The UN’s mixed review of human rights in Singapore, the rise of local talents and this year’s crappy job market—read on for a quick round-up of the city's burgeoning (and dying) trends.

Photo credit: Kampong Glam, Global Panorama

Hot: Our social values
Not: Our social values

In a speech to over 500 religious and community leaders, academics and students, Minister for Home Affairs and Law K Shanmugam emphasized the importance of religious and racial harmony in Singapore amid the international threat of terrorism. While we’re glad that Singapore is doing something about the rising issue of Islamophobia, a recent UN review of our human rights had delegates from 15 countries calling for the elimination of the death penalty, caning, detention without trial and criminalizing sex between men, which is seen by LGBT groups here as a discriminatory law against the community.

 Photo credit: Max Tan, The Orchard Road Business Association

Hot: Local designers
Not: Singapore’s retail scene

It's been a past year of foreboding reports about Singapore's weakening retail sector, and just last week, an article in The Straits Times (Jan 21) suggested that retail sales will continue to be a challenge, even for luxury brands. But not all is lost: there are still a couple of local fashion and lifestyle ventures launching stores at slick locations in town, such as veteran fashion designer Thomas Wee, independent lifestyle store Supermama and local designer Sabrina Goh, joining others like womenswear label In Good Company and regional multi-designer store Mporium.

Photo credit: Whitegrass, Fish & Co.

Hot: Sexy new restaurant openings
Not: Fish & Co.

Singapore’s food scene is bursting at the seams with more exciting openings like Angeleno, Whitegrass and Naughty Nuri’s. Plus, with rumours that Gordon Ramsay may be opening another restaurant here in the future, it seems like we’re on a roll. In other news, mass seafood chain Fish & Co. is exiting its ‘iconic’ and popular glass house premises at Park Mall in June after nearly 14 years there.

Photo credit: Robert Scoble, jo.sau

Hot: Google’s hiring blitz
Not: Unemployment

Hang on to your jobs people, because this year’s employment market looks set to be a tight one, with the lowest growth recorded in 14 years, according to a report in The Straits Times. But if you’re still planning to quit that dead-end position, you might want to hustle over to Google—the mega corporation is planning to set up a Singapore engineering hub and is expanding its software engineering team.