Education Minister urges schools to maintain long-term partnerships

SINGAPORE: Singapore Education Minister Heng Swee Keat has urged schools here to maintain long-term partnerships, which will enrich the community. He was speaking at Yishun Junior College's (YJC) Celebrating Values Day on Saturday.It is a carnival to raise funds for charities such as the President's Challenge and Movement for the Intellectually Disabled of Singapore.YJC has roped in partners...

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US manufacturing rises for 3rd straight month: ISM

WASHINGTON, March 1, 2013 (AFP) - US manufacturing activity expanded in February for the third month in a row, hitting the highest level since 2011, according to the ISM survey of purchasing managers released Friday.The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing sector index rose to 54.2 from 53.1 in January, boosted by a 4.5 percent surge in new orders.Manufacturing appeared to be...

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Pope leaves Vatican on historic final day

VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI left the Vatican on Thursday for the last time as pontiff before he steps down as leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics, becoming the first pope to resign in 700 years.Benedict boarded a white helicopter emblazoned with the Vatican flag for the papal summer residence of Castel Gandolfo near Rome, flying over the Vatican for the last time as pope.As...

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New Singapore ambassadors to Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Switzerland

SINGAPORE: The government has appointed Mr Wong Kwok Pun as Singapore's first resident Ambassador to the State of Qatar, Mr Lawrence Anderson as Singapore's next Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Mr Tee Tua Ba as Singapore's Ambassador to Switzerland (resident in Singapore). Mr Wong and Mr Anderson will assume their post on 17 March 2013 and 30 March 2013 respectively.Mr...

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Senate committee approves Lew for US Treasury chief

WASHINGTON: The US Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday approved President Barack Obama's nominee Jack Lew to be the new Treasury secretary, replacing Timothy Geithner who stepped down last month.Senators voted 19-5 in favor of Lew, with several Republicans joining with the majority Democrats. The committee approval paves the way for a full Senate vote as early as Wednesday.With Republicans...

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UN rights chief, nations condemn Security Council on Syria

GENEVA: The UN human rights chief and several nations criticised the Security Council Monday for failing to take action to halt spiralling violence in Syria and bring to justice perpetrators of abuses in the conflict."The Security Council has so far failed with regard to Syria," Navi Pillay told ministers at the start of a regular UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva.Pillay said her...

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Football: Man City leave Chelsea trailing, Newcastle edge Saints

LONDON: Manchester City galvanised their grip on second place in the Premier League and trimmed Manchester United's lead back to 12 points with a 2-0 victory at home to nearest rivals Chelsea on Sunday.After Chelsea's Frank Lampard had seen a penalty saved by England colleague Joe Hart, City prevailed through a pair of fine second-half goals from man-of-the-match Yaya Toure and substitute...

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Football: Berbatov's magic moment sinks Stoke

LONDON: Fulham forward Dimitar Berbatov produced a moment of magic to end his side's poor run with a 1-0 win over Stoke at Craven Cottage on Saturday.Berbatov marked his 200th Premier League appearance with his 85th goal in the English top-flight and it was one of the former Manchester United star's best as he netted a superb volley just before half-time.Martin Jol's team still needed...

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WTO may not be ideal platform to deal with currency issue

BEIJING: The World Trade Organisation (WTO) may not be the ideal platform to deal with the issue of currency manipulation, according to Costa Rica's Foreign Trade Minister Anabel Gonzalez, who is in the running to be WTO Director-General.She was in Beijing to meet Chinese authorities to garner their support.As the global economy slows and countries scramble to boost exports, trade friction...

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Top detective assigned to Pistorius case

PRETORIA: South African police assigned a top new detective Thursday to take over the bungled Oscar Pistorius investigation after it emerged the lead officer faced seven charges of attempted murder, dramatically undermining the prosecution case against the sprint star."We recognise the significance, the importance... and the severity of the matter," police commissioner Mangwashi 'Riah'...

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British economy moves closer to new stimulus injection

LONDON: Britain's economy, at risk of a third recession in five years despite record employment, could see a fresh injection of cash stimulus, according to minutes of a Bank of England meeting published on Wednesday.Bank of England (BoE) governor Mervyn King has called for more quantitative easing, minutes from the central bank's February meeting showed.This helped push the pound to a...

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EU, Russia call for flexibility from Iran

BRUSSELS: The European Union and Russia called on Iran on Tuesday to be flexible at much-anticipated talks next week over its disputed nuclear programme.EU foreign affairs head Catherine Ashton said after meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that both sides "expressed hope that Iran will come to these negotiations with flexibility and that we can make substantial progress"."We...

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Football: Celta Vigo replace coach Herrera with Abel Resino

MADRID: Spanish Liga outfit Celta Vigo have fired head coach Paco Herrera and replaced him with Abel Resino, the relegation-threatened club announced on Monday."Celta Vigo have signed Abel Resino as first team coach. He will replace Paco Herrera on the bench." read a statement on the club website.Herrera guided the team back into the top flight last season but has seen results slide during...

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Football: City swamp Leeds in FA Cup romp

MANCHESTER, United Kingdom: A Sergio Aguero brace was the highlight of Manchester City's comfortable 4-0 FA Cup fifth round victory over Leeds on Sunday, a win that will lift, at least temporarily, speculation about the future of manager Roberto Mancini.With City 12 points behind Premier League leaders Manchester United, the FA Cup remains Mancini's most realistic hope of winning silverware...

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Tennis: Del Potro reaches second Rotterdam tennis final

ROTTERDAM: Juan Martin del Potro dispatched Bulgarian youngster Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to move into his second straight Rotterdam Open final.The Argentine winner, seeded second and now the top-ranked player left after Friday's shock elimination of Roger Federer by Julien Benneteau, will play either the Swiss star's conqueror or fifth seed Gilles Simon.Del Potro, who lost...

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US Q4 industrial output stronger than thought: Fed

WASHINGTON: US industrial production fell in January but the final quarter of last year was much stronger than originally thought, the Federal Reserve reported on Friday.January's production contracted 0.1 per cent, and manufacturing output fell 0.4 per cent.But industrial production as a whole expanded at a 2.6 per cent annual pace in the October-December 2012 quarter, compared to the...

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Mumbai attack movie hits cinemas on Mar 1

MUMBAI: Memories of the Mumbai terror attacks of November 2008 still evoke fear among residents of the city.And those old wounds are expected to reopen now that a Bollywood movie about the incident is set to hit the big screens.India's financial capital came to a virtual standstill on 26 November 2008.The attacks which lasted for four days drew widespread global condemnation.The Pakistan-based...

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Olympics: Wrestlers vow to fight Olympic removal

PARIS: Wrestlers around the world on Wednesday vowed to fight to save the ancient sport's Olympic status, after the International Olympic Committee voted to drop it for the 2020 Games.Japan and Turkey -- whose cities Tokyo and Istanbul are bidding to host the Games in seven years' time -- led the calls for the world body to reconsider, as an online petition was organised urging a rethink...

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Tension running high in Kashmir Valley

KASHMIR VALLEY: Tension is running high in Kashmir Valley, after India's secret execution of a Kashmiri man for his involvement in an attack on parliament in 2001.A continuous curfew has been in place for four days now, as the government attempts to prevent further outbreaks of violence.The curfew has brought life to a standstill in the valley.Three people have died and at least 50 others...

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US tornadoes strike southern states, 60 injured

MIAMI: Several powerful tornadoes ripped through the southern US states of Mississippi and Alabama injuring at least 60 people and destroying hundreds of homes at the weekend, emergency officials said Monday.The city of Hattiesburg in Mississippi's Forrest County bore the brunt of the storms, with heavy rain continuing to lash the region and create a risk of flooding."Two people were critically...

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