Business

KUALA LUMPUR, Collective efforts between the Federal and state governments are essential to create a more cohesive and dynamic business environment in Malaysia, said Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz. By aligning strategies and complementing each other’s resources, the Federal and state governments can better support domestic industries and attract more investments into Selangor and Malaysia, he said. ‘To seize these opportunities, Malaysia must develop an ecosystem conducive to innovation, entrepreneurship, and investment. ‘This includes providing support to our entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and fostering strong partnerships between the public and private

KUALA LUMPUR, Nestle (Malaysia) Bhd’s net profit almost halved to RM93.60 million in the second quarter (2Q) ended June 30, 2024, from RM180.92 million a year ago due to lower sales and its conscious choices regarding pricing. The food and beverage manufacturer said that as Malaysian families coped with rising food prices and other basic items, it made efforts to moderate the translation of external cost increases to its final prices by absorbing part of the costs and actively mitigating cost pressure through various actions. Meanwhile, revenue for the quarter under review fell to RM1.52 billion from a historic high

KUALA LUMPUR, The forward-looking ASEAN Digital Economy Framework (DEFA), currently under negotiation, is likely to be completed during the ASEAN Summit next year, said Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz. He said that intra-trade within ASEAN currently stands at 20 per cent, and DEFA is expected to boost intra-trade between member states, particularly for small and medium enterprises (SMEs). ‘One way to increase ASEAN’s intra-trade is through increasing digital e-commerce and this would help SMEs, especially when we trade more between the ASEAN members,’ he told reporters on the sidelines of the Eighth

SHAH ALAM, AEON Co. (M) Bhd (AEON) today signed its first Collective Agreement with the AEON Workers’ Union, ensuring the welfare of over 10,000 employees within the retail and supermarket chain. Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong witnessed the signing of this landmark agreement, which was signed by AEON deputy managing director Tsugutoshi Seko, Human Resources chief officer Dr Kasuma Satria Mat Jadi, AEON Workers’ Union president Hamidah Mohamad and its secretary-general Muhammad Fadhli Muhammad Zamsuri. Also present were AEON managing director Naoya Okada and UNI Malaysia Liaison Council (UNI MLC) president Datuk Mohamed Shafie BP Mammal. Under this

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia saw its leading index (LI) grew 3.8 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to 114.2 points in May 2024 from 110.0 points in the same period last year, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DoSM). ‘The growth reflected a resilient economy underpinned by increasing tourism activities and promising external demand,’ chief statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said in a statement today. LI is a tool utilised for predicting economic trends for an average of four to six months ahead. Mohd Uzir said Malaysia’s LI has maintained its positive growth for the six consecutive months, primarily supported