PUTRAJAYA, April 29 — A former aide to Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli, Chai Jin Shern or James Chai, is back at the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) headquarters here today to continue providing his statement in connection with an ongoing investigation.

On the second day of the investigation, Chai arrived at 9.45 am to assist in the probe involving Arm Holdings Plc, a leading semiconductor company based in the United Kingdom.

He had also appeared at the MACC headquarters yesterday at around 10 am, where he spent more than eight hours giving his statement.

On April 1, the MACC gave Chai two weeks to come forward to assist in the investigation and stated that it was prepared to cover the cost of his return flight to Malaysia.

The anti-graft agency opened an investigation paper on Feb 16 into an agreement between the Malaysian government and a foreign company, reportedly valued at RM1.1 billion.

Sources said the investigation was initiated following complaints from several non-governmental organisations, which alleged that the agreement had been rushed and was overly favourable, potentially resulting in financial implications for the government.

The probe is also examining possible elements of conflict of interest, amid claims that several individuals were appointed to senior positions in the foreign company after leaving their roles in a government ministry. — Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, April 28 — Bursa Malaysia started Tuesday’s session on a firmer note, buoyed by sustained investor appetite for data centre-linked counters, particularly in the technology and utilities sectors, following robust earnings reported by United States (US) semiconductor players.

At 9.10 am, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) rose 6.81 points, or 0.39 per cent, to 1,724.08 from Monday’s close of 1,717.27.

The benchmark index had earlier opened 4.13 points higher at 1,721.40.

Malacca Securities Sdn Bhd said in a note that amid expectations of a leadership transition at the US Federal Reserve, with Kevin Warsh seen as a potential successor to Jerome Powell, his view that artificial intelligence (AI)-driven productivity can help ease inflation may continue to underpin sentiment towards semiconductor and AI-related stocks. — Bernama

KUALA LUMPUR, April 27 —The ringgit closed higher against the greenback today on improved optimism, as markets saw inflows into semiconductor-related stocks, which benefited Malaysia.

Against regional currencies, the ringgit was mostly higher; however, it was lower against other major currencies.

At 6pm, the ringgit rose to 3.9505/9545 against the US dollar from 3.9630/9670 at last Friday’s close.

SPI Asset Management managing partner Stephen Innes said the local note strengthened on renewed optimism over a potential Iran peace proposal reportedly being considered by the White House, which helped reduce geopolitical risk premiums and softened the US dollar at the margins.

"The ringgit’s gains were not solely driven by geopolitical developments, but also underpinned by broader structural trends, particularly strong global demand for computing power and artificial intelligence infrastructure. 

"In this environment, capital continues to flow into semiconductor-linked economies, with Malaysia well-positioned to benefit from this trend,” he added.

Meanwhile, this week will also see a high-stakes sequence of policy decisions from the Bank of Japan, the US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of England.

The US Federal Open Market Committee meeting will be held on April 28-29.

At the close, the ringgit traded lower against a basket of major currencies.

It depreciated against the euro to 4.6387/6434 from last Friday’s close of 4.6312/6358, shed versus the Japanese yen to 2.4810/4837 from 2.4808/4834, and reduced against the British pound to 5.3525/3580 from 5.3429/3483 previously.

At the same time, the local currency traded mostly higher against regional peers.

It appreciated against the Thai baht to 12.2129/2309 from last Friday’s close of 12.2183/2363, gained against the Indonesian rupiah to 229.5/229.8 from 230.0/230.3, and expanded against the Philippine peso to 6.50/6.51 from 6.52/6.53 previously.

However, the local note slipped against the Singapore dollar to 3.1018/1052 from 3.1009/1043 at Friday’s close last week. — Bernama