As Trump, Kim gear up for historic summit, here's what to watch out for

President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un begin their historic summit Tuesday in Singapore, a meeting that could lead to peace between countries that have technically been at war for 68 years -- or swiftly end in new recriminations. Trump has said the public will be able to tell how the summit goes by what he says afterward. 

If he resumes talking about his “maximum pressure” campaign to squeeze Kim’s regime, he said Thursday, “you’ll know the negotiation did not do well.” It would’ve been hard to imagine the two leaders reaching this point just nine months ago. Trump labeled the North Korean leader “Little Rocket Man” in a speech to the UN General Assembly. Kim then called Trump a “mentally deranged U. S. dotard” and a “frightened dog.” They threatened each other with nuclear war. The stakes remain dizzyingly high and the developments are likely to come rapid-fire. Here’s a reader’s guide to some of Bloomberg’s best analysis, commentary, and breaking news ahead of the Trump-Kim summit:

To survive Trump's trade war, take refuge in a humble Singapore shophouse

As a hiding place from President Donald Trump’s trade war against China, a cozy corner of Singapore’s real estate holds much appeal.

A two- or three-story terrace close to the city’s central business district, home quite often to a wine bar or gastro pub at street level with a massage spa or music lounge tucked away upstairs, has been in bigger demand this year than industrial sheds.

Shophouses are mixed-use buildings constructed between the 1840s and the 1960s that formed the majority of the pre-World War II urban fabric of the old city center. Deals of more than S$5 million ($3.7 million) for these conservation dwellings increased 281 percent from a year earlier to a record S$478.6 million in the first quarter, according to Colliers International Group Inc. The broker attributes the surge to strong demand from local and foreign high-net-worth individuals, as well as property funds and investment firms.

Singapore likely to be the venue for Trump-Kim meeting in June

US President Donald Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong Un are likely to meet in Singapore next month, reports said Monday, as anticipation builds for unprecedented talks between the mercurial leaders.

Trump said at the weekend that the two sides had settled on a date and location for the summit -- the first between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader -- without providing details.

"We'll be announcing it soon," Trump told reporters. The landmark summit will take place in "mid-June", South Korea's Chosun Ilbo daily reported Monday, citing diplomatic sources who quoted Trump's National Security Advisor John Bolton.

The newspaper suggested that the possibility of Singapore hosting the landmark meeting had "increased greatly", after a decision by Trump to host South Korean president Moon Jae-in at the White House later this month, without giving further explanation.

Bolton met his South Korean counterpart Chung Eui-yong in Washington late last week to discuss plans for both locations, according to local media reports.

A similar report on the weekend from South Korea's Yonhap news agency also said Singapore was firming as the favoured location for the summit.

Priyanka and I have 'completely forgiven' father's killers: Rahul Gandhi

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said that he and his sister Priyanka Gandhi have "completely forgiven" his father Rajiv Gandhi's killers. During his interaction with IIM alumni in Singapore, Gandhi, when asked if he and his sister Priyanka had forgiven his father's killers, said: "We were very upset and hurt and for many years we were quite angry. But, somehow, completely...in fact, completely (forgiven)."

"There is a history that when one realises that when these events take place, it's collision of ideas, forces, confusion. That's where you get caught. I remember when I saw Mr Prabhakaran on TV lying dead, I got two feelings - one was why they are humiliating this man in this way.

"And second was I felt really bad for him and for his kids and I did that because I understood deeply what it meant to be on the other side of that thing. So to me when I see violence regardless of who it is, I know that there is a human being behind that, there is a family behind that, a kid crying behind that. I have been through a lot of pain to get this and it is something I consider very valuable. I find it difficult to hate people, even my sister does," he said.

Hackers already targeting 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics: McAfee report

Hackers have already begun targeting the Pyeongchang Olympic Games with malware-infected emails which may be aimed at stealing passwords or financial information, researchers have said.

The security firm McAfee said in a report that several organisations associated with the Olympics had received the malicious email with the primary target being groups affiliated with ice hockey.

"The majority of these organizations (targeted) had some association with the Olympics, either in providing infrastructure or in a supporting role," the McAfee report said.

"The attackers appear to be casting a wide net with this campaign."

In the attacks, which began as early as December 22, emails were "spoofed" to make them appear to come from South Korea's National Counter-Terrorism Center, which was in the process of conducting antiterror drills in the region in preparation for the Games.

McAfee said the emails came in fact from an address in Singapore, and instructed the readers to open a text document in Korean.

The document was titled "Organized by Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Pyeongchang Winter Olympics," according to the report.
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How diamonds can become 'the new gold' for investors

Diamonds can at last be an investor's best friend, the Singapore Diamond Investment Exchange (SDIX) said on Tuesday, as it launched a new standardised form of the precious stones to rival gold ingots as a safe-haven alternative to cash.

The industry says diamonds are the world's most concentrated form of wealth, but investors have long viewed them as less useful as a store of value than gold because each stone is different, making its value subjective and trading difficult.

Alain Vandenborre, chairman and founder of SDIX, says technology has solved that problem and diamonds can now become "the new gold".

Diamond Bullion, produced by the Singapore Diamond Mint, is a collection of investment grade diamonds whose value can be quickly checked. Denominations will initially range between $100,000 and $200,000, with higher and lower values possible in future.

The diamonds are stored in a credit card-sized device containing a chip that allows immediate valuation based on exchange trading and instant authentication, which is crucial as synthetic diamonds have no resale value.
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Singapore Airlines launches A350 from Mumbai

The Singapore Airlines group, which operates 175 weekly flights out of India, including 17 from the city, is replacing its ageing Boeing 777 fleet with the modern A350s in the Mumbai-Singapore sector from Saturday.

The airline group, which way back in 1992 had tried to enter the country with the Tatas and has since then tied up with same group and operates Vistara, refused to speculate on whether it is interested in the national carrier Air India, which has been put on block for privatisation.

"As a policy we don't respond to market speculation," was all Singapore Airlines India general manager David Lim would say when sought his views on the government's move to disinvest the debt-ridden airline and whether his group will be interested in the same.

The aviation policy allows 49 per cent ownership by foreign carriers in domestic airlines. The details of the Air India divestment is not clear.

He also announced discount fares as part of Singapore Airlines' 70th anniversary, starting from Rs 22,070, to the city-state in the new aircraft beginning tomorrow.

Singapore Airlines, on its own, operates over 55 flights a week from India, while the group, that comprises Silk Air, Scoot and Tiger Air, operates the rest connecting 15 cities in the country.

The new 253-seater wide-body plane, which is the youngest aircraft in the industry now, will have 42 business class seats, 24 premium economy and 187 economy seats, while the 777 was carrying 263 passengers.
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