Indonesian Speaker to appear in court

Indonesia's House of Representatives Speaker and graft suspect Setya Novanto appears in court today for a pre-trial hearing.

Novanto, the suspended chairman of the Golkar Party which props up President Joko Widodo's ruling coalition, might resign if the court holds up his status as a suspect and allows the case to proceed.

Santa Claus at Gardens by the Bay

The real Santa Claus will be making a pit stop in Singapore to meet young children this holiday season. From today, Father Christmas, all the way from Lapland in Finland - considered the unofficial home of the real Santa Claus - will drop by the Flower Dome at Gardens by the Bay to meet those who have been both naughty and nice. He will also be meeting young beneficiaries from welfare organisations during his 11-day stay here.

Australia to release trade data

Australia will issue its trade figures for October this morning, a day after announcing that its economy expanded at the fastest annual pace in over a year, of 2.8 per cent last quarter.

Yesterday's data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that gross domestic product grew by 0.6 per cent in the third quarter, slowing from the previous quarter, when it rose 0.9 per cent.