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S’pore ranked world’s 3rd least-corrupt country

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 18, 2009

Singapore has moved up a notch to be ranked third least-corrupt nation in the world, after New Zealand and Denmark, according to an annual global corruption survey.

The Republic shares third spot with Sweden, which last year tied with New Zealand and Denmark for top position. Switzerland completed the top five in the list released by Berlin-based non-governmental corruption watchdog Transparency International (TI) yesterday.

TI attributed the strong performance of the five high-scorers to the ‘political stability, long-established conflict of interest regulations and solid, functioning public institutions’ in these nations.

In contrast, the bottom five – Somalia, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Sudan and Iraq – show that ‘countries which are perceived as the most corrupt are also those plagued by longstanding conflicts, which have torn apart their governance infrastructure,’ TI said.

Mr Pascal Fabie, TI’s regional director for Asia-Pacific, told The Straits Times: ‘Singapore remains a model of effective and strong political will that has made sure the public sector is clean.’

But he added that as a major trade and financial centre, ‘Singapore should do more to ensure transparency and due diligence in its banking sector. Its financial institutions should know who they lend to and who they take money from’.

Singapore has been doing more to improve transparency. This month, it was taken off the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) ‘grey list’ of countries considered lax in sharing tax information.

This came after Singapore signed its 12th Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement, which meets the OECD standard requiring governments to disclose financial information when foreign requests are made regarding tax evaders.

The TI’s annual rankings, known as the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), define corruption as the abuse of public office for private gain. They measure the perceived levels of public sector corruption, for example the frequency of bribes, in 180 countries and territories.

Overall, this year’s list is ‘of great concern’, the TI said, pointing out that most of those ranked scored under five points out of a possible 10.

What is more, shedding light on shady practices and tightening oversight have become even more critical when governments are pumping in large sums of public money to keep the world economic recovery going, TI chairman Huguette Labelle noted in a statement.

‘Corruption continues to lurk where opacity rules, where institutions still need strengthening and where governments have not implemented anti-corruption legal frameworks,’ the TI statement said.

The United States, for one, slipped a notch, to 19th place. TI cited ‘widespread concerns’ about American oversight of its financial sector in areas such as executive pay and derivatives trading.

Turning to Asia, the watchdog noted that the global financial crisis and political transformation in many Asian countries last year ‘exposed fundamental weaknesses in both the financial and political systems and demonstrated the failures in policy, regulations, oversight, and enforcement mechanisms’.

These factors contributed to a drop in the scores of 13 countries, and a reduction in the number of nations that scored above 5 in this year’s index.

The decline in Malaysia’s score, from 5.1 to 4.5, may be attributed to the perception that there has been little political will or progress in combating corruption, the TI said.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission appears to focus on ’small fish’ and opposition politicians, the report added.

Indonesia, ranked 111, still has a long way to go, but the recent tough approach by the Corruption Eradication Commission contributed to a rise in its score from 2.6 last year to 2.8, TI said.

China dipped from its 72nd position last year to 79th. But TI noted that it has launched a sustained anti-corruption drive, investigating and prosecuting ministers as well as other low-level officials.

Source : Straits Times – 18 Nov 2009

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Singapore most integrated of the 21 APEC economies

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 11, 2009

Singapore is the most integrated of the 21 economies which make up the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), according to an index released by the Pacific Economic Cooperation Council (PECC) on Wednesday as part of its annual State of the Region report.

In fact, the Asia Pacific region, as a whole, has become more integrated since APEC was founded 20 years ago.

The PECC index of economic integration tracks the extent to which the APEC economies are becoming more alike in their economic characteristics.

It also looks at the relative importance of regional trade, investment and human flows compared to economic relations with the rest of the world.

Said Woo Yuen Pau, coordinator of the report: “The path of integration has been rising pretty much through the entire two decade period, and we think that APEC can take some credit in enhancing the deepening of regional integration which surely is one of the fundamental goals of the APEC forum.”

Mr Woo said the index made use of 2006 data, and the integration levels now would be even deeper than the report.

“Integration will continue to have deepened through the 2006 to 2009 period, simply because the share of inter-regional trade and investment and human flows would have increased through this period because of the downturn in the United States and the European Union, he explained. “So, I’m fully expecting that when we produce our index next year, and the year after, we will find that integration will continue to be on the rise.”

PECC said it believes the findings to be significant as a measure of APEC’s success and a factor in assessing its progress towards the 2010 Bogor target.

The Bogor Goals, adopted at the 1994 APEC summit, calls for industrialised members to achieve free trade and investment targets by 2010.

Developing member economies have until 2020.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 11 Nov 2009

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Economists say MM Lee’s 3% growth forecast for 2010 is cautious

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 9, 2009

Singapore’s economic growth for next year could be as high as six per cent, say some industry experts.

They say the three per cent outlook given by Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew on Sunday may be on the cautious side, but it is still news they welcome as this means better times are ahead – more so in industries such as the finance sector.

“There will be a pay revision. Estimates in general range from about two per cent to about 4.5 per cent,” said Gary Lai Wai Keat, manager of Financial Services at Robert Walters. “If you look at the front line business, you talk about bonuses being restored.

“I think most of the bonuses that were cut is probably in the range of 60 per cent to 80 per cent. This year, you will get at least half of that coming back into the picture.”

Halimah Yacob, deputy secretary-general of NTUC, said: “With economy on the growth, it means workers can expect at least some bonuses and wage increases, compared to this year where many did not have wage increases, and many did not get their mid-year bonuses.

“We really do hope that with the three per cent projected growth, that would actually bring benefits to workers in terms of more job openings and some wage adjustments and bonuses that they can expect.”

However, analysts expect employers to remain cautious and adopt a wait-and-see approach when it comes to pay increments and bonuses for certain sectors such as manufacturing

“It will still be riddled with uncertainties, one of which, whether there will be an overhang in capacity,” explained Vishnu Varathan, a regional economist. “And to that extent we will not probably see a very broadbased upside to salaries and it may be better for the medium term if there’s a period of stabalisation and gestation, just simply due to the amount of uncertainty that is out there.”

But as the recovery takes shape, there are still traps lurking, which policy makers need to pay attention to.

Varathan said: “Over the next few months, there will be talk about exit strategies, to what extent and what pace will some of these policies begin to unwind. This is one of the risks that someone moves too fast or too slow and that’s going to cause de-stabalisation.

“You also see huge flows coming into this region and propping up the asset markets and partly due to dollar debasement fears as well. That, of course, is a very unsettling thing when the fundamental economies are at a very nascent stage of the recovery.”

Lai said: “Credit card debt is also being considered as the next big thing, whether the banks will have a much higher NPL (non-performing loans) going forward. Whether banks have accepted TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Programme) money and, if they can recruit talented people to join. These are things which going forward probably affect trade.”

Besides economists looking to a better year ahead, global leaders at the APEC Forum will also be looking at better understanding what the new world-economic order means for the region.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 9 Nov 2009

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MM Lee says Singapore’s economy may grow 3% next year

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 8, 2009

Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew on Sunday said the country’s economy may grow by three per cent next year, and added that this year’s fourth quarter looks healthy after Singapore’s economy bounced back in the second and third quarters.

Speaking at the annual tree planting ceremony at his constituency of Tanjong Pagar, Mr Lee said Singapore has emerged out of the recession with minimum damage.

He said the first quarter was the country’s worst period with a sudden drop in exports, and at that point of time, Singapore had expected growth to shrink by up to nine per cent.

However, the country’s economy has bounced back in the second and third quarters this year.

Mr Lee added that Singaporeans must be prepared for slower economic growth, but said that slower growth in the nation and other countries in Asia will still be higher than other regions of the world.

“We have a small population, and we must find ways and means to fill up the drop in our exports,” Mr Lee explained. “Fortunately, we have gone into industries like pharmaceuticals that have not been so badly affected by the slowdown.

“We are placed at the junction of three big economies that are not export-dependent, in other words, exports are not a high proportion of their GDP. They have huge domestic markets: China with 1.3 billion people; India 1.1 billion; Indonesia 250 million. Their domestic consumption and investments have enabled their economies to continue achieving positive growth despite a slowdown in exports.

“The rest of East and Southeast Asia have the benefit of the overflow effect from China, India and, to a lesser extent, Indonesia. Furthermore, we have free trade agreements with China and India that will give us an advantage over other regions.

However, Mr Lee added that there are bigger issues at stake.

The Prime Minister said: “If every time we run into a problem and the younger generation has grown up for the last 20, 30 years knowing only improvements in life, more income, better surroundings, better everything… that’s a problem.

“They have not understood how difficult life was when we started and how easy it is to go back to that situation if we do not work together and strive and make this place successful.”

Mr Lee also said to ensure that Singapore remains as one of the best liveable cities in the world, the country needs an honest and capable government which can think and plan long term.

One of the challenges now is to find the next generation of Members of Parliament (MP) and leaders who can continue with what the present government is doing.

Mr Lee added that it is important to choose the right leaders and not just listen to what the opposition says.

“Come election time, they talk a lot of things, which is rubbish,” said Mr Lee. “This is a government which chooses its MPs very carefully, test them out before they become Ministers, that’s why it is working. The present Ministers can last ten years…”

Mr Lee added that by the next general election due by February 2012, Singapore will see the nucleus of a new generation of leaders who are as able, determined and committed.

In that way, Singapore will remain healthy, strong and at peace.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 8 Nov 2009

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S’pore’s country brand jumps 11 spots to 13th

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 7, 2009

It is ranked best among 102 countries for shopping and easiest to do business in

SINGAPORE has moved up the rankings for the world’s top country brand, jumping from 24th place to 13th in this year’s Country Brand Index (CBI).

The United States was rated top out of 102 countries, followed by Canada, then Australia.

The CBI was conducted by consultancy FutureBrand in conjunction with public relations firm Weber Shandwick.

True to its reputation, Singapore was ranked best country brand for shopping, beating the US and Japan.

It was also ranked No. 1 as the easiest destination to do business in.

However, it slipped to No. 5 as the place where people would most like to start doing business.

Other categories where Singapore made the top five included preferred off-site convention destination (third) and ease of travel (fourth).

Singapore was also ranked fourth for prevalence of the latest technologies, fifth for standard of living and eighth for most oriented towards environmental protection.

‘The next step for Singapore is embracing more authentic characteristics and feeling a bit more confident about that,’ said Tim Riches, chief executive officer of FutureBrand (Singapore).

‘Singapore has been quite hesitant to allow authentic Singaporean culture into the spotlight.’

It is important to establish a more distinctive style, he said.

In terms of authenticity, Singapore was ranked 40th.

According to Mr Riches, the volatile economy this year generally resulted in less optimistic perceptions of other countries. ‘There’s more of a negative outlook compared to previous years,’ he told BT.

There was also a greater focus on value.

‘Asia as a region is considered to be good value,’ he said, pointing out that six of the top 10 countries that offered value-for-money were from the Asia-Pacific.

Interestingly, the perception of a country’s safety – or lack thereof – did not necessarily have a dampening impact on its popularity.

Vietnam, which was ranked 85th in terms of safety, was still rated the 25th country that people wished to visit or re-visit.

The FutureBrand CBI, now in its fifth year, polls approximately 3,000 business and leisure travellers from nine countries.

Source : Business Times – 7 Nov 2009

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SM Goh says Singapore needs new identity to stay ahead

Posted by luxuryasiahome on November 6, 2009

Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said Singapore needs to be one of the most liveable cities – not just in Asia, but globally – and one that goes beyond being clean, green and safe.

Mr Goh shared this new vision of Singapore over the next 25 years at the 50th anniversary of the Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore (REDAS) on Thursday.

Singapore has come a long way. But as other new cities erode the island’s competitive advantages, Mr Goh said Singapore needs a new identity – a vibrant place with soul that embraces both talents and ideas.

“Singapore must therefore project a new identity – one that captivates the eyes, moves the heart, stirs the soul and inspires the mind,” said SM Goh.

Painting a picture of what he called a “Distinctive City”, Mr Goh sees Singapore as both a convenient, compact city as well as an aesthetically-pleasing city with gardens and water spaces.

Moving on, Mr Goh also sees the country as one that is big on economic ideas but small in its environmental footprint.

Still, it is the quality of its people that is crucial – more important now than at any other time in the past 50 years, said Mr Goh.

There are some 100 000 tourists in Singapore on any given day, and more than half a million foreigners live and work here. This means each must go the extra mile if all are to live in harmony.

“But let me add a caveat here. Those who come to drink from the oasis must add to our ability to replenish the water, and not just consume and deplete the stock. By this I mean that we must manage the inflow of talent and new immigrants to ensure that Singaporeans do not lose out and in fact benefit from their presence,” said Mr Goh.

However, there can be no harmony if Singapore prices itself out and the city is no longer affordable, either in terms of rentals for businesses or homes for people.

The senior minister said: “For those who are worried over the recent price increases, MND (Ministry of National Development) tells me there is adequate supply of homes in the pipeline, both in the central region as well as outside it.

“The government is also committed to releasing more land through the Government Land Sales Programme to ensure that property prices do not fall out of sync with economic fundamentals.”

Mr Goh added that the government will continue to ensure that public housing remains affordable and continue to factor in the increasing demand from permanent residents in the resale market.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 6 Nov 2009

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S’pore pips London as No 2 financial hub

Posted by luxuryasiahome on October 31, 2009

New York stays clear favourite in global survey of investor choice

SINGAPORE has emerged as the second leading global financial centre after New York.

While New York has withstood the worst economic crisis in seven decades, London slipped behind Singapore as investors’ preferred place for doing business, according to a global survey.

Some 29 per cent of respondents in the quarterly Bloomberg Global Poll of investors, traders and analysts say that New York will be the best place for financial services two years from now. ‘Despite the carnage of 2008, I still expect the ‘new new’ thing in financial services to be developed and nurtured here (New York), and ultimately exported to the world,’ says Peter Rup, a fund manager at Artemis Wealth Advisors in New York.

Singapore is chosen by 17 per cent of the respondents and London is the pick of 16 per cent. Shanghai has 11 per cent. Tokyo, once considered a global hub, gets the nod from just one per cent.

On a separate question, respondents say that China, Brazil and India offer investors the best opportunities for making money. The US, Europe and Japan are seen to have less potential.

The ascent of Singapore and the decline of London reflect the rise of specialised financial centres that cater to specific segments of the industry.

Many hedge funds have left London because of a new top income-tax rate of 50 per cent for higher earnings and regulations planned by the European Union that restrict the amount they can borrow.

Consulting firm Kinetic Partners says that it had helped 23 hedge-fund firms move to Switzerland from London in the past 18 months and is looking to relocate another 15 since the UK announced a higher tax rate in April.

‘About 20 per cent of the hedge-fund community could leave the UK in the next two or three years,’ says London-based David Butler, a founder of Kinetic. ‘The feeling among the hedge-fund community is there is a better place to be.’

Singapore and Shanghai are growing in popularity as firms look for ways to tap the wealth that has accumulated in China and the rest of Asia. Private wealth management, in particular, is growing in Singapore, which has no capital-gains tax.

‘Everything in Singapore is so well organised. Everything is so efficient. Everything works,’ says Gary Addison, a partner at the private-equity firm Actis Capital, which has US$2.9 billion under management. Mr Addison worked in London, then Tokyo, before moving to Singapore two years ago.

The investment climate attracts firms seeking high returns. ‘I perceive Singapore to be a little more of the tawdry wild west, or I guess tawdry wild ‘east’,’ says Pacific Income Advisors in Santa Monica, California.

Shanghai isn’t as well established as Singapore. Some 11 per cent of those polled see the city as the top financial centre because of the huge growth potential in China. As credit remains tight in the US, China will try to unleash the excess savings of its citizens, says Anthony Comorat at Lydian Trust Co in Palm Beach, Florida.

Dubai remains a popular regional financial centre for investors who want to take advantage of the oil wealth in the Middle East. The sheikdom is the preferred locale of 5 per cent of those polled.

‘No one can compete with Dubai in terms of a place to live and work,’ says Paul Reynolds, head of debt and equity advisory for the Middle East at NM Rothschild & Sons, in Dubai.

Source : Business Times – 31 Oct 2009

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Survey ranks S’pore as world’s No.2 best place to do business

Posted by luxuryasiahome on October 30, 2009

Singapore overtook London as the investors’ preferred place for doing business in a Bloomberg Global survey.

Singapore was chosen by 17 per cent of respondents who said it was the second best place for financial services two years from now.

New York, despite being battered by the financial crisis, remained the world’s leading financial centre with 29 per cent of the votes. London was in third place, garnering 16 per cent of the votes.

Analysts said Singapore is growing in popularity as companies look for ways to tap the wealth accumulated in China and the rest of Asia. Respondents also favoured Singapore because it is well organised and efficient.

Private wealth management, in particular, is growing in Singapore – which has no capital-gains tax.

Shanghai was also popular, with 11 per cent of the votes, largely due to China’s huge growth potential.

Meanwhile, Tokyo – which was once considered a global hub – received the nod from only one per cent of respondents.

The quarterly survey, which was conducted in early October, polled over 1,400 Bloomberg subscribers in six continents.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 30 Oct 2009

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4th publicly funded varsity to focus on design & technology

Posted by luxuryasiahome on October 30, 2009

Magnanti, former dean of engineering school at MIT, is founding president

 

Singapore’s fourth publicly funded university has officially been named the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SU).

Also unveiled yesterday was its founding president, Thomas Magnanti, an institute professor and former dean of the engineering school at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States. He has been with the Boston-based institution for the past 37 years.

Prof Magnanti began work here at the start of October and will be on leave from MIT throughout his three-year appointment to devote his time fully to leading SU.

MIT is one of the new university’s two foreign partners, and the Ministry of Education said yesterday that it expects to announce the other – a top Chinese university – by the end of the year.

The chairman of SU’s new board of trustees, Philip Ng, told reporters that he was delighted to have Prof Magnanti at the helm as his knowledge and experience would be crucial in building a strong relationship between SU and MIT.

SU is on track to accept its first intake of 500 students in 2011, before eventually growing to reach an annual intake of about 2,500. It will operate from an as-yet-undisclosed temporary campus for about four years before moving to a permanent home on Upper Changi Road East, next to the Changi Business Park, by 2015.

Students will get to pick from four programmes leading to separate degrees. These are Architecture and Sustainable Design, Engineering Product Design, Engineering Systems and System Design, and Information Engineering and Design. All undergraduates will also have to take up a foundation programme in mathematics, sciences and the humanities in their freshmen year.

Said Mr Ng, who is also chief executive of Far East Organization: ‘There is a lot of regional demand for the MIT links that we have, a modified type of MIT education, if you will. What we hope to do is to produce logically and technically trained leaders of the future.’

Prof Magnanti is no stranger to Singapore, having had a long association dating back to the mid-1980s. He was a contributing faculty member and then-member of the governing board of the Singapore-MIT Alliance, and later as the director of the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology.

Having travelled in and out of the Republic frequently over the last decade, Prof Magnanti said that he has a strong connection here and was looking forward to helping SU become the top institution for technology and design in the world over the next 10 to 20 years.

‘The creation of SU is as exciting as it is ambitious,’ said the American. ‘Through its distinctive education and research and focus on technology-grounded leadership, it will be well-poised to serve Singapore, the region and the world.’

Prof Magnanti earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Syracuse University, and master’s degrees in statistics and mathematics, as well as a PhD in operations research, all from Stamford University.

Source : Business Times – 30 Oct 2009

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4th university named as Singapore University of Technology and Design

Posted by luxuryasiahome on October 29, 2009

Singapore’s fourth public-funded university, which is scheduled to open its doors in 2011, has been named the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SU).

Its founding president is Thomas Magnanti, who is an institute professor with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He was also the former dean of the Engineering School there.

Prof Magnanti’s appointment was announced by the new university’s Board of Trustees on Thursday.

During his three-year term of appointment, Prof Magnanti will be on leave from the MIT faculty and will devote his time fully to the new Singapore university.

The board said Prof Magnanti’s appointment as president also reflects the close relationship that SU is expected to have with MIT.

The new university will admit its first intake of up to 500 students in two years and students will have four degree programmes to choose from.

These will be in the areas of Architecture & Sustainable Design, Engineering Product Design, Engineering Systems & System Design, and Information Engineering & Design.

First-year students will be exposed to foundation studies in the areas of mathematics, science, introductory humanities and social sciences – all in the context of design.

They will also get to learn about entrepreneurship and management during each of the four-year degree programme.

Prof Magnanti said the university will be well-poised to serve Singapore, the region and the world.

“We’ll focus on trying to create what we call technical grounded leaders – people who have technology in their hearts and their soul and who will go out to the marketplace with a well-grounded education, and be able to lead all of us, economically and socially, to the future,” he said.

The Board of Trustees said details on the admission process and school fees will be finalised at a later date. More details about the location of both the interim and permanent campuses will be announced by early next year.

Source : Channel NewsAsia – 29 Oct 2009

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