Morning Brief

Malaysia has witnessed a surge in mall construction but footfall traffic has not kept up, with seven states recording occupancy rates below 80%. As malls and retailers brace for the glut ahead, they are also facing fierce competition from the e-commerce players who have come up with catchy marketing strategies like 9-9, 10-10, and 11-11 to gain market share. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

Malaysia has witnessed a surge in mall construction but footfall traffic has not kept up, with seven states recording occupancy rates below 80%. As malls and retailers brace for the glut ahead, they are also facing fierce competition from the e-commerce players who have come up with catchy marketing strategies like 9-9, 10-10, and 11-11 to gain market share. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy...

Malaysia improved from C to a C+ in the 2019 Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index report. The list of recommended actions to get a better rating such as "increasing the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals" is not easy to implement given the limited national finances. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While China hasn't sent troops into Hong Kong to their credit to quell the protests, the idea of "one country, two systems" is looking increasingly untenable especially with regards to its policy on Taiwan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The question of whether to ban or regulate vaping is a complex one, given that not only is Malaysia one of the biggest vaping markets in the world, but also that there are thousands of jobs at stake as well. We discuss this with Ridhwan Rosli, the Secretary-General of the Malaysian Vape Chamber of Commerce, and  Erik Stoel, Managing Director of British American Tobacco. See omnystudio.com/lis...

Following news of Indonesian President Joko Widodo's new Cabinet lineup, we speak to Enrico Tanuwidjaja, Economist at UOB Group, and Aaron Connolly, Research Fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, about their takes on the lineup, and what it means for Jokowi's second term. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia has jumped three places in the World Bank's 2020 Ease of Doing Business Report to 12th in the world. For more insight into this change, we speak to Professor Mahendhiran Nair and Professor Pervaiz Ahmed of Monash University Malaysia about what they think accounts for the move, and some obstacles to doing business in Malaysia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Asia is slowing and the rest of the world has to find a way to cope. Nor will Malaysia be spared, though its government is more optimistic than the IMF and other analysts including Khoon Goh, Head of Asia Research at ANZ Bank in Singapore, who explains this disparity and offers some market insights. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

00:05 - Softbank has doubled down on its investment into WeWork, whose valuation has plummeted to just $8 billion. 05:43 - Mark Zuckerberg has struggled to convince Congress of Facebook's plans for cryptocurrency Libra, in light of the company's missteps in protecting data privacy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

00:40 - Khazanah Nasional has said Malaysia would need a capital injection of RM1 billion a year, if it wants to survive. 06:42 - The Port Klang Free Zone masterplan is looking to revitalise the area, transforming its 20 hectare commercial component and increasing utilisation. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As protests sparked by a metro fare hike tap into a deeper vein of unrest in Chile, we speak to Dr.  Jennifer Pribble, Assistant Professor of Political Science and International Studies, University of Richmond about what lead to this, and what the Chilean government can do to assuage protesters. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

00:23 - After a proposal to revamp the civil servant pension scheme was raised early this month, the subject has come up again after Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad revealed the government is struggling to bear the pension burden. 05:19 - Are gig economy workers considered fully employed? We ask this and more as the government considers adding them to the 12th Malaysia Plan. See omnystudio.com/listener fo...

00:23 - After a proposal to revamp the civil servant pension scheme was raised early this month, the subject has come up again after Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad revealed the government is struggling to bear the pension burden. 05:19 - Are gig economy workers considered fully employed? We ask this and more as the government considers adding them to the 12th Malaysia Plan. See omnystudio.com/listener fo...

Throw in great talent, supportive regulation, funding, good market access and voila, you can't tell the difference between what's needed for the old or new economy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Throw in great talent, supportive regulation, funding, good market access and voila, you can't tell the difference between what's needed for the old or new economy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The ambitious plan to build 4000km of roads to connect Brunei, Kalimantan, Sabah and Sarawak is part of efforts to bring development and socio-economic benefits to the region. We speak to Firdausi Suffian, Political Economist at UiTM Sabah to find out what the challenges are to this Trans-Borneo Highway but also what could be the positives while having a deeper dive on the political relations betw...

The ambitious plan to build 4000km of roads to connect Brunei, Kalimantan, Sabah and Sarawak is part of efforts to bring development and socio-economic benefits to the region. We speak to Firdausi Suffian, Political Economist at UiTM Sabah to find out what the challenges are to this Trans-Borneo Highway but also what could be the positives while having a deeper dive on the political relations betw...

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has been sworn in for his second and last term, and now all eyes are on who his choices will be for his Cabinet. For more about Jokowi's priorities this term, we speak to Alden Iswanto, analyst with political consultancy KRA Group. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

00:05 - Mumbai-based processors group the Solvent Extractors' Association have told their members to avoid purchasing palm oil from Malaysia, as a mark of solidarity following Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's comments that India 'invaded' Kashmir. 04:52 - Transport Minister Anthony Loke has refused to comment on the state of the Malaysian Aviation Commission, after he reportedly criticised both the commi...

00:05 - Mumbai-based processors group the Solvent Extractors' Association have told their members to avoid purchasing palm oil from Malaysia, as a mark of solidarity following Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad's comments that India 'invaded' Kashmir. 04:52 - Transport Minister Anthony Loke has refused to comment on the state of the Malaysian Aviation Commission, after he reportedly criticised both the commi...

00:05 - Budget 2020's Graduates@Work scheme has come under criticism, on concerns that it will reduce the employability of fresh graduates. 09:15 - One of Budget 2020's stated objectives has been to ensure Malaysia is competitive as an investment destination. For some insight, we speak to Amarjeet Singh, EY Asean and Malaysia Tax Leader at Ernst & Young, about how exactly the budget goes about...

The Malaysian aviation sector, experiencing material change from a regulatory and industry perspective, has enormous consequences for Malaysian Airports Holdings Bhd. Khair Mirza, Director of Airport Investor Resource, Modalis Infrastructure Partners Inc, discusses. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Malaysian aviation sector, experiencing material change from a regulatory and industry perspective, has enormous consequences for Malaysian Airports Holdings Bhd. Khair Mirza, Director of Airport Investor Resource, Modalis Infrastructure Partners Inc, discusses. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Daniel Béland, Director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada in Montreal, discusses Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's spectacular fall from grace, in the context of that country's upcoming elections.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Another Brexit delay may be in the offing, after UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was forced to request an extension to the Brexit deadline from the EU. But with the Withdrawal Agreement Bill making its way through the House of Commons, what is likely to happen next? We speak to Professor Fariborz Moshirian, Director of the Institute of Global Finance at UNSW Sydney, about whether we can expect an...