France is a country seemingly under siege. A man drove a delivery truck through a crowd in Nice, France. A failed military coup in Turkey. Racial tensions came to a boil as the blacks sniped police officers in Dallas. Public Shootings in a German shopping mall. Donald Trump delivered his GOP convention speech like a war-time president, dark and angry. The South China Sea dispute remain contentious, straining ties between ASEAN and China.
Am I concerned about recent geopolitical developments? Sure, I am. But I am not letting these fears stop me from living my life. The world has always been a messy and even violent place (remember WWI & WWII?). I choose to believe in the goodness of humanity! Stay positive and spread the love around.
By the way, I totally enjoyed my recent trip to Washington DC. Bought a Hugo Boss bag! :)
Life is one huge stumble. Just make sure you stumble in the right direction.
DK
The desperate chase for yield is becoming dangerous, driving the valuations of dividend stocks (telcos, utilities & REITs) and bond prices to the sky. The main reason behind this 'new abnormal' is the world (especially developed nations) spiralling into a 'Japan-style' economic malaise.
- Aging populations result in weak demand
- Weak demand leads to deflation
- Central banks maintain low and even negative rates for longer in order to stimulate growth and battle against powerful deflationary forces. Central banks in Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, and Japan now all have negative interest rates!
I foresee solid blue-chip yield stocks to be selling at a premium for many years to come as the global population age even further. The thirst for income will only get ever more frantic.
Japan gave us a dress rehearsal of a bleak future
DK
Applying for SCRIP has its advantages which benefit investors with certain objectives.
1) SCRIP allows an investor to build up his position in a long-term core counter without having to pay the fees and we all know fees significantly erode our returns over time. In the case of OCBC and Raffles Medical Group, the discounted pricing of their SCRIP make it even more worthwhile. Both companies have solid earnings & dividend growth and management are still pursuing sustainable growth. OCBC just completed a massive acquisition of Barclays' private wealth management business in Singapore and Hong Kong. Raffles Medical Group is building a new wing next to its flagship Raffles Hospital as well as an international hospital in Shanghai. If an investor wants to enjoy the fruits of these expansion plans, he should apply for their SCRIPs. On the other hand, if a struggling company such as Noble offer SCRIP, I would avoid it with ten-foot pole. Anyway, I would not be vested in Noble in the first place.....hahaha!
2) Since an investor apply for the SCRIP year after year over a long period, the compounding effect will multiply several times. For example, you receive 10 shares this year, this particular batch of 10 shares will reap you more shares next year, maybe 11 shares. Then, the 21 shares will reap you even more shares next year and this wealth-generation cycle keeps rolling on.
2) SCRIP is also more suitable for investors with substantial amounts of the counter. For example, if you only own 100 shares of OCBC, just take the dividends in cash. I would suggest applying for SCRIP when you have at least 2000 shares of OCBC as the returns will be more meaningful.
