Malaysia-Finance Blogspot

Views On Air Asia

2012-02-03T09:39:00.000+08:00

Air Asia and Tony Fernandes: From public champion to money-grabbing witch?

Written by Kenny Gan, Malaysia Chronicle

AirAsia is one of Malaysia’s great success stories. From basically nothing except a few old planes serving a few domestic routes CEO Tony Fernandes has built it into the biggest budget airline in Asia with routes spanning most of Asia and reaching into Australia, NZ and Europe. He has done it without any help from the government unlike pampered bumiputra businessmen.

However AirAsia’s success story has begun to falter amid charges of poor service, inflexibility, hidden charges, deceptive pricing and anti-consumer practices designed to squeeze the maximum from passengers. Whenever there is a news item on AirAsia in malaysiakini, Malaysian Insider and other online sites readers’ comments are almost wholly negative towards the airline. It is unusual for a budget airline which purports to provide affordable flying for passengers to end up on the wrong side of public opinion but AirAsia has certainly succeeded.

When did AirAsia descend from a public champion to a money grabbing witch? To be sure this did not happen suddenly but has been ongoing for years. The negative public perception against AirAsia has reached an alarming level and cannot help but affect the airline’s business. The suit by the Australian consumer watchdog ACCC did not help.

Copying Outdated Practices

AirAsia copies a lot from Western budget airlines like Virgin Airways but some of what it copies are outdated or culturally unsuitable for local customers. It may seem clever to refuse to check in a passenger who arrives 1 minute later than the counter closing time so that he has to buy another ticket but Malaysians find this very infuriating especially when other airlines have been very flexible. MAS will allow you to check in as long as you can make it to the boarding room before the plane flies.

Other practices which do not go down well with passengers are credit card charges, counter check-in charge and seat selection charge. The first two may be considered hidden charges as they are non-optional and should be added to the fare in the first place. Those who do not pay to select seats (currently at RM35 per passenger from KL) are randomly distributed so families will be split up. This is especially annoying as passengers are not charged for any real goods or services but for the right to sit together which should be theirs in the first place. It’s like taking something away which should be yours and demanding a fee to give it back.

But probably the most aggravating is AirAsia’s RM1.95 a minute charge to talk to a service staff. It may be for something which is not their fault like flight delays, claim of refund, lost luggage or being overcharged on their credit cards but having to pay by the minute to complain is really annoying. To add insult to injury they are frequently made to wait on hold while the charge keeps ticking.

Is AirAsia Really Cheap?

AirAsia practices a sliding scale of pricing depending on when you book. Early birds get cheap prices which are probably below AirAsia’s cost while late comers will be charged more. Then there are the gimmicky promotion giveaway seats which have to be subsidized from somewhere and it’s not from Tony’s pockets. The upshot is that AirAsia is not always the cheapest and can be more expensive than regular airlines. As nobody will pay more than a regular airline for a budget airline AirAsia tries to hide its real pricing and make it difficult for customers to compare.

This pricing model of gouging Peter to subsidize Paul does not work anymore. Consumers are getting savvier with tight social networking and no longer assume that AirAsia is always the cheapest. They will buy when AirAsia’s prices are cheap and stay away when prices increase. There are still some ignorant ones who do not compare prices but depending on consumer ignorance is never a good business model. This is like BN depending on the rural Malays to be forever supportive through poor information.

During last year’s peak Christmas to New Year period AirAsia was flying between KL and Melbourne with empty seats while all regular airlines were sold out. This is extremely unusual for a budget airline which should logically be the first to be sold out. Passengers have wised up to AirAsia’s pricing tricks.

Customers should also compare beyond the basic fare. Things like food, entertainment, comfort kit and baggage have to be priced in as well as other extraneous charges. Passengers also fly from the LCCT which is a pathetic excuse for an airport and they have to walk a long way to the plane as AirAsia will not pay for aerobridges. This makes AirAsia unsuitable for senior citizens. Then again AirAsia usually flies to remote airports which may cost more to get to the city.

There are also hidden costs. AirAsia is really only cheap if you book far ahead and pay upfront. It accepts bookings as far as one year ahead. This means your money is tied down and any change in schedule can be very painful as AirAsia will levy a heavy charge out of proportion to the ticket just to change a date. Some consumers will find that paying a little more for flexibility is not a waste of money.

Delays and Cancellations

Those who fly AirAsia know that delays and cancelled flights are far more common than other airlines. AirAsia has the dubious practice of combining flights if passenger loads are low without regards to disrupting their passengers’ schedules. The fine print on their tickets claims they have the right to do this. Only a country with weak consumer laws like Malaysia allows them to get away with it.

Those whose flights have been cancelled and are entitled to a refund find dealing with AirAsia an exercise in patience and perseverance. Contacting AirAsia staff is an arduous task in itself. Some customers say they are asked to wait 30 to 60 days to process their refunds and when the time is up AirAsia can come up with another excuse to reset the waiting time.

Long upfront payment, inflexibly, inconvenience, risk of delay and poor service means that customers will demand a big price gap from regular airlines to fly AirAsia. This means that eventually AirAsia will only be able to sell if their prices are very cheap and below cost. Passengers will look elsewhere when prices approach regular airlines.

A case in point is AirAsia’s cancellation of routes to London, Paris, New Delhi and Mumbai. These are popular routes to densely populated cities which any budget airline should be able to work successfully. AirAsia’s stated reasons like visa requirements and additional taxes do not make sense as they apply to all airlines and can be added to the fare. The real reason as reported in The Star is that AirAsia is losing millions on these routes every month. So why can’t AirAsia raise its prices? The reason it can’t is because passengers will flee to other airlines. They are demanding a price gap to fly AirAsia which the airline cannot provide and still remain profitable.

The Writing is on the Wall for AirAsia

AirAsia may have started on good terms with the public but the honeymoon period is over. Its service has fallen to abysmal level and it is treating its own customers with contempt. AirAsia is behaving as if it is operating a monopoly when no such monopoly exists.

Passengers have a choice of other airlines including budget ones like Jetstar which has been complimented for its transparent fixed pricing. Air Emirates is encroaching in on AirAsia’s lucrative KL-Melbourne route with very competitive prices. Hoping that its new KL-Sydney route will be as lucrative may not happen as SIA will soon launch a new budget airline called Scoot which will start with the Singapore-Sydney route.

AirAsia has obviously not come to terms with the power of social media. In the old days an enraged customer can do limited damage as he can only influence his immediate family and close friends. These days they can vent their rage in online forums, facebook and twitter and influence hundreds if not thousands.

Horror stories about AirAsia abounds online. Some say they find AirAsia staff so difficult to contact that they are forced to buy another ticket when they just want to change a departure date. One angry customer said he has been waiting 2 years for a refund with serial excuses from AirAsia. One passenger was especially unfortunate. He reached the airport to find the check-in counter closed and the staff agreed with him that it was closed earlier than the stipulated time. She made a phone call but was not allowed to re-open the counter. As a result the passenger missed his flight and his connecting flight and to top it off Air Asia refused him a refund.

There seems to be a culture of unsavoury practices to try to squeeze all they can from passengers even to the extent of forcing them to buy another ticket. Such corporate greed will drive customers away. My sister was asked to pay RM1000 to change the date of departure for a KL-Melbourne flight. She has declared that she will fly Air Emirates from now on.

Tony Fernandez should put his mega plane buying on hold and work like hell to improve AirAsia’s customer service and public perception. He should step out of his dream world that every year will be the best ever year for AirAsia. The writing is already on the wall and if AirAsia crashes it will be a pity as it can be said to be the only Malaysian global brand.

Malaysia Chronicle

Unbelievably Talented Malaysian

2012-02-01T15:49:00.002+08:00

A Seminar For Serious Investors - Valuegrowth Investing

2012-02-01T00:34:00.003+08:00

Finally, I have managed, with help from super-investor Koon Yew Yin, to organise a highly significant full day seminar on the "best investment principles" known throughout the world. Koon Yew Yin has told me time and again that if anyone wants to know the basis for his investment philosophy, just read Glen Arnold's book on Valuegrowth Investing.

Professor Glen Arnold is the Professor of Investing at Salford University in UK. He is the author of numerous finance and investing books including Corporate Financial Management, The Handbook of Corporate Finance and the Financial Times Guide to Investing, all published by Financial Times – Prentice Hall. His book “The Great Investors: Lessons on Investing from Master Traders”, is part of the Financial Times Series, and was published in December 2010.

His brilliance is after studying the great masters, including Ben Graham, Philip Fischer, Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger, he took the salient pointers and injected his own cohesive investing theory to amalgamate the best from the masters to come up with a quite definitive philosophy, Valuegrowth Investing.

All you need to know, should know about the time tested investing philosophies will be examined, dissected and analysed to get to the bottom of each of the great investors' mindset. Its going to be a thrilling full day seminar. Possibly the most worthwhile few hundred ringgit you will get to spend to improve your investing decision making in one single day.

Koon Yew Yin will be making an opening address for the seminar and the event will be moderated by me. Early bird purchases (before March 9) will be RM563pp (coffee break and lunch included), after that date it will cost RM723pp. It will be a sustained and emphatic full day session but well worth your while. I can think of no better investing seminar to bring to Malaysia than Professor Glen Arnold.

Professor Arnold will be making his tour to India and will only be coming to Malaysia in his tour of Asia. Limited seats as 35% of tickets have been pre-booked already, and one seminar only. Be there. You should be better at investing decision making after attending the seminar, and I am sure you will make a lot less unwise investing decisions as well.

http://www.ticketcharge.com.my/jl/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=185

PROFESSOR GLEN ARNOLD - VALUEGROWTH INVESTING

PROFESSOR GLEN ARNOLD
VALUEGROWTH INVESTING

Date: 14 APRIL 2012

Time: 9:00am till 4:15pm (lunch included)

Venue: Auditorium,
Sime Darby Convention Center,
Bukit Kiara, KL

Links

Event Description

Prices & Discounts

Terms & Conditions

Event Description

Glen Arnold is a businessman, investor and a professor of investing at Salford University UK. He is the author of numerous finance and investing books including Corporate Financial Management, The Handbook of Corporate Finance and the Financial Times Guide to Investing, all published by Financial Times – Prentice Hall. His book “The Great Investors: Lessons on Investing from Master Traders”, is part of the Financial Times Series, and was published in December 2010.

Pricing & Discount

Ticket/Discount
Type

Discount
Rate

Validity

Price

per person

Normal Price

RM 723.00

Early Bird

by 9 March

RM 563.00

Type of Seat :	Numbered seat.
Seat Selection :	Actual seating will be allocated upon registration.
Price :	All Prices include RM3.00 Processing Fee.
Sales Channel :	All TicketCharge's authorised outlets, call centre, internet purchase. (Speedy outlets to start sales on 8th Feb)

Please read and confirm that you understand and accept
TicketCharge’s Conditions of Sales to "Buy Online"

Remarks: The event organizer reserves the rights to change the prices, seating arrangement, artiste lineup and audience capacity. Map not in scale, served as a guide or reference only!

Terms & Conditions

* Prices are quoted in Ringgit Malaysia and include RM3.00 processing fee
* RM1.50 per ticket will be charged for internet purchase.
* NO CANCELLATION or CHANGES allowed once ticket sold.
* Additional courier charges will apply if address is not within Malaysia.
* NO REFUND is allowed after a purchase is made.
* LOST or DAMAGE ticket(s) will not be entertained.
* Strictly no Professional Camera, Video Recording and Audio Recording is allowed.
* Phone booking is available via TicketCharge (603) 9222 8811.

LIST OF TICKETCHARGE OUTLETS:

http://www.ticketcharge.com.my/jl/images/PDF/TicketChargeOutlets.pdfOUTLETS:

Ador, You Will Be Missed

2012-02-01T00:01:00.000+08:00

I had the great opportunity to meet and see Ador in action many times over the past few years. I am thankful that together with Leslie Loh, we at least managed to get The Solianos together to record the first ever album, which I feel strongly is a brilliant testament of the contribution of The Solianos (including Alfonso) to the culture and growth of modern Malaysian music since 1950s.

Solianos band member and saxophonist Salvador Guerzo dies

By Dennis Chua
dchua@nst.com.my | 0 comments

KUALA LUMPUR: Saxophonist and music arranger Salvador Guerzo, 70, a member of Malaysia’s renowned band the Solianos, died this morning at his family's residence in Langkawi.

Saxophonist Salvador Guerzo

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Guerzo is the son-in-law of jazz legend Alfonso Soliano, who founded the Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) Orchestra.

Jazz singer Michelle Nunis, Guerzo’s daughter-in-law, described him as a professional who was easy to work with.

“He was down-to-earth and passionate about music. A perfectionist, he believed that musicians should always give fans a great show,” she said.

Fredo Villenguez, Guerzo’s cousin and lead vocalist of Fredo And The Flintstones, described the saxophonist as his ‘sifu’.

“He taught me all about musical arrangements. I would not have made it as a performer without his immense knowledge and great musicianship,” he said.

Musician Jeremy Monteiro described Guerzo as a prominent figure in the jazz scene whose passing was a deep loss to Southeast Asia.

"I am very grateful that I managed to tell him how much I respected and admired him,” Monteiro said in his Facebook condolence message to Guerzo’s family.

Guerzo had performed with Soliano siblings Isabella, Coni, Tristano, Rizal, Valentino and Irene as a band from 1979 in major hotels besides the Royal Selangor Club in Kuala Lumpur.

The family band also performed in Langkawi’s resort hotels and Kuala Lumpur nightspots such as No Black Tie. It was occasionally joined by Guerzo’s daughter, jazz pianist Rachel, and his niece Trish D’Cruz.

Guerzo had often accompanied Rachel’s showcases, most notably her 2010 performance at Dewan Filharmonik Petronas (DFP).

Another of Guerzo’s eight children, Dianne, was the lead singer of pop group Freedom.

Dianne and D’Cruz participated in reality talent show Malaysian Idol 2 in 2005 and D’Cruz made it to the Top 12.

In 2010, Guerzo and the Solianos unveiled their debut Malay album Pusaka at Bentley Music Auditorium, Mutiara Damansara, Petaling Jaya.

Pusaka encapsulated the group's brilliant musicianship and was dedicated to Alfonso.

Guerzo as the arranger gave these songs a more current sound.

The 14 tracks included Alfonso's original works such as Gadis Idamanku and Airmata Berderai, Broery Marantika’s Widuri, Freedom’s Mulanya Di Sini, Tan Sri P Ramlee’s Getaran Jiwa and Tan Sri Ahmad Merican’s Tanah Pusaka.

Guess Who Will Be Moving Up The Richest List Fastest This Year

2012-01-31T02:07:00.000+08:00

The snippet below was taken from Forbes magazine:

Malaysia's Richest

#9 Vincent Tan

Net Worth	$1.25 billion	Source of Wealth	diversified
Age	58	Marital Status	Married, 11 children

Self-made entrepreneur runs conglomerate Berjaya Group, but fortune sank by almost a quarter over the past year as shares stumbled. Owns social networking website Friendster.com and bought shares of Facebook through his Internet company, MOL.com. Failed to get a sports betting license from the government. Hates golf but loves scuba diving and working out at the gym.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Its very hard to move up the top ten richest list in Malaysia as the gap from one to the other is in the billions. Supposedly, Vincent Tan is #9 with $1.25bn (RM3.75bn). There is a very strong likelihood that Vincent Tan will move up at least two rungs this year. At #8 is Syed Mokhtar with $2.5bn while at #7 is Yeoh Tiong Lay with $2.7bn. Dislodging #6 will be difficult as Teh Hiong Piow has $4.7bn.

Chances are high that Vincent will get to #7 at least this year because his stake in Friendster was swapped totally into Facebook shares. Rough estimates has figured his stake in Facebook at 1%. Facebook is about to list soon at a valuation of at least $90bn, and should get to $120bn-$130bn when it finally trades (if market does not collapse). His stake alone will add at least $1bn to his total.

The other major play is his stake in Cosway, which is rumoured to be sold soon for around RM2bn. Then there is the realisation of his stake in U Mobile, which may be listed as well this year. All said, Vincent may add $1.5bn-$1.8bn (RM4.5-RM5.4bn) to his net worth this year.

How has 2012 been for you so far?

Then Why Have The SC Task Force In The First Place?

2012-01-30T16:47:00.000+08:00

Well, we probably won't see this kind of business reporting in local media, so have to rely on The Straits Times Singapore.

SC task force found Sime Darby triggered E&O general offer

By Yow Hong Chieh

January 30, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 30 — A Securities Commission (SC) task force found that Sime Darby Bhd was obliged to make a general offer for Eastern & Oriental (E&O) Bhd shares after acquiring a 30 per cent stake in the property developer but was superseded by the regulator’s top ruling authority.

Singapore’s The Straits Times reported that the task force was of the view that a general offer obligation had been triggered as a new “concert party” was created between Sime Darby and E&O managing director Datuk Terry Tham, who jointly controlled more than 33 per cent in the property concern after the deal.

Malaysia’s takeover rules stipulate that any party that acquires more than a 33 per cent interest in a publicly-listed entity must carry out a general offer for the remaining shares.

A general offer can also be triggered if a new party buys less than 33 per cent but secures management control of the target company.

But the SC’s final ruling three-member committee ruled “in a majority decision” there was no general offer obligation as Sime Darby and Tham were not acting in concert, according to an affidavit by the agency’s second-most senior commissioner Datuk Francis Tan, which was sighted by the Singapore daily.

The committee also accepted the task force’s recommendation that the three groups which sold the blocks of E&O shares to Sime Darby did not collectively control the company and that the disposal did not trigger a general offer.

Sime Darby purchased its controlling 30 per cent interest from three major shareholders — Tham, Singapore’s GK Goh Holdings and a group of investors led by businessman Tan Sri Wan Azmi Wan Hamzah — at the end of August last year in a deal that valued E&O shares at RM2.30 a piece.

The purchase price represented a 60 per cent premium over the value of the shares in the company on the open market when the deal was announced.

The RM776 million deal triggered unease over the widely perceived coddling by the agency of large state-controlled companies at the expense of minority shareholders when exercising its authority on corporate takeovers.

The SC ruled six weeks after Sime Darby’s purchase of the three blocks that the plantation-based conglomerate did not have to make a general offer, prompting E&O minority shareholder Michael Chow to sue the SC for failing to compel Sime Darby to make a general offer for the rest of the shares.

The legal suit could renew debate over the SC’s handling of alleged irregular trading activities and will put pressure on SC chairman Tan Sri Zarinah Anwar, whose husband, the E&O chairman, raised his personal stock holdings in the company just weeks before Sime Darby announced the acquisition.

The SC has also filed an application to recuse the judge hearing the suit as he used to be with the regulator.

Smarter People Own More Stocks

2012-01-29T09:16:00.000+08:00

Business Times - 26 Jan 2012

Smarter people own more stocks, says study
It finds a direct link between IQ and market participation

( NEW YORK ) The smarter you are, the more stock you probably own, according to researchers who say they found a direct link between IQ and equity market participation.

Intelligence, as measured by tests given to 158,044 Finnish soldiers over 19 years, outweighed income in determining whether someone owns shares and how many companies he invests in. Among draftees scoring highest on the exams, the rate of ownership later in life was 21 percentage points above those who tested lowest, researchers found. The study, published in last month's Journal of Finance, ignored bonds and other investments.

Economists have debated for decades what they call the participation puzzle, trying to explain why more people don't take advantage of the higher returns stocks have historically paid on savings. As few as 51 per cent of American households own them, a 2009 study by the Federal Reserve found. Individual investors have pulled record cash out of US equity mutual funds in the last five years as shares suffered the worst bear market since the 1930s.

'It's what we see anecdotally: higher-IQ investors tend to be more willing to commit financial resources, to put skin in the game,' said Jason Hsu, chief investment officer at Research Affiliates. 'You can generalise a whole literature on this. It seems to suggest that whatever attributes are driving people to not participate in the stock market are related to the cost of processing financial information.'

Mark Grinblatt of the University of California , Los Angeles , Matti Keloharju of Aalto University in Espoo and Helsinki , Finland , and Juhani Linnainmaa at the University of Chicago compared results from intelligence tests given by the Finnish military between 1982 and 2001 to government records showing investments the draftees later held. They found the rate of stock ownership for people with the lowest scores trailed those with the highest even after adjusting for wealth, income, age and profession.

While intelligence influenced things that might naturally increase equity ownership such as wealth and income, the authors said IQ determined who owned the most stocks within those categories as well. Among the 10 per cent of individuals with the highest salary, 'IQ significantly predicts participation' in the stock market, they wrote.

For example, people in the highest-income ranking who scored lowest on the test had a rate of equity market participation that was 15.7 percentage points lower than those with the highest IQ.

'If you look at the significance of IQ related to other factors like income or wealth, certainly it plays a very large role,' Mr Keloharju, a finance professor at Aalto, said. 'It's very difficult to get around that problem, but the results are so strong here. We are playing with lots of different controls and lots of different specifications, and all the time things work really well.'

American economist Harry Markowitz won a Nobel Prize in 1990 for his theory that owning a larger variety of assets tended to maximise returns for a certain amount of risk. The 2009 study by the Fed found that 51.1 per cent of American families own stocks directly or indirectly, and of those who do, 36 per cent have shares in one company.

'It's difficult to justify why someone wouldn't invest in the stock market, knowing what a good deal it has been,' said Mr Linnainmaa, a co-author of the study from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business. 'The classical explanations for non-participation have been participation costs. It's not just that it may be expensive to buy stocks and mutual funds, but people may not have enough knowledge about them.'

Finnish soldiers were an ideal sample because differences in race, schooling and market access are minimised, the authors said. Draftees were about 20 years old when they were given 120 questions in math, language and logic. The authors divided the results into rankings and compared them with stock ownership records. People who don't serve in the country's military such as women weren't in the sample.

'There is an older literature on whether SAT scores of an investment manager's college helps predict his or her success,' Robert Shiller, an economics professor at Yale University and co-creator of the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index, said in an e-mail. 'This paper has a much better measure of intelligence,' and the 'results are therefore a significant advance', he wrote.

Finnish draftees aren't representative of typical investors, said Brian Jacobsen, chief portfolio strategist at Wells Fargo Advantage Funds. IQ is a function of culture and shouldn't be generalised across borders, he said. The authors also failed to discuss whether the test given to the soldiers was a valid way to grade thinking.

Finland's lack of ethnic diversity 'invalidates it for extrapolating it to other cultures', he said. 'That makes it that much more inappropriate to draw inferences from it about other cultures.'

The study's authors said the findings have implications for social policy. Avoiding stock investments cuts returns and may widen income gaps, they said. Individuals scoring lowest on the tests who still owned equities earned as much as 33 basis points, or 0.33 percentage point, a year less than the highest scorers. One way governments could promote better savings might be with plans that let people opt out of stocks, like 401(k) plans, as opposed to opting in, said Mr Keloharju.

'If you look at these people over time, people with higher IQ scores and stocks become wealthier and wealthier at a much faster rate than people with lower IQ scores,' said Mr Linnainmaa. 'It makes them worse off in the long run, even more so than the difference in income.'

Mr Hsu of Research Affiliates said an explanation for why draftees with lower test scores owned less stock is that they found it harder and more expensive to receive financial education. Getting people information on investing at a younger age may help limit the disparity, he said. -- Bloomberg

SC and The Upcoming Private Retirement Scheme

2012-01-26T09:59:00.000+08:00

Managers can now apply for licences to provide products under Malaysia’s proposed private retirement scheme. The Securities Commission answers AsianInvestor's questions about how the system will work.

By Joe Marsh | 26 January 2012

In December, Malaysia’s Securities Commission published eligibility requirements for asset managers to gain a product provider licence under the country’s long-awaited private retirement scheme (PRS).

Ranjit Ajit Singh, managing director at the Securities Commission (SC), here confirms and clarifies some key points for AsianInvestor.

A feature looking at the PRS in detail will appear in the upcoming February issue of AsianInvestor magazine.

AsianInvestor: What does the SC see as the main reasons to set up a voluntary private retirement scheme? Why would (and should) people use the scheme in addition to the existing Employees Pension Fund?
Ranjit Ajit Singh: A well supervised and regulated private retirement scheme (PRS) that facilitates greater accumulation of post-retirement savings can play an important role within the overall pension landscape.

Malaysia’s PRS aims to promote the welfare of the population at retirement through a robust multi-pillar pension framework. The SC is reviewing the existing retirement landscape to make recommendations within the context of developing the private pension industry, which will complement the mandatory contribution to our existing Employees Provident Fund.

Can you summarise the main points of the PRS? For example, rules on contributions, tax allowances, plus the main guidelines/requirements for asset managers providing products.

Private retirement schemes (PRSs) are long-term retirement schemes that contain a range of funds and are offered by approved PRS providers. The PRS framework is intended to provide flexible and convenient fund options for use, by both employers and individuals with different risk-return profiles.

Contributors will be able to control their private pension accounts in terms of investment diversification, portability between providers and flexible payout options. In this respect, the right to choose and to change investment options, as well as providers, is an integral element of the PRS framework.

The tax incentives provide personal tax relief of up to RM3,000 ($967) per annum on individual contributions to approved PRS schemes, as well as tax deductions for employers for contributions above the statutory rate, up to 19% of employees’ salaries. Tax exemption will also be provided on income received by funds within the PRS schemes.

It has been said that the SC will particularly want to see large, experienced asset managers applying to be part of the PRS. Do you have any comment on that?

Only quality private-sector entities with the required expertise in pension fund management or retail fund management entities that meet the relevant standards and requirements imposed will be approved. Eligibility requirements include capital requirements, track record, conduct history and risk management controls.

Applicants will need to outline their business model, such as the proposed range of funds, indicative fees and the charges structure, as well as their resourcing capabilities, systems and process capabilities and member servicing.

Qualitative factors will also be taken into consideration, such as governance structure, reputation and professional standing, as well as track record and commitment to grow the PRS industry.

I understand that applications to obtain a licence to be a provider under the PRS must be in by February 15. What is the likely timeframe after that?
The closing date for licence applications is February 15. The evaluation and selection process will include an examination of the proposed range of funds to be offered by each applicant. On approval as a PRS provider, the SC would then undertake a separate process to approve the PRS itself and to authorise all the funds under the scheme.

PRS providers would be required to offer dedicated retirement funds under the scheme. Other key steps towards full operation of the framework include approving the scheme trustees and the distribution framework to ensure professional conduct and suitability of recommendations made in respect of the PRS to members.

How many provider licences will be approved under the scheme?
That will depend on the applicants and those who meet the criteria. Our primary objective is to have qualified and experienced providers, and these can be institutional or retail as long as they meet the criteria and demonstrate the capabilities to offer PRSs.

The provider-eligibility guidelines are now largely final, but the investment guidelines are still to be finalised – what is still to be ironed out?
As part of the implementation process, sub-working groups have been formed and continuous engagement and consultations are being held with experts – local and foreign, government authorities and industry players. We will finalise the guidelines after this process is complete.

Does the PRS have to be set up as a trust structure?
The PRS will operate as a trust structure, with the scheme trustee having fiduciary duties towards the members, including ensuring that the assets of the funds are segregated from the PRS provider. The schemes will therefore be segregated from the fund provider to ensure that contributors’ assets are protected and under the control of the trustee.

What are the rules on withdrawals from the PRS?
These are being finalised in consultation with relevant parties, including the tax authorities.

Commentary On Selected Stocks

2012-01-26T01:11:00.000+08:00

Hibiscus - There have been people warning me not to recommend this counter when I did so at 70 sen, 80 sen ... I like their projects, but seriously, they have yet to strike oil. They went limit up yesterday briefly, I wash my hands clean from this counter. Some monies are not for us to make. The stock looks very cornered.

CanOne/Kian Joo - Transaction finally went through. Upside would be around RM2.50 at least. I got so many nasty emails asking me to shut up on CanOne, I refused to print them because it was personal and not looking at the facts of the matter. Kian Joo would also go up in tandem as the uncertainty to extracting synergies from both companies are now in play. Possibly Box Pak will be sold. Although I did not think it was prudent, apparently the grapevine is very certain that there will be a G.O. for Kian Joo, which should be at least RM2.40-2.60. You get things right, nobody says a thing, you get something wrong, they whack you as if you were managing their funds. Lighten up people, you follow at your peril. You don't like, don't read la, what is so difficult about that.

MAS - If you must trade, I think MAS is OK. Now that AirAsia has reached its limit on foreign funds shareholdings level, it can only go down not up. That being the case, MAS may have a bit of upside even though I don't really like MAS.

MBSB - It was a good run but the business model remains flawed. I would stay away from the stock above RM2.00.

NOTE: The above opinion is not an invitation to buy or sell. It serves as a blogging activity of my investing thoughts and ideas, this does not represent an investment advisory service as I charge no subscription or management fees (donations are welcomed though). The content on this site is provided as general information only and should not be taken as investment advice. All site content, shall not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any security or financial instrument. The ideas expressed are solely the opinions of the author. I may already have shares in the above mentioned stock/s. Any action that you take as a result of information, analysis, or commentary on this site is ultimately your responsibility. Consult your investment adviser before making any investment decisions.

The Lowdown On China-Stocks On Bursa - Just A View

2012-01-25T09:44:00.001+08:00

You open a conversation topic on Chinese stocks listed on Bursa, you see most people shaking their heads. Most have been burned, and burned royally despite following Benjamin Graham's rules of investing. Well, you have low PER relative to profit growth, most are still registering decent earnings growth. But none are willing to pay out a decent dividend despite having a substantive amount of cash. In fact, what has been more galling was they even had the audacity to push through rights issue.

They drop and drop, even though syndicates have been roped in, they still drop. For the past 3 years or so, the news surrounding China companies listed overseas have been appalling. There have been numerous scams and accounting fraud with China companies using RTO to get listed in the US. The seemingly "clean" SGX has not been spared, last count there were 6 China firms listed there that have gone "bust literally" or have tons of shenanigans like in an Irish fairy tale.

Are those listed on Bursa a ticking time bomb?
Well, I don't know really, but so far so good despite the weak share prices for these companies. If you go by percentage of troubled overseas China listed firms, at least 1 out 5 would have collapsed by now. Why SGX had so much problems with China firms and not Bursa? Well, SGX, being a play by the rules entity, relied totally on the sponsors/IBs to bring forth these issues. If the companies can be faulted later on for accounting fraud or related misdemeanours, then SGX will throw the book on the sponsors/IBs and directors. I think Bursa/SC have traveled the extra mile in ensuring these China firms are genuine, most if not all have been "site-visited" by them. The reliance on sponsors/IBs have not been as great for Malaysia as in the US or Singapore. Notch one for Bursa/SC. (I hope no China stock will get busted right after I wrote this, but knowing Murphy's Law, that is probably what will happen).

Excuses and Reasons, and Orcam's Razor
You can dig and dig at the management for reasons for their underperforming shares. There have been excuses after excuses. One, you can say that the sponsors or parties (VC/PE firms) bringing the stock to Bursa have used the route to sell their shares to realise their gains. Two, they needed to keep cash as the bulk of their transactions are with small vendors and suppliers that want to deal in cash. Three, they do not wish to pay out good dividends as they want to reinvest for future growth. Four, they seem to have no desire to buyback their own shares at 2-3x PER??!!

When share price keeps falling and the reasons and postulations given are numerous, according to Orcam's Razor, in such situations, the simplest explanation is probably the truth. The simple explanation is that maybe the figures are a sham. Now, I used to hold that view till my recent new findings, so hold your horses.

The Real Owners?
This is probably just an opinion but I have heard enough to surmise that the registered owners are, more than likely, not the real beneficial owners of these China shares. The Bursa and SC can go and try to find out more. Don't shoot me, I am just the messenger.

For a China company to list overseas, they need this "paper license" called the "wufi", usually from their municipality or state. I am sure you can see where this is headed. Sponsors are usually some smart people piecing a few companies together to get the "wufi". In most cases the ones with the designation of CEO or even Chairman owns very little of the company. The bulk are supposedly held by the "state chiefs and their underlings". We in Malaysia can easily understand why this works, don't we. To the "chieftains", this is an easy way to regulate for paper profits and also transfer some wealth overseas.

That is why you do not see these companies getting huge bank loans, and they want to keep cash at all levels. Maybe its easier to loot the company of money by expanding and taking on new projects as we all know we can always skim the 20%-30% from any projects undertaken. Maybe.

However, I am not saying all these companies are sinister. At the end of the day, more than likely, the management's hands are tied. There is probably very little they can do (without the "approval from real owners"). This is also something we Malaysians are very familiar with, yes "Proxy"!!!

XDL
Now finally a company goes ahead and does something. Their bonus and warrants issue is a move in the right direction. Some have frowned on the private placement, but why should you frown, they are not placing to you. In fact, having a private placement could be the very trigger that some parties have managed to engage the "real owners" and go through a proper "value creation" exercise, hence they themselves would have secured the parties for the private placement.

Significance
I cannot say this with greater effect. If the hypotheses are true, which means at least most or all of the companies on Bursa are not fraudulent, and to get XDL going through this phase of value creation, which I think will be wildly successful. This could be the catalyst that is needed for the rest of the China companies listed on Bursa to do likewise. As things stand, none of the China firms on Bursa are "fraudulent yet", maybe none are. If enough of them go through the value creation steps led by XDL, it could very well lift Bursa as the "best exchange to list China firms". If this is all true and good, then Bursa and SC must continue to make doubly sure that future China listing go through even more stringent listing checks and balances. So far so good, even with depressed share prices, at least we do not have a total bust up (yet).

If all parties play their cards right, the right playing field will attract the right crowd. This is a chance to take the next step forward for all parties involved.

The Longest Wait For A Food Stall In Ipoh

2012-01-21T09:23:00.000+08:00

I probably never did write much about this food stall because its already soooo damn hard to get food here. Normally I have to wait 30 minutes at least. Well, thanks to the CNY holidays, its more like 1 hour for my bowl of curry mee (Ipoh style).

Is this the most sought after hawker food stall in Ipoh, probably. Why, its got this silly combination of chicken, mee, meehoon, its distinctive curry soup base, barbecue pork, a bit of pork parts, the crunchy siew yoke ... all topped with its stupefyingly good curry oil mix. Its all in the curry oil mix.

A HK entrepreneur bought the sole rights to sell the same stuff in HK for an undisclosed sum, its still doing roaring business in HK. I think they still ship the curry oil mix over.

If you are there, you gotta take a look at their menu ... its damn original.

Still, one hour is still worth the wait. Don't know what it is, its intoxicating, spicy and pretty hot, plus addictive ... but damn slow service man!!!

Kung Hei Fatt Choi

2012-01-20T22:57:00.000+08:00

Below is the actual 24K gold carving signifying the year 2012. Too much money, can go to HK to buy this. Sun Leen Jhun Phou!!! Sum Seong See Sing!!!

CSLA Feng Shui Chart 2012

2012-01-20T15:55:00.002+08:00

Adopt A Dog, People

2012-01-19T16:39:00.000+08:00

Dog owners and dog lovers will shed tears for sure because they know its true and the scene will be the same if the same thing befall us.

Beating The Market

2012-01-19T01:29:00.000+08:00

How to beat the market and become a super investor

By Koon Yew Yin

Risks in doing business:

It is important to stress that all businesses involve risk; hence the selection of shares is also a risky business. This is not the same order of risk as may be involved in going to the casino or betting on the four digits which in 90-99 % or even more of the cases, results in the patron losing his money, if not his pants.

Picking winning stocks means that we pick the companies that can meet the constant challenges of competition, supply and demand, change of fashion and style design, obsolete stocks write off, etc. There are also unforeseen factors such as variation in interest rates, import and export restriction, foreign exchange variation, change in Government regulations, etc. Inclement weather such as flooding affects production as we have seen in Bangkok so that even the most well run of companies such as Toyata and Honda cannot escape it.

Best form of investment

In my view, stocks are the best form of investment. They are tax free, have no management problem, and you can reduce or liquidate all your holdings at any time. There is a classical saying in the market - “You can buy the winning horse after the race”. This means that you can still buy a good share after the company has announced its profit. This does not mean that stocks are entirely risk-free

Fundamentals of Stock Selection

The basic fundamentals for share selection are P/E ratio, NTA, Revenue, cash flow etc. How important are these factors?

The most important criterion is profit growth prospect. Never buy any share if the company cannot make increasing profits. You must buy shares that Fund managers are interested. They are the movers and shakers. Do not buy too much of illiquid shares because it is cheap. It is cheap for some reasons which may keep it at basement prices.

The main reasons why share prices go up include the following:

a. Exceptionally good profit growth prospect

b. Fund managers must be interested, liquidity, publicity etc.

c. Dividends are an important catalyst for moving share prices up

d. Unexpected good news of profit, bonus issues etc. will push up share prices.

When to Sell

When to sell? Do not worry about the daily share price fluctuation if you have a target price. Quite often the share you hold can move up rapidly and continues to go up. You must remember that no share can go up indefinitely for whatever reason. Sell when you are not willing to buy at the price or the reason to buy is no longer valid. Remember you must sell so that you can have funds to buy back during correction. If the fundamentals have not changed, the share price will go up again.

What to Buy

After having seen so many unexpected surprises in the stock market, I consider the safest shares to invest are undervalued oil palm shares. The reasons are:-

a. The production cost for CPO is about Rm 1,300 per ton and the average selling price has been more than double the production cost in the last 10 years or more. The average CPO price for 2011 is more than Rm 3,000 per ton. Which business can offer such big profit margins?

b. The demand and profit are sustainable due to population increase. Moreover, both China and India who are our buyers have been improving their economy. The financial problem in Eurozone and US has little or no effect on our palm oil market.

c. A palm tree will start fruiting after 3 years. It will continue to bear more fruits until it is about 16 years old after that age it will begin to bear less fruits. Only after about 22 years a palm tree needs replanting.

d. The land always appreciates in value.

e. There is good profit growth prospect and sustainable profit

I am obliged to tell you that plantation shares form the major part of my investment portfolio. If you decide to buy, I am not responsible for your profit or your loss.

How to become a super investor?

I started serious investing in public listed shares when I retired from executive work at 50 years old. I was not an accountant nor have I a MBA degree. I was just a civil engineer and I hardly knew how to read a balance sheet at that time.

I started by reading to understand the basic fundamental principles of share selection as practiced by Warren Buffet, Peter Lynch and other great investment gurus. These are the key traits to being a super investor that I picked up.

Trait 1: Be a contrarian investor, that is, the ability to buy stocks while others are panicking and sell stocks while others are euphoric. In 1983 when China declared that they wanted to take back Hong Kong, the people were selling as if there was no tomorrow because the Communists were coming. The Hang Seng Index plunged to about 700. Currently it is around 18,500.

In such a situation at that time, would you buy Hong Kong shares? I did.

Trait 2: Obsession in playing the game and wanting to win. Winning investors don’t just enjoy investing; they live it. They wake up in the morning and the first thing they think about, while they are still half asleep, is a stock they have been researching. They are thinking about selling, or what the greatest risk to their portfolio is and how they are going to neutralize that risk.

They are obsessed in enhancing the value of their holdings. I am that way.

Trait 3: The willingness to learn from past mistakes. Most people would much rather just move on and ignore the dumb things they’ve done in the past. I believe the term for this is repression. But if you ignore mistakes without fully analyzing them, you will undoubtedly make a similar mistake later in your career.

Trait 4: An inherent sense of risk based on common sense. Most people believe analysts’ reports which are often ‘a buy’ recommendation. It is very seldom they recommend ‘a sell’ because they would lose the business from the company he has recommended ‘a sell’. You must always take any analyst report with a pinch of salt.

I believe the greatest risk control is common sense which is not so common sometimes.

Trait 5: Confidence: Great investors must have confidence in their own convictions and stick with them, even when facing criticism. Buffett never got into the dot-com mania though he was being criticized publicly for ignoring technology stocks. He stuck to his guns when everyone else was abandoning the value investing ship. He was proven right when the dot com bubble bust.

Trait 6: Clear thinking. When considering a share, you must try to understand the nature of the company’s business and its inherent difficulties so that you can evaluate your risk exposure. There are a lot of people who have genius IQs who cannot think clearly, though they can figure out bond or option pricing in their heads.

Trait 7: And finally the most important, and rarest, trait of all is the ability to live through volatility without changing your investment thought process. This is almost impossible for most people to do. When the market makes a severe correction, most people dare not buy more shares to average down or to put any money into stocks at all when the market is plunging. They would begin to doubt their own judgement.

Wishing you a season of happy and profitable investing!

Around The World In 12 Dishes

2012-01-18T22:13:00.000+08:00

These are the 12 dishes/meals to have, according to the food editors of Sydney Morning Herald, in a culinary gastronomic trip around the world. They have intentionally left out Australian restaurants as it was a SMH publication for Australian readers.

Noma, Copenhagen

“Your first course is already here” announces the waiter, indicating the vase of bright nasturtiums and twigs on the table. Inside each flower is a plump snail and a touch of remoulade. So already you’re foraging, picking flowers and crunching through twigs. Then you’re nibbling dried-then-fried reindeer moss, and lichen it. Then you’re raiding a little nest of its pickled and smoked quail eggs. Then peeling shellfish from a hot rock, as if by the seaside. And crunching through blue mussels, their shells recreated in edible form. It’s an extraordinary sleight-of-hand, and it shows that Rene Redzepi wouldn’t know what the term ‘resting on your laurels’ was if it hit him in the face.

Okay, so the vase of flowers appetiser may be bordering on the kitsch - Redzepi doesn’t need to try that hard. But all else is elegance; like the perfect little aebleskiver, a traditional spherical Danish savoury pancake impaled with a smoked muikko (a tiny freshwater fish from Finland). Local, local, local food, reimagined by the best restaurant in the world. TD

Strandgade 93, Copenhagen Tel 45 3296 3297 www.noma.dk

Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, London

Didn’t know what to expect from Heston Blumenthal’s first London venture, ensconced in the very Swish Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park and yet a far cry from the speak-in-whispers and cross-yourself-as-you enter ambience of the Fat Duck. Didn’t know I’d love it so much, either. Somehow he has created a very flexible, upstairs/downstairs brasserie with a very English accent, so that at one table will be a couple in jeans eating steak and chips, and at the next, a group dressed up and having the dining experience of their lives.

Blumenthal and the on-the-job head chef Ashley Palmer Watts serve up historically inspired British food such as roast marrowbone or a broth of lamb with slow-cooked hen’s egg. There are two truly great dishes on the menu that should bookend your meal. The first is the Meat Fruit (circa 1500), a single mandarin complete with leaves that transforms into rich, light chicken liver parfait encased in tangy, fragrant mandarin gel, accompanied by toasted brioche. The last is the light-as-a-cloud-of-drunken-angels Tipsy Cake (circa 1810), served with spit-roast pineapple. So. Damn. Good. TD.

Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, 66 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7LA
Tel 44 20 7201 3833 www.dinnerbyheston.com

Brawn at Brawn, London

My favourite London restaurant critic, Fay Maschler, gave Brawn a resounding and very rare five out of five stars. “If I could, I would eat there every day” she wrote in 2010, thereby getting this relly of the popular Terroirs wine bar in Charing Cross off to a very good start.

Set in Columbia Road, Bethnal Green, home to London’s famous flower market (and equally famous riots), it’s a simple, minimalist corner building with a white-walled, semi-industrial canteen feel. Like a pub, it’s a charming and welcoming place, with a great list of natural wines, and a menu divided into Pig, Hot, Cold, Pudding and Cheese. You could order solely from the pig section and grunt with pleasure all the way home. Naturally, it does a great brawn (jellied pig’s head terrine), or it would have to change its name. TD

49 Columbia Road, Bethnal Green E2 Tel 44 207729 5692 www.brawn.co

Osteria Mozza, Singapore

The Marina Bay Sands complex opened with a bang last year, so I was curious to see what all the hype was about. The huge Asian food court in the basement looks fun, but it's packed out, with people waiting behind your chair for your table. Upstairs in the ‘flying chefs’ restaurants (Restaurant Guy Savoy, David Boulud’s db Bistro Moderne, Wolfgang Puck’s Cut and Tetsuya Wakuda’s Waku Ghin), it’s a different story, with very few tables taken the nights I visited.

The best bet seems to be the middle-ground, and the best of the middle-ground is this branch of Nancy Silverton and Mario Batali’s LA-based Osteria Mozza. Sitting up at the cool marble bar exploring the list of dishes based on buffalo mozzarella, burrata and ricotta flown in from Italy is hugely enjoyable; as is this triple-comforting agnolotti with butter and sage, the tiny pasta parcels filled with chicken, veal and mortadella. TD.

Marina Bay Sands, 10 Bayfront Avenue, Singapore Tel +65 6688 8868 www.osteriamozza.com

Spuntino, London

I’m nominating Russell Norman as The Man Who Saved London. After learning his trade managing Scott’s, J. Sheekey and Zuma, he decided London needed a few more fun places to eat that weren’t at the pointy end of dining, and took off on his ownsome. Well, hallelujah.

If you’re just wandering around Soho looking for something to take the pain off the jetlag, then head for either Polpo or Polpetto, his New York takes on Venetian stuzzichini (small plates). The latest from the Norman invasion is Mishkin’s, in homage to the Jewish delis of New York. Then there’s the sassy little Spuntino, with its New York take on trailer trash food, with things like mac & cheese, spicy sausage & cheddar grits, pulled pork sliders and chopped salad, along with Bloody Marys and Bourbons, and these super-thin twirly-wirly fries. TD

61 Rupert Street, Soho, London. No telephone. www.spuntino.co.uk

Thip Samai Phad Thai, Bangkok

Pad Thai noodles are such a staple these days, there doesn’t seem much point in going way out of your way to find a funny little place in Bangkok that is tied up with the dish’s (surprisingly recent) history. But it’s worth it, to see this seminal dish cooked on the street in a huge cast iron wok over hot coals, by a slim young girl in a red T-shirt who must surely be skipping school.

First she puts in three ladlefuls of oil and scoops in a pile of prawns from a plastic bucket. Toss, toss, fry, fry, three minutes. Then she scoops out most of the oil, and adds cubed tofu, green garlic chives, vegetables, stiff white beanthread noodles and a lot of red chilli sauce, sugar and salt from a line-up of buckets, which all comes to the boil super-fast. Then – new wok – she deftly makes an omelette that covers the interior of the pan like a second skin. In goes the contents of the other wok, and – the finished pad Thai is turned out, perfectly wrapped in omelette, onto a melamine plate. That will be 70 baht, thank you ($2). And that’s for the Super Special. JD.

313 Mahachai Road, Samranraj, Bangkok Tel 66 2 221 6280

Au Passage, Paris

Down a dodgy back alley off the Boulevard Beaumarchais is what looks like an old, untouched bar, complete with beer sign outside and old wooden bar and mis-matched tables and chairs inside. Welcome to a little piece of Australia in the middle of Paris, where Aussie-born chef James Henry is cooking in a kitchen only slightly larger than a box of veggies.

Lunch is three courses for 16.50 Euros ($20); dinner is a small blackboard of a la carte specials that costs little more; and it’s just plain lovely, light, fresh, minimalist cookery. My lunch started with bulots (whelks) and mussels in a light cream vinaigrette with warm samphire. Then choppy, chunky tartare de boeuf (au couteau/hand-cut) with finely minced cornichon and shaved baby radishes, and a fresh little cheese with figs and toasty hazelnuts to finish. Perfect. JD.

1 bis Passage de Saint Sebastien, Paris 75011. Tel 33143550752.

Le Dauphin, Paris

How smart. The posse headed up by chef Inaki Aizpitarte, one of The Chosen (that means a fave of Rene Redzepi of NOMA) has solved the problem of being inundated at Le Chateaubriand by opening a smaller, more casual bistronome down the road. A cool, white marble cube designed by Rem Koolhaus, with detail picked out in mirrors and Danish stools, it’s a nice place to be.

Lunch is a reinvented ‘menu formule’. On this hot summer’s day, that means a cool melon gazpacho with fresh raw almonds, a choice of cod or braised lamb cleverly served with the same garniture of tomatoey chickpeas and amaranth, and as at Au Passage, a simple fresh white cheese and fruit for dessert. It’s great value and very satisfying; a clear signpost for the future of dining in Paris. Struggling with my notes, trying to find the right description for this independent gastronomic attitude (cuisine d’auteur?), I asked Aizpitarte ‘comment dites-vous l’expression ‘no bullshit’?’ He looked at me. ‘We say no bullshit’, he said. JD.

131 Avenue Parmentier 750111 Tel 33 1 55 28 78 88

Le Verre Volé, Paris

Another day, another wine bar, another platter of charcuterie, another chunk of sour Jean-Luc Poujouran’s pain levain. God I love Paris. And Le Verre Volé . The walls of this tiny place are lined with wine – it’s essentially a cave, a wine shop – and the worn wooden tables are lined with eccentric locals. It’s a good place to have andouillette, with its smell of the pissoir arriving from the tiny kitchen only moments before the plate; the fat, pale sausage spilling its guts – literally - onto mashed potato and a few green leaves. I order a glass of Pouilly Fume. "It’s very fat, with great complexity," says the waiter. What a coincidence. That’s just how I feel, too. TD.

67 Rue de Lancry, 75010 Paris. Tel 33 148031734 www.leverrevole.fr

Soho Hotel, London

Let loose from the tyranny of porridge or fruit and yoghurt, breakfast on holidays ends up being different every day – the cravings being very dependent on the local circumstances and what went on the night before. This morning, an egg and bacon roll was required. And the best egg and bacon roll is definitely at the deliciously located Soho Hotel in the heart of Soho, because the bread has just the right amount of give, the butter, eggs, and bacon are all real (and thery ask you exactly what you want and how you want it), and the whole thing comes together in the hand as one. JD.

Soho Hotel, 4 Richmond Mews, London W1 Tel 44 2 75593000 www.firmdale.com

Relae, Copenhagen

"That’s where the Redzepis always sit," says Kim Rossen of Relae. Well, if the Redzepis turn up, we’ll move. But until then, we’ll sit up at the bar watching Christian Puglisi and his team plate up some beautiful, simple, blindingly contemporary food in what is tantamount to a party atmosphere. Relae has two short menus of four dishes, mostly plants, with each ingredient at its height. Chicken hearts with babycorn. Leeks with mustard crumbs. Baby celeriac with seaweed veils. And this lovely dish of sheeps milk yoghurt, radishes and nasturtiums. Says Kim: "We cook what we like. We play the music we like. We serve the wine we like." At last! That’s what we want all restaurants to do! JD.

Jaegersborggade 41, Copenhagen Tel +45 3696 6609 www.restaurant-relae.dk

Nahm, Bangkok

So much is smoked, cured, salted, and above all, fermented, in David Thompson’s flagship Thai restaurant in The Metropolitan Hotel in Bangkok; the leaves, the chillies, the prawns, the fish, the garlic. It gives a wild, almost carnal quality to the food here, like eating a rich, smelly blue cheese as opposed to sanitised cheese slices. "It’s definitely where we’re going with our food here," says Thompson. Serpenthead fish, for instance, is salted and sun-dried for two days, then deep-fried until it’s pull-apartable into crunchy splinters. Get some help to put together an order of hot, cold, wet and dry dishes but don’t miss the feral, dark cassia leaf curry if it’s on, or the white turmeric salad with prawns, pork and chicken. Dining is a leisurely affair in the dark, tropical space, and the cooking is uncompromising, sophisticated and bloody hot. JD.

The Metropolitan, 27 South Sathorn Road, Tungmahamek, Sathorn, Bangkok Tel 662 625 3333 www.metropolitan.como.bz

Too Funny .....

2012-01-18T09:28:00.000+08:00

They Are Just Cartoons (Really!!??)

2012-01-17T00:45:00.002+08:00

Sure Can-One

2012-01-14T16:17:00.007+08:00

Well, this will be a record of sorts, 3 postings on the same stock within a week. To be fair, the markets have been very quiet and Can-One/Kian Joo saga is damn interesting. Wish we had a few talented business writers to capture the full script of behind the scenes manoeuvring, strategy, risk management and the personalities behind them ... much like The Barbarians At The Gate (RJR Nabisco), Steve Jobs in and out of Apple over a prolonged period, the disastrous Mike Eisner's emperorship during his stay at Disney, etc.

Anyway, I read The Edge just now, the writer Chong Jin Hun, had more questions on the whole thing. I will attempt to furnish a clearer picture. His last line was a request for Can-One to shed some light on it. I am not Can-One, although I write as if I am a substantial shareholder (lol):

a) "its been a week ... Can-One is not in a hurry to purchase the Kian Joo shares"
Comments: The writer is right in citing the Hong Leong Bank-EON Cap deal where the shares were crossed in one business day. Well, it is Hong Leong. In Can-One's case, the company has to wait for the liquidator i.e. KPMG to act. KPMG is not the beneficial final owner, so you can whack them with a cane, they will proceed diligently and cover their ass at every step. The executive director of KPMG apparently only flew back in over last weekend. Despite gaining the Federal Court verdict, it wanted a written legal opinion from the lawyers that they can proceed (ass covering). Now, more ass covering, they are apparently waiting for the actual original copy of the judgement by Federal Court as they deem photocopies and an actual live oral delivery of the verdict by the Federal Court judge is not deemed as sufficient for them to act (an enormous act of ass covering despite the fact that the Federal Court is the final level, no more appeals allowed). Credible sources indicate that the actual crossing will be Tuesday, Monday will be the release of the original by Federal Court. Go figure.

b) "Some quarters believe that the company may not have enough funds to buy ..."
Comment: Again pure conjecture. To be bidding for it a couple of years ago, the company had already lined up funding. They had been appealing the case over the last 2 years. Why appeal if funding is an issue? The funds are from Kuwait Finance and the crossing broker is MIMB - this from 3 different sources, reliable enough? Which bank does not want to fund this deal, gotta be kidding me.

c) ".. Can-One's delay ... may give the See family another opportunity to block the share sale again .."
Comment: What talk cock you??? What talk balls you??? (Thats funny in Cantonese). Federal Court, final... you want to appeal to the King izzit? Which part of "final" you no understand? There is the case of blocking Kian Joo's bonus and right issue, which Can-One is appealing, date pushed to March. Now, its really a none issue because once Can-One gets the 32.9% block, they will call and EGM and cancel the rights issue. The court case will dissolve then. There is no chance of Bursa acting on Kian Joo's proposal as the indication is that they will wait for all the appeals to be heard or dismissed before approving the bonus/rights. Kudos to Bursa for doing the right thing.

d) " ... gearing of one times, which is on the high side.."
Comment: Errr, 1x gearing is on the high side, I don't know which university you come from ... how to be high when the jump in borrowings is largely in buying a heavily discounted current, valuable, liquid asset??? I guess, if you get a chance to buy a liquid current asset (say shares) at a 30%-40% discount to the market, you won't take it up because you will be geared too high?? What is high gearing, if its more than backed by accretive EPS growth and more important substantive free cash flow to more than pay down interest on loan. All that with a huge buffer in terms of risk management.

e) there was speculation that Can-One will make a G.O. for Kian Joo after securing the block, as written in an article in The Edge as well
Comment: Not going to happen. As things stand you cannot be serious to mount a G.O. as there is still some 65% shares of KJ out there. You are talking about at least RM600m. A more likely development will be a merger: e.g. KJ shares swap at RM2.80 and Can-One shares swap at RM2.60 into a SPV and the SPV will take over as the listed vehicle. That way, The controlling shareholder of Can-One will still control the merged entity. Some of the peripheral assets in KJ can then be sold down to freshen up the balance sheet, or even a lucrative rights/free warrants as well.

Needless to say, the above questions to a large extent are valid, and thats what holding back the share price's uptrend. Watch for upside explosion when shares are actually crossed. Funds will pour in, uncertainty wiped out, some board members of Kian Joo will resign, ... then you have one solid near monopoly, which should be accorded a premium. But also thanks to the "delay" and so called "uncertainties", this has, in my view, presented investors who do their homework, ample opportunities, to buy on the low into Can-One.

NOTE: The above opinion is not an invitation to buy or sell. It serves as a blogging activity of my investing thoughts and ideas, this does not represent an investment advisory service as I charge no subscription or management fees (donations are welcomed though). The content on this site is provided as general information only and should not be taken as investment advice. All site content, shall not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any security or financial instrument. The ideas expressed are solely the opinions of the author. I may already have shares in the above mentioned stock/s. Any action that you take as a result of information, analysis, or commentary on this site is ultimately your responsibility. Consult your investment adviser before making any investment decisions.

Quality Time

2012-01-14T11:32:00.002+08:00

Let's face it, we only get back closer with our parents and realise the need to spend more time with them as we get older ... it doesn't have to be that way, the sooner we realise that the better.

Roadmap For Achieving Vision 2020 by Koon Yew Yin

2012-01-12T17:21:00.000+08:00

Look for Mr. Koon Yew Yin's book in February 2012, "Roadmap For Achieving Vision 2020".

Japanese Food Is Some Seriously Gay Food ...

2012-01-11T13:45:00.002+08:00

Seriously funny, must get the book Gay Men Don't Get Fat. I mean it really make sense. Food can be classified into gay, straight or even lesbian. I give you the 3 choices and you label them accordingly: double-decker double beef burger with bacon and fried egg; rocket leaves, pine nuts, mixed garden salad; california roll and salmon skin roll. Soooo easy.... Straight food is full of protein and fat, usually not much different from the real thing when it was alive and usually involves a lot of frying (i.e. cut a slab of meat from the cow, little processing). Gay food is basically stuff that used to be huge but whittled down, went through many processes, beautifully presented, little and clean, frowns on fried stuff ... Lesbian food is earthy, full stop. Soooo simple.

Joshua Bright for The New York Times

In a new book, Simon Doonan categorizes food as "gay" or "straight."

By JEFF GORDINIER

Published: January 3, 2012

“HERE’S a good example of what we’re talking about,” Simon Doonan said. My Cuban sandwich had just arrived, pressed flat and bulging with cheese. He was giving it a withering once-over.

Simon Doonan's book.

“You must be on guard when you see a panini coming toward you, because they can cram an enormous amount of meat and cheese in there,” said Mr. Doonan, the author, Slate.com humorist-provocateur and creative ambassador at large for Barneys New York. “They’re not as little as they look. And then adjacent to that is this dollop of guacamole with, quelle horreur, what are clearly deep-fried chips.”

As if fending off a lard-sucking vampire, Mr. Doonan held up his fork and knife as a makeshift cross.

“There’s a lethal amount of fat in guacamole,” he went on. “A friend of mine was just going off to Mexico, and I said to her: ‘If you get kidnapped, remember to tell your kidnappers: no guacamole. You cannot be in a confined space ingesting guacamole. You’ll become so enormous.’ ”

But wait, I wondered. Isn’t avocado supposed to be good for your skin?

“Maybe if you apply it topically,” he said.

Either way, those chips were all wrong. “Gay chips are baked,” he said. “Straight chips are deep-fried. It’s that simple.”

Mr. Doonan, slim and sprightly at 59, was doing his best to guide me through the dietary pitfalls of a typical lunch in the city. In his eyes, my problem was not merely that I was prone to eating too much, but also that I ate the way a lot of straight men automatically do: with gluttonous, meat-and-cheese-and-avocado-mad disregard for the repercussions.

If I wanted to slim down after the holidays, he suggested, I should try to eat like a gay man.

One of the tongue-in-cheek propositions of Mr. Doonan’s new book, “Gay Men Don’t Get Fat” (Blue Rider Press, $24.95), is that the vast range of the world’s culinary options can be boiled down to two core categories: gay food and straight food. Seeking out a balanced diet of both is the savviest way to stay svelte. Think of it, if you must, as bisexual eating.

“Mix it up,” he said. “Gay men don’t stay trim because they only eat gay food. I don’t live on macarons and lettuce.”

In fact, Mr. Doonan had selected our dining spot, the Knickerbocker Bar and Grill in Greenwich Village, because, he said, its kitchen managed to get that blend right. (And, well, maybe because the place was across the street from the apartment he shares with his husband, the designer Jonathan Adler.)

“It’s actually a very good mixture of gay and straight,” he said, as he surveyed the Knickerbocker’s menu. “Just the words ‘baby arugula salad’ — you know you have some gay options. But then it’s balanced out with some real classics. We have Black Angus meatloaf — that’s the Burt Reynolds of foods.”

And balance, he counseled, was key. A gentleman might succumb to meatloaf, sure, but instead of pairing it with mashed potatoes, he should ask for a salad as a substitute. “Because the Black Angus meatloaf, that’s a whole lot of hetero to digest,” he said.

Dining with Mr. Doonan is like lunching with the “Jersey Shore”-era grandnephew of Oscar Wilde. It does not take long to figure out that his self-helpish bons mots should be sprinkled with liberal shakes of sodium. And it might be pointed out that he’s putting an extreme, satirical spin on tropes and stereotypes that have been in circulation for 30 years, ever since “Real Men Don’t Eat Quiche” drew a similar line in the culinary sand. (His book title is, of course, a wink at the best-selling “French Women Don’t Get Fat.”)

Nevertheless, there are times when his thoughts on the sexual orientation of food can be unexpectedly eye-opening. Straight food, according to the Doonan rubric, tends to be leaden, full of protein, thick with fat. Consider the grub he grew up with in England.

“British food used to be so straight when I was a kid,” he said. “Haggis. Horrible stews. Boiled greens that were gray. Now they’ve gayed it up, and British food is incredible.”

The way he sees it, gay food is lighter and brighter. It feels art-directed, not just tossed together and deep-fried, with an attention to aesthetic and dietary detail.

“Gay foods are more decorative; they’re more frivolous,” he said. “The macaron craze is the ne plus ultra of gay fooderie. I can’t believe any red-blooded straight guy can even walk into a macaron shop. If you wanted to ruin a politician’s career, just publish a picture of him shopping for macarons.”

Meanwhile, Mr. Doonan freely uses “lesbian” to describe certain earthy, healthful foods.

“Organic olive oil, thick porridge, heaping helpings of wheat germ,” he said. “A crusty loaf of whole-grain bread is both ferociously lesbian and wildly heterosexual.”

Mexican food? The ultimate in straight cuisine. Sushi? Its opposite.

“Japanese food — that is some seriously gay food,” Mr. Doonan mused. “I’ve been to restaurants in Japan where they bring out a watermelon in its entirety and they open it up and inside it’s full of ice and one little pink piece of sushi in the middle. Basically, you’re taking sloppy bits of fish and making them into these exquisite little bonbons, and that seems inordinately gay to me.”

Enlarge This Image

Joshua Bright for The New York Times

The book advises men to eat more as gay men do to stay svelte.

Of course, Mr. Doonan knows what you’re thinking.

“I love sweeping generalizations,” he said. “Sweeping generalizations are the key to everything, and they invariably contain nuggets of truth. Sometimes infinitesimally small nuggets.”

And while “Gay Men Don’t Get Fat” is largely laid out as a larkish lifestyle primer for his female fans (“Most of my books are aimed at empowering women,” he said), many of his most piercing generalizations have to do with the feeding rituals of his heterosexual brethren. (Not that he’s likely to persuade many to change their ways.)

“I have a lot of straight friends,” he said. “And a lot of them are a very different shape. The word ‘burly’ springs to mind. And that’s a function of eating too many meatloafs, too many steaks, too many jumbo burritos.”

During lunch, he endeavored to steer me away from predictably straight choices. But my habits were hard to break. He advised me to have a salad. I wanted to start with the Caesar. Mr. Doonan winced, then sighed.

“Um,” he said. “A Caesar salad’s pretty heterosexual. They whip a lot of egg into it.”

Mr. Doonan, who was nattily dressed in a velvet Thom Browne blazer and a custom-made Liberty print shirt, opted for a plate of field greens followed by a bantam bowl of black bean soup. He dodged the glob of sour cream on top. I thought it seemed a rather meager repast. What if he got hungry later?

“I’m a big believer in dried fruit,” he said. “Figs. Dates. Raisins. You have to be careful with the dried apricots because they really do make you gassy.”

How about almonds?

“Yeah,” he said warily. “I’ll do an almond. Or two. Not a fistful. You know when you get those mixed nuts on a plane? If I’m sitting next to a straight guy, he’ll basically take the little container and heave it into his mouth.”

Considering his level of restraint, it came as a surprise that Mr. Doonan had not ruled out sweets.

“They do have something for you on the dessert menu,” he said, reading aloud. “ ‘Churros: traditional Spanish doughnut sticks. Dusted with cinnamon-sugar, served with dulce de leche and chocolate dipping sauce’ — as if they weren’t fatty and heinous enough! They could have stopped at the doughnut sticks and served it with a little fruit compote, but noooo.”

Still, he was craving something simple, elemental, straight.

“Desserts now have a very gay sensibility,” he said. “If you’re looking for a basic apple pie, you’re going to be out of luck.” He kept scanning the menu. “There’s a fresh-baked pie of the day. See, I want to know what that is. I might succumb to it. Because I’ve been quite abstemious.”

Mr. Doonan asked about the pie.

“It’s a cappuccino mousse with an Oreo-cookie crust and whipped cream,” the waiter replied.

Mr. Doonan made a gurgling sound.

“I thought it was maybe going to be organic pears lightly braised in ...” he said, then trailed off.

“We are, how you say, comfort food,” the waiter said.

“Yes,” Mr. Doonan said. “Thank you.”

The waiter dashed off. I asked my lunch companion if he’d be finishing off with that pie.

“God,” he said. “Are you out of your mind?”

Kian Joo and Can-One

2012-01-09T15:25:00.002+08:00

There were many queries following the posting on Can-One.

a) Kian Joo can still dilute by having the warrants issue at 1 sen, if the 32.9% block relinquished their right to subscribe. Comment: That was the case as the court case was still dragging on. It is not going to happen as Bursa rightly has withheld approval pending the decision of the Federal Court. The See family can kiss their sinister plan goodbye.

b) If everyone is saying Can-One is worth RM3.00, why isn't the share racing up to that level? Comment: Its in a rerating process. The court decision is a major factor and catalyst. The second catalyst is the actual crossing of the shares by KPMG, which is supposed to be done today or tomorrow according to market newsflow. The crossing removes the final apprehension, and actually a lot of funds are readying to buy Can-One once that happens. Can-One and KPMG should be working diligently to process this asap so as to take control of Kian Joo (either via appointing their own board members and/or vetoing/approving corporate exercises).

c) Can the See family try to win back Kian Joo? Comment: No, if they are sane. Their stake is less than 10% in Kian Joo, to win control, they have to do a G.O. at much much higher levels (e.g. RM2.60-2.80) and still they may not succeed. If the See family tries that, its so easy for Can-One to up their shares as well with minimal funding requirements. They also cannot do it via Can-One, i.e. take control of Can-One as the controlling shareholder has 51% of Can-One.

d) How will the whole thing develop? Comment: Can-One will take control of the block quickly, call an EGM at Kian Joo quickly, put in their directors and remove some. Call another EGM at Can-One and immediately considers a few viable options. One is to take Can-One private. The other is to go through a rights issue with free warrants, pay down the loan with the proceeds. Or, do a similar merger akin to Sapura/Kencana, where you create a SPV and both parties subscribe shares in it. That would probably value Can-One at around RM2.60 and Kian Joo at RM2.80.

e) 1+1 = 2 or 3? Collectively, they control the bulk of the industry for Malaysia. Hence there will be economies of scale for sure. One thing which many have overlooked is the potential upcoming business of "sweetened milk", which is a major project between Felda and Silverbird. Guess who is the common shareholder in all this?

Can-One From The Wilderness To The Top Of The Pack ... Sometimes Money Just Want To Flow To Your Side

2012-01-09T08:56:00.000+08:00

Can-One has been hogging the limelight but I think the market is still grossly undervaluing the shares at RM1.60.

Can-One has 154.2m shares.

Deal in April/May 2009, Can-One was supposed to buy Kian Joo Holdings Sdn Bhd's 32.9% stake in Kianjoo for RM241.12mil or RM1.65 per share.

Now Kian Joo is RM2.20, which meant that Can-One added "pure profit" on its 32.9% stake to the tune of 2.20/1.65 x 241.12 = RM106m. Divide that by the paid up of 154.2m = RM0.68 per share extra.

Can-One has been illiquid trading around RM1.00 for the longest time, thanks to the court case which was critical to its business outlook.

Let's look at Can-One's results:

		INDIVIDUAL PERIOD		CUMULATIVE PERIOD
		CURRENT YEAR QUARTER	PRECEDING YEAR CORRESPONDING QUARTER	CURRENT YEAR TO DATE	PRECEDING YEAR CORRESPONDING PERIOD
		30/09/2011	30/09/2010	30/09/2011	30/09/2010
		$$'000	$$'000	$$'000	$$'000
1	Revenue	160,555	115,244	463,685	316,880
2	Profit/(loss) before tax	9,794	6,747	24,934	13,853
3	Profit/(loss) for the period	8,184	5,196	21,327	11,339
4	Profit/(loss) attributable to ordinary equity holders of the parent	7,787	4,857	20,012	10,774
5	Basic earnings/(loss) per share (Subunit)	5.11	3.19	13.13	7.07
6	Proposed/Declared dividend per share (Subunit)	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00

		AS AT END OF CURRENT QUARTER		AS AT PRECEDING FINANCIAL YEAR END
7	Net assets per share attributable to ordinary equity holders of the parent ($$)	1.3480		1.2467

On their own, they are making around 18 sen EPS a year. Let's take the full 2011 net profit to be RM28m.

Kian Joo's annualised net profit comes to RM110m. Can-One will be able to equity account for its 32.9% stake as it can show that it has "control" of the company by virtue of having the largest single block. Can-One's share of net profits = RM36m.

Technically, Can-One's net profit in 2011 (assuming the KJ deal was affirmed back in Jan 2011) would be RM64m. But one would have to deduct the RM241m loan to buy the stake in KJ, so let's whack 7% interest = RM16m. Hence we are supposedly looking at RM64m-RM16m = RM48m net.

On 152.4m shares, the EPS would be = 31.4 sen.

Then a friend said if Can-One has already arranged for the bank loan. It appears from credible sources, the bank loan has been secured long time ago, and would not be an issue at all.

WHAT ABOUT KIAN JOO?
Some are speculating that KJ will shoot up as well as other member of the See family still in KJ may want to buyback more shares, whatever it is, it is hard to get a similar sized block of 32.9%. Even if KJ move up, it will only make Can-One's holdings look even more attractive. If the other substantial KJ shareholders try to make a G.O. on KJ, it will be at higher levels of 2.50 at least, what a good proposition for Can-One. In fact, the play is all at Can-One not KJ. The dissenting shareholders will find that buying more of Can-One and/or accumulating enough to make a G.O. on Can-One would be a lot cheaper and safer way to secure back KJ.

Will KJ try to dilute Can-One's stake? How? You cannot really do that, in the event of a bonus or warrants, Can-One will still get back the 32.9% share. Only way is to do a rights issue, and that is if Can-One cannot/will not subscribe, you think Can-One is stupid? Any rights issue will be taken up whole-heartedly by Can-One. However, they can now block any corporate exercise with their 32.9% anyway. So, what dilution?

HOW CHEAP IS CAN-ONE?
Can-One was very cheap prior to the court ruling because:
a) the KJ case was overwhelming its existing company's operations as KJ's business is at least 3-4x bigger than theirs
b) no fund was willing to buy their shares because Can-One lost the case before, and was in Federal Court on appeal only

Can-One's valuation should be KJ's valuation because effectively, Can-One can trigger a G.O. at anytime and there would be numerous bankers and private equity willing to fund the G.O. at RM2.30-2.40.

Kian Joo's PER is 8x, let's put a more cautious PER of 7x on Can-One's 31.4 sen = fair value = RM2.20

Can Can-One Takeover Kian Joo?
Sure can but very unlikely as KJ is almost 4x the size of Can-One. If they borrow funds, they will be shouldering at least RM400m-500m to go through with the exercise, dangerous as the interest alone comes to RM30m-40m a year. Can-One also cannot issue shares to take over as that would dilute its own holdings enormously owing to the size of KJ. The best possibility is a merger but even then Can-One will need to shore up their balance sheet first, then a merger would be very likely event in the next few months.

Why Can-One's share price is worth at least RM2.20-2.40, and possibly RM2.80-3.00 if they follow the path mentioned in (g):

a) they have the single largest block and can trigger a G.O. at anytime

b) KJ's fundamentals and valuations is not terribly expensive (at 8x) which would make bankers comfortable to fund any G.O.

c) the court ruling is final, no more appeals, cannot go to Privy Council in London la ...

d) institutional funds would now be a lot more willing to get into Can-One and/or Kian Joo, esp the latter which has been tormented by family squabbles for the longest time

e) the flip side is that some of the See family still holding KJ shares may decide to launch their own G.O., which will need to be at least RM2.50 for it to be reasonable ... in any case, you can wrench the 32.9% stake from Can-One for the right price and Can-One would be sitting pretty with a very solid NTA per share

f) Can-One's NTA at RM1.348 would now balloon to RM1.65 just on the premium on the KJ's stake, which would serve to be a very base

g) Can-One can and should be considering a major corporate exercise soon: free warrants, with rights @ RM1.60 (NTA) and maybe even bonus or share splits because they have the business model to call for the rights, they may want to do a 1-for-1 @ RM1.60 coupled with a 1 for 2 free warrants. With the additional RM240m cash, they can whack off the loan to purchase the 32.9% KJ and also strengthen their balance sheet to ready for a complete G.O. for the remainder

h) the final reason why Can-One will NOT stay below RM2.00 for long is with the 32.9% stake in KJ, it elevates Can-One into a stock that is in play. Anyone who wants to take control of Can-One and Kian Joo can now just do a G.O. on Can-One. We all know how difficult it was to do any corporate M&A with Kian Joo in the past owing to the family squabble. By virtue of transforming Can-One into a dai-dee in a chor-dai-dee game, you have to accord a big premium on Can-One now.

NOTE: The above opinion is not an invitation to buy or sell. It serves as a blogging activity of my investing thoughts and ideas, this does not represent an investment advisory service as I charge no subscription or management fees (donations are welcomed though). The content on this site is provided as general information only and should not be taken as investment advice. All site content, shall not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell any security or financial instrument. The ideas expressed are solely the opinions of the author. Any action that you take as a result of information, analysis, or commentary on this site is ultimately your responsibility. Consult your investment adviser before making any investment decisions.

Living The Life We Want

2012-01-08T14:43:00.000+08:00

I think this might be an advertising thing, but magnificently crafted and very meaningful, and probably based on some 6 old foggies' true life story. Love the Chage Aska song in the background, On Your Mark.

What Do You Make, Teacher?

2012-01-07T15:22:00.001+08:00

This was adapted and taken from
http://zorro-zorro-unmasked.blogspot.com/

I would like to dedicate this to my favourite teachers from my days at St. Michaels' Institution: the late Brother Ultan Paul, Timothy Chee and Mrs. Foong Thai Hong.

~~~~~~~~~~~

The dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life.
One man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with education. He argued:
"What's a kid going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?"

To stress his point he said to another guest;
"You're a teacher, Boon. Be honest. What do you make?"

Teacher Boon, who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied,
"You want to know what I make?
(She paused for a second, then began...)

"Well, I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could.

I make a C+ feel like he was a Medal of Honor winner.Then I give a reassuring pat on the shoulder of another because he showed improvement. He had only two red marks over the last monthly test in which he had three red marks!

I make kids sit through 40 minutes of class time when their parents can't make them sit for 5 min. without an I Pod or a Game Cube.

You want to know what I make?
(She paused again and looked at each and every person at the table)

I make kids wonder.

I make them question.

I make them apologize and mean it.

I make them have respect and take responsibility for their actions.

I teach them how to write and then I make them write.
Keyboarding isn't everything.
I make them read, read, read.

I make them show all their work in math.
They use their God given brain, not the man-made calculator.

I make my Malay, Chinese and Indian students learn everything they need to know about English while preserving their unique cultural identity.

I make my classroom a place where all my students feel safe.
Finally, I make them understand that if they use the gifts they
were given, work hard, and follow their hearts, they can succeed in life

( Boon paused one last time and then continued.)

Then, when people try to judge me by what I make, with me knowing money isn't everything, I can hold my head up high and pay no attention because they are ignorant. You want to know what I make?
I MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN ALL YOUR LIVES, EDUCATING KIDS AND PREPARING THEM TO BECOME CEO's, AND DOCTORS AND ENGINEERS..........
What do you make Mr. CEO?

His jaw dropped; he went silent.

We Didn't Start The Fire

2012-01-06T09:39:00.000+08:00

When Billy Joel came up with the song, it was effective, protest-like, summarising the social and political angsts of Americans brilliantly. Well, this version is best appreciated by Malaysians only, pretty smart, pretty funny too ... How apt "we didn't start the fire" ... hell no we didn't, but we have fires burning everywhere politically and socially. Well done guys.

band: thehavenots

Then and Now

2012-01-06T01:40:00.000+08:00

I especially like the parents-teacher cartoon ...