News
Orange Line plans hit giant bump
The Transport Ministry is planning to review the western section of the Mass Rapid Transit Authority’s (MRTA) Orange Line — from the Thailand Cultural Centre to Taling Chan — after residents refused to relocate. News of the review comes a day after the cabinet approved the construction ...
FDA shutters 22 mom-and-pop drinking-water companies
Unlicensed bottled water companies are being shut down by the Food and Drug Administration for fear they could be bacteria-ridden and contaminated, according to officials. Action is so far aimed at small-time businesses which often operate out of the vendors’ homes. However, the results of a secret ...
Supplementary budget approved without opposition
For all the storm and fury directed at it, MPs on 9 December passed unopposed a supplementary budget request that amounted to 11.95 percent of the existing budget for the current financial year. Not a single program or a single kyat was cut. Finance Minister U Win ...
New idea floated to allow NLD leader to assume presidency
A new idea has been presented that would allow Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to get around a constitutional provision that bars her from the presidency. The proposal appears to be gaining ground and has now received the backing of a former senior military officer serving ...
Dirty greens: Why some southern farmers refuse to eat the water spinach they grow
A man takes a big bowl of waste vehicle oil from a bucket and splash the thick black liquid directly onto his water spinach field. Some of his farming neighbors in Thuong Xuan Ward in District 12, Ho Chi Minh City are showed doing the same in a ...
Laos' first thermal energy plant marks start of power generation
Laos’ largest power producer, the Hongsa Mine Mouth Power Plant, which has a generating capacity of 1,878 megawatts, on 9 December celebrated the start of commercial operation. Two of the plant’s generators are fully operational while the third is set to come online early next year. Keep reading ...
Laos National Assembly approves second amendment to constitution
National Assembly (NA) members on 8 December approved a second amendment to the constitution in response to changing needs in the current era of development. The constitution serves as the foundation for the enactment of the country’s laws and the changes aim to better manage state and ...
Child abuse costs Cambodia: study
Violence against children cost Cambodia approximately $168 million in 2013, or just over 1 per cent of GDP, according to a new report from the government and UNICEF that explores the economic impacts of physical abuse. Titled The economic burden of health consequences of violence against ...
Thailand's Tasco earmarks $61.8mln for M&A deals in Vietnam, Indonesia
Tipco Asphalt Pcl, or Tasco, a major asphalt manufacturer in Thailand, plans to acquire five companies in Vietnam and Indonesia for a total of $61.8 million, news website Deal Street Asia reported this week. Keep reading ...
Vietnam looking at $4 billion trade deficit in 2015
Vietnam could run up a US$4 billion trade deficit for the whole year after three consecutive years of a trade surplus, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) said. The trade deficit would account for 2.4 per cent of total exports, much lower than the set ...
