☕️ Malaysia to splurge over USD240 bil (RM1.02 tril) to lower US tariffs

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

Remember last week, we mentioned there weren’t enough psychologists in Malaysia? Well, this is probably worse. Malaysia has about 9 mil children, but only six paediatric palliative care specialists in the country. Palliative care is specialised care that prevents and relieves suffering for individuals facing serious illnesses while offering support to their families. Rising demand and only six specialists available have led to a call for urgent reform and public awareness before more terminally ill children and their families slip through the cracks. For reference, the world estimate is for one specialist per every 300,000 children. In Malaysia, the ratio is currently one specialist for 1.5 mil children.

Meanwhile, Malaysia is high on a list for the wrong reason again. Our nation is currently ranked second in Asia for cyberbullying among youths, just behind China. Worldwide? Ranked fifth. Nearly 47% of parents knew at least one child in their community who had been cyberbullied, with a quarter of parents believing their child had experienced online bullying. The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission reported an average of 27 cases of cyberbullying reported per day between Jan and Nov 2024. Experts believe that the rise of cyberbullying among youths is peer pressure and a desire to fit in with like-minded groups. A downside to a strong cyber army, it looks like. Remember #IsraelKoyak and the Japanese cyclist during the Olympics?

The Malaysian healthcare system has almost 15,000 patients waiting for elective surgeries at government hospitals right now. Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said the ministry is aware of the extended wait times, but added that emergency operations take priority. The elective surgeries include treatment procedures for conditions like cataracts and kidney stones. Several heart surgeries, like coronary artery bypass grafts and heart valve surgeries, are also counted under elective surgeries. To address the long wait times, of between three to 21 months depending on the type of procedure, the ministry has implemented several initiatives, such as deploying surgical specialists to more hospitals and pursuing collaborations between agencies.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Malaysia to splurge over USD240 bil (RM1.02 tril) to lower US tariffs
In order to secure the lower 19% tariff rate from the US, Malaysia had to make more than a few trade concessions. Thanks to Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz’s ministerial statement in Parliament, we now know that Malaysia is committing to over USD240 bil worth of purchases and investments to reduce the trade gap between the two countries.

Key deals include:

• USD150 bil in purchases by multinational companies in Malaysia’s semiconductor, aerospace, and data centre sectors over 5 years

• USD70 bil in Malaysian investments in the US over 10 years

• USD19 bil Boeing aircraft purchase by Malaysia Aviation Group for fleet renewal USD3.4 bil per year in liquefied natural gas purchases by Petronas USD42.6 mi per year in coal purchases by Tenaga Nasional Bhd USD119 mil in telecommunications product purchases by Telekom Malaysia Bhd

Tengku Zafrul assured Malaysians that these hefty commitments avoided compromising national interests, and maintained Bumiputera equity requirements in strategic sectors.

Perikatan Nasional open to cooperating with MIC
Opposition coalition Perikatan Nasional (PN) have stated their openness in cooperating with the 79 year-old Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC). This follows MIC president SA Vigneswaran’s announcement that MIC was exploring talks with other parties, acknowledging the party was in a weakened position.

For context, MIC’s influence within the Barisan Nasional coalition began to see a decline in the years after the 2008 general election over dissatisfaction within the Indian community over inequality, discrimination and a lack of representation. Following the 2022 General Elections, MIC’s rather meagre political holdings now comprise 3 seats in the Dewan Negara, 1 Seat in the Dewan Rakyat (Tapah Parliamentary seat) and 5 state seats (1 in Malacca, 1 in Pahang and 3 in Johor).

Since 2023, PN stated there were MIC members who quit the party to join the coalition, adding that the Pakatan Harapan coalition had failed the Indian community.
Watch: Does PN really care about Malaysian Indians?

Padu data to be used for RON95’s targeted subsidy mechanism
Remember PADU? Yes, that central database hub many Malaysians refused to register with out of privacy concerns. Well, it seems that the database system which cost over RM85 mil will finally be put to its intended use - streamlining government aid and subsidy distribution.

Finance Minister II Amir Hamzah Azizan announced that the MOF will fully utilise Padu’s data in implementing the targeted subsidy for the RON95 fuel. According to Amir, the government can also identify intervention programmes which are appropriate for target groups based on the compiled data of 30.4 mil individual profiles, with crucial info such as demographics, locality, socio-economic status, employment, income, education, types of assistance received, etc.

The implementation of the RON95 targeted subsidy was first confirmed during PM Anwar Ibrahim’s Jul 23 announcement. Anwar claimed that the targeted subsidy mechanism would benefit 18 mil car drivers and motorcyclists, among them Malaysians as young as 16 years old as well as gig workers.

Shorts

1. DAP’s women division slam ‘unsanitary” protest by veteran party members

   DAP’s women wing, though Wanita DAP chief Teo Nie Ching has taken the Negeri Sembilan DAP Veterans Club to task for using sanitary pads to criticise the nomination of an ‘outsider’ for Negeri Sembilan’s senator position - party member Vincent Wu from Johor. During a Press conference, around 50 members of the Negeri Sembilan DAP Veterans Club wore custom-made “sanitary pad masks” to represent the Negeri Sembilan DAP state committee’s “airtight silence” over Vincent Wu’s nomination. This gesture however was condemned, with Teo stating, “Using sanitary pads as tools of attack or ridicule only reinforces the shame and stigma long associated with menstruation.” DAP secretary-general Anthony Loke has since described the act as “inappropriate and insensitive”, urging dissatisfied members to raise their concerns internally.

2. JPJ issues RM445,800 in fines to Singapore vehicles without active VEP tags

   During a spot check on 14,379 Singapore-registered vehicles conducted between Jul 1 and Aug 3, JPJ reportedly issued 1,489 summonses totalling RM445,800 in fines to those vehicles that failed to install or activate their RFID Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) tags. The excuse given by these drivers? The standard “I dunno” (aka ignorance). They were unaware that the Malaysian government had begun enforcement of the VEP tags and thought it was still in the advocacy phase.

3. Meet Malaysia’s first-ever chess Grandmaster

   25-year-old Yeoh Li Tian from Petaling Jaya made Malaysia proud by officially earning the coveted Grandmaster (GM) title, the highest possible title awarded in the world of chess. Yeoh, who started playing chess at the age of three, shared that “ his journey was long and gruelling” with his biggest sacrifice being the lack of a childhood. As tough as it sounds, let’s admit that not everyone can boast of belonging to a small, elite group of chess players like Yeoh - fewer than 2,000 players worldwide hold the GM title. Watch Yeoh’s winning match

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Where's the aid for Gaza?
Hamas issues conditions for allowing aid to Israeli hostages in Gaza
Hamas said it was prepared to coordinate with the Red Cross to deliver aid to Israeli hostages it is holding as long as Israel meets certain conditions, namely that Israel permanently opens humanitarian corridors and stops airstrikes during the distribution of aid. This follows sharp criticism from Western powers after a video Hamas released showed an emaciated captive. Israeli PM Netanyahu had called on the International Red Cross to provide food and medical care to the hostages after the video was released. Can’t really fault Hamas for those conditions, considering the number of Palestinians killed while seeking aid continues to climb, and the deaths from starvation, among other causes, have also led to burial shrouds being in short supply, especially with the continued Israeli border restrictions.

Hundreds of Israeli ex-officials call for Trump to end war
600 retired Israeli security officials, including former heads of intelligence agencies, have written to US President Trump, calling on him to pressure Israel to “immediately end the war in Gaza”. They offered their professional judgement that “Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat to Israel”. This comes amid reports that Netanyahu is pushing to expand military operations in Gaza. Joining their letters is another one from within the US, reportedly signed by more than a dozen House Democrats. This letter calls on the Trump administration to recognise a Palestinian state, with at least one lawmaker planning to introduce a pro-statehood resolution. But the largest gathering of voices recently is reported to be a protest in Australia, when tens of thousands of demonstrators marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, calling for peace and aid deliveries in Gaza. This comes less than a week after a joint statement by Australia and over a dozen nations stating their consideration to recognise the state of Palestine. Protest organiser Palestine Action Group Sydney said in a Facebook post that as many as 300,000 people may have marched, though police estimates numbered the crowd at about 90,000.

Business and Economics
Tesla grants CEO Musk USD29 bil (RM124.05 bil) in shares
The shares are part of a new pay deal aimed at keeping Musk at Tesla’s helm during a crucial pivot from the firm’s struggling auto business to robotaxis and humanoid robots. The shares are a “good faith” payment to honour Musk’s 2018 pay package of over USD50 bil that was struck down by a court last year. A longer-term CEO payment plan will be voted on at the annual investor meeting on Nov 6. The share award also serves to boost Musk’s voting power, something that is said to be key to keeping him focused on Tesla’s mission. However, the new shares require Musk to remain in a key executive role through 2027 and have a five-year holding period. Musk’s networth currently stands at USD352 bil per Bloomberg Billionaire Index.

Ray Dalio sells remaining stake in hedge fund Bridgewater
Billionaire investor Ray Dalio has finally sold the last of his shares in hedge fund Bridgewater Associates, after years of selling his stake and as part of his management transition. However, Dalio, who founded Bridgewater in 1975, will continue to be a significant investor in Bridgewater’s strategies while serving as a mentor. Now, Dalio has turned his focus to macro strategies, such as trading currency and fixed income markets based on economic trends. He was also a sceptic of Bitcoin, but has since turned into a believer. Now, he thinks that investors should have 15% of their portfolio in either gold or Bitcoin to optimise their portfolios for “the best return-to-risk ratio”. He did say that he still strongly prefers gold to Bitcoin, but sees the real economic issue facing markets and investors is the devaluation of fiat money.

Criminal acts
Torture groups found starving, drowning cats in the UK
An international network that shares online videos of cats and kittens being tortured has members in the UK, according to an investigation by the BBC. The network is thought to have thousands of members who post, share, and sell graphic images and videos of cats being hurt and killed. Police are now looking into possible links to the wider network of cat torturers. The torture groups are believed to have started in China, but now have members active around the world. In a UK group, one of the members discussed adopting kittens from shelters to commit unspeakable acts on them. The most active torturer is believed to have filmed the torture and killing of over 200 cats.

Singapore-based billionaire pleads guilty
79-year-old Ong Beng Seng, the billionaire hotelier who is credited with bringing F1 racing to Singapore, pleaded guilty to a charge connected to a corruption scandal that rocked the city-state last year. He admitted to abetting the obstruction of justice by helping ex-transportation minister Subramaniam Iswaran to cover up evidence when the official was under investigation for corruption. When they were engaged in official business, Ong gave expensive gifts, including an all-expenses-paid trip which included a private jet ride, to the former minister. Ong will be sentenced on Aug 15, though he is likely to see a fine rather than jail time, considering his poor health due to a rare bone marrow cancer.

Chinese mafia battle in Italy over clothes hanger distribution rights
Italy’s fast fashion centre, Prato, is the new battleground for Chinese Mafia groups, with the gangs looking to seize control of the production of hundreds of millions of clothes hangers each year – an industry worth an estimated USD115 mil (RM491.91 mil) – along with the bigger prize of transporting apparel. The situation has gotten so severe that Prato has called on Rome for help in the form of an anti-mafia division and reinforcements for judges and police. The city has one of Europe’s largest Chinese communities, but recent months have seen Chinese business owners and factory workers beaten or threatened, with cars and warehouses burned. The Chinese mafia groups also “promotes the illegal immigration of workers of various nationalities”.

Shorts

1. Indian Gen-Zers hold fake weddings to party in latest trend 
   Fake weddings are the latest party rage among Indian Gen-Zers, who gather to enjoy the wedding party – minus the actual marriage. These are ticketed events organised by hotels, clubs, and companies, with the promise of the full experience of a wedding party without any stress, rituals, or responsibilities. The trend is said to be a sign that novelty remains key in the hospitality sector.

2. Russian volcano erupts for first time in over 500 years 
   The Krasheninnikov Volcano in Kamchatka threw up an ash plume up to 6km high when it erupted for the first time in 500 years. Experts believe the eruption may be linked to the magnitude 8.8 earthquake that struck the region last week. Hours after the eruption, another large earthquake measured at magnitude 7.0 led to tsunami warnings in three areas of the peninsula.

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5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. How much do the top 10 tenants in Sunway Pyramid pay in monthly rent? Number #10 starts from RM245k per month (RM2.94 mil per year). Part 1 below, Part 2 here. Source based on Sunway REIT 2024 Annual Report (page 97).

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2. RM107,000,000,000 - that’s RM107 bil, the amount of housing projects abandoned nationwide. So, is property investment, in general, still a good investment for the masses? Perhaps consider an alternative - Bitcoin.
   Learn: Why smart investors buy Bitcoin, not real estate