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Estimated population of Singapore citizens and permanent residents - 3,163,500 as at June 1998.

Chinese                     77%

Malays                      14%

Indians                     7.6%

Other ethnic groups 1.4%

Working Language: English

Other official languages: Mandarin, Malay & Tamil.

Planners expect the population of Singapore to reach 5.5 million by 2040 or 2050, taking into account an expected increase in the number of foreigners working here. From just 3 million in 1990, the number has swelled to 3.9 million today, including 700 000 foreigners.

The weather TODAY: Partly cloudy in the morning. Showers with thunder over man y areas in the afternoon and early evening.  High tide 5.30 am 2.1m  9.20 pm 2.0m  Sunrise 7.06 am Sunset 7.13 pm Moonrise 2.40 am  Moonset  2.59 pm   PSI: 29 (good) Temp: 23-32  degrees Celsius (updated daily at 6am Singapore time)    

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     ^{Mid-Week Banking Column}

Take a stroll down North Bridge Road. Click the logo to enter Opening a Foreign Currency Fixed Deposit (ACU)   A fixed deposit in a foreign currency, such as United States Dollar (USD) or British Pound (GBP), can be placed with banks in Singapore. These deposits are also known as ACU deposits. ACU stands for Asian Currency Unit.   As with Singapore dollar fixed deposits, an ACU deposit, once placed, cannot be uplifted (withdrawn) before the maturity date. Otherwise, a penalty on the interest amount earned is payable. The amount you put in as deposit is not affected at all. This amount is reduced only if the currency goes down in value in the forex market and you decide to sell it to buy other currencies. Then, you could incur a loss and find that you get back less money than you put in, even if you have earned some interest. Different banks have different minimum amounts for the opening of such deposits.    It is important to bear in mind two things: 1.  When you place a deposit today, the value date of the deposit (the date your deposit starts earning interest) is always two working days from today. This is because the bank needs to purchase the foreign currency which you wish to buy from them for deposit into your fixed deposit account. So what happens is, when you tell the bank how much you want to buy, it goes into the forex market and buys it for you. And forex dealers will only sell foreign currencies for value two working days later. 2.  Your deposit in whatever foreign currency you have decided to buy and put into your account earns interest at the usual interest rates applicable to that foreign currency. So, a USD ACU deposit may attract an interest rate of, say 7% p.a. which is a lot more than that payable for a Singapore dollar fixed deposit, say 2% p.a. But, bear in mind that if the currency you have placed goes down in value during the period of deposit, eg. USD exchange rate significantly goes down against the Singapore dollar, then whatever benefit from the interest you have earned for your USD would be wiped out by the drastic fall in the exchange rate value of the USD in the deposit. Which will mean that you have effectively lost money in placing that fixed deposit.   Sounds strange, doesn't it. I mean, you are supposed to make money through getting interest when you open a fixed deposit but end up losing part of your principal (the amount you deposited). Welcome to the world of foreign currency fluctuations. Every day, exchange rates of different currencies move in tandem with the political or monetary situation in the respective countries. So, before you invest in a certain foreign currency, keep your ears open for any adverse news which may affect the exchange rate of that currency during the term of your deposit.   It is always prudent to place a deposit in safer currencies, such as Singapore dollar or the United States dollar. Do not be beguiled by foreign currencies which offer high interest rates. It's not worth the risk! If you have any comments or questions, please e-mail us at editor@getforme.com .

Today Thursday 30 Mar 2000

In Singapore

SingTel gives you 50% off all 001 and ICC calls around the clock every day for the whole of April 2000.

From 1 Apr to 31 May 2000, SingTel mobile phone subscribers can send SMS locally or overseas to their friends and family free. 

Admission prices for entry into the Singapore Zoo will go up from 1 Apr 2000. The adults' admission fee will be raised from S$10.30 to S$12 and children's  fees from S$4.60 to S$5. The 45-minute tram ride in the Night Safari will go up by S$2 to S$5.

The government has given 58 new licences to big and small phone companies. Five new entrants will have the right to install and operate new telecoms facilities and infrastructure, including telecoms giant MCI WorldCom and Singapore Power subsidiary SP Telecommunications.

Starhub will absorb all incoming mobile call charges of its customers for the next 12 months. This means that from 1 Apr 2000 when it starts its mobile phone service, Starhub cellular phone users need only pay for outgoing calls.

Police seized more than 200 000 pirated Sony Playstation compact discs with a street value of S$2 million, their biggest haul of the CDs here, in two days of raids on Monday and Tuesday.

Asia 

Taipei: Taiwanese President-elect Chen Shui-Bian yesterday appointed current Defence Minister Tang Fei as his Prime Minister, in what is described as a clever move to maintain political stability on the island.

Around the world

Fort Worth, Texas: A powerful tornado blew through downtown Fort Worth just after rush hour on Tuesday night. Four people were killed and at least 36 were injured, police said.

Washington: The families of young victims of online predators have turned to the US congress for help. They appeared before a Senate panel on Tuesday seeking protection of children and young adults from those who stalk, harass, kidnap and even kill. The Senate is expected to take up an overall Internet Security Act soon.

Courtesy of The Straits Times

News updated by 8.00 am daily.

Singapore's water is clean and safe to drink from the tap. There is no need to boil it.

The Editor

Raymond Han

You can e-mail him at editor@getforme.com