Tuesday, 7 April 2009

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.”

Monday, 6 April 2009

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?