No more procurement approvals without tender process: Malaysia PM Anwar tells civil servants - CNA

PUTRAJAYA: Approval for government procurement can no longer be given without a tender process, said Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Tuesday (Nov 29).

In his first address to civil servants, Mr Anwar stated that the government under his leadership will not continue to allow for financial leakages and corruption.

“I urge everyone (in the civil service) to work as a team. Let’s be committed to save our country,” he was quoted as saying by Bernama.

He added that he was not interested in bringing up indiscretions from previous administrations and said the focus should be on carrying the nation forward.

“We must restore the image of the civil service, which has been tarnished. This can only be done through change.

“If you saw laxity and carelessness before this, that is history. I don’t wish to dig all that up. We must look forward and prepare ourselves for the future,” he said, according to Free Malaysia Today.

The new prime minister called on civil servants to work with the government to bring about change and return the country to its glory days.

He said that civil servants needed to have a spirit of “islah”, or reform, for the sake of the country.

Reform is required for the country to change, he said, adding that Malaysia had reached a certain level before but had unfortunately declined in its economy, stability and discipline.

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2022-11-29 04:06:00Z
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Hong Kong stocks rise 3% in Asia session; China's Covid situation remains in focus - CNBC

1 Hour Ago

Japan's unemployment rate unchanged, retail sales miss estimates

Japan's unemployment rate for October was steady from September's reading of 2.6%, according to official data. The figure is slightly higher than the mean expectation of 2.5% from economists polled by Reuters.

The jobs-to-applicant ratio, which measures active job openings per jobseeker, was at 1.35. That indicates that there are 135 jobs available for every 100 applicants, signaling a still tight labor market in Japan.

The nation's retail sales rose 4.3% in October on an annualized basis, missing expectations of 5% increase predicted in a separate Reuters poll .

The latest reading marks the first softening in retail sales growth that it's seen since June this year.

– Jihye Lee

8 Hours Ago

Fed should keep hiking into next year, Bullard says

James Bullard at Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

David A. Grogan | CNBC

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said Monday that the Fed should continue to raise its benchmark interest rate in the coming months and that the market may be underestimating the chance that the Fed has to get more aggressive.

"We're going to have to continue pursue our interest rate increases into 2023, and there's some risk that we've have to go even higher than [5%]," Bullard said at a Barron's Live webinar.

Bullard made waves in financial markets earlier this month when he said the Fed's hikes have had "only limited effects" on inflation so far and that the benchmark interest rate may need to rise to between 5% and 7%.

Bullard, who is a voting member of the FOMC, said that the Fed will need to hold off any rate cuts next year even if the inflation picture starts to show consistent improvement.

"I think we'll probably have to stay there all through 2023 and into 2024, given the historical behavior of core PCE inflation or Dallas Fed trimmed mean inflation. They will come down, I think. That's my baseline. But they probably won't come down quite as fast as markets would like and probably the Fed would like," Bullard said.

— Jesse Pound

9 Hours Ago

Cryptocurrency prices drop but quickly recover after BlockFi declares bankruptcy

The price of bitcoin took a dip on Monday after BlockFi officially announced it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the wake of FTX's bankruptcy.

Bitcoin briefly dropped to as low as about $16,000 but has rebounded already. It was last lower by just 1% to above $16,300, according to Coin Metrics. The action in the ether price showed a similar bounce.

BlockFi has been in bad shape since the spring, following the blowup of the Terra project that led to the implosion of Three Arrows Capital. At that time, the company accepted a bailout from FTX that would help it stave off bankruptcy. Of course, FTX is now managing its own bankruptcy.

— Tanaya Macheel

2 Hours Ago

CNBC Pro: Goldman Sachs names the global automakers exposed to a China slowdown

Many global companies are heavily exposed to China, including some of the world's biggest automakers, which generate between 20% and 40% of their worldwide sales in the country, according to Goldman Sachs.

In a note to clients on Nov. 22 — before the latest protests — the investment bank mapped out the global auto industry's exposure to Chinese consumers.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

5 Hours Ago

Stocks end Monday's session lower

After a winning Thanksgiving week, the three major indexes ended Monday down as investors sold off amid mounting concerns over supply chain disruptions amid Covid-related protests in China.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.45%, or 497.57 points, and closed at 33,849.46. The S&P 500 also shed 1.54% to end at 3,963.94. The Nasdaq Composite slipped 1.58% and ended at 11,049.50.

— Alex Harring

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2022-11-29 02:18:00Z
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China protests highlight Xi's COVID-19 policy dilemma - to walk it back or not - CNA

BEIJING: The rare street protests that erupted in cities across China over the weekend were a referendum against President Xi Jinping's zero-COVID policy and the strongest public defiance during his political career, China analysts said.

Not since the protests of Tiananmen Square in 1989 have so many Chinese risked arrest and other repercussions to take to the streets over a single issue.

"During Xi Jinping’s 10 years in power, these are the most public and most widespread displays of anger by the citizenry against government policy," said Bates Gill, a China expert with Asia Society.

Public dissatisfaction with Xi's zero-COVID policy, expressed on social media or offline in the form of putting up posters in universities or by protesting, is Xi's biggest domestic challenge since the 2019 protests in Hong Kong against an extradition bill.

Xi had claimed personal responsibility for leading the "war" against COVID-19, justified zero-COVID with a need to "put people above everything" and counted his "correct" COVID-19 policy among his political achievements when he sought a precedent-breaking third term at the 20th Communist Party Congress in October.

Nearly three years into the pandemic, China says its policies are not geared towards having zero cases at all times but instead, are about "dynamically" taking action when cases surface.

Even though the protests are embarrassing for Xi, they come nowhere near to toppling him, analysts said, because he has full control of the party, military, security and propaganda machinery.

RESISTING LOCKDOWN

While some protesters chanted "Down with Xi Jinping, Down with Chinese Communist Party", most other people only concerned themselves with resisting a lockdown of their residential compounds or exemption from frequent tests for the virus.

"Once these self-interests are met, most people will be appeased and will move on," said Chen Daoyin, a former associate professor at Shanghai University of Political Science and Law, now a commentator based in Chile.

Students were not highly organised or led by a central figure, Chen said. Protests took place in Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan, Chengdu and Urumqi.

At the time of the Tiananmen protests and crackdown by Chinese authorities, the last occasion that demonstrations led to the replacement of the party's general secretary, there were internal divisions amongst top party leaders about how to manage the crisis and what path to take China in future.

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2022-11-28 21:52:00Z
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'We were there to mourn': What it was like at the COVID-19 protests in Shanghai and Beijing - CNA

According to Chris, the police started cordoning off the area after more people began gathering by the river. “The people who came after that were stuck outside. More and more people gathered outside, more and more found out what was happening, and soon we heard people making demands,” said Chris. “Slowly, we realised there were a lot of people, perhaps up to one or two thousand.” 

“When I walked out, there was an impassioned girl making demands like removing PCR tests. After her speech, she led everyone in a song, and the crowd started walking towards the city,” said Chris.

He added that he did not witness violence and that the police as well as those gathered were reasonable. “Most of the police officers in Beijing last night were very polite in dispersing the crowd and advising people to return home. It was something I didn’t expect as well,” said Chris.

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2022-11-28 14:16:22Z
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Shanghai tightens security after anti-lockdown protests across China - The Straits Times

Shops and cafes in the area were asked to close, a staff member at one told Reuters.

Sunday saw people take to the streets in several major cities across China to call for an end to lockdowns and greater political freedoms, in a wave of nationwide protests not seen since pro-democracy rallies in 1989 were crushed.

“We hope to end the lockdown,” said 28-year-old Shi at a candlelight vigil in Beijing late on Sunday. “We want to live a normal life. We should all bravely express our feelings.”

Beijing on Monday blamed “forces with ulterior motives” for linking a deadly fire in the western Xinjiang region to strict Covid-19 measures.

Online posts circulating on both Chinese and overseas social media platforms have claimed that lengthy Covid-19 lockdowns in Urumqi hampered rescue attempts after the blaze on Thursday night.

In response to a question at a regular press briefing about the disaster, foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said: “On social media there are forces with ulterior motives that relate this fire with the local response to Covid-19.”

A deadly fire last week in Urumqi, the capital of north-west China’s Xinjiang region, has become a catalyst for public anger, with many blaming Covid-19 lockdowns for hampering rescue efforts.

But they have also featured prominent calls for greater political freedoms – with some even demanding the resignation of China’s President Xi, recently re-appointed to an unprecedented third term as China’s leader.

Large crowds gathered on Sunday in the capital Beijing and Shanghai, where police clashed with protesters as they tried to stop groups from converging at Wulumuqi street, named after the Mandarin for Urumqi.

Crowds that gathered overnight – some of whom chanted “Xi Jinping, step down! CCP, step down!” – were dispersed by Sunday morning.

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2022-11-28 11:44:40Z
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Shanghai tightens security after anti-lockdown protests across China - The Straits Times

SHANGHAI – Shanghai authorities put up barriers on Monday around a city centre area where hundreds of people protested over the weekend against heavy Covid-19 measures, one of several demonstrations that have flared across the country.

From the streets of Shanghai and Beijing to university campuses, protesters made a show of civil disobedience unprecedented since leader Xi Jinping assumed power a decade ago to oversee the quashing of dissent and establishment of an extensive high-tech social surveillance system.

On Monday, the Shanghai streets where protesters gathered were blocked off with blue metal barriers, in what looked like a bid to prevent crowds gathering. Police in high-visibility vests patrolled in pairs, while police cars and motorbikes cruised by.

Shops and cafes in the area were asked to close, a staff member at one told Reuters.

Sunday saw people take to the streets in several major cities across China to call for an end to lockdowns and greater political freedoms, in a wave of nationwide protests not seen since pro-democracy rallies in 1989 were crushed.

“We hope to end the lockdown,” said 28-year-old Shi at a candlelight vigil in Beijing late on Sunday. “We want to live a normal life. We should all bravely express our feelings.”

Beijing on Monday blamed “forces with ulterior motives” for linking a deadly fire in the western Xinjiang region to strict Covid-19 measures.

Online posts circulating on both Chinese and overseas social media platforms have claimed that lengthy Covid-19 lockdowns in Urumqi hampered rescue attempts after the blaze on Thursday night.

In response to a question at a regular press briefing about the disaster, foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said: “On social media there are forces with ulterior motives that relate this fire with the local response to Covid-19.”

A deadly fire last week in Urumqi, the capital of north-west China’s Xinjiang region, has become a catalyst for public anger, with many blaming Covid-19 lockdowns for hampering rescue efforts.

But they have also featured prominent calls for greater political freedoms – with some even demanding the resignation of China’s President Xi, recently re-appointed to an unprecedented third term as China’s leader.

Large crowds gathered on Sunday in the capital Beijing and Shanghai, where police clashed with protesters as they tried to stop groups from converging at Wulumuqi street, named after the Mandarin for Urumqi.

Crowds that gathered overnight – some of whom chanted “Xi Jinping, step down! CCP, step down!” – were dispersed by Sunday morning.

But in the afternoon, hundreds rallied in the same area with blank sheets of paper and flowers to hold what appeared to be a silent protest, an eyewitness told AFP.

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2022-11-28 08:40:00Z
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Malaysia PM Anwar rejects Mercedes S600 as official car, warns against wastage of public funds - CNA

On Saturday night, he had made a similar remark after prayers at a mosque in Selangor. 

He said that no new official car would be bought for his use and no new unnecessary furniture will be bought by his office, as part of a new culture against wastage of public funds that must be practised by all.

“The condition is that there are no new purchases in the prime minister's office,” he told reporters.

“Think of what you can save – RM100 (US$22), RM1000, RM10,000 – which can be returned to the poor. I started with a commitment not to take a salary, but what’s important is not to waste the funds we have,” he said. 

“This is a message to all department leaders to remember that in the current situation we should start a new culture. Don’t use government money for our own facilities.”

Mr Anwar, 75, previously announced that he would not be taking his prime minister salary, in line with a promise that he had made during the 15th General Election (GE15) campaigning. 

He also announced that the Cabinet size will be reduced and that he is also seeking the agreement of parliamentarians who will be appointed as ministers to reduce their salaries.

He has yet to announce his Cabinet line-up and said on Sunday that he will discuss the appointments with his coalition partners in the following days.

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2022-11-28 04:40:54Z
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