Here’s a sneak peek of our interview with Nestlé Product's business executive officer for confectionery, ASEAN markets, Sachin Goel. Catch the full episode on Tuesday, July 10th.</div><div class=inPageAd id=div-gpt-ad-inpage>

OVERHEARD WITH… Nestlé’s Sachin Goel

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday redesignated Yemen's Houthi movement, known formally as Ansar Allah, as a "foreign terrorist organisation", the White House said.

Trump designates Yemen's Houthis as a 'foreign terrorist organisation'

MORNING CALL: 23/1/25

The yield gap between Singapore’s ultra-long bonds versus treasuries is expected to expand from already-record levels as the nations’ debt supplies continue to diverge.

Singapore’s record yield gap with US set to widen on debt supply

Japan’s exports rose for a third month in December on the back of a weaker yen, as businesses waited for further clarity on likely US trade policy in President Donald Trump’s second term.

Japan’s exports rise as world waits for Trump tariffs impact

South Korea's SK Hynix on Thursday posted a record quarterly profit as the Nvidia supplier saw strong sales of advanced chips such as high-bandwidth memory (HBM) used in generative artificial intelligence chipsets.

Nvidia supplier SK Hynix posts record quarterly profit on AI chip demand

A rapidly growing wildfire broke out some 50 miles (80km) north of Los Angeles on Wednesday, burning 5,054 acres (20 square km) while two major fires burning in the metropolitan area for more than two weeks were getting under control, fire officials said.

Fast-growing wildfire breaks out north of Los Angeles, forces evacuations

CNN, a unit of Warner Bros Discovery, plans to lay off hundreds of employees on Thursday, as it refocuses the business around a global digital audience, CNBC reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

CNN and NBC News to lay off employees — report

Samsung Electronics Wednesday unveiled its newest Galaxy S25 smartphones, powered by Qualcomm's chips and Google's artificial-intelligence model, hoping its upgraded AI features can reinvigorate sales and fend off Apple and Chinese rivals.

Samsung unveils AI smartphones with Qualcomm chips, teases slimmer Galaxy phones

One of the world’s biggest crop traders has halted loading of grain vessels at US Gulf terminals as the region’s worst snowstorm in 130 years slams the region.

Crop trader declares force majeure along US Gulf during rare southern snow

Investors are watching for signs that one of China’s biggest spending seasons may jumpstart the country’s consumer stocks after a disappointing start to the year.

Chinese consumer stocks look to holiday spending for rebound

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 

Crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed lower on Wednesday, weighed down by concerns over weakening demand from India due to cheaper alternatives, a trader said.

CPO futures close lower on concerns over weakening demand from India

Elon Musk openly questioned whether companies that joined President Donald Trump’s announcement promising hundreds of billions of dollars in artificial intelligence infrastructure could follow through on their promises, exposing an early internal rift within the White House.

Musk and Altman spar over US$100b AI venture hyped by Trump

CNN, a unit of Warner Bros Discovery, plans to lay off hundreds of employees on Thursday, as it refocuses the business around a global digital audience, CNBC reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Six individuals have been arrested and goods worth RM113 million confiscated in police raids on seven company premises in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur suspected of smuggling iron and metal products from abroad.

Bukit Aman Internal Security and Public Order Department director Datuk Seri Azmi Abu Kassim said those detained in the raids on Jan 17 comprised two local men, one local woman and three foreign men, aged between 33 and 50.

Police arrest six, RM113 mil worth of iron products seized in anti-smuggling raids

The Kedah state government is terminating the contractor's services for the Sungai Limau Water Treatment Plant project in Baling because the contractor failed to complete the project within the set timeframe.

Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor said all government projects must adhere to standard operating procedures (SOPs) and regulations stipulated by law.

Kedah fires water treatment plant project contractor over delay

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 

Stocks in Asia are set to edge higher after a rally in big tech, fuelled by optimism over artificial intelligence and a batch of earnings from corporate heavyweights, sent the S&amp;P 500 to the brink of an all-time high close.

Asian stocks to trend higher after S&P 500 surges

One of the world’s biggest crop traders has halted loading of grain vessels at US Gulf terminals as the region’s worst snowstorm in 130 years slams the region.

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

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?

E-commerce giant Amazon.com is exiting its operations in the Canadian province of Quebec, leading to the loss of about 1,700 full-time jobs, the company said on Wednesday, prompting Ottawa to express its unhappiness.

Amazon exits Quebec operations, to cut about 1,700 jobs; Ottawa unhappy

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

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

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) crippled a vape smuggling syndicate operating at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Cargo Centre; its activities resulted in an estimated RM8 million tax loss.

MACC busts KLIA vape smuggling syndicate, 14 arrested, RM8 million unpaid taxes

Asean is progressing cautiously on Myanmar as it is critical to secure peace in the country, said Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

He said Asean’s approach is not about enforcing a particular system but ensuring inclusivity and peace as well as the importance of participatory democracy.

Asean takes cautious approach on Myanmar, critical to secure peace — Anwar

The Nasdaq led gains among Wall Street's main indices on Wednesday, as investors cheered streaming giant Netflix's strong quarterly performance and President Donald Trump's multi-billion dollar support to bolster artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure.

The benchmark S&amp;P 500 was just shy of surpassing its all-time intra-day high hit in early December.

Nasdaq leads Wall St higher helped by Netflix results, Trump's AI investment plans

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

Netflix Inc shares soared to a record high on Wednesday after the streaming giant reported its biggest quarterly subscriber gain in history, buoyed by its first major live sporting events and the return of Squid Game.

The company added 18.9 million customers in the fourth quarter, according to a shareholder letter on Tuesday.