Morning Brief

The Minister of Defence Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan has warned of a leaner budget for military services this year, after taking into account lower government revenue. But with rising geopolitical tensions, is this the time to trim allocation for the country's defence sector? Defence analyst Ridzwan Rahmat discusses the implications for Malaysia's security apparatus.

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The government’s debts and liabilities currently stand at a record RM1.5 trillion ringgit, or 82% of GDP according to Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Anwar Ibrahim. Wong Chen, MP for Subang has suggested that we list the national oil & gas company, Petronas. We speak to him for the thinking behind this suggestion and what could potentially be the pitfalls.

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Minister for Education Fadhlina Siddique is helming a portfolio with enormous economic and social implications. As the academic year draws to a close, we discuss the policy signals so far from the government and priority areas that should be considered with Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim of PAGE.

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Minister for Education Fadhlina Siddique is helming a portfolio with enormous economic and social implications. As the academic year draws to a close, we discuss the policy signals so far from the government and priority areas that should be considered with Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim of PAGE.

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S$104 billion Singaporean dollars - that’s the ticket price of the 2023 Singapore Budget aimed at positioning the city state in an era of great competition. There were several initiatives to alleviate near-term cost-of-living pressures such as an increase subsidies by 3 billion dollars to lower-income households. It also aims to narrow the budget deficit to 0.1% of GDP, from a revised 0.3% gap this year. Will the measures announced be effective in addressing Singapore’s economy and the cost of living issues faced by its people? For answers, we speak to Lee Ju Ye, Economist, Maybank Investment Bank.

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The Lynas rare-earth processing plant in Kuantan has had its license renewed for another 3 years, subject to conditions including relocating the “cracking and leaching” facility, which produces radioactive residue out of Malaysia before July 2023.  Do these conditions adequately address concerns over health and environmental safety? Mageswari Sangaralingam of Sahabat Alam Malaysia breaks down the Lynas controversy for us.

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Malaysia's property market continues to face headwinds. An issue which is seldom focused on is the level of property overhang in Malaysia. According to the National Property Information Centre (Napic), the residential overhang at the end of 3Q22 stood at 30,000 units worth RM20 bn. More worrying is Napic's revelation on ageing of the total overhang numbers where 71% of the properties have not been sold for the past 5 to 10 years. What does this mean for the state of developers' balance sheets as inventory has to written down and what sort of policies should the government be looking at to address this? For insights, we speak to Pankaj C Kumar, Business Commentator.

Malaysia's property market continues to face headwinds. An issue which is seldom focused on is the level of property overhang in Malaysia. According to the National Property Information Centre (Napic), the residential overhang at the end of 3Q22 stood at 30,000 units worth RM20 bn. More worrying is Napic's revelation on ageing of the total overhang numbers where 71% of the properties have not been sold for the past 5 to 10 years. What does this mean for the state of developers' balance sheets as inventory has to written down and what sort of policies should the government be looking at to address this? For insights, we speak to Pankaj C Kumar, Business Commentator.

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Last year, record high inflation spelled trouble for economies, capital markets and governments. After losing the transitory-vs-sticky debate, the Fed delivered a cumulative of 4.25% increase in rates last year. Asia Pacific meanwhile did not escape unscathed from elevated prices. In Malaysia, to shield households and firms from higher prices, it was estimated that the total subsidy bill and cash aid reached a record high of 77 billion ringgit for 2022. So will inflation loosen its grip this year or will governments have to battle between elevated prices and a recession? For answers we speak to Sarah Tan, Economist, Moody's Analytics.

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Last year saw the incredible reversal of fortunes of high-profile Southeast Asia tech start-ups. At the end of 2022, the combined market cap of Grab, GoTo and BukaLapak fell by USD51 billion, a far cry from the lofty valuations the trio commanded when they each made their IPO debuts. How might 2023 play out for the regional tech sector - can companies reverse the decline in share price and improve prospects? Nathan Naidu of Bloomberg Intelligence gives his take.

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