SINGAPORE (Dec 18): Singapore is caught between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, a slowing Chinese economy and sputtering global trade are squeezing growth in the small Asian city-state. On the other hand, the mighty Federal Reserve's sway on global interest rates is causi...

Ban this four-letter word to save Singapore real estate

(Dec 18): Well, the Federal Reserve has finally gone and done it. It raised short-term rates by 25 basis points, and Fed officials predicted four more similar hikes next year. That will bring rates to a range of 1.25% to 1.5%.

The era of the much-discussed zero interest rate p...

Back to normal programming

SINGAPORE (Dec 7): Singapore's new transport minister has revived speculation of some kind of nationalization of the city- state's subway assets. Shareholders of SMRT and SBS Transit, the two owner-operators, can't wait for the authorities to relieve them of the misery of sprucing up an aging, cr...

Singapore's rail model is the zoo

(Dec 7): It's cheaper to put your belongings on a container ship and send them around the world for a year than to stick them in a land-based self-storage facility, according to freight forwarders Flexport. So it's a good time for Singapore's state investment company Temasek Holdings to bail...

Temasek leaves a listing ship

NEW YORK (Sept 18): The Federal Reserve has chosen to leave interest rates unchanged, effectively at zero. What does this mean? First and foremost, it means that we are unlikely to see any big or significant changes in monetary policy in the near future. 

The Fed’s intere...

Fed leaves rates and doubts unchanged

NEW YORK (Sept 16): Now that U.S. stock markets have experienced their first 10% correction since 2011, investors are again looking to the Federal Reserve to bail them out. Although the Fed hasn't raised interest rates in almost 10 years, sympathetic pundits say it's still too soon to r...

Why the Fed should raise rates now

SINGAPORE (Sept 4): This week's holiday to commemorate the end of World War II couldn't have come at a better time. For a global financial system traumatized by recent gyrations in China, the closure of mainland markets is a chance to take a breath and remember that the world is mo...

Here's why not to worry about China (too much)

(Nov 19): Joko Widodo's rise from nowhere to Jakarta governor and then the presidential palace showed the wonders of Indonesia's democracy. Now, he wants to democratize the economy as well, focusing as much on the quality of growth as the quantity.

Sixteen years ago, Indonesia was casca...

 Indonesia no longer worships at the 'Cult of GDP': William Pesek

(Nov 14): When things go wrong, what is it with Japanese corporate chieftains? Shigehisa Takada, the chairman of Tokyo-based Takata Corp., is facing a spiraling scandal after news that another victim -- a pregnant woman in Malaysia -- was killed by one his company's airbags. The U.S. Senate is ho...

Japan Inc. still can't help shooting self in foot: William Pesek

(Oct 23): If Malaysian leader Najib Razak thought he already had problems at home, now he also needs to worry about a “Jokowi effect” spreading from neighboring Indonesia.


On Monday, fresh-faced Joko "Jokowi" Widodo took the helm of the world’s fourth-most-populous nation. Throu...

 Malaysia battles beer, dogs as Indonesia shines

BENGALURU (Dec 10): Social media platform X will reinstate the account of US conspiracy theorist Alex Jones after a poll of the site's users backed his return, X owner Elon Musk said on Sunday.

Musk says conspiracy theorist Alex Jones will be reinstated on X after poll

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): A company and its director, a Singaporean, have been charged in the Sessions Court here on four charges of offering RM15 million worth of Islamic redeemable preference shares (iRPS) to the public between Aug 2020 and Aug 2021.

Company, director charged with offering RM15 mil worth of preference shares to public

GAZA/CAIRO (Dec 10): Israel ordered residents out of the centre of Gaza's main southern city Khan Younis and pounded the length of the enclave overnight, after the United States wielded its UN Security Council veto to shield its ally from a demand for a ceasefire.

Palestinians report Israeli battles in Khan Younis after US blocks Gaza ceasefire call

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): A total of 351 sick and abandoned housing projects, with a gross development value (GDV) of RM32.87 billion, have been completed and restored by the Ministry of Local Government Development (KPKT) throughout one year of the Madani Government's administration.

Madani Govt one year anniversary: Restoring 351 problematic housing projects among ministry’s successes

SHANGHAI (Dec 10): China's securities regulator has published draft rules aimed at slashing trading commissions for mutual funds and addressing the conflict of interest between the securities trading and fund sales businesses of brokerages, the latest reform to the US$3.8 trillion mutual fund industry.

China proposes trading cost cuts for mutual funds, to regulate commissions

SHAH ALAM (Dec 10): A total of 97 individuals will receive the state awards, honours and medals in conjunction with the 78th birthday of the Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah on Monday (Dec 11).

97 persons to receive awards, medals in conjunction with Selangor Sultan’s birthday

FOLLOWING a recent request for proposals (RFP) from the General Insurance Association of Malaysia aka Persatuan Insurans Am Malaysia (Piam) and the Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA), the Association of Accredited Advertising Agents Malaysia (4As Malaysia) would like to explicitly state its dissatisfaction with the demand by Piam and MTA for the ownership and retention of agencies’ intellectual property.

Association of advertising agents oppose tenders that usurp ownership of intellectual properties of proposals submitted

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): The year 2023 saw Malaysia elevate its commitment toward an inclusive and sustainable public transportation service, which augurs well with the newly launched National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) that emphasises clean energy.

Sustainability: The buzzword in 2023 for transportation

BEIJING (Dec 10): The Philippines and China traded accusations on Sunday over a collision of their vessels in disputed waters of the South China Sea, as tensions over claims in the vital waterway escalate.

Philippines, China trade accusations over South China Sea collision

SYDNEY (Dec 10): Australia will triple fees on purchases of existing homes by foreign buyers, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said on Sunday, as part of measures aimed at increasing the supply of affordable housing.

Australia to triple fees on foreign purchasers of existing homes

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10):&nbsp;Husband-and-wife team Ng Han Yang and Rachel Leong, scions of property development and timber families, make their first foray into F&amp;B (food &amp; beverage) with the recent opening of Mellow at Petaling Jaya’s Seventeen Mall.

Days of wine + roses

KUANTAN (Dec 10): The installation of the first track for the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project will begin on Monday (Dec 11) — three years before the 665-kilometre (km) railway line that connects the East Coast and the West Coast in the peninsula starts operating in January 2027.

King to grace ceremony to instal first ECRL track on Dec 11

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10):&nbsp;Travilion Group of Companies launched its Parq Residence project on Dec 8, and it will be one of the tallest residential buildings in Kuching. Chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Seri John Lau and co-chief operating officer (co-COO) Peter Lau believe the project will do well, thanks to encouraging booking numbers and also their confidence that high-rise living is something Sarawakians are accepting now.&nbsp;

The sky’s the limit

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): A company and its director, a Singaporean, have been charged in the Sessions Court here on four charges of offering RM15 million worth of Islamic redeemable preference shares (iRPS) to the public between Aug 2020 and Aug 2021.

DUBAI (Dec 9): Countries clashed on Saturday over a possible agreement to phase-out fossil fuels at the COP28 summit in Dubai, jeopardising attempts to deliver a first-ever commitment to eventually end the use of oil and gas in 30 years of global warming talks.

COP28 clashes over fossil fuel phase-out after Opec pushback

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): The year 2023 saw Malaysia elevate its commitment toward an inclusive and sustainable public transportation service, which augurs well with the newly launched National Energy Transition Roadmap (NETR) that emphasises clean energy.

SHAH ALAM (Dec 10):&nbsp;A total of 97 individuals will receive the state awards, honours and medals in conjunction with the 78th birthday of the Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah on Monday (Dec 11).

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): Saitama Prefecture, which is ranked fifth in terms of population and economic productivity among the prefectures of Japan, is exploring further investment opportunities in Malaysia in the halal food and automated machinery industries.

Japan's Saitama Prefecture keen to invest in halal food, machinery industries in Malaysia

SYDNEY (Dec 10): Australia will triple fees on purchases of existing homes by foreign buyers, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said on Sunday, as part of measures aimed at increasing the supply of affordable housing.

FOLLOWING a recent request for proposals (RFP) from the General Insurance Association of Malaysia aka Persatuan Insurans Am Malaysia (Piam) and the Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA), the Association of Accredited Advertising Agents Malaysia (4As Malaysia) would like to explicitly state its dissatisfaction with the demand by Piam&nbsp;and MTA for the ownership and retention of agencies’ intellectual property.

SHANGHAI (Dec 10): China's securities regulator has published draft rules aimed at slashing trading commissions for mutual funds and addressing the conflict of interest between the securities trading and fund sales businesses of brokerages, the latest reform to the US$3.8 trillion mutual fund industry.

BEIJING (Dec 10): The Philippines and China traded accusations on Sunday over a collision of their vessels in disputed waters of the South China Sea, as tensions over claims in the vital waterway escalate.

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 10): A total of 351 sick and abandoned housing projects, with a gross development value (GDV) of RM32.87 billion, have been completed and restored by the Ministry of Local Government Development (KPKT)&nbsp;throughout one year of the Madani&nbsp;Government's administration.

GAZA/CAIRO (Dec 10): Israel ordered residents out of the centre of Gaza's main southern city Khan Younis and pounded the length of the enclave overnight, after the United States wielded its UN&nbsp;Security Council veto to shield its ally from a demand for a ceasefire.

BENGALURU (Dec 10): Social media platform X will reinstate the account of US conspiracy theorist Alex Jones after a poll of the site's users backed his return, X owner Elon Musk said on Sunday.

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