Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 25 (NNN-Bernama) — The Asia Pacific (Apac) remained a multi-speed region, with its developed economies undergoing soft landings and seeing low but positive growth, while the emerging market economies are poised for robust expansions, said S&P Global Ratings.

S&P said it expected China to continue to contain its macroeconomic stimulus following a property-driven downturn.

The research house cut China’s growth forecast for 2023 to 4.8 per cent from 5.2 per cent and to 4.4 per cent from 4.8 per cent in 2024.

PASIR PUTEH (Malaysia), Sept 24 (NNN-Bernama) — The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) detained four fishing vessels and 43 Vietnamese fishermen, including their skippers, for illegal fishing in the country’s waters on Thursday.

The Deputy Director (operations) of Kelantan MMEA, Maritime Commander Khairun Dalilah Baharun, said that the illegal fishing vessels were discovered during operations by an enforcement vessel approximately 125 to 150 nautical miles from the Tok Bali estuary in the state of Kelantan.

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 20 (NNN-BERNAMA) – Malaysia, the world’s second-largest palm oil producer, yesterday maintained its crude palm oil export duty at eight percent.

According to a Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) circular, the crude palm oil (CPO) reference price for Oct has been lowered to 3,710.50 ringgit (790.14 U.S. dollars) from 3,755.13 ringgit in Sept.

Based on the tax structure, no export duty will be imposed on any CPO price below 2,250 ringgit per tonne.

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 13 (NNN-Bernama) — Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim shared his vision for Malaysia to regain the status it achieved in the 1990s and become a stellar country in this region – economically, politically, with good governance, and as a showcase of a multiracial society.

Speaking at the Milken Institute Asia Summit 2023 in Singapore on Wednesday, Anwar said given the present scenario and the team, he is optimistic that the goals could be achieved.

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 (NNN-Bernama) — The Malaysian Government’s initiative to empower digital technology in the agricultural sector through the eLadang pilot programme, or known as Digital Agriculture Technology (Digital AgTech), has attracted the attention of the European Union (EU)-ASEAN Business Council.

Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil mentioned this in a Facebook post after receiving a courtesy call from a council delegation, led by its executive director Chris Humphrey, Tuesday. 

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 11 (NNN-Bernama) — The Malaysian government will implement a multi-tiered levy system in the near future, said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

It is aimed at securing job opportunities for locals and promoting automation and mechanisation while maintaining the policy of limiting foreign workers to 15 per cent of the total workforce.

According to Anwar, skills mismatch, low wages, and slow productivity growth are the key issues hindering Malaysia’s ability to transition to a high-income economy.

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 (NNN-Bernama) — Malaysia needs to focus on the importance of international collaborations in expediting the energy transition initiative as collective efforts could drive positive change for a cleaner and more sustainable future, said Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

He said by working together, the collective strengths can be leveraged to accelerate the deployment of renewable technologies, the development of innovative energy storage solutions, and the enhancement of energy efficiency practices.  

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — After a checkered victory in Saturday’s state elections that saw strong gains by the Malay-Islamist opposition, analysts say Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim faces a daunting task in uniting an increasingly polarized nation and strengthening his nascent unity government.

SINGAPORE, Aug 2 (NNN-CNA) – Seah Kian Peng, a member of parliament for Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency in Singapore, was elected as the city-state’s speaker of parliament today.

During his first speech as the speaker, Seah called on his colleagues in parliament, to be vigilant in personal conduct and bear the weight of office with dignity and a sense of duty.

Singapore Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong, nominated Seah as the speaker on Jul 21, to replace Tan Chuan-Jin, who resigned on Jul 17.

KUALA LUMPUR, Jul 31 (NNN-BERNAMA) – Malaysia’s population is expected to grow 2.1 percent, this year, led by international migration, official data showed today.

The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said in a statement that, the total population of Malaysia in 2023 is estimated at 33.4 million, as compared to 32.7 million in 2022.

According to the DOSM, the increase in population growth rate is due to the higher number of non-citizens, which is likely to increase from 2.5 million in 2022 to three million this year.