Date: Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:03:24 GMT
Local: Fri, Jun 5 2009 9:03 pm
Subject: Singapore: Buy High, Sell Low 2
http://asiasentinel.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=191...
Home Economics/Business Singapore Singapore: Buy High, Sell Low II
Written by Our Correspondent
Friday, 05 June 2009
Bailing out on Barclay's with massive losses, Temasek forgets to tell
Singapore's citizens about it
Singapore officials' sense of superiority has taken another beating. A
behind-the-curve bunch of sheep with MBAs may now be the truer image. While
the sovereign wealth fund of Abu Dhabi has cleaned up on its investment in
Britain's Barclays Bank, Temasek Holdings, still headed until October by Ho
Ching, wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, has bailed out at a loss
estimated at around US$850 million.
The news didn't come out of Singapore, where embarrassments involving
the first family get the minimum attention, but from analysts in London and
New York studying the movement of major shareholders in Barclays. The
citizens of Singapore were apparently not worthy of being told of how their
money is being mismanaged.
Not content with buying into Barclays at a time when the banking
sector was viewed as the way to easy riches, Temasek sold out close to the
bottom of the market. The Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Investment Corp
meanwhile bought in when Barclays was desperate and sold out just this week
when the Barclays share price had recovered, netting a profit of £1.45
billion sterling (US$ 2.2 billion) in just seven months.
The Temasek debacle followed hard on the heels of massive losses on a
Bank of America stake mostly acquired near the top of the market and sold
close to the bottom. Temasek's loss is estimated at US$4.6 billion, or
roughly US$1,000 for every Singaporean citizen. After the sale, presumably
in March, the share price promptly rose by 66 percent.
Singapore Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam has claimed that
despite recent losses Temasek has made gains averaging a respectable 15
respectable a year. However, this was during a sustained global bull market
and also reflected the fact that some of its assets were state-owned
companies whose shares had been transferred at non-market prices. These
included power stations which have been sold off over the past two years,
generating large gains which cannot be replicated.
Some aspects of Temasek are also so obscure that no proper analysis is
possible. One black hole looks to be a leveraged investment in a series of
private equity funds at the top of the market.
Having bought into financials near the top - making them 40% of its
total portfolio -- and sold off near the bottom, it is now focusing on
commodities, most recently buying a stake in locally listed agriculture
company Olam international. It got a 13.76 percent stake at an 18 percent
discount to the market, nonetheless it had already almost doubled in price
this year thanks to a rebound in commodities which may or may not be
sustained.
Not that it is completely neglecting financials. It is considering a
stake in a consortium to buy AIG's asset management business. But potential
partner in this is the high-profile Hong Kong businessman notorious for
losing shareholders' money - Richard Lee of PCCW.
Nor can Temasek ignore the problems of Singapore state enterprises
which must compete internationally. It has just had to inject equity to
reduce the massive debt of money-losing ship-owner NOL. Meanwhile it is
trying to offload loss-making manufacturer Chartered Semiconductor.
In short, Temasek's bad news is unlikely to be over. But don't expect
to hear about it first in the local media.
From: rainbow12345...@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 5 Jun 2009 07:54:09 -0700 (PDT)
Local: Fri, Jun 5 2009 10:54 pm
Subject: Re: Singapore: Buy High, Sell Low 2
It is the fucking result of putting our reserve in the hand of so
called foreign experts' hands who don't even care about our reserve?
Why can't Temasek and GIC trust our local expertise? At least we will
be loyal to our reserve. I strongly suspect there is a plot behind the
forieng experts to sabotage Singaporean reserves.
From: "Zai Zai"
Date: Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:47:05 GMT
Local: Fri, Jun 5 2009 11:47 pm
Subject: Re: Singapore: Buy High, Sell Low 2
Hello, initially we put Mdm Ho a local there you complain and now we put an
ang moh there you also complain. Frankly, even if we put an ape there you
will also complain lar. You want us to put you there incharge? If so, you
can wait long long.
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