THE LONG MARCH OUT OF ASIA
The lunar new year is a special occasion for the Chinese. It's a time to gather as a family, to settle debts and to show generosity; an opportunity to display wealth and gain face.
But in this, the Year of the Tiger, the celebrations are subdued. Conversation in the smart houses and apartments from Damansara Heights in Kuala Lumpur to Forbes Park in Manila, from Queen Astrid Park in Singapore to Repulse Bay in Hong Kong, is dominated by an extraordinary combination of negative events that has shaken the overseas Chinese communities in south-east Asia.
Familiar names have gone bankrupt. Large companies have proved to be little more than houses of cards. Old ties have been strained as entrepreneurs have reneged on contracts and run away from debts. A combination of political uncertainty in Hong Kong, export stagnation in Singapore and a glut of primary market commodities throughout the region has left many companies badly over-extended and has eroded property values, unsettling the very foundation of the overseas Chinese fabled store of wealth.
In Singapore alone, the estimated value of property lying vacant is US$7.5