Darren Rowse has written a long article describing methods available for bloggers to earn money online directly from their blogs. The essence of this guide to making money online, added with some entry of my own, is summarized below.
A number of different monetizing methods are available for bloggers to use. Selection of which methods to use depends on blogs' niche, number of visitors/subscribers, impressions and expertise, among other things.
1. Advertising
* Contextual Ads - This is a pay-per-click (PPC) or cost-per-click (CPC) ads system based on blog contents (e.g. Adsense, YPN). It is a good system for blogs with specific niche topic. General blogs or blogs without any niche will not work well because the systems do not have any context to 'lock' on to when selecting what ads to display (resulting in displays of some very general ads).
* Non-contextual CPC ads - Display ads without having to relate to context, such as Chitika’s eMiniMalls.
* Impression-based ads - Payment are made based on the number of people viewing the ads; only good for blogs with large traffic). Examples: Fastclick and Tribal Fusion.
* Text Ads - A text-link on your blog sold as ads by text-link ads programs (such as AdBrite, Text Link Ads, and Bidvertiser). These programs sell your text-links to their own pool of advertisers; the benefit is that you don’t have to go through the hassle of finding your own advertisers. You also have a degree of control over what ads to run and what prices to set.
* RSS Ads – Many ads programs display ads in RSS feeds. Some programs only offer this option to blogs with a certain number of traffic, impressions, or subscribers.
2. Sponsorship
Well established blogs with large traffic have better chances of directly finding their own advertisers or sponsors to display ads. Typically, blogs with specific niche have more chances of getting sponsors with the same niche (e.g. blogs about camera getting Nikon or Kodak as sponsors). Ads are sold in the form of banners, text-links, buttons, or newsletters. Another type of sponsorship is sponsored posts: bloggers are paid to write specific posts as required by sponsors, or posts reviewing sponsors’ own blogs (positively I suppose).
3. Affiliate Programs
Affiliate program providers (e.g. Amazon, eBay, Linkshare, Commision Junction, Clickbank) pay you commissions for sending readers to purchase their products/services. Participating in these programs may require you to put more effort (than needed to setup ads in your blog) to influence readers to buy the products or services.
4. Selling Blogs
Well established and profitable blogs may be (and have been) sold at lucrative prices. An example is Weblogs Inc. which were sold to AOL for $25 million. But, to reach that level of success is extremely difficult and rare. Some smaller blogs have been sold at auction sites like eBay and SitePoint.
5. Donations
Only a very small number of blogs have been successful at making profitable income through donations. Most of them have large number of loyal readers.
6. Merchandising
Successful bloggers have used their influential blogs as brand names to be sold as merchandises (T-shirts, mugs, stickers, etc).
7. Paid Subscriptions
Selling blog contents to subscribers is an option to bloggers but a difficult one to profit from because similar contents are available free online. Bloggers would need a certain degree of expertise or exclusivity to have readers wanting to pay for these contents.
8. Blog Networks
There are two ways to profit from these methods: (1) Start your own network and pay bloggers to write in your network while profiting from the seven methods above. (2) Join other networks as a paid writer.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Seattle breaks temp record
SEATTLE – Northwesterners more accustomed to rain and cooler climate sought refuge from a heat wave on Wednesday, as Seattle recorded the hottest temperature in its history and Portland edged closer to its own record-breaker.
The National Weather Service in Seattle recorded 102 degrees by midday at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, breaking a previous record of 100 degrees, set in downtown Seattle in 1941 and repeated at the airport in 1994.
Jay Albrecht, a meteorologist with the service, said it's the hottest it has been in Seattle since records dating to 1891.
Meanwhile, Portland ventured into its third day of triple-digit heat Wednesday, hitting 104 degrees by midday. Forecasters said there's a slight chance the city could reach or even surpass its all-time high of 107 degrees, hit four times, most recently in 1981.
Doug McDonnal, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle, said the stretch of hot weather has lasted longer than usual. Wednesday was the fifth consecutive day above 85 degrees for Seattle, he said.
Throughout the region, shade, icy treats, ice-cold water, air conditioning units and fans were in high demand.
The National Weather Service in Seattle recorded 102 degrees by midday at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, breaking a previous record of 100 degrees, set in downtown Seattle in 1941 and repeated at the airport in 1994.
Jay Albrecht, a meteorologist with the service, said it's the hottest it has been in Seattle since records dating to 1891.
Meanwhile, Portland ventured into its third day of triple-digit heat Wednesday, hitting 104 degrees by midday. Forecasters said there's a slight chance the city could reach or even surpass its all-time high of 107 degrees, hit four times, most recently in 1981.
Doug McDonnal, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle, said the stretch of hot weather has lasted longer than usual. Wednesday was the fifth consecutive day above 85 degrees for Seattle, he said.
Throughout the region, shade, icy treats, ice-cold water, air conditioning units and fans were in high demand.
Petronas reviews creative
Malaysia – Petronas has invited as much as ten creative agencies to pitch for its lubricants creative business.
Incumbent agency, Leo Burnett currently handles the company's domestic corporate, motor sports and lubricants business.
Leo Burnett was responsbile for "Tan Hong Ming" work for Petronas which won gold at Cannes last year.
The work was the brainchild of the late Yasmin Ahamd who passed away last week.
Incumbent agency, Leo Burnett currently handles the company's domestic corporate, motor sports and lubricants business.
Leo Burnett was responsbile for "Tan Hong Ming" work for Petronas which won gold at Cannes last year.
The work was the brainchild of the late Yasmin Ahamd who passed away last week.
Customers get the barista treatment
Hong Kong - To promote its latest Lemon Frappuccino, Starbucks has rolled out a creative campaign where customers can act as baristas and create their own beverages.
The coffeehouse has tapped in a number of creative ideas recently. After launching the “Bing Sutt" in Duddell street and inviting bloggers to taste its breakfast menu, Starbucks set up a blender bicycle in eight different stores.
The bicycle is connected to a blender where customers can ride the bike to create their own beverages.
The campaign, created in-house, is part of the latest push to promote its Lemon Passion tea and Lemon Zen Tea Frappuccino.
Untill 26 August customers can participate in this “Be a Master Blender" game in which they can turn their kinetic energy into a blended summer drinks.
The coffeehouse has tapped in a number of creative ideas recently. After launching the “Bing Sutt" in Duddell street and inviting bloggers to taste its breakfast menu, Starbucks set up a blender bicycle in eight different stores.
The bicycle is connected to a blender where customers can ride the bike to create their own beverages.
The campaign, created in-house, is part of the latest push to promote its Lemon Passion tea and Lemon Zen Tea Frappuccino.
Untill 26 August customers can participate in this “Be a Master Blender" game in which they can turn their kinetic energy into a blended summer drinks.
Carlsberg " നൈസ് ഓനെ "
Malaysia - Carlsberg has extended its "Nice One" brand campaign launched earlier in the year with new advertisements appearing in newspapers and magazines recently.
Carlsberg declined to reveal any details on how else it planned to leverage on the "Nice One" property in the near future but a spokesperson said the company was "committed" to the theme.
The source also revealed sales had been improving since the launch but the campaign was not considered to be only driving force behind this.
According to Carlsberg's general manager (Marketing), Ole S. Nielsen, with the use of the catchphrase "Nice One", Carlsberg hopes to stimulate a culture of positive enjoyment and generous compliments.
Euro RSCG is responsible for the creatives on this campaign while OMD handles the media buying duties for Carlsberg.
In other news, Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia has entered into a memorandum of understanding with its holding company Carlsberg Breweries A/S to acquire the entire equity interest in Carlsberg Singapore for RM370 million cash.
Carlsberg declined to reveal any details on how else it planned to leverage on the "Nice One" property in the near future but a spokesperson said the company was "committed" to the theme.
The source also revealed sales had been improving since the launch but the campaign was not considered to be only driving force behind this.
According to Carlsberg's general manager (Marketing), Ole S. Nielsen, with the use of the catchphrase "Nice One", Carlsberg hopes to stimulate a culture of positive enjoyment and generous compliments.
Euro RSCG is responsible for the creatives on this campaign while OMD handles the media buying duties for Carlsberg.
In other news, Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia has entered into a memorandum of understanding with its holding company Carlsberg Breweries A/S to acquire the entire equity interest in Carlsberg Singapore for RM370 million cash.
UK shop in China
Hong Kong - UK branding and digital agency Start Creative is accelerating its push into Greater China, after securing branding and digital strategy work for BP China.
Start will develop visual branding and a digital strategy for a new joint venture project BP is developing across the Mainland.
The BP win comes as the agency looks set to lock in a major project for a Beijing-based property development group.
Start Creative set up shop in Hong Kong in late March, announcing that the agency would be headed by Jonathan Cummings, previously a director of Start's UK business.
From September the agency's UK creative director Michael Dorrian will relocate to Hong Kong with a remit to build up a local creative team.
Start CEO Mike Curtis said he was optimistic that Start would find a successful niche in the local market.
"Both creatively and from a business opportunity we see a lot of opportunity in Hong Kong," Curtis said.
"We have a good understanding of brands, creativity and digital which are three key areas."
Start will develop visual branding and a digital strategy for a new joint venture project BP is developing across the Mainland.
The BP win comes as the agency looks set to lock in a major project for a Beijing-based property development group.
Start Creative set up shop in Hong Kong in late March, announcing that the agency would be headed by Jonathan Cummings, previously a director of Start's UK business.
From September the agency's UK creative director Michael Dorrian will relocate to Hong Kong with a remit to build up a local creative team.
Start CEO Mike Curtis said he was optimistic that Start would find a successful niche in the local market.
"Both creatively and from a business opportunity we see a lot of opportunity in Hong Kong," Curtis said.
"We have a good understanding of brands, creativity and digital which are three key areas."
June adspend shows signs of growth
The local ad market has shown signs of recovery with adspend for June up more than 1.5% year-on-year to $2.08 billion.
However, adspend between January and June dropped 0.76% to $11.7 billion this year compared with 2008.
According to Admango, the top three highest spending industries are banking ($1.1 billion), toiletries ($889 million) and pharmaceuticals ($888 million).
Despite being the top spending industry, year on year adspend for banking has slid 16%.
The toiletries and pharmaceuticals industries have increased adspend year on year by 28% and 11% respectively, which could be attributed to the prevalence of H1N1 flu, as suggested by an Admango spokesman.
The restaurants industry has jumped from 12th to 8th position this year having increased 30% from last year at $558 million.
Entertainment moved up three notches at 7th position, which spent $586 million, an increase of 12%.
While beauty and slimming and travel remained in top 10 highest spending industries at ninth and tenth position respectively, year on year ad spend has dropped 13% and 17% compared with 2008.
In the top 10 advertisers category, GSK ($136 million), McDonalds ($126 million) and Wrigley ($122 million) took the top three positions with year on year adspend for the half year increase by 31%, 36% and 64% respectively.
Although Japanese FMCG company Lion ($96 million) ranks as the top fourth advertiser this year, its adspend increased the most year on year at 71%.
Other advertisers than joined the top 10 chart this year include Promise Finance, Mannings and Hong Thai.
However, adspend between January and June dropped 0.76% to $11.7 billion this year compared with 2008.
According to Admango, the top three highest spending industries are banking ($1.1 billion), toiletries ($889 million) and pharmaceuticals ($888 million).
Despite being the top spending industry, year on year adspend for banking has slid 16%.
The toiletries and pharmaceuticals industries have increased adspend year on year by 28% and 11% respectively, which could be attributed to the prevalence of H1N1 flu, as suggested by an Admango spokesman.
The restaurants industry has jumped from 12th to 8th position this year having increased 30% from last year at $558 million.
Entertainment moved up three notches at 7th position, which spent $586 million, an increase of 12%.
While beauty and slimming and travel remained in top 10 highest spending industries at ninth and tenth position respectively, year on year ad spend has dropped 13% and 17% compared with 2008.
In the top 10 advertisers category, GSK ($136 million), McDonalds ($126 million) and Wrigley ($122 million) took the top three positions with year on year adspend for the half year increase by 31%, 36% and 64% respectively.
Although Japanese FMCG company Lion ($96 million) ranks as the top fourth advertiser this year, its adspend increased the most year on year at 71%.
Other advertisers than joined the top 10 chart this year include Promise Finance, Mannings and Hong Thai.
Yahoo and Microsoft unite against Google
Global - Yahoo and Microsoft have struck an agreement on a long-waited web deal that will see the two companies unite against market leader Google.
Under the 10-year exclusively agreement, Yahoo will use Microsoft's new search portal Bing to power its own sites. Yahoo will act as the exclusive global sales force for the companies' premium search advertisers.
Full implementation of the deal is expected to occur within 24 months following regulatory approval. Yahoo estimates that this agreement will provide annual operating income of approximately US$500 million and capital expenditure savings of approximately US$200 million.
Yahoo also estimates that this agreement will provide a benefit to annual operating cash flow of approximately $275 million.
“This agreement comes with boatloads of value for Yahoo!, our users, and the industry," Yahoo chief executive officer Carol Bartz (pictured), said in a statement.
"And I believe it establishes the foundation for a new era of internet innovation and development.”
Under the 10-year exclusively agreement, Yahoo will use Microsoft's new search portal Bing to power its own sites. Yahoo will act as the exclusive global sales force for the companies' premium search advertisers.
Full implementation of the deal is expected to occur within 24 months following regulatory approval. Yahoo estimates that this agreement will provide annual operating income of approximately US$500 million and capital expenditure savings of approximately US$200 million.
Yahoo also estimates that this agreement will provide a benefit to annual operating cash flow of approximately $275 million.
“This agreement comes with boatloads of value for Yahoo!, our users, and the industry," Yahoo chief executive officer Carol Bartz (pictured), said in a statement.
"And I believe it establishes the foundation for a new era of internet innovation and development.”
Make Money Online With Affiliate Marketing
Despite many industries laying off thousands of workers or even outright shutting their doors in today’s tough economic climate, there is one industry that is thriving and helping thousands of regular people make money. Some hard workers are even replacing the income they earned at their regular jobs, allowing them to walk away from the 9-5 work day for good and work from home on a full-time basis.
What is this industry? Affiliate marketing.
Affiliate marketing programs are simple by nature: They work by rewarding
marketers for promoting products online. The affiliates are then compensated on a commission basis. Basically, affiliates get paid each time they refer new customers to the website of the company they are promoting.
Becoming an affiliate is one of the most lucrative online money-making opportunities out there, and the breadth of products that can be promoted as an affiliate is staggering. Affiliate marketing creates a cost-effective option for big and small companies alike to reach out and expose their products to a much larger audience of potential buyers. Instead of being limited to just one large webiste, companies of any size can now offer an affiliate program and have their products promoted on hundreds or even thousands of individual sites, at no upfront cost to them.
Likewise, the affiliate marketing industry also provides a virtually unlimited source for income for those who aggressively promote offers. Affiliates have been continually reaping the rewards of larger profits as the affiliate marketing industry continues to grow in popularity. Affiliates can easily earn anywhere from 30-90% of the profits from each sale that comes from customers they refer, and with some affiliate programs offering recurring monthly payouts for their products, the earning potential becomes even higher.
CPA marketing, in which affiliates can earn money just for referring traffic and having visitors do as little as fill out a short form, without even making a purchase, is the latest hot trend in affiliate marketing, and promises to keep the industry highly profitable and exciting for many years to come.
Unlike other businesses, there are no specific criteria for becoming an affiliate, other than a commitment to work hard and some knowledge of Internet marketing and how to go about researching and promoting the best offers for maximum profitability.
What is this industry? Affiliate marketing.
Affiliate marketing programs are simple by nature: They work by rewarding
marketers for promoting products online. The affiliates are then compensated on a commission basis. Basically, affiliates get paid each time they refer new customers to the website of the company they are promoting.
Becoming an affiliate is one of the most lucrative online money-making opportunities out there, and the breadth of products that can be promoted as an affiliate is staggering. Affiliate marketing creates a cost-effective option for big and small companies alike to reach out and expose their products to a much larger audience of potential buyers. Instead of being limited to just one large webiste, companies of any size can now offer an affiliate program and have their products promoted on hundreds or even thousands of individual sites, at no upfront cost to them.
Likewise, the affiliate marketing industry also provides a virtually unlimited source for income for those who aggressively promote offers. Affiliates have been continually reaping the rewards of larger profits as the affiliate marketing industry continues to grow in popularity. Affiliates can easily earn anywhere from 30-90% of the profits from each sale that comes from customers they refer, and with some affiliate programs offering recurring monthly payouts for their products, the earning potential becomes even higher.
CPA marketing, in which affiliates can earn money just for referring traffic and having visitors do as little as fill out a short form, without even making a purchase, is the latest hot trend in affiliate marketing, and promises to keep the industry highly profitable and exciting for many years to come.
Unlike other businesses, there are no specific criteria for becoming an affiliate, other than a commitment to work hard and some knowledge of Internet marketing and how to go about researching and promoting the best offers for maximum profitability.
Markets could be in for a reality check
July has been a month of unusually good news. It began with the astounding jump in GDP growth figures for the second quarter, which saw economists quickly revise full-year growth estimates upwards. Then, last week, property data confirmed that Q2 2009 was one of the best performing on record, with the number of new home sales exceeding those for the whole of 2008. The Housing and Development Board’s resale price index also reached an all-time high in the quarter. Industrial production was down in June, but the NODX rose by 7.6 per cent in quarterly terms. And the Singapore stock exchange has also rebounded nicely.
Tsui anointed Neo@Ogilvy regional head
Regional - Neo@Ogilvy has promoted regional managing director Susana Tsui to the position of regional president.
According to Neo@Ogilvy, it is a move designed to streamline and strengthen the Asia Pacific operation and Tsui will hand over daily operational responsibilities to her in-market senior management team, continuing her focus on further strengthening Neo's capabilities in the digital media.
Added to her portfolio will be the development of new business models, launching new service offerings and the identification of acquisition and merger opportunities.
"Under Susana's leadership, we've seen Neo@Ogilvy continue to grow and strengthen in every aspect of the business," Kent Wertime, president OgilvyOne Asia Pacific, said.
Tsui said in a statement: "Neo is the most exhilarating job I have ever had. In my new role, the challenge will be to continue developing deep client relationships, injecting new digital talent into the network and ensuring we retain our leadership position in the APAC digital media arena."
According to Neo@Ogilvy, it is a move designed to streamline and strengthen the Asia Pacific operation and Tsui will hand over daily operational responsibilities to her in-market senior management team, continuing her focus on further strengthening Neo's capabilities in the digital media.
Added to her portfolio will be the development of new business models, launching new service offerings and the identification of acquisition and merger opportunities.
"Under Susana's leadership, we've seen Neo@Ogilvy continue to grow and strengthen in every aspect of the business," Kent Wertime, president OgilvyOne Asia Pacific, said.
Tsui said in a statement: "Neo is the most exhilarating job I have ever had. In my new role, the challenge will be to continue developing deep client relationships, injecting new digital talent into the network and ensuring we retain our leadership position in the APAC digital media arena."
Can Companies take Customer Service too far?
Customer service is a great, right? Don’t you just love the warranties, guarantees, after-sales service and the zealous employees? How about the free stuff and frantic apologies when something goes wrong? Today, we are thoroughly pampered by companies because we are operating in what marketers call the ‘Customer Service Era.’
The evolution of marketing has evolved from being ‘production’ centric in the 1920’s to being customer centric in present times. Thus, the stage we are currently operating in has been ‘creatively’ labeled as the customer service era. We will soon post the theory of marketing and the eras in between the aforementioned, only for those interested of course!
So my question is that can companies work against their interests by overdoing the quest for ‘customer satisfaction/ experience.’ Allow me to bestow upon you a very personalized example. I am the type of customer who likes to shop without being watched and that’s why I don’t shop at Macy’s. By the time I enter the store and make my way to the escalator, at least four women would have handed me perfumed strips that I really did not want or bombarded me with details of special offers in the cosmetics section. Then, while browsing the clothes, I am approached by an employee who is oh so pleasant and curious about what I am looking for today. I take 10 steps to my right and viola there is someone else who wants to help me. Before I know it, I’m dodging super eager employees at a departmental store and then decide to shop some where I don’t feel supervised and smothered. So much for customer loyalty.
We customers can easily differentiate between employees who genuinely want to help us verses employees who have been trained to greet or wish us a nice day when we leave the store. In my opinion, the art of customer service lies in its implementation and when done genuinely and correctly it will reflect in the behavior of the customers.
The evolution of marketing has evolved from being ‘production’ centric in the 1920’s to being customer centric in present times. Thus, the stage we are currently operating in has been ‘creatively’ labeled as the customer service era. We will soon post the theory of marketing and the eras in between the aforementioned, only for those interested of course!
So my question is that can companies work against their interests by overdoing the quest for ‘customer satisfaction/ experience.’ Allow me to bestow upon you a very personalized example. I am the type of customer who likes to shop without being watched and that’s why I don’t shop at Macy’s. By the time I enter the store and make my way to the escalator, at least four women would have handed me perfumed strips that I really did not want or bombarded me with details of special offers in the cosmetics section. Then, while browsing the clothes, I am approached by an employee who is oh so pleasant and curious about what I am looking for today. I take 10 steps to my right and viola there is someone else who wants to help me. Before I know it, I’m dodging super eager employees at a departmental store and then decide to shop some where I don’t feel supervised and smothered. So much for customer loyalty.
We customers can easily differentiate between employees who genuinely want to help us verses employees who have been trained to greet or wish us a nice day when we leave the store. In my opinion, the art of customer service lies in its implementation and when done genuinely and correctly it will reflect in the behavior of the customers.
NHS Recommends Pupils have an 'orgasm a day'
The UK Nationa Health Service is telling pupils they have a 'right' to an enjoyable sex life in a leaflet being sent to schools. It encourages them to consider an 'orgasm a day' as a way reduce the risk of heart attacks and stroke. And if they can't get sex, the leaflet says children should consider masturbation!
Rexona asks 'Are you sweating much?'
Singapore - Rexona has launched an islandwide ‘Dryness Challenge', a marketing push where its urging individuals to check the presence of sweat in their underarms after a typical humid day in Singapore.
As part of the campaign a million households will receive a Rexona Dryness Challenge Test Kit as direct mail, which comprises a pair of sweat strips together with information on sweat and body odour. The campaign is also supported by a TVC starring Asian pop star elva Hsiao.
"Rexona is taking the lead to educate consumers on the use of anti-perspirants as part of their daily personal care regime, similar to brushing teeth and showering," Tina Koh, brand manager of home personal care at Unilever Singapore, said in a statement.
As part of the campaign a million households will receive a Rexona Dryness Challenge Test Kit as direct mail, which comprises a pair of sweat strips together with information on sweat and body odour. The campaign is also supported by a TVC starring Asian pop star elva Hsiao.
"Rexona is taking the lead to educate consumers on the use of anti-perspirants as part of their daily personal care regime, similar to brushing teeth and showering," Tina Koh, brand manager of home personal care at Unilever Singapore, said in a statement.
Jackson autopsy released next week: coroner
The release of Michael Jackson's autopsy results has been delayed until next week, Los Angeles County Coroner's assistant chief Ed Winter confirmed.
The Los Angeles coroner's office had earlier said Jackson's eagerly anticipated autopsy report would be revealed by Friday as speculation mounted about the possible role of prescription drugs in the pop star's death.
However Winter said Wednesday the results would now be released next week when toxicology reports are complete.
The delay came as Winter confirmed the coroner's office had issued a fresh subpoena seeking medical records from the office of a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon, Lawrence Koplin.
"I served a subpoena about noon for medical records for Michael Jackson and the doctor is cooperating," Winter said.
On Tuesday, federal agents and police raided the Las Vegas home and office of Jackson's personal doctor, Conrad Murray, who has become the central figure into the superstar's sudden death last month.
Search warrants filed in the investigation have indicated police are studying possible manslaughter charges against Murray, who is reported to have administered Jackson, 50, with a potent anesthetic before his death.
Jackson died on June 25 at his rented home in Holmby Hills as he prepared to relaunch his career with a gruelling series of comeback concerts in London.
The Los Angeles coroner's office had earlier said Jackson's eagerly anticipated autopsy report would be revealed by Friday as speculation mounted about the possible role of prescription drugs in the pop star's death.
However Winter said Wednesday the results would now be released next week when toxicology reports are complete.
The delay came as Winter confirmed the coroner's office had issued a fresh subpoena seeking medical records from the office of a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon, Lawrence Koplin.
"I served a subpoena about noon for medical records for Michael Jackson and the doctor is cooperating," Winter said.
On Tuesday, federal agents and police raided the Las Vegas home and office of Jackson's personal doctor, Conrad Murray, who has become the central figure into the superstar's sudden death last month.
Search warrants filed in the investigation have indicated police are studying possible manslaughter charges against Murray, who is reported to have administered Jackson, 50, with a potent anesthetic before his death.
Jackson died on June 25 at his rented home in Holmby Hills as he prepared to relaunch his career with a gruelling series of comeback concerts in London.
Temasek portfolio shed 27 bln US dlrs in year: executive
Temasek Holdings' portfolio lost more than 40 billion Singapore dollars (27.72 billion US) in value as of end-March from a year before, the state investment firm's chief executive said Wednesday.
Ho Ching, the wife of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said the company anticipated the drop in a review last year.
"Indeed, it had turned out to be so and more," Ho told a forum organised by the Institute of Policy Studies think-tank.
Temasek's investments were hammered by the financial and economic crisis that led global markets to plummet in the second half of last year.
Singapore said earlier this year that Temasek's overall portfolio value had fallen by 58 billion dollars to 127 billion dollars from end-March to November of 2008.
"The Temasek journey will not always be smooth. As we sail in choppy waters, we may need to take shelter if we see dark clouds coming," Ho said.
She added that the search for her successor was going ahead after the "unfortunate" scrapping of a plan to appoint US businessman Charles "Chip" Goodyear.
The former head of resources giant BHP Billiton would have been the first foreigner to run the once-secretive sovereign wealth fund and his appointment just a few months ago was hailed as part of an effort to transform Temasek into a global enterprise.
"It is unfortunate that both the board and Chip recently came to the amicable and mutual conclusion that it was best not to proceed with the CEO transition," Ho told the forum.
"This does not mean however that we should stop this discipline of succession review. We will continue to do so regardless of who takes the helm as CEO at Temasek."
The investment firm said its decision to rescind Goodyear's appointment was due to differences over strategy.
When asked to elaborate on Wednesday, Ho said: "We continue to hold Chip in very high regard for his professionalism and his integrity so all those little funny rumours you hear of his management style, and all that, you can disregard."
The firm has said it remains a long-term investor and remains focussed on Asian investments due to the region's strong growth prospects.
Ho, 56, said that Temasek will invest 70 percent of its resources in Asia, including Singapore, with 20 percent earmarked for investments in industrialised countries.
The rest will be used for markets in Latin America and Africa, she added.
"We remain very comfortable with Asia," said Ho, who will stay on as CEO of Temasek, which manages a global portfolio invested in a wide range of sectors from airlines to energy, resources and consumer products.
"Growth will not be a straight line trajectory. We can expect bumps along the way, but the longer term potential remains strong. As Asia continues on its development curve, it will also de-risk."
Ho Ching, the wife of Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said the company anticipated the drop in a review last year.
"Indeed, it had turned out to be so and more," Ho told a forum organised by the Institute of Policy Studies think-tank.
Temasek's investments were hammered by the financial and economic crisis that led global markets to plummet in the second half of last year.
Singapore said earlier this year that Temasek's overall portfolio value had fallen by 58 billion dollars to 127 billion dollars from end-March to November of 2008.
"The Temasek journey will not always be smooth. As we sail in choppy waters, we may need to take shelter if we see dark clouds coming," Ho said.
She added that the search for her successor was going ahead after the "unfortunate" scrapping of a plan to appoint US businessman Charles "Chip" Goodyear.
The former head of resources giant BHP Billiton would have been the first foreigner to run the once-secretive sovereign wealth fund and his appointment just a few months ago was hailed as part of an effort to transform Temasek into a global enterprise.
"It is unfortunate that both the board and Chip recently came to the amicable and mutual conclusion that it was best not to proceed with the CEO transition," Ho told the forum.
"This does not mean however that we should stop this discipline of succession review. We will continue to do so regardless of who takes the helm as CEO at Temasek."
The investment firm said its decision to rescind Goodyear's appointment was due to differences over strategy.
When asked to elaborate on Wednesday, Ho said: "We continue to hold Chip in very high regard for his professionalism and his integrity so all those little funny rumours you hear of his management style, and all that, you can disregard."
The firm has said it remains a long-term investor and remains focussed on Asian investments due to the region's strong growth prospects.
Ho, 56, said that Temasek will invest 70 percent of its resources in Asia, including Singapore, with 20 percent earmarked for investments in industrialised countries.
The rest will be used for markets in Latin America and Africa, she added.
"We remain very comfortable with Asia," said Ho, who will stay on as CEO of Temasek, which manages a global portfolio invested in a wide range of sectors from airlines to energy, resources and consumer products.
"Growth will not be a straight line trajectory. We can expect bumps along the way, but the longer term potential remains strong. As Asia continues on its development curve, it will also de-risk."
China: Trade Tensions Continue to Rise
I am working on a fairly long entry that I will post this weekend about why a trade rebalancing and a consumption/savings rebalancing will take place in both China and the US whether or not we want it. This week has been crazy, among other reasons because a festival in Taiwan has invited one of our indie bands and one of our experimental bands (Carsick Cars and White) to perform this weekend at the Music Terminals Festival in Tao Yuan City. Getting visas for these kids has been brutally difficult and they actually had to cancel one of their club gigs, on Thursday, because of problems with getting things done on time. Still, if any of my readers are going to be in Taiwan this weekend, I strongly recommend that you check out the festival, which besides the two Beijing representatives features a lot of great bands from around the world (or if you prefer club gigs, check them out Friday night at a pre-festival show at The Underworld, in Taipei).
So much for the good news. The bad news is described in an alarming article in today’s Wall Street Journal which shows that trade tensions are continuing to rise.
European Union trade officials approved pre-emptive penalties on imports of steel pipe from China, a precedent-setting move that suggests the trading bloc is growing more protectionist in the face of the economic downturn.
Tuesday’s vote by trade officials from the EU’s 27 member states is significant, say trade experts, because they accepted an argument from steel producers – including the world’s largest by volume, ArcelorMittal – that punitive tariffs are needed to protect them from the threat of underpriced imports from China. Previously, complainants have had to prove the imports had already hurt their businesses. Trade lawyers say they expect a host of industries to ask the EU for protective tariffs in August.
I have been hearing rumblings for a while about tougher stances being taken in Europe and the US in response to the perception that China is exacerbating the global contraction in demand by increasing subsidized resources available to manufacturers, most importantly by channeling a huge increase in lending at interest rates subsidized by Chinese household consumers and socializing the risk. These new protectionist moves seems to be an expression of just this. The article goes on to say:
Basing a claim on the threat of injury “is a perfectly legal strategy, but it has simply not, until now, been used as a matter of EU policy,” says Nikolay Mizulin, a Brussels-based trade lawyer with Hogan & Hartson LLP. This case “is a sign of growing protectionism and could open the floodgates to many more industries who believe they deserve protection.”
Mr. Mizulin and other trade lawyers say they expect many industries to seek protective tariffs next month.
As I have been arguing for over a year, as unemployment around the world rises and as the necessary contraction in US net demand picks up pace, there was inevitably going to be a conflict with China as Chinese policymakers responded to the collapse in trade in the only way they could, by substantially stepping up investment. The result is that China’s trade surplus has contracted very slowly – much more slowly than the contraction in the US trade deficit – and the result was a huge squeeze on the tradable goods sectors around the world.
The fact that policymakers in Europe, China, Japan and the US seem to have no clue as to how difficult the transition for each of the other countries is likely to be, and so are doing not nearly enough to coordinate their response (in fact lecturing and finger waggling seem to the favorite forms of policy coordination), makes trade conflict almost a dead certainty. I don’t think there are necessarily any bad guys here – each country is desperately doing what it can to get itself out of this mess – but there is a lot of failed opportunity and I am pretty sure that the trade environment will continue to decline.
The problem is illustrated in two interesting recent pieces. My friend Dan Rosen, of the Rhodium Group, has a very illuminating July 17 report that shows the composition of Chinese growth in the past decade. He shows that for the past five years net exports accounted for about 10% to 15% of Chinese GDP growth, before collapsing n to minus 41% in 2009 YTD.
Until recently investment’s share of GDP growth peaked at around 65% in 2003 – a very high share by any standard – and going back the full thirty years of China’s reform period achieved an historical high astonishing of 81% in 1985. From 2005 to 2008 the investment share of GDP growth averaged around 40% – still high – and then in the first half of this year accounted for a mind-boggling 88% of this years GDP growth.
This year’s growth, in other words, is almost wholly a function of the massive increase in investment, and this increase in investment started out largely in the form of reopening production facilities and producing more “stuff”, without any significant rise in consumption. As we know, when production increases faster than consumption, either the trade surplus or inventories must rise.
On that note Xinhua published the following article on Monday:
The per capita consumption spending volume of Chinese urban residents stood at 5,979 yuan (875 U.S. dollars) in the first half of this year, up 8.9 percent year on year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced Monday. Deducting price factors, the growth reached 10.3 percent.
The per capita disposable income of Chinese city dwellers rose 9.8 percent year on year to 8,856 yuan in the first six months. Deducting price factors, the increase reached 11.2 percent, said the NBS.
Consumption has been rising at around 9% a year for the past several years. Notice that if GDP growth slows to under 9%, the savings rate in China will decline.
The second interesting piece is put out by the Economic Policy Institute, a group I believe not noted for its commitment to free trade. It shows China’s share of the US trade deficit excluding oil. According to their numbers:
China: Trade Tensions Continue to Rise
Perhaps as a consequence of a fiscal stimulus aimed at boosting investment and production, China’s share of the US trade deficit has grown significantly. Since the US trade deficit is shrinking quickly, this means that other exporters are getting killed. As I have argued for a while, this is not sustainable and will almost certainly cause trade tensions to erupt.
Does this mean China is behaving in a predatory way? I don’t thinks so. I have warned for a long time that it would be very difficult for China to make the necessary transition to a consumption-led economy quickly enough to accommodate the global adjustment taking place. Unless it is willing to see its economy collapse, there is simply no way China can reduce its negative net demand quickly enough to match the contraction in US demand and so avoid squeezing and so avoid squeezing the hell out of the global tradable goods sectors. That is why policy coordination is so important, especially between China and the USD, and of course that is why I continue to be a pessimist. I do not think this policy coordination is taking place. I will write about this more later this week.
To continue the discussion of last week, we are getting more conflicting signals about policy confidence. On the one hand Bank of China seems to love this party. According to an article in today’s Bloomberg:
Bank of China Ltd., which doled out the most loans among Chinese banks in the first half, plans to keep expanding credit unless the government clamps down on the nation’s record lending boom.
The nation’s third-largest bank will maintain its original target of generating about 10 percent of China’s new loans in 2009, Beijing-based spokesman Wang Zhaowen said by telephone yesterday. Bank of China may “fine tune” its strategy in line with any government policy changes, he said.
…Bank of China will continue to lend to 10 key industries with government policy support, including steel, shipbuilding and automobile, Wang said. About 30 percent of its loans went to those industries in the first half.
On the other hand two of the other members of the Big Four seem a lot more cautious. Today’s South China Morning Post has this article:
Mainland’s two biggest state-owned commercial banks have put a lid on their lending targets for the year, according to domestic media reports, in a move that will significantly slow overall credit growth in the second half. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is aiming to issue full-year new loans of 1 trillion yuan (HK$1.3 trillion), while China Construction Bank (CCB) has set a goal of 900 billion yuan, Caijing magazine reported.
The two banks, mainland’s largest by market value, granted new loans of 825.5 billion yuan and 709 billion yuan, respectively, in the first half. If they stick to their reported targets, this would imply that ICBC would have already issued 83 per cent of its full-year lending total, while CCB would have already issued 79 per cent.
It is surprising to me that these members of the Big Four are responding so differently, at least in public. I wonder if the management of the different banks belong to different factions and so interpret the fiscal stimulus package differently. Perhaps my friend Victor Shih, who understand these things better than I do and who sometimes reads my blog might comment?
Finally the Financial Times on Monday continued the thread discussed in my Saturday post with an article called “China warns banks over asset bubbles.”
Chinese regulators on Monday ordered banks to ensure unprecedented volumes of new loans are channelled into the real economy and not diverted into equity or real estate markets where officials say fresh asset bubbles are forming. The new policy requires banks to monitor how their loans are spent and comes amid warnings that banks ignored basic lending standards in the first half of this year as they rushed to extend Rmb7,370bn in new loans, more than twice the amount lent in the same period a year earlier.
…Beijing’s concerns are echoed in other countries across the region, most notably South Korea, where the government says it is taking steps to cool a real estate bubble, and Vietnam, where the government has ordered state banks to cap new lending to head off inflation. regulators are now concerned that too much money is being lent by the state-controlled banks and the country’s tentative economic rebound could come at the cost of a stable financial system.
In statements published last week, Wu Xiaoling, who recently retired as deputy governor of the central bank, warned new lending this year would probably reach as high as Rmb12,000bn, a staggering increase of 40 per cent of the entire stock of outstanding loans in just one year.
…Ms Wu hinted Beijing may soon raise the amount of money banks must hold on deposit with the central bank, marking a change of policy from last year when it aggressively slashed the reserve requirement ratio and interest rates.
The central bank has also ordered 10 banks, including Bank of China, to buy Rmb100bn worth of central bank notes with a maturity of one year and a return of just 1.5 per cent, according to Chinese media reports. This move is interpreted as a warning to banks that have been the most active lenders that they should now start to rein in their excessive behaviour.
So much for the good news. The bad news is described in an alarming article in today’s Wall Street Journal which shows that trade tensions are continuing to rise.
European Union trade officials approved pre-emptive penalties on imports of steel pipe from China, a precedent-setting move that suggests the trading bloc is growing more protectionist in the face of the economic downturn.
Tuesday’s vote by trade officials from the EU’s 27 member states is significant, say trade experts, because they accepted an argument from steel producers – including the world’s largest by volume, ArcelorMittal – that punitive tariffs are needed to protect them from the threat of underpriced imports from China. Previously, complainants have had to prove the imports had already hurt their businesses. Trade lawyers say they expect a host of industries to ask the EU for protective tariffs in August.
I have been hearing rumblings for a while about tougher stances being taken in Europe and the US in response to the perception that China is exacerbating the global contraction in demand by increasing subsidized resources available to manufacturers, most importantly by channeling a huge increase in lending at interest rates subsidized by Chinese household consumers and socializing the risk. These new protectionist moves seems to be an expression of just this. The article goes on to say:
Basing a claim on the threat of injury “is a perfectly legal strategy, but it has simply not, until now, been used as a matter of EU policy,” says Nikolay Mizulin, a Brussels-based trade lawyer with Hogan & Hartson LLP. This case “is a sign of growing protectionism and could open the floodgates to many more industries who believe they deserve protection.”
Mr. Mizulin and other trade lawyers say they expect many industries to seek protective tariffs next month.
As I have been arguing for over a year, as unemployment around the world rises and as the necessary contraction in US net demand picks up pace, there was inevitably going to be a conflict with China as Chinese policymakers responded to the collapse in trade in the only way they could, by substantially stepping up investment. The result is that China’s trade surplus has contracted very slowly – much more slowly than the contraction in the US trade deficit – and the result was a huge squeeze on the tradable goods sectors around the world.
The fact that policymakers in Europe, China, Japan and the US seem to have no clue as to how difficult the transition for each of the other countries is likely to be, and so are doing not nearly enough to coordinate their response (in fact lecturing and finger waggling seem to the favorite forms of policy coordination), makes trade conflict almost a dead certainty. I don’t think there are necessarily any bad guys here – each country is desperately doing what it can to get itself out of this mess – but there is a lot of failed opportunity and I am pretty sure that the trade environment will continue to decline.
The problem is illustrated in two interesting recent pieces. My friend Dan Rosen, of the Rhodium Group, has a very illuminating July 17 report that shows the composition of Chinese growth in the past decade. He shows that for the past five years net exports accounted for about 10% to 15% of Chinese GDP growth, before collapsing n to minus 41% in 2009 YTD.
Until recently investment’s share of GDP growth peaked at around 65% in 2003 – a very high share by any standard – and going back the full thirty years of China’s reform period achieved an historical high astonishing of 81% in 1985. From 2005 to 2008 the investment share of GDP growth averaged around 40% – still high – and then in the first half of this year accounted for a mind-boggling 88% of this years GDP growth.
This year’s growth, in other words, is almost wholly a function of the massive increase in investment, and this increase in investment started out largely in the form of reopening production facilities and producing more “stuff”, without any significant rise in consumption. As we know, when production increases faster than consumption, either the trade surplus or inventories must rise.
On that note Xinhua published the following article on Monday:
The per capita consumption spending volume of Chinese urban residents stood at 5,979 yuan (875 U.S. dollars) in the first half of this year, up 8.9 percent year on year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) announced Monday. Deducting price factors, the growth reached 10.3 percent.
The per capita disposable income of Chinese city dwellers rose 9.8 percent year on year to 8,856 yuan in the first six months. Deducting price factors, the increase reached 11.2 percent, said the NBS.
Consumption has been rising at around 9% a year for the past several years. Notice that if GDP growth slows to under 9%, the savings rate in China will decline.
The second interesting piece is put out by the Economic Policy Institute, a group I believe not noted for its commitment to free trade. It shows China’s share of the US trade deficit excluding oil. According to their numbers:
China: Trade Tensions Continue to Rise
Perhaps as a consequence of a fiscal stimulus aimed at boosting investment and production, China’s share of the US trade deficit has grown significantly. Since the US trade deficit is shrinking quickly, this means that other exporters are getting killed. As I have argued for a while, this is not sustainable and will almost certainly cause trade tensions to erupt.
Does this mean China is behaving in a predatory way? I don’t thinks so. I have warned for a long time that it would be very difficult for China to make the necessary transition to a consumption-led economy quickly enough to accommodate the global adjustment taking place. Unless it is willing to see its economy collapse, there is simply no way China can reduce its negative net demand quickly enough to match the contraction in US demand and so avoid squeezing and so avoid squeezing the hell out of the global tradable goods sectors. That is why policy coordination is so important, especially between China and the USD, and of course that is why I continue to be a pessimist. I do not think this policy coordination is taking place. I will write about this more later this week.
To continue the discussion of last week, we are getting more conflicting signals about policy confidence. On the one hand Bank of China seems to love this party. According to an article in today’s Bloomberg:
Bank of China Ltd., which doled out the most loans among Chinese banks in the first half, plans to keep expanding credit unless the government clamps down on the nation’s record lending boom.
The nation’s third-largest bank will maintain its original target of generating about 10 percent of China’s new loans in 2009, Beijing-based spokesman Wang Zhaowen said by telephone yesterday. Bank of China may “fine tune” its strategy in line with any government policy changes, he said.
…Bank of China will continue to lend to 10 key industries with government policy support, including steel, shipbuilding and automobile, Wang said. About 30 percent of its loans went to those industries in the first half.
On the other hand two of the other members of the Big Four seem a lot more cautious. Today’s South China Morning Post has this article:
Mainland’s two biggest state-owned commercial banks have put a lid on their lending targets for the year, according to domestic media reports, in a move that will significantly slow overall credit growth in the second half. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is aiming to issue full-year new loans of 1 trillion yuan (HK$1.3 trillion), while China Construction Bank (CCB) has set a goal of 900 billion yuan, Caijing magazine reported.
The two banks, mainland’s largest by market value, granted new loans of 825.5 billion yuan and 709 billion yuan, respectively, in the first half. If they stick to their reported targets, this would imply that ICBC would have already issued 83 per cent of its full-year lending total, while CCB would have already issued 79 per cent.
It is surprising to me that these members of the Big Four are responding so differently, at least in public. I wonder if the management of the different banks belong to different factions and so interpret the fiscal stimulus package differently. Perhaps my friend Victor Shih, who understand these things better than I do and who sometimes reads my blog might comment?
Finally the Financial Times on Monday continued the thread discussed in my Saturday post with an article called “China warns banks over asset bubbles.”
Chinese regulators on Monday ordered banks to ensure unprecedented volumes of new loans are channelled into the real economy and not diverted into equity or real estate markets where officials say fresh asset bubbles are forming. The new policy requires banks to monitor how their loans are spent and comes amid warnings that banks ignored basic lending standards in the first half of this year as they rushed to extend Rmb7,370bn in new loans, more than twice the amount lent in the same period a year earlier.
…Beijing’s concerns are echoed in other countries across the region, most notably South Korea, where the government says it is taking steps to cool a real estate bubble, and Vietnam, where the government has ordered state banks to cap new lending to head off inflation. regulators are now concerned that too much money is being lent by the state-controlled banks and the country’s tentative economic rebound could come at the cost of a stable financial system.
In statements published last week, Wu Xiaoling, who recently retired as deputy governor of the central bank, warned new lending this year would probably reach as high as Rmb12,000bn, a staggering increase of 40 per cent of the entire stock of outstanding loans in just one year.
…Ms Wu hinted Beijing may soon raise the amount of money banks must hold on deposit with the central bank, marking a change of policy from last year when it aggressively slashed the reserve requirement ratio and interest rates.
The central bank has also ordered 10 banks, including Bank of China, to buy Rmb100bn worth of central bank notes with a maturity of one year and a return of just 1.5 per cent, according to Chinese media reports. This move is interpreted as a warning to banks that have been the most active lenders that they should now start to rein in their excessive behaviour.
Alivenotdead taps network for Linkin Park
Hong Kong – Online artist community Alivenotdead has launched a social media project in partnership with The Venetian Macau Resort to find a local band to support touring American rock group Linkin Park.
Alivenotdead.com has invited more than 60 local and Chinese bands to participate in the contest where the public will pick the best five bands to perform with the American rock band.
Alivenetdead.com, which boasts more 1,400 artists and some 470,000 registered users from around the world, has launched a landing page via its site where information about the contest can be found and tickets to the concert can be purchased.
One winning band will be selected by Linkin Park to play a half hour opening set at concert. Currently, more than 10 bands are in the running and the deadline for registration is 31 July.
Raffi Kamalian, chief operating officer at Alivenotdead, said the whole idea behind the collaboration is to enhance and expose local bands.
Alivenotdead.com has invited more than 60 local and Chinese bands to participate in the contest where the public will pick the best five bands to perform with the American rock band.
Alivenetdead.com, which boasts more 1,400 artists and some 470,000 registered users from around the world, has launched a landing page via its site where information about the contest can be found and tickets to the concert can be purchased.
One winning band will be selected by Linkin Park to play a half hour opening set at concert. Currently, more than 10 bands are in the running and the deadline for registration is 31 July.
Raffi Kamalian, chief operating officer at Alivenotdead, said the whole idea behind the collaboration is to enhance and expose local bands.
Return of the Blobby
Malaysia - Nippon Paint has brought back its Blobby mascot to launch its latest innovative Nippon Weatherbond Solareflect paint product.
The campaign includes an ATL push across TV, radio, print while BTL activities include fan-shaped leaflets and button badges with the message ‘Ask me about Nippon Weatherbond Solareflect'.
The Nippon Weatherbond Solareflect product, according to Nippon, reflects heat and cools your house for up to 10 years protection.
"We want to break-way from conventional paint advertising," Adrian S'ng, Naga DDB's new business unit head, said.
"Riding on the popularity of the first Nippon Blobby TVC, we made Blobby work harder by making it sell the benefits of this new product," he said.
The campaign is a return for Naga DDB with the Blobby proposition and it looks set to continue in future Nippon marketing initiatives.
"Unlike FMCG brands, home owners usually experience buying paint once a year or once in 3 to 5 years. Very often, they have no idea which is a good paint brand to use when they need to buy paint. With Nippon Blobbies, we want to touch the hearts of people from all walks of life so that they remember to paint their house using Nippon Paint products," Ng said.
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