Office hubs in Beijing turn into ghost towns

Vacancy rate hits 5-year high as global slump and oversupply start to bite

Beijing clips the wings of high-flying earners

As workers suffer, government acts against top executive pay

China-fuelled equity may run out of steam

Full brunt of global recession yet to be fully felt on corporate earnings and balance sheets

China car sales set record in March

Vehicle sales in China, the world’s largest car market, climbed to a record in March, extending gains from the previous month, helped by government policy measures to bolster demand in both urban and rural areas.

Shanghai orders full property disclosures

Shanghai has ordered high-ranking city officials to disclose their property assets to municipal Communist Party authorities in a bid to repair the party’s image, tainted by a string of real-estate-related scandals in recent years in the nation’s business capital.

Olam

Upper channel resistance line at 1.70. Resistances are 1.70, 1.80, 2.00, 2.10 and 2.29.

Fibonacci retracement 50% is 2.01 and 61.8% is 2.29.

Nude couple charged

A couple who caused a stir by strolling down naked along Lorong Mambong earlier this year were charged in court on Thursday.

NOL

From the hourly chart, NOL looks well placed to move up to 1.40.

Yanlord

Uptrend still intact. Immediate resistance at 1.29. Should attempt to take out 1.37.

Thai Village

Immediate resistance at 100MA 0.0734.
Cash value of about $0.110, and $0.01 dividend.
From current 0.065, it is not difficult to double your ROI.

Olam

I believe the next move above 1.62 would break out of the wedge to take out 1.70 resistance.

Daily 50EMA is about to cross 100EMA.

Singapore Market by AmFraser

Confidence of big players evident from pre-holiday rally from higher STI support levels suggesting market could be in midst of best rebound since Oct 2007 peak STI high 1836.83/low 1797.40

Silence at S-chips disconcerting

Several companies have started to default on their loans as they find themselves sandwiched between dwindling profits and the increasing difficulty of securing refinancing.

Prophet of doom squashes hopes of China’s recovery

Over the next week, China is due to release a raft of economic data for the first quarter of the year, but economic analysts are celebrating already.

200,000 want Thai King’s advisers out

Red-shirted and painted protesters rallying outside the home of royal adviser Prem Tinsulanonda in Bangkok yesterday. The supporters of ousted Thai PM Thaksin intend to stay at the site until their demands for the government's resignation are met.

Power Plant-Coal Miners Spat Home Favours International Coal Prices

As negotiations with domestic coal companies stalemated, China’s five electric power companies are now importing coal from overseas. This, together with the rebound of the Chinese economy, is boosting prices for coal imported from Vietnam, Indonesia, and Australia, but not enough so as to make it uneconomical to continue imports.

Have banks hit bottom yet? The numbers say no

Have we reached the bottom yet? That’s a question that people ask me from time to time. I haven’t got an answer yet, but today I have some numbers that may give us an idea. And the preliminary verdict is: No!

Stock Gain Is ‘Dead Cat Bounce,’ Aberdeen Asset Says

The rally in global stocks over the past month is a “dead cat bounce,” as companies report “terrible” earnings this year and the global recession persists, Aberdeen Asset Management Plc said.

Ezra Holdings’ Q2 profit rises 21% to US$14.9m

In a separate statement, Ezra announced new and renewal charter contracts worth US$47 million for three vessels.

New Foreign Institutional Demand for China A-Shares

A large internationally oriented firm in New York intends to establish an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) whose objective will be to track the China A-Share market. Van Eck Securities Corporation of New York stated in a March 30th preliminary prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Washington that it intends to submit an application with the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) for a Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor (QFII) license. The firm said that it intends to launch an ETF listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). This is believed to be the first ETF targeting the China A-Share market.

Bank Lending Binge Continues, But for How Long?

After new bank lending reached over one trillion yuan in both January and February, March also saw more than one trillion yuan in new credit flow out the bank doors. The big banks are still running for the big projects involved in the government’s economic stimulus plan, but a big part of funds lent for bill financing is continuing to flow into the stock market. And a large percentage of the financing is long-term and is boosting banks’ NPL risk.

Citic Group may replace Larry Yung

Chang Zhenming expected to be new Citic Pacific chairman as team probes forex losses

Price cuts boost sales in Hangzhou

Deep price discounting has driven sales of new houses to a 10-month high in Hangzhou, the capital city of the southeastern coastal province of Zhejiang.

Mainland auto sales jump to 1.03 million in March

Preliminary figures show auto sales in mainland rose to at least 1.03 million in March, exceeding US sales for the third month in a row, state media reports said on Wednesday.

Silver Base falls on debut after popular IPO

Shares in Silver Base Group, which distributes products made by Chinese liquor maker Wuliangye Yibin, fell 12 per cent in their Hong Kong trading debut, weighed down by a broader market slump.

Mainland companies dump 6.54b yuan of unlocked shares

Mainland companies dumped a sizeable chunk of formerly non-tradable shares last month, fuelling worries about the strength of the current rally as investors are also expected to embark on a selling spree in the coming months to lock in profits.

Hong Kong shoppers drive change

According to the Hong Kong Tourism Board, mainland visitors accounted for 57.1 per cent of travellers to the city last year and almost all of these visitors - some 9.6 million - arrived under the scheme. The data clearly indicates that mainland visitors and in particular the scheme are the main contributors to Hong Kong’s tourism business.

Shimao placement to raise HK$1.96b after profit warning

Timing ignites talk firm using good news to reassure market

G2 appeals to some but Beijing unlikely to back it

A week after what appeared to be the advent of a new world order at the Group of 20 summit in London, the idea of a “G2”, which would put the US and China at the head of international affairs, is gaining momentum.

Protest at ‘mentally ill’ slur by academic

Hundreds of protesters rallied outside Peking University yesterday and on Monday in response to a leading professor’s claims that petitioners were generally mentally ill, activists reported.

Bear Market Will Continue: Roubini

Nouriel Roubini, a professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business and chairman of economic research firm RGE Monitor, said on Tuesday that he expected more dour macroeconomic data and problems in the banking and housing sectors, as well as pressures on consumers.

Cramer gets slammed again

Just weeks after ‘The Daily Show’ host Jon Stewart took Cramer to task for trying to turn finance reporting into a ‘game,’ famous bear economist Nouriel Roubini criticised the host of CNBC’s ‘Mad Money’ on Tuesday for predicting bull markets.

Bring Thaksin back

Anti-government demonstrators sit near a giant poster of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra as they attend a protest rally outside Goverment House Wednesday, April 8 2009, in Bangkok, Thailand.

Zhonghui payments had no board assent

Investment shares bought and paid for last year have yet to be transferred: PwC

Reality check for market rally

Despite the recent powerful rally by Singapore blue chips, yesterday’s pullback is making analysts wary of calling a bottom

How robust is board oversight?

Being elected to a board of directors (the board) involves undertaking serious duties and responsibilities. Most prudent businessmen and professionals will not hesitate in refusing to guarantee a friend’s loan. However, they will readily fall for the dubious prestige of being invited to the board as independent directors without a proper understanding of their legal duties and responsibilities.

High time for cap on directorships

SGX should impose a limit of, say, 4 posts for those with full-time jobs, and 6 for those without full-time employment

Putting S-chips in perspective

The recent slew of scandals involving a string of Chinese companies listed on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) has seriously dented investor confidence in S-chips. It has also sparked furious debate on whether SGX should rethink its strategy of attracting foreign listings, especially those from China.

Singapore remains Asia’s least corrupt country

Perc says recession could lead to graft in private sector but unlikely to affect public sector

China clamps down on Qing Ming

Fear of political protests leads govt to impose strict rules on festival

Peter Kwee-VW case in High Court

Mr. Peter Kwee of Car & Cars is taking Volkswagen to court regarding compensation issues in the relinquishing of a distributorship

Market bear Roubini sticks to dour forecasts

There’s still bad news ahead for the U.S. economy and the bear market for stocks is not over yet, according to a prominent economist who foretold much of the current turmoil.

Economy Falling Years Behind Full Speed

“Eventually, once this recession is over, we will fill up capacity,” Mr. Gault said. “Not only that, capacity itself will inevitably expand as the labour force grows and innovation kicks in. But the new capacity won’t be as great as it would have been if we had not gone through this terrible experience.”

Original Beatles Albums to Be Reissued

Reality check for market rally

Despite the recent powerful rally by Singapore blue chips, yesterday’s pullback is making analysts wary of calling a bottom

How the Crash Will Reshape America

The crash of 2008 continues to reverberate loudly nationwide - destroying jobs, bankrupting businesses, and displacing homeowners. But already, it has damaged some places much more severely than others. On the other side of the crisis, America’s economic landscape will look very different than it does today. What fate will the coming years hold for New York, Charlotte, Detroit, Las Vegas? Will the suburbs be ineffably changed? Which cities and regions can come back strong? And which will never come back at all?

President orders PLA to step into economic breach

Analysts say Hu statement could signal important policy shift

Confucianism network has spread too fast

Institutes teaching Confucianism have proliferated too rapidly, stretching the network’s meagre Chinese-language educational resources to the limit and causing quality problems worldwide, a senior education official says.

China expands language network abroad

In a projection of soft power, more Confucius Institutes will be set up

Trading ‘expert’ ordered to refund fees

Course trainees were upset that option trading instructor’s doctorate came from an unaccredited university

Will The Rally Continue?

Who’s tossing cold water on the rally? A few folks, including Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley in separate reports today, are predicting the bounce off of March lows is in for a bit of retrenchment.

Stalled IPO market shows signs of life

The pace of companies going public is slowly starting to pick up, but experts don’t expect a full-blown recovery anytime soon.

Wine producers pin hopes on mainland

Wine producers are pinning their hopes for growth during the financial crisis on a country that only recently entered the ranks of the world’s top ten wine drinking countries - China.

The top 30 highest paid politicians in the world

All came from one country - Singapore.

Read the comments for the entire list.

Yuan’s Reach Widens with Currency Swaps

Not only do currency swaps benefit trade relations between China and other countries, but they give the yuan more international clout.

Currency Swaps Cut Exchange Rate Risk

Call it a currency exchange or a currency swap, the concept is similar: Two market players exchange equivalent sums of capital at the beginning of a set time period and return the principal plus interest when the period ends. The goal is to leverage each party’s comparative advantage, diversify financing, reduce financing costs, control exchange rate risks and improve the financial structure.

CSRC Rejects Ningbo QL Electronics IPO Application

Ningbo QL Electronics Co. will return to investors the funds it raised in its initial public offering plus interest after securities regulator banned the company from listing.

Beijing Pre-owned Housing Surge May be Short-Lived

The surging sales of second hand houses may not sustain their surge if second-home buyers and investors do not enter the market.

Couple on Trial for Seditious Pamphlets

‘20,000 tracts mailed over 7 years’

Dorothy Chan Hien Leng said her colleagues and former colleagues who had received her tracts over the years were still her friends and encouraged her ‘to be brave and fight on’.

Fucking bitch, that's because those friends and colleagues of yours are christians. Try handling the tract to me and see what happens? You certainly won't get encouraging words from me. Go to hell bitch.

Clashes as Thai protesters trap PM at beach hotel

Anti-government protesters trapped Thai premier Abhisit Vejjajiva inside a beach hotel and attacked his motorcade on Tuesday as the kingdom’s political turmoil boiled over into violence.

Global IPO activity slows to just 50 IPOs worldwide in 1Q 2009

Global activity for initial public offerings (IPO) is continuing to slow, with just 50 IPOs worldwide in the first quarter of this year.

Factor time decay into trading strategies

Looking at the past three bear rallies (two in 2008 and one in 2007), the Dow Jones Industrial Index (DJIA) succumbed to weakness within one month when stochastics exhibited bearish divergence. If history repeats itself in this cycle, then the quintessential question we must ask is: How long is this bear rally going to last?

China slowly moving to globalise the yuan

A shift from US dollar to yuan as the world currency would have significant consequences

Wall Street rocket scientists crash to Earth

Mathematicians and physicists who devised the financial instruments and computer programs was credited for fuelling stock markets’ spectacular rise and now for its collapse.

Guangdong to help foreign firms

Guangdong will set up a co-ordinating group to assist foreign investors in resolving land problems after the province saw 271 foreign-invested companies shut down or relocate in the first two months of this year, affecting some 406,000 employees.

Brave new directions amid unanswered questions and ‘strategic ambiguities’

The central government’s health care reform blueprint has finally been released after three years of intense bickering between various interest groups, and the key question remains: will the mainland’s 1.3 billion people get to enjoy affordable and acceptable health care?

Why China can no longer lie low on the world stage

The one image the mainland media chose from last week’s Group of 20 summit had to sum up China’s growing international clout was President Hu Jintao standing at the centre of a group of the world’s most powerful leaders at the end of the meeting.

Mainland poor are left to count high cost of medical treatment

You can afford to be without anything except money and acquire anything except a disease, goes a well-known Chinese saying.

Beijing puts public before profit with health reform blueprint

Beijing has released the long-awaited blueprint on health care reform in an attempt to turn a profit-obsessed medical system into a public service.

Service, cost-cutting key to health reform

Funding boost, hospital charges phase-out, staff motivation are plan’s 3 main planks

Fed’s Effort To Roll Snowball Uphill Is Failing

Bernanke thinks he can manipulate treasury yields by purchasing long dated treasuries. He can’t. The market is simply too big. Please consider Treasurys slide after Fed purchases.

MSCI China May Rise 15% by End-2009, JPMorgan Says

The MSCI China Index may rise 15 percent by the end of the year as growth in the world’s third- biggest economy recovers, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Stocks May See ‘Correction’ of 10%, Marc Faber Says

Global stocks may drop as much as 10 percent in a “correction” following gains in the last four weeks, before rebounding after July, investor Marc Faber said.

STI Technical Analysis by Ajith

The FSSTI’s rally had exceeded prior expectations. Still, the attached chart shows that the index is in a sideway range movement and it is premature to speak of the index forming a new uptrend or even bottoming out.

The index appears to be tracing out in a 5 wave sequence from March low of 1455. Wave 1 terminated at 1779, the rebound to yesterday’s high at 1859 is seen as wave 3. The current pullback is a wave 4 move which should not fall below the prior wave 1 peak of 1779. In fact, we believe that immediate downside should be limited to about 1800. Thereafter this should be followed by a final wave 5 move past 1879 towards 1920. There is a clear fibonacci link between wave 3 and wave 1 as wave 3 approximates 0.62x of wave 1 ( 0.62x ( 1779-1456) + 1658= 1858).

Hong Kong’s HSI also shows a similar wave pattern and fibonacci link.

Bottom line: There is scope for one more leg up if the index rebounds off 1800 and rises above 1830. Any rebound from these levels should be used as an opportunity to exit longs.

Michael Jordan is in the Hall of Fame

In a forgone conclusion, Michael Jordan in his first year of eligibility, has been selected to the Basketball Hall of Fame

US Recovery Is Far Off, Banks Are ‘Basically Insolvent’: Soros

The U.S. economy is in for a “lasting slowdown” and could face a Japan-style period of relatively low growth coupled with high inflation, billionaire investor George Soros said on Monday.

Where Are Stocks Going Now? Four Things You Should Know

“The recovery, when it does happen, will be more like a ‘V’ than a ‘U’ because there’s so much money on the sidelines,” Carver says. “When we saw last month is not a sustainable thing. We’ll to up and down probably into late summer.”

Vanke expects sales rebound as market recovers

China Vanke, the country’s biggest listed property developer, hopes to increase its sales volumes this year by about 10 per cent as the housing market pulls out of a deep slump.

Sportswear maker Xtep steps up its game

Terry Ho (left) and Ding Shuipo see further expansion for sportswear maker Xtep International Holdings ahead, but warn it will not be as much or as rapid as last year.

Cashing in big on yuan trade

A trial allowing cross-border traders to settle transactions in renminbi will be a welcome, and eventually lucrative, business stabiliser

Fixing the faults with foreign listings

China stocks listed here, or S-chips as they are popularly known, have come under unwelcome scrutiny in recent months following revelations of accounting irregularities, doubts over whether some can continue as going concerns (as expressed by their external auditors) and, in some cases, outright fraud.

Strong fundamentals a good analyst maketh

Love brought CLSA analyst Caroline Maes to Singapore - and that call hasn’t turned out badly at all. Ms. Maes, an American, worked in New York for three years as an associate in a buy-side firm but moved here in early 2006 to join her Singaporean boyfriend. She now covers offshore and marine stocks.

Diligence, consistency & thick skin

CLSA’s Thilan Wickramasinghe tells CHEW XIANG there’s nothing special in his method - just a deep understanding of industries, companies and their financials

Some get it spot on even in a volatile year

This year’s rankings show independent research houses may be a better model

Sentosa dream gets hazy

Fewer than 1,000 homes at Sentosa Cove are likely to be completed by end of 2009; several developers are delaying their projects further

Google and Music Labels Bet on Downloads in China

Can global music companies make money by giving away songs in China, where piracy is rampant?

Current run-up still looks and smells like bear rally

Historical comparisons with 1929 may not mean that the market strength in the past two weeks is just another bear rally. But it does highlight that until the pressing structural problems in the global financial system are ironed out, each market run-up will still look and smell like a bear rally.

Chinese flip new page in push to be superpower

Mr. Song Hongbing's Currency Wars is reportedly read by senior levels of government and business in China but Beijing seems to be treating the recent nationalist works more warily. Books like China is Unhappy have been slammed by academics for being "extreme".

Seven things about American youth

They have an opinion on everything. In most classes, there would be a comment made, an opinion voiced and a rebuttal given. I would sit in rapt attention and awe, desperately trying to think deep thoughts. I blushed at my inability to keep up with my classmates. It took a while for me to realise that their opinions might not have any intellectual depth at all. It was just important to be heard.

Badminton hall reborn as F&B, leisure hub

Revamped centre opens next month; fans dismayed at loss of slice of history

Shanghai A-share Index 2,539 by UOBKH

Shanghai A-share Index: 2,539

When the Shanghai A-Index closed at 2,378, we had suggested the index would have a breakout from the 200-day moving average and a follow through to 2,523. Last Friday, the index did end up at 2,539 after penetrating the previous high of 2,523.

Nonetheless, the presence of the negative divergence of MACD on the chart below means that upward momentum may slow down.

In other words, the odds are increasing that the index may see a pullback. Unless the pullback breaches the newfound support at 2,353, the index would likely resume the momentum to head towards the congestion zone near 2,860.

Straits Times Index Analysis - DBSV

Temporary pause near 23.6% upward retracement level at 1860 to 1880 possible. Pullback to 1717 to 1737 should be viewed as a buying opportunity

Our view for STI 2140 remains intact. While we do not rule out a temporary pause near the 23.6% upward retracement level at 1860 to 1880, a pullback to 1717 to 1737 should be viewed as another buying opportunity. We maintain buying into early cyclical plays i.e. basic resource, financial, property and technology stocks. We are also positive on O&M stocks as a beta/recovery play. While financial and property stocks are expected to lead the STI higher to 2140 post the anticipated minor pullback, we also believe that laggard index stocks (e.g. SPH) and small caps should begin to steal the limelight as investors’ participation rate increases in the weeks ahead.

Foreign mates sliding off the marriage radar

The global crisis has eroded western men’s allure on the mainland

Corporate bonds may be the right medicine for investors

Offer of high interest reflects new promise in sector

How to tell if your financial adviser is a Warren Buffet or Bernie Madoff clone

So, how should you cope with financial advice and financial advisers? The first answer to this question is that you need to recognise that the job you think the adviser is doing and the job he is actually doing are two different things.

The lawyers: 21/2-year bonanza of billable hours

The team from Harry Elias law firm which represented the winning minority owners: (From left) Lawyer Kylie Peh, partner Philip Fong, Senior Counsel K.S. Rajah and partner Justin Chia