PRESS DIGEST - Malaysia - Dec 18

Thu Dec 18, 2008 6:06pm IST

PRESS DIGEST - Malaysia - Dec 18

Following are the main stories in Malaysian newspapers.

Following are the main stories in Malaysian newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

THE STAR (http://www.thestar.com.my/)

-- The passing of the Bills to set up the Judicial Appointments Commission and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission will correct any misconception the public still have on the integrity of the two institutions, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said.

-- Sime Darby Bhd (SIME.KL: Quote, Profile, Research) wants to acquire a stake in IJN Holdings Sdn Bhd which operates the national heart institute, Institut Jantung Negara (IJN), the company said.

BUSINESS TIMES (http://www.btimes.com.my/)

-- The government may implement a so-called "strategic package" to drive the economy and woo foreign investors, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Amirsham A. Aziz.

-- The government-owned Pengurusan Aset Air Bhd has acquired its maiden water assets for 889 million ringgit ($252 million) from the Malacca state government.
THE NEW STRAITS TIMES (http://www.nst.con.my/)

-- Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said his final mission before he hands over power to his deputy is to cool racial and religious tensions in the country.

The cabinet last week approved the formation of a Malaysian-Japanese University to boost educational co-operation between the two countries, Entrepreneur and Cooperative Development Minister Noh Omar said.

THE EDGE FINANCIAL DAILY (http://www.theedgedaily.com/)

-- Bursa Malaysia Bhd (BMYS.KL: Quote, Profile, Research) plans to launch two palm oil indices - one domestic and the other regional - in the first half of next year as part of its strategy to enhance the country's profile as the centre for commodity products, said its Chief Executive Officer Yusli Mohamed Yusoff.

THE MALAYSIAN RESERVE (www.themalaysianreserve.com)
-- The government plans to buy all water works assets in West Malaysia from both private and state-owned water utility firms by end of next year - an exercise that would cost up to 15 billion ringgit, Energy, Water and Communications Minister Shaziman Abu Mansor said.
THE SUN (http://www.sun2surf.com/)

-- Pirates seized a Malaysian tug boat with a crew of 11, a Turkish cargo ship, a yacht crewed by just two people and a Chinese fishing boat on Wednesday, said Noel Choong, head of the International Maritime Bureau piracy reporting centre.

-- Malaysia's 2.5 billion ringgit seafood export industry is on the verge of a collapse with no concrete help thus far from the government following a ban on Malaysian seafood by the European Union (EU) in June, said Malaysian Frozen Foods Processors Association President Ch'ng Chin Hooi.

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