Good morning! Morning Minutes is a round-up of stories that will break on Monday, Feb 15, and which we think you'd be interested in.

It appears on weekdays, available by 7am.

US-Asean summit in California begins

United States President Barack Obama will be hosting leaders from the 10-member Asean at the Sunnylands resort in California for a two-day summit starting today (Feb 15), as part of his administration's "rebalance" towards Asia.

Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will be one of the leaders attending the meeting at the 81ha estate, where Mr Obama will spend informal time with them in the first US-hosted meeting with Asean heads of government.

Mr Obama will seek to tighten US presence in the region to counter China's influence amid the Asian giant's claim to a majority of the South China Sea.

Remembering Occupation victims

The Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry will be holding the 49th War Memorial Service today (Feb 15), in remembrance of the victims who perished during the Japanese Occupation of Singapore.

As part of Total Defence Day today, an "all clear" signal will be sounded by the Singapore Civil Defence Force to start the service.

China trade figures out today

China releases its trade figures for January today (Feb 15). December's data offered some relief to observers, as a set of better-than-expected numbers eased concerns about a slowdown in the world's second-largest economy.

Economists say January could show even stronger numbers, due to seasonal factors, before falling back in the following months.