Parkview Eclat at Grange - Singapore - District 10

Parkview Eclat at Grange - Singapore - District 10

21 storeys high, Parkview Eclat is designed to be a architectural landmark iconic in Singapore. Projected with sensibility of deco of art, the building steps on for is of one broadbase and the tapers gradually to an elaborated crown. 35 apartments only limited of the property of the edition are available for that they demand much more better.

Parkview Eclat Nestled inside of Disrtict 10 of Singapore the good class bungalow, Short to famous shopping of orchard road and tranquility of the botanic gardens of Singapore, this is a prestigious address that privileged a little will be proud to call the rest.

Pamper, for indulge and to cater its each necessity is what Parkview Eclat is projected . Details for the interior are being looked at manificently in. With the style timeless and the most behind technology, together combines to create interiors for urban sophisticates.

Aside remark of super penthouse, Parkview Eclat also shelters the some sizes, varying of 3 + 1 bedroom the 5 + 1 duplex of bedroom. Each one of them offers spacious and life luxurious for that it desires much more better
District: 10
Tenure: Freehold
Total Units: 35

Building:

One 21-storey tower
Sizes:

3-Bedroom: 2,895 sqft

4-Bedroom: 3,250 sqft

5-Bedroom (Duplex): 5,877 & 5,898 sqft

Super Penthouse (Duplex): 10,096 sqft

Other Features

Maid room Terrace
Garden Swimming pool
Reception Security
CCTV Smart home technology
Kitchen appliances High speed Internet
Kids play area Gym
Sauna Jacuzzi
Central A/C

Real Estate Properties of Singapore buy , sell, rent, invest,

MINDY YONG

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mindy@mindyyong.com ( email me )

http://www.hotvictory.com

Singapore URA unveils plans to promote Ophir-Rochor corridor at MIPIM, Cannes

Singapore URA unveils plans to promote Ophir-Rochor corridor at MIPIM, Cannes

SINGAPORE- The Urban Redevelopment Authority has announced its plans for the Ophir-Rochor corridor.

The project is expected to be developed over the next ten to 15 years as part of plans to rejuvenate the Central Business District.

It will feature a mix of offices, hotels and other complementary facilities in a park-like environment.

The first land parcel in the new Ophir-Rochor corridor will be launched for sale in June via the Confirmed List of the Government Land Sales Programme.

This 2.74 hectare site is adjacent to Parkview Square and is located at Rochor Road / Ophir Road.

It will include a requirement to develop a minimum quantum for office and hotel use.

This will help boost the tourism industry and cater to the growth of Singapore’s financial and business services sector.

URA said that this Ophir-Rochor corridor will be “the catalyst for future development and growth in the area”.

Plans for development of the Ophir-Rochor corridor and sale site will be exhibited and promoted at the Singapore Pavilion during the “Marche International des Professionals de L’Immobilier” (MIPIM) between 11 and 14 March 2008.

MIPIM is a premier international property event in Cannes.

The Singapore Pavilion will see a mix of public-private companies led by URA.

This is part of URA’s continuing efforts to attract foreign investors to property development and investment opportunities in Singapore.

Singapore’s real estate investment opportunities in Ophir-Rochor and Marina Bay will be jointly promoted at MIPIM Cannes.

The Singapore Pavilion will also promote Singapore’s key recent and upcoming developments. -CNA/vm
Source : Channel NewsAsia - 10 March 2008

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27 Singapore furniture makers push global brand

27 Singapore furniture makers push global brand 

By Lee Hui Chieh 
 
NEARLY 30 Singapore furniture makers have banded together to promote their wares overseas - and they will do so under a single brand name, Singapore Mozaic.
The 27 manufacturers, who are also members of the Singapore Furniture Industries Council, will go on business missions and attend trade shows under this banner.

The brand will make its overseas debut at Italy’s Milan Furniture Fair next month, followed by fairs in Cologne, Germany; and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

The council’s president, Mr Andrew Ng, said the Singapore manufacturers now needed to sharpen their competitive edge and set themselves apart from their rivals.

The new brand was launched yesterday by Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Lee Boon Yang at the opening of an international furniture fair at Singapore Expo.

The council, with Spring Singapore and IE Singapore, worked for over a year to come up with a suitable brand name.

They settled on ‘mosaic’, which means a picture formed by collaging pieces of coloured stone, tile or glass. The name reflects the diverse designs produced by these manufacturers.

The word mosaic is spelled with a ‘Z’ for a unique twist.

The brand is meant as a stamp of quality for companies which are reliable and service-oriented, and which have modern design capabilities.

Singapore Mozaic is the latest salvo in a campaign to triple Singapore’s share of world furniture exports - from 0.7 per cent in 2006 to 2 per cent by 2015.

This translates into growing exports from $2.4 billion in 2006 to some $11 billion by 2015.

The $17-million International Furniture Centre in Sungei Kadut Industrial Estate, where 28 furniture exporters have set up shop, opened last December; two more centres are being planned.

Spring mattress maker Four Star Industries and furniture maker Cellini Holdings have joined Singapore Mozaic for a toehold in markets beyond Asia.

Four Star’s executive director Neo Sia Meng said that as recently as four years ago, the Europeans at a German trade fair had not heard of Singapore.

The new brand, he said, was ‘a good way to get people to know of Singapore - that we are metropolitan and can be relied on’.

The director of Cellini, Mr Jimmy Tan, said: ‘We are exporting more to this region, but we want to sell to the world, and there’s still a long way to go.’

Source : Straits Times - 10 March 2008

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Singapore Punggol River set for big change

Singapore Punggol River set for big change 

Work starts on $7.13m project to create reservoir park with man-made island by 2010
By Tania Tan 
 
WORK to transform the Punggol River into a scenic reservoir park, complete with a man-made island, got off the ground yesterday.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who was at the official opening of the adjoining Anchorvale Community Club in Sengkang, symbolically released the first piece of the floating island - a clump of soil and grass - into the water.

For its design, the $7.13 million project will draw inspiration from a nearby fruit park being developed by the National Parks Board. Its pavilions will be shaped like mangosteens and its benches, like limes.

Work will be completed by 2010.

Punggol River is the first of five sites to be improved this year under the Active, Beautiful, Clean (ABC) Waters programme.

Launched by national water agency PUB in 2006, the $200 million programme is an ambitious island-wide revamp of 28 waterways.

The aim is to rejuvenate Singapore’s drainage and water-supply infrastructure, including the canals and reservoirs, and turn it into a scenic network of streams, rivers and lakes where people can enjoy water activities and even commute.

Giving a preview of the projects during the Budget debate a fortnight ago, Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Yaacob Ibrahim said, for example, that the Lower Seletar Reservoir would sport a heritage bridge, featuring story panels which will tell of the area’s kampung history.

Work on the pilot projects of Kolam Ayer and the Bedok and MacRitchie reservoirs is in its final phases and will be unveiled this year.

‘With these projects, we hope to bring waterfront living to the heartland, improve the quality of our living environment and enhance property values,’ said Dr Yaacob.

Source : Straits Times - 10 March 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Park in Singapore Orchard area? It’ll cost you even more

Park in Singapore Orchard area? It’ll cost you even more 

Parking fees have gone up at 18 out of 20 malls, in one case by 36 per cent
By Judith Tan 
 
THAT trip to shop or run errands on Orchard Road is setting back motorists more in parking charges nowadays.
A Straits Times check of 20 malls on the shopping strip revealed that parking fees during off-peak hours on weekdays have gone up at 18.

Just over a third of the 18 carparks are charging between 10 and 20 per cent more.

While the jump is bigger at some, there are also places where weekday, off-peak fees have stayed about the same.

The most expensive places to park are Tangs Plaza and Wheelock Place, where leaving your car for three hours will cost $9 before 5pm on weekdays.

Prices are not uniformly high along Orchard Road. It is four times cheaper to park in Plaza Singapura, for instance. Three hours there costs just $2.25.
At other carparks, the rates are calculated in blocks of between 15 minutes and an hour.

It can make a difference.

Housewife Ong Lee Lee, 55, for example, found she will be charged $3.50 for an hour and five minutes at Tang Plaza. If she parks at Ngee Ann City down the road for that length of time, she will pay $3.84 for a block lasting 1-1/2 hours.

Parking charges at most carparks rose with the upping of the goods and services tax by 2 percentage points last year, say carpark operators.

But the jump has been by more than 2 percentage points - by a whopping 36 per cent in one instance.

Cairnhill Place takes the dubious honour as that carpark. Leaving your car there for three hours before 5pm on a weekday now costs $8, up from $5.90 just two years ago.

Back in 2002, the nondescript-looking carpark was the best-kept secret among motorists looking for lots in the heart of Orchard Road: It cost just $3 for three hours then.

Its operator, Wilson Parking, which runs 50 carparks islandwide, declined comment on the price increase.

One reason for the general increase, explained Metro Parking managing director Tyrone Lopez, is rising costs.

Rental rates for carpark spaces, as well as manpower and equipment costs, have gone up. He declined to say by how much the figures have risen in the recent hike.

Metro Parking operates more than 80 carparks, including Shaw Centre, where Sunday and public holiday rates are now marginally higher. Its weekday rates have stayed the same.

Centrepoint, for example, still charges $1 for the first hour and $1.20 for the subsequent half hour, to encourage off-peak and weekday shopping, said senior centre manager Tan Hwee Cheng.

But higher carpark charges elsewhere have come at a time of higher petrol and electronic road pricing costs, putting the squeeze on motorists.

These factors have pushed public relations account director Carolyn Tay, 43, onto public transport. Meeting clients in Orchard Road three times a week costs her about 20 per cent more each month. She now takes the train if she needs to be there for more than an hour.

Others have resorted to waiting for the best deals. Housewife Celeste Lee, 43, for instance, is willing to wait up to half an hour to snag a lot in the open-air Urban Redevelopment Authority carpark in Grange Road, where coupon parking costs $1 an hour.

She blew more than $30 a week on parking alone for her twice-weekly trips to Ngee Ann City for yoga, the gym and her children’s art classes.

But parking in Grange Road can be hellish on a rainy day, she said, especially with her two children and shopping bags.

She added: ‘I guess you either pay for the convenience or put up with getting wet… I’d rather get wet.’

Source : Straits Times - 10 March 2008

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‘Dangerous talk’ about giveaways worries Singapore PM

‘Dangerous talk’ about giveaways worries Singapore PM 

Calls for more hongbao ‘because we’re rich’ a sure recipe for trouble

By Zakir Hussain 
NO ORDINARY COMMUNITY CLUB: The Anchorvale CC in Sengkang is something special, PM Lee said, as it is co-located with a sports complex and recreation centre with scenic waterfront features as well. See story on Home Page H3. — ST PHOTO: MUGILAN RAJASEGERAN
 
PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong has described as ‘dangerous’ the view that Singapore is now rich enough for the Government to dish out hongbao freely.
In his first comments on this year’s Budget, he warned that if the country stopped saving and investing for the future, economic growth would grind to a halt and ‘we would be in serious trouble’.

Mr Lee said he had noticed that when people discussed the Budget, passed by Parliament last Thursday, the emphasis was on its immediate handouts.

There was much less focus on its longer-term investments to help Singapore grow and prepare for future challenges.

Many seemed interested mainly in ‘what more should the Government give? Who else to give to? Who should get more?’ he said.

He warned against such an attitude:

‘The assumption which some people have is - we are now rich, we can afford to spend more. This is a very dangerous way of thinking and worries me a lot.’

Singapore is where it is today, he said, ‘because we have saved, we have been frugal, because we haven’t just thrown money away’.

‘If now we change our mindset, and say we used to save, now that we have money we don’t need to save anymore, then the growth will stop.

‘Singapore will go down, and we will all be in serious trouble,’ he added.

This year’s Budget included a $1.8 billion surplus-sharing package of income tax rebates, growth dividends and top-ups to Medisave to help people cope with the rising cost of living.

But some members of the public and their elected representatives in Parliament called for yet more relief to help individuals and businesses cope with rising costs, in light of the bumper $6.45 billion surplus for the last financial year.

Yesterday, at the launch of a new Anchorvale community club in Sengkang, Mr Lee assured Singaporeans that as the economy grows and the resources at the Government’s disposal increase, it will strengthen the social safety nets and set aside more to support needy and low-income families.

‘But while we do this, we must maintain our basic philosophy: rely on our own efforts to earn our living, care for one another and succeed as a team, work together to grow the economy, to grow the pie so that everybody gets a larger slice, instead of merely redistributing a smaller pie,’ he said.

Singapore’s model of self-reliance and mutual support, he added, has worked well and given its citizens a substantial stake in the nation’s success.

He called on Singaporeans to work together to improve on the model and ‘make sure we pass on to our children’ more than what ‘we inherited from our parents’.

Software engineer B. Sukumaran, 31, agreed with the Prime Minister’s view but also wanted more financial aid for the needy.

Financial planner Philip Tay, 54, said Mr Lee’s advice was sound and applied to both individuals and countries.

‘It’s important to continue building up wealth, otherwise you have less in the long run,’ he said.
Source : Straits Times - 10 March 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Deutsche Bank increases Singapore office space

Deutsche Bank increases Singapore office space

It will rent 54,000 sq ft at ex-Pasir Panjang ITE
By ARTHUR SIM
AFTER growing its headcount by over 20 per cent last year, Deutsche Bank says that it will increase its office space needs here by another 54,000 square feet.
 
Mr Tan: The move to the new premises is part of the bank’s growth strategy to house increasing staff 
Speaking to BT, Deutsche Bank’s chief country officer Ronnie Tan said that with the increase, it will now employ about 2,100 full-time staff in Singapore alone.

Mr Tan added: ‘We are experiencing significant growth in all our major business lines. One example is private wealth management, where Deutsche Bank increased investable assets by 19 per cent in 2007 to 22 billion euros (S$46.9 billion).’

The bank is optimistic about the ‘Asian story’ and has invested accordingly.

‘We have come through the financial uncertainty more positively than others and I believe it’s a good time to play on our strengths - we have a strong credit rating, a strong brand and we’ve weathered the storm extremely well,’ he added.

In 2007, Deutsche Bank’s net income was up 7 per cent year-on-year.

Deutsche Bank already occupies nine floors at One Raffles Quay. Taking up more than 280,000 sq ft, it is the largest single tenant there. It has also leased a further 100,000 sq ft in the central business district (CBD) for infrastructure functions.

While Deutsche Bank did not say if it would vacate some of its CBD premises, it will be taking up 54,000 sq ft at the former Institute of Technical Education (ITE) Pasir Panjang. The premises, with a gross floor area of 218,891 sq ft, was put up for rent by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) last year and was subsequently leased to master tenant RichZone Properties for $288,999 a month or $1.30 per square foot (psf) per month.

Asking rents for the site are said to have increased from the initial $4 psf per month to $5-5.50 psf per month now.

On the rationale for Deutsche Bank’s move, Mr Tan said: ‘The move to the new premises is part of our growth strategy to accommodate increasing staff numbers in Singapore and to provide flexibility for further growth.’

Singapore is Deutsche Bank’s Asia-Pacific headquarters and also serves as a regional head office for five out of six of the bank’s key business lines including global markets, private wealth management, asset management, private and business clients, and global transaction banking.

‘As we’re experiencing strong growth across all facets of our business, both in Singapore and in Asia, we’re strongly focused on our recruitment and staff retention efforts across the business,’ added Mr Tan.

Deutsche Bank is the latest multinational company to move to properties under management of the SLA. Other tenants include Foster Wheeler, a US engineering and construction services consultancy, and electronics giant LG.

Source : Business Times - 10 March 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Singapore needs to save for the future

Singapore needs to save for the future

What can go up can also go down, cautions PM Lee
By ARTHUR SIM
PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong reiterated the objectives of the recent Budget at a grassroots event yesterday, after noting that the public had put less emphasis on the ‘long-term initiatives’ and focused instead on short-term ‘hongbaos’.
‘The assumption which some people had is that we are now rich and we can afford to spend more,’ he said.

‘This is a very dangerous way of thinking and it worries me a lot. We are here, strong, because we have saved and been frugal and haven’t just thrown money away,’ he stressed.

Mr Lee also made the point of saying that Singapore is admired around the globe. ‘They know that in Singapore, it is a society that is working, people are cohesive. And when you have a Budget, people smile, and there is a distribution that makes sense. Not just money all around,’ he said.

His comments came after Hong Kong’s recent Budget, which was released two weeks after Singapore’s, stole some of the republic’s thunder.

The Hong Kong Budget had been widely considered more aggressive by pundits. Hong Kong had cut personal income tax by one percentage point to 15 per cent on top of a one-off 75 per cent tax rebate, capped at HK$25,000 (S$4,451). Singaporeans got a one-off 20 per cent tax rebate, capped at $2,000. However, saying that many of the components were ‘very similar to what we did’, Mr Lee pointed out that both countries addressed health care, lower income workers and personal income tax.
 
Although conceding that Hong Kong was perhaps more generous on the last point, Mr Lee added: ‘I am sure (the Hong Kong government) studied what we have done and have adapted it.’

But while he said that both countries had done well economically last year, Singapore had to ‘keep saving and investing in the future in order to generate growth and resources to keep Singapore strong’.

‘What can go up can also go down,’ he cautioned.

The prime minister was speaking at the opening of the Anchorvale Community Club in which he also took the opportunity to speak for the first time on the escape of terrorist Mas Selamat Kastari.

Security at the event was noticeably higher, with the unusual appearance of police sniffer dogs.

On the escape of fugitive Jemaah Islamiah leader Mas Selamat, Mr Lee said: ‘Security forces will learn from this mistake and grow from it. We must make sure that it does not happen again because it is a continuing problem we are dealing with.’

The outlook for Singaporeans, however, is bright.

Mr Lee said: ‘We emphasise self-reliance and the free market but we do not leave Singaporeans to fend for themselves.’

He said that the government would ‘do its best to invest in Singapore and make it more competitive, so that the economy and the free market can create prosperity for all of us’.

Anyone who might still have some doubts would certainly have left the event inspired. MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC Lam Pin Min gave a surprise performance of Josh Groban’s hit, You Raise Me Up, for which he earned a standing ovation from Mr Lee.

Source : Business Times - 10 March 2008

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Mindy Yong

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mindy@mindyyong.com

Why so many XP users are reluctant to ‘upgrade’ to Vista - NEW YORK

Why so many XP users are reluctant to ‘upgrade’ to Vista - NEW YORK

Chilling stories, even from top Microsoft execs, tell the truth
(NEW YORK) One year after the birth of Windows Vista, why do so many Windows XP users still decline to ‘upgrade’?
 
‘Doesn’t play well with others’: Non-existent hardware drivers, long loading delays and slower applicaton speeds plague ‘Vista-capable’ machines — FILE PHOTO 
Microsoft says high prices have been the deterrent. Last month, the company trimmed prices on retail packages of Vista, trying to entice consumers to overcome their reluctance. In the United States, an XP user can now buy Vista Home Premium for US$129.95, instead of US$159.95.

An alternative theory, however, is that Vista’s reputation precedes it. XP users have heard too many chilling stories from relatives and friends about Vista upgrades that have gone badly.

The graphics chip that couldn’t handle Vista’s whizzy special effects. The long delays as it loaded. The applications that ran at slower speeds. The printers, scanners and other hardware peripherals, which work dandily with XP, that lacked the necessary drivers to work well with Vista.

Can someone explain why switching XP for Vista is an ‘upgrade’? Here’s one story of a Vista upgrade early last year that did not go well. Jon upgrades two XP machines to Vista. Then he discovers that his printer, regular scanner and film scanner lack Vista drivers.
‘I personally got burned… I now have a US$2,100 e-mail machine.’
Microsoft VP Mike Nash’s verdict of a ‘Vista-Capable’ laptop 
 
 
 
 
He has to stick with XP on one machine just so he can continue to use the peripherals.

Did Jon simply have bad luck? Apparently not. When another person, Steven, hears about Jon’s woes, he says drivers are missing in every category - ‘this is the same across the whole ecosystem’.

Then there’s Mike, who buys a laptop that has a reassuring ‘Windows Vista Capable’ logo affixed. He thinks that he will be able to run Vista in all of its glory, as well as favourite Microsoft programs like Movie Maker. His report: ‘I personally got burned.’

His new laptop - logo or no logo - lacks the necessary graphics chip and can run neither his favourite video-editing software nor anything but a hobbled version of Vista. ‘I now have a US$2,100 e-mail machine,’ he says.

It turns out that Mike is clearly not a naif. He’s Mike Nash, a Microsoft vice-president who oversees Windows product management.

And Jon, who is dismayed to learn that the drivers he needs don’t exist? That’s Jon Shirley, a Microsoft board member and former president and chief operating officer.

And Steven, who reports that missing drivers are anything but exceptional, is in a good position to know: he’s Steven Sinofsky, the company’s senior vice-president responsible for Windows.

Their remarks come from a stream of internal communications at Microsoft in February 2007, after Vista had been released as a supposedly finished product and customers were paying full retail price.

One usually does not have the opportunity to overhear Microsoft’s most senior executives vent their personal frustrations with Windows. But a lawsuit filed against Microsoft in March 2007 has pried loose a packet of internal company documents.

The plaintiffs, Dianne Kelley and Kenneth Hansen, bought PCs in late 2006, before Vista’s release, and contend that Microsoft’s ‘Windows Vista Capable’ stickers were misleading when affixed to machines that turned out to be incapable of running the versions of Vista that offered the features Microsoft was marketing as distinctive Vista benefits.

Last month, Judge Marsha Pechman granted class-action status to the suit, which is scheduled to go to trial in October. (Microsoft last week appealed against the certification decision.)

Anyone who bought a PC that Microsoft labelled ‘Windows Vist+a Capable’ without also declaring ‘Premium Capable’ is now a party in the suit.

The judge also unsealed a cache of 200 e-mail messages and internal reports, covering Microsoft’s discussions on how best to market Vista, beginning in 2005 and extending beyond its introduction in January 2007.

The documents incidentally include those accounts of frustrated Vista users in Microsoft’s executive suites. — NYT
Source : Business Times - 10 March 2008

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Mindy Yong

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Banks hire aggressively even as bonuses shrink - Singapore

Banks hire aggressively even as bonuses shrink - Singapore

Most people now open to local bank jobs as sub-prime hits foreign lenders
By CHOW PENN NEE

(SINGAPORE) The sub-prime crisis has been blamed for many things - such as credit tightening, a looming US recession, and plunging stock markets worldwide. Now, it has also been cited as the reason behind the shrinking of bank bonuses here. Still, it has not deterred hirings.
 
The majority of people are open to local banks now, whereas in the past, they said ‘no’ to local banks straightaway.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Headhunters told BT that this year’s bonus envelopes handed out by local and foreign banks have become thinner compared to last year’s.

Those holding frontline positions such as relationship managers (RMs), traders and investment bankers still received generous bonuses, albeit slightly less than last year. Hardest-hit were those in the back and middle office, with some receiving little or no bonus.

However, hirings and the annual musical chairs, which see bankers hopping from one bank to another, seem to be continuing, say headhunters.

The only difference now is that job hunters who used to be partial only to positions in foreign banks are now open to jobs in local banks too.

Gary Lai, front office manager of recruitment firm Robert Walters, confirms that compared to last few years, bonuses have dropped slightly, anecdotally by about 15-20 per cent. ‘This is due to the credit crunch, and the cautious economic outlook,’ he said.

The only exception, he notes, are the top-performing 15 per cent of bankers who still command a premium and therefore get fatter envelopes.
 
Mr Lai recruits for client-facing positions such as investment banking, trading, fund management, and RMs serving corporate, priority and private customers.

Generally, investment bankers from bulge bracket firms - even those averaging just a year of experience - received decent bonuses of about one to two years of their salary. Traders, he said, had bonuses which were difficult to generalise, but flow traders who execute orders for clients averaged about six to 15 months.

RMs for corporate clients received about four to seven months, while private bankers pocketed about six to 13 months, some even getting as much as two years. Fund managers on the buy side, he said, took home about seven to 13 months.

Staff in middle and back-office operations were not so lucky. ‘Some employees from US and European banks received bonus less than last year’s or no bonus,’ said Richard Vincent, senior manager of financial services at recruitment firm Robert Half Singapore. ‘Before, they would have received about three to 12 months’ bonus.’

The company recruits for back-office and middle-office functions such as control and risk reporting, internal audit reporting, trade support, client services, and support staff. Its clients are a mix of local and foreign financial institutions.

Mr Vincent added that local bank employees’ bonuses have been less affected by the sub-prime crisis than those from US and European banks.

Steve Parkes, manager of financial services at Michael Page, who also recruits for middle and back-office functions, also noted: ‘There are some banks which have been hit by sub-prime and feeling the pinch.’

He said some second and third-tier banks have given out just one month in bonus this year, from 4.5 months last year, with employers attributing this to sub-prime problems.

Some bulge bracket investment banks have cut bonuses to three months, from four to six months last year, he added.

Not too long ago, there was a surfeit of positions for job seekers, and potential employees could pick from a variety of choices, given the economic boom. But now it seems the tide has shifted, said recruiters. ‘Until recently, it was an employees’ market, but nowadays, the momentum has shifted slightly back to employers,’ said Mr Lai.

Interestingly, as a result of the sub-prime writedowns at foreign banks, many candidates who used to prefer foreign bank positions are now also open to jobs at local banks.

‘The majority of people are open to local banks now, whereas in the past, they said ‘no’ to local banks straightaway,’ said Mr Lai. ‘Now that the credit crunch has hit foreign banks, movers tend to equate local banks with stability.’

Tim Hird, managing director of Robert Half Singapore, also noted that there is a high level of people movement from the United States to Asia. ‘There is significant interest from the North America region in Asia as this region is more protected from the sub-prime,’ he said.

Where hirings are concerned, banks still seem to be recruiting aggressively especially for sales positions as well as middle and back-office jobs.

Mr Lai said that positions involving sales personnel, such as corporate bankers, private bankers and investment bankers, are still very much sought after.

The demand comes from private equity and hedge funds setting up bases in Singapore.

‘Singapore is a base for South and South-east Asia, where these funds are looking at several emerging economies and the region such as India, Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia,’ he said.

Mr Parkes from Michael Page said he has seen hirings across the board for middle and back-office positions ‘even in US investment banks hit by sub-prime’.

‘We still see active hiring in the first quarter of this year,’ he said. ‘Asia hasn’t felt the effects of the sub-prime as compared to the US.’

Demand for support staff comes from the fact that Singapore is a significant wealth management centre in the region, said Mr Hird.

Source : Business Times - 10 March 2008

Singapore Property - Buy , Sell , Rent , Invest

Mindy Yong

(+65)91002985

mindy@mindyyong.com