Trade policy and regulation

Playing down official media reports mooting a mechanism to share Brahmaputra river waters with India, China on October 10 said Beijing and New Delhi have “effective” cooperation to share data of the river flow and it is willing to continue it. “China and India have appropriate ...

China has agreed to place the first purchase order for 100,000 tonnes of Thai rice under a government-to-government contract for a total of one million tonnes, which was signed last December. The order is for new-crop 5-per-cent white rice at a free-on-board price of US$399 per tonne ...

After imposing economic sanctions on Myanmar for nearly two decades, the US formally abolished the blacklist on October 7. US President Barack Obama signed an executive order terminating the sanctions, following his pledge to do so made when State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi visited ...

Prime Minister Hun Sen welcomed a pledge by a Thai-based industrial real estate developer on October 10 that promised to build a special economic zone in Cambodia, despite officials saying the company has yet to make any firm commitments. According to local media, the pledge was made ...

Mismanagement and legal loopholes have both lent a hand to enterprises to illegally import prohibited waste. The National Assembly’s Standing Committee convened a meeting on September 13 discussing the amendment of the Technology Transfer Law. At the meeting, National Assembly’s Chair Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan asked: “Will ...

The American Gem Trade Association arrived in Myanmar for the first time this week to assess the gems sector and build trade relationships ahead of an anticipated end to the US sanctions regime, which would allow the legal import of Myanmar rubies and jade. The association’s ...

Low productivity, high labour costs and sub-par quality are holding Myanmar back from becoming a serious rubber producer, experts say. The nation’s rubber plantations produce at less than half the international production rate, and a rise in volume must be matched by improvements in product ...

Kamworks Utility has clinched a deal to install and operate what could be the first commercial solar power system on a high-end residential tower in Cambodia, contributing to efforts to reduce elevated electricity costs through renewable energy, a company representative said on October 6. The Dutch-founded ...

The World Bank has predicted strong economic growth in Myanmar through the 2016-17 fiscal year, ending in March. In its growth outlook for “developing East Asia and Pacific” for 2016-18, released on October 5, the World Bank projects growth in Myanmar to hit 7.8 percent for the ...

Economic growth in Laos will remain buoyant however the region still faces significant risks to growth, according to a new World Bank report. The outlook of the Lao economy remains favourable overall but with increasing downside risks GDP growth is projected to remain at around seven ...