<div class=newsTextDataWrapInner><p><span style="font-style: italics;">This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on September 6, 2019 - September 12, 2019</span></p></div><div class=newsTextDataWrapInner><p>KUALA LUMPUR: Lotte Chemical Titan Holding Bhd said its US-based joint venture (JV) company Lotte Chemical USA Corp’s (LC USA) ethane cracker and monoethylene glycol (MEG) plants started commercial operations in August on an integrated basis.</p></div>

<div class=newsTextDataWrapInner><p>Lotte Chemical Titan said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday&nbsp; that LC USA is a 40:60 JV between Lotte Chemical Titan and Lotte Chemical Corp.</p></div><div class=inPageAd id=div-gpt-ad-inpage></div>

<div class=newsTextDataWrapInner><p>“The US ethane cracker plant was developed by means of a JV structure between LC USA, which has an 88% equity interest, and Eagle US 2 LLC, a 100% held subsidiary of Axiall Corp [owned by Westlake Chemical Corp] which holds the remaining 12% equity interest. The company’s (Lotte Chemical Titan) effective equity interest in the US ethane cracker plant is 35.2%. The US MEG plant is wholly owned by LC USA and the company (Lotte Chemical Titan) has a 40% equity interest in this facility.</p></div>

<div class=newsTextDataWrapInner><p>“The US ethane cracker plant will use ethane gas and process it into ethylene whereby 50% of the ethylene produced will be off taken by Axiall Corp and the other 50% will be consumed by the USA MEG plant as primary feedstock.</p></div>


KUALA LUMPUR: Lotte Chemical Titan Holding Bhd said its US-based joint venture (JV) company Lotte Chemical USA Corp’s (LC USA) ethane cracker and monoethylene glycol (MEG) plants started commercial operations in August on an integrated basis.

Lotte Chemical Titan said in a filing with B...

Lotte Chemical Titan’s US plants start commercial ops

French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on Tuesday opened the door to renegotiating a disputed pension reform in a bid to win over left-wing lawmakers he needs to pass the 2025 budget.

Bayrou's concession underlined the scale of France's political turmoil as he prepared to spend his first weeks in office reworking the hard-won 2023 pension reform under pressure from the left, which threatens to topple his government otherwise.

French PM opens door to renegotiating Macron's pension reform

Meta Platforms Inc is cutting roughly 5% of its staff through performance-based eliminations and plans to hire new people to fill their roles this year, according to an internal memo sent to all employees.

Meta to slash roughly 5% of staff, targetting lowest performers

Nato countries will deploy frigates, patrol aircraft and naval drones in the Baltic Sea to help protect critical infrastructure and reserve the right to take action against ships suspected of posing a security threat, alliance members said on Tuesday.

Nato to deploy ships, aircraft in Baltic Sea after cable breaches

Malaysia welcomes companies from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to invest in Malaysia involving renewable energy (RE) projects, including data centres, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Malaysia welcomes UAE companies to invest in renewable energy, data centre projects — PM 

Malaysia’s unique position has helped the country to chart economic policies which are comprehensive and sustainable, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

He said Malaysia is fortunate as it is politically stable despite being multi-cultural, multi religious, multi-racial, and it is probably among the most peaceful country in the region and is also among the fastest growing economies in the world.

Malaysia’s unique position helps to chart economic policies which are comprehensive, sustainable

Malaysia must embark on a digital transformation within its economic and financial sectors, prioritising areas such as blockchain and cryptocurrency to remain at the forefront of the digital age, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Malaysia must embrace digital transformation to stay ahead, says Anwar

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said he believed issues related to Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) and Petroleum Sarawak Bhd (Petros) regarding gas distribution rights in Sarawak had been resolved through a series of negotiations, including his meeting with Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg.

Anwar confident Petronas-Petros gas issue resolved

The cost of road repairs due to floods following the Northeast Monsoon (MTL) has reached RM101.57 million, said Works Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi.

He said it involved road repair costs in the states of Peninsular Malaysia totalling RM45.37 million covering periodic repairs of pavement, periodic non-pavement, bridges and traffic lights as well as street lights.

Cost of road repairs due to floods exceeded RM100 mil — Nanta

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will increase cooperation to address the challenges in combatting corruption crimes at regional and international levels.

MACC, FBI enhance cooperation to combat corruption

Russia’s seaborne crude exports were stable ahead of the toughest sanctions yet imposed on its oil sector in response to Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

But flows could be hit in the coming weeks after the US took measures on Friday against two of the country’s top exporters and about 160 oil tankers, as well as key traders, insurers and a Chinese company that facilitated the unloading of a cargo from a previously sanctioned ship.

Russian crude shipments hold steady before sanctions hit

<p>When shown US Department of Justice (DOJ) action documents for 2017 and 2021, former 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) president Arul Kanda Kandasamy agreed that 1MDB funds following two bond energy deals in 2012, and two Deutsche Bank loans in 2014, had made their way to “MO1”, his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho (Jho Low), Jho Low’s associate Eric Tan Kim Loong, film producer Riza Aziz, rapper Kasseem Dean, and then-managing director of International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) Khadem al-Qubaisi.</p>


Arul Kanda agrees funds from two bond deals went to 'MO1', Rosmah, Jho Low, Riza, and Khadem al-Qubaisi, as claimed by DOJ, but denies knowledge of it

<p>The digital bank jointly owned by YTL Power International Bhd (KL:YTLPOWR) and Singapore-based Sea Ltd has received approval from the Ministry of Finance (MOF) to commence operations, effective Dec 20, 2024.</p>


YTL Power-Sea digital bank secures regulatory nod for operations

<p>The initial public offering of cafe chain operator Oriental Kopi Holdings Bhd, set to be listed on Jan 23 on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia, has attracted RM1.61 billion worth of retail interest — nearly nine times the RM183.96 million it was looking to raise from the IPO.</p>


ACE Market-bound Oriental Kopi's IPO draws over RM1.6 bil retail interest

<p>Sunway Property, the property arm of Sunway Group, announced on Tuesday the appointment of Chung Soo Kiong as its new managing director.</p>


Sunway Property appoints Chung Soo Kiong as new MD, succeeding Sarena Cheah

<p>The ringgit is expected to come under pressure against the US dollar, following Donald Trump's return to the White House and a slowdown in China's economy, according to Maybank Investment Bank.</p>


Ringgit to weaken to 4.7 against USD before recovering by year end, says Maybank IB

<p>Yinson Production, an indirect subsidiary of Yinson Holdings Bhd (KL:YINSON), has secured US$1 billion (RM4.51 billion) worth of funding from a consortium of international investors, led by a wholly owned subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia), for expansion.</p>


Yinson secures US$1b investment from Abu Dhabi consortium

<p>Public Bank Bhd and its late founder’s family unveiled moves to ensure the continuity of the franchise</p>

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<div class="ceonothumb pb-5 imgw-800 mx-auto d-block"><a class="mobx embedimg-icon" data-desc="(Photo by Zahid Izzani/The Edge)" data-re...

2024 Newsmakers: Managing Teh’s legacy

<p>These corporate old-timers continued to make headlines&nbsp;</p>

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<div class="ceonothumb pb-5 imgw-800 mx-auto d-block"><a class="mobx embedimg-icon" data-desc="(Photo by Bloomberg)" data-rel="ceolightbox" href="https://myassets.theedgemalaysia...

2024 Newsmakers: Veterans who are still making deals

<p>The Malaysian ringgit will likely appreciate and outperform regional currencies "slightly" in the near term thanks to its supportive fundamentals that allay downside risks, Standard Chartered said.</p>


Ringgit may continue to 'slightly' outperform regional currencies — StanChart

<p>US President Joe&nbsp;Biden's outgoing administration is finalising rules on Tuesday that will effectively bar nearly all Chinese cars and trucks from the US&nbsp;market, as part of a crackdown on vehicle software and hardware from China.</p>


Biden administration finalises US crackdown on Chinese vehicles

<p>Here is a brief recap of some business news and corporate announcements that made the headlines on Tuesday.</p>


Yinson, Mah Sing, YTL Power, Atlan, Sunway, Kawan Food, Theta Edge, South Malaysia Industries

<p>The Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) is expecting tight global supply, partly due to Indonesia's upcoming B40 biodiesel mandate, to keep crude palm oil (CPO) prices firm in 2025.</p>


Tight supply, biodiesel mandate to support CPO prices in 2025 — MPOB

<p>PUTRAJAYA (Jan 14): Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak told the court on Tuesday that none of the purported 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) funds spent on corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects&nbsp;benefitted him, or boosted his personal image.</p>


1MDB-Tanore: CSR projects not to boost personal image, nor for personal benefit, says Najib

<p>A summary of how key Bursa Malaysia indices and the ringgit performed on Tuesday.</p>


FBM KLCI down 0.58% to 1,576.46 on Jan 14, 2025

<p>Here’s a quick look at some of the stories that made headlines today.</p>


EVENING 5: Five things you need to know today

<p>Risks to Malaysia’s economic growth outlook are skewed to the downside, driven by concerns over potential challenges arising from uncertainties surrounding the incoming Donald Trump administration’s policies and the direction of the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy.</p>


Risks to economic growth tilt more to downside as Trump 2.0 uncertainties loom, says Maybank IB

<p>The Ministry of Plantation and Commodities has indicated that it may consider reapplying for another special foreign worker quota for the plantation industry in 2025 to help planters address the labour shortage.</p>

<p>This, however, will be guided by the urgency of industry needs and feedback from industry stakeholders, its deputy minister Datuk Chan Foong Hin told reporters at the Palm Oil Economic Review &amp; Outlook Seminar (R&amp;O) 2025 on Tuesday. &nbsp;</p>


Ministry may consider seeking another special foreign worker quota for plantation sector

<p>Theta Edge Bhd (KL:THETA) said its subsidiary’s joint venture (JV) deal with a data-science company to develop artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain solutions has been terminated.</p>


Theta Edge calls off JV agreement to develop AI, blockchain solutions

<p>Atlan Holdings Bhd is paying an interim dividend of eight sen per share after its third quarter net profit jumped over four-fold, lifted by proceeds from the compulsory disposal of a subsidiary's land in Kedah to the Malaysian government.</p>


Atlan's 3Q profit jumps after compulsory land sale to govt, pays eight sen dividend

<p>Malaysia will review its nuclear energy undertakings as a potential power source, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.</p>

<p>Fadillah, who is also the&nbsp;energy transition and water transformation minister, said given Malaysia's growing energy demand — driven by industrial requirements, data centre expansions, and the adoption of electric vehicles — the nation is exploring all potential solutions for its energy needs.</p>
