KUALA LUMPUR: Controlling inflation and widening insurance base coverage is the approach the government is looking at to tackle soaring medical costs, says Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan. He said the Diagnosis-Related Group (DRG) system is one of the important aspects to address the issue. "We have agreed to expand the insurance coverage in...
KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara has cut the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) by 25 basis points to 2.75% at its July Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, marking the first rate adjustment since May 2023. The latest move by Bank Negara was broadly in line with market expectations, following a Bloomberg poll that showed economists were split, with...
PETALING JAYA: About 97% of goods in the market will be taxed once the expanded Sales and Services Tax (SST) comes into effect on July 1, increasing pressure on the public, according to Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong. The MCA president stated that under the new scheme, thousands of products previously exempt from SST would...
KUALA LUMPUR: Controlling inflation alone is insufficient to alleviate cost-of-living pressures, said Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), highlighting the urgent need for structural reforms to address stagnant wage growth and ensure that incomes keep pace with rising prices. Deputy Governor Datuk Marzunisham Omar said that although headline inflation has eased significantly due to timely monetary policy tightening, price...
PETALING JAYA: If the 24% reciprocal tariff by the United States on Malaysia were to take effect in the near term, this will raise the chances of Bank Negara revising the benchmark lending rate – the overnight policy rate (OPR). Most experts, however, said the central bank is unlikely to lower the rates solely on tariffs...
HANOI: Vietnam's consumer price index increased by 3.27% in the first two months of 2025 from the same period in 2024, and industrial production climbed by 7%, the government said on Wednesday (March 5), a day ahead of the scheduled release of the data. Figures published on the government's website showed the trade surplus for the...
KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit closed higher against the US dollar on Wednesday, supported by data showing a decline in Malaysia’s inflation rate, said an economist. According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), Malaysia’s inflation rate for December 2024 moderated to 1.7 per cent, compared to the 2024 annual rate of 1.8 per cent. At 6 pm,...
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s retail sector remained resilient in November 2024, as reflected in the latest distributive trade index (DTI) data, but analysts noted potential headwinds ahead. The Department of Statistics Malaysia reported a 3.9% year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in the DTI for November, reaching 158.8 points, although this represented a slowdown from the 5.1% y-o-y growth recorded...
KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit closed a little lower against the greenback for the second consecutive day on Tuesday on caution amid ongoing uncertainties in the Middle East and ahead of the US consumer price index (CPI) report due tomorrow. At 6 pm, the local currency slid to 4.4250/4300 against the US dollar, compared to yesterday’s close...
US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on November 4, 2024. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) WASHINGTON (Reuters): In a meeting with one of America's most powerful unions in September at its Washington headquarters, Vice President Kamala Harris said she'd...
