Bank Negara’s international reserves up 1.05% to US$115.9bil

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara’s international reserves totalled US$115.9bil as of Aug 15, up 1.05% from US$114.7bil as of July 31. “The reserves position is sufficient to finance 5.4 months of imports of goods and services, and is 1.0 times of the total short-term external debt,” the central bank said in a statement. The main components of the...

Civil servant salary increase shouldn’t be greeted by unreasonable price hikes, says Zahid

KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi on Thursday (Aug 22) said that the government’s recent announcement on civil servant salary increase should not be greeted with unnecessary and unreasonable price hikes. While making adjustments to the civil servant salary, he said the government also wished to control inflation. "Of course, in such...

Immigration nabs 213 in raid on KL nightclub

KUALA LUMPUR: The Immigration Department arrested 213 foreigners for various immigration-related offences after raiding a nightclub near Jalan Raja Chulan early on Thursday (Aug 22). Immigration Department deputy director-general (operations) Jafri Embok Taha said 109 women and 104 men were arrested after his team checked 300 individuals, including 12 men and two local women, in Op...

GrabPay ewallet to charge 1% fee on credit card reloads from Sept 11

PETALING JAYA: Grab says it will start charging a 1% fee on credit card reloads to its GrabPay Wallet starting from Sept 11 onwards. According to an infographic on the Grab website, reloads via other payment methods, including bank transfers, debit cards, and GX Bank, a joint venture between Grab, Singtel, and other Malaysian investors, remain free. Customers should...

QuickCheck: Did a foreign teen pose as a child to get a Malaysian passport in Penang?

WITH the Malaysian passport being one of the most valuable in Asia in terms of the countries it can give a person access to, it would seem natural that there would be those who would try to get their hands on one by hook or by crook. It was claimed recently that a Sri Lankan teenager...

China father makes children kneel on busy road in bid to force return of estranged wife, enrages mainland social media

A father in southern China made his three young children kneel in the middle of a busy road in a bid to force the return of his estranged wife, sparking outrage on mainland social media. On Aug 15, a police officer in Foshan, Guangdong province, discovered the youngsters during a patrol. They were all under the age...

Ex-aide to MP charged with sexually assaulting student in Batu Pahat pool

PETALING JAYA: A former aide to an MP has been charged at the Muar Sessions Court with physical sexual assault of a female student at a Batu Pahat swimming pool last month. The accused, Zainoor Juma'at, 45, who is also the chairman of the Parent-Teacher Association of a school in Rengit, pleaded not guilty after the...

RM49,000 deposited into Wan Saiful’s personal account two years ago, court told

KUALA LUMPUR: The Sessions Court here was told on Thursday (Aug 22) that RM49,000 was deposited into the private bank account of former Bersatu information chief Datuk Wan Saiful Wan Jan two years ago. Maybank Bukit Damansara branch assistant manager Fazilah Omar, 49, confirmed that the amount was deposited into Wan Saiful's Maybank Islamic account via...

New scam targets those indebted to loan sharks, says Michael Chong

KUALA LUMPUR: Borrowing money from loan sharks is already stressful, but a new wave of deceit has emerged as scammers now attempt to intercept payments from victims to these illicit lenders. One such victim is a 36-year-old who wanted to be known only as Ah Chung, who lost RM1,000 to a scammer after borrowing money for...

Couple make off with gold bracelets worth RM10,000 in Melaka

ALOR GAJAH: A couple stole two gold bracelets worth RM10,000 from a jewellery store here. Alor Gajah OCPD Superintendent Ashari Abu Samah a police report was lodged shortly after the robbery at noon on Wednesday (Aug 21). The couple, he said, posed as customers and asked the cost of gold bracelets on display. Supt Ashari said the woman...