Morning Brief

With its general assembly delayed and political alliances shifting, UMNO is recalibrating ahead of Sabah’s 17th state election. Can the party hold its ground amid shifting political dynamics? We speak to Adib Zalkapli, managing director of geopolitical and public policy advisory firm, Viewfinder Global Affairs, for insights.

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The Federal Court on Tuesday ruled that Section 9(5) of the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012, which criminalizes the failure to give police five days’ notice before a peaceful assembly, is unconstitutional. We breakdown the court's ruling with Andrew Khoo, Human Rights Lawyer and if the Act should be repealed.

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The property market in Singapore has been showing contrasting trends with Urban Redevelopment Authority reporting private home prices rising by 0.5% in the second quarter while sales of private residential units fell in May to their lowest level in five months. Ken Foong, Analyst, Bloomberg Intelligence helps us make of the figures and which developers are poised for stronger earnings in 2025.

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GEAR-uP, the Finance Ministry's Government-linked Enterprises Activation & Reform Programme, is Putrajaya's initiative designed to help SMEs grow and become more competitive. Government-Linked Investment Companies (GLICs), including Khazanah, EPF, PNB, KWAP, LTAT, and Tabung Haji, have committed around RM25 billion for this. Ng Zhu Hann, CEO of TradeView Capital shares his thoughts.

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The Fitch Ratings’ Global Economic Outlook report for June 2025 now forecasts the world’s GDP to grow by 2.2% in 2025, up from its April projection of 1.9%. Alex Muscatelli, Director, Fitch Ratings’ Economics Team explains the rationale behind this and what are the risks that we should be aware of.

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Less than one year in office and Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra faces suspension from duty if the kingdom's Constitutional Court accepts a petition filed by conservative senators accusing her of breaching ethical standards. Dr Michael Montesano, Associate Senior Fellow at the ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute, shares his insights on this development and what it means for the future of Thai politics.

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The US Senate has narrowly passed the US President Donald Trump’s multitrillion-dollar tax-and-spending package. We speak to Dr Kathryn Robison, Lecturer in American Studies, United States Studies Centre, University of Sydney about the political implications of this.

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The expanded Sales and Service Tax (SST) comes into effect today with many businesses across Malaysia anticipating higher operating costs. Chin Chee Seong, National President, SME Association of Malaysia tell how the implementation has been for his members and whether Malaysian can expects prices to rise in tandem.

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A widening scandal over mining license bribes in Sabah has rocked the state’s political establishment, with 15 ruling-coalition politicians implicated since 2023. Professor James Chin of the University of Tasmania talks about the implications for Sabah’s political stability, the federal-state power dynamic, and how voter sentiment may shift ahead of the next election.

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The deadly gas pipeline explosion in Putra Heights on Apr 1st has been traced back to unstable, waterlogged soil and not foul play or negligence. Dr Joshua Netto, Director at Blue Stone Management and a former President of the Project Management Institute Malaysia Chapter, talks about his takeaways from the official report released about the incident.

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