KINI ROUNDUP | Here are the key headlines you may have missed yesterday, in brief.

Nominations filed for twin by-elections

Candidates for the Balakong and Seri Setia by-elections filed their nominations, kicking off a 21-day campaigning period.

DAP and MCA are facing off each other in a straight fight in Balakong, with the Pakatan Harapan logo being used officially for the first time in any election, while MCA drops the BN logo in favour of its own party logo.

The outgoing PKR president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said Harapan will make good use of by-elections to introduce its newly approved logo to voters.

Meanwhile, former allies PKR and PAS will be facing each other in Seri Setia.

Umno supporters turned up to endorse Seri Setia’s PAS candidate Dr Halimah Ali at the nomination centre.

DOJ contradicts Dr M

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) informs California court that the US government was not party to the superyacht Equanimity’s transfer of custody from Indonesia to Malaysia.

Financier Low Taek Jho claimed DOJ’s court filing proves that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had been lying about US complicity in the transfer.

Speaking to Malaysiakini in China, Mahathir said the US government was aware of the transfer, but did not object to it.

Other Kinibites

Bernama reports that trade in Bursa Malaysia is expected to firm up next week due to various domestic and external factors

However, the ringgit is anticipated to trend lower against the US dollar due to the lack of a positive catalyst.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs said it will hold the 2018 Congress on the Future of Bumiputeras and the Nation on Sept 1.

Sources claim that government chief secretary Ali Hamsa is unlikely to step down this month as indicated by some news reports, because his contract was supposedly extended to 2020 by the previous government.

Looking ahead

Having visited Hangzhou, Mahathir will continue his China tour in Beijing, where he will meet the Malaysian diaspora.

Meanwhile, his deputy Wan Azizah will be launching the book “Conversations with Raja Ahmad Aminullah - Fidelity To Ideas” in Kuala Lumpur.

MCA Balakong candidate Tan Chee Teong will be launching his election campaign manifesto.