Malaysia Morning News For June 18

Malaysia rethinks on China projects
MALAYSIA was once a loyal partner in China’s globe-spanning infrastructure drive but a new government is now pledging to review Beijing-backed projects, threatening key links in the much-vaunted initiative.
— Bangkok Post

Investigators recommend charging Najib
INVESTIGATORS probing Datuk Seri Najib Razak for money laundering and misappropriation of property have recommended for the former prime minister to be charged.
— New Straits Times

Sarawak Does Not Deserve To Be Left Out Of Malaysia’s Clean Up Drive
The cleansing sweep of GE14 has flushed out the Federal Government and also sent Sabah’s Musa Aman packing. Yet, one glaring piece of unfinished business remaining among various pockets of entrenched corruption is Sarawak and its limpit of a leading politician, Governor Taib Mahmud.
— Sarawak Report

Malaysia’s most powerful Islamic body faces scrutiny
Malaysia’s new government intends to rein in the country’s most powerful Islamic agency and its huge financial budget, but needs to tread carefully so as not to offend the country’s Muslim majority.
— The Straits Times

Malaysian PM Mahathir set to meet Alibaba’s Jack Ma: Report
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad is set to meet Jack Ma, the founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, at his office in Putrajaya on Monday (June 18), the Malaysiakini website reported.
— The Straits Times

China’s anti-dumping measures on some chemical products from Malaysia, others
China will apply temporary anti-dumping measures to hydroiodic acid products originating from Japan and the United States, its commerce ministry said.
— The Star Online

Airlines may lose pricing power if oversupply occurs
Airlines will quickly lose their pricing power should supply growth continue to exceed demand growth in the coming months, analysts observed in an aviation sector report.
— The Borneo Post

Malaysians unwilling to buy local labels, hijab seller says
Despite the success of TudungPeople, co-founder Fazrena Aziz said Malaysians were still reluctant to purchase home-grown labels for the hijab.
— Malay Mail

Malaysia can be part of ASEAN joint bid to host 2034 World Cup
Malaysia stand a chance to co-host the 2034 World Cup together with Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam who have already agreed to put in a joint-bid proposal.
— Fox Sports Asia

Malaysia among countries who won’t feel compelled to keep up with US Fed’s rate hikes
Higher U.S. rates are rattling many emerging markets in much the same way past tightening cycles did, but the Federal Reserve’s hawkishness could also bring cheer for a small group of Asian economies that wouldn’t mind seeing their currencies weaken.
— The Star Online

Proton vendors must produce parts for electrical, green cars
As Proton vendors upgrade to 4S centres, they must focus on new technologies and manufacturing parts for electrical and green cars, prominent economist Dr Yeah Kim Leng said.
— The Borneo Post

Visa and I-Berhad launch smart city initiative in Malaysia
VISA Malaysia and I-Berhad jointly announced a strategic partnership that will see the digitisation of payment systems across i-City.
— Digital News Asia

CIMB recognised for strong risk management by The Asian Banker Awards 2018
CIMB Group Holdings Bhd (CIMB) was recently awarded with ‘Achievement in Enterprise Risk Management’ and ‘Chief Risk Officer of the Year (for David Richard Thomas)’ at The Asian Banker Risk Management Awards 2018, and The Asian Banker Risk Leadership Achievement Awards 2018 respectively.
— The Borneo Post

Mobile phone explosion kills Malaysian venture capital firm’s CEO
A mobile phone explosion led to the death of 45-year-old Cradle Fund Sdn Bhd CEO Nazrin Hassan, according to a statement released by the company on Friday (Jun 15).
— Channel News Asia

Digital transformation to add US$387 bln to Asia Pacific’s GDP by 2021
Asia Pacific’s GDP stands to gain an extra US$387 billion by 2021 and grow by extra one per cent annually if the region’s manufacturing sector embraces digital transformation, according to the new figures released by Microsoft.
— The Borneo Post

New cryptocurrency player SIM Chain draws US$30m from China investors since June 4 launch
New cryptocurrency firm SIM Chain International has garnered US$30 million (RM120 million) in cryptocurrency investment from 100 mainland China business partners in two weeks since the company was established on June 4, 2018.
— The Sun Daily

Traveloka Malaysia and Chubb introduce flight insurance plans
NOBODY wants to experience the misfortune of misplaced baggage, a lost passport or ending up in the ER of a foreign country, but it can happen to anyone.
— Digital News Asia

A look at the resignation of Malaysia’s two top judges and what’s next
The resignation of Malaysia’s two highest-ranking judges have been all over the news, but how did we get here and what’s next?
— Malay Mail

The ugly culture of food wastage growing among Malaysians
Social activist Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye has said that there is an urgent need to educate Malaysians on food wastage and to adopt the idea of taking only what they can finish.
— New Straits Times

Orkid Cosmetics in talks with angel investors, eyes foreign markets
Orkid Cosmetics plans to raise RM250,000-RM500,000 in its pre-seed round this year to scale up the one-year-old business, including bringing in more products and entering two to three new markets in India, the UK and the US.
— The Sun Daily

Malaysia looks for stronger economic ties with Turkey
Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Wan Azizah Wan Ismail has said Turkey and Malaysia have to be strong economically to help the Ummah (Muslim community).
— AA

Local transport sector faces headwinds
AmInvestment Bank, which is neutral on the transportation sector over the next 12 months, is mindful of various headwinds in the sector such as the increased regulatory risk on the back of the change in the political landscape following the 14th general election (GE14), potential dial-back of certain major initiatives by the preceding administration and rising fuel costs.
— The Sun Daily

Feature photo Bernard Spragg. NZ

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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.