Bangalore Pix

Just wanted to illustrate my point regarding my Indian posting earlier.

That's our hotel, the Samrat Residency.

A theatre opposite our hotel.

Mentri Square, Bangalore's largest shopping mall.

This is their fire extinguisher system. Its really most hilarious than it looks! There're two mandatory buckets of water and sand! Haha.

This I found at a Standard Chartered autolobby. Its really funny if you read the levels of complaints you can go all the way to. I guess the Indians take complaining to a whole new level here.

Wet market. A very colourful sight indeed.

This is standard jam 24/7 over there.

Leader in technology and engineering? Our hotel lift. That switch on the top right corner is for the internal fan. There is no close door button.

Couldn't resist this picture of their police car. All government vehicles are of the oldest models. Feels like you're travelling back in time, until you see the Suzuki Swifts and Toyota Altises.

Floods

Is the rain not gonna stop?!

It's just getting heavier as we speak!

Freak weather all over the world. The freak rains, freak snowfalls and floods. Does not bode well for agricultural prices through and through.

Time to move more funds into commodity futures or ETFs. Crop prices are going to go through the roof!

IPPT 2011

Pull-ups 6
Sit-ups 39
SBJ 213cm
Shuttle Run 9.9s
2.4km 12.28min

Missed out on Silver by 8s. :(

Bangalore, India

Just back a couple of days. Here are some wider takeaways from my Indian experience.

1) The rich poor divide is enormous
You know the income gap that Singaporeans always love to complain about? Well it's nothing compared to what you see in India where there are the poor, and then there are those who have absolutely nothing. There are the rich, and then there are the filthy (literally) rich.

2) Pollution is a serious issue
From the garbage on the streets to the dust everywhere to the exhaust and fumes in traffic, Indian cities provide the most negative pollution demonstrations I've seen. In fact someone commented that it is healthier to be a smoker in Bangalore because at least there's a filter at the end of the cigarette.

3) Basic infrastructure is still lacking
Forget the pictures of skyscrapers and beautiful urban landscapes. This place doesn't even have clean water, technology is either good, or more often terribly hopeless, transportation is archaic, and poverty is abundant.

4) Too much democracy is a bitch
When everyone has too much freedom of speech, nothing ever gets done. All it takes are a couple of pessimists and things get ground to a halt in a sea of debates, objections, accusations and counter claims. It is therefore, a survival requirement to speak better than to do better in India. Also why Indians make the best lawyers.

5) Bureaucracy is an even sluttier bitch
When all objections and talk fails, throw in the red tape. Pile up the paperwork. That'll ensure no one can be bothered to do anything.

All in, there's ample reasons why China is far sprinting ahead of India as an emerging market.

Still, I had a really fun and memorable trip. Might never do it ever again though.

An Indian Wedding

Coming up real soon.

Interesting...

New Property Rules

So on Thursday we hear of the new property cooling measures.

1) Sellers Stamp Duty is raised
2) Loan to value capped at 60%

What is really going to affect us is the 2nd ruling which means we'll have to save up even more.

I think this round of drastic measures will surely cause the property market to fall quite drastically.

Not as many people are going to buy 2nd properties anymore, probably preferring to put their money into equities or funds instead.

The worst affected will be the high-end to mid-end condos, which will see less short-term buyers especially those from overseas hoping to make a quick buck. Selling within 4 years effectively wipes out most gains due to the stamp duty being so high. Also those wanting to buy 2nd properties tend to be looking at this segment of condos. There will be less condo buyers as a whole as well since more people are willing to sit in the sidelines and wait.

As such, expect condo prices to fall quite a fair bit, especially the older ones. We are also already reading about new launches turning into ghost towns overnight.

Once these prices fall, HDB prices will follow suit since some 1st timers will rather buy condos since they are more affordable.

Rental in prime areas, and landed properties should be unaffected. This set of rulings will make 1st time buyers the happiest, provided they can wait for the cooling measures to take full effect.

I think our gahmen is very smart. Launched and sell off most ECs, BTOs and DBSS projects already at the top of the market then only announce this ruling. I doubt you will find any new launches anytime soon.

We should see the whole pricing mechanism begin after a 6 month period when sellers just cannot than anymore. This is now officially a buyers market.

Hopefully I can find something I really like in the East Coast soon.

New Astrological Signs?

For real? Looks like it, though it still depends on which calendar you follow.

Go google for more information!

Capricorn: Jan. 20 – Feb. 16
Aquarius: Feb. 16 – March 11
Pisces: March 11 – April 18
Aries: April 18 – May 13
Taurus: May 13 – June 21
Gemini: June 21 – July 20
Cancer: July 20 – Aug. 10
Leo: Aug. 10 – Sept. 16
Virgo: Sept. 16 – Oct. 30
Libra: Oct. 30 – Nov. 23
Scorpio: Nov. 23 – 29
Ophiuchus: Nov. 29 – Dec. 17
Sagittarius: Dec. 17 – Jan. 20

Astrologers who use the dates and positions dictated by Near Eastern astronomers hundreds of years before the Christian Era are well aware of it, and they don’t care. They’re not going to change the dates they use, and they’re not going to add a “13th sign” – Ophiuchus – to the Zodiac.

Marine Parade

This town is turning old. Even the government is using this place as a test bed for elderly amenities upgrading.

Yet it's residential charm and East Coast vibe remains attractive as ever.

I wonder if it will end up like Chinatown someday. A town only frequented by the old and shunned by the young.

Where even numerous upgradings and new developments fail to attract younger families to move there.

The feeling I get is now of nostalgia compared to the optimism and growth oozing out of Sengkang now.

Tough choice, tough choice.

When Everyone Is Buliish

When everyone is so bullish about the 2011 outlook, it is time to trim all your stock holdings.

2011 feels like a weird year economically. Something just doesn't feel right, some numbers just don't add up and there is that still-waters-run-deep emotion in the air.

Better be wary. Here are some things to note:

- US debt is still at an all time high. With QE, USD should become cheaper relative to other currencies. But has it? And the US stock markets keep going up when USD is cheaper just because stock values against other currencies are cheaper? Something doesn't quite add up.

- Eurozone troubles all over? I thought they labelled those countries PIIGS for a reason? And with Greece and Ireland dusted, Portugal is next. Yet European markets are flying? Even when the Euro is struggling to exist? Something doesn't quite add up.

- Property in Asia still soaring through the roof. From Shanghai to Hong Kong to Singapore. Even with government cooling measures, prices are still soaring. How much higher can all this go? Something doesn't quite add up.

Get ready for a couple of so called black swans this year. A war, a natural disaster or a terrorist strike. The economic environment is like a house of tinder and wood right now waiting for a spark to ignite a meltdown.

Beware!

Resolutions 2011

Making it a fast one. Here's my five for this year:

1) Exercise at least twice a week
2) Double my total 2010 savings
3) Achieve overall >20% ROI
4) Watch son grow up
5) Continue nurturing existing friendship circle

Hope all goes well in the year of the Rabbit!