AirAsia ChCh 11000 seats snapped up in 2 hours

Heard from a big bird, the CEO of AirAsia X himself that 11000 seats from KUL to CHC were snapped up in 2 hours. If basing on the lowest fare of 200 RM per seat, that would be an instant gross revenue of 2.2 mil. Note that the return leg of an international flight usually will be priced higher and at the destination currency. Here it is NZD.

Julian Assange wins Nobel Peace Prize?

There was a cover-up in Watergate. Then a pardon to a criminal ex-president. How unfair the world is? Yes. Then elected twice a war criminal as president. Plus hundreds years of free labour, wonder how this country could have the cheek to keep saying they are correct.

Only recent years, a US warplane "accidentally" knocked down another sovereign country plane in that country's airspace. No action taken. Well if that were to happen even close to US airspace, a war will be declared and millions of bombs laid on poor farmers again - ala Laos and Vietnam.

I haven't read any US President apologising for their military and egoistic defeat in those countries.

In recent years too, a bunch of Laotian anti-government group were arrested. They were funded by USA to create terror to Laos. Now since terror groups are outlawed, they were arrested. Imagine how shell-shocked those bunch of puppets were. Ditto to what one side of the Iran-Iraq war Santa Claus felt.

Therefore why shouldn't Julian Assange win the Nobel Peace Prize? With these wrongdoing information given to public, the wrongdoer country cannot stomach it and cannot contain it, and there is no Black Ops, Bourne Ultimatum, ThreadStone to go over.

With these publications, it is perhaps possible to show the insane nature of some US government policies. Canal, Contra, Watergate, WMD, Vietnam, Agent Orange.

Really hoping for the day, Thai people could visit USA for R and R, and paying 1 baht to 30 USD exchange rate.

AirAsia to Christchurch finally

AirAsia has finally beaten the unbeaten track. Flights from South East Asia to Christchurch, New Zealand. Almost all major airlines do not fly into this secondary airport in the Southern Island of NZ. They prefer Auckland because of capacity, population, commercial and business centre prospects.

The only airline that was doing direct flights was Singapore Airlines.

So now finally, AirAsia is opening a new floodgate.
1) The first budget airline to get into CHCH.
2) No MAS (Malaysia Airlines) flights into CHCH. Therefore, no undercutting by MAS.
3) Potentially boosting throughput at KLIA-LCCT (Low Cost Carrier Terminal) - with travellers opting to use AirAsia therefore making a stopover in LCCT.

Previously, travellers from say Thailand, Cambodia, even Malaysia, will have to to be funnelled into Changi Airport before boarding their direct flight using Singapore Airlines. Now, they will be naturally funnelled into LCCT to CHCH.

For 200 RM (80 SGD) one way to CHCH, it might even lure Singapore based travellers to take the short flight now to LCCT! So finally, after years of sitting closely and watching airplanes and tourists dollars literally flying into the Republic of Singapore, finally, some tourists dollars will land on Malaysia shores. The irony of it is the government had been totally unhelpful to AirAsia for years, by blocking routes and helping MAS indirectly and directly.

Very similar protectionism in the car industry whereby Proton is being protected, that simply doesn't help the nation and citizens.

On average the cost of a high quality imported Japanese car is 50000 RM. But due to protectionist system in place, the price is over 100000 RM. While the cost of a locally assembled "national" car, perhaps should cost less than the Japanese car - say 25000 RM. But is artificially jacked-up to 50000 RM. As you can see, the sum of it is the citizen loses by paying more for an inferior quality car (and sacrificing safety).

The car industry should not have been implemented in the first place. As you know, what you never had you will never miss. Now the "addiction" is there. Everyone has a need to own a car. It is not The Need For Speed, but The Need To Own. And alas, the 2 other important criteria to make a car-owning system works - 1) better safer larger roads and traffic system
2) better safer larger connected public transportation system
- DOES NOT EXIST.

So there you go. Two classic cases of protectionism gone wrong. And perhaps into a few politicians pocket and bank account.

Unbeatable stock picks still hold

The common question in investment is what are the safest unbeatable stocks pick please?

If you bought Genting Singapore at 2.00 recently (see previous articles), you would have gained roughly 14 cents or 7% return in a week.

The other unbeatable stock - Singtel was trading at close to $3.00.

Dangers of quantitative easing

Quantitative easing is an inefficient way to prop up the economy. In short, the process moves hot money into the economy directly, hoping it will generate jobs and have a multiplier effect. Jobs creating jobs.

The age-old example by Keynes is this: take all the gold bullion in the Treasury, get 50 trucks to transport them across the country, then use diggers to dig up 100 feet deep and bury the gold inside. Then seal it. Then get another group of contractors to use train or trucks to dig out the gold, and move them back into the Treasury vault.

The whole process is supposed to create jobs for the truckers. Jobs for managers. Jobs for insurance company to insure the cargo of gold. Jobs for coffee makers. Jobs for tyre. Jobs for petrol station. Jobs for burger flippers.

So fast forward to Quantitative Easing 2, in the year 2010. How will it be performed and why is it inefficient? This cartoon below will dispel the clouds. You will learn why QE2 is not that great for the US economy. Why the Fed is not being respected. Why Goldman Sachs seems to be untouchable as a financial institution in a very wrong sense.

AirAsia now everyone can invest

AirAsia's mantra of "Now Everyone Can Fly" is a powerful creed that touches everyone's heart and longing to go above the clouds. Everyone here of course means the average person and below. The middle-income. The backpacker. The one that could afford full fare commercial airline - but will "lose" several months of saving. Now Everyone Can Fly is a short sentence that truly touches Asian hearts. Well, at least we know in Asia, we have the biggest population of middle and low income folks. And on average, the supremacy of a foreign country such as Australian Dollar, Canadian Dollar, Euro - will always cast a shadow on an average Asian's disposable income.

The truly elusive question and litmus test is: which country can I travel to that allows my 1 unit of currency to equal 5 times of theirs? Or 3 times. Or just 2 times. None. But an Australian can be wondering (happily) the amount of food costs in say Thailand with the equivalent of a lunch in Australia that typically costs 9 AUD (270 Baht). An average Thai meal costs 50 Baht. Or 100 Baht at a equivalent Subway sandwich bar. Wow.. amazing my currency gives me 3 meals here in Asia.

So which average Thai person can "savour" the "money power" if they may have it? Let's try. Let's transport him to Indonesia. Average meals cost 20 000 Rupiah (75 Baht). That's same or more than average. Let's go to Vietnam. Supposed to also cheaper since their GDP and GNP is lower. Nope. A bowl of pho noodles costs 40 Baht. Try India. Try Laos (prices are in DOLLARS!). None. Try Zimbabwe. You won't want to visit there for a holiday would you? So Australians, you are lucky b-tards!

So the average Asian will still be average. There's no tripling of the power of your savings when travelling. Alas, this is the truth.

But one thing perhaps if you can notice how AirAsia could let you fly for the cost of a bus fare to the next pronvince, wouldn't it mean it is potential investment you can put your savings into and hoping it will triple like what the Australians magically hold in their bank savings account?

I guess if now everyone can fly, then now everyone can invest. In AirAsia.
It is definitely a no brainer to buy an airticket that costs the same bus fare from Phuket to Bangkok. And thus it is a no-brainer too to invest in the stocks of AirAsia.