NewsLite

Winter brings the school break and some hard-earned leave, and Thailand is ready for you. Its weather is at its friendliest, and it sits only a short flight away.

A private pool behind your own garden wall is easy to find, and so is a suite where barges drift past the window. They suit honeymooners just as well as parents with little ones in tow.

The lucky part? Thailand’s greenest, gentlest weeks land exactly as your holiday begins.

From around November to mid-February, Bangkok settles into its cooler, drier stretch, and Phuket and Krabi ease toward their dry season.

XPENG has officially launched the L03 in Singapore, following the electric SUV coupe's debut at The Car Expo 2026.

The RWD Plus Long Range is priced from $202,999, while an AWD Ultra variant is set to arrive in the coming months.

The newcomer has already made a strong start here. XPENG says more than 500 units were sold within three weeks of its local debut.

Measuring 4,650mm long, 1,920mm wide and 1,600mm tall, the L03 sits on a 2,850mm wheelbase.

Singapore-based Chinese-American billionaire Leo KoGuan has vowed not to buy more Nvidia shares after scandal-ridden CEO and co-founder Jensen Huang's exit .

The Indonesian-born businessman told Bloomberg: "No further investment without Jensen," claiming that he has invested around US$1.3 billion (S$1.7 billion) in Nvidia.

On Friday (Nov 13), he wrote on X: "I will reduce my plan[ned] investment in Nvidia. Instead, I will invest more in other SI (super-intelligence) companies. I hope and plan to invest in Jensen Huang if he creates or buys [an] SI company.

"I hope he will offer me the opportunity to invest in his future company."

American pop rock band LANY was in Singapore for their Soft concert tour at Singapore Indoor Stadium on Nov 4.

Members Paul Klein and Jake Goss held a fan session on Nov 3, and AsiaOne met them for a backstage interview before the event started.

The duo talked about what they did the last time they were here, shared memorable moments from the tour so far and played a game of 'Who's More Likely?' Watch our interview for more!

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Christmas in Singapore rarely comes with a quiet kitchen and a free afternoon. Between year-end deadlines, school holidays and back-to-back gatherings, the roast is often the last thing anyone has time for. That's where this year's Christmas takeaways come in.

Our pick of Christmas takeaways 2026 in Singapore covers every style of hosting. There are hotel kitchens on Orchard Road and at Marina Bay, a smokehouse in Kent Ridge, a CBD dumpling bar and a neighbourhood bakery. Expect whole roast turkeys and Wagyu tomahawks, a halal-certified spread, buffets that feed twenty, and log cakes worth saving room for.

Most kitchens open pre-orders in November, often with early bird discounts, so it pays to decide early. We'll keep adding to this list as more festive menus are announced.

The green-tiled pagoda roof of Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel has stood over Orchard Road for decades, and its Christmas takeaway menu leans on tradition too, with a few surprises.

MANILA — Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will attend the 49th ASEAN Summit and related summits in Manila from Nov 15 to 17, where regional leaders are expected to discuss regional integration and strengthen economic cooperation amid global challenges.

Themed, "Navigating Our Future, Together," the summit will reaffirm ASEAN's commitment to regional community-building and an open, inclusive regional architecture.

Discussions will also focus on opportunities in the digital and green economies, including measures to enhance energy security and strengthen the region's resilience against external economic shocks, the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement on Saturday (Nov 14).

PM Wong will be accompanied by his wife, Loo Tze Lui, and Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan.

SHANGHAI/BEIJING - GLP-1 drugs from Pfizer and Innovent Biologics will be added to China's state-run health insurance scheme from Jan 1 for patients with type 2 diabetes, the National Healthcare Security Administration said on Saturday (Nov 14), in a fresh challenge to Danish rival Novo Nordisk.

China has the highest number of adults with diabetes in the world, ​according to an estimate by the International Diabetes Federation. Pfizer's ecnoglutide and Innovent's mazdutide belong to the class of GLP-1 ​receptor agonist drugs already included in China's state insurance list from firms such ​as Novo, Eli Lilly and Guangzhou Innogen Pharmaceutical.

Novo's Ozempic joined China's reimbursement list in ​2022, followed by Lilly's Mounjaro and Innogen's efsubaglutide alfa from this year for patients with ​type 2 diabetes. Inclusion in the national reimbursement list makes drugs more widely available ‌in ⁠the country of 1.4 billion people, though an increase in sales volume often comes with lower prices.

The GLP-1 class of weight drugs mimics a gut ⁠hormone to curb appetite and regulate blood sugar in patients with diabetes.

BEIJING - China and the United States discussed tariff cuts, agricultural trade and other issues at their first trade council meeting on Friday (Nov 13), China's Commerce Ministry said on Saturday, days ahead of an expected leaders' meeting in Shenzhen next week.

"The two sides held candid, in-depth and constructive exchanges on implementing the outcomes of previous China-US economic and trade talks, including tariffs, a reciprocal 'US$30 billion-for-US$30 billion' tariff-cut arrangement, agricultural trade and other issues of mutual concern," the ministry said.

It did not say whether any agreements were reached. Both sides will continue using the council to address trade concerns, expand co-operation and reduce outstanding issues, the ministry added.

Following a September summit between Presidents Xi Jinping and Donald Trump in Washington, the two sides proposed a US$60 billion (S$77 billion) package of reciprocal tariff cuts, including roughly US$17 billion worth of US farm goods that China imported in 2024, but the plan has yet to be finalised.

Avril Lavigne has welcomed a baby girl.

The 42-year-old singer has taken to social media to announce the arrival of her daughter, sharing a series of black-and-white photos of her little girl on Instagram.

The chart-topping star - who has not yet identified the baby's father - wrote on the photo-sharing platform: "Our mini f***ing princess has arrived."

Among the carousel of photos is one showing Avril cradling her daughter. Another snap features three pairs of Vans sneakers on a skateboard, a reference to Avril's 2002 hit single Sk8er Boi.

MANILA - Leaders of the US, Japan, Australia and India are expected to meet on Tuesday (Nov 17) on the sidelines of a key Asian meeting in Manila, two people familiar with the planning said, marking the first summit of the Quad nations in two years.

The Quad group of Indo-Pacific powers is widely considered a counterweight to China's growing influence in the region, although its members have said the grouping is not directed against any one country.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated last month that the Quad leaders could meet on the sidelines of the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which begins on Sunday in the Philippine capital.

The supply of critical minerals is expected to be on the Quad summit agenda, one of the people said.