Gerakan launches fundraiser to pay damages to Guan Eng
Gerakan has launched a fundraiser to help its deputy president Oh Tong Keong pay RM500,000 in damages to DAP adviser Lim Guan Eng.
This comes after the Penang High Court earlier this month found Oh and Chinese daily, China Press, liable for defaming the former finance minister...
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New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
KPDN seizes RM50k worth of subsidised LPG in Mantin
SEREMBAN: The Negri Sembilan Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry (KPDN) has foiled an attempt to siphon subsidised liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) worth an estimated RM50,000, following a raid on an illegal storage facility in Mantin. Its director, Muhammad Zahir Mazlan, said the raid was conducted under Ops Gasak after a week-long surveillance of the syndicate's activities. He said checks at the premises revealed that it was being used as an illegal storage and transfer point for subsidised gas into unauthorised cylinders, mostly carried out at night to evade detection by the authorities. "The raiding team successfully seized 150 LPG cylinders of various brands and sizes, along with decanting equipment and several business documents believed to have been used in the illegal operation. "The total value of the seizure is estimated to exceed RM50,000. "The case is being investigated under the Control of Supplies Act 1961, which provides for a maximum fine of RM1 million, or imprisonment of up to three years, or both, upon conviction," he said.
New Straits Times
3 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Trump may call Xi 'very soon' to revive stalled trade talks, says US Treasury chief
WASHINGTON: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that President Donald Trump could speak with China's Xi Jinping "very soon," and that such a call could help break the logjam in the trade talks between the world's two biggest economies. Trump on Friday accused Beijing of violating a deal reached last month in Geneva – negotiated by Bessent – to temporarily lower staggeringly high tariffs they had imposed on each other, in a pause to last 90 days. China's slow-walking on export license approvals for rare earths and other elements needed to make cars and chips have fuelled US frustration, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday – a concern since confirmed by US officials. But Bessent seemed to take the pressure down a notch, telling CBS's "Face the Nation" that the gaps could be bridged. "I'm confident that when President Trump and Party Chairman Xi have a call that this will be ironed out," Bessent said, however noting that China was "withholding some of the products that they agreed to release during our agreement." When asked if rare earths were one of those products, Bessent said, "Yes." "Maybe it's a glitch in the Chinese system. Maybe it's intentional. We'll see after the president speaks with" Xi, he said. On when a Trump-Xi call could take place, Bessent said: "I believe we will see something very soon." Since Trump returned to the presidency, he has slapped sweeping tariffs on most US trading partners, with especially high rates on Chinese imports. New tit-for-tat levies on both sides reached three digits before the de-escalation this month, where Washington agreed to temporarily reduce additional tariffs on Chinese imports from 145 per cent to 30 per cent. China, meanwhile, lowered its added duties from 125 per cent to 10 per cent. In an interview with ABC's "This Week," Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said China was "slow-rolling the deal," adding: "We are taking certain actions to show them what it feels like on the other side of that equation." "Our president understands what to do. He's going to go work it out," Lutnick said.--AFP
New Straits Times
5 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Asyraf Wajdi: Three UK universities offer tuition discount for Mara students
LONDON: Three leading universities in the United Kingdom have agreed to offer tuition fee discounts of between 10 and 20 per cent to students sponsored by Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara), said its chairman Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki. He said the discounts, secured through discussions between Mara and the universities' top management, could help reduce the financial burden by more than RM100,000 per student annually. The three institutions are the University of Warwick and the University of Birmingham, both offering a 20 per cent discount, while the University of Edinburgh has agreed to a 10 per cent reduction. "To illustrate, Warwick is offering a discount of up to £6,000 a year. For a typical three-year undergraduate programme, that amounts to £18,000, or around RM110,000 in total, significantly lowering the overall cost," he said during a press conference today. Asyraf Wajdi is currently in the UK for strategic meetings with senior leadership and prominent academics at the University of Cambridge, as well as several other institutions. He said there are currently 1,508 Mara-sponsored students pursuing their studies in the UK. He added that the Cambridge University Trust has also expressed interest in collaborating with Mara through a co-funding arrangement for postgraduate research students at the Master's and PhD levels. "Insya-Allah, if all terms are finalised, Mara could save up to RM5 million through this initiative," he said. He described the partnership as part of Mara's strategic agenda to ensure that Malaysian students are globally competitive in academic and professional fields. Additionally, he said Cambridge University had agreed to send a delegation to Malaysia to engage with Maktab Rendah Sains Mara International General Certificate of Secondary Education (MRSM IGCSE) students. The initiative, he said, aligns with Mara's goal to establish a dedicated academic feeder pathway for MRSM students seeking admission into top global universities. Asyraf Wajdi also said that the collaboration would create opportunities for 9,987 Mara educators across vocational colleges, Mara universities and MRSMs to participate in knowledge exchange programmes. "These educators will be able to undertake joint research and pursue postgraduate studies in strategic fields at Cambridge. "These include renewable energy, artificial intelligence (AI), social sciences, quantum technology, blockchain, the Internet of Things (IoT), entrepreneurial innovation, and other emerging disciplines that will shape the global economy of the future," he said.
