HDB to sell Simei site under Design, Build and Sell Scheme
The Housing and Development Board (HDB) has launched the sale of a new site in Simei under its Design, Build and Sell Scheme (DBSS). Analysts said the plot of land near the Simei MRT station should attract medium-sized developers and construction companies to bid between S$49 million and S$76 million. With an area of over … Read more
Lobby group to fight higher taxes on US expats
A UNITED States tax policy is affecting American expatriates working in Singapore and elsewhere so badly that a group of American chambers in the region has headed to Washington to campaign for a change. The unhappiness among American expats and companies in Singapore stems from a 2006 tax law that has resulted in higher taxes … Read more
Court ‘made use of’: Lawyers’ intent queried
THE Court of Three Judges is deliberating over how three lawyers should be taken to task for their roles in making a court wrongly pay out $4.27million. In hearing the matter last Thursday, Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong said it was clear the court had been ‘made use of’. The question though, said the CJ, … Read more
More to apply for Home Office Scheme as approval period extends
The Home Office Scheme has been popular since it was introduced in 2003. So far, more than 20,600 authorisations have been issued, with 19,500 approved applications for HDB flats and 1,100 for private properties. With the Housing and Development Board (HDB) extending the approval period for the scheme from three years to five years, more … Read more
Bank savings earn less interest as key rate plunges
Banks trim rates on deposits as they struggle to maintain margins SAVERS are again feeling the pinch as interest rates continue to fall, further squeezing what meagre returns they might get on bank deposits. Citibank, Maybank and Standard Chartered Bank (Stanchart) have all trimmed rates for their high interest savings accounts given the fall in … Read more
US moves may be too late to tame recession
Of 8 postwar recessions, only once was stimulus package passed before recession ended If history is a guide, US government efforts to combat recessions often come too late to do much good. Furthermore, such efforts can sow the seeds for the next downturn. The news last Friday that the economy shed 80,000 jobs in March, … Read more
The fine line between confidence, complacency
THERE’S a fine line between confidence and complacency and markets are currently treading dangerously close to it – the US Federal Reserve’s actions may have calmed some nerves for now, but there is the very real likelihood that Wall Street has moved too far into a complacency zone and may not have fully appreciated the … Read more
More Japanese MNCs expect Singapore operations to be profitable
But high labour costs pushing many to mull plant relocation to nearby countries: Jetro survey In a year when fewer Japanese multinational corporations in Asia were likely to make money, more Japanese operations in Singapore were saying otherwise. The latest poll of Japanese firms in the region shows 88.3 per cent of the Japanese manufacturers … Read more
Another 60 units sold at City View
CITY View @ Boon Keng, a condo-like Housing Board project, has sold an additional 60 units under a walk-in selection process that ended yesterday. In all, almost 520 units out of 714 have been sold, a spokesman for Hoi Hup Sunway Development told The Straits Times. As for the remaining 190-odd units, the developer will … Read more
Lawyers in trouble: In the soup again over conflict of interest
Three counsel have become the first this year to be referred to the Court of Three Judges, which hears cases of serious misconduct by lawyers. Law Correspondent K.C. Vijayan reports SUSPENDED lawyer Vasantha Vardan will have to face the Court of Three Judges again on four new charges involving different clients – in circumstances similar … Read more
