Economy and industry

To welcome the launch of the Asean Economic Community and help Greater Mekong Subregion countries cope with e-commerce, an international conference was held recently to bring specialists and officials together to swap ideas and experiences. The 8 July event, titled “Mekong Forum 2015 – Modernising the ...

 A new report from Thailand’s government says that Bangkok, its capital city and home to some 14 million people, could be underwater in the next 15 years thanks to a combination of sinking land and rising global sea levels.         The conclusion comes from Thailand’s National Reform ...

Foreign direct investment in the first seven months declined by 8 percent year-on-year to US$8.8 billion, Vietnam’s Foreign Investment Agency has reported.   Newly licensed projects were worth $6.9 billion, 1 percent up from last year.   Keep reading ...

With tourism on the rise in Myanmar, the sector must better prepare for an influx of orphanage and child-sex tourism – problems that are already prevalent in the more travel-worn neighbouring countries, a report by three NGOs has warned. The tourism impact assessment was conducted by ...

Thailand’s worst drought in a decade appears to have ended, but the damage could cast a shadow on the economy for months to come. The crippling dry weather that first emerged in late 2014 is no longer present in the country’s 67 provinces, the deputy head ...

With the Obama administration pushing to conclude a vast Asian trade pact, the State Department on 27 July upgraded its assessment of Malaysia’s efforts to combat human trafficking, a move that could ease the country’s inclusion in the trade deal. Though the human trafficking report from the State ...

Local economists have advised the Vietnamese government to be extremely careful with spending because its public debt has reached a dangerously high level.    They raised their concerns after the World Bank reported that Vietnam’s public debt exceeded US$110 billion last year. The figure is higher than ...

Korea Rail Network Authority and Seoul University are to conduct a feasibility study for a new rail link between Vientiane and the southern Vietnamese port of Vung Tau. Keep reading ...

A survey has found that many Vietnamese are not happy with high consumer prices and the widening rich and poor gap in their country.   Members from the World Bank and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) said at a conference that their new survey found ...

The closely watched lawsuit filed by Thai Mekong communities against the Xayaburi Dam’s power purchase agreement (PPA) has reached a critical juncture: the final day that the Administrative Court will accept evidence into the case. It has been just over a year since the Thai Supreme Administrative ...