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Archive for April 18th, 2008

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Marina at Keppel Bay wins Best Asian New Marina award

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

It scored for its pontoon system, wave attenuator, service standards

Marina at Keppel Bay has beaten seven other new marinas in the region to win the Best Asian New Marina/Yacht Club award at the Christofle Asia Boating Awards in Shanghai.

Twenty judges – industry experts from Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, India and Singapore – assessed entrants on such criteria as staff service, facilities, pontoons and other dock equipment and location. Assessments were carried out on site and included meeting boaters at marinas to get their views.

Features that gained points for Keppel included its pontoon system built by US-based Bellingham Marine Industries, which incorporates a pump-out system for waste and a wave attenuator to dampen the effect of wake. The marina also scored well for service standards – it is the only marina in South-east Asia where all staff undergo a management course.

The marina beat the only other new marina launched in Singapore last year, Sentosa Cove’s One Degree 15 Marina Club, as well as new developments in Dubai and China.

Among established marinas, Malaysia’s Royal Langkawi Yacht Club took the top prize. Other awards included Best Asia-based Charter Company, which went to Simpson Marine and Best Asian Maritime Capital which went to Qingdao. Altogether, 21 awards were given.

Accepting its award, Marina at Keppel Bay’s chief marina officer Francis Olsen said: ‘Our guiding principle is simple – to offer best-in-class services as we strive to become Asia’s waterfront lifestyle destination of choice. This award will spur us to work harder and lend strength to our efforts to put Singapore on the world’s prime waterfront playground map.’

Although brand new, the marina has already staged a number of flagship events including hosting the 10-yacht Clipper fleet for their stopover in Singapore on the Clipper 07/08 round the World Yacht Race. It will also host South-east Asia’s biggest boat show, Boat Asia 2008, next week.

The annual Christofle Asia Boating Awards is widely known as the region’s premier event for recognising the efforts of boat builders, marinas, clubs and individuals in creating a diverse and exciting boating community. It has also become a must-attend event for Asia’s jet set.

‘This is the chance for Asia to celebrate its achievement as a growing centre of luxury boating that will rival places like the Caribbean and the Mediterranean in the near future,’ said Olivier Burlot, managing director of Blu Inc Media. The awards are sponsored by Christofle and organised by Blu Inc Media, publisher of Asia-Pacific Boating and China Boating magazines.

Source : Business Times – 17 Apr 2008

Posted in General | Tagged: , , | Leave a Comment »

US housing starts hit 17-year low while consumer prices stay mild

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

Inflation data seen giving Fed scope to cut interest rates

The number of US housing projects started last month fell to the lowest in 17 years, while consumer prices moved up a bit less than expected, leaving the Federal Reserve some room to lower interest rates to ward off a housing-led slowdown.

While the slide in the housing sector continued, industrial production unexpectedly rebounded as utilities raised output due to colder weather, making up for weak manufacturing growth.

The Commerce Department yesterday said that housing starts dropped 11.9 per cent in March to an annual rate of 947,000 units, the slowest pace since March 1991 and well below the 1.02 million expected by economists.

‘These housing starts suggest that the pace of decline is intensifying, which is the last thing the US economy needs right now,’ said Stephen Malyon, senior currency strategist at Scotia Capital in Toronto.

Building permits fell 5.8 per cent to their lowest since April 1991, when the economy was in recession.

Separately, the Labor Department said consumer prices rose 0.3 per cent last month, slightly less than expected, after a flat reading in February. Stripping out food and energy, core prices, which also held steady in February, moved up an even milder 0.2 per cent, restrained by a big drop in the cost of clothing.

US stock prices shot higher and US government bond prices moved lower as investors saw the price data as leaving more room for the US central bank to keep cutting interest rates to try to spur a slowing economy. The US dollar lost ground on the prospect of more rate cuts, with the euro reaching a record high.

The Fed has lowered benchmark borrowing costs by three percentage points since mid-September, trying to ward off spreading weakness from the deep housing downturn and a related drying up of credit.

The report on consumer prices showed rising energy prices continuing to exert upward pressure on overall inflation.

Energy prices shot up 1.9 per cent in March. The cost of petrol, which hit record highs last month, rose 1.3 per cent.

While financial markets initially greeted the consumer price data as providing greater scope for the Fed to lower interest rates, not everyone agreed. Over the past year, consumer prices have risen a sharp 4 per cent on the back of surging energy costs.

‘In spite of a benign core reading, the overall increase will persuade the Fed to be less aggressive in easing rates,’ said Richard DeKaser, chief economist at National City Corp in Cleveland.

Separately, the Fed said output at the nation’s mines, factories and utilities rose 0.3 per cent in March after a downwardly revised drop of 0.7 per cent in February. Wall Street economists had forecast a 0.1 per cent decline after February’s previously reported 0.5 per cent fall.

Utility output climbed 1.9 per cent after a 3.6 per cent drop in February, while manufacturing production rose 0.1 per cent after a 0.5 per cent fall.

‘Factory output was held down by a large decline in the output of motor vehicles and parts. A shortage of motor vehicle parts that resulted from a strike at a parts manufacturer idled a number of motor vehicle assembly plants,’ the Fed said in the report, referring to the seven-week-old walkout at American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings that lay behind a 5.4 per cent fall in motor vehicle output. Excluding motor vehicles, factory production rose 0.4 per cent.

The capacity utilisation rate, a gauge of how busy the nation’s industry was, edged higher to 80.5 per cent from 80.3 per cent, still well below levels that would be considered inflationary. — Reuters

Source : Business Times – 17 Apr 2008

Posted in General, Overseas Property | Tagged: , , , | Leave a Comment »

Sharp drop in Q1 new home sales

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

But don’t expect prices to fall, say analysts

IN another sign of a lull in the private residential property market, developers managed to sell only 795 new homes in the first three months of this year — a hefty 46 per cent decline from the fourth quarter of last year.

“This was the second lowest quarter of developer sales since the Sars-stricken quarter” in the first three months of 2003, said DTZ Research in the real estate consultancy’s first-quarter Singapore Property Market Report released yesterday.

“Developers and buyers are taking a wait-and-see attitude and some are holding back launches,” said DTZ in the report.

According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), developers launched 1,395 units in the first quarter this year, 291 fewer than the 1,686 in the previous quarter.

But even with the dwindling activity in the first quarter, most developers — especially the larger ones — are in no hurry to cut prices. “Developers were still able to put up with lacklustre sales, bolstered by the revenue surge during the past two years,” noted DTZ.

The bigger and more established developers are likely to hold out until the market regains its firm footing — unless a darker cloud of prolonged gloom descends in the form of a deepening United States sub-prime mortgage crisis or regional uncertainties, said Mr Donald Han, managing director of real estate firm Cushman and Wakefield.

Currently, a generally optimistic outlook for Singapore’s economy continues to prop up the property market. In fact, larger developers may even hold out for as long as two years until the Temporary Occupation Permits are obtained for their projects.

And even then, they may choose to rent out instead of selling the new apartments. Indeed, monthly rents of prime apartments have risen between 2.1 and 2.5 per cent quarter-on-quarter, noted the DTZ report.

However, some smaller developers subject to tighter bank credit, may yield to pressure to cut prices.

“Some developers may have taken out loans pegged to higher interest rates so they may price their property lower to clear stock,” said Mr Han.

Earlier this month, estimates from the URA showed that the rise in home prices had been moderating, with prices up 4.2 per cent in the first three months, down from the 6.8 per cent growth in the previous quarter. Overall, there were only about 2,000 private residential transactions in January and February this year, down sharply from the 5,200 deals recorded over the same period last year.

The number of private home transactions has fallen in part due to the cooling of en bloc sales, which stood at a “standstill” in the first quarter, noted real estate firm Colliers International. There was just one collective deal — that of Ban Guan Park at Holland Road with a price tag of $31.1 million.

At the peak of en bloc fever in the second quarter of last year, there were 41 collective sales worth a total of about $6.5 billion, which supplied the market with potential buyers.

While the residential sector is cooling down, other segments of the property market such as office, industrial and retail are going strong. This has kept overall property investment sales at $8.4 billion in the first quarter this year, just 1 per cent above the previous quarter, according to the DTZ report.

Source : Today – 18 Apr 2008

Posted in General, Market Reports | Tagged: , , | Leave a Comment »

Banks poaching home loan customers with sweet offers

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

AS HOME sales continue to slide, banks are going all out to hang on to their existing home loan borrowers.

Some poach from their rivals while others are offering to pay off the penalties that customers may incur making the switch.

Flexibility has become a byword and new packages are getting more imaginative, The Business Times reported yesterday.

In anticipation of interest rates falling even further, one new DBS home loan package offers two free repricings within 24 months.

At United Overseas Bank, customers can fix the monthly payments for 36 months regardless of interest rate changes.

Standard Chartered Bank has begun repricing home loans downwards for existing customers on variable rate packages.

It is understood to be the first bank to do so given the steep falls in interest rates since last December.

The last time banks were proactive in repricing home loans was in 2005 after interest rates rose sharply in the third quarter of 2004. This, in turn, led to several rounds of hikes as the period followed two years of record lows when interest rates went below one per cent.

Stanchart’s automatic repricing is for customers who are out of their lock-in periods – those who do not have to pay a penalty if they repay the loan in full.

“We proactively look at the customer base and take the necessary steps to ensure the pricing is competitive; if not, the competition will take them,” saidMr Dennis Khoo, Stanchart general manager, lending.

The repricing can take the form of a new package or a lower rate within the existing contract, he said.

For banks looking to grow their mortgage business in a sluggish property market, refinancing or winning over customers from rivals is critical.

In the first quarter, only 795 new private homes were sold, about half the 1,469 units in the preceding quarter.

Repricing though can be a tricky business for borrowers still within their penalty periods because their banks have yet to recover their original costs of selling those loans.

So banks know that one way to poach customers from rivals is by offering to pay the penalty rate which can be hefty – typically 1-1.5 per cent of the outstanding loan.

“It’s difficult because they were heavily subsidised in the first year… It depends on the total relationship as the bank may have to stomach the loss,” said Mr Khoo.

Mr Koh Kar Siong, DBS managing director and head of secured loans, said clients who are considering refinancing need to assess the interest savings and the costs incurred such as legal fees and any penalties or subsidies payable to the financier.

But refinancing customers should remember that cheaper offers elsewhere still come with some cost, said Mr Gregory Chan, OCBC Bank head of consumer secured lending.

“Home-owners looking for refinancing should approach their existing banks first as the total cost of refinancing with another bank is usually relatively higher and has to be offset by lower interest rates,” he said.

Source : My Paper – 18 Apr 2008

Posted in Finance, General | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

82 months’ bonus

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

Are bonuses of $5m-plus excessive? Consultants say that is the norm overseas

GETTING a three-month bonus at the end of the year may be a satisfying reward for most people.

Now imagine getting 80 months’ bonus. That means for that a year worked, you will get about seven years’ worth of pay in terms of bonus.

Going by company annual reports, it looks like there were quite a few exceptional people who did that well last year.

Property bigwig Kwek Leng Beng, City Developments’ executive chairman, earned a monthly salary of at least $77,500 last year.

But his bonus (including allowances) at year-end was at least $6.35 million – or 82 months of his monthly salary, according to the property group’s 2007 annual report.

It’s not hard to understand why, given that the group’s full-year net profit more than doubled to a record $725m last year, according to a Straits Times report in February.

Mr Kwek made between $7.75m and $8m last year, according to that report.

Also doing very well was his counterpart, CapitaLand’s chief executive, Mr Liew Mun Leong, who received a monthly salary of around $90,000 last year, according to the company’s summary report.

His bonus was an equally impressive $5.3m – about 59 times his monthly salary and his total remuneration was about $6.5m.

Some industry watchers we spoke to were surprised by the figures.

One of them, Chesterton International’s head of research and consultancy, Mr Colin Tan, noted that last year was a phenomenal year for the property market, with one of the biggest ever number of properties sold at record prices.

And when property companies do well, it’s not unusual to hear of one-year bonuses, he said.

‘But I’ve never heard of bonuses in terms of five, six years before,’ he said.

It is not just these two property honchos’ bonuses that have hit stratospheric levels. A look at the remuneration packages of other CEOs also threw up some huge numbers.

United Overseas Bank CEO Wee Ee Cheong earned between $6m and $6.25m for the 2007 financial year, according to the bank’s annual report.

His monthly salary was at least $80,000 and his bonus was about $5m or 62 months’ worth.

Singapore Exchange CEO Hsieh Fu Hua’s monthly salary was about $62,000 for the last financial year, but his bonus of $4.5m is about 71 months of his salary, according to the SGX annual report.

These may be huge pay packages here, but human resource consultants we spoke to say it’s the norm elsewhere.

Mr Fabrice Desmarescaux, a consultant with executive search firm Spencer Stuart, said the CEOs’ remuneration structure and pay here is comparable to those in Europe and US, with an emphasis on a variable bonus.

Singapore Human Resource Institute executive director David Ang said that this multi-million dollar bonus is necessary to motivate this exceptional group of people to do well.

He said: ‘Their bonus is based on some key performance indicators, such as the company’s profitability, how they maximised capital for returns, how they contain costs and earnings per share.’

He said the CEO’s service contract is usually proposed by the board of directors, remuneration committee or an independent consultancy.

Drawbacks, too

Having a high variable bonus can be a double-edged sword, said Mr Paul Heng, founder of Next Career Consulting.

He said: ‘For the CEO, the risk of not getting that variable is there. If something happens, like the market crashes, it’ll impact on his bonus.

‘If it’s a good year, of course, they’ll get much more.’

For most employees, the basic salary is about 60 to 70 per cent of the annual package, with variable bonuses making up the rest.

And Mr Ang thinks bonuses should make up a bigger part of remuneration packages for all employees.

‘This will drive up productivity and business efficiency. If the overall company targets are made clear, people who achieve the targets know that they’ll get rewarded accordingly,’ he said.

But, said Mr Heng: ‘For the rank-and-file employees, the risks of high variable bonuses are that you may not get it at the year-end.’

——————————————————————————–

Other big earners

WEE EE CHEONG
Who he is: United Overseas Bank CEO
Monthly salary: At least $80,000
Bonus: About 62 months, or $5m It is really performance-based. If the basic salary is very high, the thinking is that they may not strive that hard for the company.

HSIEH FU HUA
Who he is: Singapore Exchange CEO
Monthly salary: About $62,000 for last financial year
Bonus: 71 months, or $4.5m

Source : New Paper – 17 Apr 2008

Posted in Developer News, General | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

82 months’ bonus

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

Are bonuses of $5m-plus excessive? Consultants say that is the norm overseas

GETTING a three-month bonus at the end of the year may be a satisfying reward for most people.

Now imagine getting 80 months’ bonus. That means for that a year worked, you will get about seven years’ worth of pay in terms of bonus.

Going by company annual reports, it looks like there were quite a few exceptional people who did that well last year.

Property bigwig Kwek Leng Beng, City Developments’ executive chairman, earned a monthly salary of at least $77,500 last year.

But his bonus (including allowances) at year-end was at least $6.35 million – or 82 months of his monthly salary, according to the property group’s 2007 annual report.

It’s not hard to understand why, given that the group’s full-year net profit more than doubled to a record $725m last year, according to a Straits Times report in February.

Mr Kwek made between $7.75m and $8m last year, according to that report.

Also doing very well was his counterpart, CapitaLand’s chief executive, Mr Liew Mun Leong, who received a monthly salary of around $90,000 last year, according to the company’s summary report.

His bonus was an equally impressive $5.3m – about 59 times his monthly salary and his total remuneration was about $6.5m.

Some industry watchers we spoke to were surprised by the figures.

One of them, Chesterton International’s head of research and consultancy, Mr Colin Tan, noted that last year was a phenomenal year for the property market, with one of the biggest ever number of properties sold at record prices.

And when property companies do well, it’s not unusual to hear of one-year bonuses, he said.

‘But I’ve never heard of bonuses in terms of five, six years before,’ he said.

It is not just these two property honchos’ bonuses that have hit stratospheric levels. A look at the remuneration packages of other CEOs also threw up some huge numbers.

United Overseas Bank CEO Wee Ee Cheong earned between $6m and $6.25m for the 2007 financial year, according to the bank’s annual report.

His monthly salary was at least $80,000 and his bonus was about $5m or 62 months’ worth.

Singapore Exchange CEO Hsieh Fu Hua’s monthly salary was about $62,000 for the last financial year, but his bonus of $4.5m is about 71 months of his salary, according to the SGX annual report.

These may be huge pay packages here, but human resource consultants we spoke to say it’s the norm elsewhere.

Mr Fabrice Desmarescaux, a consultant with executive search firm Spencer Stuart, said the CEOs’ remuneration structure and pay here is comparable to those in Europe and US, with an emphasis on a variable bonus.

Singapore Human Resource Institute executive director David Ang said that this multi-million dollar bonus is necessary to motivate this exceptional group of people to do well.

He said: ‘Their bonus is based on some key performance indicators, such as the company’s profitability, how they maximised capital for returns, how they contain costs and earnings per share.’

He said the CEO’s service contract is usually proposed by the board of directors, remuneration committee or an independent consultancy.

Drawbacks, too

Having a high variable bonus can be a double-edged sword, said Mr Paul Heng, founder of Next Career Consulting.

He said: ‘For the CEO, the risk of not getting that variable is there. If something happens, like the market crashes, it’ll impact on his bonus.

‘If it’s a good year, of course, they’ll get much more.’

For most employees, the basic salary is about 60 to 70 per cent of the annual package, with variable bonuses making up the rest.

And Mr Ang thinks bonuses should make up a bigger part of remuneration packages for all employees.

‘This will drive up productivity and business efficiency. If the overall company targets are made clear, people who achieve the targets know that they’ll get rewarded accordingly,’ he said.

But, said Mr Heng: ‘For the rank-and-file employees, the risks of high variable bonuses are that you may not get it at the year-end.’

——————————————————————————–

Other big earners

WEE EE CHEONG
Who he is: United Overseas Bank CEO
Monthly salary: At least $80,000
Bonus: About 62 months, or $5m It is really performance-based. If the basic salary is very high, the thinking is that they may not strive that hard for the company.

HSIEH FU HUA
Who he is: Singapore Exchange CEO
Monthly salary: About $62,000 for last financial year
Bonus: 71 months, or $4.5m

Source : New Paper – 17 Apr 2008

Posted in Developer News, General | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

82 months’ bonus

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

Are bonuses of $5m-plus excessive? Consultants say that is the norm overseas

GETTING a three-month bonus at the end of the year may be a satisfying reward for most people.

Now imagine getting 80 months’ bonus. That means for that a year worked, you will get about seven years’ worth of pay in terms of bonus.

Going by company annual reports, it looks like there were quite a few exceptional people who did that well last year.

Property bigwig Kwek Leng Beng, City Developments’ executive chairman, earned a monthly salary of at least $77,500 last year.

But his bonus (including allowances) at year-end was at least $6.35 million – or 82 months of his monthly salary, according to the property group’s 2007 annual report.

It’s not hard to understand why, given that the group’s full-year net profit more than doubled to a record $725m last year, according to a Straits Times report in February.

Mr Kwek made between $7.75m and $8m last year, according to that report.

Also doing very well was his counterpart, CapitaLand’s chief executive, Mr Liew Mun Leong, who received a monthly salary of around $90,000 last year, according to the company’s summary report.

His bonus was an equally impressive $5.3m – about 59 times his monthly salary and his total remuneration was about $6.5m.

Some industry watchers we spoke to were surprised by the figures.

One of them, Chesterton International’s head of research and consultancy, Mr Colin Tan, noted that last year was a phenomenal year for the property market, with one of the biggest ever number of properties sold at record prices.

And when property companies do well, it’s not unusual to hear of one-year bonuses, he said.

‘But I’ve never heard of bonuses in terms of five, six years before,’ he said.

It is not just these two property honchos’ bonuses that have hit stratospheric levels. A look at the remuneration packages of other CEOs also threw up some huge numbers.

United Overseas Bank CEO Wee Ee Cheong earned between $6m and $6.25m for the 2007 financial year, according to the bank’s annual report.

His monthly salary was at least $80,000 and his bonus was about $5m or 62 months’ worth.

Singapore Exchange CEO Hsieh Fu Hua’s monthly salary was about $62,000 for the last financial year, but his bonus of $4.5m is about 71 months of his salary, according to the SGX annual report.

These may be huge pay packages here, but human resource consultants we spoke to say it’s the norm elsewhere.

Mr Fabrice Desmarescaux, a consultant with executive search firm Spencer Stuart, said the CEOs’ remuneration structure and pay here is comparable to those in Europe and US, with an emphasis on a variable bonus.

Singapore Human Resource Institute executive director David Ang said that this multi-million dollar bonus is necessary to motivate this exceptional group of people to do well.

He said: ‘Their bonus is based on some key performance indicators, such as the company’s profitability, how they maximised capital for returns, how they contain costs and earnings per share.’

He said the CEO’s service contract is usually proposed by the board of directors, remuneration committee or an independent consultancy.

Drawbacks, too

Having a high variable bonus can be a double-edged sword, said Mr Paul Heng, founder of Next Career Consulting.

He said: ‘For the CEO, the risk of not getting that variable is there. If something happens, like the market crashes, it’ll impact on his bonus.

‘If it’s a good year, of course, they’ll get much more.’

For most employees, the basic salary is about 60 to 70 per cent of the annual package, with variable bonuses making up the rest.

And Mr Ang thinks bonuses should make up a bigger part of remuneration packages for all employees.

‘This will drive up productivity and business efficiency. If the overall company targets are made clear, people who achieve the targets know that they’ll get rewarded accordingly,’ he said.

But, said Mr Heng: ‘For the rank-and-file employees, the risks of high variable bonuses are that you may not get it at the year-end.’

——————————————————————————–

Other big earners

WEE EE CHEONG
Who he is: United Overseas Bank CEO
Monthly salary: At least $80,000
Bonus: About 62 months, or $5m It is really performance-based. If the basic salary is very high, the thinking is that they may not strive that hard for the company.

HSIEH FU HUA
Who he is: Singapore Exchange CEO
Monthly salary: About $62,000 for last financial year
Bonus: 71 months, or $4.5m

Source : New Paper – 17 Apr 2008

Posted in Developer News, General | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

82 months’ bonus

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

Are bonuses of $5m-plus excessive? Consultants say that is the norm overseas

GETTING a three-month bonus at the end of the year may be a satisfying reward for most people.

Now imagine getting 80 months’ bonus. That means for that a year worked, you will get about seven years’ worth of pay in terms of bonus.

Going by company annual reports, it looks like there were quite a few exceptional people who did that well last year.

Property bigwig Kwek Leng Beng, City Developments’ executive chairman, earned a monthly salary of at least $77,500 last year.

But his bonus (including allowances) at year-end was at least $6.35 million – or 82 months of his monthly salary, according to the property group’s 2007 annual report.

It’s not hard to understand why, given that the group’s full-year net profit more than doubled to a record $725m last year, according to a Straits Times report in February.

Mr Kwek made between $7.75m and $8m last year, according to that report.

Also doing very well was his counterpart, CapitaLand’s chief executive, Mr Liew Mun Leong, who received a monthly salary of around $90,000 last year, according to the company’s summary report.

His bonus was an equally impressive $5.3m – about 59 times his monthly salary and his total remuneration was about $6.5m.

Some industry watchers we spoke to were surprised by the figures.

One of them, Chesterton International’s head of research and consultancy, Mr Colin Tan, noted that last year was a phenomenal year for the property market, with one of the biggest ever number of properties sold at record prices.

And when property companies do well, it’s not unusual to hear of one-year bonuses, he said.

‘But I’ve never heard of bonuses in terms of five, six years before,’ he said.

It is not just these two property honchos’ bonuses that have hit stratospheric levels. A look at the remuneration packages of other CEOs also threw up some huge numbers.

United Overseas Bank CEO Wee Ee Cheong earned between $6m and $6.25m for the 2007 financial year, according to the bank’s annual report.

His monthly salary was at least $80,000 and his bonus was about $5m or 62 months’ worth.

Singapore Exchange CEO Hsieh Fu Hua’s monthly salary was about $62,000 for the last financial year, but his bonus of $4.5m is about 71 months of his salary, according to the SGX annual report.

These may be huge pay packages here, but human resource consultants we spoke to say it’s the norm elsewhere.

Mr Fabrice Desmarescaux, a consultant with executive search firm Spencer Stuart, said the CEOs’ remuneration structure and pay here is comparable to those in Europe and US, with an emphasis on a variable bonus.

Singapore Human Resource Institute executive director David Ang said that this multi-million dollar bonus is necessary to motivate this exceptional group of people to do well.

He said: ‘Their bonus is based on some key performance indicators, such as the company’s profitability, how they maximised capital for returns, how they contain costs and earnings per share.’

He said the CEO’s service contract is usually proposed by the board of directors, remuneration committee or an independent consultancy.

Drawbacks, too

Having a high variable bonus can be a double-edged sword, said Mr Paul Heng, founder of Next Career Consulting.

He said: ‘For the CEO, the risk of not getting that variable is there. If something happens, like the market crashes, it’ll impact on his bonus.

‘If it’s a good year, of course, they’ll get much more.’

For most employees, the basic salary is about 60 to 70 per cent of the annual package, with variable bonuses making up the rest.

And Mr Ang thinks bonuses should make up a bigger part of remuneration packages for all employees.

‘This will drive up productivity and business efficiency. If the overall company targets are made clear, people who achieve the targets know that they’ll get rewarded accordingly,’ he said.

But, said Mr Heng: ‘For the rank-and-file employees, the risks of high variable bonuses are that you may not get it at the year-end.’

——————————————————————————–

Other big earners

WEE EE CHEONG
Who he is: United Overseas Bank CEO
Monthly salary: At least $80,000
Bonus: About 62 months, or $5m It is really performance-based. If the basic salary is very high, the thinking is that they may not strive that hard for the company.

HSIEH FU HUA
Who he is: Singapore Exchange CEO
Monthly salary: About $62,000 for last financial year
Bonus: 71 months, or $4.5m

Source : New Paper – 17 Apr 2008

Posted in Developer News, General | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

82 months’ bonus

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

Are bonuses of $5m-plus excessive? Consultants say that is the norm overseas

GETTING a three-month bonus at the end of the year may be a satisfying reward for most people.

Now imagine getting 80 months’ bonus. That means for that a year worked, you will get about seven years’ worth of pay in terms of bonus.

Going by company annual reports, it looks like there were quite a few exceptional people who did that well last year.

Property bigwig Kwek Leng Beng, City Developments’ executive chairman, earned a monthly salary of at least $77,500 last year.

But his bonus (including allowances) at year-end was at least $6.35 million – or 82 months of his monthly salary, according to the property group’s 2007 annual report.

It’s not hard to understand why, given that the group’s full-year net profit more than doubled to a record $725m last year, according to a Straits Times report in February.

Mr Kwek made between $7.75m and $8m last year, according to that report.

Also doing very well was his counterpart, CapitaLand’s chief executive, Mr Liew Mun Leong, who received a monthly salary of around $90,000 last year, according to the company’s summary report.

His bonus was an equally impressive $5.3m – about 59 times his monthly salary and his total remuneration was about $6.5m.

Some industry watchers we spoke to were surprised by the figures.

One of them, Chesterton International’s head of research and consultancy, Mr Colin Tan, noted that last year was a phenomenal year for the property market, with one of the biggest ever number of properties sold at record prices.

And when property companies do well, it’s not unusual to hear of one-year bonuses, he said.

‘But I’ve never heard of bonuses in terms of five, six years before,’ he said.

It is not just these two property honchos’ bonuses that have hit stratospheric levels. A look at the remuneration packages of other CEOs also threw up some huge numbers.

United Overseas Bank CEO Wee Ee Cheong earned between $6m and $6.25m for the 2007 financial year, according to the bank’s annual report.

His monthly salary was at least $80,000 and his bonus was about $5m or 62 months’ worth.

Singapore Exchange CEO Hsieh Fu Hua’s monthly salary was about $62,000 for the last financial year, but his bonus of $4.5m is about 71 months of his salary, according to the SGX annual report.

These may be huge pay packages here, but human resource consultants we spoke to say it’s the norm elsewhere.

Mr Fabrice Desmarescaux, a consultant with executive search firm Spencer Stuart, said the CEOs’ remuneration structure and pay here is comparable to those in Europe and US, with an emphasis on a variable bonus.

Singapore Human Resource Institute executive director David Ang said that this multi-million dollar bonus is necessary to motivate this exceptional group of people to do well.

He said: ‘Their bonus is based on some key performance indicators, such as the company’s profitability, how they maximised capital for returns, how they contain costs and earnings per share.’

He said the CEO’s service contract is usually proposed by the board of directors, remuneration committee or an independent consultancy.

Drawbacks, too

Having a high variable bonus can be a double-edged sword, said Mr Paul Heng, founder of Next Career Consulting.

He said: ‘For the CEO, the risk of not getting that variable is there. If something happens, like the market crashes, it’ll impact on his bonus.

‘If it’s a good year, of course, they’ll get much more.’

For most employees, the basic salary is about 60 to 70 per cent of the annual package, with variable bonuses making up the rest.

And Mr Ang thinks bonuses should make up a bigger part of remuneration packages for all employees.

‘This will drive up productivity and business efficiency. If the overall company targets are made clear, people who achieve the targets know that they’ll get rewarded accordingly,’ he said.

But, said Mr Heng: ‘For the rank-and-file employees, the risks of high variable bonuses are that you may not get it at the year-end.’

——————————————————————————–

Other big earners

WEE EE CHEONG
Who he is: United Overseas Bank CEO
Monthly salary: At least $80,000
Bonus: About 62 months, or $5m It is really performance-based. If the basic salary is very high, the thinking is that they may not strive that hard for the company.

HSIEH FU HUA
Who he is: Singapore Exchange CEO
Monthly salary: About $62,000 for last financial year
Bonus: 71 months, or $4.5m

Source : New Paper – 17 Apr 2008

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82 months’ bonus

Posted by luxuryasiahome on April 18, 2008

Are bonuses of $5m-plus excessive? Consultants say that is the norm overseas

GETTING a three-month bonus at the end of the year may be a satisfying reward for most people.

Now imagine getting 80 months’ bonus. That means for that a year worked, you will get about seven years’ worth of pay in terms of bonus.

Going by company annual reports, it looks like there were quite a few exceptional people who did that well last year.

Property bigwig Kwek Leng Beng, City Developments’ executive chairman, earned a monthly salary of at least $77,500 last year.

But his bonus (including allowances) at year-end was at least $6.35 million – or 82 months of his monthly salary, according to the property group’s 2007 annual report.

It’s not hard to understand why, given that the group’s full-year net profit more than doubled to a record $725m last year, according to a Straits Times report in February.

Mr Kwek made between $7.75m and $8m last year, according to that report.

Also doing very well was his counterpart, CapitaLand’s chief executive, Mr Liew Mun Leong, who received a monthly salary of around $90,000 last year, according to the company’s summary report.

His bonus was an equally impressive $5.3m – about 59 times his monthly salary and his total remuneration was about $6.5m.

Some industry watchers we spoke to were surprised by the figures.

One of them, Chesterton International’s head of research and consultancy, Mr Colin Tan, noted that last year was a phenomenal year for the property market, with one of the biggest ever number of properties sold at record prices.

And when property companies do well, it’s not unusual to hear of one-year bonuses, he said.

‘But I’ve never heard of bonuses in terms of five, six years before,’ he said.

It is not just these two property honchos’ bonuses that have hit stratospheric levels. A look at the remuneration packages of other CEOs also threw up some huge numbers.

United Overseas Bank CEO Wee Ee Cheong earned between $6m and $6.25m for the 2007 financial year, according to the bank’s annual report.

His monthly salary was at least $80,000 and his bonus was about $5m or 62 months’ worth.

Singapore Exchange CEO Hsieh Fu Hua’s monthly salary was about $62,000 for the last financial year, but his bonus of $4.5m is about 71 months of his salary, according to the SGX annual report.

These may be huge pay packages here, but human resource consultants we spoke to say it’s the norm elsewhere.

Mr Fabrice Desmarescaux, a consultant with executive search firm Spencer Stuart, said the CEOs’ remuneration structure and pay here is comparable to those in Europe and US, with an emphasis on a variable bonus.

Singapore Human Resource Institute executive director David Ang said that this multi-million dollar bonus is necessary to motivate this exceptional group of people to do well.

He said: ‘Their bonus is based on some key performance indicators, such as the company’s profitability, how they maximised capital for returns, how they contain costs and earnings per share.’

He said the CEO’s service contract is usually proposed by the board of directors, remuneration committee or an independent consultancy.

Drawbacks, too

Having a high variable bonus can be a double-edged sword, said Mr Paul Heng, founder of Next Career Consulting.

He said: ‘For the CEO, the risk of not getting that variable is there. If something happens, like the market crashes, it’ll impact on his bonus.

‘If it’s a good year, of course, they’ll get much more.’

For most employees, the basic salary is about 60 to 70 per cent of the annual package, with variable bonuses making up the rest.

And Mr Ang thinks bonuses should make up a bigger part of remuneration packages for all employees.

‘This will drive up productivity and business efficiency. If the overall company targets are made clear, people who achieve the targets know that they’ll get rewarded accordingly,’ he said.

But, said Mr Heng: ‘For the rank-and-file employees, the risks of high variable bonuses are that you may not get it at the year-end.’

——————————————————————————–

Other big earners

WEE EE CHEONG
Who he is: United Overseas Bank CEO
Monthly salary: At least $80,000
Bonus: About 62 months, or $5m It is really performance-based. If the basic salary is very high, the thinking is that they may not strive that hard for the company.

HSIEH FU HUA
Who he is: Singapore Exchange CEO
Monthly salary: About $62,000 for last financial year
Bonus: 71 months, or $4.5m

Source : New Paper – 17 Apr 2008

Posted in Developer News, General | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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