SINGAPORE in RECESSION !!!

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Oil rises above $60 as traders eye US inventories

Oil rises above $60 in Asia as traders eye US inventories for signs of gasoline demand

By Alex Kennedy, Associated Press Writer

On Wednesday July 15, 2009, 1:52 am EDT

SINGAPORE (AP) -- Oil prices peeked above $60 a barrel Wednesday in Asia as investors looked to a weekly inventory report for clues on U.S. gasoline demand.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was up 76 cents to $60.28 a barrel by early afternoon Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Tuesday, the contract fell 17 cents to settle at $59.52.

Crude has loitered near $60 a barrel for the last few days as investors try to gauge the strength of the global economy. Oil shot to an eight-month intraday high of $73.38 a barrel on June 30, up more than double the price in March.

Weak gasoline demand in the U.S. has helped undermine investor optimism. U.S. motorists have pumped about 1 percent more gas this summer compared to 2008, but the amount remains significantly lower than in 2005 through 2007, according to the weekly SpendingPulse report by MasterCard released Tuesday.

Traders will be eyeing a weekly inventory report from the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration on Wednesday. Analysts expect the EIA's gasoline inventory numbers to rise 750,000 barrels, according to a survey by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos.

"The fundamentals are still weak," said Clarence Chu, a trader with market maker Hudson Capital Energy in Singapore. "It's the summer driving season, inventories should be falling. It's a bad sign."

A solid start to second-quarter corporate results has helped bolster crude prices. Profits announced by Goldman Sachs and Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday topped analysts' estimates.

Goldman said in a separate weekly energy report that it expects crude to average $60 a barrel in July before rising to $75 in September.

In other Nymex trading, gasoline for August delivery rose 1.34 cents to $1.64 a gallon and heating oil gained 1.84 cents to $1.53. Natural gas for August delivery jumped 5.1 cents to $3.48 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent prices rose 75 cents to $61.15 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

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Strong growth suggests Singapore emerging from recession

AFP - Wednesday, July 15

SINGAPORE (AFP) - - Singapore said Tuesday its economy grew for the first time in a year in the second quarter, suggesting the city is emerging from its worst recession and offering hope for other battered Asian economies.

Powered by electronics and biomedical exports, the economy soared 20.4 percent in the three months to June compared with the first quarter on a seasonally adjusted annualised basis, the Ministry of Trade and Industry said.

A Dow Jones Newswires poll of 10 analysts had tipped an average 14.1 percent economic expansion. It was the first quarter-on-quarter growth in five quarters.

Gross domestic product (GDP) is now expected to contract 4-6 percent for the year, better than an earlier projection of 6-9 percent, but the ministry warned that any recovery would be weak due to the fragile global economy.

Trade-driven Singapore last sank into a recession in 2001 when the economy shrank 2.4 percent, its worst slump since gaining statehood in 1965.

It became the first Asian economy to slip into recession in the second half of last year after a financial and economic crisis that started in the United States hit demand for its exports.

Tuesday's data meant that Singapore is the first of the Asian countries hit by recession to release statistics pointing to a recovery.

Compared with the previous year, however, output in the June quarter was down 3.7 percent, indicating that any recovery would be fragile.

"The economy is growing again," said David Cohen, an economist with research house Action Economics.

"Growth won't be very strong but it should remain in an upward trajectory," he told AFP.

Tuesday's data compare with a 14.6 percent quarter on quarter contraction in the three months to March.

DBS Group called it a "stunning turnaround" in line with its forecast.

Singapore shares closed 1.94 percent higher partly on the GDP news.

CIMB-GK Research economist Song Seng Wun said the June quarter rebound boosted hopes that the worst is also over for China, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and other Asian economies affected by the global crisis.

These economies are expected to report on their second quarter performances in the next few weeks.

"Because Singapore has an open economy and has the highest exports to GDP ratio, its performance reflects any improvement or deterioration in global demand," Song said.

South Korea's expected recovery could ride on the back of firmer orders for its gadgets like mobile phones and flat screen panels, he said.

Any rebound in Taiwan is likely to be boosted by demand for electronic items, while China will get help from its domestic stimulus package, he added.

Action Economics' Cohen predicted the Singapore data "will be the first in a series of upbeat GDP reports for the second quarter from Asian economies."

"Maybe this will provide some reassurance to the markets which have been jittery in the last few weeks about the sustainability of the recovery. It shows that Asian economies have turned the corner in the second quarter."

Song said the question for Asia is whether the rebound will be sustained.

He noted that leading industrialised countries make up half of the world economy and many of them are still reeling from the recession, limiting their demand for Asia-made goods.

Singapore's trade ministry also cautioned that "the outlook for the rest of the year remains largely unchanged: of a weak recovery susceptible to downside risks."

While the key manufacturing sector contracted by 1.5 percent in the June quarter, much narrower than the 24.3 percent shrinkage in the previous three months due to the spike in pharmaceuticals and electronics, the services sector was down 5.1 percent, it said.

Rising unemployment and reduced consumer spending in major export markets such as the United States and Europe reflected the continued weakness in the global economy, the ministry noted.

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Oil rises above $64 on strong Q2 corporate results

By ALEX KENNEDY, Associated Press Writer AP - 2 hours 23 minutes ago

SINGAPORE - Oil prices broke above $64 a barrel Monday in Asia as strong second quarter company results helped boost investor optimism.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was up 52 cents to $64.08 a barrel by midday Singapore time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Friday, the contract jumped $1.54 to settle at $63.56.

Better than expected earnings last week from Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Intel Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. eased some investor doubts about the chances of a U.S. economic recovery this year. Traders will be watching results this week from Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. for further clues about economic growth.

"Sentiment has been helped a great deal by the earnings reports so far," said Victor Shum, an energy analyst at consultancy Purvin & Gertz in Singapore. "If the remaining reports paint an upbeat picture, that could sustain oil."

Oil has bounced from $58.78 a barrel last week after falling from an eight-month high of $73.23 on June 30.

Investors remain concerned about weak crude demand. Rising inventories of oil products, such as gasoline, suggest the recession has kept some U.S. drivers from hitting the road this summer.

"Weak fundamentals should keep a lid on prices," Shum said. "We have a glut of oil products."

In other Nymex trading, gasoline for August delivery rose 1.43 cents to $1.78 a gallon and heating oil gained 1.50 cents to $1.66. Natural gas for August delivery slid 2.5 cents to $3.64 per 1,000 cubic feet.

In London, Brent prices rose 50 cents to $65.88 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

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Report: Ho Ching to remain CEO of Singapore state investment company Temasek

Tuesday July 21, 2009, 6:26 am EDT

SINGAPORE (AP) -- Ho Ching will remain chief executive of Singapore government investment company Temasek after her replacement mining industry executive Chip Goodyear couldn't resolve differences with the board, state media reported.

State broadcaster MediaCorp. says on its Web site Tuesday that Goodyear and the Temasek Holdings board had "differences regarding certain strategic issues that could not be resolved."

Goodyear, a former chief executive of the world's biggest mining company BHP Billiton, was to have become Temasek's chief in October.

News Releases 2009

Temasek Holdings and Charles W. Goodyear mutually agree not to proceed with CEO appointment

21 July 2009, Singapore

The Board of Directors of Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited (“Temasekâ€) today announced an agreement with Mr Charles (“Chipâ€) W. Goodyear not to proceed with his CEO appointment.

Mr Goodyear was appointed a Member of the Board on 1 February and CEO-Designate on 1 March. He was to succeed Ms Ho Ching as CEO on 1 October 2009.

Four months into the leadership transition, the Temasek Board and Mr Goodyear have concluded and accepted that there are differences regarding certain strategic issues that could not be resolved. In light of the differences, both parties decided that it is in their mutual interests to terminate the leadership transition process and hence the executive relationship with effect from 15 August 2009. Mr Goodyear will also step down from the Temasek Board effective the same date.

Mr Dhanabalan, Chairman of Temasek Holdings, said, "It is with much regret that both Chip and the Board have accepted that it is best not to proceed with the leadership transition. We wish Chip all the best in his future endeavours, and are happy that Ho Ching has agreed to continue as Executive Director and CEO."

Added Mr Chip Goodyear, "I'm sorry that we are unable to continue with the leadership transition. Temasek has a fantastic platform and I wish the Board, Ho Ching and the team all the best."

Ms Ho Ching elaborated, "In the short time with us, Chip has started a number of initiatives which I believe will help strengthen the Temasek platform. I am sorry he is unable to continue with the leadership transition, and hope to complete the initiatives that he has started."

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Temasek hit by S$40 billion loss last year

Temasek portfolio shed $27 bln in year: executive

AFP - Thursday, July 30

SINGAPORE (AFP) - - Temasek Holdings' portfolio lost more than 40 billion Singapore dollars (27.72 billion US) in value as of end-March from a year before, the state investment firm's chief executive said Wednesday.

Ho Ching, the wife of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said the company anticipated the drop in a review last year.

"Indeed, it had turned out to be so and more," Ho told a forum organised by the Institute of Policy Studies think-tank.

Temasek's investments were hammered by the financial and economic crisis that led global markets to plummet in the second half of last year.

Singapore said earlier this year that Temasek's overall portfolio value had fallen by 58 billion dollars to 127 billion dollars from end-March to November of 2008.

"The Temasek journey will not always be smooth. As we sail in choppy waters, we may need to take shelter if we see dark clouds coming," Ho said.

She added that the search for her successor was going ahead after the "unfortunate" scrapping of a plan to appoint US businessman Charles "Chip" Goodyear.

The former head of resources giant BHP Billiton would have been the first foreigner to run the once-secretive sovereign wealth fund and his appointment just a few months ago was hailed as part of an effort to transform Temasek into a global enterprise.

"It is unfortunate that both the board and Chip recently came to the amicable and mutual conclusion that it was best not to proceed with the CEO transition," Ho told the forum.

"This does not mean however that we should stop this discipline of succession review. We will continue to do so regardless of who takes the helm as CEO at Temasek."

The investment firm said its decision to rescind Goodyear's appointment was due to differences over strategy.

When asked to elaborate on Wednesday, Ho said: "We continue to hold Chip in very high regard for his professionalism and his integrity so all those little funny rumours you hear of his management style, and all that, you can disregard."

The firm has said it remains a long-term investor and remains focussed on Asian investments due to the region's strong growth prospects.

Ho, 56, said that Temasek will invest 70 percent of its resources in Asia, including Singapore, with 20 percent earmarked for investments in industrialised countries.

The rest will be used for markets in Latin America and Africa, she added.

"We remain very comfortable with Asia," said Ho, who will stay on as CEO of Temasek, which manages a global portfolio invested in a wide range of sectors from airlines to energy, resources and consumer products.

"Growth will not be a straight line trajectory. We can expect bumps along the way, but the longer term potential remains strong. As Asia continues on its development curve, it will also de-risk."

Temasek says portfolio falls by S$40 bln end-March '09

Reuters - Wednesday, July 29

SINGAPORE, July 29 - Singapore state investor Temasek said on Wednesday its portfolio had fallen by S$40 billion as of end-March 2009 from a year ago.

"In our Temasek Review last year, we reported an annual value-at-risk of almost S$40 billion last March. This meant a 16 percent probability for our portfolio value to drop more than S$40 billion by March this year. Indeed, it has turned out to be so, and more," CEO Ho Ching said in a speech.

Temasek had S$185 billion in assets as of end-March 2008, which fell to S$127 billion as of November 2008. Ho did not give the exact portfolio level.

This was the first public comment by Ho, also the wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, after Temasek said last week that Charles "Chip" Goodyear will not become CEO due to differences over strategy.[iD:SIN435934]

Ho said Temasek would continue to look at internal and external candidates for her replacement.

(Reporting by Saeed Azhar and Kevin Lim; Editing by Neil Chatterjee)

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Singapore govt says ready to stop any property bubble

Reuters - Thursday, July 30

SINGAPORE, July 29 - The Singapore government stands ready to step in to prevent a property bubble after signs of speculation in the real estate market, state media quoted a cabinet minister as saying on Wednesday.

National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan told reporters it was not clear if the buying momentum of new private homes in the past few months could be sustained and the government was keeping a negative growth projection for such demand this year.

"I wouldn't say there's excessive speculation at the moment, but there is some element of speculation involved. I think some of the practices that you saw in the last property boom are starting to come back. So I think we'll have to be careful," Mah was quoted as saying by state radio 938LIVE's website.

Property and stock prices in Singapore and elsewhere in Asia have jumped in recent months after central banks and governments pumped cash into the ailing global economy, but Asia's monetary authorities may be set to ignore frothy markets [iD:nSP380977].

"I would say that there is more than sufficient supply over the next couple of years and it's a bit too early to say whether there is a speculative bubble or property bubble building up," the Straits Times newspaper's website quoted Mah as saying.

Cautioning buyers not to be lured into buying a home beyond their means, Mah said the government would step in should the situation get out of hand. He said the government could bring back its suspended land sales programme if necessary, the Straits Times reported.

Private home sales have soared since February as prices fell.

Singapore leapt out of recession in the second quarter and the government raised its 2009 forecast for the economy to shrink by 4 to 6 percent, from a previous forecast for a contraction of up to 9 percent.

Signs of speculation in private property market

Channel NewsAsia - Thursday, July 30

SINGAPORE: The government is seeing some signs of speculation in the Singapore property market, according to National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.

Speaking on the sidelines of the topping out ceremony of the Marina Bay Financial Centre on Wednesday morning, Mr Mah said the government is monitoring the situation.

It is uncertain if the buying momentum seen in recent months can be sustained, he added.

"The forecast is still for negative growth this year. Although it’s not as negative as it was in the beginning of the year, I think there is still uncertainty... But what is important really is for all of us, all the players in the market, to make sure that the market remains healthy," said Mr Mah.

According to latest data from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), sales of uncompleted private homes reached a record high of 1,825 units in June as improving sentiment in the market spurred homebuyers to snap up more units.

Mr Mah assured that there is adequate supply of units in the market for now and the government is prepared to release more land for sale if necessary.

On the Marina Bay Financial Centre, Mr Mah noted that it has already attracted over S$20 billion of private real estate investments from both local and international investors. About 61 per cent of space in the centre has been pre—leased.

Mr Mah also reiterated the government’s commitment to the project, saying another S$1 billion in infrastructure works will be invested over the next 10 to 15 years. The figure is on top of the S$7.5 billion already invested in Marina Bay.

938LIVE/so

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12,000 SIA staff to take 10% pay cut after carrier posts loss in Q1

Channel NewsAsia - Friday, July 31

SINGAPORE: An estimated 12,000 non—management staff at Singapore Airlines (SIA) will take a pay cut of 10 per cent for three months starting from August 1.

This comes after the carrier posted a S$271 million loss at the company level in the first quarter.

As a group, SIA posted a net loss of S$307.1 million for the three months ended June 30 compared to a net profit of S$358.6 million a year earlier.

But at company level, the loss for the carrier alone was S$271 million.

Under current union agreements, a pay cut is automatically triggered if the airline posts a net loss at a company level in any given quarter.

It applies across the board, but Channel NewsAsia understands, the bulk of those affected comprise cabin crew, pilots and ground staff employed in Singapore.

The quantum is determined by the amount of losses.

The pay cuts start at 2.5 per cent for losses at the company level of S$50 million, and go up to as much as 10 per cent for losses of S$200 million or more.

The pay cut is part of union—represented staff’s monthly variable component of 10 per cent.

An SIA spokesman told Channel NewsAsia that the pay cut may continue beyond November even if the carrier posts a profit in the second quarter.

This is because the losses are calculated accumulatively throughout the financial year.

CNA/vm

Retrenchments down sharply, unemployment stabilises in Q2

Channel NewsAsia - Friday, July 31

SINGAPORE: The number of jobs lost in Singapore doubled to 12,400 in the second quarter of this year, according to the Manpower Ministry’s (MOM) preliminary estimates on Friday.

This is the first time that employment has contracted for two consecutive quarters since the 2003 economic downturn. Manufacturing, again, bore the brunt of job losses.

Construction and services sectors increased their workforce, but the gains were lower than in previous quarters.

On the other hand, retrenchments appeared to have eased. MOM said 4,800 workers were laid off and 700 contracts were terminated prematurely in the second quarter.

This means 5,500 workers were made redundant during that period — half the number compared to the previous quarter.

Overall unemployment rate also stabilised at 3.3 per cent in June, unchanged from a quarter ago.

Among the resident labour force, the unemployment rate declined from 4.8 per cent in March to 4.6 per cent in June.

MOM said in the difficult job market, more people are deferring job searches to pursue training courses, including those supported under the Skills Programme for Upgrading and Resilience (SPUR).

An estimated 91,800 residents were unemployed in June.

938LIVE/so

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Singapore Air posts first quarterly loss since 2003

Reuters - Friday, July 31

SINGAPORE, July 30 - Singapore Airlines <SIAL.SI>, the world's second largest airline by market value, posted on Thursday its first quarterly loss in six years as a global recession hit passenger and cargo demand.

Singapore Airlines also warned it could post a full year loss if adverse conditions continued, but said that its cash position remains strong and it does not need to raise capital.

The combination of the global economic downturn, the outbreak of H1N1 influenza and fuel hedging resulted in a loss of S$307.1 million for its first quarter ended June 2009, compared to a profit of S$358.6 million a year ago.

"This is the first quarterly loss since the SARS crisis in 2003," the company said in a statement.

Singapore Air has seen falling passenger and cargo demand this year as a global recession hurt business and leisure travel, forcing it to reduce capacity by 11 percent in the 12 months from April, and cut salaries as well as working hours of their staff.

Analysts polled by Reuters Estimates had expected a net loss of S$30 million for the period.

Singapore Airlines saw its overall load factor falling to 67.6 percent in June from 68.5 percent the same time last year, although the number has recovered slightly from 62.1 percent in February.

Singapore’s tourism receipts down 13.5% in first half of 2009

Channel NewsAsia - Friday, July 31

SINGAPORE: Business on Singapore’s resort island of Sentosa is thriving despite the tourism slump.

Tourism receipts fell by almost 13.5 per cent in the first half of 2009 to S$6.4 billion, compared to last year.

Visitor arrivals dropped 11.5 per cent in the six months to June from a year ago as the global economic downturn and H1N1 flu outbreak hit travel, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said on Thursday.

It said the city—state received 4.5 million visitors from January to June, with those from Indonesia, China, Australia, India and Malaysia accounting for more than 50 per cent of arrivals.

STB said it expects 9.0 to 9.5 million travellers for the whole of this year, generating an expected S$12.0 to S$12.5 billion in revenues.

Singaporeans are looking for a nearby weekend getaway to help boost the numbers. Sentosa island is confident of hitting its target of six million visitors by the end of this year.

The 14—metre leap of faith is part of Sentosa’s latest attraction, the MegaZip Adventure Park.

The S$2 million facility also has Asia’s longest and steepest flying fox ride and it has already attracted much attention even before it officially opens its doors in 2 weeks.

Alexander Blyth, managing director, MegaZip Adventure Park, said: "There’s been an avalanche of interest. There are bookings from the corporate sector at the moment, private bookings and birthday parties."

Tickets start from S$10 for a Para—Jump and S$29 for the MegaZip.

Sentosa said such activities will hopefully compliment offerings from the upcoming Resorts World and Universal Studios Theme Park attractions and this could help drive up Singapore’s tourism numbers in the second half of 2009.

For now, Sentosa is enjoying a steady stream of visitors from mainland Singapore.

Mike Barclay, CEO, Sentosa Leisure Group, said: "The foreign visitor numbers have dropped a bit, but we’re getting more of our local guests on weekends particularly. And actually overall, our numbers are holding up quite well."

Sentosa is aiming to hit 15 million visitors annually by 2015 and it is investing some S$300 million on infrastructure and on new offerings, including water sport activities.

All in, the four new leisure attractions on Sentosa cost S$42 million and will be up and running by 2010.

CNA/vm/al

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'Retrenchments will continue'

Labour movement encourages skills upgrading to reduce job losses

Channel NewsAsia - Saturday, August 1

SINGAPORE: Labour chief Lim Swee Say said some companies plan to retrench 1,500 workers in the second half of this year, with most of these job losses expected to be in the manufacturing sector.

Weak global demand and companies relocating to other countries that offer lower operating costs are two factors responsible for the current job losses in Singapore, said the labour movement. And it added that lifelong learning is a way to overcome these problems.

Mr Lim said: "We must compete for higher value—added operation, higher skilled operation, higher technology contents operation, with other more advanced economies. So that on the whole, the net outflow of relocation must be in terms of less (companies) going out (of Singapore) and more coming in."

Mr Lim expects retrenchments to continue as companies restructure during this economic downturn.

Thus, workers are encouraged to upgrade their skills so that businesses will be attracted to Singapore’s skilled labour.

At a ceremony on Friday, the labour movement commended union leaders for promoting lifelong learning.

One of the 44 recipients of the Industrial Workers Education and Training Fund Learning Awards is Catherine Chia. She said that her diploma from the Ong Teng Cheong Labour Leadership Institute has helped her answer difficult questions from union members when the electronics company she worked for conducted a retrenchment exercise in February.

Ms Chia, an industrial union leader for NEC Semiconductors, said: “I find that with this diploma and courses (I attended), I have more confidence to express myself, and I could really talk to the retrenched workers and advise them to go for the employment camp, and to go to the e2i (Employment and Employability Institute) courses and also for SPUR (Skills Programme for Upgrading and Resilience). And I find that most of them have found jobs already.â€

The labour movement’s leadership development hub, the Ong Teng Cheong Labour Leadership Institute, took on a new look to reflect its new role and identity.

It involves a sharper focus on enhancing leadership and tripartism in the labour movement and among its tripartite partners.

CNA/yt

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Seagate to cut 2,000 Singapore jobs, sees charges

Reuters - 1 hour 55 minutes ago

* To relocate hard disk drive plant from Singapore

* To lay off 2,000 workers out of 8,000 staff in Singapore

* Sees $80 mln costs, $40 mln annual savings

SINGAPORE, Aug 4 - Computer hard disk maker Seagate Technology <STX.O> said it will lay off 2,000 workers in Singapore, or more than 4 percent of its global workforce, as it closes manufacturing facilities in the city-state in a bid to cut costs by $40 million a year.

The move, which Seagate said would result in restructuring charges of $80 million, follows a slide in electronics exports from Singapore this year due to weaker consumer demand in the economic downturn.

"We are moving our hard disk operation at Ang Mo Kio (in Singapore) to other Seagate sites in other countries," company spokeswoman Lotus Tan told Reuters but did not provide further details.

She said Seagate employed a total of 8,000 workers in Singapore and would keep Seagate's Asia headquarters, media operation as well as a product development and design center there. According to Seagate's website it has about 45,000 employees around the world.

Seagate said the Ang Mo Kio hard drive factory would be closed by the end of 2010 but would not meaningfully change its production capacity as it will move manufacturing to other locations, which include Thailand, China and Malaysia.

Seagate said in a filing with U.S. regulators that total restructuring charges of approximately $80 million would include about $60 million for severance payments and about $10 million for the relocation of manufacturing equipment.

It plans to record the severance charges of up to $60 million in the current quarter, with the remainder of the charges to be incurred throughout the calendar year of 2010. Seagate's fiscal year 2009 ended on July 3.

The company expects the move to generate annual savings of $40 million when the closure is completed.

Singapore's overall unemployment rate stood at 3.3 percent in the second quarter but the number of people employed in Singapore fell by 12,400 in April-June, twice as much as in the first quarter.

Tuesday's announcement came after Seagate already said in May it had initiated a restructuring plan that included a reduction of about 1,100 employees or 2.5 percent of the company's global workforce.

In July, Seagate raised its forecast for margins and overall industry sales in the current quarter, citing a larger-than-expected increase in corporate demand for computers.

Reporting by Nopporn Wong-Anan and Harry Suhartono and Sinead Carew in New York; Editing by Anshuman Daga

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Resorts World at Sentosa to fill over 8,000 job vacancies by year—end

Channel NewsAsia - Tuesday, August 4

SINGAPORE: Resorts World at Sentosa is ramping up its job hiring efforts, and hopes to fill more than 8,000 job vacancies — including that of croupiers and hotel staff — by the end of this year.

The resort said Tuesday it is on track to open on schedule next year.

It already has 760 employees in its fold — of which 82 per cent are Singaporeans.

It will be carrying out a mass hiring exercise in October, and is looking at employing over 8,000 people.

Some job vacancies that need to be filled include theme park operators, and casino and F&B staff.

By December, the resort hopes to have some 10,000 employees.

It is working with the five Community Development Councils (CDCs) in its recruitment drive.

Said Tan Hee Teck, chief executive officer of Resorts World at Sentosa: "The CDCs have been extremely helpful in affording us to reach out to the people of Singapore and... the CDCs had been working to review all the applications for our job prospects."

Resorts World at Sentosa has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with People’s Association (PA).

Under the agreement, Resorts World at Sentosa will commit over S$1 million in event and venue sponsorship to the PA and its Grassroots Organisations.

Said Tan Boon Huat, chief executive director at PA: "The grassroots organisations will be able to make use of the various interesting venues that are being offered by Resorts World and this is really wonderful because one of the best ways for community bonding is for people to come together and enjoy things together, enjoy fun things together and have fond memories."

Resorts World at Sentosa is also participating in Chingay for the first time next year where it will have its own float.

With the partnership, Passion card members can also look forward to exciting perks at Resorts World at Sentosa such as priority bookings for tours at the Resorts.

Other perks include special promotions and packages, and attractive merchandise of Resorts World and Universal Studios Singapore.

600,000 Passion card members can take advantage of the partnership.

Said Henry Ho, chairman of Jurong Central CCC: "I believe that a lot of residents will be interested and very excited to join our Passion cards whereby they have incentives and discounts to enter Resort World facilities."

The People’s Association and Resorts World at Sentosa will also jointly organise the "Mr and Mrs Singapore Senior Pageant" in June next year.

CNA/yb

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Singapore July PMI rises, electronics expand 4th month

Reuters - 1 hour 51 minutes ago

* Electronics sector expands for fourth month in a row

* Overall new orders, new export orders and output expanding

SINGAPORE, Aug 4 - Singapore Institute of Purchasing & Materials Management released on Tuesday the purchasing managers' index, a leading indicator for manufacturing: Purchasing Managers' Index and components:

July June May April March Feb Jan

PMI 51.5 51.1 51.2 49.2 47.1 45.0 45.0

Electronics 55.0 55.0 52.9 51.6 48.8 43.8 43.6

* Singapore PMI adds to other economic evidence suggesting the economy could pick up in coming months. Global factory business activity stabilised in July as new orders and output recovered to levels not seen in well over a year, a survey by JP Morgan said.

* The electronics sector maintained its expansion rate with production output, inventory, stocks of finished goods and imports expanding at higher rates.

* A reading above 50 indicates the manufacturing sector is expanding. Below 50 signals contraction.

* June non-oil exports fell 11.0 percent from a year earlier, marking the 14th straight month of annual contraction but the smallest fall so far this year.

* Singapore was the first Asian country to fall into recession last year, followed by Hong Kong, Japan and Taiwan. However, the economy grew a blistering 20.4 percent in the second quarter on an annualised and seasonally adjusted basis, pulling out of recession.

* The indices are based on data compiled from monthly replies to questions asked of purchasing executives in more than 150 industrial companies.The survey is based on 12 industry groupings and weighted by each industry's contribution to gross domestic product.

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Singapore says economy still shaky despite growth

AP - Friday, August 7

SINGAPORE - Singapore says its economy isn't on solid footing yet despite growing at a blistering pace in the second quarter.

"It's still too early to conclude that a strong, sustained recovery is at hand," Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang said in a speech Thursday. "It's premature to assume that Singapore's exports have stabilized."

Non-oil exports, which account for 60 percent of the city-state's gross domestic product, fell 11 percent in June from a year earlier, the 14th straight month of decline. Exports in June fell 5.2 percent from the previous month.

The government said last month that preliminary data, taken largely from April and May, showed the economy grew an annualized seasonally adjusted 20.4 percent in the second quarter, the first expansion in a year.

The government, which expects the economy to contract between 4 percent and 6 percent this year, plans to release updated second quarter growth figures next week.

"This is still a serious contraction, and we continue to maintain a cautious outlook for the remainder of the year," Lim said. "The labor market outlook has yet to improve."

Lim said a recent pickup in manufacturing output and a more optimistic outlook among businessmen were bright spots for Singapore's economy.

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Singapore Q2 GDP jumps revised 20.7 percent

By Alex Kennedy, Associated Press Writer

On Monday August 10, 2009, 8:53 pm EDT

SINGAPORE (AP) -- Singapore revised slightly higher its economic growth in the second quarter, but warned U.S. consumption must pick up to sustain the recovery.

Gross domestic product grew an annualized, seasonally adjusted 20.7 percent in second quarter, the Trade and Industry Ministry said in a statement Tuesday. The ministry last month initially reported a 20.4 percent expansion.

Manufacturing surged 49.5 percent, construction jumped 32.7 percent, and financial services rose 22.8 percent from the previous quarter, the ministry said.

"This improvement was largely driven by the spike in output from the volatile biomedical manufacturing cluster and inventory re-stocking," the ministry said. "Financial services was boosted by sentiment-sensitive segments such as stock market activities."

"It is uncertain if these can be sustained into the second half."

Before the April to June period, the economy contracted the previous four quarters as the global recession undermined demand for Singapore's exports. The government expects the economy to fall up to 6 percent this year.

GDP shrank 3.5 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, better than the previous estimate of a 3.7 percent contraction, the ministry said.

Non-oil exports, which account for about 60 percent of GDP, rose a seasonally adjusted 7.6 percent in the second quarter from the first quarter, while falling 14 percent from a year earlier, the ministry said. The government expects non-oil exports to contract up to 12 percent this year.

An economic recovery in the second half will likely be muted unless U.S. consumer demand grows more than expected, the ministry said.

"Private consumption, which has historically driven U.S. economic growth, will likely remain weak," the ministry said. "Without a turnaround in these demand-led indicators, any economic recovery in the second half of the year will probably be sluggish and modest."

[kueytoc]

Singapore PM warns of more retrenchments in 2009

Reuters - Sunday, August 9

SINGAPORE, Aug 8 - Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned the city state to brace for further job retrenchments in 2009, although he said the economy did better than expected in the first half of the year.

"We might see another wave of retrenchments later in the year, so we must stay on guard for more challenges to come," Lee said in a recorded speech on state television on Saturday, the eve of national day.

Singapore's preliminary unemployment figure stayed at a seasonally adjusted 3.3 percent in the second quarter of 2009, unchanged from the first quarter, which was the highest in three years.

Lee said the economy contracted 6.5 percent in the first half of 2009 -- a smaller contraction than previously feared -- prompting the government to revise down the annual contraction to 4-6 percent from an earlier projection of a fall of 6-9 percent.

"It is too early to celebrate. The outlook remains clouded. The advanced economies are not expected to bounce back soon," he said.

Singapore leapt out of its worst recession in the second quarter of 2009 due to rising pharmaceuticals production and construction, preliminary government data showed. Final second quarter GDP data is due on Aug 11.

A Reuters survey showed analysts expected the revised data to show that the economy expanded at an annualised and seasonally adjusted rate of 19.2 percent, compared with an advance estimate of a 20.4 percent.

The latest data is expected to show that from a year earlier, gross domestic product fell 3.9 percent rather than 3.7 percent as earlier reported.

Reporting by Nopporn Wong-Anan; Editing by David Fox

[kueytoc]

New condo launches spark property craze

Singapore property market booms despite recession

AFP - Wednesday, August 12

SINGAPORE (AFP) - - Despite Singapore's worst economic slump since independence, the residential property sector is in the midst of a new boom reminiscent of 2007, when the city-state was known as the world's hottest real estate market.

Greed and its twin brother fear are back in play as punters stake out condo launches days before sales open, with some offering blank cheques to pre-book flats, prompting the government to hint it may have to cool things down.

"Some of the practices and habits that you saw in the last property boom are beginning to come back, so I think we'll have to be careful," said Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan, whose portfolio includes housing.

"A little bit of speculation is inevitable in every market, but when it becomes excessive, then it is something that we should try to avoid," he said.

The minister's words of caution fell on deaf ears.

A 297-unit condo called Optima in the extreme east -- well outside prime districts -- sold out in within three days in early August after Mah's warning, fetching as much as two million Singapore dollars (1.38 million US) a unit.

The developer had to issue ballots "to address the needs of the genuine buyers" and disperse the huge crowd that turned up for the launch of the project, which will only be ready for occupancy in 2014, a spokesman said.

Within days, some units were already being advertised for resale in the secondary market.

An AFP reporter who recently walked into the sales office of another high-rise condo being built close to the Orchard Road shopping belt was treated like royalty by agents expecting to close deals within days, if not hours.

Bank officers were ready to process loans on the spot.

"Buy before prices go up further," an agent whispered in his ear, gesturing to a "sky garden" bisecting the scale model of a glass-clad, 45-storey tower.

Singapore's economic output is officially forecast to shrink by four to six percent this year -- less severe than earlier estimates, but still its worst economic performance on record -- and office rents are still soft, reflecting weak business activity.

"It is too early to celebrate," Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned over the weekend as he spelled out the country's economic prospects. "The outlook remains clouded."

The property frenzy began in middle-class condo projects due to pent-up demand from families upgrading from public to private housing but scared off by the 2007 price spiral.

Their enthusiasm quickly spilled over to more exclusive developments.

Prices of luxury condos -- the segment worst hit by the recession -- are now inching toward peak levels achieved around mid-2007, according to an analysis by business weekly The Edge.

Foreign investors, including Asians looking for a secure place to park their money, are also back in the Singapore market.

Singaporeans enjoy one of the world's highest savings and home ownership rates, but most live in relatively spartan government-built flats, making owning condos an obsessive goal for families.

A pension system forces them to save more than a third of their monthly income, and the accumulated funds can be tapped before retirement to buy property, creating a massive pool of financing ready to be used when market conditions are good for buyers.

Chua Chor Hoon, senior director and head of Southeast Asia research at property advisers DTZ Debenham Tie Leung, said various factors combined to spur renewed buying in Singapore properties.

Signs of economic recovery, the stock market rally, the imminent completion of massive casino resorts, low interest rates and lack of confidence in complex financial products encouraged property buyers.

Asked if the government will have to intervene to stop a bubble from forming, she said: "There's froth but no excessive speculation."

"The government is likely to increase the supply of housing units through the sale of government land and monitor the situation first."

Chua Yang Liang, head of Southeast Asia research at Jones Lang LaSalle, said demand is largely driven by buyers upgrading from government housing due to strong wealth creation in recent years, and the shrinking gap in cost between public and private housing.

"However, unless we begin to record positive growth in the larger global and domestic economies, the recent spike in demand and prices is short-lived and could cause asset driven inflation in the longer term, especially if wage increases do not keep pace," Chua added.

"In our opinion, there isn't enough compelling reason for the state to want to interfere into the market phenomenon just as yet, unless it affects the overall affordability for the masses and causes asset-driven inflation in the economy," Chua said.

[kueytoc]

New CEO 'should be S'porean'

Temasek says no CEO deadline, ideally seeks local

Reuters - Tuesday, August 18

By Kevin Lim and Nopporn Wong-Anan

* Temasek board to have majority of Singaporeans - finmin

* Ex CEO-designate Goodyear not compensated

* Govt mum on "strategic differences" with Goodyear

SINGAPORE, Aug 18 - Singapore state investor Temasek has not set a deadline to replace CEO Ho Ching despite her designated successor's surprise departure last month, the city-state's finance minister said on Tuesday.

Tharman Shanmugaratnam said Temasek's next chief should "ideally" be a Singaporean, but added the government would leave the decision to Temasek's board.

"There's no push factor for the current CEO to step down," Tharman said in response to questions in Parliament.

"The government does not directly manage the process of CEO succession. To do so would make the appointment of the CEO a political decision, which it must never be."

Former BHP Billiton CEO Charles "Chip" Goodyear was named as Temasek's CEO-designate earlier this year as part of a regular succession planning system and not because there was an urgent need to find a new chief, Tharman said.

Temasek, whose sole shareholder is the finance ministry, said last month that Goodyear would not take over as CEO in October as planned due to differences over strategy.

Tharman declined to comment on those differences, but said Goodyear had not received any severance or goodwill payments as a result of his premature departure.

Goodyear, who would have been the investment agency's first foreign CEO, was widely expected to trim Temasek's financial holdings and shift focus into commodities and energy, analysts had said.

"Temasek's leadership remains strong, at both the CEO and board level. They have enabled Temasek to sustain its generally superior overall investment performance over the years, including over the last cycle in global markets that began in 2003," Tharman said.

He said it was important, though, that Temasek's board remain in the control of a Singaporean majority.

Ho, the wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said last month that Temasek lost more than S$40 billion in its financial year to end-March -- indicating its portfolio had shrunk by more than a fifth over the year. She did not give the exact value of Temasek's assets.

Temasek is one of the world's biggest sovereign wealth funds although its portfolio is smaller than that managed by the Government of Singapore Investment Corp , which most analysts say has over $200 billion.

GIC does not publicly disclose the value of its assets.

Temasek is expected to release its annual report next month, giving the audited value of its portfolio and its investment returns.

[kueytoc]

Most Asia economies reform amid crisis-World Bank

Reuters - Wednesday, September 9

* Singapore leads world for 4th straight year

* Indonesia seen region's most active reformer

WASHINGTON, Sept 8 - Three Asia-Pacific economies -- Singapore, New Zealand and Hong Kong -- were ranked by the World Bank on Tuesday as the easiest places to do business over the past year, when most of the region's economies carried out regulatory reforms in the face of a global economic crisis.

The International Financial Corporation , the World Bank's private sector lending arm, said Indonesia was the most active reformer in East Asia and the Pacific, where 17 of 24 economies pursued regulatory reform.

"In a record year for regulatory reform worldwide, most economies in East Asia and the Pacific strengthened business regulations, making them more efficient to help increase opportunities for local firms," said the annual report.

Singapore, New Zealand and Hong Kong held the top three spots in the global ease of doing business rankings in 2009 as well. This year's 15 top-ranked economies also included Thailand at 12, and Japan, at 15, the IFC said.

Indonesia cut the time required to start a business by 16 days and the time to transfer a property by 17 days, climbing to 122 from 129 in the rankings, said the report, "Doing Business 2010: Reforming through Difficult Times."

The ranking, now in its seventh year, is based on analysis of regulations of business start-up and operations, trading across borders, paying taxes, and closing a business.

Singapore, which has topped the table for the past four years, continued to make its economy more efficient by introducing online services to ease business start-up, construction permits, and property transfers, it said.

Hong Kong also stream-lined procedures for construction permits, business start-ups and property transfers, said the IFC.

Malaysia, ranked 23rd worldwide, eased business start-up procedures, cut company incorporation charges and corporate fees and made it easier to enforce contracts in courts by increasing staff and setting stricter deadlines, it said.

Taiwan, 46th in the world, eased business start-up by abolishing minimum paid-in capital requirements, introducing time limits on various procedures. Taipei made it possible to file and pay taxes on-line, it said.

Penelope Brook, acting vice president for financial and private sector development at the World Bank Group, said the reforms would position firms in the regions to respond quickly to economic recovery.

"The quality of business regulation helps determine how easy it is for troubled firms to survive difficult times, how fast local entrepreneurs will start investing again and how quickly new business can get started," she said in a statement.

[kueytoc]

World’s largest CNG refuelling station opens in Singapore

Channel NewsAsia - Thursday, September 10

SINGAPORE: The world’s largest CNG refuelling station — spanning over 7,000 square metres — has opened in Singapore.

The S$16m C—Energy station, owned by the Union Energy Group, officially opened its facility at Old Toh Tuck Road on Wednesday.

The C—Energy, the fifth CNG station in Singapore, has 44 pump hoses for cars and two for buses. This should address the problem of insufficient refuelling stations that users of green vehicles have complained about.

C—Energy is the brainchild of Teo Kiang Ang, who also runs TransCab, Singapore’s second largest taxi company after Comfort Delgro.

Mr Teo plans to open three more CNG stations — in Bedok—Changi area, Woodlands and Toa Payoh — within the next three years at an estimated cost of about S$6 million each, excluding land cost.

He said: "Our projections show the need for another three to four stations to help make this industry successful. Without the additional stations in the east, south, west and north, without enough filling stations, it is hard for the CNG business to succeed. But if we are able to support it, we are assured of success."

Builders said another issue is land availability.

Alexander Melchers, general manager of C Melchers GMBH, said: "We hear from the operators that the acquisition of land and the pricing of land is an issue. There’s an opportunity for companies to have their own stations if they have access to the pipeline.

"But very importantly, is that we have public stations, so that heartlanders can convert their cars and heartlanders can save money."

Currently, there are some 4,200 CNG vehicles out of over 700,000 vehicles in Singapore. About one third of the CNG vehicles are taxis.

Still, users are hampered by a Catch—22 situation. Drivers are reluctant to switch to CNG despite the green tax rebate, because they say there are simply not enough CNG refuelling stations.

On the other hand, CNG refuellers say they are reluctant to spend millions to build CNG stations because there are simply not enough CNG vehicles.

But as fuel prices increase and CNG, which can halve a driver’s fuel cost, becomes more easily available, Mr Teo expects more to switch to CNG vehicles. And he plans to grow his current 3,000 taxi fleet to a fully—CNG one of 8,000 within five years.

In fact, Mr Teo predicted that by then, half of Singapore’s entire taxi fleet will be CNG cabs. And going by the positive reactions of customers, he may well be on the right track.

"Elsewhere, the queues are long, some equipment are not working, waste a lot of time!" said one customer.

"A lot of us started buying CNG vehicles, but ended up using petrol most of the time. Now, people in our area have started going back to CNG and enjoying the savings from it," said another.

Another plus point — the new CNG station runs 24 hours a day.

— CNA/ir

[kueytoc]

NEWSMAKER-Ho still running Temasek's show, but for how long?

Reuters - Friday, September 18

By Kevin Lim and Saeed Azhar

* Ho says board will look at succession planning

* Temasek recouped most of losses, eyes dealmaking

* Leadership change, new ideas needed - analyst

SINGAPORE, Sept 17 - Temasek CEO Ho Ching appears to be firmly in charge once again after a rocky year for the sovereign wealth fund in which it failed in its efforts to replace her by getting its first foreign chief executive.

The wife of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is carrying on after the surprise exit in July of CEO-designate Chip Goodyear, formerly BHP Billiton's head, who would have replaced her on Oct 1.

Since Goodyear's departure, Ho is shedding her once-shy public image by appearing more at events such as Thursday's news conference, where she declared the fund had recouped most of its losses from 2008 and is ready for dealmaking.

Ho may now be able to take some credit for the fund's stronger position, and there is no timeframe for getting a replacement.

But the leadership issue and questions about investment strategy still cloud the fund's global image.

"It might be good to have new leadership to inject some new ideas, change direction," said Melyvn Teo, an associate professor of finance at Singapore Management University.

The city-state's bloggers regularly criticise Ho and Temasek over what they see as the fund's investment missteps.

"Without Goodyear, does this mean we'll have another bad year?" asked blogger Joshua Chiang in a recent posting on Online Citizen, a popular Singapore news website.

But Ho said Temasek's investment decisions are not swayed by public scrutiny.

"We are human beings so we do sort of track some of this but we try our best not to let that drive our investment decisions," Ho said at Temasek's annual review.

FIFTH MOST POWERFUL

Forbes magazine, which ranked Ho as the world's fifth most powerful woman last month, has credited Ho with converting Temasek from a Singapore-focused firm to a leading investor in Asia and said her dealmaking ambitions span the globe.

One of Ho's colleagues once said it was her willingness to take risks, not her family ties, that won her the top job at Temasek, with a mandate to shake up the state investor and lead its overseas expansion.

Ho began her career at Singapore's Ministry of Defence, where she met her husband, the eldest son of former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

She moved to state-owned Singapore Technologies in 1987, running a mix of defence, technology, property and stockbroking firms which she restructured, divesting some units and listing others.

She joined Temasek as a director in January 2002 and became CEO two years later. Under her charge, Temasek's assets have grown from S$90 billion at end-March 2004 to S$172 billion at end-July 2009.

Ho has, however, also steered Temasek into making several controversial decisions in neighbouring countries.

In 2006, a Temasek-led $3.8 billion investment in Thai telecoms firm Shin Corp <SHIN.BK>, then owned by the family of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, triggered a prolonged political crisis in Bangkok that led to Thaksin's ouster in a bloodless coup.

"If you want to run life with regret, you will end up doing very little," Ho said in February when she announced plans to step down.

Additional reporting by Neil Chatterjee; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman

[kueytoc]

Temasek recoups losses, eyes deals in emerging mkts

Reuters - Friday, September 18

By Neil Chatterjee and Saeed Azhar

* Portfolio up 32 pct from April to end-July

* Portfolio at $122 bln end-July; August in line with indexes

* Buys stakes in S.Korea's ENK and Brazil's San Antonio

* Still open to new investments in financials

SINGAPORE, Sept 17 - Temasek recovered from most of its portfolio losses this year as markets rallied, saving the Singapore wealth fund's blushes after ill-timed exits from Wall Street banks and giving it firepower for new deals.

CEO Ho Ching said any dip in markets could be a buying opportunity for the $122 billion investment firm that is still open to buying financials and investing in emerging markets.

Temasek [TEM.UL] lost over an estimated $4 billion on selling its stakes in Bank of America <BAC.N> and Barclays <BARC.L>, but said it had benefited from investing in rights issues for its portfolio firms such as Standard Chartered <STAN.L> since these investments more than doubled by the end of July.

"We are in a very good cash position," Ho said at Temasek's annual review on Thursday. "We think there are lots of opportunities in over the long-term."

The review showed Temasek's portfolio slumped S$55 billion or around 30 percent to S$130 billion in the year to end-March. Its portfolio then rose 32 percent to S$172 billion by end-July, and its August performance was in line with market indexes, Ho said.

For changes in the value of Temasek's portfolio, click: http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/099/SG_TMSK0909.gif

The firm's value-at-risk was S$28 billion at the end of March, meaning it had a 16 percent probability it would lose that amount or more this financial year, down from a value-at-risk of S$40 billion a year earlier, the review said.

"We believe the worst of the global meltdown risks are behind us," said Ho. "While there are some green shoots of growth, some structural risks still remain for the medium term," she said.

Temasek is Singapore's second-biggest sovereign wealth fund after the Government of Singapore Investment Corp.

Ho, the wife of Singapore's prime minister, said Temasek's board would still search for her successor after CEO-designate and former BHP Billiton chief Chip Goodyear unexpectedly resigned in July over strategic differences.

"The big issue is new leadership. Strategy comes from the leadership. Until they sort out the issue of leadership, nobody is going to be clear what the strategy is," said the head of a private equity firm in Singapore, who declined to be identified.

PROFIT HIT

The investment company, whose sole shareholder is Singapore's Ministry of Finance, said net profit for the financial year fell two-thirds to S$6.2 billion, as it was hit by losses on financial stocks and lower contributions from earnings by its portfolio firms such as DBS Group <DBSM.SI>.

"Like investors everywhere they're just relieved that the market pulled back from the brink," said David Cohen of Action Economics in Singapore.

The role of sovereign wealth funds around the world, which oversee about $3 trillion in assets, changed from a key source of capital for struggling Western banks early in the crisis, to governments redeploying funds to stabilise home markets.

Temasek said in its annual review it had bought a 19.5 percent stake in South Korea's ENK, a supplier of cylinders for compressed natural gas, and 15.4 percent of Brazil oilfield services firm San Antonio International.

For a breakdown of Temasek's investments by region and sector, click: http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/099/SG_TMSKPF0909.gif

Temasek has published an annual report since 2004, part of efforts to be more transparent. Wealth funds have come under scrutiny from Western governments worried their investments may be politically motivated.

Additional reporting by Nopporn Wong-Anan and Brenda Goh; Editing by Anshuman Daga

[kueytoc]

Strategy split behind Temasek exit-Goodyear

Reuters - Friday, September 25

By Michael Flaherty and Joseph Chaney

* Goodyear confirms strategic vision led to Temasek exit

* First public appearance since shock exit from wealth fund

HONG KONG, Sept 24 - Former BHP Billiton CEO Charles "Chip" Goodyear confirmed that a divergence in strategy was behind his shock departure from Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings two months ago.

"Differences of strategic vision is the best way to put it," Goodyear answered calmly, in response to a question in front of an audience of 300 investors at a conference in Hong Kong.

The comments came in Goodyear's first public appearance since July when he walked out of the job to become the chief executive of Temasek less than six months after accepting the post.

He answered three or four questions from the audience.

Goodyear, appearing relaxed and comfortable on stage at the CLSA-organised conference, said the Temasek news release at the time summed up his exit.

Temasek, which manages $122 billion in assets including Standard Chartered and DBS Group, said in July that Goodyear would not take over as CEO in October as planned due to differences over strategy.

Goodyear, who was tapped in February for the Temasek job, was widely expected to trim its financial holdings and shift focus into commodities and energy, analysts had said.

The impeccably groomed and amiable American was to have been the first foreign chief executive of the high profile Singapore fund.

Ho Ching, the wife of Singapore's prime minister, decided to stay on as Temasek's CEO since Goodyear's departure.

Temasek lost an estimated $4 billion from selling stakes in Bank of America and Barclays earlier this year ahead of a global market rally.

Goodyear descends from a U.S. lumber baron and hails from the halls of Ivy League universities and Wall Street, but is best known for his reign at the Australian mining giant BHP.

Goodyear joined then debt-ridden BHP in 1999 as chief financial officer, and was instrumental in growing the company into the world's top miner, as a result of a merger with South Africa's Billiton, with a market value bigger than the GDP of some countries it operated in.

Additional reporting by Saeed Azhar in SINGAPORE; Editing by Lincoln Feast

[kueytoc]

Electricity tarriff to go up !!!

Tue, Sep 29, 2009

The Straits Times

ELECTRICITY tariff for households will increase by 12.5 per cent in the coming quarter because of higher fuel oil prices, SP Services announced on Tuesday.

The rate will go up by 2.41 cents per kWh to 21.69 cents for the October to December period.

It will raise the electricity bill of the average Housing Board three-room household by about $7 - from $57 to $64.

[kueytoc]

Concerns raised over possible abuse of Jobs Credit Scheme

Channel NewsAsia - Monday, October 12

SINGAPORE : The government is looking into whether the Jobs Credit Scheme fits into its long—term economic strategy for Singapore.

It will announce its decision on the future of the scheme on Tuesday.

But a more immediate concern for some workers is whether the scheme, which helps companies offset a portion of wage costs, is being abused.

This was raised at a dialogue with Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Finance and Transport, Lim Hwee Hua, on Sunday.

It was Mrs Lim first ministerial walkabout since taking office in April. And her morning in Bishan began with a trolley race with Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng — who is also MP for the area — and Education and Second Defence Minister Dr Ng Eng Hen.

This was followed by a quick game of woodball.

Then it was on to more serious business — a dialogue with residents at the local community club.

Questions ranged from neighbourhood issues, to concerns over public transport and the Jobs Credit Scheme.

One resident asked: "What happens if an employer who is given the Jobs Credit misuses or abuses these subsidies?"

Mrs Lim responded: "In a way, putting money back to the employers comes with the expectation that they will do what is in their best effort to reduce the need to retrench. But some businesses, in all fairness, would still need to restructure anyway. So I think we would need to look at the specifics of the case."

Mrs Lim said retrenchments may not indicate abuse of the system.

She added that abuse was also hard to define, as the subsidies go into the company’s cash flow. And it is up to the company to decide how it wants to use the government wage subsidy.

Speaking to reporters later, Mrs Lim added that it is "technically difficult" to define what counts as abuse, as the scheme is a "blunt instrument" where the firm can decide how it wants to use the government wage subsidy.

She explained: "Because it is basically cash to companies, it is technically difficult to define what is abuse, because it goes into cash flow. You also cannot judge that once a company has retrenched workers, it must be abusing the system, because some of them might just need to be restructured.

"So I think it would be difficult to judge it quite quickly. But I think there is enough peer pressure out there for companies to feel like, if they had retrenched at the word go, they would feel quite bad about it. But if it is because of business circumstances, regardless of how hard they have tried, they still needed to retrench, then I think we would have to let market forces work its way."

Mrs Lim also noted recent calls on the ground for the Jobs Credit Scheme to be extended, but she said that whether that happens depends on the economic outlook. However, Mrs Lim also stressed that the scheme was meant to be a short—term measure to save jobs, and in the longer term, the focus should be on improving worker productivity.

On concerns that stallholders would be left jobless should wet markets be taken over by supermarket chains, Mrs Lim said the challenge would be to help them get new skills and find alternative jobs.

She said: "The challenge for them, and for government, is not very different from those who have been rendered jobless from restructuring. So it is the same thing as those where the manufacturing activity has changed and they are now retrenched. We would then have to find new ways of re—skilling them, finding them alternatives so that they can continue to earn an income as well."

CNA/ms

[kueytoc]

Singapore dollar eases on profit-taking after MAS policy

Reuters - 2 hours 6 minutes ago

SINGAPORE, Oct 12 - The Singapore dollar eased on Monday as investors took profits from its recent gains after the central bank stuck to a neutral bias in its policy review but appeared wary about prospects for exports and global growth.

In an expected move, the Monetary Authority of Singapore , which steers monetary policy by managing the currency within a undisclosed trade-weighted band, kept its zero appreciation policy unchanged.

The move came as the economy expanded 0.8 percent in the third quarter of 2009 from a year earlier, returning to growth after three quarters of annual contraction.

The Singapore dollar fell as far as 1.4010 per U.S. dollar, down nearly 0.4 percent from Friday's close and compared to levels of 1.3950 just before the policy announcement.

"U.S. dollar/Singapore dollar is higher on profit taking and also on comments from MAS that the economy is not seen sustaining strong third-quarter expansion and that export demand has yet to recover fully for a place that lives and dies on exports," said a trader.

The Singapore dollar rose as high as 1.3876 per dollar on Thursday in line with its regional peers, its highest since August.

The currency has gained 10 percent against the dollar since early March, buoyed by optimism about the global economy.

"Inflation is well under control. Thus there is no pressing need for Singapore to tighten policy now," said David Cohen, economist at Action Economics in Singapore.

"Singapore is keeping its policy neutral against a basket of currencies, so this represents continued appreciation against the U.S. dollar, which has been weakening against the rest of the world," he said.

The MAS targets Singapore dollar's nominal effective exchange rate -- its relative value compared with a basket of currencies of trading partners -- instead of setting interest rates.

In April, the central bank lowered the centre of the currency band to help stimulate the economy, which leapt out its worst ever recession in the second quarter.

Reporting by Vidya Ranganathan and Kevin Yao; Editing by Kim Coghill

Singapore economy grows 0.8 percent in Q3: govt

AFP - Monday, October 12

SINGAPORE, Oct 12, 2009 (AFP) – Singapore's economy grew by an estimated 0.8 percent in the three months to September from a year ago, the first such growth in five quarters, the government said Monday.

While gross domestic product (GDP) will fall in 2009, the government amended its full-year 2009 forecast to a contraction of 2.0 to 2.5 percent, well below the previous estimate of negative 4.0 to 6.0 percent.

"A clear but modest recovery is underway globally, at least for the next three or four quarters," the ministry of trade and industry said in a statement.

The year-on-year expansion confirmed Singapore's recovery from the worst recession in its history, which began in the second quarter of 2008.