Volatility Too High to Signal Bull Market, Bank of America Says

The two-month rally in global equities does not herald the start of a bull market because price swings are too violent, according to Bank of America Corp.

Confessions of Chinese Derivatives Deals, Part 1

In this first instalment in a series, an expert tells how investment banks sold derivatives in China that may be ticking time bombs.

Exuberance in Taiwan as Ties With China Warm

The bulls are running hard in Taiwan as the island prepares to open its doors to mainland Chinese investment for the first time since breaking from Beijing in 1949.

Maintaining Sino-Japanese relations at Diaoyu’s cost?

SINO-JAPANESE relations have greatly improved since Junichiro Koizumi stepped down as prime minister in 2006. None of his successors have visited the controversial Yasukuni Shrine.

Sympathy for waitress who stabbed official

Internet users have expressed their support for a hotel waitress who killed a government official in Badong county, Hubei, after he allegedly tried to get her to take money in exchange for sex.

Wilmar may hive off China ops as new firm

Listing could be sought in Hong Kong but idea is still in early stages, says CEO

Taiwan to open selected business sectors to China investors

The 99 categories include computers, hotels, retailing

Bond payment extension for Guangzhao IFB

Bondholder not enforcing its rights until June 9

China Yongsheng faulted over payments

KPMG also suggests the group improve its internal controls

Singapore adjusts the bar to admit lawyers trained overseas

Move will help draw Singaporeans working abroad and ease talent shortage here

Sincere may tick back full circle to old hands

Mr Tay: Sold Sincere to HK-based Peace Mark in December 2007 for $530 million, but Sincere was put up for sale again last October after Peace Mark was wound up

Dollar Rally Will End, Rogers Says; May Short Stocks

The dollar’s rally is set to end in a “currency crisis,” investor Jim Rogers said, adding that he may bet on a slide in equities after nine weeks of gains.

Sovereign Wealth Funds Shift Focus

After seeing billions of dollars of value wiped off their investments, sovereign wealth funds have reason to feel disillusioned.

Questions for Justice Choo Han Teck in the sentencing of Shin Min editor Lim Hong Eng

A strange series of events unfolded in the courtroom of Justice Choo, just the other day. Justice Choo was hearing the appeal of the hit and run killer driver Ms.. Lim Hong Eng.

Massage led to love, says Tony Chan

HK$50,000 head rub became more intimate, court hears

Time to review SGX’s hybrid nature

Given the spate of corporate debacles among foreign listings here, particularly S-chips, there is dissatisfaction over the lack of closure in many instances where shareholders remain stuck with suspended shares.

Time for govt-nominated directors?

Much has been written about the spate of scandals involving S-chips during the last few weeks. To resolve this problem, several proposals have been made, including calls for greater regulation, higher corporate governance and disclosure standards, a more stringent pre-listing screening process and greater penalties for errant companies.

A corporate career cast in controversy

PCCW chief Richard Li rarely out of spotlight

Justices stress need for reform of corporate laws

In a city where free-wheeling deals are often at the expense of small investors, have the Court of Appeal judges drawn a line in the sand?

Yuen’s truthfulness questioned by court

Written judgment says phone calls and links with Fortis official ‘cast shadow of doubt’

Vote-rigging controversy: two courts, two judges and two starkly different verdicts

The PCCW bid saga can be distilled into a tale of two judges.

A nail in the coffin for share splitting

Tycoons, hedge fund arbitrageurs and others who may have been mulling PCCW-style “share splitting” as a strategy for winning shareholders’ votes will probably think twice following yesterday’s release of the Court of Appeal’s reasons for judgment.

Stimulate Away Our Imbalances? Dream On - Andy Xie

Five years or more down the road, we’ll look back and wonder why anyone believed that the financial crisis would be brief.

China’s Loan Binge: Stimulus or Insanity?

Bankers, local officials and financial regulators are trying to explain – and justify – a stunning surge in new loans.

Developer says: time to pay up, Buyer says: give me more time

51 units in luxury condo bought under deferred payment

Jade takeover probe: Answers needed

The Jade Technologies takeover 14 months ago was one of the biggest corporate debacles of recent years, but the long-awaited sequel - the official report into the fiasco - remains as elusive as ever.

SGX’s hands tied by legal, practical constraints: lawyers

Amid a growing list of corporate debacles here - many of which are still in limbo - there are market rumblings over why SGX has fallen short of being more vocal and active in its intervention.

China Emerges as a Leader in Cleaner Coal Technology

China’s frenetic construction of coal-fired power plants has raised worries around the world about the effect on climate change. China now uses more coal than the United States, Europe and Japan combined, making it the world’s largest emitter of gases that are warming the planet.

Navigating the balance sheet to chart a firm’s real value

Crisis makes it crucial to know a company’s intrinsic worth

Market Mood

Owing to the mismanagement of Taiwan’s former president Chen Shui-bian, the Taiwanese economy and stock market lagged behind those of its neighbours in past years. When Ma Ying-jeou took over, he raised hopes of an economic revival but the global financial crisis erupted soon after. And Taiwan, like other economies, could not escape its wrath.

A delicate matter of succession

Make continuity part of personnel strategy, experts advise

“So dad, who gets to run the family business when you are dead?”

Asia’s ‘Absolute Greed’ Stocks Rally to Falter, Citigroup Says

Asian stocks are set for a “correction” as a two-month rally drives valuations higher than justified by a recovery in company earnings, according to Citigroup Inc.

Asahi Attempt to Acquire Tsingtao May Be Bitter Cup for the Japanese Company

Not long after the rejection by the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) of Coke’s attempt to acquire Huiyuan, Tsingtao Beer, a more famous Chinese international brand, may be about to fall under the control of a foreign company. And this time, that company is Japanese, which could trigger all sorts of nationalistic fervour in the volatile Chinese.

China to Launch a 2 Trillion Yuan New Energy Investment Plan

China is developing a new energy investment plan, perhaps involving over 2 trillion yuan, to stimulate economic growth and prepare for a round of energy shortage after economic rebound.

Alarm Bells Sounded in Washington Over China’s Rising “Soft Power”

“Cyberspies” breaking into US government computers kicked off alarm bells in Washington last week at a hearing by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission entitled “China’s Propaganda and Influence Operations, Its Intelligence Activities that Target the United States, and the Resulting Impacts on U.S. National Security.”

Confession of an S-chip boss

Goh Eng Yeow receives an e-mail on the rise and fall of an unnamed player.

Emerging-Market Stocks May ‘Break Out’ by Year-End, Mobius Says

Emerging-market stocks may “break out” into a bull market at the end of the year as falling interest rates and easing inflation make equities more attractive, Templeton Asset Management Ltd.’s Mark Mobius said.

China Stocks ‘Bubble’ Is Almost Over

A rally in China’s stocks is close to ending as investor confidence in the nation’s economic recovery weakens and bank lending slows, according to China Galaxy Securities Co., the nation’s largest brokerage.

Secretary accidentally bites off boss’ penis

She was giving him oral sex in a car.

Why the Markets Are Up

To understand the rally, recognize that the GDP statistics you are reading are already out of date.

Wave 3

Wave 3 is usually the largest and most powerful wave in a trend (although some research suggests that in commodity markets, wave five is the largest). The news is now positive and fundamental analysts start to raise earnings estimates. Prices rise quickly, corrections are short-lived and shallow. Anyone looking to "get in on a pullback" will likely miss the boat. As wave three starts.

Scenario 1: today close below opening index 2056, tomorrow gap down (fulfil evening star);

Scenario 2: close near day high again, resume uptrend, target 2400.

Chinafornia, Chinazona, Chutah, and Chindaho

What if the U.S. broke up (much like the Soviet Union did in the early 1990s)? According to one Russian professor, it means that Governer Ahnold may need to learn Chinese.

HK gamblers losing billions in Macau’s VIP rooms

A confidential report commissioned by the Hong Kong Jockey Club to assess the impact of VIP gambling junkets to Macau has estimated that between 4,000 and 8,000 Hongkongers make 10 to 25 such trips to the city each year.

Hang Seng set for third and final plunge, analysts warn

Global market troubles likely to extend into summer

Asia’s private banks face hard times ahead

After the boom years comes the hangover

公道自在人心

能于名利事相处心安人定
善与是非人共容亲多叛寡

H1N1 flu could worsen global recession, say analysts

The swine flu outbreak could shatter fragile signs of a global economic rebound, but the gravity of its impact depends on the death toll it inflicts and the panic it generates, analysts said.

Financing your overseas home

Credit crunch means it’s critical to research loan options before making commitment

Huawei and ZTE Moving Up the Global Scales. Ericsson Next?

China’s two telecoms tigers, Huawei and ZTE, are so far the only two among all their major competitors who have managed to maintain sales and profit growth. Now their ambitious competitive strategies are beginning to challenge behemoth Ericsson for dominance in the telecoms industry.

Beijing Acts to Curb Statistics Cheating, Gain Credibility

To become a leader in the global economy, and to be the first among all countries to revive from the present crisis, is the mighty goal the country has set for itself. But for that to be believed beyond, and even within, China’s own borders will require the generation of some believable statistics, a prospect that has always proved illusive in this country. Exhibit A includes just revealed economic figures for the first quarter of the year that are triggering doubt after doubt, both publicly and privately.

Hot-shot fund managers burnt by crisis

CMIA's managing partner Lee Chong Min. The firm's FerroChina stake, valued at $240 million in 2007, is now effectively worth nothing.

China’s Post-1979 Consumer Class

Free-spending ‘Phoenix’ generation seen as both saviours and anti-heroes

Foreign funds flow to Asia on recovery hopes

Regional govt efforts to drive economies out of recession are fuelling investor appetite for risk

SGX watch-list firms running out of time

Nine have less than a year to apply for removal, most are still not profitable. By Joyce Hooi

China recovery hinges on private sector

The catch is that the private sector is sitting on its hands - with good reason

New rules to curb foreign financial info agencies in China

China yesterday unveiled new rules governing foreign providers of financial information, demanding that they not furnish domestic clients with information that could destabilise markets or stir up social tension.

Rule change boosts Taiwan stocks

Taipei stock index soars 6.7% on hopes of investment flows

‘Sell in May and Go Away’ May Not Be a Good Idea This Year

The old “sell in May and go away” adage may be only partially true this year: Investors may sell a bit but aren’t likely to stray very far after they do.

Beijing pushes traditional herbal remedy

Mainland health authorities have released three herbal medicine prescriptions they claim can block and cure swine flu.

Rejoining UN health body opens a door for Taiwan, Ma says

Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou said yesterday rejoining the World Health Assembly has opened a door for the island to increase its international presence.

Controversial content in AWARE’s sex education programme sparks debate

When TODAY showed him two pages of the CSE trainers’ manual, which stated that “anal sex can be healthy” and that “homosexuality is perfectly normal”, Rev Yap said that he “had no problems” with the content.

China’s Dual – or Duelling – Finance Hubs

Hong Kong’s role as a financial centre role is being challenged by Shanghai and yuan-based financing. Can the cities work together?

Corrupt official’s exploits made into anti-graft documentary

A corrupt high-level Beijing official’s exploits with mistresses and real estate developers have been made into a documentary that is being broadcast to Communist Party members nationwide as authorities wage war on corruption.

The documentary said a single real estate developer deposited about 400,000 yuan into Zhou’s bank account every day for three weeks in 2003, as payment for a lucrative hotel construction project.

Milk-scandal officials quietly given key jobs

Two officials disciplined for the melamine-tainted milk scandal were quietly reappointed to key positions months before their punishments were handed down to them.

Shanghai’s New Route to Financial Prestige

Through its international shipping port, Shanghai may have found a way to build a global hub for the financial services industry.

Sovereign Wealth and the Financial Crisis

China’s sovereign wealth fund CIC is holding cash assets and plans to ride out the economic downturn with minimal risk.

Dalai Lama sought refuge three years before uprising, claims biographer

The Dalai Lama wanted to defect to India as early as three years before he ultimately fled there in 1959 after a failed armed rebellion against Chinese rule, a historian and veteran journalists in India say.

Experts now believe Nehru had a change of heart three years later for three reasons: the emergence of territorial disputes straining Sino-India relations; escalating unrest in Tibet; and mounting pressure from the US and Britain for New Delhi to “take on China headlong” over Tibet.

Bulls, not Bears, May End in Tears - Andy Xie

False hope built on government stimulus measures may feel good today, but it will only delay necessary reforms.

The false hope today may feel good but it only delays necessary reforms. It actually makes things worse. As governments spend money to revive the past, they won’t be left with money required to ease the pain caused by structural reforms in the future. The world is behaving like a bankrupt drug addict, spending welfare checks to feed an addiction. Once the checks are all spent, the addict has to go cold turkey to kick the habit.

Three Gorges To-Do List: Mudslides to Jobs

The construction phase of the Three Gorges dam and reservoir ends this year. But follow-up tasks -- and project woes -- abound.

Time to rein S-chips in - but don’t stifle foreign listings

The woes afflicting China stocks listed here, or S-chips, are by now well known: accounting irregularities, missing cash, profit warnings, and the resultant going-concern doubts that have emerged. And they have led to the sector’s spectacular collapse; on Tuesday, 34 out of the 51 S-chips that comprise the FT ST China Index (67 per cent) traded for below 20 cents, while 43 (84 per cent) traded for below 50 cents.

Zhou Xiaochuan: New Growth Tasks for the Financial Sector

Retooling China’s economy through product replacement, new technology and emission cuts must include the financial sector.

China to Reject Any Higher-than-Target Iron Ore Contract Offer

The country’s steelmakers are hoping for an at least 40 percent discount on contract prices.

I am not Dr Doom, I am Dr Realist

Economist Roubini says he doesn’t believe a near-depression is on the cards right now

New rule to punish officials who give fake statistical data

Beijing has renewed its vows to clamp down on fake official data amid mounting allegations of notoriously unreliable statistics.

Male wine-drinkers live longer

Drinking up to half a glass of wine per day can help you live up to five years longer - at least for men, according to a study published on Thursday.

Chicken a la Cart

This short film won the competition in 2006 on the theme Food, Taste and Hunger.

Watch film here

Yuan To Become Regional Currency Before Going Global

After becoming a settlement currency, the next logical step would be for the yuan to become a regional reserve currency.

SAIC to spend 15.3b yuan developing own brands

SAIC Motor Corp, China’s largest carmaker, said yesterday it planned to spend 15.31 billion yuan (HK$17.41 billion) this year to develop own-brand vehicles and the related technologies.

Mainland grade A offices feel pinch

Beijing and Shanghai to see vacancy rates rising to 40pc and rents dropping 50pc

Lasting Economic Growth Beats a Warm-up

Beneath the surface of China’s ‘warming’ economy are structural impediments to long-term growth that demand attention -- now.

Developers meet valuers in search for common ground

Finger pointed at banks as some buyers struggle to raise enough loans

Finance industry may need to change: MAS

Banks and other financial institutions have been advised that they may need to change their behaviour fundamentally as a post-crisis industry landscape emerges.

For instance, they must ensure that investment advice dished out is ‘fair, objective and in the best interest of clients’. Having pay structures that rely mainly on commissions or are biased towards recommending specific products is ‘untenable’.

Chinese Economy Cannot Recover in Isolation

China cannot turn around its export-driven economy in isolation, and needs improvement in the rest of the world, especially the United States, in order to return to growth, a top Chinese official said on Tuesday.

Beijing to approve Taiwan’s role in WHO

Taiwan’s president announced on Wednesday that Beijing would allow the island’s participation in a key World Health Organisation body, a major goal in Taipei’s campaign for international recognition.

Beijing places new clamp on visa controls

Mainland authorities have once again tightened visa procedures for foreigners in the run-up to the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic, travel industry sources said yesterday.

IDA turns down hotels’ appeal to block Skype

Singapore’s telecommunications regulator has rejected requests by four luxury hotels to block the use of popular Internet telephony software Skype.

Bar owner and girl, 15, charged with rape

A karaoke bar owner and 15-year-old girl have been charged with rape in Zhejiang province in a case that a media report says could involve up to 10 underage girls over a two-year period.

DPP officials vote to invite detained Chen back into party fold

Former Taiwanese president Chen Shui-bian may rejoin the Democratic Progressive Party after an intense power struggle within the pro-independence group.

Open the door to shareholders’ meetings, please

One notable thing about the shareholder meetings held by listed companies here is that many still do not allow the media to be present, not even as observers.

China set to be biggest wind power growth market

It has doubled production annually, may add 10,000 MW of capacity in 2009

Shake-out in boutique finance business

Dearth of money-spinning IPOs spells pay cuts and even closure of firms

Analysts expect pullback in May but see bright side

Profit-taking unlikely to bring market down to March low and presents buying opportunity

THE CONFESSION OF AN S-CHIP CEO

So when dust finally settles one day, we shall all look back and evaluate what had gone wrong and who are to be blamed. I am sure all fingers will be pointing at the Chinese entrepreneurs such as myself, who are usually labelled as “greedy and unscrupulous”. There is a ring of truth to that accusation and I admit I am guilty. But how about those deal makers, who taught us how to cook the books? How about those angels, who hid their identities behind some deal makers and exerted influences to assist them to succeed in their schemes? How about those institutional investors who trifled with the money entrusted to them? How about those intermediaries and professionals who were not vigilant enough to protect the interest of the investing public?

China Prepares for Its Version of NASDAQ

In many ways, the GEM is indeed a simple extension of the Main Board.

Mistresses fly coop as menfolk lose their loot

Hong Kong men struck hard by the financial downturn are hiring private investigators to check on the fidelity of their mainland mistresses.

Time for caution on PCCW’s bargain-basement shares

The price looks right, but this stock carries a lot of baggage

Market Mood

I would not buy financial stocks if I were a long-term investor.

Tittle-tattle tension is all in a day’s work

Everyone has bad days. It’s perfectly normal to be cranky from time to time at work. It’s part of being human and, in fact, anyone in the office who is enthusiastically cheerful every single day is almost definitely harbouring some sort of chronic psychosis.

Re-emergence of emerging markets may be short-lived

Short-sellers are increasing bets against developing-nation stocks by the most since March 2007, a signal that the biggest rally in 16 years may fizzle as profits plunge from Brazil to Taiwan.

Shareholders see red at Guangzhao AGM

Management questioned on pledged shares, default on convertible bonds and disagreements with former directors.