Between 2021 and 2023, Malaysia approved a total of RM114.7 billion in investments related to data centres, which constituted most of the country’s digital investments totalling RM144.7 billion, according to Knight Frank Malaysia’s 1H2024 Real Estate Highlights report.

Overview of data centre boom in Malaysia

Cryptocurrency investment and usage are growing, as digital currencies enable millions of people around the world to transact however and whenever they want — without middlemen – and take greater control of their finances.

Illicit cryptocurrency use expands to IP theft, drug trafficking and beyond

In collaboration with Margie Ong from Thoughts in Gear, ESG is publishing a four-part, step-by-step infographic series on how sustainability is good business. The series will serve as a guide on how companies can strategically embed sustainability into their business direction and decisions.

Crafting and executing a strategy

Semiconductor companies are essential to the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution, providing the critical processing power needed for advanced computations. Through continuous innovation in research and development, they enable the integration of Edge AI and Internet of Things (IoT), ensuring scalable and efficient AI deployments. As AI reshapes industries and the future, the semiconductor sector remains crucial in driving this technological evolution forward.

Semiconductors: The backbone of AI advancements

While there has been progress, there is still a long way to go for the world to achieve gender parity. According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2024, published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in June, we have closed 68.5% of the gender gap. However, at the current pace, it will take another 134 years – equivalent to five generations – to achieve full gender parity. Globally, the gap has closed by just 0.1 percentage points since last year.

A slow trek towards gender parity

The Robo Report, published by US-based wealth management and investment advisory firm Condor Capital Wealth Management, ranks the total portfolio performance of a long list of robo-advisory firms in the US.

Performance of robo-advisor portfolios in the US

Affluent Malaysians are making their money sweat. According to HSBC’s Affluent Investor Snapshot 2024, Malaysians are among the most invested in financial products compared with investors in 10 other markets.

Making the money sweat

In recent months, Malaysia has witnessed a worrying surge in the number of mule accounts, which are increasingly being used money laundering and identity theft. The ease of acquiring the accounts has made the country a prime target for foreign syndicates looking to launder and legitimise their illicit funds.

Digital banks could spur rise in mule accounts

Talent mobility is a major factor for innovation and progress, yet also a very personal choice for workers. In its Decoding Global Talent 2024 – Mobility Trends survey, JobStreet by SEEK finds out whether people still want to move abroad for work, and if so, where and why. The survey involved 150,735 respondents from more than 180 countries. The majority were from Europe and Central Asia (38%) as well as East Asia and Pacific (31%). More than a third  of the respondents (38%) have a bachelor’s degree, and almost two-thirds  (64%) have tertiary qualifications.

Where in the world do people want to work?

While green finance was a buzzword in the last few years, the attention has partly moved to transition finance this year.

What is transition finance?

Deal activity dropped off in Southeast Asia for in the first quarter of 2024, down 46% to US$1.4 billion (RM6.6 billion) from US$2.7 billion in 4Q2023. At US$1.4 billion, the region’s deal value was back at the same level as 1Q2023, according to Bain & Co’s Southeast Asia Private Equity (PE) Report 2024.

Challenging year for private equity in Southeast Asia

Every year, Knight Frank, a global real estate consultancy and estate agency headquartered in London, publishes the Wealth Report, which focuses on the global property markets. It also looks at alternative investments and how they perform each year and over the past decade.

Investment performance of alternative asset classes

Fewer babies have been born per woman in most parts of the world in the last seven decades. From as many as five births per woman in the early 1950s and four births per woman in the mid-1970s, the global average fertility rate had plunged to 2.3 births in 2021 and is projected to slip further to 2.1 births per woman by 2050 – the rate at which a population exactly replaces itself.

Who’s (not) having babies

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim launched the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) on May 7. However, NACS itself was overshadowed by the chief commissioner of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Tan Sri Azam Baki’s statement that the country lost RM277 billion due to graft from 2018 to 2023.

The state of corruption in Malaysia

Sarawak certainly had more good reasons to celebrate its 61st year of independence last Monday (July 22).

In conjunction with the celebration, the state saw the inauguration of a new methanol plant in Bintulu and the signing of gas sales agreements — the first after state-owned Petroleum Sarawak Bhd (Petros) became the sole gas aggregator, taking over from Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas).

A major win in Sarawak’s bid to reclaim rights

SARAWAK expects to formalise a deal to raise its stake in Affin Bank Bhd to about 30% in about a month, according to the state’s premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg.

In an exclusive interview with The Edge in Kuala Lumpur last Friday (July 19), Abang Johari said the state is committed to...

Premier: Sarawak expects to ink S&P on Affin Bank deal in a month

Treasuries are rising at the end of a volatile week as the Federal Reserve’s favourite inflation gauge cemented traders’ expectations for an interest-rate cut in September.

The advance pushed yields lower across the curve on Friday, with two- and 10-year yields down by about five basis points (bps) to 4.38% and 4.2%, respectively.

Treasuries rally as data points to a September rate cut

The developer of a supertall condo tower in Miami’s Brickell neighbourhood has hired a new sales team after ousting an embattled real estate brokerage from the project.

One Sotheby’s International Realty has taken over marketing at 888 Brickell Dolce & Gabbana Miami, JDS Development’s pre-construction building overlooking Biscayne Bay in the city’s financial centre.

Miami condo tower moves on from brokers facing rape allegations

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof paid a courtesy visit to Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Friday.

"During the meeting with His Excellency, I reaffirmed the commitment of the prime minister and the Malaysian government to continue strengthening cooperation between Malaysia and Vietnam," he said in a post on the social media platform X.

Deputy PM Fadillah pays courtesy visit to Vietnamese PM, strengthens bilateral cooperation

Wall Street bounced back on Friday as megacap tech and chip stocks recovered from the week's pummeling, while a largely in-line key inflation reading kept bets for an early start to interest-rate cuts alive.

Wall Street rebounds on tech recovery, small caps jump after benign inflation data

Malaysia has urged dialogue partners attending the Asean Post-Ministerial Conference in Laos to support a ceasefire in Gaza and end the brutal killings of Palestinians.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said Malaysia, along with Indonesia and Brunei, brought forward this motion during the meeting at the National Convention Centre (NCC) here.

Malaysia urges Asean dialogue partners to support ceasefire in Gaza

US authorities filed criminal and civil charges against prominent activist short seller Andrew Left for an alleged long-running market manipulation scheme involving bets on stocks including Nvidia and Tesla, they said on Friday.

US charges Citron's Andrew Left over alleged multi-million fraud scheme

Malaysia, as the country coordinator for Asean-China Dialogue Relations, will intensify efforts to finalise the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

He said Malaysia, which assumed the role of country coordinator this year, aims to establish a code of conduct accepted by all parties.

Malaysia steps up efforts to finalise South China Sea code of conduct

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

AirAsia X, Capital A, Hibiscus, Dagang NeXchange, ViTrox, Ekovest, Knusford, Alam Maritim, Datasonic, Kumpulan Kitacon, DXN, Homeritz, Westport, MGRC 

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

Ekovest Bhd (KL:EKOVEST) said it has agreed to a further extension of time to discuss a merger between its wholly owned subsidiary Ekovest Construction Sdn Bhd (ECSB) and Knusford Bhd (KL:KNUSFOR).

Ekovest agrees to six-month extension for merger discussion between subsidiary and Knusford

The prestigious five-star Lexis Hibiscus 2 luxury resort is currently under construction by the KL Metro Group and is expected to be completed by 2029, said Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun.

Construction of RM1.6 bil GDV Lexis Hibiscus 2 resort will be completed in 2029

Wall Street bounced back on Friday as megacap tech and chip stocks recovered from the week's pummeling, while a largely in-line key inflation reading kept bets for an early start to interest-rate cuts alive.

Upholstery furniture products manufacturer Homeritz Corp Bhd’s (KL:HOMERIZ) net profit surged 46.37% in the third quarter from a year earlier, thanks to higher sales volume and stronger US dollar. &nbsp;

Net profit for three months ended May 31, 2024 (3QFY2024) climbed to RM9.09 million or earnings per share of 1.96 sen, from RM6.21 million or 1.34 sen per share recorded in 3QFY2023. &nbsp;

Homeritz’s 3Q net profit soars 46.37% on higher sales and strong greenback

Cyberview Sdn Bhd has signed three Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with three companies to make Cyberjaya a global technology hub.

Chief executive officer Kamarul Ariffin Abdul Samad said the companies involved were Permodalan Negeri Selangor Bhd (PNSB), Selangor Information Technology &amp; Digital Economy Corporation (SIDEC) and digital infrastructure company Equinix Malaysia.

Cyberview signs three MOUs to make Cyberjaya a global technology hub

The developer of a supertall condo tower in Miami’s Brickell neighbourhood has hired a new sales team after ousting an embattled real estate brokerage from the project.

One Sotheby’s International Realty has taken over marketing at 888 Brickell Dolce &amp; Gabbana Miami, JDS Development’s pre-construction building overlooking Biscayne Bay in the city’s financial centre.&nbsp;

SARAWAK expects to formalise a deal to raise its stake in Affin Bank Bhd to about 30% in about a month, according to the state’s premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg.

In an exclusive interview with The Edge in Kuala Lumpur last Friday (July 19), Abang Johari said the state is committed to...

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof paid a courtesy visit to Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Friday.

"During the meeting with His Excellency, I reaffirmed the commitment of the prime minister and the Malaysian government to continue strengthening cooperation between Malaysia and Vietnam," he said in a post on the social media platform X.

Kumpulan Kitacon Bhd (KL:KITACON) has secured a RM54.5 million contract to undertake the construction of 186 terrace houses in Rawang, Selangor.

Kumpulan Kitacon bags RM54.5m job to build houses in Rawang

Treasuries are rising at the end of a volatile week as the Federal Reserve’s favourite inflation gauge cemented traders’ expectations for an interest-rate cut in September.

The advance pushed yields lower across the curve on Friday, with two- and 10-year yields down by about five basis points (bps) to 4.38% and 4.2%, respectively.

Penang Port Sdn Bhd (Penang Port) on Friday announced the acquisition of five Kalmar container handling machines to optimise operations and improve service levels.

Penang Port acquires Kalmar container handling equipment to enhance services

A new recruitment of 3,950 staff, comprising 3,200 medical officers, 350 dental officers and 400 pharmacy officers, will be made through contract (interim) appointments, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said.

More than 3,900 contract officers to be appointed in latest recruitment — MOH

Malaysia, as the country coordinator for Asean-China Dialogue Relations, will intensify efforts to finalise the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, said Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

He said Malaysia, which assumed the role of country coordinator this year, aims to establish a code of conduct accepted by all parties.

Hungary will face fuel shortages from September if full Russian oil flows are not restored, a government official said on Friday, accusing Ukraine of blackmailing it by partially suspending supplies.

Eastern European Union (EU) members Slovakia and Hungary have been hit by a stop in flows from Russian group Lukoil coming via Ukraine after sanctions were imposed on the company.

Hungary says it will face fuel shortages from September without Lukoil supplies

The government will now determine the locations for distributing subsidised cooking oil packets to retail outlets to prevent further leakage of controlled goods, says Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Armizan Mohd Ali.

KPDN to set subsidised cooking oil distribution locations to curb leakage — Armizan

Digital Penang has announced the Market Access Thailand programme, which aims to propel Penang’s startups into Thailand’s market and create opportunities for exponential growth and innovation.

Digital Penang announces cross-border startup collaboration with Thailand

Malaysia has urged dialogue partners attending the Asean Post-Ministerial Conference in Laos to support a ceasefire in Gaza and end the brutal killings of Palestinians.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said Malaysia, along with Indonesia and Brunei, brought forward this motion during the meeting at the National Convention Centre (NCC) here.

（吉隆坡26日讯）德信控股（DXN Holdings Bhd）（KL:DXN）首季净利按年增长10.26%，得益于整体营运业务营业额上涨。&nbsp;

德信控股首季净利升10.26% 放眼进军赞比亚和加纳市场

A weekly round-up of tanker and dry bulk market (July 26, 2024)

Infographic

‌
‌

Infographic

‌‌

‌
‌