Budget 2020 is not able to stimulate the Malaysia economy next year as it does not feature any tax relief while the cost of living is expected to continue rising, said former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

“Budget 2020 is not enough to stimulate the economy, not even materialising their promises. Our plan in the past was to reduce income tax gradually, especially for the middle-income group, and reduce corporate tax, because our corporate tax is higher than Singapore's,” he told reporters at Parliament lobby today.

Budget 2020 not able to stimulate economy, Najib says

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 2): The following are the highlights of Budget 2019:


	Themed 'Malaysia Wibawa, Ekonomi Dinamik, Rakyat Sejahtera', Budget 2019 will have 3 focus areas, and 12 main strategies to return Malaysia's economic position as an Asian Tiger
	
		1st focus: Imple...

Budget 2019 Highlights

FULL Budget 2019 Speech

FRIDAY, 2 NOVEMBER 2018

A resurgent Malaysia, a dynamic economy, a prosperous society

Mr Speaker Sir,

1. I beg to move the Bill intituled “An Act to apply a sum from the Consolidated...

Full Budget 2019 speech 

PETALING JAYA (Nov 2): The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) said the Budget 2019 has identified key priorities to support the transition of the Malaysian economy towards a more balanced, sustainable and inclusive growth.

In a press release issued today, it said technology has encoura...

SC supports use of tech such as property crowdfunding platforms in driving economy

PETALING JAYA (Nov 2): It would make more sense for the government to increase the Real Property Gains Tax (RPGT) rates within the first five years instead of imposing a 5% tax rate for Malaysian individuals after the fifth year, said the Association of Valuers, Property Managers, Estate Agents a...

Increase RPGT rates within first 5 years would make more sense, says PEPS

PETALING JAYA (Nov 2): The National House Buyers Association (HBA) has urged the government to take measures to slow down escalating property prices by raising the supply of homes in the affordable housing segment through  government-linked corporations, state economic agencies and  bod...

HBA urges measures to slow down property price growth

PETALING JAYA (Nov 2): The Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS) senior fellow Dr Carmelo Ferlito has applauded the commitment made by the Real Estate and Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia (Rehda) to reduce house prices by 10% for new projects that are not subject to price c...

IDEAS applauds REHDA’s commitment to lower house prices by 10%

PETALING JAYA (Nov 2): The Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) has described Budget 2019 as a budget with “more answers than questions”.

“At first glance, I feel Budget 2019 is very different from the previous one as it has more answers than questions. The budget has a very clea...

A budget with 'more answers than questions', says MIEA

PETALING JAYA (Nov 2): Kenanga Head of Equity Research Sarah Lim (pictured) said it will be interesting to know how the current government will monitor the selling prices of new houses.

She was commenting on the Budget 2019 announcement that states the Real Estate and Housing Developers...

How will govt monitor new home prices, asks Kenanga

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 2): The absence of an excise duty hike in Budget 2019 comes as a relief to brewers like Carlsberg Brewery Malaysia Bhd today.

That's because a further hike in excise duties, if any, will lead to a dramatic increase in contraband beers, which already account for approxi...

Carlsberg breathes sigh of relief on no excise duty hike

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 2): United Oversea Bank (Malaysia) Bhd (UOB) views Malaysia’s higher headline fiscal trajectory as outlined in Budget 2019 as temporary, although it is concerned about execution risks and revenue uncertainties.

“Despite higher fiscal targets, we see it as a temporary d...

Higher fiscal deficit targets seen as temporary

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 2): The Government will use some RM30 billion in special dividends from  Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) to partly repay RM37 billion worth of outstanding GST and income tax refunds, said Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.

Lim has said back in September that the Gov...

Mixed views on taxes refund resolution via Petronas’ cash dividends

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 2): Following the Government’s guidance of a wider fiscal deficit in 2018 than targeted by the previous administration, rating agencies have voiced concerns over the level of Malaysia’s national debts.

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, in presenting Budget 2019 today, ann...

Rating agencies raise concern over widened fiscal deficit in 2018

KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 2): Organisations may not have enough time to implement the new minimum wage by the new year, says recruitment specialist Kelly Services.

“While employees will be celebrating increase in minimum wages from RM1,050 to RM1,100, we are concerned about the impact of this s...

'Short notice for new minimum wage may be problematic for employers'

Las Vegas Sands Corp said renovations at an entertainment centre and a hotel in Macau will crimp results this year, sending the shares lower in extended trading.

The casino and resort company closed its Cotai Arena in January for US$200 million (RM957.49 million)in renovations.

Sands says US$200 mil renovations at Macau casino will affect results this year

Football managers were once as dispensable as autumn leaves. Manchester City — a very different club pre-takeover — had five, including two caretakers, in a single season and became the butt of jokes. One of them had chairman Francis Lee encountering an old lady struggling with her shopping bags....

Business Of Sports: Fix the team, not the garden: It’s time for off-the-field stars to bloom

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc priced ¥263.3 billion (RM8.2 billion) of bonds in the firm’s largest yen debt deal since its debut sale in the currency in 2019, raising bets it may boost holdings of Japanese stocks.

Berkshire sells ¥263.3b of bonds with tighter spreads

Apple Inc chief executive officer Tim Cook will meet Singapore’s leader at the tail end of his most extensive Southeast Asia tour in years, searching for new growth markets and manufacturing locations to offset headwinds in China.

Apple CEO to meet Singapore leader to wrap whirlwind Asia tour

Gold prices may correct amid potential delay in the anticipated rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve, Philip Capital warned on Thursday and advised investors to stop buying Malaysia’s sole gold exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Stop buying gold ETF as prices may correct — Philip Capital

Global IT spending is expected to rise 8% year-on-year to US$5.06 trillion (RM24.2 trillion) in 2024, according to consulting firm Gartner, Inc.

Global IT spend seen rising 8% y-o-y to US$5 tril in 2024, says Gartner

The race for the “world’s best airport” crown has been a two-horse affair in recent years, with Doha’s Hamad International and Singapore Changi leading the pack.

Singapore loses ‘world’s best airport’ crown to Qatar

The Malaysian aviation industry may be badly impacted on passenger traffic and spikes in jet fuel prices if a full-blown war results from escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, according to Maybank Investment Bank Research (Maybank IB).

Malaysia's aviation industry at risk amid full-blown crisis in the Middle East — Maybank IB

Alphabet Inc’s Google has put more than two dozen employees on immediate administrative leave after they were involved in protests against Project Nimbus, a US$1.2 billion (RM5.7 billion) joint contract with Amazon.com Inc to provide the Israeli government with AI and cloud services.

Google fires workers protesting US$1.2b Israeli contract

Business confidence at big Japanese manufacturers and services sector firms slid in April from the prior month, dragged down by cost-of-living pressures and shaky economic conditions in major market China, a Reuters monthly poll showed.

Japan firms' business mood slips as weak yen squeezes households

Shares of PIE Industrial Bhd extended its rally to a new all-time high on Thursday, after Kenanga Investment Bank flagged that the electronic services firm has secured a new client that will take up the entirety of its largest facility.

PIE Industrial extends rally to new all-time high as Kenanga flags new client

President Joe Biden called China “xenophobic” while highlighting the Asian nation’s economic woes, as he sought to make the case for US economic strength during a campaign stop in the swing state of Pennsylvania.

Biden calls China ‘xenophobic’, ramping up 2024 campaign rhetoric

The Unity Government Leadership Consultative Council meeting agreed that the government must act firmly and not compromise against extreme actions that can jeopardise the country’s stability.

Unity Government Secretariat chief Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said the matter was decided at Wednesday’s Unity Government Leadership Consultative Council meeting at Seri Perdana, Putrajaya.

Unity Govt meeting: No compromise on extreme actions that can jeopardise country’s stability

Asian stocks crept higher in a mixed session on Thursday, while the dollar took a breather and bond markets steadied as investors stepped back to assess the interest rate outlook.

Asian stocks mixed as soaring dollar pauses

The Malaysian aviation industry may be badly impacted on passenger traffic and spikes in jet fuel prices if a full-blown war results from escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, according to Maybank Investment Bank Research (Maybank IB).

Alphabet Inc’s Google has put more than two dozen employees on immediate administrative leave after they were involved in protests against Project Nimbus, a US$1.2 billion (RM5.7 billion) joint contract with Amazon.com Inc to provide the Israeli government with AI and cloud services.

Alphabet-owned Google&nbsp;is laying off an unspecified number of employees, a company spokesperson said on Wednesday, marking the latest cuts at the technology giant as it cracks down on costs.

Google lays off employees, shifts some roles abroad amid cost cuts

Hong Leong Investment Bank (HLIB) research said Cloudpoint Technology Bhd is well positioned to capitalise the burgeoning demand for cyber security solutions post-passage of the cyber security bill which was passed in Dewan Rakyat on April 3.

HLIB: Cloudpoint well positioned to capitalise burgeoning demand for cyber security solutions

The stock market saw its longest losing streak since January as a handful of big techs sold off — despite a slide in bond yields.

S&P 500 suffers its longest slide since January

Sabah has lost an experienced and exceptional leader with the passing of Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) founder Tan Sri Joseph Kurup, says Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.

Expressing sympathy and condolences to the late leader's family, Hajiji said he had worked alongside Joseph as an assistant minister in the Sabah Ministry of Industrial Development in 1994, earning a deep respect for the veteran Sabah leader.

Sabah lost an exceptional leader with Joseph Kurup's passing — Hajiji

The race for the “world’s best airport” crown has been a two-horse affair in recent years, with Doha’s Hamad International and Singapore Changi leading the pack.

The crude palm oil (CPO) futures contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives closed lower on Wednesday, owing to weakness in the soybean oil futures on the Chicago Board of Trade and lower crude oil prices.

Palm oil trader David Ng told Bernama that the weaker market sentiment, however, was limited by the expectation of a stronger demand in the coming weeks.

CPO futures ends lower amid weaker soybean oil futures, oil prices

Research analysts covering IGB Real Estate Investment Trust (IGB REIT) remained sanguine on the stock’s prospects after it reported a 4.79% jump in its net property income (NPI) for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024 (1QFY2024) to RM124.24 million, from RM118.55 million a year earlier, thanks largely to higher rental income.

Analysts remain sanguine on IGB REIT’s prospects going forward

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland president Loretta Mester said monetary policy is in a good place, adding that the central bank shouldn’t be in a hurry to cut interest rates.

Mester says US Fed can hold rates steady, not in a hurry to cut

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has expressed his condolences to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Securities Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup and his family on the demise of his father, Tan Sri Joseph Kurup on Wednesday.

PM extends condolences to family of Joseph Kurup

Asian central banks’ need for assertive defense of their currencies is driving traders to turn less dovish on monetary policies in the region.

Slower US Fed pivot weakens rate-cut bets across emerging Asia

RHB Retail Research said Marine &amp; General Bhd is set for an uptrend reversal after undergoing a bullish breakout above the 28 sen resistance on Wednesday, on strong trading volume.

Marine & General set for uptrend reversal, says RHB Retail Research 

The ringgit extended Wednesday’s gains to open higher against the US dollar on Thursday as the greenback retreated from multi-month highs after a pullback in US Treasury yields, said an analyst.&nbsp;

Ringgit extends gains against US dollar at opening

Indonesia's economy was primed for monetary easing later this year, but an unwelcome plunge in its currency is complicating matters for Bank Indonesia and could force it to grudgingly raise rates as early as next week.

Indonesia's plunging rupiah twists the policy plot

Asian countries probably don't want it and they certainly didn't cause it, but a 'beggar thy neighbour' wave of exchange rate depreciation may be about to hit the continent.

If not a full-blown currency war, then a series of skirmishes is looming as policymakers grapple with a resurgent US dollar, a fragmented G10 central bank policy path, and a staggering slump in the Japanese yen which appears to have Tokyo's tacit approval.

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