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KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Health Ministry has proposed that interstate travel be postponed for the upcoming Hari Raya Aidilfitri, as daily COVID-19 cases continue to rise. Speaking after a ministry event on Thursday (Apr 15), Health Minister Adham Baba said the proposal to put off approval for interstate travel was due to two reasons. “One, there are new variants of COVID-19 in the community. Two, the vaccination programme is still ongoing, so we need to control the situation,” he said. He noted that many parties have appealed to the government to permit interstate travel for this major festival. On whether exceptions could be made for those who have completed their vaccination, Dr Adham said the ministry was still waiting for findings from the World Health Organisation and the US' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). If the ministry’s proposal to halt cross-state travel for the upcoming Hari Raya celebrations is accepted, this will be the second year ... » Learn More about Malaysian Health Ministry proposes that interstate travel be postponed for Hari Raya

NEWS that American banking group Citigroup Inc is closing down its consumer banking business in 13 markets, including Malaysia, does not come as a surprise and has ignited fresh concerns that competition in the banking space can only get more heated. With costs increasing 3% to 5% yearly on a general basis and product and servicing charges remaining flat or on a decline, observers say it is now not only the smaller consumer-centric banks that are struggling but lenders of all sizes. “With the onslaught of fintech startups and new digital banks, big existing lenders need to consider restructuring their businesses as the consumer business will come under severe margin pressures in the coming years, ” a former foreign bank CEO tells StarBizWeek. On Thursday, the New-York based Citigroup said it will exit the consumer banking business in 13 countries across Asia and Europe as well as the Middle East and African region. Instead, it will operate its consumer-banking business from ... » Learn More about Citi’s exit from consumer banking is ‘no surprise’

HANOI (Vietnam News/ANN): Vietnam's wood exports have increased over the last few years, and are expected to reach a new record in 2021. The export turnover of wood and wood products has seen an average increase of 15.4 per cent per year in the 2017-2020 period, or US$1.35 billion, even greater than the total turnover of many items. The export turnover of wood and wood products reached approximately $3.7 billion in the first quarter of this year, up 41.5 per cent, nearly double the growth rate of the total export turnover of the country at 22 per cent. It is expected the export turnover of wood will surpass the $14.8 billion milestone, an increase of nearly 20 per cent, or $2.4 billion compared to the previous year. Export turnover of wood and wood products is the sixth largest among Vietnamese export sectors. Wood and wood products are also the items with the largest trade surplus, contributing to improving the trade balance. This sector has achieved such great results due ... » Learn More about Vietnam’s wood exports expected to hit a new record

Debt servicing by the national government and lower gold prices pulled down the country’s gross international reserves (GIR) to a four-month low of $104.82 billion as of the end of March. Preliminary Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data showed on Friday the amount was 0.32 percent lower than the $105.16 billion in February, but 17.95 percent larger than the $88.61 billion a year ago. March’s figure was the smallest foreign reserves level since the $104.81 billion in November last year. “The month-on-month decrease in the GIR level reflected outflows mainly from the net withdrawal in the national government’s foreign currency deposits with the BSP, which were largely used for debt servicing, and a downward adjustment in the value of BSP’s gold holdings due to the decrease in the price of gold in the international market,” the central bank explained in a statement. “These outflows were partly offset, however, by the BSP’s income from its investments abroad,” it added. The ... » Learn More about GIR drops to 4-month low at end of March

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden on Friday (Apr 16) welcomed Japan's prime minister as his first guest, pledging a united front faced with a rising China and greater cooperation on 5G technology and climate change. Waiting nearly three months for his first summit due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Biden told Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga that Japan had "our iron-clad support" on security issues and beyond. "We're going to work together to prove that democracies can still compete and win in the 21st century," Biden told a joint, socially distanced news conference in the White House Rose Garden. "We committed to working together to take on the challenges from China and on issues like the East China Sea, the South China Sea as well as North Korea," he said. Suga said Biden reaffirmed that the US-Japan Security Treaty covers the Japanese-administered Senkaku islands - one of several areas in the region where Beijing, which calls them the Diaoyu, has increasingly shown its might. ... » Learn More about US, Japan show united front on China in Biden’s first summit

In a survey on married people in Singapore, 90 per cent of couples said they had financial disagreements about half the time. Whether you're considering moving in with your partner, getting married, or having a family together, you should ask your partner financial questions to avoid potential conflict down the line. If you both are not on the same page, making hefty financial decisions can be stressful. However, having these discussions can help your relationship grow. To help you get started, we've listed the most important topics to cover. 1. Does your partner owe money? One of the most important factors to consider is how much and what kind of debt your partner has. For instance, did your partner take out an education or business loan, or do they instead have a lot of credit card debt? Discussing debt can be a sensitive topic for many, but you should have a general idea of how much your partner owes and how long it will take to repay the debt to avoid financial strain. ... » Learn More about Financial questions to ask your partner before you get serious