Nov $4,605 ... YTD $121,122 ... 2024 $102,891

With the year fast approaching the end of 2023 .... things are traditionally starting to crawl in the market as investors start to wind down for holidays and strategise for the upcoming new year. It has also been the first full year of my sabbatical without employement income. While clocking my 6-figures investment target (YTD $121K), it is still lower than my previous income of job+cpf, minus the long hours of company politics/meetings/travelling etc. Well I guess in life, there's always a Give and Take. As the saying goes ... Nothing in life is Free... Everything has its Price

The month of Nov profits came mainly from DBS, bonds and a small position in SIA Engineering. Have always enjoyed flying in SIA planes since young, plus Singapore's aspirations to vie as an aviation hub, so this smallish position should be okay 😎  Nimbled a bit more on UOB, which is making into my Top stock position. Bought some SSB/Tbills and participated in the DRP of MLT. So basically that sums up my Nov activities hahaha ...

Finally tabulated my Top20 positions which makes up 98% of my portfolio. Bonds and Banks form the major bulk, with common household blue chips and Reits. Started dabbling with S&P500 ETF (VUSD.L and IVV.US) and Nov month has been a good recovery for S&P500 index. USA market has always been much more lucrative than the "boring" Singapore market. If I need more money, I will invest into USA stocks 😂  

As always, if u have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to comment below

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Slower Oct $3,769 ... YTD$11,8574 ... 2024 $99,927

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

Slower Oct $3,769 ... YTD $118,574 ... 2024 $99,927 projected

With 2 more months to go till the end of 2023, Oct and Q4 are turning out to be a slow crawl. As I have basically achieved my 2023 targets and making plans for 2024, I have allowed things to drift somewhat 😂 Markets have turned surprisingly negative in Oct, with ongoing wars in Israel & Ukraine, high 10y bond yields and less than spectacular quarterly company results. Traditionally Oct month tends to be "bad", so let's hope that things pick up better in the upcoming months ahead towards a Christmas rally and solid New year!

For the Oct month, I have basically collected some $$$ from bonds, reits and sold some ST Engineering. Doing some nimbling of S&P500 ETF VUSD.L and UOB (which have been unusually weak, with an okay Q3 results out). For USA markets which have run up 19% this July, and even with a current 10% market correction, still sits with a 8% gain YTD, it only makes sense to nimble a bit for long term investment. Market sentiments tend to swing wildly from optimism to pessimism, so there exists pockets of profit opportunities. Singapore markets are also not spared from these negativities, actually the correlation to negativism is pretty strong for our open economy. Looking into the latest UOB results, I seem to think their Q3 results was okay, with Citi integration ongoing and higher expanses now, but should contribute positively ahead. Maybe analysts expectations are much higher I guess. Let me know in the comments below, if u also share my thoughts on S&P500 and UOB 😎

Slow Sep $9,206 ... YTD $112,770 ... 2024 estimate $95,648

I have been moving slowly forward in life for the past 1.5 yrs 😎 Is this something that I really want? Or is there much more I can achieve? There are really 2 sides of me, that are constantly fighting/reasoning ... The current situation is what it is ... There are pros and cons to every lifestyle and no one can really determine what is truly right or wrong ... Should I trade more Time vs Money? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below ...

The past month of Sep has been quite lacking in investment activities. Besides completing my sale of Yangzijiang and building my SGS T-bill ladder, there is probably nothing much done ... haha ... Dividends collected are Comfort Delgro and Reits (ESR, Kreit, MIT, MLT) ... oh I did nimble some S&P500 ETF VUSD.L for the long term. Also looking to divest my ST Engineering and invest more into UOB, to streamline my entire portfolio. I seem to be getting lazier  😂  Doing some further projections to my passive portfolio in 2024 would amount to $95,648 ... Hmm ... should be quite comfortable to not work another year right?!

Related Posts:

Bumper Aug $25,825 ... YTD $103,180

July profit $6,772 YTD $76,803

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

USA vs Singapore Stock Market

Over the past few months, I have been rebalancing & streamlining my portfolio to make it easier to manage for the future. I have fully divested Sembcorp Industries and Yangzijiang, and will be looking to sell away my small holding of ST Engineering in the near future. 

Diversification is a risk management strategy to create different investment assets within a portfolio. With every strategy comes its pros and cons. While attempting to reduce risk through different baskets of equities, more time would also be needed to analyze and manage the risks within each investment. As I am looking to increase my holdings in S&P500 ETFs (IVV.US and VUSD.L) for the longer term, it only makes sense to reduce my time in other non-critical Singapore stocks.

I have in the past avoided investing in USA stock market (besides Employee Stock Purchase Plans) due to the time difference, taxes and more importantly in the event of sudden death. It would be confusing for my spouse or immediate family to liquidate the USA holdings coupled with Singapore estate assets during times of grieve. Since I have slightly more time now and with USA still being the most investible market in the next few decades, it makes sense to dabble once again with tiny steps into passive ETFs.

The S&P500 index has really had an explosive run since 1950s. With the exception of 8-years period from 2000 to 2008 (Dotcom and Global Financial Crisis). With the 2020 Covid crash behind us, and USA markets recovering to push towards new all time highs, will it go even higher or revert back to a double top 8-years period repeat? Let me know your thoughts in the Comments section below  😎

In the short term chart, price support would be in 4370 levels, while price resistance would be in 4580 levels. Would hope to pick up some if prices retrace to around 4370, as USA economy seems to be heading for a soft landing. Inflation is coming down slowly but surely, and labour market is reasonably strong. If the economy weakens in 2024, the Fed would have more options to reduce interest rates and print more money, which bodes well for the USA stock market. While long term it might not be the best choice for the country, but it does turbo boost the market prices from the 2009 GFC recovery. Cheap money always finds the place where it is treated best, and good investors would have little choice but to ride the bull run so as to protect their personal wealth. Buying the Top500 companies would be buying into the near future of USA, and my personal conviction is that USA would remain the strongest and most investible market in the next decade.

Are you also looking to buy into the S&P500? Let me know too 😅

Related Posts:

Marching to conquer USA Markets

Compare Blackrock ETF IVV vs CSPX

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

EC World ... 1st Reit victim from High Interest Rates!

News broke out early this morning that China based EC World Reit has requested for voluntary suspension. With the Singapore investing community's preferance on Reits, some people are naturally still invested in this Reit and disappointed with the suspension of their hard earned monies. 

While personally not invested in this reit, it is a timely reminder that with ALL investments,  for yield or capital gains, they do come with certain Risks. I too have my own share of painful experiences (Hyflux, Noble and other China stocks). 

Reits being highly leveraged businesses are certainly not spared from the rapid rise of high interest rates. Coupled with China trying to rebalance their economy for the future, slowing growth and deflation pressures in the property segment, more victims and pain should be forthcoming. The search for high yield % returns should not be at the expense of capital loss. Fundamentally strong businesses should be the First selection investment criteria! 

For those who are vested in EC World Reit, take some time to mourn and learn from this painful lesson. Afterward, let it be another stepping stone to your investment journey. Jiayou! Gambatte! Fighting!

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7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

Bumper Aug $25,825 ... YTD $103,180

It's approaching the end of month and time to count my blessings 😎 August has been full with dividends (namely Banks, Singtel, Wilmar, Kepcorp), pushing my year-to-date (YTD) nicely beyond 6-Figures. Also completed the sale of Sembcorp and partially divesting Yangzijiang. These 2 stocks (SCI & YZJ) have had an amazing run this year, hopefully these decisions to take profit would be a correct one in time to come ...

With Sep round the corner and traditionally a Negative month, would hope to pick up more Banks (DBS/OCBC/UOB) and S&P500 (IVV.US) to invest for the longer term, as I have basically reached my $$$ targets for 2023. It would also be nice to save some target numbers for the next year haha ... That's kind of how sales organisation works - chasing numbers and targets, but slowing down when targets are met ... heehee  😂  Doing some rough estimations of 2024 and it is currently showing a respectable number of $91,914 passive income. Doing more should hopefully bump the numbers up further✌

Do you think I should do more to these 2024 numbers? Or should I have sold SCI and YZJ? Let me know in the comments section below, thanks  :)

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July profit $6,772 YTD $76,803

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

July Profit $6,772 ... YTD $76,803

Yawn ... haven't been blogging for quite a few weeks .... as I have been feeling lazy and yes blogging takes quite an effort too. Plus the monetary rewards of blogging is also quite pathetic 😂. To maintain the discipline of blogging, here is a short post documenting my investment journey

Tabulating $6,772 for the month of July, this month as expected wasn't the best of months for the year 2023. Apart from dividends from AA reit and Bonds, the rest came from sales of Sembcorp and Yangzijiang. Still thankful for some income to help pay the family bills 😅. Everything seems to be getting more expensive nowadays --- inflation! Looking forward to a more bountiful month of Aug, where dividends of DBS/OCBC/UOB arrive!

Would also hope to pick up more S&P500 (IVV.US) as the USA market pulls back slightly. The months of Aug, Sep, Oct tend to be more bearish months and there might exist some pockets of opportunities. Overall would still think 2023 would be a bullish year with steady recovery of the economy. Let's all hope for the best! 

Related:

1H23 Income of $70,047

Profitable Q2 of $43,694

Bounty May Dividend of $26,191

Uneventful Apr $8,437 *yawn*

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

1H'23 Income of $70,047

 

From Singapore Department of Statistics, among each resident household, median monthly income from work grew 6.1% from $9,520 to $10,099 in 2022. Household income from work includes employer CPF contributions, which means excluding CPF the take-home income is 10099/1.17 = $8,632

Tabulating my Investment Income for 1H 2023, this works out to be $70,047 total or $11,675 per month. Contentment is great gain, and not being in the work rat-race has its pros and cons of course  😎

I am thankful for this $70k 1H'23 result, which is higher than my inial target at the start of this new year. With the 2H'23 ahead, it might be challenging to duplicate this same result as many companies have paid out the bulk of their annual dividends

Have also been slowly sharing and educating my children on some financial stuff, as they are beginning to grow and influenced by their peers. Since many money habits are caught from home, rather than taught in schools, it is important to inculcate the right financial values from young. Financial Stewardship starts from small amounts which are easily scalable by simple multiplication factors as bigger monies stream in. 

Do you have good ideas on how to teach your kids? Let me know in the comments below, thanks!  😅

Related:

Profitable Q2 of $43,694

Bounty May Dividend of $26,191

Uneventful Apr $8,437 *yawn*

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

Profitable Q2 of $43,694

 

Q2 should be my most profitable quarter for 2023, with a flurry of dividends from blue chip stocks and bonds. Tabulating the month of June with $10,138 this works out to the whole quarter of Q2 into a total of $43,694! I am thankful for this sum of money, as it helps pay the family bills, food and some wants etc 😄

Embarking on this new journey in life, has been filled with lots of ups and downs. The ups are of course with much more time at hand, it is nice to spend with family and friends, plus learning some new things. The downs of course would be looking back at my previous job and all the $$$ and perks it provides.

Well it is certainly time to move on and not dwell too much on my "glorious" past. There is still so much to learn and contribute out there, if I can overcome my lazy inertias ... hahaha

With Q2 behind and Q3 ahead of me, I will need to focus on what I really want in my life. Plus life is always full of surprises and disappointments. It is always easy to look back on hindsight and regret on decisions, but it is always better to bravely move forward, counting my blessings and cherishing what I have and making the best of everything. Majullah!

Related:

Bounty May Dividend of $26,191

Uneventful Apr $8,437 *yawn*

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

Is UOB at $27.86 a good BUY?

 

Singaporeans would be very familiar with UOB, though it is the smallest of the 3 local banks in terms of market capitalisation. Controlled by the Wee family over the past few decades, this bank has grown over the years to be a strong and reputable regional bank

The long term share price has also increased steadily from $10 during the Global Financial Crisis of 2009, peaking at $33 in 2022. Long term moving averages are sloping upwards, signalling the long term trend and growth should continue in the more years to come

In the short term though, we see the yellow MA10 line turning downwards, as price weaknesses continue to plague UOB and similarly with other two local banks of DBS and OCBC. We see the price of UOB trying to find support in the region of around $28, with another stronger and well tested support around $26

With UOB dividend of $0.75 in April 2023, and probably another dividend of $0.75 in August, the yield would translate into (0.75+0.75)/27.86 = 5.4% not too shabby for a well established bank. With bigger Reits (MIT/MLT/Areit) also offering somewhat 6% yield at around 90% payout, I would well prefer UOB which is only at 50% dividend payout. Not forgetting UOB is a much larger company and solid economic moat vs Reits

Would u also agree with my assessment on UOB? Let me know in the comments section below. Thanks  😎

Related:

Is DBS at $32.7 a good BUY?

AA Reit Rights at $1.189

 

AIMS APAC (AA Reit) has launched a Preferential Offering/Rights of 35-for-1000 at $1.189 to existing shareholders. Being a small long-time existing shareholder of AA Reit, I am quite surprised that the rights is offered at such a low price. As expected, market sold down unfavourable on this preferential offering news, to even $1.16 below the rights price (close to 1 year lows of $1.13)

With some heavy selling seen even below $1.18, this would be an even cheaper price than the preferential offering price+comission fees if bought over the market. At one point, I was even considering buying from the open market and forfeiting my rights instead. Unfortunately or fortunately 😎, prices recover on Friday to close at $1.22

 

I had been considering to purchase more AA reit for some time in AA reit at $1.3 a good Buy? as I generally consider this as a reasonably small but well managed Reit (vs MIT/MLT/Areit) with prices ranging between $1.2-$1.5 for the past few years, for a reasonable yield of between 6-8%

I would be subscribing to this preferential offering and probably oversubscribing more to round up to 1k shares for long term investments. Hopefully this decision would turn profitable in time to come, both in terms of dividends and capital gains

Would u be subscribing to this preferential offering or what are some of your thoughts on AA reit? Pls feel free to share in the comments below  😊

Wow Sembcorp Ind at $5.50!

 

Finally Sembcorp Industries (SCI) is at its 10 year highs of $5.50, an incredible strong run over the past 2-3 years from a government linked company. It's almost unimaginable that such a blue chip stock, would have a price increase that is only typically seen in a much smaller size growth enterprise

See also:

Is SCI at $3.71 a good Sell?

With price levels above $5, various research houses have been busy evaluating again what should be the real target price of SCI moving forward. I have been steadily taking profit at my long time investment and unfortunately only have a small position left, as I did not purchase much during the distressed price in 2020

While it is true that SCI have divested the cyclical business of Sembcorp Marine (SMM) for the better, such a phenomenal price rise still seems too good to be true. With current hot news on climate change and renewables, SCI does seem to be in a good business to concentrate for the future.

Hmm... should I continue to sell into new price highs, or just trail the yellow moving average MA10, or just wait further for psychological level of $6!  😂  Let me know in your comments below

MIT 3rd Largest Tenant Cyxtera gone Bankrupt!

As mentioned in my previous post on Headwinds for Mapletree Industrial Trust (MIT):

Headwinds for MIT (Hint: Cyxtera Technologies)

This news has now been announced with MIT's 3rd Largest Tenant Cyxtera Technologies entering the Chapter 11 Bankrupcy process

https://www.straitstimes.com/business/mapletree-industrial-trust-s-3rd-largest-tenant-enters-us-court-supervised-chapter-11-bankruptcy-process

Cyxtera has contributed 3.2% of gross rental income for MIT as at 31 March 2023. While blue chip MIT boasts of a well-diversified tenant base, this negative news would inadvertently be a drag to its share price

With prices closing in to short-term Oct22 lows of $2.13 and long-term Covid Mar20 lows of $2.10, hopefully these price supports would hold the sellers at bay.

Bearish trend continues with the purple weekly MA50 sloping downwards and even acting as a resistance point in Apr23.

Other affected reits included Digital Core and Keppel DC, all putting up brave fronts to soothe shareholder sentiments.

It only goes to show that with new seemingly lucrative Data Centre businesses, risks do abound with every new investments that are outside of traditional property strengths of Reits.

Also with rising and persistant high interest rates, MIT and Reits being highly leveraged companies, will continue to face strong headwinds in the months ahead.

What are some of your thoughts of MIT moving forward? Let me know in the comments section below

Disclosure: I am currently vested in MIT  😅

Bounty May Dividend $26,191

 

The month of May saw a bountiful amount of dividend $$$ as many companies close their Financial Year and distribute their profits to their faithful shareholders 😎

Apart from taking some profit from Sembcorp Industries and nimbling Wilmar, UOB and tbills, it was quite another boring month *yawn*

Also looking at the S&P500 and USA Debt Ceiling, which is approaching the final line. I entered a buy queue for IVV.US at $410 but was unsuccessful. On hindsight, should have been more decisive in buying up the S&P500 index, as the US markets seem amazingly strong, considering the many political and social issues that they have. I guess though democracies have its cons, at least we are able to openly see these issues, as compared to other closed autocratic countries. In the long run, these issues should iron out through the system, though not perfect, for the economic success of US to continue over the next decade

Coming back to Singapore market, as usual kiasu investors are probably jittery over US defaulting and the lack lustre China reopening data. UOB and DBS banks retrace back to their short term supports of $28 and $31 respectively

Could not resist nimbling abit due in part to boredom 😂 and to hopefully earn some kopi money to exercise my brain. Another interesting thing is that I have started to also use Yahoo charts instead of InvestingNote and other brokerage account charts, as their share prices are adjusted for dividends/rights etc. As I consider dividends as part of the opportunity cost of owning a share, would prefer these price levels to be unadjusted as the original share prices

With the upcoming month of June, hopefully things would be more interesting and profitable in the weeks ahead!

Related:

Uneventful Apr $8,437

My 7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

On Target for 6-Figures 2023 Income

T-Bill 3.78% vs HSBC EGA 4.55% (May 2023)

The latest t-bill BS23109E has been a respectable 3.78% for our hard earned monies 😂 Was actually expecting it to be slightly lower at around 3.5% as some of the new CPF monies pour into this t-bill auction for the new month of May, so as not to lose another additional month of CPF interest for April. Seems more people are bidding the t-bills more sensibly now, which benefits more people in the long run. 

For me, I have not been bidding t-bills for a few months because of the new HSBC EGA account which I have opened in March. With the EGA account moving to the 3rd month, I will no longer be eligible for the extra 1% Everyday+ Rewards. Still it's a respectable 4.55% slightly higher than the current t-bill of 3.78% yield. Probably it's time to look for a better yield instrument in the month of June.

HSBC 5.55% EGA Savings Account

The month of June brings some volatility as the USA Debt Ceiling croaches near, and political brinksmanship comes into obvious play. It's just concerning that Parties become more important than Country, as Right vs Left idealogy clash. Still I hope that at the end of the day, clear minds prevail as both sides agree that Default is not the option. 

Maybe this could be good opportunities to buy into local bank stocks or S&P500 index. Savings account and T-bills should just be temporal sandbox to park our excess funds to capitalise on better investment opportunities. With core inflation at 4%, it basically just matches the current purchasing power of our cash today. To build wealth, unfortunately we still need to do some calculated risks to overcome high inflation moving forward.

The local bank stocks have been feeling jittery over the upcoming USA debt limit, and are showing first signs of pullback, as usual from kiasu Singaporean investors 😅 S&P500 instead is still holding pretty well. Let's see if next week brings more volatility. I recall hearing some Economist from Bloomberg stating that usually investors tend to react 2 weeks before the deadline, as in 2011 when USA credit rating was downgraded from AAA.

USA Republican Convention

Can only pray for true Leaders to rise up and save the political situation! 😇

Headwinds for MIT? (Hint: Cyxtera Technologies)

 

Mapletree Industrial Trust can be considered as one of the blue-chip Reits of Singapore. Part of the reasons include a strong govt linked sponsor, well established history, diversified portfolio of properties in Singapore and USA (which includes lucrative Data Centres).

It recently announced a slightly disappointing Q4 & FY22 results, which saw a slight dip to 3.33c in DPU. As seen from the chart below, MIT had a previous solid history of increasing DPU since FY10, with the exception of FY20 due understandably to Covid pandemic, though it has since recovered strongly to increasing payouts again. However in recent years of FY21/22, we are seeing a plateau and even worrying decreasing trend of falling DPU. Are the best years of MIT over?!

Of course with the previous 9 interest rate hikes since Mar 2022 till now, Reits being a leveraged business is not spared from the increase interest rate expanses to its loans. Though 75% of its debt is in Fixed rates, the impact on DPU can still be seen with the increase in base interest rates. To be fair, no one would have honestly thought in early 2022, that the USA Fed would increase the interest rates so quickly and so frequently.

Another area of concern could be with MIT's 3rd largest tenant (3.2% rental income) rumoured to be Cyxtera Technologies. Even MIT CEO commented on the 2023 outlook to be "a challenging year with increased risk to global financial stability due to the banking crisis and geo-economic fragmentation."

Conerns of Cyxtera Technologies:

1. Posted US$355M loss for 2022 and cancelled earnings call amid ongoing efforts to extend maturing debt

https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/colo-q4-2022-results-cyxtera-posts-a-355m-net-loss-for-2022-cancels-earnings-call/

2) Moody's downgraded Cyxtera from B3 to Caa2, rated as speculative grade investment of  poor quality and very high credit risk

https://www.theedgesingapore.com/news/reits/cyxteras-long-term-debt-us853-million-matures-2024

3) Price of Cyxtera plunged from $15 to just $0.325! (Nasdaq: CYXT)

Looking at this scary price chart below, it seems the company is heading towards Chapter 11 bankrupcy filings

Do u have any thoughts or insights to Cyxtera or MIT? Let me know in the comments section below 😅

Disclosure: I am currently vested in MIT  

Buy T-Bill when Inflation is 6%?

 

There has been much talk about T-Bills for the past few months, as High Inflation & Interest rates surge globally. Singapore being a small global city is also not spared with the large winds of financial change. Headline news of High Inflation continue to bombard Singaporeans in everyday lives. But with inflation hitting 6%, is it worth investing in T-bills of around 4%?

https://www.straitstimes.com/business/singapore-core-inflation-holds-firm-at-55-in-february#:~:text=The%20official%20projections%20for%20the,per%20cent%20from%20Jan%201.

To try to answer this financial question, I guess it depends on what u are comparing it against and the timeframe. There is hardly anything that is absolute and everything is relative to something. In science, distance measurements are relative to origins and even time is relative to your frame fo reference, accordingly to Einstein's theory of relativity.

Math will tell u that 4% - 6% is equal to negative 2%, which mathematically means it's not worth it to invest as u would be losing 2% of your money value in a year.

However many things in life are not a simple straight line. Because it depends on what u would have done seperately with your money if it is not invested in T-bill. Would u spend it instead on a luxury bag for example? Hence getting a negative 6% return 😂

Or would u do nothing and left the excess cash in the bank earning 0.1% interest? Or put it into HSBC savings 5.35% or RHB Fixed Deposit 3.9% promotion!?

HSBC 5.35% Savings Account Promotion

RHB 3.9% Fixed Deposit Promotion

Or is it just a Bond Ladder placeholder to capitalise on better % Investment Opportunities?

S&P500 ETF

Is Wilmar at 3.94 a Good BUY?

Everybody's financial situation is unique and different, and there are many priorities that demand our everyday attention. Some find joy in shopping, like my wife and daughter, while I find joy in making them happy 😍  May we all choose to spend our time and monies wisely!

UNEVENTFUL Apr $8,437 *yawn*

 

In medical terms "uneventful" can mean a slight positive event. For example, the surgery  operation was uneventful. Which literally means nothing much extraordinary/unexpected happened throughout the surgery. 

The markets in April, were mostly sideways with low volume, plus my family was also down with Covid of mild symptoms (thank God!) So apart from collecting dividends from DBS, ESR reit and Bonds, there were really not much interesting activities (*YAWN*). Still that's kind of the beauty of a semi-passive income, where invested money works on its own to provide returns, while u are busy with other aspects of life and family.

7-Figures Singapore Portfolio

6-Figures Income

With a long weekend ahead and few days left in April, I easily tabulated my $8,437 gains (gave thanks) and look forward to a hopefully more profitable month of May ahead 😎 Though the saying goes to "sell in May and go away", this effect has been slowly waning as more trades can be done online even while away for summer holidays.

Personally, I think the USA markets seem to be slowly turning positive, with the S&P500 Moving Averages MA50 currently sloping upwards. Hopefully some good corporate earnings will act as a catalyst to start the ball rolling, as Interest Rates seem to have peaked. With positive USA markets, Singapore should follow slowly after. The Singapore market is usually the boring kiasu type 😂

Still if u have any interesting large/mid cap stock that u are looking at, pls feel free to comment below. Thanks  😊

FoxNews $787M Disinformation!

The USA court trial of Fox News vs Dominion ended with a settlement of $787M to Dominion Voting Systems. With this settlement, it spares Fox News the embarassing witness of its famous executives and news achors from standing in court to explain their intentions and actions taken. It is easy to lie in public (citing freedom of speech), but much more difficult & expensive to lie in court. Responsibility does need to go hand-in-hand with Freedom/Power. Remember this famous Spiderman quote "with great Power comes great Responsibility"?!

Misinformation vs Disinformation

Misinformation is false/inaccurate information. Disinformation is false information which is deliberately intended to mislead. The spread of misinformation/disinformation has affected public health (think Covid vaccinations) and  even how countries are run (election results/politics). It's scary to think moving forward, that half-truths are going to shape how many people think/react. Information War is becoming very real indeed!

As Investors, how we read the headline Financial news becomes very Important, as what we Think translates to what we Do. Modern day news tends to scream for our Attention, with big Bold words and Exclamation marks! Sieving through the rumours from the real stuff becomes a challenge, where some mistakes will be made, some learnt through painful experiences, and ultimately continuing bravely forward. Sticking on to our personal financial plans & convictions in certain Stock purchases, or reversing course and cutting loss, happens all in our Minds.

Personal Psychology plays a big part in investing. Containing Fear vs Greed are two keys emotions that need to be kept in good Control. Only by better understanding oneself, can we be better investors and as individuals 😊

Will Kepcorp at $6.2 go HIGHER?

 

Keppel Corporation is a government linked company with strong capabilities in energy & environment, urban development and connectivity. Many Singaporeans will be much familiar with this grandfather stock

Kepcorp has a market capitalisation of $11B with a 52wk price range of $4.57 to $7.72 (current price at $6.21) which is -20% from 52w high and +36% from 52w low

Throughout the many years, Kepcorp has rewarded shareholders with relatively good dividend (2-6%), even during Covid year of 2020

In the short term, psychological $7 and $7.50 resistance levels will be the prices to watch. Also not forgetting $7.35 which was the price that Temasek initially offered to buy Keppel private, before calling it off. So lots of resistance bands ahead.

Looking at the long term chart, it's probably hard to recall before 2014, that Keppel used to be a $10+ stock. Those are probably the good old days where shipbuilding was lucrative and profitable before the Chinese shipyards competition kicked-in

With the sale of its Oil&Gas segment to Sembcorp Marine, the problematic & cyclical profit sector seems to be unhinged from the future dreams of Kepcorp. It is now ready to embark on a more asset light management moving forward. With gahment ambitions on-the-tow, will it be able to make further inroads into neighbouring Asia and Asean countries? I certainly hope so, as I am currently vested  😂

Ukraine War & $$$ Impact

 

The Ukraine war has been heartbreaking to watch. War has always been cruel with the great loss of lives and precious resources. More so in this modern era of social media, phones/cameras and drones etc. Numerous videos with different perspectives are widely available online. One of these great minds I follow is Prof Alex Stubb, former Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Finland.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhwfC_Vh4DI&list=PL9zL6xEwtVujfHHif6MyfIFxP_G44sfAG

One of the most obvious financial impact of Ukraine war would be the price of oil, where we can see from below the price of WTI oil spiking from $94 (Feb 2022) and even up to $130 (Mar 2022)! In the following months of 2022, the price of oil remained high above $100, until it became obvious that instead of a lightning fast victory expected from Russia, the war is grinding on beyond one year. The current price of WTI is settling around $80, even below the invasion of Ukraine, as worries of global recession arise.

The second most obvious impact would be the strength of USD following the war, as global risks and uncertainties arise, people tend to flee towards strength, which would be the USD. The Dollar Index climbed from $96 (pre-War) up to $113, until settling down to the current $101. Similarly for USD/SGD $1.34 up to $1.43, before settling down to $1.33 now

Other $ impact would include global supply chain constraints in Wheat, Fertilizers and Agricultural products, all helping to push Inflation numbers higher, with Risk and Logistics Costs all baked into the final Prices of many everyday items

To those who are following the Ukraine War, we are currently in Day 419. While personally hoping for a solid Ukraine spring counterattack for this cruel war to end soon, it does not seem too likely, with Russia too pooling in more resources and mobilization, in view that this is an Existential Threat. Dictators cannot lose, as it would mean their personal Death or permanent Jail & historical Disgrace. Remember too that Russia has the largest arsenal of Nuclear Weapons and might be forced to use somehow through Intention or a fat-finger Mistake. Hence the "better" option would be for this war to grind on for years to come, until someone is assasinated or passes away. It's kind of a scary thought, but remember the also long Afganistan war?!

For Investors like us, it's another major hoop to navigate through in this global sea of Risks. The Market is not immune to negative news, and usually climbs through walls of Worries. Historically and Amazingly, mankind prevails somehow, through the Grace & Mercies of God. With an eye to Challenges, let's continue to press Up and On!  😎