General

In the year-end spirit of reflection and renewal, we look back at conversations during the year focusing on ways to improve the Malaysian media ecosystem. Our guests weighed in on tackling hate speech and political disinformation, reforming public service media and elevating media ethics standards through a Malaysian Media Council.

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The KL Construction Index has been inching up, rising by 2% year to date, beating the performance of the KLCI which is down 6%. So far for 2022, there has been a lack of newsflow on the sector, while the largest infrastructure project MRT 3 has yet to be awarded. However, despite having a new government which would provide some stability for the sector, its strained balance sheet will provide little room for the rollout of the large mega projects. How will contractors navigate their business during this still uncertain period? For answers, we speak to Loong Chee Wei, Senior Associate Director Affin Hwang Investment Bank.

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The new Works Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi will have his hands full. One of his top priorities include ensuring the completion of Pan Borneo Highway in Sarawak and Sabah. Additionally, the condition of federal roads in the country remains in focus where in September, the works ministry announced that an allocation of 3.4 billion ringgit is needed to repair damaged federal roads throughout peninsular Malaysia. What role does the Works Ministry play in the development of infrastructure in the country? For insights we speak to Dr Ahmad Farhan Mohd Sadullah, Professor of Transport Engineering, Universiti Sains Malaysia.

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Ekuinas, the Government's private equity fund management company has a focus to promote Bumiputera economic participation. With total committed investment exceeding RM4.4 billion to date, we ask CEO, Syed Yasir Arafat on how the possibility of a global recession will affect the PE landscape and their performance in turn.

The line up of twenty seven Deputy Ministers was finally revealed with a mix of old and new faces from the various parties. Ibrahim Suffian, Program Director at Merdeka Centre helps us to unpack the nuances of this whilst diving into the recent news headlines on Perikatan Nasional including the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) split from Bersatu.

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Japan has revised its third quarter GDP figures, under the expectation that it will shrink to 0.8% on an annualised basis instead of 1.2%. But this doesn’t eliminate concerns over the economy’s resilience heading into 2023, even with the 210 billion US dollars. Moreover, the yen's persistent weakness against the US dollar has impacted prices of imports; Japan recorded a current account deficit of 4.5 billion US dollars in October. How long can The Bank of Japan keep the policy of low-interest rates? For answers, we speak to William Pesek, Tokyo-based journalist and columnist, Nikkei Asia.

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Analysts have been reluctant to cut earnings estimates but with margin compression and a slowing economy, this may be inevitable. What does this mean for equity markets? Brian Arcese, Portfolio Manager & Equity Analyst, Foord Asset Management tells us. 

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Analysts have been reluctant to cut earnings estimates but with margin compression and a slowing economy, this may be inevitable. What does this mean for equity markets? Brian Arcese, Portfolio Manager & Equity Analyst, Foord Asset Management tells us whilst giving us his views on credit which had underperformed in the era of cheap money.

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Patrick Teoh takes you on another foot-stomping, hand-clapping ride down memory lane as he blows dust off his vinyl collection to bring you a selection of hits from the 60s to 80s.

Join Othniel Ting & Daryl Ong as they delve into an album of our chosen artist of the week, running you through the stories & history of the album track by track. In conjunction with the 42nd anniversary of John Lennon's passing, we put the spotlight on his iconic sophomore solo release, 'Imagine'.