Economy and commerce

With the Obama administration pushing to conclude a vast Asian trade pact, the State Department on 27 July upgraded its assessment of Malaysia’s efforts to combat human trafficking, a move that could ease the country’s inclusion in the trade deal. Though the human trafficking report from the State ...

Local economists have advised the Vietnamese government to be extremely careful with spending because its public debt has reached a dangerously high level.    They raised their concerns after the World Bank reported that Vietnam’s public debt exceeded US$110 billion last year. The figure is higher than ...

A survey has found that many Vietnamese are not happy with high consumer prices and the widening rich and poor gap in their country.   Members from the World Bank and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) said at a conference that their new survey found ...

The rapid weakening of the baht could cause problems for the real economic sector, says a senior official at the Bank of Thailand. The central bank is closely watching the baht’s movement, though no irregularity been detected so far, said Chantavarn Sucharitakul, the assistant governor overseeing financial ...

In a bid to rein in non-performing loans, several commercial banks are offering a cut of 15-20% for payment of overdue loans to encourage customers to clear their credit card and personal debt, according to a debt collection firm. Pracha Chaisuwan, managing director of Chet Collection ...

Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has said resumed permission for importing three Australian fruits including oranges, tangerines and grapes is expected to be given on 1 August. Keep reading ...

Thaicom Plc’s mobile operating unit in Laos has seen its licence extended for another 25 years, six years before the expiry of the original contract. Thailand’s sole satellite service provider expects the extension granted to its joint venture company, Lao Telecom, to cement its leadership in the ...

At a time when little is going right for Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, Thailand is being hit hard by weak global demand for its major agricultural exports. Among the people most affected are the country’s rubber producers, suffering depressed prices since January 2014. After surging to more ...

Recent data from the International Labour Organisation say that despite implementing a $128 minimum wage in January, the Kingdom’s garment and footwear sector has grown by over 10 per cent in the first quarter this year, although experts suggest a wait-and-see approach to determine its ...

Vietnam’s economic growth could reach 6-6.2 percent this year underpinned by further recovery in domestic demand, in turn reflecting robust private consumption and investment growth, according to a World Bank report.   The medium-term outlook for Vietnam is positive on balance in the context that growth in developing ...