- Kuantan Port to be positioned as a key gateway to Southeast Asia, China
- Indonesia created a fuel import scheme that susahkan diri sendiri
- Nickel mining operations in Indonesia’s Papua islands
IN MALAYSIA
Sabah red alert!
Continuous heavy rain across Sabah has wreaked havoc, as it has induced deadly landslides, which have claimed 11 people so far. In Kampung Cenderakasih, Inanam, seven people, including four children aged between two and nine, have been confirmed dead after being buried in a landslide which also buried several houses. Apart from that, as of Monday, the State Disaster Management Committee reported that more than 2,000 people were seeking shelter at temporary evacuation centres. The situation in Sabah is so dire that the state government has cancelled the Malaysia Day celebrations to redirect resources to managing the disaster.
At the same time, nearly 250,000 people were in the dark after the landslide took out a transmission tower. The incident cut power supply to six districts in Sabah’s east coast, including the town of Sandakan. Fortunately, power has been restored to some areas, but power supply normalcy will take some time, as it will take at least eight days to construct an emergency transmission tower.
Responding to the disaster, PM Anwar Ibrahim announced an RM10 mil allocation to be distributed to flood victims in Sabah through the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma). The RM10 mil is on top of the RM11 mil already channelled via the Sabah State Government.
Source: https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2025/09/15/anwar-approves-rm10mil-imm
Business news
- Kuantan Port will be a key trade launchpad to China, Southeast Asia nations
PM Anwar Ibrahim said that Kuantan Port will be an important base for trade with China as well as the coastal areas of Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. Two key projects will elevate the pedigree of Kuantan Port, namely the port’s expansion plan under a twin-city program with China and the enabling of freight transport with the soon-to-be-open East Coast Rail Link (ECRL). The connectivity with ECRL will create a land bridge between Kuantan Port and other major ports on the west coast. Is this Malaysia’s strategy to hedge the threat of Thailand’s Kra Canal? It is a good start. At least we know that Putrajaya is acting proactively, instead of the usual bila dah sakit baru panic. Talking about ECRL, Putrajaya is willing to discuss with Bangkok on extending the rail to the Sungai Golok border. At the moment, the current planned alignment of ECRL stops just 25 kilometres shy of the Kelantan-Thailand border.
https://www.businesstoday.com.my/2025/09/15/malaysia-eyes-extending-ecrl-to-thai-border/
- Smart city pilot projects underway
Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming stated that Malaysia and China have agreed to develop smart city pilot projects. The initial phase of the project will include the establishment of smart city command centres at the country’s second-tier cities, such as Ipoh and Seberang Perai. These projects will serve as living laboratories for testing smart technologies, energy-efficient designs and community-centric housing models. Hopefully, the projects move beyond the ‘simulation’ phase into final adoption. Penat dah negara ni jadi awang experiment.
Source: https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2025/09/15/from-hangzhou-to-ipoh
AROUND THE SEA
Questionable decisions by Indonesia
- Jakarta insist on keeping the single entry point for fuel import as the supply is diminishing
Indonesia’s Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) berkeras that all fuel imports will continue to be managed through a single entry point via state-owned PT Pertamina. This decision was made against the backdrop of private gas stations starting to run out of fuel as the demand exceeded the government’s import quota. The single-entry point scheme that was introduced in August 2024 has led to foreign-owned stations struggling to maintain supply as the new scheme comes with a barrage of new administrative work (frequent permit updates, maintaining commercial licenses and periodical reporting to the Oil and Gas Directorate General). Indonesia, why are you shooting yourself in the leg? Just do a Mahathir U-turn on your system and let the market dictate the best solution.
- Mega jobs mover underway
The Indonesian Government has channelled USD12.2 bil of funds to five state banks, where the latter need to disburse the funds via loans to create up to 80,000 village cooperatives across the country. The co-ops are expected to sell basic household necessities as well as subsidised cooking gas and fertiliser, among other businesses. This initiative, dubbed the ‘Red and White Cooperatives’, is expected to move the economic growth needle from 5% to 8%.
- Jakarta choose money over nature
The Indonesian Government has green-lighted a nickel mining company, Gag Nikel, to resume operations on tiny Gag island in Raja Ampat archipelago. Previously, a suspension of operation was put in place, following an outcry from activists and residents due to potential environmental damage. Greenpeace Indonesia said the nickel exploitation on the islands of Gag, Kawe and Manuran had led to the destruction of more than 500ha of forest and vegetation.
For Your EYES Only
Rest in peace to those that invested in stocks of trendy companies but could not managed to pull out in time as the stock of Labubu dolls’ toymaker, Pop Mart International Group Ltd, has slumped nearly 9% on Hong Kong’s Hang Send Index, following the cooling frenzy over the Labubu dolls. Pop Mart also has lost nearly USD13 bil in market cap since August 26. Despite the red flags, Pop Mart is still up more than 180% year to date and remains the top performer on the Hang Seng Index.
Pop Mart’s bubble continuing to pop.
Given so many retail investors on this stock, if it goes below 250 on strong volume, watch out for 200 next. pic.twitter.com/rTKyLG1VkA— Douglas Kim (@douglaskimkorea) September 15, 2025
