☕️ Jho Low reportedly living in ultra luxury in Shanghai, serving as advisor to the Chinese government

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

According to Petronas president and group CEO Tengku Muhammad Taufik Tengku Aziz, the Asia-Pacific region will need USD90 tril (RM382.1 tril) in energy investments through 2050 to power its growing economies while achieving its ambitions of net zero emissions. Taufik stressed that urgent, coordinated investments in both conventional and renewable energy systems is needed, or Asia’s energy security and its climate targets could be at risk. He also shared that the Asia-Pacific region will account for half of global energy demand until 2050.

Meanwhile, in Malaysia, women aged 65 and above receive 26% less retirement income compared to men, according to World Economic Forum longevity economy lead Haleh Nazeri. According to Haleh, women face a “triple storm” where they tend to live longer, have lower savings, and are more likely to take time off work to be caregivers. She said this is a critical issue, and suggested caregiving facilities as part of employee benefits for both children and older adults, arguing that many employees want this moving forward as they live longer and face certain difficulties.

Over in education, there are calls for a systematic approach to targeted intervention measures that address the high Mathematics failure rate in SPM examinations. How high is the failure rate? The SPM 2024 Examination Results Analysis Report said that 84,025 candidates, representing 22.4% of the 375,115 who took Mathematics, failed. The Malaysia Association for Education’s secretary, Hamidi Mookkaiyah, urged comprehensive assessments through surveys, interviews, and classroom observations involving students, teachers, and parents to understand the challenges faced. Maybe that’s why we have low financial literacy?

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Malaysia’s worst auto gate crash
Malaysia has suffered its worst autogate breakdown at Johor Bahru’s Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Complex (BSI CIQ) since last Friday. According to the Border Control and Protection Agency (AKPS) chief, Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain, the ‘system glitch’ was caused by connectivity issues between the MyIMMS system and the international security system it is linked to, affecting at least 380,000 travellers in Johor Bahru. Shuhaily added that the problem was resolved yesterday, and based on the initial investigation, there was no indication of sabotage. The system glitch that happened in Johor Bahru also occurred elsewhere, such as the Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminals One and Two and the Sultan Abu Bakar CIQ at the Second Link.

Johor Menteri Besar Onn Hafiz Ghazi was sure not to filter his words in responding to the matter, lashing out at the authorities to get their act together and describing the two-day incident as “an embarrassment to the country”. Quoting him: “We have worked so hard to promote Johor and Malaysia as open and investment-friendly — what message are we sending to the world when this happens?". This was not the first time that Johor faced this kind of ‘embarrassment’, as recently as December 2024, all autogates at the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar (BSI) customs, immigration, and quarantine (CIQ) complex suffered a four-hour system outage that affected tens of thousands of people.

The Arena of Misbehaviour and Corruption

TH Plantations CEO and CFO ‘benched’ due to alleged RM5 mil payouts - According to TH Plantations Bhd (THP)’s filing with Bursa Malaysia over the weekend, it stated that its CEO, Mohamed Zainurin Mohamed Zain and its CFO, Marliyana Omar, have been put on garden leave and resigned respectively, due to alleged unauthorised payments of RM5.1 mil made to plantation workers. No internal investigation nor the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has been initiated yet as all parties kept their lips tight on this matter.

Jho Low is basking in wealth
The journalist duo who exposed the 1MDB scandal, Bradley Hope and Tom Wright, claimed that financial fugitive Low Taek Jho, or better known as Jho Low, is residing in Green Hills, an ultra-exclusive neighbourhood in Shanghai. Embracing the whole evil mastermind aura, Jho Low allegedly used a forged Australian passport under the Greek name Constantinos Achilles Veis (passport pic below) to operate under the authorities’ radar. Low has been on the run for several years, and his current location remains a critical piece in the ongoing global investigation into the 1MDB scandal.

Mastermind behind a data centre corruption nabbed
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) stated that a project manager of a leading construction company was willing to burn nearly RM1 mil in cash to destroy evidence, during a surprise raid by MACC in Petaling Jaya. Apart from the burned RM1 mil cash, MACC also uncovered approximately RM7.5 mil in cash, stored in several pillow boxes, along with three luxury watches, a Rolex, an Omega, and a Cartier, as well as various pieces of jewellery. MACC also said that, based on the ongoing investigation into this case, the two firms that allegedly bribed the project manager have also been identified. The said data centre project, which was related to this corruption case, was believed to be worth RM180 mil, where the project manager allegedly received 3% based on the project value, in return for securing contracts for the related firms and leaking tender prices.

More judges' appointments incoming after mounting public pressure
After the announcement of Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh as the new Chief Justice, the office of the Chief Registrar of the Federal Court of Malaysia also named Federal Court judge Abu Bakar Jais as the President of the Court of Appeal (COA) and COA judge Azizah Nawawi as the Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak. The swearing-in and signing of the oath of office and oath of allegiance before the King will be held on July 28 at Istana Negara.
Quick background of the new Chief Justice: he was a former UMNO politician from Terengganu, served as a senator and deputy home minister from Mar 2008 to Apr 2009 under Tun Abdullah Badawi’s administration, resigned from politics in 2013 and entered the judiciary in 2015.

Responding to the matter, PM Anwar Ibrahim reiterated that, including the names mentioned above, 8 newly appointed Court of Appeal judges and 14 High Court judges are scheduled to be sworn in too on July 28. PM Anwar stressed that no judges were removed in the process, and the whole thing was done in full respect for the Constitutional Monarchy system.

In unrelated news, as the clouds over the judicial arm’s appointments are clearing out, the clouds over certain parts of Malaysia have left the skies translucent as the Environment Department reported that five areas nationwide - Putrajaya, Banting, Johan Setia in Selangor, Nilai in Negeri Sembilan and Alor Gajah in Melaka, have recorded unhealthy air pollutant index (API) readings. Its director-general, Wan Abdul Latiff Wan Jaffar, blamed transboundary haze for the grey skies. Thanks Indonesia.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Trump sues WSJ for USD10 bil
Trump has proceeded to sue the Wall Street Journal’s (WSJ) parent company Dow Jones and its owner Rupert Murdoch for USD10 bil. The reason? He is not happy about what the publication wrote in its article, claiming that he sent a “bawdy” note to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. According to the WSJ, a letter bearing Trump's name "contained several lines of typewritten text framed by the outline of a naked woman”, written in the third person and allegedly ended with the words: "A pal is a wonderful thing. Happy Birthday - and may every day be another wonderful secret". Trump denied writing the note, saying that it was neither his words nor the way he talks, and that he does not draw pictures.

A Dow Jones spokesperson said in a statement to the BBC that they have full confidence in the rigor and accuracy of the reporting, and will vigorously defend against any lawsuit. These developments came as the US Justice Department asked a judge to unseal material related to Epstein, following intense criticism of the Trump administration's handling of the case. From the way he acts, it feels like Trump has quite a lot to lose from the Epstein’s case.

Stuff on wheels

Uber pumps USD300mil into EV maker Lucid
In its effort to renew its push into the robotaxi space, Uber has announced its latest investment of USD300 mil in electric vehicle (EV) maker Lucid, and aims to start the service in one major US city late next year. Over six years starting in 2026, Uber will acquire and deploy over 20,000 Lucid Gravity SUVs (view car here) that will be equipped with autonomous vehicle (AV) technology from startup Nuro. The deal with Lucid follows Uber’s robotaxi agreement in April with Volkswagen, which will supply its ID.Buzz vans for commercial service, planned for Los Angeles next year. A prototype of the Lucid-Nuro robotaxi is already operating autonomously on a closed circuit at Nuro’s testing facility in Las Vegas, the companies said. Big dreams in Uber it seems.

Chinese EV sales: Fake it 'til you make it
China’s automobile industry faced a moment of reckoning as the country’s state media calls out the zero-mileage car practice - a method where automobile companies arrange for cars to be insured before they were sold to buyers, enabling them under Chinese industry car registration practices to book sales early so they could hit the monthly and quarterly targets. The practice is believed to emerge out of cutthroat competition for sales in the world’s largest auto market, which is reeling from a brutal, years-long price war caused by chronic overcapacity.

Investigations made by Reuters found out that the brands Neta and Zeekr have used this method to inflate its sales in recent years in order to hit their aggressive targets. Neta reportedly booked early sales of at least 64,719 cars from January 2023 to March 2024. That was more than half the sales of 117,000 vehicles it reported over the 15 months. Zeekr, a premium EV brand owned by Geely, used the same method to book early sales in late 2024 in the southern city of Xiamen through its main dealer there. Its reported sales in Xiamen surged to 2,737 that month, more than 14 times its monthly average. Following the revelation, a local automotive publication has reported that the industry ministry was planning to clamp down on the practice by banning cars from being resold within six months of being registered as a sale.

A grandma’s drug empire
Who would ever think that an unassuming grandma is a drug lord? Enter Deborah Mason, 65, known to family as Gangsta Debbs or Queen Bee: a grandmother and the matriarch of a crime family that operated across south east England. Mason even recruited her four children, her sister and others close to the family to help supply cocaine around the country. The operations helped to fund her lavish lifestyle which included a GBP390 Gucci collar and lead, and a nine-carat gold engraved name tag for her Bengal cat and a GBP192 Bugatti kettle. Stuffs of a rich grandma. Mason was sentenced to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs at Woolwich Crown Court, while the rest of the gang received sentences of between 10 and 15 years for the same charge. It was said in the sentencing that total the drugs the gang handled were worth GBP25 mil - GBP30 mil at wholesale, with a street value of up to GBP80 mil.

Shorts

1. Ha Long Bay tour boat capsize

   At least 37 people have died after a boat touring the Ha Long Bay capsized during a sudden thunderstorm in the vicinity on Saturday. The boat is believed to tip over amid a sudden bout of extreme weather that unleashed torrential rain, lightning and fierce winds through northern Vietnam and the Gulf of Tonkin. Five others were still missing during the time of writing.Ha Long Bay is one of Vietnam’s most popular tourist destinations, with millions of people visiting its blue-green waters and rainforest-topped limestone islands each year.

2. Felix Baumgartner dies in paragliding crash

   World-renowned extreme sports athlete Felix Baumgartner has died after his paraglide crashed into a wooden structure in Porto Sant’Elpidio, near the Italian Adriatic coast. He died at the scene, and was reportedly already lost his consciousness in the air. Baumgartner is an Austrian-born daredevil, most famous for jumping from a record 39 kilometres at the edge of space in the 2012 Red Bull Stratos project (view here). He also set a new world record for the highest base jump from a building with his leap from the KLCC Twin Towers in 1999 - in office wear. Watch below.

3. 16-year-olds to start voting in the UK

   The United Kingdom is set to reform their general elections minimum age from 18 to 16, giving the country one of the lowest voting ages in the world amid their bid to “modernise” their democracy. The move is also one of several planned changes to voting rules to improve democratic participation and remove barriers to voting. PM Keir Starmer said that 16 and 17-year-olds should have the right to vote because they are old enough to work and pay taxes. Globally, most countries have a voting age of 18, although some countries like Austria, Argentina, Brazil and Ecuador allow for voting in national elections at age 16.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. Let’s start the week with dedication towards work. A Pakistani reporter covering the flood disaster in the middle of it.

501awani

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2. Douglas Lim cracking a joke about Coldplay days before the kiss cam scandal.

3. Toy Story meets Squid Game.

traxfilmz

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