Economics 2012: Off the top of my head.

I have been doing more thinking. OK, so what's new?

In recent weeks, the stock markets rallied and with the strong closing on Wall Street last night, they look like they could move even higher next week.



The bulls say that the tide has turned and things are moving higher from here and that we should buy stocks on pull backs. The bears say that what we have seen recently is just a bear

Mr. Lee Kuan Yew on the eurozone crisis.

I just received the latest copy of Alumnus in the mail and on page 4 is a one page write up on what Mr. Lee Kuan Yew said during LKY School of Public Policy's 7th Anniversary. He said something about the eurozone which got me interested enough to search for more details online.

The one liner that got me interested was: "Mr. Lee thinks European leaders will try very hard to prevent the collapse

Further credit tightening is almost a given.

I was talking to a friend whose family controls a public listed company in Singapore and he is very optimistic about Singapore, very confident that we will not suffer a recession. Although I reminded him that in the last global financial crisis, only China, India and Indonesia escaped a recession, he remains very optimistic. Is this optimism the norm?

Many think that the housing prices in

Double dip recession or just very slow growth?

Stock markets around the world had a very bad week. Everyone it seems is expecting a global recession and the accompanying deflation.

In a truly deflationary environment, all assets will suffer and see their prices fall. Equities and precious metals were all sold down across the board, therefore.

However, reading an article in Bloomberg, it is interesting to note that in the USA, "railroads

Tharman Shanmugaratnam has spoken.

I think Tharman Shanmugaratnam is a really brainy guy. He also did our country proud when he was selected as the Chairman of the International Monetary and Financial Committee.

When Tony Tan talks about the economy, I listen. When Tharman S. talks about the economy, I listen too and he has spoken.

"Tharman Shanmugaratnam told a conference that the world has now “entered a phase where there is a

Money continues to flow into Singapore.

Singapore continues to attract inflows of money. I have friends from USA and Europe who are parking their money in savings accounts in Singapore although they get only 0.1% interest. Why? The Singapore Dollar has been appreciating against their home currencies and is likely to get stronger.


Singapore also has a AAA rating when it comes to sovereign bonds. This has been attracting much attention

Should we be staying invested or in cash?

All of us know how pathetic interest rates on savings are for quite some time now and with the U.S. Fed pledging to keep interest rates low for another two years or so, it does seem as if low interest rates are here to stay, even in Singapore.

We also know that the ultra low interest rate environment is pushing up prices of almost everything. Inflation? You bet. Is this going to persist? It

Choppy, choppy, chop, chop.

Global stock markets weakened today after strengthening the session before on news that the debt ceiling in the USA would most likely be raised successfully. Why?

Fundamentally, raising the debt ceiling means that the USA would not default and they will be able to continue paying their bills. Sounds like a good thing. However, closer at hand are still many problems which are worrying Mr. Market

Sheng Siong's IPO and the American debt ceiling.

I received two emails today from readers. The first asked me about Sheng Siong's IPO and the second commented on how the Americans have come to a compromise on raising the debt ceiling.

To the first reader, I said that it has been a long time since I took part in any IPO, believing that they do not offer good deals for investors most of the time. I rather wait and see if I could get the shares

U.S. Senate scuttled emergency legislation!

So many want to have a two party government in Singapore. Personally, I always say that if something is not broken, don't fix it. Seeing how the two parties in the US government are acting, I am thankful Singapore is not on the same boat.


With National Day just round the corner, a week after the 2 August deadline for the US to raise its debt ceiling, I am counting our blessings. We never know

How will a default by the US affect Singapore?

I read an article in the newspapers today and it confirmed my fears that Singapore could once again suffer a severe downturn if the US government does not raise its debt ceiling come 2 August. Many would have to face extreme hardship once more.

Salient points in the article:

1. US banks account for some 15% of domestic lending in Singapore.

2. If US defaults, US banks will withdraw their funds

Banks are slashing jobs!

Banks are retrenching. Should we be worried? Is a recession round the corner? Your guess is as good as mine. Best to have our emergency funds ready just in case. If we are thinking of buying shares on the cheap, make sure we have a war chest ready as well. Oh, make sure it is not empty. ;)

HSBC will slash more than 10,000 jobs as part of the global banking giant's recently announced cost-cutting