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"We are now Europe!"  So said Rick Santelli on CNBC yesterday, as he responded to the negative GDP growth announcement for 4th quarter 2012.  Santelli is right.  We are now having the same silly discussions that go on routinely in Europe.  We now think that somehow, someway the central bank can do something that makes it all better.  And that somehow, someway, with sovereign debt exploding off into infinity, we can continue to spend and borrow our way to prosperity.  It can't be done. Economists have routinely become apologists for absurd economic policy, both in Europe and in the US.  They often advocate raising minimum wages to increase employment.  They have been in the forefront of advocacy for Obama policies that have brought the US economic recovery to its knees.  Thank goodness for Santelli.  He correctly notes that US sovereign debt problems are approaching Greek levels. There was a time when US capitalism was the envy of the wor...

Follow up on my posting on how to become an equity analyst, this one refers to the very uncertain, multi definition role of who and what a dealer is. It depends on the securities firm, whether they are players in the institutional business. Let's start by defining the various dealing roles: a) remisiers - you basically work for yourself, pass the required papers, put down at least RM50,000 or RM100,000 and you can start getting clients onto your account, you probably get 40-60 sharing on commission though some may even get 30-70, the latter being your share, you must treat this as your own business, so the question is what do you bring to the table, buying a stock from any remisier in town is the same thing, its not like buying fresh fish which may differ in quality from one stall to the other ... if you cannot clarify what your value adds are, then you will be a mediocre remisier, are you prepared to face the challenges where more and more people are trading on their own via ...

The Obama Administration continues to trumpet the illusion that the economy is doing well.  It isn't, Today's 4th quarter GDP numbers point to a declining GDP, not a growing GDP.  The Obama enthusiasts in the media quickly found things within the report to like -- what else could they do?  But, the undeniable fact is the economy is going nowhere. If it were only the tax increases.  But, there is so much more.  Obamacare is kicking in and the EPA is clamping down hard on the economy.   Meanwhile, Dodd-Frank implementation is destroying credit availability.  The combination of all these things seems to get the Obama folks where they want to be -- the destruction of the American economic engine.  They are succeeding.  This morning's numbers bear testament.  Stay tuned.

Aberdeen Islamic Asset Management Sdn Bhd has recently launched two shariah unit trust funds for the Malaysian market, the Aberdeen Islamic Malaysia Equity fund and the Aberdeen Islamic World Equity fund . The new funds are the company's 1st shariah retail products in Malaysia - and the 1st from a foreign fund manager under the special scheme - and come almost 8 years its parent company Aberdeen Asset Management Sdn Bhd was established to manage assets in Malaysia for institutions and corporate investors. Malaysia: Turning promise into profit Malaysia has long been rich in promise - rich because of its abundant natural resources, physical infrastructure and educated workforce. However it has not always maximize its advantages. In recent years that has changed as the country streamlines priorities. There is more emphasis now on efficiency, the private sector has a greater say across industries and more value is being created for shareholders. This enterprise is taking Malaysian co...

There seems to be some euphoria surrounding the Obama White House that the economy may finally be on track.  The stock market's behavior this month is a glowing chorus of approval, according to many observers.  Perhaps, the economy can be managed after all.  Perhaps, taxes and health care costs don't really matter after all.  Perhaps, the collapse of Europe is irrelevant.  Perhaps.... The cold reality, though, is that the numbers on the ground are still pitiful and have the potential to get worse.  What little pulse the economy has is now an occasion for celebration in the White House.  Strange.  The American economy has historically provided 3 to 4 percent economic growth as the American middle class became the envy of the world. Yes, the middle class has greatly improved its economic position over the last three decades.  Only if employee benefits are left out of the calculation, which now amount to over 30 percent of employee compensation,...

Starbiz daringly came up with 8 stocks for those who think that the government will stay in power. The reasoning being, you may see volatility or weakness in stocks as the polling date draws nearer. They are of the view that IF you think BN stays in power, the following stocks may be "collected on weakness" http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2013/1/29/business/12638990&sec=business They include: Sapura Kencana, MMHE, Handal Resources, Cypark Resources, Prestariang, MYEG, CIMB and Gamuda. My question is: Does that mean that if the opposition wins, the above 8 stocks will be hammered? Well, I think so. You cannot have your cake and eat it at the same time. The very ingredients that the writers relied upon in assessing the stocks as to why they are in favour, will also work against them if the flip side occurs. Somehow, nobody seemed to be focused on what stocks to buy and sell should the opposition wins. Here are my selections: COULD BE GOOD BUYS 1) TENAGA - Ob...

I get this question all the time from younger folks wanting to get a foot into the financial markets. When we talk about investment banking, we are talking about equity analysts, sales traders and investment banking (corporate finance included) primarily. IB basically are the guys (gals) who meet with company owners listed/private and getting them to do deals which may include listings, corporate exercises such as rights, warrants, bonds, placements and/or M&A deals. Sales traders are the new fangled name for institutional dealers of the past. Sales traders deal with flows from clients, placements and basic buys and sells orders. It can get tricky with switching strategies, reweighting and ability to take on positions on books. I will talk about the IBs and sales traders in later postings. Today its how to be an equity analyst. The easiest way, well not really easy, is to get a good degree from a good university. The named universities such as the Ivy league, plus the LSE, Oxcam or...

The stock market has thundered forward since the turn of the year.  Unemployment claims are near their twelve month low and even California thinks it sees balanced budgets ahead in their future.  So, are we there yet? Unfortunately, nothing has really changed.  Let's begin with California.  California, New York and Illinois face an almost immediate crisis with their pension systems.  These problems are far, far larger in magnitude than their total annual spending budget for everything else they do.  And, the clock is ticking.  These problems don't get better every day; they get worse.  California, like New York and Illinois, believe that higher tax rates have no effect on economic behavior.  They are wrong.  Thus, the revenue projections these states are expecting from higher tax rates are an illusion.  Even without pension funding issues, these states are on a straight line to some form of bankruptcy, even if the day of reckoning i...

Wow! Didn't realise I did so many Dilbert cartoon mash ups. This is the second compilation of my gag Dilbert cartoons. I keep doing that I will have enough for a book soon, but then will have to talk to Dilbert's owner about royalties.

CEOs who behave with integrity and share the burden of their employees, a collective kind of leader ... and he is not even an owner. Only in Japan.

Obama's inauguration speech yesterday makes it pretty clear.  He has no intention of discussing ways to lower the deficit and begin to tackle our national debt problems.  Quite the reverse!  Obama has more spending, taxing and regulating plans ahead for the next four years.  As if the economy wasn't bad enough, Obama is planning more anti-capitalism moves. You wonder if his advisers have any idea what the implications are for the economy of all of this.  There was always the chance that a Republican House would block the most extreme measures, but that is becoming increasingly unlikely as Republicans tack feverishly in Obama's political direction. Given Europe's situation, which is far, far worse than the pundits are saying, the economic outlook for the US is pretty bleak.  The best that can be hoped for is more slow growth and stagnant employment.  That is the very best that one can hope for!  The worst is that the economy could begin to slip int...

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This was a really funny quip, somebody suggested that an UMA should be issued to the Bursa for yesterday's market weakness. Well, truth be told, the market had its biggest single day drop since October 2011, plus it was unusual market activity, and thirdly nobody can really say for sure why. Sure there is speculation about the reasons, but its pretty much like a deserving UMA to me. If you were to ask Bursa, they'd probably reply: "We are not aware of any unusual or material developments". So, UMA it is to Bursa. You fall some more, we will issue a second UMA or designate all stocks ok. Seriously, its about elections. Tell us something we don't know. It has to be held soon. How far will it go down to prior to election day. I think its more likely to be closer to 1500 than 1550. Thats just my view. If opposition wins, we may see a knee jerk quick sell down to 1450 to be followed by a swift rebound provided the transition of power is smooth. If not, we could be in f...

There is no better time to blog about this post. After the plunge of KLCI yesterday, citing election risk, we came across an interesting research report by CLSA. As such, we would like to take this opportunity to share with you. By CLSA, An unexpected opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition victory in the impending 13th General Election (13GE) would spark a broad sell-off in Ringgit assets . Changes of government are not uncommon in ASEAN. Looking at the experience of Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines over the last decade, parliamentary control has seen significant shifts and governance has been possible despite the lack of a parliamentary majority. However, Malaysia has never experienced a change in government, meaning any change will come as a shock and with a host of uncertainties. From an equity and debt market perspective , Malaysia has always enjoyed a political premium for the stability in governance and policy-setting stemming from majority control of parliament...

Following Inch Kenneth meteoric surge, some readers have been so kind to send me emails about other great value stocks, e.g. Landmarks, Selangor Dredging, etc ... Dear all, stocks that trade at massive discounts are aplenty. You cannot just point to any one and say that's a good investment. It has a lot to do with proper usage of capital by investors. Why lock up your capital in a non performing great asset? The key is there must be a CATALYST to unlock value, something must be happening to unlock that value. Those who have been in the markets long enough will understand the term "value trap". It is when you buy and hold something for the longest time because there is great inherent value. However the investor does not know when will the hidden values be unlock by management and/or owners.  Hence investors who are wiser will always bear in mind the "value trap", being locked into something for the longest time, sometimes years. Let's look at:  Kuchai Develop...

Too often, Democrats get blamed for our national debt problems and the economic stagnation that has come to characterize the US economy.  Republicans deserve their share of the blame. Who provided the votes necessary to escape considering our debt problems at the start of this year?  Speaker Boehner violated the "Hastert Rule" and let the Senate bill come up for a vote which raised taxes.  48 Republicans then voted for the bill.  A solid victory for Obama.  A solid defeat for the American taxpayer.  And, who engineered this?  Republicans.  Ditto for the emergency pork bill that passed the House last week.  Once again, with Boehner's concurrence, Republicans provided the necessary votes to pass this abomination as well. Yesterday, Republicans announced unilateral pre-emptory capitulation before the White House by pledging to extend the debt ceiling for three months in exchange for the usual -- nothing. What is the difference between a Republic...

A good friend of mine has been bringing in the exclusive and "to-die-for" handmade whisky truffles from Switzerland for sometime now. She has a steady flow of happy clientele who will order tons of them for gift-giving during festive seasons. Good things should be shared, if you are cracking your heads over what to send as gifts for this CNY, you should seriously consider Grandjean Truffles. Happy Chinese New Year to all chocolate lovers and welcome to the Year of the Snake! Although it might seem an age since we celebrated the arrival of the calendar new year and moved in 2013, the most important festival in Chinese culture is now upon us and it is time to celebrate once again. The Chinese New Year is not only the most important Chinese celebration but it is also the longest so make sure you celebrate it in style this year by offering high quality but affordable luxury gifts to your friends, family and colleagues.   Whisky truffles gift black box – RM 160 Contains 10 pieces...

Better-than-expected results were common for the major money-center banks that reported earnings this week.  The announcement of these "good results" were accompanied by more layoff notices from every large bank.  Wall Street continues to downsize as the rest of the economy remains in hunker-down mode. We are gradually becoming accustomed to accepting economic stagnation as the new normal.  Reminiscent of the 1970s,  Americans are becoming used to sluggish job prospects, sluggish income and wealth growth, and massive and continuing unemployment.  All of this is now described, by the president's coterie of supporters in the media, as an improving economy.  This is not an improving economy so much as a different economy. The place to be is somewhere in the government or quasi-government sector.  You can make high six figure incomes at a relaxed pace in the upper echelons of most large universities.  Even better, you probably aren't at risk of being ...

Saw this from one of my blog links, An Undomesticated Blogspot, searched a bit more and found that there were tons of fascinating mini videos made by the same group. When you condense a lot of information into a few minutes, you have to make it witty, relevant and revealing for the WOW Factor ... these video have them all ... and I agree with the deeper implications of the basic truths they represent. Enjoy and embrace more clarity in your life. WE ARE ALL FEMALE (so close ... yet so far yet so near, we all almost the same, so what to get so worked up over with gender bias and lifestyle choices ... same-same gene pool) CAN MONEY BUY HAPPINESS (yes, of course, its the way you spend it) THE POWER OF MUSIC (to me house music is not music, its torture chamber for Europeans) THE POWER OF NAPS (just don't go past 30 minutes each time)