Economy and commerce
Thai exports slide again in August, but still trade surplus
Exports continued to slide in August, down by 6.69% year-on-year, resulting in a contraction of 4.92% over the eight-month period. Keep reading ...
Thai banks face biggest default since 1997 crisis
Sahaviriya Steel’s UK steel business has failed with defaults on 50 billion baht of loans from Thai banks, biggest default for Thai banks since 1997 Asian crisis. Keep reading ...
Vietnam launches $1-million fund for startup incubators
The Ministry of Science and Technology on Friday announced a 1-million-euro (US$1.12 million) fund for Vietnamese incubators of tech startups, local media reported. Keep reading ...
China imports threaten traditional Vietnam festival masks
Vu Thi Thoan’s family has been making papier mache masks, part of traditional Vietnamese celebrations for the mid-autumn festival, for over four decades. But cheap Chinese toys are threatening her business. The mid-autumn festival, which falls on 27 September with the full moon, is Vietnam’s equivalent of ...
Hanoi to open Vietnamese Goods Week 2015 programme on 27 September
Vietnamese Goods Week 2015 will be held on 27 September in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang to raise public awareness of Vietnamese goods as well as their competitiveness. Accordingly, Vietnamese Goods Week 2015 will organise an exhibition at the Giang Vo Exhibition center ...
Thailand prioritises border trade
The Thai government is revving up efforts to tackle hurdles to border trade as it aims to achieve 1.5 trillion baht worth of cross-border business this year. Commerce Minister Apiradi Tantraporn, who chaired a panel handling border trade and investment promotion, said the priority is to facilitate ...
Vietnam's Military Bank sees 2016 net profit growing 7-10 pct
Military Bank, Vietnam’s sixth biggest bank by market value, has cut bad debt to 1.8 percent of total loans, and its 2016 net profit could grow by 7 to 10 percent, its vice chairman said on 24 September. Vietnam’s banks, once blighted by crippling levels of ...
Borrowing costs in Vietnam remain too high despite very low inflation: businesses
High borrowing costs have eroded profitability of many companies in Vietnam this year, a business group said, calling for a rate cut and better access to loans. The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry said at a meeting in Hanoi on 22 September that 60 percent of ...
Myanmar factory workers weary of the Arbitration Council
Factory workers have had enough of the arbitration council, the nascent, quasi-judicial body established to resolve labour disputes through mediation. Nearly 200 garment workers fired in the wake of the new minimum wage have decided to by-pass the conciliation system altogether, alleging that the members are ...
Lotteria to open in Laos
Fast-food restaurant Lotteria signed a franchising pact with Lao company, Soxay Chaleun Group, to make inroads in ASEAN countries. Keep reading ...
