BAD MOON RISING

Today is Saturday. I woke up quite early, just before 6.30am.

My usual morning routine, while answering nature's call, is always to browse through the Straits Times.

What I have read in the 'Saturday' section doesn't look good. On the front page, it carries a special report regarding the controversy involving SWFs (sovereign wealth funds).

Here's a quick sampling of what follows:

"Prepare for global financial storm, warns British bank" (It's Barclays);

"Oil jumps to new record as global stocks tumble"; (It passes US$142 a barrel!)

"Wish what we want, higher oil prices are here to stay" - from a hedge fund manager;

"Barclays needs US$24 billion to bolster capital, says Citibank", followed by a comment from a Cibibank analyst: "With credit market conditions continuing to deteriorate globally, we believe it is simply a matter of time before further significant write-downs are taken."

"Asian nations need 'clear resolve' to tackle inflation" - a warning from our Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam;

"STI & Asian bourses weaker on Wall Street crisis" - it seems that the carnage on Wall Street was sparked mainly by soaring oil prices, but lingering fears over the global financial sector, inflation & the health of the United States economy;

"Fund managers expect sluggish growth this year" - this is apparently based on a poll of 15 fund managers by OCBC Bank's wealth management unit, expressing fears that the slowdown could even stretch into next year;

No wonder, I had a little bit of problem answering nature's call this morning. Under normal circumstances on other days, it's always a smooth, continuous flow, so to speak.

My favourite song, 'Bad Moon Rising', by CCR, continues to reverberate in my mind.