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Top 20 per cent consume 35 kg of added sugar a year. http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/scratch-win-contest-launched-get-sporeans-reduce-sugar-intake SINGAPORE — The next time you buy a drink with less sugar at a Kopitiam or pick up bubble tea with reduced sugar level at Gong Cha, you could stand a chance to win prizes such as vouchers from electronics, shopping mall and supermarket brands. The Health Promotion Board (HPB) announced today (Oct 11) that it is launching a Scratch & Win contest with the aim to reduce sugar intake among Singaporeans. The contest, in partnership with coffee shops, food courts, hawker centres and food kiosk chains, will be held across nearly 800 outlets. HPB aims to have 1,000 participating outlets on board the contest by December. Sweetened drinks have been identified as a source of empty calories, contributing 200 calories or about 10 per cent of the average daily caloric allowance, the HPB said. Individually, Singaporeans currently consume, on average, 20 kg of added sugar per person per year, with the top 20 per cent consuming approximately 35 kg of added sugar a year. A major source of sugar is sweetened drinks - 60 per cent of Singaporeans consume two or more sweetened drinks a day

I hope no one would say 'it is a matter of principle!' [laugh]

Remembered when i was small, would definitely pick up the coin as that would mean a sng bao treat. kids nowadays just walk away from it.

$808,080 HDB sale hits the roof By Benson Ang Just how much are people willing to pay for an HDB flat? Mr Freddy Choo paid $808,080 for his executive maisonette in Tampines. Worth every cent, he said. The price includes a whopping $168,080 in cash over valuation (COV). That's among the largest COVs paid since the financial crisis in 2008, said real estate agents. One of the previous reported highs was about $200,000 for an HUDC flat in Shunfu. It was sold at $1.1 million in July, 2010. Mr Choo, 46, said he was willing to pay a premium as his new home was renovated just five years ago and came fully-furnished. The real estate agent had come across the unit, on the eighth storey of Block 146, Tampines Avenue 5, in April. The 150 sq m flat is two bus stops away from the Tampines MRT station and Tampines Mall. Mr Choo said it was valued at $640,000. The median resale price of executive flats in Tampines was $640,000 as of the second quarter of 2012, according to HDB's website. The father of two said the final amount - $808,080 - was also an auspicious number. It is the highest price paid for an executive HDB flat in Tampines in the past year, according to HDB's website which shows transacted prices. Mr Choo is married to another real estate agent, and they have a daughter, nine, and a son, 13. Mr Choo said his family had previously owned a condominium penthouse in Geylang, which he sold for $1.4 million. To pay for his new place, Mr Choo has taken out a 24-year loan of $560,000, saying: "You can always earn more money. "But it's not easy to find a suitable flat which you can call home." "I searched for a month and looked at six units before I decided on this one." The block is about 600m away from St Hilda's Secondary which Mr Choo's son attends. His daughter, Schermaine, attends the nearby St Hilda's Primary School. She said: "I can walk to school in 10 minutes. There's also a park, shopping mall and playground nearby for me." Mr Choo's family was also drawn by the extensive renovation to the unit. He said the previous owner had spent $200,000 and had fittings such as a water feature in the living room, and glass banisters. And Mr Choo claimed the owners left behind furniture worth $100,000.Some of the furniture they included a custom-made bed, Japanese-style tabletop and a Swarovski crystal chandelier worth $3,000. They also left electrical appliances like a flat-screen TV, fridge and speakers. Said Mr Choo: "They were also a Singaporean family who upgraded to a condominium. They initially wanted a COV of $240,000, but I managed to bargain down." The previous owners could not be contacted as Mr Choo said he does not have their telephone number. The transaction was approved in May and Mr Choo's family moved in two weeks ago. He said: "All my friends who have seen my place say it is worth the amount I paid." Good buy? Mr Albert Lu, key executive officer of property firm C&H Properties, told TNP: "On the surface, the figure definitely looks like a lot. "But if what Mr Choo says about the renovation and furnishings is true, it is actually a good buy." Most flat owners, he said, spend under $100,000 on renovations. "For someone to spend $200,000, the renovations would have been very 'high-class'." Mr Mohamed Ismail, chief executive officer of PropNex, agreed. He said: "In this case, the transaction seems value-for-money, considering the value of the renovation and furnishing the previous owner left behind." COVs have exceeded $160,000 before, said Mr Ismail. For example, he encountered two such flats - one in Yishun and another in Jurong East - in 1996. Indeed, it was previously reported that resale prices had hit a high in 1996, with the median COV going as high as $42,000 in the third quarter of 1996. Since the economy recovered after the 2008 financial crisis, it is possible for some COVs to have returned to such "spikes", Mr Ismail added. Mr Chris Koh, director of property firm Chris International, said Mr Choo's case is the largest COV transaction he has come across since 2008. It was previously reported that in 2007, some home-owners were asking for COV sums of more than $150,000 in certain mature estates. "But if the flat was well-renovated and well-furnished, as claimed by Mr Choo, I can understand why he agreed to pay such a large amount of COV." Half of all flats sold are renovated, he estimated, but only about 20 per cent have good furniture for buyers to use, he said. "Most owners tend to bring their furniture along with them when they move out." Only about 5 per cent of all flats can command such high COVs, he added. All three did not think this case was reflective of housing prices in general. Mr Koh said: "This is a resale flat, which is more expensive than a Build-to-Order (BTO) one. "The BTO flats are still affordable, and there are many schemes to help young couples get these flats quickly." For example, a four-room flat in Tampines Alcoves and Tampines Green Terrace - BTO projects launched earlier this year - was reported to cost $292,000. Mr Ismail warned that the transactions like Mr Choo's are "one-off" and are not reflective of general prices. He said: "It would not make sense to pay such large COVs for flats which do not have comparable furnishings and renovations." COVs have fallen to an average of $25,000 island-wide, he noted, so buyers should exercise caution before paying large amounts over valuation. "They should also remember that if the property market corrects itself, like during an economic downturn, whatever COV you pay will mean nothing."

ASIAONE / BUSINESS / NEWS / STORY Monday, Jul 23, 2012 my paper Real wages may drop 2.7 per cent this year Ms Chan Shu Jun has her eye on a new camera, but her rising monthly expenditure is making her think twice about buying it. The 25-year-old analyst in the financial sector estimates that she spends about half of her monthly income - in the region of $4,000 - on food, shopping and entertainment. Although her wages have increased by about 7 per cent in recent years, Ms Chan is still concerned by inflation and the spectre of shrinking incomes here. She said: "I'm exploring investment opportunities to offset inflation. There's no point saving money in banks as the interest rates they offer cannot keep up with inflation." Her concerns are shared by many, with real incomes likely to fall by 2.7 per cent this year, according to a survey by the Singapore Human Resources Institute (SHRI) and wage consultancy Remuneration Data Specialists. This is despite an expected increase of 1.5 per cent in nominal wages. The survey - which was conducted last month and covered 167 companies across key sectors, like services and construction - shows that further wage stagnation is expected next year. Although nominal wages are expected to increase by 3.1 per cent next year, that will be offset by an expected 3 per cent inflation rate. The former chief economist for the Government of Singapore Investment Corp, Mr Yeoh Lam Keong said that Singapore faces both "wage stagnation" and "inflationary problems". "Wage stagnation appears to be a general trend globally but, in Singapore, this is exacerbated by the massive influx of low-wage workers, which depresses nominal wages," he said. SHRI executive director David Ang said he is especially concerned with the ability of low-wage workers to manage their daily expenses on transport and food. Any increases would eat into their disposable incomes, he explained. Mr Yeoh said that these expenses make up a big proportion of low-wage workers' "consumption baskets", thus an income drop will hurt their pockets. He suggests that the Government raise the Workfare Income Supplement Scheme payout significantly by "about two to three times, and allocate a bigger share of the payout in cash rather than in the form of CPF". This will help push low-wage workers past the poverty line, rather than "wait for productivity levels to increase to push real wages up". He said: "That would take too long." The survey also found that about eight in 10 companies are expected to hire new staff this year. This is projected to drop to fewer than six in 10 firms next year. Mr Yeoh believes that the sluggish United States economy, euro-zone crisis and China's faltering growth may dampen business sentiments here. "This could then cause a lack of business confidence to hire," he said. For more my paper stories click here. she spent 4K on food etc and that is half of her income and she worry how about those earning MUCH less than her.. sometime i wonder how the press work ... they either feature the extreme high or extreme low income group ... not realistic at all

err.... how much would the postage, envelop and printer ink cost? [laugh]

From Malaysia Today: The price of RON97 petrol will increase by 10 sen to RM2.90 per litre effective midnight Tuesday night. Petrol Dealers Association of Malaysia president Datuk Hashim Othman confirmed this when contacted tonight. He said the price for diesel remain unchanged at RM1.80 per litre. Last week, the government had announced that the price of RON95 petrol would remain at RM1.90 per litre despite the hike in global oil prices recently. Regards,

Nov 5, 2007 Motor traders being pressed to pay up CPF on commissions By Christopher Tan THE Central Provident Fund Board has widened its efforts to get motor firms to pay up CPF contributions on commissions earned by their salesmen. The board told The Straits Times that it has written to about 40 major motor distributors - or just about the entire new car industry - to ask them to check their past records to see if they have missed out on paying contributions on third-party commissions. The move follows a probe into two car agents started in August after the board received complaints from salesmen on the matter. The complaints pertained to commissions that salesmen earn on car loans. Most dealerships sell cars packaged with a loan from a bank or finance house, with the salesmen earning a 1 per cent to 3 per cent cut of the loan amount. Many car companies leave it off the books and allow the salesmen to be paid directly by the finance institutions. As such, they do not pay CPF for these commissions. But it is no longer just car loan commissions that are being scrutinised. The CPF Board's audit covers commissions earned from other third-party services such as used car trade-ins, rust proofing, insurance and so on. The board met the Motor Traders Association (MTA) early last week to explain the matter. CPF Board spokesman Hazel Tan said: 'They understand the issue and are working with us to communicate with their members.' MTA members met last Friday over the matter, which has caused a flurry in the market. One member said: 'CPF's interpretation is too broad. Let us take the example of insurance. In the first year, there is no problem, but if the customer changes insurer the next year, how do we track?' He said the MTA will seek another meeting with the CPF to nail down the definition. 'Moving forward, it is not a problem to comply with CPF's stand, but to make backdated payments is not so easy,' he said. 'The financial implication is huge.' Banks and finance houses have given at least $35 billion worth of car loans since 1999, so the car industry may have to cough up more than $100 million in CPF dues, including penalties. And that is just for car loan commissions. While motor traders said the issue of back payments is still a big unknown, it is clear the industry will have to change the way it conducts business. Mr Glenn Tan, chief executive of Subaru agent MotorImage, said the company did not pay CPF on finance commissions in the past, but will do so now. Mr Cheah Kim Teck, chief executive of multi-brand agent Jardine Cycle & Carriage's motor operations, said: 'We might have to ask all the finance companies to pay commissions through us.' Like other motor traders, both CEOs said they are still looking at past records to see if they are liable for any back payments. The CPF Board's Ms Tan said motor traders are not disputing the need to pay CPF on third-party commissions, and some had already started 'self-rectification'. 'Employers have been given up to middle of this month to complete the self-rectification,' she said. Singapore Manual and Mercantile Workers' Union assistant secretary-general Wong Chip Mun said he is 'happy that the CPF Board is looking at this issue'. The Straits Times learnt the CPF Board is auditing other industries on this matter as well. Other businesses with similar practices include the real estate and the financial services sectors.

stop reading this, everyone get back to work now -_-

A SINGAPOREAN beauty is asking her compatriots for a 10-cent donation each - and hopes to become a millionaire within a year, reported Sin Chew Daily. The 21-year-old woman known as Holly made her intention known through a self-recorded video clip posted on YouTube last week. In the clip, Holly said she was unemployed and did not wish to work either. She hoped Singaporeans would help realise her dream of becoming a millionaire by the time she turns 22. Holly even read out her bank account number in the clip. She, however, did not reveal how she will repay her donors' "kindness". Her action was widely condemned by online users. Some censured her for trying to "reap the fruits without sowing the seeds", while others suggested that she undergo a psychiatric check-up.

TOWN gas tariff for households will go up by 2.2 per cent from Feb 1 due to higher cost of gas production. The new rate will raise tariff to 18.92 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh), adding about 36 cents more to the average monthly town gas bill for households, said City Gas Pte Ltd, the supplier, on Thursday. In a statement, City Gas said: 'Gas tariffs are reviewed quarterly and adjusted in line with changes in the cost of feedstock for gas production, which in turn is pegged to the price of high sulphur fuel oil. 'The tariff increase in the coming quarter is due to higher HSFO prices over the last three months.' The increase in gas tariffs has been approved by the industry regulator, the Energy Market Authority.

I see lots of car cleaning and whatever products there. Are they any good? I think I saw some soft99 products. Everything is a dollar and under. http://www.99only.com/