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Singapore banks drop ringgit reference rate? Posted: 14 Mar 2013 06:58 PM PDT SINGAPORE: Banks in Singapore will likely abandon their reference rate for the Malaysian ringgit, a person with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, handing a victory to Malaysia's central bank as it seeks greater control over its currency market. Singapore's foreign exchange market has come under pressure for change since regulators, spurred by a global scandal over bankers rigging key lending rates, ordered reviews last autumn into various rates set by the city-state's banking association. The probes uncovered attempts by traders to manipulate Singapore's rate fixings for certain currencies, fuelling the ire of central bankers in Malaysia and Indonesia who for years have held concerns about the impact of offshore speculation on their own spot currency markets. The Association of Banks in Singapore, which is hammering out reforms to improve the integrity of its rate settings, is expected to adopt a plan that would end the daily publication of a ringgit spot price for settling derivative contracts, said the person, a banking professional with direct knowledge of the plans who did not want to be named as the plans were not public. A spokesman for the Association of Banks in Singapore declined to comment on the matter. The Monetary Authority of Singapore provided no comment. No final decision has been made on whether to discontinue the offshore ringgit rate and discussions are continuing about how to reform the system, several banking sources involved in the process have told Reuters. Even the consideration of dropping the offshore ringgit rate shows the pressure Singapore faces from its neighbours and the impact of the global regulatory push for greater transparency in over-the-counter derivatives. The association has not shown any movement toward ending Singapore's rate fixing for the Indonesian rupiah, which market players say lacks a reliable spot reference rate in its home country compared with Malaysia's reference rate for the ringgit. Over the past two years, the Singapore fixing has consistently quoted the rupiah at rates against the dollar that are weaker than the onshore rates, with the spread widening as far as 250 rupiah at the start of this year. The spread between onshore and offshore rates for the ringgit fixing is usually close to zero. The derivatives priced against the reference rates, known as non-deliverable forwards (NDFs), are instrumental for companies, investors and traders seeking to hedge currency risk in countries where capital controls restrict foreign money flows. With the end of Singapore's ringgit rate, banks trading ringgit NDFs would refer to a benchmark published by the foreign exchange industry association in Malaysia, the person said. That would still fall short of the ideal solution - a benchmark based on actual transactions - but it would be better than the offshore model, said Joseph Cherian, director of the Centre for Asset Management Research & Investments at NUS Business School in Singapore. "When vested interests like offshore bankers set reference rates, be it interest or foreign exchange, and have their profit and loss - and by extension, their compensation - determined by the very rates they set, the temptation to do wrong is always high," he said. Singapore's NDF market is one of the world's largest with turnover that can reach billions of dollars per day. Most trade is in the Indian rupee, for which reference rates are overseen by India's central bank, and in Southeast Asian currencies. Some central banks, including Indonesia's, have long complained that speculation by NDF traders has made the spot rates for their currencies more volatile. To determine Singapore's daily currency reference rates for the ringgit, a panel of 15 banks submits estimates of onshore spot rates every trading day. The fixing takes the average of bank contributions, after removing the top and bottom quarter of submissions. Thomson Reuters, parent of Reuters news, acts as the agent for the Association of Banks in Singapore, collecting and calculating the rates. A similar process is used for interbank lending rates in Singapore and other financial centres around the world. The move to a locally set rate is both a vote of confidence in the credibility of Malaysia's onshore rates, and a signal of banks' reluctance to remain involved in an offshore rate-setting process that has become mired in controversy. It also reflects momentum for regulators to crack down on rate fixing systems after last year's scandal over the setting of the benchmark London interbank offered rate (Libor), which found traders worldwide were manipulating daily lending rates tied to more than US$600 trillion worth of securities. The review into Libor in London is proposing to reduce the number of interest rate benchmarks and tighten the oversight of the rate-setting process.-- Reuters

KL shares open mixed in early trading Posted: 14 Mar 2013 07:03 PM PDT Share prices were mixed in early trading Friday after two days of losses on renewed buying interest in lower liners, dealers said. At 9.15am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) eased 0.91 of a point to 1,639.83. It had opened 0.61 of a point better at 1,641.35. HwangDBS Vickers Research Sdn Bhd said the bellwether FBM KLCI could extend its recovery after bouncing up from a trough of 1,635.87 yesterday. "For the time being, we expect the benchmark index to swing between its immediate support and resistance levels of 1,635 and 1,655, respectively," HwangDBS said in a research note today. Meanwhile, the key US equity indices posted an overnight rebound of between 0.4 per cent and 0.6 per cent as sentiments were boosted by a drop in jobless claims. "As such, Asian equities will probably show a positive bias when trading resumes today," the research firm said. Meanwhile, the Plantation Index lost 13.46 points to 7,896.8, the Industrial Index fell 10.08 points to 2,815.48 while the Finance Index dwindled 12.54 points to 15,277.51. The FBM Emas Index declined 3.97 points to 11,219.51, the FBMT100 shed 5.52 points to 11,059.37, the FBM Mid 70 Index went down 3.15 points to 12,463.48 and the FBM Ace Index slid 10.03 points to 3,963.21. Gainers outnumbered losers 89 to 63, with 103 counters unchanged, 1,387 untraded and 20 others suspended. Turnover stood at 54.34 million shares worth RM35.21 million. Among actives, Luster Industries and MNC Wireless earned half sen each to 10.5 sen and 11 sen, respectively, Sanichi Technology added one sen to 12.5 sen, while Censof Holdings eased half sen to 43 sen. Heavyweights, Maybank rose four sen to RM9.25, CIMB slipped two sen to RM7.07, while Sime Darby and Axiata were flat at RM9.19 and RM6.39, respectively.-- Bernama

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Pope Francis begins first full day with prayer in Rome - Fox News Posted: 14 Mar 2013 09:01 AM PDT March 14, 2013: Newly elected Pope Francis I, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, makes a private visit to the 5th-century Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, in a photo released by Osservatore Romano in Rome. Pope Francis, barely 12 hours after his election, quietly left the Vatican early on Thursday to pray for guidance as he looks to usher a Roman Catholic Church mired in intrigue and scandal into a new age of simplicity and humility.Reuters Pope Francis began his first day as leader of the Catholic Church by stopping by his hotel to pick up his luggage and pay the bill himself, before praying at Rome's main basilica dedicated to the Virgin Mary. He entered the St. Mary Major basilica through a side entrance just after 8 a.m. and left about 30 minutes later. "He spoke to us cordially, like a father," Father Ludovico Melo, a priest who prayed with Pope Francis, told Reuters. "We were given 10 minutes' advance notice that the pope was coming." Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected by his peers Wednesday evening as the new pope, becoming the first pontiff from the Americas. He had told a crowd of some 100,000 people packed in rain-soaked St. Peter's Square just after his election that he intended to pray Friday to the Madonna "that she may watch over all of Rome." Bergoglio chose the name Francis, drawing connections to the humble 13th-century saint who saw his calling as trying to rebuild the church in a time of turmoil. The main item on Francis' agenda Thursday was an inaugural afternoon Mass in the Sistine Chapel. Francis is expected to outline some of his priorities as pope in the homily. Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said it would likely be delivered in Italian, another break from the traditional-minded Benedict whose first homily as pope was in Latin. On Thursday morning, members of his flock were charmed when Francis stopped by the Vatican-owned residence where he routinely stays during visits to Rome. The Rev. Pawel Rytel-Andrianek, who teaches at the nearby Pontifical Holy Cross University and is staying at the residence, said he didn't just come to get his luggage, noting that anyone could have come to get his suitcases. "He wanted to come here because he wanted to thank the personnel, people who work in this house," he said. Francis met with the staff in the dining room. "He greeted them one by one, no rush, the whole staff, one by one," Rytel-Andrianek said, noting that the pope knew everyone by name. "People say that he never in these 20 years asked for a (Vatican) car," he said. "Even when he went for the conclave with a priest from his diocese, he just walked out to the main road, he picked up a taxi and went to the conclave. So very simple for a future pope." Francis has also spoken by phone with Benedict, who became the first pope to resign in 600 years and has been living at the papal retreat in Castel Gandolfo. Francis was expected to visit him this week, but a Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Thomas Rosica, said Francis wouldn't make the trip to Castel Gandolfo on Thursday, and probably wouldn't go Friday, either. The visit is significant because Benedict's resignation has raised concerns about potential power conflicts emerging from the peculiar situation of having a reigning pope and a retired one. As the long-time archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis has spent nearly his entire career at home in Argentina, overseeing churches and shoe-leather priests. In choosing a 76-year-old pope, the cardinals clearly decided that they didn't need a vigorous, young pope who would reign for decades but rather a seasoned, popular and humble pastor who would draw followers to the faith and help rebuild a church stained by scandal. Groups of supporters waved Argentine flags Wednesday night in St. Peter's Square as Francis, wearing simple white robes, made his first public appearance as pope. Chants of "Long live the pope!" arose from the throngs of faithful, many with tears in their eyes. Crowds went wild as the Vatican and Italian military bands marched through the square and up the steps of the basilica, followed by Swiss Guards in silver helmets and full regalia. Francis appeared on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica just after a church official announced "Habemus Papum" -- "We have a pope" -- and gave Bergoglio's name in Latin. "Ladies and Gentlemen, good evening," he said to wild cheers before making a reference to his roots in Latin America, which accounts for about 40 percent of the world's Roman Catholics. Francis asked for prayers for himself, and for retired Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, whose resignation paved the way for the conclave that brought the first Jesuit to the papacy. "You know that the work of the conclave is to give a bishop to Rome," Francis said. "It seems as if my brother cardinals went to find him from the end of the earth. Thank you for the welcome." Bergoglio has shown a keen political sensibility as well as the kind of self-effacing humility that fellow cardinals value highly, according to his official biographer, Sergio Rubin. He showed that humility on Wednesday, saying that before he blessed the crowd he wanted their prayers for him and bowed his head. "Good night, and have a good rest," he said before going back into the palace. In a lifetime of teaching and leading priests in Latin America, which has the largest share of the world's Catholics, Francis has been known for modernizing an Argentine church that had been among the most conservative in Latin America. Like other Jesuit intellectuals, Bergoglio has focused on social outreach. Catholics are still buzzing over his speech last year accusing fellow church officials of hypocrisy for forgetting that Jesus Christ bathed lepers and ate with prostitutes. Francis, the son of middle-class Italian immigrants, is known as a humble man who denied himself the luxuries that previous Buenos Aires cardinals enjoyed. Bergoglio often rode the bus to work, cooked his own meals and regularly visited the slums that ring Argentina's capital. He came close to becoming pope in 2005, reportedly gaining the second-highest vote total in several rounds of voting before he bowed out of the running in the conclave that elected Pope Benedict XVI. American Cardinal Timothy Dolan gave an inside glimpse into the drama of the conclave in his talk at the American seminary. When the tally reached the necessary 77 votes to make Bergoglio pope, Dolan said, the cardinals erupted in applause. And when he accepted the momentous responsibility thrust upon him -- ''there wasn't a dry eye in the place," Dolan recounted. After the princes of the church had congratulated the new pope one by one, other Vatican officials wanted to do the same, but Francis preferred to go outside and greet the throngs of faithful. ''Maybe we should go to the balcony first," Dolan recalled the pope as saying. Elected on the fifth ballot, Francis was chosen in one of the fastest conclaves in years, remarkable given there was no clear front-runner going into the vote and that the church had been in turmoil following the upheaval unleashed by Benedict's surprise resignation. For comparison's sake, Benedict was elected on the fourth ballot in 2005 -- but he was the clear front-runner going into the vote. Pope John Paul II was elected on the eighth ballot in 1978 to become the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. In choosing to call himself Francis, the new pope was linking himself with the much-loved Italian saint from Assisi associated with peace, poverty and simplicity. St. Francis was born to a wealthy family but later renounced his wealth and founded the Franciscan order of friars; he wandered about the countryside preaching to the people in very simple language. He was so famed for his sanctity that he was canonized just two years after his death in 1226. Francis will be installed officially as pope on Tuesday, on the feast of St. Joseph, patron saint of the universal church, according to Vatican spokesman Lombardi. Lombardi, also a Jesuit, said he was particularly stunned by the election given that Jesuits typically shun positions of authority in the church, instead offering their work in service to those in power. But Lombardi said that in accepting the election, Francis must have felt it "a strong call to service," an antidote to all those who speculated that the papacy was about a search for power. In an interesting twist the Jesuits were expelled from all of the Americas in the mid-18th century. Now, a Latin American Jesuit has been elected head of the 1.2-billion strong Catholic Church. The Associated Press contributed to this report.   Print   Email   Share   Comments Recommend Tweet Related Video Pope Francis blesses crowd in St. Peter's Square Joy in Latin America as Catholic Church makes history Habemus papam: Pope Francis World's 1.2 billion Catholics have their new leader Cardinal Wuerl: Catholic Church 'looks into the future' 'Humility' key to papacy of Pope Francis? A new pope has been elected Related Slideshow Argentine Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio named new pope Share This Article Newsletter Signup Sign up for free e-mail news alerts from FoxNews.com and FoxBusiness.com. 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Most New York Gun Shows to Add Steps to Ensure Background Checks - New York Times Posted: 14 Mar 2013 08:37 AM PDT By THOMAS KAPLAN Published: March 14, 2013 ALBANY — The overwhelming majority of New York state gun show operators have agreed to new rules to ensure that criminal and mental health background checks are conducted on buyers. The agreement was reached after undercover agents from the state attorney general's office were able to purchase weapons, including three AR-15 rifles, without any screening at half a dozen gun shows around the state. The operators, with shows from White Plains to Cheektowaga, have also agreed to a broader system to track firearms at their shows and to guard against illegal sales in parking lots. The agreement was negotiated by the New York attorney general, Eric T. Schneiderman, who had brought criminal charges against the sellers identified in the sting. The new gun show procedures for New York come as Congress debates whether to require universal background checks for gun sales, including private sales at gun shows. New York law has required such checks since 2000, but Mr. Schneiderman said there was ample evidence that the rules were not being followed. "Our goal is to have 100 percent of the gun show operators on board, and then we have a good example for other states to follow," Mr. Schneiderman, a Democrat, said. "Once we demonstrate how easy this is, and how it keeps people safe, it weakens the arguments on the federal level that guaranteeing background checks are overly burdensome or face meaningful opposition." The 23 operators who have agreed to the new protocols are responsible for more than 80 percent of gun show sales in the state. The investigators, posing as buyers, were able to purchase firearms even after they had told the sellers that they had orders of protection against them, in which case they would fail background checks. Among the weapons purchased were the AR-15 rifles, like the one that was used in the elementary school massacre in Newtown, Conn., in December. "The truth of the matter is most responsible gun show operators and gun owners in America want people to have background checks," Mr. Schneiderman said. "The overwhelming majority of the folks I've talked to on this are crystal clear that they do not want people who have criminal backgrounds or mental health problems to get guns." Mr. Schneiderman had brought criminal charges against the sellers who failed to run background checks. His office also accused the operators of failing to comply with a state law that requires them to post signs about the background check requirement and notify exhibitors about it. But in lieu of pursuing civil action against them, he sought to develop the new set of statewide security procedures. The regulation of guns has been a major subject of debate in Albany in the wake of the Newtown shootings. In January, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo pushed through the Legislature a package of new gun laws, including an expanded ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, as well as a requirement that background checks be conducted for private gun sales that do not take place at gun shows. The shows have long been a major area of concern for advocates of gun control. Many states do not regulate the events, or have only modest rules for them; New York is one of only a small number of states that requires background checks for private sales at shows. Dr. Garen J. Wintemute, the director of the Violence Prevention Research Program at the University of California, Davis, described New York's new measures as a good step. "It's clear that undocumented private-party sales are an important way for either prohibited persons or those who are getting guns with criminal intent to get those guns," Dr. Wintemute said. "The majority of them probably occur elsewhere — many of them these days occur on the Internet — but you do what you can do." Under the state procedures, participating gun-show operators are to track the firearms that go in and out of their events. Most shows will use a system in which guns brought by private sellers are tagged at the show's entrance with the name of the owner or seller and the gun's serial number. When someone buys a gun from a private seller at the show and passes a background check, a second tag will be affixed to the gun as documentation that the screening was conducted. When guns are taken out of the show, they will be checked to ensure that either the gun is leaving with the owner or seller who brought it in, or has a second tag to confirm that a background check was done for the new owner. The procedures developed by Mr. Schneiderman's office also try to increase security in other ways, with operators limiting the number of entrances and exits to their shows, posting conspicuous signs publicizing the background-check requirement and notifying local law enforcement officials of the shows, so they can monitor them and patrol the area to deter sellers from working outside. The new procedures have already been tested at a number of gun shows this year, including one in Oneonta earlier this month. That show's organizer, Sandy Ackerman Klinger, who also hosts major shows at Empire State Plaza in Albany and the State Fairgrounds near Syracuse, said the only hiccup at the Oneonta event was some crowding at the show's entrance. She said gun show operators did not have a problem with what the attorney general's office was asking of them, even if some sellers were skeptical. "They get a little bit nervous, understandably, but the first thing I say is, if you want to have another show and want to keep having shows, we want to keep doing everything right," she said. While this agreement has been reached with 23 gun show operators, Mr. Schneiderman said he hoped that he would have 100 percent compliance by the end of the year.

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