British oil services firm Petrofac posted a forecast-beating first-half profit, boosted by its business in Malaysia, and said it was confident demand from national oil firms would continue to fuel future growth.

Malaysian Resources Corp. Bhd. (MRCB) and Sunway Holdings Bhd. have won contracts worth 1.33 billion ringgit (US$446 million) and 569 million ringgit for the light rail transit extension of the Ampang line and Kelana Jaya line respectively from Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd. (SPNB).

Southeast Asia's largest budget airline AirAsia looks set for a major share swap with Malaysian Airlines in a deal to help save the struggling national flag carrier, reports said Sunday.

Malaysia should consider trading in a different currency from the U.S. dollar, such as the Chinese renminbi, to avoid being affected by the dollar's devaluation.

Malaysia's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 3 percent to 102.5 for the six months ended June compared with 99.5 in the same period last year. As for the month of June, the CPI registered an increase of 3.5 percent to 103.2 from 99.7 a year earlier.

Malaysia took its first step in having a minimum wage for workers with the passing of the National Wages Consultative Council Bill in the Dewan Rakyat (Parliament). In his reply to points raised during debate, Human Resources Minister Dr S. Subramaniam gave his assurance that stakeholders would continue to be consulted in any decision on minimum wage.

Malaysia's industrial production index (IPI) contracted 2.2 percent in April from a year ago, turning negative for the first time since November 2009 as the global economy slowed and demand dropped.

Malaysia said Friday its exports, the mainstay of the country's economy, grew 11.1 percent year-on-year in April on the back of higher demand for gas, palm oil, rubber and other products.

In the quiet town of Gebeng in Malaysia's central state of Pahang, a new rare earths plant has evoked fears of radiation contamination as residents desperately seek to stop the construction of the world's largest such refinery.

A team of U.N. atomic energy experts began a week-long visit to Malaysia on Sunday to review the safety of a proposed Australian rare earths refinery that has drawn protests.