Monday, April 28, 2014
Relax at home during weekend
I was taking a rest at home with my hubby and my cute little son.
we were eating grapes together. Usually I have to feed him, but he was so sweet that day and feed me instead.
wow!! I am sooo happy when he put a grapes in my mouth!
my little cute son.. you really grow up . you are so sweet . I love you so so much.
Friday, November 14, 2008
How is the real economy faring?
Excerpts from the interview with Bank Negara governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz on issues surrounding the domestic and international economy. Yap Leng Kuen, Jagdev Singh Sidhu and P. Gunasegaram interviewed her.
Bizweek: Do you expect the 3.5% growth next year to be achievable?
Yes.
What do you think will threaten the forecast?
An external environment that is beyond what we have already priced in, that is half the world in a recession.
If the recession becomes a depression, with high rates of unemployment and severe economic contraction, then of course, this will have repercussions even for Asia.
When do we see a recovery?
Warren Buffet got it right. It will take about 18 months. When we implemented the resolution to restructure our banking sector during the (1997) crisis, banks started lending again six months after the implementation of Pengurusan Danaharta Bhd, Danamodal Nasional Bhd and the Corporate Debt Restructuring Committee, together with other measures.
So the first indicator is when banks start lending again. The confidence has to return for the recovery to take place.
Crisis – past & present
If we were to compare the current economic condition to that of the previous crisis, how bad is it for Malaysia and globally?
We need to separate the two. We are not in a recession and we don’t expect to be in one.
Half the world will likely be in a recession. We are the other part that expects to still see growth because there are real economic activities happening.
You have to make a distinction between the stage of the crisis. In our case, we took action very early so there is the potential for containing the severity of the crisis.
In the case of the US, the action was taken too late and as a result, the crisis will have to run its full course.
What this means is the prices, mostly asset prices, will have to adjust before they reach their lows. The slower they adjust, the more prolonged it will be. It will likely take 18 months from the time they implement all their measures and that will take us into 2010.
Do you see unemployment in Malaysia rising?
It will rise but not significantly. The measures that are being put in place are promoting job creation and the education system to retrain and re-absorb.
The financial services sector is not contracting. In fact, it is expanding. There are job opportunities and there are still many vacancies in many organisations.
This is a time the workforce needs to be redeployed to the areas where there are opportunities. People may not get the jobs they want to have but during this kind of period, they have to take on jobs where there are vacancies.
Do you foresee the ringgit going back to the level of RM3.80/US dollar?
It would not reflect our underlying fundamentals. Currently, it reflects short-term flows. In the near term, we are going to see volatility but the medium-term underlying trend should be a gradual appreciation.
What is the comfortable level for the ringgit?
We don’t have a level that we are looking at. The International Monetary Fund continues to tell us that our ringgit is undervalued.
We said as a central bank, we never stood in the way of an underlying trend for the currency and in fact, it appreciated quite sharply to RM3.15. We didn’t stand in the way. Now, it has depreciated.
And we noticed when our currency appreciated, there was no representation to the central bank that this is too fast or putting us in difficulty.
Now, the currency has depreciated and importers will be affected. But again, there have been no remarks.
What is key to us is that the market remains orderly. The central bank will be there to ensure orderly conditions.
Over the long term, don’t you think the Asian currencies will have to strengthen as an overall adjustment?
I don’t think Asia determines the exchange rate of major currencies. The point that I want to emphasise is we don’t just look at one currency anymore. We should not just look at our link to the US dollar.
We should look at all the other currencies. Against the sterling, we have appreciated significantly. Against the euro, we have appreciated by a lesser amount and against the Aussie, quite a lot of people are quite happy.
Asia does not determine the currencies. (it is) the financial flows... that is why we have heightened our surveillance of the financial system. Asian countries have been responsible in the way they manage their reserves.
In the case of Malaysia, we had diversified our portfolio seven or eight years ago. This is important because of the high volatility of all the currencies.
People say interest rates should be reduced. Where do you see the interest rates heading?
We have said that we would take swift action to support the economy. If it is necessary, certainly, we have the flexibility to do so.
Do you think we need to bring the budget deficit under control?
In good times, every effort should be made to bring it under control. But under these challenging times, it is important to provide support to the economy to prevent a sharp economic downturn.
Yes, some of the issues need to be addressed like enhancing the revenue base. But this can be done during better times like having value-added tax.
Bizweek: Do you expect the 3.5% growth next year to be achievable?
Yes.
What do you think will threaten the forecast?
An external environment that is beyond what we have already priced in, that is half the world in a recession.
If the recession becomes a depression, with high rates of unemployment and severe economic contraction, then of course, this will have repercussions even for Asia.
When do we see a recovery?
Warren Buffet got it right. It will take about 18 months. When we implemented the resolution to restructure our banking sector during the (1997) crisis, banks started lending again six months after the implementation of Pengurusan Danaharta Bhd, Danamodal Nasional Bhd and the Corporate Debt Restructuring Committee, together with other measures.
So the first indicator is when banks start lending again. The confidence has to return for the recovery to take place.
Crisis – past & present
If we were to compare the current economic condition to that of the previous crisis, how bad is it for Malaysia and globally?
We need to separate the two. We are not in a recession and we don’t expect to be in one.
Half the world will likely be in a recession. We are the other part that expects to still see growth because there are real economic activities happening.
You have to make a distinction between the stage of the crisis. In our case, we took action very early so there is the potential for containing the severity of the crisis.
In the case of the US, the action was taken too late and as a result, the crisis will have to run its full course.
What this means is the prices, mostly asset prices, will have to adjust before they reach their lows. The slower they adjust, the more prolonged it will be. It will likely take 18 months from the time they implement all their measures and that will take us into 2010.
Do you see unemployment in Malaysia rising?
It will rise but not significantly. The measures that are being put in place are promoting job creation and the education system to retrain and re-absorb.
The financial services sector is not contracting. In fact, it is expanding. There are job opportunities and there are still many vacancies in many organisations.
This is a time the workforce needs to be redeployed to the areas where there are opportunities. People may not get the jobs they want to have but during this kind of period, they have to take on jobs where there are vacancies.
Do you foresee the ringgit going back to the level of RM3.80/US dollar?
It would not reflect our underlying fundamentals. Currently, it reflects short-term flows. In the near term, we are going to see volatility but the medium-term underlying trend should be a gradual appreciation.
What is the comfortable level for the ringgit?
We don’t have a level that we are looking at. The International Monetary Fund continues to tell us that our ringgit is undervalued.
We said as a central bank, we never stood in the way of an underlying trend for the currency and in fact, it appreciated quite sharply to RM3.15. We didn’t stand in the way. Now, it has depreciated.
And we noticed when our currency appreciated, there was no representation to the central bank that this is too fast or putting us in difficulty.
Now, the currency has depreciated and importers will be affected. But again, there have been no remarks.
What is key to us is that the market remains orderly. The central bank will be there to ensure orderly conditions.
Over the long term, don’t you think the Asian currencies will have to strengthen as an overall adjustment?
I don’t think Asia determines the exchange rate of major currencies. The point that I want to emphasise is we don’t just look at one currency anymore. We should not just look at our link to the US dollar.
We should look at all the other currencies. Against the sterling, we have appreciated significantly. Against the euro, we have appreciated by a lesser amount and against the Aussie, quite a lot of people are quite happy.
Asia does not determine the currencies. (it is) the financial flows... that is why we have heightened our surveillance of the financial system. Asian countries have been responsible in the way they manage their reserves.
In the case of Malaysia, we had diversified our portfolio seven or eight years ago. This is important because of the high volatility of all the currencies.
People say interest rates should be reduced. Where do you see the interest rates heading?
We have said that we would take swift action to support the economy. If it is necessary, certainly, we have the flexibility to do so.
Do you think we need to bring the budget deficit under control?
In good times, every effort should be made to bring it under control. But under these challenging times, it is important to provide support to the economy to prevent a sharp economic downturn.
Yes, some of the issues need to be addressed like enhancing the revenue base. But this can be done during better times like having value-added tax.
Rules on manufacturing licence relaxed to encourage investments
KUALA LUMPUR: The automatic issuance of manufacturing licences within two days will be made possible as they will now be issued by the Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (Mida), said International Trade and Industry Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
Muhyiddin, who announced the new measure yesterday, said a mechanism would be established at Mida for this purpose.
This was one of several measures he said the Government would undertake to help domestic trade and industry players counter the impact of the global economic slowdown.
An International Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) source said the ministry had also asked Mida to come up with a simpler form to apply for the licence, which will require only basic information for automatic approval.
Except for certain categories of activities, licence applications will no longer require approval by the Miti secretary-general.
However, activities related to security, health, environment and religion will still need to go through the normal vetting and approval process by the licensing officer.
Firms have said that under the old system, licence application could take up to a month.
Under the Industrial Coordination Act, a manufacturing licence is required for projects by companies with a minimum shareholders’ fund of RM2.5mil or employing 75 full-time employees. This requirement still remains.
Earlier measures to liberalise the licensing process includes doing away with renewal. The RM50 licence fee was also abolished on June 1. Muhyiddin also said he would announce more measures after meeting industry players in other specific sectors, as well as based on the future economic scenario.
Meanwhile, MP for Alor Gajah Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn, who is a former dean of Universiti Malaya’s economic faculty, said: “If the automatic issuance of licence also deals with approval and usage of land, staff employment, Immigration approval and various other past requirements, it will encourage more investors to do business in Malaysia.”
Muhyiddin, who announced the new measure yesterday, said a mechanism would be established at Mida for this purpose.
This was one of several measures he said the Government would undertake to help domestic trade and industry players counter the impact of the global economic slowdown.
An International Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) source said the ministry had also asked Mida to come up with a simpler form to apply for the licence, which will require only basic information for automatic approval.
Except for certain categories of activities, licence applications will no longer require approval by the Miti secretary-general.
However, activities related to security, health, environment and religion will still need to go through the normal vetting and approval process by the licensing officer.
Firms have said that under the old system, licence application could take up to a month.
Under the Industrial Coordination Act, a manufacturing licence is required for projects by companies with a minimum shareholders’ fund of RM2.5mil or employing 75 full-time employees. This requirement still remains.
Earlier measures to liberalise the licensing process includes doing away with renewal. The RM50 licence fee was also abolished on June 1. Muhyiddin also said he would announce more measures after meeting industry players in other specific sectors, as well as based on the future economic scenario.
Meanwhile, MP for Alor Gajah Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn, who is a former dean of Universiti Malaya’s economic faculty, said: “If the automatic issuance of licence also deals with approval and usage of land, staff employment, Immigration approval and various other past requirements, it will encourage more investors to do business in Malaysia.”
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
OIL PRICE INCREASE!! OMG!
04-06-2008: PM announces restructured fuel subsidy scheme
KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced a restructred fuel subsidy scheme today. The measures included:
Effective midnight, fuel petrol price has been raised to RM2.70 per litre; diesel up by RM1 per litre to RM2.58; ULG 92 up 74 sen; ULG 97 up 78 sen.
Cars up to 2L, pick-ups up to 2.5L to get RM625 annual cash rebate; motorcycles up to 250cc get RM150; rebates via postal order from July 1, 2008.
Power sector gas raised to RM14.31 from RM6.40 per mmbtu; IPPs pay 30% windfall tax on PBIT; Tenaga can raise tariffs by next month; households using less than RM40 of power will not be affected.
Industries using less than 2mmscfd of gas to pay up to RM24.54 per mmbtu versus RM9.40 now; industries using more than 2mmscfd to pay RM32.56 per mmbtu from RM11.32 now.
Cars above 2L get road tax discount of RM200; motorcycles more than 250cc, road tax discount of RM50.
CPO cess removed; for oil millers, windfall tax at 15% at threshold of RM2,000 per tonne; Sabah and Sarawak millers to pay 7.5%.
The impact:
Annual inflation expected to be at 4%-5%
Rebates for motorists expected at RM5 billion
Govt to maintain GDP growth at low end of forecast of 5%
Fuel subsidy this year expected at RM18 billion versus RM57 billion if not for restructuring
Govt expects to save RM13.7 billion from fuel subsidy; savings to go towards food security, cooking oil, rice, bread, flour, among other things.
KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced a restructred fuel subsidy scheme today. The measures included:
Effective midnight, fuel petrol price has been raised to RM2.70 per litre; diesel up by RM1 per litre to RM2.58; ULG 92 up 74 sen; ULG 97 up 78 sen.
Cars up to 2L, pick-ups up to 2.5L to get RM625 annual cash rebate; motorcycles up to 250cc get RM150; rebates via postal order from July 1, 2008.
Power sector gas raised to RM14.31 from RM6.40 per mmbtu; IPPs pay 30% windfall tax on PBIT; Tenaga can raise tariffs by next month; households using less than RM40 of power will not be affected.
Industries using less than 2mmscfd of gas to pay up to RM24.54 per mmbtu versus RM9.40 now; industries using more than 2mmscfd to pay RM32.56 per mmbtu from RM11.32 now.
Cars above 2L get road tax discount of RM200; motorcycles more than 250cc, road tax discount of RM50.
CPO cess removed; for oil millers, windfall tax at 15% at threshold of RM2,000 per tonne; Sabah and Sarawak millers to pay 7.5%.
The impact:
Annual inflation expected to be at 4%-5%
Rebates for motorists expected at RM5 billion
Govt to maintain GDP growth at low end of forecast of 5%
Fuel subsidy this year expected at RM18 billion versus RM57 billion if not for restructuring
Govt expects to save RM13.7 billion from fuel subsidy; savings to go towards food security, cooking oil, rice, bread, flour, among other things.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Malaysia's Economy remain resilient
I came across today newspaper saying that BNM is projecting headline inflation to average between 2.5% and 3% this year after taking into consideration the possibility of subsidy adjustments in some controlled items.
Despite challenging external conditions marked by the downturn in the United States, Malaysia's economy is still expected to remain resilient this year because of the country's strong fundamentals, diversified export base, and low exposure of local financial institutions to the US subprime market.
Petrol price won't increase at this moment, water and electricty also won't increase at this moment. What a good news. but how can it last long? cut in subsidy will be in a gradual process.
According to Zeti, "the issues of supply contraints such as open more land for food production, enhance better techniques in production and manufacturing could be able to deal with inflation.
Improvements in distribution and warehousing could minimise wastage, reducing cost and eventually inflation. Reducing cost seems is one of the main strategy in every field even apply to every company even our personal life." She said improving efficiency required resources and, more importantly, professional expertise, adding that the Government had allocated funds for this initiative and continued to support human capital development via various training programmes.
Of course, Improving efficiency is also one of the main concern in every aspects. if every party work more efficient, more professional and more productive , then the world won't waste more money on unnecessary cost. In the meanwhile, we can avoid more problems and spend our time more meaningful and worthiness.
I think it applies to everyone's life as well. seems everyone's life is so busy but then should spend it worthiness. INflation?!! dont bother it..well plan your money and time.
Despite challenging external conditions marked by the downturn in the United States, Malaysia's economy is still expected to remain resilient this year because of the country's strong fundamentals, diversified export base, and low exposure of local financial institutions to the US subprime market.
Petrol price won't increase at this moment, water and electricty also won't increase at this moment. What a good news. but how can it last long? cut in subsidy will be in a gradual process.
According to Zeti, "the issues of supply contraints such as open more land for food production, enhance better techniques in production and manufacturing could be able to deal with inflation.
Improvements in distribution and warehousing could minimise wastage, reducing cost and eventually inflation. Reducing cost seems is one of the main strategy in every field even apply to every company even our personal life." She said improving efficiency required resources and, more importantly, professional expertise, adding that the Government had allocated funds for this initiative and continued to support human capital development via various training programmes.
Of course, Improving efficiency is also one of the main concern in every aspects. if every party work more efficient, more professional and more productive , then the world won't waste more money on unnecessary cost. In the meanwhile, we can avoid more problems and spend our time more meaningful and worthiness.
I think it applies to everyone's life as well. seems everyone's life is so busy but then should spend it worthiness. INflation?!! dont bother it..well plan your money and time.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Travelling the whole world?! is it a dream?
MATTA fair has just started since 14 March 08. I keep searching info if there is any attractive package. hope I can find a good package as i wanted to visit my brother in UK.
In the meanwhile, i also want to take a break.hehehe..maybe just an excuse. I want to travel and explore more.
Travelling ....is it a dream? i wondering how many countries i can visit in my life?
how many people i would met in my life?
but then travelling also need to find a suitable partner. i dont dare backpack or travel alone yet. =p of course money and time also an important consideration.
my dream...wish you are not dream anymore....=) travel the whole world! Step on every corner of the world. hehe..
Anyway, as long as we treasure and enjoy the moment we have gone through in our life..you have been travelling the prettiest place in your life. =)
Enjoy your Journey!
In the meanwhile, i also want to take a break.hehehe..maybe just an excuse. I want to travel and explore more.
Travelling ....is it a dream? i wondering how many countries i can visit in my life?
how many people i would met in my life?
but then travelling also need to find a suitable partner. i dont dare backpack or travel alone yet. =p of course money and time also an important consideration.
my dream...wish you are not dream anymore....=) travel the whole world! Step on every corner of the world. hehe..
Anyway, as long as we treasure and enjoy the moment we have gone through in our life..you have been travelling the prettiest place in your life. =)
Enjoy your Journey!
Saturday, March 1, 2008
COOL Dining Experience!
There is nothing impossible in the world. I was really amazed while i see these pics..share with you all...it is really a unique dining experience.
You can have breakfast, lunch, dinner or cocktail or invite your boss for a meeting while enjoying your meal. 50 meters above ground dining event arranged by a professional event arranger of Benji Fun company. It provides 22 seating complete with Chef, server, musician and you can select your own location without limitation. Guarantee safety with the hoisting crane which can accommodate the whole band of musician, or making an automobile presentation to your customers. This restaurant is in Belgium.
Can you see the pianist ?!! it is really amazing...
You can have breakfast, lunch, dinner or cocktail or invite your boss for a meeting while enjoying your meal. 50 meters above ground dining event arranged by a professional event arranger of Benji Fun company. It provides 22 seating complete with Chef, server, musician and you can select your own location without limitation. Guarantee safety with the hoisting crane which can accommodate the whole band of musician, or making an automobile presentation to your customers. This restaurant is in Belgium.
Can you see the pianist ?!! it is really amazing...
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