KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 — The rising number of older Malaysians remaining in the workforce is highlighting gaps in retirement readiness, prompting renewed focus on the need to strengthen support systems in an ageing society.

Across the country, more individuals aged 60 and above are staying economically active, with some choosing to remain engaged while many continue working due to financial consideration. 

This trend reflects a changing landscape where retirement is no longer a fixed endpoint, but an increasingly uncertain phase shaped by both opportunity and constraint. 

Universiti Malaysia Kelantan Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and International) Prof Datuk Dr Nik Maheran Nik Muhammad said insufficient savings remain a key factor, particularly among those who spent their careers in informal sectors.

“Most older Malaysians continue working because they need the income, not just because they want to stay active. So while ‘active ageing’ sounds positive, for many, continuing to work is actually a necessity, not a choice,” she said when contacted by Bernama.

Malaysia is already transitioning into an ageing society, with those aged 60 and above expected to make up about 15 per cent of the population by 2030, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).

As of September 30, 2025, a total of 310,100 elderly contributors were still actively contributing under the Self-Employment Social Security Act, reflecting the growing participation of older individuals in the workforce

In the context of this year’s Labour Day theme, ‘Pekerja Madani, Kesuma Bangsa’, the continued participation of older Malaysians in the workforce highlights the enduring value of their experience, while also underscoring the need for stronger retirement support. 

Nik Maheran said gaps in retirement readiness include inadequate savings under the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), uneven income levels among retirees, and limited protection for those in informal employment.

“Retirement savings are still not enough for many, and many workplaces are not yet designed for older workers,” she said, adding that more flexible working arrangements and age-friendly job designs could better support this segment.

Meanwhile, Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia (ISIS Malaysia) Economics, Trade and Regional Integration Division director Calvin Cheng said the rise of the ‘silver workforce’ is also shaped by broader structural shifts in the labour market.

He noted that many older workers today share similarities with gig economy workers, particularly in terms of income flexibility and also exposure to weaker protections.

“Many of these older workers end up in gig or precarious informal work…and similarly, it is likely many of today’s necessity-driven older workers were themselves gig or informal workers earlier in their careers.

“This same structural logic explains why stable, quality employment is declining, and why maintaining a decent standard of living for retirement feels increasingly out of reach for many workers,” he said.

On existing frameworks, Cheng said Malaysia’s social protection system including the EPF, Social Security Organisation (Perkeso) schemes and the Employment Insurance System is relatively well-developed by regional standards. 

However, he said gaps remain in both coverage and adequacy, particularly as protections are largely tied to formal employment.

“Close to half of Malaysia’s workforce is not meaningfully covered by any formal retirement system,” he said.

Looking ahead, Cheng said demographic ageing is inevitable but also presents an opportunity to better support and harness the contribution of older workers. 

“The labour market of the future will simply be an older one. If it continues unabated, the future may see even more disparities between well-protected workers and those in informal employment,” he said.

He added that strengthening retirement security and workplace inclusivity will be key to ensuring that older Malaysians can continue contributing meaningfully, while also having the option to retire with dignity. — Bernama

PARIS, May 1 — The closure of the Strait of Hormuz as well as tensions in the Red Sea are reshaping trade routes, with Africa becoming a hub of global container ship traffic, according to logistics and maritime sources.

Over the past two months, the blockade has also pushed shipowners to find alternative land corridors to deliver foodstuffs and manufactured goods by truck, as they can no longer reach the Gulf’s coastal countries by sea.

What are the alternative routes for delivering to Gulf countries? 

The Saudi port of Jeddah on the Red Sea is becoming a new regional “hub”, where ships from maritime giants MSC, CMA CGM, Maersk and Cosco arrive via the Suez Canal.

Cargo then leaves by truck along a desert highway to deliver to places such as Sharjah, Bahrain and Kuwait, which have not been served by sea for the past two months.

“The port of Jeddah is not at all sized to handle such import volumes and a port congestion situation is emerging,” Arthur Barillas de The, cofounder of freight forwarder Ovrsea, told AFP.

According to data from Kpler Marine Traffic, 11 container ships were docked in Jeddah yesterday, with nine waiting, and an average wait of 36 hours before unloading compared to 17 hours the previous week.

A picture taken March 1, 2022 shows a view of cranes and shipping containers at a loading dock of Jeddah’s Islamic Seaport on Saudi Arabia’s western Red Sea coast. Locally, over the past two months, the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has also prompted shipowners to find alternative land routes to deliver, by lorry, foodstuffs and manufactured goods that can no longer reach the Gulf’s coastal countries by sea. — Reuters pic

Shipowners have said they will use three ports outside the Strait of Hormuz — Oman’s Sohar, and the UAE ports of Khorfakkan and Fujairah, which are connected by land from the United Arab Emirates.

The port of Aqaba in Jordan serves as a base for sending goods to Baghdad and Basra in Iraq, while a Turkish corridor is also allowing goods into northern Iraq.

On international routes, why are Asia-Europe container ships avoiding the Suez Canal? 

The situation started well before the war in Iran but is very much connected to the conflict.  Avoiding the Red Sea from the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to the Suez Canal dates back to November 19, 2023 and the first attack on a container ship by Iran-backed Houthi militias from the coast of Yemen, said CyclOpe, a specialist commodities publication.

The rerouting of ships has now become systematic, said Ronan Boudet, head of container intelligence at Kpler.

They skirt around Africa by following its eastern coast as far as the Cape of Good Hope in southern South Africa before heading back north towards Europe and the Mediterranean.

“With the current situation in the Gulf, we have put several more coins in the machine, it’s not going to get better anytime soon,” Edouard Louis-Dreyfus, chairman of French shipping giant Louis Dreyfus Armateurs, told AFP.

“Today, 70 per cent of the freight traffic that went through the Red Sea in 2023 is being rerouted via the Cape of Good Hope,” added Yves Guillo, a supply chain expert at Efeso, a management consultancy in Paris.

According to data from the International Monetary Fund’s PortWatch platform based on ships’ GPS signals, commercial vessel traffic via the Cape of Good Hope has more than tripled in three years, while traffic through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait has fallen by more than half.

Between March 1 and April 24 this year, an average of 20 commercial vessels went round the Cape of Good Hope every day compared with six in the same period in 2023.

By comparison, traffic in the Red Sea has plummeted: from 18 transits per day through Bab al-Mandeb between March and April 2023, the average fell to five three years later.

People sit on a bench on the Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah Causeway as a Zhonggu Shipping container ship sails past on its way towards the port of Shuwaikh in Kuwait City on February 28, 2026. — Reuters pic

What are the consequences? 

Transport times have lengthened between Asia and Europe by an average of two weeks and costs have risen because 30 to 50 per cent more fuel is needed and 10 to 20 per cent more ships to ensure the same frequency of service, said Guillo.

The average price to transport a standard 40-foot container on the main shipping routes increased by 14 per cent in April compared to the same period last year, he added, citing changes in the Drewry freight index.

Large differences exist between routes: some African ports are seeing their activity increase. The Tanger Med Port Authority said it handled 11 million standard containers in 2025 — up 8.4 per cent.

But Egypt lost toll revenues from the Suez Canal, which make up a large part of its income. According to CyclOpe, in 2024 it lost US$7 billion — a drop of more than 60 per cent compared with 2023. — AFP

DUBAI, ‌May 1 — Dubai chef Shaw Lash at Mexican restaurant Lila Molino flies in her avocados and tomatillos, small, tart green fruits native to Central America that are a staple of Mexican cuisine and key for her colourful and spicy dishes. Now the two-month-old war in Iran is making such ingredients harder to source and more expensive, Lash and other chefs said, as the Gulf grapples with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz sea route ‌and spiking jet fuel prices push up air freight costs.

Lash has scaled back production, cut her payroll, and is buying ingredients in smaller quantities for now — measures she expects to be temporary. She’s focusing on her make-at-home fajita kits which have been a hit, and her grocery line.

“The reality is cargo has gotten more expensive, gas prices have gone up, the Strait of Hormuz is still blocked,” Lash told Reuters at her restaurant in Dubai’s trendy Alserkal Avenue art and culture district.

“This is really creating a problem for us as far as our supply.”

Chefs in the glitzy city are adapting their menus, with some turning to more regional or readily available foods, or offering fewer dishes. Dubai authorities have rolled out broader economic support measures, relief on fees and campaigns to get people dining.

A person sits at Lila Molino restaurant in Dubai April 28, 2026. — Reuters pic

Restaurants face period of ‘disrupted footfall’

The trend is a challenge for the UAE’s wider full-service restaurant market estimated to be worth US$9.5 billion (RM37.7 billion) last year by market researcher Mordor Intelligence. Before the war started, it predicted 20 per cent growth to US$11.3 billion this year. But the war may change the equation. After the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran in late February, the Gulf saw several weeks of Iranian missile and drone attacks. Although a ceasefire came into effect on April 8, the Strait of Hormuz, the only sea access to the UAE, which imports more ‌than 80 per cent of its food for consumption, remains effectively closed. The war has cut regional tourist arrivals, hit shopper numbers in luxury malls, high-end car sales, and disrupted restaurants, a pillar of Dubai’s ⁠booming leisure and tourism sector carefully built on an image of grandeur and safety. A survey by ⁠Juniper Strategy and the Global Restaurant Investment Forum found that UAE foodservice operators reported they were experiencing an average 27 per cent drop in ⁠demand levels versus a year ago. Supplier cost increases averaged ⁠13 per cent, according to the report, which consulted 30 ⁠industry leaders between April 1-8, who operate some 400 restaurants.

It added tourist-exposed locations and business districts were under the greatest pressure while residential establishments showed greater resilience, and in some cases, growth.

The Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism said in a statement that some operators were navigating a “period of disrupted footfall” and were finding creative ways to respond.

“Across the city, restaurants, chefs and platforms are adapting through new formats, ⁠targeted offers and community-led initiatives,” it said in a document sent to Reuters.

The UAE ministry of economy and tourism did not respond to a request for comment.

Dining tables are seen outside a restaurant, in Dubai April 28, 2026. — Reuters pic

Chefs turn to locally sourced ingredients

Kelvin Cheung, chef at fusion restaurant Jun’s Dubai, told Reuters that finding alternative routes to transport hard-to-source perishable ingredients, such as Norwegian scallops or certain Japanese seafood, had become a costly challenge.

“Your only option was then to fly air freight, which would increase our costs by about thirty, thirty-five per cent,” he said, adding he had turned to using local fish on his menu.

Air freight rates have risen by as much as 70 per cent on some routes as the war has stymied oil shipments from the Gulf and pushed up jet fuel costs. Flights to and from the UAE ⁠are only slowly returning to normal.

“Tourism has taken a huge hit,” said Cheung. “That massive influx of tourists who provide that extra boost of economy, of spend, across all industries is what we’re missing now.”

Cheung has introduced a six-course menu for 225 dirhams (RM242) using locally sourced ingredients. The restaurant has retained all its staff. Other ⁠venues are set to roll out discounted set-price meals for Restaurant Week in May.

The conflict has sharpened existing challenges like high fixed costs, tourism reliance and supply-chain exposure, said food writer Courtney Brandt, who ⁠has been in the ⁠region since 2007, adding the market was already saturated before the war.

“We were due for a correction,” she said, adding that international brands, often with celebrity chefs and deeper pockets, could fare better but that mounting costs were a challenge despite local support.

“Difficult decisions have to be made if businesses are going to survive.”

Some fine-dining venues, including in the luxury Atlantis hotels on Dubai’s iconic man-made palm-shaped island, have temporarily closed for refurbishments, not citing ‌the war. Others have opened, including Italian restaurant Siena in early April in Dubai and Isabel Mayfair in UAE capital Abu Dhabi.

Chefs Lash and Cheung expect the market to pick up.

“Over the last few weeks, especially with the ceasefire and schools resuming, we’ve started to see a positive uplift in business and overall movement across the city. There is a sense of normalcy slowly returning,” said Cheung. — Reuters

BRUSSELS, May 1 — The European Union and South American bloc Mercosur will today implement a contentious free trade agreement that the EU in particular hopes will benefit exporters and calm critics, even if it cannot fully offset the blow from US tariffs.

Backers including Germany and Spain say the agreement will help compensate for the hit from ‌US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and reduce reliance on China for critical minerals. France and other critics argue it will increase imports of cheap beef and sugar and undercut domestic farmers, and environmentalists say it will increase rainforest destruction.

Either way, economists caution that the economic gains from this pact and others concluded in recent months by the EU will be modest and are unlikely to fully make up for lost US trade.

The European Parliament, whose approval is required, voted in January to challenge the agreement in the EU’s top court, which could take up to two years to rule, but the European Commission decided to provisionally apply the deal from May 1.

Supporters hope the EU’s largest ever agreement in terms of tariff reductions, which took 25 years to negotiate, will swiftly benefit EU exporters so that when the EU assembly does vote, perhaps in two years’ time, the advantages will be clear.

Trump prompts trade deal dash

Alongside Mercosur, the EU has rushed to conclude trade agreements with India, Indonesia, Australia and Mexico since Trump’s re-election.

The accords help to shore ‌up free trade at a time when Trump’s tariffs and Chinese export curbs on critical minerals undermine a rules-based global order.

The European bloc is also ⁠hoping the agreements will help offset a decline in exports to the United ⁠States of 15 per cent or more and a hit to GDP of some 0.3 per cent this year alone.

However, Carsten ⁠Brzeski, global head of Macro at ING Research, ⁠said it was hard to see ⁠the new trade relationships replacing the United States.

“Put simply, GDP per capita in the US is by far larger than in these new trading partners,” he said.

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva shows the signed decree enacting the Trade Agreement between the European Union and Mercosur at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia April 28, 2026. — AFP pic

The European Commission has estimated the Mercosur agreement will boost EU GDP by 0.05 per cent in 2040, while the India agreement, which the EU has dubbed the “mother ⁠of all deals”, could add 0.1 per cent to GDP, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.

Those benefits are also at least a decade away, when the deals are fully implemented, whereas pain from Trump’s tariffs has been immediate.

China already there

EU companies will also face fierce competition in these markets, where Chinese rivals have been steadily building a presence for two decades.

“The elephant in the room is China,” said Lucrezia Reichlin, professor of economics at the London Business School.

“And this is not just about tariffs. If you look at what China has done in Asia and in Africa, it has been about investment ⁠and the energy transition, too.”

Maximiliano Mendez-Parra, principal research fellow at ODI Global, said much had changed since he co-authored a report for the European Commission in December 2020 that forecast a 0.1 per cent increase in EU GDP from the EU-Mercosur deal. Since then China has ramped ⁠up sales of vehicles and machinery, items that the EU wants to export, Mendez-Parra said.

Tariff reductions should help EU companies compete more effectively against often low prices ⁠of Chinese goods, ⁠but the challenges are increasing.

China has already begun the task of offsetting US tariffs, reporting a record trade surplus of nearly US$1.2 trillion in 2025, led by booming exports to non-US markets.

Global Trade Alert estimated that US tariffs led to some US$150 billion of Chinese exports being redirected, with Asean countries absorbing more than US$70 billion of extra Chinese goods, and ‌sharp increases, too, for Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and the Gulf.

So, while the EU’s trade accords should help, the EU will not offset lost US exports without looking internally. Some 60 per cent of EU exports are from one EU country to another and a more efficient and competitive single market could easily compensate. — Reuters

ALOR GAJAH, May 1 — Three individuals, including a woman, were arrested after a 135-kilometre police chase from the Serdang Rest and Service (R&R) area in Selangor to the Sungai Petai traffic light junction here on Wednesday.

Alor Gajah district police chief Supt Ahmad Abu Bakar said the incident occurred around 8 pm after a patrol team from the Serdang district police headquarters (IPD) Crime Prevention and Community Safety Department ordered a suspicious black Honda City to stop.

“However, the driver refused to cooperate and sped off in an attempt to escape before being pursued by the police to Melaka.

“Upon reaching the Sungai Petai traffic light junction, the suspect’s vehicle lost control and collided with an Isuzu D-Max four-wheel drive driven by a local man,” he said in a statement today.

He said checks on the suspects’ vehicle found two local men, aged 23 and 43, and a 41-year-old woman, who was the driver.

He said further inspection uncovered a transparent plastic packet containing a substance believed to be heroin weighing 2.16 grammes, and another packet containing a substance believed to be methamphetamine weighing 0.65 grammes.

“Checks on past records found that one of the male suspects has 24 criminal and drug-related records, while the other has eight criminal records. The woman also has two records related to drug offences.

“Initial urine screening tests found that two suspects tested positive for methamphetamine, while another tested positive for morphine,” he said.

He added that all three suspects have been remanded for four days from yesterday until May 3 to assist investigations under Section 39A(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952. — Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 — All programmes, including entertainment events, must be organised with due regard for values, decorum, religious sensitivities and local societal norms, Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said.

The Deputy Prime Minister said the views expressed by the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Department (JAWI) and the Federal Territories Mufti Department should be taken seriously and respected, as they reflect the concerns of a broad segment of Malaysian society.

“That is why we have called for such programmes to be reassessed in terms of their concept, content and implementation,” he said in a Facebook post today.

Ahmad Zahid, who is also Barisan Nasional (BN) chairman, said guidelines should be reviewed and strengthened to ensure all events remain in line with the nation’s cultural values, religious principles and identity.

“Our principle is clear: entertainment is not wrong, but it must have limits. Progress can continue, but values must not be compromised.

“Organisers should engage with the relevant authorities to ensure social harmony is preserved. This is Umno’s position,” he said.

Yesterday, JAWI reportedly objected to the Air Rain Rave Music Festival 2026, which is being held in Bukit Bintang from yesterday until tomorrow, citing concerns that it could undermine moral standards and societal values.

JAWI director Hanifuddin Roslan was reported as saying that organisers should review the programme’s concept, taking into account the sensitivities of Malaysia’s multiracial, multireligious and multicultural society.

Meanwhile, the Federal Territories Mufti Department also reportedly stressed that the festival should be evaluated holistically from the perspectives of Islam, ethics and public interest. — Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 — Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the growing number of SPM graduates opting for TVET shows the vocational route is gaining prominence and should be recognised as a central part of the country’s education landscape.

He said it is time for TVET to be positioned as a mainstream education route that carries equal standing with academic pathways.

“Data also shows that more than half of SPM graduates are now choosing the TVET pathway. This indicates that TVET is no longer a second choice, but is becoming a primary choice.

“A developed nation is built on skilled manpower that drives industry and economic growth. It is time to elevate TVET as a respected, high value and prestigious educational pathway,” he said in his concluding remarks at the Umno education congress here today.

Zahid, who is also the deputy prime minister, said that he is committed to advancing the TVET agenda, noting that the sector has demonstrated employability rates exceeding 98 per cent, with some institutions achieving up to 99 per cent.

He said education must go beyond producing workers but also build citizens who understand history, respect the Constitution, uphold the institutions of the Malay Rulers, and preserve national identity.

“We want a generation with a global mindset but firmly rooted in national identity.

“We do not want a generation that is technologically literate but historically ignorant,” he added.

KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 — Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has called for Islamic religious education and moral‑values development to be strengthened within Malaysia’s mainstream schooling system, stressing that both should not be treated as peripheral streams.

He said the party backs the creation of a National Tahfiz Council to coordinate and elevate Islamic and tahfiz education nationwide, adding that he will take the proposal to the Cabinet for approval.

“We support the proposal to establish a National Tahfiz Council, and I will bring this matter to the Cabinet for approval.

“Our goal is to produce Huffaz who are not only memorisers of the Quran, but also professionals, engineers, doctors, technocrats, entrepreneurs, and leaders,” he said in his concluding remarks at the Umno education congress here today.

Zahid, who is also the deputy prime minister, added that he aspired to see future national leaders, including a prime minister, who are Hafiz of the Quran. A Hafiz is a person who has memorised the entire Quran.

He then said this ambition should be embedded within a structured national education agenda.

He also stressed the importance of building what he described as a “knowledge society” that not only values learning but also uses it to shape national development.

“In this context, education must build human beings, the complete and balanced human person.

“Knowledge without values will produce individuals who are intelligent but not wise, capable but not civilised,” he said.

He then went on to say that education must therefore return to its core purpose of developing character, ethics, discipline, patriotism and respect for parents.

He further proposed that ethics and character education be made a compulsory subject at all levels of schooling.

“An educated society must also be a society with strong moral values. Knowledge without ethics creates emptiness,” he said.

ISTANBUL, May 1 — Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam vowed on Friday to reclaim “every inch” of occupied territory and push forward economic recovery efforts, in a message marking Labour Day, Anadolu Ajansi (AA) reported.

In a statement posted by the prime minister’s office on US social media company X, Salam addressed workers across Lebanon, acknowledging the hardship many face amid a prolonged economic crisis.

“I understand the extent of the suffering many of you are experiencing, from job losses and declining purchasing power to daily pressures weighing heavily on you,” he said.

Salam pledged that the government would continue working to improve living conditions, restore occupied land, and press ahead with reforms.

“We will continue serious work to improve your living conditions, restore every inch of our occupied land, and advance reform efforts and economic recovery,” he said.

Since 2019, Lebanon has been experiencing a financial collapse described by the World Bank as one of the worst in modern history. The Lebanese pound has lost more than 98 per cent of its value, weakening from about 1,500 to around 90,000 to the dollar.

Salam added that the government aims to create new job opportunities, restore stability, and place the country on a path towards “real recovery”.

Lebanon’s economic crisis has deepened recently, compounded by ongoing Israeli attacks and displacement. A Wednesday update from the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Food Programme found that about 1.24 million people — nearly one in four assessed — are expected to face acute food insecurity at crisis levels between April and August 2026.

The report said escalating violence and displacement since early March have driven the deterioration in food security conditions.

In response to Hezbollah’s retaliation related to the Iran war, Israel has waged an offensive in Lebanon since March 2, killing nearly 2,600 people and displacing over 1 million.

A 10-day ceasefire that began on April 17 was later extended until May 17, but Israel continues to violate it daily through airstrikes and the demolition of homes in southern Lebanon.

In April, the Israeli army announced the imposition of the so-called “Yellow Line” south of the Litani River, a notional boundary designating the area stretching to the border as a “security buffer zone,” in a step reminiscent of the Gaza model.

Israel says the zone is intended to prevent displaced residents from returning and to target any armed activity, classifying it as a “combat zone” not subject to ceasefire understandings. — Bernama-Anadolu

KUALA LUMPUR, May 1 — Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has said that statements of no confidence issued by three Umno wings against Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Aminuddin Harun should be regarded as individual opinions.

He emphasised that Barisan Nasional’s (BN) representation in the State Legislative Assembly is determined through party decisions and must be upheld.

“That expression of no confidence is their view. 

“However, we are confident that the presence of BN assembly members in the State Legislative Assembly is a party decision, and it must be respected,” he told reporters after delivering his concluding address at the Umno Education Congress here today.

Earlier today, Negeri Sembilan Umno’s Wanita, Youth and Puteri voiced concern over the relocation of personnel from the Balai Undang Luak Sungei Ujong and the directive to vacate its official residence, describing the move as insensitive given an ongoing customary dispute.

In a joint statement, the three wings said they viewed seriously the instruction to move all occupants from the premises, followed by a further order for the building and official residence to be vacated on April 29, 2026.

“It is clear that this directive was issued while the Balai Undang Luak Sungei Ujong was managing an unresolved dispute involving YTM Datuk Klana Petra Undang Luak Sungei Ujong.

“As such, the actions of the state government are deemed inappropriate, insensitive, and may be perceived as an administrative exercise of power that pre-empted ongoing customary processes,” the statement said. 

HORSENS (Denmark), May 1 — The Great Wall of China proved too strong to breach.

Malaysia’s bid to end 34-year drought of lifting the Thomas Cup during the 2026 edition came to a halt following a 0-3 defeat to the defending champions in the quarter-finals at Forum Horsens here today.

After sitting out China’s two Group A matches, world No. 1 Shi Yu Qi returned in style, overcoming Malaysia’s top men’s singles player Leong Jun Hao 21-10, 16-21, 21-9 in a 67-minute match, to set the 11-time champions on the road to victory.

Malaysia looked to their trusted pair and world No. 2, Aaron Chia-Soh Wooi Yik to turn the tide around, and for a moment, it seemed possible.

The 2022 men’s doubles world champions pushed world No. 5 duo Liang Wei Keng-Wang Chang to the brink in a tense opening set, only to see it slip 22-24.

From there, the momentum swung decisively, and the Malaysians fell 14-21 in 35 minutes, which marked their 10th defeat in 13 meetings against the Chinese pair.

With China, Group A champions, in cruise control, national second singles Justin Hoh was unable to force a comeback, as he found world No. 7 Li Shi Feng a tough nut to crack, with the latter sealing the tie 21-14, 21-13 in 44-minutes and thus booked their place in the last four.

The result also meant Malaysia, who finished as Group B runners-up, were unable to end their 24-year long wait for another win over China in the competition.

Their last victory, a 3-2 achievement, came in the 2002 edition semi-finals when China hosted the prestigious badminton team tournament in Guangzhou.

China will take on the winner of the other quarter-final tie between hosts Denmark and Thailand, scheduled to be held later today, in the last four tomorrow.

Malaysia began their Group B campaign with a narrow 3-2 win over England, followed by a 4-1 victory against Finland before falling 2-3 to Japan.

The 2026 Thomas Cup, which began on April 24, runs until May 3. — Bernama

TELUK INTAN, May 1 — The annual Chithirai Pournami festival here remains a vibrant affair, with some 30,000 Hindu devotees flocking to the Sri Thendayuthapani Temple in Jalan Bandar.

Devotees began thronging the 150-year-old temple early this morning to fulfil their vows, starting with the paal koodam (milk pots) ceremony, followed by prayer rituals, the carrying of kavadis, and the breaking of coconuts.

Local authorities, together with the police and the People’s Volunteer Corps (RELA), were on the ground to provide traffic control and security, ensuring the smooth running of the three-day celebration.

Chithirai Pournami refers to the full moon that falls in the first month of the Tamil calendar, known as Chithirai (April-May).

It is often celebrated as ‘Mini Thaipusam’ in Malaysia and honours Lord Chitragupta and Lord Murugan.

Meanwhile, Perak Human Resources, Health, Indian Community Affairs, and National Integration Committee chairman Datuk A. Sivanesan said traders involved in the Chithirai Pournami festival here will be relocated to a new site starting next year.

He said this follows upgrading works at the Leaning Tower Square in Teluk Intan, scheduled to begin this June and expected to take three years to complete.

“All traders will be moved to Jalan Mahkota, the site currently used for the Teluk Intan Ramadan Bazaar,” he told reporters after observing the Chithirai Pournami celebrations here today.

Sivanesan said an early notice has been issued to the traders to allow them to make the necessary preparations.

He added that the relocation is also crucial to reducing congestion and improving comfort for visitors who attend the festival annually. — Bernama