If the accuracy of the past year’s predictions is any indication, this 2009 should be worth paying heed to. We wish for this outlook to be helpful to you. It is our wish that forewarned and forearmed, we can take precautionary measures and live in a better environment.

Most of the events predicted by MINGS for 2008 were strikingly accurate. Among them were predictions on the world climate; agriculture and food supply; the share market; the world economy; the property market; oil prices; and the political situation. The predictions were derived from painstaking effort in researched statistics and data available to me combined with the marvel of ancient Chinese prediction formulae.

MINGS predicted last year that 2008 would be a hot and dry year, although there will be some heavy downpours in the first half of the year. There would also be more sicknesses affecting the lungs and stomach, such as acute cough and colds. Abnormal weather would also disrupt agricultural production and the poor harvests would force commodity prices to go up.

The year saw prices of soybean oil, crude palm oil skyrocketing. Even in Malaysia, we experienced a shortage of rice, and an increase in prices.

MINGS also predicted wildfires, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. This was proven true with the Northern California Lightning Series that started in June from lightning strikes and the tragic Great Sichuan Earthquake on May 12 which killed over 69,000 people with almost 18,000 missing.

Russia, China, Korea and Japan would outperform the rest of the world in 2008, MINGS predicted, and true enough, these were the economic powerhouses, followed by Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Indochina, Australia and New Zealand. Sad to say, the financial crisis in the United States and Western Europe prove the predictions’ accuracy.

MINGS also predicted no change in the ruling government and though Barisan Nasional suffered a major setback in the 12th General Election, it still maintained its grip on power. At the time of writing, the Opposition bloc has not yet been able to seize power despite continued speculation.



Basic information:
Year stem: Earth
Year root: Earth
Year Stem/Root: Fire
Year Gua: Fire (9)
Five cycles and six forces: Earth

Animal sign: Year of the Ox

Weather	Hot and windy.
Politics	Continued uncertainty in the political arena.
Economy	Good. Continues to do well.
War and instability	Nil.
Natural catastrophe	Though there will be no major serious floods or fires, occasional flash floods may occur and cause alarm.
Epidemic/pandemic	Epidemic in March and October.
Remarks	Politically-driven court tussles throughout the year.

Malaysians, in general, are very concerned about the country’s politics and economy.

Malaysia Outlook 2009: Politics

Political uncertainty will continue to be a major issue. We shall see more courtroom tussles that are politically motivated. Based on the country’s Gua reading, one can make some intriguing observations. Here is our interpretation of these signs.

1) During the first two months, those in power will suffer and be weakened due to their conservative reaction to the opposition’s attacks and onslaught.

This suggests that the opposition will continue to harangue the ruling party and put them on the back foot.

2) In the next two months, those in power could be further weakened by certain events or behaviour of a female member of the party.

A female leader of the dominant coalition will do something scandalous, shameful or embarrassing to the ruling coalition.

3) In months five and six, quick action by the authorities can save the situation and regain lost ground.

The government needs to act decisively to defuse the situation, which could mean dealing severely with the female member (see 2 above) or initiate a crackdown against its opponents (see 1 above). This is a pivotal moment: the government would need to act swiftly and correctly in order to salvage the situation and regain its esteem. Failing to act quickly or taking the wrong step could turn the tide against it. The government would do well to listen to and understand what the people want.

4) In months seven and eight, there will be a change of perspective due to one’s stand or position, which would most benefit the guests.

The government’s could change its stance and act to win the people support. However, the wrong move could also mean the opposition staging a takeover. Either scenario would create a change of perspective and may bring benefits to the people.

5) In months nine and 10, the general public has a bigger say and decide on the winner.

This suggests the possibility of a snap election or a round of by-elections.

6) In months 11 and 12, the end results favour the ruling party and the opposition is most unhappy that they were so near and yet so far.

The incumbent – depending on what happens in 4 – will be returned to power by the slimmest of majorities and the opposition will be frustrated to lose so narrowly.


From the events foretold by the Gua, the outcome will hinge on a few factors:

• The ability to listen and understand what the people want.
• The consequences of the actions and events occurring in the first four months.
• A lot of perseverance and bold, decisive moves must be taken in a timely manner.

Malaysia Outlook 2009: Economy

Malaysia will not be spared the vagaries of 2009’s economic and property crunch, which are already rearing their ugly heads in the last quarter of 2008. However, the nation’s natural resources of oil and soft commodities, and national reserves will help it offset the global effect. We should be able to perform better than most Southeast Asian countries.

The political squabbles will not be in our country’s favour. The government must take the lead in sustaining economic growth. This could be done by taking positive steps to create more projects – provide more housing and better infrastructure – increase fuel subsidies, reduce taxes, promote tourism and much more. This could buffer the economy and give time for the private sector to recuperate.

Weak industrial sectors in 2009 (For Malaysia Only)

• Building and property (Earth)
• Finance (Fire)
• Export (can be Water & Wood)
• Tourism (can be Earth & Water)
  

Element	Earth	Metal	Water	Wood	Fire
Comparative performance for Industries and Business Professions in these elements	********	***	***	****	******

The more *stars an element has, means the worse it is. Professions in this context, is not directly related to individuals but more business/commercial/industrial.


World Outlook 2009: Weather

The world’s climate is already under tremendous pressure due to mankind’s destructive ways. Jungle clearing, construction, earth excavation, fossil fuel burning and other works that cause geographical and geological changes have impacted the environment and much have been written about global warming, pollution, CFC and so on.

The outlook derived from ancient Chinese forecasts tells an alarming story. The world will be subject to erratic weather changes, such as very hot weather on one hand and extended cold winters on the other; and excessive rainfall in the northern hemisphere. This will cause heavy floods in many countries, especially in low-lying areas.

This adverse weather will impact agriculture output and trigger a series of chain reactions. We experienced a shortage of food supply, particularly rice, in 2008. Next year, the situation will escalate into a different dimension. Ever escalating prices of fuel will see petroleum prices reaching record highs, more than in 2008.

Bad weather will be the major factor that triggers many negative events in 2009. These negative and unproductive events will cause countries that performed poorly in 2008 to face economic crises. The property market will face new challenges and unless the authorities take early steps to soften the fall, the market will be crunched.

The World at a Brief Glance

2009 will be another hot and fiery year. Other than natural disasters such as wildfire stemming from the erratic hot weather and strong winds, other contributing factors include escalating confrontation and war. War and fire will cause unprecedented epidemics and humanitarian disasters.

The erratic weather will further affect agriculture performance and trigger a domino effect. There will be a shortage of agricultural product which will induce a rise in commodity prices, fuel and so on.

The property market will continue to suffer from 2008’s gloomy outlook and there will be a property crunch worldwide, with the exception of a few well-managed or prime properties. 2009 will be the year of the economic crunch, more so in the Eastern and Western sectors (relative to Mount Everest). Among those that are likely to be seriously affected are: Western United States, Indochina countries (Thailand, Vietnam and Burma) and Taiwan, in the East; and Pakistan, Nepal and Middle Eastern countries, in the West.

Epidemics and natural disasters are likely to appear everywhere in 2009, but at the top of the list are countries in the North western sector, such as China, Japan, Korea and Hong Kong.

The worst manmade disaster could occur in the Eastern and Western sectors, which include the Middle East and North America, particularly the United States. The “robbing” of wealth will cause further conflicts and battles, if not outright war. The Western sector may also experience natural wildfires of an unprecedented scale.

The Northern sector is the only sector that will be least affected and should outperform all the other sectors. They include countries in the European Economic Community, especially the Northern bloc.

The Southwest sector such as the African sub-continent could face extremely serious natural disasters, such as natural fires followed by epidemics. The death toll would be serious.

India and Southeast Asia will have a smoother run in 2009. We foresee some changes in the political makeup of a few countries but generally, life goes on with little effect.


World Economy Chart

The world economy does not look encouraging. Most countries put in great efforts to recover their losses in 2008. We will see from the end of 2008 onwards, especially after the US General Election and its new administration, a new pace for the world economy.

That artificial pace will be short-lived. By the middle of Month 2 (February), the markets will tumble down again, a repeat of 2008 or worse. My graph indicated the direction of the market (the scale and values are relative numbers for comparison purposes only).

The sectors and countries that will fare well or even perform better than expectations would be the Northwest, Northeast and North sectors (see Countries and Sectors in the chart below).

The worst affected sectors are East and West. South and Southeast sectors will suffer less severely. The economic crunch will be caused mainly by property and housing issues, an ongoing effect from 2008. This economic crisis will hit financial institutions badly and be reflected in stock markets worldwide. Countries that are the least affected by the US financial crisis, learned their lessons from 2008 and take proper precautions are likely to actually benefit from this.

World commodities will rise in price and supply will be limited due to bad weather. This supply-demand ratio will help push up prices for these commodities.

The energy crisis is likely to become front page news again: this time round, it will be caused by a real shortage and not artificial inducement from speculators.

World Outlook 2009: Sectors and Countries in Detail

To determine and demarcate the sectors of the world, MINGS take Mount Everest at the Himalayas as the centre point of reference. The various sectors of the world discussed in my forecast are defined in relation to this point. Therefore, the “East sector” stretches from the east of the Himalayas up to the middle of the United States (if you draw a line down the middle of the US continent, the western half falls within the East sector). The “West sector” stretches from the west of the Himalayas, overing the Middle East and the eastern half of the United States.

North of the Himalayas

Countries	Western part of China; Russia; and the former Soviet Union.
Weather	Erratic weather conditions. Exceptionally cold winter; heavy rainfall in autumn. Dry and windy in spring and summer.
Politics	Stable.
Economy	Relatively the most stable.
War and instability	Nil.
Natural catastrophe	Nil.
Epidemic/pandemic	Loss of lives due to epidemic in July and October, especially at Western China and the former Soviet Union.
Remarks	This sector is, by far, the least affected economically by the uncertainty faced by the rest of the world. Could face the most serious problems in terms of an epidemic.

Northwest of the Himalayas

Countries	China; Japan; Korea; Hong Kong; Taiwan.
Weather	Windy and hot during the first half. Heavy rain during mid-year. This will be the wettest region in the world for 2009.
Politics	Stable with minor conflicts.
Economy	The good run continues and this is, by far, the best sector this year.
War and instability	Nil.
Natural catastrophe	Nil.
Epidemic/pandemic	Nil.
Remarks	Other than minor conflicts and a slight epidemic afflicted by the Western part of China, they are, by far, the most comfortable.

West of the Himalayas

Countries	From Nepal to Middle East and Eastern United States.
Weather	Weather, Windy and heavy rains.
Politics	Unstable.
Economy	Very poor.
War and instability	War may break out.
Natural catastrophe	Natural fires and man-made fires in February, July and November.
Epidemic/pandemic	April, July and December.
Remarks	The worst sector among all, in every sense of the word.

Southwest of the Himalayas

Countries	The African continent.
Weather	Weather Erratic weather. Sudden hot and cold periods.
Politics	Generally stable with a few incidents.
Economy	Better than 2008.
War and instability	Not stable.
Natural catastrophe	Fires.
Epidemic/pandemic	Minor in August.
Remarks	A relatively better year.

South of the Himalayas

Countries	Sumatra, parts of Indonesia.
Weather	A reversal of normal climatic conditions. Extreme heat and windy.
Politics	Turmoil.
Economy	Stable.
War and instability	Stable.
Natural catastrophe	Nil.
Epidemic/pandemic	Fires in April and September.
Remarks	Should be doing better if not for natural disasters and the impact of a poor global economy. Will gain world recognition in academics.

Southeast of the Himalayas

Sector and countries	Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand.
Weather	Windy spring and winter. Cool summer and hot autumn.
Politics	Unstable, with minor squabbles that can draw world attention.
Economy	To perform better than the previous year.
War and instability	Nil.
Natural catastrophe	Nil.
Epidemic/pandemic	Epidemic in April and October.
Remarks	This sector fares relatively better than the rest of the world.

East of the Himalayas

Countries	Thailand, Indochina, Taiwan, Western United States.
Weather	Normal weather condition with minor changes and not serious.
Politics	Very unstable, mainly caused by money-driven politics.
Economy	Unpredictable ups and downs.
War and instability	Theft and war involving the military. Court battles.
Natural catastrophe	Manmade fires.
Epidemic/pandemic	Minor epidemic.
Remarks	Military intervention amidst political changes.

Northeast of the Himalayas

Countries	China, Korea, Japan.
Weather	Erratic weather conditions. Exceptionally cold winter; heavy rainfall in autumn. Dry and windy in spring and summer.
Politics	Stable with minor infighting.
Economy	Very good.
War and instability	Nil.
Natural catastrophe	Natural severe floods.
Epidemic/pandemic	Minor.
Remarks	Economically one of the best sectors for the year.

If the accuracy of the past year’s predictions is any indication, this 2009 should be worth paying heed to. We wish for this outlook to be helpful to you. It is our wish that forewarned and forearmed, we can take precautionary measures and live in a better environment.