Cantonese temple at Sims Drive and pre-war bungalows at Adam Park identified for conservation

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SINGAPORE: One of the oldest Chinese temples in Singapore may be considered for protection, along with 19 pre-war houses at Adam Park. &nbsp,

In the 1860s, migrant populations with primarily Chinese nature founded the Mun San San Fook Tuck Chee church at Sims Drive. When its directors purchased the land in 1902 to build the sanctuary along the banks of the Kallang River, it relocated to where it is now. &nbsp,

The pre-war bungalows at Adam Park, meanwhile, were built in 1929 by the Singapore Improvement Trust ( SIT ) as housing for&nbsp, families of officers from the Municipal Council and SIT.

According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority ( URA ), they have largely been preserved since World War II.

National Development Minister Desmond Lee announced the URA’s plan to preserve the two sites on Friday ( Nov 8 ), stating that Singapore must strive to include significant heritage in its development plans even as it plans for its future. &nbsp,

At the URA Architectural Heritage Awards, he stated that “preserving buildings and structures of the highest value is an important way to do but” to provide a natural and physical connection to our history.

By conserving these structures and houses, we hope to preserve natural representations of the shared history and memories of our country, populations, and people.

This strengthens our shared nationwide personality and creates a deeper relationship among Singapore.

Conserved properties are subject to particular URA rules. Before all changes functions and new uses of the place you start, permission is required.

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Asian markets extend rally after Fed cut

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On Wall Street, the S&amp, P 500 and Nasdaq rallied again to reach new information, helped by powerful performances by software titan Apple, Google family Alphabet and Facebook’s Meta. Asia took up the stick in early business, with Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei, Wellington and Jakarta allContinue Reading

Agencies take aim at mule accounts

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More business transactions are being opened as con artists and swindlers develop their strategies

PUBLISHED: 7 Nov 2024 at 20: 04

Deputy Commerce Minister Napintorn Srisunpang (centre) witnesses the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) and the Department of Business Development (DBD) to combat mule accounts. CIB chief Pol Lt Gen Jirabhop Bhuridej (left) and Auramon Supthaweethum, director-general of the DBD, signed the agreement. (Photo: Ministry of Commerce)
The signing of a memorandum of understanding between the Central Investigation Bureau ( CIB ) and the Department of Business Development ( DBD ) to combat mule accounts is witnessed by deputy commerce minister Napintorn Srisunpang (centre ). CIB chief Pol Lt Gen Jirabhop Bhuridej ( left ) and Auramon Supthaweethum, director-general of the DBD, signed the agreement. ( Photo: Ministry of Commerce )

To combat corporate mule accounts and nominee operations, the Ministry of Commerce’s Department of Business Development ( DBD ) and the police Central Investigation Bureau ( CIB ) are working together.

According to Karom Polpornklang, a lieutenant spokeswoman for the Prime Minister’s Office, the prime minister’s office has issued a policy to combat cybercrime, with a focus on cracking down on business mule accounts frequently used by criminals to obtain illicit funds. &nbsp,

In reaction, the DBD and the CIB reached a memorandum of understanding to start a joint construction that would combat the use of nominee services to elude the identification of those responsible for criminal activity.

According to the two parties, these combined efforts will simplify resources and legal authority across companies and improve both preventive and punitive methods to effectively deter criminal activities.

More fraudsters are registering business entities to start mule accounts, according to Mr. Karom. Therefore, using these accounts, you can use them to send money to defrauded fraud victims, who are frequently duped by phony call centers.

Lately, authorities identified 602 business animal transactions linked to costs exceeding 680 million baht.

In a different development, the Department of Special Investigation ( DSI) recently raided 21 safety deposit boxes at Lop Buri province’s commercial banks, exposing approximately 300 million baht in assets connected to money laundering by the” Mae Mon” online gambling network.

The property included metal, property deeds, jewels and 15 million ringgit in cash.

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With falling interest rates, have T-bills and savings bonds lost their allure?

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Additionally, Mr. Thum cited items from online banks and financial institutions like Stashaway, GXS, Singlife, and Syfe, which have interest charges that are close to 3 %.

” The biggest beneficial is that these are all incredibly low risk purchases”, he said, adding that the minimum sum is as low as S$ 100 for some items.

According to Mr. Ray Zheng, a client advisor at Providend, owners should find out where their money is actually going with fixed payments or several money. The earnings on products offered by financial institutions may be attractive.

Alfred Chia, the CEO of SingCapital, noted that some businesses may use this technique to generate higher profits. Buyers need to be aware of what the long-term results may actually get.

ALTERNATIVES WITH HIGHER LIQUIDITY

For buyers looking for items without lock-in intervals, fixed income resources and money market funds are two possible solutions, according to Mr Zheng of Providend.

The first is a collection of investment-grade ties, while the second is a collection of short-term fixed payments managed by a fund manager.

Both are extremely wet, so buyers can typically withdraw their money as needed.

A least BBB rating on investment grade bonds indicates that the lender is financially positioned to pay attention to investors.

” Ties and fixed income are generally considered to be low-risk equipment”, said Mr Zheng, noting that they are less dangerous than other asset classes like stocks.

” When businesses are over, bonds or fixed income lose less than securities”, he said.

Comparing strong bonds or fixed payments to set money funds and money market funds, maximum investment amounts are usually lower.

But, Mr. Zheng noted that these funds may be more difficult to understand and less clear than bonds or fixed payments, which are both more difficult to buy and understand.

Mr Alfred Chia, CEO of SingCapital, said there is potential for capital gains when owners buy a set salary account.

When interest rates fall, bond rates generally rise. Selling the tie for a higher price may have a positive impact on the investor.

He even said traders should consider shares in building a healthy, long-term investment.

” Come state for low-risk buyers, they may consider an investment portfolio made up of 80 per cent ties and 20 per cent equity”, he said.

When interest rates fall, the saving cost for firms is lowered. ” Companies that can handle well, they will be able to boost their profit, but finally, equity markets did do well”.

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‘Trump trade’ wins, Asia loses as risk factors surge – Asia Times

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It’s obvious Donald Trump’s big gain is a game-changer of epic sizes, from the harsh effect in Asian economies to the frantic press speculation about what lies ahead.

The declines in Chinese securities and the yuan only demonstrate how investors are quickly rearranging their strategies for addressing global financial risks and opportunities. The money surged on the news Trump scored a&nbsp, next term. US companies jumped, as did crypto prices. Provides on US Treasury securities shot higher, also.

The” Trump trade” that Asia has in mind is to take cover. A Trump 2.0 White House may certainly be more inward-looking, putting Asia’s export-oriented economy in harm’s way.

A large fire radius is present. Though aimed at China, Trump’s designed 60 % tariffs will destroy Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and another trade-driven markets. The aftermath on shipping flows could be unimaginable.

According to Dubravko Lakos-Bujas, a planner at JPMorgan,” a significant increase in tariffs would reflect the most significant departure in policy from the latest administration and possibly the largest source of volatility.” The current macro environment is significantly different from what it was eight years ago, when the business cycle was in its mid-cycle, when the Fed did n’t care about inflation, and when pro-growth 1.0 policies were simpler to implement and had a greater impact on the bottom line.

Trump’s win over Kamala Harris is more of a “black swans” occasion for Asia than a “gray one.” Unlike the past, the latter is a repetitive but doubtful results. A “gray swan”, though, does have its own&nbsp, serious consequences, too.

Unexpected effects might be a way to strengthen Xi Jinping’s influence in China. Trump may effectively strengthen it by attacking Beijing with such an aggressiveness that he essentially strengthens by compulsion to integrate with an Eastern economy with China at its core and not an America led by an uneven, mercantilist president who blames Asia for many of his country’s failings.

For Asia, the best-case situation is that Trump’s tax risks are more a negotiating strategy than a real accompli. In fact, Goldman Sachs economists predict that Trump may only establish 20 % tariffs on China and resist the urge to impose blanket charges on other countries.

Trump may turn the other means and impose taxes he has previously threatened to impose. Trump has already stated that there will be 100 % taxes on Mexican car exports.

How much is manufacturers in Japan and Korea hope to avoid such restrictions, especially given that Tesla’s CEO has Trump’s ear? At the very least, electronic vehicle charges will be stacked confidently against non-US manufacturers.

The&nbsp, financial challenges &nbsp, may be even greater. One is that a penny march that has already irritated Asia will take a turn. For years, the economy’s “wasteball” impulses have shook international markets. It has lured enormous waves of global capital west, disadvantaging emerging-market markets in specific.

The difficulty, explains Tom Dunleavy, a companion at MV Capital, is that emerging markets “rely strongly on assets and have debts in money”. The majority of business and debt is also based in dollars, along with fuel. And he says that” the ratio of everything is going up.”

Regardless of the dubious reasoning behind it, the more packed a continued-dollar-strength business becomes as the result of the global fallout when depressed punters flee for their exits. And Trump was serve up some such situations.

Though Trump’s tariffs get the headlines, Asia is extremely worried about what his next president may mean for the Federal Reserve, the keeper of the world’s top supply money.

Trump put the techniques on the Fed during his 2017-2021 stay in the White House. Jerome Powell sabotaged his hand-picked Fed chair, and he went after him frequently. In 2019, Powell bowed to unrelenting force from&nbsp, Trump, who also threatened to fire him.

That’s how the world’s most powerful economic authority added liquidity to a flourishing business that did n’t need new substances. Trump’s Fed meddling set the stage for the post-Covid-19 price surge to come. It also tarnished the Fed’s credibility in global markets.

For Asia, Trump’s Fed policies are especially worrisome. The region’s central banks are armed with the largest stocks of US Treasury securities. Japan alone holds$ 1.1 trillion of US debt, China$ 770 billion.

Together, Asia’s largest holders of dollars own about$ 3 trillion worth. Trump 2.0 would put at risk vast amounts of Asian state wealth if his fiscal policies push Washington’s debt far above today’s US$ 35 trillion.

Not to mention the ways China might retaliate, leading to cycle of tit-for-tat trade curbs. Or might Beijing make a move to dump sizable amounts of Treasuries to punish the Trump 2.0 gang?

Or what if Trump’s designs on altering the Fed’s mandate come to pass? A key plank of the” Project 2025″ strategy that the Heritage Foundation devised for a&nbsp, second Trump term&nbsp, is watering down Fed independence.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Trump took shots at Powell and his fellow policymakers. ” I think it’s the greatest job in government”, Trump said. Everybody talks about you like a god when you say,” Let’s say flip a coin,” and you show up to the office once a month.

Trump also contends that the White House has every right to compel the Fed to do its bidding.

Trump once remarked in August that the Federal Reserve had “kind of got it wrong” ( very interesting ). He went on to say that” I feel the president should have at least ]some ] say in there, yeah. I feel that strongly. I think that, in my case, I made a lot of money. I was very successful. And I believe I have a better instinct than those who, in many cases, would be chairman of the Federal Reserve.

This could put the Fed’s economic role closer to that of the People’s Bank of China.

To be sure, the concept of central bank independence has been muddied. Take the&nbsp, Bank of Japan, which has held interest rates at or near zero for 25 years. What truly self-governing central bank would do that?

Yet the Fed is a different story. The dollar serves as the foundation of global finance and trade. Trump frequently discussed using a weaker dollar to gain a competitive advantage during his first term. Any policy change that undermines confidence in the US government and the dollar makes the world system shakier.

A weaker dollar could fan inflation. That, on top of Trump’s tariffs, could put the Fed in a very tough spot as Trump looks over Powell’s shoulder. Economists are frantically debating how all of this might turn out.

” On the US dollar, Trump wants to revitalize US manufacturing and exports”, says Will Denyer, an analyst at Gavekal Research. He may try to manipulate the dollar lower because he recognizes that the strength of the US dollar is an obstacle to these goals.

However, Denyer says, “he has few good options. Given how dependent the US government and companies are on foreign capital today, it is difficult to use capital controls to deter foreign inflows. And if Fed chair Jay Powell persists until the end of his term in May 2026, leaning on the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates wo n’t be simple in the near future.

Trump might try to use the threat of tariffs as a negotiating tactic in an effort to revalue their currencies, Denyer adds. However, it is doubtful whether multilateral or even broader economic policy changes will significantly weaken the US dollar in the absence of broader economic policy shifts.

This, Denyer concludes,” will leave Trump to hope that continued disinflation allows the Fed to cut rates, weakening the US dollar. However, there is a sizable probability that loose fiscal policy and sticky inflation will keep&nbsp, monetary policy&nbsp, relatively tight, supporting the US dollar and confounding Trump’s aim of weakening the currency”.

Another irrational possibility: whether Trump will continue to flirt with defaulting on US debt. He declared to CNBC in 2016 that he would “know that you could make a deal” if the economy crashed. And if the economy was good, it was good. So, therefore, you ca n’t lose”.

Trump considered canceling Beijing’s debt while serving as president for the first time in light of trade tensions. With the US national debt twice the size of Chinese gross domestic product, it’s easy to see how that would make the 2008″ Lehman shock” seem quaint by comparison.

Asian assets are also weighed by the threat of geopolitical conflict. One example is what a Trump 2.0 foreign policy team might have for Taiwan.

Trump’s return is music to Vladimir Putin’s ears, giving the Russian leader greater scope to commandeer&nbsp, Ukraine&nbsp, once and for all. Compared with US President Joe Biden’s administration, Trump also seems less likely to come to Taipei’s defense if China moved against the island of&nbsp, 23 million people.

Asia investors will also keep their bets guessing about the direction US policies in the Middle East will take. Trump, for instance, might give Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu more freedom to fight the conflict in Gaza. He’s also likely to tighten sanctions on Iran, adding fresh uncertainty to oil supply dynamics and, by extension, energy prices.

” Conceptually, the impact of a potential second Trump term on oil prices is ambiguous”, says commodity researcher Yulia Zhestkova Grigsby at Goldman Sachs.

As Trump 2.0 assumes power, other issues will concern Asian governments. Japan and Korea are concerned that Trump’s “grand bargain” trade agreement with Xi leaves other top Asian nations staring in from the distance.

All that’s clear, though, is that there will be fewer guardrails or inhibitions as Trump seeks to “make America great again” at Asia’s expense.

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New Indonesia fund rings early alarm bells on Prabowo – Asia Times

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Indonesia’s powerful state-owned enterprise ( SEO ) sector is on the verge of a major shake-up as the new Prabowo Subianto administration attempts to reshape the nation’s economic system.

On November 7, Prabowo’s state is expected to release information about a new super-holding organization for SOEs and another government-controlled finances to become known as the Daya Anagata Nusantara Investment Management Agency, or Danantara.

While the novel company’s specific mandate and work is unclear, the management has promoted the idea it will serve as an Indonesian version of Temasek, Singapore’s effective sovereign wealth fund.

But, feedback from the public and in-the-know sources suggest Danantara could be something entirely different, with some hesitant to accept it as a direct investment in the government’s name projects without going through the customary Ministry of Finance budget arrangement approach.

Fears about the proposed shake-up focus on two key points. First, while Danantara’s scope is unclear, it will likely overlap heavily in numerous areas with Indonesia’s existing sovereign wealth fund, the Indonesian Investment Authority ( INA ), and the Ministry for State-Owned Enterprises helmed by Erick Thorir.

Next, there are concerns that the move may aim to lead State resources toward idealistic political priorities, including his energy security, completely student lunch and food security policies, as well as potential patronage of political allies, given that the new holding company appears to be under the authority of the national office.

However, according to sources with knowledge of the situation, top SOE ministry officials were immediately notified when plans for the new holding company first appeared on October 22.

Burhannudin Abdullah, former chancellor of the Bank of Indonesia and part of the advisory committee for Prabowo, who was then president-elect, made the first proposals to reform the SOE government and create a very keeping company in a speech on September 25.

However, the sudden announcement that this concept would be put into practice still irritated many people. Many assumed that Thorir, a billionaire and influential political operator, would continue to play a significant role in bringing together and rationalizing the SOE sector under Prabowo. He was reappointed to the position he had held under President Joko Widodo.

The announcement of an apparently parallel organization, with scant details about its remit, has thrown all this into doubt. Thorir continued to appear obnoxious on Danantara as of November 4. ” I do n’t know exactly. When reporters inquired about the new holding company’s plans for November 8th, he replied,” I’m just setting up the office.”

In Indonesia, SOE control is a particularly powerful position. In 2023, SOEs controlled US$ 671 billion in assets, equivalent to 48.9 % of the country’s gross domestic product ( GDP ), in sectors spanning energy, mining, finance, agriculture and construction.

In addition to running big businesses in key sectors, Indonesia’s SOEs carry out government policies as varied as distributing subsidized fuel and food, to building new infrastructure projects, to making micro-loans to the poor. They are a potent source of patronage because of their ability to appoint people to fill positions and distribute contracts.

So what’s likely behind Danatara’s creation? Muliaman Hadad, who will head Danantara and formerly served as chair of Indonesia’s financial services authority, invoked both Singapore’s Temasek and Indonesia’s INA as models for the fund in recent comments to the press.

The analogies appear to be intended to reassure markets, even though they use very different strategies: the former focuses heavily on overseas assets plus a few strategic Singaporean companies, and the latter more on co-investing with large foreign funds in Indonesian infrastructure. Both Temasek and INA are reputable institutions that are renowned for having good governance and technocratic management.

However, initial reports and information from a variety of sources point to the possibility that Danantara will turn out to be something quite different. According to reports from Katadata, Danantara will control Indonesia’s seven SOEs, which are currently the biggest dividend-payers.

These include three big state-owned banks, namely Bank Mandiri, Bank Rakyat Indonesia and Bank Negara Indonesia, monopoly electricity distributor PLN, oil and gas giant Pertamina, telecoms conglomerate Telkom Indonesia and mining giant MIND ID.

There are also rumored plans to combine the reputable INA with Danantara, which could cause a potential cultural conflict between bureaucrats and private professionals. The INA has invested in a portfolio of private companies and SOEs with an emphasis on infrastructure, including Bank Mandiri and Bank Rakyat Indonesia.

Some special investment vehicles under the Ministry of Finance’s control, including perhaps Indonesia Infrastructure Guarantee Fund ( IIGF ) and Indonesia Infrastructure Financing ( IIF), may also come under Danantara’s control.

Some investors and analysts worry that the new super-holding company will add yet more bureaucracy and special interests to navigate and placate. Additionally, there are concerns that the new entity might undermine existing relationships that INA has with numerous large international investment, pension, and sovereign funds.

Moreover, Hadad’s appointment to head Danantara has raised certain concerns about the body’s governance.

Hadad served as Burhanuddin’s deputy when the latter oversaw payments of about$ 10 million to members of parliament and paid the legal fees for former central bank officials who were facing corruption charges when they were governor of the Bank of Indonesia.

One of those officials assisted in this way was Sudrajad Dwjiwandono – Prabowo’s brother-in-law. Burhannudin was later found guilty and given a five-year prison sentence for his actions.

There are already several indications that Prabowo wants to appoint loyalists in key positions in the SOE sector.

On November 5, it was announced that Simon Aloysius Mantiri, a member of Prabowo’s Gerindra party and deputy treasurer of his presidential campaign, would be the new CEO of the state-owned oil and gas giant Pertamina.

According to critics, more political appointments of this sort would be made through Danantara, which would increase presidential control over SOEs.

By resigning Indonesia’s trusted finance minister, Sri Mulyani Indrawati, and indicating that he could reduce funding for some of his signature policy promises, Prabowo earlier sought to calm market concerns about his robust spending plans and governance.

That did n’t address concerns about his big boat cabinet, the largest ever since the mid-1960s with some 48 ministers and 56 vice-ministers. The appointees are notably heavy on economic technocrats and heavy on political party leaders. &nbsp, &nbsp,

How markets will react to Nanantara’s creation is still unclear. However, as Prabowo’s vision for the fund becomes clearer, the sudden and, in many ways, suspect move taken so early in his term could well rekindle those market jitters.

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Money Talks Podcast: The ins and outs of owning a property overseas

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For instance, like UK, everyone can buy and sell it. It’s a completely marketplace. But… in Australia, you can only buy a new built property, meaning you ca n’t buy a resale. Just Singaporeans and Australians can currently purchase a home in New Zealand.

Knowledge of the rule of law and tax laws, because unfortunately, when you buy and sell, what are your mark duties, which are your acquisition costs, your property tax, continued costs, capital gains tax, and other related taxes, or resettlement of profits, are what are your tax obligations. &nbsp,

Andrea: 
But when it comes to buying property in Singapore… we can utilize our CPF. Obviously, we ca n’t do that for our property overseas. How would you recommend clients to help them finance this outside property? &nbsp,

Clarice: 
Buyers should definitely practice caution and research the financing methods available to them before proceeding to make a decision to invest in a specific city or country. There are overseas property investment mortgage available even from the local banks here in Singapore, such as DBS, UOB, OCBC, Maybank. There are also financing options available from the specific countries that I’ve mentioned.

But generally speaking, customers do have a lot of home loans available to them, but this is only for purchase.

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