MYANMARS FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL mmbiztoday.

com January 16-22, 2014 | Vol 2, Issue 3

Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 6...(Fiscal Cloud)
Josh Wood
T
ax reform may not be
sexy, but Myanmars
edgIIng murkeL econo-
my Is In desperuLe need oI hscuI
consolidation. A combination of
well-intentioned reforms and
some unsuvoury IegucIes oI LIe
oId mIIILury regIme Iuve IeIL
pubIIc hnunces In u precurIous
position. If the current methods
oI pubIIc hnuncIng ure noL re-
structured quickly, a debt crisis
is a real possibility.
At present, Myanmars public
debt as a percentage of gross
domesLIc producL (GDP) Is om -
cially estimated at 45.7 percent,
IurdIy un exLruordInury hgure
by gIobuI sLundurds. Even u
deveIopIng counLry sucI us
Myanmar, with its long history
of instability and economic mis-
management, could maintain
the good graces of global capital
markets if public debt remained
uL LIIs moderuLe IeveI.
Contd. P 6...(Fiscal Cloud)
Myanmar One of The Top Countries
to Invest in 2014, But Risks Remain
Te only country to signifcantly improve its risk profle last
year: analysts
Kyaw Min
M
yunmur mude LIe greuLesL ImprovemenLs Lo ILs busIness
envIronmenL Ior zo1q more LIun uny oLIer counLry, UK-
bused gIobuI rIsk und sLruLegIc consuILIng hrm MupIecroIL
said in a report.
n ILs hILI unnuuI eguI und ReguIuLory EnvIronmenL RIsk ALIus
(LRERA), Maplecroft said Myanmar has made strides through
reforms to address issues such as corruption, rule of law, the
regulatory framework, respect for property rights and corporate
governunce.
TIe RERA IncIudes z1 rIsk IndIces deveIoped Lo enubIe compu-
nIes und InvesLors Lo monILor LIe euse oI underLukIng busIness In
1; counLrIes.
n LIe IusL yeur LIe onIy counLry Lo sIgnIhcunLIy Improve ILs rIsk
prohIe Is Myunmur, wIIcI moved up more LIun 1o percenL In LIe
LRERA scoring system, said the report.
MupIecroIL suId LIe governmenL`s resoIve Lo Improve LIe busIness
envIronmenL Ius resuILed In u number oI ImporLunL sLeps been
Luken Lo enIunce InvesLor proLecLIon, IncIudIng LIe ImpIemenLuLIon
oI u new IoreIgn InvesLmenL ruIes In MurcI zo1, wIIcI provIdes
clarity around essential issues such as foreign ownership limits and
land leasing rules.
Contd. P 22...(Risks Remain)
Contd. P 22...(Risks Remain)
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and Regulatory Environment Risk Atlas (LRERA) ..~..~
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Fiscal Crisis Looms Over Myanmar
Sans Public Finance Reforms
If the current methods of pubIic nancing are not restructured quickIy, a debt crisis is a reaI possibiIity in Myanmar.
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
2
LOCAL BIZ
Myanmar Summary
MYANMARS FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL
Board of Editors
Editor-in-Chief - Sherpa Hossainy
Reporters & Writers
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Art & Design
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Shein Thu Aung, Phyu Maung
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Phone
Editor - 09 42110 8150
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Publisher
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No. 1A-3, Myintha 11
th
Street,
South Okkalapa Township, Yangon.
Tel: 951-850 0763,
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09421085511
Jupun OHers Another $1oom Aid
Package for Myanmar
I
n a string of generous
aid packages Japan
wIII provIde ubouL
$100 million (10 billion)
in additional aid to Myan-
mar to support the coun-
trys peace process and
help national reconcilia-
LIon und deveIopmenL.
At a press conference in
Yangon, Japanese Am-
bassador Mikio Numata
said Tokyo plans for the
money Lo be used over LIe
nexL hve yeurs Lo Improve
Phyu Thit Lwin IIvIng sLundurds In My-
anmars war-torn ethnic
areas.
The aids will be
contributed through
Japanese NGOs running
in Myanmar and upon
Myunmur governmenL`s
upprovuI LIe supporL wIII
be grunLed Lo dIerenL
ethnic groups.
Nippon Foundation
Chairman Yohei Sasakawa,
who co-hosted the press
conference, said he saw
the need for help during
u recenL vIsIL wILI peopIe
A Kachin viIIager who Hed the continuing conHict between the Burmese Army and the Kachin Independence Army wept at a peace march in
Myitkyina, Myanmar.
A
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wIo`ve been dIspIuced by
decudes oI hgILIng.
I saw the refugees and
they told me they do not
Iuve proper Iood or medI-
cine or shelter, Sasakawa
said. First of all, we will
provIde rIce und beuns
and staple medicines.
The fund will be ex-
tended only after cease-
hre uccord Is sIgned Ior
the security of the work
groups who are to work in
LIe conIcL ureus IncIud-
ing Kachin state where
armed clashes are still
taking place, he said.
n zo1, Jupun cun-
ceIIed more LIun $
billion in foreign debt
owed by Myanmar and
provIded u $oo mIIIIon
bridge loan to clear the
Southeast Asian nations
arrears with international
hnuncIuI InsLILuLIons.
After decades of military
ruIe und hgILIng wILI eLI-
nic rebel groups, Myan-
mar has begun a process
of political reform and
Is negoLIuLIng ceusehres
with former combatants.
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3
January 16-22, 2014
LOCAL BIZ
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Govt to Seek Bodget, Tuxution
Approvul Irom Purliument
T
he Myanmar
governmenL Is pre-
paring to submit
its state budget bill for
zo1q-1 hscuI yeur (AprII-
March) to the ongoing
parliament sessions for
upprovuI.
The State Budget Bill
2014 and Taxation Bill
2014 are also expected to
be submitted, according
Lo governmenL om cIuIs.
The 9
th
parliament ses-
sions resumed on January
1.
PresIdenL U TIeIn SeIn
LoId LIe governmenL`s
Financial Commission
in Nay Pyi Taw last week
that more funds could
be allocated to the local
governmenLs.
Myunmur eurned rev-
enues of more than K16
LrIIIIon ($16.z bIIIIon) Lo
duLe In LIe currenL zo1-
1q hscuI yeur und Ius
spenL K1q LrIIIIon ($1q.q
billion), he said, adding
LIuL LIe cenLruI govern-
ment shared about K1.5
LrIIIIon ($1. bIIIIon)
wILI IocuI governmenLs,
and loaned more than
K25 billion ($25.5 mil-
lion) to them.
The estimated gross do-
mestic product (GDP) for
2014 is K66.197 trillion
($67.55 billion), accord-
Ing Lo om cIuI duLu.
TIe sLuLe governmenL
eurned 86.z percenL oI
LIe LoLuI revenue wIIIe
LIe IocuI governmenLs
earned the rest. Of the
total expenditure, the
Aye Myat cenLruI governmenL spenL
88.1 percenL und LIe
IocuI governmenLs spenL
the rest.
In the upcoming
budgeL, Ie reveuIed LIuL
the health and educa-
tion sectors would see
increased budget alloca-
tion, stressing the need to
cruck down on Lux evusIon
und provIde IncenLIves
to tax payers if more tax
revenue Is coIIecLed nexL
hscuI yeur.
The president also dis-
closed that in the coming
hscuI yeur, governmenL
employees salaries will
be raised along with pen-
sion and other allowances
on a proportional basis.
TIe governmenL Is
drawing up a people-
centred plan in a bid to
ucIIeve LIe gouIs Ior hscuI
year 2014-15, he said.
U TIeIn SeIn LoId LIe
commission that the plan
will conform to the need
of Myanmar and its politi-
cal, economic and social
relations with neighbour-
ing countries.
He sLressed LIe need Lo
uLLrucL IoreIgn InvesLmenL
Lo deveIop LecInoIogy und
human resources, and
double domestic produc-
LIon In seven secLors In or-
der to reach an 8 percent
gross domestic product
growth.
He cILed LIose seven
sectors as industry,
agriculture, infrastruc-
ture, energy, mining,
LourIsm, hnunce und
communication.
Myanmars draft national
plan for 2014-15 targets
u growLI oI .q percenL In
the agriculture sector, 10.4
percent in the industry sec-
tor and 12.4 percent in the
servIce secLor.
The goal for growth of
mujor regIons Is seL uL q.
percent for Yangon, 12.4
percent for Mandalay and
28.2 percent for Nay Pyi
Taw.
The International
Monetary Fund in its
recent country report said
Myanmars economy will
grow 6.75 percent in the
zo1-1q hscuI yeur, drIven
by natural gas sales,
construction and foreign
InvesLmenL.
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A parIiamentary session in Nay Pyi Taw.
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Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
4
Myanmar Summary
Scomi Energy Wins
$,.q-m Petronus
Contracts in Myanmar
M
uIuysIu-bused ScomI Energy ServIces BId (SESB),
formerly known as Scomi Marine Bhd, has secured
two contracts worth $27.9 million from Petronas
CurIguII Myunmur nc (PCM) und PeLronus CurIguII (Hong
Kong) Ld (PCM) Ior LIe provIsIon oI drIIIIng uIds,
solid control, well bore cleanout, drilling waste management
equIpmenL, muLerIuIs und servIces, SESB suId.
The contract awards are for a period of three years. SESB
expects work to start with PCMI in July.
We are pleased to work together with Petronas once again
In Myunmur. Buck In zooq, we provIded sImIIur InLegruLed
servIces Ior ILs osIore drIIIIng ucLIvILIes. We ure uIso excILed
Lo be purL oI PeLronus` hrsL onsIore bIock In Myunmur, suId
SESB CEO SIuI HukIm ZuIn.
TIe conLrucL wIns ure u resuIL oI InLensIhed eorLs Lo grow
LIe busIness In EusLern HemIspIere regIon wIIcI Is u Iocus
area for SESB, the company said.
SESB Ius been In operuLIons In Myunmur sInce zoo und
LIe Leum Ius been provIdIng servIces Lo mujor cIIenLs sucI us
Petronas, PTTEPI and Daewoo.
With this award, SESBs operations continue to grow in
Myanmar and push the groups orderbook to $1.58 billion.
Htet Aung
Using Myanmar Diplomatic
Courtesy: US
Shein Thu Aung
T
Ie UnILed SLuLes some-
LImes uses LIe om cIuI
name Myanmar instead
of Burma as a diplomatic
courtesy to the Asian country,
the State Department said last
week, in a sign of reconciliation.
Myanmars military junta
cIunged LIe counLry`s om cIuI
name to Myanmar in 1989,
saying that the old term
Burma was a legacy of British
colonialism and implied that
the country belongs only to the
ethnic Burman majority.
The opposition and exiles
herceIy opposed LIe cIunge,
seeing it as a symbolic step to
create an entirely new country,
und LIe UnILed SLuLes Ius sLood
in solidarity by calling the na-
tion Burma.
However, US SecreLury oI
State John Kerry twice referred
the Southeast Asian country
as Myanmar in a statement
marking the countrys inde-
pendence day. The statement
made no mention of Burma.
Deputy State Department
spokeswomun MurIe HurI LoId
reporters that it continues to
be US governmenL poIIcy Lo
refer to the country as Burma,
according to an AFP report.
BuL In cerLuIn seLLIngs, US
governmenL om cIuIs reIer Lo
the country as Myanmar as
a diplomatic courtesy, she
added, citing President Barack
Obumu`s vIsIL Lo LIe counLry
in 2012 when he alternated
between the two.
I dont think theres a confu-
sion, she said.
In October, Kerry said the
longtime pariah states dra-
matic political reforms were
exciting but still incomplete.
As part of its reconciliation
with Myanmar, which included
Obumu`s vIsIL, LIe UnILed SLuLes
Ius Increused deveIopmenL uId
and ended most economic sanc-
tions on the resource-rich and
strategically placed country.
Scomi Marine Bhd e e.~ . q _~..: ....q :.~._.. ~
Scomi Energy Services Bhd (SESB) ._ Petronas Carigali
Myanmar Inc (PCMI) . Petronas Carigali (Hong Kong) Ltd
(PCML)~. ~..q~,..'.:...e~,e.q._ ..,...:
~_.~ qq.._~:. .q._.
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. , .:.._~:.._. .q._.
Petronas.....|.....:q._ ~~ ~ ~. ,.~.. ._.:~ ._~:.
.~~,...~._...~~.,_e ~. .. , .q, ~ ..e: . . . , ..:.~
._ . ..: q ~ . ._~: . SESB - .~.~_e.. Shah HakimZain
~._ .:_~:.. ._ . SESB._ _., .:. ~ ~~, . . . ~~_.. ._. .
,..:. ..:q~.._.
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~ Burma ~.:. Myanmar e
q e, q .|~ ~. ._._. . _., .:. . .
~.,e.~....::.~:. _ ..
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_., .:. - .. ~. .q. . - ~q:.
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...~ ._.:...._. Burma
e..:~..'~.~'.: _-~.~.,
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...,.._.._e._.. Burman ...
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~:. _..,.: .,~._~_.. .
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q~,~.,_e._. Burma e.
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,~eq~ _.,.:.- .~..
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Myanmar e q_ , ._. .. ,.. ._ .
Myanmar Summary
US Secretary of State ]ohn Kerry answers a question during a news conference.
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LOCAL BIZ
5
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 19...(FMI)
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
IMI OHers Additionul go,ooo New Shures
Completes frst rights issue; demand drives additional public ofering
F
irst Myanmar
nvesLmenL Co Ld
(M), un InvesL-
ment holding company
in Myanmar, has started
to issue an additional
250,000 new ordinary
shares to the public citing
overwIeImIng response
from existing sharehold-
ers and a broad interest
from the public.
The company started
oerIng LIe sIures on
Thursday last week
at a price of K10,000
($10.15) each, it said in a
statement.
On January 8, FMI com-
pleted the rights issue of
2,500,000 new ordinary
shares at an issue price
of K10,000 per shares
to existing shareholders.
Shareholders were enti-
tled to subscribe for one
Kyaw Min new ordinary share for
every sIx exIsLIng ordInury
shares held.
TIe uddILIonuI oer-
Ing wIII be uvuIIubIe Ior
10 business days, and
FMI said the public can
place their subscriptions
through the FMI Share
Department and Trading
Centre by 6pm on Janu-
ary 22.
Shares will be allotted
on u hrsL come hrsL serve
basis and subject to the
sole discretion of the
board on the allotment,
the company said. Pro-
ceeds from the additional
share issuance will be
used Lo hnunce corporuLe
growth and expansion of
existing businesses of the
FMI group of companies,
it said.
Our decision to launch
more shares is due to the
sIgnIhcunL InLeresL Irom
the public, and this is a
strong testament to the
conhdence LIe murkeL
has for FMIs long-term
growLI, suId U TIeIm
Wai, chairman of FMI.
The additional share
oer wIII Increuse M`s
market capitalisation and
enlarge its shareholder
buse. L wIII uIso provIde
opportunities for more
Myanmar nationals to be
part of FMIs growth and
success as we embark on
a number of transfor-
mational projects in the
country.
The capital raised from
LIe prevIous rIgILs Issue
wIII be used Lo hnunce
company projects that in-
clude the Thilawa Special
Economic Zone (SEZ), in
which FMI has committed
to subscribe for between
5 and 9 percent of the
Myanmar consortium.
Other projects include
the expansion of existing
operations in the tourism
und uuLomobIIe dIvIsIons,
the building up of FMI
Air following the grant
of a temporary air opera-
Lor`s cerLIhcuLe, us weII us
uddILIonuI InvesLmenL
in Meeyahta Interna-
LIonuI HoLeI Ld, u 1o-ucre
mixed used property de-
veIopmenL In downLown
Yangon comprising two
IoLeIs, Lwo omce Lowers,
a retail shopping mall, a
servIce upurLmenL und u
high-end condominium.
We want to further
strengthen our cash posi-
tion so that we can proac-
LIveIy expund our exIsLIng
operations and create
start-up opportunities
in the next two to three
yeurs, suId U TIeIm WuI,
who is also the chairman
of Yoma Bank.
The funds raised from
LIe new sIure oer wIII
also be used to help in-
crease the paid up capital
of Yoma Bank.
Last month, FMI, along
with Yoma Strategic
HoIdIngs Ld, Iormed
companies to distribute
und servIce MILsubIsII
und HIno veIIcIes. On LIe
servIce secLor IronL, pIuns
are underway to construct
a 46-room international
standard hotel with con-
ference and banquet
IucIIILIes uL Pun HIuIng
Golf Estate, FMI said.
Contd. P 19...(FMI)
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, . . :. ..: q ~ .,._
First Myanmar Investment
(FMI) ~.~._ ~.~-
.~ q ~. q e e:q .:.~:.
q e e:~. . . ~. ~~~~~
. , ._e q e e:~.. ~~~~~
~.~:_..: .q:.......
._~~~ ~.~e~..
._.:~._~:..q._.
~.~- .~q~.qee:
q.:.- ~..,~~:.....
~.:._._.~- .~.|~.:.
.~._~: FMI ~.~
~.,_e ..,~.qee:..
....|. ~~~~ ~ ~.
qee:~... ~. ~~~~~
.,._e ~,,~|q. q~.,
. ._ ~.:._._ . ~~ ~ . .
.q: ... :.q, . . :.._ .
~.qee:.:. ...q:...
~ , .e q~ ~~ q~ ~:~~ .
. . e . . .... :.._ _e. _. .
qee: ~ee...:.~.,_e
~,,~|q q~ _., ',:q
~.,:~.~.. FMI
~.~~.qee:_:,. qe
Foreign Bank Operations
by 2014 Unlikely
F
oreIgn bunks wIII be uIIowed Lo operuLe hnuncIuI
servIces In Myunmur, buL LIIs Issue Is sLIII under
discussion and no exact time has been set, a top
omcIuI Irom LIe CenLruI Bunk oI Myunmur suId.
We are still holding dialogues about the issue [of
foreign banks operating in Myanmar]. The reports
that foreign banks will be allowed to operate in 2014
through JV with local banks are absolutely wrong, the
omcIuI LoId Myanmar Business Today on condition of
anonymity.
We sLIII Iuve decudes-oId sysLem und poIIcIes In
pIuce. We Iuve pIuns Lo open Myunmur`s bunkIng sec-
tor more and we are waiting for the Currency Law and
Compuny uw Lo be hnuIIsed. BuL LIere Is no exucL LIme
us oI now, LIe omcIuI suId.
CurrenLIy, q InLernuLIonuI bunks Iuve represenLuLIve
omces In Myunmur, buL LIey Iuve LIus Iur been IorbId-
den Irom openIng bruncIes or oerIng servIces oLIer
LIun udvIsIng cIIenLs.
You need proper laws, rules and procedures to
launch foreign banks. The Currency Law is still on the
way to be enacted. So, it is unlikely that foreign banks
wIII be uIIowed Lo IuuncI LIeIr operuLIons LIIs yeur, U
TIun wIn, Iormer vIce cIuIrmun oI LIe CenLruI Bunk
of Myanmar, said.
Myanmar entrepreneurs say it is impossible for local
bunks Lo provIde hnuncIng Ior IocuI enLrepreneurs, und
the interest rate is also high. If foreign banks can start
their operations local businesses will start growing, an
entrepreneur said.
Phyu Thit Lwin
Myanmar Summary
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.._.:._.
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
6
From page ...(Fiscal Cloud)
However, LIe IuLure expecLed
sLreum oI governmenL revenues
and a tax-to-GDP ratio of only
.zz percenL (excIudIng nuLuruI
resource revenues) Ius muny
Yungon-bused InvesLors uppre-
IensIve ubouL LIe hscuI IuLure.
There is growing concern that
the rents on which public debt
has so far been kept at bay
ure unsusLuInubIe. UnIess LIe
present system of tax and spend
is reformed and regularised,
Myanmars credit rating will
start to sink.
The biggest worry for Myan-
mur`s hnunces Is ILs Ieuvy de-
pendence on revenues derIved
from natural resources. Thanks
to a rich endowment of natural
gas, oil, jade, precious gems,
und Leuk, governmenL budgeLs
Iuve become IncreusIng reIIunL
upon foreign export earnings.
Gas sales alone account for an
estimated 15 percent of GDP.
WIIIe LIese revenue sLreums
are at present strong, they
provIde onIy u Lemporury suIe-
guard against mounting public
debL. TIe voIuLIIILy oI resource
revenues, us weII us LIeIr hnILe
nature, demands a rethink of
LuxuLIon und pubIIc hnuncIng
strategies.
So Iow cun InvesLor Ieurs
be uIIuyed und pubIIc hnunces
better managed? It is a question
with multiple answers, few of
them easy and hardly any of
them popular. But President
Thein Sein and his ministers
cunnoL uord Lo wuIL: even LIe
slightest hint of a debt crisis
will lead to a quick drying up
of the existing trickle of foreign
InvesLmenL.
In the 18 months remaining
in Thein Seins term, the army
generuI Lurned cIvIIIun presI-
denL musL IdenLIIy ucIIevubIe,
reasonable changes to ensure
hscuI sLubIIILy In LIe medIum
term. Simultaneously, he must
sustain the reformist momen-
Lum wIIcI Ius so Iur dehned
his administration as well as
continue the longer-term pro-
jects, many of them necessar-
IIy cosLIy, uImed uL ImprovIng
nuLIonuI producLIvILy.
TIe hrsL reIorm LIuL couId
be undertaken before the 2015
eIecLIon Is u revIew oI LIe
zo1z oreIgn nvesLmenL uw.
Introduced with lukewarm ap-
provuI Irom LIe InLernuLIonuI
communILy, LIe Iuw provIded u
much-needed legal framework
Ior IoreIgn hrms InvesLIng In
Myanmar. To encourage foreign
busInesses, Iowever, un overIy
generous provIsIon sLIpuIuLes
LIuL IoreIgn InvesLmenLs ure Lux
Iree Ior LIe hrsL hve yeurs.
UnsurprIsIngIy, IocuI hrms
Iuve crIed IouI. TIe pIuyIng
heId wus uILered IurLIer wILI
the passage of the Myanmar
CILIzens nvesLmenL uw In
JuIy zo1. TIe currenL urrunge-
ment is certainly fairer but also
short-sighted. Now, both local
und IoreIgn hrms Iuve no Lux
IIubIIILy Ior LIe hrsL hve yeurs
oI LIeIr InvesLmenLs, wILI LIe
possibility of an extension
thereafter. For a country with
no consumption taxes and a
rarely enforced income tax
system, the amended foreign
InvesLmenL Iuw Is IuLure hscuI
suicide.
AnoLIer ucIIevubIe reIorm
would be the introduction of
greater transparency within the
cubIneL. UnIIke mosL counLrIes,
governmenL revenues In Myun-
mar are not centrally collected
and accounted for by the Min-
IsLry oI Inunce. RuLIer, prohLs
from state-owned enterprises
(SOEs) InvoIved In LIe mInIng
of gems, exploitation of oil and
gas, running public utilities and
undertaking industrial farming
ure hrsL coIIecLed by LIe MInIs-
try of Mines, the Ministry of Oil
and Gas and so on.
TIe reIevunL mInIsLers ure
then authorised to allocate the
spendIng oI LIese revenues,
passing on the remainder to the
nLernuI Revenue DepurLmenL.
TIe Iuck oI oversIgIL Is overL
and contributes to Myanmars
perennial abysmal position in
global corruption rankings.
CerLuIn mInIsLers In LIe prevI-
ous junta are suspected of di-
recting millions of unaccounted
for dollars towards family and
crony businesses through their
powerful positions, draining
nuLIonuI coers Ior personuI
gain.
To uvoId u IuLure hscuI crIsIs,
and for the sake of justice and
emcIency, cubIneL proLocoI
must be reformed. Centralised
conLroI oI pubIIc hnunces sIouId
be asserted, the estimated
thousands of other ministerial
accounts must be put on public
record, and SOEs must be liable
to same rules and taxes which
uppIy Lo prIvuLeIy run hrms.
To be sure, such a transforma-
tion will take time. But a simple
publishing of each ministers
budgets, the contracts they un-
derLuke wILI ouLsIde hrms und
LIe prohLs mude by IndIvIduuI
SOEs would go a long way to-
wurds ImprovIng governunce.
RecenL LenLuLIve sLeps Lowurds
joInIng LIe ExLrucLIve ndus-
LrIes Trunspurency nILIuLIve
ure u posILIve sLep In LIe rIgIL
direction.
nvesLors need IncenLIves Lo
put capital into Myanmar; they
uIso requIre hnuncIuI sLubIIILy.
WIIIe Lux IoIIduys ure InvILIng
and may momentarily attract
the interest of foreign capital, a
debt crisis would quickly send
InvesLors Lowurds LIe exILs.
RecenL surveys sIow LIuL
inadequate infrastructure is
the most pressing concern of
poLenLIuI IoreIgn InvesLors In
Myanmar. The country clearly
needs new and better roads,
more power, and new and
expanded ports to sustain long-
Lerm InvesLor InLeresL. GreuLer
transparency and a more rea-
sonable taxation system would
secure pubIIc hnunces und curb
the risk of future default and
InvesLor IgIL.
Josh Wood is a Visiting Re-
search Fellow at the Myanmar
Development Institutes Centre
for Economic and Social De-
velopment (MDRI-CESD). He
also manages the Crawford
Schools Myanmar Develop-
ment Program at the Austral-
ian National University.
From page ...(Fiscal Cloud)
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Govt Employees to Get Pay Hike
T
Ie governmenL wIII gIve
u puy rIse Lo governmenL
employees starting the
Shein Thu Aung nexL hnuncIuI yeur In u bId
Lo gIve LIem respILe Irom LIe
rIsIng IIvIng cosL und Improve
LIeIr IIvIng sLundurd, LIe presI-
dent said.
According to an announce-
menL mude by PresIdenL U
Thein Sein at a Financial Com-
mission meeting in the capital
Nuy PyI Tuw, governmenL sLu
salaries will be increased by
K20,000 ($20) in the coming
hscuI yeur zo1q-1, wIIcI sLurLs
in April.
Those carrying out the du-
LIes oI LIe sLuLe wIII receIve
increased allowance from time
to time. The increase follows
LIe rIse gIven In zo1, U TIeIn
Sein, who is also chairman of
the commission, said.
Pensions and other allow-
ances will also be increased
proportionately, he added.
The proposed pay rise will be
submitted to the upcoming par-
IIumenL sessIons Ior upprovuI.
This is the third time Presi-
denL U TIeIn SeIn Ius uIIowed
puy rIse Ior governmenL sLu
sInce Ie Look omce In MurcI
2011.
Myanmar Summary
EmpIoyees work at the Myanmar centraI bank's headquarters in Nay Pyi Taw.
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7
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
8
Myanmar Summary
Chinese Ambussudor Toots "Win-Win
Cooperution with Myunmur
C
hinese Ambassador to
Myunmur Yung HouIun
last week stressed on the
deveIopmenL oI puukpIuw
(fraternal) friendship and
strengthening of win-win coop-
eration with Myanmar.
Yang made the remarks in his
speech at Myanmar Institute
for Strategic and International
Studies (MISIS) in Yangon.
Speaking on China-Myanmar
relations, Yang said mutual ben-
ehL und wIn-wIn cooperuLIon Is
the main tone of the relations
between the two countries.
Yung rebued LIe reporLed
strain in China-Myanmar rela-
tions following the Southeast
Asian nations unprecedented
political and social transforma-
LIon over LIe pusL Lwo yeurs.
Noting that Chinas neigh-
bourhood is crucial to its securi-
Ly, deveIopmenL und prosperILy,
Yang said the new generation of
the central leadership of China
attaches great importance to
the surrounding areas and pe-
ripheral diplomacy.
He suId CIInu wIII pIuy un
ucLIve roIe In creuLIng u more
peaceful, stable and prosperous
perIpIeruI envIronmenL, und
that China will use its economic
progress Lo benehL LIe neIgI-
bourIng counLrIes und ucIIeve
common deveIopmenL.
He suId CIInu`s cooperuLIon
with Myanmar on hosting
the recently-concluded 27
th
Southeast Asian Games has
strengthened the two countries
relations.
In terms of building China-
Myanmar relations, the am-
bassador raised a four-point
proposal: to continuously
deepen mutual strategic trust,
to continue to expand mutu-
Aye Myat uIIy benehcIuI cooperuLIon,
to further expand people-to-
people contact and cultural
excIunge und Lo muke eorLs In
strengthening coordination and
cooperation international and
regIonuI uuIrs.
Yang said China always sup-
porLs Myunmur`s eorLs Lo
deveIop IrIendIy und cooperu-
LIve LIes wILI oLIer nuLIons on
LIe busIs oI LIe hve prIncIpIes
of peaceful coexistence, which
were initiated by China, Myan-
mar and India in 1950s.
The Chinese side always
respect the choice and decision
made by the Myanmar people
in terms of political system and
deveIopmenL puLI und wIII noL
interfere in Myanmars internal
uuIrs, Ie suId.
He cIuImed LIuL bIIuLeruI
cooperation in recent years has
maintained a good momentum
In uII heIds.
China wants to see a peace-
ful, stable and prosperous My-
anmar which is in line with the
interest of the people of Myan-
mar, China and other countries
in the region, he said.
WILI Myunmur`s rIsIng Inu-
ence In regIonuI uuIrs und LIe
assumption of ASEAN chair-
munsIIp, LIe cooperuLIve spuce
will continue to be expanded
between the two countries, he
added.
Myanmar, Japan to Work on
Communications, Postal Services
M
yanmar and Japan will
cooperate in a range of
sectors including com-
munIcuLIon und posLuI servIce
sectors.
It was discussed when Myan-
mur PresIdenL U TIeIn SeIn meL
wILI vIsILIng Home AuIrs und
Communication Minister of
Japan Yoshitaka Shindo in Nay
Pyi Taw.
They also discussed Japans
provIsIon oI LecInIcuI und h-
nancial assistance to strengthen
Myanmars police force and
conducting technical courses
for Myanmar.
AIso, LuIks beLween U TIeIn
SeIn und vIsILIng CIuIrmun oI
the Japan-Myanmar Parlia-
mentarian Friendship League
Ichino Aisawa focused on My-
anmars cooperation with the
Japan International Coopera-
LIon Agency (JCA) und omcIuI
deveIopmenL ussIsLunce (ODA)
loan from Japan.
Su Su JICA has been cooperating
with Myanmar in building in-
frastructural projects and pro-
vIdIng suIe drInkIng wuLer usIng
the ODA loan and assistance.
The Japanese aid projects
uIso cover buIIdIng oI ruIIrouds
and airports as well as urban
deveIopmenL.
Myanmar Summary
Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Yang HouIan (M) deIivers a speech during his visit
to Myanmar Institute for Strategic and InternationaI Studies (MISIS) in Yangon.
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LOCAL BIZ
9
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
VB Loi Ixtends Myunmur Presence
With Nuy Pyi Tuw Om ce
V
DB Loi, a My-
anmar law and
udvIsory hrm, Ius
doubled its presence in
the country by becoming
LIe hrsL IoreIgn Iuw hrm
with a fully operating of-
hce In LIe cupILuI Nuy PyI
Tuw, LIe Iuw hrm suId In u
statement.
TIe hrm Ius been
present in Yangon since
2012, where it employs
upproxImuLeIy o Iuwyers
und udvIsors.
VDB oI suId beehng
up its existing Nay Pyi
Tuw om ce Irom u smuII
support hub to a fully
operuLIonuI om ce, und In
LIe process, movIng IL Lo
u new IucIIILy, hLs wILI
its strategy of meeting
clients needs for prompt
und reguIur uccess Lo gov-
ernment decision makers.
We Iuve Lwo dozen
ministries to follow, some
of which we need to talk
to on a daily basis. There
is just nothing like ac-
tual face-to-face, personal
contact. You need to be in
Yangon for your clients,
but you need to be in Nay
Pyi Taw to get the clients
projecL done, LIe hrm`s
managing partner Jean
Loi said.
Time is essential on
uny deuI, und we beIIeve
that we can speed up the
process considerably by
IuvIng u IuIIy operuLIng
om ce Iere In LIe cupILuI,
where so many decisions
are made.
Edwin Vanderbruggen,
VDB Lois partner in
charge of Myanmar,
said: Our clients need
constant support in the
capital, particularly at the
outset of their project. We
ure very pIeused LIuL we
were able to secure prem-
ises that are extremely
central and spacious.
He suId LIe new om ce
wIII Iouse severuI Leums,
including those focusing
on MIC permits, import
IIcences, DA upprovuIs
and operating licences.
We will also be running
our udvIsory und LecInI-
cal assistance work for the
Myunmur governmenL
out of the capital, Edwin
added.
VDB Loi had assisted
hve ouL oI 1z prequuIIhed
bidders in last years tel-
ecommunications licence
tender, as well as tower
companies and network
provIders. As IocuI counseI
to one of the two licence
winners, Ooredoo, the
hrm provIdes u runge oI
servIces IncIudIng ussIsL-
Ing wILI LIe InvesLmenL
and operating licences.
Another area VDB Loi
has focused on for the
past year was oil and
gas. It assisted three of
the supermajors with
deepwater plays, and
udvIsed AusLruIIun energy
giant Woodside on its two
farm-in transactions.
TIe hrm`s InIrusLrucLure
and energy engagements,
Kyaw Min such as the Thilawa Spe-
cIuI EconomIc Zone, cover
mosLIy bIIuLeruI govern-
ment projects, while its
Leum uIso ussIsLs prIvuLe
deveIopers wILI mIxed-
use real estate projects.
VBB Ioi's new ofce in Nay Pyi Taw.
V
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Myanmar Summary
.... .:._ _e. .. ~. .q. .
. . ._e~ .~ .. ~ q. .:.~
._ . .~ .:. ._ _ e.
._~:. .q._.
VDB Loi ~.,_e .~,:
..: q ~ q._ ~, _~ ._:,..| .
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._.:. q, . ~. ._~: . .e:~
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
10
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 11...(Oil Booms)
Myanmar`s President U Thein Sein taIks during a meeting with representatives
from civiI societies at the Yangon Region ParIiament BuiIding in Yangon.
R
e
u
t
e
r
s
evelopment Purtners Lrged to
Take Part in Myanmars Policy
Making Process
M
yunmur PresIdenL U
Thein Sein has urged
uII deveIopmenL purL-
ners Lo Luke purL In LIe govern-
ments policy making process by
InILIuLIng regIonuI deveIopmenL
projects.
TermIng LIe deveIopmenL
partners as stakeholders
ruLIer LIun donors, U TIeIn
Sein stressed the need to
build mutual trust between
LIe governmenL`s IoreIgn uId
management committee and
international donors.
He IIgIIIgILed LIe ImporLunce
oI LIe deveIopmenL oI sLruLegIes
and tactics best suited for a lo-
cal context.
At a meeting of the Central
Committee for Foreign Aid
in Nay Pyi Taw last week, the
presIdenL reveuIed LIuL poverLy
uIIevIuLIon und socIuI economIc
ImprovemenL oI LIe ruruI popu-
lation that makes up 70 percent
of the total are priorities in the
governmenL`s deveIopmenL
scheme.
NoLIng LIuL LIe governmenL
has been working on its frame-
work on economic and social
reIorms Ior q monLIs, U TIeIn
Sein said it has set accessibility
of electricity and water, agri-
cuILuruI deveIopmenL, empIoy-
menL, LourIsm deveIopmenL,
moneLury secLor deveIopmenL
und Lrude und InvesLmenL us
priorities for the last 26 months
of the current presidential term.
He suId LIuL InLernuLIonuI
grants, loans and technical
ussIsLunce owIng InLo LIe
counLry Iuve resuILed In u sIIIL
Irom LIe governmenL-Iunded
deveIopmenL projecLs Lo pro-
Shein Thu Aung jects funded by international
deveIopmenL purLners.
According to the president,
Myanmar will organise the
second Myunmur DeveIopmenL
Cooperation Forum later this
month.
OmcIuI sLuLIsLIcs sIow My-
unmur`s IoreIgn InvesLmenL
reached $44.21 billion as of
SepLember zo1.
Myanmar enacted a new for-
eIgn InvesLmenL Iuw In Novem-
ber 2012, replacing a 24-year
old similar law, with sweetened
terms and tax breaks for foreign
InvesLors.
Oil Booms in Myanmar
Despite Political Challenges
G
lobal energy sources
und gIobuI poIILIcs Iuve
been inextricably linked
since the dawn of the industrial
uge. EmergIng deveIopmenLs In
Myunmur ure now gIvIng LIe
world another reminder of the
relationship between the two.
Myanmar, still known as
Burma by many, was ruled for
decudes by u repressIve mIIILury
junta that kept it isolated from
LIe resL oI LIe worId. SLI eco-
nomic sanctions were imposed
by boLI LIe EU und LIe US,
and while some Western en-
ergy companies were criticised
by human rights groups for
helping the regime elude the
sanctions, Myanmars economy
was by and large stagnant and
its considerable natural energy
resources largely untapped.
But recent liberalisation,
recognized by President Obama
In IIs vIsIL Lo LIe counLry IusL
November, Ius resuILed In LIe
beginnings of unfettered oil
and gas exploration. Myanmar
Ius sIgnIhcunL reserves oI boLI
- IncIudIng one onsIore heId
known In LIe peLroIeum servIc-
es industry by the ironic name
of the Stalin basin enough
to put it among the worlds top
few dozen producers despite its
current status as a net importer.
TIe governmenL Is now In
LIe hnuI sLuges oI seIecLIng LIe
companies that will be allowed
Lo deveIop ILs energy sources.
While American companies
Iuve been bIddIng uggressIveIy
for the rights encouraged
by Washington, which has so
publicly signalled its blessing
of Myanmars liberalization ef-
forts others are urging a more
cautious attitude.
For one thing, critics say the
Burmese economy is widely
regarded as rife with cronyism:
many worry that the contracts
wIII muInIy serve Lo enrIcI some
of the countrys elite. And human
rIgILs ucLIvIsLs Iuve u new worry.
Myanmar, despite its reputation
as a home of tranquil Buddhism,
is in fact a hotbed of seething
tribal and religious tensions,
some of which occasionally erupt
In vIoIence. Muny ure concerned
that the pattern of energy de-
veIopmenL wIII exucerbuLe LIese
LensIons by IuvourIng some
groups over oLIers.
Another possible complicat-
ing factor in Myanmars oil
and gas picture comes from
Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel
Prize-winning dissident who,
following liberalisation, is
now a member of Parliament
and a possible candidate for
president in 2015. While gener-
uIIy IuvourIng greuLer oII und
gas production, she has also
udvocuLed keepIng mosL oI LIe
countrys resources for domes-
tic use, rather than for export.
That could change the econom-
ics of exploration and drilling,
uL IeusL Irom LIe perspecLIve oI
Western companies.
As a consequence, not all
counLrIes Iuve LIe sume uppe-
tite for rapidly increasing their
trade with Myanmar: many are
waiting for more signs that the
commitment to democracy is
genuIne und IrreversIbIe, und
that the countrys many minor-
ity groups are protected as
deveIopmenL proceeds.
BuL neurIy everyone Ius LIe
sume vIsIon Ior wIuL LIey`d
like to see happen. Myanmar,
then part of the British Empire,
hrsL exporLed crude oII In LIe
1880s. Most want to see it
return quickly to the global
stage, though only after human
rights and other concerns are
accommodated.
MIT Technology Review Custom
Shwedugon Gets Highest-Iver
Nomber oI Ioreign Visitors
Phyu Thit Lwin
A
total of 414,007 foreign
LruveIIers vIsILed Myun-
mars famous Shwed-
ugon Pugodu In zo1, up 1q per-
cent from a year earlier and also
LIe IIgIesL ever, uccordIng Lo
the pagodas Board of Trustees.
AccordIng Lo omcIuI sLuLIsLIcs,
q6,61o IoreIgn LourIsLs vIsILed
the Shwedagon Pagoda in 2012.
Visitor numbers to the pa-
goda in 2010 was 175,054, and
zz,81 In zo11.
Shwedagon Pagoda is a must-
see for all the tourists. People
oI every gender und uge come
here daily. We hope well get
more vIsILors LIIs yeur, U WIn
Kying, a member of Shwedagon
Pagoda Board of Trustees, said.
usL monLI, qq,81q vIsILors
from countries such as Brazil,
China, Finland, Germany,
India, Portugal, South Korea,
TIuIIund und LIe UnILed SLuLes
vIsILed LIe pugodu.
TIuI vIsILors Lopped LIe IIsL
wILI 1,6o vIsILIng LIe IconIc
pagoda.
TIe enLrunce Iee Ior vIsILors Is
designated as $8 per head.
The Shwedagon Pagoda
Myanmar Summary
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Myanmar Summary
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.:....~: ..:q~..._.
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~q .~_.. .:.~:. .e: ..: _ e _e .
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q ._~: . . q_. . .e . . . ~. . ~~ .
~.:....q:~q.:_..._e.._~:.
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_~:..~~q .q._.
accommodates hundreds of
colourful temples, stupas and
sLuLues LIuL reecL LIe urcII-
tectural era spanning almost
2,500 years.
LOCAL BIZ
11
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Govt Opens 1g New Pussport Issoing Omces
Kyaw Min
TIe uuLIorILIes Iuve opened 1
new passport issuing centres in
Myanmar last week in addition
Lo LIe exIsLIng Lwo omces In
Yangon and Mandalay.
TIe new omces were opened
In eucI seven sLuLes und seven
regions of Myanmar, and also
in the countrys capital Nay Pyi
Tuw, U Kyuw Zeyu, depuLy Ieud
of the Passport Department,
said.
TIe move comes umId u sIew
of attempts taken by the Pass-
port Department since 2012
to make it easier for Myanmar
citizens to get a passport, which
wus proIIbILIveIy dImcuIL Lo ob-
LuIn even u coupIe oI yeurs ugo.
A Myanmar citizen will now
be able to get a passport in
10 days at a cost of K25,000
($25), down from 21 days and
K50,000 ($50) required earlier.
AppIIcunLs Iuve Lo deposIL
K19,000 at Myanma Economic
Bank and pay K6,000 for
udmInIsLruLIve Iees, pIoLo pro-
A Myanmar nationaI hoId up his passport outside the
embassy of Myanmar in Singapore.
V
iv
e
k

P
r
a
k
a
s
h
/
R
e
u
t
e
r
s
Myanmar Summary
cessing and application forms,
U Kyuw Zeyu suId.
In the past,
passport issuing
and renewing
process was mired
in red-tapes,
bureaucracy and
corruption, while
many applications
were arbitrarily
rejected.
n November
2012, the depart-
ment decided to
exLend LIe vuIIdILy
of new passports
Irom LIree Lo hve
years without pay-
ing extra.
In March last
year, the authori-
ties introduced
a host of new
measures aimed
at simplifying the
process to obtain
passports which
included cancelling
one aspect which
forced applicants
to pay money towards an educa-
tion authority when applying for
a passport as compensation for
IeuvIng LIe counLry.
Also, in September the pass-
port department introduced
counter-corruption measures
including allowing people to
submit complaints to the pass-
porL deIIvery depurLmenL II LIey
are asked for bribes in order to
speed up LIe process, U Kyuw
Zeya said.
I LIe purpose oI LruveI Is Ior
getting medical care, a passport
will be issued within three to
hve duys, LIe pussporL depurL-
ment said. The department is
uIso provIdIng Iree Iome deIIv-
ery of passports for applicants
over 6o yeurs oId.
Myanmar currently issues
seven Lypes oI pussporL: vIsIL,
religious, work, student, de-
pendent, seafarer and business.
M
yanmar will stick to
the 1967 demarcation
of the Indian border
though a major Indian political
party has talked about annexing
the Kabaw Valley, Presidential
spokesman and Deputy Infor-
muLIon MInIsLer Ye HLuL suId.
There are growing concerns
among the local people in bor-
der town Tamu as Indias BJP
party is pledging to annex the
region if it wins in the upcoming
general elections.
Myunmur to Stick to 1q6, emurcution
on Indiun Border
Su Su However, boLI counLrIes
Iuve vowed Lo sorL ouL LIeIr
dIerences umIcubIy over u
border area that remains to be
demarcated.
India suspended construction
of an integrated check post
(CP) In Bumuw vuIIey on Junu-
ary 2, the Foreign Ministry an-
nounced in state-run daily the
New Light of Myanmar. Teams
from both sides carried out land
survey In LIe ureu IusL week.
n zo1, Myunmur objecLed
Indias construction of the
so called ICP near the border
pillar-78.
Myanmar signed a demarca-
tion agreement with India in
MurcI 1q6;. However, due Lo
dIerences over LIe IocuLIon
oI border pIIIurs In LIe vuIIey,
severuI border murks Iuve noL
yet been established.
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. .:..:.~~ ~ ._ . . ~.
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Kabaw Valley ~:. ....~..
Myanmar Summary
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..: q ~ . . :.. :._ . . .q . .q:
~...:.._e.._. _.,.:.~.,
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q.,._.. ~_~..e~..:.._. ..'
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.: ..qq..|~ ~..| .,..'.~
.:.~ . . _~ ..:..:... ._ ~ . .q .
..:.._.q.,._.
From page o...(Oil Booms)
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
FEATURE
12
Myanmar Summary
C's Renowned Bormu Restuorunt
Serves Its Final Meals
Manuel Roig-Franzia
T
Ie prIncess never cooked.
ServunLs prepured LIe
meals at the big house in
Kokung, LIe provIncIuI regIon oI
Myanmar that her family ruled
for centuries. Maids took care of
that chore during her husbands
stints as a high-ranking Bur-
mese diplomat in Britain, India
und LIe UnILed SLuLes.
So friends of the princess
sao, in Burmese could be
IorgIven Ior LIeIr reucLIon Lo
her news that anxious winter of
1q8q us Ier counLry Ieuved wILI
turmoil and its ruling military
junta rebranded it Myanmar.
The sao and her husband would
be opening a restaurant in
Washingtons Chinatown. On
New Years Day, 1990.
You Iuve never worked u duy
in your life! Sao Jane Nuwadee
Tinpe recalls her friends gasp-
ing. Now you are opening a
restaurant?
or LIe nexL z yeurs, LIe suo
und Ier IumIIy presIded over u
business named for the home-
land they left behind. Their res-
taurant, Burma, was homage to
the country they remembered.
Now LIIs second-oor IIdeu-
way this intimate nook where
mayors and congressmen, art-
ists and Burmese democracy
ucLIvIsLs dIned - Ius served ILs
hnuI meuIs. TIe buIIdIng`s new
owners guve LIe TInpes unLII
December 1 Lo Ieuve so LIuL LIe
Sixth Street NW space can be re-
habbed to attract higher-paying
tenants, says John Zarni Tinpe,
the saos son. Tinpe says the
IumIIy cun`L uord Lo reopen In
another location. The buildings
owners, DougIus DeveIopmenL,
did not respond to requests for
comment.
Due Lo genLrIhcuLIon, we`re
just continuously losing the
gems in Chinatown, says
Daphne Kwok, an AARP execu-
LIve und Burmu reguIur wIo Ius
chaired President Obamas
AdvIsory CommIssIon on AsIun
AmerIcuns und PucIhc sIund-
ers. Its a huge, huge blow.
Burma feels like a secret, a
whisper in a city of shouts.
DIners sIume up u dreury,
battleship-gray stairwell to ar-
rIve uL u door wILI u IuLLIce oI
Burma, Iong frequented by the dipIomatic set and Burmese exiIes, is on the second Hoor at 74U
6
th
street NW.
J
o
n
a
t
h
a
n

N
e
w
t
o
n
/
T
h
e

W
a
s
h
in
g
t
o
n

P
o
s
t
ironwork splayed across its win-
dow. But when the door swings
open, LIey hnd wuIIs puInLed u
bright yellow sunshine defy-
ing the perpetual winter of the
stairs.
John Tinpe a youthful
40-something who also works
as a supernumerary, or extra,
at major Washington ballet and
opera performances greets his
guests in custom-made tailored
punLs, IIs voIce soIL und IIs
munner rehned. TIe suo Ickers
in and out of the room, her dark
black hair cut sharply in bangs.
SIe moves wILIouL seemIng Lo
displace the air around her. In
Burmese, her name Nuwadee
means gentle waters.
Over In LIe Iur corner Is Muyor
VIncenL C Gruy`s IuvourILe LubIe,
JoIn TInpe suys, u vunLuge poInL
to scan all who come and go. In
this room, Tinpe has brought
ALLorney GeneruI ErIc H HoIder
Jr IIs IuvourILe suuLed cIIcken
kebab and former mayor
Adrian Fenty his usual chicken
curry. On a recent afternoon,
he was gently placing Burmas
signature green tea leaf salad in
IronL oI MIkIuII BurysInIkov,
who was quietly ensconced in a
window seat alone.
WIuL Is LIIs? BurysInIkov
asked, lifting a small nugget
from the salad with his chop-
sticks. Tinpe explained that he
was holding a toasted lentil, a
dIscovery LIuL seemed Lo deIIgIL
the ballet legend.
TIe suIud beIore BurysInIkov
embodies the allure of this
place, one of those Washington
haunts populated by characters
who know mystery and intrigue.
TIe Leu Ieuves, TInpe expIuIns,
ure souked In gurIIc oII, IeuvIng
LIem wILI u uvour LIuL cunnoL
be described in simple terms.
It is neither sweet nor sour. In
Burma, he says, they call it the
oLIer uvour.
Years ago, it was Tinpes
IuLIer, Henry TInpe, wIo guve
the restaurant, a
place that seats no
more than 70 at a
time in two rooms,
an aura of old-world
cIurm. Henry TInpe,
who died in 2005,
Iud served us depuLy
chief of mission at the
Burmese embassies
in Washington and
New Delhi, as well
as deputy permanent
represenLuLIve Lo LIe
UnILed NuLIons.
He spoke wILI u
proper British accent,
IuvIng been edu-
cated at Cambridge.
Lyndon Boozer, a
Washi ngton-based
telecommunications
lobbyist who has been close
friends with John Tinpe since
their college days at Bucknell,
remembered beIng InvILed Lo
the Tinpes fashionable apart-
menL on New York`s Upper EusL
SIde In LIe IuLe 1q8os. Henry
TInpe unswered LIe door. He
wore an ascot.
Mr Boozer, so glad you could
joIn us. CockLuIIs wIII be served
uL 6:o, dInner uL ; pm, Boozer
recalls his friends father say-
Ing. 'Mr Boozer`? `m onIy zz!
he thought. It was like meeting
a Burmese Cary Grant.
The Tinpes blended interna-
LIonuI suvoIr IuIre und gIumour
wILI uncIenL bonu hdes. TIe
saos family, the Yangs, had
founded Kokang in the 1700s
after coming to the area from
CIInu. Her IuLIer Iud provIded
material and workers to help
build the Burma Road, a famed
supply route for British soldiers
during World War II, John
Tinpe says.
By the late 1980s, the fam-
ilys world was coming undone.
Henry TInpe Iud reLurned Lo
Burma for a post in the Foreign
Ministry while his wife and
family had stayed behind in the
UnILed SLuLes wILI reIuLIves.
In 1988, Burma was wracked
by demonstrations against po-
litical oppression, followed by a
bloody crackdown on protesters
and a coup detat. In the chaos,
Henry TInpe joIned u LIduI wuve
oI Burmese IeuvIng LIe counLry.
Settling in Washington, the
family thought, What better
way to represent Burma than
with food? John Tinpe says.
The sao culled the family
recipes that had once been pre-
pured by Ier IouseIoId sLu.
She trained cooks, drawing
Irom yeurs oI observuLIon, und
even begun Lo cook IerseII uL
times.
Old friends were the original
patrons diplomatic chums
sucI us ArLIur HummeI, LIe
Iormer US umbussudor Lo
Burmu. TIe TInpes served LIe
InuenLIuI und LIe Iumous, wIo
were drawn by a menu that
sounded and tasted utterly ex-
otic: caladish, a type of squash,
IrIed InLo goIden hngers; u hsI
soup called mohingar, infused
with coriander and fried on-
Ions; sour musLurd Ieuves; pork
slow-roasted with mangoes.
Kwok, the former head of the
Obumu udvIsory commIssIon,
ate there with Kiran Ahuja,
execuLIve dIrecLor oI LIe WIILe
House nILIuLIve on AsIun
AmerIcuns und PucIhc sIund-
ers, and Chris Lu, assistant
]ane Nuwadee Tinpe taIks with MikhaiI Baryshnikov, who stopped in for Iunch at
Burma in Washington, BC.
Due to gentrification, were just
continuously losing the gems in China-
town. Its a huge, huge blow.
Contd. P 26...(Burma Restaurant)
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~|q~,q Chinatown . : .:.
..:~.~..~ee _~.....q
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Sao J ane Nuwadee Tinpe .q . .
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J ohn Zarni Tinpe ~.~: ..:..
~.,_e.,:~..,q:~..~ .:.
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sao q .:...:~.... ~.:.
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Contd. P 26...(Burma Restaurant)
REGIONAL BIZ
13
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 14...(Hong Kong)
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Hong Kong Property Sules Slide to
1,-Yeur Low us Tux Hike Bites
Number of transactions down 39pc in 2013 vs 2012
Yimou Lee
T
he number of properties
soId In Hong Kong IeII
by more than a third last
year to a 17-year low as a surge
in sales tax, designed to burst
u prIce bubbIe, Lurned o buy-
ers in one of the worlds most
expensIve cILIes.
Despite steep discounts of-
Iered by LIe cILy`s InuenLIuI
properLy deveIopers, LIe LoLuI
number of sale and purchase
ugreemenLs concIuded In zo1
wus ;o,o, down q percenL
from 2012, according to the
Hong Kong und RegIsLry.
TIe vuIue oI deuIs dropped
o percenL Irom u yeur eurIIer
Lo HK$q6 bIIIIon ($q bIIIIon)
and forecasters expect the
downturn to continue this year.
With local tycoons like Li Ka-
shing warning of the impact on
his property business last year,
In November DeuLscIe Bunk
suId Hong Kong Iome prIces
could drop up to 50 percent
over LIe IoIIowIng 1z monLIs.
Last Februarys doubling of
stamp duty, or tax, on residen-
tial transactions to as much as
8. percenL oI LIe suIe vuIue
was designed to prick the citys
property bubble. But it has
yet to stop the price of homes
creeping up: according to prop-
erLy servIces hrm CenLuIIne
ProperLy, overuII Iome prIces
edged up percenL Ior LIe yeur,
und Iuve jumped 1zo percenL
since 2008.
That could change soon, mak-
ing life tougher for the property
deveIopmenL IndusLry.
Thai PTTEP Lifts 2014 Investment Plan
6opc on Mozumbiqoe Project
T
hailands PTT Explora-
tion and Production Pcl
(PTTEP) said it plans to
InvesL $. bIIIIon LIIs yeur, up
neurIy 6o percenL Irom u prevI-
ous estimate, with much of the
IIke due Lo un InvesLmenL In u
NG heId In MozumbIque.
L uIso suId IL wus revIewIng ILs
InvesLmenL sLruLegy In ILs Ioss-
making KKD oil sands project
in Canada due to high costs
and expects to make a decision
within this year.
TIere ure severuI possI-
bilities. We may push ahead or
pull back. But I cant tell more
details because we need to do
some ussessmenL hrsL, CIIeI
ExecuLIve TevIn VongvunIcI
told a news conference.
Thailand is keen to secure
long-term energy supplies and
last month, PTTEPs parent
company PTT Pcl signed a
preliminary deal with Anadarko
Petroleum Corp to buy 2.6
million tonnes per year of lique-
hed nuLuruI gus Irom u heId In
Mozambique.
PTTEP has an 8.5 percent
sLuke In LIe Rovumu OsIore
Area 1 project, which is ex-
pected to start producing LNG
in 2018-2019.
or LIe hve yeurs LIrougI Lo
2018, PTTEP, Thailands top
oil and gas explorer, plans to
InvesL $z;. bIIIIon, IIgIer LIun
the $25 billion it planned for
zo1-zo1;.
PTTEP also said petroleum
sales are expected to rise to
;,ooo burreIs oI oII equIvu-
lent per day (BOEPD) in 2014,
up from an estimated 292,000
BOEPD In zo1.
The increase will mainly come
from the Zawtika project in
Myanmar, which is expected to
sLurL up by LIe hrsL quurLer oI
this year, it said.
Petroleum sales are expected
Lo rIse Lo q,ooo BOEPD In
zo1 beIore IuIIIng Lo qq,ooo
In zo16, o,ooo In zo1; und
z1,ooo In zo18, IL suId In u
statement.
PTTEP also expects to con-
clude a deal to buy stakes in
Hess Corp`s usseLs In TIuIIund
In LIe hrsL quurLer oI zo1q.
PTTEP recently joined hands
with Indonesias Pertamina to
buy Hess`s sLuke In Lwo ndo-
nesIun osIore heIds Ior $1.
billion. Reuters
Contd. P 14...(Hong Kong)
Myanmar Summary
.e:.~:~ ~._.._..q:..
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A security guard keeps watch during the open ceremony of Thai energy rm PTT's sixth Cas Separation PIant near the town
of Map Ta Phut in Rayong province, east of Bangkok.
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A woman waIks up the stairs as Iuxurious high rise residentiaI buiIdings, buiIt on recIaimed Iand, are seen at Hong Kong's
West KowIoon district.
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
REGIONAL BIZ
14
Myanmar Summary
From page ...(Hong Kong)
Chinu Services Indostry Growth Slows,
Conrms Yeur-Ind Cooldown
G
rowLI In CIInu`s servIces
industries slowed in De-
cember, u puIr oI surveys
showed, mirroring a slowdown
In munuIucLurIng und conhrm-
Ing vIews LIuL LIe worId`s
second-largest economy lost
steam at the end of last year.
TIe HSBCJMurkIL EconomIcs
servIces PurcIusIng Munugers`
Index (PMI) dropped to 50.9
in December, its lowest since
August 2011, from 52.5 in No-
vember, HSBC suId.
New business expansion was
the slowest in six months.
The PMI follows a similar
survey by CIInu`s NuLIonuI Bu-
reau of Statistics, which showed
u sIowdown In servIce-secLor
growth to a four-month low of
q.6 Irom LIe prevIous monLI`s
56.0.
BoLI surveys IoIIow Lwo oLIer
PMIs that showed Chinas fac-
Lory ucLIvILy sIowed In Decem-
ber, suggesting the moderation
in the countrys growth in
LIe hnuI quurLer oI zo1 wus
broad-based.
But all four measures re-
muIned ubove LIe o poInL IeveI
that separates expansion in
ucLIvILy Irom conLrucLIon.
Chinas economy has regained
some momentum since mid-
year after a protracted slow-
down. While it was expected to
Iose sLeum us LIe governmenL
reins in rampant credit growth
and demand for Chinas exports
remuIns subdued, ucLIvILy Ius
remained resilient into the
December quarter.
Beijing has said it will accept
slower growth as it tries to
reshape the economy towards
more sustainable growth, based
on consumer demand, after
three decades of breakneck
expansion led by exports and
credit.
Chinas economic growth is
likely to come in at 7.6 percent
In zo1, LIe governmenL Ius
suId, jusL ubove LIe omcIuI LurgeL
of 7.5 percent and slightly below
the 7.7 percent in 2012. Data for
zo1 GDP Is seL Lo be reIeused
on January 20. Reuters
China`s services industry, which incIudes construction sector, has sIowed down in Becember, surveys show.
R
e
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~,~.- ~,..:...,..:.
~.,_e . ~ :.~ e _e.~ .~~ .
....~..._~:. ..~...:.~q .q
_.. ~,~...~_. ~.:.~e
~_~..:..._e...: ~,~.-
. .. :..q.._ . ~ :.~ ~ .~~ .
.,...:~. :.._~:. .q._.
Purchasing Managers Index
(PMI) ,.~,..:._. ~. .
. ~ :.~ ~. .. _. . ~~~ . . .
_.~..._ e..,.:..: ~,.
..~._.~.,~.q._e.._~:. .q
~: .~:.~ ,.~,.~.~
. q.._~:. HSBC . ._.:
_~:..._.
~,~.- ~...:..:.q.~.
_:,. ._. ~.:.~ .. ~...~:~ .
._.. ~,..:.~_. : .~:.
~ ,.~,.~.~ ,.' .:q._..
. ~ :.~ '.~ q . ._~: .._.
.q._.
~..|..~...:.~ ~,~.-
.~ , .:. . ~ :.~ . . ,...:
q ~ . ~. ._. .~ _...,._ .
Since the new measure is still
LIere, don`L beIIeve LIe worsL Is
uIreudy over, suId RIcky Poon,
execuLIve dIrecLor oI resIdenLIuI
suIes uL reuI esLuLe servIces hrm
CoIIIers nLernuLIonuI In Hong
Kong.
DeveIopers wIII Iuve Iess und
Iess In prohL murgIns. TIuL`s Ior
sure, Poon suId. He IorecusL
mass-market home prices will
drop up to 20 percent in 2014.
I`s CIeung Kong (HoIdIngs)
Ltd, the citys second-largest de-
veIoper, oered prIce dIscounLs
of up to 25 percent for a new
resIdenLIuI Iome deveIopmenL
launched last weekend, one of
the steepest cuts seen since new
suIes ruIes cume InLo eecL IusL
April.
Pr i ce Cuts Ahead
Despite predictions that the
property market will remain in
the doldrums for some time,
CIeung Kong puL on u bruve
face. It predicted prices could
rebound by up to 10 percent
umId u posILIve response Lo new
IousIng deveIopmenLs.
TIe worsL Is over Ior LIe
citys housing market. You
can see from the strong sales
responses for the recent new
project launches, Cheung
Kong`s execuLIve dIrecLor JusLIn
Chiu Kwok-hung was quoted as
saying in daily paper the South
China Morning Post.
Analysts see little sign of that,
instead forecasting further
pressure on deveIopers Lo Iower
prices as new home construc-
tion projects are completed.
There is zero chance that
property prices will go up this
year, said CLSA property ana-
lyst Nicole Wong, adding that
deveIopers Iud uIreudy been
forced to price homes in newly
buIIL properLIes some zo Lo o
percent below those for sale in
older buildings.
In 2014 there will be pres-
sure to cut prices further for
InvenLory cIeurunce, Wong
said. Supply for new homes may
increase by up to 85 percent in
2014, she said.
n u reecLIon on LIe scuIe
of last years slowdown, last
November Lycoon I suId IIs
properLy busIness Iud suered
its worst year in more than a
decade.
Mujor rIvuI Sun Hung KuIs
Properties Ltd in September
posted a 14 percent fall in full-
yeur underIyIng prohL Ior zo1,
trailing forecasts and marking
ILs hrsL drop In unnuuI eurnIngs
due Lo sIow suIes In Hong Kong.
Prices in the former British
colony remain among the high-
esL In LIe worId. WIIIe Hong
Kong hrsL begun LukIng sLeps Lo
cool property prices in October
2009, no real impact had been
seen until the February increase
in stamp duty on residential
transactions. Reuters
From page ...(Hong Kong)
Jupun Aoto Sules Lp o.1pc
in o1 ut g.Sm Vehicles
Yoko Kubota
A
nnual automobile sales
in Japan rose 0.1 percent
In zo1 Lo .8 mIIIIon
veIIcIes, IndusLry duLu sIowed,
as strong sales from September
countered earlier declines after
green car subsidies ended in
September 2012.
Sales in the worlds third-
biggest auto market is likely to
continue growing year-on-year
In LIe hrsL LIree monLIs oI zo1q
but outlook is murky following
April when the sales tax will
be ruIsed, omcIuIs Irom Jupun
Automobile Dealers Association
and Japan Light Motor Vehicle
and Motorcycle Association said.
Japan is set to raise its sales tax in
April to 8 percent from 5 percent.
n zo1, mInI-veIIcIes wILI
660cc displacement posted
record annual sales of 2.1 million
veIIcIes, up 6.; percenL Irom u
year earlier, helped by new mod-
eIs wILI beLLer IueI emcIency und
suIeLy IeuLures, un omcIuI Irom
Japan Light Motor Vehicle and
Motorcycle Association said.
In December, industry-wide
auto sales rose 25 percent to
qz,z1o veIIcIes, duLu Irom LIe
two associations showed.
ExcIudIng 66occ mInI-veIIcIes,
sales at top-ranked Toyota Motor
Corp, including the Lexus brand,
~~, ...~ .,._ ..:
.~:~:..q:..q. .:.. : ~.~ q:.
.,.~.~~.:._.. ..:.~:~:.~..
.q ., ..e~ .q:...q
._~: .._. ..: .~: ~:.. . , .. .
. q: ~.~ ~.~ .:.~q . q._ .
green car ~ee..:~.._~.
.:.~ ~~ ... .~~:.~
.~ .~ .:~ . ...q, q. ~, .
._~~~ ..:.~:~:..q:..q.
~...._~:.._. .q._.
..:.~:~:..q:..q.~ ~.:
~~ e~_~ .. . ..: .~: ~:....~ ~
_~._e.._ .,.~.,_e ~~,
...- .....~:~~. .q:..
q..:. .~.~~.~~.:.eeq.,
._.
rose 11.q percenL, wIIIe Hondu
MoLor Co soured 1o. percenL
and Nissan Motor Co increased
1.0 percent.
n LIe UnILed SLuLes, LIe worId`s
second biggest auto market, sales
In zo1 hnIsIed uL 1.6 mIIIIon
veIIcIes, up ;.6 percenL Irom
2012, its best year since the boom
times before 2008. Industry-
wIde suIes duLu Ior zo1 In CIInu,
the worlds biggest auto market,
has yet to be announced.
Reuters
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P ,...(]apan Auto)
._~:. .,.,.~~.~..:.~ ..
..:.._.
Li Ka-shing ~ . _._ ~ .. . , .
.q_~..:... e..._ ,.~
- ~ . _. ._.. . , .-.~ .q:~ . .:.
~ .~ .... _~q._ . . ~ :.~
Deutsche ~-._.:_~:..~~q
.e:.~:.- ~.....,..:.
~.,_e .:._ ~ .~:~~.
~ q:..,.~...:.eeq._~:.
._. .q._.
. , . ._ .e.e: ~|q .~ ~.~:~
.,.,.:..:.~:. ...~._.._..
.e:.~: - ~ . _. ._..... , ..:.
_.~~.:.~ ,...e,~:.q,
~~~ ~.~:~.,~ .q:...
~,e.- . q:..,.~ .~:~.
.._.~.....,..:..: ~~ ...
.._ ~~ q:..,.~ .,~~.
._~~~ e.~. .q:..,~
~._..~:~.._.._e.._.
R
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REGIONAL BIZ
15
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Sumsong Spurks ividend ebute AIter
Big Worker Bonus
Figure likely hit by estimated $1-billion special bonus
Miyoung Kim
S
amsung Electronics Co
Ltd , the worlds largest
smartphone maker, has
reignited shareholder calls for
more returns after splashing
out on a special employee bonus
estimated at nearly $1 billion.
TIe urcI rIvuI oI AppIe nc
drew on its $50 billion cash pile
to mark 20 years of transforma-
LIon InLo AsIu`s mosL vuIuubIe
company just two months af-
Ler InvesLors crILIcIsed IL Ior noL
spending enough to increase its
dIvIdend yIeId.
The bonus, to commemorate
Chairman Lee Kun-hees New
Management strategy, hit
October-December operating
prohL wIIcI Sumsung suId
likely fell 6 percent on year and
18 percent from a record third
quurLer Lo 8. LrIIIIon won ($;.8
billion).
Initial street estimates put the
bonus uL oo bIIIIon Lo ;oo bII-
lion won, but the extent of the
prohL decIIne IndIcuLed u puyouL
closer to 1 trillion won, or an
uveruge $q,ooo Ior eucI oI LIe
companys 240,000 employees,
analysts say.
TIuL Is IIkeIy Lo Iuve senL
IourLI-quurLer prohL beIow
even LIe mosL beurIsI IorecusL
umong z poIIed unuIysLs oI
8.8 trillion won, to the lowest
IeveI sInce LIe 8.1 LrIIIIon won oI
July-September 2012.
This (bonus) could increase
pressure from some sharehold-
ers to raise shareholder returns,
und uIso do Iuve some Iopes
for more payout either in the
Iorm oI u sIure buybuck or dIvI-
dends, said Kim Kyung-yoon,
head of equities management
uL Kyobo Axu nvesLmenL Mun-
agers, which owns Samsung
shares.
Like most South Korean com-
panies, Samsung has kept its
dIvIdend yIeId Iow uL uround 1
percent or less, which is a pri-
mary reason its shares are not
us vuIuubIe us gIobuI peers.
We are not against paying
bonuses to workers but at least
the shareholders should get
as much, said Mark Mobius,
execuLIve cIuIrmun oI TempIe-
ton Emerging Markets Group.
They should really celebrate
LIe evenL wILI u bIg bonus, u
bIgger dIvIdend, wIIcI muy
happen.
Sumsung sIures suw LIeIr hrsL
unnuuI decIIne In zo1 In hve
years partly due to the compa-
ny`s conservuLIve sIureIoIder
return policy, despite operating
prohL IIkeIy growIng z8 percenL
Lo u record 6.8 LrIIIIon won.
Returns equal around 5.1
percenL oI prohL, LIe IowesL
since 2007 when Samsung last
bought back shares, at which
time its rate of return was 15.8
percent.
No Tr anspar ency
ee, wIo Look over Sum-
sung Group in 1987 from his
Iounder-IuLIer, In 1qq ordered
IIeuLenunLs Lo cIunge every-
thing except your wife and chil-
dren to transform Samsung
Electronics from a mid-tier
LeIevIsIon seL munuIucLurer InLo
a global technology leader.
L Ius sInce overLuken Sony
Corp in TVs, Nokia Oyj in
mobile phones and Apple in
smartphones.
Lee, who turns 72 this week,
set the agenda for the future
in his New Year speech by
stressing the need to drop a
hardware-centric culture and
adopt new ways of thinking to
sLImuIuLe InnovuLIon.
In theory this (bonus) has
nothing to do with Samsungs
enormous prohL... und wIII noL
be repeated, although there is
no transparency on this issue
and so no guarantees, CLSA
unuIysL MuLL Evuns suId In u
note.
Whether shareholders will
receIve uny sImIIur 'bonus` In
LIe Iorm oI u meunIngIuI dIvI-
dend or share buyback remains
Lo be seen. However, LIIs unu-
lyst is not holding his breath as
M&As ure u more IIkeIy wuy oI
usIng ILs cusI reserves.
Korean companies often top
up low salaries with bonuses.
Sumsung EIecLronIcs gIves up
to 50 percent of annual salary
by reLurnIng zo percenL oI prohL
that exceeds targets. It also of-
fers up to 100 percent of basic
monthly salary to employees in
unILs wIIcI ucIIeve LurgeLs.
Reuters
Thui Airwuys Aims to Retorn to Prot in o1q
Manunphattr
Dhanananphorn
T
hailands national carrier
Thai Airways Interna-
tional Pcl said last week it
expecLed Lo reLurn Lo u prohL In
zo1q uILer suerIng Iuge Iosses
In LIe hrsL nIne monLIs oI IusL
year.
The airline is aiming for
revenue growLI oI uL IeusL per-
cent this year with an estimated
Myanmar Summary
cabin factor the number of
seats sold at 76 percent, acting
President Chokchai Panyayong
told reporters.
Thai Airways, whose presi-
dent resigned for health reasons
LIIs monLI, posLed u Ieuvy neL
Ioss Ior LIe second consecuLIve
quarter, hit by a lower pas-
senger yIeId, herce compeLILIon
and foreign exchange losses.
Reuters
From page ...(]apan Auto)
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
REGIONAL BIZ
16
Myanmar Summary
Vietnum to Allow Bigger Ioreign
Stakes in Local Banks
20pc stake allowed for strategic investor, without govt approval
Ho Binh Minh and
Nguyen Phuong Linh
V
ietnam will allow foreign
InvesLors Lo buy bIgger
stakes in its banks from
nexL monLI, u move LIuL couId
gIve some reIIeI Lo ILs crIppIIng
debt problem but is short of the
reforms experts say are needed
to strengthen its economy.
A governmenL decree, un-
nounced IusL week suId eecLIve
on February 20, foreign banks
could be allowed to buy major-
ity stakes in domestic lenders
considered weak, and margin-
ally greater shares than at
present in stronger banks. It did
not stipulate what constituted a
weak bank.
TIe move Is one oI u serIes
of incremental steps taken by
VIeLnum`s communIsL govern-
menL Lo revIve u once-LIrIvIng
economy that has been stuck
in a quagmire, in large part due
Lo IIgI IeveIs oI LoxIc debL und
tight lending that has hurt retail
growth and led to bankruptcies
of tens of thousands of small
businesses.
The State Bank of Vietnam
(SBV) last year set up an asset
munugemenL hrm Lo buy bud
debt from lenders in return for
bonds In un eorL Lo LuckIe LIe
regions highest ratios of non-
performing loans (NPLs).
According to the new decree,
u sIngIe sLruLegIc IoreIgn Inves-
tor will be allowed a maximum
20 percent of a Vietnamese
bunk wILIouL governmenL up-
provuI, up Irom 1 percenL now.
TIe o percenL cup on LoLuI
foreign ownership remains in
place.
It would raise the foreign
ownersIIp IImIL beyond LIe o
percenL II un overseus InsLILu-
LIonuI InvesLor wunLed Lo buy
into weak banks, it said, with-
out elaborating. An SBV report
Lo LIe IegIsIuLure In November
said there were 11 weak banks
in Vietnam, although it said
eight had been restructured.
Bui Kien Thanh, an independ-
ent economist and former
governmenL udvIsor, suId LIe
cIunges wouId Iuve IImILed
appeal to foreigners because
stakes permitted in stronger
banks were too small and the
extent of the NPL problem in
Vietnam was still unclear.
Bad Debt Bar r i er
It doesnt mean anything to
IoreIgn InvesLors us LIey wouId
sLIII onIy pIuy u pussIve roIe In
u bunk, LIey don`L Iuve rIgIL Lo
decide anything, Thanh said.
The chance to buy a 100-per-
cent share of a weak bank is also
very dIm cuIL us no one wunLs
to pay a lot of money to buy a
bank with high rates of non-
performing loans... the biggest
barrier is bad debts.
Overseus bunks ure umong
seven IoreIgn sLruLegIc Inves-
Lors LIuL Iuve so Iur bougIL
into about 10 Vietnamese banks
half of them listed among
the nearly 40 in the country,
according to Thomson Reuters
data.
Among the foreign banks with
stakes in Vietnamese ones are
HSBC HoIdIngs, In TecIcom-
bank; Commonwealth Bank of
AusLruIIu In VB; und UnILed
Overseus Bunk oI SIngupore In
Phuong Nam. In those three
cases, the foreign bank got
governmenL upprovuI Lo IoId
20 percent.
The concept is similar to what
Is now on oer In TIuIIund,
which had a debt crisis of its
own more than a decade ago,
although Vietnams solution of-
Iers sIgnIhcunLIy Iower cups on
foreign stakes.
oreIgn InvesLors cun own up
to 49 percent in Thai lenders,
while majority foreign owner-
ship has been allowed on a
case-by-case basis, such as the
72 percent in Bank of Ayudhya
, and 94 percent CIMB Thai
Bank, mostly as a means to
inject more capital.
VIeLnum`s governmenL Ius
promised reforms as part of a
master plan aimed at boosting
economic growth that was 5.42
percent last year, up slightly
from 5.25 percent 2012, which
wus LIe sIowesL In 1 yeurs.
Vietnams economy grew about
7-7.5 percent annually from
2004-2007. Reuters
Iord Suys ec Chinu Aoto
Sules Lp gpc on Yeur
F
ord Motor Co and its local partners in China sold a total
oI qq,88 veIIcIes on u wIoIesuIe busIs In December, un
Increuse oI percenL Irom u yeur eurIIer, LIe compuny
said last week.
TIuL compured Lo u q; percenL Increuse In November und u
55 percent jump in October.
n zo1, suIes by LIe Deurborn, MIcIIgun-bused uuLomuker LoLuIIed q,81 veIIcIes on u
wholesale basis, up 49 percent from 2012, helped by Ford Focus, the best selling model in China
last year.
Ford partners with Chongqing ChangAn Automobile Co Ltd and Jiangling Motors Corp in
mukIng veIIcIes In LIe worId`s bIggesL uuLomoLIve murkeL. Reuters
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e..~q~ ~ q:..,.~
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.:..q,~~~._. -e~,..
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~:.,_...:~ .:.~:._._ .q .. .
_.....:.~ ~ee.. ..,.
qee: ,~ q:..,.~~ ~ee
.:..q, ~.~.q.~._. ._.
.... :.e e q .,._ . . .. :..q.._:q
~. ._e. _. . e. ~. .q~_~ ...~. .
_ e. ..: Bui Kien Thanh ~
._.:....:.~.,_e ._.:.q...
_.....:.~..'~ ~~,~.~
_e q.,ee_e.~: ..:_.. ~~:.
.~:...:_._ ~ .~ .:.~ .
_.:.q..._.....:.. qee:~ee
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Myanmar Summary
An empIoyee works at a bank in Vietnam.
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INTERNATIONAL BIZ
17
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Sorprise rop in Iorozone Inution
Shows eution Risk
Martin Santa
E
urozone InuLIon IeII In
December after a small
Increuse LIe prevIous
month, increasing the Euro-
pean Central Banks challenge
oI uvoIdIng deuLIon us weII us
supporLIng LIe bIoc`s recovery.
Consumer prIce InuLIon In
the 17 countries then sharing
the euro stood at 0.8 percent
year-on-year in the last month
oI zo1, compured wILI o.q
percenL In November, duLu
Irom LIe EU`s sLuLIsLIcs om ce
Eurostat showed.
Decembers reading takes in-
uLIon buck Lo neur u Iour-yeur-
low of 0.7 percent in October.
Toduy`s hgures sIow LIuL IL`s
too early for the ECB to become
compIucenL ubouL deuLIon
risks, especially in peripheral
countries, said Peter Vanden
HouLe, NG`s cIIeI eurozone
economist, referring to the
blocs weaker members.
An InuLIon ruLe LIuL Is weII
below the ECBs target of close-
to-but-below 2 percent carries
risks in the longer term because
IL cun deuLe wuges und de-
mand, depressing the economy.
Reacting to the data, the euro
rose Lo $1.6q6 Irom $1.618
on speculation the ECB could
consider more steps to support
the economy.
TIe OcLober drop In InuLIon
wus LIe hrsL IuII beIow 1 per-
cent since February 2010 and
prompted the European Central
Bank to cut its key interest rate
to a new record low of 0.25
percenL In November.
Still, the eurozone is far from
LIe deuLIon LIuL Jupun suI-
fered from the early 1990s.
ECB President Mario Draghi
said recently there were no
sIgns oI deuLIon or un urgenL
need for another rate cut, but
udded LIuL IL wus vILuI Lo uvoId
u scenurIo wIere InuLIon geLs
stuck permanently below one
percent and slips into a danger
zone for the economy.
WIIIe we beIIeve LIuL Ior LIe
time being the ECB will keep
its monetary policy unchanged,
not much is needed to push the
central bank into action, said
Vunden HouLe.
Analysts see the ECB staying
on hold at its rate-setting meet-
ing on Thursday, while watch-
ing out for any action the bank
may take in reaction to current
Iow InuLIon envIronmenL.
We beIIeve LIe ECB wIII mosL
likely enact its Long-Term Re-
hnuncIng OperuLIon (TRO) In
the next few months, which may
very weII be LuIIored specIhcuIIy
towards bank lending, said
HS cIIeI Europeun economIsL
Howurd ArcIer.
ECB GovernIng CouncII mem-
bers Iuve sIgnuIIed LIe bunk wIII
provIde more money Lo bunks
by the time the cheap long-
term loans it has already made
expire. The ECB injected more
than 1 trillion into the banking
sysLem vIu LIree-yeur Iouns In
December 2011 and February
zo1z, wIIcI meuns LIe hrsL
tranche of repayments is due in
late 2014. Reuters
London is Top City Ior Reul Istute Investing;
US Safest Country
Michelle Conlin
L
ondon ranks as the top
city for foreign real estate
InvesLmenL opporLunILy,
beating out last years winner,
New York, according to a sur-
vey reIeused by LIe AssocIuLIon
oI oreIgn nvesLors In ReuI
Estate.
TIe survey Iound LIuL Sun
runcIsco wus LIe LIIrd Iuvour-
ILe cILy Ior IoreIgn InvesLors,
wILI HousLon und os AngeIes
comIng In uL Iour und hve,
respecLIveIy.
TIe US remuIns LIe mosL
stable and secure country for
InvesLmenL by u wIde murgIn oI
more than 50 percentage points
over second-pIuce counLry Ger-
many. This is the widest margin
since 2006.
TIe US remuIns LIe counLry
provIdIng LIe besL opporLunILy
for capital appreciation. It also
leads the ranking for planned
real estate acquisitions in 2014,
with nearly 50 percent of re-
spondents projecting a modest
Increuse In LIeIr US porLIoIIo
size and 20 percent projecting a
major increase.
oreIgn InvesLors` conLInued
und growIng InLeresL In LIe US
reuI esLuLe murkeLs reecLs IuIIy
functioning capital markets for
both debt and equity that pro-
vIde uccess Lo u broud runge oI
InvesLmenL opporLunILIes, suId
the associations Chairman,
SLeven Huson, wIo Is uIso LIe
Managing Director and Co-
Heud oI AmerIcus ReuI EsLuLe
Ior APG AsseL MunugemenL US
Inc. Reuters
Myanmar Summary
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~,_.e_.~~.:_...,:~ .~
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.:........,..e:....,..: ~.
q:..,.q._.. .~:.~ ~.
q:. . , .q . ._~: . ~.e - .:q .~ .
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.~:~ ~ :.~ .:.. .. .... , .
.e:....: ~. q:..,.q.._.
e.,~,.~,.~.~~.~.:.~:.
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..:.,..,..._.. ~.._e ~.,
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ING -e , ~ , . .. :..q.._:q ~_~ .
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~:.,_..,.....:~e~..:.
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q..._....~.~...~~~ .
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.:~.....,._~:. . q._ .
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INTERNATIONAL BIZ
18
A
s LIe LIduI wuve oI gIobuI
central bank liquidity re-
cedes in 2014, emerging
murkeL InvesLors ure growIng
more anxious about local politi-
cal risks and how to spot them
early on.
DeveIopIng economIes Iuve
had a rough ride since the
ederuI Reserve hrsL mooLed u
wind-down of its money print-
ing last year. The looming with-
drawal of easy cash worldwide
pushed the dollar and Treasury
yIeIds up und drove WesLern
InvesLors Iome, jurrIng coun-
tries most dependent on foreign
capital.
Emerging market bonds
posted only their third year in
the red since 1998 last year,
while emerging equities ended
zo1 In LIe red Ior LIe second
year in three.
And us LIe gIobuI InvesLmenL
LIde sweeps ouL, IL muy reveuI
a beach strewn with political
detritus.
As competition for funds heats
up while their economies rap-
idly lose steam, political risks
Iuve been umpIIhed In LIe so-
cuIIed 'rugIIe Ive` oI Turkey,
South Africa, India, Indonesia
and Brazil, the emerging econo-
mIes wILI LIe bIggesL overseus
hnuncIng needs.
AII hve Iuce eIecLIons LIIs
year, adding to brewing local
concerns over u deepenIng
corruption probe in Turkey or
the waning popularity of South
Africas and Brazils leaders.
South Africa and India hold
parliamentary elections in
2014, while Brazil and Turkey
Iuve presIdenLIuI eIecLIons.
Indonesia has both. In fact, 12
Emerging Market Investors Face Year
Mined With Politicul Risks
Mike Dolan
of the major emerging markets
go to the polls in some format
this year.
2014 will be a year in which
the return impact from idiosyn-
cruLIc poIILIcuI evenLs In emerg-
ing markets could increase
substantially, asset manager
M&G nvesLmenLs LoId cIIenLs.
The prospect of these elec-
tions could potentially reduce
LIe neL cupILuI ows InLo LIese
economies on a temporary ba-
sis, it added, citing the threat
oI IocuI cupILuI IgIL, deIuyed
IoreIgn dIrecL InvesLmenL or
porLIoIIo ows us weII us In-
creased demand for currency
and bond hedging.
NuvIguLIng LIe scIeduIed
elections may be the easy bit,
Iowever. Some oI LIe bIggesL
political disruptions of the past
four years were rather more
sudden, such as the Arab Spring
upIeuvuIs ucross LIe MIddIe
East and North Africa or the
more recent street protests in
UkruIne.
For funds seeking to assess
poIILIcuI rIsk weII In udvunce,
some Iorm oI udvunce wurnIng
system or scorecard is critical.
Wi lli ngness to Pay
The worlds biggest asset
manager Blackrock, for ex-
umpIe, pubIIsIes u SovereIgn
RIsk ndex every quurLer LIuL
now ranks 50 countries in
Lerms oI governmenLs` overuII
creditworthiness.
TIe Index covers ureus sucI
us exLernuI hnunce needs, hscuI
policies and banking stability,
but also captures the essence of
pure political risk under a head-
Ing 'WIIIIngness Lo Puy`.
TIe InLroducLIon oI UkruIne
and Nigeria to the list last week
saw the two countries come in
uL qLI und qLI respecLIveIy on
overuII ruLIngs.
TIeIr scores Ior 'WIIIIngness
Lo Puy`, Iowever, ure Iur beIow
LIe uveruge oI LIeIr emergIng
market peers. Only Venezuela
has a worse rating than Nigeria,
for example.
Whats more, Blackrock high-
lighted the growing political el-
ement in its risk ratings, citing
the recent unrest in Thailand
und UkruIne In purLIcuIur, und IL
said it had added an additional
source In compIIIng ILs 'wIIIIng-
ness to pay gauge to strengthen
monitoring.
AII oI LIe 'rugIIe Ive` usIed
red on this category when
Blackrock last updated this
index in October. Reuters
Myanmar Summary
Chinese Tycoon Admits New York Times
Bid Iuces Obstucles
Jennifer Saba
C
hinese recycling tycoon
Chen Guangbiao dialled
back his ambitious plans
to buy The New York Times Co
jusL over u week uILer mukIng
his intentions public.
TIe IeveI oI dImcuILy Is greuL,
he said through a translator last
week.
CIen, known Ior IIs usIy
philanthropy, does not hold
shares in the Times, nor does he
plan to buy any of its common
shares, he said, noting that the
TImes rebued u requesL Ior u
meeting.
The company, which pub-
lishes the namesake newspaper,
Ius u murkeL vuIue oI $z.
billion. Chen, who has been
mulling a bid for the prestigious
newspaper for the past two
years, said last week he thinks it
is worth $1 billion.
The Ochs-Sulzberger family,
which has owned the Times for
more than 100 years, controls
the company through a trust of
CIuss B sIures wILI specIuI voL-
ing rights.
He penned u coIumn In TIe
Global Times on January 5
asking readers not to take his
intention of buying the paper as
a trick or joke.
Chairman Arthur Sulzberger
Jr has said recently the Times is
not for sale. A New York Times
spokeswoman declined to com-
ment on Chen.
CIen, wIose prIvuLe busIness
is tearing down buildings and
brIdges, suId In un InLervIew LIuL
Ie sLIII coveLs LIe newspuper
buL Iopes Lo hnd un AmerIcun
entrepreneur to partner with to
make the purchase. Reuters
Chinese phiIanthropist Chen Cuang-
biao arrives at a news conference to
announce his underwriting for the
fuII surgicaI regimen of mother and
daughter, Hao Huijun and Chen Cuo,
who were disgured after their 2UU1
seIf-immoIation incident in Tiananmen
Square, at a hospitaI in New York.
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Myanmar Summary
A worker uses a weIding torch to weId an iron machine at the construction site of a Hyover in New BeIhi.
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.:_~._~:. .q._.
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. . ._~.. ..: . ~. ~. .:.~
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INVESTMENT & FINANCE
19
January 16-22, 2014
From page ,...(FMI)
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Myanmar Summary
Whut Shoold Yoo Ixpect Irom o1q
David Mayes
A
s we are now into 2014
and will soon be busy
dIvIng buck InLo wIuL-
ever projecLs we Iud sLurLed
before the holidays, it is a good
LIme Lo reecL on Iow LIIngs
wenL In our hnuncIuI IIves LIIs
prevIous yeur. More ImporLunL-
Iy IL Is u very good LIme Lo Iook
at what kinds of challenges and
opportunities the coming year
may bring, and try to reduce the
IIkeIIIood oI beIng cuugIL o
guurd. do beIIeve LIIs Is IIkeIy
Lo be u very InLeresLIng yeur
ahead but also one fraught with
danger.
As we suw deveIoped worId
stock markets soaring to new
highs last year, a question many
are asking is if this year will see
sImIIur perIormunce. UnIorLu-
nuLeIy LIe muIn supporL drIvIng
prices higher has been the cen-
tral banks of the world printing
money, and this is expected to
Luper o over LIe comIng LweIve
monLIs. As we Iuve never been
In u sILuuLIon oI hve yeurs oI
near zero interest rates and
mussIve moneLury sLImuIuLIon,
there is a good chance that the
removuI oI LIuL supporL couId
very weII see LIe boLLom IuII ouL.
As for the bond market, this
has been teetering on the edge
oI u cII Ior quILe some LIme
now, und InvesLors In LIIs usseL
cIuss Iuve been essenLIuIIy pIck-
ing up dimes in front of a steam
roller. One good thing for bonds
is that the Fed has promised
to keep rates low until at least
zo1, Iowever LIe murkeLs muy
respond sooner than this if they
see the writing on the wall.
While I see much danger in
both stocks and bonds at cur-
renL IeveIs, do see LIIs us LIe
makings of a coming opportu-
nity for those who are patient
enougI Lo wuIL unLII everyone
else panics, as this will certainly
create some amazing buying
opportunities. At the moment
cusI Ius been receIvIng u negu-
LIve reuI reLurn, buL IL sLIII In
my opinion is a safe place to
wait for these opportunities to
presenL LIemseIves.
Alongside cash I see trend
following CTA funds (commod-
ILy LrudIng udvIsors), wIo Iuve
noL Iured very weII Ior LIe IusL
hve yeurs us u group, us u suIe
way to hedge exposure in stocks
and bonds. If the stock and
bond markets continue to tick
over Ior unoLIer yeur, IedgIng
a portfolio with trend followers
(who typically do best in times
oI IIgI voIuLIIILy und punIc) Is u
way to participate without fear
that all will be lost when we
evenLuuIIy reucI LIe nexL Inec-
tion point.
Picking tops and bottoms in
the markets is a losing game,
so I would recommend the
besL wuy Lo preserve und grow
weuILI In LIIs envIronmenL Is Lo
dIversIIy und buIunce your porL-
IoIIo us menLIoned ubove. um
IuvourIng un usseL uIIocuLIon
of 25-40 percent split between
equILIes und bonds oseL by un
equal amount spread across a
few trend following funds with
long track records (15+ years).
The remainder is best left in
cash so that if either the stock
or bond market do see a panic
there is ammunition to pull the
trigger when the bargains are
there to be had.
David Mayes MBA provides
wealth management services to
expatriates throughout South-
east Asia, focusing on UK
Pension Transfers. He can be
reached at david.m@faramond.
com. Faramond UK is regulated
by the FCA and provides advice
on pensions and taxation.
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U TIeIm WuI suId:
TIere Is vusL opporLunILy
in Myanmar in a number
of strategic sectors, and
our key strength is that we
are a partner of choice for
many international com-
panies looking to expand
into Myanmar.
From page ,...(FMI)
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
20
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 21...(Making Asia's)
Muking Asiu's New Appurel Prodoction
Frontier Sustainable: Myanmars Opportunity
Dr. Maximilian Martin
M
yanmar opened its
InLernuLIonuI conven-
tion center on January
5 in the new capital of Nay Pyi
Taw. This would be the main
venue Ior LIe regIonuI summILs
and meetings of the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN), which the country
will chair for one year in 2014.
It actually hosted the ASEAN
Coordination Committee on
nvesLmenL IusL weekend.
Myanmars chairmanship
comes at a watershed moment.
As a nation, leading the ASEAN
represenLs un ImporLunL vuIIdu-
tion of the scale of opportunity
that has resulted from the re-
form process that has been oc-
curring since 2011, showcasing
both the extent of the road thus
Iur LruveIIed und provIdIng u
powerIuI IncenLIve Lo sLuy on
track for the planned national
election in 2015.
However, LIere Is un uddI-
LIonuI nurruLIve underwuy - one
LIuL Is Iess obvIous buL equuIIy
powerful. Myanmars term co-
incides with a delicate moment
for the apparel industry, which
is the leading export engine in
muny oI LIe regIon`s deveIop-
ing economies. For ASEAN
members such as Cambodia,
garment exports now account
for roughly 75 percent of total
merchandise exports and rep-
resent about 10 percent of GDP;
comparable statics are true of
other ASEAN members.
Despite this, apparel is an
industry routinely plagued by
poor working conditions and
Ieuvy poIIuLIon. SInce LIe coI-
lapse of the Rana Plaza factory
in neighbouring Bangladesh in
AprII zo1, wIIcI kIIIed more
than 1,100 workers, working
condILIons In LIe IndusLry Iuve
come under serious scrutiny.
The systemic issues the industry
faces were further highlighted
when the recent two-week na-
tionwide strike for higher wages
in Cambodias readymade
garment industry was ended by
the police using force, killing at
least four protesters.
Myanmar now has South and
Southeast Asias lowest garment
wuges uL $o-, compured
to $68 in Bangladesh, $68 in
Indonesia, $77 in Laos, and $90
In VIeLnum, uII oI wIIcI Iuve
faced rises in garment wages.
Based on size alone, Myan-
mar has lots of potential. It
is geographically roughly the
size of the state of Texas, or
Germany and Italy combined,
and contains about 60 million
inhabitants, as well a migrant
population. Myanmar is logi-
cuIIy posILIoned Lo IuIhI LIe bu-
sic equipment manufacturing
needs that other markets can
no Ionger eusIIy (or uordubIy)
satisfy.
But how the apparel in-
dusLry evoIves wIII muLLer
Ior Myunmur`s deveIopmenL
path, though its readymade
garment industry is still small.
ApproxImuLeIy o gurmenL
factories currently operate in
the country, which is tiny when
compared to major sourcing
locations in South Asia. Myan-
mar earned about $917 million
in 2012, progressing from $770
million in 2011. Apparel exports
Lo Jupun conLrIbuLed $q8 mII-
IIon und u IurLIer $18 mIIIIon
to South Korea.
The industry is growing fast,
und LIe deveIopmenL oI ASEAN
wIII gIve u IurLIer boosL Lo
InvesLmenL und osIorIng Irom
higher cost locations such as
neighbouring Thailand. Fac-
tories are currently operating
based on a Cut, Make, Trim
(CMT) upproucI, provIdIng onIy
busIc vuIue udded. Myunmur
aims to upgrade its production
systems from a contract manu-
facturing (more than 90 percent
of national factories) to Original
Equipment Manufacturing
(OEM) and Original Brand
Name Manufacturing (OBM)
over LIme. TIIs sIIIL wIII need Lo
be supported by an adapted leg-
IsIuLIve Irumework. EsLImuLes
for export potential are about
$5-6 billion within a few years.
Most recently, the Myanmar
nvesLmenL CommIssIon (MC)
begun upprovIng IoreIgn InvesL-
ment in the countrys garment
manufacturing industry. This
has generated major interest
Irom InLernuLIonuI InvesLors,
nexL Lo currenL IeudIng Inves-
tors from China, Japan and
Koreu. Humun cupucILy und
installed infrastructure are a
few additional features that
are critical to conditioning the
growth potential of the apparel
industry in Myanmar.
Yet there are problems on the
IorIzons even us LIe counLry
seeks to seize the opportunity.
The migration to Myanmar of
the poor working conditions
that are routinely tarnishing the
deveIopmenL record oI oLIer
sourcing locations would be a
disaster. The risk of a growth
path that simply leads to a pro-
duction cluster with thousands
of sweatshops, thus recreating
LIe ubuses und conLroversIes
associated with the apparel
industry in neighbouring Bang-
ladesh, is real.
In fact, a respondent to an
onIIne survey mpucL Economy
recently conducted on the
future of the global apparel in-
dustry commented that one of
his worst fears is a transfer of
the industry to Myanmar with
no local NGOs or unions, [and]
exploitation of workers.
The good news is that a
sounder approach is possible,
one that links greater competi-
LIveness wILI Improved socIuI
und envIronmenLuI perIor-
mance. Although the textile and
garment industry has built a
long track record as an engine
oI IndusLrIuIIsuLIon und deveI-
opmenL ever sInce IL kIcked o
LIe UK IndusLrIuI revoIuLIon
zo yeurs ugo, surprIsIngIy vusL
pockeLs oI poLenLIuI producLIv-
ity gains (economic, social,
und envIronmenLuI) remuIn
by and large untapped. 20
percent of chemical inputs, up
to 40 percent of energy, and
up to 50 percent of water can
be suved In LIe munuIucLurIng
process - provIded producLIon
is redesigned, infrastructure
upgraded, and workers and
management appropriately
LruIned. However, u cIeur roud-
mup Ior LIe IndusLry Lo ucIIeve
this transformation has been
missing.
To help address this need,
Impact Economy a global
ImpucL InvesLmenL und sLruLegy
hrm - Ius jusL Issued u reporL
Creating Sustainable Apparel
Value Chains. The goal of the
report is to make the needed
InIormuLIon uvuIIubIe so LIuL
industry stakeholders can start
to build a common way forward.
The structural frame laid out in
the report links greater resource
producLIvILy wILI u cIunge
agenda that enhances working
condILIons und envIronmenLuI
impact.
For this industry transforma-
LIon Lo be ucIIeved, Iour key
Ievers need Lo be ucLed upon,
IncIudIng: (1) ucIIevIng greuLer
LoLuI resource producLIvILy und
transparency across the sup-
ply chain; (2) using (impact)
InvesLmenLs Lo enubIe IndusLry
InIrusLrucLure upgrudIng; ()
tackle working conditions with
u IIgIer IeveI oI umbILIon; und
Contd. P 21...(Making Asia's)
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~.,.:.. _._...... :._. _.
.:..,._~.,~:.~q.,._.
.:...q~ ~~, ... -_.._
PeopIe work at a garment factory of HIaing Tharyar IndustriaI Zone in Yangon.
U
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Myanmar now has South and Southeast Asias
lowest garment wages at $30-35, compared to
$68 in Bangladesh, $68 in Indonesia, $77 in Laos,
and $90 in Vietnam.
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
21
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
(4) understanding and repro-
ducing the best practices of
frontrunner producers.
As the reform path continues,
Myanmars garment industry
has the potential to grow well
beyond $6 billion in annual
exporLs - provIded upgrudIng
is successful and issues such as
compliance with basic worker
issues and factory safety stand-
From page zo...(Making Asia's)
ards, standardised payroll, and
minimum wages can be ad-
dressed producLIveIy. SusLuIn-
able production is important for
social peace, attracting foreign
InvesLmenL und LIe uwurdIng oI
duLy Iree uccess Lo LIe EU. AII
of which are critically needed
mIIesLones Ior kIckIng o sub-
stantial sector growth.
Myanmar, in its role as chair
of the ASEAN this year, will
play a leading role in making
From page zo...(Making Asia's)
Rana Plaza .~,_.~._.. ~..
..:...|. ~~~~ .~: .....q
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._ ~._.~.,.: ~...:.q._
~ . q. ~. . ~_e. q .:._ . ~.. :
. .e:.~ ._. . . ...:. ,.:..:.
. . ~ ._. ...q, ~~ ~ .. _..~: ..
..:. _e..:.._.. ~..q. ~~:...
~: ._eq..._~~~ ~,_...
.._.. , . .....q._ ~..
,_.ee_e.q..:.._. q.._.
_ ., .:. ._ .~: ~:q .
~.q .~:~:q~ ~_~..
..,.~ .....:.,.~,_...
... ..:. ~. . _ e. _ . . ~..
q ~, ..'.: ,~ . ,..'.:~
.:...._~:.._..q._.
.:... q . ~ ~..q ~,
..'.: ' ..'.: ~.,.q:.~
~..q~,..'.: ' ..'.:
.:~~ ~..q ~,..'.:
..'.: - e~ ,. ~ ~..q ~,
..'.: ~ ..'.:..._.. ..:.
~:....: ~_~....,.~
.....:.:.~._....q, .~:..
..:.~ _~.~.q._..:.._.
_e. ._ .~q e ~.:.~. . ~_ .~ .:
~._.. ~ ~ .~ _~_ ._ . . _., .:
. ~ ~.:.~.:.~:..:..:q
.,._ ..~ ~.,~:.~q ~e _.,
.. ...q.:._. .,. '~ q
._ .
PeopIe work at a garment factory of HIaing Tharyar IndustriaI Zone in Yangon.
A worker throws a petroI bomb after cIashes broke out during a protest in Phnom
Penh. At Ieast three peopIe were kiIIed when Cambodian miIitary poIice opened re
to try to queII a protest by garment factory workers, two witnesses said. Myanmar
is weII-pIaced to take advantage of this kind of unrests in the garment sectors in
Cambodia and BangIadesh.
S
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P
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sure that the priorities of the
ASEAN roadmap in relation to
eorLs Lo esLubIIsI LIe ASEAN
Community are properly im-
plemented. American sanctions
initiated with an arms embargo
In 1qq, und wIdened In zoo Lo
IncIude uII new InvesLmenL, us
well as a ban on imports from
Myanmar, are now history.
The nations opening up to the
world after decades of closing
ILseII o Lo IoreIgn InLeresLs
has the potential to usher in a
greuL Lukeo. GDP growLI Is
IorecusL Lo uveruge 6.q percenL
a year from 2014/15 to 2018/19,
und InvesLmenL spendIng Is
expecLed Lo expund by 1q. per-
cenL u yeur on uveruge (up Irom
12 percent in 2000/01).
Myanmar is now in a position
Lo Inuence LIe deveIopIng
ASEAN Vision far beyond 2015.
Combining humane working
conditions and simultaneously
ucIIevIng un Improved envIron-
mental footprint and competi-
LIveness Is possIbIe In uppureI.
And susLuInubIe deveIopmenL
should be a key to the ASEAN
vIsIon und reecLed In LIe cor-
responding sector policies.
Maximilian Martin, Ph.D.
is the founder and global
managing director of Impact
Economy. Before founding the
jrm, he serted cs joundin
global head and managing
director of UBS Philanthropy
Services. Dr. Martin also cre-
cted the jrst unitersit course
on social entrepreneurship in
Europe.
U
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
22
Myunmur`s eorLs Lo
strengthen the legal and regula-
Lory envIronmenL ure IuudubIe,
said Maplecroft Senior Analyst
Chris Laws.
Myanmars commitment has
resulted in a steady climb in the
ranking from worst position at
the bottom of the ranking in
zo1z, Lo
rd
Irom boLLom In zo1
and 5
th
in 2014.
Despite the modest shift in
runkIng, reIorms Iuve uIreudy
resuILed In sIgnIhcunL Im-
provemenLs Ior busIness, und
Maplecroft forecasts that if
Myanmar sustains its current
LrujecLory IL muy move ouL oI
the extreme risk category in
less than three years.
Challenges remai n
However, MupIecroIL sounded
caution notwithstanding the
posILIve medIum-Lerm ouLIook.
CurrenL IeveIs oI corrupLIon,
lack of rule of law and interfer-
ence in business by a wide range
oI powerIuI und vesLed InLeresLs,
including the military, continue
Lo creuLe u very uneven pIuyIng
heId Ior IoreIgn InvesLors, IL
said.
Myanmars commitment to
upholding rule of law continues
Lo be LesLed. n AugusL zo1, u
dIspuLe urose over LIe owner-
ship of Myanmar Brewery Ltd,
between the military controlled
Myunmur EconomIc HoIdIngs
und SIngupore hrm ruser &
Neuve. SIouId urbILruLIon besL
prucLIce noL be IoIIowed, Inves-
Lor conhdence In Myunmur Is
likely to be undermined, Ma-
plecroft said.
The countrys current lack of
eecLIve InsLILuLIons oI govern-
ance still raises serious concerns
over reguIuLory enIorcemenL,
and it remains a challenging
place to do business, Laws
said.
Resour ce or cur se
Resource-rich countries
muke up over o percenL oI
the extreme risk category in
the LRERA and include: Turk-
menIsLun (
rd
), DR Congo (4
th
),
Myanmar (5
th
), Central African
Republic (7
th
), South Sudan
(8
th
), Venezuela (12
th
), Libya
(1
th
), Zimbabwe (14
th
), Iran
(16
th
), Angola (19
th
), UzbekIsLun
(21
st
) and Iraq (24
th
).
Legal and regulatory risks
impacting property rights are of
particular concern in resource-
rich countries. Despite soften-
Ing commodILy prIces over
the past year, societal unrest
and poor economic conditions
can act as risk multipliers in
reIuLIon Lo LIe respecL oI prIvuLe
properLy rIgILs, LIe hrm suId.
Company assets, especially
those in the mining and oil
and gas sectors, can become
subject to nationalisation and
exproprIuLIon, us governmenLs
From page ...(Risks Remain)
seek Lo oseL socIeLuI unresL
or strengthen their position
through the use of resource
nationalism, as witnessed in
Venezuela and Argentina in
zo1z und zo1, LIe reporL suId.
As well as presenting major
rIsks Lo busIness, poor govern-
ance and corruption can also
undermIne LIe deveIopmenL
poLenLIuI provIded by un ubun-
dance of natural resources,
Maplecroft added.
The legal and regulatory en-
vIronmenLs oI LIe mIneruI und
hydrocarbon rich growth mar-
keLs oI NIgerIu (
rd
), Russia
(q
th
), Indonesia (70
th
), and the
Philippines (77
th
), meanwhile,
are categorised as posing a
IIgI rIsk Lo InvesLors.
Sur pr i se i nclusi ons
Senegal, Guatemala, Mozam-
bique and Rwanda, meanwhile,
are among the countries with
besL perIormunce over LIe IusL
hve yeurs, uccordIng Lo LIe
report.
Legal mechanisms and regu-
latory structures are typically
well entrenched features of a
country that are not subject to
IusL cIunge wILIouL sIgnIhcunL
poIILIcuI wIII und reIorm. How-
ever, over LIe IusL hve yeurs LIe
RERA reveuIs LIuL u number
oI counLrIes Iuve mude sLeudy
ImprovemenLs.
SeneguI Ius rIsen z pIuces
from 28
th
to 51
st
(1
st
place is con-
sidered the highest risk in the
LRERA), Guatemala went from
z
nd
to 61
st
, Mozambique 40
th
to
71
st
, and Rwanda 66
th
to 101
st
.
These decreases in risk were
prImurIIy due Lo subsLunLIve
eorLs Lo Improve LIe IeguI
und reguIuLory envIronmenL
und encouruge IoreIgn InvesL-
menL wIIcI IncIudes moves Lo
sLrengLIen corporuLe govern-
ance, to reduce regulatory
hurdles, to combat corruption
und Lo Improve ruIe oI Iuw,
Maplecroft said.
Ri sk hot spots
Aside from Myanmar (5
th
),
the countries posing the high-
est legal and regulatory risks
Lo InvesLors ure: SomuIIu (1
st
),
North Korea (2
nd
), Turkmeni-
sLun (
rd
), DR Congo (4
th
), Syria
(6
th
), Central African Republic
(7
th
), South Sudan (8
th
), Eritrea
(9
th
) and Afghanistan (10
th
). A
further 16 countries are also
cIussIhed us exLreme rIsk by
Maplecroft.
Outside of these markets, the
RERA reveuIs u number oI
counLrIes LIuL Iuve experIenced
an increase in risk, due to fac-
Lors sucI us conIcL, LIe rIse oI
uuLIorILurIun governunce or LIe
introduction of destabilising
governmenL poIIcy cIunges.
These include: Syria, which
dropped to 6
th
from 29
th
in
2010, Guinea (15
th
from 42
nd
),
Bangladesh (29
th
from 52
nd
),
From page ...(Risks Remain)
~.q ._ ~. ~ . :. ~ _ . _ .
._.:....:._e ..~...:q~
..._~:. .e:_.:.._.
. , . ._ . . ~ ., .:.q . q
._ ~._.~.,.:.~ ..: .|..:...
.~: . . .:.:..: q ~ . . ._
~..~_...:..: _.,.:..
_e. ._~: .~. .|.. ~. .~q. q._ .
_.,.:~..q~.,_e q..._....
.:.~~~ ~~:~~e.~:..:.
......:.q,~~~ ~.q..|..:
..:q~..:.~ _...._.. ~~,
... .~.~._. ._.:.q...
_.... ._ .. .._ .~. ... .:.~
~.~: ~_ .e: ..: q ~ . . ._ .
~q:.~ ~.q.~ . .:.. ._ .. .
._.~.....q:.:. ....:.:
.~: _~.......: _.,.:.-
..: q ~ . ~ . :.. : . .~.~
._~:. Maplecroft - ~_~.~,.
....~.._e.._ Chris Laws
~ ._.:_~:..._.
e.~ _.,.:.~.,_e ...:.
.q.q..._.....:.~~~ ~:..
.~....._~._.~.,.: ~~
...~ ~e:..~:~._._ ~....
~.,~:._e q. ~_ . q_.. ~~,
...~ ~e:..~:~._.. ~~e
._.:~.,q:. ~~.:_.. ~~, ~
...,q:. ~~.:._ .
EgypL (z
nd
Irom ;
rd
), Mali
(q
th
Irom 8
rd
), Argentina (59
th
from 78
th
) and Bahrain (122
nd
Irom 1
rd
).
Rule of law, including
judicial independence and ef-
IecLIveness, Is u IundumenLuI
IngredIenL In LIe hgIL uguInsL
corruption and remains weak
in a large number of countries,
particularly in Asia, Africa and
the Middle East, Maplecroft
said.
This lack of rule of law con-
tinues to contribute to regime
instability in those countries
that witnessed regime change
during the Arab Awakening
of 2011, as well as many other
countries with potential for
societally forced regime change,
IncIudIng TurkmenIsLun (
rd
),
Cambodia (28
th
) and Viet Nam
(
rd
).
Since 2009 some of the
biggest increases in legal and
reguIuLory rIsk Iuve been expe-
rIenced by IoreIgn InvesLors In
Argentina, Bahrain, Bangladesh
and Egypt.
Maplecroft states that the
busIness envIronmenL In LIese
countries is being curtailed by
factors such as a lack of respect
for the rule of law and property
rIgILs, weuk InvesLor proLec-
tion, increasing regulatory
burdens und poor governunce
resulting from instability.
Workers at a Coca-coIa bottIing pIant in Myanmar. Myanmar`s recent economic reforms have Ied to a rush of gIobaI giants Iike
Coca-coIa, Ford, Nissan, Heineken into the formerIy-isoIated country.
F
T
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
23
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Investment und Iinunce Lpdute
Minister Encourages Local
Businessmen to Expand
Business Boldly
Commerce MInIsLer U WIn
Myint has encouraged local
businessmen to expand their
businesses boldly to seize better
opportunities during the eco-
nomic boom expected in 2015.
Taxes will be reduced and re-
Iuxed IurLIer, Ie suId, oerIng
other necessary assistance to
exporters and importers.
Draft of New Foreign
I nvestment Law to be
Submitted to Parliament
The draft of the new foreign
InvesLmenL Iuw wIII be submIL-
ted to the upcoming parlia-
mentary session, due to resume
LIIs week, u senIor nvesLmenL
CommIssIon omcIuI suId.
DruILed on LIe udvIce oI nLer-
national Finance Corporation,
the new law, once enacted, will
supersede Myanmar Foreign
nvesLmenL uw (zo1z) und
Myunmur CILIzens nvesLmenL
uw (zo1).
Myanmar Plans to Add 4m
Mobile Phone Users in 2014
Myanmar plans to expand
its mobile network to accom-
modate 4 million new subscrib-
ers, comprIsIng GSM und G,
during 2014, bringing the total
number to 10 million users, a
senIor mInIsLry omcIuI suId.
Suu Kyi Says Next Govt
Needs to Tackle Stalled
Dam Pr oj ect
In her regular biweekly inter-
vIew wILI LIe RudIo ree AsIu,
major opposition NLD leader
Suu KyI suId LIe nexL govern-
menL wIII Iuve Lo LuckIe decI-
sIveIy LIe Issue oI LIe sLuIIed
conLroversIuI megu dum proLecL
on Ayeyuwudy RIver, Ier purLy`s
mouLIpIece LIe D-Wuve journuI
reported.
It was irresponsible of present
governmenL Lo Iuve IeIL IL Lo LIe
nexL governmenL, sIe udded.
Myanmar Pr esi dent Says
2014-15 GDP Seen Ar ound
$67 Bi lli on
Myunmur`s GDP Ior hscuI
2014-15 is estimated to be
around $67 billion (K66.19
trillion), President Thein Sein
said at a Financial Commission
Meeting in Nay Pyi Taw.
He uIso suId suIurIes oI
governmenL empIoyees wIII be
raised by K20,000 per month
wILI eecL Irom AprII 1.
Fi ve Sub-Commi ttees
For med for Revi ew on
Consti tuti on Changes
Ive sub-commILLees Iuve
been set up among the
109-member Parliamen-
Lury CommILLee Lo revIew over
oo,ooo poInLs oI suggesLIon
receIved Irom LIe pubIIc on
amending the constitution, the
Voice Daily reported citing a
Committee member.
He suId LIese commILLees wIII
Iuve Lo revIew LIe poInLs wILIIn
a week and submit their report
at the upcoming parliament by
end January.
For ei gn Tr ades Gr ow by
$4 bi lli on i n 9 Months
ToLuI Lrude voIumes us oI
end December durIng zo1-1q
(AprII-MurcI) hscuI yeur grew
by $4 billion compared to the
sume perIod IusL hscuI, uccord-
ing to commerce ministry data.
Total imports and exports
durIng LIe hrsL nIne monLIs
were $q.8 bIIIIon und $8.81
bIIIIon respecLIveIy.
Next Yeor's Budget Depcit
Esti mated at $2.75 bi lli on
TIe dehcIL oI nexL yeur`s
budget is estimated to be about
$z.; bIIIIon, omcIuIs reporLs
say.
Allocations on education will
be Increused Lo .q percenL
Irom .q percenL und on LIe
IeuILI secLor Lo .8 percenL
Irom .1 percenL.
Suu Kyi Says 2014 More Im-
portant Than 2015 for Myanmar
Major opposition NLD party
leader Aung San Suu Kyi said
2014 will be far more important
than 2015 for political and
economIc deveIopmenL In My-
anmar although most potential
IoreIgn InvesLors ure wuLcIIng
out for the situation in 2015.
The Nobel peace laureate,
speaking at a mass meeting
during her tour of Chin State,
said the trees grown in 2014 will
ower und beur IruIL In zo1,
obvIousIy reIerrIng Lo LIe con-
stitution amendment in 2014
in time for the 2015 general
elections.
Myanmar Gets Over
82,000 Busi ness Vi si tors
i n 2013
More than 82,000 tourists
vIsILed Myunmur wILI busI-
ness vIsu-on-urrIvuI IusL yeur,
according to the Yangon inter-
national airports immigration
department.
Since June 2012, Myanmar
Ius uIIowed vIsu-on-urrIvuI Lo
26 countries, including regional
neighbours. An additional 22
nations, most of them Euro-
pean countries, were added to
LIe IIsL In ebruury zo1, muk-
Ing LIe IucIIILy uvuIIubIe Ior q8
countries.
The majority of the business
tourists were from Thailand,
Japan, Singapore, Canada,
and Spain, according to the
statistics.
Thuilund Seeks LNG, New
Energy Resources as Gas
Reserves windle
Plans to import more LNG, open new bid for petroleum
concessions
Khettiya Jittapong &
Pisit Changplayngam
T
hailand is seeking more
ImporLs oI IIquehed
natural gas (LNG) and
looking to other energy sources
such as coal and renewables as
domesLIc gus reserves wIII IIkeIy
IusL onIy unoLIer seven yeurs,
senIor Energy MInIsLry omcIuIs
said last week.
Thailand, which uses natu-
ral gas to generate nearly 70
percent of its power, has been
struggling to secure long-term
energy supplies as output
growLI und reserve repIuce-
menL Iuve noL kepL up wILI
rising demand.
TIuIIund`s proven reserves Ior
natural gas dropped 10 percent
from a year earlier to 9.04 tril-
IIon cubIc IeeL In zo1, LIe hrsL
decline after the country began
producing natural gas from
the Gulf of Thailand more than
three decades ago.
We need Lo seek severuI uILer-
nuLIves Lo IeIp boosL domesLIc
gas supplies, which will be
depleted, said Suthep Lium-
sirijarern, permanent secretary
at the Energy Ministry.
TIuIIund becume LIe hrsL
Southeast Asian nation to
import LNG in 2011 when it
brought a 5-million-tonne-
per-year terminal online.
State-controlled PTT is now
looking at setting up a new LNG
terminal in a plan to double its
import capacity.
But prices of LNG are two to
three times higher than natural
gas and that will push up elec-
LrIcILy LurIs, SuLIep suId.
Thailand is also looking at
buying power from neighbour-
ing countries and plans to di-
versIIy energy sources InLo couI
and renewables, he said.
It is also planning to open a
new round of bidding for petro-
leum exploration concessions
and extend the life of existing
production-sharing contracts
to boost output of natural gas
Irom domesLIc heIds.
Concession contracts due to
expire in the next eight years
IncIude LIose IeId by CIevron
Corp and PTT Exploration and
Production, a subsidiary of PTT.
CouI wIII neurIy overLuke oII
as the dominant global energy
source by 2017, and only a drop
in world gas prices could curb
the use of the dirtier fossil fuel
in the absence of high carbon
prices, the International Energy
Agency said in December.
n zo1, TIuIIund produced
,o; mIIIIon cubIc IeeL oI
natural gas per day (mmcfd)
and imported 990 mmcfd from
Myanmar.
It also had 729 mmcfd from
TIuI-MuIuysIu joInL deveIop-
ment areas and imported 190
mmcfd of LNG last year. That
was just enough to meet domes-
tic gas needs of around 4,950
mmcfd.
Thailands 2014 energy
demand is expected to rise 2.5
percent on the assumption that
the countrys economy will grow
q- percenL LIIs yeur, versus u
rise in energy use of 1.2 percent
In zo1, LIe mInIsLry suId In u
statement.
Demand for natural gas is ex-
pected to rise 4 percent in 2014,
boosted by growing demand for
electricity, it said. Reuters
R
e
u
t
e
r
s
Myanmar Summary
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~...:.:.~.,.._~.~~
._.:_~:..._.
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
24
INTIRNATIONAL AN OMISTIC ILIGHT SCHILLI
Fliggh htss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Bangkok ((BKK) Fliggh htss ffroom Banggkok (BKKK) to Yaangon (RGN)
Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:
PG 706 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 7:15 9:30 Bangkok Airways DD4230 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 06:30 07:55 NOK Airlines
DD4231 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 8:00 9:45 NOK Airlines 8M336 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 6:40 7:25 MAI
FD2752 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 8:30 10:15 Thai AirAsia FD2751 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 7:15 8:00 Thai AirAsia
8M335 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 8:40 10:25 MAI TG303 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 8:00 8:45 Thai Airways
TG304 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 9:50 11:45 Thai Airways PG701 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 8:50 9:40 Bangkok Airways
PG702 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 10:45 12:40 Bangkok Airways FD2755 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 11:35 12:20 Thai AirAsia
Y5-237 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 18:05 19:50 Golden Myanmar Airlines PG707 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 13:40 14:30 Bangkok Airways
TG302 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 14:45 16:40 Thai Airways Y5-238 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 21:10 21:55 Golden Myanmar Airlines
PG703 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 15:20 17:15 Bangkok Airways FD2753 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DMK RGN 16:35 17:20 Thai AirAsia
8M331 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 16:30 18:15 MAI PG703 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 16:45 17:35 Bangkok Airways
FD2754 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 17:50 19:35 Thai AirAsia TG305 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 17:55 18:40 Thai Airways
PG704 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 18:25 20:20 Bangkok Airways DD4238 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 19:30 20:15 NOK Airlines
TG306 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN BKK 19:40 21:35 Thai Airways 8M332 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 19:20 20:05 MAI
DD4239 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DMK 21:00 22:45 NOK Airlines PG705 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 BKK RGN 20:00 21:15 Bangkok Airways
FFliggh htss ffroom m Yangoon (RGN)) to Chiaang Maii (CNX) FFliggh htss ffroom m Chiangg Mai (CCNX) to YYangon (RGN)
W9-9607 4 7 RGN CNX 14:50 16:20 Air Bagan W9-9608 4 7 CNX RGN 17:20 17:50 Air Bagan
Flligghtss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Sinngapore (SIN) Flligghtss ffroom Singaapore (SIN) to Yangon ((RGN)
Y5-233 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 10:10 14:40 Golden Myanmar Airlines Y5-234 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 15:35 17:05 Golden Myanmar Airlines
MI509 1 6 RGN SIN 0:25 5;00 SilkAir SQ998 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 7:55 9:20 Singapore Airline
8M231 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 8:30 13:00 MAI 8M6231/3K585 1 3 4 5 6 SIN RGN 9:10 10:40 Jetstar Asia
SQ997 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 10:25 14:45 Singapore Airline 8M232 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 14:10 15:40 MAI
8M6232/3K586 1 3 4 5 6 RGN SIN 11:30 16:05 Jetstar Asia MI518 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 SIN RGN 14:20 15:45 SilkAir
8M233 5 6 7 RGN SIN 13:45 18:15 MAI 8M235 5 6 7 SIN RGN 19:15 20:45 MAI
TR2827 1 6 7 RGN SIN 15:10 19:35 TigerAir TR2826 1 6 7 SIN RGN 13:00 14:30 TigerAir
TR2827 2 3 4 5 RGN SIN 17:10 21:35 TigerAir TR2826 2 3 4 5 SIN RGN 15:00 16:30 TigerAir
MI517 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN SIN 16:40 21:15 SilkAir MI520 5 7 SIN RGN 22:10 23:35 SilkAir
FFliightts frromm Yangonn (RGN) tto Kualaa Lumpuur (KUL) Fligghtts frro om m Kuala LLumpur (KUL)too Yangonn (RGN)
AK1427 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KUL 8:30 12:50 AirAsia AK1426 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KUL RGN 6:55 8:00 AirAsia
8M501 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KUL 8:55 12:55 MAI MH740 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KUL RGN 10:05 11:15 Malaysia Airlines
MH741 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KUL 12:15 16:30 Malaysia Airlines 8M502 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KUL RGN 14:00 15:00 MAI
Fligghtts frrom Yanngon (RGGN) to HHanoi (HHAN) Fligghtts frrom Hannoi (HANN) to Yanngon (RRGN)
VN956 1 3 5 6 7 RGN HAN 19:10 21:30 Vietnam Airlines VN957 1 3 5 6 7 HAN RGN 16:35 18:10 Vietnam Airlines
Flliggh htss ffroom m Yangon (RGN) to Ho CChi Minhh (SGN) Flliggh htss ffroom m Ho Chii Minh (SSGN) to Yangonn (RGN)
VN942 2 4 7 RGN SGN 14:25 17:10 Vietnam Airlines VN943 2 4 7 SGN RGN 11:40 13:25 Vietnam Airlines
Flligghtss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to TTaipei (TTPE) Flligghtss ffrom Taipei (TPEE) to Yanngon (RGN)
CI7916 1 2 3 4 5 6 RGN TPE 10:50 16:10 China Airline CI7915 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 TPE RGN 7:15 10:05 China Airline
BR288 2 5 6 RGN TPE 11:35 17:20 EVA Air BR287 2 5 6 TPE RGN 7:30 10:35 EVA Air
Flliggh htss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Kunming(KMG) Flliggh htss ffroom Kunmming(KMMG) to Yangon ((RGN)
CA906 2 3 4 6 7 RGN KMG 14:15 17:35 Air China CA905 2 3 4 6 7 KMG RGN 12:40 13:15 Air China
MU2032 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN KMG 14:40 17:55 China Eastern MU2031 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 KMG RGN 13:30 14:00 China Eastern
MU2012 3 6 RGN KMG 12:20 18:10 China Eastern (via NNG) MU2011 3 6 KMG RGN 8:25 11:30 China Eastern (via NNG)
Flligghtss from Yanngon (RGGN) to BBeijing (BJS) Flligghtss from Beijjing (BJSS) to Yanngon (RRGN)
CA906 2 3 4 6 7 RGN BJS 14:15 21:55 Air China (via KMG) CA905 2 3 4 6 7 BJS RGN 8:05 13:15 Air China (via KMG)
Fliggh htss ffroom Yanggon (RGNN) to Naanning (NNG) Fliggh htss ffroom Nannning (NNNG) to Yaangon ((RGN)
Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:
MU2012 3 6 RGN NNG 12:20 16:25 China Eastern MU2011 3 6 NNG RGN 10:15 11:30 China Eastern
FFliggh htss ffroom m Yangoon (RGN)) to Honng Kong (HKG) HHonng g KKo ong (HKG) Flights from Yaangon ((RGN)
KA251 1 2 4 6 RGN HKG 1:10 5:35 Dragon Air KA250 1 3 5 7 HKG RGN 21:50 23:45 Dragon Air
Flliggh htss ffroom m Yangon (RGN) to Guanng Zhouu (CAN) Flliggh htss ffroom m Guang Zhou (CCAN) to Yangonn (RGN)
8M711 2 4 7 RGN CAN 8:40 13:15 MAI CZ3055 3 6 CAN RGN 8:40 10:30 China Southern Airlines
CZ3056 3 6 RGN CAN 11:20 15:50 China Southern Airline 8M712 2 4 7 CAN RGN 14:15 15:45 MAI
CZ3056 1 5 RGN CAN 17:40 22:15 China Southern Airline CZ3055 1 5 CAN RGN 14:45 16:35 China Southern Airlines
FFlighhts ffroom Yanggon (RGN) to Koolkata (CCCU) FFlighhts ffroom Kolkkata (CCUU) to Yaangon (RRGN)
Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:
AI228 5 RGN CCU 18:45 19:45 Air India AI227 1 5 CCU RGN 10:35 13:20 Air India
AI234 1 5 RGN CCU 13:40 16:55 Air India (via GAY) AI233 5 CCU RGN 13:30 18:00 Air India (via GAY)
Fliggh htss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to GGaya (GAAY) Fliggh htss ffrom Gayya (GAY) to Yanngon (RGGN)
8M 601 1 3 5 6 RGN GAY 10:30 11:50 MAI 8M 602 1 3 5 6 GAY RGN 12:50 16:00 MAI
AI234 1 5 RGN GAY 13:40 15:00 Air India AI233 5 GAY RGN 15:00 18:00 Air India
Fligghtts frrom Yanngon (RGGN) to TTokyo (NNRT) FFliightts frrom Tokkyo (NRTT) to Yaangon (RRGN)
NH914 1 3 6 RGN NRT 22:00 06:40+1 ALL NIPPON Airways NH913 1 3 6 NRT RGN 11:10 17:05 ALL NIPPON Airways
FFliggh htss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to SSeoul (ICCN) FFliggh htss ffrom Seooul (ICN)) to Yanngon (RGGN)
KE472 1 3 5 7 RGN ICN 0:05 8:00 Korean Air KE471 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ICN RGN 18:40 22:55 Korean Air
OZ7463 4 7 RGN ICN 0:50 8:50 Asiana OZ4753 3 6 ICN RGN 19:30 23:40 Asiana
Flligghtss ffrom Yanngon (RGGN) to DDoha (DOOH) Flightts frrom Dohha (DOH) to Yangon (RRGN)
QR619 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN DOH 8:00 11:45 Qatar Airways QR618 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 DOH RGN 21:05 06:29+1 Qatar Airways
Flliggh htss ffroom m Yangon (RGN) to Nay Pyi Taww (NYT) Flliggh htss ffroom m Nay Pyyi Taw (NNYT) to Yangonn (RGN)
Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by: Flight No. DDayss From To ETD ETA Operated by:
FMI-A1 1 2 3 4 5 RGN NYT 7:30 8:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-A2 1 2 3 4 5 NYT RGN 8:50 9:50 FMI Air Charter
FMI-B1 1 2 3 4 5 RGN NYT 11:30 12:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-B2 1 2 3 4 5 NYT RGN 13:00 14:00 FMI Air Charter
FMI-C1 1 2 3 4 5 RGN NYT 16:30 17:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-C2 1 2 3 4 5 NYT RGN 18:00 19:00 FMI Air Charter
FMI-A1 6 RGN NYT 8:00 9:00 FMI Air Charter FMI-A2 6 NYT RGN 10:00 11:00 FMI Air Charter
FMI-A1 7 RGN NYT 15:30 16:30 FMI Air Charter FMI-A2 7 NYT RGN 17:00 18:00 FMI Air Charter
FFliightts frrom Yangoon (RGN) to Manndalay ((MDY) FFliightts frrom Manddalay (MDDY) to YYangon (RGN)
Y5-234 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 6:15 7:30 Golden Myanmar Airlines Y5-233 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 MDY RGN 8:10 9:25 Golden Myanmar Airlines
YH 909 2 4 6 7 RGN MDY 6:30 8:10 Yangon Airways YH 910 1 3 MDY RGN 7:40 10:30 Yangon Airways
YH 917 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 6:10 8:30 Yangon Airways YH 918 1 2 3 4 6 7 MDY RGN 8:30 10:25 Yangon Airways
YH 727 1 5 RGN MDY 11:15 13:25 Yangon Airways YH 728 1 5 MDY RGN 9:10 11:05 Yangon Airways
YH 731 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 15:00 17:10 Yangon Airways YH 732 1 2 3 4 5 6 MDY RGN 17:10 19:15 Yangon Airways
W9 501 1 2 3 4 RGN MDY 6:00 7:25 Air Bagan W9 502 1 2 3 4 MDY RGN 16:10 18:15 Air Bagan
K7 222 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 6:30 8:40 Air KBZ K7 223 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 MDY RGN 9:00 11:05 Air KBZ
YJ 201 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 RGN MDY 11:30 12:55 Asian Wings YJ 202 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 MDY RGN 16:00 17:25 Asian Wings
Days - (1) Monday (2) TTueesdaay (33) WWeddnessdaay (4) Thursdayy (5) Friday (6) SSaturday (7) Suunday Days - (1) Monday (2) TTueesdaay (33) WWeddnessdaay (4) Thursdayy (5) Friday (6) SSaturday (7) Suunday
PROPERTY & REAL ESTATE
25
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Govt to Establish More Hotel Zones
T
Ie MInIsLry oI HoLeIs und
TourIsm Ius gIven LIe
go-ahead to construction
entrepreneurs to establish more
hotel zones in three regions
in the country in a bid to cope
with the growing hotel room
demand, industry insiders said.
A total of 11 hotel zones will be
built in Yangon, Mandalay and
Taninthayi regions where most
of the tourists to Myanmar go.
The hotel and tourism sector
saw K257 billion ($262 million)
In InvesLmenLs Irom LIe IocuI
enLrepreneurs In LIe hscuI yeur
zo1-1q.
According to the Ministry of
HoLeIs und TourIsm, LIe num-
ber oI LourIsLs vIsILIng Myunmur
Ius reucIed 1.q mIIIIon In zo1.
U TInL Tun Aung, dIrecLor oI
the ministry, said there are high
chances to reach the ministrys
LurgeLed z mIIIIon vIsILors Ior
zo1-1q hscuI yeur us LIe hscuI
ends in March. The ministry has
seL u LurgeL oI mIIIIon vIsILors
Ior LIe nexL hscuI yeur.
Yangon and Bagan stand
in the top of the list for most
vIsILed LourIsL desLInuLIons,
followed by Inle Lake in Shan
state, Kyaikhtiyo Pagoda in
Mon state and Ngapali Beach in
Rakhine state, according to the
ministry.
n un uLLempL Lo deveIop LIe
Aye Myat major tourist attractions and to
increase the number of tourists
vIsILIng Myunmur, LIe govern-
ment in collaboration with the
AsIun DeveIopmenL Bunk und
Norwuy Ius InILIuLed u seven-
year tourism master plan worth
$500 million.
The Yangon International
Airport, the countrys major
international airport, has also
seen a tremendous increase in
LIe number oI LourIsL urrIvuIs.
AccordIng Lo hgures Irom LIe
DepurLmenL oI CIvII AvIuLIon
(DCA), LIe uIrporL receIved over
oo,ooo LourIsLs In zo1z, up
from 160,000 in 2009.
TIe number oI LourIsL urrIvuI
is expected to rise this year as
muny IoreIgn vIsILors ure vIsIL-
ing Myanmar to attend ASEAN
Foreign Ministers Meeting
(AMM) in January in Bagan
and Mandalay.
In a recent tender opening by
the DCA, Pioneer Aerodrome
ServIces Ius been uwurded LIe
right to upgrade the airport in-
cluding expanding its capacity
from 2.7 million to 5.5 million
passengers by 2015. Mandalay
International Airport, in upper
Myanmar, is also scheduled to
upgrade and expand its capacity
Lo IundIe mIIIIon pussengers
annually.
TIe governmenL Is uIso buIId-
Ing LIe HunLIuwuddy nLernu-
tional Airport, 80 kilometres
from Yangon in Bago region, as
the new gateway to Myanmar
with an estimated total capacity
oI o mIIIIon pussengers.
n November, LIe DCA
Ius InvILed prIvuLe InvesLors
through state-run newspapers
Lo upgrude o oI LIe counLry`s
69 domestic airports.
Aothorities to Boild Studiom Removing Illegul Settlers
T
he authorities will build
a stadium on a plot in
Ward 46 in North Dagon
Myo Thit where 25 houses were
built illegally.
Kyaw Min The plot, owned by the town-
sIIp deveIopmenL commILLee,
has 25 small huts where some
poor IumIIIes Iuve been IIvIng
for nearly six years. The fami-
IIes were gIven evIcLIon noLIce
on January 5.
We will start building the
stadium this month after
destroying the houses. The
consLrucLIon work wIII hnIsI
by LIe end oI LIIs yeur, U HIu
Myo, assistant administrator
oI LIe LownsIIp`s DeveIopmenL
Committee, said.
The free public stadium will
IncIude LIree heIds Ior IooLbuII,
Chinlone (traditional cane ball)
and other games.
However, U HIu Myo suId LIe
department hasnt made any
estimation of the expenditure
und LIuL LIe hnuncIuI deLuIIs
wIII be reveuIed IuLer.
TIe IumIIIes IIvIng In LIe
IIIeguIIy-buIIL Iouses Iuve
submitted a request letter to
the township authority to allow
them to stay until the end of this
academic year as many of them
has school-going children.
This area is near to many
scIooIs. We Iuve submILLed
our plea but we dont know the
authorities decision yet, Ko
Myo Min, a settler from that
area said.
TIe Yungon CILy DeveIopmenL
Committee (YCDC) earlier said
IL wIII remove uII LIe IIIeguI
settlements around the city and
build stadiums and parks in
those places.
Myanmar Summary
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
26
Myanmar Summary
PROPERTY & REAL ESTATE
From page z... (Burma Restaurant)
to the president and Cabinet
secreLury. DurryI HunnuI dIned
there during Obamas 2009 in-
uuguruLIon IesLIvILIes. CIeIseu
Clinton showed up once.
But, as much as anything, the
resLuurunL served us u Iocus Ior
people who cared about Burma.
Roundtable discussions were
IeId In LIe evenIngs. DurIng
LIe Suron RevoIuLIon - LIe
2007 protests led by thousands
of Buddhist monks against
Burmas military dictatorship
the restaurant swelled with
ucLIvIsLs und wILI emoLIon.
They had one thing in com-
mon: that was democracy for
Burma, John Tinpe says. It
was great. Today, he and his
family are hopeful that demo-
cratic reforms will continue to
strengthen there.
Over LIe yeurs, puLrons wouId
sometimes ask whether the
Tinpes would change the name
of the restaurant from Burma to
Myunmur. Never, LIey suId.
AILer Ie Ieuves LIe resLuurunL
business, John Tinpe would like
to put his Burmese expertise to
work In u dIerenL wuy, perIups
In u job wILI LIe US governmenL
or u nonprohL orgunIzuLIon. He
Ius mude LenLuLIve upproucIes
in this direction but for the
moment is focusing on the last
days of the restaurant.
As word spreads about the res-
taurants impending demise, the
little place turned into a kind of
rolling farewell party. One after
another, old friends shown up
for a last plate of dry bean curd,
or u hnuI bowI oI onIon peu
soup. BuL uIso Ior one more vIsIL
with a princess and her son; one
more demure smile.
It would be nice if this could
Iuve u Iuppy endIng, JoIn
Tinpe says one afternoon, his
voIce LruIIIng o.
In some ways, thats exactly
what was happening.
From page z... (Burma Restaurant)
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Ministry Bans Construction
in Heritage Sites
T
Ie uuLIorILIes Iuve
suspended constructions
of hotels, motels, guest-
houses, restaurants and indus-
trial buildings in the countrys
cultural heritage areas, accord-
ing to an announcement from
the Archaeology and National
Museum Department under the
Ministry of Culture.
The department said con-
structions at the heritage sites
Su Su are causing damage to the an-
cient sites, and that if construc-
tions are not stopped it will take
legal actions.
TIere Iuve been rumpunL
constructions of hotels, restau-
rants and industrial buildings
In Bugun, MruukU und nnwu
Lo Luke udvunLuge oI LIe recenL
surge In LourIsL urrIvuIs In LIe
country. The department has
designated 46 areas in Myan-
mar as cultural heritage sites
and laws will be enforced to
control the damages to those
sites, it said.
The department said con-
sLrucLors Iuve Lo seek permIs-
sion from the ministry if they
plan to build any hotels or res-
taurants, and that the ministry
wIII Iuve LIe hnuI suy regurdIng
awarding of the construction
permit.
The ministry has also recently
InvILed prIvuLe secLor pIuyers
Lo renovuLe Yungon`s IerILuge
buildings.
North ugon's 'Iuir Price'
Apurtments Lp Ior Iveryone
A
ny Myanmar citizen
will be eligible to apply
Ior u uL In Yungon CILy
DeveIopmenL CommILLee`s
(YCDC) recenL Bo Bu HLoo 'IuIr
price housing complex in North
Dagon, the committee said.
Applications to purchase
an apartment can be submit-
ted to the YCDC Engineering
DepurLmenL unLII Junuury 1.
PrevIousIy onIy governmenL
employees could apply for such
apartments.
A total of 90 apartments of
972 square feet (sq ft) size are
uvuIIubIe Ior Kq.; mIIIIon
($,qoo) eucI, wIIIe 6 upurL-
ments of 877sq ft are up for grabs
uL Kz.q mIIIIon ($,;o),
o upurLmenLs oI 61qsq IL uL
K25.5 million ($26,000) and 22
upurLmenLs oI 6sq IL uL Kz.;
mIIIIon ($zq,1oo) per uL.
I LIe uppIIcunL Is u govern-
ment employee she has to be in
LIe servIce Ior uL IeusL zo yeurs
at the time of submitting the ap-
pIIcuLIon. OLIer uppIIcunLs Iuve
Lo be uL IeusL over z-yeurs und
hold a National Registration
Card (NRC). Recommendation
IeLLers Irom respecLIve depurL-
ments are needed if the appli-
cunL Is u governmenL empIoyee
or u compuny sLu.
An applicant can purchase an
apartment through either bank
loans or installments. For bank
loans, the loan duration will be
four years, an YCDC source
said.
Kyaw Min If a buyer sells or rents the
Iouse wILIIn hve yeurs oI pur-
chasing, we wont take any legal
action but we will reoccupy the
apartment. These apartments
are meant for needy people, he
added.
A IumIIy Ius Lo Iuve uL IeusL
Koo,ooo ($oo) monLIIy
income to be able to purchase
such apartments, and a family
wILI reIuLIves sIouId be ubIe Lo
earn about K700,000 ($700),
he said. If the applicant is a
reLIred governmenL empIoyee,
payment can be made from
pension funds on an install-
ment basis, the source added.
Ma Aye Aye, who works at a
prIvuLe compuny, suId: Iuve
bought an application. But I
LIInk IL wouId be very dIm cuIL
to get an apartment here be-
cause of the competition. They
sIouId gIve IL Lo LIe peopIe wIo
really need one.
YCDC has been carrying out
severuI Iow cosL IousIng pro-
jecLs In Yungon over LIe IusL Lwo
years in a bid to tackle the citys
rIsIng popuIuce und gIve respILe
to the low-income people from
the sweltering property prices
in the countrys commercial
Iub, wIIcI Ius seen mussIve
specuIuLIve surge In ILs reuI
estate prices in recent years.
However, upurLmenLs uL LIose
low cost housing projects were
sLIII ubove LIe meuns oI poor
population, and the authorities
changed those projects names
to fair price housing after
druwIng uk.
Myanmar Summary
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Thousand year oId tempIes in Bagan, Myanmar.
F
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_~:..._.
IT & TELECOM
27
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Infosys to Help Myanmar Develop
E-Governance Strategy
Development comes after the visit of Myanmar's pro-democracy leader and Nobel laureate Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi to Infosys headquarters in Nov last year
Bibhu Ranjan Mishra
W
ith its economy
opening up after
decades of isolation,
LIe reIormIsL governmenL In
Myanmar is trying to make the
countrys presence felt on the
global information-technology
(IT) map.
The Southeast Asian nation
Ius IeurnL Lo Iuve roped In
Indian tech major Infosys to
devIse u sLruLegy on usIng T Lo
Improve governunce emcIency.
This would focus on grooming
the local ecosystem.
Sources say Infosys, Indias
second-IurgesL T servIces
company, has bagged a consult-
ing project from the Myanmar
governmenL Lo do LIe sume.
TIIs deuI wouId gIve nIosys
an entry into the country once
considered untouchable by
gIobuI InvesLors, owIng Lo ILs
proIonged cIvII wur under LIe
military junta.
n November IusL yeur, My-
anmars pro-democracy leader
and Nobel laureate Daw Aung
Sun Suu KyI vIsILed nIosys
headquarters. During her in-
teraction with senior company
omcIuIs, Suu KyI dIscussed on
how technology could play a role
In LIe Myunmur`s deveIopmenL.
Infosys had also committed
to undertaking a six-month
training programme for 100
engineering students from that
country.
At home, Infosys is working
wILI LIe governmenL In vurIous
T modernIsuLIon InILIuLIves.
This includes managing the in-
come tax departments central
processing centre and postal
departments IT modernisation
InILIuLIves.
Infosys is trying to take its
success In ndIu In vurIous
e-governunce projecLs Lo oLIer
countries in Southeast Asia, a
company source said.
Under LIe democruLIcuIIy-
eIecLed governmenL, Myunmur
Is IookIng Lo boIsLer ILs InvesL-
ment ecosystem and in the
process is wooing global tech-
nology companies. The country
Is LukIng LIe IeIp oI LIe US
Agency for International De-
veIopmenL (USAD) Lo uLLrucL
global technology majors such
us CIsco, GoogIe, HP, nLeI und
Microsoft.
Last year, Microsoft had an-
nounced to enter Myanmar
with a local company, Myanmar
Information Technology (MIT).
Besides, Cisco has announced
to open networking academies
with an aim of training the
locals before establishing a
presence in the country.
AccordIng Lo reseurcI hrm
IDC, the IT spends in Myanmar
Is esLImuLed Lo reucI $z.6
million by 2016, with a com-
pound annual growth rate of 16
percent between 2011 and 2016.
Information Ministry
Spends $g.qm Ior Reluy
Stations
Shein Thu Aung
T
he Ministry of Informa-
tion has spent K5.81
billion ($5.9 million) to
upgrade 22 transmission relay
stations around the country, a
Lop omcIuI oI LIe mInIsLry suId.
The stations were upgraded
from analogue to digital system,
U WIn KyI, dIrecLor oI LIe mIn-
istry, said.
The installation of retrans-
mIssIon devIces Ior sLuLIons In
Mawlamyine, Meiktila, Taung-
gyI, Hpu-un wus compIeLed
IusL monLI, U WIn KyI suId.
Test transmission from those
hve sLuLIons wIII sLurL soon, Ie
added.
U WIn KyI suId mosL oI LIe
remuInIng devIces Ior 1; more
sLuLIons Iuve uIreudy urrIved uL
the port and the rest will reach
within this month. The whole
upgrade process for those will
be completed by June this year,
he added.
The ministry last year asked
LIe sLuLe governmenL Lo provIde
funds to upgrade 56 stations
around the country. The stations
include eight in Kachin state, 17
in Shan, four each in Sagaing,
Magway and Mandalay regions,
hve In KuyuI, hve In KuyIn, one
in Bago, one in Tanintharyi, two
in Ayeyarwaddy, one in Chin,
two in Mon and two in Rakhine
state. The director said 257 sta-
tions were targeted for upgrade
works In zo1z-1, und zq8 were
completed.
n u hve-yeur projecL, LIe
ministry plans to upgrade 110
stations in 2015-16 and 65 sta-
tions in 2016-17 from analogue
to digital system.
Myanmar Summary
Yatanarpon to be Information
Purtner Ior ASIAN Puru Gumes
Aye Myat
Y
atanarpon Teleport Co
Ltd will act as an infor-
mation partner of the
7th ASEAN Para Games, which
is scheduled to take place from
January 14 to 20 in Nay Pyi
Tuw, ILs omcIuIs suId.
Yatanarpon Teleport, Myan-
mars state-run information
and telecommunications ser-
vIces provIder, wIII provIde In-
formation regarding the Games
in six languages throughout the
evenL.
The six languages include
Myanmar, Chinese, Thai, Ma-
laysian, English and Tagalog.
There will be a toll free hotline
(1818) during the Games for the
servIce, LIe compuny suId.
The 7th ASEAN Para Games,
to be organised in line with
the rules of the ASEAN Para
Sports Federation APSF, will
Iuve 1z sporLs evenLs IncIudIng
urcIery, Lruck und heId, bocIu,
seven In one IooLbuII, hve In one
IooLbuII, gouI buII evenL, LubIe
LennIs, swImmIng, cIess, voI-
leyball, wheelchair, basketball
and weightlifting.
Myanmar Summary
An Infosys campus in Thiruvananthapuram, KeraIa, India.
W
M
C
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_~.._.:~ ASEAN Para Games
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
28
IT & TELECOM
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Nvidia Chief Executive ]en-Hsun Huang at a press conference.
R
e
u
t
e
r
s
Nvidiu CIO Tulks Lp Mobile Chips
with Bruwny PC Gruphics
Noel Randewich
C
IIpmuker NvIdIu Corp
guve new deLuIIs oI un
upcoming chip with
beefed-up graphics for mobile
gadgets and cars as it faces a
slowing personal computer
industry and harsh competition
in smartphones and tablets.
TIe K1 Is NvIdIu`s hrsL mobIIe
chip to incorporate the Kepler
graphics technology the com-
pany uses in the high-end com-
ponents it makes for PC game
enLIusIusLs, CIIeI ExecuLIve
Jen-Hsun Huung LoId reporLers
uL un evenL In us Vegus uIeud
of the Consumer Electronics
Show.
Huung In recenL yeurs Ius
expunded NvIdIu`s busIness
beyond its core PC market
und InLo mobIIe devIces wILI
the companys Tegra lineup of
chips. But he has encountered
Ieuvy compeLILIon Irom Iurger
Qualcomm Inc and Samsung
Electronics Co Ltd in making
components for tablets and
smartphones.
NvIdIu Is beLLIng LIuL uddIng
cutting-edge graphics technol-
ogy to its mobile chips will
entice more manufacturers
and consumers to see tablets as
vIubIe uILernuLIves Lo consoIes
for playing high-end games like
hrsL-person sIooLers.
We`ve brougIL mobIIe
compuLIng Lo LIe sume IeveI
as desktop computing ... the
sume IeveI us supercompuLIng,
Huung suId oI LIe K1`s grupIIcs
technology.
NvIdIu`s mosL recenL Tegru q
processors are used in Micro-
soft Corps Surface 2 tablet and
a smartphone made by Xiaomi
in China, but Wall Street is con-
cerned the company is making
too little progress for the money
IL spends Lo deveIop LIe cIIps.
In the third quarter, sales
Irom NvIdIu`s Tegru mobIIe
chips fell 54 percent and sales
from its PC graphics chips,
which account for the majority
oI LIe compuny`s LoLuI revenue,
declined 2 percent.
TIe K1 wus prevIousIy
codenamed Logan, an alias
of the comic book superhero
WoIverIne. An uuLomoLIve ver-
sion of the chip will be ideal
for camera-based computation
In IuLure seII-drIvIng curs wILI
applications like pedestrian de-
LecLIon und coIIIsIon uvoIdunce,
Huung suId.
Following in the footsteps of
recent chip announcements
from Qualcomm, Samsung and
AppIe nc, NvIdIu`s Tegru K1
IIneup wIII uIso IncIude u versIon
with 64-bit features typically
found in personal computers.
Processors with 64-bit
IeuLures cun Luke udvunLuge
oI more memory LIun z-bIL
processors now found in most
mobIIe devIces, poLenLIuIIy IeL-
ting them work faster and more
emcIenLIy.
Current smartphones dont
Iuve enougI memory Lo gIve
6q-bIL processors un udvunLuge
oI z-bIL cIIps, buL IuLure
phones probably will include
enougI memory Lo gIve LIe 6q-
bit processors a performance
boost.
NvIdIu suId IL expecLs u z-bIL
versIon oI LIe K1 cIIp Lo uppeur
In devIces In LIe hrsL IuII oI
2014, with the 64-bit chip ap-
pearing later in the year.
With progress in mobile
devIces sIow, NvIdIu Is Increus-
IngIy IookIng Lo LIe uuLomoLIve
industry and cloud computing
to fuel future growth. It has
made deals with Audi, BMW
and Tesla to use Tegra chips in
dashboard entertainment and
nuvIguLIon sysLems.
At last years Consumer Elec-
LronIcs SIow, NvIdIu unveIIed u
IundIeId gumIng devIce cuIIed
Shield, made with its Tegra 4
chip and based on Google Incs
AndroId pIuLIorm. NvIdIu Ius
not said how many Shield de-
vIces IL Ius sIIpped sInce LIeIr
launch in July. Reuters
Chinu's ZTI Appointed us Ooredoo's Vendor
O
oredoo Myanmar has
appointed China-based
ZTE Corp as its author-
ised supplier to source telecom
equipment required for build-
Ing LIe G mobIIe neLwork, u
Lop omcIuI suId.
In December, Oordeoo Myan-
mar signed an agreement with
Nokia Solutions and Networks,
a subsidiary of Nokia Corp, to
supply radio and core equip-
menL Ior LIe deveIopmenL oI
mobIIe broudbund servIces.
Ooredoo, one of the two win-
Htet Aung ners of Myanmars telecom
licences, is planning to launch
G servIces nuLIonwIde In zo1q.
CIInu`s ZTE uIso serves us
a major supplier of backbone
infrastructure to state-owned
telecom operator Myanmar
Posts and Telecommunications
(MPT).
Although the Telecommuni-
cations Law has been enacted
on October 8 last year, Qatars
Ooredoo and Norways Telenor
who won the two nationwide
telecom licences in June
Iuven`L yeL IormuIIy receIved
the licences.
TIe Lwo hrms ure now de-
veIopIng LIe mobIIe neLwork
and infrastructure required to
IuuncI mobIIe servIces once
LIe IIcences Iuve been omcIuIIy
awarded.
Ooredoo Myanmar . ~,~.
~._..~ ZTE Corp ~:. _.,.:
.~ 3G ..~,q~.:.~:.
~_.:.:.q,~~~ .~.._
.~.e.q.~.:~~..._..:.
~:. .:~..~_e. .,~.:.q
._~:. .q._.
.~:.~ Oordeoo Myanmar
._ NokiaCorp -. . , .. _e. ..:
Nokia Solutions and Networks .
..:~_.~..~.~.~.q..
._.. .q.e. mobile broadband
~,..:..:. e_e.~.~~.~~~
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.q:..:~_.~.._e.._~:.
._. .q._.
Ooredoo ._ _.,.:.-.~
.e.q....:.~ qq.._ .
_.:..~:..q~: .~,~. ~..
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q, ...,._~:. .q._.
Chipmaker ..,.~.._e.._
Nvidia Corp ._ ~.~e.q
~.._....: ~,.~:..,.
~.... ..~e,.. tablet
..,..:.~._. ..,._..
..._..,.:._~~~ ..
gadget .:.. ~:..:.~~~
beefed-up graphics .~~ ~q
.:._ chip ~.. - ~.~ ~.~
.:.~ ._ .:_~:..._~:. .q._.
K1onf Nvidia - Kepler
graphics technology . ..|...
:.._..... .. chip
_e. _. . ~. ~ e .q. .~ , .~:.:.~
..: ~.:.. ._ . ..:.~:. . . .~
......:.~~~ ~.~:.....:
~q_~....:._e ~.._.~..
:.._~:. ~...:.. J en-
Hsun Huang ~ Las Vegas ~
_......: Consumer Electronics
Show ~ .~..:~.:.~:.
._.:_~:..._.
._~:.......:.~~. Huang
._ Nvidia - ..,..:.~.
..: q ~ . ._ . . ..: ._ .
Qualcomm Inc . Samsung
Electronics Co Ltd ~~. _.~
_~..:.- _....:.. tablet .:.
. ..~e,..:.~~~ .~.._
.. _ ..:.~:. ~ . . q:~ . ~ ~
.~..q._~:.._. .q._.
Nvidia - Tegra 4 processors
.:.~:. Microsoft Corp -
Surface 2 tablet ~ ~.._.._..
~,~.. Xiaomi - ..~e,.
~..~._. ~.._..._....:
._.~.~~.,_e chip .:.~:.
e, ~ . ~ . . q:~ ~. ._.. ._
. ._~...:~~:._., ._ qq .~:
..:q~q:~ ~.~~.~,_.
e.:q.,._~:.._. .q._.
AUTOMOBILE
29
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Jupunese Aotomukers See
Chinu Aoto Sules Sour
Toyota up 19.4pc, Honda 60pc, Nissan 70.4pc in December
J
apanese automakers
recovered Irom LIe bIg
slump in car sales in
China in 2012 by registering
sIgnIhcunL growLI In suIes In
December, carmakers Toyota
Motor Corp, Nissan Motor Co
Ld und Hondu MoLor Co Ld
said last week.
Toyota and its two local part-
ners sold about 108,400 auto-
mobiles in China in December
zo1, up 1q.q percenL Irom u
yeur eurIIer, wIIIe Hondu und
ILs Lwo IocuI joInL venLures soId
a record 101,465 automobiles,
up 60.4 percent from a year
earlier, and Nissan and its lo-
cuI joInL-venLure soId 1q,zoo
automobiles in China in De-
cember, up 70.4 percent from
a year earlier, the Japanese
automakers said.
For Toyota the rise follows a
40.7 percent year-on-year jump
In November und un 8o.6 per-
Aye Myat
A RoIIs-Royce mascot known as 'Spirit of Ecstasy' stands above the brand's Iogo on the front of a RoIIs-Royce Chost in a
showroom in Singapore.
T
im

W
im
b
o
r
n
e
/
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e
u
t
e
r
s
Rolls-Royce Iyes Myunmur us A New Murket
Kyaw Min
U
K-based Rolls-Royce
Motor Cars is eyeing
Myanmar to expand its
footprint in Asia as the luxury
cur munuIucLurer deIIvered ILs
Myanmar Summary
Importers to be Allowed to
Check Cars at Port
Transport ministry to take responsibility on missing car parts
T
he authorities will allow
automobile importers
to check their cars for
mIssIng purLs umId exLensIve
allegations of lost accessories
oI ImporLed veIIcIes, u mInIs-
ter said.
We would not like to en-
counter these incidents [of
loss of items of imported auto-
mobiles] at the port anymore.
So, were arranging for the
automobile owners or agents
to examine their imported cars
us IL urrIves uL LIe Iurbour,
unIon mInIsLer Ior LrunsporL U
Nyan Tun Aung said at a press
conference held at Myanma
Port Authority headquarters.
Automobiles can be tested
again with the help of a three-
member probing group when
it reaches the warehouse after
landing at the port, the minis-
ter said.
U Nyun Tun Aung suId LIe
ministry will take responsibil-
ILy Ior LIe Iosses oI veIIcIe
parts while in port warehouses.
However, LIe porL uuLIorILIes
said that the importers are un-
ubIe Lo provIde uny documenLs
that list the number of accesso-
ries and the original condition
of the imported car.
They said the importers think
Phyu Thit Lwin that the loss of accessories
occurs at the port, but the de-
purLmenL hnds LIe condILIon oI
imported cars dont match the
condition described in auction
documents.
TIere ure hve sLeps In
between a ship carrying auto-
mobIIes urrIvIng uL LIe porL Lo
gIvIng IL Lo LIe owner. WIen
a ship docks we make take
photos to record the condition
oI LIe veIIcIes on LIe sIIp und
LIen send LIe veIIcIes Lo LIe
warehouse. We take photos
LIere uguIn, U Kyuw MyInL,
director general of Myanma
Port Authority, said.
Losses in the port is only 15
percent, he claimed.
The owners who pick up
imported automobile should
uvoId sLoppIng cureIessIy ouL-
sIde LIe deIIvery ureu uILer coI-
lecting the car and car agents
sIouId oer beLLer servIces,
un om cIuI Irom LIe nLernuI
Revenue DepurLmenL suId.
However AuLomobIIe m-
porters and Manufacturers
AssocIuLIon CIuIrmun U HLuy
Aung said 50 percent of those
lost or missing cases hap-
pen at the port.
A LoLuI oI z1,6o8 veIIcIes
were imported from 2011 to
zo1, uccordIng Lo LIe Myun-
mar Port Authority.
Myanmar Summary
fourth straight annual sales
record last week.
Rolls-Royce opened 15 new
dealerships last year in cities
IIke sLunbuI, BeIruL, ugos, Hu-
noi and Manila, and expected to
open up to eight more in 2014,
eyeing Myanmar and Azerbai-
jun, ILs cIIeI execuLIve TorsLen
MueIIer-OeLvoes suId durIng un
InLervIew wILI ReuLers.
The 110-year-old British car
maker, bought by Germanys
BMW In 1qq8, soId ,6o veII-
cIes In zo1, up Irom ,; In
zo1z, drIven IurgeIy by demund
Ior personuIIsed veIIcIes Irom
the super-rich in Asia and the
Middle East.
Juguur und Rover, unoLIer
British-based luxury car maker,
owned by Indias Tata Motors,
is also looking at entering
Myanmar, according to its
Southeast Asian partner.
Sales in China jumped 11
percent last year to match those
In LIe UnILed SLuLes Ior LIe hrsL
time and Rolls-Royce is eying
new markets this year including
Myanmar, Torsten said.
The head of the luxury car
maker had a few predictions
for 2014 less bling, greater
demand for customisation, and
more women buyers. It is also
looking at entering the sport-
uLIIILy veIIcIe murkeL buL Ius
not made a decision, he told
Reuters.
Rolls-Royces bumper sales
report came a day after Bentley
Motors, another British luxury
car brand now under the Ger-
man ownership of Volkswagen,
reporLed record suIes Ior zo1.
Torsten said sales were strong
gIobuIIy In zo1 IncIudIng In
Germany, Japan, Qatar and
Canada and were particularly
good in the Middle East, rising
17 percent.
CIInu und LIe UnILed SLuLes
now both accounted for 28 per-
cent of its sales, while the Mid-
dle East snapped up 20 percent
and Asia 10 percent.
Torsten said future growth de-
pended on Rolls-Royces global
strategy. It is now present in
40 countries and is starting to
appeal to a growing number of
women buyers In Lop execuLIve
positions, who currently ac-
count for about 10 percent of
sales.
Car exports from Britain last
year were up 7 percent, gener-
uLIng over o bIIIIon Ior LIe
economy.
cent rise in October, which were
partly boosted by a low base
from 2012 when sales tumbled
due to a surge in anti-Japan
sentiment following a territo-
rial dispute between Beijing
and Tokyo.
Hondu`s jump IoIIows u 1o1.
percent year-on-year rise in
November und u z11 percenL
surge in October. Nissan fol-
lowed its 95.7 percent year-on-
yeur jump In November und un
127.8 percent surge in October.
n zo1, ToyoLu soId ubouL
q1;,oo veIIcIes, up q.z per-
cent from a year earlier, beating
ILs LurgeL oI qoo,ooo veIIcIes.
Hondu, wIIcI InLroduced ILs
newesL versIon oI LIe Accord
and the Jade in September, sold
;6,88z veIIcIes In zo1, up
26.4 percent from a year earlier
and hitting a record high. In
zo1, NIssun soId 1,z66,zoo
veIIcIes, up 1;.z percenL Irom u
year earlier, matching its target
oI 1.z mIIIIon veIIcIes.
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January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
CLASSIFIEDS
30
SOCIAL SCENES
31
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
Myanmar military guard of honor attend a ceremony
to mark Myanmar's 66
th
Independence Day in Nay Pyi
Taw. U Aung/Xinhua
Myanmar Vice President Sai Mauk Kham reads Independence Day mes-
sage of President U Tein Sein during a ceremony to mark Myanmars 66
th
Independence Day in Nay Pyi Taw. A national fag-raising ceremony was
held that morning to celebrate the Independence Day.
U Aung/Xinhua
Myanmar ethnics attend a ceremony to mark Myanmars
66
th
Independence Day in Nay Pyi Taw.
U Aung/Xinhua
Myanmar Vice President Sai Mauk Kham salutes during a ceremony to mark
Myanmars 66
th
Independence Day in Nay Pyi Taw. U Aung/Xinhua
Myanmar military guard of honor at-
tend a ceremony to mark Myanmars 66
th

Independence Day in Nay Pyi Taw.
U Aung/Xinhua
Myanmar ministers attend a ceremony to mark Myanmars 66
th
Independence Day in Nay Pyi Taw.
U Aung/Xinhua
Chinese Buddhist Pictures
Display at the Shwedagon
Pagoda in Yangon
Khun Tun Maung. Htet Aung Zaw Htoo Aung. Htet Aung Sandi Myint Lwin. Htet Aung
Poe Ei San. Htet Aung Sai Sai Khang Hlaing.Htet Aung Wanted Band. Htet Aung
Myanmars 66
th
Independence Day Ceremony in Nay Pyi Taw
Myanmar Music Awards in Yangon
Award winners pose for a photo. Htet Aung
Opening Ceremony of Yangon General Hospital
Training Centre by Sea Lion Co Ltd
Speech from a delegate. Sea Lion
Delegates pose for a photo. Sea Lion
Ribbon cutting. Sea Lion
Delegates cut ribbon to launch the Yangon General
Hospital Training Centre. Sea Lion
Ribbon cutting. Sea Lion
A Buddhist devotee visits the Chinese Buddhist pictures
display at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon.
U Aung/Xinhua
Chinese Ambassador Yang Houlan (2
nd
L) cuts the rib-
bon during the Chinese Buddhist pictures display at the
Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. U Aung/Xinhua
Chinese Ambassador Yang Houlan delivers a speech
during the Chinese Buddhist pictures display at the
Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. U Aung/Xinhua
Buddhist devotees visit the Chinese Buddhist pictures
display at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon.
U Aung/Xinhua
January 16-22, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
32
ENTERTAINMENT
K-Pop Stars to Rock Yangon in February
A
fter featuring a host of
big international per-
formers in the last cou-
ple of years, Yangon will keep
the momentum going this year
with some famous K-pop stars
set to perform in Myanmars
commercial hub next month.
As Myanmar opened itself up
to the world in 2011 following
hve-decudes oI IsoIuLIon und
InLernuLIonuI IndIgnuLIon, sev-
eruI gIobuI numes Iuve rocked
the stage in Myanmar. The list
includes American pop rock
singer Jason Mraz performing
in December 2012, Danish rock
band Michael Learns to Rock
(MLTR) and Japanese girl pop
group Berryz Kobo in March
last year, Australian soft rock
legend Air Supply in August
and Swedish pop band Abba in
November zo1.
The upcoming South Korean
Phyu Thit Lwin
musIc IesLIvuI wIII be IeId In
Yangons Thuwunna Indoor
Stadium on February 8 and it
aims at strengthening mutual
relations and boosting cultural
exchange between South Korea
and Myanmar, the organiser of
LIe evenL suId.
Organised by Pee Paw Enter-
tainment from Myanmar and
South Korean DM Company,
the concert will feature famous
Korean pop music bands
Sistar, After School, ZE:A and
U KSS.
Legendary Korean actor Song
Il Gook who is well known in
Myanmar for his roles in Ko-
rean dramas will also perform
In LIe evenL. TIIs wIII be LIe
second time for Song Il Gook to
meet Myanmar audiences as he
vIsILed LIe SouLIeusL AsIun IusL
year to attend the Korean Film
esLIvuI In Yungon. He sLurred
In severuI IIsLorIcuI Koreun
dramas such as Jumong and
Emperor oI LIe Seu. He Is LIe
grandson of Kim Du-han, great
grandson of the famous Ko-
reun Independence movemenL
general Kim Jwa-jin during
the early 1900s, and the son of
Korean actress and congress-
woman Kim Eul Dong.
Sistar is a girl group formed
in 2010 under the management
of Starship Entertainment. The
group consIsLs oI Boru, HyoIyn,
Soyou and Dasom.
After School, often stylised
us ATERSCHOO, ubbrevI-
ated as A.S., is also a girl group
formed by Pledis Entertainment
in 2009, with an admissions
and graduation concept. The
band consists of eight mem-
bers: JunguI, Jooyeon, Uee,
Raina, Nana, Lizzy, E-Young
and Kaeun.
U-KSS Is u boy bund Iormed
by NH MedIu In zoo8. TIeIr
name is an acronym, standing
Ior UbIquILous Koreun nLer-
national idol Super Star. The
group consists of Soohyun, Eli,
KIseop, KevIn, Hoon und AJ.
ZE:A, also known as Children
A
f
t
e
r

S
c
h
o
o
l
U

K
I
S
S
Z
E
:
A
S
i
s
t
a
r
of Empire, is a South Korean
9-member boy band formed
under Star Empire Entertain-
ment. The group debuted on
KBSs Music Bank in 2010.
The security measures will
be tightened for the occasion,
LIe orgunIser suId. TIe IesLIvuI
tickets will be sold at shopping
centres in Yangon from the
third week of January.
Myanmar and South Korea
Iuve been cooperuLIng In LIe
sector of culture with Korean
hIm week LukIng pIuce In Myun-
mar annually since 2006.
A South Korean speech
contest is also held annually to
encourage Myanmar people to
study the East Asian countrys
Iunguuge. n November zo1z,
SouLI Koreu Week ucLIvILIes
were launched in Yangon partly
to boost business relationship
between the two countries.