is this a sign of bubble?

CIMB Research, Sept 24

EXCESS liquidity is ebbing away. Domestic banking unit loan-to-deposit ratio has crept up to 92 per cent. S$-deposit growth year to date is a sluggish 3.2 per cent versus loan growth of 9 per cent. UOB has been bleeding deposits for over three quarters now and DBS lost 9.5 per cent of its S$-fixed deposits in Q2 2012. Previously unfazed by deposit competition, DBS recently raised time deposit rates to match peers.

No doubt, the local banks still hold the lion's share of S$-deposits but competition from large foreign banks is chipping away the deposit franchises.

An extensive branch and ATM network used to be the key to attracting deposits. In a world of increasing digital banking transactions and sustained low interest rates, branches have lost their value. Instead, attractive rates and customised lifestyle benefits are the new battleground for deposits.

Outlets at Suntec City and Plaza Singapura to close by year-end; 380 employees will be affected
BY
NISHA RAMCHANDANI
Moving out: '...expansion and growth perspectives do not allow reaching a leadership position in the medium and long term,' says Carrefour Singapore on the decision to shelve its S'pore business -
[SINGAPORE] French hypermarket chain Carrefour, which started operations here back in 1997, will shut down its outlets at Suntec City and Plaza Singapura before the end of this year, pulling out of the Singapore market entirely.
It has decided to shelve its local business "since expansion and growth perspectives do not allow reaching a leadership position in the medium and long term", Carrefour Singapore said in a statement yesterday.
The closure will affect over 380 staff, though Carrefour intends to contact other local retailers to help its staff find employment. A spokesman for Dairy Farm Singapore, which runs nine Giant hypermarkets in Singapore, said that the chain is open to employing staff presently working for Carrefour. "In this tight labour market, we are constantly looking out for experienced retail staff to join our group," the spokesman said.
With two stores, Carrefour has minimal market share, pointed out head of retail for Jones Lang LaSalle Hannah MacDonald, while competitors such as NTUC FairPrice, Giant and Cold Storage - the latter two being owned by Dairy Farm - have economies of scale, giving them an edge in terms of purchasing and logistics. "Margins are tight in supermarket retail, in the region of 3-5 per cent," she added.

seems like present air quality in singapore still not at swiss standard yet. i wonder how beenficial is it for those cyclists/joggers who cycle/jog along side the pollutive vehicles on roads?

fr business times:
The NEA believes these targets will enable Singapore to achieve a high standard of public health and economic competitiveness.

Singaporeans can look forward to healthier lungs and clearer skies in the years ahead as the National Environment Agency (NEA) announced today a suite of measures to achieve higher national air quality standards by 2020.

The Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) will adopt the World Health Organisation's (WHO) Air Quality Guidelines (AQG) for particulate matter 10 (PM10), Nitrogen Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide and Ozone, and the WHO AQG's Interim Targets for PM2.5 and Sulphur Dioxide, as Singapore's air quality targets for 2020.

The NEA believes these targets will enable Singapore to achieve a high standard of public health and economic competitiveness.

Like many other major cities, emissions from industries and motor vehicles are the two key sources of air pollution domestically. Transboundary smoke haze from land and forest fires in the region is also a problem which affects Singapore's air quality intermittently during the South West Monsoon period from August to October.

I was reading this with disgust - this guy has simply to integrity at all, lying about his qualifications like this!

*For the full article, please visit the website.

The Straits Times
www.straitstimes.com
Published on Aug 05, 2012
Not in gifted programme.
Not a maths grad either...
NUS confirms tutor was never its student; he got a diploma in physiotherapy

By Jane Ng

Things just keep getting worse for Mr Kelvin Ong, the tutor who ran a lucrative business promising to help children ace the Gifted Education Programme screening tests.

First, the Education Ministry exposed him for lying that he was in the gifted programme as a child, and that he later taught in it.

He was never in the programme - as a pupil or a teacher. In fact, he did not even have teaching qualifications.

Now the National University of Singapore has confirmed that Mr Ong, 36, was never a student there.

He had long claimed to be a "double mathematics major" from the science faculty, and said as much in the author's note for an assessment book he wrote.

"Based on our records, Mr Kelvin Ong Wee Loong did not attend or graduate from NUS," the university spokesman told The Sunday Times.

In fact, he went to Nanyang Polytechnic from 1997 to 2000, and obtained a diploma in physiotherapy before working as a physiotherapist at the National University Hospital.

An NUH spokesman would confirm only that he is a former employee and left in 2004, but The Sunday Times understands he was asked to go because of "integrity" issues.

Those who knew him at the time recalled that he was always trying to find ways to earn money, including through tuition.

Mr Ong set up his Aristocare tuition centre, charging high fees of up to $500 a pupil for a three-hour lesson.

He built up a reputation not least with his claims, dating back several years, that he had been through the gifted programme himself and had more than 10 years' experience teaching in the programme at Anglo-Chinese School (Primary).

But after the ministry and the school exposed his lies two weeks ago, he claimed that he had in fact been a relief teacher who "helped out" in gifted classes from 2002 to 2003 - the same period it now emerges he was a physiotherapist at NUH.

Asked last week why he had lied about being an NUS graduate, Mr Ong declined to comment.

He said the bad publicity had forced him to shut his school on Tuesday and he was making refunds to some people who sent their children to him.

"I've closed down Aristocare and won't be teaching any more. I don't want to comment about the other matters. The case is closed," he said.

As for the assessment book with false information about his degree, he said the book was no longer on sale as of last week.

"The information on it is an error," he added.

"Whatever is done cannot be undone and I've faced the consequences already."

Meanwhile, several parents who were angry to discover the truth about him have demanded refunds of the fees they paid.

Madam Anu S., 36, a technical director whose child attended Mr Ong's gifted preparation tuition for the past year, said she had paid about $15,000 in fees.

He has refunded part of the fees.

"I'll never be kiasu again in my life," she said, reflecting on her eagerness to help her child get into the gifted programme.
-------------------

I wonder if this may inflate our retail trading cost?

SINGAPORE - Singapore Exchange Ltd (SGX) said it is proposing that members will have to deposit margins on equities trades cleared through its system, as part of a drive to strengthen the city-state's financial system.

The exchange announced the plan on Monday, following measures introduced by the Monetary Authority of Singapore last week to create a liquidity buffer of S$20 billion to back up a deposit insurance scheme in the event of a banking crisis.

Under SGX's proposals, margins will be imposed on members of its central depository (CDP) clearing house and will vary depending on the level of risk their portfolio poses to the clearing system in the event of a default.


The changes, expected to take effect in January 2013, could raise overall trading costs, but will align SGX's practises with new international standards proposed by the International Organization of Securities Commissions.

Besides stocks, the proposed rules will also apply to other securities including structured warrants, real estate investment trusts and exchange traded funds.

Currently, CDP has a fund which comprises of contributions from SGX and its clearing members. It covers losses that could arise from the liquidation of a defaulting member's positions.

With the introduction of margin requirements, SGX is proposing to reduce CDP members' minimum contribution to the clearing fund to S$500,000 from S$1 million, it said.

SINGAPORE: Passengers departing from Changi Airport will have to pay more from April next year.

They will have to pay S$6 more for the Passenger Service Charge.

The new charge of S$19.90 will apply to all air tickets purchased from November this year for travel on or after 1 April next year.

Including the Aviation Levy of S$6.10 and the Passenger Security Service Charge of S$8.00, both of which remain unchanged, departing passengers will have to pay
S$34.

Charges for transfer and transit also remain unchanged.

Changi Airport Group says the revision will help fund new investments required to cater to growing passenger traffic.

It will also cover the airport's operating costs, which have increased.

S$2 billion has already been set aside over the next five years for the airport's enhancement and expansion programme.

Two big development projects include the development of the new Terminal 4 and the expansion of Terminal 1.

These will raise handling capacity at Changi Airport by about 30% from 66 million to 85 million passengers per annum.

There will also be significant investment in airside infrastructure over the next few years including new parking stands and taxiways throughout the airport.

Observers believe the revision in passenger departure tax will have minimal impact.

They say the increase is also fair, given the newer facilities and high level of service offered at the airport.

Standard and Poor's aviation analyst Shukor Yusof said: "It's cheaper than other places, like Japan and Europe.

"Considering the facilities that they are offering, six dollars is probably a fair amount, given that Terminal 1 has gone through refurbishment and other terminals also provide top-notch facilities and services."

CTC Travel senior vice president for marketing & PR, Alicia Seah, said: "I think for six dollars, it's quite a marginal increase; people will take it as part and parcel of escalating costs, especially after an upgrade of airport facilities.

"It is a very small fraction of what the passengers pay when travelling."

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/s...36/1/.html.

Do you think the 5 recommendations propsosed by SIAS will be able to stem the fradulant practises of firms?

The Straits Times
Jul 7, 2012
Findings of MAS financial advice survey 'disturbing'

By MAGDALEN NG

NEARLY a third of customers looking for financial advice and products were steered to unsuitable investments, according to a mystery shopping survey conducted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

People posing as normal customers assessed the advice being given by banks and insurers. Between October and December last year, 126 shoppers made 500 visits to 11 banks and four insurance companies seeking advice from representatives.

It found that in 30 per cent of the cases, the products recommended did not match the person's financial objectives or their stated investment horizon.

An independent panel of industry practitioners reviewed the suitability of the products based on the shoppers' personal profile, experience during the advice and sales process and the sales material handed out by the institutions.

While most advisers did engage in some form of fact finding - asking questions about the customer's financial situation, risk appetite and what products they already have - most did not go beyond basic information such as names, personal particulars and employment.

About 50 per cent of the mystery shoppers were not quizzed about their risk tolerance or financial objectives and 40 per cent were not asked for their investment experience.

Mr Lee Chuan Teck, MAS assistant managing director for capital markets, told the Singapore Management University Market for Financial Advice Symposium yesterday that these two findings were 'particularly disturbing'.

Mr Lee, who also chairs the panel for the Financial Advisory Industry Review (Fair), said: 'If we do not make an effort to understand our clients' needs, how do we expect to recommend the right product to them?'

The survey also discovered that most representatives disclosed basic information about the products recommended but details on risk factors and the amount and frequency of fees and charges, for example, were omitted in a significant number of advisory sessions.

The MAS imposed a rule in January that gets customers to take a test to prove that they have the relevant financial experience and knowledge before getting the go-ahead to buy certain complex investment products.

But the MAS can only do so much, Mr Lee said, adding: 'While we can regulate on what an adviser needs to do and who needs advising, it is harder to regulate the quality of advice given.'

MAS said that this survey differs from the last one in 2006 in terms of scope and the types of financial institutions surveyed so the results are not comparable.

It said that it will work with the Life Insurance Association (LIA) and the Association of Banks in Singapore to carry out regular mystery shopping exercises. Findings will be made public.

LIA president Tan Hak Leh said: 'We note the shortcomings, which require the industry's further attention.' LIA sees the regular mystery shopping surveys as a 'further initiative to enhance the effectiveness of the life insurance sales advisory process.'

The Securities Investors Association of Singapore said it was disheartening to know vital information such as risk factors was not disclosed to retail investors.

One customer, Mr Mervin Wang, 39, a marketing head at a multinational corporation, believes that the customer should not rely completely on the adviser. 'You need to be more knowledgeable about what is available so you can ask the adviser the correct questions, and engage him more meaningfully.'

songyuan@sph.com.sg

Its a hot weekend, have some laughter if you understand Hokkien

Hi,

thinking of setting up a personal website with my own domain name.

For those with their own domain/website, which service provider do you use? How do you rate their service so far in terms of charges, hidden fees, realiability, ease of use etc?

Thanks in advance