Our editors will be looking ahead today to these developing stories ...
Vladimir Putin steps up to a changed world
Vladimir Putin takes office for a third term as Russian president at a pivotal moment in its post-Soviet history, with his supporters expecting landmark reform but the opposition fearing stagnation. Sworn in at a grand ceremony in the Kremlin, he returns to the post he held from 2000-08 - but now ruling a Russia changed by the outburst of mass protests against the authorities. Outgoing President Dmitry Medvedev, mocked as a mere Kremlin seat-warmer for the past four years, is expected to take on Putin's current position, prime minister, in a job swap that has angered the protesters.
First accumulator case goes to court
Hearings on Hong Kong's first commercial dispute over the sale of accumulator financial products begin in the High Court. DBS Bank (Hong Kong) is seeking repayment of HK$90 million from investor Hao Ting after the Beijing woman lost on a DBS product. The case is set for seven days.
Education Bureau briefs on new year's textbooks
The Education Bureau provides a briefing on electronic book and textbook prices for the coming academic year. Textbook prices are expected to rise 3 to 4 per cent due to inflation, according to a coalition of textbook publishers. Education Secretary Michael Suen Ming-yeung said last year the government would focus on developing e-books, presumably hoping this would lead to cheaper textbooks, after failing to get publishers to unbundle expensive supplementary materials from textbooks.