Morning Brief

The Penal Code (Amendment) (No 2) Bill 2024 aiming to tackle bullying has been passed at the Dewan Rakyat. The amendments address the legal definition of bullying and its punishments, ranging from fines to up to 10 years imprisonment. These changes aim to establish a clear legal framework for addressing both physical and online bullying. Dato’ Vignesh Kumar, Advocate & Solicitor, and former De...

What does the collapse of the Al-Assad regime in Syria mean for Russia and President Vladimir Putin? We discuss the implications of the realignment in the Middle East with security analyst Malcolm Davis of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. Image Credits: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Uncertain and volatile are the buzz words for 2025, no thanks to incoming US President Donald Trump and his stance on tariffs and taxes. With that, the pace and quantum of Fed rate cuts is less clear, so what does that mean for Asian currencies and the Ringgit in particular? Christopher Wong, FX Strategist, OCBC Bank tells us his 2025 outlook. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/list...

Local authorities have been called to expedite the gazetting of public open spaces in their respective areas to prevent the land from being misused by irresponsible parties. What accounts for the low level of gazettement? We speak to lawyer Alliff Benjamin Suhaimi, Partner at Thomas Philip to better understand the legislation governing the development of public spaces.  Image Credit...

2024 has been a tale of two halves for Asia-Pacific infrastructure stocks, with the second half of the year making up for the sluggish start, which saw the sector underperform the MSCI Benchmark index by 7.7 percent. But could the positive momentum be derailed by Trump tariffs in 2025? We discuss the outlook for the Asian infrastructure sector with Denise Wong of Bloomberg Intelligence. Image Cred...

Human Rights Day is marked annually on 10 December to commemorate the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights adopted in 1948. How does the Madani Government’s commitment to uphold human rights stack up against its actions? We get an assessment from Ragunath Kesavan, Commissioner with SUHAKAM. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia and Vietnam have elevated their bilateral ties to that of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, which is expected to pave the way for a more unified approach to the South China Sea tensions. How might this collaboration strengthen their collective voice against Beijing? For more perspectives, we speak with Collins Chong, a foreign affairs and security analyst at Universiti Malaya. I...

In conjunction with International Anti-Corruption Day, we speak to Sujatha Sekhar Naik, Chairperson of the Malaysian Institute of Corporate Governance (MICG), about the standards of corporate governance in Malaysia, whether the amended MACC Act has reduced instances of corporate malpractice. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fortunes in Syria have changed overnight, after opposition groups seized Damascus and toppled the 24-year regime led by President Bashar Al-Assad on Sunday. Who will fill the leadership vacuum in Syria and what does this mean for geopolitical dynamics in the Middle East? We get analysis from Dr James Dorsey, Adjunct Senior Fellow with the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. Image Credit...

Data from Adobe Inc showed that US e-commerce sales rose to a record 10.8 billion US dollars on Black Friday. This shopping season is viewed as one of the barometers for US consumer spending. Sales at larger digital platforms are expected to outperform this season, with TikTok tripling its US shopping sales to more than 100 million dollars on the day after Thanksgiving. For more insights into the...

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is now facing the very real possibility of being impeached after declaring martial law out of the blue on Tuesday night, and rescinding it after a parliamentary vote a few hours later. For some insight into South Korea’s political situation at the moment, we will be speaking to Dr. Hoo Chiew Ping, Senior Fellow, East Asia International Relations (EAIR) Caucus....

Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, announced that the government is reviewing the master plan for the Bandar Malaysia development after it was approved in principle last year. Our Finance Minister said the review is necessary to take into account the perspectives from various stakeholders to ensure that Bandar Malaysia achieves its objectives. Dr. Shuhana Shamsuddin, President of Pereka Ban...

The 2-month-old minority government of France's prime minister, Michel Barnier, is facing near-certain defeat in a no-confidence vote. This is after he forced through an austerity budget which rallied opposition lawmakers from both a left-wing alliance and Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party. Benjamin Barton, Head of School of Politics and International Relations at University of Nottin...

The Malaysian government has recently launched a 13 billion ringgit affordable housing project, but how can the government ensure this project is carried out effectively? For some answers, we speak to Dr Carmelo Ferlito, CEO of the Center for Market Education. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia and Brazil are partnering in the semiconductor industry for integrated circuit (IC) design activities next year. With joint ventures (JVs) between Brazilian and Malaysian companies spearheading that, we speak to Dato' Seri Wong Siew Hai, President, Malaysia Semiconductor Industry Association as to how this might help us achieve our goals as stated in the National Semiconductor Strategy. I...

Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia recently held their 7th AGM with delegates reaffirming their support for Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to continue leading the party as president as well as to be Perikatan Nasional's prime ministerial candidate for GE16. Ibrahim Suffian, Co-Founder & Programme Director for Merdeka Centre shares his takeaways from what came out of the meeting. Image Credit: shutt...

Australia has passed a bill banning children under 16 from going on social media. This includes regulations on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and X, subjecting them to fines of up to A$49.5 million. Dr Faith Gordon, Associate Professor of Law at the ANU College of Law at the Australian National University, shares her insights on how effective (or not) this new piece of legislation will be....

There have been significant developments in Malaysia’s fintech landscape across the board over the past few years. With the launch of digital banks and the take up in e-payments to the introduction of buy now pay later players. We ask Vincent Fong, Chief Editor at Fintech News Malaysia about their latest report and what were the key observations. Image Credit: Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/l...

Selangor became the first state in Malaysia to launch a care economy policy. As the state with the highest number of elderly residents, the new framework would focus on regulation, training, and investments in the care economy. Joining us for a discussion on this is Lee Min Hui, Gender Consultant at the United Nations Population Fund Malaysia. Image Credit: shutterstock.com See omnystudi...

In Malaysia, digital investments have experienced robust growth with assets under management at RM1.6bn with more than 40 products on offer. Yet the industry is still at a nascent stage. So what policy changes should there be to encourage this as an option to promote financial inclusion, especially for those who have not prepared for retirement? We ask Munirah Khairuddin, CEO of Malaysia & Glo...

Lee Hsien Loong has confirmed that he will step down as PAP chief after 20 years helming the party, proposing Prime Minister Lawrence Wong as his successor. Eugene Tan, Associate Professor of Law at Singapore Management University, shares some insights into how Singapore's political landscape might change as the island nation goes to the polls next year in a high-stakes general election. Imag...

US President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to impose tariffs or increase them on Canada, Mexico and China - its three largest trading partners. At the same time, during his presidential campaign, Trump also pledged to address domestic inflation. Professor Dr Calvin Cheong, Vice Dean & Deputy Dean of Education, Sunway Business School, shares his insights into who stands to benefit from this an...

Global airfares are projected to continue climbing in 2025, amid ongoing supply chain disruptions and cost pressures on airlines. Could this dampen demand for air travel in the coming year? We discuss the outlook for global aviation with Shantanu Gangakhedkar, Senior Aviation Consultant, Frost & Sullivan. Image Credit: shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid announced that new guidelines regulating short-term rental accommodation activities would be presented to the Cabinet. He acknowledged its significant contribution to the growth of Malaysia’s tourism industry and emphasised the need for proper compliance. For a better understanding of this sector and what legislation to expect, we speak to Chan Ai Cheng...

The minority government in Japan led by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba signed off on a new stimulus package worth $140 billion US dollars last Friday in a bid to boost domestic consumption and bolster the economy. How might this affect the growth prospects of Japan at a time when the world is bracing for a return of Donald Trump to the White House? We get analysis from Stefan Angrick of Moody’s Ana...