Ismail Sabri Charting His Own Course
Norshahril Saat
Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaacob appears to be holding his own, despite pressure from his party colleagues to hold a general election soon.

Norshahril Saat
Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaacob appears to be holding his own, despite pressure from his party colleagues to hold a general election soon.
Tham Siew Yean|Kevin Zhang
One of the key goals of a minimum wage is to provide employees with a wage that can sustain their basic livelihood. Therefore, a more appropriate minimum wage scale should create several tiers where wages are calibrated according to state or regional differences.
Francis E. Hutchinson
Pending approval from the government, UMNO’s Supreme Council can now delay elections for up to 18 months from a full three-year term or 6 months after a general election — whichever is later. The rationale is that this would allow the party to overcome any internal divisions arising during the polls and focus its energies on the next general election.
Lee Hwok-Aun
Months away from Malaysia’s general election, little separates the ruling coalition and the opposition in terms of ‘rice bowl’ economic policies. The vote winner lies elsewhere: Malays value general pledges on jobs and social services, but they are wary of parties that make no commitment to pro-Malay policies.
Cassey Lee
The war in Ukraine and the de-coupling of Russia from major economies are expected to dampen economic recovery and generate inflationary shocks. If inflation in Malaysia worsens, policymakers may have to implement a more restrictive monetary policy combined with fiscal stimulus funded by debt and petroleum royalties.
Tham Siew Yean
A better way forward is to continue to enhance investment facilitation measures, making it easier for investors to establish and expand their operations, and conduct their day-to-day business in host countries. In this regard, boosting post-investment, after-care services will grow in importance.
Tham Siew Yean
China has become the most significant foreign partner in Sarawak’s hydropower development, as its extensive knowledge and experience in this domain dovetails with Sarawak’s ambitious programme to develop hydropower for its own needs and for export to the region.
Benjamin Y.H. Loh|Munira Mustaffa
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Malaysia’s social media has been abuzz with discussions on the conflict, with different groups expressing both condemnation and support for Russia. This paper examines pro-Russian sentiments and unpacks them for possible explanations for why such views prevail amongst Malaysians.
Lee Hwok-Aun
Half of all Malaysians and 81 per cent of Malays deem ‘Malay special rights and privileges’ a ‘core feature’ of Malaysian society. Many Malays are anxious about ‘fair competition’, but perhaps encouragingly from the perspective of reform, there are indications of openness to change.
Kevin Zhang|Lee Hwok-Aun
UMNO and Prime Minister Ismail Sabri are hoping to take credit for recent announcements on hiking the minimum wage and allowing special withdrawals from retirement savings, but the devil is in the details.