Asean Morning News For January 26

Asean Morning News

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Southeast Asian nations launch intelligence pact to counter terrorism threats
Singapore and five other Southeast Asian nations launched an intelligence pact on Thursday (Jan 25) aimed at improving regional counter-terrorism efforts.
— Channel NewsAsia

India, Asean agree to establish mechanism for cooperation in maritime domain
India and ten Asean countries on Thursday agreed to establish a mechanism for greater cooperation in the maritime domain, a move which comes in the wake of growing concerns in the region over China’s rising military posturing in the South China Sea.
— Times of India

PH, Vietnam seen to post strongest growth in emerging Asean
Debt watcher Moody’s Investors Service expects the Philippines to sustain robust economic growth this year as credit conditions in the country and across the region are expected to remain stable.
— Inquirer.net

Tharman: Innovation at the heart of Asean’s next phase
Innovation will be at the heart of Asean’s next phase of development, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said on Wednesday, as he outlined several areas of priority, including fintech and e-commerce, for the regional grouping.
— The Straits Times

TAT to focus on Asean visits
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has pledged to boost cross-border tourism and raise the number of Asean tourists coming to Thailand.
— Bangkok Post

ASEAN nations seek to purchase BrahMos, Akash missiles from India
ASEAN nations are seeking to purchase major defence and weapons systems from India, including the Akash and BrahMos missiles, according to a report by The Financial Express.
— Money Control

DBS to hire private bankers to tap $19 trillion Asia market
DBS Group Holdings Ltd. plans to increase the number of relationship managers in its private banking business to tap into surging Asian wealth.
— The Jakarta Post

The Future of India’s Ties With ASEAN
As ASEAN leaders converge on New Delhi, what are India’s priorities for Southeast Asia?
— The Diplomat

Terror, maritime cooperation top agenda at Asean summit
Maritime cooperation, with an eye on the security situation in South China Sea (SCS), and terrorism dominated India’s unprecedented Asean outreach, including its decision to invite leaders of all 10 Asean nations for the R-Day parade to celebrate 25 years of India-Asean partnership.
— The Times of India

Southeast Asia should change outdated attitudes toward investment from China
Some politicians in Southeast Asian nations never tire of playing political games by smearing Chinese investment, a typical manifestation of nationalism that actually represents an irresponsible attitude toward their own national interests.
— Global Times

India, Asean pledge to enhance air connectivity
India and Asean countries today decided to deepen cooperation in the area of aviation and enhance air-links for better connectivity within the region.
— The Economic Times

StoreHub lands $5.1M help SMEs in Southeast Asia digitize their business
StoreHub, a startup that helps retailers digitize their business, has closed a $5.1 million Series A round led by Vertex Venture to expand in Southeast Asia.
— TechCrunch

Tryb Group raises $30M to develop fintech platforms for Southeast Asia
Tryb Group, a Singapore-based organization focused on fintech services in Southeast Asia, has landed a $30 million investment from Makara Capital.
— TechCrunch

Cambodia Morning News

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Cambodia Profits $700,000 from Fisheries Export
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MoAFF) profited $700,000 from fisheries sector in 2017, according to the annual report of MoAFF released on Thursday.
— Fresh News

Cambodia collects 3.83 bln USD taxes in 2017
Cambodia collected 3.83 billion U.S. dollars from all sources of taxes in 2017, up 18.5 percent from 3.23 billion U.S. dollars in 2016, according to official reports on Thursday.
— Xinhua

Major Union Faces Lawsuit Over Financial Reporting
The labor ministry has warned one of Cambodia’s most prominent unions that its registration could be canceled if it does not supply the government with financial reports.
— VOA

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Indonesia Morning News

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Trade Ministry releases permit on salt import
The Ministry of Trade has released a permit to import 2.37 million tons of industrial salt to 21 companies, the Foreign Trade Director General, Oka Nurwan, said here on Wednesday.
— Antara

Indonesia’s Pertamina nears takeover of state gas distributor
Indonesia’s state oil conglomerate Pertamina edged closer to a takeover of state-owned gas distributor Perusahaan Gas Negara on Thursday, after the latter held a shareholders’ meeting to approve the transfer of the government’s 57% stake to Pertamina.
— Nikkei Asian Review

Indonesia’s retail business expected to pick up this year: association
Retail business in Indonesia is expected to grow higher this year amid rising commodities’ prices.
— Xinhua

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Lao PDR Morning News

Compiled by Leakhena Khat @leakhenakhat

Japan supports Vientiane irrigation improvement
The Government of Japan has agreed to support a Vientiane irrigated agriculture improvement project with 837 million yen (US$7.4 million) under Laos’ strategy to increase its 10 major provinces’ rice production to 2.5 million tonnes by 2020.
— Vientiane Times

Laos to Have Digital Society Foundation Built by 2030
Lao Government has set an ambitious plan to build foundation for digital society 2030, Minister of Post and Telecommunications, Mr Thansamay Kommasith has said.
— Lao News Agency

Laos, China ink deal on plant protection
Laos and China will partner in the area of plant protection and green crop standards after government officials signed an agreement in Vientiane on January 23.
— Vientiane Times

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Malaysia Morning News

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Malaysia’s central bank taps the brakes, raises key rate
Malaysia’s central bank on Thursday became the first in Southeast Asia to raise a key interest rate in years, moving to tap the brakes and “normalize” policy well before national elections and at a time of robust growth.
— Reuters

US tariffs to hit Malaysia PV exporters most
Malaysia, which is the largest photovoltaic (PV) exporter to the US with a market share of 30% of US PV imports, will be impacted by the US move to slaps import tariffs on imports of PV cells and modules for four years.
— The Star Online

Vertex Ventures leads $5.1m Series A in Malaysian PoS startup StoreHub
Malaysia-based retail technology company StoreHub has announced the close of a $5.1-million Series A financing round led by Vertex Ventures, according to a media release.
— DealStreetAsia

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Myanmar Morning News

Compiled by Leakhena Khat @leakhenakhat

Veteran US Diplomat Quits Myanmar Advisory Panel; Government Says It Asked Him to Go
The Myanmar government on Thursday said it asked veteran U.S. diplomat Bill Richardson to resign from an advisory panel on the Rohingya Muslim crisis in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state because he was pursuing “his own agenda.”
— Radio Free Asia

U.S. Advisor Bill Richardson Refuses a Role in Myanmar’s ‘Whitewash’ Crisis Panel
Former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has resigned from an international advisory board on Myanmar’s Rakhine state, where recent army operations have been described as ethnic cleansing of the country’s Rohingya Muslim minority, calling the effort a “whitewash.”
— Time

Following Dam Cancellation, Myanmar Can Lead On Sustainable Energy
I’m in northern Myanmar, being driven to the site of one of the world’s biggest hydropower dam projects of the last decade, slated to generate three times the electricity Hoover Dam can produce at peak power.
— Forbes

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Philippines Morning News

Compiled by Leakhena Khat @leakhenakhat

Philippines seeks tougher charges for Aquino over commandos’ deaths
Former Philippine President Benigno Aquino must be held criminally accountable for negligence that led to the deaths of 44 police commandos in 2015, the government’s top lawyer said in a petition filed at the Supreme Court on Thursday.
— Reuters

Philippine gov’t hits New York Times for defending Rappler
The Philippine government criticized the New York Times (NYT) for releasing an editorial that defended Rappler after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revoked the license of the social news network.
— Rappler

Over 10,000 HIV cases recorded in first 11 months of 2017
Over 10,000 new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cases were recorded during the first 11 months of 2017, the Department of Health (DOH) disclosed Thursday.
— Manila Bulletin

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Singapore Morning News

Compiled by Leakhena Khat @leakhenakhat

PM Lee calls for greater connectivity, economic integration between ASEAN and India
Urging leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and India to renew discussions on an air transport agreement, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Thursday (Jan 25) that both sides stand to benefit from greater connectivity.
— Channel NewsAsia

StarHub Latest Singapore Telco With Chinese New Year Sadvertisement (HD video)
We don’t know where Singapore telcos got the idea of turning traditionally festive occasions into subdued, tear-jerking, heart-wrenching, emotional rollercoaster sadvertisements from, but hot on the heals of Singtel’s ‘Mr Lim’s Reunion Dinner‘ comes a similar themed Chinese New Year 2018 social commentary production from rival Singapore telco StarHub.
— AEC News Today

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Thailand Morning News

Compiled by John Le Fevre @photo_journ

Transparency Thailand clarifies its decision to pull out of TI
A staff member of Transparency Thailand on Thursday (Jan 25) dismissed criticism that its decision to pull out of Transparency International’s (TI) memberships was to appease the National Council for Peace and Order.
— Thai PBS

All eyes on baht amid capital inflows
FOREIGN capital has been pouring into Thailand and other emerging market economies in the wake of further weakness in the US dollar. The inflows have propelled the baht to second place among regional currencies, behind the Malaysian ringgit, this month.
— The Nation

Stronger baht may curb export outlook
Exporters look set to cut their forecast for the country’s export growth because of the baht’s appreciation and emerging protectionist trade measures.
— Bangkok Post

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Vietnam Morning News

Compiled by Sreypov Men @MenSreypov

Vietnam raises $184 mln by selling 20 pct of PVOIL in IPO
The Vietnamese government raised 4.18 trillion dong ($184 million) through the sale of a 20 percent stake in state-owned Petrovietnam Oil Corp (PVOIL) in an initial public offering (IPO), the company said on Thursday.
— Reuters

Cashew businesses worry about high price trap in 2018
Although global cashew demand is predicted to continue rising, the Vietnam Cashew Association (Vinacas) and cashew processors and exporters are worrying about a high price trap which may affect their activities in 2018.
— VietnamPlus

Footwear sector awaits rebound with US giant
Foreign capital flow in the footwear industry is expected to rebound this year after a slowdown in 2017, with the anticipated arrival of a major US player.
— VietnamNet Bridge

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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.