The Malaysian Insider

LOS ANGELES, Nov 21 — Las Vegas has cleaned up since its days as a magnet for ill-gotten mobster gains, but a Canadian insider trading scam has exposed the smaller-scale money laundering still going on in the desert city’s casinos.

Canadian Stanko Grmovsek admitted in a Toronto court earlier this year to making US$9 million (RM30.6 million) with a law school buddy in a 14-year illegal scheme. Court documents show he said he laundered some of it by gambling wads of cash on games like blackjack in Vegas’ world-famous casino strip.

His confession was a flashback to an era when Las Vegas’ “Sin City” image made it a playground for gangsters offloading their loot in glittering gambling parlours.

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 21 — The Najib administration received a fillip yesterday with new economic data showing that the prime minister’s moves to rev up the economy are working.

Gross domestic product contracted 1.2 per cent in the third quarter from a year earlier, shallower than the 2 per cent drop predicted by most economists.

The economy shrank 6.2 per cent in the first quarter of the year, but improved a bit in the second quarter by contracting 3.9 per cent.

SINGAPORE, Nov 21 — Much has been said of government stimulus packages and the nascent global economic recovery. But have investors given serious thought to the prospect of another crash?

In a report, Societe Generale (SocGen) painted a Doomsday scenario in which global economic collapse could recur in the next two years. It advises clients to go short on US dollars and European stocks, and long on government bonds and agricultural commodities.

SINGAPORE, Nov 21 — Maybank has become the first bank in Singapore to pledge that it will give a one-off payment to employees who cannot be rehired beyond retirement age.

This is a key feature in a set of tripartite proposals announced on Monday on the rehiring of workers beyond the legal retirement age of 62.

The bank also promised to end the practice of cutting the pay of employees when they turn 60, although this is allowed under the law.

NEW YORK, Nov 21 — News Corp, Time Warner Inc and Qualia Capital LLC are interested in buying Hollywood’s Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio, home of the James Bond movies, Bloomberg News reported yesterday.

Citing people with knowledge of the situation, the report said the companies have not yet examined the studio’s finances and their level of interest will depend on price.

Burdened by about US$4 billion (RM13.58 billion) in debt, Los Angeles-based MGM said last week it was weighing options, including a possible sale of the company.