Morning Brief

With a slew of growth-forecast downgrades, criticism over government stimulus reliefs to contain damage from the pandemic and rising border tensions with China, India's economic engine seems to be stuttering. Amintendu Palit, Senior Research Fellow, Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, discusses the extent of the damage while also offering some much-needed perspective.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Less than two of every ten Malaysians are taxpayers, while Covid-19 has savaged corporate taxes. With a tax-collection shortfall that's been exacerbated by record-low oil prices in an energy-exporting nation, the government has a looming policy and fiscal time bomb on its hands. Veerinderjeet Singh, Chairman, Tricor Malaysia and President, Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants, explores these and other related issues.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Professor Wong Chin Huat, Jeffrey Sachs Centre on Sustainable Development, Sunway University discusses options to discourage party hopping and the bigger problems about the electoral system.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Leadership issues continue over in the Pakatan Haparan camp, with PKR in disagreement with allies DAP and Amanah over Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad as their prime minister candidate if snap polls are called. PKR said it will reject any proposal to nominate Tun Mahathir for the position and continued to back Dato’ Sri Anwar Ibrahim as Prime Minister. However, Anwar appears to be struggling to gain mainstream support. So, can PH survive the latest iteration of the never-ending power struggle?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

India and China, two of the world's fastest-growing countries and also nuclear rivals, are clashing again, except that the consequences are rising, with potentially half the world's population affected and feed-through effects into rising China-US tensions. Michael Kugelman, Deputy Director of the Asia Program, Wilson Center, discusses.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A study by Professor Dr Geoffrey Williams, ELM Graduate School, HELP University reveals that 64% of the 100 universities that he researched are critically debt ridden, and 32% are bleeding cash. The MCO made things worse. We discuss with Williams the reasons universities have been doing badly, and how the industry will change when there are closures.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're 5 months away from the 2020 US elections, which will be taking place under the shadow of the worst global pandemic in over a century. As candidates once again start to hit the (physical) campaign trail, we reached out to Andrew Cohen, Professor of Journalism and US politics to talk about subjects including Donald Trump's approval ratings, and Joe Biden's presidential bid.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite the fact that Malaysia has moved into its Recovery Movement Control Order, it's still not yet smooth sailing. On Wednesday, the Employee's Provident Fund sat down with BFM at an exclusive media roundtable to talk about their expectations. So here's what CEO Tunku Alizakri Alias said about Malaysia's recovery scenario, social security, and unemployment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Start ups have also been feeling the effects of Covid-19 as funding dries up. Dr Sivapalan Vivekarajah, Co-founder and Partner at Scale-Up Malaysia and Past President of the Malaysian Business Angels Network tells us the challenges that venture capital funds are facing. He also compares the industry in Singapore and Malaysia and what are the trends.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The situation on the Korean peninsula has worsened, after North Korea blew up a joint liaison office in the border town of Kaesong, South Korea on Tuesday. The rapid deterioration in relations come only two years after a new era of bilateral ties was touted. So for a better understanding of how things got so bad, we speak to Dr. Hoo Chiew-Ping, Senior Lecturer at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a small media roundtable discussion, the CEO of the Employees Provident Fund of Malaysia, Tunku Alizakri Raja Muhammad Alias reminded that EPF remains a long term fund manager with clear objectives. He however does acknowledge that changes are needed to how investments should be considered and that the ability to pivot is key to succeeding especially during these difficult times.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a small media roundtable discussion, the CEO of the Earnings Provident Fund of Malaysia, Tunku Alizakri Raja Muhammad Alias reminded that EPF remains a long term fund manager with clear objectives. He however does acknowledge that changes are needed to how investments should be considered and that the ability to pivot is key to succeeding especially during these difficult times.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Weddings are a RM10 billion industry in Malaysia. So aside from the contribution it makes to the economy, it often is one of the most important events in a lifetime. So we speak to Leticia Hsu, President, Association of Wedding Professionals to find out the impact Covid-19 has had on the industry and how should weddings continue in the new normal.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Weddings in Malaysia are a RM10 billion industry in Malaysia. So aside from the contribution it makes to the economy, it often is one of the most important events in a lifetime. So we speak to , Leticia Hsu, President, Association of Wedding Professionals to find out the impact covid 19 has had on the industry and how should weddings continue in the new normal.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As China is the first country to emerge from a lockdown, will the consumer trends emerging from there be an indicator of what will happen in the region? Taohai Lin, Consumer & Retail Analyst at Fitch Solutions shares with us the findings of their study whilst telling us the long term trends we should see.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite a self-imposed deadline of yesterday evening, the Pakatan Harapan coalition still has not decided on its Prime Minister candidate. We reached out to Dr. Bridget Welsh, Honorary Research Associate at the University of Nottingham Asia Research Institute and frequent commentator on Malaysian politics, for her thoughts on this never-ending story.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The automotive industry has suffered since the start of the Movement Control Order - April Total Industry Volume came in at only 141 vehicles sold, compared to nearly 50,000 units a year ago. So with the government recently announcing incentives to spur the sector, how well will industry players be able to respond to the challenges posed by a global pandemic? We speak to Dato' Aishah Ahmad, President of the Malaysian Automotive Association, for some insight.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A report by the Singapore Straits Times reported that Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin is gearing up for snap elections by the end of the year, following the tabling of an 'election budget'. To talk about how likely this is, as well as the political dynamics within the Perikatan Nasional coalition, we speak to Amir Fareed, Director of Strategy at KRA Group.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A cluster of infections has emerged in Beijing over the weekend with more than 100 people infected. Questions now arise over the dreaded second wave that many health specialist warn of. We speak to Dale Fisher, Professor of Infectious Diseases at National University of Singapore to ask what precautions we can take to avoid this and is another lockdown inevitable?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many industries and businesses have been disrupted as a result of the MCO, and local governments are also feeling the pinch. Facing unexpected expenses and decreasing revenue, we reached out to Ng Sze Han, Selangor Exco for Local Government, Public Transportation and New Village Development as well as State Assemblyman for Kinrara, to talk about funding sources for local councils.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

All businesses have had to evolve in the Covid-19 era and wealth management which was growing phenomenally in Asia is no exception. Gabriele Vigo, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company tells us how wealth managers should shift their focus and the way they to do business to remain relevant and grow even as customers change their investment behaviour.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia saw over 500 people lose their lives to road accidents during the Movement Control Order - more than the total Covid-19 related deaths in the country so far. We speak to Dr, Kulanthayan KC Mani, Executive Director of Safe Kids Malaysia, to get a better understanding of the underlying causes to our road accident problem, and whether harsher penalties will make a difference.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Sabah Chief Minister Tan Sri Musa Aman has been acquitted of some 45 charges, related to kickbacks from 16 logging companies in the state. The discharge amounting to an acquittal was made on the grounds of lack of evidence, as well as upon a sworn statement from former Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail. We reached out to constitutional lawyer Surendra Ananth, for more insight into the legal process.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lockdowns have been horrendous for business and none more so than for commercial real estate. But how bad is bad? And are there rainbows on the horizon? Lim Boon Ping, President, Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents, discusses.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to Fitch Ratings, aggregate direct fiscal stimulus measures for the “Fitch 20” countries, such as the US, UK and Australia, have totalled over $5 trillion, which is 7% of those countries’ 2019 GDP. This outweighs the scale after the global financial crisis, when the advanced economies undertook a fiscal easing of only 3% to 4% of GDP. That said, is the global response enough to ward off the much feared global recession which some have said could be worse than the Great Depression of the 1930s?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Penjana stimulus plan has been praised by economists. We speak to Distinguished Professor of Economics at University Malaya, Dr Rajah Rasiah on areas that the government really needs to focus on.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has been accused by the US of favouring China and slow in responding to the Covid-19 outbreak. Lucie Gadenne, Professor of Economics, University of Warwick discusses if US’ claims are reasonable and possible funding options for WHO.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has been accused by the US of favouring China and slow in responding to the Covid-19 outbreak. Lucie Gadenne, Professor of Economics, University of Warwick discusses if US’ claims are reasonable and possible funding options for WHO.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Yesterday, Malaysia entered into what’s called the recovery MCO (RMCO) which will go on until August 31st. Both the National Security Council (NSC) and Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) released new social distancing protocols which includes areas like places of worship and funerals, schools, the defence sector as well as open-air markets. That said, is it too early to further open up the economy?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia has entered a new phase of the movement control order, called the 'Recovery MCO' (RMCO), allowing, among other things, interstate travel between 10 June and August 31, with clear implications for the local hotel industry, both good and bad. Yap Lip Seng, the CEO of the Malaysian Association of Hotels, discusses.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jagdev Singh, Tax Leader, PwC Malaysia weighs in on what else could be covered by Penjana, the government’s recent economic recovery plan.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Year to date, the Jakarta Composite Index has been the worst performing market in this region. We assess the Indonesian equities market and potential investment opportunities with Bharat Joshi, Investment Director at Aberdeen Standard Investments based in Jakarta.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week, the government gave childcare centres the green light to resume operations which comes after the tabling of comprehensive SOPs for these centres by the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry. While this should help reduce the burden on parents who have had to skip work to stay home and care for their young children, it was received with mixed reactions. Is it too soon to open up childcare centres?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s been rumours of MPs crossing over to support Pakatan Harapan which might trigger another government change. Dr Hamidin Abd Hamid, Research Fellow, Ilham Centre, discusses the likelihood of a government leadership change and his reservations about both coalitions—Pakatan Harapan and Perikatan Nasional.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Laurence Todd, Head of Research & Development, IDEAS unpacks the government’s recent economic recovery plan “Penjana” worth RM35 billion. Is this enough? Is it too late? And how does Todd rate Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s performance so far?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With tech stocks hitting record highs, we speak to Dan about his thoughts on the rally and whether it still has legs. We also get into the potential impact of a delay to the iPhone launch to Apple's bottomline.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Global equity markets have recovered from the lows although Singapore has lagged. We ask Thilan Wickramasinghe Aloysius, Singapore Head of Research at Maybank Kim Eng whether the catch up that the STI has been showing is sustainable. We also ask him for his views on 2nd quarter result season and what is the best investment strategy for the island state.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Investing has been a growing trend with assets under management having grown to US 30 trillion. However what is the trend here in Asia and where does Malaysia stand when it comes to ESG investing? Benjamin McCarron, Managing Director, at Asia Research and Engagement gives us the answers while telling us whether ESG investing means less returns?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The impact of Covid-19 on jobless numbers is starting to come to light. SOCSO has reported job losses increased 42% year-on-year in the first quarter, with the trend set to accelerate from April onwards. To get more insight, we reached out to SOCSO's Chief of Employment Insurance Dato' Mohd Sahar Darusman, for his expectations going into the rest of the year.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health Director-General Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah revealed this week, that one Covid-19 case has been detected within the Sungai Buloh prison population. While the Health Ministry has now commenced screenings of the more than 800 inmates and 700 employees, the case has raised important questions over whether our prison system could potentially withstand a Covid-19 outbreak. For more insight, we speak to Dr. Tharani Loganathan, of the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, at Universiti Malaya.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Covid-19, are capital markets quiet? Are there any deals in the pipeline? We speak to Alessandro Cannarsi, Partner in the Private Equity Practice at Bain & Company on what to look out for. He also chimes in on why its important for companies to have a long term growth plan before coming to public markets or run the risk of share price under performance.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The International Civil Aviation Organisation has published a series of health recommendations for airlines, including obligatory donning of face masks, but stopping short of leaving every other seat open on planes. To get a sense of whether these recommendations will be enough to restore confidence in the aviation industry amid global pandemic fears, we speak to aviation expert Ron Bishop.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Protests have rocked the US over the past few days, sparked by the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer last week. As a result, at least 12 major cities including New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles, have imposed curfews, with President Donald Trump also threatening to deploy the military if state and city officials failed to control the violence. So for a view on what is happening on the ground, we speak to Bloomberg Opinion columnist Adam Minter, who is currently located in Minneapolis, where the protests first began.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Calls have surfaced for university tuition fees to come down, especially since physical classes have largely come to a halt due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The argument is that since most students have returned to their hometowns, university facilities are not being fully utilised during the MCO, and many B40 and M40 families are now suffering from severe economic uncertainty. Both students and academic staff have been severely affected, so to give us more insight, we reached out to Dr Noraishah Mydin Abdul Aziz, Secretary of the UM Academic Staff Union.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The KL-Singapore High Speed Rail project has been deferred until the end of the year, the second time the project has been put on the back burner after it was shelved in 2018 under the Pakatan Harapan administration. Senior Minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali has said that discussions between the two countries will resume in the near future. The question is now, however, does the HSR project still make sense? We speak to Francis Hutchinson, Senior Fellow with the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, to help us find an answer.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amidst the unrest in the US, President Donald Trump appears to have escalated his row with social media, signing an executive order which would allow for new regulations on social media content. To help us understand the implications of this order, as well as what it would mean for social media companies, we speak to Alexander Howard, Director of the Digital Democracy Project at Demand Progress, a think tank focused on internet freedom and open government.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

8 former Malaysian Bar Presidents issued a joint statement asking for a proper explanation from AG Tan Sri Idris Harun as to why a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) was granted to Riza Shahriz Abdul Aziz, Najib Razak’s stepson. Ragunath Kesavan, one of the signatories tells us the rationale behind this statement and why this is important.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With political uncertainty continuing, the role that Sarawak plays in determining who runs the country cannot be underestimated. Professor James Chin, Professor of the Asian Studies at the University of Tasmania gives us an update on the local political scene and whether GPS will switch sides.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ibrahim Suffian, Programme Director at Merdeka Centre analyses the latest political maneuvers in Malaysia with a deep dive on the major political parties and their respective strategies. He also weighs in on politics of East Malaysia and how they remain the king makers.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The weekend's political drama saw Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia announce that former Prime Minister and founder, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, has lost his party membership alongside four other lawmakers. The purported reason for the sacking was because they chose to sit among the Opposition during the May 18th parliamentary sitting. Tun Mahathir has since come out to challenge the move, and we speak to his legal counsel Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla, about whether he believes the termination has any legal standing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.