Singapore tops business ranking in Asia: EIU
But it drops two positions in global ranking to third SINGAPORE is still the best place in Asia to do business. But it has slipped two spots in the global ranking to third, pulled down by slower trade growth and limited market size. Out of 82 countries, Denmark was rated the best place to invest … Read more
St Regis, Singapore
IF YOU’RE really, really too time-strapped to spare a three or four-hour flight out of Singapore, there’s the St Regis: for the waited-on-hand-and-foot experience. St Regis is the only hotel in Singapore to offer butler services to all guests now that it’s open. For some folks, this service takes some getting used to. For example, … Read more
Homes held back from launches in staring game
Buyers not forthcoming, so developers delay projects that are ready for market The number of homes that could be launched for sale immediately, but have been held back, has increased to 10,239 in the first quarter of 2008, an increase of 44.2 per cent over the 7,099 units in the fourth quarter of last year. … Read more
Developers hold off launches in quiet market
DEVELOPERS are so gun-shy of the quiet property market that they are continuing to hold off launching units, creating fears of a supply glut and possible price slump. The pool of unsold, uncompleted private flats that can be launched for immediate sale rose by more than 3,000 units in the first quarter of this year. … Read more
Home prices rise more slowly in quiet market
Lower-than-forecast 3.7% growth could signal start of decline THE property market may have gone quiet, but home prices continued their steady climb in the first three months of this year, albeit at a much weaker pace. Private home prices rose 3.7 per cent between January and March, down from the 6.8 per cent growth in … Read more
HDB resale transactions decline 6% in Q1
Median COV was $21,000, compared to $22,000 in Q407 TRANSACTIONS of resale HDB flats fell 6 per cent from the fourth quarter of 2007 to 6,360 in Q1 this year, against the backdrop of rising asking prices and high cash-over-valuation (COV) demands. ‘With escalating resale prices and more and more COV transactions, we saw the … Read more
Major remaking of Collyer Quay
Waterfront area around Marina Bay to be transformed over next few years TALL wooden hoardings now block off both ends of the once-bustling thoroughfare of Change Alley. The moneychangers after whom it was named are long gone. All is eerily quiet at the glass-framed bridge linking Collyer Quay and Raffles Place. However, the 32-year-old landmark … Read more
Singapore now a better place for start-ups: Entrepreneur
INVESTORS in Singapore have had a tendency to view start-ups with a very cynical eye and keep their wallets firmly closed when it comes to investing. Just ask Dr Lou Choon-Leong. It was the reluctance of local investors to put money into Dr Lou’s business venture eight years ago that led him to take his … Read more
Stepping into the future
A new $2.5 million facility featuring a futuristic gallery as well as a sensory garden offers a glimpse of the vision for Singapore’s built-up environment. The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) yesterday opened the exhibits at its Braddell Road academy. Key themes on show include a ‘green’ sustainability drive and making buildings and other facilities … Read more
Smoking to be allowed at S’pore’s casino gaming halls
CASINOS here will be one of the last holdouts for smokers who want to light up indoors, when they start operating from the end of next year. The Government has decided to leave gaming halls out of a nationwide ban on smoking in indoor public spaces, which is being rolled out in the next few … Read more
