MONTHLY NEWS SCAN
Tinjauan Berita Bulanan
Compiled by IDS
Vol. 17 Issue 7
IDS Online http://www.ids.org.my
HIGHLIGHTS
FOKUS
• Growth is biggest threat to
global trade,WTO’s Lamy says
• US economic growth slows in
second quarter
• Malaysia jadi platform Jepun
• Ekonomi Malaysia sederhana
kepada 4.2%
• Tan: RM23.9bil boost for Sabah
• Ewon:
Kerajaan
serius
kurangkan kadar kemiskinan di
Sabah
INTERNATIONAL
ANTARABANGSA
Growth is biggest threat to global
trade, WTO’s Lamy says: A
deepening global slowdown may
prompt
governments
to
take
measures
to
shield
domestic
industries,
said
World
Trade
Organization chief Pascal Lamy. The
Geneva-based trade arbiter’s top
concern in the short term is keeping
protectionist pressures under control
amid deteriorating global economic
conditions, Lamy said on Bloomberg
Television’s “City Central” show
today. (16 July, Bloomberg)
US economic growth slows in
second quarter: Growth in the US
economy slowed in the second
quarter to an annualised pace of
1.5%, as consumer spending eased.
But growth in the first three months
of the year was revised up to 2%
from a previous estimate of 1.9%, the
Commerce
Department
said.
Previous data was also revised to
show the economy shrank by less
during the 2007-9 recession than
thought. Despite the slowdown, the
second quarter growth figures were
better than expected and US stocks
rallied sharply. The main Dow Jones
index closed up 188 points, or 1.5%,
at 13,076, its highest level since early
May. (27 July, BBC News)
slowing global demand and a strong
yen. Meanwhile imports jumped
7.4% amid rising fuel demand, as
most of Japan’s nuclear reactors
remain shut. That resulted in a trade
deficit of 2.9tn yen ($37bn; £24bn)
for the period. (25 July, BBC News)
China economic growth slows to
7.6% in second quarter: China’s
economy has grown at its slowest
pace in three years as investment
slowed and demand fell in key
markets such as the US and Europe.
Gross domestic product rose by 7.6%
in the second quarter, compared with
the same period a year ago. That is
down from 8.1% in the previous three
months. In March, Beijing cut its
growth target for the whole of 2012
to 7.5%. China accounts for about a
fifth of the world’s total economic
output and any slowdown may
hamper a global recovery. (13 July,
BBC News)
1 – 31 July 2012
UK economy to see return to
growth, says Item Club: The UK
economy should enjoy an “Indian
summer” after a poor first half of the
year, says a leading forecaster.
Falling inflation and a pick-up in
consumer spending will help the UK
return to growth in the second half of
the year, the Ernst & Young Item
Club says in its latest quarterly
forecast. It expects the inflation rate
to fall to 1.7% by the end of the year,
but overall growth for 2012 to remain
flat. The economy will grow by 1.6%
in 2013 and 2.6% in 2014, it says.
Peter Spencer, chief economic
adviser to the Item Club, said:
“Spiralling inflation has cut real
wages by 7.5% over the last four
years, but the squeeze is almost over.
(16 July, BBC News)
South Korea economic growth
slows as exports weaken: South
Korea’s economic growth slowed in
the second quarter, as investment
dipped and its exports sector was hurt
by the eurozone debt crisis. Gross
domestic product (GDP) expanded by
0.4% in the April to June period. In
the previous three months it grew
0.9%. The economy grew 2.4% from
the same period the previous year.
The data may prompt the central
bank, which cut interest rates earlier
this month, to ease its policy further.
The Bank of Korea unexpectedly cut
its key interest rate to 3% from
3.25% in the first reduction for three
years. (26 July, BBC News)
Eurozone unemployment rises to
fresh record high in May:
Unemployment in the eurozone hit
11.1% in May while the downturn in
its manufacturing sector continued,
according to official statistics. A total
of 17.56m people are now out of
work marking the highest level since
records began in 1995, according to
EU
statistics
body
Eurostat.
Meanwhile,
the
manufacturing
Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI),
compiled by Markit, was stuck at
45.1 in June. Any reading below 50
indicates contraction. The data
compounds the gloomy outlook for
the eurozone where companies have
reduced or frozen spending levels including labour costs - as fears over
the impact of the ongoing debt crisis
have reduced confidence in future
growth. (2 July, BBC News)
Russia moves to diversify economy
with technology projects: Twenty
miles west of Moscow, a new
technology race, rather like the space
race of the 1960s, is opening up. In
the area of farmland, Russia is trying
to build its own version of Silicon
Valley - the Skolkovo Innovation
Centre. It is part of the government
initiative to divert the country away
from its economic dependence on oil
and gas and towards a new kind of
industry. It has been a key policy for
Dmitry Medvedev, the man who was
Russia's president until he was
replaced by Vladimir Putin at the
beginning of May 2012. (4 July, BBC
News)
Singapore’s central bank raises
inflation forecast: The Monetary
Authority of Singapore (MAS) on
Wednesday
revised
its
2012
consumer inflation forecast for
Singapore to 4 per cent to 4.5 per
cent from 3.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent.
This is because the central bank
expects housing rentals and COE
premiums to remain high. However,
the MAS kept unchanged its core
inflation forecast of 2.5 per cent - 3.0
per cent for the year. The MAS core
inflation measure, which excludes
costs for accommodation and private
road transport, moderated to 2.7 per
cent in the April-to-June quarter. (25
July, Channelnewsasia.com)
Japan posts record half-yearly
trade deficit: Japan has posted a
record trade deficit for the first six
months of the year as exports
weakened and increased demand for
fuel resulted in a jump in imports.
Exports rose just 1.5% during the
period, from a year earlier, hurt by
1 – 31 July 2012
MONTHLY NEWS SCAN (Tinjauan Berita Bulanan)
1
NATIONAL
NASIONAL
Malaysia jadi platform Jepun:
Pertubuhan Perdagangan Luar Jepun
(JETRO) mahu bekerjasama dengan
Malaysia
untuk
membolehkan
syarikat-syarikat berasaskan makanan
Jepun menerokai pasaran halal dunia
yang berpotensi besar. Pengarah
Urusannya, Joji Ikeshita berkata,
pihaknya
berminat
menjadikan
Malaysia sebagai platform untuk
memasuki pasaran makanan Asia
Barat dan juga negara-negara Islam.
Malah, beliau tidak menolak untuk
mengimport sistem pengiktirafan
halal yang digunakan Malaysia,
untuk digunakan di negara matahari
terbit itu pada masa depan. “Malah,
terdapat idea yang diutarakan untuk
mewujudkan taman halal di Nigata,
Jepun,”
kata
beliau,
sambil
menambah penerimaan pengiktirafan
halal Malaysia di kawasan majoriti
rakyat Islam di China, menarik minat
Jepun untuk mengadakan kerjasama.
(5 Julai, Utusan Malaysia)
Ekonomi
Malaysia
sederhana
kepada
4.2%:
Pertumbuhan
ekonomi
Malaysia
dijangka
menyederhana kepada 4.2 peratus
tahun ini berbanding 5.1 peratus yang
dicatatkan tahun lepas, kata Institut
Penyelidikan Ekonomi Malaysia
(MIER). Ia berkata, permintaan
domestik dijangka kekal pendorong
utama
pertumbuhan
ekonomi
berikutan pembangunan luar yang
negatif. “Penggunaan swasta dan
kerajaan
akan
terus
menjadi
pendorong pertumbuhan ekonomi
teras,” katanya dalam satu kenyataan.
MIER
juga
berkata,
kadar
pertumbuhan ekonomi pada suku
pertama menyederhana kepada 4.7
peratus
berikutan
pertumbuhan
penggunaan peribadi dan eksport
bersih yang lebih perlahan. (18 Julai,
Utusan Malaysia)
Entrepreneur Conference (MCEC)”
as a platform to further enhance
bilateral trades. The objective of the
conference is to match investors from
China with local partners through its
business matching session. (27 July,
The Star)
Economists see 1.68pc rise in June
CPI: Inflation pressures have
steadied in Malaysia, thanks to the
drop in commodity prices. The
Consumer Price Index is expected to
grow by an average 1.68 per cent
year-on-year in June. The Statistics
Department will release the details
today. Bank of America Merrill
Lynch economist Dr Chua Hak Bin
expects inflation to hold steady,
helped by the easing commodity
prices. “Fuel subsidies have kept
transport costs contained, limiting the
impact from volatile global oil prices
on domestic fuel prices.” Citi said the
10-sen cut in RON97 prices to
RM2.80 per litre beginning June
helped. (18 July, Business Times)
Jumlah perdagangan Malaysia
RM538.6b: Jumlah perdagangan
Malaysia bagi tempoh lima bulan
pertama tahun ini berkembang 6.2
peratus kepada RM538.58 bilion
berbanding tempoh yang sama tahun
lalu.
Menurut
Kementerian
Perdagangan
Antarabangsa
dan
Industri (MITI), prestasi positif itu
disokong oleh pertumbuhan kukuh di
rantau Asia khususnya negara-negara
ASEAN, China, Jepun dan India.
Katanya, eksport Januari-Mei 2012
meningkat 3.9 peratus kepada
RM290.24 bilion manakala import
meningkat 8.9 peratus kepada
RM248.35 bilion. (5 Julai, Utusan
Malaysia)
Malaysia’s trade exposure to 5
troubled European countries at
1.5%: Malaysia’s exposure to the
five troubled economies in Europe in
terms of trade is minimal at 1.5%,
said Second Finance Minister Datuk
Seri Ahmad Husni Hanadzlah.
Speaking to reporters at the
Malaysian Banking Summit on
Thursday, he said the government is
maintaining its target of between 4%
and 5% growth in gross domestic
product this year. He added that the
government’s aim to reduce the fiscal
deficit to 4.7% remained intact,
despite the recent announcement that
it will pay out a half-month bonus
with a minimum payment of RM500
for civil servants and a special
payment of RM500 for pensioners.
(26 July, The Star)
Malaysia’s
economic
scenario
depends on demand, external
factors:
Malaysia’s
economic
scenario next year will depend on
domestic demand and external
factors, particularly developments
unravelling
in
the
protracted
eurozone debt crisis. Malaysian
Institute of Economic Research
(MIER) executive director Dr
Zakariah Abdul Rashid said the
global economic picture was not very
encouraging as China's economy was
moderating while Europe’s was
shrinking. He said the continuing
weaknesses in the United States,
particularly its weak job market, was
also contributing to the sluggish
economy. “Europe has not addressed
its real problems plaguing its
economy,” he said at the MIER
National Economic briefing. (18 July,
The Star)
Malaysian consumer confidence at
6-year high: Consumer confidence
in Malaysia rose to a six-year high
while more than two-thirds of
Malaysians were optimistic about
their job prospects and personal
finances, according to Nielsen. It said
on Tuesday consumer confidence
was up four points to 111 in the
second quarter of 2012, based on the
Nielsen
Global
Consumer
Confidence
Survey.
“Optimism
towards local job prospects and
personal finances continue to boost
confidence,” according to the
findings of the survey. The index last
hit its 111 level in the first quarter of
2006. Malaysia advanced to fifth
place from seventh among the 56
countries surveyed in terms of
confidence level, after Indonesia
(120), India (119), the Philippines
(116) and Saudi Arabia (115). (17
July, The Star)
IPI up 7.6% in May due to lowbase effect: Malaysia’s industrial
production index (IPI) expanded
7.6% in May from a year ago largely
due to a low-base effect. Economists
remain cautious despite data from the
Statistics
Department
showing
increases across the country’s
manufacturing, mining and electricity
output which make up the IPI. “The
electrical and electronic products
segment, which is part of the
manufacturing sector, should remain
weak and is expected only to rebound
by year-end on festive demand,” said
Alliance Investment Bank Bhd chief
economist Manokaran Mottain. (12
July, The Star)
MITI: Malaysia-China trade to
exceed last year’s RM172.9b: The
Ministry of International Trade and
Industry forecasts Malaysia-China
bilateral trade for 2012 to easily
exceed the US$54.5bil (RM172.9bil)
recorded last year. MITI principal
assistant director for China desk,
Albert Ch’ng said on Friday that
bilateral trade hit US$23.6bil
(RM74.87bil) in the January-May
period of 2012. The Malaysia-China
Chamber of Commerce (MCCC) has
teamed up with logistics provider
TNT Express Worldwide (M) Sdn
Bhd to organise the “Malaysia-China
1 – 31 July 2012
MONTHLY NEWS SCAN (Tinjauan Berita Bulanan)
2
LOCAL
TEMPATAN
Tan: RM23.9 bil boost for Sabah:
Sabah has received investment of
RM23.9 billion since the start of the
10th Malaysia Plan in 2011 until the
first quarter of this year. Minister of
Industrial
Development
Datuk
Raymond Tan Shu Kiah said data
from the Malaysian Investment
Development Authority (MIDA)
showed that of this amount, RM12.4
billion or 53 per cent was domestic
investment and the remaining
RM11.4 billion from overseas.
Replying to a question from Datuk
Samsudin Yahya (UMNO-Sekong) at
the State Assembly sitting in Kota
Kinabalu here yesterday, he said the
investment created14,674 jobs. (18
July, New Sabah Times)
Ewon: Kerajaan serius kurangkan
kadar kemiskinan di Sabah:
Kerajaan komited mengurangkan
kadar kemiskinan di negeri ini, kata
Menteri Pembangunan Luar Bandar
Datuk Dr. Ewon Ebin. Beliau
berkata,
ini
terbukti
dengan
penurunan
kadar
kemiskinan
daripada 24.2 peratus pada tahun
2004 kepada 19.7 peratus pada tahun
2009. Selain itu katanya paras
kemiskinan di beberapa bahagian di
Sabah juga berjaya diturunkan
khususnya di bahagian Pantai Barat
dan Pedalaman iaitu daripada 14.1
peratus kepada 8.0 peratus di Pantai
Barat dan daripada 29.0 peratus
kepada 15.8 peratus di Pedalaman.
“Kerajaan
telah
melaksanakan
pelbagai langkah untuk mencapai
objektif membasmi kemiskinan di
negeri ini khususnya mensifarkan
kemiskinan tegar. (18 Julai, New
Sabah Times)
Projek jalan pintas bermula
Oktober: Projek Pembinaan Jalan
Pintas Taman Ria 11-Kg Pasir Putih,
Tawau sejauh tiga kilometer bernilai
kira-kira RM10 juta dijangka
bermula Oktober tahun ini, sekaligus
memberikan satu lagi laluan alternatif
buat penduduk di kawasan terlibat.
Pembantu Menteri Pembangunan
Infrastruktur, Datuk Pang Yuk Ming
berkata
jalan
itu
mampu
mengurangkan kesesakan yang sering
menimbulkan rungutan pelbagai
pihak khususnya anggota masyarakat
pada waktu puncak. “Apabila projek
ini siap, masyarakat akan mempunyai
pilihan tambahan untuk keluar-masuk
di kampung ini selain jalan sedia
1 – 31 July 2012
ada,” katanya selepas turun padang
meninjau tapak projek terbabit
bersama Jurutera Jabatan Kerja Raya
Kota Kinabalu dan Tawau. (26 Julai,
The Borneo Post)
KR1M pertama di Sabah, kedua
terbesar di Malaysia: Kedai Rakyat
1Malaysia (KR1M) yang dilancarkan
di Kota Kinabalu kelmarin adalah
yang pertama di Sabah dan kedua
terbesar di Malaysia. Menteri
Perdagangan Dalam Negeri, Koperasi
dan Kepenggunaan (KPDNKK),
Datuk Sri Ismail Sabri Yaakob
berkata kerajaan di bawah pimpinan
Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib
Tun Razak telah menunaikan janji
kepada rakyat khususnya Sabah
dengan membuka KR1M pada 29 Jun
lalu. (13 Julai, The Borneo Post)
Kerajaan bantu lebih 200,000
golongan kurang mampu tingkat
tahap
kesihatan:
Kerajaan
menyasarkan
membantu
lebih
200,000
golongan
kurang
kemampuan meningkatkan tahap
kesihatan dan kualiti hidup mereka
melalui Program Siri Penjelajahan
Kesejahteraan
Keluarga
Untuk
Rakyat (SPEKKTRA). Timbalan
Menteri
Pembangunan
Wanita,
Keluarga dan Masyarakat Datuk
Heng Seai Kei berkata program itu
dilaksanakan di 200 lokasi iaitu 62 di
kawasan komuniti kampung baru, 38
di kawasan perladangan dan 100 di
kawasan kampung tradisional. Beliau
berkata di bawah program itu,
kerajaan
menyediakan
pelbagai
kemudahan
termasuk
Klinik
Kesihatan Keluarga (Bergerak) iaitu
enam buah di Semenanjung dan
masing-masing satu di Sabah dan
Sarawak. (29 Julai, New Sabah
Times)
85 keluarga terima bantuan tangki
1Malaysia:
Limpahan
nikmat
daripada kemajuan negara terus
dirasai oleh rakyat menerusi pelbagai
bantuan yang disumbangkan oleh
kerajaan. Timbalan Ketua Menteri,
Datuk Seri Yahya Hussin berkata,
hasil
daripada
kejayaan
dan
kemajuan ekonomi yang dicapai
negara, segala hasil tersebut dikongsi
bersama, terutama kepada golongan
yang
memerlukan.
Katanya,
menyedari kepentingan memiliki
tangki penyimpanan air bersih dalam
kalangan orang ramai di negeri ini,
kerajaan menyediakan bantuan tangki
1Malaysia kepada keluarga tidak
berkemampuan. (30 Julai, Utusan
Malaysia)
Pairin: RM1.8 mil assistance
provided to Tambunan farmers to
enhance productivity: The farmers’
lot today is very fortunate as they get
assistance and guidance from
government agencies and even
encouraged to engage in agricultural
activities as a profitable business.
Deputy Chief Minister, Tan Sri
Joseph Pairin Kitingan, said, in the
past, knowledge of agriculture is
limited and is handed down from
generation to generation. Where in
the past agriculture is more focused
as a livelihood or as food selfsufficiency for the family. However,
today, said Pairin, who is also
Minister
of
Infrastructure
Development, with guidance and
assistance from the government;
many farmers have enjoyed lucrative
benefits from agricultural activities.
(13 July, New Sabah Times)
167 peserta terima dividen RM1j:
Keupayaan Felcra Bhd. (Felcra)
memajukan kawasan tanah terbiar
seluas 383 hektar di daerah ini
dengan projek tanaman kelapa sawit
membuahkan hasil di samping
membuktikan keupayaan agensi
kerajaan itu membantu rakyat
khususnya kumpulan peladang. Ahli
Parlimen Sipitang, Datuk Sapawi
Ahmad berkata, pihak pengurusan
Felcra
telah
melaksanakan
tanggungjawab yang diamanahkan
dan hasilnya telah dinikmati oleh
rakyat daerah tersebut. “Felcra telah
memainkan peranan yang diharapkan
oleh kerajaan untuk membantu
meningkatkan ekonomi rakyat luar
bandar. (10 Julai, Utusan Malaysia)
1Azam bukti transformasi berlaku:
Peserta Program 1Azam diminta
menggunakan
kemahiran
yang
dipelajari semasa kursus berkenaan
untuk meningkatkan pendapatan dan
taraf hidup mereka. Ahli Dewan
Undangan Negeri (ADUN) Lumadan,
Kamarlin Ombi berkata, para peserta
tidak harus mensia-siakan kemahiran
mereka tanpa melakukan sebarang
usaha atau inisiatif untuk memajukan
diri. “Tujuan kerajaan menganjurkan
Program 1Azam (Akhiri Zaman
Miskin) ialah untuk membantu
golongan miskin tegar, miskin dan
mudah miskin dalam pelbagai aspek.
(30 Julai, Utusan Malaysia)
MONTHLY NEWS SCAN (Tinjauan Berita Bulanan)
3
SELECTED FACTS AND FIGURES
FAKTA MUTAKHIR
PERFORMANCE OF ASIAN MARKETS ON JULY 2
1.12%
0.11%
0.03%
Nikkei 225 (Japan)
-0.04%
Shanghai (China)
Kospi (South Korea)
-0.13%
STI (Singapore)
FBM KLCI (Malaysia)
(Source: (3 July, The Star)
MANUFACTURING SECTORS CONTINUES TO BE THE LARGEST CONTRIBUTOR TO FDI INFLOWS
2010
2011
Percentage of growth
40
2,403
5,334
4,189
11,966
53.8
146.7
6.7
35.0
31.5
(US$ million)
26
974
5,001
3,102
9,103
Agriculture, forestry and fishing
Mining and quarrying
Manufacturing
Services
TOTAL
(Source: 6 July, Business Times)
SUMMARY OF MALAYSIA’S EXTERNAL TRADE
May 2011
January 2012
February
March
April
May
2011 (Jan-May)p
2012 (Jan-May)p
Total Exports
(RM million)
55,093.8
55,070.1
56,865.4
61,787.0
57,736.9
58,777.5
279,248.9
290,236.9
Total Imports
(RM million)
46,606.9
46,320.8
46,286.0
51,332.8
50,230.8
54,174.9
227,988.7
248,345.3
Trade Balance
(RM million)
8,486.9
8,749.3
10,579.4
10,579.4
7,506.1
4,602.6
51,260.1
41,891.6
Total Trade
(RM million)
101,700.6
101,390.9
103,151.4
103,151.4
107,967.6
112,952.5
507,237.6
538,582.2
p: provisional data
(Source: 5 July, Business Times)
TOTAL INVESTMENTS APPROVED IN THE MALAYSIAN ECONOMY, 2011
1 – 31 July 2012
MONTHLY NEWS SCAN (Tinjauan Berita Bulanan)
4
Primary
28.1 (18.9%)
Manufacturing
56.1 (37.8%)
Services
64.4 (43.3%)
(Source: 4 July, Business Times)
AUSTRALIA CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (CPI), JUNE 2012
Weighted average of eight capital cities
All groups CPI
Food and non-alcoholic beverages
Alcohol and tobacco
Clothing and footwear
Housing
Furnishings, household equipment and services
Health
Transport
Communication
Recreation and culture
Education
Insurance and financial services
Mar Qtr 2012 to Jun Qtr 2012
% change
Jun Qtr 2011 to Jun Qtr 2012
% change
0.5
0.6
1.0
1.5
0.4
1.5
1.5
0.9
-0.3
-1.3
0.0
0.5
1.2
-3.2
3.8
0.6
3.4
0.7
3.6
2.1
0.9
-1.6
6.1
2.9
0.6
0.5
0.7
1.2
2.0
1.9
CPI analytical series
All groups CPI, seasonally adjusted
Trimmed mean
Weighted median
(Source: 31 July, Australia Bureau of Statistics)
1 – 31 July 2012
MONTHLY NEWS SCAN (Tinjauan Berita Bulanan)
5