wildlife officers are hunting a rampaging wild elephant blamed for killing at least 20 people and injuring 15 others in the forests of Jharkhand. The lone bull, is reported to have gone on the rampage for nine days beginning in early January, creating panic in the rural West Singhbhum district. Children and the elderly are among the dead, as well as a professional elephant handler. But after wreaking a trail of destruction, it had not been spotted since Friday, despite multiple patrols in the area. Fear has driven residents of more than 20 villages to abandon their farms or barricade themselves indoors at night, village head Pratap Chachar said.

PUTRAJAYA: Malaysians travelling abroad have several means to clear immigration as the use of the National Integrated Immigration System (MyNIISe) app is not mandatory for now. Immigration director-general Datuk Zakaria Shaaban said travellers currently still have several options to clear immigration at entry and exit points, such as the physical passport and via the MyBorderPass. CLICK TO ENLARGE“We announced previously that starting Jan 15, all MyNIISe registrations will use MyDigital ID. ALSO READ: MyBorderPass has raised the bar for MyNIISe“However, in terms of using MyNIISe itself, it is not mandatory at the moment. “For new users who begin using the MyNIISe app after Jan 15, registration for a MyDigital ID will be mandatory.

Muhammad Yunus, the 85-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate, said he had called on the United Nations human rights team to “counter a surge of misinformation targeting the February 12 elections”, his office said in a statement. “There has been a flood of misinformation surrounding the elections,” Yunus told UN rights chief Volker Turk in a telephone call, according to a statement. “They have flooded social media with fake news, rumours and speculation,” Yunus added. “We are concerned about the impact this may have on the elections.”Turk, according to the Bangladesh press statement, offered the UN’s support. Yunus, who returned from exile in August 2024 at the behest of protesters to lead a caretaker government as “chief advisor”, will step down after the polls.

NEW YORK, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices rose on Wednesday. The West Texas Intermediate for February delivery increased by 87 cents, or 1.42 percent, to settle at 62.02 U.S. dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude for March delivery gained 1.05 dollars, or 1.6 percent, to settle at 66.52 dollars a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.

PETALING JAYA: Boustead Heavy Industries Corp Bhd (BHIC) has entered into a non-binding collaboration agreement with France-based Defense Conseil International to explore a potential strategic partnership. In a statement, BHIC said the agreement sets out a framework for exploration of potential sustainable collaboration in relation to spare parts and component support for rotary-wing platforms, technical and manpower support, and other related support activities in Malaysia. BHIC said the agreement is subject to applicable laws and the execution of separate definitive agreements, where required. It will not have any effect on the earnings, gearing, share capital and substantial shareholders’ shareholdings of the company.

PUTRAJAYA: The government has agreed in principle to amend the Peaceful Assembly Act (PAA), says Datuk Fahmi Fadzil. He said the decision was made during the Cabinet meeting that took place on Wednesday (Jan 14). Basically, the government agreed in principle to amend the PAA,” he added. Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail later said the government enforced a moratorium on legal proceedings under Section 9(5) of the PAA as part of its agenda to reform the law. Amir also said the AGC had requested that the prosecution against him under the PAA be revived.

(Jan 15) : President Donald Trump is holding off on new tariffs targeting imports of critical minerals, following a months-long review to determine whether foreign shipments threatened US national security. Industry watchers for months have awaited the decision from the investigation, launched last April under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which concluded that imports of processed critical minerals and their derivative products imperiled US national security, citing their importance to a wide swath of defense industries. Trump has been under pressure to respond after China, the world’s largest processor of many critical minerals, constrained access to rare earths crucial to advanced technologies during a trade spat last year. More broadly, the Section 232 authority behind the minerals probe is seen as a way the administration could rebuild its tariff regime if the Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s global levies. The proclamation notes uranium as one of the critical minerals “the energy sector relies on.”A major hurdle the administration will need to address, if tariffs are eventually imposed, is the lack of domestic production the US has for most of these raw materials.

The S&P 500 Index closed 0.5% lower in New York, notching its first back-to-back decline of the year. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index dropped 1.1%, also adding to losses from Tuesday’s session, almost wiping out gains for the year. Wholesale inflation picked up slightly in November from a month earlier, driven by a jump in energy costs. The producer price index rose 0.2% after climbing 0.1% in the prior month, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Earnings are keyBig bank earnings continued to roll in.

WASHINGTON, Jan 14 (Reuters) - ‌The U.S. Supreme Court issued ‌three decisions on Wednesday but did ‌not decide the closely watched dispute over the legality of President Donald Trump's global tariffs. The court ‍did not announce the next ‍date when it ‌will issue rulings. It does not announce ‍in advance ​which rulings will be released on a given date. The challenge ⁠to Trump's tariffs marks a major ‌test of presidential powers as well as of ⁠the court's ‍willingness to check some of the Republican president's far-reaching assertions of authority since ‍he returned to office in ‌January 2025. Trump's administration is appealing ​rulings by lower courts that he overstepped his authority.

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today extended his prayers and well-wishes to the Sultan of Brunei, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. In a Facebook post, Anwar said he had received news that the Sultan is scheduled to undergo medical treatment soon. "I pray that His Majesty is granted lasting good health and remains under the protection and grace of Allah SWT. "May His Majesty continue to rule the Nation of Brunei Darussalam with wisdom and sound judgment," he said. According to a statement from the Brunei Prime Minister's Office yesterday, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah is scheduled to undergo a right knee replacement surgery on Jan 18.

KUALA BERANG: Two separate scam cases in Terengganu have cost victims nearly RM190,000, with a civil servant losing RM119,000 to a phone scam and a housewife losing RM70,731 to a fake job scheme. "The victim took out a personal loan and transferred RM110,000 to a new account as instructed by the suspect. She also provided her full bank details under the pretext of security verification," he said in a statement on Wednesday (Jan 14). In a separate case in Kuala Terengganu, a housewife lost RM70,731 after being deceived by an online part-time job scam syndicate. "The victim made seven transactions totalling RM70,731 to various accounts over two days, from Jan 11 and 12.

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has urged Umno Youth Chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh to reconsider his decision to quit, according to a party delegate. The delegate from Melaka, who declined to be named, said the Umno president had given his advice to Akmal during the closed-door meeting at the World Trade Centre (WTC) on Wednesday (Jan 14). "The party president also told Akmal to listen to the advice of the Chief Minister Datuk Seri Ab Rauf Yusoh," he said, when met here. Akmal previously hinted at stepping aside from his post as Umno Youth chief after his call for Umno to withdraw from the unity government drew a negative reaction from the Umno president. He said that Ab Rauf was the individual who introduced him to Umno's struggle during his days as a student leader and had guided him on leadership and the spirit of struggle.

BERLIN (Jan 14): Germany's finance minister called on Wednesday for a new era of "European patriotism" to protect regional economic interests, proposing that companies receiving state aid be required to keep jobs in Europe and that public procurement prioritises Europe-made goods. "We need more European patriotism," Klingbeil said. Klingbeil said trade was increasingly "weaponised" through subsidies, overcapacity, tariffs and export controls, putting pressure on Germany's export-oriented economy. Klingbeil outlined a strategy centred on strengthening European unity, diversifying trade partnerships beyond the U.S., and protecting European markets from unfair competition. POINTS TO GERMANY'S MODERNISATION BACKLOGGermany suffers from a significant modernisation backlog that must be urgently addressed to maintain its competitiveness, Klingbeil said.

Last week's plan to get federal housing agencies on a $200 billion buying spree of mortgage bonds looks unlikely to get mortgage rates down further by itself, according to many banks. And a fresh challenge to Federal Reserve independence potentially ​complicates efforts to push benchmark long-term Treasury yields lower. Last Thursday, Trump's mortgage bond initiative clearly pointed in that direction. While the move would not cut mortgage rates directly, he added, it may help by further reducing the spreads on Fannie and ⁠Freddie over Treasuries. The 30-year Treasury yield at just over 4.8% is exactly where it was on Trump's inauguration.

(Jan 15): Federal Reserve governor Stephen Miran said the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda offers the central bank an additional reason to continue lowering interest rates. “I believe that the sweeping deregulation underway in the US will significantly boost competition, productivity and potential growth, allowing faster economic growth without putting upward pressure on inflation,” Miran said Wednesday at an event in Athens. Miran is serving at the Fed while on unpaid leave as one of President Donald Trump’s top White House economic advisers. Since joining the central bank in September, he has repeatedly argued for a quick series of outsize rate cuts and said the Fed’s policy stance is unnecessarily restraining the economy. I think that inflation is very much headed in the right direction,” Miran said.