☕️ 15 years on, justice for the late Teoh Beng Hock remains unclear

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer among Malaysian women, accounting for approximately 32% of cases, followed by colorectal cancer (11.9%) and ovarian cancer (7.2%). A recent review revealed that 13.6% of breast cancer diagnoses occur in women under 40. A significant 47.9% of breast cancer cases are diagnosed at later stages (Stage 3 and Stage 4). Dr Tan Yee Ling, Consultant General, Endocrine and Breast Surgeon recommends women to begin regular checkups and self-examinations as early as age 20 for early prevention. If you have dense breast, you might need more imaging test.

The number of millionaires (defined as having networth of USD1 mil and above) in Singapore rose to 333,204 in 2023, a 0.4% increase from 2022. With a population of 5.6 mil people, this means one out of sixteen Singaporeans is a millionaire. Globally, the number of millionaires decreased to 58 million from 59.4 mil. Despite representing just 1.5% of the world's population, millionaires owned nearly half of global household wealth, amounting to approximately USD214 trillion.
Read: USB’s Global Wealth Report 2024.

104 snakes were smuggled by a man with adhesive tapes and canvas bags in his pant pockets into China. The bags contained various snake species, including the milk snake, western pig-nosed snake, and corn snake. None of the snakes are venomous, but some are not native to China. We hope no reptiles were harmed. Watch the video here.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Justice for the late Teoh Beng Hock is still unclear
Teoh Beng Hock’s family may need to wait longer as the KL High Court will only decide on July 29 whether to allow the family’s judicial review to force a wrap-up in the long-standing police probe into Teoh’s death. Below is the timeline of this unfortunate case: 

• July 2009 - Teoh was found dead on the fifth-floor service corridor of Plaza Masalam in Shah Alam after being questioned overnight at the Selangor Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) on the 14th floor.

• 2011 - The Royal Commission of Inquiry concluded that Teoh was driven to commit suicide due to MACC’s aggressive questioning.

• 2014 - The Court of Appeal unanimously ruled that Teoh died due to the act of ‘person or persons unknown’.

January 2022 - Teoh’s parents decided to bring the matter to court and filed a judicial review on the premise of the alleged failure of the police to conclude their investigation into his death. The parents received court leave to proceed with the civil action in June 2022.

While what has officially happened to Teoh is still unknown, two motions by Raub MP Chow Yu Hui to debate the matters related to Teoh were scrapped by the Dewan Rakyat Speaker Johari Abdul since Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail gave a verbal response on July 2 stating that the police is still investigating Teoh’s case. Before his death, Teoh was then the political aide to the former Selangor executive councillor Ean Yong Hian Wah.

Recap on the incident here.

GLC CEOs that are in deep _____

• Human Resource Development Corp (HRD Corp) CEO Shahul Hameed Shaik Dawood has voluntarily taken a leave of absence to make way for the ongoing probe by MACC towards HRD Corp. Shahul has been the CEO for more than 4 years since April 2020. Prior to that, he was the Group CEO of My Events International for more than 12 years. Check out his Linkedin here.

• Former Malaysian Automotive, Robotics and IoT Institute (MARii) CEO Madani Sahari is sentenced to one year behind bars and an RM100,000 fine for not one, but two Session Courts for fraudulently securing a RM6.4 mil automotive training contract and receiving RM5 mil in cash between 2019 and 2021. In one of the charges, Madani pleaded guilty to lying to MARii’s board that the training conducted by LPS Learning Platform was 178% higher than the actual price of RM2.3 mil.

Business shorts

• Rooftop solar power system provider ILB Group Bhd is in the midst of finalising an RM98 mil deal of purchasing the lock, stock and barrel of another solar energy company Armani Sinar Sdn Bhd. The acquisition will be funded by internally generated funds and bank borrowings. The deal also includes a profit guarantee of RM8 mil minimum for the financial years between 2024 until 2026.

• Gamuda Bhd and its joint venture partner Alstrom France have bagged an RM5 bil project to upgrade and maintain the train control systems on Perth's rail networks. The 10-year contract will start to contribute positively to the books of Gamuda for the financial year ending July 31, 2025.

• While electric vehicle (EV) sales worldwide are slumping, it has not been the case in tanah airku. According to the Road Transportation Department’s (JPJ) data, EV registration has seen a 141.85% (low base effect) increase for the period between January and June 2024, compared to the same period last year. At the top of the EV models in demand, there is a fierce battle between the US-based Tesla and China-based BYD models. Overall, the best-selling model for the first six months of this year is the BYD Seal with 1,764 units registered.

Shorts

1. Unsurprisingly Machang MP Wan Ahmad Fahysal is suspended for six months from Dewan Rakyat for publishing a poison pen letter speculating the mastermind behind the Malaysia Airport Holdings Bhd (MAHB) privatisation. The motion to suspend Wan Fahysal was debated in Parliament before the majority of the MPs voted for the suspension. Law Minister Azalina Othman, the one who raised the motion to suspend Wan Fahysal, said that if Machang MP is not penalised, it will encourage other MPs to do the same in the future, releasing statements without proper due diligence.

2. Three NGOs - Save Taman Rimba Kiara Working Group, Persatuan Penduduk Rumah Panjang Bukit Kiara, and Friends of Bukit Kiara rejoiced after Putrajaya decided to maintain the greenery in Taman Rimba Kiara and to build permanent housingfor the 98-family longhouse community. The next step is to ensure the green status of Taman Rimba Kiara is maintained and reflected in the Kuala Lumpur Local Plan 2040.

3. Malaysia Darul Diskaun is in full force as road users will receive up to 50% discounts for their traffic police summonses in conjunction with the launch of the Merdeka Month at Cyber Event Hall in Cyberjaya. For those looking to clear your docket of traffic summonses, you can start queuing at the said location way before 9 AM as the booth for traffic summonses open from 9 AM to 4.30 PM.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

US pulls plug on Gaza aid pier
President Joe Biden announced the formal end to the US military project to install and operate a floating pier off the coast of Gaza, which was meant to handle the surge of humanitarian aid being brought to Palestinians by ship. The pier was meant to operate until the end of July but was closed early due to the Israeli port of Ashdod becoming the established port to distribute aid to Gaza. Aid started landing at the pier in May and about 9,000 tonnes of it was delivered, though the pier could only operate for about 20 days due to bad weather and distribution challenges. It cost USD230 mil to build it. A real expensive temporary structure.

Meanwhile, Italy took a different route in sending aid by flying over 60 tonnes of food, hygiene kits, and sanitary equipment to Amman, Jordan, to be sent into Gaza. This follows Italy allocating USD32.8 mil in May to the Food for Gaza plan, and the resumption of its funding for the UN’s Palestinian relief organisation UNRWA.

On the football front, Israel may also lose access to the beautiful game for its actions in Gaza. A group of human rights lawyers are calling for football association FIFA to ban Israel from any football-related activities for violating FIFA’s statutes. This follows a proposal from the Palestinian Football Association, submitted in May.

The return of ISIS
Elsewhere in the Middle East, the US military reports that ISIL/ISIS is trying “to reconstitute”, projecting that the militant group’s attacks in Syria and Iraq could double from the previous year. The first half of 2024 has seen 153 attacks across both countries. Iraqi officials stated they can keep the threat from the militant group contained and have entered talks with the US to wind down the US-led military coalition in the country, amid increased domestic tensions over the presence of the US military in the region.

It has been more than a decade since ISIS, then ledd by Abu Bakr al-Baghadi, controlled one-third of Iraq and Syria at its peak to create a self-declared “caliphate”. US Special Forces in 2019 killed al-Baghadi in a Idlib, north-western Syria.

Positive (Covid-19) Biden sees campaign negatives as Trump steps up to represent Reps
US President Joe Biden has tested positive for Covid, displaying “mild symptoms”. He will be undergoing quarantine in his home in Delaware. However, the discomfort will probably come from the cancellation of a campaign event in Las Vegas at a time when rival Donald Trump is riding a wave of support.

Biden is also facing increasing pressure from fellow Democrats to step back from his White House bid, with concerns that Biden will not only lose the White House to Trump and the Republicans but also cost the Democrats any chance of winning back the US House of Representatives. The president has so far ignored public calls from over 20 congressional Democrats to step aside following his disastrous debate against Trump at the end of June.

Meanwhile, Trump has accepted the Republican presidential nomination, with former critics now offering strong endorsements for his White House bid. These include Senator J.D. Vance, Trump’s running mate who was himself a critic who had compared Trump to Hitler.

Shorts:

1. Bangladesh cuts mobile data as protest death toll rises

   The government suspended some mobile internet services to shut down “various rumours” and the “unstable situation created” by social media. This follows internet providers cutting off access to Facebook two days ago. As students clash with armed police, at least 12 have lost their lives since the start of the protests fuelled by high unemployment among the nation’s youths. The population of Bangladesh is massive - 171 mil.

2. Mercedes Benz partners Starbucks in US to charge your car as you get your coffee

   A unit of the German automaker will be partnering with the coffee giant to deploy fast-charging stations at over 100 Starbucks stores along the Interstate 5 highway in the US. The first was opened in 2023 as part of a USD1 bil investment, with plans for the network to cover nearly half of the states in the country over the next 18 months.

3. Facebook parent explores EssilorLuxottica buy-in

   Fresh off buying Supreme for USD1.5 bil, EssilorLuxottica is reported to be an interest to Meta which is eyeing a 5% stake in fashion brand and eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica as it pushes towards more smart glasses. The brand owns Ray-Ban, which produced the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses launched in 2021. The stake is projected to cost Meta about USD4.7 bil.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. It’s a terrible dad joke, but hey, it’s TGIF.

2. Don’t have the victim mentality. Don’t know who is Charlie Munger? Of the many names we have shares in our newsletter, this is one name you ought to know and learn from - learn here.