CPI for June

Singapore Consumer Price Index (CPI) for June - due to be released at 1pm - is expected to have declined for the 20th straight month as housing and private transportation costs ease. The all-items CPI is expected to have fallen 1.1 per cent in June from a year earlier, according to a Reuters poll. The drop in the CPI was expected to have moderated from May, when the government gave rebates to households that reduced housing maintenance-related costs.

NTU’s convocation ceremony begins

The Nanyang Technological University’s convocation ceremonies for its graduands this year will be held this week, starting on Monday. More than 9,100 of its students are graduating with bachelor’s degrees or higher. This year’s convocation also marks the university’s silver jubilee. NTU was made Singapore’s second public university in 1991.

Asean foreign ministers to have meetings with China

Asean foreign ministers will be having a series of separate meetings with their dialogue partners including China in Vientiane, Laos today. China’s official Xinhua news agency had reported that Chinese leaders are keen to forge a closer relationship with the grouping, especially since this year marks the 25th anniversary of Asean-China ties. However, today’s meetings are clouded by the failure of Asean to find common ground on maritime disputes in the South China Sea at its meeting yesterday.

US national security adviser in China

United States national security adviser Susan Rice is in China today where she is expected to urge Beijing to avoid escalation in the South China Sea, following China’s refusal to recognise an international court’s ruling which invalidated its claim in the disputed waterway earlier this month. Ms Rice will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and other senior government officials where she is also expected to lay the groundwork for US President Barack Obama’s talks with Mr Xi at the G20 summit in China in September.

Duterte’s first State of the Nation address

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will hold his first State of the Nation address this afternoon where he is expected to talk about his plans to combat illegal drugs, crime and corruption in the country. He is also expected to outline his policies for law and order and as well as his administration’s economic agenda. Mr Duterte won the May 9 presidential election by a landslide and took office on June 30, largely on a pledge to kill tens of thousands of narcotics suspects and other criminals, and has urged the police and civilians to help in the killings.

Manchester rivals will meet in Beijing

If the weather permits, and the pitch at the Bird’s Nest in Beijing holds up, Manchester United and Manchester City will meet today in the International Champions Cup in what will be the first Manchester derby outside of the United Kingdom. It will also be the first time that arch-rivals Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola are meeting on opposite ends again. Mourinho and Guardiola had an acrimonious rivalry from 2010 to 2012 when they were in charge of Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively in the Spanish league.

Weather forecast

Thundery showers over many areas in the morning, with temperatures ranging from 24°C to 32°C.