Malaysia Morning News For January 23

Malaysia ready to take on gold industry
Malaysia is now poised to take on the world in the gold industry.
— New Straits Times

Thai SCG Packaging acquires majority stake in Malaysian firm for $26.5m
SCGP Solutions (Singapore) Pte Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thailand’s largest packaging paper firm SCG Packaging, has acquired 68.3 per cent stake in Malaysia’s Interpress Printers Sendirian Berhad (IPSB) for 104.5 million ringgit ($26.5 million), according to a Stock Exchange of Thailand filing on Monday.
— DealStreetAsia

Malaysia to consult WTO on EU palm oil ban
Malaysia will voice out unethical and unfair trade practices by the European Union (EU) in the next World Trade Organisation (WTO) meeting, said International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed.
— New Straits Times

Vegetable prices up in Malaysia
Checks by The Star this week showed that consumers in Malaysia will have to fork out extra money for vegetables and fish, as prices of these items have increased due to the monsoon season.
— Fresh Plaza

Axiata invested US$200m in digital ventures
Axiata Group Bhd is in the process of building one of the largest fintech companies in Asia to include five micro services – payments, remittance, lending, savings, and insurance.
— New Straits Times

Ringgit could benefit from US govt shutdown
The Greenback could potentially weaken in light of the political development in the United States, as the shutdown of government services moved into the third day, spelling good news for the ringgit.
— The Sun Daily

Multinationals confident of Malaysia’s resilience, economy – Najib
Planned investments and measures to enhance their presence taken by multinationals are reflective of the confidence the international community has shown in Malaysia over the past year, said Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.
— MalaysiaKini

BRI a major opportunity for growth
China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a major opportunity of growth for Malaysia in terms of infrastructure development and its multiplier effects.
— The Sun Daily

CIMB Research expects 25bp hike in interest rates
A 25 basis point hike in the in overnight policy rate (OPR) is likely to be announced by Bank Negara’s monetary policy committee (MPC) on Thursday, says CIMB Equities Research.
— The Star Online

Malaysia’s economic woes unresolved amid Dr Mahathir-Najib row, says columnist
ECONOMIC woes in Malaysia lie unresolved because of the ongoing feud between Prime Minister Najib Razak and his former mentor Dr Mahathir Mohamad, says an opinion piece published in the Asian Nikkei Review.
— The Malaysian Insight

GHL starts Alipay services in Philippines
GHL Systems Bhd will offer Alipay payment acceptance services to in-stores merchants as well as online merchants in the Philippines.
— The Sun Daily

AirAsia soars; shares hit all time high
Shares in AirAsia Bhd, which has been on an uptrend, settled at its highest closing price of RM4.14 on Monday since the company’s listing in 2004.
— The Star Online

MSM CEO leaves, claims ‘constructive dismissal’
MSM Malaysia Holdings Bhd group’s president/ CEO by Datuk Mohamad Amri Sahari @ Khuzari has left the group claiming “constructive dismissal” 20 months into the job.
— The Sun Daily

Feature photo Charles Haynes

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Malaysia morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Malaysia news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.