Asean morning news for December 19,

Asean morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

Southeast Asian coal demand to grow at fastest rate in world
Southeast Asian coal demand is forecast to rise 5% yearly through 2023 for the fastest growth rate worldwide, an International Energy Agency report published Tuesday says, as Asia makes up for declines in usage elsewhere.
— Nikkei Asian Review (paywall)

ASEAN e-commerce Agreement
As Thailand will assume the ASEAN chairmanship title next year, let’s take a look at one of the bloc’s key moments when ASEAN has signed first e-commerce agreement.
— NBT World (video)

Catastrophe and Risk Management in Asean
The Asean Insurance Council, through its Asean Natural Disaster Research Works and Sharing Committee, established the Catastrophe and Risk Management in Asean, a Web-based media portal for sharing awareness on catastrophe and disaster risk management in Asean.
— Business Mirror

New joint patrol starts on Mekong (Lancang) River
The 77th Mekong River joint patrol led by China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand started Tuesday from Guanlei Port, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture in southwest China’s Yunnan Province.
— China.org.cn

East Asia needs a new economic plan to meet future challenges
A new report from the World Bank has warned that East Asian policymakers must act decisively if they want to continue the region’s noteworthy development performance to date.
— Devdiscourse

LAZADA SHOPPING EXTRAVAGANZAS DRAW 1.3 BILLION VISITS
SOUTHEAST Asian e-commerce firm Lazada drew a whopping 1.3 billion visits to its platforms during its 11.11 and 12.12 shopping festivals.
— Digital News Asia

APAC dominates global IPO activity with US$97.1b worth of deals in 2018
The Asia Pacific (APAC) region continued to lead global initial public offering (IPO) activity, racking in US$97.1b across 666 deals in 2018, according to a report by Ernst & Young (EY).
— Singapore Business Review

Southeast Asia coping well with trade war headwinds – Atradius report
As the trade war between the US and China continues, trade credit insurer Atradius has released a report examining how the standoff has affected the emerging economies of Southeast Asia.
— Insurance Business Asia

Dialogue on ASEAN-Italy Economic Relations to be held in Hanoi
The third High-level Dialogue on ASEAN-Italy Economic Relations is scheduled to be held in Hanoi on June 5-6, 2019.
— Vietnam Plus

The key tech platforms for driving ASEAN’s growth
As ASEAN looks towards becoming a resilient and innovative bloc, governments and businesses in this region need to be empowered to overcome the disruptions brought on by the exponential change in technology.
— GovInsider

These 4 companies dominate Asia Pacific pipeline
According to a recent report from analysts at Lodging Econometrics, the total hotel construction pipeline in the Asia Pacific region, excluding China, remains near its high with 1,738 hotels and 367,886 rooms.
— Hotel Management

2019 will be a pivotal year for Southeast Asian tech startups
With a rising middle class and a booming tech startup scene, Southeast Asia (SEA) sits where China did 10 years ago — on the cusp of a major economic boom fueled by the tech industry.
— TNW

Mekong-Lancang co-operation needs focus
Mekong-Lancang co-operation needs to focus on maintaining an efficient working model and ensure projects bring benefits for all member countries.
— Viet Nam News

Realising smart cities in Asean
Asean’s rapid urbanisation has implications for important issues such as strained infrastructure, rising inequalities, and public safety and security.
— Khmer Times

Asean needs to stay proactive
In reference to Mr Lee Teck Chuan’s letter (Asean should be self-reliant, members help each other; Dec 14), I would agree that self-reliance would be an ideal scenario.
— The Straits Times

Cambodia morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

More stellar growth for Cambodia economy, but reforms needed says IMF
A report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts the Cambodian economy to continue its robust performance in the year ahead, tipping 2019 Cambodia GDP growth at 7.00 per cent, 25 percentage points below its forecast of 7.25 per cent GDP growth for 2018.
— AEC News Today

Union leaders set to appeal
All six union leaders convicted for their roles in the 2013 Veng Sreng Boulevard protests plan to bring their case to the Appeal Court, spurred on by Prime Minister Hun Sen’s assertion that three of the six men were not involved in the violent protests.
— The Phnom Penh Post

Family of jailed RT news fixer seeks help from Russian embassy
About ten family members and friends of a news fixer charged over his role in a sex trafficking documentary dismissed as fake news by the government attempted to submit a petition to the Russian embassy in the capital yesterday asking it to lobby for his freedom.
— The Khmer Times

See here for more of today’s Cambodia morning news

Indonesia morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

Jakarta records low budget expenditure
akarta city secretary Mohammad Saefullah stated that the administration had used only 67.65 percent of its Rp 75 trillion (US$5.17 million) 2018 budget, a low figure that concerns many as the year is nearing its end.
— The Jakarta Post

Govt to issue new policy after November’s poor trade data
The government will issue a new policy to boost exports after Statistics Indonesia (BPS) announced a US$ 2.05 billion trade deficit in November, the largest recorded in the last five years, according to Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution.
— The Jakarta Post

Indonesia`s unemployment rate falls drastically: Manpower Minister
Manpower Minister Hanif Dhakiri claimed Indonesia`s unemployment rate fell drastically during the government of President Joko Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla.
— Antara News

See here for more of today’s Indonesia morning news

Lao PDR morning news

Compiled by Mark Roy @electricnerve

Laos achieves rice export target to China
Laos has achieved its target for exporting rice to China this month after the IDP Rice Mill of Laos signed a trading agreement with China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corporation (Cofco) in November.
— Phnom Penh Post

Lancang-Mekong Cooperation countries voice support for open world economy, multilateral trading system
The ministers from the six Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) countries underlined here on Monday the vital need of maintaining an open world economy and upholding the rules-based multilateral trading system with the World Trade Organization at its core.
— Xinhua

NA defers approval of amended Land Law
The National Assembly (NA) has yet to approve a draft amendment to the Land Law, pointing out the need for further refinement to address all its deficiencies.
— Vientiane Times

See here for more of today’s Lao morning news

Malaysia morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

KL rises in world’s most expensive location
Kuala Lumpur remains the highest placed Malaysian city as par of the findings of the latest Cost of Living survey published by ECA International, the world’s leading provider of knowledge, information and software for the management and assignment of employees around the world.
— The Borneo Post

Malaysia to ban export of four fish species and shrimp in Jan-Feb 2019
The Malaysian government has announced that it will prohibit the export of four species of wild-caught fish and shrimp to meet the shortage in the domestic market during the monsoon and festive seasons, a week after Putrajaya said that it was looking into limiting or stopping the export of eggs.
— Yahoo News

Malaysia on the hunt for an egg cartel after prices jump
An almost 30 per cent jump in egg prices in just one week has prompted a Malaysian government investigation into potential collusion.
— The Straits Times

See here for more of today’s Malaysia Morning News

Myanmar morning news

Compiled by Mark Roy @electricnerve

Point of No Return
Having fled waves of violence, more than 900,000 members of Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslim minority now languish in refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh. A Reuters investigation has found the Myanmar government is taking steps that threaten to make the purge of the Rohingya permanent.
— Reuters

Myanmar peace crucial for China’s security
Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, Ta’ang National Liberation Army and Arakan Army jointly issued a declaration on December 12, claiming that in support of Myanmar government’s efforts to achieve national reconciliation and peace, they were willing to join hands with the government to solve military conflicts and political issues through dialogue.
— The Global Times

International organisations continue to withdraw honours from Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi
For many years, Myanmar’s de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi was the darling of the international community, lauded by global organisations and political leaders for her decades-long struggle to bring democracy and reform to the country.
— Channel News Asia

See here for more of today’s Myanmar morning news

Philippines morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu

External debt service rises by 11% in September
The country’s external debt service burden was up by 11 percent year-on-year to $5.88 billion end- September, based on Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) data.
— Manila Bulletin

HSBC sees inflation easing to 5.7% as food and fuel prices drop
Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp. expects inflation rate in the Philippines to ease to 5.7 percent in December from 6 percent in November, mirroring the downtrend in food and fuel prices.
— Manilastandard.net

Official death toll in Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs exceeds 5,000
The official death toll from Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drugs campaign has surpassed 5,000, authorities said on Tuesday.
— South China Morning Post

See here for more of today’s Philippines morning news

Singapore morning news

Compiled by Mark Roy @electricnerve

Expect 30 to 40 per cent increase in fish prices; supply shortage ‘common’ over festive period, say fishmongers
Cynthia Choo 2 hours 41 min ago — Customers can expect a 30 to 40 per cent increase in fish prices over the
— Today Singapore

Tax cuts and deduction schemes will provide relief for business growth in 2019: PwC
The current minimum fund size requirement of $50m is too high for most
— Singapore Business Review

Singapore is Asia’s ninth costliest city for expats in 2018
The strength of the Singapore dollar pushed the city back into the global top 20.
— Singapore Business Review

See here for more of today’s Singapore morning news

Thailand morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ

Bank of Thailand Chair Says Tightening Unlikely to Be Aggressive
Thailand is unlikely to tighten monetary policy aggressively as inflation remains low and the economy needs support, the chairman of the nation’s central bank said.
— Bloomberg

Media warned against revisiting past unrest
Media crews have been warned against publishing or presenting hate-provoking news and false information as they may be used online to influence how people vote in next year’s election, a forum was warned yesterday.
— Bangkok Post

5% VAT refund approved for Chinese New Year
The Cabinet on Tuesday approved the Finance Ministry’s proposal of a 5-per-cent value-added tax refund for all shoppers during the Chinese New Year in February.
— The Nation

See here for more of today’s Thailand morning news

Vietnam morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Việt Nam is Asia’s hottest investment destination: Forbes
An article published by US magazine Forbes named Việt Nam the hottest investment destination in Asia.
— Viet Nam News

Vietnam becomes member of UN Commission on International Trade Law
Vietnam has for the first time become a member of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), singing up for a six-year term.
— Nhan Dan online

Vietnam’s e-commerce forecast to boom
Vietnam’s e-commerce market is predicted to boom in the near future, given that 53 percent of the population uses the internet and nearly 54 million people use smartphones.
— VNA NET

See here for more of today’s Vietnam morning news

The Asean morning news roundup and its individual country morning news round-ups are the most comprehensive hand-curated selection of news reports from around the Asean Economic Community (AEC) published. We scour hundreds of local and international news and websites to find the things that you need to know to start your working week day.

We clearly identify the source of the story, whether it is behind a paywall, a media release, or whether the site uses annoying pop-up advertising or auto-play video, in case those things annoy you. It’s all then packaged up in an easy to read format enabling you to make an informed choice of whether you want to learn more by clicking directly through to the original source, or keep on reading the headlines. AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.