BFM

The Morning Run crew gives you their take on today's business headlines:

- BOE surprises by maintaining rates

- Wanda wants in on movie magic

- Donald trumped by tech giants

The FF Group is a leading global force in the fashion world, operating in more than 30 countries, and are most known for designing, producing and marketing brands like Follie Follie and Links of London. Today Follie Follie is everywhere, as are most of the brands that are helmed under the FF Group. But of course it was humble beginnings when CEO George Koutsolioutsos’ family first established the brand as a singular jewelry store in Greece back in 1982. We speak to George to get insights into their global brand strategy and success amidst the financial crisis in Greece. 

The slogan 1Malaysia was inaugurated in 2009 during Najib Razak’s debut Budget speech as Prime Minister. The slew of measures announced were designed to mark of his Administration from that of his predecessor. The speech started with the slogan “1Malaysia, People First, Performance Now” and ended with “1Malaysia, Together We Prosper”. In between there were references to 1Malaysia Clinic, 1Malaysia Sukuk, 1Malaysia Retirement Scheme and 1United, Innovative Malaysia. In that same speech Najib spoke about his trip to Saudi Arabia and the sovereign 1MDB which has come to taint the Administration despite protestations of innocence.

Chandra Muzaffar is best known as a public intellectual, founding the Aliran movement and magazine, and heading organisations such as JUST World Trust. He is a social scientist by training, and a long time observer of Malaysian politics.

Yayasan 1Malaysia was established a few months before the Budget 2010 speech and just celebrated its 7th anniversary.

The Bank of England surprised financial markets yesterday by keeping interest rates on hold, despite market expectations they would cut rates. Mikio Kumada, Global Strategist at LGT Capital Partners in Hong Kong discusses what he thinks of the BoE's inaction.

Arup Raha, Chief Economist at CIMB Research in Singapore explains the rationale behind Bank Negara's OPR rate cut, and why we should expect more rate decreases this year

In May, the US along with Europe and Japan began lifting long-standing trade sanctions against Myanmar, showing support for the ongoing political reform in the country after decades of military rule. Elections held early this year saw the appointment of President Htin Kyaw, Myanmar's first civilian president.

As the National League for Democracy party completes its first 100 days in power, expectations run high of the new president, who has to contend not only with a fledgling economy but also its poor human rights track record and treatment of minorities. Today we explore the challenges faced by the new Administration leading reforms in the country.

This is a report by Lee Sheung Un & Wan Irdina.

Is it the common flu or strep throat? Should you take cough drops or let it go away on its own? Do you need to remove your tonsils or can you keep it? Find out all about coughing, sore throat and that nagging itch from Consultant Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist, Dr Lim Wye Keat.

Child Aid Malaysia believes that children should be given an opportunity to learn the arts, regardless of their economic background. Underprivileged children are often not likely to have the opportunity or luxury of an education and training in the arts. Child Aid aims to change that, and we find out more about the organisation’s work in Malaysia.

"What is the nature of colonialism? What does it mean to be a colonised country? What does it mean to behave in a colonial manner? Can we be both part of an independent country and yet still be oppressed like a colonial one? These questions would underpin the conflicts of the final phase of Singapore’s decolonisation. In this episode, PJ Thum discusses the question in the light of the act that was most associated with the tyranny of colonialism: detention without trial. Please send questions, comments, and feedback to [email protected] or visit thehistoryofsingapore.com. Support the show at patreon.com/pjthum. Learn more about “1987: Untracing the Conspiracy” at http://1987untracing.wix.com/1987untracing.”

In tandem with mobile trend, Malaysia’s mobile penetration rate has scored a relatively high of 145% rate across other SEA countries. This shows that Malaysians rely largely on mobile communication in their daily lives compared to its neighbouring countries. The reason of this success will be explain further by Andrea Vogiatzakis where he will introduce us to the key 4Cs of mobile marketing which are channel, context, content and connect.