Singapore’s free trade agreement with the European Union is yet to be ratified, but already the economic community is gearing up for a fresh deal with the EU’s soon-to-be former member – Britain.

Bilateral trade between Singapore and Britain might be small, but longstanding ties between the two nations will give such an agreement a level of significance when it gets to the negotiating table, experts said.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong told the BBC last Friday that Singapore would sign a trade deal with Britain after it exits the EU.

His remarks followed those made by British High Commissioner to Singapore Scott Wightman, who said last Wednesday that Britain is ready to explore deeper collaborations with Singapore in areas such as data science, smart cities and healthcare.

OCBC economist Selena Ling noted that areas of traditional collaboration, such as financial services, business and legal services and education, will likely be important areas of discussion as well.

IE Singapore data shows that total trade between Singapore and Britain amounted to about $11.5 billion last year, or 1.36 per cent of Singapore’s total international trade.

This may be a small figure, but there is still a lot about Britain that will interest the business community, and vice versa, noted CIMB economist Song Seng Wun.

He said: “There are many Singapore companies with operations and investments there, including household names such as GIC and Temasek Holdings. British companies, in turn, see Singapore as a gateway to the region.”

Still, Ms Ling noted that there is still much uncertainty before the two countries even get to the negotiating table.

“Prime Minister Theresa May has a lot on her plate. The UK Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether she can even begin the talks to leave the EU,” she noted.

Mr Song agreed, noting that talks on a free trade deal can happen only years from now, once Britain has completed its divorce from the EU. He added: “This could be more than two years down the road.”

The EU is Singapore’s third-largest trading partner.

The EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement involves the EU eliminating tariffs on all imports from Singapore.

Singapore exporters of electronics, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and processed food products stand to benefit in particular.

Separately, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic and Social Policies Tharman Shanmugaratnam is visiting Germany, Brussels and Britain.

He flew to Stuttgart, Germany, yesterday, and will return on Jan 30.

yasminey@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 24, 2017.
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Babies with eczema – the medical condition that causes patches of dry, itchy skin – are three times more likely to get tooth decay as they grow up, a local study has found.

Doctors surmised that “structural defects”, occurring when a baby is being formed in its mother’s womb, could be the biological mechanism behind both conditions.

Doctors, commenting on the study, believe this is the first time a link between these two common childhood diseases has been discovered.

The study was a collaboration between the National University of Singapore’s dentistry faculty and the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research.

It was published in the Journal Of Allergy And Clinical Immunology earlier this month.

Researchers interviewed the parents of more than 500 infants to determine whether their offspring had eczema.

The babies also underwent skin prick tests for common allergies.

They were then divided into three groups: those who tested positive and had eczema, those who were diagnosed with eczema but tested negative, and those with no eczema at all.

The children returned for check-ups at ages two and three, when doctors looked at their oral health.

Researchers found that the children who had both eczema and positive skin prick tests were three times more likely to have tooth decay.

Both conditions are fairly common here. Eczema affects around one in five children of school age, while around two in five preschool children have tooth decay.

The study, part of a broader project involving over 1,200 Singaporean families, intends to map out how genes and the environment can affect children as they grow up.

“Our latest findings will give parents and caregivers of babies with eczema early warning of increased risk of developing tooth decay in toddlers,” said Dr Stephen Hsu, an associate professor at the NUS dentistry faculty, and one of the authors of the study. “Regular dental check-ups can then be conducted to help minimise the incidence of tooth decay in these children.”

The researchers are now conducting genetic analysis to confirm the biological mechanism responsible for their findings, and also looking at the link between tooth decay and other childhood diseases.

More work needs to be done before the eczema-management guidelines are re-evaluated, said Dr Mark Koh, who heads the dermatology service at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital.

He said: “In general, parents should establish good dental hygiene habits for their children from young, to prevent tooth decay.”

linettel@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 24, 2017.
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Luxury carmakers Bentley Motors and Audi have successfully got the trademarks of other companies revoked, with their court actions shedding light on a unique feature of trademark law.

At issue in both cases is whether a registered trademark has been used commercially for a continuous period of five years after registration – failing which, it could be challenged by others and revoked in court.

The lack of continuous use was what Bentley Motors sought to prove in its bid to revoke a trademark bearing the name “Bentley”, which had been registered by Aucera, a manufacturer of eyewear and other products.

The Swiss-based company had owned the trademark under Class Nine of the Registry of Trade Marks here, for its eyewear products, including spectacles cases and frames.

The marks for various goods and services are categorised under 45 classes, with marks for optical instruments – including eyewear – registered under Class Nine.

Bentley Motors made its move after efforts to register its trademark for the same class of goods stalled in March 2014 because Aucera held the mark.

Eight months later, Bentley Motors applied to the trademarks registrar to revoke Aucera’s mark. It reapplied to register its trademark in April 2015, but failed again.

Bentley Motors’ lawyers William Ong and Amanda Soon argued that Aucera had not used the mark for five continuous years and there was no proper reason for its non-use.

But Aucera, through lawyers Gillian Tan and Mark Teng, countered that the mark had been genuinely used for goods sold in the five years preceding Bentley Motors’ 2014 application.

Aucera’s best evidence comprised an imported consignment of 228 items worth US$6,370 (S$9,050), as well as two sales on a single day to local retailers, which involved 30 out of the 228 imported items.

But principal assistant registrar Tan Mei Lin, in her decision grounds last November, said Aucera’s case fell “on the wrong side of the line” as the evidence shown was insufficient.

She found the evidence “sorely lacking in detail and specificity”, adding that it was unclear whether the goods imported into Singapore were of unspecified brands or were goods with the mark in question.

Separately, German automobile manufacturer Audi succeeded in revoking the “AOne” trademark owned by spare parts trader Lim Ching Kwang for all his products except for one in the Class 12 goods of the trademarks registry, a category which includes fittings in vehicles.

Audi filed an application in March 2015 to revoke Mr Lim’s trademark, which bears the same name as one of its car models, A1.

The carmaker’s lawyers Eunice Maaland and Jolena Ang argued there was no genuine use of the trademark by Mr Lim for five years after it was registered in 2010.

But Mr Lim argued that the AOne brand was his way of providing non-branded spare parts as an alternative to the competitive branded spare parts market.

The Class 12 mark applied to nearly 400 items that he registered, including various transport-related machines, appliances and tyres.

Ms Tan, after considering all submissions, found that the AOne mark had been genuinely used only in relation to the sale of torque rod bushes, which are used to cushion joints and prevent shocks in a moving vehicle.

She pointed to quotations, purchase orders and payments related to torque rod bushes branded with the AOne mark.

“The use is clearly not token, sham or internal and there is no question of hidden motive behind the use,” said Ms Tan, in her decision grounds issued last week.

But she said Mr Lim “has not shown genuine use of any other goods in the registration” and ruled that the trademark registration for all other items – except torque rod bushes – would be revoked.

vijayan@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on January 24, 2017.
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The question “What if Singapore has to choose between China and the United States?” featured prominently at a conference yesterday.

Professor Joseph Liow, dean of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, said it is unlikely Singapore will reach that crossroad.

China’s growing clout in the Asia-Pacific, and concerns that America’s engagement with the region will weaken should it turn inward, had led some observers to wonder whether countries in the region will have to take sides at some point.

However, Prof Liow noted, among other factors, that the scope of bilateral relations between the US and China has expanded.

Both countries share a complex relationship with intertwining interests, which have expanded beyond trade and exchange rate issues to include topics such as territorial disputes, climate change and counter-terrorism efforts, he pointed out.

China will not want the US to “entirely disengage from the region”, and neither does the US want to do so, Prof Liow told the annual Singapore Perspectives conference organised by the Institute of Policy Studies.

Read also: White House warns China on trade, South China Sea​

Singapore has long maintained that it does not want to choose between powers.

Still, Prof Liow noted that recent developments in Malaysia and the Philippines have been portrayed as the countries making a choice.

At another panel, Education Minister (Higher Education and Skills) Ong Ye Kung was asked about some of the hardest policy choices within the PAP.

He cited the shifting geopolitical landscape as one issue.

Meanwhile, Banyan Tree executive chairman Ho Kwon Ping said Singapore could face its first major crisis if relations between the US and China worsen to a point where it has to pick a side.

Should Singapore ever have to make a choice, said Prof Liow, it will need to consider these terms:

First, the choice must be based on national interest, and not on countries. It should also not be made “at gunpoint”, he said.

The superpower should also not interfere in domestic politics, though ensuring this will pose a challenge for the government of the day, he said.

Singapore also needs to be mindful of how other countries will interpret its move.

Prof Liow also highlighted two other points to keep in mind – that other Asean states are also navigating the same dilemma, and that there are other major players who have a hand in determining the state of regional affairs – such as Japan, Australia and Russia.

What Singapore should do, said Prof Liow, is to “look into diversifying engagement … with external players of consequence in regional affairs”.

Read also: China wants ‘meddlesome’ US out of region

China returns underwater drone, US condemns “unlawful” seizure

leepearl@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 24, 2017.
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Businesses at Chinese New Year festive bazaars have been hit this year by a triple whammy – wet weather, a poor economic outlook and the festival’s proximity to the Gregorian new year.

Mr Ang Cheng Hoy, 70, who sells festive decorations such as God of Fortune figurines in Chong Pang, said takings have fallen by 20 per cent from last year, as customers tighten their belts.

More are doing so as bonuses are down, and the economic outlook is gloomy.

Heavy rain yesterday morning also dampened sales, but Mr Ang is optimistic that business will pick up in the four days before the start of Chinese New Year on Saturday.

“If customers don’t come today, they will come tomorrow because they have to buy decorations for the new year,” he said.

Nearby, two large tents selling festive lanterns and couplets attracted few customers. Owner Ker Yong Sen, 35, estimated that takings would fall by 70 per cent to 80 per cent if the rain continues.

The weather forecast is not rosy – the last two weeks of this month are expected to be wetter than the first fortnight, though the month’s overall rainfall is expected to be slightly below normal.

Business was already poorer than expected, said Mr Ker. “People do buy, but they have been buying less because of the poor economy. And these days, young people don’t buy decorations any more; my customers are mostly the older ones.”

That the start of the Chinese New Year is within a month of the Gregorian one also spells bad news for retailers, as families may have to spend on things like new school supplies and less on other items.

Over at Chinatown, Ms Guo Xiao Cui, 34, who sells children’s clothes at a festive bazaar in Temple Street, estimated that the crowds have halved because of the rain.

But rain or not, Madam Tan Kok Wah, 63, took the train from her home in Bukit Panjang to a bazaar next to People’s Park Complex yesterday, where she shopped for Chinese couplets.

Waving away concerns about the rain, she said: “My sandals are a bit wet, but I am a hawker, I am used to wet floors. It is my day off, so I wanted to experience the festive atmosphere here.”

mellinjm@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 24, 2017.
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A package on its way to another destination was intercepted in Singapore last week when the authorities discovered that it contained 65 bullets.

The incident occurred on Jan 16 at the Changi Airfreight Centre, a police spokesman confirmed in response to queries from The Straits Times.

An officer from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority, who was on duty, detected the bullets while screening the package.

The police did not say where the parcel came from and where it was headed.

The Straits Times understands that this is the first time that a package with bullets has been intercepted here.

Investigations are ongoing, said the police spokesman.

The case has been classified as importation of guns, arms or explosives without licences under the Arms and Explosives Act.

If convicted, offenders can be fined up to $10,000 and jailed for three years.

As Singapore is a global hub for air cargo, there are strict checks and procedures at Changi Airport to ensure that items shipped from and through the country meet all police and other requirements, said Mr Steven Lee, chairman of the Singapore Aircargo Agents Association.

For goods exported from Singapore, the police maintain a database of “known” shippers so resources can be effectively deployed.

The cargoes of participating companies undergo random screening – believed to be about 10 per cent of outbound cargoes – as opposed to 100 per cent.

To be on the list, companies must show that they have in place stringent security checks and measures in their warehouses.

The challenge lies in checking and screening transit items – such as the package containing bullets – that may be in Singapore for just a few hours, Mr Lee said.

He added: “To prevent such cases, our members that ship items through Singapore from other markets usually work with shippers who are licensed and well-informed of the rules and regulations imposed by the authorities here.”

karam@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 24, 2017.
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A one-party system may give Singapore its best shot at success, because it is a small country that needs to stay nimble, said Education Minister (Higher Education and Skills) Ong Ye Kung yesterday at the Institute of Policy Studies’ annual Singapore Perspectives conference.

But Banyan Tree executive chairman Ho Kwon Ping warned that one-party systems face the danger of its political elites becoming slow to change, resulting in a culture of entitlement and corruption.

He added that the most desirable scenario would be a system of robust internal competition within the People’s Action Party (PAP).

Likewise, Mr Ong stressed that the PAP must stay open-minded and grounded in reality, and have integrity beyond reproach.

Both were on a panel discussing whether rule by a single political party is best for Singapore.

The panel addressed the possibility of Singapore becoming a two- or multi-party system.

In his speech, Mr Ong made the case that single-party rule is the best way for a small country like Singapore to succeed.

He added that the party need not be the PAP, but whichever party is the most capable.

For a multi-party system to form, said Mr Ong, there must first be at least two sufficiently different paths for Singapore to take, and political views distinct enough for different parties to uphold.

But Singapore is not big enough to have geographically separate towns that evolve drastically different views on national issues, he said.

Another reason he cited is that Singapore needs to stay nimble and move fast in a changing global environment.

QUESTIONED

Mr Ong questioned whether it could do so with a multi-party system.

“A country’s success is always idiosyncratic and can never be replicated wholesale by another.

“The formula for success is based on different political processes and ours happens to be a one-party system,” said Mr Ong, who was recently made an organising secretary of the PAP and has been touted as a possible future prime minister.

He added that complacency, elitism and corruption are not inevitable outcomes of single-party rule and have shown up across all political systems.

But Mr Ho said history showed that a ruling political party that faces no competition tends to turn complacent.

Citing the declines of India’s Indian National Congress and the Kuomintang in Taiwan, Mr Ho said a founding party’s political values can be passed down over three or four generations of leaders.

Beyond that, complacency overwhelms the self-discipline instilled by the party’s pioneers and its political culture erodes, he told the 960 policymakers, businessmen and students in the audience.

Despite his views, he thought that the PAP had the best chance of any long-term party to set a new record for staying in power, because of its “ability to self-correct and obsessively talk about problems” and find solutions to them.

He suggested that the party introduce a formal way for competing policies to be aired internally.

To this suggestion, Mr Ong said that the PAP needed to be as pluralistic a party as possible and must take in people with different views.

charyong@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Jan 24, 2017.
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