Culture of Openness and Transparency

FROM POLICYHOLDER TO MY MANAGER WHO ATTENDED TO HIS REQUEST

I am also taking this opportunity to thank Mr Tan KL for his immediate response.

I wish to let him know that his "tankinlian.blogspot.com" website provides useful information of general interest in allowing persons (not only policyholders) to air their views on Income's business practices, and also allowing for policyholders to air their grievances, if any.

This culture of openness and transparency is not usually found wanting in general when financial institutions market their insurance and investment products.

Income has been very successful in its short history (compared with other older insurers) and its business practices are very focused on consumer interests and protection. It has shown itself to be a good corporate citizen in its support of the arts and sports (especially the huge financial support for the sleague to ensure its success).

This customer prefer to come to Business Center

Dear Mr Tan

I like this new way of seeking information from NTUC product specialist instead of an agent serving me. Agents tend to push products which earn them more commission than needed for me - the client. Agents are only good if they are my personal friend who truly care for me.

Unfortunately I've no such 'friends' with NTUC Income despite all my insurance policies are with Income.

Your specialist has been prompt in answering my questions about enhanced incomeshield and plus rider even over weekends.

All his answers to my queries are clear and now I can go ahead to change my incomeshield and add the plus rider. I really appreciate his service.

Customer enjoy our educational talks

Hello Mr Tan,

Just a little note to say thank you for all those informative educational seminars. I have been an income policyholder since 1984 and have had also bought several other policies since then.

I still remember the pighead story which you shared with the audience during one of your talks quite some time back. Not to worry as the good will always truimphs the evil! It always reminded me of the "sloggy" and "suspicious" counterclaims for my car insurance way back.

Thanks again for your busy time. Most of the time, when I prefer to buy insurance from Income, mainly due to your leadership for the co-operative.

Travel insurance covers loss due to closure of agency

Editor
Today Paper

We refer to your article, "Ananda suspends business, settles refunds", (TODAY, 26 Jul).

Travellers are encouraged to take up travel insurance plans whenever they go overseas to protect themselves against any unpleasant circumstances that might arise as has happened in this case.

People tend to buy travel insurance at the last minute, before departure. We advise that travel insurance should be activated as soon as the deposit is paid, as most comprehensive travel insurance would have a trip cancellation benefit. The premium is the same regardless of when the purchase was made.

This benefit covers the non-refundable portion of all travel costs prepaid in advance should the trip be cancelled due to circumstances stated in the policy terms. For example, serious illness or injury sustained by the traveler or his family members or bankruptcy or insolvency of the travel agent or airline.

NTUC Income's travel insurance covers up to as much as $10,000 for trip cancellation. To provide better peace of mind for policyholders, our affordable yet comprehensive travel insurance plans also cover terrorism and natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunami and floods. Cover can be activated immediately with simple phone call to our hotline at 96INCOME (9646 2663).

Regular travelers, including those who make frequent trips to Johore and Batam, may also find it more economical to take up annual plans.

More information can be obtained from our website, www.income.coop/insurance/travel.

Freddy Neo
General Manager

Is it possible to buy direct and enjoy a bigger discount?

A visitor read my blog that the commission rates paid to our advisers are 30% to 50% lower than the market. He asked if it is possible to buy directly from NTUC Income and get a further discount?

MY REPLY:

Our premium rates are already much lower than the market for similar products. This is possible due to the lower commission rates paid to our adviser.

If you come directly to us, we still need to pay the salary of the consultants at our business center. This is barely covered by the savings in the commission. So, we are not able to give a further discount.

If we are able to enjoy further savings, we will use the savings to give a better return to all policyholders, through higher reversionary bonuses.

Some customers are willing to come to the business center for the same premium, as they feel more comfortable about talking to a salaried consultant. They do not feel under pressure to buy the product.

Actually, our advisers are also not pushy. They are willing to give advice to customers by e-mail and telephone, and to refer them to the internet website for information. This is just as good as visiting the business center.

FAQ: The Right Insurance Plan

1. Why is it important to have life assurance?

Life is uncertain. If anything unexpected happens to you, life insurance can provide a sum of money to take care of the financial needs of your family.

You can also use life insurence to make savings for your future needs, for example, after your retire from work.

2. Who should I buy it from?

You can buy life insurance from any of more than a dozen companies. But, we recommend that you buy it from NTUC Income.

NTUC Income is a cooperative society. We keep our cost low and pay a smaller share of profits to shareholders. This allows our policyholders to pay a lower premium and can enjoy a higher return on your savings.

Many of our policyholders find that the payout from NTUC Income on the maturity of their insurance policy is 10% to 20% higher than similar products from other insurance companies. If the payout is $100,000, the difference can be more than $10,000. That is a lot of money.

3. What is the right life insurance plan?

It depends on your financial situation and your needs.

For most young people, their need is to have financial security for the family and to make additional savings for their future. A whole life or endowment policy is more suitable for them.

For older people, their need is to earn a higher return on their cash and CPF savings. They can invest in a fund to earn a higher return. But they have to be aware of the risk and learn how to turn risk into an advantage.

They also need insurance to pay for their medical bills and to cover losses due to accidents and other risks.

An insurance adviser can help you.

4. How do I find an adviser?

You can call 6877 3366, if you wish to have an insurance adviser to see you in your home.

You can also visit our business center at Bras Basah Road or Tampines Point to talk to our salaried consultant.

5. Can I get more information, without seeing an adviser?

You can visit our website at www.income.coop. It contains a lot of information about our products and services. You will find it easy to search for the information that you need. About 10,000 people visit our website daily.

You can also visit an educational website called www.knowyourinsurance.com.sg. You can spend 20 minutes to learn about a common insurance products and to take a simple test. About 300 people visit daily.

You can visit this website to see a comparison of financial products: www.askdrmoney.com.

You can also attend an educational talk conducted very week. Call 6877 3366.

Insurance Adviser wish to return to NTUC Income

Dear Mr Tan Kin Lian,

I shall be very grateful if you could approve my application for the post of an Organizer with NTUC INCOME.

I was with NTUC INCOME from .... to ..... as a Development Officer and moved over to .... to be a FA representative in Aug 2004. Prior to joining NTUC INCOME, I was with another insurance company from 4 years. In all, I have more than 17 years of experience in the insurance industry.

Sir, please give me an opportunity to come back and work as an Organizer.

MY REPLY

We welcome you back. My colleague will contact you.

Happy birthday - Time to review your investments!

QUESTION:

Hi Tan,

A big "Thank you" for the Birthday Wishes.

Who is the best in your team to teach me about various Unit Trust Fees structures in the Market ( like monthly Wrap Fees etc., ) ... also looking for some comparative note on how various Financial Investments companies operating here .. ( for example dollar-dex, fundsupermarket, IFAST, NTUC Income etc., ).

It is lovely, when I forget all birthdays, including my own, to find that somebody remembers me.
~Ellen Glasgow

MY REPLY:

Dear
Here are some links that you will find useful:

http://www.askdrmoney.com
http://www.income.coop/fund/coopprices.asp
www.tankinlian.blogspot.com

I will ask ........ to contact and advise you.

Agent ask about our commission rates

QUESTION:

Mr Tan. I am an agent of .... I read your blog about migrating to NTUC Income. I understand that your commission rate is lower than my company. Why should I move over?

MY REPLY:

Our commision rate is about 30% to 50% lower than other insurance companies. This allows us to lower the premium to our policyholders and give them a better return on their savings.

Our agents find it easier to sell our products, as customers approach them directly.

We also generate leads from existing customers to give to our agents. This helps our agents to reduce the time taken to close a sale. Some of the sales can be done through the telephone, without a visit.

Most of our agents are able to close 2 or 3 times the volume of sales. They can earn a higher income.

They can also face their customers in the future and say, "I offered you a good product that gives a better return to you".

Several agents who have migrated to NTUC Income are now our champion producers. Previously, when the worked for their previous company, they could hardly meet the sales quota.

Kind remark from a visitor

I receive this kind remark from a visitor who read by blog.

Mr Tan,

I am surprised that, as you CEO, you are willing to attend to questions from your customers.

I read your blog about the customer who insist that you attend to his matter, even though the matter can be handled by your colleague.

By being accessible, are you taking the risk that many customers will want to bypass your colleagues and want you to attend to their matter personally? How can you find the time? Is it stressful?

I hope that you can sort out the good from the bad, and still be accessible to your customers to give their suggestions and views.

Living policy by limited premiums

Some customers like to take a Whole Life policy that covers 30 dread diseases, and they want to pay their premium for a certain number of years only, ie not for life.

They ask NTUC Income to offer this plan.

We will be introducing this plan in about 3 months time. I have to alert them that the premium will be much higher than a whole life policy.

For example, if you insure $50,000 with premiums payable for life, you may have to pay a premium of about $1,000 (actually, it depends on your age).

If you take a 20 year payment policy, you may have to pay 2 times of the premium, or more. This is due to the shorter premium period.

Alternatively, you can take a smaller policy to fit your budget.

Unemployed workers refuse to work in retail industry

A report in the Straits Times said that there are 70,000 unemployed workers in Singapore, but they do not want to work in the retail industry. The employers have to look for foreign workers.

Why?

I think that they find it difficult to cope with the difficult Singaporean customers. Some customers are quite demanding. They have high and unreasonable expectation of service and are not forgiving of mistakes. It is quite stressful to deal with them.

Many years ago, NTUC Income had difficult to recruit people to work in the frontline to serve customers - i.e. at our call center, service center or branches.

We manage to solve this problem, and are now able to get people to work at these places and to stay there. We still have difficulty, but not as much as other organisations.

What is our strategy? If you are in Human Resource management and are interested to know, send an e-mail to me at tankl@income.coop.

A second chance to develop your career in insurance sales

If you have a licence as an insurance agent, and you find it difficult to meet the sales quote of your company, maybe you should migrate to NTUC Income. We give you a second chance to develop your career in insurance sales.

Here is how we are different:

* we generate leads from our 500,000 direct customers
* we offer value products, ie lower premium and better return
* many products can be sold over the telephone

If you are interested to try this "marketing of the future", you can call 6877 3366.

Replies to comments posted in my blog

A few visitors posted comments that disagree with me. Some of the comments are quite personal and uncalled for. I will leave them in my blog for other people to make their own judgement.

If anyone wish to ask a specific question that is important to you, please send an e-mail to me at tankl@income.coop. I will answer them myself or get my colleague to reply to you.

Some of the people who posted their comments obviously work for my competitors. They are agents of other insurance companies or financial advisers marketing unit trusts. They argue that their products are better. Maybe, they are right. I will let the customers make their own judgement.

Some unit trusts are available at no front end charge. But, you have to be careful about their annual fee. It may be 1.5% or 2%. They may also have trailer charge. So, you just have to make sure that you have the correct comparison.

You can also visit Dr Money's website, at www.askdrmoney.com. He makes a comparison of the charges of unit trusts and insurance funds.

All the best.

Policyholder invest $50,000 on his birthday

My insurance adviser told this story.

Quote:

I called my policyholder this morning at 10 am to wish Happy Birthday. I was surprised. My policyholder told me that my CEO is earlier than me. He SMS the policyholder at 8 am to wish him Happy Birthday.

Because of my CEO's message, my policyholder wanted to invest an additional $50000 in our Combined Growth Fund.

Why do your colleagues block e-mails to the CEO?

A policyholder asked why my colleagues block e-mails to the CEO. Here is my reply:

Dear

You ask why emails to me are blocked by my colleagues. Normally, my colleagues attend to the routine matters, and will refer to me only those matters that need my attention.

Even if your e-mail does reach me, I am not able to answer specifically the questions that you have raised, and will need to refer them to my colleagues who handles them anyway.

You were unhappy about the delay in responding to your request for upgrading.

During this period, my colleagues are overwhelmed by 60,000 requests for upgrading into the Enhanced Incomeshield plan. This has caused a lot of backlog with its own set of problems. As they are highly stressed, there is some delay and drop in standard of service. Please accept our apology.

Customer prefer to insure with NTUC Income

FROM CUSTOMER

Hi Mr Tan,

I am a policyholder of Income's Living Policy.

Recently, I found out that there is a kind of insurance policy that provides the same whole life coverage as Living Policy, but which requires policholders to pay the premium for a limited period only (e.g. 20 years).

Your staff has told me that Income has a similar policy known as Protection AD. However, Protection AD DOES NOT PAY the Sum Assured upon diagnosis of the 30 Dreaded Diseases.

I wonder if Income is planning to launch such a whole-life-but-term-payment insurance policy?

MY REPLY

We intend to launch a similar product in three months time. It will give better value to our customers, compared to similar products in the market. I will ask my colleague to send you some detail in 1 month's time, when our premium rates and yield to maturity are available.

FROM CUSTOMER

Dear Mr Tan,

Thank you very much for your prompt reply! I am delighted to hear this piece of good news!

I had actually bought Asia LifeSecure, but I cancelled it during the free-look period; I was hoping that Income would launch a similar product but with a more affordable premium.

Do not allow the adviser to churn your CPF investment

Recently, there is some articles in the newspaper about "churning" of investments using CPF savings. Let me explain what the issue is.

Churning takes place when there is unnecessary buying and selling of investment in order to generate income for the insurance adviser.

A customer has to incur a front-end spread (ie the difference between the bid and offer price), when investing in this product. Most companies charge a spread of 5%. NTUC Incomes charges a lower spread of 3.5%.

If the investment is sold within a short time, there is insufficient time to realise a good return to recover the front end cost. We advise CPF funds to be invested for the long term and not for short term speculation.

NTUC Income is against churning, as it is at the expense of policyholders. We pay a lower rate of commission to our insurance advisers. They do not have the incentive to churn. Our supervisor call the policyholder at the time of purchase to ensure that they properly understand their investment and the features of the product.

We have the lowest rate of early surrenders in the industry. If a customer wishes to surrender his investment, we explain the disadvantages of early surrender. We also provide them with other options such as switching from one fund to another so that they avoid high front end cost.

Radio Ad on Flexi-Cash

Our insurance consultant in the business center obtained a lead from Hotline from a customer who heard our radio ad. The customer was impressed with the ad on Flexicash.

She signed up $15,000 and mentioned that "your CEO says that we can earn 3% or more , I take his word"

Dance Appreciation Series at the Esplanade

The Singapore Dance Theatre is partnering with The Esplanade to introduce several interesting dance items at a special price of only $10 per person (plus $1 SISTIC fee).

Normally, a dance performance cost between $50 to $100 in Singapore. We are offering a special price to encourage more people to appreciate and enjoy this art form. The dance items are choreographed by world famous and local choreographers

Do not miss this wonderful opportunity. Book your ticket early.

Date: 14 August, 15 August, 6 September 2006
Time: 4 p.m (1 hour performance)
Venue: Esplanade Concert Hall

Tickets: Esplanade Box Office & SISTIC's outlets. SISTIC Hotline: 63485555

ETUDES An Introduction to Class
Excepts from THE NUTCRACKER by Jeffrey Tan
DYING SWAN by Thierry Malandain
BOLERO by Thierry Malandain

Advertisement: Soar in your Insurance Sales

If you already have an life insurance licence, and find it difficult to meet the sales quota, you are working for the wrong company.

Come to NTUC Income. You can enjoy:

* products that are easy to sell
* better value for your customers, from a cooperative
* attractive rate of commission, payable upfront
* sales leads from our large customer base
* ease of marketing through product FAQ
* marketing through the telephone
* monthly advance to provide at least $2,500

Do not be stuck with the old way of marketing life insurance.
Move to the marketing of the future.

Call 6877 3366 or visit www.mailbox.coop/0001 (available from 28 July)

New system for Incomeshield helps to clear the backlog

Here is a report from my head of Group & Health Department.

We have recently introduced a new computer system to handle the upgrade to Enhanced
Incomeshield. It works well and is able to clear many cases efficiently.

We have processed more than 20,000 cases (out of 60,000) that do not require underwriting. However, we continue to receive 10,000 new requests each week. We anticipate this will only start to slow down next month.

We expect to clear the backlog completely by Sep 2006. For new requests received at our enhanced@income.com.sg, we send an email reply of acknowledgement to the sender on the same day.

AIA policyholders have to pay premium longer than projected earlier

The Straits Times reported that policyholders of AIA have to continue to pay more premium, i.e. longer duration of premium payment. This was due to poor investment returns.

As many as 120,000 policies are affected. These are the policyholders who bought the Financial Guardian, Choice Life and Prime Life.

Many years ago, when the advisers from NTUC Income approached me to make the same projections to the policyholders, I refused to do so. I think that it is too speculative.

But, the agents from AIA did roaring business by making this projection. Now their policyholders are disappointed and have to suffer in silence.

NTUC Income does not use marketing gimmicks to sell our products. We offer "honest" insurance products that are fair and good for our customers.

Flexi-Cash: it takes 12 days to recover the initial spread

A policyholder invested $200,000 in the FlexiCash and monitored the price movements. He found that it was still making a loss after a few days. He compared to a ban deposit that shows the interest accruing immediately.

Here is my explanation.

Dear

There is a spread of 0.1% when you make your investment. This is the difference between the offer and bid price of the unit. When you make an investment, you pay a spread of $200.

The bid price is expected to grow based on the yield of the money market rate fund. Based on the current rate, the yield should be 3%. It can go up and down according to the money market.

It will take about 12 days to earn enough to cover the spread. After that, you can earn more.

The advantage of Flexi-Cash is the higher interest rate and no lock-in period. The slight disadvantage, compared to a bank deposit, is the initial spread, which takes 12 days to recover.

During the promotion period, which spread is 0.1%. After the promotion, the spread will be increased to 0.25%. At that time, it will take about 30 days to earn enough to cover the spread.

I hope that this explanation is clear to you. I will put it in the FAQ so that this point is clearer.

A few months to clear our backlog. Sorry.

FROM POLICYHOLDER

Dear Mr Tan,

I am a big fan of NTUC income. In fact, most of my insurance policies and those of my family are from Income. However, I really have to feedback to you that Income’s back room operation is one of the slowest I have ever seen.

Previously, I waited for 6 months to receive my policy document for SAFRA living care. And that is after 3 calls and 1 email to chase after the document. The reasons given by your staff was that the computer system went through some migration.

Currently, I am waiting for the Incomeshield rider confirmation for my children, which I had made payment 2 months ago. I cannot help but wonder, what is going on inside Income?

All the best to Income.

MY REPLY

Dear

I must admit that my group and health dept, which handles SAFRA and Incomeshield, is in a mess right now.

We received 60,000 requests for upgrading into Enhanced Incomeshield. My staff absolutely could not cope with the work volume. Guess what, one third resigned.

Give us a few months to sort out the backlog. In the meantime, I am sorry that there is nothing that we can do about the delay. Just be patient.

FROM POLICYHOLDER

Dear Mr Tan,

Thanks for the prompt reply. Really appreciate it. I hope you can find more capable men to assist you.

One suggestion is to find part-time housewives or students during school holidays to help with all the paper work.

Another way is to outsource some jobs to other companies. Try out 1/3 and 2/3 rule. 2/3 inhouse and 1/3 outsource.

I hope I am not too nosey.

MY REPLY

Thank you. We actually have help from the other depts. Some of the work needs some technical knowledge, so part time workers does not really help. But, I appreciate your concern.

Best Deal for your cash

The Sunday Times on 16 July has an article comparing fixed deposits. Here's what it said about our Flexi-Cash.

BEST DEALS

MOST, if not all banks, offer 3 per cent or more in interest for fixed deposits using fresh money only. There are varying lock-in periods and minimum sums to consider.

Insurance cooperative NTUC Income recently launched a scheme called Flexi-Cash. The minimum deposit is only $5,000, and you can withdraw your deposit at any time with no penalty.

The interest rate currently is 3 per cent a year, but it is not fixed. It will move ever so slightly, depending on the yield from short-term bonds that Income invests your money in and on interest rates in the Singapore money market that Income can lend at.

Among the banks and Income, interest rates differ by a fraction of a percentage point, which is insignificant unless you have at least six-digit sums to deposit.

Be careful of complex product

A life insurer has introduced a single premium investment linked product with these features:

- 7 year lock in period
- 4.9% annual payout
- return of 100% principal at maturity
- additional insurance cover of 110% of invested amount
- initial fee of 5% to 6%, annual fee 1 to 1.2% pa

This looks attractive. Our expert analysed the product, and found the following features:

* The product feeds into a specialty fund managed by an investment bank through a special purpose vehicle.

* It targets high yearly return and full return of principal at maturity

* The annual payout and maturity value are not guaranteed - they depend on low default rate of "reference entities".

This appears to be a complex product, with risks that are quite difficult to understand (even to my expert).

Existing motor polichholder wants to enjoy installment payment

FROM POLICYHOLDER

Dear Mr Tan,

Am I allowed to renew my road tax and motor insurance with instalment payment?
I am a current policy holder. I was told it is only extended to newly joined members and why is this so? What are loyal members not taken care of?

Please reply urgently. How can I pay by installment, because S$1,000 upfront is a lot of money.

REPLY

Yes, you will enjoy the privilege of installment payment. My colleague will contact you to handle your request. If you had called the telephone number that is shown in our advertisement, you would have got the correct information.

Annuitant Club

Dear Mr Tan

I am an active member of the Annuitant Club.

I would like to thank you for all the facilities afforded to annuitants. I would like to compliment especially the services and commitment of Mary Lim, the coordinator of all the activities, events and functions.

Our group truly enjoyed all the activities organised. Mary always make sure that everything is near perfect. Her services and commitment is exemplary.

We trust you will continue to support us in every possible way to enjoy our retirement years.

Logic9 (Sudoka) keeps a friend actively engaged

My friend in America is taking treatment for cancer. I sent a set of Logic9 (Sudoku) books to him. Here is an e-mail from his wife:

Dear friend,

You have a new Sudoku player here in America! D.... learned how to go about it from a friend and he has been doing it ever since!

We came out to our home in the West for a week in between treatments (he goes back in the hospital the morning after we arrive home). He bought a book with beginner, intermediate and difficult challenges. He loves numbers so this is a good brain teaser and will help him when he is in the hospital also.

Thank you once again for introducing the game to him. You are the best! As an aside, our friend who taught him, just tore all four ligaments in her knee waterskiing on the second day of their vacation. She had her knee operated on and has to stay still for six weeks. She said she would go crazy if she wasn't able
to keep her mind occupied.

A touching show of trust

FROM CUSTOMER

Dear Mr Tan,

I came across your blog with great interest, and admire your candidness and most of all your willingness to face queries straight on, with undeviating statements and replies.

I had been wondering from whom I should get my insurance and now I am fully confident I would like to take it up with you/NTUC.

Could you possibly revert, or kindly provide your best personal referral and/or contact person, as to how should I go about signing up insurance with you/NTUC? I have every trust and faith in your recommendation, as I would look forward to becoming a NTUC Insurance Policy Holder with you as its leading Officer always.

MY REPLY

Dear

I am very touched by your show of trust. I will ask my specialist in the business center to contact you.

My fond memory of Lim Kim San

I am sad to learn about the demise of Mr Lim Kim San, a pioneer of modern Singapore, at a ripe old age of 90 years.

I have not met Mr Lim personally, but I have a wonderful memory of a message given by him 30 years ago.

I was involved in Marine Parade constituency. We wanted to produce a monthly newsletter for the constituency. It was the first of its kind at that time. We wrote to Mr Lim for a message. He was the Minister for National for National Development. Marine Parade was a HDB estate, created out the sea, ie on reclaimed land.

In his message, Mr Lim said, "Marine Parade has no past. It only has a future". I remember these wonderful words over the years.

Views on the Singapore Economy

INTERVIEW WITH SMART INVESTOR MAGAZINE

1) Over the past few years, the Singapore Government has restructured the economy and sought to remake Singapore. Some of these initiatives (such as CPF cut, shift towards a monthly variable component pay system, emphasis on education & retraining) were not exactly welcomed by the ordinary men-in-the-street. How successful do you think these measures have been?

Reply: Generally, these measures have been quite successful. They have contributed to the robust economic growth that was experienced over the past two years. The ordinary people may look at the immediate impact on their wages, and feel pessimistic about some of these measures. The real test is the ability to grow the economy and create more jobs. The recent increase in employment has led to a tight labour market, which is reflected in higher wages. The ordinary people will benefit from the higher wages soon.

2) Was there any specific measure which left a lasting impression on you?

Reply: I am impressed with the innovative measure to allow the refinancing of a property loan and allowing banks to have higher priority over CPF savings. This allows the banks to keep the property loan for a longer period, even though the property value may have dropped below the total charges (comprising of the loan and the CPF savings). It helps to stabilise the property market and gives it a longer time for the property values to be adjusted. There is no need for the banks to call back many of the property loans that have entered into negative equity. In so doing, we avoid a property crash.

3) Singapore economy is heavily dependent on external factors. With the uncertain global environment today (escalating oil prices, high US interest rates), do you think Singapore could achieve the projected GDP growth of between 5-7 per cent this year?

Reply: I think that it is still possible to achieve the projected growth rate. If the global economic environment continues to be difficult, we will probably be at the low end of the range. It will still be quite encouraging.

4) It has been reported that our employment outlook has improved. Is it likely for China or India to take away a significant portion of the existing jobs in Singapore due to their supposedly lower level of business costs? How successful has the Government's efforts to cut business costs (eg. reducing corporate taxes) been?

Reply: With the adjustment of business costs during the past few years, we are now quite competitive globally. The increase in employment is likely to be sustainable over a longer period. The lower manpower costs of people from India and China have already been factored in. We do not need to worry too much about this source of competition. The key is to upgrade our ecomony and find new ways to utilise our people and resources.

5) Under the Singapore Tourism Board 2015 Vision, the STB aims to triple Tourism Receipts to $30 billion; doubling visitor arrivals to 17 million; and creating an additional 100,000 jobs in the services sector by 2015. Are these initiatives (such as annual campaigns like the Great Singapore Sale, establishment of integrated resorts) sufficient to draw in the tourists, as our regional rivals are miles ahead of us?

Reply: We have to find ways to improve the attractiveness of Singapore to the international tourists. We may get a boost with the opening of the integrated resorts. We can also get some excitement from the development of the sports industry and the arts and culture industry. These activities may take a few years to develop. We have made a start. Let us learn how to make them more successful.

7) What else do you think the Government could do to further grow and sustain the economy?

Reply: We need to improve the efficiency of our financial services industry. At present, there are too many complicated products that are not well designed for the ordinary people. We have to streamline these products. We also have to improve the products to make them more easily understood by the general public, and give people an attractive return for their long-term savings.

How is interest calcuated on Flexi-Cash?

Question: I have invested in flexi-cash and wish to clarify on the followings. You said that the investor earn based on the bid price minus 0.1%. Looking at SIBOR, there are 5 different rates, namely 1mth (3.5%), 2mths (3.5625%), 3mths (3.625%), 6 to 12mths (3.6875%).

If investor conduct withdrawals and/or additional deposits from time to time, which of these rates would be applicable and do you provide statements to show the details of all these transactions?

Reply: The interest will be based on the average yield of the money market fund. As the fund is invested in a mix of instruments of different tenure, you will get an effective average of these instruments.

Question: Your example shows that the interest rate would be converted to unit price. What is the formula on the conversion?

Reply: We compute the bid price of the unit every day. This bid price is posted daily. It should move daily according to the average rate yield earned by the investments.

Question: If I send a cheque, when will my interest start accruing?

Reply: We will compute the unit price based on the date of transaction. This should be the date that your cheque is submitted for clearance, or it could be the date that the cheque is cleared.

NTUC Income assists owners of parellel-import Toyota cars

SINGAPORE, Tuesday, 18 July 2006 -- NTUC Income is offering assistance to owners of parallel-import Toyota cars recently recalled for their faulty steering. The affected models are Toyota Prius, Wish, Isis, Ractis and Corolla.

On 5 July, a Straits Times article reported a recall of about 5,000 cars to fix this faulty steering has run into problems because some of the importers have closed down.

"We understand that some of our policyholders who have bought their cars from parallel-importers are experiencing difficulties in replacing the faulty steering, as their parallel-importers have closed down or are unable to honour their warranties. Without the proper replacement of these faulty steerings, we are concerned about their safety on the road," said Mr Freddy Neo, General Manager of
NTUC Income.

Singapore's largest motor insurer, NTUC Income, has written to offer assistance to 2,759 of its affected policyholders.

NTUC Income is referring a professional workshop to carry out the replacement of their steering at a cost of S$250 plus GST. In addition, the insurer has given its policyholders an option to repay their replacement costs in five instalments.

While waiting for the parts to arrive in Singapore, a check-cum-tightening of the steering assembly can be arranged at the workshop at no additional charge.

Policyholders who require more information may contact NTUC Income's motor hotline at 98Income (98 462263).

Insure against personal liability of directors and officers

Editor
Forum Page
Straits Times

I refer to the article entitled SATA acts to insure its board against lawsuits" (ST 14 July 2006)

NTUC Income offers a Directors and Officers Liability Insurance cover to the Singapore Anti-Tuberculosis Association.

The policy comes in two parts. The first part indemnifies the directors and officers for the defence costs if they are successful in defending an action brought against them in connection with the management of the company. The premium for this portion is quite inexpensive, and is the sum of $275 quoted in the article.

We also offer an additional cover, to reimburse the company for the defence costs in the event that the directors and officers are not successful in defending the charge for the wrongful act brought against them. The premium for this cover is higher.

The total premium for both covers works out to about $300 per director per year. The actual premium varies according to the type of business.

We wish to suggest that all organisations should a directors and officers liability insurance, regardless of their size or nature of business. Directors have personal liability in the discharge of their duty and should be protected. It has now been shown that charitable organizations are also exposed to this risk. Most businessses prefer to buy the full cover, comprising of the two parts. Even though the cost is higher, it is still quite modest.

Tan Kin Lian
Chief Executive Officer
NTUC Income

Difficult to access Blogspot in Kunming China

I had a lot of difficulty in accessing Blogspot in China. I could access other websites easily, including Blog. It happened for a few days.

When I returned to Singapore, I can access Blogspot immediately. I suspect that Blogspot is not welcomed in China.

Save for your child in an Ideal plan

A parent can save for a child in an Ideal plan.

It is expected to earn an attractive return that can be higher than a traditional education policy. It has the advantage of being flexible, i.e. you can change your regular savings and also the timing of the withdrawal for your child's education. You can also use the savings for other purpose to benefit your child.

Compared to similar plans from other insurance companies, our Ideal plan could give a return of 20% higher. This is due to our lower charges, which allows more of the savings to be invested in the plan. If the projected amount is $50,000, our plan can give up to $10,000 more. That is a lot of money.

To find out more, call 62 INCOME (62 462663)

Motor Insurance Covers Injury To Third Parties

QUESTION.

As an orthopaedic surgeon, I have to write medical report for my patients who were unfortunate enough to be involved in road traffic accident.

The more unfortunate ones may lose their ability to work and some will lead long term, expensive medical care.

Whilst my sympathy lies with these victims, I also wonder what sort of bills the guilty party will face. I believe some court awards to accident victims may be very high, to cover the medical bills and perhaps loss of future earnings etc.

Whilst I do not foresee myself involving in major car accidents as the guilty party, this sort of thing is very unpredictable.

Naturally, I am not sure if I would be able to hand the potentially hefty damages that the court may award. I would not want to spend the rest of my working life paying off this debt, or worse, ending up as a bankrupt.

I do not think my vehicular insurance would cover such things. Should I buy a personal liability insurance?

REPLY

If you drive a car and you injured someone in an accident and are liable, the motor insurance policy will cover your liability. The third party injury is covered by the motor insurance.

However, if you cause this injury through another negligent act, ie not involving your car, then you are personally liable.

We do have a personal liability insurance plan. If you are interested, let me know.

Customers want assurance that the investment is safe

FROM CUSTOMER

In your posting, you said: investors have over-reacted to the concerns for inflation. The correction was exaggerated by selling and unwinding of leverage positions by hedge funds.

I hope that NTUC can help policy holder monitor the fund should like should ensure that none of the find wil lose money.

I don't trust (three company names deleted) because I get the feeling that their agents just want to earn my money and don't care about my investment.

After attending your talk, I want to invest with NTUC. I need assurance that I will not lose my hard earn CPF money and cash savings.

MY REPLY

If you invest in a large well diversified fund, eg the combined fund, for 10 years or longer, the risk is actually very small. While the investments may go up in some years, and down in other years, the average over several years should be better than the return on bonds and other safe investments.

By investing in a large fund, you get diversification and is not exposed to bad stock
selection.

I also have most of my personal savings invested in our combined fund. I understand the concern of all investors to have an attractive return and to avoid excessive risk.

FROM CUSTOMER

Dear Mr Tan,

Thank you so much for your reply. I really appreciate to have an exemplary figure like you who is so humble to attend to the public's enquries promptly & with great sincerity.

Travel by train in Germany

I had tickets to watch the World Cup quarter-finals between England and Portugal at Gelsenkirchen stadium in Germany.

My travel agent arranged for me to fly to Dusseldorf and to stay at a hotel near the stadium. As the taxi fare to the hotel is quite expensive (Euro 80), I decided to take the train. It was an interesting experience for me.

I learned the following lessons about the train system:

- You can look at the train schedule
- You have to be at the right platform
- The train will usually arrive on time
- The schedule will state the various stops and the time of arrival at each stop
- You can ask for directions
- If the destination station is deserted, you can call your hotel to get a taxi to fetch you.

Actually, a better arrangement would have been to check into the airport hotel and travel to the stadium and back by train. This would have been easier, fun and less costly.

With this experience, I am now confident of using the train system in Europe. I intend to take a holiday and around Europe by train.

Customer happy with online application

A customer applied for 4 low cost term insurance (iTerm) for members of the family though online applicaiton.

She was delighted with the low premiums and hassle free processing. There is no need for medical examinations. She only has to complete 4 simple health questions.

The average processing time for i-Term is about 3 working days, compared to 6 days for traditional products.

Purchase of life annuities from business center

A customer asked for my advice on wheter to buy an annuity at age 55 or leave it with CPF until age 62.

I referred the customer to our annuity specialist based on our business center.

The customer was delighted with the "prompt and professional support" given by the annuity specialist.

His two sisters turned up later to buy two life annuities and to invest in the growth plan (single premium endowment).

Elderly are active at work

I stayed at a resort hotel outside of Munich to attend the World Cup match.

On my arrival, an elderly German (who looked nearly 70) helped me to carry my luggage to my room. He looked fit and strong.

Over the next few days, I met a few elderly persons working in the hotel. They include the night front desk attendant and the health center attendent. The elderly attendants was quite prominent - always attentive, always helpful, always cheerful.

The hotel also had younger employees dressed in the attractive Bavarian costumes.

Germany has a way of keeping their elderly people active at work.

Customer wants on-the-spot settlement

SUGGESTON FROM CUSTOMER

Dear Mr Tan,

Currently when there is an accident, the vehicles have to go to IDAC to assess the damages. Later, they have to get another assessor to assess the cost of repairs based on the IDAC report.

If both parties have the same insurer (NTUC Income), can the monetary assessment be done by NTUC Income on the spot and an offer be made to the parties involved. This will save admininstration and legal cost and time.

MY REPLY

Dear

We have a practice to offer monetary compensation on the spot, but it has to be done at our office. Previously, we operated this service at various centers, but the demand was quite low.

I will ask my claim service manager to send our practice note to you on this matter.

Please be more understanding

A customer was unhappy with some mix-up in his requests to upgrade to the enhanced Incomeshield plan.

He originally wanted to upgrade, but later changed his mind. During this time, our collegues failed to act on his intention correctly. This made him very angry.

He sent a strong e-mail to me. I gave him this reply:

Dear

I will ask my service quality manager to call you and find out what your intentions are.

During this period, all my colleagues are working under great stress. I wish to ask you to be more understanding and patient. Please do not use strong language unnecesarily. My colleagues also have their feelings.

I hope that we can sort this matter out to your satisfaction.

Global bond fund earns average of 4% return

EDITED



Our Global Bond fund earned about 4% return, after conversion into Singapore $, as follows:

            Global  
Yield(YTM)   Bond   
 
2003         3.60%  
2004         3.47%  
2005         4.03%  
2006 (6m)    4.01%  

The average yield to maturity of the investments on the fund is 3.99%.

Investors who wish to have a more stable modest return can consider the Global Bond fund.

Tips on choosing your investment

QUESTION
I am afraid to invest now, as the market may fall further and I make a loss. What is your advice?

REPLY
When the market falls, you do not really make a loss, if you are a long term investor. The market will recover within a few weeks or months. You never know when the market will turn around, and if it does, you will miss the opportunity.

It is better to invest when the market is low, as you will get a better return.

QUESTION
Is it better to take a guaranteed return, even if it is lower?

REPLY
If you want a guaranteed return, you will get 2% from a bank deposit or 3% from government bonds. Your return is locked up for the duration of the deposit or bond. If you wish to sell the bond prematurely, when interest rate increases, you will have to take a capital loss.

For a long term investor, it is better to invest in equities (which gives a higher return), and choose the right time to realise your investments.

Bank wealth planner provide misleading information

FROM CUSTOMER

Dear Tan,

Other bank's wealth planner told me that NTUC's mortality charges and insurance charges are higher as NTUC faced with more claims from policyholders than the bank. May I enquire on this point ?

When I buy a unit, what is the % of selling price from the purchased price of the unit bought in order to cover all costs ( distribution, fund charge, expenses, etc) to reach breakeven?

MY REPLY

Dear

I will ask our specialist to provide the answers to you.

The bank's wealth planner mislead you. We do not have any mortality charge at all.
If you wish to have any life insurance cover, you buy a separate rider at a flat premium rate. Many people find it to be more transparent.

Delay in approval of Enhanced Incomeshield

FROM CUSTOMER

Dear Mr Tan,

We visited your NTUC Income Business Centre in both Brah Basah on 2 June and Jurong East branch on 28 June.

Your staff who attended to us are to be congratulated of doing a great job. They attended and explained to us very efficiently and clearly on our request to convert our current Medishield plan to the Enhanced Incomeshield. Both of us are above 55 years old.

However, I was extremely concerned being told by your staff that in both cases, they would take at least two months to respond to our application. They informed us there are limited resources in your underwriting department. We certainly appreciate you would look into this and speed up the process.

MY REPLY

Thank you for our feedback. I agree with you that the two months' delay is not acceptable. This is due to a heavy overload of work. We expect to clear the backlog within the next few months.

Fly back to Singapore after watching World Cup

I took a economy flight on SIA to Singapore, after watching the World Cup in Germany. The steward recognised and greeted me. He said that his insurance policies are with NTUC Income.

The supervisor came later to introduce himself and said, "Mr Tan, I expected you to be in the first class. How are you enjoying your flight?".

I gave him a smile. I usually fly economy class. I am not prepared to pay 6 times to fly first class. All our managers fly economy class as well.

We keep our expenses low, so that our customers can pay lower premium. They also enjoy a better return on their savings with us.

I introduced Logic9 (aka Sudoku) to the passenger sitting next to me. She is a retired teacher from Munich, Germany. She is travelling in a group tour to Singapore and Bali.

She did not know about the puzzle before. I showed her how to play the puzzle. She became hooked on it. I presented our Logic9 pocketbook to her. She will probably remember me for a long time.

It is so easy to get somone hooked on Logic9. No wonder, it is so popular around the world.

Village life in Bavaria, Germany

I asked the tour guide. What is a village?

Here is the interesting answer. In a village, there is always a church. The people of Bavaria are religious, mostly Catholics. Sunday is for the church and for rest. No business is done on Sunday.

The village has an inn. It is a place for people to go and drink beer, socialise or to have food. It also has accommodation for travellers.

Quite likely, there is a primary school for the first four years of education. When the students are older, they can go to a secondary school in a larger village nearby.

There is a May pole in the road leading to the village. It shows the shops and trades available in the village, eg baker, butcher, doctor, carpenter, etc. It serves like a "yellow page" directory for the village.

One day of the week is set aside for market day.

The village has many assocaitions, eg a sports association, a fire association, and many others. These associations organise many activities for the villagers to meet regularly. Most young people join the fire assocation to learn about how to put out fire. It is a way to keep them occupied, so they do not get bored and cause trouble.

The social life is interesting in the village. Every one knows about every other person in the village.

FIFA World Cup Semi-Finals (France v Portugal)

I attended the FIFA World Cup semi-final match between France and Portugal at the stadium in Munich.

It is an impressive stadium. It has 65,000 comforable seats. All the seats are covered. Only the field is open to the weather.

The stadium has several hospitality lounges for corporate guests. I was fortunate to be invited by my host.

The game was exciting all the way, down to the last minute. Portugal had many chances, but they failed to convert into goals. It was disappointing for their supporters and their coach.

France played well. They were a strong team, with robust players. They deserve to win.

The stadium was fully sold. I estimated that 75% of the stadium were French supporters, by looking at the colors of their clothings and the volume of their cheers. Portugal had 25% supporters.

The stadium is beautiful from the outside. It has an impressive external "coat". The stadium has three sets of lights - white, blue, red. If there is an international game, the stadium will be lighted "white". There are two football teams in Munich - the Bayern and the 1816 (?). The other colors of the stadium indicate which team is playing.

My host said that the admission ticket to watch a football match is between Euro 30 to 60. It is quite high, compared to Singapore prices.

I now look forward to the Grand Finals between France and Italy. Much earlier, many people expected the match to be between Germany and Brazil. So did I. This is football. The ball is round. Anything can happen.

Global stockmarkets are recovering

I track the global stock market indices against a 5 day moving average and the 50 day moving average. If the current index is above the moving average, it suggest that the market is getting stronger. If it is below the average, the market is still weak.

Here are the findings for the London, Japan, Singapore and New York and Technology shares as at 3 July 2006

- all of the markets are higher than the 5 day moving average by 1% or 2%, ie the markets are recovering well

- the US and UK shares at the 50 day moving average, ie these markets are now neutral

- the Japan, Singapore and Techology shares are about 2% below the 50 day moving average, ie the markets have still not reached the neutral point.

My general conclusion: most of the markets are recovering well.;

Invest in specialised funds?

QUESTION:

Dear Mr Tan,

Would you reccommend the following funds:-

           Japan   Tech
Average    2.70%  -12.00%
YTD 2006  -4.20%   -6.40%

Seems to have produced negative results?

REPLY:

For a long term investor, I recommend the Combined Growth Fund.

The specialised funds (ie Technology or Japan) requires someone who is more knowledgeable about the market. As you are not familiar, I sugget that you should invest in the Combined Growth Fund.

Tan Kin Lian
CEO, NTUC Income

Global stockmarkets are now recovering

The global stockmarkets has been recovering during the past two weeks.

As an example, the Japanese market (as reflected by the Nikkei index) fell from a peak of 17,500 two months ago, to a low of 14,300 (about 18%) and has now recoverd to 15,700 (up 10% from its low).

The other stockmarkets displayed a similar pattern, but not to the same extent as reflected in Japan.

The Combined Growth Fund from NTUC Income reflect a smaller degree of fluctuation, as it is 30% invested in bonds. At the lowest point, the drop was 8%. It has since partially recovered.

For a long term investor, it is time to make an investment when the price is still low.

Will NTUC Income close down its small funds?

QUESTION:

Dear Mr Tan,

I have bought 2 different unit trusts where the bank send me statement that the funds, one has been transferred to another management. Another will be closed by certain date where the price is 40% less the initial launch price. So I am forced to acccept a loss.

Will this happen to NTUC units ?

REPLY

NTUC Income acts fairly in the interest of our customers. We do not intend to close any of our small funds. If we do, we will give generous terms to the customers.

3 tips for the young - worth at least $20,000

Here are 3 valuable tips.

1. Invest in the right investment (earn 6% instead of 2%), and earn $146,000 more
2. Invest in a low cost fund (charge 1% instead of 2% p.a.) and earn $48,000 more.
3. Invest in a low cost ILP (7 months instead of 19 months) and earn $20,000 more.

* assume you save and invest $300 a month over 30 years

Attend my educational seminar, 6877 3366.

Or visit the website, www.income.coop. A talking powerpoint (20 mins) will be ready by 7 June.

Why do travel website only recommend 1 travel insurance provider?

There are several websites that gives you competitive quotes for airfare and hotels. But they only recommend one travel insurance product. Do you know why?

The answer is simple. For Travel Insurance, there is no standard commission. The website owner is likely to promote the travel insurance that pays the highest commission to them. Do not buy their travel insurance.

NTUC Income provides low-cost, hassle free Travel Insurance. We pay very low commission, and pass the cost savings to our customers by charging low premium rates.

So be a wise consumer. Book your Travel Insurance directly with NTUC Income. Call 6332 3456.

Do not give $20,000 away!

If you invest in most investment-linked plan in the market, it can take away 19 months of your savings to pay agent's commission and other expenses.

If you invest with NTUC Income, we will take away only 7 months. Compared to competitor's ILP plan, we invest an additional 12 months of your savings for your benefit.

If you save $300 a month, the additional 12 months of your savings, invested to earn an average of 6% per annum (not guaranteed) for 30 years can amount to $20,000. We can give you $20,000 more!

Lesson: Invest in an ILP plan that takes away only 7 months of your savings. Avoid a ILP plan that take away 19 months!

Earn 3% and more on your un-fixed deposits

Do you want to earn 3% or more on your un-fixed deposits?

Our Flexi-Cash operates like a deposit in a bank. The current interest rate is about 3%. It will change with the money market. Right now, interest rate is increasing, so the interest rate on your deposit will also move up.

It is an un-fixed deposit becuase you can withdraw it at any time. There is no penalty. You are not locked in for 1 year or longer.

Your money is invested in our Money Market fund, which is invested mainly in the inter bank market (ie lent to other banks) or A rated money market instruments. The cost of investing is only 0.1% (yes, one tenth of 1%), during the promotion period.

Invest in the un-fixed deposit. It pays more, and gives full flexibility for your cash.

Go to www.income.coop and read our FAQ. Or call 6788 1111.

Customer choose to buy insurance directly

Last week, a couple walked into our Business Center, after finding the location of the center from our website.

They bought two education policies for their children for $200,000 each. They paid an annual premium of $26,000.

My manager thanked them and asked why they prefer directly with the Business Center and not through a personal adviser?

They had a few insurance advisers who served them previously. They prefered to buy directly as it is straight forward and more efficient.

Wow. This can be a new way of buying insurance.

My World Cup Experience

I visited Germany to watch the World Cup quarter finals between England and Portugal on July 1. The game is played in Gelsenkirchen Stadium. Getting there is an experience.

My wife and I took the Singapore Airlines flight from Singapore to Frankfurt and change to a Lufthansa flight to Dusseldorf. We had some trouble in changing from the international terminal to the domestic terminal in Frankfurt. There were many flights handled at the airport. We were not familiar with the layout of the airport. We could not find any information helpdesk.

The workers at the airport, including tHe security workers, were very friendly and helpful. We only need to know Guten Tag (good day) and the rest of the conversation is handled in English. But, the workers had also to rely on the information screen, which may not display the information that is needed. And they are also very busy.

Getting from Dusseldorf to my hotel in Gladback West is another interesting experience. The most convenient way is to pay EUR 50 for a taxi ride. But my World Cup ticket allows me to use the public transport for free to the train station in Gladback West.

My travel agent gave the instruction to take the train from Dusseldorf Airport to Essen and change to another train to Gladback West. I should take 1 hour. They warned me that the change of trains is not so easy.

At the airport, I decided to take the cheaper choice and experience the German train system.

My first difficulty was to locate the information counter at Dusseldorf Airport. I could not find it. I followed the sign to the train station. I ask a passenger for information to get the train to Essen main station. She was not sure, but suggested that I should go to Dusseldorf main station and take the train from there.

This was a mistake. It took me 90 minutes to get to the main station, to find the right train platform and wait for the train to take me to Essen. The train from Dusseldorf train station had to return to Dusseldorf airport on its way to Essen. So, I wasted 1 hour travelling the wrong direction and back. From Essen, it took another 45 minutes to get to Gladback West.

After arriving in Gladback station, I had another challenge. There was no taxis available. There was no worker in the station. It was deserted.

Outside, I found another traveller who managed to telephone a taxi. He called his hotel, which despatched a taxi to pick him. I never knew that this is how one travels in a big country.

I did the same, and soon arrived in my hotel.

The total journey took more than 2 hours. We had to carry heavy luggage as well. But, the experience was worth it. I learned about the German train system and the friendliness of the people.

In the afternoon, I book from a taxi from the hotel to the stadium. It cost EUR 18 for a short journey. I asked the taxi driver for his telephone number, in case I need to call him back after the match.

The match between England and Portugal was exciting, but not unusual. A few billions fans could watch the live game over the television screens around the world.

The English supporters were fantastic. I met many of them on the train from Dusseldorf. One told me that 150,000 England supporters will be in and outside of the stadium. Those without tickets were willing to pay 1,000 EUR to get a ticket to enter the stadium.

They came in the colourful costumes. It was like a big carnival, with people having a great time. Many were singing and enjoying their beer or coke. Some came with spouses and children.

The stadium was amazing. It had a covered roof, with a confortable seat for everyone. All the seats are numbered. Everyone can watch a large TV screen located above the center of the field and facing the fans on all the 4 sides.

The stadium was full. All the 54,000 tickets were sold out.

The 2 hours of the game was an interesting experience. The English fans were most passionate. Throughout the game, they were singing the national anthem "God Save the Queen" and other familiar songs. At numerous points in the game, they shouted loudly "Send her victories, happy and glorious". This is accompanied by raising both arms in a warm gesture, accompanied by several tens thousand fans.

I sent photos of the small Singapore delegation at the stadium through MMS live from the stadium to my colleagues in Singapore. I added the remark, "Live from the World Cup stadium. 150,000 England supporters. 5,000 plus 1 Portugal supporters. "

I was confident that, in spite of the odds, the Portugal team will win. They work better and harder as a team. I had watched a few of their earlier games on TV, and was impressed by their playing style.

There was no score for 90 minutes and 30 minutes of extra time. Portugal attacked the England goal more often, but the England defence was quite strong.

Portugal won the game on penalty kicks. I give credit to the Portugal goalkeeper for a few fine saves.

The only sad part of the game was the disappointment of the England supporters. They gave their very best in passion, time and money. They came in full support of the national team. Even in defeat, they behaved graciously. A big salute to them.

I met a few Portugal supporters and congratulate their country. They are outnumbered by the England supporters, but it did not deter them.

Wow. It was a great experience. And Portugal won, in spite of being the underdogs. And the England fans won my admiration for their passion and spirit.

Tan Kin Lian
From Germany