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PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s total subsidies, which is set to hit a record high of nearly RM80bil this year, will come at a necessary cost as the government strives to curb the rising cost of living. Given the current economic environment, Malaysia University of Science and Technology professor Geoffrey Williams said the need to increase subsidies is justified, but only as a short-term measure. “There is no free lunch. If the government was not paying the subsidy then the rakyat would have to pay higher prices. “It is better for the government to carry these costs than the people, because the government has the resources to do it,” he told StarBiz. Given the current economic environment, Malaysia University of Science and Technology professor Geoffrey Williams said the need to increase subsidies is justified, but only as a short-term measure. For petrol subsidies, Williams explained that the amount is estimated at between RM28bil and RM30bil for this year. “But Petronas, … [Read more...] about Rising cost for stable prices

A housing advocate is ending his campaign for the Berkeley City Council, saying he could no longer afford to live in the city. Greg Magofña tweeted that he was ending his run to represent District Four because his roommate plans to move out of the Bay Area within the year, forcing Magofña to look for housing outside of Berkeley because he is “now priced out.” “I’m being forced to leave Berkeley, and it’s ironic because I co-founded an organization called the East Bay for Everyone in 2015, fighting for housing, to make sure something like this doesn’t happen,” Magofña told The Chronicle on Thursday morning. “It just really hits hard when you have been fighting for other people experiencing displacement, and you — as someone with privilege and with a good salary — is displaced,” he said, adding that lived lived in Berkeley’s District Four for nearly 10 years. Magofña is the director of development and outreach for the California Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund, an … [Read more...] about Housing advocate ends Berkeley City Council campaign, says he’s ‘priced out’ of city

Amid protests by the opposition parties against the hike in diesel cess imposed by the AP State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC), the corporation management has defended the move citing recent hike in the price of diesel. In a statement on Saturday, corporation’s Executive Director (Operations) K.S. Brahmananda Reddy said due to the hike in the price of diesel, the APSRTC was left with no choice but to increase the cess on diesel, which resulted in marginal hike in ticket rates. He said the corporation had taken care to ensure that the common man was not overburdened by the move, and appealed to the public to understand and extend their cooperation. He said even in the wake of serious financial constraints faced by the corporation, which had made the maintenance of buses an uphill task, APSRTC had not increased the bus fare keeping in mind the welfare of the public. “The recent cess hike is inevitable. The marginal increase in the diesel cess effected in April this year was … [Read more...] about Andhra Pradesh: APSRTC defends diesel cess hike

The Centre’s move to increase the import duty on gold by a steep 500 bps (base rate) to arrest the free fall of rupee may lead to strengthening of the grey market, analysts said. “The sudden hike in gold import duty has taken us by surprise,” said Ashish Pethe, Chairman, Gem & Jewellery Council (GJC). “We understand the government’s situation with regard to the rupee vs dollar, but this hike will put the entire industry in a spot and may encourage smuggling,” he added. “We will engage with the government to resolve the situation in favour of the domestic industry,” Mr. Pethe said. He was reacting to the government’s move to increase import duty on gold from base rate of 7.5-12.5% to curb the sharp depreciation of the Indian rupee against dollar. “India’s gold demand is largely met through imports, which, at times when the rupee faces some weakness, exacerbates the issue. Rupee exchange rate touched a record low earlier this week amid higher inflation and expanding trade … [Read more...] about Steep raise in gold import duty may strengthen grey market, says WGC

Ration shops will be renovated and turned into mini supermarkets that provide other services too, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies G.R. Anil has said. He was speaking after inaugurating a Subhiksha hotel at Vamanapuram in the district on Friday. The Minister said the State government aimed at making better quality rice and other commodities available in ration shops than that found in the market. The government, he said, was very clear that not one person should go hungry in the State. With this objective, the ‘Hunger-free Kerala-Subhiksha’ hotel project was being implemented in each Assembly segment. Those in need could get cooked for ₹20 from these hotels. Rice and other special dishes could be ordered for low prices, the Minister said. The Subhika hotel near the Vamanapuram market is being run by a local Kudumbashree unit. D.K. Murali, MLA, presided over the function. Civil Supplies Commissioner Sajith Babu, district supply officer C.S. Unnikrishna Kumar, Vamanapuram … [Read more...] about Ration shops be turned into mini supermarkets: Minister

The story so far: The Indian rupee hit an all-time low against the U.S. dollar this week weakening past the 79 rupees to a dollar mark and selling as low as 79.05 against the dollar on Wednesday. Many analysts expect the rupee to weaken further in the coming months and move past the 80 rupees to a dollar mark. In fact, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects the rupee to weaken past the 94 rupees to a dollar mark by FY29. What is happening with the rupee? The Indian rupee has been witnessing a steady decline this year, losing more than 6% against the U.S. dollar since the beginning of 2022. India’s forex reserves have also dropped below $600 billion, plunging by more than $50 billion since September 3, 2021, when forex reserves stood at an all-time high of $642 billion. The drop in India’s forex reserves is believed to be largely due to steps taken by the Reserve Bank of India to support the rupee. RBI officials, however, have noted that the drop in forex reserves is due … [Read more...] about Explainer | The free fall of the rupee

The story so far: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has not only created instability in the region and displaced millions of people but has also led to a global food shortage. Earlier in June, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) released a report that outlines the importance of Ukraine and Russia for agricultural markets and the risks associated with the war that broke out in Ukraine in February 2022 when Russia invaded the country. Also Read Russia-Ukraine crisis live updates | Russia says it has more than 6,000 Ukrainian prisoners of war Both Russia and Ukraine are among the top producers of agricultural commodities in the world. In 2021, both ranked among the top three exporters of wheat, barley, maize, and sunflower seed and oil, globally. Share in global production of selected crops (2016/17-2020/21 average) | Photo Credit: FAO People living in eastern Ukraine were already displaced or impacted by war since 2014 when Russia … [Read more...] about Explained | The impact of the Ukraine-Russia crisis on global agricultural markets

Newsmax’s top-rated host Greg Kelly warned Republican Governor Ron DeSantis on Friday night: Don’t take on Donald Trump for president come 2024. The declaration from the primetime star comes more than two years ahead of a 2024 general election and months ahead of the 2022 midterms, as behind the scenes, Republican Party lieutenants mull potential 2024 GOP presidential contenders. “Governor Ron DeSantis. He is amazing, so talented, so smart, unlimited political future. I want him to be president someday,” Kelly began his Friday evening show as a graphic appeared on screen stating, ‘Not Yet, Ron.’ “I think that’s almost guaranteed to happen, but I’d rather not see him run in 2024.” The message from Kelly comes while Trumpworld remains unsure of precisely when a Trump 2024 campaign announcement might come. The New York Times reported Friday that Trump could announce his candidacy “unusually early,” and the news may come not at a rally but on social media. After … [Read more...] about Newsmax Host Rips Into ‘Career Politician’ Ron DeSantis Over Potential 2024 Run Against Trump

Braving the scorching heat, where nights are no longer cooler than the day, and breathing in toxic air which is easily blamed on vehicular pollution, Delhi and its neighbours welcome monsoons only to grumble about water-logging, trees toppling on cars, overflowing storm water drains and life coming to a standstill. Amidst all this, columns of newsprints are covered with news about vehicular emissions leading to air pollution and rise in temperature. However, what is rarely spoken about is another silent killer — a by-product of urbanisation that is steadily engulfing Delhi and NCR. What environmental activists and experts call “concretisation” is suffocating trees and greens and turning the city into an urban heat island with extremely low ground water and threats of floods looming large in monsoons due to surface run-off. Not only lackadaisical approach of civic agencies, poor public participation in maintenance of greens is reflected in the presence of concretised ramps outside … [Read more...] about Concretisation, the silent killer

The Taliban's supreme leader offered prayers on July 1 for Afghanistan's earthquake victims during a speech to Islamic clerics in Kabul. The tremor in June killed more than 1,000 people in the eastern part of the country . State radio aired Haibatullah Akhundzada's speech live on Friday from the gathering in Kabul, where thousands of Islamic clerics and tribal elders are gathering for the first time since seizing power in Afghanistan in August. Women were not allowed to attend. Mr. Akhundzada's appearance added symbolic heft to the meeting and the decisions the group is considering about Afghanistan's future. The Taliban are under international pressure to be more inclusive as they struggle with Afghanistan's humanitarian crises. The powerful earthquake killed more than 1,000 people in eastern Afghanistan, igniting yet another crisis for the struggling country and further underscoring the Taliban's limited capabilities and isolation. Overstretched aid groups already keeping … [Read more...] about Taliban supreme leader prays for Afghanistan’s earthquake victims