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Rome wasn't built in a day and the Eurozone will not collapse in a day.  But, the Eurozone will collapse.  It's just a matter of time. Consider the stronger countries in the Eurozone -- Germany and France.  Both economies are now contracting.   Meanwhile their debt levels, acknowledged and unacknowledged, have exploded to new levels.   Both countries are now in the situation that faced Greece four years ago.  So, how is their future going to be any different that what is now taking place in Cyprus, Greece, Spain and Italy? The ECB ministers are a group of political hacks who know little or nothing about economics (something they share with the Obama advising team).   Their idea of improving the economic plight of the Eurozone is to increase the level of debt, continue to implicitly guarantee profligate spending and bureaucratic regulations, and plunge the Eurozone into the economic dark ages. GDP is falling, debt is rising, unemploy...

So how big is Cyprus?  800,000 people with a GDP of about 18 billion Euros -- less than 10 percent of the size and wealth of the State of Virginia.  So, how can Cyprus rock the Eurozone? Easy.  Let politics substitute for economics and anything can happen. The grand Euro scheme of bailing out country after country is rapidly running up against reality. The sacrifices that the bailers require are politically unacceptable to the bailees. Austerity traded for more debt -- this is the bailout scheme devised by politicians.  This scheme is an effort to change reality and it won't work. The reality is that Cyprus banking is history.  Who, in his right mind, would willingly leave their money in a Cypriot bank after the events of the past week?  It doesn't really matter what solution is imposed, the Cypriot financial community will not recover. Meanwhile, institutions with deposits in Italian and Spanish banks now face a new reality, hitherto not contempl...

Ina Drew - Senate Hearing (Source: CNNMoney) “The strategy was flawed, complex, poorly executed, and poorly monitored.” – Jamie Dimon on the scheme that cost the firm over $6.2 billion last year. Right before a series of hearings related to the failed hedging portfolio, the Senate released a 300-page report two days ago that revisited significant missteps in the risk-management process at JP Morgan that led to catastrophic losses in the first half of last year, as well as casting a dark shadow over former Chief Investment Officer Ina Drew. The heavy losses sustained by JP Morgan where from a complex derivatives portfolio that was build to hedge against credit risk in the Firm’s Chief Investment Office (CIO) and “in its capacity as a lender.” [1] The Senate report claims that JP Morgan failed miserably in heeding repeated warnings from its internal risk controls (more than 330 of them throughout the first four months of 2012), misled investors in a conference call in April 13 of ...

Are you bored of the recent elections hoo-haa ? It's all coming from either party from different side, some NGOs, and some political related persons. How about foreigners? What are they thinking about our Malaysia General Election? Here you go... In this note, Morgan Stanley outline the 5 things they think investors need to know regarding Malaysia elections: What's upcoming? Setting the context The 13th General Elections are due to be held very soon in Malayia. Parliament needs to be dissolved no later than April 2013, and elections need to be held no later than 60 days from date of its dissolution. Which are the key states to monitor? They are Kedah, Penang, Selangor, Perak, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak. Election scenarios and macro implications BN Parliamentary seat share of > 63% would be seen as a positive surprise for investors. BN Parliamentary seat share of < mid 50% would be seen as a negative risk event by investors and could have implications for leadership and gove...

T oday, Samsung unveiled its newest smartphone, the Galaxy S 4, right here in New York’s Radio City Music Hall. The Samsung S 4 is the latest smartphone to be previewed and has yet to come out into retail, with a release date set sometime in late April. The phone is the work of new technology, new logistics and a sleeker design. The S 4 has a 5 inch screen and is .31 inches thin. It   runs on a faster chip and has a 13-megapixel camera that allows rear and front cameras to take simultaneous photos and videos. The phone will connect to next-generation LTE networks and has capability to connect to higher speed Wi-Fi networks. New software features includes   a function that lets users control the smartphone screen with their eyes. Users can also wave their hands to scroll up and down a Web page or accept a call, or hover their fingers to preview the content of any media without having to open it. The phone also includes temperature and humidity sensors, as well as one designed ...

Today, the Catholic Church made the decision to modernize and recognize the changing realities of the world. By electing Jorge Bergoglio, now Pope Francis I, as head of the church, the cardinals have shown that they understand the prevalence of the developing world and the need for changes in the papal order. In addition, the support for Pope Francis was magnified by the swiftness of the decision, coming after only 2 days in the fifth round of voting in what was thought to be one of the most wide open papal races in recent memory. The selection of Pope Francis is a crucial one for the church as it moves forward because it gives new hope to members worldwide by thinking outside the box and selecting not only the first Jesuit pope, but also the first from Latin America. Through his name selection alone, Pope Francis showed that changes would be coming to the Church. By taking the name of St. Francis of Assisi, a man who gave up his wealth and worldly lifestyle in service of the church, P...

One of the most desired by an investor, is to achieve diversification in his or her portfolio and what better way to do so then by investing in a balanced fund. A balance in an investment portfolio is also fundamental to appease an investor in times of uncertainties and volatility. Such a balance can appeal to the investor of any age regardless of his or her objectives. Thus, with market uncertainties continuing to prevail over the Eurozone debt crisis and its contagion effect on the global economy, investors remain cautious with their investment choice, seeking to invest in low to moderate risk investments such as a balanced fund. Hence, OSK-UOB offer you a Shariah-based fund with its balanced asset allocation strategy in equities and investments comprising sukuk, islamic money market instruments, deposits and collective investment schemes. The investment in equities will enjoy potential capital appreciation upswings while any downswings will be cushioned by its investm...