Scholars and updates

My frequent answer when asked why is " I can't take with me what I have to the grave".

Not that I am old and dying, hehehe. Far from it.

Charity, and giving scholarships, or helping friends, and strangers is not an alien idea in my part of the Visayas. But in the community where I lived, poverty is overwhelming that to be charitable would always make people wonder and asked me why? And my answer would always be the above.

Meet the scholars:

A - her father died when she was young. The mother can barely feed her, much less, send her to school. Took her when she was in High School. She finished college, and now working in a government institution. She is now married and has one child. Sending her to school was a challenge - "pinanindigan ko" - even if her expenses were competing with my wants and needs (budget).

E - brother of A, somehow he failed to finish his studies after prodding him for around 6 years. Now in Cebu - and I have no updates about his situation.

G - came to my house around 5 years ago. Just graduated, preparing for her board exam, and applying for jobs.

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New scholars:

Another E - she is a she, father got jailed, mother working as a bakery help in another City, has 3 brothers. Mother is hard up, so taking her in and she will start Grade 5 this June.

W - daughter of my farm helper. My farm helper's brothers and sisters (8 of them) failed to send to College any of their children. She herself has 7 children and no one finished college. Her dream is to have at least one child obtain a college degree. I am helping her.

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I am also sponsoring a community basketball team.

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I know these efforts are minuscule in the larger scheme of things. Much that I wanted to offer more help and scholarships to more people that I know, I am however, constrained by my finances.

What I am happy about is that my scholars are working hard despite the minimal financial and material help that I can provide. All of them are staying in the small house that I have in the City and this makes the whole endeavor easier.

I treat this efforts of mine as my small contribution to make our community/society a better place for all of us.

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This is all for now.

New fuel cell catalyst and investments flows

Material scientists at Washington University in St. Louis have developed a technique for a bimetallic fuel cell catalyst that is efficient, robust and two to five times more effective than commercial catalysts. This technique eventually will enable a cost effective fuel cell technology, which has been waiting in the wings for decades, and should give a boost for cleaner use of fuels worldwide.

At 60 Celsius degree (the typical operation temperature of a fuel cell), the performance almost meets the targets set by the US Department of Energy.

The Department of Energy has estimated for widespread commercial success as the "loading" of platinum catalysts in a fuel cell could be reduced by four times.

So? This is great news, of course. It is up to you how to make money out this.

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In the USA, the number of new jobless claims rose to a seasonally adjusted 637,000, from a revised 605,000 the previous week. That's above analysts' expectations of 610,000.

Economists focused on the fact that initial claims remain below the peak reached in late March, a sign that the wave of mass layoffs announced earlier this year has crested.

"This is yet more evidence that we are now past the worst," Paul Dales, US economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a research note.

Do you believe, that once the market is so down, there is nowhere to go but up?

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Lastly, in the Philippines.

Philippine foreign portfolio investments posted a net outflow of $276.1 million in April as global recession and wider budget deficit weakened investor sentiment in the country, the central bank reported today.

April's figures is a reversal of the $32.2 million net inflow posted in March.

? I thought the worst is over.

Inflection point

I am sure many are laughing their way to the bank the past few days.

The quoted $75 billion shortfall in bank capital and half a million job losses - as a sign of weakness for the economy, had been shunned by investors. Stock market is up and up the past few weeks.

After the panic selling last year, and being down the first two months this year - many thinks, and perceived the economic recovery is not just in the horizon, but already is in the air.

I guess, perceptions, is very important, indeed. But I would still tread very carefully.

If the nonfarm payrolls improves next month, then it is great sign that maybe the downturn is over. Or is it?

But certainly not as worse as last year?

What about the stress test, how stringent were they? I hope nobody shares my suspicion that it was not so strict. I mean do you believe that, only $75 billion shortfall are needed by banks?

Let me quote a different report/news:

In its global financial security report, the IMF estimates that financial companies could write down an estimated $2.7 trillion in loans and securities that originated in the U.S. Between 2007 and 2010. That's up from the fund's $2.2 trillion estimate made in January, and $1.4 trillion in October.

My points are:

1. Indeed, there is nowhere to go but up.
2. Signs maybe there - but the herd are not comforted yet. Maybe the worse is yet to come.
3. If the stress test, as I suspected, show some "problems" later, a pandemonium could occur.

Watch your back.