TVB Meet & Greet

Date: 1 July 2012
Time: 1pm
Venue: Plaza Singapura, Level 1 Atrium


Celebrate VV Drama’s 20th Anniversary with Kenneth Ma, Myolie Wu and Ruco Chan as they make an exclusive appearance on 1 July at 1pm!

Baybeats 2012

Baybeats is the biggest festival of its kind in Singapore and in the region, promoting folk, pop, metal, post-rock, emo, punk, electro (and everything in between), there is something for every personality. 
This is an Esplanade Presents programme.


Baybeats is the biggest festival of its kind in Singapore and in the region, promoting folk, pop, metal, post-rock, emo, punk, electro (and everything in between), there is something for every personality. The Baybeats initiative makes sure that there will be a decent amount of exposure to artistes and music alike. A platform for homegrown talents, the top 8 bands from this year’s auditions will be given an opportunity to bare their strength and reach out to a wider audience as they play alongside more successful bands from around the region. Tapping on the success of the Budding Photographers programme, this year we also introduced the Budding Writers programme to reach out to the youth. On top of that, the festival also encompasses a lifestyle component in the form of the Festival Village where local vendors and indie crafters ply their wares to the hip and young crowd.

So reach out, touch faith and rock on at Singapore’s very own alternative music festival, proudly presented by Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay.
Stay tuned to updates and log on to www.baybeats.com.sg for band lineups, band bios and song tracks you can groove to.
Baybeats 2012 - 29 June to 1 July! Mark your calendar now!

The official Movie for the Formula Drift Singapore 2012 is none other than... MOTORWAY!

Meet-The-Drivers Autograph Session
Date : Thursday, 28 Jun 2012
Time : 6:30PM - 7:30PM
Venue: Shaw Theatres Lido,  1 Scotts Road, Level 5 outside ticketing office




Members of the public are welcome to join and queue for the Meet-The-Drivers autograph session! Expect premiums to be given away!

NIGHTMARE EXPERIENCE AT AVALON SINGAPORE - SOCIAL with BIG SYPHE (TEAM PITBULL) + Fashion Forward

Just came back from the nightclub feeling very unsocial !

Facebook event page stated - Enter before 12mn and get Free Entry (without free flow) + 1 Free Drink Coupon

https://www.facebook.com/events/240293096074186/

I had arrived at the event around 10pm.

When I asked politely for my drink coupon from the staffs on duty , none of them knew about the promotion ?

One of the bouncer at the entrance even shouted at me " YOU WANT TO ARGUE WITH ME IS IT ! "

I felt like an idiot with full of embarassment ...

Only when one of the kinder staff took the initiative to call the management for confirmation , I was then given the coupon for my entry.

If this is the efficiency of customer service , I will put the nightclub on my blacklist.

This incident spolit my mood to party and I decided to leave before midnight.

Now waiting for the management to contact me for official explanation + apology + compensation !

Office Reits : A long-term savings plan

·    Operational income from MBFC Phase 1 becomes tax transparent Under LLP
  structure

·    Conversion for One Raffles Quay to this more tax-efficient structure
  possible in the longer term

·    Upgrade K-Reit to BUY (TP S$1.21), maintain BUY for Suntec Reit (TP S
  $1.58)

A more tax-efficient structure for MBFC Phase 1 in place. K-Reit and Suntec
Reit had announced that they have successfully converted the vehicle which
holds Marina Bay Financial Centre Towers 1 & 2 and Marina Bay Link Mall
Phase I (collectively known as MBFC Phase I), into a Limited Liability
Partnership (BFCD LLP) structure. Under the previous structure, both K-Reit
and Suntec Reit pay a17% corporate tax rate on the rental income generated
on the property.  Upon conversion, the operational rental income (excluding
income support) generated by MBFC Phase 1 will no longer be subjected to
corporate taxes. The new structure will take effect from 16 June 2012 and
is not retrospective.

FY13 DPU to increase by 3.6% - 5.1%. Based on our estimates, both Reits
should reap tax savings of close to S$2.2 m and S$4.5m in FY12 and FY13
respectively. Netting off administration fees, we estimate that FY12 DPU
should increase by 1-2% and FY13 DPU by about c4-5%. We think this
conversion is a positive step as it would also pave the way for the
possible restructuring of One Raffles Quay’s (ORQ) into a similar more tax
efficient LLP structure in the longer term Currently, the payable tax for
ORQ is estimated to be close to S$3m p.a.

TP rise by 7.9% – 8.6%, upgrade K-Reit to BUY. Adjusting for the tax
savings, Suntec Reit’s TP is raised by 8.6% to S$1.58. We continue to like
Suntec Reit for its strong balance sheet and we believe the tax savings
should help to partially offset the income vacuum of Suntec City Phase 1
AEI works which began 2Q12. We have also upgraded K-Reit to BUY from HOLD.
We like K-Reit’s for its quality assets and we believe the tax savings
would help to strengthen its balance sheet. Net of the tax adjustment and
factoring in a higher withholding tax for its Australian property, our new
TP of S$1.21 (+7.9%) offers investors a total return of c.30%.

Suntec REIT - Tax transparency for MBFC 1

Tax transparency for MBFC 1 should allow savings translating to 2-3% of DPU annually. We do not dismiss the possibility of similar conversions and structures for ORQ and MBFC 2, which could allow less tax leakages and potential simplification of holding structures. We raise DPUs and DDM-based target price (discount rate: 8.1%) factoring in tax savings from Suntec REIT’s one-third stake in MBFC Phase 1. Maintain Outperform on favourable risk-reward. We see catalysts from earlier bottoming of office market and further tax savings.


OUTPERFORM - Maintained  |  Share Price S$1.31 - Tgt. S$1.51

SGX Links Chicago and London Hubs to Asia

Starting next month, Singapore Exchange (SGX) will be providing connectivity for its customers in Chicago and London, allowing them access to the world’s biggest offshore market for Asian equity futures.

The exchange said it will use the connectivity service of British Telecommunications’ BT Radianz. Investors from Chicago and London will be linked to Singapore by simply connecting to BT Radianz at a local, third-party data centre.

SGX is the first Asian exchange with hubs in the US and Europe, a move intended to bring its markets closer to international investors.

“The hubs – beginning in London and Chicago – plus the connectivity alliances we are building with other exchanges and partners will deliver unparalleled access into Asia for international investors. We are delighted that BT will play an integral part in our connectivity initiative,” said Muthukrishnan Ramaswami, president of SGX.

BT Radianz has about 15,000 members in its network. It is considered the world’s largest secure online financial services community.

TIMELESS LOVE 《那个夏天》 autograph session at Serangoon NEX on Sunday 17 June!

Date:	Sunday 17 June 2012
Time:	2:30PM - 3:30PM
Venue:	Serangoon NEX Event Plaza, Level B2 (next to Wendy's)
Artistes' Appearance:	Director Dasmond Koh (许振荣) Aloysius Pang (冯伟衷) Kimberly Chia (谢静仪) Xu Bin (徐彬) Michelle Tay (郑荔分) Theme Song Singer Issac Dang (邓冠圣)

SGX Introduces Dual Currency Trading for ETFs

Singapore Exchange (SGX) announced Thursday it will launch dual currency trading for Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) on June 15, enabling investors to trade foreign-currency denominated ETFs in Singapore dollars.

“The move will provide investors with trading flexibility in accessing ETFs denominated in a foreign currency,” SGX said in a statement.

The ETFs will be fungible, that is, an investor can buy and/or sell the ETF in US or Singapore dollars regardless of the currency in which it was first bought and/or sold.

Previously, investors who are trading in a USD-denominated stock counter and wish to settle the trade in another currency, say SGD, will have to engage their broker to provide the foreign exchange settlement at a FX rate provided by their brokers. With this new functionality, investors can directly buy (sell) in the SGD counter if the price quoted on the exchange is lower (higher) than the converted amount that their brokers will charge or without having to wait till settlement to know the converted amount.

“With this new offering from SGX, investors can enjoy trading flexibility and cost efficiency while benefitting from investing in ETFs. Issuers will also benefit from a wider pool of investors as those who prefer to trade in Singapore dollars enter the market,” said Nels Friets, Head of Securities at SGX.

SGX worked with issuers BlackRock’s iShares and CIMB-Principal Asset Management to offer seven ETFs with a secondary trading counter in Singapore dollars, all of which are cash based full replication ETFs.

The exchange introduced dual currency trading for securities on 22 March 2012. Hutchison Port Holdings Trust was the first listed security to launch dual currency units.

SGX Derivatives, Clearing Volumes Up in May, but Securities Down

Singapore Exchange (SGX) announced Tuesday that derivatives and clearing volumes grew in May from a year earlier but securities activity declined.

Securities daily average value (SDAV) fell 20 per cent year-on-year and 0.5 per cent month-on-month. However, the total number of securities trades went up to 3.9 billion in May, a 34 per cent annual increase and 8.5 per cent monthly increase.

Catalist turnover volume was up 199 per cent year-on-year at S$6.3 billion, but down 60 per cent month-on-month.

Daily average outstanding loans under the Securities Borrowing and Lending (SBL) programme totalled S$26.1 million, up 31 per cent from a year earlier.

Derivatives volume rose almost 40 per cent year-on-year to 6.9 million contracts, and daily average volume (DAV) grew 31 per cent to 320,715 contracts.

China A50 futures volumes once again set a new high of 767,739 contracts, which was four times more than the previous year, and up 30 per cent from April.

Nikkei 225 futures grew a positive 45 per cent to about 2.5 million contracts year-on-year. MSCI Singapore Index Futures also rose 15 per cent year-on-year to 368,378 contracts, with a 23 per cent increase from April.

Commodities and clearing also saw higher volumes in May, with commodity contracts up 119 per cent year-on-year to 24,645 contracts and was up 76 per cent in May.

OTC (over-the-counter) energy swaps surged up 687 per cent year-on-year to a high of 2,102 contracts, and iron ore swaps volume more than doubled to 15,487 contracts from a year earlier.

Volume of new OTC interest rate swaps (IRS) cleared was S$4.4 billion, up 47 per cent year-on-year as compared to S$3.3 billion in May 2011. The total volume of OTC IRS cleared since the November 2010 launch amounts to S$264.6 billion.

The Dell-Intel Youth Concert

Venue: Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza
Date: 30 June 2012
Time: 7.00 pm to 9.00 pm


Happening from 7pm to 9pm, the Dell-Intel Youth Concert is set to get youths gyrating to the music of YouTube sensation Jayesslee, local veteran singing duo Jack and Rai, and up-and-coming local YouTube star Clarence Liew.


 
Jayesslee
This Australian duo comprising twins Janice and Sonia opened a YouTube channel back in 2008 and hasn’t looked back since. In 2010, they played their debut concert in LA and has since performed in Singapore, Washington DC, Vancouver and Malaysia. They’ve also made various television appearances throughout Asia.





Jack and Rai
Former band members of East India Company (the resident band of Wala Walas), Jack and Rai compose their own music and recently released an album titled “In Stores Now”. The dynamic duo not only keeps their audience entertained with their music, but also with their jokes.







Clarence Liew
Only 19, Clarence has quite a following on his YouTube channel – an achievement for someone who has neither been trained musically nor vocally. His folk-like vocals bring a soulful quality to his covers of popular and classic hits.

Your Cleavage Is Guilty of ‘Biological Sexual Harassment’

One of the seemingly endless variations on the "men today are in crisis and it's mostly women's fault" trope is the idea that most straight guys are completely incapable of figuring out what the other sex actually wants. Pop psychologists assure us that men are evolutionarily hardwired towards promiscuity, simplicity, and the inability to pick up on subtle clues. As a result, the theory holds, men are both easily manipulated and vulnerable to chronic misinterpretation of women's dress and behavior. So vulnerable, in fact, that some advocates for men are calling for a change in sexual harassment law: a change that would force women either to cover up — or put out. This, obviously, is bullshit, but the rationale behind it is even more ridiculous.


The latest iteration of this argument has the Antipodes a-buzzing. Bettina Arndt argued in theSydney Morning Herald that "everywhere you look, women are stepping out dressed provocatively, but bristling if the wrong man shows he enjoys the display." (Remember, it's summer down under.)


There's nothing new about arguing that scantily-clad women drive helpless men to distraction — or worse. SlutWalkers and Talmudic scholars (among others) have made the case over and over that nothing a woman wears (or doesn't wear) can cause a man to rape her, but their voices are often drowned out by those who ridiculously insist on outsourcing all male sexual self-control to women.

In Arndt's case, she goes beyond merely holding women responsible for their own rapes. Her op-ed implies that women who don't cover up are committing an act of cruelty against most men, most of the time. Arndt claims that a conventionally attractive woman who shows off her cleavage "is advertising her wares to the world, not just her target audience, and somehow men are expected to know when they are not on her page… But as we all know, many men are lousy at that stuff — the language totally escapes them."


Arndt's appeal to the universal "knowledge" of men's cluelessness is as casual as it is clumsy. She's right in the sense that our culture raises men to inadvertently confuse a woman's bare skin (or a smile, or direct eye contact) with a sexual come-on. But most men are not biologically incapable of either empathy or intuition. They can learn to distinguish sexual interest from politeness, a fashion choice from an attempt at seduction. Rejection from women (and "correction" from other men) is often how they learn.


Arndt doesn't believe men are capable of learning these non-verbal skills. More importantly, like many in the men's rights movement to which she's sympathetic, she doesn't think they should have to. She approvingly cites Rob Tiller, an Australian psychotherapist and men's advocate who refers to women who wear revealing clothing as committing "biological sexual harassment." This idea that women who go around "flaunting their bodies" are harassing men has become a pet issue for many in the North American men's rights movement. One site claims: "In many offices across America, women dress provocatively, showing inappropriate thigh and cleavage. This, in itself, is sexual harassment against men — but women get away with it, and men rarely complain."


Sexual harassment, of course, takes many forms. Tiller and his fellow men's rights activists (MRAs) refer seem to think that scantily-clad women are guilty of creating a "hostile environment." The term is the same in both Australian and American sexual harassment law, and refers to a workplace or school culture that tolerates unwanted sexual behavior. The law rejects the idea that a low-cut blouse or a short skirt might constitute a hostile environment, but that hasn't stopped the MRAs — or their allies like Arndt — from arguing that perhaps the law should be changed to recognize the damage that sexually tantalizing dress does to men.


The traditional arguments for women's modesty have been that concealing dress was necessary to protect men from lustful thoughts and to protect women from being raped. But Arndt and the MRAs have a different rationale. They're not offended by skimpy clothing on religious grounds, nor do they all buy into the myth of male weakness that says that bare female skin invariably causes otherwise nice guys to commit sexual assault. Rather, they seem to be arguing that by tempting all straight men while only being willing to sleep with a few, flirtatious or scantily-clad women are engaged in a particularly cruel form of sexualized discrimination. That, the MRAs insist, ought to be seen as sexual harassment.


For Arndt and her ideological fellow travelers, it's sexually unsuccessful straight men ("betas") that suffer the most from a culture in which women are free to display their bodies. Asking women to cover up isn't about protecting purity; for the MRAs it's about protecting betas from humiliation and from self-esteem-destroying reminders that they can look but never touch the bodies for which they long. All of that pent-up male resentment is women's fault, Arndt implies, and it is women's responsibility to consider the soul-scarring cost of the mixed messages their revealing clothing sends.


The kind of particularly male pain that Arndt and her allies describe isn't rooted in women's flirtatiousness, sexy clothing, or presumed preference for "alpha" males. Whether they're genuinely hurting or just petulantly sulking, the confusion and hurt with which men cope is based largely on their own sense of entitlement. The calculus of entitlement works like this: if women don't want to turn men on, they need to cover up. If they don't cover up, they'll turn men on. If they turn men on, women are obligated to do something to assuage that lust. Having turned them on, if women don't give men what they want, then women are cruel teases who have no right to complain if men lash out in justified rage at being denied what they've been taught is rightfully theirs.


The reality is that sexual rejection happens to men and women alike. That's part of living in a world in which for a host of reasons, we are not all equally attractive, and where the people we want to sleep with will not always want to sleep with us. The hard truth men and women alike need to grasp is a simple one: our arousal is not someone else's problem to solve. The sooner we encourage men in particular to grasp that truth, the safer and happier we'll all be.

TIGER STREET FOOTBALL WITH EDGAR DAVIDS

Tiger Beer Singapore hosted a press conference on 310512 1pm outside Art Science Museum, Marina Bay Sands to kick off Tiger Street Football Singapore 2012 with Edgar Davids as ambassador.

Edgar Davids was joined by Rene de Monchy from Asia Pacific Breweries Singapore and Adam Zecha from ESPN star sports.

He also graced the meet & greet session at Clarke Quay's central fountain 7.30pm in the evening. Fans were delighted to have his autograph signed on their favourite items and a chance to take a photo with him.