The opposition failed in its attempt to thwart Budget 2021 as it was passed in the final approval stage in the Dewan Rakyat today via an en bloc vote.

The vote ended with 111 Members of Parliament (MPs) in favour and 108 MPs against the passing of the budget.

Budget 2021 passed in Dewan Rakyat despite opposition's last-ditch efforts to stymie bill

Budget 2021 was formulated with a balancing act in mind, a treasury official said today, adding that it is important for the government to spend on development expenditure to stimulate new growth in the country.

Budget 2021 formulated with balancing act in mind — MoF

The crucial vote on Budget 2021 is scheduled for today in the Dewan Rakyat amid uncertainty as to whether it will garner sufficient support from lawmakers.

Several MPs have threatened to withhold support for the Budget unless their concerns are addressed. Former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad (Pejuang-Langkawi), for one, has said that he and “his friends” have decided to reject the Budget

Parliament to decide on the National Budget today

As for now, the schedule for the crucial Budget 2021 vote set for tomorrow is on track, according to a source familiar with the matter.

“Ministers have also been reminded to stick to their 20-minute allocation and not exceed it — as what happened on Monday and Tuesday. Questions that can’t be answered due to time constraints will be answered in writing,” a government source familiar with the scheduled budget vote told The Edge, adding that at present, the budget voting is still “confirmed” for tomorrow as scheduled.

Schedule for budget voting on track — source

Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah will not be participating in the Budget 2021 debate as long as the legitimacy of Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and his Cabinet is not tested.

Ku Li to abstain from Budget 2021 debate as long as no-confidence motion not allowed

Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal today criticised the government’s controversial decision to allocate RM85.5 million to the Department of Special Affairs (Jasa) during the Covid-19 pandemic, calling it unnecessary.

Following a growing number of lawmakers who have voiced their dissatisfaction at this move, Shafie echoed their calls to use the RM85.5 million in combating Covid-19.

Shafie joins growing list of politicians questioning RM86m allocation for Jasa

While the Budget 2021 has been touted to be the largest budget in Malaysia, four associations have jointly urged the government to revise the national budget to provide “sustainable and meaningful” assistance.

The four associations are Malaysia Retail Chain Association (MRCA), SME Association of Malaysia, Bumiputra Retailers Organization and Malaysia Shopping Malls Association (PPK).

SME, retail and mall associations urge govt for more aid in Budget 2021

The V-shaped recovery that has been attained at this point will be derailed if Budget 2021 is not passed by Parliament, according to EMIR Research.

V-shaped recovery will be derailed if Budget 2021 not passed — EMIR Research

Construction companies are set to benefit greatly from the projects and expenditure outlined in Budget 2021, with the Mass Rapid Transit 3 and the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High-Speed Rail viewed as being big opportunities.

Builders the key beneficiaries of Budget 2021, but little interest seen

The recently tabled Budget 2021 was "supersized but spread too thin", said Affin Hwang Capital Research, noting that the measures announced were not sufficient to assist the sectors that are badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Budget 2021 has something for everyone but ‘spread too thin’, says Affin Hwang

Pejuang says the government had used Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah’s decree as a “blank cheque” to propose a Budget which is populist and does not take into account the interests of the people.

Pejuang: Budget 2021 populist, does not take into account public interest

Top Glove Corp Bhd, Hartalega Holdings Bhd and Supermax Corp Bhd have confirmed that they are donating to the Government’s COVID-19 fund set up to battle the pandemic.

When contacted by theedgemarkets.com, Top Glove said it is donating RM185 million to the fund, while Supermax will be chipping in RM75 million.

Kossan, Top Glove, Hartalega and Supermax confirm donations to Govt's RM400 mil COVID-19 fund

Human capital management solution provider RAMSSOL Group said employee engagement is key in digital transformation.

Employee engagement key in digital transformation, says RAMSSOL

BIMB Holdings Bhd's Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd has welcomed the enhancement made to the targeted repayment assistance in Budget 2021, saying that the measure addresses the difficulties of most vulnerable groups and provides an opportunity for them to recover from the economic shocks of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Bank Islam welcomes enhancement to targeted repayment assistance

KUALA LUMPUR (May 2): Here is a brief recap of some business news and corporate announcements that made the headlines on Thursday:

Yinson Holdings Bhd has closed the limited recourse term loan facility of up to US$1.3 billion (RM6.2 billion) for the financing of its Ago...

Yinson, Protasco, LCTitan, Westports, UOA REIT, Frontken, Pasukhas, BHIC, JAKS, Epicon, Sarawak Cable, Annum, Aldrich, Ajinomoto, Ageson and SMI

Ageson Bhd said Virdos Lima Consultancy (M) Sdn Bhd (VL Consultancy) is in the final stage of completing its independent assessment report on the matters raised by its external auditor in its financial statements for the 18-month financial period ended Dec 31, 2022 (FPE2022).

Ageson says independent review of audit issues raised by its auditor now in final stages

The Penang government plans to hold a workshop with stakeholders to finalise the Penang Mutiara Line Light Rail Transit (LRT) Project following minor amendments to the original plan.

Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the workshop is expected to be held within a week or two so that further work involving the transformative infrastructure project can be carried out.

Penang to hold workshop with stakeholders to finalise Mutiara Line LRT alignment

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said he has encouraged Japan and Qatar to explore investment opportunities in Kelantan.

As the country's leader, he said that he will always strive to help develop all states in Malaysia.

PM encourages Japan, Qatar to explore investment in Kelantan

The options market is betting that stocks will swing widely after Friday’s US jobs report, which traders expect will offer more clarity on how much the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates this year.

The S&P 500 Index is expected to move 1.2% in either direction after the release, based on the cost of at-the-money puts and calls expiring Friday, according to Stuart Kaiser, Citigroup Inc’s head of US equity trading strategy. That figure, based on the prices of S&P straddles as of Wednesday’s close, is the largest implied swing ahead of an employment report since March 2023, he said.

Options traders brace for biggest S&P jobs-day swing in a year

Bill Gross, who pioneered the “total return” strategy in the 1980s that revolutionized the bond market, says the approach is now defunct.

Bill Gross says ‘total return’ strategy he pioneered is ‘dead’

The High Court on Thursday upheld the conviction and 12-year prison sentence against Rumah Bonda founder Siti Bainun Ahd Razali for neglecting and abusing Bella, a teenage girl with Down’s syndrome.

Bella case: High Court upholds Siti Bainun's conviction and sentence  

Blogger Wan Muhammad Azri Wan Deris, or Papagomo, was charged in the Sessions Court here on Thursday with posting seditious articles against His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia on his X account.

Wan Muhammad Azri, 41, who is also a former Umno Youth exco member, pleaded not guilty to the charge before Judge Siti Aminah Ghazali.

Papagomo charged with sedition against King

South Malaysia Industries Bhd (SMI) has appointed Leow Thang Fong as its new chief executive officer, effective May 1, two months after a group of shareholders rejected him from being re-elected executive director at its annual general meeting (AGM).

SMI makes Leow Thang Fong CEO after his reappointment as ED rejected at AGM

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said addressing issues such as hardcore poverty, infrastructure development and basic amenities remain an enduring commitment of the Madani Government, particularly in Kelantan.

He said these issues should ideally be resolved promptly to overcome prolonged hardship for those affected.

Madani Govt firmly committed to resolving people's issues, hardcore poverty — PM

Protasco Bhd, which has businesses ranging from hotel to engineering, said on Thursday it has received an offer to buy its unit Ikram Education Sdn Bhd which owns the Infrastructure University Kuala Lumpur (IUKL).

Protasco gets offer from HK firm to buy its university unit

Subang Airport, officially known as Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, will likely be able to handle jet aircraft by the third quarter this year, according to Transport Minister Anthony Loke.

Subang Airport’s jet ops likely to start in 3Q, also eyes business jets — Loke

Mechanical and electrical engineering services provider Pasukhas Group Bhd has secured a RM56.98 million contract to build a data centre in Selangor.

Pasukhas secures RM57m contract from US company to build data centre in Selangor 

The additional investment by Microsoft amounting to US$2.2 billion or RM10.5 billion in the country over the next four years is the largest single investment by the company in its 32 years in Malaysia.

Microsoft’s new US$2.2b outlay is company’s largest single investment in Malaysia, says Anwar

The High Court on Thursday dismissed Tengku Datuk Zafrul Abdul Aziz's application to file an affidavit with regards to Datuk Seri Najib Razak's judicial review application to unearth an addendum to his pardon order that detailed he was to spend the remainder of his sentence under "house arrest".

Court rejects Zafrul’s bid to file affidavit on Najib’s ‘house arrest’ order

Shares of Ge-Shen Corp Bhd rose as much as 14.91% to a new record high of RM4.47 on Thursday, following the emergence of Chin Hin Group’s Chiau family as its second largest shareholder.

Ge-Shen shares hit new high on emergence of new substantial shareholder

Yinson Production, the offshore production business unit of Yinson Holdings Bhd, has closed the limited recourse term loan facility of up to US$1.3 billion (RM6.2 billion) for the pre- and post-delivery financing of the Agogo floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which will be deployed in Angola.

Yinson unit secures single largest term loan of US$1.3b to finance Agogo FPSO delivery

US President Joe Biden included ally Japan along with rivals China and Russia in a list of countries he called “xenophobic” in a speech at a campaign fundraising event in Washington.

Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ along with China, Russia

theedgemalaysia.com highlighted seven stocks with momentum at Bursa Malaysia’s afternoon close on Thursday. Two stocks showed positive momentum while five stocks showed negative momentum.

GHL Systems, Oppstar, Bursa Malaysia, Country View, Fiamma, Marco, Tambun Indah 

Smart Asia Chemical Bhd, en route to Bursa Malaysia’s ACE Market, expects its new plant in Perak to triple its production capacity while allowing the paint and coating manufacturer to be closer to its clients.

Smart Asia Chemical to triple capacity with new plant from IPO proceeds

IT will be a busy year for the energy sector. Over the past month, there has been a slew of announcements, with the latest being the establishment of the Energy Exchange Malaysia (Enegem).

The Enegem programme will start with a project with a pilot auction of 100mw of renewable energy (...

Cover Story: A busy year for RE players

South Korea's SK Hynix said on Thursday its high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips used in AI chipsets were sold out for this year and almost sold out for 2025 as businesses aggressively expand artificial intelligence services.

Nvidia supplier SK Hynix says HBM chips almost sold out for 2025

The El Nino phenomenon hitting the country is expected to continue for the next two months, said Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.

El Nino to last two more months; 2024 could be Malaysia’s hottest year — Nik Nazmi 

Local authorities' investigations into 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) involved "thousands" of documents, and not all of them could be specifically shown to imprisoned former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak when his statement was recorded, the court heard on Thursday.

MACC IO says 'thousands' of docs involved in 1MDB probe, impossible to show each one to Najib

DBS Group Holdings Ltd was hit by renewed disruptions to its Internet banking and payment services in Singapore on Thursday, days after a six-month ban by the island’s central bank over similar glitches ended.

Singapore DBS’ digital services hit days after MAS ban ends

Construction outfit and bus operator Epicon Bhd will exit Practice Note 17 (PN17) status on Friday following the completion of its regularisation plan.

Epicon, formerly Konsortium Transnasional, exits PN17 status

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EVENING 5: Five things you need to know today

Lotte Chemical Titan Holdings Bhd (LCTitan) logged a net loss of RM178.03 million in the first quarter ended March 31, 2024 (1QFY2024), making the group's eighth straight loss-making quarter.

LCTitan posts 8th straight quarterly loss ahead of planned plant turnaround

Surface engineering service provider Frontken Corp Bhd recorded a 27.4% jump year-on-year (y-o-y) in its net profit for the first quarter ended Mar 31, 2024 (1QFY2024) to RM30.05 million, from RM23.58 million last year, mainly due to improved revenue and better profit margin.

Frontken kicks off FY2024 with 27% jump in net profit on improved revenue, better profit margin 

JAKS Resources Bhd's unit has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with China-based CALB Group Co Ltd to explore opportunities in the battery energy storage system (BESS) market, with a particular focus on the Southeast Asia region.

Budget 2021

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