Yet in a world increasingly enamoured with grand industrial strategies and splashy technology investments, Sara helps with something more fundamental – improving public health through everyday economics. Choice allows families to align purchases with their own health needs, which is an under-appreciated feature of effective social policy. This is a central lesson of social policy: good intentions must be matched by fiscal reality. Lessons beyond MalaysiaWhat Sara illustrates is that effective social protection does not require endless bureaucracy or ideological purity about cash versus in-kind aid. Sara does by recognising that rice, soap and school stationery are as much part of public health as clinics and hospitals.

KUALA LUMPUR: An unemployed man pleaded not guilty in the Magistrate’s Court here on Tuesday (Feb 24) to a charge of threatening to kill his younger brother. K. Charaniyathevan, 25, is accused of criminally intimidating his 22-year-old sibling by placing a knife to the victim’s neck and verbally threatening to kill him. The offence was allegedly committed at an apartment unit in Kampung Baru Air Panas, off Jalan Genting Kelang, at 4.49am on Feb 21. Earlier, the unrepresented accused told the court he was suffering from mental health issues and emotional distress. Magistrate Farah Nabihah Muhamad Dan allowed the application and ordered the accused to be sent to the hospital for a psychiatric report.

LONDON (Feb 24): Copper prices rose to their highest level in more than a week on Tuesday, propelled by positive sentiment and firmer demand in top metals consumer China, where markets reopened after a holiday. Benchmark three-month copper CMCU3 on the London Metal Exchange gained 1.8% to US$13,100 a metric ton in official open-outcry trading after touching its highest since February 12 at US$13,196. Munro noted there were signs that physical demand in China is also picking up, with the Yangshan copper premium, which reflects demand for copper imported into China, jumping 60% on Tuesday to US$53 a ton. Copper inventories in LME-registered warehouses rose another 1,350 tons to 243,175, data showed on Tuesday, the highest since March 2025, having surged by 71% so far this year. "What's going to be crucial is for us to start to see those stocks start to dissipate, maybe not this week or next week, but in the next three, four weeks," Munro said.

KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia slipped in early trade as profit taking emerged, while losses in PETRONAS-linked heavyweights added to the pressure following Wall Street’s overnight selloff. The benchmark FBM KLCI fell 5.26 points, or 0.31%, to 1,752.51 at 9.13 am, after opening 1.99 points lower at 1,755.99. Berjaya Research said the FBM KLCI is poised to consolidate going forward with a mild positive bias, underpinned by its recent streak of gains and improving market breadth. “Technically, the FBM KLCI has gapped up and formed another doji candlestick. “Meanwhile, the immediate support is envisaged at 1,734 points, followed by 1,720 points,” Berjaya Research said.

He called for the expansion of open tender systems and the publication of detailed information on government contracts and project costs for public scrutiny. "Investigative agencies such as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) must be empowered to act without fear or favour, and cases involving public funds must be fast-tracked in court," he added. The AG’s Report flagged RM183.11mil in unreturned research grant balances involving 7,904 projects across four ministries. The first series of the AG’s Report this year mentioned that the figure mostly consisted of 7,823 projects involving RM110.67mil of unreturned research grants from the Higher Education Ministry. The Agriculture and Food Security Ministry (KPKM), meanwhile, has two projects involving unreturned research grants amounting to RM2.47mil.

PETALING JAYA: Datuk Seri Lee Chong Wei has welcomed Lee Zii Jia with open arms, expressing relief over the independent shuttler’s willingness to strengthen Malaysia’s Thomas Cup campaign and waive his image rights fees. Chong Wei also urged all parties to rally behind not only Zii Jia but the entire Malaysian camp as they attempt to end the country’s 34-year-wait since last lifting the Thomas Cup in 1992 in Kuala Lumpur. “We now have a good team and everyone wants Malaysia to end the 34-year-wait to win the Thomas Cup. But my task now is to reduce the pressure on the players because this is a huge responsibility,” said Chong Wei when contacted. This year’s Thomas Cup will be held in Horsens, Denmark, from April 24-May 3.

Those reference prices will be set by the US Department of Defense's Open Price Exploration for National Security (Open) AI metals program, according to the sources, who were not authorized to speak publicly. An antimony price set by the AI program and backed by the trade block could boost profits for companies developing U.S. antimony projects, for example. The plan to create a minerals reference price and support it with tariffs has sparked questions about whether the tariff would apply to all products containing critical minerals. The Open program comes amid private industry efforts to boost transparency. "I would want to make sure any reference price is above that."

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Learning Matrix (MPM) for Year Four pupils is set to begin this October, with Form Three students following suit next year, says Fadhlina Sidek. She said the ministry is focused on integrity and intervention goals, in line with the School-Based Assessment domain under the National Education Assessment System. “The Learning Matrix is focused not on school rankings or unhealthy competition, but on identifying students’ mastery levels to provide support and early intervention,” she said, Bernama reported. Fadhlina also said teachers would not have to prepare any instruments for the learning matrix or for Ujian Akhir Sesi Akademik (UASA) as it will be done by the Examinations Board. She said the assessment results will help boost students’ literacy, numeracy and science skills while ensuring a holistic evaluation.

The UAE, which accounts for 4.1% of JPMorgan’s global diversified EM bond universe, will make its exit in four equal decrements beginning March 31, the New York-based bank said in a statement. The country will also fully leave the euro-denominated bond grouping — where it has a 1% weight — on March 31. The growing riches of Middle Eastern countries have contrasted with their developing-market status in recent years, pushing JPMorgan to remove Kuwait and Qatar from its EM bond indices last year. That spread, which represents the extra yield investors demand to own EM bonds rather than US Treasuries, stood at 247 basis points on Monday. The spread on UAE bonds is currently about 65 basis points.

TAIPEI, Feb ⁠24 (Reuters) - A 5.6 magnitude ⁠earthquake struck just off the ‌coast of Taiwan's northeastern county of Yilan on Tuesday, the island's weather ​administration said, with no ⁠reports of ⁠damage. The quake briefly shook buildings in ⁠the ‌capital, Taipei. The quake had a depth ⁠of 66.8 km (41.5 miles), the weather ​administration ‌said. The fire department said the ⁠quake's ​epicentre was 16.9 km (10.5 miles) from the county government seat ⁠and in coastal waters. More than 100 people were killed in a quake in southern Taiwan in ​2016, while a ⁠7.3 magnitude quake killed more ​than 2,000 people ‌in 1999.

As part of the arrangement, Meta will receive warrants to buy 160 million AMD shares in stages, the two companies said. The shares will vest when the project and AMD’s stock price reach certain milestones, turning Meta into a major holder. That ability to define more closely what it needs was part of the reason for committing to AMD, Janardhan said. After AMD shares surged 77% in 2025, they are down 8.2% so far this year. The Meta tie-up assumes that AMD shares are just at the start of a longer rally.

Its chicken feed subsidiary Leong Hup Feedmill Malaysia Sdn Bhd (LFM) is seeking permission to commence a judicial review of the tribunal's decision. The move comes after the tribunal on Feb 11 dismissed appeals from four major feed millers, including Leong Hup, against a landmark ruling made by the MyCC. The four of them who appealed the ruling — LFM, Dindings Poultry Development Centre, FFM Bhd, and Gold Coin Feedmills (M) Sdn Bhd — faced a combined fine of RM367 million. Of the four, Leong Hup bears the largest share of the penalty, at RM157.5 million. Leong Hup has maintained that the allegations are without merit.

“There’s always a surprise in a credit cycle,” Dimon said, adding that the surprise has often been which industry. Private creditDimon’s lender largely stayed on the sidelines early in the private credit cycle. The cockroach quip sparked a war of words over whether banks or private credit firms are better positioned to weather a broader downturn. The financial industry, like many others, has also suffered stock declines in recent weeks because of AI concerns. In the wide-ranging question-and-answer session at what the bank called a “company update” for investors, Dimon inevitably got asked about succession.

The Japanese currency fell 0.83% to 155.93 per dollar , hitting its lowest in nearly two weeks, as the report from The Mainichi Daily also sent Japanese government bond yields lower. "If the government is lobbying the central bank, doubts again re-emerge over the independence of the central bank." ASSESSING UNCERTAIN TRADE ENVIRONMENTInvestors are also digesting an uncertain trade environment. He also warned countries against retreating from recent trade deals after the Supreme Court struck down his emergency tariffs. "Now we're back in a very uncertain environment," Ray Attrill, head of currency strategy at National Australia Bank, said on a NAB podcast.

PETALING JAYA: The German Open will always hold a special place in the hearts of mixed doubles pair Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie. “I can still remember the joy of winning our first Super 300 title together,” said Soon Huat, now 36. It was only their third career title after the Malaysian International Challenge and Scottish Open in 2016, barely a month after they were paired up. Since then, they have added three more titles to their resume – the higher-ranked Singapore Open in 2018 and the Swiss Open, Malaysian Masters in 2024. “Even eight years after winning the German Open, we are still fighting to keep our career going.