PUTRAJAYA: More economic sectors, including ones in states under Phase One of the National Recovery Plan, will be allowed to operate beginning Friday. For states under Phase One, a list of businesses will be allowed to operate provided the vaccination conditions are met. The businesses are photography shops and services; used items shops; nurseries and florists; souvenirs and crafts; antique shops and toy shops. “The economic sectors in states under Phases Two and Three are allowed to undertake forestry management activities, including logging and forestry development,” he said. For states under Phases Two and Three, sports and physical contact recreational activities are allowed for both indoor and outdoor facilities.

JOHOR BARU: A gas-like stench from a chemical spill at Kampung Baru Sri Aman here has ignited fear and anger among the villagers, raising the spectre of the Sungai Kim Kim pollution in the state two years ago. The 46-year-old said her husband had told her of a strong petrol smell coming from outside their home at around 7.30pm on Tuesday. “My parents were selling food in Tampoi at the time and they rushed home to send my sister to hospital. At the same time, I was also worried that it would become another Sungai Kim Kim incident. Ahlami said the Sungai Kim Kim incident, just two years ago, should have been a wake-up call for the government to tackle pollution.

PETALING JAYA: If all goes well, youngsters like Siti Nurshuhaini Azman (pic) are expected to join the senior team next year to beef up the depleted women’s singles squad. Nurshuhaini, 17, is supposed to be roped in only in 2023 but time is not on the side of the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) as they are desperate to bolster their women’s singles options for Project 2024. Head coach Indra Wijaya is currently left with just four players to work with after two-time world junior champion Goh Jin Wei’s shock resignation on Monday. In April, 2015 World Junior Championships silver medallist Lee Ying Ying also called it a day. Ong Xin Yee, 15, could also be in the radar as she has shown her potential by finishing third to Nurshuhaini and Zhing Yi in the junior rankings.

(Reuters) - Cisco Systems Inc on Wednesday forecast that within four years, about half its revenue will come from software and other recurring sales, but its chief financial officer told Reuters high chip prices in its hardware business will keep pressuring overall profits. The company gave a fiscal 2025 revenue forecast with a midpoint of $62.9 billion, saying it expects a compound annual growth rate of 5% to 7%. Cisco predicted the same growth rate for adjusted profits, targeting a midpoint of $4.07 per share in fiscal 2025. Piper Sandler analyst James Fish told Reuters that Cisco's outlook implies that profit margins will stay flat, but Wall Street was hoping for margin growth from Cisco's shift to software. Cisco Chief Financial Officer Scott Herren said the company's software units do have higher margins than its hardware business, but some subscription revenue will also come from services that have lower margins than software.

LIVERPOOL, England (Reuters) -Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson struck a rare Champions League goal to earn his side a 3-2 victory over AC Milan in a rip-roaring Group B opener at a rocking Anfield on Wednesday. Remarkably, after weathering the storm which included a Mohamed Salah penalty miss, Milan struck twice in quick succession at the end of the first half with Ante Rebic and Brahim Diaz silencing the home crowd. MISSED PENALTYBefore Milan could clear their heads they conceded a penalty when Ismael Bennacer blocked Robertson's shot with his arm. It could have got even worse for Liverpool a minute after the restart when Saelemaekers scored from close range following a corner but an offside flag spared Liverpool. Milan did well to soak up Liverpool pressure but they finally cracked when a corner was cleared to the edge of the area and Henderson smashed the ball home.

BRUGGE, Belgium (Reuters) -Lionel Messi failed to provide Paris St Germain with any sparkle as the Ligue 1 team's potent attacking trio lacked inspiration in a disappointing 1-1 draw at Club Brugge in their Champions League opener on Wednesday. Brugge, who levelled before halftime through Hans Vanaken, were more aggressive and had the best chances against a PSG side lacking quality and defensive focus. The result left PSG and Brugge trailing Group A leaders Manchester City by two points after the Premier League champions crushed RB Leipzig 6-3. "Maybe they had opportunities at the beginning of the second half but I think we controlled the match, we had a lot of chances." With Messi, Neymar and Mbappe together on the pitch for the first time, PSG made a confident start but Brugge responded well.

NEW YORK: Global shares edged higher on Wednesday on the strength of U.S. equities markets that were boosted by rising oil prices and positive economic data out of the United States. U.S. factory production data showed that manufacturing was strong in August despite a slowdown due to closures related to severe storms and the ongoing microchip shortage. U.S. oil rose by more than $2 on Wednesday after stockpiles fell last week to their lowest since September 2019. However, the pan-European STOXX 600 index closed down 0.80% after U.K. data showed that inflation hit a more than nine-year high last month. "Any material change to tax policy can create a more volatile market."

KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 15): The High Court today was told that Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had never promised a textile wholesaler any MyEG project in return for RM13 million given to him in 23 cheques via law firm Messrs Lewis & Co, the trustee of Yayasan Akalbudi owned by Ahmad Zahid. Hisyam then referred the court to Junaith’s witness statement which stated that he (Junaith) and Ahmad Zahid’s brother, Datuk Seri Mohamad Nasaee Ahmad Tarmizi went to see Ahmad Zahid at his residence to deliver the cheques for the purpose of building the said mosque and tahfiz school. “In fact, upon cross-examination, Junaith also confirmed that the accused never promised him any MyEG project,” he said. Hisyam further affirmed the allegation that the cheques were given as inducement for the accused to secure projects for Mastoro Kenny was therefore unfounded. Ahmad Zahid, 68, is facing 47 charges — 12 for CBT, eight for corruption and 27 for money laundering — involving tens of millions of ringgit belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi.

In essence, Nizam had sought to hijack the contracts from the three companies — Bestinet Sdn Bhd, Tass Tech Sdn Bhd and Synerflux Sdn Bhd — just as they were about to ink contracts with the government. JR Resources Holdings Sdn Bhd, Mohd Zaki Jaafar and SH Yahya SH Mohamed are shareholders of the three companies and plaintiffs in the case. The cause of action undertaken by the plaintiffs in seeking the return of the shares included duress, economic duress, coercion, illegality, failure of consideration, breach of condition precedents, frustration and unjust enrichment. “I was told that Bestinet was having difficulty implementing and strategising the project for the Malaysian government,” Nizam testified in court. “In fact, in mid-2017, Nizam raised his game further by incorporating a company bearing the name FWCMS Sdn Bhd.

KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 15): The Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) has expressed its concerns over the issues pertaining to the shortages of workers and the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme. ACCCIM said it met with Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Saravanan Murugan and Transport Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong today to discuss the two issues. On the issue of MM2H, the ACCCIM said it has raised some reservations on the need to fine-tune the new requirements to make MM2H more competitive relative to Malaysia's regional peers. To recap, Hamzah on Tuesday said the government's intention to improve the conditions for participation in the MM2H programme was to ensure quality candidates and their ability to contribute to the country's economy. Introduced in 2002, the MM2H programme allows foreigners to purchase property and reside in Malaysia on a long-term basis.

Three years after Theranos Inc began winding down its operations, Holmes, 37, is finally having her day in court. (Former Theranos president Balwani, who has since split up with Holmes, will be tried separately in January.) Then, they fight you; and then, all of a sudden, you change the world.”Yet, her “revolutionary” blood tests made no sense to specialists. Theranos machines could perform only 12 blood tests from a menu of nearly 250 tests. Since the collapse of Theranos, however, women founders, particularly in biotech and healthcare start-ups, have been compared to Holmes.

HAVING seen significant demand for its products during the long-drawn-out pandemic, Signature Market Sdn Bhd is looking forward to a debut on the local stock exchange next year. According to Signature Market founder Edwin Wang, a reason for the rise in demand is the emphasis on healthy living brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic. Along with the increased disposable income, an openness to new food products has increased during the pandemic, Wang observes. Signature Market plans to debut on the Ace Market in 2022 and on the Main Market in 2023. “As Signature Market continues its path towards IPO, we will have to re-evaluate our position on the investment and determine whether to retain some equity when the time comes.

JOHOR BARU: A chemical spill has forced the evacuation of five houses in Kampung Baru Sri Aman here as two women were rushed to hospitals on Tuesday (Sept 14). Johor Fire and Rescue Department hazardous materials unit chief Saiful Bahri Safar said they received a distress call at around 10.22pm on Tuesday and a team arrived some 15 minutes later. Saiful Bahri said initial tests found a chemical, suspected to be methyl alcohol, at concentrations of 120 ppm (parts per million). He said they directed villagers from five houses located some 150m away from the river to vacate their houses and move to a public hall. As of 2.30am Wednesday (Sept 15), spill detection efforts are continuing and assistance has been requested from the Environment Department (DoE) and Melaka hazardous materials unit.

KUALA LUMPUR: The signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on transformation and political stability between the federal government and Pakatan Harapan (PH) will have a positive impact on the country’s economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2021 and beyond. Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz (pic) said political stability would contribute to a more stable and conducive environment for the development of the country’s investment sector, capital market and economy. “Overall, the implementation of stimulus packages, the reopening of economic sectors and Malaysia’s diversified economic structure have successfully resulted in the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 16.1% in the second quarter of this year. “The Finance Ministry is confident that the MoU will continue to support economic recovery and the GDP growth projection of between 3% and 4% for this year,” he said in a statement yesterday. Meanwhile, Tengku Zafrul said the government would increase the ceiling cap for the Covid-19 fund if necessary to continue supporting the people and businesses that are in need.

Hock San (second from left), Joey, Tony, Dr Baharum Mohamed, Han Boon and Si Cheng represented LBS in the first round of lucky draw for LBS Fabulous 20-21 hosted by Nazrudin Rahman (left). RENOWNED developer LBS Bina Group Bhd (LBS) launched its first round of lucky draw for its LBS Fabulous 20-21 campaign that went live on its Facebook page on Sept 11. The event was witnessed by Steven Tai, a partner of the legal firm Wong & Partners, to ensure that the lucky draw was conducted fairly. More prizes to be wonThe brand encourages those who have yet to win any prizes to stay tuned for the next round of lucky draw with LBS Fabulous 20-21. All LBS homebuyers who purchased properties above RM250,000 from LBS’ list of participating properties during the period would be entitled for the second round of the lucky draw.