General

A recent study published by the Global Development Policy Center of Boston University expects ASEAN to be a net loser of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that is meant to create the largest free trade bloc in the world. Jayant Menon, Visiting Senior Fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, shares his views about the potential benefits to Malaysia, and the limitations of forecasts.

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

After several Covid-19 quarantined cruise ships made a spate of bad headlines last year, it is estimated that the cruise industry saw revenue fall 15% last year. Some cruise liners have attempted to stay above water by offering round trips with no ports of call, but is that truly a sustainable measure to keep the industry afloat? We speak to Annie Chang, Director of Cruise at the Singapore Tourism Board, for more insight.

Image Credit: Igor Grochev / Shutterstock.com

Twice in one month, the Singapore Food Agency has issued recalls of eggs imported from Malaysia, following the discovery of a type of Salmonella bacteria in the batches. Considering some of the producers of the eggs have since been declared free of Salmonella by the Department of Veterinary Services, this has caused concern over what looks to be differences between Malaysia's food safety standards and Singapore's. For insight, we speak to Dr Chai Lay Ching, Senior Lecturer at the University of Malaya's Institute of Biological Sciences.

Image Credit: Unsplash.com

The S&P500 is trading at PE levels not seen since the DotCom Bubble, is this equity rally wading now that stimulus measures are tapering off? Tim Mulholland, President of TJM Limited, gives us his thoughts.

We get you out of bed, to your first cup of coffee or to your first destination of your day with thought-provoking discussions on ideas, people and events shaping all our lives.

02:48 - Have you filed your taxes?

09:38 - How do you end an awkward conversation?

16:45 - International headlines

22:53 - Local headlines

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

A lot of factors are taken into consideration when designing a city, but sometimes, its main occupants, people that come from diverse backgrounds, are not really part of the equation. How are we supposed to design cities that are people-friendly, and what do those cities look like? Shuhana Shamsuddin, President of Pereka Bandar joins us for an introduction to the concept.

IMAGE SOURCE: withGod / SHUTTERSTOCK

There’s no denying that when it comes to the heavy-hitters of superheroes, DC Comics has it made; with Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman in their pantheon (just to name a few), there’s no doubting their fan fervour. But when it comes to their onscreen outings, DC has had its ups and downs - and currently lags behind its Marvel-ous counterpart. So we’re dedicating this Supercut to discussing DC superheroes onscreen: what works, what doesn’t, and what we’d love to see.

PAS has recently proposed for a re-delineation of electoral boundaries to allow for more Malay representatives in Parliament. Can politicians make suggestions for redelineation, and on what basis are the lines usually redrawn? Thomas Fann from Bersih 2.0 weighs in.

Image Source: Harris Hamda, Shutterstock

The Federal Court ruled yesterday that hoteliers are not entitled to use the 10% service charge to meet the minimum wage of their workers. We explore the impact of this development with a lawyer, discuss the minimum wage requirement with a union representative, and then look at why we don't have a culture of tipping in Malaysia.

Image Source: Andrea Piacquadio, Pexels

A year in the pandemic has pushed us to adapt to a changing and companies are now looking to shift the idea of a traditional work culture. Shawn Tanis tells us more.

Image Source: Vlada Karpovich, Pexels