Economy and commerce
Time to set the Kyat free
The Burmese kyat has recently fallen. Down around 13 percent this year, and 26 percent since the instigation of the “managed float” arrangements in 2012, the decline in the kyat has also brought with it a return of many of the economically repressive impulses of ...
Mekong's steady flow of tourism
Pongpet Mekloy argues that Thailand and Laos need to work closer together in order to capitalise on their joint attractions that line the mighty river. Research by Si Sa Ket Rajabhat University is highlighted, which investigated the potential for tourism along the international river, focusing on the ...
Nearly half of the Chinese stock market halts trading
Listed Chinese companies have rushed to halt trading in their shares today as the rout on the Shanghai and Shenzen exchanges continues. The South China Morning Post reports that 51 per cent of mainland Chinese stocks, representing some US$2.2 trillion in market capitalisation, have asked for voluntary ...
Vietnam’s tourist industry marks 55th anniversary amid challenges
Vietnam is celebrating the 55th anniversary of its tourist industry amid a mountain of challenges, highlighted by falling international tourist numbers. Fifty-five years after the tourist industry was founded in 1960, the industry has obtained many achievements, but “new challenges and difficulties have also arisen,” Vietnam ...
Putting productivity on the menu
An ILO project that provides free lunch at garment factories is proving to be a hit with workers, but whether or not this 50-cent per worker “experiment” catches on will depend on factory owners and the brands they supply. Last July, eight garment factories in Phnom ...
Thai PM calls for Japanese firms to invest more in Mekong region
Thailand’s Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha has invited Japanese small and medium sized enterprises to invest more in the Mekong Subregion- by taking advantage of its logistic transport links, with the expectation that the region will be able to take a step forward together. Prayut spoke ...
Cambodia priced out of Filipino rice tender again
Cambodia has lost a 100,000-tonne Filipino rice bid to Vietnam, on account of a higher costs as compared to regional competitors, marking the fourth time the Kingdom has failed to win a rice tender issued by the Philippines. The Philippines National Food Authority last week awarded ...
Laos works to strengthen SMEs prior to AEC integration
Around 400 representatives from enterprises, companies, banks, and financial institutes of Laos and Thailand met in Vientiane Capital on June 16 to discuss improving Lao Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) and enhancing their competitiveness in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). The half-day seminar was held at the ...
Cambodia mine on track for 2016 start-up
India’s Mesco Gold (Cambodia) presented to the Cambodian Ministry of Mines and Energy that its Phum Syarung underground mine, in the northeastern province of Ratanakiri will start with initial capacity of 500 tons per day with a recovery rate of 85%. Angkor Gold discovered the epithermal gold deposit ...
China's alleged ban on Vietnamese contracts irrelevant: transport minister
In response to reports that China has prohibited state-owned companies from bidding on public projects in Vietnam, Transport Minister Dinh La Thang said the ban, if true, will have no effect on Vietnam. Thang, speaking to press on the sidelines of the National Assembly meeting, said that many Vietnamese ...