Marc Faber @July 2012: We are still in a High Risk Environment

Q: Would you say the rally is probably short-lived and saw the best part of it play out by last week itself?

Marc Faber : This is too early to tell. Basically, we made a low in early June and at 1261 on the S&P and then we rallied and we came down again, but we didn’t test a new low. We may rebounce to around 1400 on the S&P. Don’t forget July is a month of seasonal strength and that we are coming into the election, there maybe some more money printing and fiddling with statistic sense of ours. So the market may actually rally a bit more. But it doesn’t change the global picture, which is essentially for a global economic slowdown, for an increasing number of companies that are reporting disappointing sales for forecast, for earnings. 

When there is a minor disappointment that’s what the case on Friday in the case of Nike, the stock then drops very significantly and erases essentially all the gains of the last three or six months. So we are still in a high risk environment. Eventually, I think that in the next 12 months, you will be able to buy most markets at a lower level than today. The only stocks I bought in the last 10 days are from the fresh issues in Portugal, Spain, Italy and France. - in CNBC TV 18 

Petron Malaysia to rebrand 120 stations by year-end

KUALA LUMPUR: Petron Malaysia Sdn Bhd, formerly known as Esso Malaysia Bhd (EMB), expects to further rebrand 120 stations in Malaysia by year end in line with its focus to aggressively build revenue and create efficiencies at all levels.

Last April, Philippine-based Petron Corporation, a unit of conglomerateSan Miguel Corp acquired the Malaysian businesses of oil refiner Exxon Mobil, namely 65% of EMB and Exxon Mobil units Exxon Mobil Malaysia Sdn Bhd and Exxon Mobil Borneo Sdn Bhd.

Petron Corp's unit Petron Oil and Gas International has assumed control of the three companies.

In a statement after its EGM on Monday, Petron Malaysia said all its activities were well on track after the successful transition.

On May 14, the mandatory general offer in relation to Petron Malaysia subsidiary, EMB was completed which resulted in the company owning 73.4% paid-up capital and voting shares of EMB.

Subsequently on June 15, the first phase of Petron rebranded stations was completed.

The company also said the study for the upgrade of the Port Dickson refinery was progressing well with its completion due by this year.

"The focus is also to push the rebranding of our service stations. We look forward to creating growth for the business and with dedicated efforts of our employees, network dealers and business partners, the company is confident of success," Petron Malaysia said. - Bernama

Comments :-

We will see Philipine-based company, to compete with Petronas Bhd in future. How good is petrol from Philippine? 

Exxon Mobil/Esso Station rebrand to Petron in progress .... 

Petron Station at KESAS highway 

San Miguel Corporation
Company Profile

Established in 1890 as a single-product brewery,San Miguel Corporation (San Miguel) is the Philippines’ largest beverage, food and packaging company. Today, the company has over 100 facilities in the Philippines, Southeast Asia, and China.

One of the country’s premier business conglomerates, San Miguel’s extensive product portfolio includes over 400 products ranging from beer, hard liquor, juices, basic and processed meats, poultry, dairy products, condiments, coffee, flour, animal feeds and various packaging products.

For generations, the Company has generated strong consumer loyalty through brands that are among the most formidable in the Philippine food and beverage industry – San Miguel Pale Pilsen, Ginebra, Monterey, Magnolia, and Purefoods. Flagship product, San Miguel Beer, holds an over 95% share of the Philippine beer market.

In addition to its leadership in the Philippine food and beverage industry, San Miguel has established a significant presence overseas. The Company’s operations extend beyond its home base of the Philippines to China (including Hong Kong), Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Australia.

Through strategic partnerships it has forged with major international companies, San Miguel has gained access to managerial expertise, international practices and advanced technology, thereby enhancing its performance and establishing itself as a world-class company.

San Miguel’s partners are world leaders in their respective businesses. Kirin Brewery Co., Ltd. is a major shareholder of San Miguel Brewery. The Company also has successful joint venture relationships with US-based Hormel Foods Corporation, Nihon Yamamura Glass and QTel, a telecommunications company in Qatar.

In the Philippines, San Miguel’s corporate strategy is at aimed capitalizing on new growth markets through acquisitions and further enhancing its competitive position by improving synergies across existing operational lines.

The company has significantly expanded its participation in both its core businesses of food, beverage and packaging, as well as heavy industries including power and other utilities, mining, energy, tollways and airports.

Jim Rogers : Natural Gas closer to the bottom than the top

Jim Rogers : “I want to own real assets. I want to invest in companies that produce real goods. Shortages are getting worse, not better.” He would rather own natural gas at these prices than shorting the commodity. Jim Rogers thinks we’re closer to the bottom than the top in natural gas. - in ETFtrades 

Marc Faber Investment Picks for 2012

Marc Faber : I still like my January investment picks. As a group, Singapore REITS look OK. Among them I like Mapletree Commercial Trust [MCT.Singapore], Frasers Centrepoint Trust [FCT.Singapore], K-REIT Asia [KREIT.Singapore], Mapletree Logistics Trust [MLT.Singapore], Ascott Residence Trust [ART.Singapore], Cache Logistics Trust [CACHE.Singapore] and Parkway Life [PREIT.Singapore]. 

I am also warming to gold shares. Gold corrected to $1,522 last December from $1,921 in September. It rebounded to $1,795 in February and is back down around $1,600. The correction could last longer, but given that governments will print more money, gold is relatively effective as a currency. My preference is physical gold, but I would also own some gold shares, which have been decimated. Goldcorp [GG] is attractive because most of its properties are in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. The company isn't exposed to regimes that are talking about nationalizing resources. In general, stock markets are oversold. The U.S. government-bond market is overbought. The U.S. dollar is overbought, and gold is oversold near term. - in Barron's roundtable June 2012

Marc Faber : We are most deeply asleep at the Switch when we believe to control all Switches

Over the years, my experience has been that most investors (including myself) who lose money fail because of ‘overconfidence.’ When they buy, they are convinced that an investment will be highly profitable and seldom consider that they could be wrong. Likewise, when investors sell an asset they are sure that it no longer has a significant upside potential. Investors’ overconfidence leads to a complete lack of diversification and heavy concentration of money in a single asset class.

Investors should consider carefully that win/win transactions are far less common than win/lose transactions. Usually either the buyer or the seller makes a big mistake. Successful investing is about making sure that it is not you that makes the big mistake.

I am enclosing a report by Michael Gayed entitled “Money Illusion and Why the ‘Bond Bubble’ Must Burst.”

I wish my readers a nice, sunny, and peaceful summer.

Kind regards

Yours sincerely 

Marc Faber

Comments :-

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