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Showing posts from April, 2013

挂羊头卖牛肉 - Selling Beef Under the Guise of Mutton

Source 3 stalls at Ayer Rajah Food Centre were selling beef as mutton. Personally, I can eat anything so it's not a big deal to me, but I know there are people who are not allowed to consume beef due to their religion, just imagine the kind of shock waiting for them when they learn of this news. Madam Semi Sagi, 36, owner of a nasi ayam stall, said: "A fine or a warning would be enough, this is not right." The stall owners were fined S$3000 each and their licenses revoked, I agree that it's quite extreme to revoke their licenses, but then again, they were deceiving customers. I think everybody has the right to know exactly what they are paying for, they can't just lie to people. And these hawkers are planning to meet their member of parliament, I wonder what he/she can do for them, they cheat people and they still have the cheek to ask their MP for help. Another hawker, who declined to be named, said: "NEA can't just come down and do this. If th...
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Passing of One of The Best Actors in Singapore

Well, kind of sudden as he always looked so kind, so healthy and always smiling. Very humorous guy, I always chuckled whenever he appeared on TV, just his face alone is enough to lighten up my mood, and when he started talking or acting (the funny roles), most of the time I just laughed. Sigh, his passing made me realize that I got so much older, how time have passed, people gets old, gets sick and such a thing is inevitable, just a matter of time, but I think he will live forever in the hearts of people who've been touched by him. Thank you Mr. Huang Wen Yong, for all the joy you have brought me, and for accompanying me since I was a little boy. And to his family members, please take care.
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Financial Literacy should Start from Young

I strongly feel that financial literacy is a necessary skill for everyone. It's the kind of skill that you can never learn in school, most probably not even at home unless your parents are financially savvy and teaches you from young, or you have friends who can influence and guide you. I think the best time to start learning is from young, it's like trying to catch a plane, if you miss it, you will have to pay more and then wait for the next one. It's actually a very simple concept, Earn, Save and Invest. Earn You earn by being employed or self-employed. The key point is to have a steady stream of income. You will have to spend, but spend it on NEEDS and not too much WANTS, and that is under expenses, anything left after expenses are spare cash and that goes to Save. Save You set aside a small amount as emergency fund, if you don't ever need to use it, let it grow, but there should be a cap as there is no point holding onto too much cash. Anything after the...
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BAM! I Bought it!

If you read my last post , I was thinking of buying Semb Corp Industries at S$4.90 if I had the cash, but I don't. Today I did something brave and did my first ever stock purchase using CPF, bought 4 lots of Semb Corp Industries (U96) at S$4.97. We'll see how it goes, but I have plenty of confidence in this counter, furthermore, I will get S$600 of dividend from this purchase in 14 May.
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DBS Bank Charges When Investing in Stocks with CPF

Source 1. S$2.50 per lot when buying or selling, capped at S$25. 2. S$2 per counter every quarter as maintenance fee, minimum S$5. 3. Note that the amounts are before GST, so you need to add 7%. 4. Note that you also have to pay the SGX fees as well. 5. There is also a one-time S$0.50 (w/gst S$0.54) charge by CDP for each transaction See that when you buy or sell, it's charged by PER LOT, so do not buy those low priced cents-category stocks like e.g. Sheng Siong or Informatics, buy those dollar-category stocks like SingTel, Starhub or DBS, it's all just examples, don't really go buy because I said so, anyway DBS is very expensive now. And don't buy too many counters, focus on one or two, because the quarterly maintenance is charged by PER COUNTER, you hold 10 counters then you will pay 10 x $2 x 1.07 = S$21.40 per quarter. 1 lot = 1000 shares Buy example Buy 4 lots of Semb Corp Industries (U96) at S$4.96 via CPF. SGX Fees 4000 shares x S$4.96 = S$198...
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One Stock I will Buy Now...

If I have money. I bought 1 lot of Semb Corp Industries (U96) at S$5.15 on 27 Mar 2013. I was attracted to the S$150 dividend that they will payout in May, and I was expecting the price to go upwards, it did go up to S$5.23 in early April but from then on, kept going down, it's now S$4.90 as I type this. Too bad I don't have the cash to average down. Dividend Info Record: 02 May 2013 Payment: 14 May 2013 Per Share: S$0.15 Let's see how it performs in late April. And that's the good thing about trading long-term, if the price goes down, and if I have the money, I can choose to average down, if not, I'll wait since it's only paper loss. And I don't believe at S$4.9x or S$4.8x, or hell even S$4.7x nobody wants that S$150, it's just too good to pass.
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Immigration Phone Scam

Source SINGAPORE: The Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said it does not call up members of the public for transfer of funds pertaining to immigration facilities such as extension of stay in Singapore. This comes after ICA received public feedback that some individuals including foreigners had received suspicious phone calls from a caller who claimed to be an ICA officer. The calls made to the victims happened over this week and were from a phone number that is similar to the ICA hotline (6391 6100). ICA said the caller would tell the victims that they had not filled their disembarkation/embarkation cards properly. They were then asked to transfer funds to the caller in order to make their stay in Singapore legitimate. ICA said such calls are not authentic and that the police have been informed of the scam. The public is advised to ignore such calls, and not transfer any money via remittance agencies, banks or any other means to the caller. The public should call the poli...
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Photos from Thailand Trip

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Photos! I didn't take too many though as I keep leaving it at my wife's home, but here goes... New Tesco Lotus in Kumphawapi District Random shot of chickens in cages Rubber trees at my mother-in-law's house Look at the neat formation I heard this is the correct way to cut the tree Cut rubber tree front view See how the liquid used to flow down to the collection bowl I think it takes time to fill up Young rubber trees Another small farm for young rubber trees Growing healthily Young spring onions See how the spring onions have grown Bamboo trees, it's a very useful tree Lots of snail shells, I see piles like this everywhere I wonder what these are for This is how they manage their waste, burn. My wife's uncle's house This is how they store clean water See how big the jar is Honeycomb, this is honey fresh from the trees! Rear shot of the honeycomb Yu...
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Just Came Back From Thailand Trip

Went to my wife's hometown in North Eastern Thailand (Udon Thani) with my parents and then had a short stay in Bangkok. I have some pictures to share but I will post my spending, get some sleep and then upload tomorrow. Air tickets to Bangkok (4 adults) Fare Price S$200 Tax S$136 Checkin Baggage S$18 (1x 20KG) Booking Fee S$36 (online booking charge) Seat Fee S$20 (seat selection) Total S$410 Air tickets back to Singapore (4 adults) Fare Price 5160 THB Tax 2800 THB Checkin Baggage 900 THB (2x 20KG) Booking Fee 900 THB (online booking charge) Seat Fee 500 THB (seat selection) Total 10260 THB ( S$428.06 ) My spending for the trip (11 days) Taxi to Changi Airport S$10 Bought a 10 pack Sampoerna S$32 Changed S$3450 at Suvarnabhumi Airport @ 22.63 for 78073 THB 12000 THB for my wife to return to her mom. 15000 THB as payment for sinsod (by installment). 2104 THB for bus ticket to her home in Udon Thani (526 THB per pax). 2400 THB for bus ticket back to B...
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Singapore Budget 2013 - Wage Credit Scheme (Update)

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In my last post , I mentioned that I am eligible for the Wage Credit Scheme, but today when I looked at this article from IRAS, seems like I am not eligible. Basically the government will co-fund salary increment, but only for employee whose Gross Monthly Wage is S$4000 or below. So how do they derive Gross Monthly Wage? My monthly salary is S$3300, and I usually get 3 months bonus a year, and I have a S$500 allowance for each year. Total basic wage = 3300 x 12 = 39600 Bonus = 3300 x 3 = 9900 Allowance = 500 Total = 39600 + 9900 + 500 = 50000 Total divided by Number of Months Worked = 50000 / 12 = 4166.66 Meh. I was happy for a while...
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Furious World Tour - Bangkok

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Other than Anthony Bourdain and Gordon Ramsey, Furious Pete is the next guy I want to see on a Food + Travel show, enjoy! Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
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Singapore Budget 2013 - Wage Credit Scheme

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Today I came across this scheme at our budget website . It seems that our government will help businesses pay their employees a higher salary increment for 3 years by topping up an extra 40%, but this only applies to employees whose monthly salary are S$4000 or lesser, which also means I am eligible, Yay... I wonder if it is capped at S$200 since the picture shows only that amount. Anyway, I don't think my employer will pay me that much, I'll probably get S$100-S$150 increment for 2013 depending on performance. So let's say I get S$100 increment from my employer, and our government tops up 40%, I'll get a total of S$140 increment for 2013, sounds like not bad huh. The thing is, what happens after 3 years? From the 4th year onwards, employers will need to cough up that extra salary increment from their own pockets? I don't think they will like that.
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Google Glass - Say Delicious in Thai

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Wow, voice command, GPS and... translation!?! 1:47 "Say delicious in Thai" - Aroi Maybe I should get one.
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Bought Sheng Siong at S$0.65 on 01 Apr 2013

Today it closed at S$0.67, I think it will go higher later on. It's giving out dividend in May, let's see...
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Long-Term Visit Pass - Plus (LTVP-PLUS)

http://www.ica.gov.sg/news_details.aspx?nid=12665 Good news for those of us who cannot get PR for our beloved spouse, because the Singapore government has come up with a enhanced long-term visit pass called LTVP-PLUS or LTVP+. I'll sum up the key points in the FAQ provided by ICA so you don't have to go through one big page. Do let me know if I missed out anything or correction is required by dropping a comment. GENERAL LTVP+ will be in effect from 01 Apr 2012. LTVP+ holders will enjoy extended duration of residency, public healthcare subsidies and easier access to employment. No separate application required for LTVP+; an application for LTVP will automatically include your spouse for LTVP+, if eligible. LTVP applications submitted from 01 Feb 2012 will automatically be considered for LTVP+. The first approved LTVP+ will grant 3 years residency and subsequent renewal will be 5 years. Current holders of LTVP will be considered for LTVP+ on next renewal. If holde...
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How to Marry a Thai in Singapore

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You should refer to here -  https://www.rom.gov.sg/reg_info/rom_marriage.asp Please spend some time to go through and understand the information on that section (legal provision, other information, filing of notice, solemnization and etc), if your still not sure, feel free to drop a comment here or you can use their FAQ . The ROM website did a really good job of putting together the information that you need in a well-organized manner. I've done it once and I think the guide is very easy to follow. The only hiccup I've had with my marriage is during the  Appointment for verification & Statutory Declaration where both of us were required to read out a wall of text and my wife had difficulty getting past the first few lines and the counter guy got fed up and told my wife to stop. Definitely my oversight as I didn't arrange for an interpreter beforehand but luckily, there was a licensed interpreter at the scene and we managed to get her to do the interpretation ...
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Commission Calculator for DBS Vickers SG Stocks

Made this little tool to help me calculate the costs of buying or selling a stock, just enter number of shares and price and it will show both buy and sell costs at the same time. Can even choose by cash upfront, online or phone and it will calculate using respective rates. Cash Upfront ONLINE By Phone Shares: Price: Value: Commission: Clearing Fee: ...
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