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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 14:46 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	China banks, brokerages see no RRR cuts in March BEIJING, March 1 (Reuters) - Chinese financial institutions expect the central bank to cut banks' reserve requirement ratio (RRR) sometime in the next three months, but not in March. Nearly three quarters of the domestic banks, brokerages and other financial institutions participating in Reuters' monthly fixed-income poll believe there will be no RRR cut during March. But more than 70 percent believe that a 50-basis-point cut will occur sometime in the next three months. China cut RRR by 50 bps on Feb. 18. Respondents agreed unanimously that the People's Bank of China will not lower the benchmark one-year bank deposit rate in March. But a minority, 20 percent, believe that bank deposit rates will be lowered by 25 basis points to 3.25 percent sometime in the next three months. As support for their predictions, respondents cited February's five-month high official purchasing manager's index (PMI) improving economic prospects in the United States and Europe and the risk of inflation caused by rising world oil prices as reasons for their predictions. Despite the relatively cautious outlook for monetary policy, respondents expect bond yields to fall. On average, they expect the yield on 10-year government bonds to fall by 5 basis points, compared with the end of February, to 3.48 percent. Respondents said the large increase in central bank bills and repurchase agreements due to expire in March compared with February will support interbank liquidity this month, even in the absence of an RRR cut. (Reporting Zhong Hua and Ken Wills Writing by Gabriel Wildau Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
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hlfoo2010 Veteran	01-Mar-2012 12:00 hlfoo2010 About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Wednesday, February 29, 2012 10:27am PST Spectacular 'Dolphin Stampede' footage stirs an array of emotions By: Pete Thomas, GrindTV.com A video titled " Dana Point Dolphin Stampede," showing perhaps 2,000 common dolphins in a frenetic charge alongside a Southern California whale-watching boat, is stirring emotions ranging from awe to dismay as it gets passed around on the Internet. http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/blog/32928/spectacular+dolphin+stampede+footage+inspires+awe+but+also+anger/ IS it sign of something going happen ???
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 10:20 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Stick to picking Singapore property leaders: DBS Do you know why CMA, GLP and Capitaland remain the most attractive stock choices? Despite a demand uptick in mid- to mass-market segments, there are still risks that will be best weathered by these niche leaders, said DBS in its new research report on property companies. On a broader assessment, the high-end market continues to struggle as seen in tepid response to offerings in projects like 26 Newton and Suites @ Newton. Here's more from DBS: Ground checks. Our visit to Bartley Residences as well as two higher-end show flats showed that interest in the upper end of the housing spectrum continues to be lacklustre. Over the weekend, Bartley Residences saw additional units taken up, bringing sales to 161 to date, of the 180 units launched or 23% of total 702 units. Of this, the larger sized units – 3 bedrooms and above, were fairly popular, accounting for a third of transactions, while the two bedders made up another third, and the one bedders accounted for a slightly smaller share of about 30%. Buyers were mostly locals, with about half the buyers intending the units for owner occupation and the remaining for investment, indicating a greater composition of ‘real’ demand compared with other projects. Response to higher end projects more muted. Meanwhile, our forays into 2 projects along Newton Road – 26 Newton and Suites @ Newton showed a more cautious response. 26 Newton comprises 180 units of which 40% are one-bedders of < 500sf each, 50% of 2-bedders less than 800sf each. ASP average about $2,300psf for the 1 and 2 bedders. Response during this soft launch phase remains muted. Adjacent to this, Suites @ Newton consists 68 units of which 63% are two bedroom units of > 770sf and 30% are 1-bedders of less than 630sf each. The development was launched since CNY and to date, about 25% have been taken up. ASP ranges from $1,950-$2,150psf. The response to both developments continues to highlight a more cautious tone within this segment of the market. Preferred picks – CMA, GLP and Capitaland. Whilst our latest channel checks do point to better activity in the mid and mass market housing projects, policy overhang will remain amid continued strong take up in the sector. We continue to adopt a stock picking strategy and remain selective. Our top picks are CMA, GLP and Capitaland with a leadership niche in their respective markets.
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 10:18 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Currency Briefing - what you need to know for Thurs March 1, 2012 Singapore dollar showed resilience and avoided a steeper decline. IG Markets Singapore said: The Singapore dollar held its ground last night as money flooded back into the US dollar as expectations of QE3 eased. Quantitative easing in the US economy, while good news for equities, would dampen the value of the greenback. But QE3 isn’t currently on the agenda as the US economy is slowly recovering on its own merits with no immediate need for cheap money. This has boosted the US dollar which edged up to 1.2515 breaking through the 1.25 level of resistance. But the Singapore dollar has proven resilient and could have faced a steeper drop. It was helped by upbeat Korean factory output which increased confidence in Asian economies. The European Central Bank’s second tranche of LTRO funding also saw a big take-up among European banks which has helped restore confidence in the eurozone, and the global economy in general. A strengthening US economy, which saw GDP growth above expectations of 3% in Q4, is good news for risk assets like Asian currencies. RBS, on the other hand, reported: The 3-year LTRO came in line in line with our expectations, which we expect to be EUR-negative (the estimated net liquidity addition 314bn). Our fair value model implies that this take-up, holding other variables such as the 5-year swap spread and equity prices constant, would shave 1.5 cents of EUR/USD. During US hours, the bigger driver of FX markets was the reaction to the Bernanke semi-annual testimony – expectations for Bernanke to signal additional QE appear to have been much larger than we expected. The USD strengthened sharply and US rate support increased after Bernanke did not signal additional easing. We wrote about this scenario aiding USD strength, particularly vs. the EUR, in Global Currency Weekly on Tuesday. We still narrowly favour additional Fed QE at mid-year, but the continued improvements in economic data likely complicate the decision to embark on more asset purchases. Finally, the MoF / BoJ announced that they did not intervene in the FX markets during February. GFT meanwhile noted: Thanks to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, the U.S. dollar soared against all of the major currencies outside of the Canadian dollar. Although the Fed Chairman believes that monetary policy needs to remain extremely accommodative, he made it clear that there is no immediate need for QE3. Over the past few weeks we have seen consistently better U.S. economic reports and these improvements are finally resonating with the central bank. Bernanke acknowledged the positive developments in the labor market by saying that unemployment is falling at a more rapid pace than expected. Combined with the rise in stocks and the acceleration in manufacturing activity, there is very little need for additional stimulus.
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 10:15 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Brace for even higher freight rates: CIMB Container freight rates are climbing and will reach mid-year peaks before crashing in 2H11. From Asia to Europe, freight rates have gone up by up to 18%, a marked uptick that CIMB believes will persist for the first half of the year now that market leader Maersk seems determined to stick to its rate increases. Here's more from CIMB: Maersk made two important announcements recently: 1) that it is planning a US$400/teu increase on AE from April 1, and 2) that it continued to expect its liner arm to register losses in 2012. While seemingly contradictory, we think that Maersk hit the nail on the head. Container freight rates should rebound strongly in 1H11, but rates will peak in mid-2012 and decline in 2H11 as competition returns. Freight rate momentum on Asia-Europe seemed quite powerful last week, with rates rising 16-18%. Maersk has announced a US$400/teu rate increase from April 1, in addition to the US$775/teu increase from March 1. Big brother’s commitment to rate restoration means that half the battle is won. Furthermore, NOL said last week that its customers are now prepared to accept the rate increases. However, the industry’s self-destructive tendencies are reflected in Maersk’s cautious guidance for 2012. We also notice that Middle East and Australia trades have so far not benefited from the recent rise in the spot AE and TP rates, suggesting that the impact from cascading is still a major issue. A host of carriers including Maersk, NOL, CSAV and HMM have reported poor 4Q numbers, providing each carrier with a strong impetus to carry on with its freight restoration programme. Maersk has announced a US$400/teu rate increase from April 1, in addition to the US$775/teu increase from March 1, which took the market by surprise. The big brother also reaffirmed its commitment to using more slow steaming and may reactivate lay-ups in order to “improve market balance”. With the market leader now determined to see through rate restoration, other carriers will take its cue and follow with more announcements of the same. We expect the AE trade to experience fairly dramatic rate increases until mid-2012. Bulk rates rose last week in relatively lacklustre volumes, while tanker rates corrected due to excess supply. The issue with bulk shipping remains with China’s growth slowdown, while tanker uncertainties revolve around the potential disruption to the oil trade in the Middle East.
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 10:10 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Singapore Markets Morning Briefing - what you need to know for Thurs March 1, 2012 There was retreat on Wall Street amidst the STI's mini-recovery. OCBC Investment Research said: The retreat on Wall Street overnight is likely to spook the local bourse to a negative opening this morning but the strong Nikkei start (up 1.3% now# could limit the damage. Following the rebound on Tuesday, the STI continued inching higher yesterday after a 0.4% higher opening, the index recovered further to a 0.8% gain at the close. With today's tone likely to turn a tad more downside biased, the index is likely to remain capped at below the 3000 psychological resistance in the near term. Beyond this immediate resistance, we see the subsequent obstacle at the 3031 recent peak. On the downside, we see the immediate base at the 2947 recent trough formed, followed by the subsequent support at the 2900 key resistance-turned-support region. IG Markets Singapore, on the other hand, reported: The STI has enjoyed healthy gains as it stages a mini-recovery back towards 3,000 and will see its resolve tested today as traders react to an action-packed night of news from the global economy. US and Europe went into overdrive last night with cheap money flooding one continent while being held back in another. This led to some clear winners #the US economy and European banks# and big losers #US equities and notably gold#. First up was Ben Bernanke, whose comments can move the markets like no other. And he had a lot to say as he gave a testimony to US Congress. Oil prices may cause a spike in inflation, the jobs market is improving faster than expected and quantitative easing is unlikely to happen anytime soon. This last point had a huge impact on the markets, not least gold which slipped almost 5% as signs of a strengthening US economy reduced its need as a safe haven. Also some of the expected QE3 cash would have made its way into the precious metals markets. US equities took the brunt of the disappointment with the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipping 0.4% back below 13,000. The S& P 500 dropped 0.5% while the NASDAQ fell 0.7%. RBS meanwhile noted: After the much anticipated LTRO came and went as expected, investors turned their attention to the US data and Chairman Bernanke's testimony. The combination of the two sent yields higher, equities lower, commodities lower #though energy rebounded into the close#, and the dollar higher. The way I saw the combined moves was as follows: with the second LTRO operation behind us, there is no third. Bernanke did not quash hopes of QE3, but he also did not trumpet QE3 as much as some apparently hoped. Thus, markets reacted in a way that reflected investors' realization that while there is plenty of liquidity in the system #and central bank balance sheets are large#, there are no liquidity adding operations on the horizon. So perhaps it is time to dial back on liquidity fuelled positions. So the typical " printing press" hedges were in retreat, with often nasty intraday moves #for example, Gold fell ~$50 in a few minutes alone#. Equities and the Euro/the dollar traded in a similar fashion and in the bigger picture, this may not be unreasonable considering the healthy run " risk assets" have had since the first LTRO on December 2nd, all the way into today's second LTRO. Also, while this summary reads like a day yields had large sized moves, 10yr yields rose approximately 5bps close-to-close. So despite a very interesting day in global markets, good old 10yr notes closed once again just a few bps off our familiar mid-point of the November-February range of 1.95%.
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 09:40 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Dollar gains vs euro, yen as Bernanke gives no QE3 signal * Fed Bernanke refrains from signaling more bond buying * ECB lends out 530 bln euros in three-year lending * U.S. economic data paints brighter picture (Updates prices, adds quotes) By Julie Haviv NEW YORK, Feb 29 (Reuters) - The dollar gained against the euro and yen on Wednesday as factors ranging from month-end positioning to a European Central Bank cash infusion and lowered expectations of another Federal Reserve bond-buying binge raised the greenback's appeal. Robust U.S. data, which typically increases risk appetite, favored the dollar versus the euro as it highlighted a growing disparity between the economies on both sides of the Atlantic. Ongoing financial strains in Europe prompted the ECB to infuse over a half a billion euros into financial markets. " The ECB's auction in some ways could be interpreted as a form of quantitative easing," said Charles St-Arnaud, foreign exchange strategist at Nomura Securities in New York. " But, today was a day where everyone was a little confused about the euro and there was not any big data out of Europe to trade off," he said. " Data in the U.S. was strong, which benefited the Canadian dollar, but not the Australian and New Zealand dollars. " When it comes down to it, there were a lot of moving parts today and not just one story drove the market." The euro accelerated losses against the dollar to hit a near one-week low. The dollar rose sharply against the yen after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told a congressional panel the U.S. unemployment rate had fallen more quickly than expected. Bernanke offered a tempered view of the U.S. economy and stopped short of signaling further Fed bond purchases, dashing the hopes of some traders in financial markets who were betting on more monetary stimulus. The Fed's two asset-purchase programs, known as quantitative easing, helped stimulate the economy but hurt the dollar's value as they were tantamount to printing money. Bernanke's testimony " confirms the fact the Fed is in wait-and-see mode," said Sean Incremona, an economist with 4Cast Ltd in New York. The euro fell as low as $1.3313 and last traded down 1.1 percent at $1.3318. The greenback also rose against the yen, hitting a high of 81.31 before receding to 81.18, still up 0.9 percent for the day. Nevertheless, it has been a strong year so far for the single currency, which has risen 2.9 percent against the dollar and 8.7 percent against the yen. So far this year, the dollar has gained 5.6 percent against the yen. U.S. economic growth was slightly faster than initially thought in the fourth quarter and a gauge of factory activity in the Midwest hit a 10 month-high in February, pointing to underlying strength in the economy. A report from the Federal Reserve showed the economy expanded modestly in January through mid-February as hiring picked up a bit across several districts. ECB ADDS LIQUIDITY The European Central Bank loaned 530 billion euros in cheap money on Wednesday, slightly more than analysts had expected for the bank's second long-term refinancing operation. More than 800 banks applied for funding - up from 523 banks in its first auction in December. This may suggest that some of the stigma attached to the ECB's Longer Term Refinancing Operation, or LTRO, may have dissipated. On the other hand, it could also mean more banks are in a vulnerable position, requiring more funds. While increased liquidity typically weakens a currency, the euro has not weakened substantially since the first LTRO, perhaps because it was a response to increased liquidity demand, according to Barclays Capital. " The second 3-year LTRO is likely to be more of a liquidity supply shock and weaken the EUR," the bank said. " We recommend a short EUR position against an equal weighted basket of USD and NOK (Norwegian krona)." The ECB lending eased some fears over the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis, analysts said, but did not address longer-term worries in the region. The ECB's move helped riskier currencies earlier in the day, lifting the Australian dollar to a 7-month high against the U.S. dollar, while pushing the New Zealand dollar to a 6-month high and the Canadian dollar a five-month peak against the greenback. But those gains left the currencies vulnerable to profit-taking in month-end rebalancing and they traded down. (Additional reporting by Luciana Lopez Editing by Dan Grebler)
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 09:33 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	China PMI up as new export orders expand * Feb official PMI at 51.0 vs 50.5 in Jan * New orders pick up, index rises to 51.0 * New export orders accelerate, index gains to 51.1 By Kevin Yao and Aileen Wang BEIJING, March 1 (Reuters) - China's factory sector grew more than expected in February as export orders expanded for the first time in four months, a government survey showed on Thursday, supporting hopes the world's second-biggest economy can avoid a hard landing. China's official purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 51.0, above expectations for a reading of 50.7 and higher than 50.5 in January. It was the highest PMI since 51.2 in Sept, the figures from the National Bureau of Statistics showed. A PMI above 50 signals expansion, while below 50 points to contraction. The HSBC Flash PMI, the earliest indicator of China's industrial activity, hit a 4-month high of 49.7 in February, but new export orders shrank the most in 8 months as global demand weakened. The government's new export orders sub-index rose to 51.1 in February, indicating expansion for the first time in four months and the highest reading since 51.1 in May 2011. New export orders were shrinking in January, when the index was 46.9. New orders overall rose to 51.0 from 50.4. " The February PMI continued to pick up, further confirming a trend that the economy is stabilising," Zhang Liqun, a researcher with the Development Research Centre of the State Council, said in the official statement. " Different from January, last month's expansion in the manufacturing sector is mainly driven by heavy industries. But the export and investment demand is expected to ease in the coming months, albeit at a slower pace. Input price is accelerating evidently, a reflection of rising imported inflation," Zhang said. The official PMI, which is weighted more towards big state firms, generally paints a rosier picture of Chinese factories than the PMI produced by HSBC, which includes small private firms that have been hit harder by credit curbs and weaker demand. Still, China's economy faces formidable headwinds as exports falter due to weakening demand in the United States and Europe, alongside a downturn in the once red-hot property sector in response to tightening steps by Beijing. China's annual economic growth is widely expected to slow to just over 8 percent in the first quarter from 8.9 percent in the previous quarter, the fifth consecutive quarter of slowdown. Many analysts expect the central bank to continue its steady policy easing by cutting the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves to crank up credit to ward off sharper growth slowdown. China announced a cut in its reserve requirement ratio (RRR) by 50 basis points to 20.5 percent on Feb 18, releasing about 400 billion yuan ($63 billion) that could be used for bank lending. It was the second 50-bp cut in the RRR in three months. The deep-pocketed government has also cut taxes for small firms, which are vital for generating economic growth and jobs, to help them cope with a credit squeeze and weaker exports. Longer-term, China needs to change its economic model, which for years has relied on the export sector to drive growth, the World Bank said in a report this week. The government must relax its grip on industry and move towards free markets, it said. (Editing by Neil Fullick)
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 09:32 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Copper guarded despite upbeat China data SINGAPORE, March 1 (Reuters) - London copper was little changed early on Thursday in Asia as investors digested data showing top copper consumer China's manufacturing sector grew faster than forecast in February. FUNDAMENTALS * Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was nearly flat at $8,500.25 a tonne by 0114 GMT, after falling more than 1 percent on Wednesday. * China's official purchasing managers' index rose to 51 in February from 50.5 in January, the National Bureau of Statistics said, above market expectations of 50.7. PMI readings above 50 signal factory expansion while those below 50 point to contraction. * Comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that the U.S. economy needs to strengthen to further cut the still high jobless rate and the absence of indications of more Fed bond purchases fuelled a scramble out of risk assets on Wednesday, including copper. * That countered the positive impact from the half a trillion euros in additional liquidity the European Central Bank injected into the financial system to help fight a nagging debt crisis. * The most-traded May copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 1.2 percent to 60,350 yuan ($9,600) a tonne, chasing losses in London in the previous session. * A stoppage at Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.'s Grasberg mine in Indonesia could be resolved within days, with talks between workers and management progressing well, a union official said. * Glencore has agreed to buy zinc concentrates from Peruvian miner Volcan without charging for processing, taking the view that it will be able to more than recoup the charges by profiting from rises in zinc prices, industry sources said. * For the top stories in metals and other news, click , or MARKETS NEWS * The euro and commodity currencies nursed heavy losses in Asia on Thursday as investors cut bullish positions after key events, including the European Central Bank's cash injection, passed without surprise. * U.S. stocks snapped a four-day winning streak after comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke disappointed investors hoping for a strong signal of more stimulus. * U.S. crude futures were steady on Thursday after gaining half a percent the previous day, spurred by data showing a modest expansion in the U.S. economy that raised hopes for oil demand in the world's top oil consumer. DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 0858 EZ Markit Mfg PMI Feb 1000 EZ Inflation, flash yy Feb 1330 U.S. Initial jobless claims Weekly 1500 U.S. Construction spending February Base metals prices at 0114 GMT Metal Last Change Pct Move YTD pct chg LME Cu 8500.25 1.25 +0.01 11.85 SHFE CU FUT MAY2 60350 -720 -1.18 9.01 HG COPPER MAR2 386.35 -0.75 -0.18 12.44 LME Alum 2323.00 -7.00 -0.30 15.00 SHFE AL FUT MAY2 16195 -55 -0.34 2.21 LME Zinc 2098.00 -14.00 -0.66 13.71 SHFE ZN FUT MAY2 15965 -175 -1.08 7.91 LME Nickel 19650.00 395.00 +2.05 5.02 LME Lead 2182.00 22.00 +1.02 7.22 SHFE PB FUT 16135.00 -180.00 -1.10 5.56 LME Tin 23625.00 0.00 +0.00 23.05 LME/Shanghai arb^ 2241 Shanghai and COMEX contracts show most active months ^ LME 3-month copper in yuan, including 17 pct VAT, minus SHFE third month ($1=6.2936 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Manolo Serapio Jr. Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 09:31 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	HK posts HK$102.5 bln fiscal surplus for April-Jan March 1 (Reuters) - Hong Kong posted a HK$102.5 billion ($13.22 billion) fiscal surplus for April-January, the first 10 months of the fiscal year 2011/12, against a HK$93.8 billion surplus for the same period last year, official data showed. A government spokesman said the surplus in January was mainly due to the receipt of salaries tax and profits tax. January 2012 April 2011-Jan 2012 Fiscal balance (HK$) 43.0 bln 102.5 bln Expenditure 28.4 bln 293.2 bln Revenue 71.4 bln 395.7 bln Fiscal reserves as of Jan. 31, 2012: HK$697.9 billion, up from HK$654.9 billion at the end of December, 2011. ($1 = 7.7557 Hong Kong dollars) (Reporting by Christina Lo in HONG KONG Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
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krisluke Supreme	01-Mar-2012 09:29 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Hong Kong shares to open down 0.5 pct, financials drag HONG KONG, March 1 (Reuters) - Hong Kong shares were set to start lower on Thursday, dragged down by weakness in the financial and property sectors after data suggesting China's manufacturing sector expanded slightly more than expected in February. The Hang Seng Index was set to start down 0.47 percent at 21,578.19. The China Enterprises Index of top mainland listings in Hong Kong was indicated to open down 0.51 percent at 11,766.77. (Reporting by Clement Tan Editing by Chris Lewis)
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 23:49 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Bernanke: Economy, job creation likely to stay sluggish for several years Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke warned on Wednesday that, despite bright spots in recent economic reports, unemployment would likely stay high and the nation’s recovery remain slow for the next several years. In prepared testimony to Congress, Bernanke acknowledged that the unemployment rate--which now stands at 8.3 percent--has come down faster than anticipated. But he said several factors are likely to weigh on the economy. (The Labor Department will release numbers on February unemployment at the end of next week.) Bernanke noted that wages are flat, that borrowers are having trouble getting loans, state and local governments are still laying off workers, and financial problems are causing crisis abroad, particularly in Europe. The challenges, the Fed chief said, “have weighed on financial conditions and global economic growth, and problems in U.S. housing and mortgage markets have continued to hold down not only construction and related industries, but also household wealth and confidence.” Bernanke also noted that gas prices have jumped since the spike in global oil prices. Those high pump prices, he said, will probably push up inflation temporarily “while reducing consumers’ purchasing power.” Over the long term, he said, inflation is not likely to be a major concern. Late last month, the Fed announced it would keep interest rates extraordinarily low through 2014, expecting that unemployment would not drop low enough to truly boost growth. Bernanke reiterated Wednesday that the Fed does not expect the jobless rate to decline much more than it already has this year and that it will “edge down only slowly” in coming years. Bernanke expressed some surprise that the unemployment rate has come down as quickly as it has, given other signs of weakness in the economy — in particular, relatively sluggish economic growth. “Continued improvement in the job market is likely to require stronger growth in final demand and production,” he said. The Fed chairman highlighted the housing market as a heavy burden on the economy. While homes cost much less than they used to -- because real estate prices have declined and mortgage rates are low — he said, “unfortunately, many potential buyers lack the down payment and credit history required to qualify for loans.” Others, he said, “are reluctant to buy a house now because of concerns about their income, employment prospects and the future path of home prices.” Bernanke said pointed to Europe’s financial crisis and its effects on the U.S. economy. He applauded European leaders’ recent steps to contain their debt crisis as “constructive,” he said there’s more work to do. He also expressed concern about Europe’s reliance on harsh austerity measures for troubled nations as a way to get a handle on their debt. “Further steps will also be required to boost growth and competitiveness in a number of countries,” he said. As for the United States, he said that the recovery is continuing but has been “uneven and modest by historical standards.”
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 23:46 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Bernanke stands by plan to keep record-low rates Flags fly over the Federal Reserve Building on December 16, 2008 in Washington, D.C. (Mark Wilson, Getty Images) WASHINGTON (AP) — Ben Bernanke says the Federal Reserve is sticking with its plan to hold interest rates at record-low levels until at least late 2014, despite a pickup in hiring that's steadily lowered the unemployment rate. The Fed chairman's twice-a-year economic report to Congress mostly mirrors his remarks in January after the Fed pushed back its timetable for any rate increase. Bernanke acknowledges that unemployment, now at 8.3 percent, has fallen faster than the Fed had predicted. He says the Fed doesn't expect the rate to continuing falling as fast this year. But if it does, he says the Fed would reassess its economic outlook. Some economists think the Fed will reconsider its 2014 target for raising interest rates if job growth continued to strengthen.
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 23:30 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Path to an all-time high for Dow will be bumpy Now that the Dow Jones industrial average has closed above 13,000, an all-time high is in sight — just 1,160 points away. But the path won’t be smooth for the stock market or the economy. The Dow’s final push above the milestone came from a report that Americans feel better about the economy than they have in a year. But other economic data Tuesday were more grim: Orders for big-ticket factory goods dropped by the most in three years, mainly because the government withdrew a key tax subsidy. And home prices are stuck at 2002 levels. “I don’t think 13,000 guarantees 14,000,” said John Manley, chief equity strategist for the Wells Fargo funds group. “I do think there still is a lot of skepticism about the short term.” Market futures were up early Wednesday. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 20 points. Standard & Poor’s futures gained three points, and Nasdaq composite futures rose six points. Markets were also higher in Europe, following gains in Asia. The next big test comes March 9, when the government releases the number of jobs added by the country in February and updates the unemployment rate. For a day, though, Wall Street could savor something it hadn’t seen since May 2008, before the bailouts, bank failures and millions of layoffs of the Great Recession — Dow 13,000. The Dow last closed above 13,000 on May 19, 2008, almost four months before the fall of the Lehman Brothers investment bank triggered the worst of the financial crisis. On Tuesday, it just cleared the mark — 13,005.12, up 23.61 points for the day. “I think it’s a momentous day for investor confidence,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank. “What this number implies is that the financial crisis that we were all losing sleep over, it never happened, because now we’re back.” The milestone comes at a time when Americans are feeling better about the economy than they have in a year. The Conference Board, a private research group, said its consumer confidence index was 70.8 for February, up from 61.5 in January. The report came out at 10 a.m. and lifted the Dow above 13,000. It stayed there most of the day. “Two months ago, we were talking about a double-dip recession. Now consumer confidence is growing,” said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist for Schaffer’s Investment Research. He said the Dow’s milestone “wakes up a lot of investors who have missed a lot of this rally.” The average first pierced 13,000 last Tuesday but fell back by the close. It floated above the milestone again on Friday and Monday, but slipped below both days. A strong rally for stocks this year seemed stalled as worry built on Wall Street about climbing prices for oil and gasoline. Tuesday’s gain puts the Dow 1,160 points below its all-time high of 14,164.53, set Oct. 9, 2007. The Great Recession began two months later. The milestone could draw some fence-sitting investors back into the market and add to the gains, said Brian Gendreau, market strategist at Cetera Financial Group. “Already here in the first two months, we’ve blown past the consensus expectations for the entire year, and that certainly gets people’s attention,” he said. The Dow started with its best January since 1997 and has added to that gain. The index is up 6.5 percent for the young year. Other averages have fared even better: The Standard & Poor’s 500 is up 9 percent, the Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks is up 11 percent, and the Nasdaq composite index, dominated by technology stocks, is up 14 percent. The other major indexes sit at multi-year highs as well. The S& P closed Tuesday at its highest level since June 2008, and the Nasdaq has not traded so high since December 2000, during the bursting of the bubble in technology stocks. Just last August, the Dow dropped 2,000 points in three frightening weeks. Investors were worried about the European debt crisis, gridlock in Washington over the federal borrowing limit, a downgrade of the U.S. credit rating and the threat of another recession. After Labor Day, the recession fears melted away. Since then, the stock market has been engaged in a tug-of-war between optimism over the improving American economy and fear that crisis in Europe would derail the U.S. recovery. The optimists have been winning. The Dow cruised to 13,000 the old-fashioned way, riding the economy higher. The unemployment rate has come down five months in a row, the first time that has happened since 1994. The economy added 243,000 jobs in January, one of the three best months since 2006. Gains were surprisingly robust in industries across the economy, including the strongest hiring in manufacturing in a year. In the stock market, the improving economy has translated to slow, steady gains — about 20 points a day for the Dow, averaged over the eight weeks. The index has gained more than 100 points on only three days, and it has not fallen 100 points on any day. On Tuesday, seven of the 10 industry groups within the S& P 500 index were higher, with information technology and consumer discretionary stocks leading the way. Utility stocks, traditionally solid investments in a weak economy, were lower. Microsoft led the 30 stocks in the Dow with a gain of 1.7 percent for the day. Johnson & Johnson had the biggest price change. It gained 73 cents and was responsible for 5.52 points of the Dow’s gain, enough to clear the 13,000 level. The S& P 500 gained 4.59 points for the day and closed at 1,372.18. Technical traders said it was a breakthrough because the S& P has been hemmed between 1,100 and 1,370 for months. The Nasdaq gained 20.60 and closed at 2,986.76. Prices for U.S. Treasurys were little changed. Besides the consumer confidence figure, investors wrestled with a Commerce Department report that businesses cut back on machinery and equipment in January. The price of the 10-year Treasury note dropped 12.5 cents for every $100 invested. The yield edged up to 1.94 percent from 1.93 percent late Monday. Shorter-dated Treasurys were nearly all unchanged. The euro rose against the dollar a day before the European Central Bank is expected to give banks in the region another round of loans. A jump in U.S. consumer confidence also pushed traders to buy the euro. The Dow first cracked 13,000 on April 25, 2007, when the unemployment rate was 4.5 percent, far below today’s 8.3 percent, and the economy was growing at a relatively healthy clip. From there, it was a quick ride to the Dow’s all-time high. The average crossed 14,000 in July 2007, then peaked at 14,164.53 on Oct. 9, 2007. Concerns about weak corporate earnings and tighter credit were already haunting the market, though. The trip back down to 13,000 was less pleasant. It took little more than a month. Ten months later came the fall of Lehman Brothers and the financial meltdown. The Dow hit bottom on March 9, 2009, at 6,547.05. Analysts say the stock market has grown accustomed to lingering threats this year, including a debt crisis in Europe and an economic recovery in the United States that is still not as strong as economists would like. The price of gasoline has emerged as the latest worry. A gallon of regular costs $3.72 on average. The price has risen 21 days in a row. Economists worry whether gas will climb high enough to cut into consumer spending in the rest of the economy. “It’s important to remember that the stock market is not the U.S. economy, and the U.S. economy is not the stock market,” said Dan Greenhaus, chief global strategist for the brokerage BTIG. “Most people are likely to say, ‘Dow 13,000. So, where’s my job?” The consumer confidence reading of 70.8, while much stronger than the 63 that economists were expecting, is still far below the level of 90 that indicates a healthy economy. It was above 110 in mid-2007, before the recession. Still, Greenhaus said, while 13,000 is just a round number, “it’s a round number that’s likely to make many Americans feel better about the economy and the stock market. It’s another sign that things are getting better.” ——— AP Business Writers Matthew Craft and Christina Rexrode in New York contributed to this report. Follow Daniel Wagner at www.twitter.com/wagnerreports .
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 23:28 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Apple market value hits $500B, where few have gone By Associated Press on February 29th, 2012 NEW YORK (AP) — Apple’s market capitalization topped $500 billion in opening trading Wednesday, climbing to a mountain peak where few companies have ventured and none have stayed for long. Apple was already the world’s most valuable company. The gap between it and No. 2 Exxon Mobil Corp. has widened rapidly in the past month, as investors have digested Apple’s report of blow-out holiday-season sales of iPhone and iPads, and raised their hopes that the company might institute a dividend. On Tuesday, the Cupertino, Calif., company sent out invites to reporters for an event in San Francisco next Wednesday, apparently to reveal its next iPad model. The launch of the new model was expected around this time, a year after the launch of the iPad 2. advertisement Exxon, now worth $411 billion, was worth just over $500 billion for two short stretches at the end of 2007. Apple’s arch-nemesis Microsoft Corp. was worth just more than $500 billion briefly at the end of 1999, then again in early 2000. It even shot up above $600 billion for one day. The company is now worth $267 billion. Cisco Systems Inc., Intel Corp. and General Electric Co. also peaked just above $500 billion in early 2000. Cisco and Intel are now worth a bit more than $100 billion each, while GE is worth $200 billion. Despite its sky-high market capitalization, Apple’s valuation isn’t high compared to its earnings. It’s worth 15 times its earnings for the last year. That compares to 21 times earnings for Google Inc. and 14 times for the S& P 500 overall. Yet few companies in the index grow their earnings as fast as Apple does: In its latest quarter, its earnings rose 118 percent from a year ago, to $13.06 billion. Apple’s stock accounts for 3.8 percent of the value of the S& P 500 index, according to Standard & Poor’s, and it accounted for 6 percent of the operating income of the 500 companies in the fourth quarter. Analysts say Apple’s sheer size works against its stock price. Apple stock already makes up a large share of the holdings of technology and growth-focused funds, and they have little appetite for more. Meanwhile, value-focused funds are often prevented from buying the shares because the company doesn’t pay a dividend. However, the company has been signaling that a dividend is under consideration, and several analysts now consider it a given that one will be announced this year. Last week, CEO Tim Cook told shareholders at the annual meeting that the company has more money than it needs, and the board and management are thinking “very deeply” about ways to use the cash. Former CEO Steve Jobs, apparently haunted by the company’s lean years in the 90s, had a policy of accumulating cash. The company now sits on $97.6 billion. In the first few minutes of trading Wednesday, Apple’s market capitalization climbed near $508 billion as shares rose $8.98, or 1.7 percent, to $544.39. © 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 15:45 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Budget surplus will be challenging - Wong RETURNING the budget to surplus will be challenging, but Finance Minister Penny Wong believes it is the right thing to do in the current economic climate. The federal Government has forecast a $1.5 billion surplus in 2012-13 after an expected 37 billion deficit in the current financial year that ends on June 30. Senator Wong has told Sky News achieving a budget surplus will be challenging, but it is the right call, given that the economy continues to grow at trend, and particularly after the strong result in the latest employment figures. Meanwhile, a verbal stoush's erupted over the opposition's apparent stance over the new parliamentary budget office, which Treasurer Wayne Swan has described as an economic circus and a spokesman for the treasurer accusing the opposition of having a trio of positions.
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 15:42 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Japan says it may cancel F-35 order if prices rise Wednesday, February 29, 2012 TOKYO -- Japan may cancel its multibillion-dollar plans to buy dozens of F-35 stealth fighter jets from the United States if prices continue to rise or delays threaten the delivery date, its defense minister said Wednesday. Defense Minister Naoki Tanaka said failure by manufacturer Lockheed Martin to deliver on time at current price levels would force Tokyo to consider switching to a different aircraft. Japan announced late last year that it would purchase 42 F-35 jets in a deal expected to cost more than $5 billion. The next-generation fighter is set to become the centerpiece of the U.S. military and allied air forces around the world, but the program has been plagued by delays and its cost overruns. Japan hopes to receive its first F-35s in 2016, at a cost of about $120 million per plane. " I think we will reach a formal agreement before the summer," Tanaka told a session of Parliament. " If we cannot reach an agreement at that time, this would create a great deal of uncertainty for our national defense and preparedness. We would naturally have to view the possibility of canceling our plan or selecting another aircraft." Lockheed Martin, in conjunction with Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems, is building 2,400 F-35s for the U.S. as well as partner nations. But the cost of the program has jumped from $233 billion to $385 billion. Some estimates suggest that it could top out at $1 trillion over 50 years. Lockheed is building three versions of the F-35 _ one each for the Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. The plane would replace Cold War-era aircraft such as the Air Force F-16 fighter and the Navy's F/A-18 Hornet. Last January, then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates had put the Marines' version of the aircraft on a two-year probationary period because of " significant testing problems." His successor, Leon Panetta, ended the probation late last month. But the Pentagon has said it will slow its purchases of the fighter to save money, which has raised concerns abroad. Slowed production could lead to delays in delivery to foreign buyers, and could make the planes more expensive to produce.
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 15:41 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Durable goods orders drop by most in 3 years (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) In this Feb. 27, 2012 photo, customers shop for laundry appliances at Pacific Sales Kitchen & Home center at the Best Buy store Glendale, Calif. The Commerce Department said Tuesday, Feb. 28, orders for durable goods _ products that are expected to last... Tuesday, February 28, 2012 WASHINGTON -- Businesses slashed spending on machinery and equipment in January after a tax break expired, pushing orders for long-lasting manufacturing goods down by the largest amount in three years. Orders for durable goods fell 4 percent last month, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. A big reason for the decline was demand for so-called core capital goods, which are viewed as a good measure of business investment plans, tumbled 4.5 percent. That's the biggest drop in a year. Economists attributed much of the decline in January to the end of the tax credit. They noted that demand for core capital goods hit an all-time high in December as most companies raced to qualify for the tax credit. Many said the underlying trend remained strong and predicted further business investment in the coming months. " We see no evidence of underlying slowing in the industrial economy so we look for a rebound in February and the re-emergence of the upward trend over the next couple of months," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at High Frequency Economics. A durable good is a product expected to last at least three years. They include everything from appliances and cars to heavy machinery and planes. Orders tend to fluctuate sharply from one month to the next. But the overall trend in orders has increased since the recession ended nearly three years ago. In January, overall orders totaled $206.1 billion. That's 38.6 percent above the low hit during the recession. Orders are still 16 percent below their peak hit in December 2007. U.S. factories boosted output last month and December ended up being their best month of growth in five years. Strong auto sales and growing business investment in machinery and other equipment are keeping factories busy and helping the economy grow. About 9 percent of the nation's jobs are in manufacturing. But last year, factories added 13 percent of new jobs. And in January, about one-fifth of the 243,000 net jobs the economy created were in manufacturing. The economy grew at an annual rate of 2.8 percent in the final three months of last year. Economists are looking for roughly the same level growth in the current quarter. And a forecasting panel of the National Association for Business Economics said Monday that the economy should grow 2.3 percent this year. Demand in many durable goods categories showed declines in January. Orders for commercial aircraft, a volatile category, fell 19 percent after two months of big gains. Orders for motor vehicles and parts edged up 0.9 percent. The overall transportation category posted a 6.1 percent decline while orders outside of transportation were down 3.2 percent. Other areas showing weakness were primary metals such as steel, down 6.7 percent, and machinery, which fell 10.4 percent. Orders for computers and related products were down 10.1 percent. Asia stocks rise after Dow closes above 13,000 Wednesday, February 29, 2012 BANGKOK -- Asian stock markets rose Wednesday, powered higher by the strongest close for U.S. stocks since before the 2008 financial crisis. Benchmark oil climbed above $107 per barrel while the dollar fell against the euro and the yen. Japan's Nikkei 225 index added 0.9 percent to 9,805.27 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng edged up 0.5 percent to 21,681.36. South Korea's Kospi gained 1.4 percent to 2,031.46. Australia's S& P/ASX 200 rose 0.8 percent to 4,298.60. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia were also higher. Mainland Chinese shares fell. Surging consumer confidence helped push the Dow to close at 13,005.12 on Tuesday. The last time the benchmark closed above 13,000 was in May 2008, four months before the fall of the Lehman Brothers investment bank and the worst of the financial crisis. Investors are also anticipating the Federal Reserve's so-called Beige Book report on economic activity, which is due Wednesday. The report is expected to reflect a slowly improving U.S. economy. " A plethora of positive developments helped to buoy markets overnight ... a jump in US consumer confidence to its highest since February 2011 gave equity markets and risk assets in general a lift," said analysts at Credit Agricole CIB in Hong Kong. Investors were largely putting aside a worse-than-expected drop in orders for durable goods. The U.S. Commerce Department reported Tuesday that orders fell 4 percent last month as U.S. businesses slashed spending on machinery and equipment after a tax break expired. " The market just seems to want to edge up further and that actually is in line with the larger picture," said Lee Kok Joo, head of research at Phillip Securities in Singapore. " When you look at the whole macro scheme of things _ on the euro side the debt story is kind of slowing down. Right now the story still is that the U.S. is actually showing signs of recovery," he said. Key benchmarks in mainland China were down due to a clampdown by Beijing on Shanghai officials for attempting to relax rules on property purchases. " They stopped them from doing that, so that's why the mainland markets are down, especially property," said Francis Lun, managing director of Lyncean Holdings in Hong Kong. The move also put a crimp in Hong Kong-listed shares. China Vanke Co. fell 1.2 percent and Poly Real Estate Group tumbled 2.7 percent. But airlines shares began to claw back from recent selloffs sparked by higher oil prices. Korean Air Lines Co. rose 3.1 percent and Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. jumped 3.8 percent. Meanwhile, shares of Elpida Memory Inc. went into free fall after it filed for bankruptcy Monday. The company, Japan's only chipmaker to specialize in memory chips used in mobile phones and computers, was pummeled by dropping prices, fierce competition and flooding in Thailand. Benchmark oil for April delivery was up 50 cents to $107.05 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell by $2.01 to $106.55 per barrel in New York on Tuesday. In currency trading, the euro rose to $1.3483 from $1.3459 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar fell to 80.33 yen from 80.55 yen. Source: http://www.baynews9.com
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 15:38 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Oil near $107 after mixed US demand signs Wednesday, February 29, 2012 SINGAPORE -- Oil prices rose slightly to near $107 a barrel Wednesday in Asia after a large drop the day before amid mixed signs about the strength of U.S. crude demand. Benchmark oil for April delivery was up 42 cents to $106.97 midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell by $2.01 to $106.55 per barrel in New York on Tuesday. Brent crude was up 60 cents to $122.15 per barrel in London. U.S. crude and oil product inventories were mixed last week. The American Petroleum Institute said late Tuesday that crude inventories rose 521,000 barrels while analysts surveyed by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos., had predicted an increase of 1 million barrels. Inventories of gasoline fell 916,000 barrels last week while distillates dropped 3.3 million barrels, the API said. The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration reports its weekly supply data later Wednesday. An improvement in consumer sentiment helped bolster oil prices in Asia. The Conference Board, a private business research group, said Tuesday that consumer confidence rose to a one-year high in February. However, the government said orders for durable goods in the U.S. in January had the biggest fall in three years. Crude has jumped from $96 earlier this month amid growing tension over Iran's nuclear program. Investors will be closely watching the latest data on U.S gross domestic product and industrial production due to be released later Wednesday. In other energy trading, heating oil rose 2.2 cents to $3.24 per gallon and gasoline futures gained 1 cent at $3.23 per gallon. Natural gas added 1.9 cents at $2.54 per 1,000 cubic feet.
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krisluke Supreme	29-Feb-2012 13:41 krisluke About Contact Quote this Post!
x 0 x 0 Alert Admin	Sunita Sue Leng: Budget 2012 not bold enough IN AN EFFORT to build a fair and inclusive society, this year’s Budget has increased social protection for the elderly, low-income families and people with disabilities. This is a move in the right direction. Notably, healthcare has received a boost, with annual spending to double to about $8 billion over the next five years. This will see the number of beds in acute hospitals rise by about 30% and the capacity of long-term care services doubled. The government is also raising coverage of Medishield, the national insurance scheme for serious illnesses and prolonged hospitalisation, from age 85 to 90. However, a broad swathe of Singapore is smarting from aggressive growth policies that have contributed to a growing chasm between the bottom strata of its society and the well-off. At the same time, its population is grappling with the rising cost of ageing. While the government is making a greater effort at redistribution, the moves so far are modest for a country with among the highest official reserves on a per capita basis in the developed world. Here is a closer look at two new enhancements to the social safety net. Medisave top-ups. Two top-ups were announced to Medisave, the medical savings scheme run by the Central Provident Fund. The first is a one-off top-up for all Singaporeans on Medishield. This ranges from $50 to $400 and is designed to help meet the higher premiums that come with expanding insurance coverage to age 90. The second is part of the new Goods and Services Tax (GST) Voucher scheme. This puts an extra $150 to $450 annually into the Medisave accounts of less well-off Singaporeans aged above 65, depending on the value of their homes and how old they are. While welcomed, the reality is that these distributions do very little to help ageing Singaporeans meet their rising healthcare costs. Let’s not talk about serious diseases such as cancer. A couple of visits to the doctor for ailments that the elderly are prone to, such as high blood pressure, or an accidental fall, could result in medical and drug bills that would wipe out these Medisave top-ups. Compared with other developed Asian countries such as South Korea and Taiwan, out-of-pocket expenditure on healthcare by patients in Singapore is much higher. As our society ages, it is the government, rather than the individual, that is better positioned to reap the benefits of risk-pooling in healthcare. Moreover, many Singaporean women may not have enough in their Medisave for old age. On balance, women tend to earn less than men and at retirement, have less than half of the CPF savings that men have, according to a study by AWARE, a gender equality advocacy group, and the Tsao Foundation for Successful Ageing. GST Vouchers. The government has introduced a permanent scheme to help low-income Singaporeans with the GST. This is an improvement over the temporary offset credits that were given when the GST was hiked from 5% to 7% in 2007. Those GST Credits expired last year. The new GST Vouchers have three components: a cash payout for those whose incomes fall in the bottom 40%, and who live in HDB flats or the bottom 15% of private properties a Medisave topup (as mentioned above) and a USave rebate to help ease utility bills for those in HDB flats. The GST Vouchers are a big part of the government’s redistribution efforts. For FY2012, they form almost half of its budgeted outlay for Special Transfers (excluding top-ups to endowment and trust funds). However, many people in the middle-income bracket do not qualify for these vouchers and the GST remains a regressive tax on them. More than that, the government’s Special Transfers have so far not gone very far in addressing Singapore’s inequality problem. The GINI coefficient, a standard measure of inequality, has climbed steadily over the last decade (see Chart 1). However, even after government benefits and transfers, the adjusted GINI number only went down by about 0.02 points. In Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries, where welfare programmes are much more generous, such transfers lowered the GINI number by a full 0.16 points in the mid-2000s, according to analysis by Citi Investment Research (see Chart 2). The Singapore government is careful not to overspend. This year, it is working towards a budget surplus of $1.27 billion. However, maintaining a small government means a continued reliance on market forces to allocate resources as well as risks, and sometimes, those risks end up with individuals who are not best equipped to cope with them. Without doubt, individual responsibility should remain a central pillar of Singapore’s socio-economic fabric. But there is a case for further loosening the purse strings and spending that money optimally, so that as many Singaporeans as possible get the help that they need.
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Wednesday, February 29, 2012 10:27am PST

Spectacular 'Dolphin Stampede' footage stirs an array of emotions

By: Pete Thomas, GrindTV.com

Apple market value hits $500B, where few have gone

Japan says it may cancel F-35 order if prices rise

Durable goods orders drop by most in 3 years

Asia stocks rise after Dow closes above 13,000

Oil near $107 after mixed US demand signs

Sunita Sue Leng: Budget 2012 not bold enough