Asean morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu          @stmarisewudolu

 

Minimum wages surge across Southeast Asia
Minimum wages in Southeast Asia are rising sharply as governments strive to please their publics, but the trend could slow foreign investment as the region loses its edge as a low-cost production hub.
— Nikkei Asian Review (paywall)

ASEAN to sign MOU allowing smaller vessels to travel in region’s waters
Transport ministers of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) will sign next month a memorandum of understanding (MOU), allowing non-conventional size ships, including wooden boats, to cross the maritime borders of the countries within the region, Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) Executive Director Romeo Montenegro.
— Manila Bulletin

ASEAN companies are the most confident about digital readiness across APAC
Companies in ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) are the most confident about their digital readiness across Asia-Pacific, according to a new study released by Cisco.
— Networks Asia

How digitalisation can help achieve fair Asean migration
Digital technologies are making it easier to access information and connect people.
— The Nation

Gender equality pushed in Asia Pacific
Countries in Asia and the Pacific are being encouraged to accelerate progress on gender equality in order to reach ambitious goals under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
— The Philippine Star

UOB’s investment arm mulls up to $300m Southeast Asia-focused FoF
UOB Alternative Investment Management (UOBAIM), the alternative investment arm of Singapore-based lender UOB, is weighing a Southeast Asia-focused fund-of-funds with a target corpus of $200-300 million, a top executive has said.
— Deal Street Asia (paywall)

Big data is revolutionising microfinancing
Microfinance is a service where financial institutions back small start-ups and would-be entrepreneurs with small loans, often times referred to as microloans. Such initiatives are most popular in the poorest parts of the world.
— The Asean Post

AI businesses on the rise in Asean
Singapore is one of the Southeast Asian countries aiming to be a leader and business centre in artificial intelligence (AI) in line with its industrial transformation policy.
— Bangkok Post

China, ASEAN security ties leap forward
The first ASEAN-China maritime exercise that concluded on Saturday signals that Beijing and the Southeast Asian bloc have upgraded military and defense ties, taking substantial steps in safeguarding security in the South China Sea.
— Global Times

Over 20 ASEAN companies receive Good Design Award
THE Tokyo-based ASEAN-Japan Centre (AJC) – an inter-governmental organisation of the 10-member states of ASEAN and Japan – has launched a two-year regional programme titled ‘ASEAN Design Selection.’
— Borneo Bulletin

Climate change, biodiversity experts work to keep Asean region ‘cool’
SWELTERING hot days. Increased number of typhoons. Unprecedented instances of storm surges. These have become the norm nowadays, and people are quick to blame these on one thing: climate change.
— Business Mirror

Cambodia morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men          @MenSreypov

 

Startups Blooming In Cambodia
Cambodia had seen at least 12 tech startup funding announcements by the second quarter of the year, which was a 140 per cent increase from at least five in the previous year, according to a new report on the country’s tech ecosystem by Mekong Strategic Partners and Raintree Development, industry news platform E27 reported.
— Investvine

Cambodia Owes $6.7B Debt by 2018, to Borrow $1.4B SDR for 2019
As of September 2018, Cambodia owes $6.8 billion foreign debt and that Cambodia will borrow $1.4 billion SDR for 2019, according to the summary of Ministry of Economy and Finance’s draft budget law 2019 which Fresh News received on Friday.
— Fresh News

Improving public transport in Phnom Penh: TosJis
Khmer Times’ Sok Chan speaks with Hong Monyreach, the co-founder of local startup TosJis, a platform that promotes smart public transportation. TosJis was one of three winners in the latest round of the Toyota Impact Challenge, gaining access to a six-month incubation programme and the chance to win $10,000 in the final round of the programme.
— Khmer Times

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Indonesia morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu          @stmarisewudolu

 

Indonesia tops global list of e-commerce growth: Study
ndonesia’s e-commerce market still has ample room to grow thanks to its high internet penetration, according to the latest report on payments and e-commerce by United Kingdom-based financial services firm PPRO.
— The Jakarta Post (paywall)

Transaction of 2018 Trade Expo Indonesia reaches Rp126.77 trillion
The transaction of the 2018 Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) successfully reached Rp126.77 trillion until 12.00 p.m local time.
— Antara News

Indonesia’s catastrophes lead to higher financial losses
ndonesia has put the casualty of quakes and an ensuing tsunami in Central Sulawesi province to 2,086 as financial loss ratcheted up to a 18.48 trillion rupiah (some 1.221 billion U.S. dollars), official said here on Sunday.
— Xinhua

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Lao PDR morning news

Compiled by Maria Mirasol Rasonable          @Maria Rasonable

 

Laos dam collapse: bombshell accusations, few answers (video)
Questions, accountability concerns, and controversies continue to swirl around the Laos dam disaster in July that killed more than 40 villagers, as evidenced by a range of new reports that stretch from South Korea to Thailand.
— AEC News Today

Chinese engineering company digs 1st over-1000m railway tunnel in Laos
Chinese engineering company completed on Sunday the first over-1000-meter tunnel along the China-Laos railway.
— China.org.cn

Anaesthesiologists’ workshop targets improved safety, patient care
Lao anaesthesiologists, experts and cooperation partners met in Vientiane on Friday to review their work in the sector and discuss methods of improving patient care and providing safe anaesthetics.
— Vientiane Times

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Malaysia morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men          @MenSreypov

 

Malaysian Passport Classified As Fifth-Best Worldwide
The Malaysian passport has been ranked fifth among the best passports in the world in terms of visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to other countries by the Global Passport Power Rank 2018. This ranking is compiled by Montreal-headquartered financial advisory firm Arton Capital which focuses on citizenships by investment.
— Investvine

Petronas calls for collective action in gas advocacy
Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas) has urged all stakeholders in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry to take concrete actions to advocate natural gas, LNG and its role in the global energy mix, as a collective effort towards a sustainable market ecosystem.
— The Borneo Post

How Najib Nearly Sold Out Malaysia To China
The latest six charges laid against Najib and his trusty lieutenant, Treasury secretary-general Irwan Serigar Abdullah, confirm again how blatantly the previous prime minister and his government were prepared to lie in the face of evidence leaked by brave insiders to Sarawak Report.
— Sarawak Report

See here for more of today’s Malaysia Morning News

 

Myanmar morning news

Compiled by Maria Mirasol Rasonable          @Maria Rasonable

 

Sanctions against Myanmar are “Nonsense” claims the Ambassador of Japan
The Japanese Ambassador to Myanmar, Ichiro Maruyama, is adamant that international sanctions against this country are “utter nonsense.”
— Modern Tokyo Times

Myanmar: EU’s preferential trade status withdrawal not to affect FDI flow
A Myanmar official has said the European Union (EU)’s probable withdrawal of its Generalised Scheme of Preference (GSP) will not impact the foreign investment flow into the country, the official Global New Light of Myanmar reported on October 28.
— Vietnam+

Myanmar Courts Free Detained Eleven Media Journalists on Bail
Three journalists from Eleven Media who were detained on incitement charges were each freed on 10 million Kyats bail Friday at Tamwe Township Court.
— Radio Free Asia

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Philippines morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu          @stmarisewudolu

 

Signal no. 2 up in Northern Luzon as typhoon ‘Rosita’ nears landfall
Residents of Northern Luzon will have to brace for strong winds and heavy rains in the next two days as typhoon “Rosita” nears landfall, weather officials said.
— CNN Philippines

Deposits hit P12 trillion in first semester of 2018
DEPOSITS in the country grew to double digits in the first half of 2018, compared to its level last year, driving the expansion in the banking industry’s assets for the period.
— Business Mirror

Duterte temporarily puts Bureau of Customs under military control
President Rodrigo Duterte has put the Bureau of Customs (BOC) under the control of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
— ABS-CBN News (video)

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Singapore morning news

Compiled by Maria Mirasol Rasonable          @Maria Rasonable

 

Prices of consumer goods lower here, but no clear link to e-shops
A year since Mr K. W. Toh decided to set up online stores on Carousell and Lazada after the closure of his Sim Lim Square outlet, the director of audiophile equipment seller Alpha Audio has repeatedly heard this question about his online prices: Why should I buy from you when Amazon has it for cheaper?
– Straits Times

On the up: Electricity and gas bills, petrol, food prices for 2018 and 2019
Electricity and gas bills, petrol costs, and food prices are expected to go up for the rest of this year and into the next year. This comes on the back of higher oil prices and concerns over weather conditions affecting the production of Singapore’s key food import sources.
— Today Singapore

WP MPs suspend public appeal for legal funds after raising more than S$1 million
After raising more than S$1 million in about three days, the three Workers’ Party Members of Parliament (MPs) who are facing civil lawsuits have suspended their public appeal for legal funds.
— Today Singapore

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Thailand morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre          @photo_journ

 

King Power/ LCFC boss killed in fiery England helicopter crash (video)
Thailand’s fifth richest person and the owner of Leicester City Football Club (LCFC) and the King Power Group, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, has been confirmed as being one of five people killed Saturdayt night (Oct 27) when a helicopter they were onboard crashed outside the King Power Stadium in England.
— AEC News Today

Thailand’s main opposition Pheu Thai Party picks leader ahead of general election
Thailand’s main opposition Pheu Thai Party picked acting head Viroj Pao-in as its leader ahead of a general election expected in 2019 after more than four years of military rule.
— The Straits Times

Analysts doubt US recession odds
Despite a potential slowdown in US economic growth next year, the world’s largest economy is unlikely to fall into a recession because the Federal Reserve will probably cut rates to shore up growth momentum , says the Investment Analysts Association.
— Bangkok Post

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Vietnam morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men          @MenSreypov

 

Vietnamese cement sales projected to far exceed 2018 target
The quantity of cement exported and sold in the domestic market reached 85.23 million tonnes in the first ten months of 2018, already surpassing the target of 85 million tonnes for the whole year.
— Nhan Dan Online

Vietnam’s PV Gas net profit sees 50% increase in Jan-Sep
The result was partly thanks to an increase in oil prices in the world market, reaching US$71.4 per barrel, up 42% compared to PV Gas` original estimate and US$20 year-on-year.
— The Hanoi Times

Coca-cola plans fourth Vietnam factory worth US$300 million in Hanoi
Coca-Cola is looking for a location in Hanoi for a plant worth US$300 million, which would be the soft drinks group’s fourth in Vietnam, according to Calin Dragan, president of Coca-Cola’s Bottling Investment Group.
— The Hanoi Times

See here for more of today’s Vietnam morning news

 

The Asean morning news roundup and its individual country morning news round-ups are the most comprehensive hand-curated selection of news reports from around the Asean Economic Community (AEC) published. We scour hundreds of local and international news and websites to find the things that you need to know to start your working week day.

We clearly identify the source of the story, whether it is behind a paywall, a media release, or whether the site uses annoying pop-up advertising or auto-play video, in case those things annoy you. It’s all then packaged up in an easy to read format enabling you to make an informed choice of whether you want to learn more by clicking directly through to the original source, or keep on reading the headlines. AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.