Asean Morning News
Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu
Singapore workers still least engaged in Asia
Singapore continues to have the least engaged workers in the region, even as employers from neighbouring countries see improving engagement levels.
— HRD
Why Southeast Asia’s children are facing an obesity epidemic
Malnutrition is leaving Southeast Asia’s children predisposed to obesity and fatal diseases later in life.
— Southeast Asia Globe
Chinese Miners Are Finding Relocation Difficult in Southeast Asia
According to a recent report, cryptocurrency miners from China have been flocking to regions in Southeast Asia like Vietnam, Myanmar, and Cambodia.
— Bitcoin News (media release)
SE Asia MA hits three-year high on tight supply, strong demand
Southeast Asia’s maleic anhydride (MA) spot prices have reached three-year highs amid tight supply and strong demand from Europe and India, with the market condition expected to extend into June.
— ICIS
Hong Kong acupuncture team bringing pain relief to 10,000 sufferers in Southeast Asia’s remote communities
For chronic pain sufferers in remote or underdeveloped parts of Southeast Asia, treatments such as acupuncture can be hard to come by.
— South China Morning Post
Go-Jek faces challenges as it goes head to head with Grab in Singapore
Go-Jek is coming to Singapore in the next few months. The company also plans to move into Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam. Company insiders predict a presence throughout Southeast Asia in the future.
— Asean Today
Markets that matter most to ASEAN’s growth: Automotive
There are many sectors within ASEAN that have propelled the region to greater heights in terms of economic development and general prosperity.
— The Asean Post
ASEAN MSL ratings: Singapore trio shine while Cambodians flop in Malaysia
The Malaysia Super League (MSL) second transfer window has been buzzing with activity since it was opened for business on May 7.
— Fox Sports Asia
ASEAN Energy Storage Devices Market Research Report and Outlook by Future Market Insights 2014 – 2020
Rise in the energy demand and depleting fossil fuels is pushing the market towards non-conventional sources of energy.
— Find Market Research (media release)
Southeast Asia’s Carro raises $60M for its automotive marketplace and car financing service
Carro, an automotive marketplace and car financing startup based in Singapore, has closed a $60 million Series B round to scale its business in Southeast Asia.
— TechCrunch
Southeast Asia’s billet, slab prices largely stable on thin trading
Import prices for steel billet and slab in Southeast Asia were relatively steady over the past week amid soft demand as a result of subdued sales downstream, particularly in Indonesia.
— Metal bulletin
Hong Kong’s Lee Kee says China die-casters starting automated factories in SE Asia
Lee Kee Group, a major supplier of metals to China’s die-casting industry, says that some of its customers are developing “next generation” automated factories in Southeast Asia, a boost for its business in the region.
— Reuters
IMF announces winners of ASEAN Youth Instagram Photo Contest
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) today announced the winners of its ASEAN Youth Instagram photo contest, which was held to showcase the progress and reforms achieved by ASEAN countries to address inequality and climate change. This is the first of two Instagram contest planned under the Voyage to Indonesia campaign in the run-up to the IMF Annual Meetings in Bali, Indonesia on October 10-14, 2018.
— Devdiscourse
First Asean-China media forum bolsters regional ties
A historic media conference took place this month when the first Asean-China Media Forum was staged in Wuxi, China, with the aim of further strengthening cooperation between the two influential regions.
— Vientiane Times
Oracle claims positive traction for autonomous database in ASEAN
One of the first-movers was Thailand’s Forth Smart, a payment services provider that is using Oracle’s autonomous data warehouse service to run customer and asset management analytics, said Kirsten Gilbertson, Oracle’s director for cloud platform business development in ASEAN.
— Computer Weekly
The MOFA challenge: getting diplomats to speak ASEAN languages
For decades, Taiwanese diplomats focused on sharpening their skills in the foreign languages most commonly used around the world, such as English, Spanish, French, and Japanese.
— Focus Taiwan
Asean Smart Education Learning Market: Malaysia and Thailand to be Potential Growth Markets
The smart education and learning market in the ASEAN region is rising due to government initiatives towards digitizing education, increasing use of smartphones and tablets, internet penetration and developed information and communication (ICT) infrastructure.
— Business Services24
Cambodia Morning News
Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov
Eastern rail link gears up for service
The Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT) expects to begin service on a 107-kilometre train route from Battambang to Pursat on May 29, saying on their Facebook page that officials are actively working on restoring the track.
— The Phnom Penh Post
Salt producers told to add iodine or risk losing licence
Salt producers must now add iodine to their product or face losing their business licence after the government passed a Prakas banning sales of non-iodised salt.
— Khmer Times
Cambodian Electoral Watchdog Group Decides Against Monitoring General Elections
The Committee on Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (Comfrel), a respected independent vote monitor, will not sign up observers for July’s parliamentary elections in face of government restrictions on NGO activities, a senior election observer told RFA’s Khmer Service on Tuesday.
— Radio Free Asia
See here for more of today’s Cambodia Morning News
Indonesia Morning News
Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu
How Indonesia is dealing with the new threat posed by returning Islamic State fighters
It was no coincidence that Sunday’s suicide attacks on three Catholic churches in Indonesia came as Muslims began the holy month of Ramadan.
— The Conversation
Dropping to 7.19 Percent, Export Realization Unaffected by Rupiah Weakening
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) said the decline in export realization as of April 2018 reached 7.19 percent to about USD14.47 billion. That number is the impact of the weakening of the rupiah against the dollar.
— Netral News
Indonesia records US$1.63 billion trade deficit in April
Indonesia recorded a US$1.63 billion trade deficit in April due to an “unusual” increase in imports, particularly on capital goods, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) announced on Tuesday.
— The Jakarta Post
See here for more of today’s Indonesia Morning News
Lao PDR Morning News
Compiled by Leakhena Khat @leakhenakhat
Defense Visit Puts Vietnam-Laos Military Ties Into Focus
This week, Vietnamese and Lao defense officials held yet another round of consultations to discuss ongoing developments in the security realm of the relationship. The meeting was just the latest in a series of interactions between the two neighboring Southeast Asian states that gave a sense of cooperation in this area in 2018 and beyond.
— The Diplomat (paywall)
Laos, China seeking greater tourism cooperation
Laos and China have vowed to increase cooperation to promote tourism between the two countries with the aim of attracting more visitors.
— Vientiane Times
Laos: The legacy of the US ‘secret war’ still takes a deadly toll
On a Saturday morning in central Laos, two boys were playing along a road when they picked up what they thought was a small ball. Three girls who were out tending to buffaloes happened to pass by and stopped to take a look. That was when the “ball” exploded.
— Asia Times
See here for more of today’s Lao Morning News
Malaysia Morning News
Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov
Malaysia is business friendly and welcomes FDI — Dr Mahathir
Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said Malaysia is business friendly and welcomes foreign direct investments (FDI) from all over the world, including China.
— The Edge Markets
A Stunning, Sudden Fall for Najib Razak, Malaysia’s ‘Man of Steal’
Just a few months ago, the political machine led by Najib Razak, the gilded prime minister of Malaysia, appeared so indestructible that a multibillion-dollar corruption scandal seemed unlikely to derail it.
— New York Times
Najib’s demise could be UMNO’s gain in Malaysia
For years, political analysts spoke of Khairy Jamaluddin as a future prime minister of Malaysia. That possibility now appears much closer, and much more distant, after the United Malays National Organization (Umno) lost in resounding fashion at historic elections last week.
— Asia Times
See here for more of today’s Malaysia Morning News
Myanmar Morning News
Compiled by Leakhena Khat @leakhenakhat
ADB considering grant support to help tackle Rohingya crisis
Asian Development Bank (ADB) is considering grant support to Bangladesh to help tackle Rohingya crisis.
— The Daily Star
On Thai-Myanmar border: 5 million meth tablets and 70 kilograms of heroin seized
On May 14, the Thai police shot two Thai citizens, seizing 5 million methamphetamine tablets and 70 kilograms of heroin. The drugs were being transported from the eastern Shan State at the Thai-Myanmar border, into Thailand.
— Fresh Plaza
Government makes it official: Basic wage is K4800
Government ratified on Monday the new daily minimum wage K4800 (US$3.60) or K600 per hour for an eight-hour day after a nearly four-month delay since the National Tripartite Committee made the recommendation in January.
— The Myanmar Times
See here for more of today’s Myanmar Morning News
Philippines Morning News
Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu @stmarisewudolu
Philippines posts sharpest drop in remittances in 15 years
The amount of money sent home by overseas Filipinos plunged last March, seeing the sharpest decline since April 2003, due to the continued repatriation of Filipino workers from Middle East countries as well as fewer banking days.
— Rappler
ATF-North casts first buoy, lays flag marker in PHL Rise on Wednesday
AN interagency coordinating body will sail on Wednesday to the Philippine Rise to cast the first buoy and lay the country’s tricolor marker in what military officials called as a “historical event” in the country’s continental shelf.
— Business Mirror
House OKs bill abolishing agency hunting Marcos ill-gotten wealth
The House of Representatives approved a bill that would abolish the agency tasked to recover the billions of pesos plundered during the Marcos dictatorship and transfer its powers to the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG).
— Rappler
See here for more of today’s Philippines Morning News
Singapore Morning News
Compiled by Leakhena Khat @leakhenakhat
Act that expands police powers comes into force on May 16
The new law that gives the police more powers to deal with serious incidents, like terrorist threats, will come into force on Wednesday (May 16), two months after it was passed in Parliament.
— The Straits Times
Deterrent punishments, including detention, for officers who engage in ragging: SCDF
The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it has meted out “deterrent” punishments like detention for ragging activities, as it acknowledged the existence of such activities in the force.
— Channel NewsAsia
Singapore’s Sea More Than Doubles Losses on E-Commerce Spending
Sea Ltd., operator of Southeast Asia’s biggest gaming platform, said losses more than doubled in the first quarter on rising costs at mobile-shopping unit Shopee as it strives to lure more users with shipping and other promotions.
— Bloomberg
See here for more of today’s Singapore Morning News
Thailand Morning News
Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ
Commercial banks saw solid performance during Q1
The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has issued a report showing that overall, commercial banks performed well in the first quarter of the year with strong capital, reserves and liquidity.
— News Today (video)
Govt to waive VAT on personal cryptocurrency earnings
The Revenue Department will waive value-added tax for people trading in cryptocurrencies on exchange markets approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
— The Nation
EEC Act in force after long delay
The much-awaited Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) Act was finally published in the Royal Gazette Monday after a seven-month delay.
— Bangkok Post
See here for more of today’s Thailand Morning News
Vietnam Morning News
Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov
Vietnam’s largest industrial properties supplier debuts
The BW Industrial Development JSC, a joint-venture between the US private equity fund Warburg Pincus and Vietnam’s Investment and Industrial Development Corporation (Becamex IDC), made debut in the southern province of Binh Duong on May 15.
— VietnamPlus
Government urges plans on public investment capital disbursement
The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has asked centrally-run cities and provinces to rapidly submit their reports on the 2018 disbursement plans of public investment capital.
— The Hanoi Times
State corps commit violations worth 15.4 billion USD
State corporations and groups have been found to have committed violations worth nearly 350 trillion VND (15.4 billion USD) in State capital usage and management during the 2011-2016 period, according to the Government Inspectorate.
— VietnamPlus
See here for more of today’s Vietnam Morning News
Asean Morning News is the most comprehensive selection of reports on what you need to know from around the Asean Economic Community (AEC) published. All articles are hand curated by the team at AEC News Today. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.
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