Asean morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu          @stmarisewudolu

Why China and ASEAN’s South China Sea Negotiations Will Go Nowhere
As the world gets acclimated to 2019, the South China Sea could very well be at the center of the new year’s most bare-knuckled negotiations.
— The National Interest

Digital farming to address food scarcity in SE Asia
The farm sector should adapt digital agriculture and disruptive breeding technologies to catch up with predicted food scarcity and raise agriculture contribution to jobs and growth.
— Malaya

For China, Asean is far more important than a mere ‘talking shop’
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is important to China. This is a statement of fact, not out of courtesy or preference.
— South China Morning Post/ Daily Times

DEATH BY SUGAR: CAN SOUTHEAST ASIA WIN THE WAR ON DIABETES?
Mayang Gagat Kamayang is 23 and lives in Sukabumi, West Java, where she runs a home business making and selling Indonesian kue (sweet snacks).
— South China Morning Post

Expat survey puts Thailand fourth in Asean
Despite the many high-profile international campaigns that tout the welcoming people, exotic food and attractions of the Land of Smiles, Thailand is not the top choice for expats in Southeast Asia, according to a new survey.
— Clayton Caller

The future of telecommunications in ASEAN
The telecommunications industry in Southeast Asia is evolving quickly.
— The Asean Post

China’s ATM Capital hits first close of $200m SE Asia fund
Beijing-based ATM Capital has reportedly completed the first close of its $200-million fund from cornerstone investors including Alibaba’s $600-million eWTP Technology and Innovation Fund, 58 Group and Sogou CEO Wang Xiaochuan.
— Deal Street Asia

How Partner Marketing Will Change in Southeast Asia in 2019
Partner marketing is exploding in SEA as more brands recognize its business-building power.
— Branding in Asia

Oyo Doubles Investment Plans in Southeast Asia to $200 Million
Oyo has the money to spend and is putting skin in the game to scale fast in Southeast Asia. The region’s industry will be hearing a lot more of Oyo in 2019. But not everyone may be enthralled.
— Skift

83% of funding in SEA went to Grab, Go-Jek, Sea, and Lazada. Here’s what it means
Dmitry Levit is the founder of Cento Ventures, whose portfolio companies include Jirnexu, Kalibrr, Grain, and iPrice.
— Tech in Asia

Vietnam, Thailand and Philippines fly the Asean flag at Asian Cup
Newly minted Asean champions Vietnam, regional powerhouses Thailand and the rising Philippines will be hoping to do South-east Asia proud at the Asian Cup, which kicks off tomorrow.
— The New Paper

Cambodia morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu          @stmarisewudolu

National Bank projects 7 pct economic growth in 2019
In 2019 the Kingdom’s economy will grow at a rate of 7 percent, according to the nation’s Central Bank, who noted in its latest report that such growth may be weakened by a number of internal and external factors, including the potential cancellation of the Everything-but-arms (EBA) scheme with the European Union.
— Khmer Times

Property price growth slows
Real estate prices in the Kingdom’s major cities only saw small increases last year, though land prices in coastal provinces saw a sharp increase, according to a second-half 2018 Key Real Estate Co Ltd report obtained by The Post on Wednesday.
— The Phnom Penh Post

MQ Tech backs out of Cambodian theme park, casino deal
A major entertainment project planned for Cambodia has lost its main developer. In a filing with Bursa Malaysia, Malaysian investment company MQ Technology announced that it was backing out of the deal that would have seen the development of a large resort area in Cambodia offering hotels, a theme park and a casino.
— CalvinAyre.com

See here for more of today’s Cambodia morning news

Indonesia morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu          @stmarisewudolu

Indonesia / More than 4000 dead after year of devastating disasters
Indonesia has been rocked by a series of destructive natural disasters in the past 12 months, with the death count at its highest in over a decade.
— Southeast Asia Globe

Minister forecasts last year`s economic growth to reach 5.15 percent
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati has forecast that the Indonesian economic growth in 2018 may reach 5.15 percent, falling short of the target of 5.4 percent set in the state budget.
— Antara News

Indonesia to tax assets kept hidden during amnesty
Indonesia‘s government has issued new regulations aimed at tracing and taxing the wealth of taxpayers who were not pardoned in the nine-month tax amnesty that ended in March.
— Lakeland Observer

See here for more of today’s Indonesia morning news

Lao PDR morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men          @MenSreypov

Govt merges two special trading areas
Businesses operating in a border trade area at a Lao-Vietnamese border crossing in Savannakhet province will soon be offered special tax and non-tax incentives as in special economic zones.
— Vientiane Times

1.2 Trillion Kip Needed For Road Renovation
The Department of Bridges and Roads has said it needs 1,200 billion kip to implement 20 projects and 148 contracts on road repair and construction nationwide.
— KPL

Laos records 38 deaths in road crashes within 5 days
Laos has registered 38 deaths in road crashes in five days of the New Year celebration.
— Menafn

See here for more of today’s Lao morning news

Malaysia morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men          @MenSreypov

Malaysia makes top 10 list of best places to retire in 2019
MALAYSIA has landed a cushy spot on a list of the top 10 best countries to retire in next year, beating out fellow popular Southeast Asian holiday destination Thailand, according to International Living magazine’s Annual Global Retirement Index.
— Malaysian Insight

Govt subsidised RM4.89bil for RON95, diesel for Jan-Nov 2018
The government paid a total of RM4.89 billion in RON95 and diesel subsidies for the period from January to November last year, Minister of Finance Lim Guan Eng said today.
— The Star Online

RAM expects Malaysia’s November export growth to decelerate
RAM Ratings expects Malaysia’s November export growth to decelerate to 3%, as front-loading activities which had temporarily boosted exports by 17.7% in October subsided.
— FMT

See here for more of today’s Malaysia Morning News

Myanmar morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men          @MenSreypov

Banking sector to strengthen, support economy in 2019: experts
The banking sector is expected to make strides forward this year as fiercer competition forces banks in Myanmar to level up.
— Myanmar Times

More than 3,000 locals from Rakhine State desert their homes
Up to 3,144 refugees from eight villages in Kyauktaw, Ponnakyun, Yathedaung and Buthidaung townships in Rakhine State are had fled their homes due to ongoing battles, said Ko Ko Lay, Chairman of the state red cross management committee.
— Eleven Myanmar

Changes in petroleum law could give Myanmar a boost in oil and gas investments
Changes in a petroleum law in Myanmar could help the Southeast Asian country attract investment in to the oil and gas sector, while reducing the growing strain on depleting domestic oil and gas reserves, according to a report by Fitch Solutions Macro Research.
— Business Times

See here for more of today’s Myanmar morning news

Philippines morning news

Compiled by Stella-maris Ewudolu          @stmarisewudolu

Government debt jumped by P758 billion to reach P7.2 trillion in November
Outstanding government debt jumped P758 billion, or 11.8 percent, over a 12-month period to hit a record P7.195 trillion in November 2018, data from the Treasury show.
— Manilastandard.net

Gov’t moving to allow work to resume at gas field in disputed waters
THE DEPARTMENT of ENERGY (DoE) is recommending to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) the end of the suspension of exploration in a disputed South China Sea area covered by Service Contract (72), after PXP Energy Corp. — the company with the biggest stake in the project — submitted its request to pursue its work program, Energy officials said on Thursday.
— BusinessWorld Online

House probe uncovers P332-billion flood fund scam
Clearly a “flood control scam,” lawmakers said yesterday of the allocation by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) under Benjamin Diokno of P332 billion for non-existent flood control projects in a short span of three years.
— The Philippine Star

See here for more of today’s Philippines morning news

Singapore morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre          @photo_journ

Singapore GDP ends 2018 on a weaker note – ING
Robert Carnell, chief economist at ING, explains that in what was a remarkably steady year for Singapore’s economic growth, final quarter of GDP growth printed a figure of 1.6% QoQ.
— FXStreet (annoying popups) 

Sugar tax, green perks, friendlier tax regime for startups: Deloitte
A SUGAR tax, incentives for green investment, and a tax regime that is friendlier to startups are among Deloitte Singapore’s Budget 2019 recommendations, released on Thursday.
— The Business Times

Factory growth cools, PMI down 0.4 point in December
Singapore’s factory growth slowed again last month, with the key electronics sector contracting further amid a weakening of the outlook for the sector globally and the fallout from the trade dispute between the United States and China.
— Straits Times

See here for more of today’s Singapore morning news

Thailand morning news

Compiled by John Le Fevre          @photo_journ

New Year road deaths up by 9.5%
The road death toll during the New Year holidays rose by 9.5% from last year to 463, even as the numbers of accidents and injuries fell.
— Bangkok Post

Government admits election delay
The election date will likely be delayed from Feb 24 to avoid having poll-related activities overlapping with those of the coronation ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam said Thursday.
— Bangkok Post

DTAC boss outlines obstacles to 5G by 2020
Commercial 5G services will not be in available in Thailand before 2020 under the government’s plan, as the next-generation mobile system will require a massive infrastructure upgrade with a high degree of collaboration across industries.
— Bangkok Post

See here for more of today’s Thailand morning news

Vietnam morning news

Compiled by Sreypov Men          @MenSreypov

Vietnam to reach new heights in 2019
The country’s business environment grew tremendously at the start of the year with over 26,000 new enterprises established. In addition to that, the government there highlighted that foreign direct investment (FDI) disbursement reached over US$3.8 billion in the first three months of the year, up 7.2 percent from 2017.
— The Asean Post

Government intensifies support for non-cash payment methods
The Government has issued measures to boost non-cash payment methods in the country this year.
— Viet Nam News

Retail sales rise on strong domestic demand
Total retail sales of goods and services in Vietnam reached nearly 4.4 quadrillion VND (191 billion USD) in 2018, representing a rise of 11.7 percent against the previous year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
— Vietnam+

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.