Nation

Motorcyclist killed, pillion rider hurt in crash on NSE near Kulai

 KULAI: A motorcyclist died on the spot after hitting a stalled pickup truck on the emergency lane at KM29 of the North-South Expressway (NSE) southbound near here.

Nation

Why treat Pamela as a suspect if she was just a witness, family asks MACC

PETALING JAYA: Datin Seri Pamela Ling Yueh's family wants to know why she was treated as a suspect if the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) claims she was only a witness in a case.

Swimming

Swimming-Olympic champion McEvoy says Enhanced Games 'record' meaningless

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Olympic 50 metres freestyle champion Cam McEvoy thinks the record time claimed by Kristian Gkolomeev as part of the Enhanced Games programme, where swimmers are allowed to use banned drugs, is irrelevant to the sport.

Sabah & Sarawak

13 deaths, nearly 700 accidents on Sibu roads from January to April

SIBU: A total of 683 road accidents involving 13 deaths were reported in Sibu between January and April, says Division Resident Abang Mohamad Porkan Abang Budiman.

China

Senior US, China diplomats hold phone call

BEIJING: Two senior diplomats from the United States and China held a phone call on Thursday (May 22) to discuss "issues of mutual interest", according to official statements.

AseanPlus News

Hong Kong property tycoon's wine collection fetches US$9.3mil at auction

HONG KONG: Hong Kong businessman Joseph Lau sold a collection of fine wine for HK$72.9 million (US$9.3 million) in an auction, fetching more than $41,000 a bottle for some rare French vintages.

Economy

Asia must not succumb to tariff retaliation, Singapore cbank official says

SINGAPORE: Asian economies must remain agile and not succumb to tit-for-tat tariff retaliation, a deputy managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore said on Friday.

Markets

Asian shares make cautious gains as beaten-down Treasuries find support

SYDNEY: Asian shares made some tentative gains on Friday as beaten-down Treasuries found buyers after U.S. President Donald Trump's tax bill narrowly passed the lower house, although debt worries still lingered.

Economy

Japan's core inflation hits more than 2-year high, could force year-end BOJ hike

TOKYO: Japan's core inflation accelerated at its fastest annual pace in more than two years in April, data showed on Friday, raising the odds of another interest rate hike by year-end.

Forex

Ringgit opens higher against greenback on lower US$ index

KUALA LUMPUR: The ringgit opened stronger against the US dollar on Friday, due to a weaker US Dollar Index (DXY) amid mixed economic data, said an analyst.

Nation

Asean urged to close micro, SME gaps to unlock growth

KUALA LUMPUR: A prominent Malaysian private sector official has urged Asean to prioritise strategies and policies that address the challenges facing micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), to ensure the regional economy fully benefits from their potential.

Vietnam

'Significant progress' made in second round of Vietnam-US trade talks

HANOI: The second round of the Vietnam–United States reciprocal trade agreement was held as scheduled during May 19-22 in Washington, DC, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Nation

Six-month course to help GPs manage mental health cases

KLANG: The Malaysian Society for Academic Psychiatry (MSAP) has developed a six-month training programme for general practitioners (GPs) to help patients with mental health issues.

Technology

Some US banks explore venturing into crypto with joint stablecoin, WSJ reports

(Reuters) -Some of the biggest U.S. banks are exploring whether to team up to issue a joint stablecoin, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

Smartphones

Easily distracted? How to improve your attention span

Feel like you can't focus? Like you'll never finish a book again? Like the only way to keep your mind and hands busy is to scroll on social media for hours? You're far from alone.

Family

Malaysian entrepreneur marks 21st birthday with floral show promoting mental health awareness

This young Malaysian entrepreneur celebrates her 21st birthday by hosting a floral exhibition to promote mental health awareness.

Living

The '24-hour rule' can help defuse tension in couples' conflicts

Are you the kind of person who gets carried away in an argument with your other half, only to regret your words afterward?

Stock on the Move

Eco-Shop rises 10% in Main Market debut

KUALA LUMPUR: The trading stock of Eco-Shop Marketing Bhd rose 10.62% from its initial public offering (IPO) price as trading of its shares commenced on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia on Friday.

World

South Korea's defence ministry says no talks held with US on troop withdrawal

SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea's defence ministry said on Friday that Seoul and Washington had not had discussions about the withdrawal of some U.S. troops stationed in the country.

Commodities

Oil falls on stronger US dollar, possibility of higher Opec+ output

OIL prices slipped on Friday, weighed down by a stronger U.S. dollar and the possibility that OPEC+ will further increase its crude oil output.