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- ☕️ UMNO gives PAS a pass, Madani government breakup averted
☕️ UMNO gives PAS a pass, Madani government breakup averted
1MDB fight ain’t over - Malaysia to go after more global banks. Top and worst-performing Bursa-listed companies in 2025. The United Nations funding struggles.
Finance Finlit & The Coffee Break
January 07, 2026
1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈
2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢
The US has pledged USD2 bil (RM8.1 bil) in aid to the UN, following a new model of assistance that aims to make aid funding and delivery more efficient, while increasing accountability for how the funds are spent. This follows the US slashing its aid spending in 2025, with leading Western donors such as Germany also cutting back on assistance as they shifted their focus to increased defence spending. This triggered a severe funding crunch for the UN. The US and the UN will sign 17 memoranda of understanding with individual countries identified by the US as priority countries. However, some UN priority areas, like Yemen, Afghanistan, and Gaza, will not be receiving US funding under the new mechanism, requiring the UN to seek support from other donors. UN data showed that in 2025, total US humanitarian contributions to the UN fell to USD3.38 bil, representing 14.8% of the global sum. This was down sharply from USD14.1 bil in 2024.
The UN was forced to make tough choices due to the lack of funding and appealed for a 2026 aid budget of USD23 bil (RM93.15 bil), only half of what it had hoped for this year. The UN acknowledged that the plunge in donor funding comes at a time when humanitarian needs have never been greater. The reduced funding will result in tens of millions of people in urgent need of help being shut out. UN aid chief Tom Fletcher told reporters that the UN was “overstretched, underfunded, and under attack”.
In Indonesia, President Prabowo Subianto’s free school meals programme is expected to reach 80 mil recipients by Apr, according to the senior minister overseeing the food sector. The programme has been plagued by controversy due to its high costs and mounting food safety concerns, leading to setbacks for the programme. The president’s campaign promise in 2024 aimed to distribute food to as many as 83 mil school children and pregnant women but has seen more than 11,000 children nationwide affected by food poisoning. The original goal was for the programme to be fully rolled out by the end of 2025, but targets were scaled back due to a kitchen shortage. The allocation for the programme for 2026 is IDR335 tril (RM80.98 bil), double the allocation of 2025.
3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾
UMNO gives PAS a pass, Madani government breakup averted
UMNO will stay put in the unity government with Pakatan Harapan until the current term ends, despite weekend noise from its Youth wing calling for an exit, said party president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. He stressed this has been UMNO’s position since it teamed up with PH to form the government in Dec 2022, adding that a proposal by Umno Youth chief Muhamad Akmal Saleh, who argued the party was compromising on race, religion and royalty, was discussed at an Umno Political Bureau meeting but no decision was taken.
Pushing back against suggestions to revive ties with PAS under Muafakat Nasional, Zahid said UMNO had no appetite to repeat old alliances that ended badly, a clear reference to PAS’ past defection. His remarks come amid mixed reactions within BN, with some youth leaders backing Akmal while others warned that leaving the government would weaken UMNO’s influence, especially as the party currently holds 13 Cabinet posts. Zahid also welcomed PM Anwar Ibrahim’s proposal to cap a PM’s tenure at 10 years, calling it a “game changer” to prevent leaders from overstaying their welcome.
1MDB fight ain’t over - Malaysia to go after more global banks
Malaysia is stepping up pressure on global banks accused of playing a role in the 1MDB money trail, with the government now pushing courts in multiple jurisdictions to bring forward hearings in 2026 to speed things up. Finance Minister II Johari Abdul Ghani said authorities are also reviewing other financial intermediaries involved in the fund flows, as lawsuits continue against firms including Deutsche Bank, Standard Chartered, Julius Baer, RBS Coutts, Amicorp and law firm White & Case. While earlier suits against Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Coutts & Co were dropped after multi-billion dollar settlements and Malaysia remains open to negotiating if parties come forward, even after cases are filed. As of Oct 14, more than RM20 bil has already been clawed back through settlements, with a further RM8 bil in cash and assets recovered by MACC and returned to the government’s Consolidated Fund, showing that Putrajaya is far from done closing the 1MDB chapter.
Bersatu gives Saifuddin the boot, appeal coming
Bersatu has sacked its Supreme Council member Saifuddin Abdullah with immediate effect, a move the Indera Mahkota MP has confirmed, saying he plans to appeal. According to reports, the decision was taken at a party meeting and formalised in a letter from the Bersatu Disciplinary Board, citing alleged breaches of the party constitution under Clauses 22.5 and 9.1.4, though no details were spelt out. The letter was signed by disciplinary board chair Mohd Radzi Manan, with Saifuddin’s sacking coming months after he was summoned for investigations over claims he was linked to efforts to undermine party president Muhyiddin Yassin.
Shorts:
Police flag 10 more firms over scam links, public urged to check SemakMule
Police have flagged 10 more companies with alleged scam links and added them to the Commercial Crime Investigation Department’s (CCID) SemakMule database, following a spike in reports lodged within a month up to Dec 31, 2025. Firms including CVC Grow Star Sdn Bhd, CVC Group Sdn Bhd, KGI HK Sdn Bhd and Apek Express Services (M) Sdn Bhd had drawn multiple complaints in a short period, with their names closely resembling real, legitimate firms.
Actually, check out MoneyMama - it’s like a financial coach in your pocket (on WhatsApp!) and you can just ask mama a bank account number, company name, mobile number whether legit or not. Think of it as a better interface than typical government sites. Mama can do wonders, too - like nagging you to spend less.Tesla holds prices steady after EV tax break ends
Tesla Malaysia is holding its ground on pricing even after the EV tax holiday ended, keeping its entire line-up at the same starting prices introduced in 2025, with the Model 3 from RM169,000 and the Model Y from RM195,450. The company said the move shows its long-term commitment to Malaysia and ensures buyers keep benefiting from expanding charging networks across the country. Tesla currently operates 18 Supercharging stations and 17 destination charging locations, totalling 76 Superchargers and 79 destination chargers, with more sites in the pipeline to make ownership easier for daily use and long-distance travel, even as duty exemptions for fully imported EVs ended on Dec 31, 2025.
Get RM1,000 off your new Tesla with our promo code here. You’re welcome.
4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎
More of Trump and Latin America
After Venezuela, Trump seems to have his eyes on other Latin American countries, with his latest threats of military action against his Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, telling reporters that the government in Bogota was run by “a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States”.
Trump also believes the government in Cuba, too, is likely to fall soon. Trump said a lot of Cubans were killed in the US raid on Caracas, adding that an American military intervention in Cuba may be unnecessary because Cuba now has no income after the US took Venezuela. Some backstory - the US and Cuba have had strained relations since Fidel Castro overthrew a Washington-backed government in Havana in 1959 and established a socialist state allied with the former Soviet Union. He also sent a warning to Mexico, saying that there are still drugs pouring into the US through Mexico and that they (the US) need to do something about it.
Latin American countries Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Uruguay and Spain have strongly condemned the US action over Venezuela as a “dangerous precedent for peace and regional security”. Trump has made no secret of his ambitions to expand the US presence in the Western Hemisphere and revive the 19th-century Monroe Doctrine, which claims that Latin America falls under Washington’s sphere of influence. Of course, he has to Trump-ify it: He calls the 21st-century version the “Don-roe Doctrine”. Analysts said it remained unclear whether Trump would act on his threats or whether he was aiming to coerce the Latin American nations into cooperating with Washington.
What is the Monroe Doctrine?
A policy that was formulated by US President James Monroe in 1823, the Monroe Doctrine urged the division of the world into spheres of influence overseen by different powers. The policy warned European powers not to interfere in the affairs of the Americas, and in return, the US would recognise and not interfere with existing European colonies or their internal affairs. But it’s ok for US to interfere with Asian affairs?
In 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt added the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, asserting a US right to intervene in Latin American countries to prevent European interference, especially concerning debt or instability, to maintain stability and protect Washington’s interests in the Western Hemisphere. And so, Trump found this policy apt to justify his moves on Venezuela. Learn more about the doctrine here.
Someone won USD410,000 betting on Maduro’s removal
Meanwhile, a mystery trader has profited around USD410,000 (RM1.66 mil) after betting that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro would be ousted from his position. Using the prediction market platform Polymarket, the anonymous account was created in Dec, with the trader buying up USD96 worth of contracts on Dec 27 that would pay off if the US invaded Venezuela by Jan 31. The trader then made several more similar bets in the following days.
The account then built up positions in contracts tied to Maduro’s removal on terms that implied long odds before the weekend raid. Those wagers, which were worth about USD34,000 prior to Maduro’s capture, surged in value after news of the US military operation against the Venezuelan leader emerged. Prediction markets like Polymarket offer tradable yes-or-no contracts that allow users to bet on a wide range of real-world events, ranging from sporting and entertainment outcomes to politics and the economy. Basically, anything can be a bet, like whether Jesus Christ will return in 2025. This bet attracted USD3.27 mil in betting volume.
Biz:
Hyundai ushers in humanoid robots for car factory
Hyundai Motor Co’s Boston Dynamics unit has debuted its newest humanoid robot, Atlas, designed to work in its manufacturing plants starting in 2028, including at a factory in Savannah, Georgia. Atlas will handle highly repetitive tasks, such as arranging components in the order they are installed in vehicles. It features human-scale hands with tactile sensing and fully rotational joints capable of lifting up to 110 pounds (50kg) and operating in temperatures as low as - 4F (- 20C) and as high as 104F.
Hyundai aims to mass-produce as many as 30,000 robots annually at a new facility in the US, as part of a broader initiative to meld artificial intelligence (AI) with robotics. The South Korean company plans to invest KRW125 tril (USD86 bil or RM348 bil) in South Korea over the next five years in AI, robotics and other new technologies, and another USD26 bil in the US through 2028.
AI + robotics are coming after all our jobs. Gradually, then suddenly.
Philippine fast-food group Jollibee plans to list its global unit
Jollibee Foods Corp is going big and will spin off its international business and list it on the US stock exchange as it gears up for its global expansion this year. A rival to big brands like McDonald’s and Yum! Brands Inc., the corporation would include all of the company’s businesses outside its home market, the company said in a statement filed to the Philippine Stock Exchange, where its Philippine operations will remain listed.
The food giant owns several brands (view its brands here), including its iconic Jollibee chain and The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. The group had 10,304 stores as of Sept, of which 6,859 were located overseas across over 30 countries. International business generated around 43% of Jollibee’s PHP224.2 bil (RM15.3 bil) revenue from Jan to Sept, up from its 28% share in 2019 and 21% portion in 2017. Its market cap stands at USD4.1 bil.
Shorts:
Tomorrowland to be held in Thailand this year
The hugely popular European electronic dance music or EDM festival Tomorrowland is set to take place this Dec in Pattaya, Thailand, said to be chosen for its "growing influence on the global stage of music, innovation, and experience-driven tourism". It’s estimated to attract around 50,000 people per day. Tomorrowland has become one of the world's most iconic celebrations of EDM, with its annual Belgian edition often featuring ambitious, creative stages and wild parties that draw music lovers from across the world. Thailand finalised an agreement with Tomorrowland to host the event for five years and expects it to generate THB21 bil (USD673 mil or RM2.7 bil) over the period.OECD finalises agreement on global minimum tax
The US and more than 100 other countries have finalised an agreement that would exempt US-based multinational corporations from the 15% global minimum tax negotiated through the Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development, or OECD. Under the agreement, other countries would be effectively blocked from imposing additional taxes on foreign subsidiaries of US multinationals to compensate for profits that are under-taxed in other jurisdictions. US officials made the case that American companies already face a minimum tax regime, both through a 15% federal corporate minimum tax imposed on companies with at least USD1 bil (RM4.07 bil) in profits and the US international tax regime, which imposes levies ranging from 12.6% to 14% on a corporation’s foreign profits.
5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺
Inve$tment
Dividend counters to analyse. For total returns for the year, add the year’s appreciation (i.e. YTD % chg) and dividend yield.
