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CNA
8 minutes ago
- CNA
Elderly man accused of obscene acts against children aged 8 and 12, taking explicit photos
SINGAPORE: A 69-year-old man is accused of performing sexual acts on two children who were aged eight and 12 or 13 when the alleged offences took place. The Singaporean man also allegedly took photos of the older child's private parts with a camera at a flat in Bedok. The man was handed a total of seven charges on Thursday (Aug 7). He faces six counts of committing an obscene act against a child under the Children and Young Persons Act, and one of intentionally producing child abuse material. CNA is not naming the man as there is a gag order protecting the identities of the children and forbidding the publication of anything that could lead to their identification. According to charge sheets, the offences took place between November 2020 and June 2022 at the same flat. On three occasions between Nov 5 and Nov 11, 2020, the man allegedly used a digital camera to take 62 pictures of the genital region of the older child, a boy, who was 12 years old at the time. Sometime in March 2021, he allegedly performed a sex act on the same boy. On Mar 5, 2021, he allegedly performed sex acts on the boy and kissed him. This happened again on Aug 6, 2021, charge sheets alleged. Sometime in March 2021, the man allegedly performed a sex act on the younger child, then aged eight. The gender of the child was not apparent in charge sheets as the child's name was redacted. He then performed a sex act on the older child again in June 2022. The boy was 13 by this time. The nature of the relationship, if any, between the man and the victims is unclear at this early stage of proceedings. The man said he intended to plead guilty to all the charges except the charge involving the eight-year-old. He indicated his intention to apply for a lawyer from the Public Defender's Office and was told where to go after the hearing to begin the application process. He will return to court in September. For each charge of committing an obscene act against a child, he faces up to seven years' jail, a fine of up to S$10,000, or both. If he is a repeat offender, the maximum jail term increases to 10 years and the maximum fine to S$20,000 for each charge. The penalty for intentionally producing child abuse material is a maximum jail term of 10 years and a fine or caning. However, the accused cannot be caned as he is above the age of 50.
CNA
25 minutes ago
- CNA
Fresh US tariffs shake up Asian chip stocks; TSMC and Samsung edge higher
TOKYO: Donald Trump's threat to impose 100 per cent tariffs on semiconductor imports shook up Asian chip firms on Thursday (Aug 7), but sector giants TSMC and Samsung were boosted after he pledged to exempt those who invest in the United States. The US president made his warning ahead of the imposition of sweeping tariffs on goods from dozens of countries, and it comes amid a global race to develop high-end chips used for artificial intelligence. "We'll be putting a tariff of approximately 100 per cent on chips and semiconductors, but if you're building in the United States ... there's no charge," he said at the White House. He did not give a timetable for the new levy being enacted. In Japanese trade, Tokyo Electron, a major producer of chipmaking equipment, plunged 3.2 per cent on the news, while chipmaker Renesas sank 3.4 per cent. Precision tools maker Disco Corporation gave up 1.3 per cent and Sumco, which makes silicon wafers, lost 1.2 per cent. However, Taipei-listed TSMC - the world's largest contract maker of chips, which counts Nvidia and Apple among its clients - soared nearly 5 per cent as Taiwan said it would not be affected by the new tariffs. "Because Taiwan's main exporter is TSMC, which has factories in the United States, TSMC is exempt," National Development Council chief Liu Chin-ching said in parliament. Some Taiwanese chipmakers "will be affected" by the 100 per cent tariff, but their competitors will also face the same levy, he added. TSMC, which is ramping up manufacturing in Arizona, has pledged to invest as much as US$165 billion in the United States, which the firm said in March was the "largest single foreign direct investment in US history". Seoul-listed Samsung, which is also pumping billions into the world's number one economy, rose 2 per cent while South Korean rival SK hynix was also up. "The highest-end semiconductors will be excluded" but "this kills producers of low-end chips", including those based in Malaysia or China, Alicia Garcia-Herrero, chief economist for Asia Pacific at Natixis, told AFP. Arisa Liu, senior semiconductor researcher at the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research, said the announcement "will impact the future strategic direction of global semiconductor companies". "Since the United States is the world's largest player in AI and related high-performance computing, this will have a relatively greater impact on companies involved in advanced processes," she said. But Samsung and TSMC should be eligible for the exemption, she added. Apple-linked firms were also helped after the US giant said it will invest an additional US$100 billion in the United States, taking its total pledge to US$600 billion over the next four years. Foxconn and Pegatron both rose in Taipei. TARIFF TALKS "To some degree this outcome would be something of a relief," said Morgan Stanley analysts. "Yes, 100 per cent tariffs are unpalatable but if companies are given time to restore them, the real tax is just the higher cost of building chips in the United States." Trump's remarks came hours before his wide-ranging "reciprocal" tariffs are set to kick in against trading partners, and after he doubled his levy on India to 50 per cent over its purchase of Russian oil. Fifty per cent tolls on Brazilian goods came into place on Wednesday, with significant exemptions, after Trump targeted Latin America's biggest economy over its prosecution of former president Jair Bolsonaro. Investors are keeping tabs on talks between the White House and New Delhi, as well as other countries, including Switzerland, which was this week hammered with a 39 per cent toll. Asian markets extended their recent run-up and have regained much of last week's losses sparked by the president's tariff announcements and weak US jobs data. Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Seoul and Wellington were all in the green, with Taipei leading the way thanks to the surge in TSMC. The gains followed a strong day on Wall Street, where Apple jumped more than 5 per cent and Amazon piled on 4 per cent. Traders had already been on a buying streak as they grew optimistic that the Fed will cut rates after data last week showed US jobs creation cratered in May, June and July, signalling the economy was weakening. US futures rose on Thursday. Oil prices rose after Trump threatened penalties on other countries that "directly or indirectly" import Russian oil, after imposing his extra toll on India. Still, traders are keeping tabs on developments regarding Moscow and its war in Ukraine after the US president said he could meet with Vladimir Putin "very soon" following what he called highly productive talks between his special envoy and the Russian leader.
CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
Sony hikes profit forecast seeing smaller trade war impact
TOKYO :Sony raised its full-year operating profit forecast on Thursday by 4 per cent to 1.33 trillion yen ($9.01 billion), citing expectations of a smaller impact from U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war. Sony sees a tariff impact of 70 billion yen, compared to 100 billion yen forecast in May. It said the estimated impact is based on tariff rates as of August 1 and that the situation remained fluid. Japanese companies such as Honda Motor have trimmed their expected hit from tariffs amid a reduction in uncertainty with Japan striking a trade deal with the U.S. last month. Sony also said it sees a stronger profit outlook at its games business, boosted by sales of network services and favourable exchange rates. Sony was once well known as a maker of household electronics such as the "Walkman" portable cassette player but has become an entertainment behemoth spanning games, movies and music as well as a leading maker of image sensors for smartphones. The group reported a 36.5 per cent rise in operating profit to 340 billion yen for the April-June quarter, beating the 288 billion yen average of eight analyst estimates compiled by LSEG. Shares in Sony, which announced results during the midday trading break, jumped 5 per cent. Sony sold 2.5 million PlayStation 5 game consoles in the first quarter, a 4 per cent rise compared to the same period a year earlier. Quarterly operating profit at the games business more than doubled to 148 billion yen due to higher sales of network services and games not made by Sony. The console industry was set to receive a boost this year from the launch of "Grand Theft VI" but the latest addition to the popular series has been delayed to 2026. Nintendo, which is seen as a potential beneficiary of GTA 6's delay, last week reported robust early demand for its new Switch 2 gaming device. Elsewhere in the conglomerate, Sony is preparing to cut its stake in its financial unit to less than 20 per cent through a partial spin-off, with the business to list in Tokyo on September 29. ($1 = 147.5700 yen)
