Politics in Myanmar: Not so fast; Aung San Suu Kyi’s road to the presidency grows longer and more winding

Politics in Myanmar: Not so fast; Aung San Suu Kyi’s road to the presidency grows longer and more winding

Feb 8th 2014 | SINGAPORE | From the print edition

EVER since Myanmar’s army-dominated government began its political reforms in 2011, the question of whether the country’s most popular politician would be able to stand for president next year has hung over the whole process. Aung San Suu Kyi is a Nobel laureate, among the most famous women in the world, and leader of the country’s biggest opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD). But all this will count for nothing if Myanmar’s constitution continues to bar Miss Suu Kyi from standing for president. Changing the constitution to allow this has become the single most important test for the country’s reformers. But to judge by recent events, altering the constitution will be harder than many had expected. Read more of this post

Approaching the endgame: A messy poll leaves Thailand in an even worse pickle

Approaching the endgame: A messy poll leaves Thailand in an even worse pickle

Feb 8th 2014 | From the print edition

ELECTIONS are supposed to provide political solutions. The one Thailand held on February 2nd served only to further exacerbate its problems. Both sides of the political divide claimed a victory. The governing Pheu Thai party, which had defied protesters’ efforts to scupper the vote through disruption, intimidation and a boycott, could boast that nearly 90% of polling stations opened for business and that nearly half of voters turned out. But the protesters and the main opposition Democrat Party which backs them thwarted voting in enough places to mean that, constitutionally, no government can be formed. They may now succeed in having the whole election annulled by the courts. And these might even find a reason to dissolve Pheu Thai. The enemies of Yingluck Shinawatra, the prime minister, are inching closer to their goal of forcing her to resign. Read more of this post

Emerging Markets Buffeted By Bipolar World: America’s rock, China’s hard place

Emerging Markets Buffeted By Bipolar World

By Mike Dolan on 11:32 am February 6, 2014.

London. Ailing emerging markets are caught between a rock and a hard place — Washington and Beijing to be more precise.

For much of 2013, the investor narrative was that currencies and stock markets from Mumbai to Moscow and Istanbul to Johannesburg were running aground as Federal Reserve largesse ebbed away. Read more of this post

Emerging market equity fund outflows this year surpass whole of 2013

Updated: Friday February 7, 2014 MYT 5:57:39 PM

Emerging market equity fund outflows this year surpass whole of 2013

LONDON: Outflows from emerging market equity funds since the start of this year now exceed those for all of 2013 after investors continued to flee emerging stock and bond funds during the past week, banks said on Friday, citing EPFR Global data. Read more of this post

The fiasco with KLIA2: Time to get a handle on cost

Updated: Saturday February 8, 2014 MYT 8:05:37 AM

Time to get a handle on cost

BY JAGDEV SINGH SIDHU

A DELAY in finishing off big projects makes news and it’s often an embarrassment when a project is bogged down and completed beyond the original deadline.

It reveals poor planning and execution, but the one aspect that really slips the minds of many is whether the project is completed within the original budget. Read more of this post

If our first prime minister was still alive, what would he say about Malaysia today?

Updated: Tuesday February 4, 2014 MYT 6:54:06 AM

Remembering the Tunku

BY WAN SAIFUL WAN JAN

If our first prime minister was still alive, what would he say about Malaysia today?

THIS Saturday, Feb 8, marks the 111th birthday of Tunku Abdul Rahman. Not only did he take our country to independence in 1957, he also led the coming together of four entities – Sabah, Sarawak, Singapore and Malaya – to form the Federation of Malaysia. Read more of this post

Malaysian tycoon Tan Sri Robert Tan seems to be on a roll to unlock the values of some listed companies; A close associate of Tun Daim Zainuddin, Tan’s company Spanco obtained a privatised contract in 1993 to service govt-owned vehicles.

Updated: Saturday February 8, 2014 MYT 11:11:18 AM

Robert Tan’s PDZ in the limelight

BY WONG WEI-SHEN

LOW-PROFILE tycoon Tan Sri Robert Tan Hua Choon seems to be on a roll to unlock the values of some his listed companies. His modus operandi: the entry of new shareholders that bring with them new businesses.

The 72-year-old, dubbed the elusive “Casio King”, only last month saw his Malaysia Aica Bhd (Maica) make headlines after it received a takeover offer from property developer Sunsuria Development Sdn Bhd. The move sent Maica shares sky rocketing by some 60%. Read more of this post

Beijing may introduce congestion charge as early as 2015

Beijing may introduce congestion charge as early as 2015

Staff Reporter

2014-02-08

Beijing is to unveil plans for a low-emission zone and vehicle congestion charge by the end of the year, with the measures to come into effect as early as 2015, reports the Beijing Youth Daily, the official paper of the Communist Youth League of China in Beijing. Read more of this post

Rent poor households estimated at 27,000 to 31,000 in Seoul

Rent poor households estimated at 27,000 to 31,000 in Seoul

Ko Jae-man

2014.02.07 17:12:48

The rent poor refer to those who barely make their ends meet by spending most of their income on pricy housing rents. Generally, those whose housing rents represent over 30 percent of their total income fall into the category of the rent poor.  Read more of this post

At GE, a push for innovation through partnerships; The industrial titan is using its investment arm to partner with outside companies to produce and commercialize new products

At GE, a push for innovation through partnerships

By Chanelle Bessette February 7, 2014: 2:37 PM ET

The industrial titan is using its investment arm to partner with outside companies to produce and commercialize new products.

FORTUNE — General Electric (GE) has a long history of developing, manufacturing, and selling products across more than a dozen sectors, but the industrial giant is using its investment arm to find untapped resources for innovation. Read more of this post

Winter Olympics 2014 puts Russia’s corruption — and incompetence —on world stage

Winter Olympics 2014 puts Russia’s corruption — and incompetence —on world stage

Diane Francis | February 7, 2014 | Last Updated: Feb 7 1:33 PM ET
In 1787, Czarina Catherine II went to Ukraine and Crimea to inspect her new acquisitions. They had been devastated by war, but when she arrived, her trusted military leader Grigori Potemkin ordered the construction of fake villages to impress the Empress and her allies. Read more of this post

Heenan Blaikie’s lesson for Bay Street: Change or die; Heenan Blaikie’s sudden demise is a much-needed wake-up call for Canadian law firms, which are chasing too little high-dollar business

Heenan Blaikie’s lesson for Bay Street: Change or die

Drew Hasselback | February 8, 2014 7:00 AM ET

Ralph Lean was enjoying his time at Heenan Blaikie. It was a cosy perch that kept him busy, enabling him to work his Rolodex and, more importantly to him, stick it to anyone who thinks that 68-year-old lawyers are past their best-before date. He aimed to work well into his 70s. He had arrived at Heenan Blaikie just eight months ago, having left his previous Bay Street firm because he had reached mandatory retirement age for an equity partner. Read more of this post

Horrific corruption: A public servant pocketed as much as 5.8 billion won of taxpayer’s money by stealing the personal data of more than 100,000 citizens held by the government

2014-02-06 17:18

Horrific corruption

A public servant pocketed as much as 5.8 billion won of taxpayer’s money by stealing the personal data of more than 100,000 citizens held by the government. Surprisingly, the official, surnamed Choi, mobilized his brother, daughter and other relatives in this ugly case of fraud. Read more of this post

GS E&C to sell assets to ease cash shortage

2014-02-07 16:25

GS E&C to sell assets to ease cash shortage

By Yi Whan-woo
GS Engineering & Construction (E&C) plans to sell its luxury hotel operator to secure capital and ease a liquidity shortage, the company said Friday. Its debt ratio reached 276.9 percent last year.
The construction arm of GS Group is the biggest shareholder of Parnas Hotel with a 67.56 percent stake. Read more of this post

Rest, Reflect, Repent: Is the flight from risk a mere moderating of recent raging expectations, or a grave portent?

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2014

Rest, Reflect, Repent

By KOPIN TAN | MORE ARTICLES BY AUTHOR

Is the flight from risk a mere moderating of recent raging expectations, or a grave portent?

History repeats itself. Apparently, so do financial markets, because the withdrawal of the Federal Reserve’s easy-money stimulus is provoking a drama we’ve seen before.

You’d think bond prices would droop with the Fed cutting back its third — and biggest — bond-buying program, but the opposite is happening in 2014. As was the case when the first two rounds of quantitative easing ended, bonds have sprung to life, while the yield on 10-year Treasuries has shriveled from 3.03% to 2.68% in five weeks. And while the Standard & Poor’s 500 pulled back just 5.8% before buyers stepped in last week, more than half of the stocks within the index had already corrected more than 10% from their recent peaks. Read more of this post

McDonald’s Opens in Vietnam, Bringing Big Mac to Fans of Banh Mi

McDonald’s Opens in Vietnam, Bringing Big Mac to Fans of Banh Mi

By MIKE IVESFEB. 7, 2014

HANOI, Vietnam — When Nguyen Hoang Anh and Nguyen Thi My Hao started dating, the 23-year-olds agreed to disagree about food: Mr. Anh adores Western-style fast food, but Ms. Hao mainly eats pho, a popular noodle soup, and other northern Vietnamese foods she has loved since childhood. Read more of this post

For Many Older Americans, an Entrepreneurial Path: People in the 55-to-64 age group, one study has found, had the highest rate of business start-ups in the last decade, despite the often difficult task of raising money

For Many Older Americans, an Entrepreneurial Path

By KERRY HANNONFEB. 7, 2014

Marilyn Arnold, 66, the founder of Marilyn Arnold Designs, creates keepsakes by converting wedding dresses into decorative pillow covers. Steve Hebert for The New York Times Read more of this post

M&A Funds: Sexy and Steady? The steady increase in M&A activity has many investors wondering how to take advantage of Wall Street’s deal making

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2014

M&A Funds: Sexy and Steady

By AVI SALZMAN | MORE ARTICLES BY AUTHOR

The steady increase in M&A activity has many investors wondering how to take advantage of Wall Street’s deal making. These two funds do it well—but don’t be fooled by the wrapper. These are essentially income funds.

Arbitrage has a risky—even sexy—reputation. In the 2012 film Arbitrage, hedge-fund magnate Richard Gere seduces a mistress, flies on a private jet, and defrauds investors, all in a day’s work. Read more of this post

The US Was An Emerging Market In This 209-Year-Old Chart

WILL ORTEL, INSIDE INVESTING
FEB. 7, 2014, 6:42 PM 2,728 4

It’s easy to forget that business and commerce have been around for a long time, in fact almost as long as civilization itself.

William Playfair—who among other things, invented the bar chart—published a book in 1805 which investigated the causes of decline and fall of wealthy nations. Read more of this post

Bitcoin Implodes As The World’s Most Famous Exchange Halts All Withdrawals

Bitcoin Implodes As The World’s Most Famous Exchange Halts All Withdrawals
ROB WILE

FEB. 7, 2014, 9:11 AM 41,087 53

Mt. Gox, the Japan-based bitcoin exchange, was forced to halt all Bitcoin withdrawals this morning amid an “increase in withdrawal traffic.”

According to a memo on Mt. Gox’s website, “In order for our team to resolve the withdrawal issue it is necessary for a [temporary] pause on all withdrawal requests to obtain a clear technical view of the current processes. We apologize for the sudden short notice.” Read more of this post

A Walk-Thru The First Shadow Bank Run… 250 Year Ago

A Walk-Thru The First Shadow Bank Run… 250 Year Ago

Tyler Durden on 02/07/2014 15:23 -0500

Plain vanilla bank runs are as old as fractional reserve banking itself, and usually happen just before or during an economic and financial collapse, when all trust (i.e. credit) in counterparties disappears and it is every man, woman and child, and what meager savings they may have, for themselves. However, when it comes to shadow bank runs, which take place when institutions are so mismatched in interest, credit and/or maturity exposure that something just snaps as it did in the hours after the Lehman collapse, that due to the sheer size of their funding exposure that they promptly grind the system to a halt even before conventional banks can open their doors to the general public, the conventional wisdom is that this is a novel development (and one which is largely misunderstood). It isn’t. Read more of this post

Presenting China’s Largest Shadow Bank

Presenting China’s Largest Shadow Bank

Tyler Durden on 02/07/2014 18:35 -0500

Submitted by Nicholas Borst via The Peterson Institute blog,

Shadow banks in China come in a variety of forms and guises. The term is applied to everything from trust companies and wealth management products to pawnshops and underground lenders. What surprising is that China’s biggest shadow bank is actually a creation of the central government and receives billions in financing directly from the banks.  Even more interesting, this shadow bank recently pulled off a successful international IPO where it raised billions of dollars. Read more of this post

Companies take pre-packaged news to another level; Rather than simply sending out a press release, big companies are putting together websites, complete with video interviews, slideshows and “asset packs” of relevant documents

Last updated: February 7, 2014 11:22 pm

Companies take pre-packaged news to another level

By Brooke Masters

Treat the corporate trend with the same scepticism as for political ads

This week saw an escalation of the new corporate trend toward pre-packaging the news. Rather than simply sending out a press release, big companies are putting together websites, complete with video interviews, slideshows and “asset packs” of relevant documents ahead of big announcements. Read more of this post

Shale: miracle, revolution or bandwagon?

February 7, 2014 1:27 pm

Shale: miracle, revolution or bandwagon?

By Terry Smith

Investors are far from certain to make money from shale

Unless you have been in hibernation for the past few years you will have heard that there is a shale hydrocarbon “revolution” or “miracle” under way. Barack Obama, the US president, pledged support for shale gas development in his 2012 State of the Union speech. David Cameron has urged opponents of fracking to “get on board”. Read more of this post

Winners and losers in the new China; Traditional state-backed industries are yesterday’s story

February 7, 2014 6:21 pm

Winners and losers in the new China

By Rafael Halpin

“It will be very painful and even feel like cutting one’s wrist.” So predicted Li Keqiang, China’s premier, as he discussed the task ahead of him during his first press conference last March.

Not the most inviting prospect for investors looking to make a play on China. But they should certainly take heed of these words. Li is the man who, together with president Xi Jinping, must lead a reform programme regarded by analysts as the most fundamental in decades. It will affect almost every part of an economy worth $9.4tn (Britain’s annual output, for comparison, is $2.4tn). Read more of this post

Communist Vietnam gets first taste of the Big Mac

Communist Vietnam gets first taste of the Big Mac

Saturday, February 8, 2014 – 15:40

AFP

HO CHI MINH CITY – Four decades after the Vietnam war ended, US fast-food giant McDonald’s opened its first restaurant in the communist country Saturday, aiming to lure a rising middle class away from rice and noodles. Read more of this post

Welcome to Bakersfield, California: How an ordinary town became one of the home foreclosure capitals of America

February 7, 2014 12:28 pm

Welcome to Bakersfield, California

By Gary Silverman

How an ordinary town became one of the home foreclosure capitals of America

“You don’t know me but you don’t like me,
You say you care less how I feel.
How many of you that sit and judge me
Ever walked the streets of Bakersfield?”

Homer Joy, “Streets of Bakersfield”

On the spring day in 1988 when he turned 41, Carl Cole left the small town in North Carolina where he had grown up as a boy and fallen into disgrace as a man. With his wife and their two sons he headed out west, to Bakersfield, California, and prayed for something better. A Christian, Cole had seen miracles with his own eyes – believers speaking in tongues, the sick healed by faith alone – and he clung to the words of scripture promising that “all things work together for good to them that love God”. Read more of this post

Sorry, Writers, but I’m Siding With Google’s Robots; Copyright laws too often stifle the creativity they claim to protect. Time for a 21st-century update

Sorry, Writers, but I’m Siding With Google’s RobotsSorry, Writers, but I’m Siding With Google’s Robots

Copyright laws too often stifle the creativity they claim to protect. Time for a 21st-century update.

JAMES PANERO

Feb. 7, 2014 6:23 p.m. ET

How much did mention of “copyright” increase in American books published in the second half of the 20th century? The answer is by nearly a factor of three. How about “intellectual property,” a neologism designed to equate copyright with real property? By a whopping factor of 70. But what about “public domain,” the term for our creative commons where the arts are replanted and renewed? The answer is almost not at all. Read more of this post

Chanos’s Kynikos Opportunity Fund Lost 14% in 2013

Chanos’s Kynikos Opportunity Fund Lost 14% in 2013

Fund Posts Largest Decline in at Least a Decade

ROB COPELAND

Updated Feb. 7, 2014 7:11 p.m. ET

A boom year for many global markets produced losses for one famously pessimistic hedge-fund manager.

James Chanos’s Kynikos Opportunity Fund fell 14% last year, the largest decline in at least a decade, according to a document detailing fund performance. That was the second consecutive year of losses for that fund, which dropped less than 1% in 2012. Read more of this post

If you want to go shopping in a minefield, make sure you are wearing enough armor. Most emerging-market investors, it seems, aren’t.

Feb. 7, 2014, 7:02 p.m. EST

How to Invest in Emerging Markets Now

By Joe Light , The Wall Street Journal

If you want to go shopping in a minefield, make sure you are wearing enough armor.

Most emerging-market investors, it seems, aren’t.

Emerging-market mutual funds and their exchange-traded cousins have been hit with $18 billion in withdrawals this year, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch and EPFR Global. Read more of this post