Malaysia Morning News For April 21

Malaysia, Abu Dhabi to settle dispute over 1MDB debt
Malaysia and Abu Dhabi have reached a settlement on a dispute involving billions of dollars in debt obligations of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) that is at the centre of an international money-laundering probe.
— The Star Online

Malaysia has no fear of the facts: Najib
Freedom of speech and of the press is thriving in Malaysia and people are free to criticise the government, says Prime Minister Najib Razak, dispelling notions that Putrajaya has cracked down on dissenting voices.
— Today Online

Maybank Research raises earnings forecast for MAHB, AirAsia
Maybank Investment Bank Research has raised its 2017 passenger traffic growth forecast for Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd’s (MAHB) Malaysia operations to 10% from 8%) to reflect better the current industry performance.
— The Star Online

SKF pumps RM22 million for Nilai factory expansion
Leading global technology company, SKF is investing RM22 million to expand the capacity of its factory here to meet rising demands.
— New Straits Times

Malaysia’s EPF eyes direct natural resources investments in bid to diversify
Malaysia’s Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is mulling direct investments in plantation and forestry assets to diversify its holdings and beef up its portfolio of long term assets, the chief executive of the state pension fund said on Thursday.
— Reuters

EPF records 7pc in total investment growth
Despite the volatile world economy, the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) today announced its investment assets rose to RM731.11 billion last year, up 6.8 per cent from 2015.
— Malay Mail Online

Report: Malaysia, Abu Dhabi dispute over 1MDB almost settled
Malaysia and Abu Dhabi have reached an agreement on settling a dispute involving billions of dollars in debt obligations, The Straits Times (ST) reported today.
— Free Malaysia Today

Malaysia most active M&A country in Southeast Asia in 1Q — report
Malaysia took pole position as Southeast Asia’s most active country in terms of the number of merger and acquisition (M&A) deals in the first quarter of 2017 (1Q17), with a total of 26 deals worth US$1.9 billion (RM8.36 billion), according to Mergermarket.
— The Edge Markets

Malaysian palm oil price rises after six sessions of losses
Malaysian palm oil futures recorded their biggest daily gain in two weeks on Thursday, ending six sessions of losses as they tracked strength in soyoil and were helped by a technical correction.
— The Star Online

Bursa Malaysia opens firmer
Bursa Malaysia opened firmer this morning in line with the positive sentiment of its regional peers which spurred investors” risk appetite.
— New Straits Times

EPF keen on owning plantation assets
THE Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is exploring opportunities to invest more directly in natural resources assets, instead of just being a shareholder.
— New Straits Times

Big data in healthcare: What we (need to) know
The use of big data analytics to document, track and forecast trends is becoming increasingly popular and commonplace in every industry with the goal of increasing productivity and efficiency.
— Malay Mail Online

Survey: More than 70pc willing to fork out RM750,000 for a home
A study on home buyers showed 73 per cent did not mind paying between RM300,000 and RM750,000 for a residential property, including condominiums and houses.
— Malay Mail Online

Ringgit opens slightly higher against US dollar early Friday
The ringgit opened slightly higher against the US dollar today as investors’ interest shifted away from the greenback following US President Donald Trump’s remark that he preferred to see US interest rates stay low.
— The Star Online

KPJ Healthcare proposes share split
KPJ Healthcare Bhd is dividing its shares to boost trading liquidity. The company has proposed to split every one existing share into four subdivided shares.
— New Straits Times

PKNS township in Kuala Selangor ecotourism belt
A new housing development, Bayu Malawati, in the heart of Kuala Selangor’s ecotourism belt, will be launched this weekend — the third project to be completed by the Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS) this year.
— Malay Mail Online

Preacher Zakir Naik should not be allowed to remain in Malaysia: Minister
A cabinet minister and president of the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), a component party of Malaysia’s ruling coalition, said on Thursday (Apr 20) that controversial Muslim preacher Zakir Naik should not be allowed to remain in Malaysia nor should he be allowed to use his “questionable” credentials to solicit support from the country to shield him from prosecution in India.
— Channel NewsAsia

Today’s Malaysia Morning News was delayed due to electricity supply shortages in Phnom Penh

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