On Christmas Eve, an express coach crashed into a ravine near Muar, Johor, killing 14 people, including three Singaporeans and a Singapore permanent resident. The New Paper looks back at other serious road accidents this year:

JAN 24

Madam Yep Lay Choo, 51, and her daughter, Kimberly Poon Hui Yin, 22, died after their Mercedes E250 plunged into the Alexandra Canal as they drove out of the Valley Point Shopping Centre at about 9pm.

State Coroner Marvin Bay later said in an inquiry that the case underscored the need for motorists to navigate less familiar carparks at a cautious speed.

FEB 20

An elderly couple were picking cardboard at Collyer Quay at about 6.50am when a BMW ploughed into their lorry.

Madam Tan Powi Kim, 61, was killed while her husband, Mr Cheng Kiat Yan, 68, suffered a fractured knee after he fell off the lorry.

In the first half of this year, there were 122 accidents – 12 fatal – involving elderly victims, up from 104 in the same period last year with 10 fatalities.

MAY 21

Factory supervisor Lau Lee Kiau, 46, was on her way to work on her boyfriend’s motorcycle when they got involved in an accident with a car and a taxi at the junction of Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 and Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2.

She died and police arrested a 17-year-old underage driver for allegedly causing death by a rash act.

The age for getting a driving licence here is 18.

On Tuesday, a police spokesman said they were still investigating the case.

There were 853 people caught driving without a licence between January and September this year, up from 748 detected in the same period last year.

AUG 31

A tour bus carrying 12 Singaporean passengers overturned on the Karak highway in Malaysia on its way back from Genting Highlands.

Accountant Lim Sia Thian, 62, suffered traumatic brain injuries and died.

The bus driver, a Malaysian, and eight other Singaporeans were injured, some seriously.

OCT 27

Three e-bikers were riding their bikes near the junction of Pandan Crescent along West Coast Highway at 11.55pm when they collided with a trailer. Mr Ong Zi Quan, 18, and Mr Ang Yee Fong, 25., died while Marcus Loke Teck Soon, 17, escaped with an injured leg and several scratches.

The 34-year-old trailer driver was arrested by the police for negligently causing death.

NOV 3

Two foreign workers died after they were run over by a reversing tipper truck at the Thomson-East Coast Line Mandai Depot construction site at about 1.15pm.

The Bangladeshi nationals had been napping on the ground.

The accident prompted safety experts and migrant rights’ groups to call for proper rest areas for workers, reported The Straits Times.

DEC 19

At about 8am, a Mercedes-Benz car travelling against the flow of traffic at high speed on the Ayer Rajah Expressway (AYE) rammed head-on into another car, killing its driver, Mr Jackie Liong Kuo Hwa, 37.

The Mercedes-Benz also collided into a motorcycle, sending its rider and pillion rider flying in the air.

Businessman Lim Chai Heng, 53, was later charged with allegedly causing death by reckless or dangerous driving.

rloh@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Dec 29, 2016.
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Transformation of the economy was the keystone of Budget 2016.

But many local businesses are not taking steps to change, the latest National Business Survey released by the Singapore Business Federation (SBF) yesterday showed.

About six in 10 of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) surveyed have yet to make significant adjustments to adapt to the slowing economic growth and technological change and disruption.

The study, which drew more than 1,100 responses from companies across all major industries, also noted that business sentiment is gloomy.

Nearly two-thirds of businesses say that the economic climate in Singapore has worsened this year, and nearly half of the businesses expect the situation to deteriorate next year.

At the Budget in March, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat announced that a $4.5 billion Industry Transformation Programme would be rolled out to help firms and industries create new value and drive growth.

One initiative aimed at transforming firms was a new automation support package, worth more than $400 million over the next three years.

Despite the new measures, only about 60 per cent of businesses agreed that they have to transform to adapt to slowing growth and technological change.

Only 28 per cent of businesses expressed satisfaction with the current policies.

This is lower among SMEs – 27 per cent was satisfied, compared to 39 per cent among large companies.

Lack of resources in terms of knowledge, finances and manpower are some of the challenges that local firms face when it comes to transforming their businesses, said Associate Professor Boh Wai Fong from the Nanyang Business School.

Prof Boh, who lectures in Nanyang Technological University, is currently conducting a training and research programme for local SMEs and start-ups on innovation, capabilities and decision-making preferences.

“As local companies try to innovate, they often face challenges in working through technical and feasibility difficulties.

“Environmental unpredictability is also a challenge.

“This includes changes in customers’ tastes, changes in markets and regulations,” added Prof Boh.

TRANSFORM

Mr Ho Meng Kit, CEO of SBF, urged the Government to consider measures that will help businesses overcome the near-term economic headwinds in the upcoming Budget 2017, even as it considers the longer-term strategies for the Singapore economy.

He said: “Having said so, Singapore companies can, and must, transform to find new ways of doing things and offer innovative new products and services.

“At the same time, we encourage our companies to expand to overseas markets.

“The current technological disruption that we are witnessing has lowered the barriers for companies to do all these.”

Manpower issues biggest obstacle for local firms

Manpower issues remain the biggest challenge for local firms here, according to a Singapore Business Federation survey released yesterday.

Rising labour cost is the toughest challenge for about eight in 10 companies.

Rules and regulations as well as retention of younger workers are also high-priority areas.

A survey respondent said: “It is difficult to get Singaporeans for lower skilled, more hard labour kind of jobs and these jobs cannot be automated (marine crew for example).

“However, quotas are being cut and the levy is increasing. It is also difficult to retain Singaporeans.”

Nearly half of the businesses expressed that they were neutral with current Government policies for businesses.

The high neutral scores mask a sense of disappointment with recent Government efforts, noted the survey.

More than 40 per cent of the companies identified rising compliance costs and bureaucratic hurdles as areas that they were dissatisfied with.

Associate Professor Boh Wai Fong from the Nanyang Business School pointed out that many firms feel the cost of doing business in Singapore is too high and there is a lack of financial support from banks.

“Many SMEs point out that while grants are available by Government, they involve too much paperwork.”

Streamlining the application process will definitely help the SMEs.

“They would also prefer help on cash-flow financing. Many government schemes are on reimbursement basis, but many SMEs are unwilling to pay for the upfront costs,” he said.

“Many schemes also provide payment to third parties – for example, consulting firms to do the work for SMEs.

“Maybe tying the schemes to capability development will be useful – teaching them to fish, rather than to fish for them.”

– LINETTE HENG

linheng@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Dec 29, 2016.
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A number of fixed-rate mortgage plans have been pulled from the shelves lately as banks grapple with the uncertainty over the pace of interest rate hikes.

Market watchers noted some banks are trying to ensure their margins are not squeezed by cheaply priced fixed packages.

Ms Grace Cheng, co-founder of personal finance website Get.com, told The Straits Times: “For example, Maybank removed its two-year 1.60 per cent fixed-rate package in mid-November.

“Bank of China removed its two-year fixed-rate packages from 1.40 per cent earlier this week, and DBS removed its five-year 1.99 per cent fixed-rate package earlier this week.”

Bank of China and Maybank did not respond to queries in time while a DBS Bank spokesman said the five-year offer was ended because it was only a temporary “promotion”.

DBS has a three-year 1.88 per cent fixed-rate loan, while OCBC Bank is offering a two-year 2.48 per cent loan for Housing Board properties.

United Overseas Bank (UOB) has one of the best fixed-rate offers in town – a two-year 1.8 per cent loan – but apparently not for long. This deal has a last submission date by Jan 1, said MoneySmart.sg chief executive Vinod Nair.

Such plan withdrawals are normal reactions to market forces, Mr Nair said.

“Analysts in these banks are likely forecasting the interest rate uptrend to continue and hence have increased rates to protect their margins,” he added.

Unlike floating- or variable-rate packages, fixed-rate loans are locked, and they provide borrowers with certainty.

Low interest rates had allowed banks some competitive pricing, but this may prove hard to swallow in times to come.

How fast interest rates will rise next year has become something of a concern since earlier this month when the US Federal Reserve forecast up to three hikes in 2017.

The Singapore interbank offered rates (Sibor) have been gaining in tandem, with the three-month Sibor sitting at around 0.966 per cent this week – the highest since late June.

The three-month Sibor – one of the key benchmarks banks use to price home loans – could hit 1.35 per cent in the second quarter next year and 1.6 per cent in the fourth quarter, according to Nomura’s forecasts.

Ms Cheng said: “We expect to see further home loan interest rate changes in the upcoming weeks as the Chinese New Year period draws near, which is typically a time when banks update their rates.”

Against this backdrop, those looking to buy new homes or refinance mortgages with good fixed-rate offers may have to act fast.

Consultant Pamela Ng, 35, who is looking to sell her home to buy a new one, is unsure whether she is missing the window for a good deal.

“I have a lower risk profile and prefer fixed rates for its certainty. My concern now is whether I will still be able to lock down a fixed-rate home loan next year, when we have sorted out our plans for the new apartment.”

A UOB spokesman said mortgage rates are reviewed according to market conditions and urged home buyers to set aside sufficient funds to manage potential rising rates.

whwong@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Dec 29, 2016.
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The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) will begin collecting iris images from Singapore citizens and permanent residents as another identifier, in addition to photographs and fingerprints.

This comes as part of the amendments to the National Registration Act (NRA), which were passed in Parliament on Nov 10, and will take effect from Jan 1.

The NRA was enacted in 1965 for the registration of people in Singapore for the issue of identity cards and related purposes.

These amendments will strengthen the effectiveness and efficiency of ICA operations, said the release from the Ministry of Home Affairs yesterday.

The collection of iris images will be done as part of the IC registration and re-registration process as well as the passport application and renewal process.

This article was first published on Dec 28, 2016.
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