Malaysia climbed six spots to 22nd place among 63 countries in the International Institute for Management Development’s (IMD) World Talent Ranking for this year, sitting above richer nations like the UK, France and Japan.

The ranking is based on countries’ performance in three main categories: Investment and development, appeal and readiness.

The three categories assess how countries perform in a wide range of areas, including education, apprenticeships, workplace training, language skills, cost of living, quality of life, remuneration and tax rates.

For investment and development, Malaysia performed well in several aspects. It was ranked ninth for teacher-to-pupil ratio, sixth for apprenticeship and eighth for employee training.

It also fared well in terms of appeal. Under this category, the survey looked at criteria like cost of living, policies for attracting and retaining talent, brain drain and quality of life.

Malaysia’s relatively cheap living cost made it highly attractive, according to the survey, which ranked the country 10th in this aspect. It was also in the top 25 for talent retention. The report also described the country’s quality of life as “very high”.

As for readiness, gradings were based on the skill levels of a country’s workforce.

Malaysia was 11th in terms of talent availability, 15th for international work experience and in the top 30 on average for criteria related to the country’s education level and overall talent competitiveness.

IMD said Malaysia’s progress in the ranking is rooted in investments in education to develop its homegrown skilled workforce.

“In addition to improved perceptions about the quality of the talent pool available in the country,” the report said in its summary of the performance of Southern Asian nations.

Malaysia, however, remained relatively weak in terms of its performance in the Programmes for International Students Assessments or PISA, an evaluation of how good a country’s pupils are in maths, science and reading.

Western countries consider the three subjects to be the building blocks for technological and economic advancement.

Malaysia was ranked 41st among 63 countries.

Regional rival Singapore, on the other hand, maintained its position at the 13th spot, scoring well in all three main categories. But the expensive cost of living there has made it less attractive to talent.

The tiny island republic has consistently made it to the lists of the most expensive places to live in globally for several years now, mostly due to the exorbitant property market. It took 58th spot in this aspect.

Singapore was also ranked close to the bottom in terms of education funding, but that could be due to its already solid standing in the field. Its elite university, the National University of Singapore, is rated the best school in Asia.

In the report’s summary of the performance of South Asian nations, IMD said Singapore and Malaysia achieved the best placements in terms of talent competitiveness.

“Compared to last year, Singapore keeps the same position in the ranking and Malaysia moves up by six,” the report said.

Singapore continues to excel in appealing to professionals from abroad to sustain their top-tier talent pool but lags behind in terms of public investments in education, the report added.

Source: Malay Mail

Source: NST

If you’re a high-networth individual in Asia into fine dining, wine, jewellery and luxury skin cream, it’s best not to live in Shanghai.

The Chinese city overtook Hong Kong as the most expensive for a basket of luxury goods and services on a price-weighted basis, according to Bank Julius Baer & Co’s annual Wealth Report Asia, which tracks spending by the region’s rich.

Shanghai has also grown more pricey on a relative basis to buy property (although Hong Kong is still most expensive in that regard), hire a lawyer or purchase watches and handbags, the report found.

Kuala Lumpur retained its claim as the least expensive city in Asia – Malaysia’s capital is the best place to pick up a piano, indulge in cigars or book a hotel suite.

The report, in its eighth year, also introduced a new His & Hers Index to compare the cost of luxury goods for men and women in an attempt to answer the question: Is there a pink tax? Or, does it cost more for a woman to look good versus a man?

It will perhaps come as no surprise to anyone that women’s items cost more on average, with Seoul being the most expensive city for both male and female luxury goods. This is largely owing to an excise tax of up to 20% on certain imports.

On average, it costs US$2,158 more to purchase Julius Baer’s Hers Index relative to the His Index, although the differential is lower – by US$126 – when a wrist accessory is excluded.

The Hers index is skewed higher due to the Cartier Love Bracelet, a diamond-paved and white gold adornment that costs around US$48,143 in Shanghai (or US$41,818 in Kuala Lumpur).

At the other end of the spectrum, Jakarta is the cheapest overall for men’s luxury items while Mumbai is where you want to be shopping if you’re a lady.

In Hong Kong, Julius Baer’s basket of goods and services rose by 2.2% in 2018.

Source: Bloomberg

The association’s 2018 Corporate Governance (CG) Watch report ranked Malaysia fourth out of 12 Asia-Pacific economies in terms of market accountability and transparency, said Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng.

“This is a significant improvement from seventh place in 2016 when the report was previously published. This means Malaysia is the biggest 2018 gainer among regional rivals that include Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore,” Lim said in a statement.

He said ACGA had noted that the improvement reflects Malaysia’s “concrete moves” to tackle endemic corruption issues fostered by the previous administration.

The improvement, he added, proves that the government’s continuous effort to instil the principles of competency, accountability and transparency in its administration is bearing fruit.

“The report states that the jump is based on optimism over the May 9, 2018 political change in Malaysia, which has translated into tangible improvements to enforcement and reporting,” Lim said.

In addition to the anti-corruption measures undertaken, Lim said the government has ensured the open tender system is widely implemented, which has not only increased transparency in the public sector, but also has had a positive impact on the local market.

“The application of zero-based budgeting and the migration towards accrual accounting from cash accounting by 2021 as announced in the 2019 Budget are also part of the government’s wider institutional reform agenda that will further raise the level of accountability and transparency in the government,” he added.

Lim said the improvement in ranking is only one example of how the government’s institutional reform agenda is raising Malaysia’s governance quality and contributing to fiscal sustainability.

“The biggest proof that the government’s plan is working can be seen in the surge of approved foreign direct investment in manufacturing of 379% year-on-year since May 2018 as reported by the Malaysian Investment Development Authority,” he said.

These institutional reforms undertaken by the government have also convinced the top three rating agencies to maintain Malaysia’s sovereign credit ratings at A- or A3 with Moody’s being the latest one to have done so, Lim noted.

Source: The Edge Markets

Malaysia ranked fifth among top 10 developing economies in Asia for its readiness to support online shopping, based on the 2018 United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Business to Consumer (B2C) e-commerce index.

A report on the B2C E-Commerce Index by UNCTAD, released on Dec 10, said Malaysia has had strong B2C sales contribution to its gross domestic product (GDP) since 2016 and was among the top five countries including United Kingdom, China, Ireland and Thailand.

Malaysia also improved its overall ranking, among developing economies, to 34th placing from 39th last year, ahead of Thailand (43), Turkey (47), Iran (49), Chile (50) and Saudi Arabia (52).

The index was evaluated, among others, from the share of individuals using the Internet, share of individuals with an account, secure Internet servers (normalise) and UPU postal reliability score.

B2C sales accounted for 6.4 per cent of Malaysia’s GDP in 2016.

“This is because the government partnered Chinese e-commerce company, Alibaba, to establish a dedicated e-commerce technology park, Digital Free Trade Zone, the first such facility in South East Asia,” it said, adding that the digital readiness had attracted foreign direct investments in the B2C sector.

“And, so far, Alibaba has invested US$100 million in Malaysia.

Source: Bernama

Malaysia, with a score of 95 out of 100, was ranked first in the Best Healthcare in the World category of the 2019 International Living Annual Global Retirement Index.

According to the International Living website, among top six countries that obtained the best ratings in the category of Best Healthcare in the World for this year, Malaysia ranked first with its world-class healthcare services and sophisticated infrastructure.

It said that with 13 hospitals in the country accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI), where almost all doctors – majority of whom were trained in the United Kingdom, the United States or Australia – were fluent in English, thus communication was flawless.

“There are both private and public hospitals for expatriates to choose from, to suit one’s needs though the private hospitals tend to be a bit more expensive but are more up to Western standards than the public hospitals,” it said, adding that even at the private hospitals, the treatment was affordable for minor visits.

“Here (in Malaysia), you don’t need to make an appointment to see a specialist and you don’t need a referral from a general practitioner. It’s as simple as registering at a hospital of your choice and waiting in line to see your specialist of choice,” it said.

“The prescriptions in Malaysia cost a fraction of what you pay at home. But it’s not just the cost that is attractive – it’s the service.

“Pharmacists, similar to rest of medical staff in Malaysia, are well-trained and informed. The Malaysians are friendly people, but it’s the genuine interest they take which impresses,” it said.

Source:  Bernama

University of Malaya (UM) is the best performing university in Malaysia, according to the recent release of Times Higher Education Emerging Economies University Rankings (THE-EEUR).

In UM’s statement today, the university has been positioned at no. 18 in the ranking system, which placed it among the top 20 emerging economies universities.

The THE-EEUR system, which is now in its sixth year, includes a special group of 300 plus universities across 40 over countries classified by the British’s Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) as advanced emerging, secondary emerging or frontier economies. Malaysia is classified as advanced emerging by the FTSE classification.

UM said it will continue to focus on strengthening its fundamentals through the many phases of its strategic plan.

“Through the UM Eco-Campus Blueprint (UMECB), UM has expanded its research focus on environment and sustainability matters linked to the United Nations Sustainability Goals (SDGs). Many initiatives outlined in the UMECB is promulgating UM’s research orientation towards closer partnership in various industries and community,” it said.

UM’s vice-chancellor Datuk Ir (Dr) Abdul Rahim Hashim said the university’s participation in the ranking system is to further improve its value proposition and to benchmark UM against other institutions of higher learning.

“UM aims to improve its linkages and collaboration with strategic industries and international partnerships in order to better prepare UM graduates to handle new technologies as the economy moves towards Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0. The challenge is how universities can handle these fast evolving smart technologies in this IR 4.0 era,” he said.

He thanked the university community especially the staff and students for their commitment and contributions towards the achievement of the University’s performance, and expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Education (MOE) for its unwavering support.

“I hope that the ministry will continue to provide stronger support so that UM could rise further in university rankings in the coming years,” he added.

Source: The Edge Markets

Source: NST

Taylor’s University has again achieved Malaysia’s highest rank in all of the 48 subject tables in the latest edition of the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University rankings by subject.

According to the 2019 instalment of the ranking, the private institution has risen seven positions to 14 in the Hospitality & Leisure Management ranking.

Taylor’s University vice-chancellor and president Prof Michael Driscoll ( pic) said the achievement was especially significant with the change in the employer reputation component for this subject.

“This year, there is an increase in the weightage of how the institution is viewed by employers.

“Our strong performance is indicative of how our students are viewed by industry players and proves to us that our approach is well received by the industry,” he said.

Prof Driscoll said this was the first time its Business and Management Studies subject made it into the rankings.

UCSI University Institute of Music director Prof Dr P’ng Tean Hwa said this was the second year they were listed in the 51-100 bracket for Performing Arts.

“The ranking, once again, cements UCSI’s Institute of Music standing as the nation’s foremost music school and one of the best in the region,” he said.

“We always work together with our students so this achievement belongs to our alumni and students, just as much as it does to our teaching staff.

“We are also grateful for the support given by our partners from the music industry in contributing to this milestone.”

Other Malaysian universities have taken a tumble in this edition of the rankings with only four Malaysian departments ranking among the top 50 in the world for their subject compared to nine in 2018.

Universiti Malaya (UM) is Malaysia’s most ranked university with placings in 34 subjects.

Despite it being the most ranked local varsity, all of UM’s subjects have seen a drop in their positions.

Among them are Library & Information Management, which is down seven places to 31 and Development Studies which has dropped eight places to 38.

The global higher education analysts said the drop in the rank of Malaysia’s universities occurred primarily because employers were recording less satisfaction with the country’s graduates.

This decrease in employer satisfaction outweighed improvements in research performance, the statement said.

In total, 157 Malaysian university departments are ranked with 26 Malaysian university departments making it into the top 100.

Only 11 departments recorded improvements while 76 departments recording a drop in their position this year.

However, QS research director Ben Sowter said: “There are 78 countries represented in this edition of the rankings, and Malaysia is 22nd globally for the number of university departments featured.

“A positive result for a young nation which is competing on the world’s stage with countries boasting higher education systems established centuries ago.”

The ranking is an extensive overview of international higher education performance, with over 1,200 universities from 78 locations ranked in 48 subject tables and five broad disciplinary tables.

Source: The Star 

Malaysia has maintained its strong position globally, ranking second highest in Southeast Asia and 12th out of 169 countries for trade connectivity, says the DHL Global Connectedness Index (GCI) report.

The fifth edition of the GCI, which measures international flows of trade, capital, information and people, stated that Malaysia also improved the depth and breadth of its global connectedness to 15th and 28th places in the world respectively.

DHL Express Malaysia and Brunei managing director Julian Neo said Malaysia’s consistent top 20 ranking in the Global Connectedness Index is evidenced by a steady growth in Malaysia’s trade with Asean.

“By increasing our nation’s connectedness, Malaysia is well poised to meet the growth targets set by the International Trade and Industry Ministry,” he said.

The GCI report said Southeast Asian countries benefit from linkages with the wider Asian supply chain networks as well as Asean policy initiatives promoting economic integration.

Malaysia and three other Southeast Asian countries – Cambodia, Singapore and Vietnam – were economies where international flows exceeded expectations the most, said the report.

“This is expected to create a positive effect for the region as deeper global connectedness can help accelerate countries’ economic growth,” it said. — Bernama

Source: Bernama

Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru have retained their rankings for quality of life in Asia at 10th and 12th, respectively, said a survey.

This also means that KL is placed second spot in Southeast Asia behind Singapore, according to the Mercer Quality of Living City Ranking 2019 survey.

On the global scale, KL is at No 85 and Johor Bahru No 101.

“In Asia, Singapore (25) has the highest quality of living in the region, followed by the five Japanese cities of Tokyo (49), Kobe (49), Yokohama (55), Osaka (58), and Nagoya (62), and then Hong Kong (71) and Seoul (77), which rose two places this year as political stability returned following the arrest of its president last year,” the survey said.

In South Asia, New Delhi is placed at 162, “Mumbai (154) and Bengaluru (149) remained unchanged from last year’s ranking for overall quality of living, with Colombo (138) topping the ranking. In 105th place, Chennai ranks as the region’s safest city, while Karachi (226) is the least safe,” it said.

In Europe, Vienna is at the top, Zurich second and Munich third. All three cities also clocked in the same rankings on the global scale.

Munich shares the overall third place with Vancouver (Canada) and Auckland (New Zealand)

In the Middle East, Dubai (74) continues to rank highest for quality of living, followed by Abu Dhabi (78), but Sana’a (229) and Baghdad (231) are among the poorest performers in the region.

In South America, Montevideo (78) is ranked highest, while continued political turmoil kicked Caracas (202) down nine spots.

The Mercer survey evaluates local living conditions in more than 450 cities worldwide. Living conditions are analysed according to 39 factors in 10 categories.

Source: The Edge Markets 

Source: NST

Universiti Malaya (UM) has made a giant leap up the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2020.

Malaysia’s oldest university now ranks 70 in the latest edition of the international university rankings.

It made an impressive 17 spot climb up from 87 last year.

This is the highest position the university has been at since the rankings began in 2004.

UM vice-chancellor Datuk Abdul Rahim Hashim said the university’s continuous improvement is due to it adhering with its strategic plan.

“UM has sustained its upward trajectory in the face of fiscal challenges, and emphasises the value of financial support from the government to achieve excellence in teaching, research and innovation,” he said.

Abdul Rahim added that an increase in investment will enable them to intensify international collaborations, enhance strategic research and industry partnerships, and improve graduate employability.

“UM also has plans to widen its talent pool with excellent local and international staff as well as retain the services of its internationally-recognised retired academics,” he said.

QS research director Ben Sowter said the main reason for UM’s success is its score for Academic Reputation – 40% of overall score – that rose from 62/100 to 68.2/100 since 2016.

It now ranks 91st in the Academic Reputation indicator which measures the opinions of over 94,000 faculty across the world, he added.

He also said that UM’s Employer Reputation score has risen from 56.8/100 to 72/100 in the same timeframe.

Malaysia’s other four research universities are also continuing to climb up the international university rankings (see table).

UPM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Dr Aini Ideris said making it to the top 200 universities is proof that they “have successfully accomplished our Putra Global 200 (PG200), one of the important aspirations we set in UPM’s Strategic Plan 2014-2020.”

UKM vice-chancellor Prof Dr Mohd Hamdi Abd Shukor said the university is “very humbled by this improvement and will continue to work hard to strengthen our quality output.”

Meanwhile, UCSI University is ranked the nation’s best private university for the second year in a row.

UCSI vice-chancellor and president Senior Prof Datuk Dr Khalid Yusoff said the latest milestone was a result of a consistent university-wide push for excellence and performance.

Taylor’s University vice-chancellor and president Prof Michael Driscoll said they are proud to again be Malaysia’s number one private university among employers globally.

For more info, visit https://www.topuniversities.com/qs-world-university-rankings.

Source: The Star

Source: NST

Posted on : 20 June 2019

Education Minister Dr. Maszlee Malik in announcing on the rankings here today said Universiti Malaya (UM) rose to 70th place from 87 last year.

According to the QS World University Ranking 2020, he said Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) ranked at 159 from its former position of 202; Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) (160 from 184); Universiti Sains Malaysia (165 from 207) and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia climbed up 11 places from 228 places last year.

“The ranking series saw 20 local universities have been listed this year, with 10 universities improving from last year’s ranking, while two universities retained their positions.

“Seven more have been ranked for the first time and one university declined its position from last year’s rankings,” he said in a press conference here today.

A total of 15 public and private local higher education institutions are also listed in the top 1,000 QS World Rankings, namely UCSI, Universiti Teknologi Petronas, Taylor’s University; Management & Science University; Universiti Utara Malaysia; Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia; Universiti Teknologi Mara; Universiti Malaysia Perlis; and Sunway University.

Also in the list were Universiti Malaysia Pahang; Universiti Multimedia; Universiti Malaysia Sarawak; Universiti Tenaga Nasional; University Tunku Abdul Rahman; and Universiti Malaysia Sabah.

According to Maszlee, the ranking development proved that the government was on the right track in providing quality higher education institutions in the era of the Industrial Revolution 4.0.

He, however, stressed that the ministry will not prioritise a university’s position or ranking, instead emphasised on the academic excellence and university’s role to become problem solvers of issues faced by society and the nation.

“The ministry hopes all universities have the ability to produce researchers and academic researches, that can be a reference at the global level, and at the same time, assist in getting the best rank in the world ranking,” he added.

Source: Bernama

Source: NST

Posted on : 24 July 2019

Poland took silver, followed by the Philippines, Indonesia and Australia with Malaysia continuing to be the most attractive destination for investors and business people among 67 countries evaluated.

According to CEOWORLD, the rankings were based on 11 different factors, including corruption, freedom (personal, trade, and monetary), workforce, investor protection, infrastructure, taxes, quality of life, red tape, and technological readiness. Each category was equally weighted.

The rankings had Singapore in sixth place, followed by India, the Czech Republic, Spain, and Thailand. The United Kingdom, the United States, China, and Japan ranked 16th, 18th, 24th, and 32nd respectively.

Each year, CEOWORLD magazine ranks the world based on a variety of categories ranging from the richest people to the best universities, top companies, and top executives. One of the categories is the “World’s best Countries to Invest In or Do Business”.

Source: Bernama

The ranking for the easiest city to get settled as an expat was carried out by InterNations, the world’s largest expat community with over 3.5 million members.

As many as 12 Asian cities featured in the ranking which is based on InterNations’s annual Expat Insider survey that covers more than 20,000 expatriates representing 178 nationalities and living in 187 countries or territories.

In the global list, Taipei, Kuala Lumpur, Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore were in first to fourth places respectively, with Taipei defending its position in 2018. Whereas Bangkok (20th), Tokyo (26th), Jakarta (33rd), Shanghai (43rd), and Hong Kong (52th) rank midfield. Beijing (60th) and Seoul (63rd) come in towards the end of the list, and Yangon (73rd) is among the bottom 10.

“Expats seem to find it easy to get settled in most Asian cities, with the exception of Tokyo, Beijing, Seoul, and Shanghai,” InterNations said in a press release today.

Based on the ranking, Taipei, Kuala Lumpur, Ho Chi Minh City, Singapore, Montréal, Lisbon, Barcelona, Zug, The Hague, and Basel are the best cities to move to in 2020. Whereas Kuwait City (82nd), Rome, Milan, Lagos (Nigeria), Paris, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Lima, New York City, and Yangon (73rd) are the world’s worst cities.

In 2019, a total of 82 cities around the globe are analyzed in the survey, offering in-depth information about five areas of expat life — Quality of Urban Living, Getting Settled, Urban Work Life, Finance & Housing and Local Cost of Living. For a city to be featured in the Expat City Ranking 2019, a sample size of at least 50 survey participants per city was required.

KL makes it into top 3

With its second place, Kuala Lumpur finally makes it into the global top three after consistently ranking among the top 10 cities in the past few years.

In the city, 75% of the expats felt at home (versus 64% globally), while 69% were happy with their social life (versus 55% globally). Language does not seem to be a problem, as 92% find it easy to live in the city without speaking the local language (versus 47% globally).

Expats has little to complain about when it comes to Local Cost of Living (2nd) and Finance & Housing Indices (2nd). Close to four in five (78%) are satisfied with the local costs of living (versus 43% globally), and 75% find housing affordable (versus 36% globally).

However, expats’ satisfaction with their work life was mixed, ranking Kuala Lumpur 26th worldwide in the respective index. While expats were generally satisfied with their jobs (5th), they were not happy with the local career opportunities (50th). Only 47% of respondents rate the latter positively, which is just below the global average (51%). — EdgeProp.my

Source: The Edge Markets

Posted on : 03 December 2019

Candidates selected from 3,200 listed companies

Six Malaysian companies made it into Forbes Asia’s inaugural “Best Over A Billion” list, which features AsiaPacific’s 200 top-performing listed companies with revenues of over US$1bil.

In a statement, Forbes Asia said the candidates were selected from 3,200 listed companies in the region, and were evaluated based on over a dozen metrics including their average five-year sales, operating income growth, return on capital, and projected growth over the next one to two years.

Those having the highest composite score, it said, made it into the final list.

“The goal is to find the region’s best-run companies that are doing well on not just one metric but across many of them.

“The result is a list that represents the best of Asia-Pacific’s big companies,” it said.

The Malaysian companies on the list – by alphabetical order – are Batu Kawan Bhd, Hap Seng Consolidated Bhd, IHH Healthcare Bhd, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Bhd, Press Metal Aluminium Holdings Bhd and Public Bank Bhd.

The new list complements Forbes Asia’s existing “Best Under A Billion” list of the 200 best-performing, small and mid-sized companies in the region with less than US$1bil in revenue.

Together, it said, the two lists now comprehensively cover all of Asia-Pacific’s listed companies, selecting the top 400 companies using US$1bil in sales as a dividing line.

It said the largest companies on the list by market value were from the technology sector and located in the region’s largest markets.

They included Internet giants Alibaba and Tencent, as well as semiconductor firms Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and SK Hynix.

Fast Retailing, which is the operator of the Uniqlo apparel chain, is among the 10 largest companies on the list by market value.

The industries that dominated the list included retail, real estate, banking, transportation as well as food and beverage manufacturing.

Forbes Asia also noted the connection between the companies and members of Forbes Asia’s rich lists.

“The Best Over A Billion list provides an incredible insight into which are Asia’s bestrun big companies.

“Nearly two-thirds of the companies on this list are controlled by or connected to families or individuals who have appeared on Forbes Asia’s rich lists,” says Forbes Asia editor Justin Doebele.

Source: The Star

Posted on : 29 August 2019