Barbie Hsu reportedly visited multiple hospitals in Japan before tragic death; Singapore puts controls on race-based business groups: Singapore live news

Certificate of Entitlement (COE) premiums were down across the board, except in Category D, for the first bidding in February 2025.

Category A (car up to 1600cc & 130bhp / EV up to 110kW) closed at $85,000 which was a drop of $8,601 or more than 9%

There was a fall of $5,521 in Category B (car above 1600cc or 130bhp / EV with more than 110kW) which closed $111,104 while Category C (goods vehicle and bus) dipped $2,970 to $62,506.

Category E (all vehicles except motorcycles) saw premiums drop by $5,112 to close at $110,000. Motorcycle premiums or Category D experienced only a slight rise of $568 to close at $8,289.

The next COE bidding results will be out on 19 February.

The year-end spike of the human metapneumovirus (HMPV) in Singapore has started to subside, according to Senior Minister of State for Health Janil Puthucheary.

Dr Janil was replying to questions on HMPV posed by MPs Ng Ling Ling (Ang Mo Kio GRC) and Joan Pereira (Tanjong Pagar GRC) on 5 February.

HMPV is a respiratory disease that causes flu or cold-like symptoms. It’s not a new virus and is actually considered a regular seasonal virus. However, a year-end global surge of the virus was widely reported by media outlets sparking public concern.

Dr Janil told Parliament that sudden increases of HMPV are common, especially during the colder winter months. He also said there is currently no HMPV vaccine and that the influenza vaccine does not provide protection against it.

Most HMPV cases are mild but the elderly, young children and people with a low immune system are more at risk of developing severe complications such as pneumonia.

Just when you thought Netflix’s‘Physical: 100’ was maybe losing a bit of steam, the streamer made a knockout announcement about the hit show’s latest evolution.

In a move that is sure to ignite regional excitement, Netflix revealed that boxing legend Manny Pacquiao is set to join the third season of the series – which has been dubbed ‘Physical Asia’.

‘Physical Asia’ is a team-based format with contestants competing to claim the title of the strongest country in Asia. Pacquiao will be representing the Philippines and we’ll just have to wait and see who the other celebrity heavyweights joining him in the competition are (if any).

"The strongest physical competitors from different Asian countries will compete in a national team battle for their country’s pride," said Netflix Korea's director of content Yoo Ki-hwan at the Next On Netflix 2025 event. "This season follows a national team format, where if a country is eliminated, all its competitors are eliminated together," he said.

A release date for 'Physical: Asia' was not disclosed.

US President Donald Trump has revealed an astonishing proposal for America to “take over” the Gaza Strip and re-settle Palestinians in other countries.

In typical bombastic fashion, Trump expressed his desire to turn the territory into “the Riviera of the Middle East” as the US would "develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs" and turn it into "something the entire Middle East can be very proud of".

Trump made the comments while speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House. “I do see a long-term ownership position and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East,” Trump said.

Netanyahu said Trump’s plan could “change history” and was worth “paying attention to”.

US foreign policy has previously supported the formation of an independent Palestinian state.

Iskandar Rahmat, the former police officer convicted of the 2013 murder of a father and his son in Kovan, has been hanged.

The Singapore Police Force (SPF) issued a statement confirming the capital sentence of death imposed on the 46-year-old had been carried out today (5 February). “Capital punishment is imposed only for the most serious crimes, including murder,” said SPF

Iskandar was convicted of the murder of 67-year-old Tan Boon Sin and his son, 42-year-old Tan Chee Heong. He was sentenced to death on 4 December 2015 and the Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal on 3 February 2017.

Justice Tay Yong Kwang, who presided over the trial, said that there was enough evidence to prove that the murder of the elderly Tan was premeditated.

Iskandar had claimed that the killings of the two Tans was a poorly conceived robbery gone terribly wrong.

Authorities in China recently raided a factory producing counterfeit Aupen products which were being sold at retail price.

Aupen was founded by Singaporean Nicholas Tan, and his unique handbags have famously found favour with a number of high profile celebrities including Taylor Swift.

According to a report, the factory in China had 2,000 employees and more than US$150,000 in counterfeit bags were seized in the raid. Nine ringleaders have been imprisoned in connection with the case.

Aupen only sells direct-to-consumer on Aupen.com and it was Tan who alerted authorities to the presence of fake Aupen bags being sold online – at retail price – on major e-commerce sites such as Alibaba.

“Although we are a young brand, we take our design integrity very seriously, and we will go to great lengths to defend our trademarks and our intellectual property,” Tan was quoted as saying.

In December last year, Tan said he had no plans to open a physical retail store for Aupen.

Singapore passed the Maintenance of Racial Harmony Bill on Tuesday (4 February) which included safeguards against foreign interference.

The Bill will see around 300 entities linked to Chinese, Malay and Indian ethnic groups have to disclose foreign donations and overseas affiliations. They must also ensure Singapore citizens are appointed to leadership positions.

“We have always treated racial harmony as being fundamental in Singapore, and so this Bill has to be seen in that context,” said Minister of Home Affairs K Shanmugam.

Under the bill, Singapore will have the power to issue a ‘foreign influence restraining order’ against designated groups that may ‘present a threat to public peace and public order.’ You can read the full details of the Maintenance of Racial Harmony Bill, here.

Bloomberg reports the Bill is the latest in a string of legislation in recent years to clamp down on foreign influence and misinformation.