SIBU: A plumber's hope of getting big returns from an investment ended with him losing RM106,300 to an investment scam. Sibu OCPD Asst Comm Zulkipli Suhaili said the 50-year-old victim was cheated by a syndicate who promised him a return of 50% from the investment. "Believing that it was a genuine investment scheme, the victim made 28 bank transfers from Dec 19, 2021 to July 4, 2022 totalling RM106,300 to 10 bank accounts provided by the syndicate. ACP Zulkipli advised people to be careful of any investment advertised on social media. "As a precautionary measure, people are advised to check first before making any investment online to avoid being a scam victim.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 3): Petra Energy Bhd's contract for the provision of services to operate and maintain Petroliam Nasional Bhd's (Petronas) Banang oilfield off Terengganu has been extended by 22 months until Aug 6, 2024. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, Petra Energy said its wholly-owned subsidiary Petra Energy Development Sdn Bhd (PEDSB) has entered into a supplementary agreement with Petronas relating to the technical services agreement first awarded in June 2020 for a duration of two years. Petra Energy did not disclose the value of the supplementary agreement. “The contract is expected to contribute positively to the earnings and net assets per share of the group for the duration of the contract,” it added. Shares in Petra Energy closed one sen or 1.16% higher at 87 sen, giving the group a market capitalisation of RM279.92 million.

KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 3): Sunway Construction Group Bhd (SunCon) has entered into a RM1.7 billion contract to provide general contractor services for a data centre construction project in Sedenak Tech Park (STeP), Johor. The construction firm’s wholly owned subsidiary Sunway Construction Sdn Bhd entered into the contract with Yellowwood Properties Sdn Bhd on Dec 31, 2022, according to SunCon’s filing on the same day. “The works are expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2024 (3Q2024),” SunCon said. “The total new projects secured by the group this year (2022) including the abovementioned works amounted to RM2.6 billion,” SunCon added. Shares in SunCon ended three sen or 1.92% higher at RM1.59, giving the construction group a market capitalisation of RM2.06 billion.

LONDON (Jan 2): Britain's Prince Harry said his troubled relationship with the royal family "never needed to be this way" and he wants to get his father King Charles and his brother "back", in an excerpt from an interview with broadcaster ITV released on Monday. "It never needed to be this way," he said in the clip. "I would like to get my father back; I would like to have my brother back." They have since criticised how they were treated as members of the royal family, including an accusation by Harry that his brother William, Prince of Wales, screamed at him during a meeting to discuss his future. ITV said the interview will be broadcast on Jan 8, two days before publication of Harry's autobiography titled "Spare".

(Jan 2): Russia's Defence Ministry said on Monday that 63 Russian soldiers had been killed in a Ukrainian New Year's Eve attack on their quarters in the Russian-controlled part of Ukraine's Donetsk province. Earlier, Ukraine's defence ministry said as many as 400 Russians had been killed. AmmunitionRybar said there had been about 600 people in the building, and that ammunition had been stored in the same facility. Russia's Defence Ministry gave its estimate of the death toll only in the final paragraph of a 528-word daily battlefield roundup. Girkin, who has bitterly criticised Russia's military failures in Ukraine, also said ammunition had been stored at the facility.

Anwar faces a significant challenge because Malaysia has not only lost its Asian Tiger status but has also fallen far behind its neighbours such as Indonesia and Vietnam. Despite moving from an agrarian economy in the 1970s to a manufacturing economy today, we are still largely a low-techno­logy manufacturing economy and also a resource-dependent economy — primarily oil, gas and palm oil. Our economy is still dependent on low-level manufacturing, palm oil, oil and gas, the same as it was 30 years ago. The carrot and stick approachWe need to reward businesses that adopt technology and penalise those that do not. We will not recapture the mantle of an Asian Tiger but will instead be nothing more than an Asian kitten.

(Jan 1): In several of China's metropolitan cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, the COVID-19 infection peak is expected to end around New Year's Day, according to a latest study by a leading Chinese research team, Global Times said. The outbreaks are expected to mainly affect rural areas and small and medium-sized cities between New Year's Day and the Spring Festival, which falls on January 22, the study also showed. Since December 23, the number of patients attending fever outpatient clinics in the city began to decline, with the number of visits dropping from about 60,000 to 19,000 in a single day, reported the Yangcheng Evening News, citing data from the Guangzhou Municipal Health Commission on Sunday.

PUTRAJAYA (Jan 1): The Inland Revenue Board (IRB) Return Form (RF) Filing Programme for 2022 is now available on HASiL official portal as a reference for taxpayers to submit their return form this year. It also encouraged tax agents to use the Tax Agent e-Filing (TaeF) (https://taef.hasil.gov.my/) service to submit RF. “To save time and facilitate e-Filing submission by employees, employers are encouraged to submit 2022 employees’ remuneration data through the e-Data Praisi/e-CP8D application. “The remuneration data received will be prefilled into employees’ e-Form (e-BE/e-B/e-BT/e-M/e-MT for the Year of Assessment 2022),” the statement read. Employers can refer to the latest format of the e-Data Praisi/e-CP8D information for the 2022 remuneration year attached to the RF Filing Programme 2023 filing programme for the purpose of providing employee remuneration data, it added.

>Antarabudaya Malaysia, a non-profit volunteer-driven organisation focused on intercultural learning across communities and a member of AFS Intercultural Programs, has announced the launch of the first AFS Global STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) programmes with 10 full scholarships for young Malaysians. > The four-month intercultural programme combines digital and in-person learning where participants from more than 18 countries worldwide will enrich their knowledge through the development of global competencies in problem-solving, analytical skills, intercultural understanding, sustainability and social innovation. > The annual STEM scholarship programme for 100 participants funded by global energy company BP starts with a 12-week virtual e-learning curriculum from their home countries, culminating in student-led social impact projects and presentations offering potential solutions to real-world challenges with emphasis on sustainability and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The topic of study includes climate change and the energy transition. They will also participate in community service and have the opportunity to visit local innovative, sustainability-focused operations to see firsthand how companies and organisations at the destination country use STEM skills to address industry and societal challenges around sustainability issues.

A good number of the school’s staff and pupils were among the campers. We will always remember all of you,” said Cheong who officially assumed her post on Dec 19. “Those who came were family members, classmates, colleagues and friends of the victims,” he said. “Every level of the school had lost teachers and students... it was the hardest moment for me to tell everyone about the news. At the end of the event, teachers, students and parents were asked to write messages for the departed on a small card before tying it with a yellow balloon.

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Examinations Syndicate has announced the dates for the 2022 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) and Sijil Tinggi Agama Malaysia (STAM) exams. On Dec 28, the Education Ministry said students in Johor, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu would start their 2022/2023 (third term) school session on Jan 1. Schools in Melaka, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Penang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan would start their session on Jan 3. School holidays for schools in Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, and Terengganu would be from Feb 18 to March 18 next year, while the rest of the states would have their school holidays from Feb 18 till March 19. The Education Ministry said the postponement was to allow for the SPM examination to be carried out smoothly.

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 30): The Inland Revenue Board (IRB) has announced additional tax exemption eligibility requirements for eligible taxpayers with overseas dividend income received in Malaysia from Jan 1, 2022 to Dec 31, 2026. The dividend income abroad must comply with the substantive economic conditions, it said in a statement on Dec 30. IRB said the amendment of this provision is to provide equitable tax treatment on the foreign income with the income accrued in or derived from Malaysia in line with the country’s commitment towards compliance with international tax best practices. For individuals: the income (all types of income except partnership income) has been subjected to tax in the country of origin. In accordance with these additional terms, amendments to the Treatment Guidelines Tax Related to Income Received from Abroad have been uploaded to HASiL Official Portal on Dec 29, 2022 and Guidelines dated Sept 29, 2022 are cancelled.

KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 30): RHB Retail Research said Ramssol Group Bhd is eyeing a rebound from its recent pullback as it bounced off the 21-day average line and headed towards the 45 sen immediate resistance. In a trading stocks note on Friday (Dec 30), the research house said that if a breakout above that level happens, the stock may resume its uptrend towards reclaiming the recent high of 47.5 sen, ie Dec 19’s high. “This is followed by 52 sen, which was the highest level since Sept 12. “Conversely, the counter may reverse its direction if it falls below the 42 sen support, forming a 'lower low' bearish structure below the average line,” it said.

In response, the United States and a number of other countries announced they would require negative Covid tests for all travellers from mainland China. The US move came after Italy, Japan, India and Malaysia announced their own measures in a bid to protect against importing new Covid variants from China. The European Commission is set to meet Thursday to discuss "possible measures for a coordinated approach" by EU states to the explosion of Covid cases in China. On the frontlines of China's Covid wave, hospitals are battling surging cases that have hit the elderly and vulnerable hardest. China's National Health Commission (NHC) last week said that it would no longer release an official daily Covid death toll.

This compares to the Ministry of Finance's forecast in October of 2.8%-3.3% inflation for 2023. "As core inflation remains elevated, this signals the persistence of demand-pull price pressures along with higher wages. Hence, we reiterate our view for another two 25 bps hikes in OPR to 3.25% in the first quarter of 2023 (1Q2023). BNM may raise the OPR by another 25 bps in January 2023, to further realign with global monetary tightening trends and to curb persistently elevated core inflation, the research house said. Malaysia's core inflation rose to a new high of 4.2% in November, driven by robust consumer demand and an improving job market.