ASEAN Roundtable Series discussion on Growth drivers for ASEAN in stagnating global economy

CIMB ASEAN Research Institute in collaboration with ASEAN Business Club held a roundtable discussion on 29th September 2016, themed Growth Drivers for ASEAN in Stagnating Global Economy. Speakers of the roundtable include, Dr. Arup Raha, Chief Economist of CIMB ASEAN Research Institute; Dr. Yeah Kim Leng, Member of Bank Negara Monetary Policy Committee; Mr. Nurhisham Bin Hussein, Head of the Economics and Capital Markets Department at the Employees Provident Fund Malaysia; Dr. Rafael Muñoz Moreno, Senior Country Economist for Malaysia of World Bank. This discussion is moderated by Tan Sri Dr. Munir Majid, Chairman of CARI and President of the ASEAN Business Club.

Click here: Read discussion summary

Dr. Arup Raha

Chief Economist, CIMB ASEAN Research Institute

Dr. Arup Raha is the Chief Economist of CIMB ASEAN Research Institute (CARI). While his work and interests are global in nature, Arup’s particular expertise is on Asia where he has close to 20 years of experience working as a professional economist in the financial services industry. He was the Chief Asia Economist for global banks such as HSBC, Citi and UBS and also the Head of India Equity Research for JP Morgan. Prior to working in financial markets, Arup was an economist with The World Bank in Washington D.C.

Arup has a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree in Economics from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi, a Masters from the Delhi School of Economics and a Doctor of Philosophy in Economics from Vanderbilt University in the United States.

Dr. Yeah Kim Leng

Member, Bank Negara Monetary Policy Committee Professor, Sunway Business School Former Chief Economist, RAM Holdings

Dr. Yeah Kim Leng is the Professor of Economics at Sunway University Business School and Director of Economic Studies Program at Jeffrey Cheah Institute on Southeast Asia (JCI) at Sunway University. He assumed the current positions in May this year following a 2-year stint as the Dean of the School of Business at Malaysia University of Science and Technology (MUST).

Prior to joining the academia, he had a 20-year stint at RAM Holding Berhad (RAM), the country’s first credit rating agency, principally as the chief economist and managing director of its wholly-owned consulting subsidiary. Prior to RAM, he was a Senior Analyst at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia. He holds an MBA and PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of Hawaii and a Bachelor of Science degree in forestry from Universiti Pertanian Malaysia.

He is a Vice-President of the Malaysian Economic Association and a trustee of the Malaysian Tax Research Foundation. He is also one of the two external members appointed to Bank Negara Malaysia’s Monetary Policy Committee in 2015.

Mr. Nurhisham Hussein

Head, Economics and Capital Markets Department, Employees Provident Fund Malaysia

Nurhisham Hussein is the Head of the Economics and Capital Markets Department of the Employees Provident Fund (EPF). His department oversees economic surveillance of over 20 economies, contributing to the investment process at EPF.

Nurhisham began his career in merchant banking in the 1990s, before joining Perwira Affin Bank in 1997 as part of the Corporate Planning Department. He later joined Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) in 2004 to head the Economics section of the Research Division. There he was responsible for monitoring, analysis and reporting of economic conditions, providing input for PNB’s investment decisions. He joined EPF after a stint with the Malaysian Rating Corporation Berhad (MARC), producing country reports, developing economic viewpoints and making quantitative forecasts.

He holds a Bachelors of Science (Econs) in Monetary Economics from the University of London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), and a Masters in Economics from University Malaya (UM).

Dr. Rafael Muñoz Moreno

Senior Country Economist, Malaysia, World Bank

Rafael Muñoz Moreno is the World Bank’s Senior Country Economist for Malaysia since September 2015. He leads the macroeconomic and fiscal policy dialogue between the Government of Malaysia and the World Bank, contributes to the analytical and advisory work on the country’s transformation into a high-income economy, and leads the team that produces the bi-annual Malaysia Economic Monitor.

Mr. Muñoz joined the World Bank in 2005 as part of the Young Professional Program. He has worked in the office of the Vice President of the Economic Department and has served as Country Economist in the Africa region. Prior to moving to Malaysia, he was in Mauritius as Country Economist and Resident Representative, coordinating the World Bank work program with Mauritius and Seychelles.

Previously, Mr. Muñoz worked in the Spanish Embassy in Tokyo as Economist and in the European Commission as Operation Officer in charge of budget support projects in Latin America.

Mr. Muñoz holds a PhD in Economics from the University of Louvain (Belgium) and a European Doctoral Program in Quantitative Economic after attending the London School of Economics. He has published several research papers, mostly on macroeconomic policies, labor economics and business cycles.

Tan Sri Dr. Munir Majid

Chairman, CIMB ASEAN Research Institute President, ASEAN Business Club

Tan Sri Dr. Munir is the Chairman of CIMB ASEAN Research Institute (CARI) and the president of ASEAN Business Club (ABC). He is also the Chairman of Bank Muamalat Malaysia Bhd, and has been on its board since 2008. He obtained his B.Sc (Econ) from the London School of Economics and Political Science in 1971, and his PhD in International Relations in 1978. He taught at the Department of International Relations in LSE from1972-1975, and was an analyst for Daiwa Europe NV in London from 1975-1978.

On his return to Malaysia at the end of 1978, Tan Sri Dr. Munir joined The New Straits Times Press (NSTP) as a lead writer and progressed to become its Group Editor. He left The NST in 1986 to become the CEO of a small merchant bank, Pertanian Baring Sanwa (PBS), which then became Commerce International Merchant Bankers, the genesis of today’s CIMB Group. He left CIMB in 1993 at the invitation of the Government of Malaysia to set up the Securities Commission and became its first Executive Chairman until 1999. He continued with his illustrious career, serving in various capacities, including as Chairman of both Celcom and Malaysia Airlines System at different times. He was the founder and President of the Kuala Lumpur Business Club (2003-2008), and was the chairman of its Advisory Council. Dr. Munir, an Honorary Fellow, is Visiting Senior Fellow at LSE IDEAS (Centre for international affairs, diplomacy and strategy).