GST everywhere you travel

There is a trend that GST (Good and Services Tax) or Value-Added Tax will be implemented throughout Asia Pacific.

Tomorrow (1st July), Singapore businesses will switch from 5% to 7% GST, a 2% tax hike. Comparing Asia Pacific countries to European Union (EU), you will find that the majority of governments in the Asia Pacific region that impose GST or VAT do so at comparatively low rates between 5 to 12.5% (with the exception of China), and on average at a rate far below the norm in the EU where rates range from 15 to 25%.

VAT and GST are the two of the fastest growing taxes globally with no less than 140 countries operating a VAT/GST system, reflecting a global trend by governments to focus on the certainty of revenues from indirect taxes.

When Singapore first introduced GST in 1994, the tax was responsible for approximately 11% of government tax revenue, in the last financial year, that proportion had nearly double to around 20%. This trend is set to increase with the impending GST hike by 2%. As a consequence, the corporate income tax is to be reduced from 20 to 18% to keep Singapore competitive.

Similarly in China, the recent corporate tax reforms in China are expected to shift the tax revenue collection profile even further towards indirect taxes which already accounts for two-thirds of China's tax revenue.

GST/VAT around the region (as at 1st July 2007)

China - introduced in 1994 - 17%
Pakistan - introduced in 1990 - 15%
Bangladesh - introduced in 1991 - 15%
New Zealand - introduced in 1986 - 12.5%
India - introduced in 2005 - 12.5%
Philippines - introduced in 1988 - 12%
South Korea - introduced in 1976 - 10%
Indonesia - introduced in 1985 - 10%
Cambodia - introduced in 1999 - 10%
Vietnam - introduced in 1999 - 10%
Australia - introduced in 2000 - 10%
Thailand - introduced in 1992 - 7%
Singapore - introduced in 1994 - 7%
Taiwan - introduced in 1985 - 5%
Japan - introduced in 1989 - 5%

Currently there are no GST in Malaysia and Hong Kong, but Malaysia is expected to reduce direct taxes in preparation for the introduction of GST soon. Laos will introduce VAT in 2008.

Dragon Boat Festival

Singapore - Bak Chang is here finally. "Bak Chang" is the hokkien name for rice dumplings. The Mandarin name is called "Zong Zi" - this is also the only time when my mum-in-law makes hundreds of Bak Chang and give to our family in couple of tens.

When I was in KL, I tried some rice dumplings from "YY Famous dumplings" @ Mid Valley Megamall - very tasty about RM4-5 each. They have Cantonese Chang, Nonya Chang, Hakka Chang, Chicken Chang and Golden Chang. I tried they Hakka Chang, Golden Chang and Chicken Chang.

Now a days, you can buy Bak Chang every day, not only during Duan Wu Jie. My regular 'kuek' or cake stall sells Nonya chang (sweet and no soy sauce is used in the preparation so the skin is whiter) or Cantonese chang (salty with chestnut).




Tradition
Bak Chang or Zong Zi is traditionally eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival (Duan Wu Jie) which falls on the fifth day of the fifth moon of the Chinese calendar (approximately early- to mid-June), commemorating the death of Qu Yuan, a famous Chinese poet from the kingdom of Chu who lived during the Warring States period. Known for his patriotism, Qu Yuan tried unsuccessfully to warn his king and countrymen against the expansionism of their Qin neighbors. When the Qin Dynasty general Bai Qi took Yingdu, the Chu capital, in 278 BC, Qu Yuan's grief was so intense that he drowned himself in the Miluo river after penning the Lament for Ying. According to legend, rice dumplings were thrown into the river to prevent fish from eating the poet's body.

The fifth month is normally a month with a great deal of rainfall that threatens to ruin young crops. In traditional China, the Double Fifth was a day of misfortune: the fifth month was considered an evil month and the fifth day of the month was particularly evil. On this day, the mystical river dragons, who had sovereignty over water, needed to be placated so that the dragons would bless the community with an optimal amount of rainfall. Rituals surrounding the theme of dragon were then developed.




Dragon Boat Races
Originating in Southern China over 2000 years ago, dragon boat racing started gathering interest in the western world in the 1970s. Today, it is both a recreational and a highly competitive sport enjoyed by people of all ages in over 50 countries or territories around the world. Dragon boat racing is increasingly popular as a component in corporate team building retreats and charitable fundraising events, particularly for promoting breast cancer awareness.

Current races
Penang - International Dragon Boat Festival 2007 (28th Anniversary) - 8-10 June 2007
Singapore - 30th June - 1st July 2007 - 10am to 6pm - Bedok Reservoir

Guangzhou

You can feel the summer heat when you alight from the aircraft at Guangzhou International Airport. Unfortunately, there are no air-conditioning in the aero-bridge so you can feel the heat hitting your skin straight away. The Guangzhou airport is huge and modern.

The taxi took about 45 minutes to reach The Garden Hotel (located at 368, Huanshi East Road) - a five star international hotel. The wall-to-wall panel at the reception area was impressive in gold colour of Chinese impressions. I was expecting a 'shoe-box' size room but surprisingly the rooms are spacious, clean, nicely decorated and comes with free internet access. The lobby is spaceous and gives a grandeur feeling to the hotel with the focal point being the water fall in the garden - with obvious reasons why it is called "The Garden Hotel". A very centrally located hotel with their staff ever willing to help.

This is my second trip to Guangzhou - the last time was via a train from Hong Kong for a day meeting. The city has a dull overcast due to the ever increasing industrial estates polluting the sky which can be felt as far as Hong Kong during certain times of the year.

The local restaurant I tried has a wide Guanzhou cuisine. Bing Sheng - very crowded and the food is local and the price is reasonable too.

The other restaurant was at The Garden Hotel - Peach Blossom restaurant. This is a Cantonese gourmet dishes - the restaurant was well decorated and the food is very good.

Upon my departure, at the immigration check point - you will come across a customer service panel just in front of the immigration officer - you can rate the service by pushing either one of the four buttons. I push the Excellent service and the lady officer said thank you and she smile - probably that simple effort would give her enough points to jump to the next promotion.

It's a special day today

Singapore - Yes, it is - today's is Father's day. To me everyday is Father's day...the screaming, shouting and chasing my children to do their homework. To play an active part of their life is important but it is tough.

My Dad made it a point to get me things which are practical whenever he goes shopping - I am 42 and he stills gives me shirts, shoes, and shorts on days when I visit him. The thought that he still thinks about me when he goes shopping made it special. My casual wardrobe are filled with my dad's practical gifts.

On this special day, my youngest son gave me one month ago - a $1 - this is worth millions as that is all he had - it means so much to me. My second son, got me a can of deodrant and my eldest got me a packet of cuttlefish. It's the thought that counts. Today, I took them to the park and spend time playing with them.

To my father - a Happy Father's day.

Shopping you can cruise

Kuala Lumpur

Do you know where you can cruise inside a shopping mall?

It is The Mines Shopping Fair and is the only shopping mall you can cruise via their water taxis. You can get from one point of the Lake to the other. Our partner, Zaki suggested that we go to the Mines Shopping Fair for lunch - it was interesting to have a small 'man-made' river in the middle of the shopping mall.

Nando's Chicken - was the restaurant we had lunch and it's a spanish restaurant - the food is good and tasty.

Looking from our table beside the river, we were surprised to find a large number of fishes within it. The restaurant uses the fishes as their 'automatic food disposal' - the waiter chuck everything off the completed diner's plate into the river - chicken bones, rice, potatoes - everything and the fishes just gobbled them up. It is no wonder they are so fat and huge.

After the lunch - Zaki surprised me by booking a cruise around the Mines Resort - it was a cruise that I really enjoyed. There are 2 Lakes - the bigger North Lake and South Lake.

Phill, Zaki and me

Do you know what is the name of the tin mine that became the successful Mines Resort?

It was called Hong Fatt tin mind - the story started a hundred yeas ago when a Chinese immigrant Chan Wing came to Malaya and discovered tin ore ina site abandoned by Europeans earlier. This became the largest tine mine in the world. Mining in the area left a gaping hope 2 kilometres long a kilometer wide, and 200 metres deep. Gradually rain water began to fill the crevice and thus was the humble beginings of the two great lakes - North Lake and South Lake.

In 1988, Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew built Mines Resort City with the seven wonders of Malaysia which I took the water taxi to view this wonder.

The wonder of this cruise is experiencing the "Water Lock". The reason was that the two main lakes in the Mines Resort City are of different height levels (7m) - so the water lock was used to link the two lakes together. Both lakes are connected via a 1054 meter canal - the entire system took 1 1/2 years to build at a cost of RM15m.

The cruise cost RM25 took 1 hour and starts from Mines Shopping Fair moving towards to the North Lake. Since it is lower by 7 meters, the water lock will discharge the water in just 7 minutes (this system is similar to the Panama canal but on a much smaller scale) - 61,600 gallons of water is the amount of water in the water lock to be discharged or refilled.

While crossing the North Lake I passed by the Fatty Crab restaurant that I had dinner with Donny the last time. Not far away, the cruise captain stopped for a short while for us to look at the monitor lizard - there are so many breeding there.

It was a breather to a hectic business schedule..... thank you, Zaki.

S.M.A.R.T

Kuala Lumpur
SMART and smarter... Do you know what SMART stands for?

Becuase of the severe flooding in Klang valley on Sunday - it rained continuously for 6 hours which burst the banks the Klang and Gombak rivers; and flooded most of Klang valley at heights of 1-2 metres - the SMART project will be completed one week ahead of schedule.

SMART means "Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel"






Construction began in 2003 for SMART – the longest and most technologically advanced tunnel in Malaysia to date. The 13.2m diameter tunnel consists of a 9.7km stormwater bypass tunnel, with a 4km dual-deck motorway within the stormwater tunnel. The main purpose of SMART is to solve the problem of flash flooding in Kuala Lumpur and also to reduce traffic jams during the daily rush hour.

I rode once into the tunnel with Donny and it was impressive and it has three modes before converting the motorway into stormwater tunnel - it would not be pleasant to be caught at the conversion....LOL.


The SMART will work on a three-mode system:

• MODE 1: Normal conditions. When there is low rainfall and no storm. The motorway section is opened to motorists


• MODE 2: Moderate storm. The SMART system is activated and flood water is diverted into the bypass tunnel in the lower channel of the motorway tunnel. The upper channel will still be open to motorists.


• MODE 3: Storm. The tunnel will be closed to motorists. Once all vehicles have vacated the tunnel, automatic water-tight gates are opened to allow flood water to pass through.

References:
www.roadtraffic-technology.com

The Star, 13 June 2007

Mid Valley

Kuala Lumpur - Arrived on SQ with Phill to KL - and we quickly zipped past the 'taxi touts' on KLIA express straight into Sentral station. We were booked into Boulevard Hotel - a new hotel part of the IGB Corporation Group. A Malaysian conglomorate that includes many hotels including the Midvalley Megamall. The location of Mid Valley is strategically located between KL and PJ (Petaling Jaya).

Boulevard hotel - a four star hotel located just 2 minutes walk to the MidValley Megamall on the Ground floor. The rooms are neat and clean, has good internet access and the rates includes breakfast -at RM260 for deluxe room - I think it is a good rate.

At the Megamall, there are so many restaurants and shops on 5 floors - and I heard the megamall is developing to make this even bigger.

The Equire Kitchen (located on the ground floor of the mall) - $$ - Popular among locals for its homestyle Chinese food. The decor is fuss-free, clean and bright. Reasonably priced - tried their famous chicken rice but it is not as good as others I have tried.

Finnegan's Irish Pub and Restaurant (located also on outside ground floor of the mall) - $$ - Phill ordered Tiger Beer and we just ordered the same - I think Phill likes Tiger Beer compared to many Asian beers. Well...Tiger Beer will slowly be on US soil with their signed agreement Anheuser-Busch. Besides beers, Finnegan's had a good selection of Irish dishes - I had "Beef stew in Stout" - it was delicious.

Sam Gyub Sal

Seoul - After going through 5 meetings in a day - it is time to relax in a traditonal Korean environment. Today was a very busy day.....

Oops...what is Sam Gyub Sal? It means "Three layers Pork or pork belly" and is one of the delicacies in Korea. Tonight, I had Sam-gyub-sal so instead of Beef on BBQ - this is pork on BBQ and it is very delicious. The Koreans have made eating BBQ an art - the metal plate for BBQ-ing the pork is tilted so that the fatty oil can drip slowly into a container at the end of it. At the end of 2 dishes of BBQ pork - looking at the container, it was amazing to find so much fatty oil.

This dish consists of thin slices of pork belly meat served in the same fashion as galbi - the pork is cooked on a grill at the table. The custom here is to pick up the cooked pork and placed inside a lettuce or any green leafy vegetables provided, add a slice of garlic diped into chilli paste. Wrapped it up and put it into your mouth...ooh so delicious. Soju, a Korean alcoholic beverage, is commonly served with sam-gyup-sal, making a tasty combination and is typically inexpensive.

After having dinner with 2 bottles of Soju, we adjourned to another drinking establishment to continue with a different type of Korean liquor called Dong Dong Ju. Now I know why it's been said that Koreans consume more alcohol per capita than anywhere else in the world.

Makkoli and Dong Dong Ju are traditional drinks made from rice and have a milky appearance.

This is the first time trying Dong Dong Ju and it is quite an experience, it was served out of a large bowl and poured into a separate cup with a ladle. The atmosphere at this Korean drinking joint is very rustic and traditional.

A funny situation happened also - on the table had a bowl of iced water - not sure what that was fo. In Singapore, after eating chilli crabs and messing up your hands - the waiters would normally bring a bowl of water to wash your hands. I thought this is what it was for since there was just one metal bowl of iced water with no cups to be found. Fortunately, I decided to asked Young Jin about it - he laughed and said that it is drinking water for both of us. Koreans are very communal people and like to share their food. It was stated to me that Dong Dong Ju is a bit more expensive than Makkoli - to me both taste and look the same.

Spicy Octopus meal

Seoul - This will be my fifity-third trip to Seoul since 1993. The arrival into Seoul was as expected, when the plane landed and was taxing on the runway - many Koreans start to stand and open the overhead compartment. This happens every time I come to Seoul.

Today, I rented a phone from LG Mobile and it is cheap @ KW3,000 (about US$3/day) with all incoming calls free.

The weather is cool and nice at about 22 degrees Celsius. This time around I am staying at a different hotel from my usual , and my first stay at Grand Hilton Seoul @ 201-1 Hongeun-dong, Seodaemun-Ku.

It is about 1hr from the Incheon airport via Limousine bus. I paid KW8,000 for the ride to the hotel - it is different route and located quite a distance away from the Seoul city centre. I had to be vigilant otherwise I will miss my stop - also I let the bus driver know that I am stopping at Grand Hilton Seoul. Fortunately, he understood - when the bus arrived at the destination, I got down and the hotel was just opposite the bus stop on the hill. The bus driver was kind enough to point out to me that there is a limo shuttle provided complimentary by Grand Hilton. This is because it would be quite a up-hill walk of about 10 minutes to the hotel lobby from the bus station.

It was nice that since I am a Hilton Gold member, I was automatically upgraded to the Executive Floor which gives me access to complimentary breakfast and drinks at certain time of the day.


At around evening, Young Jin and I had about 1 1/2 hrs of solid discussion and then adjourned for dinner just across the road. It was a Spicy Octopus restaurant - the spicy Octopus dish is called "Nakji Bokum". The spicy octopus dish comes in a big plate and is the main dish to be shared amongst friends and colleaques. Octopus tentacles are cut into bite-sized pieces. Koreans love this dish but it was too spicy for me. I love Octopus and Squid but it was the chilli and spices that held me back going all out to finish this meal.

Shop, shop till you drop...

Do you know where the largest Mall in the World is? Clue...somewhere in Asia.

I think Malls are finding it hard to be distinct - there are so many malls in Asia that a "Unique Selling Point" is important. Most of the Malls today, have customer service and their level of services are very high - some distinct themselves by call it "Concierge" but basically means the same thing. To attract customers back over and over again is tough - there must a certain awe to going shopping, dinning or be entertained there.

Asian countries are touted to house many of the world's most unique malls and the largest in the World. The malls are known to provide "shoppertainment" with a variety of popular retailers to an array of in-house entertainment such as indoor skiing to theme parks.

Asia is also home to some of the top shopping destinations in the world - Singapore, Hong Kong and Bangkok. Other countries like Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur are working hard to be in that shoppers leaque. In Singapore, an annual event "Great Singapore Sale" held around mid May and end in July is a place where you shop, shop till you drop...

Singapore - we have the mega shopping distict the "Orchard Road" - it is a long road with many shopping centres and megamalls lining the two sides of Orchard road. The most popular is Ngee Ann City which houses Takashimaya. Good bargains can be found during the Great Singapore Sale. The latest Mall to come onto the Singapore shopping scene is ViVo City located near the harbour front and opposite Sentosa. This is the largest Mall in Singapore.

Bangkok - The luxurious and famous mall is The Siam Paragon but MBK shopping centre (near National Stadium station) is my favourite because it houses over 2,000 retailers in an eight storey mall. Bangkok megamalls are Central World and Seacon Square (was a target of Bangkok bombing on 31 Dec 2006)

Kuala Lumpur - KL have their huge and massive malls with theme parks like Berjaya Times Square . The Cosmo's World located at Berjaya Times Square is the largest in-door theme park in SE Asia. My family spent the whole day at this Theme Park and it was fun - the most exciting station was "Robo Crash" - the electric bum cars which was really fun. Would guess that they might have taken this about 8-9 times. The most scariest was "Space Attack" - which both my wife and my eldest son went was gravity defying. On the whole we had a good time.

The Berjaya Times Square is KL largest shopping mall and has Asia's largest indoor theme park. The Midvalley Megamall (the Golden Screen Cinema @ Midvalley is the largest in Asia with a 18-screens Cineplex). Starhill Gallery and Suria KLCC are well-known Luxury Malls.

KL shopping district is Bintang Walk (stretches from Mariott Hotel to Lot 10 Shopping Centre) where you can find many shopping centres with a leisure concept of alfresco cafe and entertainment outlets. The famous night market is @ Petaling Street (located at Maharajalela monorail station) commonly called "Chinatown" closes at 2am in the morning. I like to walk around this place to experience the colour, sights, sound - people from all walks of life bargaining or just being spectators of this night-life. Just a caution to beware of pick-pockets.

Hong Kong - the most popular is Pacifc Place.

Largest Mall in the World - three of the world's largest mall are in Asia
South China Mall, in Dongguan, China is the largest mall in the world. It has leasable space for over 1,500 stores in approximately 6.5 million square-feet (600,000 square metres) of total floor area.

Golden Resources Shopping Mall, in Beijing, China is the 2nd largest mall in the world. It is 1.5 times the size of Mall of America.

Central World in Bangkok, 3rd largest mall in the world and the largest mall in South East Asia.