Stocks I am Watching...

1. Olam (fair price to enter... $2?)

2. STI ETF

3. Yangzijiang (PE should be more attractive now compared to >40 PE ratio just half a year ago)

4. Ezra

5. Golden-Agri

Changing Times

Can't help but feel happy upon reading the news. I will not analyse about Mugabe's rule in Zimbabwe but i am glad that the election went well. To me, an apparent dictator can be unseated from a national elections means that the people truly wants a change, a new lease of life. It is easy for an individual with absolute power to corrupt absolutely and he can effectively stay in power. Therefore, congratulations to the people of Zimbabwe, this is your victory. Now lets hope the new president or government will rule this country well. I think Africa, though plagued with problems, can be very optimistic in this current era. With the help of the Chinese, they may just get pulled up from their current state. Give Africa 5 years of good governments and 10 years of solid institutions and smiles will return to this wonderful land once again.

They can write whatever they want

Financial journalism is something that amazes me all the time. I love the way these reporters try to justify every movement in the market with the latest bout of financial news. Today, UBS and Deutsche Bank announce yet another series of writedowns, close to US$ 20 billion. On a normal day, the markets would have crashed but the markets went up. Financial news commented that the rallies seen in European and US markets were signs that the markets welcome the disclosures and is a sign that the markets are bottoming. I bet if markets were to go the other way, the same journalists will report that the markets are still edgy, uncertainties still loom in the markets etc etc. A investor must truly know how to stand unaffected by these reports and truly rely on sound data to help him make his decisions.

However, it is far from easy to be neutral from biased-reports. Reports from consultancy firms, reserach arms of investment banks and other 'experts' all contain potential bias. I am a faithful follower of an investment-bank's weekly publication and their tone and assessment of the credit crunch have largely followed the rest of the market. I do not detect any fresh insights nor any privilege access to exclusive information.

Still awaiting the results of the Zimbabwe elections. My next post will be about Singapore's dividend stocks performances since the credit crunch began. Will Graham's theories prove the test of time?