Morning Brief

Yesterday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad reaffirmed that a full ban on vape and e-cigarettes might happen as early as mid-2026, with implementation happening in phases. Azrul Mohd Khalib, CEO, Galen Centre for Health & Social Policy gives us his thoughts on this move, and whether there might be unintended consequences as a result.

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Asean equities are a tale of two halves with Singapore and Indonesia outperforming and Thailand and Philippines languishing while Malaysia is sandwiched in between. We speak to Khoo Hsien Liang, Senior Portfolio Manager at AHAM Capital as to the economic outlook of this bloc and which markets will do better in 2026.

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After weeks of speculation, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim finally announced a cabinet reshuffle following 4 ministerial vacancies. Dr. Azmi Hassan, Senior Fellow, Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research gives us his perspective and which parties were the winners and losers of the changes.

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Malaysia’s education system is undergoing reforms aimed at improving teacher welfare, enhancing infrastructure, and addressing student discipline. Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim, Chairperson of the Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia (PAGE) talks about changes she would like to see going forward.

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A proposed development near Selangor’s Ayer Hitam Forest Reserve has captured national attention, touching on the broader issues of planning transparency and the future of green spaces in rapidly urbanising areas outside Kuala Lumpur. Wong Chen, the MP for Subang talks about the details of the project and clarity (or lack thereof) from the state government.

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On a year-to-date basis, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Small Cap Index is down 13%. However are valuations in this space too attractive to ignore? Lee Meng Horng, Senior Analyst, RHB Investment Bank tells us his perspective, the investment strategy to adopt and his top buy ideas.

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The debate over recognising the Unified Examination Certificate, or UEC, for entry into Malaysia’s public universities has resurfaced once again, with questions about language, fairness, and national identity. Eddin Khoo, Founder of PUSAKA and Chairman of the UEC Policy Task Force helps us understand the issues at stake.

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Following recent peace talks in Berlin, both US President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz have expressed optimism for a real peace process to happen. Dr Sonia Mycak, Research Fellow at the ANU Centre for European Studies, shares her insights on these latest developments, analysing the conditions of the peace deal and how sustainable it might be.

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The theme for Sabah's budget is ‘Driving Development, Prioritising the People’s Well-Being’. We ask Zafri Zulkeffeli, Deputy Chief Economist of BIMB Securities for his impressions of this RM6.4bn budget and which sectors stand to benefit.

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Over seven hundred contract pharmacists who were previously identified for eventual permanent roles recently had that status withdrawn, raising fresh questions about human capital planning in the public health sector.  Prof. Amrahi Buang, President of the Malaysian Pharmacists tells us what are some of the consequences and policy solutions to overcome this.

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