NewsTracker Answers for week of Feb. 01, 2016

Q: Switzerland's chief prosecutor said last week that a criminal investigation found that about $4 billion appeared to have been misappropriated from a government fund for development projects in Malaysia. Where is Malaysia?

Circle the area on this map

Q: Earlier last week, Malaysia's attorney general issued a controversial decision clearing the nation's prime minister in a fund scandal that has rocked the capital city of . . .

A. Bangkok

B. Jakarta

C. Kuala Lumpur

D. Singapore

C. With a metropolitan area population of 7.5 million people, fast-growing Kuala Lumpur also is Malaysia's largest city. The attorney general said the $681 million channeled into the prime minister's bank accounts was a political contribution from the royal family of Saudi Arabia and not from the depleted government fund.

Q: Swiss investigators said some of the $4 billion missing from the government fund was transferred to Swiss bank accounts of former Malaysian public officials and current and former officials of what Persian Gulf country?

A. Egypt

B. Syria

C. Turkey

D. United Arab Emirates

D. The United Arab Emirates is a federation of seven small countries next to Saudi Arabia on the oil-rich Persian Gulf. Swiss prosecutors said, so far, four cases involving allegations of criminal misconduct have emerged involving several companies including PetroSaudi, which has been linked to the Saudi royal family.

Q: What does Malaysia NOT have in common with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia?

A. Ethnicity

B. Monarchy

C. Oil production

D. Religion

A. The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are ethnic Arabian. Malaysia is half ethnic Malay, a fifth ethnic Chinese and the rest indigenous or Indian. Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy while the seven emirates and Saudi Arabia are ruled by absolute monarchs. Islam is the official religion of all three of the oil producing nations.

Q: The fund was created in 2009 with a goal of turning Kuala Lumpur into a financial hub. Malaysia's economy has been growing rapidly, and it had a gross domestic product (GDP) of $25,100 per person in 2014. According to the CIA World Factbook, which of these nations was poorer?

A. Poland

B. Russia

C. Slovenia

D. South Korea

B. At $24,400 per person, Russia ranked 75th behind Malaysia at 73. Falling oil prices are hurting economies of both Russia and Malaysia as well as other oil producing countries.