US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he planned to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un later this year, despite Pyongyang denying that the two leaders were in direct communication.
“Yeah, I will be,” Trump told reporters when asked whether he expected to meet Kim before the end of 2026.
Trump, speaking during a tour of a new helipad under construction at the White House, provided no details about where or when a meeting might take place.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that…
Singapore plans tax, visa incentives to boost fund industry
Singapore will introduce tax exemptions on profits earned by fund managers and make it easier for investment professionals to obtain visas as it seeks to head off growing competition in the asset management sector, the central bank has said.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the finance ministry plan to exempt from tax investment profits earned by fund managers from managing certain funds, including those of single family offices. More details will be announced in the 2027…
Three procurement models will shape infrastructure delivery in Hong Kong into the 2030s
As Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) moves into a new phase of infrastructure delivery three sophisticated project structures are shaping deal.
Expect risk-spreading by investors in the global energy transition
A turbulent geopolitical environment, which has impacted global supply chains, is likely to encourage greater diversification in energy transition investment portfolios – both in terms of the geographic markets investors target and the types of technologies they back.
Russia’s Putin hosts Myanmar leader, talks up energy projects
Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks in Moscow on Tuesday with Myanmar’s junta chief-turned-president, Min Aung Hlaing, discussing a wide range of issues including prospective energy deals.
Russia is the first non-neighbouring country Min Aung Hlaing has visited since becoming Myanmar’s president in April, a sign of the two countries’ deepening ties in the face of pressure from the West.
In remarks after the meeting, Putin described Min Aung Hlaing as a friend of Russia and said the…
Philippines’ Marcos slammed over US$3b family estate tax, says ‘very busy’ with government
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr has put his anti-corruption drive at the centre of his presidency, but questions over his late father’s estate taxes and the family’s past ill-gotten wealth have prompted critics to question his commitment.
Last month, Marcos pledged in his address to Congress to continue fighting alleged irregularities in flood-control projects, stressing that the campaign would be a test of whether his administration could hold even powerful allies to account.
The…
Why governance and fraud prevention are now strategic priorities in sport
For sports organisations, governance has often been viewed as a boardroom issue, sitting behind more immediate priorities such as sporting performance, commercial growth and regulatory compliance. That is changing.
Why the Arctic sea route has become so important for China and Russia
Since Chinese container ships began plying the Northern Sea Route three years ago, the Arctic shipping lane has gained global importance.
Houthi attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea later that year disrupted traffic through the Suez Canal – the fastest route between Europe and Asia – in what was the most serious conflict-driven disruption since the Arab-Israeli war nearly six decades earlier.
The 5,600km (3,480-mile) Northern Sea Route spans Russia’s Arctic coast, from the Barents Sea to…
Malaysia to scrap 55-year-old university law, but will campus reform follow?
Malaysia may finally scrap the university law that generations of students have blamed for stifling campus dissent, but activists and academics say the harder fight will be over what comes next.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has promised to abolish the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971, better known by its Malay acronym AUKU, a law that has long sat at the centre of arguments over how much freedom Malaysian students should have to protest, organise and challenge university…
Lee Kuan Yew’s Montblanc pen sells for US$360,000 in Singapore auction
A silver Montblanc fountain pen owned by Singapore’s first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew has sold for S$461,500 (US$360,000), nearly 10 times its highest estimate, after drawing 111 bids at an auction.
Singapore auction house Hotlotz said the sterling silver Montblanc Meisterstuck No 146 fountain pen, engraved with “SM Lee Kuan Yew”, sold on Sunday at its “Interiors & Collectibles – August, Fine Art Focus” online auction.
The pen had a presale valuation of S$30,000 to S$50,000, with bidding…