Myanmar Morning News For July 26

Why the Myanmar economy is slowing, and how it could bounce back
Economic growth in Myanmar has slowed and the country’s fiscal and current account deficits have swelled over the past 2 years under the National League for Democracy government.
– The Myanmar Times

Limited links sink Myanmar’s potential
Long viewed as Southeast Asia’s ‘connectivity’ laggard, is the underdeveloped nation poised to allow more foreign-built ports, roads and rails?
– Asia Times

Transport authorities to open tender for train carriages, signal system
Myanmar will call a tender to buy a signal system and new carriages with an incoming loan from Japan for the upgrade of the Yangon circular railway system, according to a senior official from Myanma Railways.
– Eleven Myanmar

No plan for coal-fired plant: Tanintharyi Chief Minister
Tanintharyi Region Chief Minister Le Le Maw insisted a coal-fired power plant project would not be launched during her tenure, as she outlined the regional government’s progress over the past year at a press conference yesterday.
– Eleven Myanmar

Land seizure ‘may deter progress of Thilawa’
ALTHOUGH foreign investors continue to show interest in Thilawa, Myanmar’s leading special economic zone, land confiscation may deter them from splashing the cash, Thilawa residents warn.
– Eleven Myanmar

Companies Rush to Use Inactive Lands After Govt Announces Seizure
More than 100,000 acres of land permitted to some 270 private companies for business activities in Irrawaddy Division’s Maubin District remain inactive more than 20 years after confiscation.
– The Irrawaddy

Public warned of fraudulent real estate deals
An article in yesterday’s edition of City News warned against unscrupulous real estate agents attempting to sell fraudulent deals.
– Global New Light of Myanmar

Gold traders mull over plans to set up gold exchange
GOLD traders from across the country debated how the industry should set up a gold exchange in a meeting held in Yangon last week.
– The Myanmar Times

Myanmar receives 1.76 million foreign tourists in six months
About 1.76 million foreign tourists visited Myanmar from January to June this year, exceeding the same period last year by 24 per cent, according to data from the Directorate of Hotels and Tourism.
– Eleven Myanmar

Ministry to boost ecotourism this fiscal year
The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism will focus on ecotourism, community-based and marine tourism in fiscal year 2017-18 to boost the industry, U Myint Htwe, director of the ministry, told a news conference in Yangon on July 24.
– The Myanmar Times

Monsoon Season Tourism Sees Increase in Arrivals
With the introduction of the Green Season campaign for Myanmar’s low-traffic tourist season beginning in April, the number of foreign visitors to the country has increased, and trips to Buddhist archaeological site Bagan continue all year round.
– The Irrawaddy

Promise seen for cards in Myanmar’s ranks of unbanked
THE LARGE number of Myanmar people without bank accounts creates room for growth in the use of cards and e-wallets in the country over the next few years, bankers said at a conference yesterday.
– The Nation

Myawady border trade falls
Trade at the Myawady border with Thailand has dropped this year despite the opening of the New Asia Road, the Ministry of Commerce reports.
– Eleven Myanmar

Mandalay likely to hit US$600 million FDI target for 2017-18
The Mandalay region is set to achieve its US$600 million foreign direct investment (FDI) target for 2017-18. FDI in April-June has already exceeded US$582 million, which is around 90 per cent of the target, data released by the Mandalay Region Investment Committee showed.
– The Myanmar Times

No welcome for Rohingya refugees in Hindu-dominated Jammu
Families who settled in the area have encountered new religious tensions.
– UCANews

Independent UN rights expert says situation ‘worsening’ in Myanmar
While no one expects an overnight transition to democracy in Myanmar, there has to be real progress on human rights, an independent United Nations expert has said, highlighting reported killings, tortures, and an “ongoing humanitarian crisis” for the Rohingya people and other minorities.
– Burma News International

Denmark to donate US$5 million for mangrove conservation project
The Denmark government will donate US$ 5 million for a mangrove conservation project in Taninthayi Region and Rakhine State, according to the Forestry Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation.
– Global New Light of Myanmar

H1N1 flu outbreak kills two more in Myanmar
Myanmar health officials said that two more people had died after contracting H1N1 influenza in the largest city, Yangon, a day after the government said more than a dozen people had contracted the virus known as swine flu.
– The Star Online

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Myanmar morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Myanmar news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.