☕️ Madani considers building social network for Malaysians

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

Katie Ledecky (aka LEGENDecky) claimed her ninth gold in her signature 800-metre freestyle event at the Olympics, equalling Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina for the most gold medals won by women in any Olympic sport. It is the fourth time Ledecky has won the 800-metre freestyle and she joins compatriot Michael Phelps as the only swimmer to win gold in four different Olympics. Ledecky now has added two golds, a silver and a bronze, bringing her Olympic stockpile to 14 medals - and counting.

The Malaysian government is spending a little bit too much time on TikTok. In TikTok’s bi-annual Government Removal Requests Report released in June, Madani requested the most takedown requests worldwide — 1,862 content takedowns in H2 2023, a huge 447.6% jump from only 340 in H1 2023. Australia, which ranked second globally, didn’t even come close to Malaysia with only 651 requests in H2 2023. Here are the stats for our neighbours: Indonesia (351), Vietnam (138), Philippines (113), Thailand (70), Singapore (47) and Cambodia (7). It’s either our government is obsessed with social media or there’s seriously something wrong with content coming out from Malaysia. But with the government’s focus on social media, it seems like the latter. Our government now wants to build a social media network for Malaysia — more below.
View report: Government Removal Requests Report 

The price to dine like a literal king — EUR475,000 (RM2.33 mil). That’s the cost of a decadent dinner France has to fork out to host the UK’s King Charles III. French President Emmanuel Macron hosted the British head of state in September last year at Versailles, with guests including Rolling Stones’ frontman Mick Jagger and British actor Hugh Grant. Guests were served with blue lobster and rose macaroons. France’s love for grand gestures and opulent dining were highlighted in a damning yearly audit of Elysee’s budget (Elysee Palace is the office of the President), which hit a whopping EUR125 mil, leading to a deficit of EUR8.3 mil. Governments — same s**t, different country. 

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Malaysians’ confused financial state - MYR up, Bursa down
The ringgit has kept its winning streak against the US dollar for 11 days straight. Investors are redirecting their money towards the Asia-Pacific after weak US employment stats last Friday. Bank Muamalat chief economist Dr Mohd Afzanizam thinks the ringgit is on track to hit RM4.40 per dollar soon. Cheaper imports, cheaper oversea holidays, but.

If you are invested in the stock market, we hope you are coping well — zoom out. It was a rough day for markets around the world and also Bursa Malaysia yesterday, dubbed Black Monday, as the market took a nosedive. The sentiment is echoed across regional markets due to concerns over a potential US recession, chasing investors away from risky assets. By the end of Monday, the FBM KLCI had dropped a whopping 74.57 points or 4.63%, closing at 1,536.48. It managed to recover slightly from an intraday low of 1,531.24. This is Bursa’s biggest plunge since a 4.77% drop on Mar 16, 2020. Bursa also put a stop to intraday short-selling (IDSS) for several stocks that took a heavy hit, including Mah Sing Group Bhd, VS Industry Bhd, WCT Holdings Bhd, Nationgate Holdings Bhd, and Deleum Bhd. Japan, China, Hong Kong, and South Korea’s stocks also took hits.

Malaysia’s own social media platform?
The Madani government is ambitious. Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil says that they are considering a proposal to develop Malaysia’s very own social media app. Their reasoning? Current social media providers are profiting without guarantees of user safety. Following Meta Platforms Inc.’s removal of postings related to Palestine, more specifically, PM Anwar Ibrahim’s post on the death of Ismail Haniyeh, Fahmi is determined to look into building our own app as “other countries have attempted it”. Google, with tens of billions of dollars in resources, tried to build its Google+ social network to take on Facebook and yet it failed and shut it down in 2019. The minister needs to understand what are network effects. 

PM Anwar has given Meta reps a thorough tongue-lashing over their removal of his post. The PM’s Office (PMO) made several demands from Meta, including an open apology to which they have agreed. PMO called out Meta’s bias on content moderation. Fair enough, if Meta allows posts on Israel, why censor Palestine?

Chinese nationals now our largest group of foreigners
Chinese citizens in Malaysia have almost doubled in the past three years, due to an influx of students and new investors. There are roughly 150,000-200,000 Chinese nationals now, up from about 82,000 in 2022. Thanks to the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme, Malaysia has become a top choice for those seeking new opportunities as government business regulations tighten and economic growth slows in China. The Tourism Ministry says China holds the highest number of active MM2H passes at 24,765. Even in higher education institutions, more than 44,000 Chinese students enrolled in 2023, a 35% hike from 2021.

Berjaya snags rights to operate Starbucks in 3 Nordic countries
Berjaya Food Bhd has secured the rights to operate Starbucks stores in Iceland, Denmark, and Finland. Berjaya Food International’s (BFI) expansion marks the first entry of a Malaysian public-listed F&B company into Nordic markets, a remarkable feat! Berjaya Food’s portfolio includes Starbucks Coffee, Kenny Rogers Roasters, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, and Paris Baguette. BFI signed an agreement to operate Paris Baguette in Singapore earlier this year after opening its first store in the Philippines in April. BFI’s expansion into the Danish market will build on the store footprint established by the largest Danish retailer Salling Group A/S. Smart of Berjaya to operate Starbucks overseas when their sales locally have plunged.

Shorts:

1. Lee Zii Jia wins Malaysia’s second bronze!

   Men’s singles Lee Zii Jia wins his first Olympic medal and Malaysia’s second bronze at the Paris Olympics. Zii Jia had a stunning comeback, defeating world No. 22 India’s Lakshya Sen after a match of 13-21, 21-16, 21-11 for the win. Watch his teary, post-match interview below.

2. Maybank2U app & WeChat Pay MY to be discontinued
   Maybank will discontinue the Maybank2U app from Aug 28. Existing Maybank2U app users are urged to switch to the MAE app for any online banking needs, as they will no longer be able to access the Maybank2U app after Aug 28. Ewallet service WeChat Pay MY will also discontinue its payment service in Malaysia from Sept 1 onwards due to “business strategy adjustment” reasons. Users can withdraw their balance until Dec 31, 2024. Weixin Pay will operate as usual. The platform allows Malaysians to make payments in China and vice-versa. 

3. Zahid’s controversial slip of the tongue - “Hidup Israel”

   Deputy PM Zahid Hamidi apologised to the public after his horrific slip of “Hidup Israel” instead of “Hidup Palestine” at a Palestine support rally on Sunday night. He made this mistake in front of a crowd of no less than 10,000. In this clip, you can see Fahmi cringing at the back.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

War inevitable in the Middle East?
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was reported to have warned his G7 counterparts that a joint attack on Israel by Iran and Lebanon-based Hezbollah could happen in the next 48 hours. Blinken also called for the G7 to halt any escalation by applying diplomatic pressure on Iran, Hezbollah, and Israel to limit their attacks and responses. The US is already deploying more military forces to the Middle East as a defensive measure to de-escalate regional tensions as well.

Iran stated that it is not looking to escalate regional tensions, but believes that Israel needs to be punished to prevent further instability and to create a “deterrence against the adventurism of the Zionist regime”. It also called on the US to stop supporting Israel and instead support the “punishment of the aggressor”. Iran’s regional allies, which form what is known by Israel and the US as the “Axis of Resistance”, are also likely to join in the retaliation. The members of this group include the Lebanon-based Hezbollah, the Houthis from Yemen, and the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, and Syria.

Bangladesh upheaval sees PM resigning and fleeing country
Sheikh Hasina has resigned from her position as Prime Minister of Bangladesh, fleeing the country with her sister as protestors stormed her palace following weeks of deadly demonstrations. Her resignation was announced by Bangladesh’s army chief, General Waker Uz-Zaman who said that an interim government would be formed. He also called for peace and promised justice for those killed during the weeks of protests. 

This ends the 15-year second stint of the daughter of independence leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who has been ruling the country for 20 of the last 30 years. She celebrated her fourth straight term of power less than seven months ago at an election that was boycotted by the main opposition. Her rule was also marred by accusations of forced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and repression of the opposition, though her administration blamed this on the opposition trying to fuel protests.

India, where Hasina fled with her sister, looks unlikely to do much beyond tightening control on their borders, as anything done could be seen as interference in the internal politics of Bangladesh. This also marks the fourth revolution the country has seen since the turn of the century, according to this timeline.

Olympic podium points

• French pole vaulter hits pole with wrong pole

  Anthony Ammirati failed to make the finals for the pole vault event at the Paris Olympics but has gone viral due to how he apparently lost his chance. According to videos going up on social media (watch here), the athlete knocked over the pole during his attempt with his…well, his crotch, leading to numerous comments finding humour in the situation. Alas, the truth is that the pole had first struck his shins, then his knees, before impacting his bulge, but that won’t stop the memes on X and the punny headlines in the papers for a while.

• Men's 100-metre comes down to the wire in spectacular finish

  This event came down to a photo finish to determine who took the gold medal, and even the slow-motion replay showed the runners were so close to each other that it proved difficult for the layperson to tell. Ultimately, the gold medal went to American Noah Lyles, who was judged to have won thanks to a torso dip and surge of speed at the finish line. This is also a historic 100m final as every single finalist ran under 10 seconds for the first time ever.

• China sinks US dominance in 4x100 medley relay

  The Chinese team ended the US’ 64-year hold on the title, taking the win with a team led by 100m freestyle world record holder Pan Zhanle, who will be taking a lot of credit for his incredible speed during his part of the race, with teammate Qin Haiyang also commended for his performance. Watch the race here.

A very bad, bloody Monday for investors
Japan’s Nikkei stock exchange recorded its biggest loss since Black Monday in October 1987, with the plunge blamed on worries that the US economy is heading to a recession. The US Federal Reserve is expected to make a hefty rate cut in September, which pulled down the dollar and reduced its appeal as a safe-haven currency. The Nikkei plunge also follows a rate hike by the Bank of Japan, which pushed the yen upwards compared to the weighed-down dollar. The Bank of Japan has also shown signs of further rate hikes in future.

Meanwhile, the Magnificent 7 of the US stock market, which are expected to collectively lose USD1 tril in value as tech stocks are sold off. The sell-off, triggered by US recession fears, sees Apple and Nvidia likely to be the biggest losers, followed by Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Tesla, in no particular order. 

The two events are postulated to be tied to an investment strategy called a carry trade, which involves borrowing in a cheap currency to buy higher-returning investments. In this case, investors have been indulging in carry trades where they borrow in Japanese yen at low interest rates, then investing the borrowings in high-growth stocks, such as the Magnificent 7. With the dollar dropping against the yen, the highly profitable carry trade strategy ceases to be so, and investors are seeking safety while they can, leading to the ripple effect on global markets, even cryptocurrencies.

The only man who is smiling during this bloodbath:

Shorts:

1. Indonesian man arrested for murdering nosy neighbour 
   45-year-old Parlindungan Siregar beat 60-year-old Asgim Irianto to death with a piece of wood, with the incident sparked by Asgim constantly asking Parlindungan “why he was not married yet at the age of 45”. A handy story to have in your back pocket when it comes time for family gatherings.

2. China launches first batch of satellites to rival Starlink 
   The satellites will form a mega constellation to rival that of Space X’s Starlink and were launched by a Chinese state-owned enterprise, Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology. This first batch also marks the start of the firm’s “Thousand Sails Constellation” plan, which aims to deploy more than 15,000 low Earth orbit satellites.

3. German chipmaker to cut 1,400 jobs

   Infineon will be cutting 1,400 jobs worldwide as part of a cost savings programme, including the cancellation of several hundred positions at the company’s plant in southern Germany. A further 1,400 jobs will be relocated to countries with lower labour costs. This follows the firm’s latest quarterly results, where it missed revenue and profit forecasts.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. Know your basic rights against police when its comes to arrest, identification, body & bag search and mobile phone search, amongst others.

2. British Airways released its latest in-flight safety video inspired by Bridgerton and Pride and Prejudice.

3. It’s Tuesday. Work hard. Know why you are working hard.

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