Social conditions and trends

Millions of Spaniards stage first general strike in 14 years as anger over housing leads to clashes

Workers endured stormy weather to set up picket lines, with large marches taking place in Madrid (above), Barcelona and cities across Spain.

Sony rewinds to the Walkman era with US$60 wired headphones

The US$60 (S$77) MDR-3R is inspired by the pair that Sony shipped alongside the original Walkman in 1979.

Are chocolate bear cubs France’s new macarons?

Chocolate-covered marshmallow bear cubs – “oursons au chocolat” – are exciting taste buds across France.

Japan sticker craze meets politics as PM Takaichi-themed sets are a hit

The National Diet Friends sticker set, featuring cartoon designs of figures such as Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, has surprisingly become popular.

Pranksters fake US$10 theft from struggling Minnesota dad – viewers raise over US$250,000 for him

An employee of frozen-food maker Red Baron in Minnesota, identified only as Walt Z, berating a pair of pranksters.

Labubu loses its bite as Pop Mart’s quarterly sales plunge up to 50%

Pop Mart has described 2026 as “a year of adjustment”, as the Labubu fad dims and hits its bottom line.

Field Notes from Tokyo

The enduring intimacy of writing by hand in digital Japan

Kengo Hirose, 21, opened the by-reservation-only Mechanical Pencil Museum in Kyoto. It displays rare, discontinued models from the 1960s to 1980s.

Squeeze into those skinny jeans: Millennial culture is back

The new millennial moment may be the most powerful wave of nostalgia yet, reaching more people than ever before.

NEA to offer ferry services for scattering of cremated remains at sea from second half of 2027

Nicky Teo of Funeral Solutions, a private operator for sea burials, with items used in the process.

1 in 3 middle-aged women in S’pore had anxiety symptoms; more distressed less likely to seek help: Survey

Around 33.5% of middle-aged women surveyed showed symptoms consistent with anxiety, and 21.8% showed symptoms consistent with depression.

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MDDI (P) 046/10/2025. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No.202120748H. Copyright © 2026 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.