Brunei recorded 1,393 new COVID-19 cases yesterday, bringing the national tally of confirmed cases to 126,109. Of the new cases, 1,215 were from antigen rapid test (ART) results uploaded to the BruHealth app, while 178 were from 1,551 RT-PCR laboratory tests performed in the past 24 hours.
The country also recorded three COVID-19 fatalities where the cases were not categorised as deaths due to COVID-19.
The latest COVID-19 updates were shared by Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah at a press conference yesterday.
In light of the fatalities, Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew said, “On behalf of the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the people of Brunei Darussalam, I would like to express our deepest condolences to the cases’ families. May their families be given patience in their passing and may their souls receive blessings and be placed among the pious.”
Meanwhile, the current number of cases in Category 4 stand at 11, while the five cases are in Category 5. The number of cases in Category 4 and Category 5 at this time is 6.2 per cent of the treatment capacity of Categories 4 and 5 at the National Isolation Centre (NIC).
Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II Dato Seri Setia Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah and Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Health Haji Maswadi bin Haji Mohsin at the press conference. PHOTO: JAMES KON
The minister also shared 2,314 cases have recovered, bringing the tally of recovered cases to 113,654 with 12,262 active cases.
At present, the bed occupancy rate in isolation centres nationwide is 5.4 per cent where 195 active cases are placed at isolation centres and hospitals. Some 12,065 positive cases are undergoing home self-isolation.
As of March 20, 59.8 per cent of the population has received three doses under the National COVID-19 Vaccination Programme.
No violations were found during the movement restriction from midnight to 4am yesterday.
Permanent Secretary at the MoH Haji Maswadi bin Haji Mohsin was also present.
MADRID (AFP) – Xavi Hernandez said Barcelona’s 4-0 thrashing of Real Madrid could be transformative for the club after their Clasico demolition at the Santiago Bernabeu early yesterday.
Barcelona blew Madrid away as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice either side of goals from Ronald Araujo and Ferran Torres.
The match was billed as a test of Barca’s progress under Xavi and they passed with flying colours, a humiliation of their fiercest rivals suggesting they are primed to challenge again for La Liga next season.
“It can change the dynamics of the present and the future,” said Xavi. “We had lots of chances and we were much better than Madrid, far superior. We deserved to score so many goals.” Asked if Barcelona are back, Xavi said, “It can be. This is the right path.”
And while the result might have little bearing on the title race this term, a defeat of this magnitude, at home, and against Barcelona, will cause serious reverberations at Real Madrid.
It will go down with other historic Clasico thrashings, like when Barca won 6-2 at Real Madrid in 2009 under Pep Guardiola or 5-0 at home two years later.
Barcelona’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang lobs the ball to score his side’s fourth goal against Real Madrid’s goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois during the La Liga match at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid. PHOTO: AP
Questions will be asked about Carlo Ancelotti’s future, with Madrid outplayed tactically and technically by Xavi’s Barca, who were faster, slicker and, perhaps most worryingly, could easily have won by more. “We played badly and I planned the game badly,” said Ancelotti.
“I am sorry for the defeat and I am sad. But we have to keep it in perspective.”
Madrid were admittedly without the injured Karim Benzema and Ferland Mendy while there could have been a degree of complacency, given they kicked off nine points clear at the top of the table after Sevilla were held to a goalless draw by Real Sociedad.
But none of that will excuse a loss as dramatic as this one, the only relief now that a resurgent Barcelona are still 12 points behind, albeit with a game in hand.
Aubameyang’s double means he now has nine goals in 11 games for Barcelona and the Gabon striker is looking like a superb January signing.
Pedri was outstanding again too – but this was a night for the bigger picture, as Barcelona’s revival made its biggest statement so far.
When Barca were beaten by Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup in January, the Catalans were criticised for celebrating the manner of their narrow defeat.
“We are getting closer,” said Gerard Pique.
After five consecutive losses to Madrid, a win of any kind was the next step for Barca but a hammering like this could be transformative, delivering a huge boost to confidence, vindication of Xavi’s project and optimism for next season all in one fell swoop.
Shortly after the final whistle here, Pique tweeted: “We are back.”
Eder Militao clattered Pedri in the opening minute and that was about as close as Real Madrid got to him all game.
Soon, the chances started coming for Barca as Ferran Torres pulled back for Aubameyang but he scuffed straight at Thibaut Courtois, who then had to palm wide a curling effort from Ousmane Dembele. Barca’s dominance was growing and in the 29th minute they scored, Dembele racing round the outside of Nacho Fernandez and crossing for Aubameyang to head in.
Vinicius Junior might have changed the game if he had converted after being sent through but a heavy touch allowed Marc-Andre ter Stegen to save.
Instead, Barcelona doubled their lead when Ronald Araujo headed in from a corner before half-time and after it, the humiliation began.
David Alaba and Militao both committed themselves to sliding tackles and both missed, Aubameyang executing a superb flicked pass to Torres, who made no mistake.
Worse was to come, as Pique’s ball over the top allowed Aubameyang to scoop in a brilliant finish for a fourth in the 51st minute. Madrid thought they were spared by the offside flag but VAR intervened and the goal stood.
Aubameyang, Torres and Dembele could all have furthered the embarrassment for Madrid, the latter poking wide after skipping in behind and holding off Militao.
By then, Aubameyang had gone off, the victory already complete and the stadium quickly emptying.
BEIJING (AP) – Global stock markets were mixed yesterday after Wall Street’s biggest weekly gain in 16 months as investors watched efforts to negotiate an end to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Oil prices gained over USD4 per barrel.
London, Paris and Shanghai gained while Hong Kong and Seoul slipped. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.
Wall Street futures were lower after the benchmark S&P 500 index rose on Friday as markets appeared to welcome the Federal Reserve’s attempt to fight surging inflation by raising its key interest rate.
Investors watched efforts to mediate a settlement to Russia’s attack, which pushed up oil prices and added to uncertainty about the global economic outlook.
“It appears that there is a 50-50 chance of continuing with the pick-up in market sentiments,” Tan Boon Heng of Mizuho Bank said in a report.
In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London rose 0.3 per cent to 7,425.08. The DAX in Frankfurt gained 0.2 per cent to 14,434.00. The CAC 40 in Paris was little-changed at 6,619.12.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 future was off 0.1 per cent and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.2 per cent.
People walk past a bank’s electronic board showing the Hong Kong share index at Hong Kong Stock Exchange. PHOTO: AP
On Friday, the S&P 500 gained 1.2 per cent, adding to a streak that included two days of two per cent gains. The Dow advanced 0.8 per cent and the Nasdaq composite added two per cent. The three indexes had their best week since November 2020.
In Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index gained less than 0.1 per cent to 3,253.69.
The Hang Seng in Hong Kong fell 0.9 per cent to 21,221.34. Hong Kong-traded shares in China Eastern Airlines, a major mainland China-based carrier, sank 6.5 per cent shortly before the market closed after state media reported that a flight with 132 people aboard had crashed into mountain in southern China, setting off a hill fire. The Civil Aviation Administration of China confirmed the crash. There was no immediate word on casualties.
The Kospi in Seoul lost 0.8 per cent to 2,686.05 after the government reported exports in the first 20 days of March were up 10.1 per cent from a year earlier. Semiconductor exports rose 30.8 per cent while autos fell 18.1 per cent due to supply bottlenecks.
The figures “hinted at a continuation of the global recovery but also pointed to downside risks from global supply chain disruptions”, said Min Koo Kang of ING in a report.
Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 declined 0.2 per cent to 7,278.50 and India’s Sensex retreated 0.8 per cent to 57,409.90.
New Zealand, Singapore and Jakarta gained while Bangkok retreated.
Russia’s attack added to investor unease about the Fed and other central banks withdrawing stimulus that has pushed up share prices.
Last week, Fed Chair Jerome Powell expressed confidence the economy is strong enough to withstand higher interest rates.
On Sunday, Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said Ukraine and Russia are close to an agreement on “fundamental issues” after he travelled to both countries to meet his counterparts.
Cavusoglu said in return for its neutrality, Ukraine wants Turkey, Germany and the five permanent members of the United Nations (UN) Security Council to act as guarantors.
Also yesterday, Disney Co closed its Shanghai theme park as the city tried to control its biggest coronavirus flareup in two years. The southern business centre of Shenzhen allowed shops and offices to reopen after a weeklong closure.
China’s case numbers in its latest infection wave are low compared with other major countries, but authorities are enforcing a “zero tolerance” strategy that suspended access to some major cities
In energy markets, benchmark United States (US) crude rose USD4.50 to USD107.59 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the price basis for international oil trading, gained USD4.32 to USD112.25 per barrel in London.
The dollar rose to JPY119.25 from Friday’s JPY119.13. The euro retreated to USD1.1042 from USD1.1047.
The second session of the International Malay Language, Literature and Culture Congress Series (KABSBM) in conjunction with the Language Month organised by the Language and Literature Bureau (DBP) was live streamed via the Dewan Bahasa dan Pusatak Brunei Facebook and Zoom application yesterday.
Some 150 individuals attended the event including Acting Permanent Secretary (Strategy and Policy Management) at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports (MCYS) Dr Siti Norkhalbi binti Haji Wahsalfelah, as well as recipients of the Southeast Asian Writers’ Award, DBP strategic partners, senior government officers and language lovers from within and outside the country.
Dr Rusmadi bin Baharudin from DBP Malaysia presented a paper on Kamus Dewan Perdana: Mengharkatkan Perkamusan Melayu ke Persada Leksikografi Dunia in the second session of KABSBM series in the field of language. Among the topics discussed were language codification or language construction that aims to strengthen a language in terms of the system as a whole, namely spelling, pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary terms and language adjustment.
Dictionaries also serve as a reservoir of information, which is an important part of language construction, development and standardisation.
The second segment of the presentation looked at the history of how the Dewan Perdana Dictionary project emerged which has been successfully undertaken by the Language and Literature Bureau, Malaysia.
It is estimated that over 120,000 entries and subentries consist of general words, special nouns and so on.
Acting Permanent Secretary (Strategy and Policy Management) at the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports Dr Siti Norkhalbi binti Haji Wahsalfelah and attendees at the session. PHOTO: DBP
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate Judiciary Committee began historic confirmation hearings yesterday for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who would be the first Black woman on the Supreme Court.
Barring a significant misstep by the 51-year-old Jackson, a federal judge for the past nine years, Democrats who control the Senate by the slimmest of margins intend to wrap up her confirmation before Easter.
Jackson presented an opening statement yesterday afternoon, then answer questions from the committee’s 11 Democrats and 11 Republicans over the next two days. She will be introduced by Thomas B Griffith, a retired judge for the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and Lisa M Fairfax, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.
Jackson appeared before the same committee last year, after President Joe Biden chose her to fill an opening on the federal appeals court in Washington, just down the hill from the Supreme Court.
Her testimony will give most Americans, as well as the Senate, their most extensive look yet at the Harvard-trained lawyer with a resume that includes two years as a federal public defender. That makes her the first nominee with significant criminal defence experience since Thurgood Marshall, the first Black American to serve on the nation’s highest court.
SHANGHAI (CNA) – Microsoft Corp’s Bing, the only major foreign search engine available in China, said a “relevant government agency” required it to suspend its auto-suggest function in China for seven days.
The suspension marks the second of its kind for Bing since December, and arrives amid an ongoing crackdown on technology platforms and algorithms from Beijing.
Chinese Internet users first spotted the suspension on Saturday.
“Bing is a global search platform and remains committed to respecting the rule of law and users’ right to access information,” Bing said on its Chinese search site.
Bing did not specify a reason for the suspension. Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Internet companies in China have been hit over the past year by a regulatory crackdown that imposed fresh curbs on areas from content to customer privacy.
In August, Beijing’s top cyber regulator published draft rules dictating how Internet platforms can and cannot make use of algorithms.
A finalised version of the rules came into effect this month.
A smartphone with the Microsoft Bing logo is displayed against the backdrop of the China flag. PHOTO: CNA
LONDON (AFP) – Liverpool and Manchester City’s bid for historic trophy-winning hauls will clash in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley next month after coming through their last eight ties in differing fashion early yesterday.
City finally got the better of Southampton at the third attempt this season with a 4-1 win, while Liverpool needed a late Diogo Jota strike to see off Championship side Nottingham Forest 1-0.
Forest had dumped out holders Leicester and Arsenal on their run to the last eight and could easily have caused another shock had the fine margins gone their way at the City Ground.
“It was a proper cup match,” said Klopp. “I know they don’t get anything for it, but a massive compliment to them, they played a really good game.”
Klopp made seven changes with Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Andy Robertson among those rested and it showed in a ragged Liverpool performance.
Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling celebrates with Jack Grealish after scoring his side’s first goal against Southampton. PHOTO: APManchester City manager Pep Guardiola. PHOTO: AP
Roberto Firmino should have put the Reds in front before the break when he tried to dink the ball over Ethan Horvath with just the goalkeeper to beat, but it was Forest who had the better chances after the break.
Philip Zinckernagel missed the best of them 14 minutes from time when he slotted wide Brennan Johnson’s inviting cross.
Three minutes later, Jota showed the Forest forwards how it is done as he stretched to meet Kostas Tsimikas’ cross for his 19th goal of the season.
Still the home side could have taken the game to extra time as Ryan Yates headed straight into the arms of Alisson Becker and had a penalty appeal turned down as he rounded the Brazilian goalkeeper.
But Liverpool held on to book a meeting with City when one side’s quest for history will come to an end.
City are aiming to match Manchester United’s historic feat in 1998/99 of winning the treble of Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup, while Liverpool, who trail Pep Guardiola’s men by one point at the top of the table, are aiming to go one better by adding those three trophies to the League Cup they won in February.
Despite a more resounding scoreline, City also struggled for the first hour at St Mary’s as a Southampton side that held the English champions twice in the league this season caused them problems once more.
“We started really well and then we forgot to play,” said Guardiola. “We know it’s so difficult because Southampton are one of the best organised teams.”
Adam Armstrong hit the post early on for the Saints, but just seconds later Raheem Sterling opened the scoring with a cool finish from Gabriel Jesus’ pass.
Ilkay Gundogan then hit the woodwork for City, but Southampton got the equaliser their first-half performance deserved when Aymeric Laporte deflected Mohamed Elyounoussi’s cross into his own net. With the tie delicately poised, Southampton’s good work was undone when Mohammed Salisu needlessly dived in on Jesus to concede a penalty.
Fraser Forster got a hand to Kevin De Bruyne’s spot-kick but could not keep it out.
City’s strength in depth off the bench then took the game away from the hosts as substitutes Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez produced lethal finishes to round off the scoring.
Crystal Palace will face Chelsea in the other semi-final after thrashing struggling Everton 4-0.
“Going to Wembley is fantastic,” said Palace coach Patrick Vieira.
DUMAS, ARKANSAS (AP) – One man was killed and 27 people were wounded when two people got into a gunfight during a car show that’s part of an annual community event in a small southeast Arkansas town, authorities said on Sunday.
A person who left the scene of the Saturday evening shooting has been arrested on unrelated charges and is being questioned about the shooting in Dumas, a city of about 4,000 located about 90 miles south of Little Rock, Arkansas State Police Col Bill Bryant said.
“All we know at this time, there was two individuals that got in a gunfight,” Bryant said at a Sunday afternoon news conference.
He said several children were among the wounded, including two under the age of two.
The car show is part of a community event held each spring called Hood-Nic, which is short for neighbourhood picnic. The Hood-Nic Foundation said on its website that its mission is to “rebuild, reunite, and respond to the needs of the youth in our communities.”
The event, which helps raise funds for scholarships and school supplies, also included a bonfire, a basketball tournament, musical performances, a teen party and a balloon release.
“The purpose of Hood-Nic has always been to bring the community together,” the foundation said on its Facebook page. “This senseless violence needs to end.”
Cameron Shaffer, 23, of Jacksonville, Arkansas, was killed in the gunfire, Bryant said. He said authorities have no indication that he was involved in the gunfight.
Earlier in the day, Governor Asa Hutchinson said on Twitter that one of the two suspects had been arrested and was being held on unrelated charges.
Crime scene tape lies at the scene of the shooting in Dumas. PHOTO: AP
Some 280,000 antigen rapid test (ART) kits have been and will be distributed to citizens and residents of Brunei Darussalam registered under the National Welfare System (SKN), Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of Finance and Economy II said at the daily press conference yesterday.
In response to a question regarding the COVID-19 fatality recorded, Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Amin Liew said compared to neighbouring countries, the Sultanate recorded the lowest number of fatalities. “As announced last Sunday, nine deaths were recorded in which out of the total figure, two were due to COVID-19 while the other seven were not due to the pandemic. The two cases had not received their vaccination, while the seven had prior medical conditions.”
The minister said that in efforts to reduce the number of COVID-19 fatalities, the public is encouraged to get their vaccinations and boosters. He also advised the public to look after their health to prevent or reduce the fatality risk either due to COVID-19 or not.
SINGAPORE (CNA) – The Singapore Hotel Association (SHA) and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) launched a new hotel sustainability roadmap yesterday, with two key targets for the industry.
The first is for hotels in Singapore to commence tracking of emissions by 2023 and reduce emissions by 2030, with a view to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.
The second target is that by 2025, 60 per cent of hotel rooms in Singapore – up from the less than 10 per cent currently – should attain internationally recognised hotel sustainability certification.
The roadmap is in line with the Singapore Green Plan 2030 and sets out “clear targets and strategies” for hotels to adopt in their sustainability journey, said SHA and STB in a media factsheet.
This in turn will allow the industry to contribute to sustainable development goals, capture new opportunities presented by the Green Economy, strengthen enterprise resilience, and tap new visitor segments, they noted.
Speaking at the Marina Bay Sands Convention Centre where the Hotel Sustainability Conference and Marketplace was held, Minister of State for Trade and Industry Alvin Tan described the roadmap as the culmination of a public-private partnership under SHA’s Hotel Sustainability Committee (HSC).
“The hotel sustainability roadmap charts out a clear industry-wide sustainability vision,” he said.
People view the city skyline from the Marina Bay Sands SkyPark in Singapore. PHOTO: AFP
“Our goal is to help industry players to make sustainability an integral part of your operations and to help you gain a competitive advantage through your sustainability efforts.”
This means supporting hotels to develop “holistic” sustainability plans that are in line with internationally recognised standards, he explained.
STB will also work with the hotel industry on clear and quantifiable emissions targets, noted Tan.
“Through the roadmap, STB and SHA envision a hotel industry that integrates sustainability as a core value across the entire hotel ecosystem, is established as a living lab and uses sustainability to drive business competitiveness and growth, and is recognised as a leader in environmental sustainability in the region,” added SHA and STB.
The roadmap is endorsed by the HSC, which was set up in March 2020 to drive industry-wide adoption of sustainability practices in hotels to promote Singapore as a sustainable destination.
The committee is made up of members from the hotel industry and representatives from the public sector.
To help hotels achieve these targets, the roadmap lays out four strategies and related initiatives.
The first is raising sustainability standards and striving towards internationally recognised sustainability certification by a number of solutions.
Other strategies include test-bedding and adopting innovative sustainable solutions, developing sustainable hotel concepts and experiences in Singapore and raising awareness of the industry’s sustainability efforts and promoting sustainable consumption habits among hotel guests.
STB and SHA have also identified four focus areas to green hotel operations, to ensure that sustainability efforts drive impactful environmental outcomes.
These areas are water conservation, waste management, recycling and circular economy, sustainable sourcing and procurement as well as energy conservation.
“This roadmap is also another significant step forward that we have taken forward towards greening our tourism sector which has been hard hit by the pandemic,” said Tan.
“But I hope that it can guide hotels to chart and achieve ambitious sustainability goals, and inspire this change, that the hotel industry can lead the efforts in other tourism sectors and other tourism businesses.”
