Today's News

Rumbles in outer space
IT TOOK almost two weeks for China to admit that it fired a missile which destroyed an orbiting satellite. And when the admission finally came, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao did his best to minimise its importance.Beijing, he promised, had... [Read more]

Please advise women how to deal with MRT perverts
ON JAN 20 at about 7.55pm, my wife took a train from Bugis MRT station heading towards Jurong East MRT interchange.A middle-aged man boarded the crowded train in one of the stations along the way and stood in front of her.The... [Read more]

TV times
GOLF: FBR Open: Day 1 (Live, Ch22, tomorrow, 4am).HANDBALL: Men's World C'ship: S-finals (Live, Ch22, tomorrow, 2.30am).EventHOCKEY: SHF League, U-18 Girls: dMaster-ACJC v STC (6pm). Boys: Khalsa A v dMaster-ACJC (7.30pm) - Delta Stadium.... [Read more]

House of China
PHOTO: XIANHUA This French-style building in Tianjin, northern China, is literally a china house. Owner Zhang Lianzhi has decorated the exterior with more than two million pieces of Chinese porcelain. The once-abandoned house was bought by Mr Zhang, an avid collector... [Read more]

Taiwan pair beaten in final
MELBOURNE - THE Cinderella run of Taiwan's Chan Yung-jan and Chuang Chia-jung came to an end yesterday. They were beaten in the women's doubles final at Australian Open by Cara Black and Liezel Huber. The experience of Zimbabwean Black and South... [Read more]

Fate of sand importers hangs in the balance
BARGES carrying thousands of tonnes of sand are unloaded every day at landing terminals in Pasir Ris and Tuas. But in just over a week, this could grind to a halt as Indonesia's ban on land sand exports kicks in after... [Read more]

Just 8% of SMEs took govt loan? That's good sign
ONLY 8 per cent of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) last year took a loan under a government scheme to help them.But Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang saw this as a positive sign. 'It's good that our SMEs are... [Read more]

Sports World
JOCKEY MURPHY DIES AFTER FALLWELLINGTON: Irish jockey Damien Murphy died yesterday from injuries suffered in a race fall.The 23-year-old never regained consciousness after crashing to the turf when his mount, Ajay's Luck, clipped the heels of another runner nearing the finish... [Read more]

Oil prices hover at US$50 on sharp hike in US supplies
OIL prices stayed weak at just above US$50 a barrel yesterday, after plunging below that level a day earlier to a 20-month low due to a sharp increase in US supplies.United States crude fell eight US cents to US$50.40 a barrel... [Read more]

Phisher faces 100 years' jail
A MAN in Los Angeles faces a sentence of up to 101 years in prison after being the first person in the United States convicted under a federal anti-spam law.Jeffrey Brett Goodin, 45, was found guilty on Friday of running a... [Read more]

Thailand's ITV agrees to fork out $94m in fines
BANGKOK - THAILAND'S ITV said yesterday it had agreed to pay 2.21 billion baht (S$94.1 million) of the nearly 100 billion baht fine the government has imposed for breach of contract.The broadcaster, owned indirectly by Singapore investment company Temasek Holdings, said... [Read more]