Latest news with #RM116bil
The Star
17-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Ensuring agility of economy
Show of respect: Ramli (second from left) inspecting the guard of honour mounted by the Federal Reserve Unit of the police during the opening of the state assembly sitting. — CHAN BOON KAI/The Star GEORGE TOWN: Newly-appointed Penang Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Ramli Ngah Talib welcomes the state's various initiatives for sustainable and future economic progress. One such initiative is Penang Silicon Design @5km, a strategic move to bolster the integrated circuit (IC) design sector and accelerate the growth of the state's semiconductor ecosystem. Other key projects include Penang IC Design and Digital Park, Penang Chip Design Academy and Silicon Research and Incubation Space, aimed at creating high-value jobs and attracting investments from leading global technology companies. Ramli said the state's gross domestic product (GDP) of RM116bil was driven by two major sectors – services and manufacturing. 'The dependence on these high-impact sectors makes the state's economy more agile in facing external challenges and global uncertainties. 'Penang is proud to remain among the top-six major contributors to the 73% share of the national GDP. 'The state also recorded the highest GDP per capita at RM72,586. 'In 2023, Penang achieved 3.3% economic growth. 'On international trade, Penang recorded a trade volume of RM788.1bil in 2024, an increase of 11.6% compared with RM696.7bil in 2023,' he said before opening the state legislative assembly sitting yesterday. As the new head of state, Ramli expressed his appreciation for the state's commitment to strengthening Islam. He said Penang had invested RM6mil in the construction of two mosques – Masjid Papan Kampung Pertama and Masjid Bandar Cassia. 'Several other mosque projects are also in progress, including Masjid Sungai Kechil, Masjid Bandar Putra Bertam, Masjid Taman Sungai Dua Utama and Masjid Mengkuang Titi,' he said. Another notable development, Ramli said, is the KITAB Smart City Campus in Bandar Cassia, Batu Kawan. The project to be built on 7ha wakaf land will feature a mosque and Islamic centre, commercial hub, student dormitories and administrative and academic facilities of the Penang International College of Technology. Ramli also thanked the Federal Government for its continued support of major infrastructure projects that enhance connectivity and improve mobility for the people of Penang. He said two new Bills, namely Penang Water Supply Authority Bill 2025 and Penang Water Supply Bill 2025 will be tabled during the state assembly proceedings.
The Star
14-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Death row tycoon vows to turn empire into ‘golden goose'
Relentless legal battle: Lan (right) at a court hearing in Ho Chi Minh City in this file photo. — AFP A PROPERTY tycoon trying to avoid a death sentence for multi-billion-dollar fraud has promised to turn her property empire into a 'golden goose' to help pay back the assets she embezzled, her lawyer said. Property developer Truong My Lan lost an appeal in December against the death penalty in a case in which she was found guilty of stealing money from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) and fraud amounting to US$27bil (RM116bil). The appeal court ruled there was no basis to reduce her sentence but said she could still escape the death penalty if she paid back three-quarters of the amount stolen. In a letter sent from jail to a state-controlled committee handling her properties, Lan said her assets have been significantly undervalued, causing potential losses to the state and affecting her rights, her lawyer Giang Hong Thanh said. Lan said the government-appointed company that valued 726 of her assets, several of them real estate projects in prime areas of Vietnam's biggest cities, had estimated their worth at around US$9.7bil (RM42bil). But Lan argued in the wake of new land price guidelines issued by authorities in Ho Chi Minh City, where most of the projects are situated, that their value had likely increased by three to five times. She added that if her other 440 assets were valued, the state could collect another US$7.7bil (RM33bil) at least. 'I believe that with my 30-year experience in the real estate business and my thorough legal understanding, I could turn most of the assets into a golden goose so that the state can recover the costs,' Lan wrote in her letter, pleading for authorities to allow her involvement. Tens of thousands of people who invested their savings in SCB lost money, shocking the communist nation and prompting rare protests from the victims. In a second appeal trial in April, Lan's life sentence in a separate US$17bil (RM73bil) money laundering case was cut to 30 years. Prosecutors said she had repaid a quarter of the US$1.2bil (RM5.2bil) she defrauded from thousands of bond investors. — AFP
