Morning Brief

The Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah decided against a state of emergency yesterday evening in response to Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s proposal last Friday. In an official statement from the Palace, the King viewed the government’s measures to fight the pandemic as effective, and had confidence they would be able to continue doing so. In response, t...

The US presidential debates are over, and up next is Election Day on Tuesday, November 3rd. Biden is leading in the polls, but will that actually translate into votes on the day? Also, what are the most important states to watch? We discuss this and more with Robert Shapiro. Image Credit: Christos S / Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A lack of clarity over SOPs and the newest iteration of the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) have caused significant disruption to businesses and confusion all around. As cases remain high, there is no disputing that movement restrictions are necessary - but could things have been done better? Laurence Todd, Director of Research and Development at IDEAS, gives us his thoughts on governmen...

Sales of new cars came back strong immediately after the Movement Control Order (MCO) ended, spurred on by pent-up demand and government incentives. But as Covid-19 cases rise and movement is once again curtailed, what does the future hold for the automotive sector? We speak to Vivek Vaidya, Associate Partner at Frost & Sullivan, about changing consumer trends, regional government support meas...

Goldman Sachs has been slapped with penalties in the US to the tune of $2.9 billion, after pleading guilty to crimes linked with the 1MDB scandal. The bank will also claw back compensation worth $174 million from both past and current executives as a result. For some insight on whether this admission of guilt will actually impact Goldman Sachs, as well as thoughts on its effect on the ongoing 1MDB...

Chinese fintech giant Ant Group has cleared the final regulatory hurdle for its IPO after the China Securities Regulatory Commission gave it the all-clear to list simultaneously in Hong Kong and Shanghai. The Group is planning to raise $35 billion dollars in the dual listing and will split its stock issuance equally across Shanghai and Hong Kong, issuing 1.67 billion shares in each location. This...

Dr Geoffrey Williams, HELP university updates on the challenges faced by private higher education institutions, and his hopes for Budget 2021. Image Credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Big Japanese clothing groups Fast Retailing and Ryohin Keikaku, the owners of Uniqlo and Muji, expect record profits for the year ahead despite a global retail downturn. The two companies are recovering far faster than their Western peers, so we reached out to Catherine Lim, Senior Analyst for Asia Consumer at Bloomberg Intelligence, to find out more. Image Credit: August_0802 / Shutterstock See o...

The Prime Minister has hinted that sustainable development will be given a special focus in Budget 2021. Frederik Paulus, Economic Advisor of REFSA, discusses Malaysia’s climate change commitments and what more needs to be done. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are regular spikes and lockdowns the new normal? On the back of positive cases crossing the 40 million mark this week, we speak to Benjamin Cowling for his thoughts on the surge, efforts to contain the virus, whether lockdowns are the way to curb the spread, and vaccine expectations. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The number of Covid-19 cases has been rising quickly in Sabah, accounting for close to 75% of active cases in Malaysia. Dr Anbarasu Ramalingam, Chairperson of MERCY Malaysia Sabah, updates in the trenches. Image Credit: Lano Lan / Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

S. Piarapakaran, President of the Association of Water and Energy Research Malaysia (AWER), helps us understand why water cuts occur in Selangor, the most developed state in the country, and suggests proposals to resolve our woes. Image Credit: Afif Abd. Halim / Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The end of the blanket loan moratorium in September has triggered concern that people whose income is still suppressed as a result of the pandemic will not be able to service their loans. Although there is a targeted loan moratorium in place, the National Union of Bank Employees is calling for the government to reinstate the blanket moratorium for low-wage groups and SMEs. To find out more, we spe...

Richard Shaw, Professor of Politics at Massey University in New Zealand discusses Jacinda Ardern’s priorities after her landslide victory, if having a high number of inexperienced MPs would be a setback, and direction on foreign policy with China. Image Credit: Shuttlestock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin's majority in the Dewan Rakyat in doubt and a flood of no-confidence motions, all eyes are now set on the upcoming parliamentary session beginning November 2nd. Will these motions see the light of day on the parliament floor or be buried under government business? We also get into the importance of Budget 2021 as a motion of confidence in the prime mini...

Thousands of people in Bangkok continue to take the streets despite a ban on gatherings. Dr. James Gomez, Regional Director of Asia Centre discusses possible scenarios for the government and the monarchy. Image Credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Political jockeying continues, the latest being Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim claiming to have majority MP support and UMNO’s hints of withdrawing support for Perikatan Nasional unless given more plum positions. Dr. Hamidin Abdul Hamid, Research Fellow at Ilham Centre, discusses the potential winner and loser in our version of the Hunger Games. Image Credit: Shahjehan /  Shutterstock.com See...

Political jockeying continues, the latest being Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim claiming to have majority MP support and UMNO’s hints of withdrawing support for Perikatan Nasional unless given more plum positions. Dr. Hamidin Abdul Hamid, Research Fellow at Ilham Centre, discusses the potential winner and loser in our version of the Hunger Games. Image Credit: Shahjehan /  Shutterstock.com See...

Thousands of people in Bangkok continue to take the streets despite a ban on gatherings. Dr. James Gomez, Regional Director of Asia Centre discusses possible scenarios for the government and the monarchy. Image Credit: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What will be the fate of the beleaguered Malaysia Airlines? Khazanah, the national carrier’s sole shareholder, could inject funds into its sister airline Firefly, which would subsequently become the national airline. Reports suggest this could become a reality if the current debt restructuring plan fails. So for on the implications of this, we get analyst Khair Mirza's thoughts on this. On T...

What will be the fate of the beleaguered Malaysia Airlines? Khazanah, the national carrier’s sole shareholder, could inject funds into its sister airline Firefly, which would subsequently become the national airline. Reports suggest this could become a reality if the current debt restructuring plan fails. So for on the implications of this, we get analyst Khair Mirza's thoughts on this. On T...

The Khazanah Research Institute’s State of Households 2020 report has highlighted a concerning trend of rising living costs, insufficient social security systems and a fast-growing wealth divide, even as the pandemic and socio-political issues further threaten policies to mitigate these challenges. Adam Firouz, Research Associate at the Khazanah Research Institute, discusses. Image credit: D...

A third wave of Covid-19 means yet another fortnight of Conditional Movement Control Orders, throwing yet another spanner in the works of a much-needed recovery in the local retail scene. Tan Hai Hsin, Managing Director of Retail Group Malaysia, discusses the state of play. Image credit TY Lim / Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Food security has long been a problem, but COVID-19 has raised the urgency to address it even more. While the stereotypical image of food insecurity is one of famine and hunger, the pandemic has also exacerbated a lack of access to food due to economic poverty. On the event of World Food Day, we discuss with David Dawe of the Food Agricultural Organization. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnys...

With the Klang Valley, Selangor and Putrajaya under a conditional movement control order for 2 weeks till 27 October , what will the impact be on the Malaysian economy especially since this area is 40% of the country's GDP? Wellian Wiranto, Economist at OCBC Bank weighs in on his views while giving us a preview of Budget 2021. Image credit: Abdul Razak Latif_Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listene...