Saturday, April 2, 2011

Welcome and do join us in the Financial Circle



For long I have aspired to take part in a society of sorts where members can engage in high-level, serious discussions on finance, politics and professional topics with a veil of secrecy and the freedom to truly express one's inner thoughts without any duty to keep up with political correctness.

The "open" nature of the internet hence makes it hard for one to post without any fear of real life implications. Our main chatter thread "The Gentlemen's Club" hosted on Hardwarezone.com, whilst remaining as our main active thread, has received considerable unwanted attention and resulted in several breaches of confidentiality. Also, we became subject to "online trolling" and combined that with the paranoia of knowing that your words could potentially be "quoted" by other users and used against you, the flow of high level, honest ideas was overtly suppressed.

Knowledge flows best in the freest and most equal society. It is with these intentions in mind, I, along with a few pioneers, created this private forum where members must be invited in order to access "Our Inner". Any member suspected of breaching our collective secrecy will be suspended.

We hope you can contribute positively to the laissez-faire environ that I hope to nurture. In this place, everyone is truly equal. No one has to take shit from any other, even the Admin staff. Please feel free to openly make biased statements, pass comments on other people's opinions and I also hope you can be magnanimous when the time comes for you to receive criticisms for your perspectives.

After all, our objectives are clear: We are all here to invest, learn and share :)

On this note I wish you all the best in your health and career. Happy posting

Sincerely,
Moderator

Friday, February 25, 2011

To be an investor or trader? [In my own words]

To be an investor or trader? [In my own words]
For newbie, before you step into the market, you need to know which type of player you want to be, investor or trader? or half half.

To be an Investor;
IMO, you need to have at least $30,000 to hoot at least 3 blue chips or good fundemental stocks, capital gain and dividend yield is usually what you aim for in a portfolio, IMO an expected rational dividend yield should be at Least 5%. but as long you are invested in the market, no matter whether is it trading or investing, you face risk, anything can happen to a stock or even a bluechip counters or the market overnight while you are sleeping at night or when the singapore market is closed, be it is a blue chips or a penny stock, to quote some bluechips, just look at wilmar, glp, SIA. Your entry into the market is important too, just imagine u started building up your portfolio your investment when sti was 3200 last year? Or when sti was 3800 in 2009? You would have lost a fortune despite hooting only bluechips. IMO the only advantage of hooting bluechips is there will always be funds will invested in blue chips. So depending on which level you start your investment. an investor will not lose all your capital, but might stand to lose 60% to 80% paper loss. Type of portfolio you can build can be a dividend portfolio that consists of the high yield dividend stocks, or reits (reits is good when i/r is low, but when i/r starts to move up, reits will go down), or a portfolio full of ETFS, or a portfolio full of undervalued stocks. IMO a portfolio should have at least one or two multi-bagger and it boils down to which level of the market you invest in, a market will never make high everyday, it moves in cycles, a typical market cycle can be as short as 5 years or as long as 10 years, so do you invest when STI is trading at 1400 or when STI is trading at 3000 when the previous all time high is around 3900? so IMO, you only become an investor when the market crashed, and not when you have the money. Do you honestly believe that by buying DBS today at $14.32 and DBS will be trading at $18 by end of the year or $50 in 10 years time?

To be a Trader;
IMO, The startup capital can be low, you can start with a low capital like $1000 or $2000, but the learning curve is steeper, a trader days become like a war game, to a trader, every trade is a war against the market, you fight against the market, you can't simply go into a trade without planning and knowing what you want out of the trade, you as a trader is fighting against the unknown everyday. There is only 50% win 50% lose. Trader requires war experiences to survive or improve, the more u trade the better you become, provided you put in an effort to study your losses. No traders can beat the market when he starts. he needs experiences. It's akin to in NS when each drill each mission is repeated many many times so that when any unexpected or when a surprise spring up, you are up to the task to react with instint, so going back to trading, when your trade goes against you or some unexpected event happen with the market (a rise in interest, a terroist attack, or some important character death) you are able to react to it instinctly.

A trader's journey is usually rocky in the beginning, some drop up along the way, some become investor, some give up and loss become permanently, the journey is challenging. A trader should always regard himself as an entreprneur and treat his trading as a business..

let me use a chicken rice stall holder as an analogy.
1) It is common for a businessman or enterpreuer to face losses everyday too (trader faces losses too),
2) they face rental cost and operation cost everyday in their business (trader faces commission, gst and clearing fee),
3) you want to be an entrepuer, you save up, you borrow from the bank to start a chicken rice stall (you need to have a good capital to begin your trading journey too),
4) you need to look for a location with good flow of human (you need to find a good broker house with good stock platform),
5) there you need to find supplier (you need to find a good and reliable broker),
6) you need to negotiate your terms with your supplier (negotiate a good commission rate if you are a high volume trader),
7) you need to choose your ingredients carefully (select a few market and counters to concentrate),
8) but of course before you decide to start a chicken rice stall, you must already have a recipes for a good chicken rice (A good trading strategy or develope your own),
9) but what is taste like a good chicken rice might not be a good for your customer (what might works in forex market might not work in sgx or us market)
10) since eventually it is your customers who is your revenue generator who decide whether you make or lose money (It is the market who decides you profit and losses).
so nobody will have a perfect recipes (a perfect strategy) for a chicken rice,
11) you do still need to prepare to adjust your recipes everyday to match your customer taste, adjusting your recipes requires time and cost too (revising your trading strategy),
12) you would also, part of your business planning requires to forecast on the number of chicken you order from your supplier, the ingredients and also negiotiate your rental cost (Adjust your trading position, the type of entry, the amount of risk you put in the market).
13) Every business will face risk, even a chicken rice stall will face many risks (Be prepared to face risk once you are a trader, there might be computer failure, system failure, or even job occupation risk),
14) there might be a shortage of vegetable or chicken due to natural disaster or Epidemic risk like bird flu which might affect your business (like the middle east unrest or china rate hiking or even singapore going into recession)
15) despite finally having a perfect chicken rice recipes which could be passed down from your forefather (could be a good trading strategy that you pay and learn from trading school or trading books),
16) or there might be a sudden change in taste and preference from your customers due to new innovation or competition (like no contra, or new rules or new market rules or new market operating hours like no lunch break)
or maybe health warning, that is also when recipes must again be adjust again (requires to change or revise your strategy again), most important is you must evolve with the industry.
17) Nobody will have the perfect recipes for chicken rice, if you can evolve faster than anyone, you will have a bigger slice of the profit. If you refuse to evolve, you will always be the left behind. Even a chicken rice stall holder dont make money everyday after deducting all the cost, a typical daily profit after deducting all the cost could amount to at most $100 or $150, sometime they dont make money too (be happy with a $100 or $150 or dont despair if you dont make any money at all on that day)
despite working long hours from 11am to 7pm for a chicken rice holder (a trader position can be as short as 5min or as long as 5 days), which are due for taxation at the end of a financial year too (good thing is trading or capital profit is not taxable unlike dividend. )
18) A chicken rice stall can go bust, your effort and capital will go wasted (a journey of trading can make you bankrupt or have a high debt)

So if you want to be an entrepruer but doesnt have the time because of your job, be a trader.

So therefore trading Losses and commission should be treated as business cost and all his profit be treated as revenue, when your revenue exceed expenses, you make profit vice versa. You manage your risk, you plan your business, different times counts for different strategy. In bad times, it's normal for a newbie or even an experience trader to lose money, but an experience trader will manage their risk and their exposure better and minimise their losses by placing tighter stop losses and taking profit off faster than a newbie who some cant differentiate a bull market or a bear market and hopes to see his winning run and eventually disillusioned himself as a short term investor rather than a trader.

Losing money as a trader is common and part of parcel to his business, even an experience trader will run into losses, but when money is lost without knowing why you lose, the losses will become as a cost or write-off, if you learnt from it and you are able to avert such mistake again, the losses will become an asset or school fee. Therefore do not lose money without know why you lose.For a trader, we face shorter but BIGGER risk, our risk ends once our trade is settled compared to an investor, so before you decide to be a trader, be prepared to lose all your capital but if you suceed, the market becomes your ATM machine.. It doesnt matter you lose today or you are on a losing streak, what matter most is the net net profit/loss at the end of the month/quarter or year.

Even a bluechip company can make losses in a quarter despite sitting on huge cashpile or good track record previously.

Nobody wins everytime, as a trader, we look at our net position, not the number of losses or number of wins, you can have more losing trades than your winning trade, as long you minimise your losses, and have 1 or 2 good wins, you will still make a good profit.

So eventually the Golden Rule no 1 is know yourself; Do you want to be a trader or an investor and know who you are up against in your trades, it is not the market but yourself.

Saturday, November 13, 2010

My Personal Journey to learning trading

I will share with you my personal journey, as much as possible.

When I trade I don't play mirco pennies and illiquid stocks. As long the volume is increasing and higher than the average 5d, i will place it in my shortlist. No charting systems can predict direction of illiquid stocks until volume starts to build. I rather let the stock run and generate volume then I start looking at it.

I have never attended any TA courses and is unlikely to do so unless it's free. No doubts in my earlier days I have been tempted to fast track my learning processes to want to take the short cut.

TA will teach you the methods, the charting, the money management etc, but my mantra in life has always been...what is it in life that they can teach you that books cannot.. At the end of the day is still how you handle your emotion and decision making when the market is going against the trend.

I spend my working hours, my after work hours to read and search for materials on the internet. All I can say is that the amount of information out there is enormous. You want ebooks or pdf it is there. You want audiovisual materials it is also there. Youtube has many vids, investopedia, stockcharts are good to begin with

Slow and steady bro, the school of hard knocks.

Mr Market is 100% right. There is no better teacher than Mr Market 

And Mr Market is your best teacher  

You will probably spend some money to pay for tuition fees to Mr Market though

No Loss no Gain. Treat trading as a business and not a game or gamble.

What u read, u must put into practice.

The best qualification is given by Mr Market.

im going to share some of my thoughts, some of the articles that i came across and also some advise given by some of the old time traders that i have fortunately get to know and talk to yet see how they trade, which has helped me shape the way i approach the market now.

i hope as you guy broker, we can share and you people be better than me.

Come next year, i will resume my own trading, hope within these few months you guys can learn as much from me as possible and start trading under my account.

Those who learned from me but trade with other brokers, i will be quite disappointed to be honest with you and hope my hardwork will be rewarded by you guys as we huat together next year.

For those TA fanatics

What to cover in your self study, what is the breath you need to cover?

Basic concepts – trend, correction, congestion, support, resistance
Bollinger Bands
Candlestick Charting
Cycles
Directional Movement Index
Dow Theory
Elliot Wave Theory
Fibonacci Expansion & Retracement Projections
Ichimoku Kinko Hyo
Momentum
Moving Average
Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD)
Money & Risk Management
Parabolic
Price patterns – Continuation & Reversal
Relative Strength Index
Stochastics
Trading psychology
Trendlines, speed lines, trend channel

Trade with TA and invest with FA

Never trade on hope dispensed by sorcerer and sell on fears created by doomsayers

Listen only to Mr Market and onli Mr Market is always right, so every time, when Mr Market closes shop at 5.10pm, i have no idea what will happen the next day, only until when i see the opening prices and the market depth, will i be able to know what MIGHT going to happen next!



So it is inrelevant to discuss anything until we know how DJI closed at 5am and when we see the pre market at 0830hrs.

So after 5.10pm, please clear your mind, do whatever things you want, and not think about it, no amount of engineering will prevent any losses if you refuse to cut loss.



REMEMBER: 

Nobody can buy at the lowest and sell at the highest. 

Buy low sell high, buy high sell higher.

Friday, November 12, 2010

How to fill in the NEW TRADING ACCOUNT OPENING FORM

If you’ve just joined CIMB – welcome!

If you havent; the following is for you

Q1.How do I/we get started?
You can get started by opening a Cash Trading Account (Individual) with CIMB Securities (Singapore) Pte Ltd. To transact in Singapore securities, you need to open a corresponding CDP Individual Securities Account (commonly known as the CDP account) with the Central Depository Pte Ltd ("CDP"). Linkage between your Cash Trading Account maintained with CIMB and the CDP account is necessary to facilitate book-entry transfer of scripless securities listed on the Singapore Exchange

Q2.Who can apply for a Cash Trading Account?
You must be at least 21 years old, not an undischarged bankrupt with no delinquent records with any stockbroking houses in Singapore. Foreigners may be required to open a Trust Account for settlement of shares transactions.

Q3.Do I/we need to place an initial deposit for opening a Cash Trading Account?
You may be asked to place an initial deposit and this deposit will save as collateral for assignment of trading limits.

Q4.Is it mandatory for me/us to open a CDP Securities Account if I/we wish to transact in securities listed on the Singapore Exchange Limited ("SGX")?
Yes. You need to open a CDP Securities Account with the Central Depository Pte Ltd ("CDP"). The CDP acts as a custodian for scripless securities listed on the SGX. Book-entry transfer of securities will be effected as and when you purchase or sell securities through your Cash Trading Account maintained with any stockbroking houses in Singapore.























1) Electronic payment system (EPS) is an automated payment system for SGX share transactions operated by members of the SGX and NETs member banks. The EPS enables the electronic transfer of funds between your Saving Accounts(DBS/UOB) and stock brokerage firm (CIMB/POEMS). 

2) To buy/sell shares, you needs a broker to do so for you, in the example above, your brokers within the stock brokerage firm (CIMB/POEMS) are the only parties who are able to access the Stock Market on your behalf to carry up your buy/sell orders.

3) After fulfilling your buy/sell orders, your stock brokerage firms will then intitiate payment from Electronic payment system (EPS) for the shares contract, then they will transfer your shares into your CDP accounts, you can treat CDP as a "online storage" for your shares where it will be kept until you sell. Each people can only have 1 common CDP account which all your stock brokerage firms must have access or linkage to it to buy/deliever your shares

Q5.When can I/we commence trading?
Subject to completeness and approval of your account application, it will take 2 to 3 working days to activate your account application. You will be notified in writing of your Cash Trading Account number. You can start to transact in securities listed on the Singapore Exchange Ltd upon confirmation of linkage approval of your Cash Trading Account to your Securities Account maintained with the CDP. Any transactions executed via your Cash Trading Account prior to linkage approval may result in failed trade and losses.

Now, lets get started, first things first, if you have already opened an account under my broker ID,

Q1. What's next after opening a new trading account?
You will receive an activation link in the form of an EMAIL that is sent to the email address that is registered when you open an account with CIMB.
http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/whats-next-after-opening-account.html

Q2. What is my User ID and Password for online trading?
To trade online, you will need to register here, where you will be prompted to create your own personalised User ID and Password. To complete the creation of your login ID, you will be required to click on the activation link send to your primary email address for your first login.

Your request for online trading should be ready within 3 working days and you will be notified via email.

Q3. What if I did not receive the Activation Link or it has expired?
Check your Spam or Bulk Mail folders. It is possible that the activation link email we tried to send you was caught by a spam or bulk mail filter in your email system.

If you have entered an invalid email address or the activation link has expired, you may login under Member's Login. Upon login, you will be prompted to enter your User ID and update the email address to request for a new activation link.

Q4. What if I forgot my password?
If you have forgotten your password, simply click on "Forgot Password" in the Main page of i*Trade@CIMB to reset your password.

Please note that you will receive two emails - "Reset password" & "Reset Password - Authorisation Code" in your primary email.

Click on reset password link and key in your USERID and Authorisation Code.

Upon successful verification, you will be prompted to change a new password immediately. Do remember to key in the verification code (the distorted alphanumeric characters on your screen) to effect the change of password. Good Password Practice

Your i*Trade@CIMB password is your private entry key into your account. i*Trade@CIMB enforces a password policy in accordance to the guidelines set by Monetary Authority of Singapore. Here are some requirements to ensure the security of your password:

1.Password must be between 6 to 8 alphanumeric characters
2.Password and ID should not be the same
3.Password is case sensitive. Use both capital and small alphabets
4.Password should not contain any spaces
5.Password should not be recycled frequently
6.Password should be changed periodically
7.Password should always be kept confidential

E.g.:

Valid passwords: J0hnTa9, Angi5e

Invalid passwords: John Tan, 123456




Are you new to trading?

Okay, if you’re not only new to CIMB, but also new to investing/trading, then this is the FAQ for you. Stock market is a very large subject. You’re welcome to just follow your nose and see where it leads, or you may prefer to take a more structured route to accelerate your learning curve. If so, we have . .

2) General Frequenty Asked Question
3) Electronic Payment Shares

Before you start out, you need to:
1) determine what you want out of trading: trade for hobby, a living,...
2) determine a suitable timeframe for your style (can you sit on your hands for 4 hours doing nothing but watching the tape?)
3) determine your long and short time goals (small consistent profits are large gains accompanied with equally large drawdowns?)
4) analyze yourself (SWOT analysis)

Next you need to know what kind of trading suits you best
5) mechanical or discretionary appraoch?
6) price/volume / price patterns / indicators / pivot points / bollinger bands / candlestick analysis / a combination of any of the previous concepts...

After you determined that, you need to formulate a hypothesis and build something around that:
7) formulate a hypothesis
8) backtest and papertrade the hypothesis
9) refine the rules of your hypothesis into a conceptual idea
10) define the idea and the specifics surround it
11) define the tactics you are going to employ (enter with market order? stop placement? target strategy?)
12) go back to 8 and go through the process again to see what the performance of your system is, what is your win ratio, profit factor, maximum consecutive losses, maximum drawdown, average % gain per month,...

After you have written down the trading plan on paper, you can start to:
13) papertrade your system once all the pieces are in place
14) switch to real trading trading small size
15) analyze yourself and your ability to follow the trading plan

Finally, after a while you will (hopefully) have gained the confidence to stick to the plan and execute only those trades that fit the plan.

The process can take up several months, but most will admit that becoming a consistently profitable trader took them 2 to 3 years.

So if you haven’t done so already, please bookmark the following URL: 

https://www.itradecimb.com.sg/app/home.z

This is where you are going to login and access your trading platform.

These are at least the starting point for ALL new members, regardless of your trading experience.

Are you ready to experience i*Trade@CIMB now at this point of the time?

This tutorial will guide you to view, search for stocks from various Markets and guide you to create Watchlists to monitor your favourite stocks






















1.
Log in from our website https://www.itradecimb.com.sg/app/home.z

This is where you can find the
2. latest information about our products and platform are posted.
3. Fresh trading ideas of the day from our research teams
4. Event and seminars organised by CIMB, such as training, workshop, corporate roadshows held in CIMB investment center.
5. You can view help and frequently asked questions for the following services

Access your account and launch i*Trade@CIMB here by;
6. typing your USERID and PASSWORD as indicated
7. Choose the page that you wish to go to after login
8. Click the [Go] to proceed with the login
9. For your trade management, you can access the following menu from the "Trade" Menu
10. Keep up to date with the status of your account by using the "Account" menu
11. Access to in-depth research reports by CIMB Group by clicking the "Research" Menu

Technical FAQ
To access the video demo
https://www.itradecimb.com.sg/eGuide/demo.html
  
How to access the Profit/Loss Calculator (inclusive commission)
http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/how-to-access-profitloss-calculator.html

How to check your BUYING/SELLING Limit?
http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/how-to-check-your-buyingselling-limit.html

To access i*Trade@CIMB platform,
https://www.itradecimb.com.sg/app/home.z

How to get started with i*Trade@CIMB
http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/login-httpswww.html

How to access and find counters in i*Trade@CIMB
http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/how-to-access-and-find-counters-in.html

How to access the trading tools in i*Trade@CIMB
http://irrationalexuberancenomore.blogspot.com/2010/11/how-to-access-trading-tools-on.html

How to trade on i*Trade@CIMB
http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/how-to-trade-on-itradecimb.html

How to view orders and portfolio in i*Trade@CIMB
http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/how-to-use-order-and-portfolio-with.html

Wishing you all a wonderful Journey of success & contentment.




























*All 3 signatures must be the same as the one you signed when you OPENS YOUR CDP ACCOUNT when you first open an trading account

* If you do not have a CDP ACCOUNT, you need to open a CDP account first before you can open a trading account, either go
1) SINGAPORE LAND TOWER
2) INTERNATIONAL PLAZA
3) SGX - its gonna take less than 1 day to set up CDP

You needs to have the following items send back together with the application form as well1) BACK/FRONT of IDENTIFY CARD (PINK or BLUE IC)
2) BACK/FRONT STAFF PASS/STUDENT CARD

ONCE YOU MAILED BACK; 3 to 4 days later;
1) There will be one CUSTOMER SERVICE staff who will call and verify your identity and also assist to fill up any missing informations on the application form


A few days later, you will received an ACTIVATION LINK EMAIL,


Click below for more informations

 http://irrational-exuberance-comes-home.blogspot.com/2010/11/whats-next-after-opening-account.html

General Frequently Asked Market Questions

http://bullythebear.blogspot.com/200...wbies-faq.html

1. What causes the price of a stock to go up or down? How come even though the buy queue is higher than the sell queue, the stock doesn't move up in price?

I'll give an example.

Bid vol | bid:ask| ask volume
520 | 0.770 : 0.775 | 330
- 520 shares are queueing to buy at $0.77
- 330 shares are queueing to sell at $0.775

Scenario 1
If you want to buy 5 lots at 0.770, you join the queue at 0.770, the quotes become
Bid vol | bid:ask| ask volume
525 (+5lots) | 0.770 | 0.775 | 330

Scenario 2
If I want to sell 10 lots at 0.775, i join the sell queue and the quotes become
Bid vol | bid:ask| ask vol
525 | 0.770 : 0.775 | 340 (+10lots)

Scenario 3
Notice that up to now, the price didn't move at all. Now if I'm sick of waiting and i'm in a hurry to sell off another 10 lots, i dun sell at the sell price, i sell at the buy price. Immediately i jump the sell queue, quotes become:
Bid vol | bid:ask| ask vol
515 (-10lots) | 0.770 : 0.775 | 340... last done price = $0.770

Scenario 4
Same thing for buying up. If someone is too eager to buy the stock, he wants to get in 10 lots at 0.775 to jump the whole buy queue, here's how the quote look like:
Bid vol | bid:ask| ask vol
515 | 0.770 : 0.775 | 330 (-10lots).... last done price = $0.775

Basically it's the enthusiasm of buyers to bid higher price that drives the price up, and the desperation of sellers to sell at lower bid that drives price down, not the buy and sell queue.

In short
*You are rewarded for queueing to avoid paying a premium for buying or geting a premium for selling.

Bid:Ask
$0.77:$0.775 -> [ask px - bid px] = 1 bid (0.005)

if you queue to buy, YOU might take LONGER or MAY NOT get at all, but you will get your shares at $0.77 (1 bid less)

if you DECIDED NOT to queue and buy from the SELLER, you will pay 1 bid more to get the shares at $0.775 (1 bid more)

if you queue to sell, YOU might take LONGER or MAY NOT get at all, but you will get to sell your shares at $0.775 (1 bid more)

if you DECIDED NOT to queue and sell to the buyers, you will only receive 1 bid lesser at $0.77(1 bid less)


2. What is the trading hours of Singapore and HK bourse?

Singapore opens at 9 am to 1230pm, break for lunch and resume the afternoon session at 2pm to 5 pm. Hong Kong opens at 10 am to 1230pm, opens again at 230pm to 4 pm. Do take note that if you use most of the 'live' prices for HK stocks, it'll lag by at least 5 to 15 min. Yahoo! finance lags by as much as 30 mins to 1 hr. The livest live price can be found from the following sites:

a. Live HSI charts - This one is good as it even has charts and is detachable
b. Real time HSI forex gold - this one is not real time, but it's not laggy, good enuff for me.
c. HSI stock quotes - this one is straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak. Too laggy for me

The only free HK live price I know from brokerage is from dbs vickers. But it has it own set of problems...

3. What actually happens when I buy a stock?

After you buy a stock, we don't have to pay for it immediately. The day that the stock is purchased is termed T day. We have to pay the stock by T+3 (or T+4, T+5, depending on your brokerage firm or broker). This means that we have to make payment by transaction day plus another 3 market days (market days exclude public holidays and weekends).

For example, if I buy on Thurs, I have to pay on T+3, which is next Tues (usually by evening, but dependent on broker). If payment is not received on end of T+3, the brokerage will sell off your shares. After payment is made, the scripts will be electronically transferred to your central deposit account (CDP). If you have an online password with them, you can check their website and you'll see your shares there. You'll also receive those irritating perforated pieces of paper (two of them!), saying that you made a transaction with your brokerage firm and another saying that the CDP received the shares.

4. What is long? What is short = kateks?
Longing a stock means we buy a stock, wait for the price to move up to sell again to pocket the difference. Shorting a stock means we sell a stock first, wait for the price to move down, then buy it back again to 'cover the short position', thereby pocketing the difference. How come we can do such things - selling something that we dun have?

The reason is because of 'contra'. Basically it just means that it takes some time for the stock you buy or sell to be delivered to your central deposit account (CDP), so if we sell or buy before it's delivered we don't have to pay for anything. Usually contra period is T+3, meaning the day you transacted (T) + another 3 market days. So if I buy a share and sell it all within T+3, I don't have to make any payment and can pocket the difference. Be careful about buying things you can't afford to pay. If you can only buy $1000 worth of stocks and you bust that limit and buy all the stocks your trading limit allows (say $50,000) on contra (meaning that you have no intention to pay and die die have to sell by T+3), you are either skillful or just very optimistic in the face of death.

Shorting, on the other hand, doesn't work on T+3, take note!! We have to cover our position by the end of the day (T+0), otherwise SGX will buy back for you.

5. What is naked short?
Naked short means that you short a counter that you didn't have, AND didn't cover by the end of the day and is subjected to SGX buy back. The procedure is like this

a. You sell short a counter and never cover your position by buying in at the end of the day

b. On T+3, you don't have the scripts in your CDP to deliver to the buyer, so SGX will initiate a buy in for you

c. SGX will buy at 11:30am on T+4 at 2 bids higher than the closing price of T+3 or 11:30am price of T+4, whichever is higher. That is, higher of (closing of T+3 or 11:30am price of T+4) plus another 2 bids. I remember someone saying that the bids will increase every few minutes until someone sells it to SGX. Other penalties may apply.

In other words, you're subjected to the whims of the market and you'll only know the results after 3 or 4 market days. AND DO NOT BUY BACK YOURSELF - YOU'LL JUST BE OPENING ANOTHER POSITION! Good luck to you.

6. This short cannot, that short also cannot. Then if market turns bearish, just sit and cry ah? Any other options?
There are proper ways to short the market. Listed below are the ones I know, but bear in mind that each also have its own risks. It's not within the scope of this faq to discuss.

a. Put warrants
b. CFD - contract for difference
c. Short the market, borrow scripts from SGX to cover your short position . When price drops low enough, buy back the scripts and return to SGX, pocketing the difference.

7. What is averaging down?
This is a method to lower down the average buy price so as to be able to get out of it IF it rebounds at lower price. An example will do the trick.

Suppose I bought a stock, 10 lots at 0.770. The price subsequently tanked and I held on, thinking that it is temporarily. But it tanked to 0.600, a 22% drop in price. For it to rise back to 0.770 (ignore brokerage for simplicity), it has to rise up 28%, which is even harder. So I buy in more to 'average down' my buy in price.

So when it reached 0.600, I bought 10 lots at 0.600...tanked down further
Bought it 5 lots more at 0.550.

My weighted average buy price is 0.658 [ (10x0.770 + 10x0.600 + 5x0.550)/(10+10+5)]. If the price rebound slightly and hit 0.660 (assuming no brokerage), I can break even and sell already, instead of waiting to sell at 0.770.

The risk? You are throwing money into a sinking ship. It might sink and sink and never recover. Do this only if you're sure why the stock is sinking. Otherwise you're just digging deeper in your own grave. Most pple prefer averaging up - if the stock is performing as you expect, then you throw in more funds. Whatever you choose, just know what you're doing and the risks involved.

8. What are bonds, bills, warrants, CFDs? (adapted from veron97, cna forum)
Bond/bills
A debt investment with which the investor loans money to an entity (company or government) that borrows the funds for a defined period of time at a specified interest rate.

The indebted entity issues investors a certificate, or bond, that states the interest rate (coupon rate) that will be paid and when the loaned funds are to be returned (maturity date). Interest on bonds is usually paid every six months (semiannually). The main types of bonds are the corporate bond, the municipal bond, the Treasury bond, the Treasury note, the Treasury bill and the zero-coupon bond.

The higher rate of return the bond offers, the more risky the investment. There have been instances of companies failing to pay back the bond (default), so, to entice investors, most corporate bonds will offer a higher return than a government bond. It is important for investors to research a bond just as they would a stock or mutual fund. The bond rating will help in deciphering the default risk.

A bill is just a shorter term version of bonds. In Singapore, bill is anything less than or equal to 1 yr while bonds are more than 1 yr, like 1,2,5,7,15 and 20yr bonds.
Check this website out to find the difference in prices and yields.

Warrant
A derivative security that gives the holder the right to purchase securities (usually equity) from the issuer at a specific price within a certain time frame. Warrants are often included in a new debt issue as a "sweetener" to entice investors.

The main difference between warrants and call options is that warrants are issued and guaranteed by the company, whereas options are exchange instruments and are not issued by the company. Also, the lifetime of a warrant is often measured in years, while the lifetime of a typical option is measured in months.

Basically, call warrants means that you want the price of the underlying to go up. If the underlying goes up, the call warrants will also rise in price. Put warrants means you want the price of the underlying to go down and it will rise in price if the underlying goes down. Can read this website for more information on the basic of warrants e.g. IV, delta, strike, settlement, expiry.

Contract For Differences - CFD
An arrangement made in a futures contract whereby differences in settlement are made through cash payments, rather than the delivery of physical goods or securities.

This is generally an easier method of settlement because losses and gains are paid in cash. CFDs provide investors with the all the benefits and risks of owning a security without actually owning it.

9. What's XD, CD? Do I get dividends if I buy on XD?
When a stock wants to give dividend, it will put a CD - cum dividend remark. This means anyone who buys now or owns the stock already, will be entitled to get dividends by the time the stock closes its book. XD stands for ex-dividend. If you buy the stocks on XD, it will be too late to reach the registrar so your name will not be in the company's book - so you'll not be entitled to dividends. To make it really simple:

a. If you buy on or before CD, you'll get dividends
b. If you sell on or before CD, you won't get dividneds
c. If you buy on or after XD, you won't get dividends (the seller gets it)
d. If you sell on or after XD, you'll get dividends (the buyer won't get it)

Don't worry about record date or book closure date, it's none of our concern. Just worry about CD/XD will do. Oh, and of cos the payment date.

10. What is the x you see just before market opens and after it closes, when looking at the sales and transactions for the day? Married deals?
The x at the opening and closing is the pre-open and pre-close matching respectively.

For pre-opening, it's basically for those orders that are keyed in before the market is opened AND are transacted. What happens is that there are buyers who bid for a price and sellers who ask for a price. There is some formula to calculate these two bid/ask price, and this calculated price is the opening price of the stock. If there are a total of 10,000 buyers and sellers matched, then you'll see 8:59 x 10,000.

Same thing for pre-close matching, but this time the calculated price is actually the closing price of the stock.

Do not mistake the x when market is open for trading for pre-close/open matching, they are not. These x are married deals, a different ball game altogether. Married deals are private deals with a willing buyer and seller, so the price are decided between the two parties and are independent of the bid/ask quotes you see currently on the screen. Married deals are important, esp if the volume for the transactions are huge - usually indicates to me that institutional buyers are buying/selling.

11. What are rights shares? Nil paid rights?
Cash-strapped companies can turn to rights issues to raise money when they really need it. In these rights offerings, companies grant shareholders a chance to buy new shares at a discount to the current trading price. Let's look at how rights issue work, and what they mean for all shareholders.

Defining a Rights Issue and Why It's Used
A rights issue is an invitation to existing shareholders to purchase additional new shares in the company. More specifically, this type of issue gives existing shareholders securities called "rights", which, well, give the shareholders the right to purchase new shares at a discount to the market price on a stated future date. The company is giving shareholders a chance to increase their exposure to the stock at a discount price.

But until the date at which the new shares can be purchased, shareholders may trade the rights on the market the same way they would trade ordinary shares. The rights issued to a shareholder have a value, thus compensating current shareholders for the future dilution of their existing shares' value.

Troubled companies typically use rights issues to pay down debt, especially when they are unable to borrow more money. But not all companies that pursue rights offerings are shaky. Some with clean balance sheets use them to fund acquisitions and growth strategies. For reassurance that it will raise the finances, a company will usually, but not always, have its rights issue underwritten by an investment bank.

How Rights Issues Work

So, how do rights issues work? The best way to explain is through an example.

Let's say you own 1,000 shares in Wobble Telecom, each of which is worth $5.50. The company is in a bit of financial trouble and sorely needs to raise cash to cover its debt obligations. Wobble therefore announces a rights offering, in which it plans to raise $30 million by issuing 10 million shares to existing investors at a price of $3 each. But this issue is a three-for-10 rights issue. In other words, for every 10 shares you hold, Wobble is offering you another three at a deeply discounted price of $3. This price is 45% less than the $5.50 price at which Wobble stock trades.

As a shareholder, you essentially have three options when considering what to do in response to the rights issue. You can (1) subscribe to the rights issue in full, (2) ignore your rights or (3) sell the rights to someone else. Here we look how to pursue each option, and the possible outcomes.

1. Take up the rights to purchase in full
To take advantage of the rights issue in full, you would need to spend $3 for every Wobble share that you are entitled to under the issue. As you hold 1,000 shares, you can buy up to 300 new shares (three shares for every 10 you already own) at this discounted price of $3, giving a total price of $900.

However, while the discount on the newly issued shares is 45%, it will not stay there. The market price of Wobble shares will not be able to stay at $5.50 after the rights issue is complete. The value of each share will be diluted as a result of the increased number of shares issued. To see if the rights issue does in fact give a material discount, you need to estimate how much Wobble's share price will be diluted.

In estimating this dilution, remember that you can never know for certain the future value of your expanded holding of the shares, since it can be affected by any number of business and market factors. But the theoretical share price that will result after the rights issue is complete - which is the ex-rights share price - is possible to calculate. This price is found by dividing the total price you will have paid for all your Wobble shares by the total number of shares you will own. This is calculated as follows:

1,000 existing shares at $5.50 $5,500
300 news shares for cash at $3 $900
Value of 1,300 shares $6,400
Ex-rights value per share $4.92 ($6,400.00/1,300 shares)

So, in theory, as a result of the introduction of new shares at the deeply discounted price, the value of each of your existing shares will decline from $5.50 to $4.92. But remember, the loss on your existing shareholding is offset exactly by the gain in share value on the new rights: the new shares cost you $3, but they have a market value of $4.92. These new shares are taxed in the same year as you purchased the original shares, and carried forward to count as investment income, but there is no interest or other tax penalties charged on this carried-forward, taxable investment income.


2. Ignore the rights issue
You may not have the $900 to purchase the additional 300 shares at $3 each, so you can always let your rights expire. But this is not normally recommended. If you choose to do nothing, your shareholding will be diluted thanks to the extra shares issued.

3 Sell your rights to other investors
In some cases, rights are not transferable. These are known as "non-renounceable rights". But in most cases, your rights allow you to decide whether you want to take up the option to buy the shares or sell your rights to other investors or to the underwriter. Rights that can be traded are called "renounceable rights", and after they have been traded, the rights are known as "nil-paid rights".

To determine how much you may gain by selling the rights, you need to estimate a value on the nil-paid rights ahead of time. Again, a precise number is difficult, but you can get a rough value by taking the value of ex-rights price and subtracting the rights issue price. So, at the adjusted ex-rights price of $4.92 less $3, your nil-paid rights are worth $1.92 per share. Selling these rights will create a capital gain for you.

Be Warned
It is awfully easy for investors to get tempted by the prospect of buying discounted shares with a rights issue. But it is not always a certainty that you are getting a bargain. But besides knowing the ex-rights share price, you need to know the purpose of the additional funding before accepting or rejecting a rights issue. Be sure to look for a compelling explanation of why the rights issue and share dilution are needed as part of the recovery plan. Sure, a rights issue can offer a quick fix for a troubled balance sheet, but that doesn't necessarily mean management will address the underlying problems that weakened the balance sheet in the first place. Shareholders should be cautious.

12. What is force key? I see that option when I'm getting my orders keyed in.
When buying or selling, you can only key in within 6 bids of the current price. Different price range have different bid size.

So, if a stock is currently trading at say 1.50, you can only sell up to 1.56 or buy up to 1.44 (within 6 bids, each bid being 1 cent). If you need to go beyond, you need to check the 'force-key' option. Some brokerage firm have free force keys, some are subscription based.

Take note that on 24th Dec 2007, SGX will revise a new minimum bids with increased forced key orders. The bid size is reduced according to this:

For stocks:
1. Below S$1, bid size is 0.005
2. S$1 - S$9.99, bid size is 0.01
3. S$10 and above, bid size is 0.02
4. Forced key orders for stocks is +/- 10 bids.

For all ETF
1. Bid size is 0.01 or 0.001 as determined by SGX-ST
2. Forced key order is +/- 30 bids


13. I have been using X brokerage firm and now I’m using Y brokerage firm. I bought some shares using X firm, so does the shares that I bought with X be transferred over to Y? If I sell my shares using Y does it constitute a short sell?
The answer depends very much on whether the shares you bought with X firm are deposited in the central depository (CDP). It will be, after you made payment by T+3 days. If that is the case, the shares you bought have nothing to do with X firm anymore, so you can very well sell the shares using Y firm or any other firms. It will not be a short sell.

If you buy shares using X firm, but within T+3 you sell it using Y firm, then you have an open position with X and a short position with Y. You still need to pay for your shares plus brokerage with X before the shares will be transferred over to CDP. In the meantime, you have to cover you short position with Y by buying back within the same day of transaction, otherwise you will be subjected to SGX buy back.

If you buy shares with X firm, paid for it by say T+1, then sell it by T+2 using Y firm, then I’m also confused! To be sure, check CDP website to ensure that the shares you paid for are already deposited inside before selling using Y firm. Life’s too bland for you? haha

Do yourself a favour, keep a good transaction record of which shares you buy, T+3 payment date and with which brokerage firm.

14. What are odd lots? Can I sell odd lots?
Usually, each lot size in SGX shares consists of 1000 shares. There are some exceptions, for example the STI ETF 100 shares, you can buy at 100 shares per lot instead of the usual 1000 shares per lot. How do we get odd lots? Usually through corporate actions like rights or entitlement, script dividend. For simplification, I assume all shares have a lot size of 1000 shares here.

Since you can only buy or sell a minimum of l lot, there is some problem if you want to buy/sell less than 1 lot, like 800 shares. These are called odd lots, and they can’t be transacted in the normal markets.

I know that for poems, there is a unit shares market – specifically used to buy/sell odd lots. But take note – due to the liquidity (or rather the lack of), expect to sell your odd lots below market price and buy odd lots (to top up to 1 full lot) at a discount. This mean you can buy 1 share of DBS at $20 plus dollars if you so wished.

15. What is contra? (No, it’s not the game

When you buy a stock, you normally have to pay on T+3. T+3 means that transaction date + 3 more market days (public holidays, sat, sun not counted as market days).

E.g. If I buy on Thurs, T+3 is actually next Tues.

If I managed to sell off the stock I bought before T+3, that means that I don't have to pay any capital upfront and get the difference between the price I bought and the price I sold. This is called contra.

Usually contra are for short term traders, who goes in and out within the T+3 days. Those who contra all the time will also whack huge lots (more than what they can afford to pay) since they don't have to really pay for the stocks upfront and they are going to sell off before the T+3 date, regardless of profit or loss.

Just be careful if you buy more than what you can afford...If the stock went down, you might have to hold or sell at a loss. Not advisable, unless you're a good chart reader who knows when a stock can make spectacular gains all within T+3.

16. I got a company warrant. How do I exercise the warrants to covert it to shares? (Note: company warrant is not structured warrants)

Q. What shall I do when I want to exercise my warrants?
A. When exercising your warrants, you must submit the following to the Warrant Agent:

1. Your latest statement showing the number of warrants you have in your securities account. This can be obtained from The Central Depository (Pte) Ltd or via CDP Internet Access if you have applied and gotten an I-PIN.

2. The exercise notice, a copy of which can be obtained from the Warrant Agent. You need to sign the notice and provide the following details:
a. your name
b. address
c. CDP securities account number
d. NRIC number
e. no of warrants converted *
f. no of shares subscribed *

* The number of shares subscribed for every warrant held depends on the conversion ratio.

3. The subscription amount in the form of a cashier's order made payable to the issuer.

The Warrant Agent will inform CDP of your exercise notice after it has verified your particulars. This date is known as the Lodgement Date (L).

Q. How will I know who the Warrant Agent is?
A. Pulses, a monthly publication by Singapore Exchange, publishes a list of warrants traded and their respective Warrant Agents. You may also check with the company which issued the warrants.

Q. When will the warrants be debited from my account?
A. CDP will debit the warrants from your securities account immediately after notification from the Warrant Agent that they have earmarked the warrants and that your exercise notice is in order.

You cannot sell the warrants once you have exercised them.

Q. How long will CDP take to credit my account with the new shares arising from the exercise of my warrants?
A. After receiving the exercise notice, CDP will credit the shares into the 'Available' balance. The converted shares will be credited to the 'Free' balance of your securities account five market days after Lodgement Date. This is provided the Warrant Agent has sent the new share certificates to CDP and the new shares have been approved for listing.

CDP will notify you in writing after your account has been credited.

Q. When can I sell the converted shares?
A. You may sell your converted shares only after receiving CDP's notification, or when your shares are in the Free balance of your securities account.

If you sell before the shares are in your account, you risk being bought-in. To meet your delivery obligation, the Exchange will buy-in the shares from the market if you do not have them in your account by due date. You will have to pay for the difference between your sale price and the buy-in price, and all other related charges.

Q. I have just sent in my exercise notice to convert my warrants to shares and there is an entitlements distribution. Will I be eligible for the entitlements distribution?
A. Whether you are eligible for the entitlements will depend on how the listed company had defined the entitlements date. Listed companies can set the entitlements date to be either on Lodgement Date (L) or the day after Lodgement Date (L + 1).

Consequently, if your warrants are converted on L, which happens to fall on Books Closure Date and the listed company had defined entitlements date as L, then you will receive the entitlements.

However, if you have converted the warrants on L, which happens to fall on Books Closure Date and the entitlements date had been set as L+1, then you will not receive the entitlements.

Q. What happens if there is a warrant issue or entitlement for the shares I have in my CPF Investment Account?
A. If the warrant entitlement comes free, the warrants can be left in your CPF Investment Account for you to sell or convert to shares with your CPF funds before the expiry date.

However, if you have to pay for the warrant entitlement, i.e. you have to subscribe for the warrants, you will not be able to use your CPF savings to do so. In this case, you can:
1. provide your CPF Agent Bank with the cash to subscribe for the warrants on your behalf; or
2. transfer the right to subscribe for the warrants from your CPF Investment Account to your CDP Securities Account before you subscribe in cash.

However, if you want to sell your rights instead of subscribing for the warrants, you may sell your rights in the same manner as you sell your shares purchased with your CPF savings.

Q. What happens if I do not sell or exercise my warrants by the expiry date?
A. On expiry date, warrants become worthless and cannot be exercised into new shares.

Q. I am still holding the physical warrant certificates although the company's shares and warrants are already traded scripless. How do I exercise the warrants?
A. The exercise procedure is similar to that for the first question. However, you will have to surrender your warrant certificates to the Warrant Agent.

If you wish to have the new shares credited directly to your CDP securities account, you will have to fill in your securities account number in the exercise notice.

Q. How do I sell my new shares if I have opted to receive physical certificates after exercising the warrants?
A. Physical share certificates cannot be used to settle the sale of your new shares. You must first deposit the certificates with CDP. You need to pay a deposit fee of S$10 (excluding GST). Payment may be made in cash, or by cheque made in favour of "The Central Depository (Pte) Limited".

After receiving your share certificates, CDP will send them to the share registrar to have them transferred and registered in CDP's name before they can be credited to your account. The whole process takes 17 market days; 15 days for the registrar to transfer and register, and two days for CDP to credit your account.

You may sell your converted shares only after receiving CDP's notification, or when your shares are in the 'Free' balance of your securities account.

Q. How can I check the expiry dates for warrants?
A. The trading name of the warrant provides the expiry date. It appears in a year-month-day format. For example, CSC W050427 indicates that the warrant expires on 27 April 2005.

17. What is pre-open and pre-close?
'Pre-Open' Routine [0830hrs to 0859hrs]
It is a 30-minute session before regular trading starts at 0900 hrs. It comprises the 'Pre-Open Period' and the 'Non-Cancel Period'.

During the 'Pre-Open Period' (0830 to 0859 hrs), buy and sell orders can be entered, amended or withdrawn. They will not be matched and executed during this period. The 'Non-Cancel Period' is between 0859 to 0900 hrs, during which input, amendment and withdrawal of orders are not permitted. Orders that are matched are executed at a single computed price, which will be the same as or better than the price at which the orders are entered. This computed price shall be the opening price for the day. Unmatched orders will be carried forward into the regular trading session.

'Pre-close' Routine
At 1700 hrs, all unmatched orders are carried forward to the Pre-Close Routine, which runs for 6 minutes and consists of a 'Pre-Close Period' and a 'Non-Cancel Period'.

Orders can be entered, amended or cancelled during the 'Pre-Close Period' (1700 to 1705 hrs). During the 'Non-Cancel Period' (1705 to 1706 hrs), input, amendment and withdrawal of orders are not permitted. Orders that can be matched are executed at a closing price computed for the day, while unmatched orders will become void.

18. What should I do when I receive the thick annual report every year? Do I have to do anything about it?
The thick annual report consists of a few important information that any serious investors need to pay attention to. Firstly, it gives a snapshot of how well the company is doing in that financial year if you look at their financial statements. Secondly, the chairman/CEO will have give his/her message to shareholders, detailing the next year’s direction, a summary of the company’s performance and generally what to expect in the future. Lastly, there will also details of where and when the annual general meeting (AGM) for the company is taking place. The AGM is a meeting where shareholders and the directors will meet once each year to pass resolutions regarding the company. Examples of such resolutions include approval of director’s fee, re-election of directors, approval of dividend payout, rights issues, etc.

You can choose not to go to the AGM and missed communicating directly with the directors (and the free food) and instead appoint a proxy to vote for you on your behalf. OR you can totally choose to ignore the AGM.

19. What are rights warrants?
In addition to issue rights shares, a company may instead choose to issue rights warrants. Somewhat similar to right shares, rights warrants give the shareholders an opportunity to subscribe to rights that will be converted to company warrants upon ceasing of nil-paid rights trading. These company warrants give the holders the right to convert the warrants to ordinary shares at some point in the future (before the expiry of the warrants) by exercising them.

This is quite different from rights shares. Subscription to rights shares and subsequent ceasing of nil-paid rights converts the rights to ordinary shares immediately, whereas rights warrants are converted to company warrants (so you can choose when to convert to ordinary shares anytime before expiry of the warrants). The benefits of the warrants is thus this – you can save capital that would be otherwise locked up as warrants are leveraged derivatives, so the locked up capital is a fraction of that of ordinary shares. If the company is doing well, the price of the warrants will rise and you might choose to sell it without exercising it. Or if you believe in the long term prospects of the company, you can choose to exercise your warrants by converting it to ordinary shares.

To find out how to exercise warrants, look for the relevant questions in this faq.
------------------------
Paul (see comments) mentioned that there are some warrants that can only be converted on a specified date, an example of which is TechOil@GaeW101126. As always, it's better to check the OIS that comes together with the rights issue for more information that might not be applicable for others.

20. How do I apply for rights? What are the options I have?
Okay, you received a bombshell in the form of rights issue and you don’t know what to do despite reading the thick OIS (offer information statement) mailed to you. You panicked.

If you flip the OIS and look for the section under “Procedures for acceptance, payment and excess applications by entitled depositors” under the Appendix section, you can see that it’s all spelt out clearly for all the possible cases you can imagine.

I’m only going to go through the basics. There are two main ways to subscribe for your rights:

a. acceptance and application by ATM of a participating bank

b. acceptance and application by CDP

First before choosing either options, look at the mailed Form A - white form (ARE for rights shares) or green form (WEWAF for rights warrants). Pay attention to the number of rights shares/warrants provisionally allocated – that is the amount that you are allocated, so you can choose to take it all up, partially, not at all and/or apply for excess. Find out how much you need to pay for and how much you need to pay if you want the excess rights.

If you go by ATM, it’s the easier option. Just go to the ATM screen, click on other transactions, then look for something like “ESA – IPO applications”, then find the company that is relevant. You’ll be guided to type in the amount of rights that you wish to accept out of the allocated (e.g you may be provisionally allocated 5000 rights but may want to accept only 2000), plus another separate screen where you’ll be guided to type how many excess rights you want to subscribe. Then you’ll come to a screen where they will tell you how much you have to pay. Make sure this screen you check carefully before pressing. I know for DBS you need to pay a service charge of $2.00, not so sure of other banks.

If you applied through ATM, then do not send any forms! It’s done – just wait for them to mail you how many excess rights you’ve successfully got and how much you applied for.

If you’re going through application by CDP, then you have to fill form A (the coloured forms). There’ll be instructions to tell you how to fill but I’ll run through a little. First, delete away the I/We* and my/our* that you see accordingly. Then look under Registration – and fill in quantity (the number of rights shares/warrants) you accepted, calculate and fill in the amount payable to CDP (multiply the quantity by issue price per share/warrant). Fill in the number of excess rights you wish to apply and repeat, total it up and sign below.

Next go to the bank to get a cashier’s order or banker’s draft (it’s just a cheque that is issued by the bank – you have to pay the bank a certain fee in addition to the amount for their services) with the following written – “CDP – XYZ RIGHTS ISSUE ACCOUNT” and crossed “NOT NEGOTIABLE, A/C PAYEE ONLY”. On the reverse side, write your name and your securities account number. Finally send the banker’s draft/cashier’s order and the form A to the enclosed envelope mailed to you. Affix your own stamp!

21. How is the opening price of a stock determined?
This is done by matching the highest bid price and quantity with the lowest ask price and quantity until a common price is met. For example:

BUY
----
100,000 1.10
90,000 1.09
80,000 1.08
70,000 1.07
60,000 1.06
50,000 1.05
40,000 1.04
30,000 1.03
20,000 1.02
10,000 1.01

SELL
------
10,000 1.00
20,000 1.01
30,000 1.02
40,000 1.03
50,000 1.04
60,000 1.05
70,000 1.06
80,000 1.07
90,000 1.08
100,000 1.09
200,000 1.10
300,000 1.11
400,000 1.12

the 100,000 @ 1.10 BUY will match with 10,000 @ 1.00, 20,000 @ 1.01, 30,000 @ 1.02, 40,000 @ 1.03 from the SELL

the 90,000 @ 1.09 BUY will match with 50,000 @ 1.04, 40,000 @ 1.05 from the SELL

the 80,000 @ 1.08 BUY will match with 20,000 @ 1.05, 70,000 @ 1.06 from the SELL

Finally 70,000 @ 1.07 BUY will match with 10,000 @ 1.06, 60,000@ 1.07 from the SELL

Hence, the opening price will be 1.07, with the buy queue of 60,000 @ 1.06 and the sell queue of 20,000 @ 1.07

22. Why is it that when I queue to buy at price of $0.50, but when the current price of the stock reaches that, I still haven’t bought my stock yet? Is it because of queuing?
It’s best to give an example of how the queuing works.

Say for company A, you'll see the quotes as
B vol, Buy price, sell price, sell vol
10, 0.775, 0.780, 12

You queue to sell at 0.780, 5 lots. You'll see the quotes as
10, 0.775, 0.780, 17

I want to buy 2 lots at 0.775, the quotes become
12, 0.775, 0.780, 17

Basically you join the queue to sell at 0.780 while i join the queue to buy at 0.775. Let's say you're impatient and wanted to sell immediately. So you sell another 5 lots at 0.775. The quotes become
7, 0.775, 0.780, 17

TAKE NOTE: I didn't buy anything as my queue is not up. Unless another seller sells at 0.75, 6 lots - i'll get 1 lot (order partially filled). If sells at 0.75 for 7 lots - i'll get 2 lot (order fully filled).

Same thing goes for buying. If I can't wait, I'll just hit 2 lots at 0.780. THe quotes change from
12, 0.775, 0.780, 17 to

12, 0.775, 0.780, 15

Did you manage to sell? No, unless someone buy up 0.780 for another 15 lots, then your order will be fully filled.

23. What is CE and XE? What is cash distribution?
CE means cum-entitlement. This means that the company is going to distribute cash to shareholders as a result of:

a. Delisting – so all the shares held by shareholders will be ‘bought’ back by them with the cash returned to the shareholders

b. Shares cancellation – this is to reduce the number of shares outstanding. They will announce a ratio, say 1 out of every 12 shares will be cancelled at $0.50. So, if you’re holding 6000 shares, 500 shares will be cancelled so you’ll get back $250 (500 x 0.50) with 5500 shares remaining (6000 – 500).

To qualify for entitlement, you need to have shares before or on CE. This means that if the stock went XE (ex-entitlement) and you went to buy it, you won’t get the cash distribution due to the entitlement.

24. What is BB? I keep seeing people saying BBs are buying/selling.
BB stands for a lot of things - chng kay, big boys, big brothers etc. Basically they refer to institutional players like fund managers, brokerage house like JP morgan, Merrill lynch, hedge funds and others. They are the ones who possess the will and the clout to move the markets that retailers investors like us can't. They are able to do a lot of things to the stocks - drive it up, bring it down, issue reports to buy but sell it etc. Basically, you wouldn't want to bet the other direction from what the BBs are doing - it's suicidal.


25. What is shares splitting and what are its implication?
All listed companies have a fixed number of shares outstanding. A shares split is when the company increased the number of shares outstanding by issuing more shares to current shareholders. For example, a 2-for-1 split means that a company initially having 30 million shares will end up having 60 million shares.
There is an ex-date and a record date, which are duly announced beforehand. Normally, the current shareholders will receive the split shares a day after the record date but it is more advisable to check with CDP to confirm that.

The most direct implication is that the value of the company per share will be diluted. Price per share and key ratios like earnings per share (EPS) will also be changed. Obviously the number of shares outstanding and the par value of each shares will be affected. What will not be changed is the accounts as well as the capital structure of the company (same market capitalization)

For example, company A has 10 million issued ordinary shares @ par value of $0.50 each (Capital = 5 million). After splitting, it will have 20 million of issued ordinary shares @ par value of $0.25 each (capital is still 5 million). Hence, there will be no change in the capital structure of the company.

So why do companies do that?

1. Sometimes the share prices of the companies have risen too high for retail investors to participate, so a shares splitting is good to lower the price per share to entice investors to jump in.
Since many small investors think the stock is now more affordable and buy the stock, they end up boosting demand and drive up prices. Another reason for the price increase is that a stock split provides a signal to the market that the company's share price has been increasing and people assume this growth will continue in the future, and again, lift demand and prices. For a good example, look at Chinafish.

2. Shares splitting is good for illiquid stocks with very low floating shares. This can affect the reflection of the company. Basically it's to increase the liquidity of the company. For an example, look at Ezion.


Q1: What are the brokerage charges?

Note: The below rates are meant for CIMB Securities (Singapore) Pte Ltd clients only. For CIMB Invesment Bank Berhad clients, please refer to www.itradecimb.com.my
Singapore Dollar Denominated Securities on SGX (with effect from 1st Jan 2010)
Contract Value Via TRS On-line
Up to SGD50,000 0.5% 0.275%
SGD50,001 to SGD100,000 0.4% - 0.5% 0.22%
Above SGD100,000 0.25% - 0.5% 0.18%
Minimum Commission SGD40 SGD25
US Dollar Denominated Securities on SGX
Contract Value Via TRS On-line
Up to USD25,000 0.5% 0.275%
USD25,001 to USD50,000 0.4% - 0.5% 0.22%
Above USD50,000 0.25% - 0.5% 0.18%
Minimum Commission USD20 USD15
HK Dollar Denominated Securities on SGX
Contract Value Via TRS On-line
Up to HKD200,000 0.5% 0.275%
HKD200,001 to HKD400,000 0.4% - 0.5% 0.22%
Above HKD400,000 0.25% - 0.5% 0.18%
Minimum Commission HKD180 HKD125
Australian Dollar Denominated Securities on SGX
Contract Value Via TRS On-line
Up to AUD50,000 0.5% 0.275%
AUD50,001 to AUD100,000 0.4% - 0.5% 0.22%
Above AUD100,000 0.25% - 0.5% 0.18%
Minimum Commission AUD30 AUD20
Note:
  • The above rates are applicable to corporate and retail clients only.
  • Rates are not applicable to securities listed on other foreign exchanges.
  • A 7% GST is chargeable on commission payable, clearing fee and SGX Trading Fee.
  • Clearing fee of 0.04% will be levied on contract value, subject to maximum of SGD600 for SGD contracts. For non-SGD contracts, the equivalent maximum clearing fee shall be at USD393, HKD3095 and AUD507 respectively.
  • SGX Trading Fee of 0.0075% is chargeable on the value of each contract.
  • For more information on the additional fees payable, please contact 1800 538 9889.
The management reserves the right to revise the above commission rates without prior notice.
Q2.What are the commission rates for trading in foreign markets?

Note: The below rates are meant for CIMB Securities (Singapore) Pte Ltd clients only.
With effect from trade date 01 April 2010.
Countries Malaysia Hong Kong USA
Exchanges Bursa Malaysia HKSE
NASDAQ/NYSE/AMEX
Via Trading Representatives RM100,000                  0.75%
RM100,000 & above    0.50%
0.50% Market Order   Limit Order
0.40%              0.55%
Minimum Commission RM80 HKD75 US$25             US$28
Via Online 0.50% 0.25% Market Order   Limit Order
0.30%              0.40%
Minimum Commission RM60 HKD50 US$18             US$20
Q3.What are the trading hours and settlement date for the different exchanges?

Countries
Singapore
Malaysia
Hong Kong
USA
Exchanges
SGX
Bursa Malaysia
HKSE
NASDAQ
NYSE / AMEX
Trading Hours

(Singapore Time)
9:00am-
12:30pm

2:00pm-
5:00pm
9:00am-
12:30pm

2:30pm-
5:00pm
10:00am-
12:30pm

2:30pm-
4:00pm
9:30pm-
4:00am

10:30pm-
5:00am*
9:30pm-
4:00am

10:30pm-
5:00am*
Settlement Date
Trade Date+3
Trade Date+3
Trade Date+2
Trade Date+3
Trade Date+3


Additional charges:
SGX Trading Fees (Contract Value x 0.0075%)
CDP Clearing Fees (Contract Value x 0.04%)
GST ((Brokerage + Trading Fees + Clearing Fees) x prevailing GST rate)


Q2: What are the securities clearing fee?

Securities Clearing Fee

The Securities Clearing Fee is at 0.04% of the contract value subject to a maximum of S$600. Fee structure is applicable to all trades (except futures, options and structured warrants) done on / after 12 February 2010.

For non-S$ contracts, the equivalent maximum clearing fee cap shall be as follows:
Settlement Currency Clearing Fee* @ 0.04%, subject to a maximum of
Australia Dollar (AUD) AUD 470.00
British Pound (GBP) GBP 265.00
Canadian Dollar (CAD) CAD 455.00
Euro (EUR) EUR 294.00
Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) HKD 3,342.00
United States Dollar (USD) USD 431.00
Japanese Yen (YEN) YEN 38,363.00

* Subject to Changes

Q3: Who can open a cash trading account?
Anyone who is above 21 years old and with no record of delinquency can open a online trading account.


Q4: What are the payment modes available?
We accept payment via:

Cash Cash payment can only be made at our Cashier Counter. Only Singapore Dollars are accepted for Cash payment.
Opening hours: 8:30am to 5:45pm (Monday to Friday, excluding Public Holidays)
Cheque
you can use Electronic Payment for Shares service (EPS) available at ATMs or through the banks’ Internet Banking website. Payment due to you will be credited directly into your bank account.
Available at: DBS/POSB, OCBC, UOB, Citibank
Download Application Form
GIRO

Outgoing payments and incoming funds are automatically directed to your bank account. Please ensure you have enough funds on the Due Date of the contract.
Available banks: DBS/POSB, OCBC, UOB
Download Application Form

Click here for Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on GIRO
Bill Payments Bills Payment service is only for payments and available on the Internet Banking services with selected banks.
Available banks: DBS/POSB, HSBC, Maybank, OCBC, Standard Chartered, UOB

Q5: Can I use my CPF funds to trade online?
Yes, you can. However, please note the following important conditions when using CPF funds to invest: -

1. Sufficient Funds/ Shares
Ensure that you have sufficient funds in your CPF Investment Account before you trade. If you are not sure of the balance you have for investing in stocks and shares, please check with your CPF custodian bank. Purchases will be revoked if there are insufficient funds in your CPF Investment Account. Your purchases may be "force-sold" and you will be liable for any losses that may arise.

When selling shares from your CPF Investment Account, please ensure there are sufficient shares in free balance in the account. If there are insufficient shares in your CPF Investment Account, the shortfall in quantity will be revoked and subject to buying-in by the SGX.

2. Authorization to settle CPF transaction
From 1 March 2000, investors who transact shares using CPF funds need only give a one-time authorization to their agent banks and the CPF Board for the settlement of transactions. Please remember to provide the CPF Investment Account to your Trading Representative or our Online Trading Helpdesk at 6799 8188 prior to your first CPF trade through the Online Trading account.

If you have forgotten to do so, the latest time for submitting your CPF Investment Account is by 5.15pm on Trade date. Otherwise, your CPF trade will be revoked and converted to a Cash trade.

3. Use of CPF funds for Investment
Investors should use the funds in their CPF Investment Account for investment only. No contra trading is allowed for transactions using CPF funds.

4. Changes in CPF Investment Account
Please update us of any changes in your CPF Investment Account. You may inform your Trading Representative or our Online Trading Helpdesk at 6799 8188.

Q6:Can I use my SRS funds to trade online?

Yes, you can. However, please note the following important conditions when using SRS funds to invest: -

1. Sufficient Funds / Shares
Ensure that you have sufficient funds in your SRS Account before you trade. If you are not sure of the balance you have for investing in stocks and shares, please check with your SRS Operator bank. Purchases will be revoked if there are insufficient funds in your SRS Account. Your purchases may be "force-sold" and you will be liable for any loses which may arise.

When selling shares from your SRS Account, please ensure there are sufficient shares in free balance in the account. If there are insufficient shares in your SRS Account, the shortfall in quantity will be revoked and subject to buying-in by the SGX.

2. Update of SRS Account prior to first SRS trade through Online Trading Account

If you have forgotten to do so, the latest time for submitting your SRS Account is by 5.15pm on Trade date. Otherwise, your SRS trade will be converted to a Cash trade.

3. Use of SRS funds for Payment of Share purchase
Investors should use the funds in their SRS account for investment only. No contra trading is allowed for transactions using SRS funds.

4. Changes in SRS Account/ Operator
Please update us of any changes in your SRS Account/ Operator bank. You may inform your Trading Representative or our Online Trading Helpdesk at 6799 8188.

Q7: What are the new restrictions on the CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS) from 1 April 2008?
With effect from 1 April 2008, you will not be able to invest the first $20,000 in your Ordinary Account and first $20,000 in your Special Account. Please click here to read more.

Q8 Can I sell shares that I have previously bought elsewhere through your broker?
Yes, you may so long as the shares are recorded in the free balance of your Securities Account with CDP.

Q9: What happens when my CPF / SRS trades are revoked by my agent bank?
Possible reasons for revocation of CPF / SRS trades to Cash trades

* exceed the 35% stock limit for CPF
* have insufficient funds in CPFIS and/or SRS accounts
* counter is not approved under CPFIS
* do not have the stockholding in the CPFIS and/or SRS accounts (for sell trades)

Payment for shares which are revoked

* Please pay us as per a CASH contract by T+3, to avoid any selling out of your shares.
* Otherwise, please sell the shares as a CASH trade within the contra period.
* For GIRO clients, payment due will not be automatically deducted from your bank account. Please call our Helpdesk if you would like the revocation to be deducted via GIRO. Please note that this is applicable only for full revocation.

Sale of your shares which have been revoked
Please sell your revoked shares as a CASH trade

Portfolio Management
Trades that have been revoked from CPF to Cash will not be reflected in your portfolio automatically. Please refer to the following instructions to amend your online portfolio manually.

(For full revocation of CPF trade to Cash trade)
1) Please delete the CPF trade from your portfolio management.
2) Select "Add Contracts" and fill in the relevant information, selecting "cash" for payment type.

(For partial revocation of CPF trade to Cash trade)
1) Please delete the CPF trade from your portfolio management.
2) Select "Add Contracts" and add in the 2 contracts of CPF trade and Cash trade separately

Q10: What are the bid sizes?
The scale of minimum bids for trading are as follows:







Q11: What are 'Pre-Open' and 'Pre-Close' routines?
* 'Pre-Open' Routine
It is a 30-minute session before regular trading starts at 0900 hrs. It comprises the 'Pre-Open Period' and the 'Non-Cancel Period'.

During the 'Pre-Open Period' (0830 to 0859 hrs), buy and sell orders can be entered, amended or withdrawn. They will not be matched and executed during this period. The 'Non-Cancel Period' is between 0859 to 0900 hrs, during which input, amendment and withdrawal of orders are not permitted. Orders that are matched are executed at a single computed price, which will be the same as or better than the price at which the orders are entered. This computed price shall be the opening price for the day. Unmatched orders will be carried forward into the regular trading session.

* 'Pre-Close' Routine
At 1700 hrs(for normal day trading) or 1230 hrs (for half-day trading), all unmatched orders are carried forward to the Pre-close Routine, which runs for 6 minutes and consists of a 'Pre-Close Period' and a 'Non-Cancel Period'.

Orders can be entered, amended or cancelled during the 'Pre-Close Period' (1700 to 1705 hrs for normal day trading or 1230 to 1235 hrs for half-day trading). During the 'Non-Cancel Period (1705 - 1706hrs for normal day trading or 1235 - 1236 for half-day trading), input, amendment and withdrawal of orders are not permitted. Orders that are matched are executed at a closing price computed for the day, while unmatched orders will become void.

Q12: Are there any trade restrictions?
Singtel A, Singtel 2 and any related bonus shares cannot be traded through the online trading system. In addition, the odd-lot and the buy-in markets are also not available.

Please contact your Trading Representatives or the Online Helpdesk at 6799 8188 should you want to trade the above.

From time to time, Lim & Tan Securities may also impose trading restrictions of specific counters or ground of shares without notice. Please refer to the "Notices" section on the Homepage.

Q13: What is a Unit Share Market?
The Unit Share Market, also known as the Odd Lot Market, allows clients to trade counters in quantities less than the standard Board Lot for the counter. The minimum trade amount is 1 share. Currently, Unit Share Market is only available for SGX listed counters.

Q14: What is short-selling?
Short-selling happens when:
a. You have a sell position without a corresponding buy position of the same counter and quantity on the same trading day.

b. You do not have the shares of the short-sold position to deliver on the due date of the sell position.

We would like to stress that short-selling is not encouraged.

Q15: What happens when I short-sell?
Effective Settlement Date: 14 December 2009
If you are unable to cover back the short position on the same trading day, and if you do not have existing shares in the free balance of your CDP account by 12pm on Trade Date +3 (Half-working Day: 8pm, on Trade Date +2), SGX regards the sale transaction as a short-sell and conducts a buying-in at 3pm, Trade Date +3. (Half-working day: 11am, Trade Date +3)

Q16: What is the penalty imposed by SGX for failed delivery?
Effective Settlement Date: 14 December 2009
If the buying-in is completed by SGX at the end of Trade Date +3, no penalty will be imposed. However, if the buying-in by SGX is unsuccessful on Trade Date +3, SGX will continue on Trade Date +4 and Trade Date +5. A penalty, of the higher of S$1000 or 5% of the value of the failed trade not bought in will be imposed.

Q17: What is the buying-in processing fees and the brokerage charged by SGX for failed trades?
SGX imposes a processing fee of S$75 + GST for each failed contract and charges a brokerage fee for buying -in contract at 0.75% + GST of contract value.

Q18: How is buying-in conducted by SGX for a short position?
Effective Settlement Date: 14 December 2009
SGX conducts buying-in on each market day, in the Buying-in Market, from 3pm - 5pm (Half-working day: 11am). SGX publishes on its website daily between 2pm - 2.30pm (Half-working day: 10.30am), a list of shares to be bought-in.

The buying-in bid price, as determined by CDP, will be 2 minimum bids above the highest of the closing price of the previous day, the reference transacted price or the reference bid price. The reference transacted price and the reference bid price will be any of the last transacted prices and bid prices in the 1 hour preceding the commencement of buying-in, as determined by CDP.

If the securities are not obtained, CDP shall have absolute discretion to raise the price bid by 2 minimum bids, as determined by SGX, from time to time throughout the Settlement Day until the securities are bought or delivered to CDP.

If the securities cannot be obtained during the Settlement Day, the buying-in shall continue on the following and successive Market Days at 2 minimum bids, as determined by SGX-ST, higher than the buying-in bid price at the close of the Settlement Day or previous Market Day, and thereafter CDP shall have absolute discretion to raise the buying-in bid price by 2 minimum bids, as determined by SGX, from time to time throughout the Market Day until the securities are bought or delivered to the CDP.

SGX will publish on its website the list of shares it had bought-in, the volume and dollar value at 8.30am the following market day.