KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened barely changed against the US dollar on the expectation that the US Federal Reserve (Fed) will continue its tight monetary policy going forward. At 9 am, the local currency rose marginally to 4.6460/6495 against the greenback from Monday’s close of 4.6470/6500, which was a fresh 24-year low against the US dollar. The current rate is at 3.25 per cent. SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said the higher oil price will cap any ringgit weakness, especially against regional peers who are oil importers. It depreciated against the Japanese yen at 3.2108/2136 from 3.2015/2040 and slid vis-a-vis the euro to 4.5652/5686 from 4.5355/5384 on Monday.

SEVERAL oil and gas companies specialising in the provision of drilling fluids are waiting in anticipation of a relatively large tender that is likely to be announced soon by Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas). We (drilling fluid suppliers) have been waiting for a few months now for it,” he said early last week. In short, drilling fluids are used to reduce friction during exploration works. Petronas’ Activity Outlook 2022-2024 indicates that the existing drilling fluid contracts will expire in the middle of next year, which makes it likely that tenders will be called soon. If things are maintained, there will be a lot of activity, but if oil prices plunge again, exploration will halt and there will be little use for drilling fluid.

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 4): The total cost for the procurement of the PerantiSiswa Keluarga Malaysia initiative amounts to RM385.31 million for the supply of 350,000 units of tablets, said Communications and Multimedia Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa. In August, four companies won contracts worth RM335.22 million in total from the federal government to supply tablets for students from B40 households, under the PerantiSiswa Keluarga Malaysia initiative. The government allocated RM450 million under the PerantiSiswa Keluarga Malaysia initiative, which was announced under Budget 2022. The distribution of the PerantiSiswa tablets, which was initially scheduled for June 2022, had been postponed due to technical factors in the procurement process. Read also:Four companies win govt contracts worth RM335 mil to supply tablets to B40 students in Peninsular Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 4): Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) said Malaysia’s pre-determined short-term foreign currency outflow is seen at US$9.4 billion (about RM43.69 billion) over the next 12 months. BNM's latest projection of Malaysia’s pre-determined foreign currency outflow at US$9.4 billion over the next 12 months is higher than the previous estimate announced on Aug 30, 2022. On Aug 30, BNM said in a statement that Malaysia’s pre-determined short-term foreign currency outflow was seen then at US$8.48 billion, while the country’s projected foreign currency inflow was estimated at US$2.16 billion. “In line with the practice adopted since April 2006, the (foreign currency inflow) data excludes projected foreign currency inflows arising from interest income and the drawdown of project loans,” BNM said. Nor Shamsiah said BNM will ensure that Malaysia's onshore foreign exchange market remains liquid, so businesses can be assured that all their foreign currency needs can be efficiently fulfilled.

Capital that had once sought higher returns in emerging markets would now reverse, causing sharp falls in domestic equities, rising bond yields and eroding foreign reserves. If the domestic economy is highly leveraged as most emerging markets post-pandemic are, the consequences can be brutal. In addition to possible recession in 2023, the report warns of a potential string of financial crises in emerging markets. Clearly, further rate increases by the Fed could tip several emerging markets into serious financial problems. Alas, all this is not new; every time the Fed raises rates, emerging markets suffer financial distress.

“Many of the industries experiencing higher receivables-to-sales ratios are related to the consumer sector,” he tells The Edge when contacted. The semiconductor sector, for one, is enjoying higher sales volumes and is likely to clear its mounting backlog. Another manufacturing sector on the list with both higher receivables and sales is packaging materials. On the other hand, those who saw revenue expand faster than receivables include Yinson Holdings Bhd, Malaysia Resources Corp Bhd and Dagang NeXchange Bhd. Comparatively, a smaller percentage of 14% saw higher receivables despite lower revenue, which suggests that “payment headwinds are not yet widespread”, he adds.

MELAKA: The Melaka health department ordered three food processing factories to be closed due to non-compliance of cleanliness procedures for food safety and quality standards, during an integrated operation on Monday (Oct 3). According to state Health Department director Datuk Dr Rusdi Abd Rahman, the three factories were ordered shut in accordance with Section 11 of the Food Act 1983, as the department was not satisfied with the cleanliness at the three factories. Dr Rusdi said the three factories were among 73 food processing factories inspected by the department throughout the year. "As of today, the state Health Department had issued 58 compounds worth RM47,350 for various offences involving non-compliance of cleanliness under the food processing and safety standard procedures. Dr Rusdi said the integrated operation was carried out by the Food Safety and Quality Division, as well as the Inspectorate and Legal Unit to ensure food processing factories in Melaka met the Malaysia Food Protection Scheme (MeSTI) standard.

AFTER Malaysia's very first general election, our country’s inaugural Cabinet was formed on Aug 1, 1955. VERDICT:TRUETHE first Cabinet of the Federation of Malaya had 10 ministers, who were assisted by two deputy ministers and three junior ministers (Menteri Muda). This inaugural Cabinet was formed just a few days on Aug 1, 1955 after the country’s first general election on July 27, 1955. All 15 members of the Cabinet were appointed after getting the royal approval from the Malay Rulers at that time. Another three British officials also had important government posts at that time, namely the chief secretary, attorney general and government secretary," said the Archives.

One key question would be how the government plans to deploy fiscal policy tools that can both support long-term sustainable economic growth and generate higher tax revenue to reduce debt and accommodate growing expenses. It is interesting to witness a varied approach to tax reforms adopted by governments around the world. Will the UK’s proposed tax reforms lead to massive economic growth or will it follow the path of an unsustainable drop in tax revenue as witnessed by Sri Lanka? Expansion of a broad-based consumption tax that can provide a stable flow of tax revenue and is not subject to the fluctuations of economic cycles. Furthermore, the recovery period from a crisis, in this case the Covid-19 pandemic, is an opportune time to institute tax reforms.

He is familiar with buying used shoes and will browse at shophouses that have been converted into thrift stores or bundle shops. A husband and wife team – Mohd Shahir Talib and Natasha Yusoff – run a bundle shop along Armenian Street here, selling pre-loved shoes. She recalled how their bundle shop came about, saying: “The pandemic had just begun when we started our business. Mohd Shahir, 34, said the public were now open to buying second-hand branded goods as they were much cheaper. The representative said that customers, who comprised locals and foreigners, would visit the shop looking for collectors’ items.

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 3): Foreign shareholding in Bursa Malaysia Bhd fell to its lowest on record since 2016 at 13.6% in August 2022, from 14.8% a month earlier, according to the bourse operator and regulator's latest update. Prior to this, the lowest foreign shareholding was 14.4% in January 2022, Bursa said. Bursa's highest foreign shareholding on record was at 28.6% in March 2018, according to the group. Since the beginning of 2022, Bursa's share price had fallen to current levels, from the stock's closing price at RM6.46 on Jan 3. Read also:Bursa Malaysia's foreign shareholding at 14.4% in January, lowest on record

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 2): The local aviation and aerospace industry is hoping that Budget 2023 will include initiatives and policies that encourage technology-first strategies to support post-pandemic recovery and the industry's future ecosystem. "We need a Budget that supports an ecosystem that is friendly and conducive to the growth of the technology industry, not necessarily to the aviation and aerospace industry only but all in general. Kamarul noted that assistance in terms of grants is more suitable than subsidies as the aviation and aerospace industry is capital- and technology-intensive, whereby a huge fund size is needed for it to grow. "If we look at South Korea and Japan, for examples, priority [for investment] is given to domestic technology. Ida added she also hopes that the Budget will address the growth of general aviation and aviation sports.

KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said he agreed to hold snap polls this year without conditions. We have the Umno top five meeting, the political bureau meeting and the supreme council meeting before we decide. ALSO READ: Cold ground ahead of polls“If there is a good basis to hold the snap polls, we will agree to it, that was our stand. “As for the date (of dissolution of Parliament), please wait. You have waited since last year, you can wait a little more this year,” said Ismail Sabri.

KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 1): The ringgit is likely to trend higher next week, trading at between 4.59 and 4.62 against the US dollar, on improved market sentiments, an analyst said. “However, ringgit volatility is much lower in comparison to other currencies in the region. [In terms of] currency volatility, the ringgit stood at 6.7%, [followed by the] Singapore dollar (7.2%), Indonesia rupiah (10.1%) and Thai baht (10.3%),” he told Bernama. Mohd Sedek also said historical data showed that the ringgit tended to close lower during the budget week. The ringgit also weakened versus the pound to 5.1728/1762 against 5.0957/0985 last week, and fell against the euro to 4.5428/5458 from 4.4686/4710 a week earlier.

KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 30): Bursa Malaysia Securities on Friday (Sept 30) publicly reprimanded and fined six directors of Brem Holding Bhd for failing to take reasonable care over advances totalling RM26.46 million made to a private company. The exchange imposed a fine of RM200,000 on Brem’s managing director Tan Sri Khoo Chai Kaa, and RM50,000 each on executive directors Khoo Chai Thiam and Low Yew Hwa, independent director Wong Miow Song, and non-independent directors Khoo Hui Keam and Khoo Hui Giok. Bursa noted that Brem had in November 2014 acquired a 49% shareholding in GJH Prestige Sdn Bhd (GJHP) from GJH Holdings Sdn Bhd (GJHH). Bursa noted that Brem continued to make advances, and GJHP had only repaid RM1.6 million to Brem in August 2017. The remaining advances amounting to RM24,863,650 remained unpaid, nearly eight years after Brem had first provided the advances in 2014.