BFM 89.9

HIGHLIGHTS 
Podcast  >  Evening Edition  >  Top 5 At 5  >  Top 5 at 5: Trump’s Trade War Begins—Are We Ready?

Top 5 at 5: Trump’s Trade War Begins—Are We Ready?

Arividya Arimuthu, Senior Fellow, ISIS Malaysia

03-Feb-25 17:00

Top 5 at 5: Trump’s Trade War Begins—Are We Ready?

President Trump has imposed steep new tariffs—25% on Canadian and Mexican imports and 10% on Chinese goods—igniting fresh trade tensions. As global markets brace for impact, Arividya Arimuthu, Senior Fellow at ISIS Malaysia, unpacks what this means for the economy and whether the world is prepared.

Other stories we covered:

• The Hague Group unites against Israel's war on Palestinians: A new international alliance brings nine Global South nations, including Malaysia, together to hold Israel accountable for its actions in Palestine. We turn to James Dorsey, a Senior Fellow at RSIS, for his thoughts on what this coalition hopes to achieve.

• Trump’s aid freeze hits Malaysian wildlife conservation: The 90-day freeze on US foreign aid isn’t just affecting humanitarian efforts, it’s crippling conservation work in Malaysia too. Nor Arlina Amirah Ahmad Ghani, co-founder of Justice for Wildlife Malaysia, shares how the funding cut has disrupted ranger training and wildlife protection programs.

• Malaysia’s minimum wage rises to RM1,700: The new minimum wage of RM1,700 took effect last Friday, benefiting 4.37 million workers but posing challenges for businesses. Calvin Cheng, a Fellow at ISIS Malaysia, breaks down the economic impact and what this means for employers and workers alike.

• Carcosa Seri Negara to Reopen: After six years of closure, the government is set to reopen one of the mansions of the iconic colonial building, the Carcosa Seri Negara. Heritage conservation expert Elizabeth Cardosa discusses why preserving these national landmarks matters and what the revival could mean for Malaysia’s historical identity.

Image Credit: shutterstock.com

Produced by: Dashran Yohan, Sudais Ferhard, Alia Zefri, Sneha Harikannan

Presented by: Sharaad Kuttan


This and more than 60,000 other podcasts in your hand. Download the all new BFM mobile app.

Categories:  politicsgovernmentinternationalLaw/Activismcorruptioneducationcontroversies

Tags:  Trump tariffsChinese goodsThe Hague GroupGlobal South nationsMalaysian wildlife conservationUS aid freezeminimum wage Malaysiahistorical identityCarcosa reopeningcolonial landmarkstrade tensionstrade warsglobal economyIsrael Palestine conflictforeign aid freezeJustice for Wildlife Malaysiawildlife protectioncarcosa seri negaraheritage conservationmalaysian history





Play / Pause

Listen now : BFM 89.9 -- The Business Station

Today’s Shows



11:00 AM

Best of Enterprise

(REPEAT) Venon Tian, Group COO of ZUS Coffee, joins BFM Open For Business to decode the strategy behind the disruption in the F&B industry.

12:00 PM

Just For Kicks

(REPEAT) Love is not in the air, as Spurs and Forest said goodbye to their respective managers, Thomas Frank and Sean Dyche. We respond to the news and look ahead to the fourth round of the FA Cup!

1:00 PM

A Bit of Culture

(REPEAT) Azmyl Yunor and Ong Kar Jin join Kam Raslan on this episode of A Bit of Culture to talk about espionage, crafts and art, and lo-fi!

2:00 PM

Ringgit & Sense

(REPEAT) Dr Cheng, Feng Shui Master shares his thoughts on how the different zodiacs will do this year.

2:30 PM

The Property Show

(REPEAT) Dr. YM Cheng, Founder and Principal Consultant of ChineseZodiacFengshui.com, discusses Fengshui outlook for Commercial and Residential properties for the upcoming Year of the Horse.

3:00 PM

Best of The Bigger Picture

(REPEAT) Without aged care in place, family members - especially women - will sink under the burden of caregiving. We look at the social, economic and gender implications of the care economy.

4:00 PM

Best of Evening Edition

(REPEAT) This episode of Stories of KL explores the story of The Zhongshan Building, and the people and passions that keep it evolving in unexpected ways.

5:00 PM

BBC World Service

Prof. Amilra Prasanna De Silva talks to Jim Al-Khalili about his passion for engineering molecules and how his photochemical innovations have since crossed into computer science.