Singapore: Landlords Refuse to Rent to Chinese and Indians over Cultural Differences

Several landlords in Singapore refuse to rent homes to Chinese and Indians.Reuters

Several landlords in Singapore refuse to rent homes to mainland Chinese and Indians and the so-called rental discrimination has reportedly become a rising menace in the small but wealthy city-state.

The issue appears more common with less expensive properties and on property rental sites where content is posted directly by users, the Online Citizen reported.

Singapore is an ethnically diverse nation, comprising of 74% Chinese, 13% Malay, 9% Indian and 3% from other groups, according to official data.

Nine out of 10 Singaporean households own their homes, according to government data. As such, a sizeable chunk of renters are foreigners.

The president of the Universal Society of Hinduism (USH), Rajan Zed, has called on Singapore's President Tony Tan and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to put an end to the prejudice.

Cultural Differences

Charlene, an estate agent, said it was common for landlords to not rent houses to tenants from China or India because such tenants "are not people who are house proud", reported IANS.

An Indian expatriate said his agent told him that many landlords would refuse to rent flats to him because "Indians always cook smelly curries", the BBC reported.

"Many don't clean weekly, and they do heavy cooking, so dust and oil collect over the months. They may use a lot of spices that release smells people don't like," Charlene told the news agency.

World's Most Expensive City

Singapore has become the most expensive city in the world to live in following a rise in house prices after an influx of foreign workers boosted the island's wealth and demand for homes.

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit's Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, strengthening of the Singaporean dollar also pushed the country to pole position as the expansion of the republic's financial industry contributed to the country's wealth.

Singapore, whose per capita GDP exceeds that of the US and Germany, surged in the survey by rising by five positions, beating Paris, Oslo, Zurich, Sydney, and Tokyo.

Crude Oil Ends Lower Amid Robust US Stockpiles and Improving Libya Supplies

Rebels under Libyan rebel leader Ibrahim Jathran guarding the Zueitina oil field, south of Ras Lanuf, Libya, in March, 2014.Reuters

Crude oil prices logged gains on 2 May, but finished slightly lower for the week, amid the prospect of higher demand in the US, the leading oil consumer, and news of escalating violence in Ukraine.

The US June contract finished 34 cents, or 0.3%, higher at $99.76 a barrel on 2 May.

Prices were down 0.8% for the week as a whole, pulled down largely because of robust US crude stockpiles.

The Brent June contract finished 83 cents, or 0.8%, higher at $108.59 a barrel on 2 May.

The European benchmark finished 0.9% lower for the week amid news that Libya's Zueitina oil port will resume exports, following a near 10-month closure due to protests.

"Higher jobs growth [in the US] could indeed mean more demand for oil, but it could also mean a steady tapering [of the Federal Reserve's bond-buying program] and higher rates sooner," Jason Rotman, president of Lido Isle Advisors told Marketwatch.

Commerzbank Corporates & Markets said in a 2 May note to clients: "Brent has climbed this morning to $108.5 per barrel, WTI to $100 per barrel. The escalating conflict in east Ukraine is allowing oil prices to recover after finding themselves under pressure until [1 May]. The Ukrainian leadership has launched a military offensive against the pro-Russian separatist stronghold in the east Ukrainian city of Slovyansk where western military observers have been held hostage for a week.

"US crude oil stocks climbed last week by 1.7 million barrels to a new record level of just shy of 400 million barrels. Although crude oil stocks at Cushing declined further, this was countered by a sharp increase in crude oil stocks on the US Gulf Coast. What is more, US gasoline stocks climbed unexpectedly, putting US gasoline prices under serious pressure and also weighing temporarily on oil prices. The fact that loading has been resumed at an oil terminal in Libya also had a short-term negative impact on prices."

"The OPEC production surveys in April produced contradictory results. According to Reuters, OPEC production [in April] grew by 16,000 to 29.68 million barrels per day, though it fell by 302,000 to 29.86 million barrels per day according to Bloomberg. The findings differed particularly as regards oil production in Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The two surveys at least agreed largely on the production level, which in April was somewhat higher in each case than the IEA and OPEC had indicated in their last monthly reports for March," the German firm added.

Gold Prices Set to Drop Following Upbeat US Labour Market Data

Gold prices set to drop next week.Reuters

Gold prices are set to drop next week with upbeat US labour market data expected to weigh on the precious metal.

As many as 11 of 19 analysts polled in a Kitco Gold Survey said they expected gold prices to drop next week, while four predicted that prices would rise and three forecast prices to remain unchanged.

Analysts will continue tracking developments in Ukraine next week, as geopolitical tensions tend to boost gold's safe-haven status.

In addition, they will be watching to see how positive US employment figures influence the US Federal Reserve's policy decisions.

Meanwhile, the London bullion market will be shut on 5 May for the May bank holiday.

Sean Lusk, director of commercial hedging with Walsh Trading, said: "... [The rise in US nonfarm payrolls is] going to put some downward pressure on the metals. I think the only thing keeping it up here is this Ukraine news – there have been some skirmishes in the country and the market has its eye on that."

"Going into the long weekend with London out on [5 May], there was short-covering and good physical buying after a knee-jerk selloff earlier after the job data," Thomas Capalbo, precious metals trader at brokerage Newedge told Reuters.

Commerzbank Corporates & Markets said in a note to clients: "During the course of the week so far, gold has shed around 1.5% to reach a good $1,280 per troy ounce. In other words, the gold price is failing to profit from the fall in US real interest rates over the past days.

"The US economy stagnated in the first quarter, but this was due to the unusually harsh winter, and a significant acceleration of growth is expected in the current quarter. In view of this, the US Federal Reserve is scaling back its bond purchases - as anticipated - by a further $10 billion per month."

"Consequently, precious metals are losing their attractiveness as a safe haven despite the Ukraine crisis,which is also reflected in outflows from the gold ETFs," the German firm added.

Gold Ends Higher

Gold prices ended higher on 2 May and logged marginal gains during the trading week, on news of clashes in the largely Russian-speaking Ukrainian port city of Odessa.

US gold futures for delivery in June finished 1.5% higher at $1,302.90 an ounce on 2 May.

Prices inched up 30 cents for the week.

Spot gold rose 1.4% to $1,301 an ounce.

India Demand

Gold demand in the world's second-largest bullion consumer jumped some 10% to 20% on 2 May on account of the Akshaya Tritiya festival, when gold buying turns auspicious.

The price for 10 grams of gold hovered between 29,800 rupees (£294, €357, $495) and 30,000 rupees during the day, and closed slightly higher at 30,100 rupees.

Friday's prices were some 8% higher than a year ago.

Uruguay Rolls Out Marijuana Legalisation Process

A marijuana cultivator inspects a flowering plant in Montevido, Uruguay (Reuters)

Authorities in Uruguay have revealed how the drug will be produced and retailed legally.

Licensed pharmacies will sell the drug for less than $1 a gram (59p), with consumers allowed 40g a month.

The bill states that each household will be permitted to grow up to six cannabis plants, and that marijuana can be consumed in public places, like tobacco.

"Towards the end of November, early December, the sale of marijuana will already be available in the country through pharmacies," said government official Diego Canepa.

The bill is expected to come into force early next week.

Last year, Uruguay became the first country in the world to legalise the production, sale and consumption of the drug.

Uruguayan president Jose Mujica, who proposed the bill, argued that the global war on drugs is failing, and the legislation would allow authorities wrestle control of the business from drugs cartels and organised crime.

At the press conference, Canepa said that the government would launch the licensing process for companies interested in growing the drug within the next 15 days.

The government estimates that demand in Uruguay would require about 10 hectares of the plant to be cultivated.

The drug cannot be used in the workplace, and those caught driving whilst under its influence will face the same penalties as those caught drink driving.

In a recent report the UN criticised drugs legalisation policies, saying that they posed a health risk.

116-Year-Old Extremely Poor Peruvian Claims to be World's Oldest Person

Misao Okawa, a Japanese woman, currently holds the record for world's oldest living person. A 116-year-old Peruvian named Filomena Taipe Mendoza claims to be three months older, thus making her the oldest person in the world.Reuters

A 116-year-old woman living in extreme poverty in Peru is claiming to be the oldest living person in the world.

Filomena Taipe Mendoza was born on 20 December, 1897, at least that is the date on her identity card, according to Peru's Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion.

The date of birth suggests that Mendoza is three months older than Japan's Misao Okawa, who currently holds the title of the world's oldest living person.

The Guinness World Records and the US-based Gerontology Research Group named Okawa, born on 5 March 1898, the world's oldest person after the death of 116-year-old Jiroemon Kimura, also a Japanese, on 12 June, 2013

Mendoza lives in extremely poor conditions in a village in Huancavelica in the heart of the Andes. She recently got her first pension under a retirement programme for seniors living in extreme poverty.

"I am not of the past century, young man, but the other one... I am very old," she was quoted as saying by the ministry, the AFP reported.

She revealed secrets of her long life and how she faced hardships.

"My secret to longevity is a natural diet: I always ate potatoes, goat meat, sheep milk, goat cheese and beans," said Mendoza, who has never stepped out of her village.

"Everything I cook comes from my garden. I never had canned soft drinks.

"I had a very hard life, I was very a young widow with nine dependent children and I worked hard to raise them. Only three of them are alive."

The pension programme will ensure that Mendoza now gets free medical care and receive about $90 (£53) every month.

But Mendoza also has another desire - "I wish I still had teeth," she says.

MERS Virus Spreads to US Via UK Flight

Health authorities in the UK are searching for the fellow passengers of a man infected with Mers who flew to Heathrow on a flight from Saudi Arabia.

Health authorities in the UK has contacted passengers who flew to Heathrow on the same plane as a man confirmed as the first US case of the deadly MERS virus.

The man is currently hospitalized and in a stable condition in northwest Indiana with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the US.

Public Health England said the man flew on British Airways flight 262 from Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia, and transferred at Heathrow to an onward flight to the US before being taken ill.

"The risk of the infection being passed to other passengers on Flight 262 is extremely low," the body said. "However, as a precautionary measure, Public Health England has contacted UK passengers who were sitting in the vicinity of the affected passenger to provide health information."

Officials did not provide any information on the man's position in Saudi Arabia, or if he had been treating MERS patients there.

The disease first emerged around two years ago, and since then 400 people have had the respiratory illness, and more than 100 have died.

MERS causes a fever and a cough, but the symptoms vary dramatically, and whilst deadly for some, others have had only minor symptoms.

Though not as infectuous as flu, measles or other illnesses, it has a high mortality rate, and there is no known vaccine or cure.

Saudi Arabia has been the centre of the outbreak, and all those infected have had ties with the Middle East or connections with people who have travelled there.

MERS is a coronavirus, similar to Sars, which caused global panic in 2003, and killed more than 700 people.

It has been identified in bats and camels, from where it may have originated, but the majority of cases are passed on from human to human.

In recent months, there has been a surge in reported cases in Saudi Arabia.

Researchers at Columbia University have suggested that this may be because more camels are born in spring.

Death Toll from Afghanistan Landslide 'At Least 2,000' say Officials

Survivors of the Badakshan landslide survey the devastationYouTube

The death toll from two massive landslides which engulfed a village in Argo district, Badakshan province, Afghanistan has exceeded 2,100, according to local government officials.

Around a third of the village of Aab Barik was reported to have been obliterated. Many of those who perished were women and children. A wedding was also taking place in the village, adding to the casualties.

The disaster occurred when torrential rain and melting snow caused parts of a hillside to collapse, engulfing the village beneath 300 feet of mud, soil and rocks. Desperate locals rushed to dig out survivors but were then reportedly hit by another huge landslide. Nearby villages have now been evacuated amid fears of further landslides.

Shah Waliullah Adib, the provincial governor, said: "There are around 1,000 houses in Aab Barik, 300 were buried when this happened, then 600 local people who live in the site went to help but unfortunately the hill collapsed a second time.

"The mud is 10 to 30 metres deep. We couldn't even reach the bodies, so we decided to just pray for them and make the site into a mass grave."

“The mud is 10 to 30 metres deep, we couldn't even reach the bodies, so we decided to just pray for them and make the site into a mass grave”

- Provincial governor Shah Waliullah Adib

President Karzai has ordered officials to begin emergency relief efforts to the region, which borders Tajikistan and China, immediately. However rescue attempts have been hindered by the area's remoteness and poor infrastructure.

Locals from nearby villages in Badakshan and Takhar are trying to rescue survivors but are hindered by a lack of even the most basic equipment.

Although early reports put the death toll as 350, local government official Naweed Forotan told Reuters: "More than 2,100 people from 300 families are all dead."

There are regular landslides and avalanches in the province and in 2010 170 people were killed when an avalanche buried scores of cars and buses at Salang Pass, Hindu Kush.

However, even that was dwarfed by this incident. As the scale of the disaster became apparent, US President Barack Obama sent a message of condolence to the Afghan people.

"On behalf of the American people, our thoughts are with the people of Afghanistan, who have experienced an awful tragedy."