Long term investment turning short term

In the stockbroking industry, many short term traders who punted in the market often ended with their short term positions becoming long term. This happens when their positions turn bad and they have to pick up the shares or face immediate losses. Temasek is adopting a different strategy. From long term to short term in their investments. Bad long term investments will be cut. Yesterday it announced another cut, selling its long term stake in Barclay Bank barely a year or two after putting a few billions into it. Here the loss is between 500-600 million pounds or more than a billion $S. This is the second cut loss by Temasek after pulling selling out its Merrill Lynch stake in Bank of America. Wonder how much was the total loss in Merrill Lynch? Now which one will be next to be cut? At the rate it is going, all its long term investments will become short term. What is left? UBS, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley? Will they be cut as well? I don't think any MP will be raising questions on these investments. Probably they will be busy lecturing Low Thia Khiang how to rebuild his Workers Party to fight the next GE.

Parliament is having a break

Geese, without the entertainment from Parliament, news is getting a bit dull. I hope Low Thia Khiang would review carefully the lessons and lectures he received in Parliament and come back prepared to take on the matrons. One thing I hope he will do is to issue a challenge to the good hearted MPs who have been teaching him how to be a politician and invite them to contest in Hougang, one to one, to prove who is being simplistic. The result will be a great testimony on what is real.

Motor insurance premium increased by 400%!

Just read a reply from Pui Phusangmook, SVP & GM NTUC Income, to the claim by Tan Boon Tong that his repair bill was high, $19,800. The photos shown in the ST today, of the damage car in the workshop and those shown yesterday were grossly different. But that was not my concern. I am startled by the comment that Tan Boon Tong's insurance premium had gone up by 400% because of the insurance claim. Actually no, I was not startled by this. I was shocked that his insurance premium would have gone up by 30% on renewal even if he has not make any claims. Wow! 30% increases in premium for nothing! Is this robbery or what? Motorists just have to pay. What choice have they got? Go shopping and compare prices from one insurer to the next? Can they get their insurance from Malaysia?

Great Singapore Sales going to HDB flats

Fernvale Crest, sounded like some place in Bukit Timah, very high end. No it is at the junction of Jalan Kayu and Sengkang West Way. Oops, Jalan Kayu, Sengkang! Anyway, it is BTO, so the design and quality must be good and the price, oh at a great discount, very affordable. They are cheaper by 35-45% from others in the vicinity. Now, isn't it a steal? 2 rm from $74k-$98k, 3 rm from $116k-$157k and 4 rm from $203k-$250k. Cheap, cheap and cheap. Less than 10 years ago, 4 rm flats probably cost about $120k. It depends on what you are comparing. Go to the big shopping centres offering the Great Singapore Sales. Many have jacked up their prices only to bring it down as a great discount. That is ingenuity in pricing. Don't worry about the pricing. Fernvale Crest is going to be our new standard for a Swiss Standard of living.

CASE is working on the abuses in motoring insurance

Motorists should be heartened by CASE's involvement in the motoring insurance scam. It is reported that CASE will be setting up a review committee this month to look into the problem. High time. One suggestion is for motorists to make statutory declarations of an accident. This of course will bring about more costs and time involvement. The question is, why is a police report not enough and a statutory declaration is deemed necessary? Can anyone make a false police report? I believe it is criminal and the person can be charged in court for doing so. What I think is necessary is not to add more layers of administrative work and protective measures. The current procedure may be adequate. What it needs is enforcement and a team of people assigned to deal with it and make an example of a few cases of frauds, charged the culprits and send them to jail. That will send a strong signal to the crooks in the scam. How ridiculous it is to pay $5000 pa or $400 a month just on insurance to have the right to drive a car? Many people may not even drive 10 days a month and it means they will have to pay $40 daily for it. ERP is expensive, what about insurance cost? This is a big rip off! We are going into the realm of madness.