Some ideas on Solving Subsidized Petrol Problems in Malaysia

I am reluctant to touch on this subject because many might think my ideas are cruel, but I assure you it is for the benefits of all Malaysians in the long run. So, may I ask you to read on please? Here are the strategies

(1) Cut the Bleeding Arm
The quick fix for all the petrol smugglings, inappropriate consumptions, & you-name-it ..etc. : START SELLING AT NON-SUBSIDIZED PRICES. PERIOD. Don't curse me yet. We need stern policy to get things right top-down. Do it the decisive way. Clean cut, bukan soap opera. (OK, enough). WIth this, lots of administrative works of government will be reduced too, not only the subsidies to those non-entitling parties (sorry to my Singaporean friends loh).
Brilliant right? Now Malaysians will finally realise petrols are precioius. Wastage will be reduced naturally. Probably Malaysians will be more healthy, walk more drive less mah.

(2) Rewards and Penalties
When (1) is implemented, lower income people with own transports will be affected, immediately. To solve this problem of short-term shock, a immediate subsidy should be provided to those entitling vehicle owners directly, eg. Check , direct bank-in, and etc. Comon, you know where to send the Speeding Ticket, then you should know where to send us the moneyyy. JPJ have our records, IRD have our records, blah blah blah. Of course, a careful formula need to be worked out on deciding what type of vehicles entitling to what amount of subsidies. And I do suggest 2.0L and above, get Zero subsidy. 3.0L and above, get to pay additional for Luxury Tax. (or even make it illegal to own 3L car, I don't care). Now you like me better? And I assume you don't drive a Hammer, do you? kekeke. For mid to long term, integrate this whole thing into the income tax form, like adding a row for Petrol Consumption Rebate. Likewise, for the manufacturing / transport industries, tax rebate as subsidy.

(3) Let them Dog Eat Dog for Malaysians' sakes
This is the best part, I love this. Now petrol stations sales will be affected, how to attract customers? Cut your prices lah. Cut your margin, hire less workers. Easy licenses don't mean easy money OK. Walk an extra mile, won't you? (err.. I should start marketing electric fly swatter to those petrol stations taukeh..) akekekek.

My simple closing statement: We Malaysians need to be more efficient. PERIOD. (opps, period means more bleeding :D) FULL STOP.

No sign to U-Turn yet

Volatile FKLI. Unusual spike on 23/May 10AM.

Gold Mining Company in Malaysia

Old News: PGL in new gold extraction venture

Peninsular Gold Ltd (PGL), the latest to join the gold mining industry in Pahang, is investing in a state-of-the-art Carbonin-Leach processing plant in Raub, which is expected to start production next year.

The plant, with an initial production of 25,000 ounces of gold from Bukit Koman, is geared to step up production eventually to 100,000 ounces a year.

Speaking at the official ground breaking ceremony of the new plant by Datuk Adnan Yaakob, the Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) of Pahang, PGL's Chairman and Chief Executive, Datuk Seri Andrew Kam Tai Yeow said, the new plant, with the latest technology would be able to maximise the extraction of gold from soil by up to 85% from the 15 % based on the conventional technology.

PGL, whose wholly-owned subsidiary, Raub Australian Gold Mining Sdn Bhd, has been granted a 20-year rights to mine gold at the 202-hectare site in Bukit Koman, expects to export the entire production of the gold.

The company, which targets to extract a minimum of five million ounces of gold in Malaysia, is expected to invest an additional RM150 million subsequently, for extensive drilling works and possible expansion of the new plant.

"Malaysia has a mining culture and the operating cost at about US$200 (RM702) an ounce for tailings deposits here is very conducive for gold mining. Kam said.

Tailings deposits are residues from conventional methods of gold extraction, which were not able to get the maximum gold yield from the soil. Hence the new plant will be able to process up to 1.1 million tonnes of tailings a year.

PGL, listed on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange, has brought in more than RM50 million from its London listing in 2005, to invest in its gold mining and exploration operations in Malaysia. To-date, it has invested RM25 million for exploration works in Bukit Koman.

With the current gold prices of between US$680 and US$700 (RM2,380 and RM2,457) an ounce, the company expects to generate some RM60 million a year in revenue just from its initial production.

Adapted from NST Business Times, 3 March 2007

Gold is Hot, but Expect Some Strong Resistance Ahead

One of the scenarios, bounced back by 940~950 level before testing higher high (of recent high 953.90)

Go Gold Go

Buffett Chicken Soup of the Day

Excerpted from his 2007 letter to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholders:

...But if a business requires a superstar to produce great results, the business itself cannot be deemed great. A medical partnership led by your area’s premier brain surgeon may enjoy outsized and growing earnings, but that tells little about its future...

Ring any bell? Yeah, Tony & Airasia.. wa ha ha..

Move On and Move Forward

Normally news medias financial analysis is just about skin-deep, but I found this one (of biz.thestar.com.my) has some depth which I am inclined to buy the story... I said so not because I have long position in Gold :D

...Third, the fall in global supply also contributed to the rise in the price of gold. In 2007, global supply of gold dropped 3.0% year-on-year to 3,469 tonnes.
Mine production sagged 2.9% year-on-year to a 10-year low of 2,047 tonnes (2,108 tonnes in 2006). Over 2004 to 2007, the top suppliers have cut their production levels as a result of rising exploration and mining costs. For example, South Africa, the US, and Australia cut their production by 36.3%, 15.5%, and 28.9%, respectively to 272 tonnes, 250 tonnes, and 251 tonnes by 2007.
Only China has consistently raised its production levels from 172 tonnes in 2004 to 270 tonnes in 2007...

Devastated

I do not know what to write. My heart mourns with people of China.

Golden Dragon Can't Hide No More

Check out this intra-day New York Spot Gold (Bid) price chart. Looks like a dragon ready to launch... "Catch me if you can." is her statement.

Exchange Rate RM 3.2665 / USD !

US dollars gaining strength against Ringgit Malaysia!

Can Sapu or Not?

Need some charge-up this morning?

Leadership in Three Simple Steps

Leadership is about supporting and building employee morale and productivity...To maintain and build high performance work relationships you must focus on three core ideas: reduce ambiguity, be fair and stay positive.

Reduce Ambiguity
People hate the unknown, the unclear and the unnecessarily complex... assumptions are rarely correct. Typically, they are negative and self-serving. All of this is time not spent working productively because you failed to go the extra few steps required to really reduce ambiguity.
...With great communication and clear performance goals you will go a long way towards reducing unnecessary employee ambiguity.

Be Fair
This does not mean treating people the same. You only want to treat people identically in terms of creating an environment where expectations are clear and opportunities are open to everyone...
One vital key to not only being fair, but being perceived as fair, is to allow people a voice in shaping decisions that affect them...

Stay Positive
Positive emotions (just like negative emotions) are infectious...
Next, realize that to be a leader is to be a cheerleader....

Author's Bio : Dr. Dewett
Dr. Dewett is a business professor, author, consultant and speaker specializing in leadership and organizational life... more at drdewett.com.

Crude Palm Oil Weely Chart 080513

CPO weekly chart doesn't look very healthy, has been very volatile for the past few weeks. But.. but.. this plantation counter is whispering to me to take her leh.. how ar?

Nice to Watch, Good to Listen, Sit Back and Enjoy!

Marie Digby - Say It Again

KLCI Weekly Chart Review 080509

Considered it a miracle KLCI holding up positively despite heavy selling pressures on Maybank and TMI. Could some funds buying in others discreetly camouflaged by the selling? I don't want to speculate about it. Let the chart tell the story:
KLCI weekly chart flirted around with its trend line. 1297 level proves to be tough resistance. Most likely it will come down again before another attempt to break the 1297.


Crude Palm Oil: This one is worth watching as it might have found some support and ready to trend up again.

Results are out! Case Study: A Tale of Three Steel Kingdoms

Talk Only Mah!: Case Study: A Tale of Three Steel Kingdoms

He he, the news was out on 9/May, about Malaysia scrapping ceiling price on steel bars. Now, it is time to take a look at these 3 steel kingdoms' performances since I last blogged about it...
1) Annjoo +16%
2) Kinstel +10.71%
3) Onastel +7.7%
My pick on Annjoo about 3 months ago was genius like. The credits should go to Chart Reading. Nonetheless, I think the steel play is over, since the news has already removed market anticipation.

Gold is in Correction Mood II

Talk Only Mah!: Gold is in Correction Mood

Seems like not coming down any further for now. RM getting weak against USD. Is this the good timing now? I think the margin of safety is good.

Buffett the Investor or Great Trader?

Excerpted from his 2007 letter to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholders (which didn't come with the picture...):

...We made one large sale last year. In 2002 and 2003 Berkshire bought 1.3% of PetroChina for $488 million, a price that valued the entire business at about $37 billion. Charlie and I then felt that the company was worth about $100 billion. By 2007, two factors had materially increased its value: the price of oil had climbed significantly, and PetroChina’s management had done a great job in building oil and gas reserves. In the second half of last year, the market value of the company rose to $275 billion, about what we thought it was worth compared to other giant oil companies. So we sold our holdings for $4 billion.

They purchased PetroChina when we were ignorant of global crude oil supply issues "years before". They disposed PetroChina when we were just "starting" to notice bullish China market. They made 700% ROC (grossly, not factored in dividends, exchange rate gain, taxes, and etc.) in just about 5 years time. If that is not called smart money, what else is? Do you still think Buffett is a slow moving boring old fat investor? Think again. He is a probably greatest and fastest moving trader on earth.

Buffett on Lousy Business

Excerpted from his 2007 letter to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholders:

... The worst sort of business is one that grows rapidly, requires significant capital to engender the growth, and then earns little or no money. Think airlines. Here a durable competitive advantage has proven elusive ever since the days of the Wright Brothers. Indeed, if a farsighted capitalist had been present at Kitty Hawk, he would have done his successors a huge favor by shooting Orville down.

Shooting down Orville (of the Wright Brothers)? kekeke..talk about werid sense of humor.
Apply it to our KLSE : Still interested in Airasia? Helloooo.. anyone?

Investment Can be very Easy

Check out this IOI chart, had you invested RM10,000 in Apr/2006 closing price, it would have grown to RM38,503by Mar/2008 conservatively. And if you could repeat this performance 4x, you would be having RM2.2 million in just about 8 years time. Pretty straight forward huh? The difficult part, it takes skills to identify a growth stock like this and mental strength to sit on the soaring price (Sometimes it pays to be like Turtle, slowly but surely. Unlike Rabbit, hopping in and out).

The Power of Dreams : Honda Civic 2008

Simply gorgeous.

The King has Spoken

These words of him should provide many peace of mind, coupled with his latest acquisition move on Wm. Wrigley Jr.

May 3 (Bloomberg) -- Warren Buffett, chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., said the global credit crunch has eased for bankers, and the Federal Reserve probably averted more failures by helping to rescue Bear Stearns Cos.

``The worst of the crisis in Wall Street is over,'' Buffett said today on Bloomberg Television. ``In terms of people with individual mortgages, there's a lot of pain left to come.'' Buffett was interviewed before the Omaha, Nebraska-based company's annual meeting, attended by about 31,000 people.

... link

Dare to Flirt with Sarawak's First Family's counter?

Backed up by 15cent dividends.

KLCI: The Big Picture

Do you buy this theory? Whether or not, hard to ignore. Smart Money leads, Dumb Money follows. Something never changes.

KLCI Review 080502

KLCI: Some fundamental reason (CPO) dragged down the 2/May composite index as I suspect some institutes were selling big blue like IOICorp and Sime Darby. Pure TA says it has some more room to come down :( 1264 is the final base line or else KLCI will drop back to down trending :(( Global markets' sentiment is another story though..
Eden: Still looks ok for me to re-enter. My guess is it is under major accumulation. Distribution is unlikely, looking at the above average volume with green closing of late. Remember, KLCI sentiment prevails.

Gold is in Correction Mood (Second Opinion)

Talk Only Mah!: Gold is in Correction Mood

Interesting second opinion from the professional of a local bank.
http://klse2118.blogspot.com/2008/05/133-pm-gold-and-commodities-investing.html

Naza founder passes away

Just heard this news. Shocking indeed. Need to scout around for more information. Stay tuned.
(Update: OK, it is on all main stream medias already)

Head and Shoulders... Hope not.

This weekly chart scared the shit out of me when I first look at it. Then I scrutinized it and found the Head volume was higher than it should be to fit the pattern of H&S. I can only hope I am right, because I have taken my long position in unit trust. Meanwhile, tomorrow KLCI will need to close strong for a good weekly chart.

Gold is in Correction Mood

Will see if it can get strong support at 800 level. If it move back up again after hitting 800 level, I will join the gold rush. wa ha ha ha.