All Except Mr Salary

This cartoon speaks more than the ringgits in your wallet!

That's the problem when inflation is not only imported but home-grown as well by the government!

Pity us, poor salaried workers!

MOSTE'S Year-end Dinner 2014

The Venue

This was to be the last dinner we had for 2014 after the cancellation of the earlier scheduled dinner in October.

The venue this time was the Golden Dragon City Seafood Restaurant in Paramount Garden.

A Variety of Food

A total of 13 ex-officers came for the function. They are as follows:

Low Chee Choy
Aloysius Goh
Daniel Chew
Dato' Dr Yap
Goh Siok Eng
Ong Chui Khoon
Dato Himmat Singh
Lee Heng Keng
Lily Hor
Cindy Tan
Jenny Tan
Heng
Kam Teik Beng

We were most privileged to have Himmat and Aloysius with us this time around.

Food was sumptuous and we had a roaring good time.

Choice Suckling Pig Gems

We will meet again in 2015 after the Chinese New Year.

Spelling Disorder

Yes, this is certainly plaguing the Gen Y of Malaysia.

The lack of English language skills and the pollution brought about by the widespread usage of inter-language among Malaysians have led to many who may be able to speak but when it comes to writing English, it is a different matter.

The spelling capability of young Malaysians are getting unstuck.

This cartoon speaks volumes.

Wholesome Rebuttal to Zeti?

I took this from the Malaysian Insider dated 29 November 2014. In this article, the writers of  the report on lack of savings among Malaysian households took the opportunity to rebut the Governor of BNM on the origins of their data.

In defending their data in the Malaysia Human Development Report 2013, the joint writers-Kamal Salih,Dr. Lee Hwok Aun and Dr. Muhd Adb Khalid put paid that their findings were based on inclusive and reliable sources.

I thought it make interesting reading especially when the rebuttal is intellectually stimulating.

It's a classic of the proverbial Davidian three pebbles against a Goliath.

Here is the article.

Do You Believe?

That the filthiest item you would touch in a restaurant is the menu?

But it's true.

Movies for Armed Forces and Servicemen

Interesting Throwback to the War Years

This credit is often seen at the end of movies that were made during the war years.

They were meant to boost the morale of fighting men as well as to entertain them.

On of these movies was Rodgers and Hammerstein's State Fair with its wonderful melodies and lyrics of yester-years.

ACCA and MIA To Boost Accountant Supply

More Business for ACCA

I plucked this from Bernama News dated 3 November 2014.

It seems that the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) and the Association of Certified Accountants (ACCA) have inked a strategic memorandum of understanding (MOU), a deal that could help boost the supply of accountants come 2020.

This deal intends to redouble efforts to develop 60,000 accounting professionals by that target year.

A  Interim 3-Year Pathway

Under this MOU, eligible MIA members will be incentivised to take the ACCA qualification. It will entail an exemption of 9 out of a total of 14 ACCA papers.

Initial registration fees and exemption fees will also be waived.

This special pathway will be in force for 3 years from today.

Stephen Heathcote,the ACCA executive director remarked that the exemption will hasten the certification process while simultaneously produce able and qualified accountants for Malaysia.

Currently, Malaysia has only to reach the half-way mark in meeting the targeted number of professionals required in the accounting field.

Signed by Heathcote and MIA President, Johan Idris, the former believed that this partnership would provide a sustainable pipeline of qualified accountants to support the government's development plans.

Meanwhile, Johan in his speech said that with this MOU, it will leverage each party's strengths and bring the accounting profession to the next level.

Beware,Odd Lot Counter Players

Stuck on One!

If you think that you can bargain on the Odd Lot Counter of BSKL, you may have to think twice.

I have played the odd lot counter quite frequently and this is the third time that the sellers had ensnared me.

I started by playing a counter called Gas Malaysia. I asked for 50 units and they gave me 7 units only.

The same goes for Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad (BIMB),where I got another 7 units only in spite of the 50 units I wanted to buy.

Then, there was  IHH Holdings (IHHH). They gave me only one unit of it, while holding the selling price at about 10 times the price I bid.

This late afternoon, they had me again. They gave me again one share at 57 sen while holding the balance at 80 sen for the counter I wanted to buy. I need to buy another 49 units.

What are the implications?

If you are satisfied with what you get,then take no more action.

That was what I did with Gas Malaysia and BIMB.

However, I could not do the same with IHH Holdings (IHHH).

Why?

If I did not buy in a trading 100 unit on the Main Board. it would mean my share would be the price of that unit plus RM 30 for overheads such as brokerage, clearing fees and stamp duty.

Let us assume you bought one unit of IHHH at RM 4.50. Failure to take follow up action to buy more will mean that your IHHH share is priced at RM 34.50 .This would means it cost about the price of KLK and most other blue chips. Big loss, my friend!

So,what do I have to do today for that counter that I have been ensnared?

If I lucked out, it can only mean I would have to buy it at a much higher price than currently on offer.

On the Main Board,the offer price is 58.5 sen. Perhaps, I would have to take up the seller's offer before trading ends at 5 p.m. today.

So,watch your steps when playing in this no-holds barred; anything can happen to you God-forsaken Odd lot counter on BSKL.

Post-script:

I had to buy 100 more shares at 57.5 sen on the main board and 9 more shares at 57 sen on the odd-lot board. He gave to me the 9 units in the afternoon session.

What a hassle.

Strangely, the seller threw in the towel and gave his shares even at 33 sen for a 24 sen loss.

So, I may not have gained but those who bought at 33 sen certainly did!

Hot Seats on MAS!

Going Nowhere?

On 6 November 2014, the same Board of Directors of MAS will again face the bitter minority shareholders.

Unless they can say something pleasing and reassuring to the ears of the minority shareholders or give them a handsome subsidised flight ticket to partly off-set their massive losses holding below par value MAS shares for ages, expect fireworks just like what MAS experienced at their recent rowdy AGM.

This time around-will the minority shareholders allow Khazanah to take MAS shares off their hands for a song? Will Khazanah succeed in privatising MAS?

While independent adviser AmInvest Bank may verbalise the obvious financial platitudes to placate minority shareholders and that the Khazanah offer is prima facie both 'fair' and 'reasonable', I think it will be an uphill task as the shareholders may be looking for a better deal.

Khazanah proposes paying 27 sen per MAS share to take it private so that they can restructure the company and resuscitate it back to financial health. 

It involves both a capital reduction and repayment exercise. 

Let us look at the forces of Khazanah and the minority shareholders.  While Khazanah owns 69.37% interest in this airline, the next 29 biggest shareholders sadly only hold an aggregate quantum of 6.57% of MAS shares. Strangely, 4 billion shares or 24% lie in the hands of the average Joe and Jane investor. They are  an absolutely unhappy lot!

To get through its SCR proposal, Khazanah needs at least 50% in numbers as well as 75% in value acceptance (Likely through a poll with proxy strength). 

I am not sure about what 50% in number means? Does it mean Khazanah and the 29 biggest shareholders of MAS? Or the 4 billion share bloc? Or those who are attending in person and through a vote of hands?

Apart from that, Khazanah needs 90% acceptance from shareholders to de-list MAS from Bursa Malaysia. This may be a tall order again if the mood and tide goes awry on 6th November with the average Joe and Jane shareholder. 

As part of the new plan to salvage MAS, Khazanah will invest RM6bil more, cut 6,000 jobs and migrate the airline’s into a new company which will be operational on July 1,2015.

Interestingly, the circular warned that if Khazanah failed to get the votes it needed to push through its plan, MAS would remain listed and there would be no RM6bil cash-injection from Khazanah, and if MAS continued to incur heavy losses coupled with its cash reserves of RM2.4bil depleting over the next 12 months, the airline could become a PN17 company.

I wonder how the minority shareholders will hold up against this serious scenario.

Will they bite the bullet and go down with the airship or will they run helter skelter with 27 sen to a dollar?

This is an EGM that will  likely see conflagration,not a whimper. 

All minority shareholders should attend!

Can the Chairman, CEO and Board members of MAS willing and ready to be on these hot seats to be grilled once more on 6 November?

The jury is out on that one.

Pay up or No Exit!

Unemployable Unemployed Graduates?

I read with interest that out of 700,000 names on the black-list of the Malaysian Immigration Department, some 85,000 or 12% of them are graduates  who had defaulted on their PTPN or study loans. That means that they will be stopped at any immigration exit points whether at airports, roads,ports or rail and cannot leave the country's borders and shores until they pay up pronto.

While the government is doing its best to get the loans repaid through one-off discounts or a periodic payment schedule of a year, we do not know whether this is going to be effective if the graduates are still out looking for a job or are underemployed and have pittance left to pay these loans after paying for their food,transport and lodging.

Achtung!

Also, possibly, not many are bothered  whether they can leave the country or not as tourism may not be at the top of their priorities right now.

Some of the negative effects will be the probability that many Sabahans and Sarawakians may not be able to cross from their states to Peninsular Malaysia and vice-versa for retraining, to get a job at the bigger Malaysian cities and the inability to visit family members and relatives.

The Western Corridor-Bullish About Subang-Klang-Shah-Alam Connurbation

The Towering Empire in Subang

A forum titled “Property investment opportunities in the western corridor of Klang Valley: Is Shah Alam sustainable in the long run?” is bullish about the Western corridor of the Klang Valley; namely the Subang-Shah Alam-Klang connurbation.

According to speakers in the forum, Selangor is the richest state in Malaysia in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and of the many urban centres in the state, Petaling Jaya (PJ) is the most active in terms of property development. The areas that are hot on buyers’ radar is the stretch from PJ/Subang Jaya to Shah Alam, and goes way way west to Port Klang. 

Though for the past two decades, property projects remained almost unchanged in the western corridor, the landscape is fast changing with the launch of new township developments in Shah Alam and Klang. These are - Bandar Bukit Tinggi, Setia Alam, Setia Eco Park, Aman Perdana, Cahaya SPK, Denai Alam, City of Elmina, Bandar Botanic and Tropicana Aman. 

Today, the western corridor is transforming into one of the more exciting corridors where the entrance of big developers has changed the property landscape and beckons more to come. .

S. P. Setia is credited as one of the first developers to introduce master-planned community living in northern Klang through its Setia Alam project in 2004. It has been a game changer. Though never been favoured as a local for residency, S.P. Setia changed the face of Shah Alam with the development of Setia Ecopark and Setia Alam. 

Shah Alam’s has a growing population of approximately 750,000, among the highest in Selangor. Besides this healthy threshold population size, job creation is also seen as a corollary when corporate headquarters moved there and supply chain and service companies do like-wise. 

Value Creation in Setia Alam

In Klang, the population is approximately one million, and there is potential spillover from those living in Klang to invest in Shah Alam as Shah Alam is closer to the centre of gravity. Greater Kuala Lumpur’s centre of gravity has shifted towards Kinrara, spurred by the proposed new Serdang-Kinrara Putrajaya Expressway, Kinrara-Damansara Expressway, Sungai Besi-Ulu Kelang Elevated Expressway, and Damansara-Shah Alam Highway (Dash).

Shah Alam will remain on investors’ radar because it is close to Port Klang as the Japanese have chosen Penang and Port Klang as their manufacturing hub for the long-term.

As for current and future infrastructure, the western corridor is now home to modern award-winning township developments and all the necessary amenities including sports stadiums, tourist attractions, golf courses, recreational parks, higher learning institutions, and shopping centres.

The key factors contributing to the growth of the western corridor is infrastructure and accessibility. The network of highways serving the corridor include:

    Federal Highway (connects KL to Klang)

       NKVE (Jalan Duta to Bukit Raja)

      Federal Highway Route 2 (Batu Tiga to Sungai Rasah)

       Kesas (Sri Petaling to Pandamaran)

      Guthrie Corridor (Shah Alam and Rawang)

       Elite Highway (connects to Nilai and a few highways)

      Kemuning-Shah Alam expressway (LKSA)

       Proposed Dash highway (Damansara Perdana to Shah Alam)

Additionally, the KTM Komuter connects Batu Caves to Port Klang, with stations in Shah Alam, Padang Jawa and Batu Tiga.

The extension LRT project that is being built will connect to Bukit Jalil and to Kelana Jaya while the MRT blue line will cover from Sungai Buloh to Kajang. The Prolintas highway development connects Damansara to Shah Alam, and can be linked to Sprint or the LDP, which will help to enhance the value of property in these parts.

Additionally, the LRT 3rd line’s (Bandar Utama–Klang) is awaiting approval and alignment has yet to be released. According to a speaker of hte forum, “The main thing is not to be near the alignment, but position properties near the stations.”

Klang - Moving up the Price Ladder

From 2011 to 2013, there has been a consistent decrease in the number of transactions from 430,000 to 381,000. Despite this, the transaction value has steadily increased from RM137bil to RM152bil.

According to Siva Shanker, the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents president, he opined, that “If there is GDP growth, it is usually between 2% and 5%. During recession, it is minus 2% or minus 3%. We are now at minus 11%! What people don’t recognise is that we are already in the middle of the bubble and it is already here. Is it right time to invest? Looks like there is no wrong time to invest in Malaysia, as it seems to be on the uptrend all this while and we are in the middle of the bubble.”

Another interesting aspect: Malaysians have become brand conscious as they evaluate both the project’s and developer’s image.

In Shah Alam, i-City could be the go-to destination for the area when it starts building a brand name for itself. i-City was conceived as an MSC hub, but it is much more than that as it is self-contained with leisure, office and residential components. i-City is a fully integrated digital city comprising a shopping mall, corporate office towers, Cybercentre office suites, hotels, apartments, data centre, innovation and theme park.

In purchasing properties, Gen-Y are perceived to be more receptive to new areas, looking particularly at the uniqueness of these developments. Despite the  availability of social media, Gen Y are trained almost always to look at new things and fail to look at subsales of old houses which are truly hidden residential nuggets. 

Gen-Y should also switch on their “trading up” mentality. By going for things that they cannot afford, and ignoring those that they can, Gen-Y will constantly complain about properties being out of their reach.

Gen-Y should think about purchasing lower priced properties first. After all, property is a good hedge against inflation. When the lower-priced property increases in value, capital appreciation can be used to slowly trade up to better properties.

For those who are looking into purchasing commercial properties such as SoHos, and SoFos, a forum participant, SkyBridge International’s Un has this to advise:  “With the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax in April 2015, developers should educate Gen-Y buyers. As they are on a tight budgets, they thought they might have factored in all the financing, only to find that six months down the road, they might be unprleasantly shocked to discover that they have to pay for the 6% upon full loan disbursement.”

Shah Alam and Klang have definitely outgrown their image as sleepy old towns. In the past decade, there has been an influx of infrastructure, connectivity and townships which opened up the western corridor of the Klang Valley. 

The western corridor is now truly the new Canyon Del Oro!

Ratan Tata Speaks

Truly words of wisdom!

Housing and Construction: Future Views

Pricing in the Higher Costs?

Will prices of real estate go up in 2015 and thereafter?

Let us look at some issues.

Now that the issue of water may be settled soon with the impending water transfer from Pahang and the building of the Langat 2 reservoir in tow, let us look at the closer-to-home issues.

Apart from water which constitute about 45% of the woes for developers in the utilities category, higher costs has impacted development of new projects generally.

Developers have now cited the higher cost of doing business in the first half of 2014.  The increase is 20% higher than before.

What are the causes?

The increase cost has been attributed to such items as higher compliance cost, scarcity of land, higher infrastructure contribution funds and higher conversion premium.

There were also claims that building material steel bars, cement, bricks, sand and river sand and wages have risen in the first six months of 2014.

The latest REHDA survey paints this picture:

Overall, 45 percent of the respondents are neutral of the property market in 2H 2014, while 33 percent are pessimistic.

Moreover, 41 percent of the respondents are pessimistic for 1H 2015.

What’s in store for 2015?

Currently, developers are holding back new launches.  Take up rates have dropped to 49%.

Despite this, with the looming GST imposition comes April 2014, many experts have predicted that prices will continue to increase, not discounting the 8% rise already experienced in 1H 2014.

Thought residential properties may be GST-exempt, higher building costs will inadvertently be passed on the buyers via higher launch prices.

So, it does not look too good for house and real estate buyers comes 2015. 

What say you?

Totally Trees

You must see these trees.

They are just nature's majestic work of art!

That Million Dollar Smile

Makes Your Day

This is a interesting observation from a close friend of mine.

Beauty Smile

According to him, you do not have to have love for a girl or even worse, lust.

All you need to do is to appreciate the beautiful things in life.

Glance Away

And so it came to past that a regular Jane that he hardly knew  personally flash one of the most beautiful smile at him.

He felt like a million dollars not because of that smile literally but more because of its significance-an acknowledgement that she knew him, no matter how remote,  and that she smiled personally for him and nobody else!

Manifestation of Loveliness

That is what made his day!

Make Your Life Better

These simple advice are truly great.

Try to practise some of them everyday.

Words of Wisdom

Cybil Shepherd's Best

Heartbreaking Humour

Most of the younger generation will remember the Ben Stiller version of the Heartbreak Kid which was mostly comedic and meant to poke fun.

However, the original 1972 Heartbreak Kid was really something else. And much more.

Lusting or Loving?

Here, a young Charles Grodin played Lenny in a more 'awkward' and less funny way.

Lenny is the  protagonist who did not know what he wanted out of a relationship or even a marriage or two.

This original movie was also the true debutante platform for a young and charming Cybil Shepherd who played Kelly.

It showcased her physical form, beauty and cheekiness as she played love and lust games along with a confused Lenny.

Rapture and Capture

Lenny was actually spun like a top by this young thing who led him up the garden path from the beach in Miami to a remote cabin in Minnesota.

The stripping game in which Kelly toyed with Lenny  in the old cabin was  mischievously funny and reminds one of a coming of age movie.

An Icy Encounter with Kelly's parents

It is  sexual teasing that is so well done and remains one of moviedom extraordinary great moments which has yet to be paralleled up to this day!

The really weird confrontation between a silent and glummy Kelly's father and a brash and gutsy Lenny was equally amusing  particularly the scene when he tried to buy over Lenny, poker style with his wad of cash.

Lusty Cheekiness

The final scene when Lenny was totally lost even at his own wedding dinner after marrying Kelly truly exemplify the woes of a heartbreak kid!

What does he really want?

Amusing fare. Great movie!