Philip Chua Business Blog

A LIMP trading session yesterday finished with brokers heaving a sigh of relief that the boredom had ended and with the Straits Times Index standing 12.99 points weaker at 2,749.19.
Prices hardly budged throughout trading hours, forcing dealers and remisiers to try their luck at intraday punting, the alternatives being to watch TV or doze off at their terminals. As such, penny stocks were active, … more

(SINGAPORE) Gold prices continued to head south yesterday, with some analysts predicting more selling pressure in the coming weeks.
The yellow metal retreated after the US dollar rebounded against the euro, while firmer oil prices offered little help as investors turned cautious on bullion after it failed to sustain recent gains.
Gold dropped below a psychological level of US$1,100 an ounce as unc… more

(SINGAPORE) DEVELOPERS will be bringing forward their property launches over the next few months to satisfy strong demand from homebuyers, said Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore (Redas) president Simon Cheong yesterday.
But Mr Cheong, who was speaking at Redas’ spring festival lunch, warned that many developers are now facing depleting land banks following brisk home sales in recent… more

GREECE’S debt crisis rattled investors again yesterday and sent markets south despite overnight gains on Wall Street.
Reassurance from Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke that interest rates would stay low for some time pleased investors, who sent the Dow Jones up 91.75 points, or 0.89 per cent.
But concerns over the weak United States job market and poor housing sales data outweighed the promis… more

WHO would you trust more? A fireman, or a real estate agent?
Thought so.
So did 760 Singapore residents who took part in an online poll conducted by Reader’s Digest magazine on the most trusted professionals in the country.
Conducted last October, the poll gave them two lists of 55 individuals and 40 professions and asked them to rate their trustworthiness on a scale of one to 10.
The results show… more

The three major snowstorms that have slammed the Northeast this winter have been more than just huge hassles — they may be creating yet another headwind for a wobbly economy.

Winter storm – Weather – Arts – Movies – Sports

The stock market eked out a gain as investors took glum economic news in stride. The small gains still left stocks with a loss for the week but the Dow and S&P 500 logged their best month since November.









Gross domestic product – Business – Economy – Government – Investing

The economy rocketed ahead at a 5.9 percent pace in the final quarter of 2009, stronger than initially estimated. But the growth spurt isn’t expected to carry over into this year.

Economy of the United States – Business – Financial Services – Investing – Social Science

Fannie Mae needs another $15 billion in federal assistance, bringing its total to more than $75 billion. And worse, the mortgage finance company warned its losses will continue this year.









Fannie Mae – Freddie Mac – Business – Thailand – Provinces

Nearly a year after the stock market staged one of the biggest rallies in history, investors  worry that this bull may be getting wobbly. There’s no shortage of cause for concern.  







Stock market – Investing – Business – Stocks and Bonds – Equities