Malaysia Morning News For July 31

MH370 Investigation Hits Dead End With Latest Report
A report on the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 released on July 30 has highlighted mistakes and protocol guidelines that were not followed, but nothing really new, complain families of passengers on board the ill-fated plane.
— Investvine

Malaysia considers setting restrictions on foreign car imports
Govt is studying possibility of setting certain conditions on foreign car imports, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad speaks in parliament.
— The Edge Markets

Mahathir takes over as Khazanah chairman, 4 directors appointed
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has been appointed chairman of sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd, his office has said in a statement.
— The Straits Times

Malaysia’s youngest minister wants to remove policies that promote hierarchy and seniority based on age
Malaysia’s youngest minister wants to empower the nation’s youths by amending policies promoting hierarchy and seniority based on age.
— The Straits Times

SBPAC discusses southern border trade, tourism promotion with Malaysia’s Kelantan
The Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center (SBPAC) discussed trade and tourism promotion along the border areas with a high-ranking official from the Malaysian state of Kelantan. The meeting took place at CS Hotel in Pattani province on Monday (July 30th).
— NNT

Singapore opposition take lessons from Malaysian election result
Last Saturday’s gathering to discuss a new opposition coalition led by former People’s Action Party (PAP) MP Tan Cheng Bock was a few years in the making.
— The New Paper

Foreign selling of Malaysian stocks ramped up
Foreign selling on Bursa Malaysia ramped up last week, doubling to RM498.4 million net over the preceding week, MIDF Research said.
— New Straits Times

Malaysia, Thailand electronics sector likely to benefit from Trump tech tariffs
US PRESIDENT Donald Trump may well be the best thing that’s happened to Southeast Asia’s humble electronics industry in quite a while.
— The Star Online

EcoFirst Consolidated looking at dividend policy
EcoFirst Consolidated Bhd, which saw its net profit more than double to RM44.6 million in the financial year ended May 31 (FY18), is considering the introduction of a dividend policy as early as six monthsl time, said group CEO Datuk Tiong Kwing Hee.
— The Sun Daily

Senior citizen sets himself on fire at Malaysia taxi station
A senior citizen said to be suffering from depression set himself on fire at a taxi station here.
— AsiaOne

MoF expects Malaysia shares to outperform regional markets
Bursa Malaysia-listed companies’ share performance is expected to be better than those in Asian stock markets on Malaysian government policies and as external factors remain stable, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) said.
— The Edge Markets

Saifuddin: Malaysia-Singapore ties very good
Bilateral relations between Malaysia and Singapore are at a very good level, Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah said today.
— New Straits Times

Selangor govt-linked firm eyes 30% stake in Tadmax’s Pulau Indah power plant project
Selangor state-linked fim Worldwide Holdings Bhd is looking to secure a 30% stake in a directly negotiated power plant project to be developed in Pulau Indah, Selangor, by Tadmax Bhd.
— The Sun Daily

No big IPOs expected this year: Tajuddin
More initial public offerings (IPOs) are expected this year, but in terms of value it would be much lesser than 2017 given the challenges facing the stock market in 2018, according to Bursa Malaysia Bhd’s CEO Datuk Seri Tajuddin Atan.
— The Sun Daily

Malaysian youth minister looks to Singapore to develop eSports
Malaysia’s youth and sports minister, Mr Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, is making an official trip to Singapore this weekend to scope the youth centres there, and to draw ideas on youth development and eSports – a growing field that the young minister aims to tap to reach the young.
— The Straits Times

New contract steers Velesto Energy into clearer waters
Analysts are optimistic on Velesto Energy Bhd (Velesto) having secured a contract for its Naga 7 jack-up rig to drill four confirmed wells with an option for three more from Sarawak Shell/Sabah Shell Petroleum Company Ltd, a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, commencing between August 1 and September 30, 2018.
— The Borneo Post

MBSB’s Q2 profit down 5.9% on higher taxation, zakat
Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB) registered a 5.9% decline in net profit to RM85.69 million for the second quarter ended June 30 versus RM91.08 million in the previous corresponding period, due to higher taxation and zakat.
— The Sun Daily

Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 Report Leaves Families in Dark Four Years On
Investigators probing the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 found no fault with the pilots or aircraft in Malaysia’s most comprehensive report yet into one of the world’s biggest aviation mysteries.
— Wall Street Journal

Hassan, Sukhdave make comeback to corporate Malaysia
The Prime Minister’s Office has appointed Tan Sri Mohd Hassan Marican and Dr Sukhdave Singh to the board of Khazanah Nasional Bhd, marking the comeback of the two to corporate Malaysia.
— The Sun Daily

Malaysia National Day 2018 logo picked from netizen entries unveiled
According to Communications and Multimedia Minister Gobind Singh Deo, the Malaysia National Day 2018 logo aims to portray Malaysians of different races living in diversity, harmony and unity, with a strong affection for the nation, Bernama reported.
— Marketing Interactive

MBSB Q2 net profit slips to RM85.6m
Malaysia Building Society Bhd’s (MBSB) net profit for the second quarter ended June 30, 2018, slid to RM85.68 million from RM91.08 million recorded in the same period last year.
— New Straits Times

Fima’s unit sues Datasonic for RM25m
Fima Corp Bhd’s wholly owned subsidiary, Percetakan Keselamatan Nasional Sdn Bhd (PKNSB), has commenced High Court action against Datasonic Technologies Sdn Bhd for RM24.98 million.
— New Straits Times

Feature photo Craig Morey

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Malaysia morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Malaysia news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.