cari captures issue 107 (7jan 2013)
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CARICAPTURES
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ASEAN WELCOMES NEW SECRETARY-GENERAL AND CHAIRMAN
The first ASEAN Secretary-General
from Vietnam assumed the position on 1
January 2013, while Brunei Darussalam
has taken over the Chairmanship of
ASEAN.
ASEAN’s new Secretary-General, Le Luong
Minh, is a seasoned diplomat from Vietnam
During his time at the Foreign Ministry,
he served as Vietnam’s ambassador to the
United Nations
Analysts suggest Vietnamese style of
diplomacy is less public and transparent,
which may be a better way to deal with China
This is the second time Brunei has been the
Chair of ASEAN, the first time being in 2001
Brunei has chosen “Our People, Our Future
Together” as this year’s theme to emphasise
the importance of community building
As Chairman, it will be able to set the agenda
and has the responsibility to host the various
meetings and two Summits; the 22nd ASEAN
Summit on 24-25 of April, and the 23rd ASEAN
Summit on 9-10 October, where the 8th East
Asia Summit will be held on the sidelines
These changes come at an important time
as tensions continue to simmer between
ASEAN and China on the maritime claims in
the West Philippine Sea
Both Brunei and Vietnam are claimants and
will be more active in pushing for ASEAN
consensus on this issue
CARI analyst, Chayut Setboonsarng,
considers what to expect from the new
chairman here
VOA News (1 January 2013)
The Borneo Post (3 January 2013)
ASEAN
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Source: ASEAN Secretariat
DISCLAIMER: The news articles contained in this report are extracted and republished from various credible news sources. As such, CIMB ASEAN Research Institute (CARI) does not make any guarantee, representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the adequacy, accuracy, completeness, reliability or fairness of any such information and opinion contained in this report. Should any information be doubtful, readers are advised to make their own independent evaluation of such information.
Best ASEAN country to be born in
ASEAN CLIMBS LIVABILITY
RANKINGS
Singapore and Malaysia went up in the
rankings of the best place to be born
in the world, to 6th and 36th place
respectively. The index which is provided by the
Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) aims to
quantify how happy people say they are
based on a list of 11 economic and socio-
political indicators such as a country’s
income per capita, cost of living, human
rights, life expectancy, literacy, and
education levels
Thailand came in at 50, while the
Philippines dropped to 63rd place,
tying with Sri Lanka
ASEAN
Vietnam and Indonesia took 68th and 71st
positions respectively
Switzerland beat out all other nations,
including the US (16), as the best place for
babies to be born
Australia was the runner-up, followed by
Scandinavian countries Norway (3), Sweden
(4) and Denmark (5) while New Zealand,
the Netherlands, Canada and Hong Kong
rounded up the rest of the top 10
The Economist (21 November 2012)
CHAROEN
GETS MORE
THE
PHILIPPINES
Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia
Philippines
TIME TO BID FOR F&N
THE BIGGEST
SURPRISE
Thailand’s TCC Assets was granted
another chance to improve its original bid
of SG$8.88 for each of F&N’s shares, in
the face of the Indonesian consortium’s
bid of SG$9.08 a share. The new deadline for TCC Assets, which
is controlled by Thai tycoon Charoen
Sirivadhanabhakdi, is end of day on January 10
The Indonesia consortium is led by property
firm Overseas Union Enterprise (OUE), and is
backed by the Japanese brewer Kirin Holdings
Kirin Holdings owns 14.8% of F&N’s shares,
and is interested in F&N’s food and beverage
business, while F&N’s property interests are to
pass to OUE if their bid is successful
Bangkok Post (3 January 2013)
2012 is claimed to be one of the best
years ever for the Philippines economy,
with GDP growth expected to surpass the
targeted 5% to 6% and the stock market
ending the year on its 38th record high. Good economic fundamentals, benign
inflation, high foreign exchange reserves and
low interest rates, provide a good springboard
for a rosy 2013 outlook
It is hoped that this translates into another
credit rating improvement that would put the
country to investment grade, something they
haven’t seen in at least the last three decades
The Philippines economy in 2012 showed
resilience and strength amid the economic
crisis in Europe and territorial disputes in the
region, said Philippine Chamber of Commerce
and Industry president Miguel Varela
The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE)
welcomed the New Year with a bang after the
benchmark stock market index recorded a new
all-time high
As of the end of 2012, the PSE Index set 38
new records during the year 2012
Malaya Business Insight (3 January 2013)Business Inquirer (30 December 2012)
Source: Economist Intelligence Unit
DISCLAIMER: The news articles contained in this report are extracted and republished from various credible news sources. As such, CIMB ASEAN Research Institute (CARI) does not make any guarantee, representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the adequacy, accuracy, completeness, reliability or fairness of any such information and opinion contained in this report. Should any information be doubtful, readers are advised to make their own independent evaluation of such information.
ASEAN’s AVIATION INDUSTRY IS ON
THE ASCENT
NEW MINIMUM
WAGE SWEEPS
INDONESIA’S BAJA STEEL TO
EXPORT ASEAN
Growth in the Philippines’, Malaysia’s
and Singapore’s aviation industry
looks promising although in the
Philippines it is being hindered by
infrastructure bottlenecks. Foreign airlines are forgoing operations in
the Philippines due to the lack of space at
its airports; the latest victim being Mumbai-
based Jet Airways
Carmello Archilla, executive director of the
civil aeronautics board of the Philippines says
airports can’t meet the many orders they
have for slots, which is a major deterrent for
growth in an otherwise burgeoning market
Ninoy Aquino International Airport
(Naia) in Metro Manila is the main culprit,
however areas like Cebu and Clark are being
developed to offset Naia’s congestion
Meanwhile Changi Airport celebrated a
The governments of Malaysia,
Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia are
implementing their new minimum wage
policies in an attempt to curb income
inequality; however, businesses are
concerned with the rise of labour costs. Businesses in Thailand are concerned with the
new US$10 per day minimum wage that will
come into effect nationwide as it will increase
production costs at a time of declining demand
from the US and EU
The chairman of the Textile Industry Club of
the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), Somsak
Srisupornwanit, said he does not expect to see
many factory shutdowns as manufacturers will
try to find new cost saving measures in supply
chain management and logistics to lower costs
In Vietnam the minimum wage is expected
to be up to US$14 with varying increases
throughout different designated zones
According to a specialist from the International
Labour Organisation, Yoon Youngmo, the
Government used minimum wage policy to
gradually raise the wage floor over the last few
years, by more than 20% yearly
In Malaysia, new wage levels go up to US$10
per day depending on region; however, 600 firms
gained a 3 to 6-month exemption from the wage
hikes because they have been performing poorly
for two to three consecutive years
The extension is to give them time to
restructure their operations
Following massive strikes last year, Indonesia
will increase minimum wage by 50% this year to
US$228 per month
Malaysian plantation firms face problems as
domestic labour markets are already at a deficit
of 60,000 workers and Indonesian workers may
return home
The Nation (2 January 2013)The Star (21 December 2012)
Wall Street Journal (28 December 2012)VNA (8 December 2012)
Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines
Indonesia
Indonesia, Thailand,Malaysia, Vietnam
ASEAN
Indonesian steel manufacturer PT
Saranacentral Bajatama (BAJA) plans to
export its products to Malaysia, Myanmar
and Thailand, taking advantage of the
ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (AFTA). BAJA has already identified potential buyers
from the numerous on-going construction
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new milestone – 50 million passengers were
handled in 2012, a 10% increase from 2011
The success at Changi is credited to strong
business partnerships with airlines like
Garuda, and focused efforts with them to
grow air links and increase flight frequencies,
according to Lee Seow Hiang, CEO of Changi
Airport Group
Malaysia’s aviation industry on the other
hand is seeing increased competition spurred
by the new entrant, Malindo Air, and a new
lost-cost airport opening in May 2013, KLIA2
MAS and Air Asia are confident they can
face their new competitor, on the back on
their clear network expansion roadmap,
new fuel-saving and efficient aircrafts, and
established brand network
Asia One (28 December 2012) The Star (31 December 2012)
ANN (1 January 2013)
projects in these countries, according to BAJA’s
president and director, Handaja Susanto
BAJA projects its exports will account for 20%
of their global sales
Susanto predicts the increased income from
exports in 2013 to range from US$1 million to
US$2 million in 2013
The Star (2 January 2013)
Impact of AFTA on steel prices- Allows for greater profit margin
for regional firms- Promotes intra-Asean trade as it
is much cheaper to source for steel regionally
Source: Aseansec.org
Source: Aseansec.org
DISCLAIMER: The news articles contained in this report are extracted and republished from various credible news sources. As such, CIMB ASEAN Research Institute (CARI) does not make any guarantee, representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the adequacy, accuracy, completeness, reliability or fairness of any such information and opinion contained in this report. Should any information be doubtful, readers are advised to make their own independent evaluation of such information.
Editorial Team: Manissa van Geyzel, Chayut Setboonsarng, Sóley Ómarsdóttir, Paul Leong Consultant Editor: Tunku ‘Abidin Muhriz
TRADE DEALS SET TO OPEN
NEW ERA FOR ASEAN, INDIA
Two Chinese firms signed a
memorandum of understanding,
overseen by the Cambodian Minister
of Transport, to start work later this
year on a massive project to build an
entirely new 400-km railway line. The first cargo train between Phnom Penh
and Sihanoukville’s port set off, marking
the beginning of a route that it is hoped will
decrease reliance on the road network to
transport goods to the coast
The expansion project, valued at US$9.6
billion, will be carried out by Cambodia
Iron and Steel Mining Industry Group, a
consortium of Chinese metal firms
China Railway conducted a feasibility study
on the rail project in 2011, but results have
not been made public
Peou Maly, deputy director of the
transportation department within the
Ministry of Public Works and Transport,
said that he believed the project will impact
people’s homes because it is more than 400
km long
The Cambodia Daily (31 December 2012)The Cambodia Daily (1 January 2013)The Cambodia Daily (2 January 2013)
ASEAN, India
Cambodia
CAMBODIA
EXPANDS
RAILWAY
INFRASTRUCTURE
08 MYANMAR MONITOR
The Information Ministry announced last
week that privately owned daily newspapers
will be allowed, but from April, for the first
time since 1964. This is the second major
step towards media freedom: but in August
last year the government abolished direct
censorship of the media allowing only weekly
publications of private newspapers.
Bangkok Post (30 December 2012)
Myanmar will install its first ever 500 kilovolt
power grid early this year in a bid to reduce
power loss in the country. According to the
Ministry of Electric Power, demand has hit
1890MW against supply of only 1500MW.
Xinhua (30 December 2012)
The Thai state-owned Krung Thai Bank
(KTB) is looking to form a joint venture in
Myanmar following the successful launch
of its representative office in Yangon in
Myanmar’s military admitted that it carried
out air-strikes against ethnic Kachin rebels in
the northern part of the country. The attack
highlights the rift between the government
and the military which has ignored orders
by President Thein Sein to halt offensives
against the Kachin minority.
The New York Times (2 January 2013)
Myanmar held its first public countdown
to the New Year, a celebration featuring
fireworks and performances by local
entertainers that gathered about 90,000
people. The President then made his
first New Year’s address to the nation
on 1 January. In the five minute speech
broadcasted by radio, Thein Sein
acknowledged that he needs to do more
to earn the people’s trust and will make a
point to speak to the people more often.
Abc News (1 January 2013)
December. The bank has provided financial
support to large Thai companies and SMEs
investing in Myanmar, mostly in border
trade and supply chain businesses.
Bangkok Post (25 December 2012)
Japan’s finance minister and deputy
prime minister, Taro Aso, met with
President Thein Sein on January 3 and
confirmed Japan’s intention to cancel
debt and help develop the Thilawa Special
Economic Zone, in the first high-profile
overseas visit by a member of Tokyo’s new
cabinet since it took office last month.
The Star (3 January 2013)
Myanmar has established diplomatic ties
with Iceland, according to official media
last week. Iceland is the sixth country that
Myanmar forged links with in 2012.
Xinhua (26 December 2012)
FORE IGN AFFA IRS
ECONOMY
POL I T I CS
The ASEAN-India Summit on 21 December
saw the conclusion of negotiations for
an ASEAN-India FTA framework which
boasts a combined market of almost 1.8
billion people, and GDP of US$3.8 trillion.
All ASEAN leaders, with the exception of the
Philippines president, attended the summit in
New Delhi
The FTA agreement which covers goods,
services and investments will be signed by
ASEAN countries in August 2013, before being
ratified at each member country’s parliament
The cooperation between ASEAN and
India also includes support for sub-regional
developments such as the Greater Mekong Sub
Region and the BIMP-EAGA
Salman Khurshid, Indian Foreign Minister,
expects connectivity projects between India and
ASEAN to take off, citing the highway project
between India’s border, Myanmar, and Thailand,
which is scheduled for completion in 2016
The Nation (30 December 2012)
Source: ASEAN India
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