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March 28, 2007

ADB lifts growth forecast for Asian economies

It expects pickup in consumer, business sentiment to even out weaker exports

MANILA - THE Asian Development Bank (ADB) raised its growth forecast for Asia excluding Japan on expectations that a pickup in spending by consumers and companies in the region will cushion the impact of weaker exports.

Asia's developing economies will expand 7.6 per cent this year, faster than the 7.1 per cent estimated in September, the Manila-based lender said yesterday. The pace will quicken to 7.7 per cent next year, it said in its Asian Development Outlook 2007 report.

Rising incomes and increased employment across Asia are boosting consumer spending and encouraging companies to lift investment.

That will help sustain the region's economies this year even as slowing growth in the United States and Europe dampens demand for made-in-Asia exports, according to the ADB.

China and India are likely to continue to drive Asia's expansion. The ADB lifted its 2007 forecast for China to 10 per cent from 9.5 per cent estimated six months ago, while India may now expand 8 per cent instead of 7.8 per cent.

Asia's rate of expansion this year is still expected to trail that of last year, when the region grew an 'exceptional' 8.3 per cent, the ADB said. The lender also expects growth in the US, Japan and euro zone to slow, pushing world trade volumes lower this year.

'These projections imply that growth will move on to a more sustainable footing and that overheating pressures that surfaced in 2006 will gradually abate,' the ADB said. In Asia, 'net exports' contribution to growth will soften, but strengthening domestic demand will fill part of the gap'.

Slowing inflation stemming from lower oil and commodity prices and as a result of previous interest rate increases may encourage central banks to cut borrowing costs this year, the lender said. Inflation pressures in South-east Asia may 'subside significantly', the ADB said.

'Most developing countries are very cognizant of overheating,' Mr Ifzal Ali, the bank's chief economist, said in an interview in Tokyo. 'Monetary policy will have a major role in bringing this under control.'

Asian central banks raised rates more than 25 times last year to curb inflation, control lending and limit inflows from overseas that were creating asset bubbles in their markets.

'As the pass-through effects of high oil prices comes to an end, there may be scope for interest rates to come down,' the lender said, citing Indonesia and Thailand which have already begun lowering rates.

The 10 economies in South-east Asia will grow 5.6 per cent this year, and accelerate to 5.9 per cent next year, the ADB said.

Said Mr Bill Belchere, an economist at Macquarie Securities in Hong Kong: 'Domestic demand cycles are stronger in South-east Asia and are being reinforced by policy, whether that is cutting interest rates or adding fiscal stimulus.'

China is taking steps to boost domestic demand and curb a reliance on exports and investment for growth. Premier Wen Jiabao this month said the nation's economic expansion is unstable and environmentally unsustainable.

Risks to the region's growth this year include slowing demand for electronic goods and a resurgence of inflation should oil or commodity prices rise, the ADB said.

Crude oil has dropped about 20 per cent since reaching a record US$78.40 per barrel on July 14 last year. It was US$62.61 yesterday.

'The global electronics cycle could turn in 2007, which would negatively affect export prospects particularly for East and South-east Asia,' the report said. 'The relief that lower prices are currently bringing to budgets, to inflationary pressures and to import bills is welcome, but should not be counted on.'

BLOOMBERG NEWS

The Asian markets are moving! What investment should you look at? How do you invest? What investments will yield the best returns?

Contact us for your reliable needs based investment advice

Do you have enough savings to send your children to University?

March 27, 2007

Which University?

For four years now, students have been able to apply to all three local universities, and choose where to go once acceptances come in. So the universities strive to be different - in their programmes, admission criteria and fees. The Straits Times Education Correspondent Sandra Davie takes a look at the choices offered by the universities

Degrees

THERE are the local single degrees, of course. A few years ago, double degrees were all the rage. Now it is the global degree route. These are proving popular as more companies look out for employees with a global outlook.

NUS: It offers the widest range of degrees among the three universities. Its exclusive courses are medicine, architecture, dentistry, music, pharmacy, nursing, and project and facilities management.

Global degrees:

Bachelor of Arts (Honours) with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Bachelor of Computing (Communications & Media) and Master in Entertainment Technology with Carnegie Mellon University.

Bachelor of Engineering (Civil Engineering) with the University of Melbourne.

NTU: It has expanded its range of courses in recent years to include social sciences and fine arts. Its exclusive offerings include art, design and media, aerospace engineering, communication studies, maritime studies and education (conducted by the National Institute of Education).

Global degrees:

Double degree in Biomedical Sciences and Medicine (Traditional Chinese Medicine) with Beijing University of Chinese Medicine.

Double MBA degree programme in Management of Technology with Japan's Waseda University.

Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science) from NTU and Master of Science (Computer Science) from Georgia Institute of Technology

SMU: Positioning itself as a boutique business university, it offers four-year, full-time programmes in accountancy, business, economics, information systems management and social science. It has introduced a new one, law, which will take in 90 students in its pioneer batch.

Global degrees:

Bachelor of Science (Information Systems Management) degree from SMU and master's degree from Carnegie Mellon University.

Fees

THE three universities announced in January that they will not raise tuition fees this year in view of the upcoming increase in goods and services tax (GST).

SMU, anyway, has a lock-in system for its fees, which will not be raised over the duration of one's course even if fees are increased for later intakes.

Some parents and students prefer this lock-in scheme, because it allows them to plan ahead and set aside a specific amount of money.

Both NUS and NTU have said they are considering a similar scheme.

NUS ANNUAL FEES

Dentistry and medicine: $17,520

Music: $7,570

Nursing: $7,000

All other courses: $6,110

NTU ANNUAL FEES $6,110

SMU ANNUAL FEES $7,500 (except law which is $9,000).

Example

If you are planning to send your child to University.

Gender: Female Age: 4 next birthday

For Singapore, using SMU annual fees of, $ 7,500.00

Age of entry to university 18 (Females)

This amount is needed for Years 4

Total amount needed for Local Course fees $ 30,000.00

Shortfall will be needed in Years 15

Education cost, I feel will increase annually by about 6%

Education Costs 15 years later $ 71,896.75 (after inflation)

SHORTFALL to Fund Education

Lump Sum in today dollars needed to meet the shortfall $ 53,420.34

OR Monthly savings per month for 15 years $ 342.26

Have you done your children's education planning?

Will you have enough savings when the times comes for your children's education?

Give your children a head start with an education policy!

Contact your reliable needs based-advisor on how to have a discipline savings plan that provide protection and education funds for your childrens University

Give your child a head start in life with an education policy!

April 2, 2007

Student loans: No defaults, say banks

By Cheryl Tan

LOAN SHIRK?: Better not default, or my guarantor will have to pick up the tab.

THEY may owe money, but they'll pay it back.

Banks offering student loans to undergraduates at Singapore's universities say they have yet to encounter defaulters. Some even repay their loans early.

That is a far cry from students in the United States.

In November, the USA Today newspaper cited a credit analysis report which stated that unpaid student loans had put two out of three million people in their 20s surveyed in bad debt.

Such loans, along with credit card debt, had even caused up to 1.5 million of those surveyed to stop repayments altogether, forcing lenders to sell these debts to a collection agency.

The worst cases have had their cars repossessed or sought bankruptcy protection.

Singapore students are another breed altogether.

Credit Counselling Singapore's assistant director Tan Huey Min said 20somethings do seek help after overspending on credit cards, but not for student loans.

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Just imagine your poor child with a huge loan to repay even before nailing a job! Give your children a head start in life with an education policy! There are numerous plans that provide a force savings for parents to provide a lump sum of monies to pay for their children’s education. Some of such insurance plans in Singapore are:-

Endowment

With the costs of higher education rising, it makes sense to plan for your child’s future by investing in Endowment Classic, a savings plan with potential higher returns than regular bank deposits that combines savings with protection in one plan.

Premiums on Endowment Classic are guaranteed, and you can choose to have the policy mature when your child is ready to enter university. The resulting returns from your sum assured, as well as all attaching bonuses, would come in handy when it’s time to pay those hefty tuition fees.

You are also covered against death and total and permanent disability should the unforeseen happen.

Life Policies with Savings rider

Whole life protection with premium payment required only for 20 years (Flexi20). Ideal for newborns - For example, sign up for a 1-year old infant and by the time the child is 21 years old, his policy would have been fully paid for. No additional premium is required while he continues to enjoy protection for life.

In the meantime the saving rider will mature at the university age yielding a lump sum amount for the child's education where ever he may wish to study. But the main policy continues providing protection and accumulation through out their life until surrender.

Life Policy using Investment linked products

GreatLink SupremeLife is an insurance policy designed to meet your protection and investment needs in a smart and secure way. It ensures you and your family are financially protected while investing for the future.

This comprehensive regular-premium investment-linked plan combines whole life protection with investment opportunities aimed at achieving returns on your savings. From a low minimum monthly premium of $100, you will enjoy protection benefits of the basic sum assured and the total investment value of your funds invested.

More importantly, SupremeLife gives you the control and flexibility to allocate more of your premium towards protection as your financial liability rises or potentially higher investment returns as your protection need decreases near retirement.

Which plans best suit your child or children?

Contact your reliable needs based adviser today!

Does your medical policy pay for trial or developmental drugs?

April 2, 2007

The smart-pill solution

By David G. Nathan

FOR most of the past half-century, medical treatment of invasive tumours like those of the breast and colon has relied mainly on drugs, radiation or both, in effect carpet- bombing the DNA of cancer cells. This highly toxic treatment is effective in many cases, but it does not address the root causes of cancer.

Fortunately, the revolution in genetics of the past 30 years has taught us how cancer results from defects in DNA repair that arise when certain genes are damaged by solar radiation, tobacco smoke and the chemical products of intestinal bacteria and cell metabolism. Cancer cell genes depend on only a very small number of mutated genes to ensure their own survival. These are typically the genes responsible for repairing other genes and for controlling growth and death. Our challenge is to outsmart the cancer by determining which genes are keeping the cancer going, and to design drugs that can inhibit them.

The first such 'smart' agent to see action in patients is trastuzumab, or Herceptin, which is not a drug in the strict sense but rather a large protein, an antibody that binds to a growth-controlling protein found in about 20 per cent of patients with a highly aggressive form of breast cancer. When it is administered with standard chemotherapy and radiation, Herceptin ties up the protein, and thus markedly improves the survival of such patients.

Gleevec (imatinib), the first smart anti-cancer pill, inhibits a protein produced by a single gene that is key to the growth of a form of leukaemia. Even more remarkable is Gleevec's effect on an intractable bowel cancer known as gastrointestinal stromal tumour, a ravaging tumour derived from nerve cells in the bowel wall. In its early stages, this cancer is driven by a single gene and its protein, and it can be inhibited overnight by a single dose of Gleevec. A large number of patients who have received this drug have remained in remission for years.

There are at least 100 such smart antibodies and drugs in practice, trials or development. Among them are Iressa (gefitinid) and Tarceva (erlotinib), which are effective in treating about 10 per cent of lung cancers, those that are initiated by a specific mutation in a growth-controlling gene. But we need many more, because cancer cells are wily foes that readily develop further mutations to help them evade such drugs. Also, because cancer cells are genetically unstable and vary slightly from one to the next, it is difficult for a single drug attacking a single protein to do the whole job. We need multiple smart drugs, and creating them will take time.

Patients, organisations that finance research and the public want faster progress. So do cancer researchers and clinicians. We are trying, and we are succeeding. The pace is slow because the problem is difficult, but we will get there.

The writer, the president emeritus of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, is the author of The Cancer Treatment Revolution.

Read the fine print! Many Singapore medical insurance policies be it cash or Medishield does not pay for trial or developmental drugs!! This would mean the usage of such drugs which are expensive (may be in the area of hundreds to thousands dollars a pill) will have to be forked out of your own pocket!

The drug may save, but you may loose your life savings!

Transfer the risk for just $538 for a yearly medical for a person age 60 and below a year in good health, can qualify for a class Ward A "as charged" plans . Co-Insurance and deductibles apply.

Contact us for your reliable needs based advice on the best and cost effective medical policies.