A woman wearing a protective mask walks on a street in Kuala Lumpur (Photo: Reuters)
Kuala Lumpur (VNA) -♕ Malaysia has logged 350 new COVID-19 clusters since the start of last December, including 225 related to the workplace, making up 64.3 percent.
On January 23 alone, the country reported 11 additional clusters, eight of them at the workplace. The country's Director-General of Health Noor Hisham said 80 clusters are in manufacturing, 53 in construction and 31 in the services sector. Employers are asked to observe preventive measures to curb the spread of the pandemic. Since December 1 last year, 112,225 people were tested for COVID-19, and 28,477, or 25.4 percent were positive with the SARS-CoV-2 that caused the disease. On January 23, Malaysia saw a highest daily infections of 4,275, raising the national tally to 180,455, with a death toll of 667. Meanwhile, Thailand had 198 new cases on the day, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 13,500, with 73 fatalities. Among the new infections, there were seven imported ones./
Malaysia re-applied the Movement Control Order (MCO) from January 13 to 26 in various locations as the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) was no longer effective, said Noor Hisham, a high-ranking official of the Malaysian Ministry of Health.
Policies and regulations on free flow of data across the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) must be realised urgently to further promote digitalisation and its growing participation in the region, according to Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama.
Malaysia has announced that the entire country, with the exception of Sarawak, will come under the Movement Control Order (MCO) in a bid to contain the spread of COVID-19.
The Republic of Korea (RoK), China and Japan agreed on May 3 to reinforce the regional financial safety net, along with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), by launching a new financing facility programme meant to extend greater support in case of a financial crisis.
A technical issue combined with an extreme heatwave was blamed for a series of explosions at a military base that killed 20 soldiers and injured several others in Cambodia on April 27, the country’s Ministry of Defence said in a May 2 statement as reported by the Xinhua news agency.
The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduled to commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
A lecturer from Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine has warned Thais to be more vigilant against COVID-19, saying infection rates appeare to be worsening with higher hospital admissions, deaths and severe cases.
Malaysia should harness the collective expertise and resources to drive sustainable growth and development of the halal industry, according to Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
Laos has officially restored the 10% value-added tax (VAT) rate starting May 1, in a bid to support the country’s budget revenue and socio-economic development.
The ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) entered its second plenary session in Hanoi on the afternoon of April 23, discussing ways to ensure comprehensive security for the people-centred ASEAN Community.
The first session of the ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) in Hanoi on April 23 focused on fast and sustainable growth for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) and the ASEAN Alliance on Carbon Markets (AACM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration and accelerate the implementation of carbon crediting programmes across Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn reaffirmed ASEAN leaders' commitment to empowering the youth to unleash their full potential when he had a dialogue with ASEAN youth in Hanoi on April 22 on the sidelines of the ASEAN Future Forum (AF 2024).
The Thai Government is being urged to increase the proportion of renewable power generation to more than the target of 50% set in the power development plan (PDP).
The Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) of Indonesia on April 21 lifted its tsunami advisory issued previously following the eruption of Mount Ruang in Sitaro district of North Sulawesi province.
Thailand expects to export about 1 million tonnes of durian, valued at an estimated 130 billion THB (3.53 billion USD) this year, with most of the shipments to China, according to Minister of Agriculture Thammanat Prompao.
The 72nd meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) and related meetings are being held by the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of Vietnam in the central city of Da Nang on April 22-26.
Enhancing regional food security and tackling the pressing challenges of climate change will be key agendas defining Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat (lower house) Johari Abdul told the press on April 19.
A woman wearing a protective mask walks on a street in Kuala Lumpur (Photo: Reuters) 
