News
Hanoi funds craft village cleanups
Hanoi will spend VND1.35 trillion (US$60 million) on an environmental campaign to fight pollution in 80 of its craft villages through 2030, the capital city’s Department of Trade and Industry said on 7 October. Water samples taken from 40 craft villages in Hanoi raised red flags ...
The biggest winner from TPP trade deal may be Vietnam
Vietnam, whose low-wage economy relies on exports, is likely to be the biggest winner of the Trans-Pacific Partnership that slashes an estimated 18,000 tariffs among the dozen participating countries. In a decade, the country’s gross domestic product will be boosted 11 percent, or $36 billion, as ...
Vietnam's fruit and veg exports on track to hit $2 billion this year
Vietnam’s fruit and vegetables are getting more popular overseas with exports growing 26.5 percent annually, local media reported. In the January-September period, the revenue was estimated at over $1.4 billion, up 16.5 percent year-on-year. Keep reading ...
Factory hunger strike continues
Around 20 factory workers are still hunger striking while effective pay cuts and unpaid salaries continue, despite a government order that employers must implement the new minimum wage across all sectors. Workers at the Han Jen garment factory started the hunger strike on 5 October. They demand their ...
Yangon needs 75,000 new apartments each year
Yangon will need around 75,000 new apartments to be built each year to accommodate the city’s growing population, but contractors are struggling to come anywhere close to this target. More than 330,000 people migrate to Yangon each year from elsewhere in the country, but formidable challenges ...
Rohingya trafficking victims endure stress of limbo, stranded in Thailand
The strapping 23-year-old Rohingya Muslim was matter of fact as he described being forced onto a boat in Myanmar for a tortuous two-month-long journey, beaten and kicked by traffickers as he watched scores die of starvation and thirst along the way. He said he was abandoned in ...
Myanmar official accuses China of meddling in peace talks
A top negotiator in Myanmar’s peace talks with ethnic rebels has accused neighboring China of derailing a nationwide ceasefire deal last week that would have brought Japan and Western nations in as observers to monitor an end to decades of conflict. Beijing has denied the accusation but ...
Laos' Luang Prabang set to hit tourist target
Laos’ World Heritage town of Luang Prabang is on target to hit 500,000 visitors by the end of this year after reaching 470,279 in the first nine months. Keep reading ...
Xayaboury dam 50% completed
After beginning in 2012, the construction of the US$3.5 billion Xayaboury dam is now about 50 per cent complete, according to a report by Vientiane Times. When it becomes operational in 2019, about 95 percent of the 1,285-megawatt electricity produced will be sold to Thailand. The dam, ...
Cambodia's new garment sector minimum wage set at $140
The Cambodian government set the new monthly minimum wage for the country’s billion-dollar garment sector at $140 on 8 October—up from $128—more than what factory owners wanted but far less than the raise demanded by some unions. Keep reading ...
