Almost half of Singapore residents say they'll never achieve financial freedom: Singapore live news
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Of the 3,000 respondents in a poll, 44 per cent of them believe they'll never achieve financial freedom. (PHOTO: Getty Images)
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Hello to all our readers, Yahoo Singapore will be bringing you live news updates today.
Of the 3,000 respondents in a poll, 44 per cent of them believe they'll never achieve financial freedom. The poll was conducted by Singlife, and the respondents comprised of Singaporeans and permanent residents. For a fuller breakdown of the financial freedom poll, read here.
The number of petrol stations in Singapore have fallen over the last two decades following a greater adoption of electric vehicles. The remaining petrol stations have diversified their offerings and now sell a wider range of items – from sushi to bubble tea. For more on the 'disappearing' petrol stations, read here.
Securing a home loan in Singapore as a freelancer is a little tricker as the process seems to favour salaried employees. But, with freelancing on the rise, perhaps it's time to pay a little more attention. There are five factors to consider and you can read here for a detailed guide.
Qantas's sale of discounted first-class tickets, due to a coding mistake, has left many passengers with unexpected business-class bookings or refunds. More on the Australian airline's first-class ticket disaster here.
Singapore is launching a four-year study on how Asian skin ages. The study will cost $14 million and aims to develop preventive measures and treatments tailored for Asian skin.
Oasis is reuniting for a tour in UK and Ireland. It's been 15 years since they split but the feud between brothers Liam and Noah seems to have eased up. For more details on the reunion tour, read here.
Rescuers have stepped up efforts to locate the woman who disappeared down a sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur. They're now using a ground-penetrating radar, the same device used during a landslide incident in Batang Kali in December 2022. For more on the rescue efforts, read here.
Singapore's prime minister, Lawrence Wong, visited army recruits at the Basic Training Military Centre on Thursday (27 Aug) morning. He said it has been "some time since my last visit" and he wanted to get an update on the training. Wong also joined them for a run.
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Bryan Lim
Singapore commits nearly $14 million for Asian skin ageing study
Singapore is launching a four-year study on how Asian skin ages. The study will cost $14 million and aims to develop preventive measures and treatments tailored for Asian skin. (PHOTO: Getty Images)
Asians don't 'raisin' – you might have heard of that saying before.
It's an open secret that Asians generally look youthful even as they age. However, the real secret lies in why, and even that might not be a secret for long.
Singapore is launching a four-year study on how Asian skin ages, and addressing age-related issues like skin thinning and persistent itching. It'll cost $14 million.
The study is led by professor Rachel Watson, an executive director at the Skin Research Institute of Singapore, and aims to develop preventive measures and treatments tailored for Asian skin.
Almost half of Singapore residents believe they won't achieve financial freedom
44 per cent of Singapore residents say they won't achieve financial freedom. (PHOTO: Getty Images)
A poll by Singlife revealed that 44 per cent of people in Singapore believe they won't achieve financial freedom.
The top three reasons cited were – insufficient income, unforeseen personal of health circumstances, and job insecurity.
The poll is a part of Singlife’s second financial freedom index and had 3,000 respondents comprising Singaporeans and permanent residents aged 18 to 65. The survey was conducted from April to June 2024.
This year's respondents scored 58 out of 100 on the index, a slight dip from 60 in 2023.
Inflation, insufficient retirement savings, and medical expenses are the top sources of financial stress among respondents.
Additionally, more than 44 per cent of respondents also believe that having children will hinder their path to financial freedom. They estimated that it'll delay their progress by 15 years.
This belief is more prevalent among three groups – those aged 55 to 64, people whose youngest child is above 16, and those with a high monthly household income.
Our Prime Minister going for a run? Well, that's normal.
Our Prime Minister going for a run with army recruits? That's quite ingenious, according to one netizen who exclaimed, "Who would have thought of that?"
In an Instagram on Thursday (27 Aug), Singapore's prime minister Lawrence Wong shared that he visited the Basic Military Training Centre (BMTC) on Pulau Tekong that same morning. He was accompanied by Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen and Senior Minister of State Zaqy Mohamad.
Wong wrote, "It has been some time since my last visit. I wanted to get an update on BMT/NS training, and to engage our soldiers firsthand."
In the photos that Wong shared, he can be seen running with the army recruits and participating in other activities with them.
KL sinkhole: Rescuers turn to soil-penetrating radar to locate woman
Rescuers have stepped up efforts to locate the woman who disappeared down a sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur. (PHOTO: Malay Mail)
Rescuers have stepped up efforts to locate the woman who disappeared down a sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur.
They're now using a ground-penetrating radar which emits electromagnetic waves into the ground through a transmitter and detects the reflected waves using a receiver sensor.
The same device was used during a landslide incident in Batang Kali in December 2022.
It's been four days since the woman, an Indian tourist, fell into the sinkhole. There have been no signs of her except for a pair of slippers.
A Singapore waste management company has also volunteered to aid rescue efforts.
Oasis is reuniting for a tour in UK and Ireland. It's been 15 years since they split but the feud between brothers Liam and Noah seems to have eased up. (PHOTO: by Leon Neal/Getty Images)
They've taken shots at each other and had physical clashes, but after 15 years, Oasis is reuniting.
The feud between the brothers, Liam and Noel Gallagher, seems to have eased up. The band also said as much when announcing their reunion tour.
"The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised," they shared.
Oasis has announced a run of 14 shows in UK and Ireland next year and you can find more details here.
Qantas mistakenly sold first-class tickets at 85% off due to a coding error, leading to 300 bookings. The airline will rebook these passengers in business class or offer refunds. (Photo: Getty Images)
Qantas recently experienced a major mishap when a coding error on its website led to the sale of first-class tickets at a steep discount.
On a single day, approximately 300 passengers booked return flights between Australia and the US at up to 85 per cent off the usual fare, which typically costs over $18,000 (AU$20,000).
The discounted prices were available for only about eight hours before the error was corrected.
Qantas has announced that it will not honour these discounted first-class tickets but will instead rebook affected passengers in business class at no additional charge.
Alternatively, passengers can opt for a full refund.
Despite this adjustment, business class tickets will still be around 65 per cent cheaper than usual.
Qantas' action follows its terms and conditions, which allow it to cancel bookings with "reasonably obvious" pricing errors.
The airline has stated that this situation falls under such a category, thus leading to the decision to offer business class seats instead of first class.
This is not the first time airlines were left red-faced with mispriced tickets.
Similar incidents occurred with other airlines such as Cathay Pacific, which in 2019 honoured significantly discounted business-class tickets, and British Airways, which in 2018 canceled tickets sold for £1 due to a glitch.
The Qantas blunder comes amid recent scrutiny for the airline, which faced a substantial fine earlier this year for selling tickets for flights that had already been canceled.
Securing a home loan as a freelancer is a little tricker as the process seems to favour salaried employees. (PHOTO: Getty Images)
If you intend to freelance for the foreseeable future, getting an HDB flat and sourcing for a loan might be a bit trickier.
After all, the process does seem to favour salaried employees.
There are five factors to account for when you're looking at a home loan – income, total debt servicing ratio (TDSR), credit score check, CPF OA contributions, and paperwork and tax returns.
For a detailed guide to securing a home loan, read here.
Bryan Lim
Singapore's petrol stations dwindle amid EV surge
The number of petrol stations in Singapore have fallen over the last two decades. (PHOTO: Getty Images)
Following the global adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), the number of petrol stations in Singapore has dwindled.
The number of petrol stations stands at 184, a drop from the peak of 222 stations in 2003.
The remaining petrol stations have diversified their offerings and now sell a wider range of items – from sushi to bubble tea. They have also started providing charging points for EVs.
Despite the drop over the last two decades, the Urban Redevelopment Authority said that the number of stations has remained "largely stable" in recent years.
The wife of a California inmate will receive $5.6 million after being sexually violated during a strip search when she tried to visit her husband in prison, her attorneys said Monday.
A man from Mississauga visiting Quebec for the weekend is speaking out over a disturbing interaction he had with Laval police. He alleges he was assaulted by officers and that he thought he was going to die. A warning that some images and video in this story can be disturbing to some. Global's Felicia Parrillo reports.
Advocates and state lawmakers say that Rachel Pickrel-Hawkins’ fight to keep her children away from their allegedly abusive father highlights a bigger issue within family courts.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The attorney for a 17-year-old high school senior charged in the daytime shooting of San Francisco 49ers rookie receiver Ricky Pearsall said Tuesday that new video evidence supports his theory that the teenager should not be charged with attempted murder.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The governor of Ohio will send law enforcement and millions of dollars in healthcare resources to the city of Springfield as it faces a surge in temporary Haitian migrants that has landed it in the national spotlight.
SASKATOON, Sask. — The family of a 15-year-old girl who was lit on fire at a Saskatoon high school has asked people to wear purple Tuesday when classes resume.
Three men in South Africa are accused of killing two women and feeding their bodies to pigs on their farm in a case that has outraged the public. The men appeared in court Tuesday in the northern province of Limpopo. It is alleged that in August, a truck belong to a dairy company dumped potentially expired goods at Olivier's farm, prompting the women, Locadia Ndlovu and Maria Makgatho, to trespass and try to collect the products.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysian authorities on Wednesday rescued 402 children and arrested 171 suspects after raiding 20 welfare homes linked to an Islamic business group, in which children were exploited and sexually abused, the national police chief said.
