Nation

Govt orders crackdown on misuse of social visit visas

PUTRAJAYA: The government has directed the relevant agencies to take firm enforcement action against the misuse of social visit visas for illegal employment and business activities, says Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Steven Sim.

Entertainment

Japanese PM and South Korean President jam to K-pop hits at summit

They sat side by side and drummed to hits such as BTS' Dynamite and KPop Demon Hunters' Golden.

Markets

Bursa Malaysia slips as profit-taking hits heavyweight counters, KLCI down 0.33%

KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia ended the morning session in negative territory, weighed down by continued profit-taking in most heavyweight counters.

True Or Not

QuickCheck: Did an almost-accident at a JB petrol station turn into a violent assault?

A video has gone viral showing a motorcyclist assaulting a driver with a wooden stick after his car nearly hits him. Did the incident happen at a Johor Baru petrol station as claimed?

Technology

Microsoft in record deal for soil carbon credits as data centres surge

LONDON, Jan 15 (Reuters) - Microsoft has agreed ‌with Indigo Carbon to buy a record 2.85 million soil carbon credits linked to regenerative ‌agriculture in the United States, as the tech giant aims to become "carbon negative" by ‌2030 despite surging emissions linked to AI.

Nation

Akmal resigns as Melaka Umno Exco member effective next week

KUALA LUMPUR: Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh has resigned from his post as the Melaka Umno Exco.

World

Exclusive-IMF chief Georgieva arrives in Kyiv for first visit since 2023

KYIV, Jan 15 (Reuters) - International Monetary Fund ‌chief Kristalina Georgieva arrived in Kyiv early on Thursday for high-level talks, two sources familiar with the matter said, ‌as Ukraine prepares to mark the fourth anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion on February 24.

Myanmar

China’s Intelligence sharing key to drug lab seizures in Northern Shan state: Myanmar 

YANGON: Major General Zaw Min Tun, spokesperson for the National Defence and Security Council (NDSC), said that the seizure of drug manufacturing sites in Hsipaw and Mongyai townships in Northern Shan State was carried out with full intelligence sharing from China.

Cybersecurity

China warns of covert mapping by foreign forces to steal sensitive geodata

Counter-espionage agency says 'anti-China' actors are gathering information on natural resources, energy facilities and terrain in key areas.

Corporate News

Malaysia's construction, sub-contractor industries urged to expand into Asean, India- AIEC

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's construction and sub-contractor industries must expand beyond domestic borders and actively tap opportunities in the wider ASEAN region and India to remain competitive, said ASEAN India Economic Council (AIEC) Malaysia chairman Datuk Ramesh Kodammal.

Philippines

Philippines excluded from US visa processing suspension: Envoy

MANILA: The Philippines is excluded from the list of 75 countries whose nationals are affected by the United States' temporary suspension of visa processing, according to Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez.

Corporate News

Kerjaya Prospek unit bags RM201.25 construction contract in Sungai Buloh

KUALA LUMPUR: Kerjaya Prospek Group Bhd said its wholly-owned subsidiary Kerjaya Prospek (M) Sdn Bhd has accepted a building contract from Greencove Sdn Bhd in Sungai Buloh, Selangor, for RM201.25mil.

Cricket

Cricket-Afghanistan approve three-foreign-league annual cap for top players

KABUL, Jan 15 (Reuters) - ‌Top Afghanistan players such as Rashid Khan ‌can play a maximum of three ‌franchise leagues abroad per year, alongside mandatory availability for a rebooted domestic competition, according to a new policy approved by ‍the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB).

Vietnam

Vietnam's southern hub starts construction of second metro line

HANOI: Vietnam's southern hub Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday (Jan 15) broke ground on its second metro line, spanning more than 11 km with a total investment of over 55 trillion Vietnamese dong (about US$2.1 billion), local daily VnExpress reported.

Nation

Why are we sidelined as election candidates, asks Puteri Umno chief

KUALA LUMPUR: Puteri Umno is questioning why its members are being sidelined as candidates in elections.

Indonesia

Indonesian forces rescue 18 Freeport workers from rebel siege in Papua

JAKARTA: Indonesian military rescued 18 workers at gold and copper miner Freeport Indonesia that had been surrounded by armed rebels for three days at a company outpost in the insurgency-plagued Papua region, officials said on Thursday (Jan 15)

Bangladesh

Dreams on hold for Rohingya children in Bangladesh camps

COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh: Books tucked under their arms, children file into a small classroom in Bangladesh's vast refugee camps, home to more than a million Rohingya who have fled neighbouring Myanmar.

Singapore

Alarm clock sounds disrupt Tiong Bahru residents up to eight times a day for over a month

SINGAPORE: Alarm clocks have been disrupting the lives of residents in a Tiong Bahru neighbourhood since early December, ringing up to eight times a day for about an hour each time.

China

Beijing tells Chinese firms to stop using US and Israeli cybersecurity software, sources say

BEIJING: Chinese authorities have told domestic companies to stop using cybersecurity software made by more than a dozen firms from the US and Israel due to national security concerns, three people briefed on the matter said.

Tennis

Tennis-Sinner to meet Gaston in Australian Open first round, Sabalenka to play French wildcard

MELBOURNE, Jan 15 (Reuters) - ‌Defending champion Jannik Sinner will ‌meet French world number 94 Hugo ‌Gaston in the first round of the Australian Open in his bid for a third ‍successive title at Melbourne ‍Park, while women's ‌top seed Aryna Sabalenka takes on French wildcard ‍Tiantsoa ​Rakotomanga.