Economy and commerce

“After the war, we live afraid of unexploded bombs, and we’re very careful when we go and do anything,” says Somechit Phouangsavat, an artisan from Ban Naphia, also known as War Spoon Village, in Laos. The 32-year-old works alongside 30 other artisans at Article 22, a company ...

The Ministry of Transport is looking for a private company to operate a tourist rail line in the Central Highlands resort town of Da Lat, following decades of losses, news website Saigon Times Online reported on 28 October. Keep reading ...

Agribusiness operators in Phongsaly province are struggling for trade after Chinese authorities banned the import of some agricultural produce. Commercial crops including green tea and sweetcorn being traded by Lao entrepreneurs in the province cannot be exported to China, the provincial Green Tea Processing Factory Director, ...

Cambodia improved its ranking for the ease of doing business from 133 last year to 127 in 2015, making marked progress in the number of days and procedures required to start a business, though it is still ranked well below the world average, according to ...

Vietnam moved three places to the 90th position out of 189 economies in the World Bank’s Doing Business report released on 28 October.   The country’s score on a scale of 0-100 increased from 60.35 to 62.1, indicating an improved environment for businesses, according to the report.   Keep reading   ...

The Bank of Thailand is considering a plan to expand categories of asset class investment in order to manage its foreign reserves more effectively, says the Bank of Thailand governor. “If we can find an asset class that could yield greater management of foreign reserves, result in ...

With increasing foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into its manufacturing sector, Vietnam stands a great chance of leaping ahead and replace China as the new production center, experts have said.    They were speaking at a conference recently organized by the State Bank of Vietnam in collaboration ...

Rising temperatures and humidity due to climate change are likely to increase the number of days with unsafe “heat stress,” putting Thailand at risk of a significant drop in productivity, a research firm said on 28 October. Thailand – with three of the 50 highest-risk cities ...

The Lao government has instructed central and local state organisations to use up to 35 percent of the annual total budget allocated to them to repay debt they have accumulated. The instruction was part of debt payment measures resolved by the annual government meeting where the ...

Jade traders in Mandalay say this could be the worst year ever for business. The main cause they cite is the absence of Chinese buyers, possibly nervous about the outcome of next month’s election.  In interviews on 25 October at the Maha Aung Myay Gem Trading ...