Less hard selling, more sound advice

Less hard selling, more sound advice

By Gabriel Chen

BACK to basics.
The days of product pushing and convoluted investment strategies for the very wealthy are over for now.

Many private banking customers - sitting on wads of cash amid the financial turmoil - are looking for simpler and easier-to-understand financial products.

Security of principal and diversity of investments are foremost on the minds of ultra-high net-worth families.

Those were key themes driven home by speakers yesterday addressing more than 100 private banking professionals at the 18th annual Private Banker International wealth management summit held at the St Regis Hotel.

If private banks want to excel in a climate in which advice is received warily at best, they must ensure that any advice they give to their clients is fair, objective and in the clients’ best interests.

Mr Renato de Guzman, ING Asia Private Bank’s chief executive for the Asia-Pacific region, summed up the mood when he said it is ‘back to basics’.

Clients do not want hard-to-comprehend instruments to grow their wealth while they are also minimising the use of debt in their investments, at least for now, said the Filipino, who is a Singapore permanent resident.

One reason, understandably, is fear as the market turmoil has whipsawed their investment portfolios.

‘What dominates investment is either fear or greed. And right now, it’s fear,’ explained another speaker, Northern Trust’s senior vice-president Kathleen Dugan. ‘We hear from our clients who ask us: ‘Is our money safe?’ Clients have also asked us on many occasions to explain the strength of our balance sheet.’

In this climate, it is time for professional financial advisers to prove their worth, suggested Standard Chartered Private Bank’s global head Peter Flavel.

Mr Flavel, speaking on the sidelines of the event, said the wealth management industry needs to understand what clients need, but clients also need to understand what they are purchasing. ‘As you can see with some of the products purchased in the mass affluent space, questions were raised on the suitability of those products,’ he told The Straits Times.

Private bankers also need to stay close to clients, especially in these difficult times, said Barclays Wealth Asia-Pacific’s chief executive Didier von Daeniken.

‘Private banking is a people-led and relationship-led business. The importance of building up a long-term relationship, staying close to clients, in good times and especially in bad, cannot be underscored enough,’ he said.

Certainly, what makes sound advice has definitely come to the fore amid alleged mis-selling of investment products by relationship managers at some banks.

Earlier in the keynote address, the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s executive director, Mr Ng Nam Sin, said that it was easy for financial institutions to keep clients happy in a bull market, when investment returns were high. But in a bear market, this becomes challenging.

‘It is crucial clients’ needs are well understood and come first, be it their risk appetite or liquidity preferences.’

Source : Straits Times - 07 Nov 2008

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Mah: No delay to HDB, govt building projects

Mah: No delay to HDB, govt building projects

By Grace Chua

PUBLIC housing and government building projects will not be delayed on account of the economic downturn, said Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan yesterday evening.
‘Demand is still very, very strong. As long as there is a demand, we will continue to build,’ he said, on public housing.

Speaking after chairing a public forum on sustainable development in Singapore, Mr Mah said more than 8,000 new HDB units are scheduled to be built this year.

On other building projects, he said: ‘Other government projects…infrastructure projects, MRT projects, road-building, schools, all those things we felt are urgent and necessary - for example, retrofitting Nanyang Technological University for the Youth Olympic Games - all are on track. It’s something we need to do.’

The forum, which focused on physical-environment issues such as energy efficiency and biodiversity, was held at the Urban Redevelopment Authority centre in Maxwell Road. About 200 people attended, including architects, engineers, students, teachers, nature enthusiasts and the managing director of a company that builds solar-energy systems.

Questions at the lively discussion ranged from the technical, such as those on solar power and energy-efficiency incentives, to the practical, including adding more greenery to HDB blocks and building bicycle paths.

It was the second of two public discussions on sustainable development. Last week’s session was chaired by Environment and Water Resources Minister Yaacob Ibrahim, who co-chairs a committee with Mr Mah to think up ways to promote economic growth and preserve natural resources.

Both forums drew topics from a website launched in July, for the public to offer suggestions.

More than 1,000 have been received and will be considered as officials draw up a sustainable-development blueprint for the next 10 to 15 years, expected to be ready next year.

Source : Straits Times - 07 Nov 2008

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$700k housing scam: Lawyer pleads guilty

$700k housing scam: Lawyer pleads guilty

By Sujin Thomas

A LAWYER pleaded guilty yesterday to being part of an elaborate housing scam that cheated banks out of almost $700,000.
David Tan Hock Boon, 40, became the fourth person convicted in connection with the plot, which also involved David Rasif, Singapore’s most famous fugitive lawyer.

A district court heard that Tan conceived a scam in 2003 to swindle banks and the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board by falsely declaring the purchase prices of properties.

His partners included property agent Goh Chong Liang and Rasif, who went missing in June 2006 with about $12 million of his clients’ money.

Their plan saw Goh convince sellers and buyers of properties, mainly HDB flats, to declare inflated purchase prices.

Armed with phoney documents such as CPF and employment records, they secured mortgages well above the value of the houses.

The scam, set in motion in 2004, saw them pocket nearly $700,000 in just over a year.

Court documents did not say how the men planned to get away without repaying the loans.

When the Commercial Affairs Department got wind of something suspicious in 2005, Goh asked to have signatures removed from documents connected to the sale. Tan handed over the documents to Goh, who erased his own signatures and replaced them with those of another man, Zurkifli Alang Noordin, in return for money.

Goh was sentenced to five years and five months’ jail on Aug 2 last year for his offences, while Zurkifli was jailed for a year in April.

Another man involved in the scam, Abu Samah Yacob, was jailed for 17 months in June. Rasif remains on the run.

District Judge Toh Yung Cheong adjourned Tan’s sentencing to next Friday.

Source : Straits Times - 07 Nov 2008

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Obama will be positive for Asia: Economists

Obama will be positive for Asia: Economists

By Jessica Cheam

AS THE election euphoria from Senator Barack Obama’s historic United States presidential election victory subsides, more sober questions are emerging.
For instance, what does the return of the Democrats to the White House after eight years’ absence signal for Asia, and for Singapore in particular? Will trade protectionism take hold in the US?

Broadly, economists that The Straits Times spoke to agreed Mr Obama’s win is a positive outcome for Asia as he is seen to symbolise the change required to turn around the flagging US economy. The world’s No.1 economy is a key export market for Asia, including Singapore.

Mr Roman Scott, resident economist at the Singapore British Chamber of Commerce, said most Asians believe Mr Obama will lead a ‘less belligerent, more consensus-driven White House that is willing to listen and talk’.

‘His win has a geo-political significance. And economics is tied to geo-political stability, so this is positive for Asia.’

However, pre-election campaign talk has fuelled anxiety in Asia that Washington under Mr Obama will embrace more protectionist trade measures.

He has pledged to use US trade laws to press China to allow its currency to revalue, prompting concern on US-China ties.

Beijing was quick yesterday to spell out what it expects from an Obama administration. ‘We hope that the policy of free trade will continue to be adhered to. We must prevent trade protectionism, which is no good for either side,’ Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang was quoted by AFP as saying.

Mr Obama has also openly opposed a US-South Korea free trade agreement.

Seoul’s chief free-trade negotiator Lee Hye Min yesterday urged Mr Obama to honour the agreement. ‘To try to renegotiate the text when it’s been signed and awaiting ratification…you would damage the balance that was achieved when the deal was reached,’ he told a news briefing, Reuters reported.

Malaysia said it was not yet clear whether a US free-trade agreement will be achievable under Mr Obama, after it failed to reach a deal with the Bush administration, Bloomberg reported.

‘We will have to see the policy direction of the new US administration,’ Finance Minister Najib Razak said.

An aide on Mr Obama’s foreign policy team told The Straits Times that ‘from an Asean perspective, trade is going to be the big issue. He is a free trader but he also has a domestic constituency that needs to ensure there are safeguards for American workers’.

Mr Scott agreed that US domestic policy will be Mr Obama’s top priority.

His ‘buy American’ stance could come across as protectionist but, in practice, there will not be too many changes in trade policies with Asia, said Mr Scott.

‘You don’t want to make enemies in Asia or with China. There’s a lot of talk on the yuan, but Bush didn’t get very far with that. And I don’t think Obama will push this agenda,’ he said.

OCBC economist Emmanuel Ng added: ‘Simply put, the US needs China more than China needs the US. So I don’t expect a raft of protectionist policies or renewed calls on revaluing the yuan.’

Barclays Capital’s economist Leong Wai Ho said Mr Obama’s response to the financial crisis is vital. ‘How he manages at home will determine our fates. So far, the signals have been positive.’

Citigroup economist Kit Wei Zheng said Mr Obama’s willingness to take aggressive fiscal stimulus measures may help to cushion the depth and duration of the likely US recession next year.

‘This is a good thing for Asian economies, which are still dependent on the US economy,’ he added.

CIMB-GK economist Song Seng Wun and economist David Cohen of Action Economics both said the jury is still out on how Asia will be affected.

‘We have to see what exactly he’s going to do. I wouldn’t get overly excited about any radical changes as we’re in for a tough period ahead, with the US economy and global economy,’ said Mr Cohen.

Mr Scott predicts that Singapore’s economic growth will come in at 1 to 2 per cent next year, given that its economy is ‘open and vulnerable to global fall in demand’. But he is still bullish on the country’s long-term prospects as it has ’strong fundamentals’ and good policies.

Source : Straits Times - 07 Nov 2008

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Training funds to help workers cope

Training funds to help workers cope

Firms may get funds to send workers for training during downturn

By Lim Wei Chean

STAR SERVICE BOOSTS S’PORE’S RANKING: Her attention to detail won assistant F&B manager Michelle Ee Soo Meng, of Sheraton Towers’ Li Bai Cantonese Restaurant, one of 10 top service excellence awards given out yesterday. After a decade of effort, Singapore has made it back to the list of the world’s top 10 countries known for customer service. It was ranked 15th last year. — ST PHOTO: CAROLINE CHIA

UNIONS, employers and the Government are gearing up to help workers cope with the economic downturn, and one key area being looked at is providing companies with funds so that they can send staff for training.
The strategy for coping is two- pronged: Reduce the cost of doing business to save jobs and companies, while finding ways to ’step up the investment in new capabilities’, labour chief Lim Swee Say said yesterday.

The aim: Keep job losses below the 29,000 level experienced in 1998, when the country was reeling from the effects of the Asian financial crisis.

It will not be easy, though, conceded Mr Lim, the secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), yesterday. The effects of the 1998 downturn were felt mainly in Asia, while the current crisis is global in nature, and could last longer - ‘one year, two years, three years or even longer’, he said.

Still, he said, Singapore is well-placed to weather the storm this time, because of lessons learnt well from past downturns.

Training systems and institutions are in place and he is ‘cautiously confident there will not be runaway unemployment’.

However, Mr Lim, who is also a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, emphasised the need to upgrade at a time when business is slow.

‘If all we do is to focus on cost-cutting alone, then at some point in time, massive retrenchment will have to take place due to the long duration of this downturn,’ he warned.

One key area unions are focusing on, he said, is making it acceptable for companies to keep employees on their payroll while they attend courses to upgrade their skills.

Speaking after presenting SuperStar Awards to top-notch service staff at Suntec Singapore yesterday, Mr Lim said: ‘During good times, companies are busy. So they have the money but not the time to train busy workers.

‘But today, as we go through this downturn, companies will have excess manpower. So they have time, but unfortunately, they won’t have the money.’

This, he said, is an ‘absentee payroll’ problem which unions and the Government can help with.

He cited the $5 million fund set aside for skills redevelopment in 1998, and said a similar scheme might be needed this time.

The fund was used to subsidise training for workers when the downturn bit. Instead of retrenching, employers reduced their wage bill by sending workers for training and getting back some of their wages through the grants. Workers kept their jobs while learning new skills to give them a headstart when the economy improved.

Mr Lim said the labour movement has been giving feedback on the subject to the Government, whom he urged to make a decision and announcement soon.

The slowdown was already taking a toll, especially in the manufacturing sector, he warned, and companies needed to know what help was available to factor into decisions.

‘Companies are already approaching our unions…overtime is already dropping. In some cases, we are now working a shorter work week, in some cases they’re even talking about temporary layoff.’

He also tackled a question that arises whenever a downturn looms: Should foreign workers be retrenched ahead of Singaporeans?

He said past records showed that more than half of retrenched workers were foreigners.

He also noted a trend among employers of making local workers the core of their workforce - something that bodes well for Singaporeans.

At the end of the day, Mr Lim said, the labour movement cannot stop retrenchments, but he held out this promise: ‘For every worker who is affected, there is a programme to help him.’

Source : Straits Times - 07 Nov 2008

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Govt to watch market before deciding: Mah

Govt to watch market before deciding: Mah

By UMA SHANKARI

THE government will watch the property market closely before deciding whether further measures are needed to address the supply-demand imbalance that has emerged, National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan said yesterday.

Mr Mah: Asked if DPS will be reintroduced, he said, ‘Let’s take a look, see what the market is like’
‘There is a lot of uncertainty,’ he said. ‘It’s best for us to watch carefully before we start to make the next move. We are watching the market very closely.’

On Friday last week, the government said the sale of land from the ‘confirmed’ list has been suspended for the first half of next year. Most sites on the ‘confirmed’ list have been shifted to the ‘reserve’ list, from which properties are offered for sale if there is interest from developers. A ban on converting office space in the central area to other uses, such as housing, was also lifted.

The moves are seen as an attempt to stabilise the property market as residential prices and office rents continue to fall. Developers welcomed them, but expressed hope that the government will reintroduce the deferred payment scheme (DPS), which was scrapped in October last year to deter speculation.

Under the DPS, home buyers had to pay only 10 or 20 per cent of the price of a residential property without having to commit to a bank loan, which could be delayed until a project was closer to completion and the rest of the payment was due.

Asked yesterday if the DPS will be reintroduced, Mr Mah said the authorities are watching the market. ‘We have just made this change (the suspension of sites from the ‘confirmed’ list),’ he said. ‘Let’s take a look and see what the market is like.’

Mr Mah, who was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a public forum on enhancing Singapore’s environment, also said Singapore will have a blueprint on sustainable development for the next 10-15 years by February next year.

The inter-ministerial committee on sustainable development, set up in February this year to come up with a national strategy for sustainable development, will release its recommendations then, he said.

Source : Business Times - 07 Nov 2008

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Long-term prospect ‘fabulous’, but 2009 looks gloomy

Long-term prospect ‘fabulous’, but 2009 looks gloomy

British Chamber spokesman paints the big picture for Singapore

By GENEVIEVE CUA

THE long-term outlook for Singapore is ‘fabulous’ but 2009 is likely to be a miserable year economically, said Roman Scott, economic spokesman for the British Chamber of Commerce.

In a luncheon presentation yesterday, Mr Scott painted a bleak picture of global growth, but reiterated his confidence that Asia will bounce back stronger.

‘I remain a long-term secular Asian bull. In the mid- to long term, (the crisis) accelerates the secular shift of economies towards Asia,’ he said. While open and export oriented economies such as Singapore will be hit hard, domestic consumption in countries such as China is expected to provide a fresh engine of growth.

‘Singapore is very very vulnerable; it’s a canary in a coal mine. It will be the first to pick itself up when things get better . . . The Singapore story is fundamentally intact and will be fabulous in 2015.’

Still, Asian economic data for the third and fourth quarter this year is expected to be weak. ‘Asian banks may hold very little of the sub-prime toxic debt, but the resultant damage to the interbank and those human things - trust and credibility - that are essential ingredients of the banking system, has affected Asia equally.’

On the global economy, he said IMF forecasts have been consistently over-optimistic in downturns and pessimistic in upturns. IMF forecast for 2009 has been revised downwards to 3 per cent, the slowest pace since 2002.

Mr Scott believes that global growth will actually slip to a ‘recessionary’ level of 2 per cent. ‘The only question that remains is for how long this will last. Given my comments on why systemic banking crises leave the fires burning far longer than the standard cyclical recession, a two-year period is a minimum, not a maximum, and that would be lucky,’ he wrote in a paper.

Asia is expected to bounce back earlier, within 18 months.

A banking crisis, he maintains, differs markedly from normal cyclical recessions. ‘This is a heart attack, not a fall, and hearts are difficult to get started again . . . This is what happens when the trust that underpins the system disappears and credit is severely restricted.’

For businesses, he said plans should be stress tested against two to three scenarios. ‘Smaller enterprises will be particularly vulnerable and should plan cash flow to ensure that a year’s requirements for cash is available, and if not it is time to liquidate assets to get to that point.’

Source : Business Times - 07 Nov 2008

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Stock market rout benefits ‘dark pool’ operators

Stock market rout benefits ‘dark pool’ operators

Funds struggling to meet redemptions turn to them to exit less liquid stocks

By CHEW XIANG

LAST month’s equity market rout was good for at least one group - operators of ‘dark pools’ that facilitate big trades by institutional investors.

Mr Klinger: ‘Funds that face redemption tend to get rid of the most liquid stocks first, so the liquidity of portfolios is getting quite bad.’ Liquidnet saw the most trading in Oct since its debut here last November
They work by electronically connecting fund managers’ order books, privately marrying large trades without moving the market.

As funds struggle to meet redemptions, many have turned to dark pools to sell out of less liquid stocks, said David Klinger, managing director of Liquidnet Asia.

Liquidnet, the largest independent operator of dark pools in the US, is one of three that have operations in Asia.

It began trading Hong Kong, Singapore, Korean and Japanese equities in November last year, adding Australian stocks in February this year.

According to Mr Klinger, there has been a surge of interest in dark pools since Asian equities started heading south this year.

‘Last month we saw the most trading in Singapore since we started (last November),’ he said.

‘There has been a lot of interest since the market started going badly. Funds that face redemption tend to get rid of the most liquid stocks first, so the liquidity of portfolios is getting quite bad.’

This is where dark pools can help - by sourcing buyers or sellers without alerting the rest of the market that a big deal is impending.

The average spread in Singapore is about 30 basis points, Mr Klinger said.

And ‘92 per cent of our trades are at or within the spread, and about 50 per cent at the midpoint’, saving clients money as they do not have to cross the spread to trade. Fees are also cheaper than if the trades are conducted through brokers.

‘It augments the way exchanges work,’ he said.

‘Exchanges are great for price discovery - it’s the best way to say what is a fair price. Where exchanges don’t do such a good job is for volume discovery.’

As well, ‘orders can stay on (clients’) trade desk (instead of with brokers).

This means that they have more control so there is less volatile trade,’ said Greg Henry, who will manage Liquidnet’s Singapore office when it opens this month.

Clients now can trade Singapore-listed stocks on Liquidnet’s proprietary network - mostly small and mid cap stocks, where liquidity on the Singapore Exchange may be hard to come by, said Mr Henry.

Mr Klinger said the average trade size of Singapore equities last month was $1.7 million, though volume is ‘a little spotty’.

‘Sometimes we go a couple of days without a trade, and so far there is no consistent flow,’ he said.

The Singapore office aims to get more clients - ‘about 10 right now, maybe seven more we’re bringing in,’ Mr Klinger said.

Trading in dark pools and other forms of electronic markets has taken off in developed Western economies, as funds seek to minimise spreads and information leakage.

More than 10 per cent of trade in New York and London takes place in such off-exchange arenas, according to reports.

Source : Business Times - 07 Nov 2008

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IMF warning: world economy slowing quickly

IMF warning: world economy slowing quickly

It forecasts that global growth will fall to 3.75% in ‘08 from 5% last year

By ANTHONY ROWLEY
IN TOKYO

GLOBAL economic activity is ’slowing quickly’ and advanced economies face overall contraction next year for the first time since World War II, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned last night in a special update of its World Economic Outlook.

It forecasts that world growth will fall to 3.75 per cent this year from 5 per cent in 2007 and will drop to ‘just over 2 per cent’ in 2009.

The forecast for next year is 0.75 per cent down from the IMF’s forecast only last month and underlines how fast the outlook is decaying.

‘Prospects for global growth have deteriorated over the past month as financial sector deleveraging has continued, and producer and consumer confidence have fallen,’ the IMF says in its special update. In advanced economies, output is now forecast to contract in 2009 - ‘the first such fall in the post-war period’. In emerging economies, growth is projected to slow appreciably but still reach 5 per cent in 2009.

The IMF says that its new forecasts are based on current policies. Global action to support financial markets and provide further fiscal stimulus and monetary easing can help limit the decline in growth, it says.

The special report comes as leaders of the G-20 group of advanced and major emerging economies prepare for a summit on Nov 15 called by US President George W Bush, at which he will represent the US. The IMF’s call to action on the fiscal and monetary front is seen as aimed at that meeting.

‘There is a clear need for additional macro-economic policy stimulus relative to what has been announced thus far to support growth, and provide a context to restore health to financial sectors,’ the IMF says. ‘Room to ease monetary policy should be exploited, especially now that inflation concerns have moderated.’

The US economy will suffer as households respond to depreciating real and financial assets and to tightening financial conditions, the IMF says, forecasting US growth of 1.4 per cent this year and a contraction of 0.3 per cent in 2009.

The euro area, meanwhile, will be ‘hard hit’ by tightening financial conditions and falling confidence, resulting in growth of just 1.2 per cent this year and a 0.7 per cent overall contraction in 2009.

Japan will see exports weaken, with growth reaching 0.5 per cent in 2008, followed by a contraction of 0.2 per cent next year, the IMF forecasts.

‘Countries in East Asia, including China, generally have a smaller markdown (in growth) because their financial situations are typically more robust and they have benefited from improved terms of trade, from falling commodity prices and have initiated a shift towards macro-economic policy easing,’ it says.

China is forecast to grow 9.7 per cent this year but the IMF predicts the pace to fall to 8.5 per cent in 2009, which is significantly below China’s own current official forecast. Growth in the five biggest Asean economies is forecast at 5.4 per cent this year, falling to 4.2 per cent in 2009. India’s growth is put at 7.8 per cent this year and 6.3 per cent in 2009.

‘The financial crisis remains virulent,’ the IMF warns. ‘Markets have entered a vicious cycle of asset deleveraging, price declines and investor redemptions. Credit spreads spiked to distressed levels and major equity indices dropped by about 25 per cent in October. Emerging markets came under even more severe pressure.

‘Financial conditions are likely to remain tight for a longer period and to be more impervious to policy measures than previously expected.’

Source : Business Times - 07 Nov 2008

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Obama gets down to team building-WASHINGTON

Obama gets down to team building-WASHINGTON

He offers Chief of Staff post to Rahm Emanuel; is also expected to quickly name members of economic team

(WASHINGTON) President-elect Barack Obama barely had time to savour his victory before he began filling out his new administration and getting a sobering look at some of the daunting problems he will inherit when he takes office in just 10 weeks.

As president-elect, he began receiving highly classified briefings from top intelligence officials from yesterday.

Already, Russia was threatening to put missiles alongside US-ally Poland if President George Bush’s plan for a missile defence shield in Europe is not repealed. In Afghanistan, US-backed President Hamid Karzai demanded that Mr Obama ‘put an end to civilian casualties’ by changing US tactics to avoid airstrikes in the hunt for militants.

Mr Obama on Tuesday night made history by being elected the first black US president. But times are bleak: the country is in the grips of its worst economic crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s and is fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He got a quick start with the transition on Wednesday, calling on Rahm Emanuel, a fellow Illinois politician, to serve as White House Chief of Staff.

While several Democrats confirmed that Mr Emanuel had been offered the job, it was not clear if he had accepted. But rejection would amount to an unlikely public snub of the new president-elect swept towards power in an electoral college landslide.

Mr Obama’s staff said that he would address the media by the end of the week, but Cabinet announcements were not planned that soon.

With hundreds of jobs to fill before his Jan 20 inauguration, Mr Obama and his transition team confronted a formidable task complicated by his anti-lobbyist campaign rhetoric.

In offering the post of White House Chief of Staff to Mr Emanuel, he turned to a fellow Chicago politician with a far different style from his own, a man known for his bluntness as well as his single-minded determination.

Mr Emanuel was a political and policy aide in Bill Clinton’s White House. Leaving that, he turned to investment banking, then won a Chicago-area House seat six years ago. In Congress, he moved quickly into the Democratic leadership. As chairman of the Democratic campaign committee in 2006, he played an instrumental role in restoring his party to power after 12 years in the minority.

In light of the financial crisis, Mr Obama is expected to quickly name members of his economic team. Former Treasury secretary Lawrence Summers, who served in the Clinton administration, and Timothy Geithner, president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, are among the names being mentioned for Treasury Secretary.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has pledged to work with Mr Obama to ensure a smooth transition. He has already set up desks and phone lines at the department where Mr Obama’s incoming Treasury team can work between now and the inauguration.

Mr Obama’s transition team is headed by John Podesta, who served as chief of staff under former president Bill Clinton; Pete Rouse, who has been Mr Obama’s Chief of Staff in the Senate, and Valerie Jarrett, a friend of the president-elect and campaign adviser. — AP

Source : Business Times - 07 Nov 2008

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