Morning Brief

Starting Sept 1st, 2022, amendments to the Malaysian Employment Act 1955 will take effect. This means employees will get longer maternity leave, paternity leave will be introduced and there will also be a lower cap to how long people can work a week. Datuk Wira Ameer Ali Mydin, advisor to the Federation of Malaysian Business Associations tells us about how receptive and prepared employers are for these changes aimed at elevating Malaysia's employment landscape.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Royal Malaysian Navy's littoral combat ship scandal would have been swept under the carpet if not for the 250-page Public Accounts Committee that highlighted how more than RM6 billion was spent with no vessel materialising. What does this say about Malaysia's national security as well as corruption at high levels of government? Economist Dr Nungsari A Radhi talks about how these issues can be addressed.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The US corporate earnings' season is winding down with overall results either surpassing or meeting street expectations. This surprised investors who had been bracing for a gloomier outlook on both businesses and the economy. Dave Sekera, the Chief US Market Strategist at Morningstar talks to us about his expectations for the rest of the year and what he sees are sectors to keep an eye on.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Putrajaya expects to table the Health White Paper in Parliament in November. The aim is to ensure a sustainable and resilient health system that can survive changes in the government. It is also looking to increase health expenditure from the current 2.59% to 5% of GDP. Dr Khor Swee Kheng, co-founder of the Malaysian Health Coalition talks to us about how effective these proposals might be.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Barisan Nasional chairman and Umno president Datuk Seri Zahid Hamidi is calling for early elections whilst Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri wants to study the outcome of a BN survey. So when will GE15 be called? Adib Zalkapli, Director at BowerGroupAsia attempts to answer that question whilst telling us the respective issues that both BN and PH will campaign on.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the Hong Kong Government cutting its growth forecast, we ask Michael Frank, Senior Analyst of Public Policy, Economist Impact how will China's Covid Zero policy impact its immediate and long term future as well as understand who will benefit from Hong Kong's declineSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week, the Federal Court ruled that victims of road accidents should automatically be given compensation without having to sue insurance companies. But what are the actual mechanics of this ruling and does this mean higher premiums for all motorist? Antony Lee, President of the Persatuan Insurans Am Malaysia clarifies the law.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Inflation in Australia hit a 21 year high in June at 6.1% which caused the Reserve Bank of Australia to raise rates by 50 basis points to 1.85% in August. However what impact does this have on the property sector and also the consumer? Catherine Birch, Senior Economist at ANZ Research tells us.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

All eyes are on the Federal Court today as it hears former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak’s appeal to quash his conviction and jail sentence in the 42 million ringgit SRC International corruption case. Tom Wright, Co-author of the Billion Dollar Whale and co-founder of Project Brazen, a journalism production studio tell us what he thinks the outcome will be and will this mark the end of his political career.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We ask Suhaimi Ilias, Chief Economist at Maybank Investment Bank on whether the Government can afford an expansionary budget following Bank Negara releasing the 2nd quarter GDP figures last Friday that beat consensus expectations with the country’s economy growing by 8.9%See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With reports that more than 21,000 students had quit school between March 2020 and July 2021, there are calls for the Education Act 1996 be amended to make schooling compulsory up to Form 5. Does Malaysia have the infrastructure to do so? What other solutions can be explored? Hema Letchamanan, senior lecturer at Taylor’s University School of Education shares her thoughts on systemic changes that might improve Malaysia's education system See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine unleashed a perfect storm that roiled the global energy markets with governments worldwide under enormous pressure to cope with reduced gas flows. So does this crisis impede or catalyze the global energy transition? Evan Ng, Energy Market Analyst tells us.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

SMEs are the backbone of the Malaysian economy with Department of Statistics saying the sector's contribution to GDP stands at around 37%. And in conjunction with International Youth Day, we explore the important role young entrepreneurs play in the nation's development. Stefen Cheng, Chairman of the Digitalisation Sub-committee, Small and Medium Enterprises Association (SAMENTA), share his personal experiences with us and what he thinks young business owners need.Image credit: shutterstockSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There has been a landmark ruling by the Federal Court that victims of road accidents should automatically be compensated by insurance companies without requiring legal action to do so. The Judge's ruling is that provisions in the Road Transport Act 1987 should be construed to protect all motorists, including victims of road accidents. Transport consultant, Dr Rosli Azad, takes us through the implications of this and other related developments.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The FBI has raided former US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. Trump's lawyers say the FBI had broken into a safe and seized 15 boxes of documents. Reports say the raid is related to an ongoing investigation into whether or not laws were broken when boxes of White House records, some marked Top Secre, were not sent to the National Archives. Robert Shapiro, a Professor of Government at Columbia University in New York, takes us through how these developments might impact the upcoming mid-term elections and Trump's 2024 presidential bid.Image credit: EPA-EFESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri said the special cabinet committee on anti corruption had agreed in principle to a political funding bill but is there political will for it and what should it contain to create a fairer political system . Tricia Yeoh, CEO of IDEAS tells us.Image credit: shutterstockSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bank Negara has had to raise interest rates to combat rising inflation, which is already a global phenomenon. This however impacts the people because with higher interest rates, financing costs go up - more expensive home loans, vehicle loans, credit card loans etc. Lower income households are particularly hit, especially those still reeling from the Covid-19 pandemic impact. Jason Loh, Head of Social, Law and Human Rights at EMIR Research, believes there may be a solution that can help the B40 while keeping inflation under control.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

More than a week since the arrival of Nancy Pelosi in Taiwan, we ask Chong Ja Ian, Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science, National University of Singapore how likely will tensions between Taiwan and China continue to escalate and what this will mean for US allies around the regionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Interest rates are on the way up as central banks across the Asia Pacific use this tool to tame inflation. In Malaysia, Bank Negara has increased the Overnight Policy Rate twice so far this year from 1.75% in July 2020 and is now 2.25%. The ringgit has however softened - it is at its all-time weakest against the Singapore dollar. Willie Tanoto, Director at Fitch Ratings' Asia-Pacific Financial Institutions team explains what rate hikes can achieve.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wong Kah Woh, Chairman, PAC and Member of Parliament for Ipoh Timor unpacks the recent revelations from the Public Accounts Committee report on the littoral combat ship (LCS) project as not a single ship has been completed despite RM 6 billion being spentSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Singapore celebrates National day, we take a look at the reasons for its success and also its future challenges with Dr Oh Ei Sun, Principal adviser at Pacific Research Center. We also ask if PM designate, Lawrence Wong will bring a change to this city state in terms of leadership style.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is GE15 for BN to lose? Or will we see another seismic shift in our political paradigm? Dr Azmi Hassan, Senior Research Fellow, Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research helps us answer these questions as this watershed election loomsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) has been accused by Meta of running a troll farm that sought to promote the current government coalition and to criticise its opponents. However, PDRM refuted the allegation claiming that they are gathering further information about it. For more details, we speak to Alexander Wong, Managing Editor of SoyaCincau. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Back in 2013-2015, multiple women’s groups came together and worked with the Attorney General’s Chambers and other parties to criminalise stalking. And after 10 years, progress is being made. But is this Anti-Stalking bill enough to protect Malaysians against stalking ? For a deeper dive, we speak to Yu Ren Chung, Deputy Executive Director of Women's Aid Organisation (WAO).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With 10% tax on imported low-value goods, GST and global minimum tax of 15 percent on MNC, we find out what these new taxes mean for us and for the government coffers with Senthuran Elalingam, Indirect Tax Partner, DeloitteSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Foreign Ministers of Asean are meeting in Phnom Penh which was also attended by key officials from the US, China, Russia and Japan. With hot button topics of Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, Myanmar and the South China Sea on the agenda, what are the expected outcomes? Izzah Ibrahim, Analyst, at the Foreign Policy and Security Studies Programme of ISIS Malaysia gives us her observations.Image credit: REUTERS/Soe Zeya TunSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recent statistics from the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry have revealed that in 2021 alone, 752 senior citizens were abandoned at hospitals by their family members. With Malaysia soon to become an ageing population by 2030, what should the Senior Citizens Act, currently being drafted, include to ensure both the protection of the elderly and the empowerment of their caregivers. Hawati Abdul Hamid, a Researcher at Khazanah Research Institute breaks down the issue for us.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia has already lost more than 15% of her beaches with things set to become worse. In the peninsula alone, more than 30 beaches have experienced critical erosion of over 4 metres a year and the National Coastal Erosion Study 2015 revealed that many of these beaches could be lost in the next 10 years or so. Associate Professor Dr Effi Helmy Ariffin, Deputy Director at Universiti Malaysia Terengganu's Institute of Oceanography and Environment (INOS) talks to us about the impact of coastal erosion and if enough is being done to address it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the region, central banks have also raised rates but what does this mean for Asean banks? Will the economic slowdown eat into earnings? Thilan Wickramasinghe, Head of Research Singapore at Maybank Investment Banking Group tell us the important answer especially since banks are a barometer of an economy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

US Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi continues her whirlwind tour of Asia, moving onto South Korea and Japan. However the trip has been overshadowed by her visit to Taiwan which was the worst kept secret of her itinerary. We speak to William Pesek, columnist at Nikkei Asia as to what is her agenda.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Control of Tobacco Products and Smoking Bill 2022 has now been referred to the Parliamentary Special Select Committee to be finetuned despite some concessions made before it was tabled for second reading at the Dewan Rakyat this week. It is now expected to come up again at the next sitting. Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii is a member of this PSSC and he explains the intricacies of formulating a bill to meet every stakeholders' demands.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia has agreed in principle to implement a global minimum tax of 15% on multinational companies. Currently, Malaysia's standard corporate income tax rate is 24%, with some MNCs granted tax exemptions and enjoy preferential rates of zero to 10% according to various concession. Dr Geoffrey Williams, Economist at Malaysia University of Science and Technology, talks about how this may impact foreign direct investment into the country.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the Home Ministry officially launching the Sahabat Kita Demi Negara programme, we ask James Chai, Visiting Fellow, ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute whether this programme wanting youths to be its eyes and ears for KDN has more sinister intentionsImage credit: ShutterstockSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A few days ago for the first time since the start of the Russian invasion, a ship carrying Ukrainian grain finally left the port of Odesa. Will this lead to lower prices? Priyanka Kishore, head of India and Southeast Asia economics at Oxford Economics tell us her views.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To get a temperature check on the property market and even what to buy, Chan Ai Cheng, President, Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents helps us give a perspective on how the demand supply dynamics are evolving for the property marketSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is on a trip to Asia Pacific which includes Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan but with no mention of Taiwan officially. What is the implication to China- US relations if she does indeed visit Taiwan? Dr Adrian Ang, Research Fellow Coordinator of United States Programme, S S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies tells us.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Following the surprise power outage which for some areas lasted more than 2 hours in the middle of the day we speak to Shukreen Ma, Head Group Corporate Communications, Tenaga Nasional Berhad and what transpired and how can we avoid this situation from repeating itselfSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the Control of Tobacco Product and Smoking Bill tabled for the second and third reading in parliament yesterday, we speak to Dr Helmy Haja Mydin, Consultant Respiratory Physician and Technical Advisor to Ministry of Health. about the lasting and impactful GEG will have on health legacy for Malaysia but understand the loopholes on the enforcement power issues in the bill itselfSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the poultry industry being a victim of government’s several policy u-turns and conflicting messages, we ask Ong Kian Ming how should the government assist local chicken farmers in the short and long termSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Its a tale of two halves for the tech sector with names like Amazon and Apple reporting better than expected numbers while chip makers, Intel and Qualcomm disappointing the street. Daniel Ives, Managing Director of Wedbush Securities helps us make sense of the results and who will be winners in 2022 despite the economic slowdown.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri confirming that UMNO has decided not to extend the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Pakatan Harapan, is GE15 upon us? Dr Oh Ei Sun, Senior Fellow, Singapore Institute of International Affairs gives his perspectiveSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yesterday, the Dewan Rakyat passed the Anti-Party Hopping Bill with a two-thirds majority, bringing to fruition a long-sought after political reform in the wake of the Sheraton Move. How much impact will this have on voter confidence as we head into GE15? We get reactions from Danesh Prakash Chacko of Tindak Malaysia.Image Credit: Lens Hitam/Shutterstock.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Myanmar's military government which overthrew the elected civilian government in a coup d'état on Feb 1, 2021, remains in power today and is doing all it can to quash opposition. This includes executing 4 democracy activists recently. What does Asean have to say about all this clear violations of human rights? Thomas Daniel, a Senior Fellow at ISIS Malaysia talks to us about the intricacies of navigating regional democracy. Image Credit: R. Bociaga / Shutterstock.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The annual Federal Budget gets a lot of attention from the public and stakeholders, but the same scrutiny isn't paid to state budgets. We speak to Alissa Rode of IDEAS to discuss the importance of state budget transparency and how the state governments stack up against each other.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This month, Bank Negara Malaysia raised the overnight policy rate this month by 25 basis points to 2.25% as part of efforts to manage inflation.  We speak to Assistant Governor Fraziali Ismail about the calculations that go into an OPR adjustment and how BNM sees inflation trending in Malaysia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Dewan Rakyat passed the Independent Police Commission (IPCC) bill this week, to the disappointment of civil society groups for a much stronger body to address police misconduct in the form of the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC). Human rights expert Dato' Sri M. Ramachelvam explains why the IPCC is flawed, and also reacts to the extension of section 4(5) of the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (SOSMA), which allows detention for up to 28-days.Image Credit: ShutterstockSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The US Fed raised interest rates by 0.75% for the second consecutive time,in an effort to tamp down on skyrocketing inflation. In response markets rallied, but is it still sustainable. We ask Grant Bowers, Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Franklin Templeton.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The combination of a series of geopolitical and economic shocks, including the war in Ukraine, the flare-up of Covid cases in China and the consequent supply chain disruptions has sent inflation skyrocketing. The Fed is leading the charge of global central banks tightening monetary policy to bring inflation under control. How much will these factors continue to weigh down the economic outlook for the remainder of the year? We discuss the outlook with Selena Ling the Chief Economist of OCBC Bank.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The government plans to review the management of GLC-owned shopping malls to ensure more Bumi-traders in the tenancy mix. But with the retail industry being one of the most dynamic and competitive businesses, could quotas of this nature do more harm than good? We discuss policy measures to encourage Bumiputera entrepreneurship with Ahmad Yazid Othman of the Malay Economic Action Council (MTEM).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The prerogative to call for elections in Malaysia lies with the Prime Minister. However would it be better if there was a fixed term parliament. Wong Chin Huat, Political Scientist at Sunway University tells us the merits of such a system.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.