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Gamuda Bhd (Property Division) - The Edge Malaysia Top Property Developer 2015

Here is a brief recap of some business news and corporate announcements that made the headlines on Wednesday

Sunway, CapitaLand Malaysia Trust, Sentral REIT, AME REIT, Jentayu, Power Root 

Guns may have fallen silent in Gaza, but for Mahmoud Abu Dalfa, the agony is not over. He is desperately searching for the bodies of his wife and five children trapped under the rubble of his house since the early months of the war.

Abu Dalfa's wife and children were among 35 of his extended family who were killed when an Israeli airstrike hit the building in Gaza City's Shejaia suburb in December 2023, he said.

Bereaved Gazans dig out bodies from city ruins, give them graves

All travel agencies, particularly Umrah operators, must have a bank guarantee of RM250,000 to ensure the quality of the services offered and safeguard the welfare of pilgrims.

Malaysia Association Tour Agency (Mata) president Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khalid Harun said this is in line with the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture’s (Motac) proposal to require Umrah operators to possess a minimum bank guarantee of RM250,000.

Travel agencies must have bank guarantee of RM250,000 to operate — Malaysia Association Tour Agency

The Selangor government will hold the 2025 Chinese New Year state-level celebration on Feb 8 at the Fo Guang Shan Dong Zen Temple grounds in Jenjarom here.

State Investment, Trade and Mobility Committee chairman Ng Sze Han said the Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, and the Tengku Permaisuri of Selangor, Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin, are scheduled to grace the event, which is expected to attract over 30,000 visitors.

Selangor state-level CNY celebration in Jenjarom on Feb 8

Economists anticipate Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to maintain its overnight policy rate (OPR) at 3% throughout 2025, in a move to strike a balance between sustaining economic growth and managing rising inflationary pressures.

Economists foresees BNM to hold OPR steady in 2025, but closely watch on inflationary risks 

Indian and US diplomats are trying to arrange a February meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump in Washington, two Indian sources familiar with the discussions told Reuters.

India and US trying to arrange early meeting between Modi and Trump, sources say

US equity futures signalled that the strong Wall Street rally of the past two sessions remains on track, lifted by a slew of robust corporate results and signs that US tariffs on trade partners could be less harsh than feared.

Contracts on the Nasdaq 100 climbed 1%, paced by Netflix Inc’s gain of more than 15% in the premarket and Oracle Corp’s surge of 10% on the US administration’s investment plans for artificial intelligence (AI).

US stocks march higher with Netflix poised for record

Prince Harry claimed a "monumental" victory over Rupert Murdoch's UK newspaper group on Wednesday after the publisher settled his lawsuit, admitting unlawful actions at its Sun tabloid for the first time and paying substantial damages.

Harry, 40, the younger son of King Charles, had been suing News Group Newspapers (NGN), publisher of The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World, at the High Court in London, alleging the papers had illegally obtained private information about him from 1996 till 2011.

Prince Harry hails 'monumental' legal win over Murdoch newspapers

After pouring record sums of money into the 2024 US elections, the cryptocurrency industry is hopeful — if not certain — of a newly friendly reception from DC policymakers after what it perceived to be a hostile environment in the Biden administration.

Trump 2.0: Crypto bet big on Trump in 2024. Can it cash in?

The market for US initial public offerings (IPOs) is opening up following the election, according to New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) president Lynn Martin.

“The activity is real,” Martin said in a Bloomberg TV interview from Davos, Switzerland on Wednesday. “Deals are now getting on the road, they’re making plans to IPO either in the coming days and weeks or in quarters or second half of the year.”

NYSE president Martin says more companies are pursuing US IPOs

Malaysia's currency hit a six-week high and stocks advanced for a fourth straight session on Wednesday ahead of a central bank policy decision, while a gauge of emerging Asian equities reversed course weighed by China on US tariff plans.

Ringgit extends gains as BNM holds rates; China stocks drag 

MIDF Research said&nbsp;the recent selldown of data centre-linked construction stocks&nbsp;may have been overdone as it sees the US’ AI chip export restrictions having minimal impact on data centre operations here.

In a note, MIDF Research said this prompted&nbsp;its upgrade on&nbsp;Sunway Construction Group Berhad (KL:SUNCON) to a “buy”, from “neutral”.

MIDF says selldown on data centre-related stocks overdone, upgrades SunCon

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 22): Malaysia’s property market is now showing signs of improvement that will lift Malaysian banking stocks under pressure from uncertainties over data-centre outlook, according to CIMB Securities.

CIMB Securities: Malaysian property market now showing signs of improvement that will lift banking stocks

Arina, Sime Darby Property Bhd’s (KL:SIMEPROP) first single-storey linked homes in Bandar Ainsdale, achieved full take-up of all 118 units within hours of its launch on Saturday, Jan 18.

Sime Darby Property’s Arina single-storey homes in Bandar Ainsdale fully taken up within hours of launch

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 22): TechStore Bhd, which provides hardware and software to businesses, has fixed its initial public offering (IPO) price at 20 sen per share ahead of its listing on the ACE Market of Bursa Malaysia.

Enterprise hardware and software firm TechStore sets IPO price at 20 sen

Founders of FashionValet Sdn Bhd Datin Vivy Yusof and her husband Datuk Fadzarudin Shah Anuar have been charged with the misappropriation of RM8 million from Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), belonging to the company.

FashionValet founders claim trial to alternative charges of fund misappropriation

Analysts are positive on Sunway Real Estate Investment Trust’s (KL:SUNREIT) acquisition of AEON Mall Seri Manjung in Perak, prompting revisions of their earnings forecasts.

Analysts raise Sunway REIT earnings forecasts after AEON Mall acquisition in Perak

SRC International Sdn Bhd’s former director Datuk Suboh Md Yasin told the High Court on Wednesday that he signed four blank cheques that led to RM19.5 million going to Umno and Umno Selangor.

Former SRC director says he signed blank cheques, didn’t know payments were to Umno

A fugitive banker accused of orchestrating a US$1 billion (RM4.45 billion) fraud in Moldova appears to be helping Russian lenders and businesses to continue conducting foreign trade amid payment problems caused by sanctions.

Fugitive banker may be helping Russian firms beat US sanctions

Export-Import Bank of Malaysia Bhd (EXIM Bank) has filed a lawsuit against instant coffee manufacturer Power Root Bhd (KL:PWROOT), seeking RM7.39 million over an alleged loan default.

According to Power Root’s filing with Bursa Malaysia on Wednesday, EXIM Bank is demanding repayment of RM675,509.22 for funds disbursed to its subsidiaries, namely Power Root (M) Sdn Bhd (PRM), Power Root Manufacturing Sdn Bhd (PRMFG) and Power Root ME Free Zone Company (PRME).

Power Root sued by EXIM Bank over RM7.4 mil loan default

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 22): Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) on Wednesday kept the benchmark interest rate unchanged as widely expected, comfortable with its outlook for sustained economic growth and manageable inflation.

BNM keeps OPR steady, takes comfort in sustained growth

HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd has officially opened its flagship wealth centre in&nbsp;Menara IQ at the Tun Razak Exchange (TRX), Malaysia’s international financial hub,&nbsp;to serve its high-net-worth clients.

HSBC Malaysia opens flagship wealth centre at TRX to serve high-net-worth clients

The public portion of ACE Market-bound Northern Solar Holdings Bhd’s initial public offering (IPO) has been oversubscribed by 73.2&nbsp;times.&nbsp;

Northern Solar's IPO oversubscribed by 73.2 times

Datuk Seri Najib Razak denies seeking royalties from the Middle East to help stepson Riza Aziz over his alleged entanglement with 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) funds, the court heard on Wednesday.

Najib says stepson was already servicing loan from Emerati prince, phone call only to formalise agreement

The&nbsp;industrial subsector&nbsp;is expected to continue&nbsp;its positive trend&nbsp;in 2025,&nbsp;according to&nbsp;Henry Butcher Malaysia&nbsp;chief operating officer Tang Chee Meng. The Henry Butcher Perspective — Malaysia Property Outlook 2025 report, which was&nbsp;launched&nbsp;on Wednesday, noted that&nbsp;the&nbsp;volume of industrial transactions in the first nine months of 2024 (9M2024)&nbsp;increased by 6.5%, while the value rose 22.8%.

Henry Butcher: Malaysia's industrial subsector to continue strong performance

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 22): Mah Sing Group Bhd’s (KL:MAHSING) proposed acquisition of land in Sentul, its first deal of the year, is being done at fair and attractive&nbsp;valuations, analysts said.

Mah Sing's first land deal in 2025 is fair and attractive, analysts say

Former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak claimed that he was being prosecuted for "being transparent" on how he spent the purported donation from the Middle East.

The now-imprisoned 71-year-old, said that he could have easily utilised the donation monies in the form of cash but did not do so and specifically used cheques because he knew it would be documented.

1MDB-Tanore trial: Najib denies abusing funds, says used cheques to be 'transparent'

President Donald Trump faces a host of headwinds that could thwart his ability to generate a boom for the US economy, according to Harvard University professor Ken Rogoff.

Trump’s plan to trigger boom risks coming undone, Rogoff warns

Malaysia’s international reserves fell by US$700 million by mid-January this year, from a fortnight earlier, according to Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM).

BNM: Malaysia’s international reserves down to US$115.5b as at mid-January

Datuk Seri Najib Razak said he did not interfere with the attorney general’s (AG) prosecutorial discretion while he was prime minister.&nbsp;