Nation

Preschool curriculum in 2026 to focus on reading practices, says Education Minister

CYBERJAYA: The Preschool Curriculum 2026 will place stronger emphasis on shared reading between parents and children to boost early literacy, said Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek.

Football

Soccer-Man Utd's Mainoo will not pay price for brother's t-shirt, says Amorim

Dec 19 (Reuters) - A 'Free Kobbie Mainoo' t-shirt worn ‌by the Manchester United midfielder's brother will not jeopardise the England international's chances of playing for the Premier League ‌club, coach Ruben Amorim said on Friday.

Singapore

Singapore's AGC issues warning to WP leader Pritam Singh and Mediacorp for contempt of court

Pritam Singh and Mediacorp were on Dec 19 issued warning letters by the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) for contempt of court over the Workers' Party leader's interview with CNA programme The Assembly.

World

What Russian President Putin said at end-of-year press conference

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin held his annual end-of-year press conference on Friday.

Indonesia

Collapse of eFishery haunts Indonesia’s startup scene

Many founders have drawn the same lesson: restraint now carries more weight than inflated promises in the aftermath of the eFishery scandal.

Football

Soccer-Guardiola dismisses Manchester City exit talk ahead of West Ham clash

(removes extraneous word in paragraph nine)

Technology

Paris court rejects French government request to suspend Shein's website for 3 months

PARIS, Dec ‌19 (Reuters) - A Paris court ‌on Friday rejected the French ‌government's request to suspend Shein's website as a whole for three months, ‍saying it would ‍be "disproportionate".

Nation

Govt urged not to slash allowance of medical officers transferred to Sabah, Sarawak

PETALING JAYA: Medical bodies have expressed concerns over the cut in allowance for newly appointed medical officers in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan.

Thailand

Thailand's 2025: Border crisis and natural disasters test governance ahead of election

From border tensions and political transition to natural disasters and a fragile economy, Thailand's 2025 unfolded as a succession of crises that tested governance, institutional resilience and crisis-management capacity.

Cricket

Cricket-England's Barmy Army earns praise for litter-picking

LONDON, Dec 19 (Reuters) - England's ‌Ashes hopes already look destined for the scrap heap ‌but at least their travelling fans, the Barmy Army, ‌are winning praise for keeping the Adelaide Oval clean.

Vietnam

Rising and to rise even further - Vietnam's e-commerce market size estimated at a whopping US$31bil in 2025

Vietnam's e-commerce market size is estimated at around US$31 billion in 2025, accounting for nearly 10 per cent of total retail sales of goods and consumer services, local daily Hanoi Moi reported on Thursday, citing the Ministry of Industry and Trade

Football

Soccer-PSG Intercontinental Cup shootout hero Safonov sidelined with hand fracture

Dec 19 (Reuters) - Paris St Germain ‌goalkeeper Matvey Safonov fractured his hand during the Intercontinental Cup final shootout, the ‌French club said on Friday, with coach Luis Enrique at a loss ‌to explain how the Russian kept on playing.

Football

Soccer-Embattled Alonso wants Real to end 2025 on positive note

Dec 19 (Reuters) - Real Madrid manager Xabi ‌Alonso wants to leave the club's recent struggles behind and end the year on ‌a high with a win over Sevilla on Saturday to keep the pressure on ‌LaLiga leaders Barcelona.

Nation

Dead woman's body too decomposed to determine cause of death, say Negri cops

SEREMBAN: Doctors were unable to establish the cause of death of a 53-year-old woman whose remains were found in a bag and buried behind an unoccupied house in Rembau near here.

Technology

YouTube largely back up after being down for thousands of users, Downdetector shows

Dec 19 (Reuters) - ‌Alphabet's YouTube was largely back up ‌after a brief outage denied ‌access for thousands of users globally on Friday, according to Downdetector.com.

Nation

Melaka police detain 15 foreigners over human trafficking

MELAKA: Fifteen Myanmar nationals, comprising 10 men and five women, were detained on suspicion of involvement in human trafficking and migrant smuggling during an Op Pintas raid at a hotel lobby in Ayer Keroh here on Thursday (Dec 18).

Cambodia

Laos and Cambodia launch second phase of cross-border QR code payments

Cambodia and Laos on Friday launched the second phase of cross-border QR code payments, which allow Lao travellers to shop in Cambodia using their own currency.

Myanmar

Myanmar arrests hundreds under new election law ahead of December vote

Election law criticized for ‌silencing dissent, blocking scrutiny and group highlights misuse of law against journalists, artists and activists.

Technology

Temu-owner PDD Holdings appoints co-CEO Zhao as co-chairman of board

Dec ‌19 (Reuters) - PDD Holdings ‌on Friday appointed ‌co-chief executive officer Jiazhen Zhao as co-chairman ‍of the Temu ‍owner's board, ‌joining the company's other ‍chief ​executive Lei Chen.

Entertainment

Miss Finland stripped of crown after racist photo mocking Asians surfaces

Sarah Dzafce lost her Miss Finland crown last week after a photo of Dzafce pulling the skin at the corners of her eyes posted on social media went viral late last month.