Satun out for deals with Penang

BUSINESS ties between Penang and the Satun province received a boost following a courtesy visit by 24 delegates from Thailand to the Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce (PCCC) office here.

The delegates, who represented various sectors such as agriculture, commercial, finance and tourism, took the oppor-tunity to foster better understanding with the PCCC yesterday.

Chinese demand behind higher prices of dairy raw materials

Dutch Lady Milk Industries Bhd foresees the price of dairy raw materials, such as milk, increasing by between 10 and 20 per cent from the US$2,000 per tonne currently due to an increase in demand.

"Raw material cost has started to increase again, mainly due to a change in buying behaviour. China is purchasing a lot of raw milk powder in line with the country's economic growth," its managing director Hans Laarakker said.

"The volatility in prices is worrying," he added.

US firms satisfied doing business in Malaysia

American companies operating in Malaysia have indicated a much higher level of satisfaction in doing business there than in past years.

Four categories – ease of moving products through customs, availability of raw materials, labour cost and laws and regulations – registered high level of satisfaction for the first year, according to the latest regional business outlook survey by the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore (AmCham Singapore).

KLIA to facilitate seamless connection

KL International Airport (KLIA) will introduce facilities called "Next Generation Hub" that enable passengers to connnect seamlessly between all types of carriers and between different types of terminals.

Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) announced this at the 15th World Route Development Forum that took place in Beijing from Sept 13 to 15, the company said in a statement today.

MAHB general manager (marketing) Sallauddin Mat Sah said KLIA''s Next Generation Hub would provide the passenger with "tools to plan an itinerary that best suit his or her needs, as well as the physical infrastructure to integrate and enable connections between full service and low cost carriers".

The airport operator said there was already a growing trend of passengers who self-connect between the Main Terminal Building and Low Cost Terminal at KLIA.

A study had revealed that there were at least 500 self-connect passengers per day or 1,000 passenger movements, representing an annual market of over 180,000 passengers, it added.

It said KLIA was well positioned as a Next Generation Hub as the airport offered both the largest volume of routes and traffic carried out by low cost carriers, making it a market leader in the sector in the Asia Pacific Region and globally.

Malaysia to sign FTA with New Zealand next month

Malaysia will sign the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with New Zealand next month and it will come into force in January 2010, Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Mukhriz Tun Dr Mahathir said on Tuesday.

The agreement is in line with the Asean/ New Zealand FTA that would also come into effect in January next year, he said.

Toll-free drive on KL-Karak and East Coast Expressways

Motorists can drive toll-free on the KL-Karak and East Coast expressways on Sept 18 and Sept 24, between midnight and 5am, says MTD Group President Chief Executive Officer Azmil Khalid.

MAS to introduce Sibu-Kuala Lumpur direct flight

Malaysia Airlines (MAS) will introduce a direct flight daily from Sibu to Kuala Lumpur beginning Oct 25. MASwings' managing director Mohd Salleh Ahmad Tabrani said travellers from here would be able to catch the 7am flight to arrive in Kuala Lumpur by 8.50am.

"They can then return home by the evening flight the same day at 7.30pm to arrive here at 9.25pm. The new flight will allow them ample time to do their business in the city without having to stay overnight," he said at a dialogue session here today.

Malaysia may raise tobacco taxes 11pc

The Malaysian government may raise tobacco taxes by at least 11 per cent as it takes steps to discourage smoking and cut its budget deficit, according to Maybank Investment Bank Bhd.

The excise duty on cigarettes may be increased by 2 sen to 20 sen (5.7 cents) a stick when the government unveils next year’s budget on October 23, Khair Mirza, a Maybank analyst in Kuala Lumpur, said in a report today. He kept a “neutral” rating on Malaysia’s tobacco stocks.

Now only one number needed to deal with government

Pemudah, the country’s special task force dedicated to facilitate all aspects of doing business in Malaysia, has initiated a single number reference called MyCoID. 

Initially, as of July 1, the single number reference is applied to five agencies, namely Inland Revenue Board (IRB), Human Resource Development Fund (HRDF), Employees' Provident Fund (EPF), Royal Malaysian Customs (RMC) and Social Security Organisation (Socso). 

All other agencies will be using the reference number in stages, according to a statement released by the Pemudah secretariat.

MyCoID is a standard identification number of a business entity for use in its interaction with government agencies. 

It is the Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM) business registration number for companies, sole proprietors and partnerships. 

"New businesses registering with CCM from July 1, 2009, can use the MyCoID when registering with the five agencies -- IRB, HRDF, EPF, RMC and Socso," the secretariat said. 

"Existing companies (those registered before July 1, 2009) will be able to use their registration numbers as their MyCoID when dealing with IRB, EPF, and HRDF from Sept 1, 2009. However, for RMC and Socso, these companies can only use their CCM registration numbers as their MyCoID from Jan 1, 2010," it said. 

Full implementation of MyCoID by all five agencies is expected from Jan 1 next year. 

Tune Talk subscribers can enjoy lower IDD rates over other mobile operators

New mobile operator Tune Talk Sdn Bhd, which operates the prefix 010 for its prepaid cellular service, aims to beat the competition by offering IDD rates that are 10% cheaper.

The company will charge a flat rate of 22 sen per minute for calls to any operator in the country, while an SMS cost 5 sen each.

Chief executive officer Jason Lo said Tune Talk would focus on voice calls and SMS but would be introducing GPRS services sometime next month.

Speaking after the launch of Tune Talk at the Sepang Aircraft Engineering Sdn Bhd’s hangar yesterday, Lo said the Tune Talk SIM pack was sold at RM5 and it came with a RM5 pre-loaded worth of talk time.

Flying taxi crashes on test flight, killing its UK inventor

Newly-assembled aircraft Jetpod, by the British-based Avcen Ltd, crashed and burst into a ball of fire during a test flight from Tekah airstrip near here, killing its inventor Michael Robert Dacre, 53, who was piloting the aircraft.

The crash happened at 12.30pm Sunday. Dacre is also Avcen's managing director.

Avcen Limited Malaysia is based at Patimas Technology Centre, Technology Park, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur and Dacre had intended for the 8-seater flying taxi to be ready in 2010.

According to Wikipedia Jetpod is a design proposal for a very quiet aircraft that can take off and land in short distances (STOL), developed by Avcen Limited, a company formed in 1998 to promote development of the Jetpod.

A number of applications have been proposed, including as a military transport, an executive transport, and as a short to medium-range air taxi.

According to Avcen's publicity materials, the Jetpod's maximum speed is 550 km/h (350 mph, 300 knots).

It would need only 125 meters (135 yards) to take-off or land, allowing runways to be constructed close to the center of major cities, and would be sufficiently quiet to not be noticeable above city traffic.

The trip from Heathrow Airport to central London would take about 4 minutes and cost about $100.

Bank Negara leaves OPR unchanged

Bank Negara has decided to leave the overnight policy rate (OPR) unchanged at 2% following its monetary policy meeting on Wednesday.

AirAsia X to set up virtual hub in Middle East

AirAsia X Sdn Bhd, a long-haul budget airline and related company to AirAsia Bhd, is looking to set up its first ever virtual hub in the Middle East next year.

AirAsia X chief executive officer Azran Osman-Rani told reporters Wednesday that this hub would serve the region and beyond and was part of the airline’s expansion strategy.

He said the hub would be used for flights from Malaysia to Middle Eastern destinations as well as from the Middle East to Europe.