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https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/01/16/oxfam-wealth-inequality-davos/ The world could have its first trillionaire within 10 years if current inequality trends continue, antipoverty group Oxfam International said in a report published Monday, reflecting the increasing gap between the world’s wealthy and poor. The report, titled “Inequality Inc.,” was released the same day as the start of the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Its authors say the world is living through a “decade of division,” pointing out that since 2019, the world’s five wealthiest people have almost doubled their wealth, while nearly 5 billion people have become poorer. Using data from Forbes, the report’s authors calculated that the combined wealth of those five men — Tesla CEO Elon Musk; Bernard Arnault and his family, who own luxury goods group LVMH; Amazon founder Jeff Bezos; Oracle founder Larry Ellison; and investor Warren Buffett — increased from $453 billion in 2019 to $869 billion as of November 2023. (Bezos owns The Washington Post.) In their methodology, the authors wrote that if that growth trajectory continues, Musk — the world’s richest person, according to Forbes — is projected to become a trillionaire in fewer than nine years, though they noted that the estimate is subject to uncertainty. “If each of the five wealthiest men were to spend a million dollars daily, they would take 476 years to exhaust their combined wealth,” Oxfam’s authors wrote. Representatives for these individuals could not immediately be reached late Monday. But, Oxfam said, for the world’s poorest people — who are more likely to be women and marginalized groups in every society — “daily life has become more brutal” since 2019. It pointed to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, as well as “escalating conflict, the acceleration of the climate crisis and surging costs of living.” The report also said that globally, men own $105 trillion more than women — a difference in wealth equivalent to more than four times the size of the U.S. economy. Oxfam urged governments worldwide to adopt caps on CEO salaries, along with permanent taxes on wealth and excess profits.

https://www.reuters.com/technology/microsoft-cut-thousands-jobs-sky-news-2023-01-17/ Jan 17 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) plans to cut thousands of jobs with some roles expected to be eliminated in human resources and engineering divisions, according to media reports on Tuesday. The expected layoffs would be the latest in the U.S. technology sector, where companies including Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) have announced retrenchment exercises in response to slowing demand and a worsening global economic outlook. Microsoft's move could indicate that the tech sector may continue to shed jobs. "From a big picture perspective, another pending round of layoffs at Microsoft suggests the environment is not improving, and likely continues to worsen," Morningstar analyst Dan Romanoff said. U.K broadcaster Sky News reported, citing sources, that Microsoft plans to cut about 5% of its workforce, or about 11,000 roles. The company plans to cut jobs in a number of engineering divisions on Wednesday, Bloomberg News reported, according to a person familiar with the matter, while Insider reported that Microsoft could cut recruiting staff by as much as one-third. The cuts will be significantly larger than other rounds in the past year, the Bloomberg report said. Microsoft declined to comment on the reports. The company had 221,000 full-time employees, including 122,000 in the United States and 99,000 internationally, as of June 30, according to filings. Microsoft is under pressure to maintain growth rates at its cloud unit Azure, after several quarters of downturn in the personal computer market hurt Windows and devices sales. It had said in July last year that a small number of roles had been eliminated. In October, news site Axios reported that Microsoft had laid off under 1,000 employees across several divisions. Shares of Microsoft, which is set to report quarterly results on Jan. 24, were marginally higher in late afternoon trading.

This thread arises of a discussion initiate in the car/lifestyle section. However, some very interesting points came up as to how Singapore properties should be considered. The emphasis is deliberate as the model only works for Singapore. There are a lot of property gurus here, so please ignore this un-sophisticated newbie who is just venturing into property and trying to justify his purchases. Fundamental assumption : Singapore will continue to exist as a nation or if not, a quasi nation with independence and that the calibre of national leadership remain high. Let with with an analogy from Singapore/Malaya history; Rubber planting. As all Singaporean students knows from their history books, rubber tree takes 5 - 7 years to mature. So, any businessman intending to venture into this industry has to 1. Buy the land 2. Clear the land 3. Plant the cuttings and continue to care for the younglings These are the years where there are negative profits as the businessman has to continue to pour money into his investment with no guarantee on returns (storm blows down estate, commodity prices collapse, disease toll on trees, etc). However, if the plantation make it through and extraction starts, profits will start to flow in and can continue to flow for another 25 years or more. Also, the rubber estate itself also gain value as it could be sold to buyers with a risk premium for taking on the early year risk. One thing that a number of people keep telling me is rental margins and so on... but they always left me scratching my head, the time horizon they use is very short. Like rubber planting, buying property for me is for the long haul with time horizon of 30 - 40 years or more. Analogous 1. Buy the property 2. Do interior finishing 3. Continue to care for the property These are the years where profits may be negative (if you cannot find a tenant) as the investors has to pour money into the investment. However, once the mortgage is paid off, profits will start to flow in and continue to flow as long as you own that property. That is not in addition to capital appreciation if you sell off the property. So, the total cost and total profit that can be taken from the property over a time horizon of 30 - 40 years is actually more important then short term rental margins gained while the mortgage is still in force.

Don't be bother to Buy Engine Oil and Oil filter on your own because as compare to our $78 deal, you will spend more doing all those on your own. Bringing in of own Lubricants, discourage most of the workshop to do all safety Points checks, so if you think you save, We don't think so and might be more hazardous without proper safety Checks. SO why bother doing all those shopping on your own ? Just leave it to Us. Another Hot Cake in the Making .... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHpYTisOC5k Ptt now in Singapore, Only available in DM. Fully synthetic 5w40 servicing package with FREE Steam sanitization at only $78 nett. We push our limits to bring you the Best at the most affordable price at such hard times. For more info on this Asian popular lubricant :- Www.pttplc.com/en/pages/home.aspx http://pttweb2.pttplc.com/weblub/en/products-01.aspx… LUBRICANTS STANDARDS ====================== API SN/ CF ACEA A3/ B3-08, A3/ B4-08, C3-08 MB p229.31 VW 502.00/ 505.00 BMW LL-04 Porsche (SAE 5W-40) EAST BRANCH : Call us at 63416164 (Synergy@KB. 25 Kaki Bukit Rd 4 #01-36 NORTH BRANCH : Call us at 63635112 184 Woodlands Industrial Park E5 #01-03/04

Those who buy on future money, There Will Be No Economic Recovery. Prepare Yourself Accordingly.

Especially given the recent COE cut? Lesser supply = high demand, even in recession? This Sunday Times columnist seems quite certain that it will drop.

SINGAPORE: The Community Development Councils are getting ready to cope with another economic downturn if it hits Singapore's shores. Ms Tin Pei Ling, MP for Marine Parade GRC, said: "One of the key issues is actually healthcare, especially for the senior citizens. Affordability is probably the top concern that they have reflected to me even at MPS, especially for those with chronic illnesses. The cost involved in having to visit the doctors on a quarterly visit can be a bit hefty and difficult for them to bear." http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/sin...1158175/1/.html interesting how after so many months of being a MP she still has yet to get a clue on how things work at our level from her statement i derive that many singaporeans have chronic illnesses!

Read the news splashed all over. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/03/15/...E72E1EK20110315 it seems like the earthquake's ripple effect is greatly felt, not just in asia alone.

SINGAPORE : Taxi drivers are riding on the economic upturn and the steady stream of passengers generated by the integrated resort (IR). Comfort Delgro, one of Singapore

Im still waiting for the positive spin from the local media. Or has it already been announced somehow? anyway, here's BBC's short report. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8438976.stm

Economic crisis folks!

The current economic crisis has severely affected the financial institutions and soon will reverberate across other industries. I was thinking not all business will lose money during bad times, there'll still be some that will survive or even profit. Some of them I think include: 1) Food & Beverage - low to mid-end ones. People still got to eat. 2) Child care 3) Pawn shops 4) .... Please add to the list. Just some lazy afternoon discussions.

Saw this new product from Pivot... Me still trying to understand from the website how the product works.. Wondering if anyone knows how it works...it claims can improve FC... Another snake oil product?

What do u guys think of getting a diesel powered mini van to travel to work from one part of the island to another.... vs getting a cheap car to drive around with... for those on a tight budget... for vans need to go commercial register with a company though

hi, any cheap acceptable perfomance 2-din HU below S$600 ? asked for my frez...thanks