KUALA LUMPUR: UEM Group Bhd chairman Tan Sri Dr Ahmad Tajuddin Ali, was conferred the Prominent Player Award at the Malaysian Construction Industry Excellence Awards (MCIEA) 2009.

He received the prestigious award for enhancing the image of the national construction industry.

KUALA LUMPUR: Chinese nationals comprised the most number of people who signed up for the Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) programme since it was introduced seven years ago.

A total of 13,977 applications from 107 countries were received over the past seven years.

KUALA LUMPUR: IJM Land Bhd’s iconic waterfront project in Penang, known as The Light, will be launching its second luxury condominium within its first phase, The Light Point (picture), this Saturday (Dec 19). The Light, with a gross development value of RM5 billion, is situated just off the Penang Bridge on the island’s eastern coastline.

KOTOR, Montenegro: Slightly smaller than Connecticut, the Balkan state of Montenegro is a good place to view the clear waters of the Adriatic, charming medieval cities such as Kotor, and a financial crash in suspended animation.

BEIJING: China's rules on forced demolition of homes are under attack after a Beijing man set fire to himself to protest confiscation of his home and as prominent law professors urged reforms, newspapers reported on Dec 17.

TOKYO: Rents for first-class offices in Tokyo will likely bottom out in the first half of 2010 and foreign investors have already begun hunting investment opportunities in the city's property market, a report said.

VANCOUVER: When Bob Stark bid on a loft apartment in a trendy Vancouver neighborhood in June this year, he wasn't expecting competition.

House prices in the traditionally expensive West Coast city had dipped because of the recession and a friend had recently bought a house nearby for a good price.

KUALA LUMPUR: Ho Hup Construction Company Bhd has disposed of a tract of freehold land in Bukit Jalil for RM7.64 million.

Bukit Jalil Development Sdn Bhd, its 70%-owned subsidiary, had on Dec 16 entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement with Action Master Sdn Bhd for the proposed disposal of a parcel of freehold land measuring approximately 13,398 sq m.

KUALA LUMPUR: Iskandar Malaysia will be the location of an integrated media production studio facility known as Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia Studios (PIMS) costing RM400 million.

Khazanah Nasional Bhd, via its wholly owned subsidiary Beserah Ventures Sdn Bhd, and Pinewood Shepperton Plc of the United Kingdom have entered into definitive agreements to develop the facility.

SHAH ALAM: The Selangor state government has directed four municipalities in Selangor to make written requests to the Public Works Department to declassify the “Hazardous Map”: A report which indicates the level of landslide risk in residential areas in the respective municipalities.