The Wishful Thinker ( World News To You )

Brunei, S'pore Exercise Begins (BruDirect.com)
Bandar Seri Begawan – About 400 personnel from the Third Battalion of Royal Brunei Land Forces (RBLF) and 140 personnel from 3S1R Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) are engaged in a five-day Maju Bersama Exercise that began yesterday and runs until March 8.

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Europe raises pressure on U.S. to halt dollar slide (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
Worried euro zone policymakers pressured on Washington on Tuesday to do more to halt the dollar's decline, a day after the U.S. currency hit a record low against Europe's single currency.

Infiniti launches Western Europe sales, aiming to build patiently (Detroit News)
GENEVA, Switzerland — Nissan of Japan launched its Infiniti luxury brand in Western Europe with President and CEO Carlos Ghosn saying it planned to build its presence slowly but surely.

Housing market slowing in Europe (BBC News)
House price growth across Europe slowed sharply in the second half of 2007, according to a report.

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Ukraine says it could cut Europe's gas (AP via Yahoo! News)
Ukraine's natural gas company on Tuesday warned that if Russia further cuts its gas supplies, it could begin diverting shipments intended for Western Europe.

Infiniti launches Western Europe sales, aiming to build patiently (Detroit News)
GENEVA, Switzerland — Nissan of Japan launched its Infiniti luxury brand in Western Europe with President and CEO Carlos Ghosn saying it planned to build its presence slowly but surely.

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Philippine Inflation Fastest in 16 Months on Food (Update2) (Bloomberg.com)
March 5 (Bloomberg) — Philippine consumer prices rose at the fastest pace in 16 months in February as food prices climbed, making it less likely the central bank will cut its benchmark interest rate next week.

Ex-Philippine officials urge Arroyo to come clean (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
About 60 former top Philippine government officials urged President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on Tuesday to lift restrictions on information about a multi-million dollar telecoms deal tainted by corruption allegations.

Philippine Inflation Rate Probably Fastest in 16 Months on Food (Bloomberg.com)
March 5 (Bloomberg) — Philippine consumer prices probably rose at the fastest pace in 16 months in February as food prices climbed, making it less likely the central bank will cut its benchmark interest rate next week.

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Philippine inflation jumps to 5.4 percent in February, highest since Oct 2006 (Sharewatch)
MANILA (Thomson Financial) – Philippine annual inflation jumped to 5.4 percent in February, near the top end of forecasts, from 4.9 percent in the previous month, government data showed on Wednesday.

Philippine court offers compromise on graft probe (The Star)
MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippine Supreme Court gave senators 24 hours on Tuesday to accept a deal that would see a top government official resume testimony in a Senate probe into suspected corruption that has rocked the government.

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Expats vote Singapore, Copenhagen top places: survey (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
Asian expatriates have ranked Singapore as the best place to live in the world for its safe and clean environment, while Europeans chose Copenhagen, a survey showed on Tuesday.

TAIWAN CARRIER DENIES REPORTED DEAL WITH SINGAPORE AIRLINES (Asia Pulse via Yahoo!7 Finance)
Transport Taiwan's largest carrier denied a rumor Tuesday that Singapore Airlines (SGX:S55) plans to buy a quarter of its shares, which soared to a record high earlier in the day.

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Anwar attends seminar in Singapore (Channel NewsAsia)
As campaigning for the general election on Saturday enters its last lap, Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim is taking a break from the hustings to attend a seminar in Singapore on Wednesday.

Singapore best place to live for Asian expats: survey (AFP via Yahoo! News)
Singapore is the best city in the world for Asian expatriates to live in due mainly to its quality of life and low crime rate, a survey released Tuesday by ECA International showed.

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Celebrity birthdays (USA Today)
See who's celebrating a special day.

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U.N. wants tougher stance on celebrity drug users (Reuters via Yahoo! News)
Prosecutors worldwide are too lenient on celebrities who use drugs, sending a dangerous message to young people, the United Nations said on Wednesday in its global report on illegal narcotics trends.

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Australia cancels contract for US Seasprite helicopters (AFP via Yahoo! News)
Australia on Wednesday cancelled a one billion dollar (930 million US) contract for US-made Seasprite helicopters following a review of the troubled project.

Australia to Release New Rules For Wheat Exports (Update1) (Bloomberg.com)
March 5 (Bloomberg) — Australia, the world's sixth-largest wheat exporter , expects to release draft rules for the marketing of the nation's crop within the next day.

Australia's Economy Grows at Slowest Pace in a Year (Update3) (Bloomberg.com)
March 5 (Bloomberg) — Australia's economy grew at the slowest pace in more than a year in the fourth quarter as construction declined and bottlenecks at ports cut exports.

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India beat Australia in thriller to claim cricket tri-series (AFP via Yahoo! News)
India wrapped up the triangular one-day international cricket competition when they beat Australia by nine runs to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the best-of-three finals series here Tuesday.

Australia's Economy Grows at Slowest Pace in a Year (Update3) (Bloomberg.com)
March 5 (Bloomberg) — Australia's economy grew at the slowest pace in more than a year in the fourth quarter as construction declined and bottlenecks at ports cut exports.

Australia cancels US helicopter deal (AP via Yahoo! News)
Australia has canceled a 1.3 billion Australian dollar ($1.2 billion) contract to buy 11 navy Seasprite helicopters from U.S.-based Kaman Corp., the government announced Wednesday.

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Malaysia's lingering ethnic divide (BBC News)
The BBC's Robin Brant looks at the ethnic divisions highlighted by recent protests in Malaysia

Malaysia election officials axe indelible ink at polls (Channel NewsAsia)
KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysia's election authorities on Tuesday cancelled plans to use indelible ink in this weekend's general elections, drawing fire from the opposition which said it would increase fraud.

BURSA MALAYSIA:KL Shares Marginally Lower In Early Trade (Malaysian National News Agency (BERNAMA))
KUALA LUMPUR, March 5 (Bernama) — Share prices on Bursa Malaysia were marginally lower in morning trade today as investors locked in profits on selected heavyweights and lower liners, particularly plantation and banking related stocks, dealers said.

International Fight League, Alfred Haber Distribution Announce Addition of Malaysia Television to Their International … (Business Wire via Yahoo!7 Finance)
The International Fight League (OTC.BB: IFLI) and Alfred Haber Distribution (AHDI) today announced that Media Prima Berhad, the largest integrated investment group in Malaysia and the owners of Malaysia Television stations TV3, TV8, NTV7 and TV9, will begin showing "IFL Fight Night" on a weekly basis beginning in 2008.

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Malaysia's Export Growth Probably Accelerated on Commodities (Bloomberg.com)
March 5 (Bloomberg) — Malaysia's export growth probably accelerated in January as surging prices lifted commodity earnings, compensating for weakening demand for electronics.

Deputy PM defends Malaysia system (BBC News)
Malaysia's deputy PM hits out at critics who say his country is undemocratic, ahead of a general election on Saturday.

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Heat among teams to open '08 preseason in Europe (Sports Illustrated)
Dwyane Wade will get to see his popularity in Europe first-hand next fall.

Irish Housing Market Was Europe's Worst Performer Last Year (Bloomberg.com)
March 5 (Bloomberg) — Ireland's housing market was Europe's worst performer last year as rising borrowing costs ended a decade-long boom that saw average home prices quadruple, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said.

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Housing market slowing in Europe (BBC News)
House price growth across Europe slowed sharply in the second half of 2007, according to a report.

Infiniti launches Western Europe sales, aiming to build patiently (Detroit News)
GENEVA, Switzerland — Nissan of Japan launched its Infiniti luxury brand in Western Europe with President and CEO Carlos Ghosn saying it planned to build its presence slowly but surely.

Gas dispute threatens western Europe (CNN.com)
MOSCOW, Russia (AP) — Ukraine's natural gas company on Tuesday threatened to begin diverting gas supplies headed for western Europe, after Moscow warned it would halve gas deliveries to Ukraine in a long-running debt dispute.

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