Stock Market, and then some

There's this article in Inquirer today which discussed the difference between saving and being miserly. I really hate it when people say refer to others as kuripot (being miserly) since each person has his own way of saving up or cutting down on costs. Who are we to say which route would the best way to go about it?

Another thing that annoys me is when people refer to me as Intsik (Chinese) when I discuss the options on how to earn more, be it from side businesses or investment options. So what's so wrong with wanting to get the most of what you have, and more if possible? I'm actually looking at this plan from Manulife wherein I pay a fixed amount for 10 years, and upon the plan's maturity (20 years), my investment would have earned 162% already. Well of course, the annual interest would vary depending on the market conditions, but the range of 4 to 8% is not so bad anymore. At least this kind of investment has an assured return, instead of investing it in a bond fund (mutual fund or UITF) wherein the principal is not assured though the returns is in roughly the same range. And compared to a time deposit or savings account (which is 2.25% and 1% respectively) that is still subject to 20% withholding tax, 4% per annum is not bad at all.

I discussed this with two other officemates since 1 of them was also considering the same plan I was looking at. We were trying to convince our other officemate about the benefits of the plan, only to be called "Intsik ka talaga, and that's derogatory".

Now that I think about it, do you mean the term Intsik is derogatory, or are you dissing me now? I didn't bother clarifying that anymore. Bottomline is, so what if I want to earn more? I'm not doing it illegally so what's up with that?

Anyhow, I attended this seminar last week, and another one last night (Tecnical Analysis in Stock Trading, and Market Outlook 2008). According to them, should the PSEi breach 2850 points after the double test of support, then the Phil market would officially be in the bear market already. As of today (30 Jan 2008), the PSEi closed at 3,256.53, so it's still far off from the 2850 range. I just hope that the market doesnt reach the 2900 level since I'd be forced to sell all my position, or hold until the next bull run. during the seminar last night, the speaker mentioned that the 75-B Stimulus Fund has been approved by President Arroyo already, so here's to hoping that I feel the benefit of the supposed income tax reduction as well as the reduction in electricity rates.