Indonesia has had a good run in its 10 years under President Joko Widodo (Jokowi). The economy has withstood a series of challenges, including the Covid-19 pandemic, the worldwide inflation surge, the spike in global interest rates and the Ukraine crisis. Growth has been fairly steady and the rup...

My Say: Challenges for Indonesia’s president-elect Prabowo to overcome

For the longest time, Vietnam was the “in” thing. Foreign investors gushed over its low-cost but hard-working labour force. Even more impressive was how hungry those young Vietnamese were, with their keenness to learn and upgrade themselves, endearing them to foreign investors. Though nominally c...

My Say: Vietnam at risk of losing its shine

The US is such a colossus that it has outsized effects on the rest of the world. Despite many challenges, it remains the world’s largest economy and so its market matters more for Asian exporters than others. Its technological prowess and innovations in business models are unchallenged. Listed Am...

My Say: US election casts cloud over Asia’s economies

It was not very long ago that there were laments about the “savings glut” in Asia. Excessive savings by Asians were blamed for creating the easy monetary conditions in the US that eventually precipitated the global financial crisis in 2008. Others claimed that the same Asian tendency to over-save...

My Say: The return of global imbalances could hurt Asia

Multilateral agencies such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have been updating their economic forecasts of late. In most cases, caution has dominated their perspectives, preoccupied as they are with a range of risks, from the geopolitical to financial and nature-related risks...

My Say: Risks may not be so bad for Asean region

For many of us in Southeast Asia, the conflict in Myanmar seems far away. There has been limited spillover from the fighting into other parts of the region except for the immediate border areas in Thailand. Neither has there been a flood of refugees and, so far, foreign investors have not been sc...

My Say: Myanmar is burning, posing a challenge for Asean

There are fears that, because China is unhappy about the results of Taiwan’s recent election, there is a greater chance of political turbulence in the region. Our view is that this risk should not be overstated. While China may exert somewhat more pressure on Taiwan, the resulting frictions are l...

My Say: Taiwan polls result will refine power relations

The most volatile segment of an economy is investment spending, so any surprise to expectations of economic growth would tend to come from how investment behaves. We believe that there is a good chance that a new investment cycle in the Asian region could emerge, which would produce better econom...

My Say: A new investment cycle could produce upside to regional growth

As we approach the end of the year and think about prospects for the new year, there is huge uncertainty in the global environment and how our region will fare in 2024. What we can do is to formulate the best possible guess on how things might pan out, all the while being humble enough to admit t...

My Say: A rough year ahead, but don’t forget the silver linings

The past few years have been turbulent, to say the least. Yet Singapore has emerged relatively unscathed from the Covid-19 pandemic, tragic wars in Europe and the Middle East, big power frictions that brought more protectionism and inward-looking policies, an unexpected Chinese slowdown, the shoc...

My Say: Singapore in 2024: Stepping into uncharted waters

Cypark Resources Bhd said on Tuesday that its 100MW Large Scale Solar 3 (LSS3) hybrid solar plant project in Merchang, Terengganu, will transition to full commercial operations by next month.

In a statement, the group said the plant consists of 83MWac (megawatt, alternating current) ground-mounted solar photovoltaics and 32MWac floating solar photovoltaics.

Cypark's LSS3 solar plant in Terengganu set for commercial operations next month

British sportswear and sneaker retailer JD Sports Fashion Plc agreed to buy Hibbett Inc for about US$1.1 billion (RM5.2 billion) to speed up its US expansion.

JD Sports to buy Hibbett for US$1.1b to fuel US growth

NINJA Logistics Sdn Bhd (Ninja Van Malaysia) was one of the private venture-backed start-ups that burst onto the last-mile delivery scene and disrupted the long-standing business model of incumbent delivery companies with technologies that deliver products faster, cheaper and more efficiently tha...

Ninja Van Malaysia takes pole position with record growth pace

Crypto exchanges are eating into Binance’s share of bitcoin trading outside the US as overseas expansion efforts and changing regulations reshape the competitive dynamics of the digital-asset industry.

Binance’s rivals muscle in on bitcoin trading around the world

The UK economy’s recovery from recession unexpectedly gathered pace at the start of the second quarter as private sector firms reported the strongest growth in almost a year.

UK recovery from recession gains momentum as PMI beats forecast

China’s biggest wave of steel exports since a global glut in the mid-2010s is inflaming trade tensions across the world as the metal reaches a wider range of destinations.

China’s surging steel exports are inflaming global trade tensions

KUALA LUMPUR (April 23): Penang International Airport (PEN) recorded a 5% increase in passenger movements, rising to 328,000 from 313,000 passengers in the preceding month.

Penang International Airport sees 5% rise in passengers to 328,000 in March 2024

UBS Group AG raised its recommendation on a key Chinese stock index to “overweight” in a rare upgrade call this year, underscoring the tentative optimism that the market is finally on the mend.

UBS lifts Chinese stocks to ‘overweight’ in rare upgrade call

The US is drafting sanctions that threaten to cut some Chinese banks off from the global financial system, which officials hope will stop Beijing's commercial support of Russia's military production, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

US to take aim at Chinese banks aiding Russia war effort — report

Elon Musk lashed out at Australia's prime minister on Tuesday after a court ordered his social media company X take down footage of an alleged terrorist attack in Sydney, and said the ruling meant any country could control "the entire internet".

Musk decries Australian court 'censorship' of X terror posts

The Edge covers former Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's 1Malaysia Development Bhd-Tanore (1MDB-Tanore) trial live.

Najib's 1MDB-Tanore trial live reporting (April 23)

Ten members of the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) were confirmed dead in an incident where two helicopters collided and crashed at the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) base in Lumut, Perak on Tuesday morning.

Two helicopters crash in Lumut, 10 confirmed killed — RMN

Shares of Topmix Bhd surged 32% in its trading debut on Tuesday after the surface decorative products company’s initial public offering (IPO) on the ACE Market raised RM31.7 million.

Topmix surges 32% on ACE Market debut

Healthcare stocks still have legs to run following the recent rally and investors should continue to buy hospital operators for their further earnings growth this year, analysts said.

KPJ near record high, IHH surges as analysts bet on more upside

Brazil's government said on Monday that four additional poultry plants have been cleared to sell halal products to Malaysia, a move it hopes will allow exports to the Asian country to double when compared to last year's levels.

Brazil says Malaysia clears four more halal poultry plants for export

Eight contractors face possible Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC) fines for alleged bid rigging in 2019, in respect of two tenders of the Public Works Department (JKR) and one tender of the Department of Drainage and Irrigation.

Eight contractors face possible MyCC fines for bid rigging in tenders worth RM473m

Malaysia’s construction tender prices are&nbsp;expected to grow by 3% in 2024, compared to the previous year, driven by various factors such as project type, industry procurement strategy and currency fluctuations, according to a report by global professional services company Turner &amp; Townsend.

Malaysia’s construction tender prices to grow by 3% in 2024, says Turner & Townsend

Former Umno Supreme Council member Hizatul Isham Abdul Jalil or better known as Isham Jalil has offered to make an unreserved apology to bring an end to his contempt of court proceedings.

Ex-Umno leader ready to apologise in contempt of court case

Asian shares extended gains on Tuesday, taking cues from Wall Street as investors' focus shifts to earnings reports from US tech giants in the week, while a still strong dollar pressured the Japanese yen to fresh 34-year lows.

Asian shares extend gains ahead of tech earnings, yen fragile

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his son, incoming vice-president Gibran Rakabuming Raka, are no longer members of the country's largest party after they backed rival candidate and election winner Prabowo Subianto, a party official said on Tuesday.

Indonesia's biggest party confirms President Jokowi no longer a member after backing Prabowo

Swatch Group (M) Sdn Bhd&nbsp;said the seizure of its 172 rainbow-themed watches had caused much grief to its international reputation, as the renowned Swiss watch maker had always been dutiful citizens of any state where the watches were sold.

Swatch says advocating compassion for LGBTQ is not a crime, seizure illegal

Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor's appeal against her guilty conviction and sentence over all three counts of graft pertaining to the RM1.25 billion solar hybrid project for 369 rural schools in Sarawak will be heard in October.

October hearing for Rosmah's appeal in solar project graft trial

Chinese universities and research institutes recently obtained high-end Nvidia artificial intelligence (AI) chips through resellers, despite the US widening a ban last year on the sale of such technology to China.

China acquired recently banned Nvidia chips in Super Micro, Dell servers, tenders show

Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB) has a “trading buy” rating on SDS Group Bhd and said with 33 of its F&amp;B outlets situated across Johor state, and a wholesale segment that is focusing in this region, SDS appears strategically positioned to leverage the burgeoning vibrancy in Johor, propelled further by the continuous influx of visitors from Singapore.

SDS strategically positioned to leverage burgeoning vibrancy in Johor, says HLIB 

Capital A Bhd’s unit AirAsia Consulting Sdn Bhd is still in the pre-qualification stage for the acquisition of national carrier SriLankan Airlines.&nbsp;

However, AirAsia Consulting has yet to submit any price bid since due diligence has not been carried out, its chief executive officer Subashini Silvadas told The Edge on Tuesday.

Capital A’s unit in RFQ process for SriLankan Airlines, no price bid yet

Malton Bhd has unveiled the final tower (Block B) of River Park, following the successful launch of its previous Tower A and Tower C blocks with more than 70% take-up rate.

Malton unveils River Park's final tower

Bursa Malaysia opened higher on Tuesday, taking its cue from Wall Street’s better performance overnight, as sentiment improves after Iran said it will not escalate the conflict with Israel, said an analyst.

Bursa up in early trade, tracking Wall Street overnight

The two helicopters which collided and crashed at the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) Base were undergoing a rehearsal for the third time in conjunction with RMN Fleet Open Day celebration scheduled on Saturday (April 27).

RMN helicopters involved in third rehearsal before incident — Khaled Nordin

Rakuten Trade has a “buy” rating on ACE Market-bound surface decorative products company Topmix Bhd at an initial public offering (IPO) price of 31 sen, with a fair value of 40 sen based on financial year 2024 (FY2024) forecast price-earnings (PE) of 15x, in line with industry peers.

Rakuten Trade values Topmix at 40 sen, expects FY2023-FY2026 earnings to grow at CAGR of 25%

Wall Street stocks ended higher on Monday following a market sell-off in previous sessions as investors eyed a busy week for quarterly results from key companies that would provide a glimpse of the US economy's health.

Manu Bhaskaran

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

Manu Bhaskaran

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌

‌
‌