Morning Brief

On 16 May, the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) was adopted by the Council of the European Union. What impact does this have on the Malaysian agriculture sectors which are impacted? And are the small stakeholders ready? Khor Yu Leng for Principal at Segi Enam Advisors gives us her views. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Economic recovery across the world has been a mixed bag and poses a challenge for our local exporters. We ask Callum Chen, President of Malaysian Consortium of Mid-Tier Companies how businesses are faring, government support, and is a weaker ringgit beneficial for their export growth and profit margins? Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cambodia will hold general elections on 28 July - but it's a foregone conclusion that Prime Minister Hun Sen and his party, the CPP will win after the only opposition party was barred from participating. Who is in place to eventually replace Hun Sen and what does the succession mean for the future of Cambodia? We discuss the political landscape in Cambodia with author and journalist Sebastian Stra...

A proposal has been mooted to create a Johor Singapore economic region, which would further cement the existing economic and social ties across the Johor straits. Which sectors will benefit the most from this economic zone? We speak with Dr Francis Hutchinson, ISEAS-Yusof Ishak, Coordinator of the Malaysia Studies Programme on the issues and challenges to make the idea work for all parties. Image...

Does Malaysia face an uphill battle battling its neighbours to attract tourist arrivals and spend? Governments in Asean are spending big dollars to promote tourism to help the recovery. But here in Malaysia, Penang Island has just placed restrictions on AirBnB short term rentals. We speak with Hannah Pearson, Founder, Pear Anderson, to find out the wider effects of this move. Image by: Shutterstoc...

The Thai Election Commission has confirmed the results of the recent elections but with no party winning the required 376 seats, coalition discussions have started. Does the Move Forward Party which won the most seats have the upper hand or will the Pheu Thai party succeed? Dr Greg Raymond, Senior Lecturer at Australia National University tells us. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listene...

Buzz tech word for 2023 - AI. Do we fear it, or embrace it? Can a country benefit and how do we need to put policies in place to protect ourselves? Dr Sia Chin Chin, Programme Director and Senior Lecturer of Business & Law, Taylor’s Law School weighs in.  Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

During LIMA 2023 the defence ministry signed a record value of 10 billion ringgit in deals, announced a RM2 billion cost overrun in the Littoral Combat Ships, but failed to present our National Defence Industry Policy Blueprint. And as a maritime country, are we paying too much emphasis on the airforce and army, and less so on our navy. We speak with Marhalim Abbas, Defence writer to digest all th...

Recently the yuan slipped passed 7 to the US dollar. We ask Luca Santos, Currency Analyst at ACY Securities, if the PBOC will intervene in forex markets. Whilst asking if this is driving recent weakness in the Ringgit Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sarawak is at the forefront of pushing the federal government to uphold the Malaysia Agreement 1963, seeking equal economic and political rights, from the establishment of Petroleum Sarawak, taking control of education and health, and this week Sarawak Ports Authority. We speak with Dr James Chin, Professor of Asian Studies to get his views on how Abang Jo has been flexing his muscles. Image by: S...

This week the Ministry of Home Affairs raided Swatch outlets across Malaysia and seized watches from its 'Pride Collection" for allegedly contravening the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 (PPPA).  What are the provisions and processes behind this Act, and was it rightly used? We speak with lawyer, New Sin Yew to find out more. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for p...

Capital lenders through corporate and government bonds, play a crucial role in advancing the responsible investment agenda and with we have seen a sharp rise in green bond offerings. However do all such bonds really meet the criteria and what should that standard be? Jason Mortimer, Head of Sustainability, Fixed Income Nomura Asset Management gives us his views. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystud...

It is a two-cornered fight between PAS-Bersatu and BN-Pakatan Harapan in the upcoming state election in Kelantan. Will the unity government make inroads, or will we see a clean sweep of seats by the PAS-Bersatu coalition? For insights, we speak to Adib Zalkapli, Director of BowerGroupAsia. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is the streaming war finally over as subscriber counts plateau? Is great content the only way to acquire and retain market share. And what will the roll out of password sharing controls do for Netflix’s number 1 position? We speak with Geetha Ranganathan, Senior Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence to talk about the companies bringing us great shows like XO Kitty, Succession, and the Mandalorian. Ima...

The US government could start to run out of money within weeks unless it allows itself to borrow more. With just a week till the estimated debt-limit deadline of 1 June, we ask Walter Todd, President & Chief Investment Officer, Greenwood Capital what are the options left and the consequences if the largest economy breaches the debt ceiling. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener fo...

In the first three months of this year, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has made official visits and trade missions to 9 countries, attracting around 185 billion ringgit of potential investments and potential exports of 3.2 billion ringgit. Ong Kian Ming, Director of the Philosophy Politics & Economics (PPE) Program at Taylor's University and former Deputy Minister of International Tra...

Goldman Sachs estimates that China’s government debt amounts to $23 trillion US dollars, and this includes debt amassed by regional governments and municipalities. How do these debt levels weigh down on China’s economic recovery? Bernard Aw, Chief Economist at Coface gives us his analysis. Image by: ZDL / Shutterstock.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Disillusionment amongst our secondary school leavers have taken hold, with only 50% of surveyed youth intending to continue their higher education. Is it a case of funding, varsity places, or a mismatch of tertiary courses versus jobs available. To get an insight on this dilemma, we speak with Adli Amirullah, Fellow at Malaysian Youth Council. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for...

Perikatan Nasional looks ready for the upcoming Kedah state election led by the popular Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor. The state is a key gateway for PAS into the west coast. To have an understanding how prepared the 2 opposing sides are, we speak with Dr Bridget Welsh, Honorary Research Associate with the University of Nottingham Asia Research Institute Malaysia Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com...

The MACC is purportedly investigating the UEM purchase of a 33% block stake in Renong Bhd for RM2.3 billion ringgit. Many questions remain unanswered from the aftermath of the transaction that took place 26 years ago in 1997. To help us answer these question, we speak with P. Gunasegaram, Independent Business Writer. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Focusing on the three giants dominating the Southeast Asia tech space, Grab, GoTo and Sea; Nathan Naidu, Equity Research Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, dissects for us their recent quarterly results and their timeline to full year profitability Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Subsidies are weighing heavily on government budgets and plans to rationalise subsidies for both fuel and electricity are in motion. Join our conversation with Associate Professor Dr Ahmed Razman Abdul Latiff, MBA Program Director , PUTRA Business School on targeted subsidy removals, and how implementing it on a phase approach will minimise the risk of unintended consequences. Image by: Shuttersto...

As temperatures are set to soar, what should businesses and the government do to ensure that the safety, welfare and productivity of workers are upheld? We discuss policies to mitigate the effects of heat waves with Dr Abed Onn, Vice-President of the Academy Of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, Malaysia Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The G7, an informal grouping of the world’s seven richest nations, convened in Hiroshima over the weekend with a surprise visit by Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky. We discuss their communique in detail with William Pesek, columnist at Nikkei Asia. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia is doing better than average in terms of reducing trade barriers compared to her Asia Pacific peers. We rank 45th out of 88 countries in the International Trade Barrier Index by Washington DC-based think tank the Tholos Foundation in partnership with Malaysia’s Centre for Market Education. CME's Carmelo Ferlito tells us what the study shows us. Image by: Shutterstock See omnystudio.com/li...