Morning Brief

China’s recent cut to the seven-day reverse repo rate aims to boost its struggling economy. With the country facing its slowest growth in over a year, there’s a pressing need for immediate economic support. Gary Ng, APAC Economist, Natixis shares his analysis on how China can balance long-term goals with urgent economic needs and the fiscal policies required to complement the rate cut and ensure sustainable growth.

Image Credit: kstudio / Freepik.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

US Vice President Kamala Harris appears to be on track to secure the Democratic presidential nomination, but it’s far from certain. What hurdles stand in her way and how does this shake up the November elections? We discuss what to watch for with Prof. John S. Jackson of the University of Illinois, Carbondale. 

Image Credit: shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since earlier this month, university students in Bangladesh have taken to the streets to demonstrate against the country’s government job quota policy, which reserves large percentages of civil service positions to descendants of “freedom fighters”. Subsequently, the protests have escalated in intensity, leading to clashes with the  armed forces, resulting in more than a 100 dead from the violence. Dr. Ali Riaz, Distinguished Professor​ at the Department of Politics and Government, Illinois State University joins us in discussing the situation in Bangladesh.

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Joe Biden has withdrawn from the presidential race, claiming that he is doing so in the best interests of the party and the country. He has also endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee to the White House. John Zogby, founder of Zogby Strategies takes us through the different scenarios in the lead up to November 5th when Americans choose their President.

Image Credit: shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Putrajaya wants to review and strengthen existing cyberbullying laws which have been proven to be inadequate, This was after an individual was fined just RM100 for making offensive social media comments, which led to the tragic death by suicide of a social media influencer. Lawyer, Harpal Singh of T Harpal & Associates, gives us an idea what our existing cyberbullying law are like and how they might be improved.

Image Credit: freepik.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The global tech outage on Friday plunged the world into a pre-technology world that felt unfamiliar and primitive, with flights grounded, health services disrupted, payment systems crashing and access to Microsoft services effectively blocked. It was eventually traced back to a cybersecurity firm called CrowdStrike, which provides software to a wide range of industries. CF Fong, executive chairman of LGMS Bhd, with the benefit of hindsight, talks about what happened, its impact and how we can prepare if this happens again.

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China's Third Plenum, a once-in-five-years conclave of top officials that usually deals with major economic and political policy changes concluded yesterday. We gleam through the statement for clues as to the future economic direction of the country which faces its own set of structural issues with Koh King Kee, President of the Centre for New Inclusive Asia.

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

SMEs reported a rather good first quarter boosted by strong consumer spending but now report of higher cost pressures whilst sales have slowed. We ask Chin Chee Seong, National Secretary General, SME Association as to how challenging the situation is on the ground and what measures can be taken by the SMEs to overcome these headwinds.

Image Credit: shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Madani government has signalled that it will table a Freedom of Information bill in Parliament by the end of the year. What should an effective FOI law encompass? We discuss the importance and implications of an FOI law with Dr. Benjamin Loh of Taylor’s University.

Image Credit: shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Loan sharks have increasingly turned to digital platforms to extend their reach, with Bukit Aman recently uncovering a loan shark syndicate that recruited henchmen via Facebook ads and then communicated tasks via Whatsapp. Dr Zaharuddin A Rahman, a shariah advisor at shariah consultancy firm, Elzar Shariah Solution, shed some light into how this has been happening and how the public can be more vigilant.

Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.