Good morning! Morning Minutes is a round-up of stories that will break today and which we think you'd be interested in.
It appears on weekdays, available by 7am.
National Library's French Corner to have more than 1,000 titles
Fans of French literature will be delighted by the launch of the French Corner by the National Library Board. It will have more than 1,000 books, from classics by Voltaire and Victor Hugo to more contemporary ones such as titles by novelist Patrick Modiano. The books will be translated into the four official languages of Singapore. - CALVIN YANG
Eating legumes not associated with gout risk, study finds
The eating of soy foods and legumes is not associated with increased gout risk, contrary to popular belief. This conclusion is based on a study of 63,275 people in Singapore aged between 45 and 74 by academics from the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School Singapore, the NUS Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health and the National University Hospital. - KASH CHEONG
New Johor data centre hopes to attract Singapore SMEs
Johor Menteri Besar Khaled Nordin will open today a data centre beside Senai Airport, Johor, owned by a Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary company Puncak Semangat. The RM150 million (S$55.5 million) data centre, which has Fujitsu as an anchor tenant, hopes to lure Singapore SMEs to base their data storage there. - REME AHMAD
Accounting associations to sign partnership agreement
The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA) will be inking a partnership agreement in anticipation of Singapore's transformation into a leading global accountancy hub by 2020. ACCA chief executive Helen Brand and ISCA chief executive Lee Fook Chiew will provide details at a media briefing this afternoon. - ARIEL LIM
Netanyahu faces uphill task to form government
Time is ticking for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is scrambling to form a stable governing coalition by midnight today. He must bank on the right-wing Jewish Home party to secure a razor-thin majority after the sudden decision of a former ally not to join his government. Yet, to forge a coalition with this party is not easy in view of Mr Netanyahu's strained relationship with its leader, Economy Minister Naftali Bennett.
If the Prime Minister fails to form a coalition by the deadline, President Reuven Rivlin must then assign another party leader to the task, with a 28-day deadline.
