Tea with AK71: Home made onigiri.

It has been a while since I blogged about my home made lunches. Today, I feel compelled to blog about my lunch because my sister outdid hereself this time. Home made onigiri!

Wrapped up nicely too with instructions. Just tear down the red line and pull outwards on both sides.

Oishi des ne!

For any average income worker, saving some money by not eating out for lunch could amount to quite a bit of savings and it is actually meaningful.

Imagine someone with a gross income of $2.5k a month saving $3 daily for 20 days a month. That is $60 or 2.4% of his gross monthly income! Hey, don't laugh, some traders would run for the hills after making 2.4% on their punts in the stock market!

Some things, we should not try but this is one thing I think is worth trying. Bring your own lunch to work. If you don't try, you won't know. Trust me, it is a good money saving habit.

Related post:
7 money habits of AK71's.

As per Chu's request for recipes, I got these from the catalog at BetterWorldBooks:
1.
Healthy & Tasty Sushi Rolls and Onigiri
2.
Fun and Fancy Sushi: Nigiri-Zushi, Onigiri and Maki-Zushi for Every Day and Parties

Wilmar: Buy or sell?

Today, one person asked me if she should still buy Wilmar's shares while another person asked me where is the first resistance level in case share price continues to rise. One person is thinking of putting in a long position while another person is thinking of possibly divesting.

Daily chart

It is obvious to any chartist that Wilmar's share price broke resistance.

On the daily chart, the descending 200dMA at $3.62 or so is where we would find the next resistance level. The 200dMA could push share price down in the near term. It has that ability. If that should happen, then, it presents a chance for anyone who missed the boat earlier to buy in.

Weekly chart

If the 200dMA could be overcome, then, looking at the weekly chart, we see the next significant resistance provided by the declining 50w MA. In very bullish circumstances, we could see the 100w MA tested in due course. The longer term technicals are supportive of this but it could take weeks for it to happen. If this should happen, it would be a nice price for divestment, wouldn't it?

Related post:
Wilmar: Smart money outflow is reversing.

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Not enough money to be married!

Over the weekend, I was told of a person in his early 30s who is married and has two children. He is regularly borrowing money from his family and friends. In fact, he would borrow from friends to pay the installments on the mortgage of his 5 room HDB flat as well. Amount? S$800 a month.

I am not married and I wouldn't know but with an annual gross income of some S$28K, is it tough to support a family of four in Singapore? It seems that this is the case for this man.

The wife stays home and takes care of the two children who are still attending primary school. It is reasonable to assume that the two children would probably be financially dependent on him for another ten years at least.

I fear that I might sound heartless for saying this but this person really should not have gotten married in the first instance. Making the mistake of getting married, he should have applied for a smaller 3 room HDB flat instead of a 5 room HDB flat which probably cost twice as much. Then, making the mistake of applying for a bigger flat, he should have deferred the decision to have children.

All the romantic notions of a perfect marriage, a spacious home and lovely kids have to be built on rock solid finances, especially in a city like Singapore which has very high cost of living. This is the hard truth.

We have heard of marriage counselling for couples who have serious differences. However, the Catholic Church, I know, provides pre-marriage counselling for would be couples as well. This is a very good idea, I feel. However, that is probably only on an emotional and religious level.

Building on this, I believe that there should be financial advisory services for people thinking of tying the knot so that people do not find themselves in a hole after getting married. Such services should be secular in nature and be made available to all people thinking of getting married. Do such services exist?

If we do a search online for "not enough money for wedding", we will find some websites telling us not to worry and how we could go ahead with it. Where is the common sense in this?

If there is not enough money for a wedding, the two people do not have enough money to be married.

Related posts:
1. Wage slaves should be fearful.
2. Why is Warren Buffet the world's greatest money maker?

It is official! Fiscal Cliff averted!

Mr. Market is in a good mood! The Fiscal Cliff has been averted!

As global stock markets made their 2013 debut, the House of Representatives passed a deal between the White House and Senate Republicans to raise taxes on the rich and put off automatic $109 billion budget cuts for two months.

The deal passed the Senate early on Tuesday, but its fate hung in the balance for hours as House conservatives sought to amend it to include big spending cuts, which would likely have killed it.

In the end, the House voted 257 votes to 167 to pass the original bill with minority Democrats joining a smaller number of majority Republicans to pass the legislation after a bitterly contested and unusual session on New Year's Day.

President Barack Obama planned to make brief remarks at the White House within minutes of passage of the deal, which relieved investors who feared that continued logjam could have sent global stock markets spinning.

Read full article: here.

What a fantastic start to the new year! Happy New Year!

Related post:
President Obama wins! What next?

Marco Polo Marine: A neglected gem.

I have revealed how I diverted some resources away from S-REITs to invest in certain stocks which I feel are undervalued and have the potential for some meaningful capital gains in subsequent months.

DBS Vickers thinks that mid cap offshore plays could catch up with the large caps as risk appetite improves and the industry fundamentals remain strong. I share those sentiments.

Their top picks are Ezion, ASL Marine Holdings and Ezra Holdings.

My pick? Marco Polo Marine.

Persistent insider buying in Marco Polo Marine caught my eyes six months ago. When insiders increase their shares in large quantities, we must suspect that something good is brewing.

UOB is of the opinion that a new upcycle has begun for the OSV sector. This is supported by OCBC which revealed that the OSV to rig ratio will start falling in 2013 and this will favour vessel owners.

Marco Polo Marine together with its 49% owned Indonesian subsidiary ventured into the OSV sector in 2010 and currently own seven OSVs. Net profit received a leg up from their Indonesian subsidiary and doubled QoQ recently.

The scheduled listing of its Indonesian subsidiary on Indonesia Stock Exchange this month is likely to add some 30% to the NAV of Marco Polo Marine, according to Maybank KimEng.

Now, what does all this mean for Marco Polo Marine's current share price? It is too cheap.

ASL Marine Holdings last traded at 67.5c a share and its PER is about 8.9x. For Marco Polo Marine to trade at a PER of about 8.0x, its share price has to be about 50.5c. This is, in fact, conservative because EPS in 2013 is likely to be higher which means a PER of 8.0x will translate into a higher share price. Marco Polo Marine last traded at 38.5c a share.

This is just the beginning. If we believe that a new upcycle has just begun, then, the sector will continue to be upgraded. Indeed, analysts at DBS Vickers have a 12 months price target of 90c for ASL Marine Holdings.

Where would we see Marco Polo Marine's share price then? I wonder.

Related posts:
1. Marco Polo Marine: Persistent insider buying.
2. Marco Polo Marine: Patience will be rewarded.

See: Marco Polo Marine's insider trades here.

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Eat Right 4 Your Type for a Healthy New Year!

I suggested to a friend who has been feeling lethargic of late to try eating right for his blood type. This is something I started doing a couple of years ago. Although it is hard to say if it is psychological, I always feel better when I eat what I am supposed to based on my blood type.

Better? Yes, I would feel less bloated. My nose would also stay clear instead of mucousy. The back of my throat would not itch. There is a general sense of well-being when I follow the blood type diet.

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In Eat Right 4 Your Type, see which foods, spices, teas, and condiments help someone of your blood type maintain optimal health and ideal weight; which vitamins and supplements to emphasize or avoid; which medications function best in your system; whether your stress goes to your muscles or your nervous system; whether your stress is relieved better through aerobics or meditation; whether you should walk, swim or play tennis or golf as your mode of exercise; how knowing your blood type can help you avoid many common viruses and infections; how knowing your blood type can help you fight back against life-threatening diseases; and how to slow down the aging process by avoiding factors specific to your blood type that cause rapid cell deterioration.

You could borrow the book from a public library near you if you are interested in finding out more or, if you would like to have a personal copy, consider buying a pre-owned copy from BetterWorldBooks. Price starts from US$9.98 a copy. They ship free globally.

See:
Eat Right 4 Your Type Complete Blood Type Encyclopedia: The A-Z Reference Guide for the Blood Type Connection to Symptoms, Disease

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Here is wishing all readers

a Happy and Healthy New Year!