The Breakfast Grille

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) is hosting the Latin American Business Day in Kuala Lumpur next Tuesday. The event serves as an opportunity for local businesses to look at trade opportunities between Malaysia and the Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries. On one hand, critics say the grouping suffers from a confusing “spaghetti bowl” of free trade agre...

Dr Yu Runze, Chief Strategy Officer of Country Garden Pacificview, discusses the China developer’s mammoth Forest City project, in terms of human capital management, commercial returns, governance, funding, politics, environment and technical challenges. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Currently serving as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine at Georgetown University, our guest today is the author of many books on terrorism and violence. Having interviewed hundreds of terrorist, Speckhard studies the thinking as well as the external conditions that makes a person a ready recruit to terror organisations. Her books included “Talking to Terro...

Dato’ Nicol David, eight times World squash women's champion and five times British Open winner, talks about Malaysia’s pipeline of top sporting professionals, the SEA Games, Squash’s continued exclusion from the Olympics and her continuing aspirations as a top professional. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Moon Jae-in of South Korea was elected in May 2017 promising economic reform, amidst widespread public outrage over corruption allegations that plagued his predecessor. But a shadow hangs over the dynamic economy as its northern neighbour sends Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles in it way. We speak to South Korea’s envoy about the complexities at play in the divided peninsular, t...

Published in the  South China Morning Post, an opinion piece by the regionally syndicated columnist, has pushed buttons over the expression “optimism deficit” . Are we an overly critical and negative lot, or are some people burying their heads in the sand while the country sinks? Today we look at both optimistic and pessimistic points of view and whether the twain will ever meet....

Matrix Concepts has won the Forbes Asia's 200 Best Under A billion Award and is currently part of the Edge Billion Ringgit Club. With affordable housing at the top of the mind of homebuyers, government and property developers, Dato Mohamad Haslah Amin, Chairman of Matrix Concepts shares his secrets on how Matrix Concepts remains competitive in this market. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...

Over the last six decades, Chuan Huat has weathered many challenges in its key segments, namely steel and IT retail. Dato Mark Lim explains how the company intends to fend of the recent threats posed by Chinese steel imports and lacklustre retail consumer spending, all while expanding its production footprint across the Asean region. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With a background in both journalism and conflict resolution, Vatikiotis, is able to look beyond the glass and steel facades of Southeast Asia’s rapidly growing economies to get at deep dynamics that are shaping the region. Today we tap him for his views on this emerging community of over 600 million with a focus on the seemingly futile fight against graft, the failures of democratisation, a...

Datuk Dr Mohd Yusoff, CEO, Malaysian Industry Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) is asked about his agency’s mandate, KPIs and results in delivering the country’s science and technology ambition. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tan Hai Hsin, Managing Director of Retail Group Malaysia  joins us on the Breakfast Grille to provide some insights into the retail industry eco system and how the industry is responding to numerous challenges, including the rise of eCommerce. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the world begins to embrace the entrance of electric vehicles and electric engines into the market, we ask the question of how this would impact transportation on a wider scale? We talk to Tony Seba, Lecturer in Entrepreneurship, Disruption and Clean Energy of Stanford University as well as author of the report, Rethinking Transport 2020 - 2030 to shed some light on the disruption and it's impl...

Just three years ago Sony was on the ropes and had lost its mojo. After a successful turnaround, Sony  it is looking to the future with new innovative products and  a marketing strategy focusing on customer experience. The Managing Director of Sony Malaysia, Satoru Arai tells us why Sony is cool again. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shareholders of Sedania Innovator recently approved the acquisition of Islamic FinTech platform provider Sedania As-Salam Capital for RM12 million. How will Sedania achieve synergies between this acquisition and its other verticals, namely Green Technologies, Internet of Things, Big Data Analytics and mobile airtime sharing? Datuk Azrin and Ridzuan also explain how SASC will help Sedania rebound f...

With the public tranche of Advancecon's IPO oversubscribed by 10.28 times, Yeo believes the timing is now right for the earthworks and civil engineering specialist to tap the capital markets to fund its expansion plans. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Volkswagen is on a major drive to win back the trust of their customers after Dieselgate and major issues in Malaysia. The new CEO of Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia, Erik Winter tells us of his plans to rebuild the Volkwagen brand. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tan Sri Lim Hock San, MD of the property developer LBS Bina, talks about the nuances of the affordable housing segment, its launches for 2017, China market potential in Zhuhai, and its growth strategy   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The detariffication of motor insurance premiums went into effect July 1, 2017. Antony explains how will this affect Malaysian motorists and insurance companies. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Datuk Siew Ka Wei, the Chairman of Tourism Malaysia, talks about government policies to steer more arrivals and spending to the country and measures to repair the reputational damage that has afflicted the nation in recent years. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Celebrity Fitness and Fitness First set to be housed under a new entity, Evolution Wellness is poised for a stronger hold on the Asian market. Simon outlines the growth prospects and the challenges that lie ahead. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In his latest book, "China's Crony Capitalism: The Dynamics of Regime Decay", Professor Minxin Pei casts doubt on whether China's ongoing anti-corruption campaign can be truly effective in tackling endemic financial malfeasance in the country. We speak with Professor Minxin Pei on his views regarding the roots of corruption, the pervasiveness of crony capitalism and the future of democracy in the...

About one-third of the estimated 3,000 freight forwarders operating in Malaysia are registered members of the Federation of Malaysian Freight Forwarders. Alvin outlines the challenges facing the industry. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In his latest book, Prof. Guy Standing lays out the case against rentier capitalism - where a small majority accumulate vast wealth and power from rental income of tangible and intangible assets - and how universal basic income can mitigate the grievous economic imbalance. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Isuzu is synonymous with tough SUV’s and commercial vehicles. It was a rising star in the global automotive industry in the 80's, but declined in the 90's. The automotive industry is rapidly evolving and Isuzu needs to stay relevant. The Malaysian MD talks to us about Isuzu's direction in Alternative Fuels, Autonomous vehicles and its plans for Malaysia and the region. See omnystudio.com/lis...

The Irish Central Bank warned that Ireland is the EU economy most likely to be affected by Brexit. Part of this is because Ireland was more reliant on UK export markets that any other EU country. The Bank’s Chief Economist said the overall impact of Brexit of the Irish economy is uncertain, and depends on the nature of any new trade agreement. In the event of a hard Brexit with no UK-EU trad...