A Malay edition of The Star , Malaysia's most widely-read English newspaper, will be launched end of the month, Star Publications (M) Bhd executive deputy chairman Clement Hii said today.

He said for a start, the Malay edition would be published once a week and included as an insertion in The Sunday Star .

"If there is good response, we plan to make it a daily paper in the near future," he told reporters after the ground-breaking ceremony of The Star new office by Perak Menteri Besar Zambry Abdul Kadir in Ipoh today.

Earlier in his speech, Hii said the decision by The Star to have its own building in Perak after 28 years of renting the current office reaffirmed its continuous effort and commitment to serve the people and the state.

He said The Star circulation in Perak had increased to 11,000 copies daily compared to only about 3,000 copies daily in the early 1970s.

"For this year, we look forward to giving all the support to Perak to further promote the state as a great food destination through a Perak Food Festival and we hope to work closely with our menteri besar in organising the event in June," he added.

- Bernama