Briefly

SINGAPORE

Crumbling economy brings deep recession

Singapore plunged into recession in the second quarter as the economy contracted more than 40 percent, preliminary data showed on Tuesday, with the trade-dependent city state hammered by the coronavirus in another ominous sign for the global recovery. The economy shrank 41.2 percent quarter-on-quarter and 12.6 percent year-on-year between April and June, according to data from the trade ministry. Analysts said it was the worst quarterly figure for GDP ever recorded in Singapore. It marked the second consecutive quarter of contraction, meaning the country has entered a recession for the first time since 2009, when it was hit hard during the global financial crisis. Singapore is one of the world's most open economies and is seen as a barometer for the health of global trade.

INDIA

IT hub Bengaluru locks down again

India's IT hub Bengaluru, formerly Bangalore, went back into a seven-day lockdown on Tuesday as the number of coronavirus cases in the country surged toward a million. After imposing one of the world's strictest lockdowns in March, India has been steadily easing rules to lessen the huge economic impact. But infections have continued to soar, passing 900,000 on Monday with almost 24,000 deaths, according to health ministry figures. Mumbai and New Delhi have been the worst hit so far, but the southern city of Bengaluru－home to more than 13 million people－has emerged as a new hot spot.

UNITED NATIONS

Guterres concerned by Caucasus clashes

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday expressed deep concern over reports of deadly clashes along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border. According to his spokesman Stephane Dujarric, Guterres called for an immediate end to the fighting and urged all involved to take immediate steps to de-escalate the situation and refrain from provocative rhetoric, Dujarric said in a statement. In the clashes on Sunday and Monday, four Azerbaijani soldiers were killed and at least two Armenian police officers were wounded, according to the defense authorities of the two Caucasus countries.

SOUTH KOREA

Widow of ex-Korean Air boss convicted

The widow of the former Korean Air chairman received a suspended prison sentence on Tuesday for assault and other abuses of her chauffeur, security guard and other employees in a case that extended a bizarre legal saga surrounding the company's founding family. The Seoul Central District Court found Lee Myunghee, 70, guilty of habitual abuse toward helpless "victims who were under her influence" and sentenced her to a two-year prison term suspended by three years. While prosecutors had sought a jail term of two-and-a-half years, the court said it considered Lee's age and that she was acknowledging responsibility.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Arab first eyed with Mars probe launch

The United Arab Emirates plans to make history on Friday with the scheduled launch of the "Hope "mission, which will make it the first Arab nation to send a probe to Mars. A rocket carrying the unmanned spacecraft is due to take off from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center at 5:43 am local time. The Emirati project is one of three racing to Mars, including Tianwen-1 from China and Mars 2020 from the United States, taking advantage of the period when the Earth and Mars are nearest: A mere 55 million kilometers apart. But unlike the two other ventures, the UAE's Mars probe will not land on the Red Planet.

Xinhua - Agencies