While the knee-jerk reaction on the part of multinational corporations like Ferrero to stop buying palm oil products from Sime Darby Plantation Bhd (SDP) is regrettable, they seem to have overlooked the fact that SDP is the largest producer of Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil-certified sustainable palm oil globally.
THE government’s move to raise the minimum wage from RM1,200 to RM1,500 with effect from May 1 has been met with resistance as the country transitions to endemicity against a backdrop of nascent economic recovery, global inflation and geopolitical tensions arising from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Sime Darby Plantation Bhd is transforming all 33 of its Malaysian palm oil mills into certified food safety facilities by the end of 2023, after which the same standards will be applied across the group's operations in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands.
INDONESIA
<strong>Exports hit US$26.5bn record</strong>
Exports last month rose to an all-time high as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered a surge in global commodity prices and swelled the nation’s shipments of steel, coal and palm oil. Exports climbed 44.36 percent year-on-year, beating all analyst forecasts in a Bloomberg survey for a total value of US$26.5 billion last month. Southeast Asia’s largest economy recorded a trade surplus of US$4.53 billion, also beating all economists’ estimates. The country, which remains a net oil importer, saw its imports jump 30.85 percent to US$21.97 billion last month, another record high. SINGAPORE
<strong>House sales bounce back</strong>
Home sales
KUALA LUMPUR, April 15 ― Italian confectionary giant Ferrero said it will stop sourcing palm oil from Sime Darby Plantation SIPL.KL after the US customs service found the Malaysian planter used forced labour, in a reputational blow for the palm producer and for Malaysia. Labour.