Dividend Chaser on 4 sources of Income

Dividend Chaser on Gold dropping below 1200

(From Article)

Gold price falls below $1,200 an ounce

4 hours ago

Gold is headed for its worst quarter in decades after a sharp decline in price in recent weeks

Gold has continued its drop, falling to its lowest level in almost three years, after the US Federal Reserve said it could wind down its stimulus programme.

Gold fell to $1,191.21 an ounce in Asia trade, after breaching the $1,200 mark in New York on Thursday for the first time since August 2010.

The US Fed said last week that its bond purchases would start to "taper off" in coming months if the economy recovers.

Analysts said investors had been anticipating further price falls.

As a result there was a sell-off, resulting in a big drop in prices in recent days.

"You don't want to catch a falling knife, so people who might be buyers are stepping aside and don't want to show gold at their quarter-end statement," said Axel Merk, chief investment officer at Merk Funds.

Losing its lustre?

Gold prices have had a remarkable run over the past few years, driven by two key factors.

The first has been the uncertainty surrounding the global economic situation after the global financial crisis and the sovereign debt problems in the eurozone.

That saw many investors turn to gold - seen as a traditional safe haven asset in times of uncertainty.

At the same time, the slowdown in the global economy, prompted central banks across the world to lower interest rates - to historic lows in many cases - in an attempt to try to boost growth.

Analysts said that with interest rates so low, investors have been favouring gold.

However, things have started to change in the past few months.

The US economy has been recovering; as a result, the Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has said that the US central bank will scale back its $85bn a month bond buying programme.

Analysts said that such a move may see interest rates rise again - making gold a less attractive option.

At the same time, the risks surrounding the eurozone crisis seem to have abated as well, which has also hurt gold prices.

"Gold's major attribute as a potential hedge against a major global crisis has been diluted," Mark Matthews of Julius Baer told the BBC.

Mr Matthews said that given these factors the gold price may fall further.

Dividend Chaser on Singtel did not get license for Myanmar contract

(From Article)

Norway’s Telenor ASA and Ooredoo won licenses to expand telecommunications in Myanmar, one of the world’s last remaining untapped markets where only about one in 10 people has a mobile phone.

A France Telecom SA-Marubeni Corp. group was named as a backup in case one of the winners doesn’t fulfill the tender requirements. There were 11 groups in the final round including Singapore Telecommunications, billionaire George Soros and Bharti Airtel. Ooredoo was formerly known as Qatar Telecom.

“The Union Government will now enter the process of finalising” the award of the licenses, it said in a statement. The licenses will be awarded according to a telecommunications law that parliament expects to adopt soon, it said.

The announcement ends a six-month race that drew 91 expressions of interest to operate in the country of 64 million people. The licenses are among the biggest prizes for foreign companies since President Thein Sein moved to allow greater political and economic freedom after taking power in 2011.

“It’s a tremendous growth opportunity, but it will require a fair bit of investment, and returns will be long dated too,” Sachin Gupta, a Singapore-based analyst at Nomura Holdings Inc., said before the announcement. “I don’t think it’s going to be an easy exercise for anyone, but having previous green-field experience and strong local partnership should help.”

Local Partners
The government proceeded with naming the winners even after parliamentarians moved yesterday to delay the announcement. Set Aung, deputy minister of national planning and economic development who is overseeing the process, said today the process would only stop on Thein Sein’s orders.

Set Aung said that while he’d prefer local companies, the process complied with international practices. Four of the groups had local partners, including those led by SingTel, Digicel Group, Japan’s KDDI Corp. and South Africa’s MTN Group.

“The playing field should be level,” he said. “We, the technical team, aren’t biased in the selection of the winners.”

Myanmar plans to boost telecom coverage to as much as 80% of the country by 2016. It has a mobile-phone penetration rate of 9%, compared to 70% in Cambodia, 87% in Laos and more than 100% in Thailand, the Communication Ministry said in January.

Dividend Chaser on Psychology of buying stocks in this market

(From Article)

Thursday, 27 June 2013

The psychology of buying stocks in this market

Dear Friends,

Asia recently did indeed correct itself. On radio, we talked about both US and Asia. We mentioned that we anticipate Shanghai composite to reach a bottom at 2000, Nikkei at 12800, STI at 3000-3100, (the best is for STI to drop to near 3000), Hang Seng at 20000. All have reached its low point except STI. STI is close, 3066 being the lowest point.

Anyway, we anticipate that STI will drop at most a further of 66 points to around 3000. Most of the stocks were sold down, especially the STI component blue chips. I definitely prefer banking and property sector stocks.

Do take note that there is still a chance for US to go down somemore, we still think that the correction in US may not have finished, although Asia might have!

If you want to enter position, our idea is to break your portion of money into 3 parts. Either accumulate up or accumulate down.

Eg. If u intend to buy a stock with $30k, break down into 3 portions of $10k.

For accumulating down; 
If you buy a stock at $1, buy with $10k. If it goes down 25% to $0.75, buy another $10k. If it goes down another 25%, buy another $10k.

The good thing about this is that you don't buy at one go. You have extra cash just in case it drops further.

For accumulating up; 
If the stock goes up 20% buy another time, when it goes up another 20% buy another time. Whenever you buy, put your stock loss at breakeven point, to guard your downside.

Rgds
Daniel

Dividend Chaser on Gold will never hit 1930 in next 10 years

(From Article)

Thursday, 27 June 2013

Gold is heading for 1200

Dear Friends,

Recently on radio, we did mention we predict gold to be heading for 1200. It sure looks weak at this moment, Yesterday in the day, gold at one point drops $50 to reach a low of $1223. Like what we mentioned, we think that it is heading at least to 1200, where we think might have a strong support.

http://www.danielloh.com/2013/06/gold-support-is-at-1200-now.html

Let us see if it happens.

By the way, some of my friends recently asked, what should we do if we have position? Long term wise, we think you should never have invested in gold. It is on a long term downtrend, You will never see gold at $1930, the highest point, for the next 10 years. Short term wise, we think there is a rebound. You may want to take the opportunity to sell into the rebound.

Good luck with trading gold, a "safe haven" that is never really safe!

Rgds
Daniel

Dividend Chaser on Gold extend losses into 2014

(From Article)

Gold is forecast to drop 13 percent this year and extend losses into 2014 as investor holdings tumble amid speculation that theFederal Reserve will reduce asset purchases, according to Australia’s government forecaster.

Prices may average $1,444 an ounce in 2013 and $1,340 in 2014 from $1,668 last year, the Canberra-based Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics said in areport. The forecast for this year compares with an estimate in March for an average price of $1,638 in 2013. Since January, spot bullion has averaged about $1,530, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Gold has plunged 26 percent this year, entering a bear market in April, after some investors lost faith in the metal as a store of value. Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said this month that the central bank, which buys $85 billion of Treasury and mortgage debt a month, could trim purchases this year and end the program in 2014 should the U.S. economy continue to improve.

The price drop “may be attributed to a change in investor sentiment towards gold in response to indications that the U.S. Federal Reserve may end its quantitative-easing program earlier than expected,” the bureau said. That change “contributed to a capital outflow from gold into other asset classes,” it said.

Gold for immediate delivery dropped as much as 2.6 percent to $1,244 an ounce, the cheapest since September 2010, and was at $1,247.27 at 11:25 a.m. in Singapore. It’s heading for the worst quarterly drop since 1920.

Holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest exchange-traded product backed by bullion, fell to 969.5 tons yesterday, the lowest since February 2009, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Gold output in Australia, the world’s second-biggest producer, may increase to 263 tons in the year starting July 1 from 252 tons this year. Exports may reach 304 tons in 2013-2014 from 281 tons a year earlier.

Dividend Chaser on Singapore raining hail in Bt Batok and jurong

(From Article)

By Natalie Kuan
The Straits Times
Tuesday, Jun 25, 2013

Mr Lucas Ho, 28, playwright and teacher said: "The torrent came in a five-minute burst; something was clanging on my windows and I went to my front door to see what was going on. I never thought I'd see hail in Singapore."

Get the full story from The Straits Times.

SINGAPORE - A video was posted on Facebook by Vivian Tian in which she revealed tiny ice cubes were falling with the rain in her vicinity.

Other Facebook users as well as contributors to citizen journalism website Stomp also sent in pictures showing that it is hailing on the west side of Singapore.

Stomp contributor Foo said:

"Hailing in Singapore! I thought stones were flung into my balcony when i saw it was ice cubes!"

Another contributor Kent wrote in: "It's raining hail in CCK Ave 3. The welcomed downpour came with ice!"

Reader Kevin wrote: "My friends and I were just at Bukit Batok West Ave 6 and we were stuck in the rain. When we running in the rain, ice fell on us."

Reader Judy said: "It's raining ice in Bukit Batok. It started to rain at about 2.30pm and soon it became extremely heavy with strong winds.

"Suddenly I heard sounds of objects hitting at my window and I went to look. To my surprise i saw pellets of ice raining down. It lasted for about 10 minutes."

Moderate to heavy thundery showers with gusty wind are expected over southern, eastern and central areas of Singapore between 3.25pm to 4.25pm.

PUB said flash floods may occur in the event of heavy rain.

For flash floods updates, visit PUB Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/PUBSg or PUB Twitter: http://twitter.com/PUBSingapore.

Dividend Chaser on list of GP clinics participating in haze subsidy

(Personal sharing)

Recently, it was announced that there were some GP clinics participating in MOH subsidy. 

I went to source out the link and found one - Shenton Medical Group which was at Jurong Point. 

It was near to the place I stayed so I decided to give it a visit since my son was down with fever and sore throat.

The service there was good with ample seats and an area where children can play with the toys so it made the wait still pleasant.

When it was our turn, the doctor saw my son. 

He said the throat infection could be caused by the haze, verbally to me but he did not put it on paper.

So when it came the time to pay the bill, I was very shock to know that the bill was 73 dollars, pretty expensive for non-working housewife like me.

I said to the cashier... Wow.. Is there any subsidy due to the haze?

The cashier said the subsidy is only 30 dollars and only approved by the doctor.

Immediately, I told them the doctor told me earlier, my son's infection was caused by the haze.

Luckily, the cashier went to verify with the doctor who agreed again on the haze subsidy thing, if not, I would definitely make a fuss.

In my mind, I told myself that next time, if there was any next time, it would be better find out first before committing to claim a haze subsidy from any clinic.

It was a lesson well learnt.

Dividend Chaser on Muar hits 750 PSI

(From Article)

Malaysia's government declared a state of emergency in two southern districts choked by smoke from forest fires in Indonesia as air pollution levels reached a 16-year high on Sunday.

Environment minister G. Palanivel said the air pollutant index (API) hit 750 in the town of Muar -- the highest reading seen in Malaysia in 16 years -- Sunday morning, with two other southern towns also reaching hazardous levels.

Photo of the haze situation in Muar, Johor on June 22 when the Air Pollution Index (API) level was close to 400.  API reading breached 700 on Sunday morning. (Photo: HK Goh)

The Kuala Lumpur skyline shrouded in haze. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

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prevnexKUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's government declared a state of emergency in two southern districts choked by smoke from forest fires in Indonesia as air pollution levels reached a 16-year high on Sunday.Kuala Lumpur Environment minister G. Palanivel said the air pollutant index (API) hit 750 in the town of Muar -- the highest reading seen in Malaysia in 16 years -- Sunday morning, with two other southern towns also reaching hazardous levels.

"The prime minister has signed a declaration of emergency for Muar and Ledang districts," Palanivel told AFP in a text message.

Haze is an annual problem during drier summer months, when westerly monsoon winds blow smoke from forest fires and slash-and-burn land-clearing on the huge Indonesian island of Sumatra across the Malacca Strait to Malaysia and Singapore.

Air quality in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, which had so far escaped major impact from the current haze, also took a turn for the worst.

The smell of smoke permeated the city and the twin Petronas Towers that dominate the skyline were invisible from just a short distance away, while many city residents donned facial masks.

Malaysia's API rated the capital's air "unhealthy".

Malaysia's index differs from Singapore's, which surpassed the critical 400 level on Friday, indicated potentially life-threatening conditions for the ill and elderly, though pollution in the city-state has since eased.

The Muar pollution reading was Malaysia's highest since the API hit 860 during a severe 1997-1998 haze crisis that gripped the region and thrust the issue onto the Southeast Asian agenda.

An emergency also was declared in 2005 when readings soared above 500.

Hundreds of schools have been closed since Thursday in the southern Malaysian state of Johor, which borders on Singapore, which also has been severely impacted by the pollution.

The government announced Sunday afternoon that it would commence cloud-seeding in hopes that rain will alleviate the pollution in the worst-hit areas.

The annual problem is blamed by Indonesia's neighbours for affecting tourism and public health.

The crisis has brought more negative publicity for big palm oil companies -- Indonesian, Singaporean and Malaysian -- which deforest vast swathes of Sumatra, as well as other areas of Indonesia and Malaysia, although the companies insist they have strict "no burn" policies.

Indonesia's government has outlawed the use of fire to clear land, but weak enforcement means the ban is largely ignored.

Singapore and Indonesia have lashed out at each other in recent days. Malaysia's government has so far avoided strong criticism of its big Southeast Asian neighbour.

Indonesia, meanwhile, has blamed Malaysian and Singapore-based palm oil companies for allowing slash and burn on estates they own on Sumatra.

Environmental group Greenpeace said Saturday that NASA data indicated hundreds of fires were burning in palm oil concessions owned by Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean companies.

In 1997-1998, the haze cost Southeast Asia an estimated US$9 billion from disruptions to air travel and other business activities.

- AFP/fa

Dividend Chaser on Singapore Child is being suffocated

(From Article)

Screenshot: Facebook

SINGAPORE — As the haze in Singapore worsens today, Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong has declared that “the Singapore Child is being suffocated” in a riposte to an Indonesian minister’s comments yesterday that Singaporeans are “behaving like a child” in response to the haze.

In his latest Facebook post as “MParader”, Mr Goh asked: “The Singapore Child is being suffocated. How can he not scream?

But acknowledging that there is little that can be done in the short term, the former Prime Minister concluded his note: “But as of now, the Singapore Child better learn to survive the tortuous smog and haze. ---gct”

Mr Goh wrote his latest post this afternoon. The National Environment Agency’s three-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) hit a new high of 401 at 1pm.

Dividend Chaser on Indonesia deployed choppers to curb fire

(From Article)

Agence France-Presse

Jun 21, 2013 12:51 (IST)

Jakarta: Indonesia deployed helicopters today to artificially create rain in a bid to fight raging fires that have choked Singapore with smog, which is hitting record-breaking levels that pose a threat to the elderly and the ill.

At a late-night emergency meeting, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered disaster officials to "immediately mobilise all the country's resources" to extinguish the fires on Sumatra island that have created vast palls of smoke.

Singapore's worst environmental crisis in more than a decade has seen the acrid smoke creep into people's flats and cloak residential blocks as well as downtown skyscrapers, and the island's prime minister has warned it could last weeks.

Indonesia's national disaster agency said that two helicopters with cloud-seeding equipment were sent early Friday from Jakarta and Borneo island to Riau province, where hundreds of hectares (acres) of carbon-rich peatland are ablaze.

"Hopefully, we will be able to create artificial rain today," said agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.

He also said water-bombing helicopters could be dispatched, although gave no timeframe. Firefighters on the ground have struggled to put out the blazes, which are burning under the surface of the peat.

Firefighters tackling blazes in Bengkalis district, the worst hit area, were "overwhelmed" and unable to cope, Ahmad Saerozi, the head of the natural resources conservation agency in the province, told AFP.

"We have been fighting fires 24 hours a day for two weeks," he said, adding that aircraft must "drop water as soon as possible. We can't do this alone".

As Indonesia stepped up its fire-fighting efforts, Singapore's smog index hit the critical 400 level, making it potentially life-threatening to the ill and elderly people, according to a government monitoring site.

The all-time record level was reached at 11:00 am (0830 IST) today after a rapid rise in the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI). It fell back to 360 in the afternoon.

According to Singapore government guidelines, sustained PSI average levels above 400 on a 24-hour basis "may be life-threatening to ill and elderly persons".

Before the latest crisis which erupted on Monday, the previous Singapore air pollutant index high was 226, recorded in September 1997.

That episode cost the Southeast Asian region billions of dollars and also resulted from vast amounts of haze from Indonesia, where slash-and-burn farming generates heavy smoke during the dry season that begins in June.

Parts of Malaysia close to Singapore have also been severely affected by the smog this week.

The haze crisis has had a dramatic impact on life in Singapore, with the city-state's residents scaling back their activities in a bid to protect themselves.

Fast-food deliveries have been cancelled, the army has suspended field training and even Singapore's top marathon runner has been forced to run indoors.

Hunched commuters are wearing masks or cover their mouths as they travel to and from home, with major drug stores telling AFP they have temporarily run out of masks and cannot accept advance orders.

Vivian Balakrishnan, Singapore's minister for the environment and water resources, who has demanded "definitive action" from Indonesia to stop the haze, was due to meet his Indonesian counterpart in Jakarta later today.

The haze crisis has caused tensions to escalate dramatically between tiny Singapore and its vast neighbour, with the city-state repeatedly demanding that Jakarta step up its efforts to put out the fires.

However, Indonesian officials have become irate at the demands, and on Thursday the minister coordinating Jakarta's response to the crisis accused Singapore of acting "like a child".

Dividend Chaser on Primary 1 registration

(From Article)

SINGAPORE — Primary 1 registration for admission to schools in 2014 will run from July 4 to Aug 30, for children born between Jan 2, 2007, and Jan 1, 2008, with both dates inclusive, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said today (June 21).

Three new primary schools will be taking in students from 2014 and will open for Primary 1 registration this year. The schools are Alexandra Primary, Northoaks Primary and West Spring Primary. Each will offer 210 places.

All primary schools will open for registration Mondays to Fridays, from 8am to 11am and from 2.30pm to 4.30pm.

The MOE said that there will be sufficient school places for all eligible Primary 1 students, with the 2014 cohort comparable to the 2013 one.

PHASES

Phase 1 will take place on July 4 and 5 July for children with a sibling studying in the primary school of choice.

Phase 2A is on July 9 for children whose parent is a former student of the primary school and who has joined the alumni association as a member not later than June 30, 2012. A child whose parent is a member of the School Advisory / Management Committee is also eligible under this phase.

Phase 2A(2) will take place on July 15 and 16 July. A child whose parent or sibling has studied in the primary school of choice or whose parent is a staff member of the primary school of choice can register under this phase.

Phase 2B will take place on July 22 and 23 for children whose parent has joined the primary school as a parent volunteer not later than July 1, 2012, and has done at least 40 hours of voluntary service for the school by June 30 this year. It is also for a child whose parent is a member endorsed by the church/clan directly connected with the primary school, and whose parent is endorsed as an active community leader.

For Phase 2C, all children who are eligible for Primary 1 in the following year and are not yet registered in a primary school can register. This phase takes place from July 30 to Aug 1.

Phase 2C Supplementary applies to a child who is not yet registered in a primary school after Phase 2C. Registration under this phase will be on Aug 13 and 14.

Phase 3, scheduled for Aug 29 and 30, is for children who are not Singapore Citizens or Singapore Permanent Residents.

The Education Ministry will introduce the Primary 1 Internet System (P1-IS) in 80 Primary Schools during Phase 2C and 2C Supplementary. The list of schools can be found on MOE’s website.

This online registration is an alternate channel for parents to register their children under these two phases only. They can also choose to register personally at the schools.

For parents who are registering their children in all other primary schools should go to the schools personally to register.

Dividend Chaser on Gold reaching 1200 soon

(From Article)

Friday, 21 June 2013

Gold support is at 1200 now!

Dear Friends,

Gold collapsed again with a 90 points down day! With today's poor china report and Wallstreet predicting the end of QE soon, there seems to be no more good news for the gold.

Do take note that we think gold has a support at 1200, a support that we think should hold agin mid term. So good luck to gold, it is 80 points away now!

Rgds
Daniel

Dividend Chaser on My friend's remisier on drops of US stocks

(From Article)

From my friend's remisier: last night's drops of US stocks and today's declines of Asian-Pacific equities are meant to correct investors' expectation of dovish statement by Bernanke after FOMC meeting last night. 

That expectation had led to about 3% rebound of STI early this week. 

However Fed sounded a bit more  optimistic on the sustainability of US economic recovery which may lead to tapering of QE3 from 4Q13 onward, resulting in the selloff of stocks worldwide.

 This selloff may last for a couple of days and do watch for the key support of 3100 which was the recent low for STI. 

The 200-day simple moving average  is at 3194 which had been broken today and will be the immediate resistance for STI.

 HSBC flash manufacturing PMI for Chinese SMEs,which was released in the morning, did not help market sentiments either as it came out at 48.3 (forecast 49.4) in Jun, down from 49.2 in May. 

Probably it may test 3100 the second time which I think it will hold before rebound again to 3195 - 3200 level as it maybe overdone and oversold by then. 

The fact is that US economy is improving, albeit gradually, but may pick up pace by the end of the year, should bring back some stability and senses to the market after a while. 

If STI closes and traded below 3100 for 2 consecutive days, do exercise caution as next target will be 3000. 

Just my opinion. Thank you so much for your support and all the best to you.

......

 Investors are expecting monthly bond purchases to reduce from $85 bil to $65 bil in 4Q13, but this will depend whether the economy does improve along the lines that Fed expect. 

They will continue to reduce the once of purchases in measured steps thru the 1st half of 2014, ending QE around mid-2014 only if the economy continue to improve. 

Even after the end of bond purchases, Fed will continue to hold its target interest rate bear zero as long as unemployment remains above 6.5% (7.6% now) and the outlook for inflation doesn't exceed 2.5% (1.6-1.7% now based on annualized PCE). 

It is still very accomodative even though Fed no longer print extra $85 bil/mth as by then those positive sentiment and momentum generated by improving macro economic fundamentals will be able to support higher valuation if stock mkts going forward. 

In the event during these periods, conditions turn for the worse, Fed will stop this tapering and will maintain the purchases and may even increase them. 

As I mentioned earlier, do watch out for the key support of 3100. 

If STI breaks this level and traded below for 2 days, selling will increase and probably test range of 2880 - 2890. Just my opinion. Thank you.

Dividend Chaser on Singapore PM speaks on Haze

(From Article)

SINGAPORE - Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Ministers Ng Eng Hen and Minister Vivian Balakrishnan will be speaking on the haze situation at 3pm, today (June 20). Live updates here:

"Haze is not a new problem for Singapore and Malaysia, but this episode is more serious than in recent years," Mr Lee said. "This afternoon the 3-hour PSI reached 371, a new high. The 24-hour PSI (at 2pm), which our health advisories are based on, was in the range of 175-207 – in the Unhealthy to Very Unhealthy range. We expect the wind and weather conditions to remain the same, and therefore the haze to persist."

Mr Lee also said that he had written to Indonesian President Yudhoyono to register serious concerns and reiterate the Republic's offer to help. Mr Lee also vowed to take action against any Singapore companies or companies in Singapore responsible for causing the fires in Sumatra.

Mr Lee added that the Ministry of Health will implement a special scheme to provide financial help with medical expenses for those in need. An inter-ministerial committee will also be set up to focus on protecting public health and safety and work with Indonesians to mitigate the haze.

Dr Ng, who will chair the inter-ministerial committee, said: “Like it or not, for haze to improve we are dependent on the Indonesian government. We must not let the haze overrun us. The haze will test our economic and social resilience.”

Environment Minister Dr Vivian Balakrishnan said that the Government will have to give more advice on appropriate precautions to deal with the haze. “The bottom-line is that no company has the right to pollute the air at the expense of Singaporeans' health,” he added.

When asked about a tipping point for a stop-work order, Mr Lee said that there is no hard line where everything must stop. He also added that it is "not fruitful" to respond to Indonesian minister's comment that Singapore is acting like a child over the current haze situation.

Addressing concerns over PSI readings, Mr Lee said: “We don't play these kind of games in Singapore. We are publishing 3-hour average. It may be better than what you see outside window or worse than what you see.”

Dividend Chaser on Worst Haze ever seen

(From Article)

8 HOURS 44 MIN AGO

SINGAPORE — The Government will implement contingency plans such as closing schools and sports complex, if necessary, and the Ministry of Manpower may issue stop-work orders depending on the seriousness of the haze situation, said Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishan tonight (June 19).

The Government has convened a taskforce of 23 agencies to deal with the situation and draw up contingency plans.

The Government will also be publishing high-resolution pictures of all hotspots at Sumatra, which the National Environment Agency (NEA) will link to specific companies, said Dr Balakrishban. 

This, he said, would “allow us to take commercial action against companies”.

Dr Balakrishnan was speaking to the media at a press conference called after Singapore’s air quality reached “hazardous” levels. At 10pm, the three-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) reading spiked to 321.

A delegation will also be attending an emergency haze meeting at Jakarta soon.

 Noting that “concrete action” is what’s needed, the real solution is to stop fires in Sumatra, said Dr Balakrishnan. 

Singapore does not have enough clouds to successfully execute cloud-seeding, he added.

The minister said the haze is expected to worsen overnight due to a high number of hotspots in Sumatra, and that things would get worse before they get better. 

Only rain and sudden wind changes will improve the situation, but the chances of it happening are slim, he said.

He expects tomorrow’s (June 20) 24-hour PSI to go beyond 200.

This is the worst haze Singaporeans have seen and adjustments in our daily lives must be made, added Dr Balakrishnan.

Responding to a question on the PSI reading, Dr Balakrishnan said: "We must not get fixated on numbers and focus on improving the situation first." 

The NEA will be completely transparent in the management of this crisis, he said.

He advised children, elderly and those with lung disease to avoid outdoor activities and to seek medical treatment early.

 The longer Singaporeans go through high levels of haze, the more people will need medical attention, he said, but assured that hospitals are well prepared to handle the situation.

“This is a crisis but I’m confident we can survive this,” said Dr Balakrishnan. “We are going to overcome this problem by working very hard with the Indonesians and get them to do the right thing.”

Dividend Chaser on Gold backs off a bit

(From Article)

(Kitco News) - Comex gold futures saw an initial moderately bearish price reaction to Wednesday afternoon’s highly anticipated Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) statement and the ensuing press conference held by Fed Chairman Bernanke. 

Comex August gold last traded down $8.00 at $1,358.80 an ounce. Spot gold was last quoted down $8.00 at $1,360.75. 

July Comex silver last traded down $0.282 at $21.38 an ounce.

The FOMC said U.S. monetary policy will not see an imminent change even though the economy is expanding moderately. 

There was no mention about tapering of the Fed’s monthly bond-buying program in the statement. 

However, Bernanke at his press conference did hint that the Fed in the coming months will back off the accelerator on its monthly bond buying. 

When asked by a reporter about his job and whether he will keep it, Bernanke said he would not touch upon his future plans at this time.

The U.S. dollar index rallied sharply in the aftermath of the FOMC statement, which in turn put downside price pressure on the gold and silver markets. 

Heavy short covering was featured in the dollar index as it had hit a four-month low early on Wednesday. 

The greenback bears still have the overall near-term technical advantage, which is still an underlying bullish factor for the precious metals markets. 

Crude oil prices were slightly lower Wednesday afternoon but did hit a four-month high overnight. 

With Nymex crude prices presently just below $99.00 a barrel and trending higher the past three weeks, the precious metals bulls are rooting for prices to hit the $100.00 mark, which would give a psychological boost to the entire raw commodity sector, including the precious metals.

There is civil unrest in Turkey and Brazil that traders and investors are monitoring. The gold market saw selling interest limited on this news. 

If the situations there see an escalation and violence in the streets, the gold market could see some safe-haven demand surface.

Dividend Chaser on Singapore hits 290 record

(From Article)

SINGAPORE'S air is now on the cusp of being "hazardous" as the Pollutant Standards Index soared to 290 at 9pm, the worst reading ever in the Republic.

Air becomes hazardous when the index passes 300. The worst smog reading before this was 226, in 1997.

Several organisations such as the Singapore Civil Defence Force, Singapore Armed Forces and Ministry of Home Affairs have all reduced physical and outdoor training in light of the health risks, while NTUC FairPrice has issued face masks to all of its pump attendants at its petrol stations.

Earlier on Wednesday, Environment Minister Vivian Balakrishnan acknowledged that Singaporeans are "very frustrated, angry and distressed about the situation".

Both Dr Balakrishnan and Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam spoke to their Indonesian counterparts on Tuesday to urge them to take tougher action against companies responsible for the illegal burning.

The National Environment Agency said on Tuesday night that haze is likely to last for the next few days, and is the result of fires in Sumatra, Indonesia.

Dividend Chaser on Monsters University

(From Article)

BY

GENEVIEVE SARAH LOH

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16 HOURS 29 MIN AGO

SINGAPORE — Making a prequel to a successful film is considered one of the hardest things to do. Double that (plus five) when you’re talking about Monsters Inc, which, in this reviewer’s book, stands as one of the most enjoyable and ingenious animated movies of all time.

It was a monstrous (pun fully intended) hit back in 2001 for Pixar, which raised the animation bar so high with the likes of Toy Story, Finding Nemo and The Incredibles.

So where does the new generation of Pixar film-makers start?

Right at the very beginning. Stepping up to the plate to direct is Cars and Toy Story 3 storyboard artist Dan Scanlon, a brave soul who’s up for tackling the legacy of Sully and Wazowski.

Scanlon knows exactly what the necessary core elements are for a Pixar hit: Hilarious running gags, memorable characters, heartfelt story. And he mostly delivers.

Monsters University works as both a frat house comedy and a coming-of-age tale, recalling all the recognisable Revenge Of The Nerds movie tropes. Our two lovable but obviously flawed heroes aren’t exactly mates when they first meet in university, but they must rally together a team of misfits to win a big competition and keep their dreams alive.

But for all of the plot’s familiarity (it is a prequel after all), extra props must be given to the screenwriters for throwing in some surprising detours on the two “scare-rs”’ journey to Monsters Inc.

Billy Crystal and John Goodman are, of course, more than excellent as they reprise their roles of Mike Wazowski and James P Sullivan, respectively. They continue to do no wrong with their comedic rapport. Helen Mirren as Dean Hardscrabble, the cold-as-ice headmistress of Monsters University is also spot-on, along with a host of A-list voices like Steve Buscemi and Alfred Molina.

It’s a fun outing at the movies, no doubt about it. Yet, there seems to be a little something missing. Perhaps the absence of any human characters for the monsters to play off against (like the awww-so-cute Boo in Monsters Inc) means it lacks the emotional payoff that the first movie had.

That said, Monsters University is still sweet, entertaining and satisfying as far as hard-to-get-right prequels go. It respectfully continues Pixar’s tradition of delivering films that focus on character, mirth and merriment. But like a younger brother, it will always have to stay under the mighty shadow of the superior, timeless classic that was the original.

Dividend Chaser on Serious Haze in Singapore

(From Article)

FROM

RYAN CHAN

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10 HOURS 37 MIN AGO

I refer to the report “Haze hits levels not seen since 1997 record” (June 18).

As far as my memory serves me, we have experienced the same situation many times, and each time we find ourselves wondering how long it will last.

We can take all precautions to keep ourselves and our children healthy, but there is only so much we can do in this situation other than hope the wind will blow in our favour and take the haze away.

It is time for the Indonesian government to take a serious view on this transboundary haze problem.

As a responsible member of the international community, the Indonesian government must tackle the problem at its roots, be it via education or effective legislation.

Every country should promote good neighbourly relations but we should also be able to take a tough stand when it comes to such issues, especially when it compromises the health and well-being of everyone around. When all else fails, perhaps we should look at the possibility of economic sanctions against the parties and corporations that do not abide by their international obligations.

It is high time the governments act so that our future generations do not live their lives engulfed in smog.

Dividend Chaser on Resolving Parent-child conflicts

Dividend Chaser on the Bull and the Bear

(From Article)

Have you ever wondered why when the stock market is up, it is said that the market is “bullish” whereas the contrary is said to be “bearish”?

The terms “bull” and “bear” are thought to be derived from the way each animal attacks its opponents. A bull will thrust its horns up into the air while a bear will swipe down on its adversaries. These innate actions were then related metaphorically to the stock market movements.

Even though a bull thrusting its opponent high into the air might sound frightening, its quick, swift actions are typically not translated to the stock market. 

A bull market usually takes a long time to form, usually many months and years. 

However, when a bear strikes, the markets can tumble down fast and furious, sometimes within weeks, perhaps even erasing past gains in a very short period of time.

To find out the reason why this is so, we have to look at two human emotions driving the stock market all the time – greed and fear. 

Greed takes some time to form in investors. 

When the stock market is slowly rising, more people talk about it and come on board slowly till the market peaks. 

However, when fear strikes, things get really messy as investors sell in panic, causing tumultuous plunges in the stock market, almost in a blink of an eye. 

As selling continues, pessimism grows, creating more price plunges.

In the chart below, we can see clearly the various time frames and the duration for the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) to rise and to fall to almost the same levels:

(Source: Yahoo! Finance)

The first down arrow indicates the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997. 

The second down arrow indicates the Dot Com Bubble in 2000. 

The third down arrow indicates the Sub-Prime crisis in 2008/2009. 

The last down arrow indicates the US sovereign debt downgrade.  

Except for the second down arrow (the duration of downtrend is slightly longer than the uptrend, probably due to quick recovery from the Asian Financial Crisis), it can be seen that bear markets tend to happen quickly.

Taking the current downtrend as an example, within 3 weeks, the STI hit a 6-month low whereas it took 6 months to hit the 5-year high of 3454 points seen on 22^nd May 2013.

What can investors do to take advantage of such market irrationalities? 

Warren Buffett once quipped that we have to be greedy when others are fearful. 

When the bear strikes down hard, we must be greedy enough to purchase companies that we like. 

Companies such as Super Group(SGX: S10), Fraser and Neave Limited(SGX: F99) and Jardine Cycle & Carriage Limited (SGX: C07) have been some of the top few gainers in the past five years since hitting lows during the 2009 crisis. 

By being fearful and sitting on the sidelines, we would have missed out on these gains.