Good morning! Morning Minutes is a round-up of stories that will break on Friday, Sept 30, and which we think you'd be interested in.

It appears on weekdays, available by 7am.

Yang Yin to be sentenced for misappropriation charges

Chinese national Yang Yin is expected to be sentenced today (Sept 30) for misappropriating $1.1 million from an elderly widow - for which the prosecution has asked for a jail term of 10 to 12 years.

Funeral for former Israel president Shimon Peres

Israel's ex-president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Shimon Peres will be laid to rest today (Sept 30). A state funeral will be held, to be attended by world leaders and foreign dignitaries including US President Barack Obama and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean will represent Singapore at the state funeral. Mr Peres died on Wednesday after suffering a major stroke.

17th Investors' Choice Awards dinner presentation ceremony

Ms Indranee Rajah, Senior Minister of State (Law and Finance) will attend the 17th Investors' Choice Awards dinner presentation ceremony tonight (Sept 30). About 800 guests comprising representatives from regulatory bodies and academia, corporate leaders, senior management of the securities and finance industry, and investors are expected to be present at the Securities Investors Association (Singapore) event.

Malaysia manufacturing data out today

Malaysia will release the performance of its manufacturing sector for September today (Sept 30). The Nikkei Manufacturing purchasing managers' index had fallen to 47.4 in August from 48.1 in July, as output and new orders shrank at a faster pace, leading to a quicker decline in payroll numbers and a further reduction in input buying.

The PMI is a composite single-figure indicator of manufacturing performance and is derived from indicators for new orders, output, employment, suppliers' delivery times and stocks of purchases.