Got WorkFare for them.Originally Posted by Unregistered
Got WorkFare for them.
In any country, there will always be a group of people who unfortunately, will be left behind, be it fate or reasons that will be hard to explain. Why don't we compare ourselves with our neighbouring countries and we should be thankful and be fortunate that we have a roof over our head and we don't have to worry about our 3 meals.
I have travelled frequently and many a time, the locals never fail to praise us that we are very fortunate in many ways, be it security, merit, . I guess its mother nature that we as humans always take things for granted and we expect better things to come our way.
Actually hor, army barracks also not a bad place to stay. How about Tekong camp, quite a nice resort.
OHHH HOW THE POOR MORONS DONT REALISE WHAT IS COMING. GOD SAVE THEM.
Got protocols to follow. JB hotels is the easier option.
OHHH HOW THIS MORON, MADDOG/TIGERSEE, REFUSES TO ACCEPT THE REAL FIGURES AND FACTS. GOD SAVE HIM.
All the better things have already done with. You have to look at what is coming your way. 3 meals would be soon a thing of the past. When countries refuse to export what will you buy? Cannot eat bricks. Sure the less fortunate people in some countries may not have the plush condos but have all the food. Oh starvation will come for sure and then you will change your opinion of people from poor neighbouring countries who may not have a proper shelter but have ample food and land to cultivate.
Philippines Seeks Wheat Supplies After China Rebuff
By Clarissa Batino and William Bi
April 11 (Bloomberg) -- The Philippines said China turned down a request to supply wheat, adding to concern that the world faces a worsening shortage of staple foods that has already driven grain prices to records.
``China politely turned us down, saying they also need to stock up,'' Trade Secretary Peter Favila said in a telephone interview today. ``We've alerted all our trade attaches to find out where we can source wheat, so as not to cause shortages.''
The rebuff follows a struggle this year by the Philippines to secure supplies of rice, of which it is the largest importer. Wheat has more than doubled in the last year to a record and rice is up 94 percent, triggering riots from Egypt to the Ivory Coast.
China ``is tightly controlling exports'' through permits and taxes to secure grain supplies, Xu Fan, an analyst at China International Futures Co., said by phone from Shenzhen.
Global food prices gained 57 percent last month from a year earlier, according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, or FAO. There were ``very limited supplies'' of rice available given export restrictions, the FAO said on April 2.
`Self Interest'
Grain-producing countries ``are definitely putting self interest ahead of exports because so much of disposable incomes gets spent on food,'' said Luke Chandler, senior analyst at Rabobank Group, based in Sydney.
The Philippine Star reported earlier today that the government asked China to provide 200,000 metric tons of milling wheat, equivalent to about 10 percent of annual consumption. Favila said that his request to Beijing didn't specify any volume.
China has as much as 200 million tons of grain reserves, Premier Wen Jiabao said April 6. Still, China International's Zhu said that while 200,000 tons may be small relative to the stockpiles, China was unlikely to issue any export permits soon.
``We've asked Australia. I've also contacted the U.S. because the ambassador has assured us they will help with the supply,'' said Favila, adding that the Philippines was looking at coconut and vegetable flour as potential substitutes for wheat. ``Prices of bread will go up. Either that or the size would shrink.''
Rising food prices and the difficulties in gaining imports pose political and economic challenges for Philippine President Gloria Arroyo, who said this week she was ``leading the charge'' against hoarders.
`Politically Sensitive'
``Domestic food inflation and food security are obviously very politically sensitive issues,'' said Chandler, the senior analyst at Rabobank. ``We're likely to see governments come in and place bans on exports.''
China started to tax wheat exports at a rate of 20 percent this year, according to a Dec. 30 statement from the Finance Ministry. The tax for corn and rice was set at 5 percent.
The U.S. ambassador to the Philippines pledged this week to ensure that the Asian country, a former colony, would be supplied with as much rice as the nation of 91 million needs. The country was ``assured absolutely'' of supply, Kristie Kenney said April 9.
Rice, the staple food for half the world, has almost doubled in price in the past year as China, Vietnam and India cut sales abroad and the Philippines tried to secure shipments. The price traded at a record $21.60 per 100 pounds on the Chicago Board of Trade on April 8.
Wheat futures in Chicago reached a record $13.495 a bushel on Feb. 27 on forecasts global demand will exceed output for the seventh time in eight years. The contract traded at $9.365 today.
``In the early part of the year, people weren't talking about shortage,'' said Joric Nazario, treasurer at Philippine Veterans Bank in Manila. `` Now everybody's talking about it.''
Philippine inflation accelerated at 6.4 percent in March, the fastest pace in 20 months as food and fuel costs gained. Crude oil traded at a record $112.21 a barrel on April 9.
``Food inflation could surmount oil prices as the major threat,'' Vishnu Varathan, a regional economist at Forecast Singapore Pte., said in an interview. ``It could spill over to the early part of next year. This would be the making of a storm you wouldn't want to be in, especially with the global slowdown.''
The food-import situation ``would affect inflation,'' Favila said. ``But what good are the numbers if the people are hungry?''
Nikkei ends up 2.9%, led by Retailers on Positive Outlooks
Taiga Uranaka
Reuters
Tokyo, Japan
Friday, 11 April 2008
Japan's Nikkei average rose 2.9% on Friday, snapping a three-day losing streak, with retailers Fast Retailing Co and Seven & I Holdings jumping on solid profit outlooks.
Japan's second-largest bank Mizuho Financial Group extended gains after disclosing additional subprime-related trading losses.
"Mizuho shares were bought as investors saw negative news as having run its course for the time being. The market had priced in subprime problems to a considerable degree," said Harushige Kobayashi, head of the research department at Maruwa Securities.
High-tech shares such as Advantest Corp advanced after their U.S. peers lifted Wall Street on a brokerage upgrade of chip makers.
"The previous three days' losses were caused by trades in connection with SQ. Now, with that over, the lid on the market is off," said Katsuhiko Kodama, senior strategist at Toyo Securities.
The closely watched settlement price, known in Japan as the special quotation or "SQ", is calculated from the opening prices of the 225 shares on the Nikkei average on the second Friday of the month.
The price for options contracts expiring in April is likely to have come to 13,129.58, according to market sources.
The benchmark Nikkei ended up 2.9% at 13,323.73. The index gained 0.2 percent for the week.
The broader TOPIX index added 2.5% to 1,278.62.
Retailers High
Shares of Fast Retailing jumped 5.2% to 10,100 yen, the biggest contributor to the Nikkei, after the retailer raised its full-year operating profit forecast by 10% to 80.1 billion yen on the back of a recovery at its Uniqlo casual-clothing chain.
Seven & I Holdings shot up 11.6% to 2,895 yen after Japan's largest retailer said it would buy back and cancel up to 170 billion yen of its shares and Mitsubishi UFJ Securities lifted its rating on the stock to "1" from "2", saying the shares are cheap considering an expected improvement in return on assets.
Seven & I posted its first drop in full-year operating profit in six years, hit by weak consumer spending and tough competition, but it forecast a recovery this year as it closes unprofitable outlets.
Daiei Inc jumped 13.7% to 631 yen after the supermarket operator said it expects its operating profit this business year to rise 24.6% to 18 billion yen, better than a forecast of 13.6 billion yen in a poll of three analysts by Reuters Estimates.
"Investors' buying interest is turning towards domestic, non-manufacturing sectors since they're less affected by the stronger yen," said Maruwa's Kobayashi.
Mizuho extended gains, ending up 5.2% at 407,000 yen, after the banking group said during the midday break that it expected 400 billion yen ($3.9 billion) of subprime-related trading losses at its unlisted brokerage, Mizuho Securities, for the year ended in March.
The bank said it now expects a net profit of 310 billion yen ($3.1 billion) for the year to March 2008, down nearly 60% from its original estimate of 750 billion yen.
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd fell 2% to 5,300 yen, becoming the biggest drag on the Nikkei 225, after news of its $8.8 billion acquisition of U.S. biotech company Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc in the biggest overseas buyout by a Japanese drugmaker.
Technology shares gained, with Advantest, the world's largest maker of microchip testers, up 5.3% at 2,795 yen.
On Thursday, Intel Corp shares jumped and helped lift all three major U.S. stock indexes after Banc of America Securities upgraded the U.S. semiconductor sector, saying a modest inventory buildup has eased.
Trade was moderate on the Tokyo exchange's first section, with 2 billion shares changing hands, compared with last week's daily average of 1.9 billion.
HK shares jumps 2% to 2-month high as Chinese banks lead way
Judy Hua
Reuters
Hong Kong SAR
Friday, 11 April 2008
Hong Kong stocks rose 2% to a 2-month closing high on Friday, tracking higher overseas markets, with financial plays leading the gains as Chinese banks flagged rosy profit forecasts.
Investors are cautious, however, as they await key economic data from China and the United States, as well as quarterly results from major U.S. financial institutions next week to gauge the outlook for the global economy.
"China's stock market is still soft and lacks momentum even though it has stablised," said KGI Asia Ltd associate director Ben Kwong. "Investors are waiting for major economic data to assess if there is further need for tightening."
"Technically, the (Hong Kong) market is quite resilient," he said, adding that he expected short-term support at 23,900.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index ended 480.69 points higher at 24,667.79. The China Enterprises Index of Hong Kong-listed mainland companies , or H shares, gained 2.76% to 13,357.12.
Mainboard turnover rose to HK$77.14 billion ($9.9 billion) from HK$74.81 billion.
Chinese banks jumped after they estimated sharply higher first-quarter earnings due to higher interest on consumer lending as Beijing grants lenders more flexibility in pricing loans.
China Merchants Bank closed up 4.6% at HK$29.85 after it estimated that net profit surged at least 140% in the first quarter of this year.
China Construction Bank rose nearly 2.8% as investors expect it to post strong earnings after the market close.
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the country's largest bank and the most active stock for the day, climbed 2.8%, while smaller rival Bank of Communications soared 5%.
Another bright spot was China Coal Energy, the country's No.2 coal producer, which jumped more than 5% to HK$15.94 after Citigroup upgraded it to buy from hold as it plans to sell more coal on domestic spot market this year, which should drive margins.
Offshore oil specialist CNOOC Ltd rose 4.6% and its bigger rival PetroChina climbed 2.8% after they signed landmark deals to buy liquefied natural gas from top LNG exporter Qatar.
TPV Technology, the world's largest maker of PC monitors, jumped 4%to HK$5.24 after JP Morgan upgraded it to overweight from neutral on margin improvement and likely market share gain.
But mobile phone and electronics components maker BYD bucked the broad market trend, tumbling as much as 12% to close at HK$12.90 after its Taiwanese rival, Hon Hai Precision Industry, said BYD's vice president Xia Zuoquan had been detained.
CLSA downgraded BYD to underperform from buy, citing accelerating legal disputes between BYD and Foxconn International over alleged patent infringement. Foxconn jumped 7.3% to HK$11.70.
Kingdee International Software Group Ltd, China's second-largest designer of software, fell 11 percent to HK$6.84 after the company and its chairman sold up to $21.5 million worth of shares.
GE Profit Sharply Misses Forecasts
Reuters | 11 Apr 2008 | 06:58 AM ET
General Electric (GE is the parent company of CNBC) reported Friday an unexpected 6 percent drop in profit, as the slumping U.S. economy and credit crunch drove down profits at its financial, industrial and healthcare units.
It also lowered its earnings forecast for the year.
"These results confirm that the slowdown is widespread and beginning to impact capex (capital expenditures) and longer-cycle businesses," said Stephen Surpless, senior analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald in London.
"While the credit crisis might be nearer to the end than the beginning, according to some, the impact on the real economy is taking place and is unlikely to abate in 2008," he added.
The second-largest U.S. company by market capitalization, which also has media and finance arms, reported profit of $4.3 billion, or 43 cents per diluted share, compared with $4.57 billion, or 44 cents per diluted share, a year earlier.
Profit from continuing operations of 44 cents per share compared with analysts' average forecast of 51 cents, according to Reuters Estimates.
Revenue rose 7.8 percent.
The company cut its full-year profit forecast from continuing earnings to a range of $2.20 to $2.30 per share.
The new full-year earnings forecast, which calls for profit to be flat to up 5 percent, compares with an earlier view of "at least" 10 percent.
Many on Wall Street had viewed that as a conservative forecast.
"The extraordinary disruption in the capital markets in March affected our ability to complete asset sales and resulted in higher mark-to-market losses and impairments," said Jeff Immelt, chairman and chief executive, in a statement.
shares are down less than 1 percent, less of a drop than the 5 percent slide in the Dow Jones industrial average, of which GE is a component.
Shares were down more than 6 percent in Frankfurt and almost 4 percent in pre-market trade
OH IT IS GETTING WORSE....
Wow! Such a positive outlook.
Nikkei ends up 2.9%, led by Retailers on Positive Outlooks
Taiga Uranaka
Reuters
Tokyo, Japan
Friday, 11 April 2008
Japan's Nikkei average rose 2.9% on Friday, snapping a three-day losing streak, with retailers Fast Retailing Co and Seven & I Holdings jumping on solid profit outlooks.
Japan's second-largest bank Mizuho Financial Group extended gains after disclosing additional subprime-related trading losses.
"Mizuho shares were bought as investors saw negative news as having run its course for the time being. The market had priced in subprime problems to a considerable degree," said Harushige Kobayashi, head of the research department at Maruwa Securities.
High-tech shares such as Advantest Corp advanced after their U.S. peers lifted Wall Street on a brokerage upgrade of chip makers.
"The previous three days' losses were caused by trades in connection with SQ. Now, with that over, the lid on the market is off," said Katsuhiko Kodama, senior strategist at Toyo Securities.
The closely watched settlement price, known in Japan as the special quotation or "SQ", is calculated from the opening prices of the 225 shares on the Nikkei average on the second Friday of the month.
The price for options contracts expiring in April is likely to have come to 13,129.58, according to market sources.
The benchmark Nikkei ended up 2.9% at 13,323.73. The index gained 0.2 percent for the week.
The broader TOPIX index added 2.5% to 1,278.62.
Retailers High
Shares of Fast Retailing jumped 5.2% to 10,100 yen, the biggest contributor to the Nikkei, after the retailer raised its full-year operating profit forecast by 10% to 80.1 billion yen on the back of a recovery at its Uniqlo casual-clothing chain.
Seven & I Holdings shot up 11.6% to 2,895 yen after Japan's largest retailer said it would buy back and cancel up to 170 billion yen of its shares and Mitsubishi UFJ Securities lifted its rating on the stock to "1" from "2", saying the shares are cheap considering an expected improvement in return on assets.
Seven & I posted its first drop in full-year operating profit in six years, hit by weak consumer spending and tough competition, but it forecast a recovery this year as it closes unprofitable outlets.
Daiei Inc jumped 13.7% to 631 yen after the supermarket operator said it expects its operating profit this business year to rise 24.6% to 18 billion yen, better than a forecast of 13.6 billion yen in a poll of three analysts by Reuters Estimates.
"Investors' buying interest is turning towards domestic, non-manufacturing sectors since they're less affected by the stronger yen," said Maruwa's Kobayashi.
Mizuho extended gains, ending up 5.2% at 407,000 yen, after the banking group said during the midday break that it expected 400 billion yen ($3.9 billion) of subprime-related trading losses at its unlisted brokerage, Mizuho Securities, for the year ended in March.
The bank said it now expects a net profit of 310 billion yen ($3.1 billion) for the year to March 2008, down nearly 60% from its original estimate of 750 billion yen.
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd fell 2% to 5,300 yen, becoming the biggest drag on the Nikkei 225, after news of its $8.8 billion acquisition of U.S. biotech company Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc in the biggest overseas buyout by a Japanese drugmaker.
Technology shares gained, with Advantest, the world's largest maker of microchip testers, up 5.3% at 2,795 yen.
On Thursday, Intel Corp shares jumped and helped lift all three major U.S. stock indexes after Banc of America Securities upgraded the U.S. semiconductor sector, saying a modest inventory buildup has eased.
Trade was moderate on the Tokyo exchange's first section, with 2 billion shares changing hands, compared with last week's daily average of 1.9 billion.
This is getting better by the day.
中国一游客用银联卡 一天在本地消费60万元 ($600,000)
联合早报
2008-04-11
人民币不断升值，鼓励越来越多中国旅客出境旅游。接受银联卡消费，将成为本地商家提升业绩的“润滑剂”。中国银联人士透露，有中国游客一天内在新加坡用多张银联卡消费了60万新元(S$600,000)！
中国银联国际业务总部副总裁黄兴海昨天在第13届卡和付费亚洲峰会（Cards & Payments Asia）指出，人民币缓慢增值的趋势，意味着人民币越来越值钱，也促进中国居民出境旅游和消费。“我认为这完全是好现象，因为中国旅客带来的商机很大，对新加坡旅游业、银行、商户都是好事情。”
尽管没有具体数据能说明自“破八”（跌破一美元兑八元人民币心理关卡）以来，人民币升值在多大程度上使银联卡业务受惠，黄兴海承认，中国银联是人民币升值的受益者，“对我们肯定有利”。
香港、澳门、新加坡是中国旅客的主要旅游地，这些以华人为主的城市对银联卡的接受度要高于欧美城市。目前，每年到访新加坡的中国旅客都超过100万人次，是新加坡第二大外国旅客来源，每年消费额超过18亿新元。根据保守估计，未来十年中国旅客出境旅游人数，每年将以10.4％速度增长。
中国银联自2005年1月开始，与星网电子付款公司（NETS）成为合作伙伴，目前本地星展银行、大华银行及花旗银行的自动提款机，都接受银联卡提款交易，覆盖率近100％。
中国银联新加坡代表处首席代表杨建民说，过去，中国游客经常随身携带大量现金，在外国匪徒眼里是“流动提款机”，经常遭抢劫。使用银联卡，既方便又安全。
中国银联新加坡高级市场代表刘裕德指出，中国政府规定出境不能携带超过两万元人民币或6000美元的现金，而信用卡又有消费额度限制。
“银联卡提供另一种消费渠道。如果商户不接受银联卡，顾客走进他们商铺的消费能力，就取决于身上的现金有多少；如果可以使用银联卡，他们的消费能力就无限扩大。比如，一名顾客要买一件昂贵的商品，只要一通电话让亲友把钱存入他的银行账户，马上就可以转账。”
杨建民透露，去年到访新加坡的中国旅客比前年增加了9万人次，但通过银联卡消费的业绩却上升了近80％。该公司的消费记录显示，曾有一名中国旅客刷银联卡，买走了一只价值20万新元的名贵手表。“还有人通过两、三张银联卡，一天之内就在乌节路上多家商场消费了60万元。”
中国银联成立于2002年3月，总部设在上海，是全中国统一的银行卡跨行交易清算系统。截至2007年底，中国境内发卡机构有150多家，发卡总量超15亿张，同时在中国旅客常去的26个国家和地区获得接纳。
So many good news. Buy, buy, buy!
But what happens when the Singapore $ continues to appreciate against other currencies? Does it make Singapore a cheaper or more expensive place to be in?
can some kind soul provide a brief translation in english. thanks.
中国一游客用银联卡 一天在本地消费60万元 ($600,000)
联合早报
2008-04-11
人民币不断升值，鼓励越来越多中国旅客出境旅游。接受银联卡消费，将成为本地商家提升业绩的“润滑剂”。中国银联人士透露，有中国游客一天内在新加坡用多张银联卡消费了60万新元(S$600,000)！
中国银联国际业务总部副总裁黄兴海昨天在第13届卡和付费亚洲峰会（Cards & Payments Asia）指出，人民币缓慢增值的趋势，意味着人民币越来越值钱，也促进中国居民出境旅游和消费。“我认为这完全是好现象，因为中国旅客带来的商机很大，对新加坡旅游业、银行、商户都是好事情。”
尽管没有具体数据能说明自“破八”（跌破一美元兑八元人民币心理关卡）以来，人民币升值在多大程度上使银联卡业务受惠，黄兴海承认，中国银联是人民币升值的受益者，“对我们肯定有利”。
香港、澳门、新加坡是中国旅客的主要旅游地，这些以华人为主的城市对银联卡的接受度要高于欧美城市。目前，每年到访新加坡的中国旅客都超过100万人次，是新加坡第二大外国旅客来源，每年消费额超过18亿新元。根据保守估计，未来十年中国旅客出境旅游人数，每年将以10.4％速度增长。
中国银联自2005年1月开始，与星网电子付款公司（NETS）成为合作伙伴，目前本地星展银行、大华银行及花旗银行的自动提款机，都接受银联卡提款交易，覆盖率近100％。
中国银联新加坡代表处首席代表杨建民说，过去，中国游客经常随身携带大量现金，在外国匪徒眼里是“流动提款机”，经常遭抢劫。使用银联卡，既方便又安全。
中国银联新加坡高级市场代表刘裕德指出，中国政府规定出境不能携带超过两万元人民币或6000美元的现金，而信用卡又有消费额度限制。
“银联卡提供另一种消费渠道。如果商户不接受银联卡，顾客走进他们商铺的消费能力，就取决于身上的现金有多少；如果可以使用银联卡，他们的消费能力就无限扩大。比如，一名顾客要买一件昂贵的商品，只要一通电话让亲友把钱存入他的银行账户，马上就可以转账。”
杨建民透露，去年到访新加坡的中国旅客比前年增加了9万人次，但通过银联卡消费的业绩却上升了近80％。该公司的消费记录显示，曾有一名中国旅客刷银联卡，买走了一只价值20万新元的名贵手表。“还有人通过两、三张银联卡，一天之内就在乌节路上多家商场消费了60万元。”
中国银联成立于2002年3月，总部设在上海，是全中国统一的银行卡跨行交易清算系统。截至2007年底，中国境内发卡机构有150多家，发卡总量超15亿张，同时在中国旅客常去的26个国家和地区获得接纳。
Nevermind. Dow Jones just dropped 1% because of GE.
Look out for Monday.
... China RMB getting very very strong ... Chinese getting very very rich
... Singapore getting very cheap ... Singapore goods are very reliable
... so record number of Chinese tourists come to Singapore
... they keep buying things like there is no tomorrow ...
... tourism receipts from Chinese tourist is at record high ...
... one Chinese tourist spent S$600,000 in one day ...
Singapore currency strong?
Are you kidding?
Did you not read the Chinese news above?
Singapore is dirt cheap.
Look at the way they buy things in Singapore. They behaves like they have just been released from the cell with loads of money.
We should seriously worry about inflation because of them.
GE Says Profit Fell, Citing Finance; Forecast Reduced
By Rachel Layne
April 11 (Bloomberg) -- General Electric Co. unexpectedly reported its first quarterly profit decline since 2003, sending U.S. and European stocks lower, as the credit market's seizure spread to the world's third-largest company by market value.
GE dropped as much as 12 percent in New York trading, the most since the October 1987 market crash. The decline wiped out as much as $42.2 billion in market capitalization, or more than the 2006 gross domestic product of Ecuador.
Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Immelt cut the annual forecast he had once told investors was ``in the bag'' for 2008 and repeated as recently as March 13. GE now says capital markets seized up just days later, forcing it to cut the value of some securities in the last two weeks of the quarter and blocking some asset sales. The Federal Reserve's March 14 move to help rescue Bear Stearns Cos. created ``a different world,'' he said today.
``We hate disappointing investors,'' Immelt said on the GE- owned CNBC television network. ``It's not part of the company. It's not part of the culture. We take accountability for that.''
Profit from continuing operations dropped to $4.36 billion, or 44 cents a share, from $4.93 billion, or 48 cents, a year earlier. Revenue rose 8 percent to $42.2 billion, less than GE's prediction of about $44 billion. GE was expected to earn 51 cents a share, the average of 15 analyst estimates in a Bloomberg poll.
``You're shocked'' by such results, Benjamin Pace, chief investment officer of Deutsche Bank Private Wealth Management in New York, told Bloomberg Television.
Shares Plummet
The stock dropped $4.23, or 12 percent, to $32.52 at 11:25 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares had fallen less than 1 percent this year compared with a 7.3 percent decline in the Standard & Poor's 500 index.
On a conference call today, analysts demanded that Immelt explain why he told retail investors on a March 13 Webcast that Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE would likely meet its annual forecast of at least $2.42 a share.
``Two days after the Webcast, the Bear Stearns situation took place,'' Immelt said. ``The last two weeks in March were a different world in financial services.''
The market turmoil also prevented GE from selling some finance assets, Immelt said. GE put its U.S. credit card business and Japanese consumer finance units up for sale last year. The health-care unit also trailed expectations.
The U.S. may be near a recession because of a slump in housing prices and a tightening of credit markets. Some members of the Fed's rate-setting Open Market Committee said at their March 18 meeting that they saw the risk of a ``prolonged and severe downturn'' in the U.S. economy, the world's largest.
`Biggest Misses'
``This is one of the biggest misses that GE's had in quite some time,'' said Nicholas Heymann, an analyst with Sterne Agee & Leach Inc., in an interview today. ``The pressure is on like it's never been on before for all senior management at GE.''
GE missed its own forecasts for its commercial and consumer finance units. That cut per-share profit by 5 cents and resulted in a lowered full-year forecast of $2.20 to $2.30 a share, down from the previous forecast of at least $2.42. Immelt had told investors in December that $2.42 a share was ``in the bag.''
``The quarter was disappointing,'' James Hardesty, president of Hardesty Capital Management in Baltimore, told Bloomberg Television. ``It does reflect a rather sharp economic slowdown that seems to be occurring in the U.S.''
Finance units may have a profit decline of 5 percent to 10 percent this year and non-financial units will increase 10 percent to 15 percent. That makes total profit little-changed to up 5 percent, GE said in its statement.
Didn't See It Coming
``This is something that we clearly didn't see until the end of the quarter,'' Immelt said on the conference call. ``What we did is try to reflect on that, not make excuses and take appropriate actions. The company's fundamentals remain strong. We believe that the strategy and the fundamentals remain strong.''
GE Healthcare, the world's biggest maker of medical imaging equipment, had a profit decline of 17 percent, below the predicted 5 percent rise. GE hasn't shipped its OEC X-ray machines from a plant for 20 months as it works to comply with an FDA consent decree. That cost about 1 cent a share, Immelt said.
GE Infrastructure, the largest of the six main segments, has units that focus on oil and gas equipment, jet engines, locomotives, power-turbines, water-treatment and aircraft leasing. Its revenue climbed 23 percent, more than forecast, driving a 17 percent increase in earnings, which matched GE's prediction.
Downgrades
Analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Credit Suisse Group both cut GE's rating to ``neutral'' today. Fourteen analysts recommend buying the stock, and six suggest holding it. None recommend selling. Before today's earnings announcement, 16 analysts rated the stock a ``buy'' and four rated it ``hold.''
``There's probably a very good buy in here,'' Joseph Keating, chief investment officer of First American Asset Management in Birmingham, Alabama, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. His firm manages $3 billion, including GE shares. ``They have a worldwide franchise in industrial products and with the decline of the dollar, their products are competitive worldwide.''
The cost of protecting bonds of GE, the biggest U.S. corporate borrower, reached the highest in almost two weeks. Credit-default swaps on GE's General Electric Capital Corp. increased 10 basis points to 131 basis points, according to broker Phoenix Partners Group in New York. The contracts have about doubled this year as the credit-turmoil that started in the U.S. housing market led investors to flee everything from commercial paper to leveraged loans.
Investors and analysts asked Immelt to assure them that GE's ability to forecast, and strategy as a whole, remained intact and whether this surprise decline eroded GE's reputation as a safe investment.
``I understand your frustration,'' Immelt said. ``I'm not going to be defensive about it, this is a company that's delivered for a long time. The franchise of the company is very strong. And I feel the same about the strategy of the company.''
Wow what did you just say?
GE had the biggest fall since 1987? You can't be kidding. GE is all about world economy. You mean eqvivalent amount to Equador's GDP wiped out in a few minutes? Tell me you are kidding....for God's sake. I have a weak heart.
thank you for your work, <a href="http://index8.pekomanik.com">video store bandung</a>, http://index8.pekomanik.com video store bandung, :-(((,
That's better!
Keep the outlook positive.
Nikkei ends up 2.9%, led by Retailers on Positive Outlooks
Taiga Uranaka
Reuters
Tokyo, Japan
Friday, 11 April 2008
Japan's Nikkei average rose 2.9% on Friday, snapping a three-day losing streak, with retailers Fast Retailing Co and Seven & I Holdings jumping on solid profit outlooks.
Japan's second-largest bank Mizuho Financial Group extended gains after disclosing additional subprime-related trading losses.
"Mizuho shares were bought as investors saw negative news as having run its course for the time being. The market had priced in subprime problems to a considerable degree," said Harushige Kobayashi, head of the research department at Maruwa Securities.
High-tech shares such as Advantest Corp advanced after their U.S. peers lifted Wall Street on a brokerage upgrade of chip makers.
"The previous three days' losses were caused by trades in connection with SQ. Now, with that over, the lid on the market is off," said Katsuhiko Kodama, senior strategist at Toyo Securities.
The closely watched settlement price, known in Japan as the special quotation or "SQ", is calculated from the opening prices of the 225 shares on the Nikkei average on the second Friday of the month.
The price for options contracts expiring in April is likely to have come to 13,129.58, according to market sources.
The benchmark Nikkei ended up 2.9% at 13,323.73. The index gained 0.2 percent for the week.
The broader TOPIX index added 2.5% to 1,278.62.
Retailers High
Shares of Fast Retailing jumped 5.2% to 10,100 yen, the biggest contributor to the Nikkei, after the retailer raised its full-year operating profit forecast by 10% to 80.1 billion yen on the back of a recovery at its Uniqlo casual-clothing chain.
Seven & I Holdings shot up 11.6% to 2,895 yen after Japan's largest retailer said it would buy back and cancel up to 170 billion yen of its shares and Mitsubishi UFJ Securities lifted its rating on the stock to "1" from "2", saying the shares are cheap considering an expected improvement in return on assets.
Seven & I posted its first drop in full-year operating profit in six years, hit by weak consumer spending and tough competition, but it forecast a recovery this year as it closes unprofitable outlets.
Daiei Inc jumped 13.7% to 631 yen after the supermarket operator said it expects its operating profit this business year to rise 24.6% to 18 billion yen, better than a forecast of 13.6 billion yen in a poll of three analysts by Reuters Estimates.
"Investors' buying interest is turning towards domestic, non-manufacturing sectors since they're less affected by the stronger yen," said Maruwa's Kobayashi.
Mizuho extended gains, ending up 5.2% at 407,000 yen, after the banking group said during the midday break that it expected 400 billion yen ($3.9 billion) of subprime-related trading losses at its unlisted brokerage, Mizuho Securities, for the year ended in March.
The bank said it now expects a net profit of 310 billion yen ($3.1 billion) for the year to March 2008, down nearly 60% from its original estimate of 750 billion yen.
Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd fell 2% to 5,300 yen, becoming the biggest drag on the Nikkei 225, after news of its $8.8 billion acquisition of U.S. biotech company Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc in the biggest overseas buyout by a Japanese drugmaker.
Technology shares gained, with Advantest, the world's largest maker of microchip testers, up 5.3% at 2,795 yen.
On Thursday, Intel Corp shares jumped and helped lift all three major U.S. stock indexes after Banc of America Securities upgraded the U.S. semiconductor sector, saying a modest inventory buildup has eased.
Trade was moderate on the Tokyo exchange's first section, with 2 billion shares changing hands, compared with last week's daily average of 1.9 billion.
Surge 2%. That's cool!
HK shares jumps 2% to 2-month high as Chinese banks lead way
Judy Hua
Reuters
Hong Kong SAR
Friday, 11 April 2008
Hong Kong stocks rose 2% to a 2-month closing high on Friday, tracking higher overseas markets, with financial plays leading the gains as Chinese banks flagged rosy profit forecasts.
Investors are cautious, however, as they await key economic data from China and the United States, as well as quarterly results from major U.S. financial institutions next week to gauge the outlook for the global economy.
"China's stock market is still soft and lacks momentum even though it has stablised," said KGI Asia Ltd associate director Ben Kwong. "Investors are waiting for major economic data to assess if there is further need for tightening."
"Technically, the (Hong Kong) market is quite resilient," he said, adding that he expected short-term support at 23,900.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index ended 480.69 points higher at 24,667.79. The China Enterprises Index of Hong Kong-listed mainland companies , or H shares, gained 2.76% to 13,357.12.
Mainboard turnover rose to HK$77.14 billion ($9.9 billion) from HK$74.81 billion.
Chinese banks jumped after they estimated sharply higher first-quarter earnings due to higher interest on consumer lending as Beijing grants lenders more flexibility in pricing loans.
China Merchants Bank closed up 4.6% at HK$29.85 after it estimated that net profit surged at least 140% in the first quarter of this year.
China Construction Bank rose nearly 2.8% as investors expect it to post strong earnings after the market close.
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the country's largest bank and the most active stock for the day, climbed 2.8%, while smaller rival Bank of Communications soared 5%.
Another bright spot was China Coal Energy, the country's No.2 coal producer, which jumped more than 5% to HK$15.94 after Citigroup upgraded it to buy from hold as it plans to sell more coal on domestic spot market this year, which should drive margins.
Offshore oil specialist CNOOC Ltd rose 4.6% and its bigger rival PetroChina climbed 2.8% after they signed landmark deals to buy liquefied natural gas from top LNG exporter Qatar.
TPV Technology, the world's largest maker of PC monitors, jumped 4%to HK$5.24 after JP Morgan upgraded it to overweight from neutral on margin improvement and likely market share gain.
But mobile phone and electronics components maker BYD bucked the broad market trend, tumbling as much as 12% to close at HK$12.90 after its Taiwanese rival, Hon Hai Precision Industry, said BYD's vice president Xia Zuoquan had been detained.
CLSA downgraded BYD to underperform from buy, citing accelerating legal disputes between BYD and Foxconn International over alleged patent infringement. Foxconn jumped 7.3% to HK$11.70.
Kingdee International Software Group Ltd, China's second-largest designer of software, fell 11 percent to HK$6.84 after the company and its chairman sold up to $21.5 million worth of shares.
hello get lost !!
中国一游客用银联卡 一天在本地消费60万元 ($600,000)
联合早报
2008-04-11
人民币不断升值，鼓励越来越多中国旅客出境旅游。接受银联卡消费，将成为本地商家提升业绩的“润滑剂”。中国银联人士透露，有中国游客一天内在新加坡用多张银联卡消费了60万新元(S$600,000)！
中国银联国际业务总部副总裁黄兴海昨天在第13届卡和付费亚洲峰会（Cards & Payments Asia）指出，人民币缓慢增值的趋势，意味着人民币越来越值钱，也促进中国居民出境旅游和消费。“我认为这完全是好现象，因为中国旅客带来的商机很大，对新加坡旅游业、银行、商户都是好事情。”
尽管没有具体数据能说明自“破八”（跌破一美元兑八元人民币心理关卡）以来，人民币升值在多大程度上使银联卡业务受惠，黄兴海承认，中国银联是人民币升值的受益者，“对我们肯定有利”。
香港、澳门、新加坡是中国旅客的主要旅游地，这些以华人为主的城市对银联卡的接受度要高于欧美城市。目前，每年到访新加坡的中国旅客都超过100万人次，是新加坡第二大外国旅客来源，每年消费额超过18亿新元。根据保守估计，未来十年中国旅客出境旅游人数，每年将以10.4％速度增长。
中国银联自2005年1月开始，与星网电子付款公司（NETS）成为合作伙伴，目前本地星展银行、大华银行及花旗银行的自动提款机，都接受银联卡提款交易，覆盖率近100％。
中国银联新加坡代表处首席代表杨建民说，过去，中国游客经常随身携带大量现金，在外国匪徒眼里是“流动提款机”，经常遭抢劫。使用银联卡，既方便又安全。
中国银联新加坡高级市场代表刘裕德指出，中国政府规定出境不能携带超过两万元人民币或6000美元的现金，而信用卡又有消费额度限制。
“银联卡提供另一种消费渠道。如果商户不接受银联卡，顾客走进他们商铺的消费能力，就取决于身上的现金有多少；如果可以使用银联卡，他们的消费能力就无限扩大。比如，一名顾客要买一件昂贵的商品，只要一通电话让亲友把钱存入他的银行账户，马上就可以转账。”
杨建民透露，去年到访新加坡的中国旅客比前年增加了9万人次，但通过银联卡消费的业绩却上升了近80％。该公司的消费记录显示，曾有一名中国旅客刷银联卡，买走了一只价值20万新元的名贵手表。“还有人通过两、三张银联卡，一天之内就在乌节路上多家商场消费了60万元。”
中国银联成立于2002年3月，总部设在上海，是全中国统一的银行卡跨行交易清算系统。截至2007年底，中国境内发卡机构有150多家，发卡总量超15亿张，同时在中国旅客常去的26个国家和地区获得接纳。They are here to buy buy buy.
We have better buy buy buy before they try try try.
AIYAH!!!
No need to argue lah! The property market is going up!
See the following article by Straits Times Senior Writer Chua Mui Hoong.
She said "Sentiment is a strange thing. And maybe it's the bonus-effect, with lots of people getting their annual bonus payments in the first quarter, but I do think the tide in the property market is shifting. There's a barely discernible lift.
I base this on nothing more than cursory looks at asking prices in classified advertisements and on looking at the handful of developments I keep an eye out for. And on that touchstone of sentiment: my own itch factor.
So when figures for 2Q 2008 show a slight uptrend, remember it wasn't an expert who told you so, but a reporter whose hobby is reading property classifieds.
And if it doesn't?
I retreat to that old excuse: I was ahead of the curve. The market will improve in the following quarter. Or the next."
Does that sound familar? Predicting property trends by looking at asking prices in Straits Times Classifieds. Same as what some sour grapes are doing here. Except she is the Straits Times Senior Writer.
And then what if she is not correct? Then she will use the SAME OLD EXCUSE: The market will improve in the following quarter. Or the next.
HAHAHA!!! Talk exactly like sour grapes.
Except her predictions are opposite to sour grapes - she predict property market goes up; sour grapes predict goes down.
But then hor ... she is STRAITS TIMES SENIOR WRITER who is writing an article for the Straits Times, so she must have done more research, and read more property classifieds, than sour grapes who come here to this forum to anyhow talk cock for leisure.
http://www.straitstimes.com/Insight/...ry_225913.html
April 11, 2008
FRIDAY MATTERS
Property market headed for a lift?
By Chua Mui Hoong
WATCHING the property market is a hobby of many Singaporeans, not all of whom are savvy investors. It's an exercise replete with intellectual challenge, emotional ups and downs, and lots of human interest.
The human-drama element has been high in recent months, with court cases, lost deposits and challenges to collective sales.
The property market also allows scope to exercise one's mental muscle.
Which direction is it heading now, with uncertainties over the financial impact of the United States sub-prime crisis pulling the market down, but with strong fundamentals in Singapore pushing trend prices up?
Property analysts and players have different takes on the property market.
One view, expressed by Mr Liew Mun Leong of CapitaLand, in a Business Times interview last weekend, is that fundamentals remain strong, especially in view of Singapore's push to be a global city with a bigger population.
Another more nuanced perspective is that uncertainty remains, and the turn of the market depends on how its major players react.
This was CDL's Kwek Leng Beng's take when he suggested that the Government review its land-sales programme, and consider reintroducing a modified version of the deferred payment scheme - suggestions dismissed by National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.
What are potential investors to make of things when experts, and those in the know, come up with different views on the direction of the market?
This will be a dilemma familiar to most investors, and in fact to anyone who has ever relied on
'expert advice' for anything, whether it's to buy a new cellphone, sign up for a series of new beauty treatments, or decide what one's dream job is.
Is expert advice worth the paper it's written on?
Financial advisers say yes - their advice is worth the weight of the paper in gold at least.
They can draw up charts showing how well their managed portfolios perform relative to MSCI or other global, regional or local indices. They can churn out spreadsheets showing how their portfolios are robust, and risk-adjusted, with high Sharpe ratios, and the correct level of variance, correlation, or whatnots.
I must confess to being sceptical of, yet sneakily susceptible to, jargon and impressive-looking charts I need an adviser to talk me through.
But does expert advice turn out to be a more accurate predictor of reality than the advice of your grand-uncle - or his maid?
University of California Berkeley professor and political psychologist Philip Tetlock tracked the predictions of 284 experts and forecasters of political and global events over 20 years to assess their validity. He then asked the forecasters what they thought of the quality of their judgments.
He found that more qualified people didn't make better predictions. Professors did no better than undergraduates - or journalists.
More interestingly, those whose predictions turned out wrong, didn't think their judgment was at fault.
They argued that their prediction was in the right direction anyway. Or that time would prove them right. Or that their judgment was right, but the final outcome was an outlier - 'I was right on the basics, but this was an exception.'
Insead decision sciences professor Spyros Makridakis led an international team that looked at the accuracy of econometric predictions over a 25-year period. They were trying to see what kind of statistical method proved most accurate. The authors of the study concluded that 'statistically sophisticated or complex methods do not necessarily provide more accurate forecasts than simpler ones'.
The above survey of the failure of forecasting is courtesy of an entertaining book by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, The Black Swan, which warns against the hubris of thinking one can predict the future, especially using methods like regression and trend lines, which assume the future unfolds at a predictable, steady trot.
It's a useful reminder to bear in mind in a country like Singapore which has got so used to success, its citizens may take steady-state reality as the natural order of events. (And forget that outlier shockers derail life. Like Sars. Or a terrorist event.)
But back to the property market.
Given that Singapore's property market is as much driven by sentiment as by fundamentals, one can argue that a layman's take is as good as the take of real-estate experts.
Like Mr Kwek, whose pronouncements on the property market I take with the same seriousness a forex trader treats pronouncements from the Fed, I think how the property market pans out depends on how people react.
If buyers believe fundamentals are strong and that prices are due to head north, then those who have remained in the margin will be tempted to come in now when prices are stabilising, in anticipation of firmer prices after the worst of the sub-prime crisis is over.
Sentiment is a strange thing. And maybe it's the bonus-effect, with lots of people getting their annual bonus payments in the first quarter, but I do think the tide in the property market is shifting. There's a barely discernible lift.
I base this on nothing more than cursory looks at asking prices in classified advertisements and on looking at the handful of developments I keep an eye out for. And on that touchstone of sentiment: my own itch factor.
I'm fully aware that my view has no statistical basis since I used neither regression analysis, nor the Box-Jenkins method nor the Bayesian estimator. (Don't ask. I just parrot these phrases without much understanding, like the exam-oriented student I once was).
Having familiarised myself with psychology works on the errors the human mind commits in decision-making, I am also aware that I am guilty of confirmation bias, recency, anchoring, loss-aversion and whatnots (Okay, these you can ask).
But if prediction is as much an art as a science, then your guess is as good as mine - or any PhD's or CEO's.
So when figures for 2Q 2008 show a slight uptrend, remember it wasn't an expert who told you so, but a reporter whose hobby is reading property classifieds.
And if it doesn't?
I retreat to that old excuse: I was ahead of the curve. The market will improve in the following quarter. Or the next.
Yes, they are crazy. Rushing to buy things everywhere.
Should base on URA price index.April 11, 2008
FRIDAY MATTERS
Property market headed for a lift?
By Chua Mui Hoong
WATCHING the property market is a hobby of many Singaporeans, not all of whom are savvy investors. It's an exercise replete with intellectual challenge, emotional ups and downs, and lots of human interest.
The human-drama element has been high in recent months, with court cases, lost deposits and challenges to collective sales.
The property market also allows scope to exercise one's mental muscle.
Which direction is it heading now, with uncertainties over the financial impact of the United States sub-prime crisis pulling the market down, but with strong fundamentals in Singapore pushing trend prices up?
Property analysts and players have different takes on the property market.
One view, expressed by Mr Liew Mun Leong of CapitaLand, in a Business Times interview last weekend, is that fundamentals remain strong, especially in view of Singapore's push to be a global city with a bigger population.
Another more nuanced perspective is that uncertainty remains, and the turn of the market depends on how its major players react.
This was CDL's Kwek Leng Beng's take when he suggested that the Government review its land-sales programme, and consider reintroducing a modified version of the deferred payment scheme - suggestions dismissed by National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.
What are potential investors to make of things when experts, and those in the know, come up with different views on the direction of the market?
This will be a dilemma familiar to most investors, and in fact to anyone who has ever relied on
'expert advice' for anything, whether it's to buy a new cellphone, sign up for a series of new beauty treatments, or decide what one's dream job is.
Is expert advice worth the paper it's written on?
Financial advisers say yes - their advice is worth the weight of the paper in gold at least.
They can draw up charts showing how well their managed portfolios perform relative to MSCI or other global, regional or local indices. They can churn out spreadsheets showing how their portfolios are robust, and risk-adjusted, with high Sharpe ratios, and the correct level of variance, correlation, or whatnots.
I must confess to being sceptical of, yet sneakily susceptible to, jargon and impressive-looking charts I need an adviser to talk me through.
But does expert advice turn out to be a more accurate predictor of reality than the advice of your grand-uncle - or his maid?
University of California Berkeley professor and political psychologist Philip Tetlock tracked the predictions of 284 experts and forecasters of political and global events over 20 years to assess their validity. He then asked the forecasters what they thought of the quality of their judgments.
He found that more qualified people didn't make better predictions. Professors did no better than undergraduates - or journalists.
More interestingly, those whose predictions turned out wrong, didn't think their judgment was at fault.
They argued that their prediction was in the right direction anyway. Or that time would prove them right. Or that their judgment was right, but the final outcome was an outlier - 'I was right on the basics, but this was an exception.'
Insead decision sciences professor Spyros Makridakis led an international team that looked at the accuracy of econometric predictions over a 25-year period. They were trying to see what kind of statistical method proved most accurate. The authors of the study concluded that 'statistically sophisticated or complex methods do not necessarily provide more accurate forecasts than simpler ones'.
The above survey of the failure of forecasting is courtesy of an entertaining book by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, The Black Swan, which warns against the hubris of thinking one can predict the future, especially using methods like regression and trend lines, which assume the future unfolds at a predictable, steady trot.
It's a useful reminder to bear in mind in a country like Singapore which has got so used to success, its citizens may take steady-state reality as the natural order of events. (And forget that outlier shockers derail life. Like Sars. Or a terrorist event.)
But back to the property market.
Given that Singapore's property market is as much driven by sentiment as by fundamentals, one can argue that a layman's take is as good as the take of real-estate experts.
Like Mr Kwek, whose pronouncements on the property market I take with the same seriousness a forex trader treats pronouncements from the Fed, I think how the property market pans out depends on how people react.
If buyers believe fundamentals are strong and that prices are due to head north, then those who have remained in the margin will be tempted to come in now when prices are stabilising, in anticipation of firmer prices after the worst of the sub-prime crisis is over.
Sentiment is a strange thing. And maybe it's the bonus-effect, with lots of people getting their annual bonus payments in the first quarter, but I do think the tide in the property market is shifting. There's a barely discernible lift.
I base this on nothing more than cursory looks at asking prices in classified advertisements and on looking at the handful of developments I keep an eye out for. And on that touchstone of sentiment: my own itch factor.
I'm fully aware that my view has no statistical basis since I used neither regression analysis, nor the Box-Jenkins method nor the Bayesian estimator. (Don't ask. I just parrot these phrases without much understanding, like the exam-oriented student I once was).
Having familiarised myself with psychology works on the errors the human mind commits in decision-making, I am also aware that I am guilty of confirmation bias, recency, anchoring, loss-aversion and whatnots (Okay, these you can ask).
But if prediction is as much an art as a science, then your guess is as good as mine - or any PhD's or CEO's.
So when figures for 2Q 2008 show a slight uptrend, remember it wasn't an expert who told you so, but a reporter whose hobby is reading property classifieds.
And if it doesn't?
I retreat to that old excuse: I was ahead of the curve. The market will improve in the following quarter. Or the next.
How can base on asking/bidding price!
How can base on hear say!
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