PELABUR dijangka terus berada di luar pasaran di tengah kebimbangan suasana politik negara yang tidak menentu. Penganalisis menjangka penanda aras Bursa Malaysia, Indeks Komposit Kuala Lumpur (KLCI) bergerak dalam jajaran sempit antara 1,166 hingga 1,180 mata hari ini. Katanya, kebimbangan terhadap kenaikan harga minyak mentah dunia, ditambah keadaan politik negara yang tidak menentu menjejaskan sentimen pelabur untuk terus memasuki pasaran.
“Saya fikir indeks mungkin mencecah paras rendah 1,166 esok (hari ini) dan mungkin meneruskan aliran menurun ke paras 1,157 mata menjelang akhir minggu ini berikutan sentimen pasaran negatif dan jumlah dagangan merosot,” katanya. Dalam urus niaga semalam, harga saham di Bursa Malaysia ditutup rendah dengan jualan berterusan, didahului kerugian di kaunter berkaitan kewangan dan perladangan, kata peniaga.
KLCI susut 11.74 mata atau 0.99 peratus untuk ditutup pada 1,174.83 mata. Ia dibuka 1.42 mata lebih tinggi pada 1,187.99.
Kebanyakan peserta pasaran bersikap tunggu dan lihat dan menantikan petunjuk baru. Aseambankers Equity Research dalam nota penyelidikannya berkata pelabur dijangka kekal tidak memasuki pasaran kerana bimbang dengan tahap inflasi pada separuh kedua 2008 akan menjejaskan penggunaan domestik dan pendapatan korporat. Indeks Perindustrian merosot 17.87 mata kepada 2,540.39, Indeks Kewangan turun 135.91 mata kepada 8,610.27 dan Indeks Perladangan berkurangan 70.39 mata kepada 7,854.54.
Daripada siri Indeks FTSE-BM, FBM2BRD lebih rendah 144.49 mata kepada 5,391.10, FBMEmas turun 84.46 mata kepada 7,815.9, FBM30 susut 81.37 mata kepada 7,575.36 dan FBMMDQ lebih rendah 97.88 mata kepada 4,306.89.
Saham rugi mengatasi saham untung dengan 471 berbalas 172, 240 kaunter tidak berubah, 516 tidak diniaga dan 31 digantung. Jumlah dagangan merosot kepada 340.095 juta saham bernilai RM759.792 juta daripada 370.536 juta bernilai RM965.351 juta kelmarin.
Sumber : Berita Harian Online
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Saturday August 12, 2006
Showing youths how to be financially secure
JOHOR BARU: Young Malaysians need to have good financial planning as there is a high bankruptcy rate among the youth.
A total of 1,280 Malaysians between the age of 20 and 30 were declared bankrupt in 2004.
That was the clear message delivered during the Malaysian Financial Planning Council (MFPC) Financial Planning Road Show themed ‘Youth in the New Era of Financial Planning’ held in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) recently.
The road show’s organising chairman Kenny Chong said the road show was aimed at educating the youth on good financial planning for a better future.
“Nowadays, we see fresh graduates and young workers loose money easily and end up being bankrupt.
“We want to show the youth that they can prevent this from being a common trend by planning their finance smartly,” he said adding that prevention was the best solution in avoiding bankruptcy
Participant Zinette Zorzos, said the road show as very informative.
“It was surprisingly very interesting as it did not dwell with figures and data but instead it gave us a lot of alternative if we ever faced financial trouble,” said Zorzos.
Fellow participant Leslie Koh, 19, said his favourite part were the tips to control credit card usage.
“The speakers taught us how to spend more economically and conservatively.
Showing youths how to be financially secure
JOHOR BARU: Young Malaysians need to have good financial planning as there is a high bankruptcy rate among the youth.
A total of 1,280 Malaysians between the age of 20 and 30 were declared bankrupt in 2004.
That was the clear message delivered during the Malaysian Financial Planning Council (MFPC) Financial Planning Road Show themed ‘Youth in the New Era of Financial Planning’ held in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) recently.
The road show’s organising chairman Kenny Chong said the road show was aimed at educating the youth on good financial planning for a better future.
“Nowadays, we see fresh graduates and young workers loose money easily and end up being bankrupt.
“We want to show the youth that they can prevent this from being a common trend by planning their finance smartly,” he said adding that prevention was the best solution in avoiding bankruptcy
Participant Zinette Zorzos, said the road show as very informative.
“It was surprisingly very interesting as it did not dwell with figures and data but instead it gave us a lot of alternative if we ever faced financial trouble,” said Zorzos.
Fellow participant Leslie Koh, 19, said his favourite part were the tips to control credit card usage.
“The speakers taught us how to spend more economically and conservatively.
EPF head highlights troubling situation
Sunday November 19, 2006
EPF head highlights troubling situation
PUTRAJAYA: The majority of those aged 60 and above in Malaysia are wholly dependent on their children for support.
They do not hold highly paid jobs and did not manage their finances well when younger as they lacked proper education.
In making these observations, Employees Provident Fund chairman Tan Sri Abdul Halim Ali said nationwide data showed that the average income of the older generation was only RM300 and most of them did not have any savings.
“But the older generation cannot depend fully on their children for support as the cost of living now is increasing day by day and lifestyles have changed,” he said.
He was speaking to reporters at a hotel here yesterday after giving the keynote address at the two-day “Ageing and National Development: Improving Quality of Later Life” conference.
Abdul Halim said the older generation, especially those still active, could continue to contribute to the country's development and be self-reliant. The Government, he added, was finding ways to help active senior citizens be productive and improve their quality of life.
According to him, those aged 60 and above now make up 6% of the population and the figure, which is rising rapidly because of lower mortality rates, is expected to go up to 15% by 2035.
Abdul Halim also urged young people to learn how to manage their finances so that they would have enough funds to see them through old age without needing to depend on their children.
“The changes in societal and family structures require an individual to be prepared for old age not only in terms of money but also psychologically and socially,” he said.
EPF head highlights troubling situation
PUTRAJAYA: The majority of those aged 60 and above in Malaysia are wholly dependent on their children for support.
They do not hold highly paid jobs and did not manage their finances well when younger as they lacked proper education.
In making these observations, Employees Provident Fund chairman Tan Sri Abdul Halim Ali said nationwide data showed that the average income of the older generation was only RM300 and most of them did not have any savings.
“But the older generation cannot depend fully on their children for support as the cost of living now is increasing day by day and lifestyles have changed,” he said.
He was speaking to reporters at a hotel here yesterday after giving the keynote address at the two-day “Ageing and National Development: Improving Quality of Later Life” conference.
Abdul Halim said the older generation, especially those still active, could continue to contribute to the country's development and be self-reliant. The Government, he added, was finding ways to help active senior citizens be productive and improve their quality of life.
According to him, those aged 60 and above now make up 6% of the population and the figure, which is rising rapidly because of lower mortality rates, is expected to go up to 15% by 2035.
Abdul Halim also urged young people to learn how to manage their finances so that they would have enough funds to see them through old age without needing to depend on their children.
“The changes in societal and family structures require an individual to be prepared for old age not only in terms of money but also psychologically and socially,” he said.
Making students money-savvy
BY SHAHANAAZ HABIB
KUALA LUMPUR: A Bank Negara agency wants final-year undergraduates to take a course in financial management because many of them are not very savvy in handling their personal finances when they join the workforce.
Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency (AKPK) chief executive officer Mohamed Akwal Sultan said the agency was looking at whether this can be offered as an elective course at local universities for those in their final year. “These students will be leaving university soon. That’s when they get their first credit card, when they start shopping for a car and a house and get into debt.
“We realise they are not very savvy about financial management. Very often they start making not-so-wise decisions when acquiring these things,” he said. Mohamed Akwal believed that if people were well educated on financial management there would be fewer debt problems.
That is why he sees the need for graduating students to be educated on things to look out for when buying a car or a house and to ask themselves if they have the money to buy them.
“If you come out (from university) with your eyes open, chances of you getting into debt issues are less,” he added.
AKPK is a subsidiary of Bank Negara, set up recently to counsel and educate people on managing their money and debts. Mohamed Akwal said there were cases where parents came to them for help because their working children could not repay their car loans and settle their credit card payments.
“Their children want their fancy cars and their daily cup of gourmet coffee, but when they start paying their rent and car instalments they find that their income is not sufficient to pay for their lifestyle. Then the parents have to bail them out,” he said. Mohamed Akwal said AKPK had discussed the idea of the university course but that it was still at the conceptual stage.
“
We plan to convince the Higher Education Ministry that we think it is important to make this an elective course,” he added. Mohamed Akwal said AKPK would not have the resources to provide lecturers, but that it could propose the course syllabus and let the universities provide the lecturers. There were also plans to teach financial management in schools, he added.
“What you are taught when you are young, you carry into your adulthood. If youngsters are taught early to put money in their piggy banks, they would have the concept that savings is important,” he said. He said the agency planned to enhance Bank Negara's Buku Wang Saku programme in schools, where Bank Negara gave out booklets and got students to track their spending. Mohamed Akwal added that he had already discussed with consultants on what students should be looking at.
He said the knowledge could be imparted as part of extra-curricular activities, by having teachers run through it before the term break through the Web or by giving out CDs on financial management. “If we don’t educate, we are not nipping the problem in the bud. And the process of credit-counselling and debt-managing people will be never-ending,” he added.
KUALA LUMPUR: A Bank Negara agency wants final-year undergraduates to take a course in financial management because many of them are not very savvy in handling their personal finances when they join the workforce.
Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency (AKPK) chief executive officer Mohamed Akwal Sultan said the agency was looking at whether this can be offered as an elective course at local universities for those in their final year. “These students will be leaving university soon. That’s when they get their first credit card, when they start shopping for a car and a house and get into debt.
“We realise they are not very savvy about financial management. Very often they start making not-so-wise decisions when acquiring these things,” he said. Mohamed Akwal believed that if people were well educated on financial management there would be fewer debt problems.
That is why he sees the need for graduating students to be educated on things to look out for when buying a car or a house and to ask themselves if they have the money to buy them.
“If you come out (from university) with your eyes open, chances of you getting into debt issues are less,” he added.
AKPK is a subsidiary of Bank Negara, set up recently to counsel and educate people on managing their money and debts. Mohamed Akwal said there were cases where parents came to them for help because their working children could not repay their car loans and settle their credit card payments.
“Their children want their fancy cars and their daily cup of gourmet coffee, but when they start paying their rent and car instalments they find that their income is not sufficient to pay for their lifestyle. Then the parents have to bail them out,” he said. Mohamed Akwal said AKPK had discussed the idea of the university course but that it was still at the conceptual stage.
“
We plan to convince the Higher Education Ministry that we think it is important to make this an elective course,” he added. Mohamed Akwal said AKPK would not have the resources to provide lecturers, but that it could propose the course syllabus and let the universities provide the lecturers. There were also plans to teach financial management in schools, he added.
“What you are taught when you are young, you carry into your adulthood. If youngsters are taught early to put money in their piggy banks, they would have the concept that savings is important,” he said. He said the agency planned to enhance Bank Negara's Buku Wang Saku programme in schools, where Bank Negara gave out booklets and got students to track their spending. Mohamed Akwal added that he had already discussed with consultants on what students should be looking at.
He said the knowledge could be imparted as part of extra-curricular activities, by having teachers run through it before the term break through the Web or by giving out CDs on financial management. “If we don’t educate, we are not nipping the problem in the bud. And the process of credit-counselling and debt-managing people will be never-ending,” he added.
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Use financial planners
WE REFER to the letter by Sad retiree who lost RM30,000 in unit trust investments he had made with his EPF money, “EPF should not allow use of fund to buy unit trusts” (The Star, Feb 22).
We sympathised with Sad Retiree and others who may find themselves in the same situation.
The Financial Planning Association of Malaysia believes that investors should always proceed to invest based on a properly conceived financial plan.
At the same time, it is useful to bear in mind these investing pointers:
REALISE that where there are promises of higher returns, the potential for higher losses also exists.
BE SURE to understand the nature of your investment before you put money in it.
Ask searching questions and demand answers. Know the various costs (hidden or otherwise) involved and the factors that will cause the investment to either yield a positive or negative result. Choose reliable sources of information.
REALISE that investment decisions cannot be made in isolation to your existing financial situation, your current position in the life cycle, your personal risk and reward profile and other factors specific to you.
DO NOT hesitate to seek professional advice. Some financial instruments are more complex than what the layman may be used to.
Even in the case of plain vanilla instruments, professional advisers may be able to provide information that may not be previously known to an investor.
For those seeking assistance from professionals in analysing and planning their financial affairs in order to achieve their financial goals, seek properly qualified, licensed financial planners.
Financial planners in Malaysia are required to be licensed by the Securities Commission and they must possess qualification recognised by the authorities.
The Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation is one such qualification that is well established and internationally recognised.
*Dipetik Dari http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/3/22/focus/13731534&sec=focus
We sympathised with Sad Retiree and others who may find themselves in the same situation.
The Financial Planning Association of Malaysia believes that investors should always proceed to invest based on a properly conceived financial plan.
At the same time, it is useful to bear in mind these investing pointers:
REALISE that where there are promises of higher returns, the potential for higher losses also exists.
BE SURE to understand the nature of your investment before you put money in it.
Ask searching questions and demand answers. Know the various costs (hidden or otherwise) involved and the factors that will cause the investment to either yield a positive or negative result. Choose reliable sources of information.
REALISE that investment decisions cannot be made in isolation to your existing financial situation, your current position in the life cycle, your personal risk and reward profile and other factors specific to you.
DO NOT hesitate to seek professional advice. Some financial instruments are more complex than what the layman may be used to.
Even in the case of plain vanilla instruments, professional advisers may be able to provide information that may not be previously known to an investor.
For those seeking assistance from professionals in analysing and planning their financial affairs in order to achieve their financial goals, seek properly qualified, licensed financial planners.
Financial planners in Malaysia are required to be licensed by the Securities Commission and they must possess qualification recognised by the authorities.
The Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation is one such qualification that is well established and internationally recognised.
*Dipetik Dari http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/3/22/focus/13731534&sec=focus
Get insight into financial planning
WE NOTE with great concern your report, “Tighten rules, Government tells EPF” (The Star, Aug 8) that EPF contributors have lost more than half a billion ringgit investing in unit trusts.
Firstly, we would like to point out that computing returns in investment is a more complex function than normally thought.
The nature of investment, whether it is long, medium or short term, the period over which the returns are measured, the risks attached to an investment product and the benchmark against which the returns should be measured are just some of the considerations taken into account when finance professionals discuss returns to get a full, proper and true picture of the performance of the investment.
Secondly, to generalise whether investment in unit trusts is beneficial or harmful to the EPF contributors is simplistic.
Again, many factors have to be taken into consideration in assessing the appropriateness of an investment for an investor including his position in the life cycle, his level of affluence and his risk appetite. For example, an EPF contributor in his early 40s in a high-paying job compared to one who is a small wage earner who is about to retire (all other things remain equal) will have to be advised differently on how aggressively an investment policy they should pursue.
In addition all categories of investors need to be properly advised on the details of each investment including the risk structure and the fees involved.
The Financial Planning Association Of Malaysia (FPAM) has always advocated the importance of a proper and comprehensive approach in structuring one’s financial plan.
This will enable one to have a more accurate picture of one’s current financial position, one’s capacity to undertake risks (and its corresponding expected returns) and what will constitute a suitable asset allocation structure for one. For those who have not embarked on proper financial planning and still treat investment as something to dabble in from time to time, we strongly advise that it is time to treat financial planning seriously as it will determine how well you live your retirement years.
For interested members of the public, our association together with Securities Industry Development Centre (SIDC) have published a booklet, “Insights To Choosing a Financial Planner” which could be downloaded from our website at www.fpam.org.my or obtained from our office at 16th Floor, HP Towers, 12 Jalan Gelenggang, Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur.
FPAM would also be happy to work closely with institutional bodies, including EPF, to advise members of the public on financial planning which includes in this particular context, investment and retirement planning.
Firstly, we would like to point out that computing returns in investment is a more complex function than normally thought.
The nature of investment, whether it is long, medium or short term, the period over which the returns are measured, the risks attached to an investment product and the benchmark against which the returns should be measured are just some of the considerations taken into account when finance professionals discuss returns to get a full, proper and true picture of the performance of the investment.
Secondly, to generalise whether investment in unit trusts is beneficial or harmful to the EPF contributors is simplistic.
Again, many factors have to be taken into consideration in assessing the appropriateness of an investment for an investor including his position in the life cycle, his level of affluence and his risk appetite. For example, an EPF contributor in his early 40s in a high-paying job compared to one who is a small wage earner who is about to retire (all other things remain equal) will have to be advised differently on how aggressively an investment policy they should pursue.
In addition all categories of investors need to be properly advised on the details of each investment including the risk structure and the fees involved.
The Financial Planning Association Of Malaysia (FPAM) has always advocated the importance of a proper and comprehensive approach in structuring one’s financial plan.
This will enable one to have a more accurate picture of one’s current financial position, one’s capacity to undertake risks (and its corresponding expected returns) and what will constitute a suitable asset allocation structure for one. For those who have not embarked on proper financial planning and still treat investment as something to dabble in from time to time, we strongly advise that it is time to treat financial planning seriously as it will determine how well you live your retirement years.
For interested members of the public, our association together with Securities Industry Development Centre (SIDC) have published a booklet, “Insights To Choosing a Financial Planner” which could be downloaded from our website at www.fpam.org.my or obtained from our office at 16th Floor, HP Towers, 12 Jalan Gelenggang, Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur.
FPAM would also be happy to work closely with institutional bodies, including EPF, to advise members of the public on financial planning which includes in this particular context, investment and retirement planning.
Credit card bad debts up
KOTA BARU: Bankruptcy cases due to credit card debts rose from 1,152 in 2003 to 1,497 last year and this has got the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry worried.
Its Consumer Affairs Division director Ismail Jantan said youths who did not know how to save and who spent on luxury items were some of the causes of the bad debts.
Some 8.4 million credit card holders owed financial institutions and corporate firms some RM167mil to date, he said at the launch of a smart consumer roadshow at the KB Mall here.
With the rising cost of living due to the increase in fuel prices and inflation, Ismail said consumers needed to know how to become smart spenders.
On get-rich-quick schemes, especially scratch and win contests, Ismail said many of the victims were women.
However, in recent months the ministry discovered that certain victims were professionals who were cheated by offers on the Internet. Up to October this year, 604 cases of consumer fraud were reported to the tribunal courts.
Ismail said many victims would not recover their "investments" and there was a need to promote good consumerism among the people, especially on wise spending to avoid being cheated.
Its Consumer Affairs Division director Ismail Jantan said youths who did not know how to save and who spent on luxury items were some of the causes of the bad debts.
Some 8.4 million credit card holders owed financial institutions and corporate firms some RM167mil to date, he said at the launch of a smart consumer roadshow at the KB Mall here.
With the rising cost of living due to the increase in fuel prices and inflation, Ismail said consumers needed to know how to become smart spenders.
On get-rich-quick schemes, especially scratch and win contests, Ismail said many of the victims were women.
However, in recent months the ministry discovered that certain victims were professionals who were cheated by offers on the Internet. Up to October this year, 604 cases of consumer fraud were reported to the tribunal courts.
Ismail said many victims would not recover their "investments" and there was a need to promote good consumerism among the people, especially on wise spending to avoid being cheated.
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