<p>THE Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) has strengthened its combat fitness training system, leveraging on advances in fitness training science.</p><p>The changes are to ensure that such training is relevant, customised and progressive, said the Ministry of Defence on Tuesday.</p>

New SAF combat training

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<p>THE next time you see a sign written in poor English, just put the correct usage on a sticky-note and paste it on the sign.</p><p>Those behind the Speak Good English Movement hope this guerilla tactic will get more people to be more conscious of the correct usage of English.</p>

Be an 'activist'

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<p>HOMEGROWN filmmaker Royston Tan has directed a short film, based on his childhood friend's father, to raise awareness of dementia.</p><p>He was commissioned by the Health Promotion Board (HPB) to make the six-minute film for its campaign to raise awareness of dementia, now in its second ear.</p>

Film on dementia awareness

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<p>WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama will call on Congress to pass new tax breaks that would allow businesses to write off 100 per cent of their new capital investments through 2011, the latest in a series of proposals the White House is rolling out in hopes of showing action on the economy ahead of the November elections. An administration official said the tax breaks would save businesses $200 billion over two years, allowing companies to have more cash on hand. The president will outline the proposal during a speech on the economy in Cleveland Wednesday.</p><p>Amid an uptick in unemployment to 9.6 percent, and polls showing that the November election could be dismal for Democrats, Obama has promised to propose new steps to stimulate the economy. In addition to the business investment tax breaks, he will also call for a $50 billion infrastructure investment and a permanent expansion of research and development tax credits for companies.</p>

Call for new tax breaks in US

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<p>NEW YORK - US STOCKS slipped on Tuesday as fresh concerns over the health of the European economy weighed on last week's optimism as traders return from a long holiday weekend. </p><p>The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 46.81 points (0.50 per cent) to 10,401.12 in opening trade, while the broader S&P 500 index shed 6.76 points (0.64 per cent) to 1,097.46 points. </p>

US stocks slip on concerns

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<p> BRUSSELS - EUROPEAN rivals are 'wasting their time' trying to claw back the 'Thatcher rebate' that returns billions of euros annually to London in place of farm payments to France and Germany, a British minister warned on Tuesday. </p><p>Asked how he intended to fight off a move by European Union budget commissioner Janusz Lewandowski to slash the rebate, finance minister George Osborne said: 'By making it very clear from the start that we are not going to give way on this at all. </p>

Europe is 'wasting time'

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<p>JAKARTA - THE new chief of Indonesia's anti-terror agency complained on Tuesday that courts were being too lenient towards convicted terrorists and called for tougher laws to fight jihadist extremists.<p>National Anti-Terror Agency (BNPT) Ansyaad Mbai said there was an 'urgent need' to amend the anti-terror laws in the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, following a series of attacks since 2000.

Mbai seeks tougher laws

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<p>MANILA - THE Philippines said on Tuesday the media has agreed to new restrictions on covering police operations - including limits on live broadcasts - after a hostage crisis in which eight Hong Kong tourists died. </p><p>Local media were accused of irresponsible reporting during the August 23 massacre, when a former Manila police officer dismissed for extortion seized a tourist bus in a desperate bid to get his job back. </p>

Media agrees to restrictions

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<p>SHANGHAI - SALES of passenger cars in China - the world's biggest auto market - rose 18 per cent in August from a year earlier as government subsidies and price cuts by dealers helped spur demand. </p><p>Passenger car sales totaled 1.02 million vehicles in August, the Shanghai-based China Passenger Car Association, a private research group, said on Tuesday. </p>

China car sales up 18% in Aug

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<p> MADRID - SPAIN'S World Cup-winning football squad won the prestigious Prince of Asturias prize for sport on Tuesday for a victory that 'made history", the jury announced. </p><p>The team delivered Spain's first ever World Cup win, overcoming the Netherlands 1-0 in the July 11 final with a goal just four minutes before the end of extra time by Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta. </p>

Spanish squad wins top prize

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<p>BRUSSELS - SWEDEN came out against calls for Europe to tax banks more heavily on Tuesday, warning from experience that companies will simply move to friendlier regimes elsewhere.

Sweden warns against bank tax

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<p>HONG KONG - BANK of China said on Tuesday it would sell a bond issue worth five billion yuan (S$998 million) in Hong Kong, as the city aims to be a test bed for internationalising China's currency.

Bank of China to issue $998m in bonds

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<p>LIVERPOOL - LIVERPOOL midfielder Dirk Kuyt faces a four-week injury lay-off after damaging a shoulder on international duty with the Netherlands, the club confirmed on Tuesday. </p><p>The 30-year-old Anfield ace suffered the injury during training ahead of Holland's Euro 2012 with Finland and returned to Liverpool's Melwood training base to undergo tests. </p>

Kuyt out with shoulder injury

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<p>BANGKOK - THAILAND'S government approved on Tuesday a proposal to build the country's first high-speed rail project jointly with China. </p><p>The plan needs approval from parliament before authorities can start talking about details with China, deputy government spokesman Supachai Jaisamut told reporters after a weekly cabinet meeting. He did not elaborate. </p>

Thai-Chinese project approved

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<p>JAKARTA - THE youngest son of late Indonesian dictator Suharto defended his 'honour' on Tuesday as he sued national carrier Garuda for an article in its in-flight magazine which called him a murderer. </p><p>Hutomo Mandala Putra, popularly known as Tommy Suharto, served only four years of a 15-year prison term for ordering the murder of a supreme court judge in 2001. </p>

Tommy Suharto sues airline

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<p> LONDON - WITH John Toshack set to soon announce he will be stepping down as Wales coach, Ryan Giggs has admitted that taking on the job would be something that would interest him. </p><p>After six years in charge, Toshack has come under pressure to resign, notably after an opening 1-0 Euro 2012 qualifier loss to Montenegro, although he will remain at the helm until a successor is found. </p>

Wales job interests Giggs

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<p>BERLIN - EUROPEAN powerhouse Germany received a blow on Tuesday as orders for its industrial goods unexpectedly dropped significantly in July, following a strong rise the month before, official data showed. </p><p>Industrial orders fell by 2.2 per cent on the month, figures from the economy ministry showed, following an upwardly revised gain of 3.6 per cent the previous month. </p>

German industrial orders fall

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<p>JAKARTA - INDONESIAN Christians expressed deep concern on Tuesday over plans by a US fringe group to burn copies of the Quran to mark the anniversary of the September 11 attacks, amid fears of violent reprisals. </p><p>Already reeling from attacks by Islamist radicals over their rights to worship, Christian leaders said the Dove World Outreach Center's planned Koran burning would only stir more religious hatred around the world. </p>

Plea for end to Quran threats

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<p>DUBAI - DUBAI Holding Commercial Operations Group said on Tuesday it secured an extension on a US$555 million (S$748 million) revolving credit facility, the second time since July.</p><p>The hospitality, media and property group, which is controlled by Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashed al-Maktoum and had posted a $6.4 billion loss last year, said the facility has been extended until November 30.</p>

Dubai Holding gets new loan extension

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<p>KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA'S Petronas has filed a draft prospectus for an initial public offering of its entire petrochemicals business, moving a step closer towards creating country's second largest IPO after Maxis. </p><p>The draft prospectus on the Securities Commission website did not state how much Petronas Chemical Group is seeking to raise but banking sources have put the value of the firm at over US$2 billion (S$2.7 billion) Petronas Chemical Group's IPO is one of two offerings to be launched by government-run Petronas in response to Prime Minister Najib Razak's call to reduce state ownership in the private sector and boost liquidity in the stock market. </p>

Petronas files draft prospectus

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