While China’s coastal provinces and major cities are recovering from the coronavirus pandemic, firms in its poorer western and central provinces are falling well behind in metrics like output an…
Southeast Asia’s wind power in need of investment
Southeast Asia’s wind power sector requires at least US$14 billion of investments by 2030, says Wood Mackenzie. This is to support the 8.9 GW of new wind power capacity that Wood Mackenzie expects to …
Trump and new Japan PM Suga discuss ‘free and open Indo-Pacific’: US
US President Donald Trump on Sunday spoke to Japan’s new prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, to congratulate him on taking office and to discuss a “free and open Indo-Pacific” region, which is increasingl…
Asean’s road to a green economic recovery
In Southeast Asia, Covid-19 has worsened the already grim economic growth in 2019 that resulted from US-China trade tensions and Brexit uncertainties. The latest figure from Asian Development Bank (AD…
Myanmar digital payments platform NearMe plans expansion after 7-figure funding
After raising seven figures in funding, one of Myanmar’s most promising digital payment platforms says it has set its sights on becoming the most widely-used tool for digital transactions in the count…
Asia poised for recovery from recession in near term
Finance ministers and central bank governors of Asean-member countries, China, Japan and South Korea expect recovery from the pandemic-induced global recession in the near term even as they remain on …
World Bank approves $200m support to strengthen Nepal’s financial sector
The World Bank has approved a $200 million ‘Finance for Growth’ development policy credit to strengthen financial sector stability, diversify financial solutions, and increase access to financial serv…
Post-pandemic investment climate appears promising
How will foreign direct investment (FDI) levels for 2020 play out globally in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic? It is a question being asked by government officials, policymakers, business leaders…
Vietnam’s economy remains resilient despite COVID-19 challenges: ADB
Vietnam’s economy is expected to grow by 1.8% in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic and bounce back to 6.3% in 2021, according to a new Asian Development Bank (ADB) report released on September 15. Lo…
Development of Malaysian business district with Chinese investment kicks off
The development of a major Malaysian business district by a consortium which includes a major Chinese company took off following a deposit and advance payment ceremony on Tuesday. During a cheque pres…