February 20-26, 2014

Myanmar Business Today

mmbiztoday.com
mmbiztoday.com February 20-26, 2014 | Vol 2, Issue 8 MYANMARS FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 6...(Myanma Airways)
Myanma Airways Signs Nearly
$1-b Aircraft Leasing Deal
S
tate-owned My-
anma Airways has
agreed to lease 10
new Boeing 737 jets from
the worlds biggest leasing
company GE Capital Avi-
ation Services (GECAS),
marking the largest single
eeL expunsIon In Myun-
mar.
Myanma Airways (MA),
Myunmur`s ug currIer,
wIII Ieuse sIx ;;-8oo und
Iour ;;-8MAX sIngIe-
aisle jets, according to a
joint statement from the
hrms.
GECAS, the commercial
aircraft-leasing arm of
US-based General Elec-
tric Co, said the deal had a
list price of $960 million
and the aircraft will be
delivered through 2020.
TIe hrsL pIune wIII be de-
livered in June 2015 and
Is purL oI un exIsLIng order
by GECAS.
Leasing companies rent
uIrcruIL Lo uIrIInes In ex-
change for a monthly fee.
Each 737 aircraft is worth
about $90 million at list
prices when ordered di-
rectly from planemaker
Boeing.
Kyaw Min MA will work with GE-
CAS to develop and up-
grude ILs uIrIIne eeL und
expund rouLes InLo key
markets in the region, of-
hcIuIs Irom Myunmu AIr-
ways told a news confer-
ence on the sidelines of
2014 Singapore Air Show.
Myanma Airways,
which has suspended in-
ternational operations
since 1993, is now going to
re-enter the international
market with the support
of our good friend and
partner GECAS, Minis-
ter for Transportation U
Nyan Htun Aung said.
We hope that we could
become well known again
to international air travel-
lers.
TIe currIer pIuns Lo ex-
pand its international
routes to Japan and South
Korea. Currently, its only
exLernuI IgIL Is Lo Bud-
dhist pilgrim destination
Gaya in India.
We are delighted to
work with GECAS to de-
velop and upgrade our
uIrIIne eeL und expund
routes into key markets in
the region, said Captain
Contd. P 6...(Myanma Airways)
Germany Waives Half a Billion
Euro of Myanmars Debt
G
ermany has signed
an agreement to
slash more than
half a billion euro in debt
owed by Myanmar, in line
with a debt forgiveness
agreement the Southeast
Asian nation made a year
ago with the Paris Club,
a group of creditor coun-
tries.
The agreement was
signed on February 10 in
Myanmars capital Nay
Pyi Taw, during a state
Phyu Thit Lwin visit by German President
JoucIIm Guuck, LIe hrsL
by a German head of state
in 26 years, state-run me-
dia reported.
The remaining debt of
542 million ($741 mil-
IIon) ouL oI C1.o8q bIIIIon
($1.q8 bIIIIon) Is Lo be re-
paid with a three percent
interest within a period of
15 years, according to the
agreement.
Myanmar negotiated
the deal a year ago with
German President Joachim Gauck gives a speech at Yangon University.
S
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Contd. P 6...(Cermany \aives) Contd. P 6...(Cermany \aives)
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
2
LOCAL BIZ
MYANMARS FIRST BILINGUAL BUSINESS JOURNAL
Board of Editors
Editor-in-Chief - Sherpa Hossainy
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Reporters & Writers
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Phyu Thit Lwin, Htet Aung,
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DTP
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Translators
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Advertising
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Email
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Phone
Editor - 09 42 110 8150
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Publisher
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Par li ament calls for nuclear ener gy to cope
wi th chr oni c power shor tage
TIe PubIIc AuIrs CommILLee oI LIe UnIon PurIIu-
ment last week urged the government to generate nu-
cIeur-powered eIecLrIcILy Lo suppIy sum cIenLIy LIrougI-
out the country, local media reported.
Mgonmor set to nome oshore uinners
The Myanmar government will announce the win-
ners bIddIng Ior o new energy expIoruLIon osIore
blocks this month, a senior Energy Ministry has said.
'We are nearly at 100 percent evaluation of the 2013
osIore bIddIng round und wIII unnounce LIe resuILs
in February,' Win Maw, the deputy director general of
pIunnIng, LoId PIuLLs, u US-bused energy unuIysL hrm.
BuL LIe om cIuI suId conLrucLs on producLIon sIurIng
with the bid winners could take months before they are
reudy Ior sIgnIng, IL udded. Myunmur Ius LIree osIore
heIds - Yudunu, YeLugun und SIwe.
Myanmar i mpor ts 90pc of medi ci ne r equi r e-
ments
Myanmar has to import 90 percent of the medicine
required for its population of over 60 million, the Kum-
udru JournuI reporLed, cILIng om cIuIs. No IoreIgn Inves-
tor has shown interest in manufacturing medicines in
the country.
Mar ubeni Cor p plans to bui ld fer ti li ser fac-
tor y i n Myanmar
MurubenI Corp, one oI Jupun`s IurgesL LrudIng hrms,
Ius pIunned Lo expund ILs busInesses In Myunmur In-
cluding construction of a chemical fertiliser factory,
local media reported. A team led by Tetsuro Terasaka,
generuI munuger uL MurubenI`s represenLuLIve om ce In
Yangon, reportedly met with Win Tun, union minis-
ter for Environmental Conservation and Forestry, and
Aung NuIng Oo, dIrecLor generuI uL LIe DIrecLoruLe oI
Investment and Company Administration, in Nay Pyi
Taw recently.
1ndio to Assist in Mondolog repnerg upgrode
MunduIuy`s MunnLunpuyurkun oII rehnery wIII be up-
graded with aid from India and will produce 92 Ron
(unleaded gasoline), a Myanma Petrochemical Enter-
prise source was quoted as saying in local media. My-
unmur Ius Lwo more oII rehnerIes besIdes MunnLunpu-
yarkan Thanlyin and Chauk.
Myanmar to send wor ker s to Tai wan
Om cIuIs Irom Myunmur und TuIwun ure LuIkIng ubouL
permitting Myanmar workers to move to Taiwans manu-
IucLurIng secLor, IocuI medIu reporLed, cILIng senIor om -
cials from the Federation of Myanmar Overseas Employ-
ment Agencies. If all goes well, workers from Myanmar
will be sent to Taiwan after May, the report added.
Myanmar to i mpor t mi ni car s thr ough bor der
gates
Myanmar will soon allow imports of minicars, which
have less than 1,000cc engine power, through border
gates, local media reported Commerce Minister Win
Myint as saying in Tamu Town, on Indian Border, re-
cently.
GI Z to assi st Myanmar banks
The German Agency for International Cooperation
(GIZ) will assist three Myanmar private banks in terms
oI hnuncIuI LecInIques Ior LIe deveIopmenL oI counLry`s
small and medium-sized enterprises. Under the gov-
ernment to government aid program, GIZ will provide
LIe hnuncIuI LecInIques Lo SmuII und MedIum EnLer-
prIses DeveIopmenL Bunk, Kunbuwzu Bunk und Yomu
Bank. The aid program will run from March 2014 to
September 2015.
I ndi a, Myanmar , Thai land r oad pr oj ect at
feasi bi li ty stage
A feasibility report is being prepared for the proposed
highway to connect India with neighbouring Myanmar
and Thailand, an Indian minister said. Presently, pro-
jects are at feasibility-report stage, Minister of State for
Road, Transport and Highways, Sarvey Sathyanaraya-
na, told the Indian parliament, Indian media reported.
India agreed to undertake upgradation of the Kalewa-
Yagyi section of trilateral highway and construction of
71 bridges in the Tamu-Kalea section, Sathyanarayana
said.
Business News in Brief
Myanmar Summary
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
3
LOCAL BIZ
Myanmar Summary
APR Energy Clinches Myanmar
Power Contract
U
S-based APR Energy
has landed a contract
to build a fast-track
100-megawatt power plant in
upper Myanmar, becoming the
hrsL AmerIcun compuny Lo sIgn
a power generation agreement
with the government since the
lifting of sanctions in 2013.
The facility will provide the
Myanmar Electric Power Enter-
prise (MEPE) with a guaran-
Leed mInImum oI 8z meguwuLLs
(MW) of power generation,
with plant capacity to deliver up
to 100MW, APR Energy said in
a statement.
The products we have are
ideally suited to the needs of
Myanmars power market. We
plan to work with the ministry
to provide solutions for fur-
ther power needs within the
country, Clive Turton, APR
Energys head of business de-
veIopmenL, AsIu PucIhc, LoId
Myanmar Business Today in a
phone interview.
Based in Kyaukse in Man-
dalay region, the plant will be
run by natural gas, supplied
through the Chinese-built Shwe
gas pipeline, which runs from
Myanmars Rakhine state to
Chinas Yunan province.
The key deliverable of APR is
... to deliver gas power genera-
tors in a very short time. Myan-
mar is unique in that sense that
it has indigenous gas that can
be used for power generation,
Turton said.
The company said the plant
Sherpa Hossainy will be one of the largest ther-
mal plants in the country and
will provide power to more than
sIx mIIIIon peopIe, In u coun-
try where about 70 percent of
the population has no access
to electricity, according to the
World Bank.
The contract, which is on a
rental basis, is due to start in
the second quarter of 2014 and
Is expecLed Lo run LIrougI Lo
late 2015, Turton said, declin-
ing to mention how much in-
vestment APR will make to in-
stall the power plant.
Turton said: From APRs
point of view Myanmar is a key
market. We are very keen to
develop our businesses in the
market and we will be looking
forward to making a lot of in-
vestments in this country in this
particular sector.
Theres a growing demand
for more power in the country
und u Iow eIecLrIhcuLIon ruLe.
So, we are looking at more po-
tential projects and we believe
that our products are ideal to
address the demand.
APR said its turnkey plant,
featuring mobile gas power
modules (GPMs), will be one
of the cleanest power genera-
tion solutions in Myanmar and
wIII represenL u sIgnIhcunL In-
vestment in the infrastructure
of the country.
APR Energy will provide a
bridging solution for the me-
dium term while the country
develops its long-term power
generation infrastructure, the
company said in a release.
The power solutions provider
said it won the contract due to
its ability to deliver to a very
challenging timeframe, as well
us Ior LIe em cIency oI APR`s
power generation technology.
We are delighted to have won
this contract, based on our abil-
ity to optimise the use of natural
gus resources In u IusL, em cIenL,
und eecLIve munner, suId
John Campion, APR Energys
cIIeI execuLIve om cer.
This contract will create one
of the biggest thermal plants in
the country ... Together with our
recent installation of 130MW of
new power generation in Indo-
nesia, the Myanmar project is a
greuL exumpIe oI LIe reuI Lruc-
tion we are seeing in the Asia
PucIhc regIon sInce openIng our
Malaysia hub and Singapore
commercIuI om ce.
Derek MILcIeII, AmerIcun um-
bassador to Myanmar, said in a
statement that doing business
in an emerging market econo-
my does not come without its
challenges, including the need
to implement key economic
reform policies, address infra-
structure challenges, and make
sure uII benehL Irom LIe coun-
trys economic potential.
We ure conhdenL LIuL AmerI-
cun busInesses, wILI LIeIr ex-
perience and commitment to
principled and transparent ap-
proaches, will make a tangible
conLrIbuLIon Lo LIese eorLs.
~..q~,~._..~ APR Energy
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~ Myanmar Business Today -
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An APR Energy project site in Peru.
A
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Myanmar Uses Intl Gold
Standard for The First Time
M
yunmur om cIuIs un-
nounced last week that
Ior LIe hrsL LIme IL wIII
use international measurement
standards to issue gold bars,
adding that the change will fur-
ther open their countrys gold
market to the outside world.
Myanmar will start selling
gold with 99.99 percent purity
in the international unit, gram,
instead of local unit "tical".
Myanmar is awash in a variety
of minerals but has kept itself
relatively closed to the global
gold market as it was using dif-
IerenL goId exLrucLIng und purI-
fying standards as well as local
measurement units. The coun-
Feng Xin try also restricted how much
gold foreigners could buy.
Only after people in Myan-
mar become familiar with and
understand such a standard,
can the gold produced in Myan-
mar be sold in the international
market. After a period of pro-
motion, more than 60 million
Myanmar people will be able to
use the standard, and then we
can adapt and enter the inter-
national market, said U Khin
Maung Han of Myanmar Fed-
eration of Mining Association.
TIe end Lo Myunmur`s exporL
ban on selected minerals such
as gold wont happen in just
one day, though. A 1994 law re-
Contd. P 24...(Cold Standard) Contd. P 24...(Cold Standard)
Myanmar Summary
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
4
Gas Pipeline Has No Environmental
Impuct: Om ciul
T
here would be no envi-
ronmental impacts of the
natural gas pipelines in
Myanmar, a high ranking en-
ergy om cIuI suId.
DepuLy MInIsLer Ior Energy U
Aung Htoo made the remarks at
the ongoing session of the par-
liaments Lower House in Nay
Pyi Taw recently in response to
a question about public safety
concern over possible leak of
the natural gas pipelines laid in
the country.
Supervisory control and data
Htet Aung ucquIsILIon (SCADA) wus In-
stalled to tackle the possible
leak problem as quick as possi-
ble, he told the parliament.
With foreign investment, sev-
eral natural gas pipelines has
been laid and are being laid in
Myanmar including Myanmar-
Thai and Myanmar-China gas
pipelines as well as domestic
ones.
Myanmar Summary
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Myanmars Border Trade Hits $4b in 10 Months
Aye Myat
M
yanmars border trade
hit $4.01 billion in
LIe hrsL 1o monLIs oI
(April-January) in the current
zo1-1q hscuI yeur, uccordIng
Lo om cIuI hgures.
Myanmars border trade is
done through 14 points with
four neighbouring countries
China, Thailand, Bangladesh
and India.
Myanmars largest border
trade point with China, Muse,
accounted for $3.12 billion dur-
ing the same period, accounting
for more than 77 percent of the
total border trade volume.
Lewjie, Chin Shwe Haw and
Kanbiketee stand are the other
trade points with China, while
Tachileik, Myawady, Kaw-
thaung, Myeik, Nabule, Htikhee
and Mawtaung are with Thai-
land, Sittway and Maungtaw
are with Bangladesh and Tamu
and Reed border points are
with India.
According to official statis-
tics, as of September 2013,
Myanmar Summary
People protest against the Chinese gas pipeline in Myanmar.
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Myanmars foreign trade to-
talled $15.27 billion, of which
exporL sLood uL $;.q bIIIIon
and import accounted for
$;.8q bIIIIon.
A Thai-Myanmar border checkpoint.
F
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s
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
5
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 12...(\anbao) Contd. P 12...(\anbao)
Building Trust: Redemption for
Chinas Wanbao Mining
Wang Xinyuan
T
hrough a com-
bination of land
compensation and
corporate social respon-
sibility activities, the op-
erator of one of Chinas
largest investments in
Myanmar hopes to re-
commence operations
after a years delays and
wrangling.
Dong YunIeI, u munuger
at the Yangon branch of
Wanbao Mining, the Chi-
nese State-owned com-
pany that operates the
Letpadaung copper mine,
wrote in an e-mail to the
Global Times that the
compuny wIII puy exLru
subsidies ranging from
K300,000 to 1.2 million
($300-$1,200) for an acre
of land to farmers who
make way for the project,
based on the instructions
of the Myanmar govern-
ment.
This is the companys
LIIrd compensuLIon oer.
With joint investment
from Wanbaos partner
the Myanmar military-
backed Union of Myan-
mar Economic Holdings
Ltd (UMEHL), the project
requires relocating 442
households from four vil-
lages with land compen-
sation for residents of 26
villages.
Wanbao Mining has
previously assisted in re-
locating people to new
villages, rebuilt a monas-
tery and roads, funded a
hospital and four kinder-
gartens. Boasting inter-
national standards of en-
vironmental protection,
Wunbuo Ius uIso oered
2,000 jobs to villagers.
Wunbuo oered vIIIug-
ers K550,000 ($550) in
2011 for an acre of land,
and paid additional sub-
sidies between K700,000
and 1.25 million for an
acre in June 2013.
About 40 percent of vil-
lagers refused compensa-
tion, the company said.
Even though the pro-
ject has resumed, we
have no way to proceed
due to the land issue,
said Zhuang Yongquan,
an engineer at Myanmar
Wanbao Mining Copper,
standing atop a red rock
mountain and pointing
across plains dotted with
trees and farmland.
With an annual capacity
of 100,000 tonnes of cath-
ode copper on a planned
ureu oI ;,8;; ucres (z
square kilometres), the
mine is located in the Mo-
nywa copper mining area
of northern Myanmars
Sagaing region, about
three hours drive west of
Mandalay, the countrys
second-largest city.
U Hla Tun, minister
oI LIe PresIdenL`s Omce
who also chairs the im-
plementation committee
working for the govern-
ments Letpadaung in-
vestigation commission,
told the Global Times that
the committee had raised
compensation.
With increased com-
pensation, I think theres
a greater possibility that
villagers will take it, he
said.
The company and the
governmenL Iud mude ex-
LensIve eorLs Lo Improve
the livelihood of villagers,
Hla Tun said.
Before Wanbaos dona-
tion, villagers had neither
water nor electricity, but
now the company and the
government have helped
fund power and water
IucIIILIes Ior LIeIr benehL
and villagers really appre-
ciate it, he said.
I feel that the villag-
ers will trust us more as
time passes. We believe
strengthened communi-
cation will make the situ-
ation better over a period
of time.
Soci al r esponsi bi li ty
The former Myanmar
military junta approved
the Letpadaung project in
2010, with a total invest-
ment of $1.07 billion.
Myanmar then began
making its transition
from military rule to a
quasi-civilian democracy
led by President Thein
SeIn wIo Look omce In
March 2011.
In November 2012 the
project was halted by
demonstrations of villag-
ers supported by activ-
ists and some opposition
parties, protesting inad-
equate compensation and
potential environmental
damage.
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Myanmar pro-democracy Leader Aung San Suu Kyi comforts a woman at a village in Sarlingyi township.
People whose land was seized to allow the expansion of the copper mine in northwestern Myanmar
prompted protests that were crushed by police last year.
S
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
6
Myanmar Summary
From page ...(Myanma Aiways) From page ...(Myanma Aiways)
Than Tun, Myanma Air-
wuys MunugIng DIrecLor.
Our collaboration with
a leading multinational
US company like GE will
benehL LIe uIrIIne und LIe
economy of Myanmar.
EsLubIIsIed In 1qq8,
Myanma Airways cur-
rently connects major
local destinations in My-
anmar using 12 aircraft.
GECAS currently leases
two Embraer E190 air-
craft to MA. The airline
ew oo,ooo pussengers
last year, compared with
230,000 in 2010.
MA currently operates
the smaller Beechcraft
and Cessna plans, as well
us okker z8 jeLs und
ATR turboprops.
We are pleased at GE
to work with Myanma
Airways to provide new,
state-of-the-art Boeing
aircraft, said Norman CT
Liu, president and CEO
of GECAS. This is an im-
portant milestone for the
airline and for the devel-
opment of Myanmars
aviation industry.
Derek MILcIeII, US um-
bassador to Myanmar,
reportedly described the
agreement as the largest
commercial sale by a US
company to Myanmar in
decades.
It is an important mo-
ment for both our coun-
tries and I assume it will be
LIe hrsL oI muny sucI mo-
ments among American
businesses and Myanmar.
Mitchell has been a
strong supporter of GEs
recenL eorLs Lo enLer LIe
Myanmar market. In ad-
dition, GECAS AviaSolu-
tions consulting business
has signed a memoran-
dum of understanding
with the airline and will
work with its senior man-
agement to develop a
strategic growth plan for
the airline with a focus on
route and network devel-
opment.
GECAS Ius u eeL oI
over 1,620 owned and
serviced aircraft with over
230 airlines.
After years of isolation,
Myanmar is seen as one
of the last frontiers for
aviation in Asia, with pas-
senger numbers surging
as new airlines spring up
and foreign carriers rush
in.
However, there are
concerns about the lack
of infrastructure and the
counLry suers u poor
safety record.
Myanma Airways
grounded its three Chi-
nese-mude XIun MA6os
in 2012 after two of the
turboprop aircraft suf-
fered accidents on land-
ing within a month.
Japans biggest airline
All Nippon Airways last
year bought a 49 percent
stake in Myanmars Asian
Wings Airways.
the Paris Club, and Gauck
said Germany could go
ahead with its part of the
deal after meeting Presi-
dent Thein Sein.
A sustainable agree-
ment has been reached
allowing Germany to for-
give half a billion euro
of debt, Gauck said in a
speech at the University
of Yangon.
Myanmars government
said it had met the Paris
Club on Januasry 25,
and member countries
had agreed to cancel half
of the arrears Myanmar
owed them in two stages,
rescheduling the rest over
15 years, with seven years
grace.
Myanmar accumulated
$8.q bIIIIon In IoreIgn
debt during the socialist
regime of the late Gen-
eral Ne Win from 1962
Lo 1q88, und $z.61 bIIIIon
under the military junta
LIuL Look over In 1q88.
Last year, Japan agreed
to provide a bridge loan
to Myanmar to cover
outstanding debt to the
World Bank and the
AsIun DeveIopmenL Bunk,
totalling about $900 mil-
lion. Norway cancelled all
the $534 million owed to
it, while Japan cancelled
more than $3 billion,
adding up to $6 billion,
more than 60 percent of
the total debt, the govern-
ment said.
Following his meeting
with U Thein Sein, Gauck
From page ...(Cermany \aives)
met Parliament and Low-
er House Speaker U Shwe
Mann and opposition
leader and Chairperson
of National League for
Democrucy (ND) Duw
Aung San Suu Kyi. He
also inaugurated the Goe-
the Institute on February
11 in Yangon.
From page ...(Cermany \aives)
.,. ~ ,..|.q.,._~:. .q
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..._~:.~.,_e GECAS
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.:.q,..: . :.._ e .
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A Boeing 737 jetliner is pictured during a tour of the Boeing 737 assembly plant in Renton, Washington.
D
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.~:~ .e.e:~|q. ~~ q~
.,~ :.~..~ J oachim
Gauck ~ .~.~.q..
.... _. ._e. ._ .' . . ~~ .
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.e~~~:. .ee~...q,
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Thui LiIe Insorer to Open Myunmur Omce
Aye Myat
T
h a i l a n d - b a s e d
Muang Thai Life
Assurance Plc be-
cume LIe hrsL TIuI In-
surer to win a permit to
set up a representative
omce In Myunmur, wIIcI
boasts a large population
and a booming economy.
Myanmar authorities
granted the company a
permit last month, mak-
Ing IL LIe hILI IoreIgn
insurer to set foot in the
country.
or LIe hrsL LIme In
more than 50 years, the
state-owned Myanma
Insurance and the Insur-
ance Business Superviso-
ry Board (IBSB) has given
insurance companies con-
ditional approval to start
operating in the country.
Twelve companies met
the criteria set by the
IBSB and Myanma Insur-
ance.
Before the military gov-
ernment nationalised
many businesses in 1963,
70 local and foreign insur-
ance companies had been
operating in the country.
Only the government-
owned Myanma Insur-
ance Enterprise has since
remained in business.
Of the 12 approved com-
panies, three plan to of-
fer life insurance, which
requires paid-up capital
of K6 billion ($6.09 mil-
lion). The rest
planned to of-
fer life and gen-
eral insurance,
which requires
total capital
of K46 billion
($53 million).
We studied
the market for
a long time in
pr e pa r a t i on
for the ASE-
AN Economic
Communi t y,
which is due to begin in
late 2015. And now the
time is ripe to make the
big move. Thanks to re-
forms and abundant
natural resources, the
country has become the
darling of foreign inves-
tors. The country is also
forging ahead with sev-
eral large-scale projects,
said CEO and president
Sara Lamsam.
She said the company
is well prepared to start a
IuII-edged operuLIon In
Myanmar either through
a joint venture with a lo-
cuI hrm or u suIes omce
once it is allowed.
We will prepare our
infrastructure and build
our brand in Myanmar
and we will study other
neighbouring countries,
because we believe life in-
surance will prosper from
the coming of the AEC.
Myanmar is accelerat-
ing several infrastructure
projects apart from the
pIunned DuweI deep-seu
port and industrial estate.
They include oil and
natural gas pipelines link-
ing Myanmars port of
Kyaukphyu (Sittwe) in
the Bay of Bengal with
Kunming in Chinas Yun-
nan province, the Thilawa
Special Economic Zone,
and the planned highway
project linking the coun-
try with India and China.
Besides Myanmar,
Muang Thai Life is con-
ducting a feasibility study
to invest in other ASEAN
countries such as Laos,
Vietnam, Cambodia, In-
donesia and the Philip-
pines.
..~._..~ ~.~
~:.. . . , ._e. ._ Muang
Thai Life Insurance Plc
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.:.._. ....|. ~ .~:
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(IBSB) . ~:..~.~.:.
~:. _.,.:.~ ..,..:.
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. _.,.:~:....,.. .~
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
7
LOCAL BIZ
Myanmar Summary
German Industry and Commerce Delegation Launches in Myanmar
Kyaw Min
T
Ie DeIeguLIon oI
German Industry
and Commerce has
launched its operation
in Myanmar in a bid to
boost business and bilat-
eral ties between the two
countries.
TIe om ce wIII be co-
funded by the Association
of German Chambers of
Commerce and Industry
(DHK) und LIe Germun
Ministry of Economic
AuIrs und Energy, LIe
DeIeguLIon suId In u sLuLe-
ment.
The German Federal
President Joachim Gauck
on February 11 inaugu-
ruLed LIe DeIeguLIon Lo-
gether with Win Aung,
president of the Union of
Myanmar Federation of
Chambers of Commerce
and Industry (UMFCCI),
and Ludwig Georg Braun,
honorary president of
DHK.
Myanmar is in a pro-
cess of catching up, said
Braun. In order to stand
its ground in regional
competition broad activi-
LIes In quuIIhcuLIon und
concepts for productive
value chains will be key.
DeveIopIng un enLrepre-
neurial infrastructure is
essential in this respect.
German companies can
make a very valuable con-
tribution here.
He said Germany is the
most important supply-
ing country from within
the European Union, but
while there is room for
development in bilateral
trade and investment
activities, he sees huge
potential for bilateral
business relations and
encouraged taking a long-
term perspective.
German products and
technologies traditionally
enjoy high esteem in My-
anmar. And I can see that
our approach based on
partnership and patience
is much appreciated as
well, Braun said.
He said further develop-
ment of the Myanmar pri-
vate sector would be an-
other worthwhile topic
for bilateral dialogue.
The whole of Asia en-
vIes our em cIenL und pro-
ductive SME structures.
Their success relies on the
close cooperation with the
big multinational corpo-
rations and a consequent
focus on competition
based free enterprise sys-
tem. In Myanmar as well
this concept might be a
good basis for sustainable
development.
Monika Staerk, who
has been following de-
velopments in Myanmar
and supported German
business activities since
2003, will head the Ger-
man Chamber operation
us u DeIeguLe oI Germun
Industry and Commerce.
The launching took
place during a bilateral
a business forum with
more than 150 German
business representatives
attending in the UMFCCI
headquarters.
German businesses
want to support and
participate in economic
growth potentials, based
on Myanmars geostrate-
gic position and its wealth
in natural resources. For
these potentials to de-
ploy, infrastructure and
energy supply will need
to be developed further
with German business be-
ing in a good position to
make sustainable contri-
buLIons, LIe DeIeguLIon
said in a statement.
The forum was also
attended by Brigitte
Zypries, state secretary,
Federal Ministry for Eco-
nomIc AuIrs und Energy,
and U Soe Thein, union
minister for the Presi-
denL`s Om ce.
Zypries said she will
personally push for an
investment protection
deal between the Europe-
an Union and Myanmar
in a bid to attract more
foreign investors to the
formerly-reclusive South-
eusL AsIun sLuLe. DeveIop-
ing the legal framework
and forming strong un-
ions are necessary for
Myanmars economic de-
velopment, she added.
TIe UMCC und DHK
later issued a joint state-
menL reconhrmIng LIeIr
willingness to intensify
dialogue and coopera-
tion through further busi-
ness forums and targeted
platforms for business to
busIness excIunge.
The statement said that
both sides will continue to
jointly work on promot-
ing and further develop-
ing the spirit of partner-
ship and trust, aiming at
muLuuI benehL.
Both sides were aware
that promoting foreign
direct investment will
be a key for economic
development and social
stability in Myanmar,
the statement said, add-
ing that development of
infrastructure and power
supply will be a prerequi-
site for this.
Cerman President ]oachim Cauck gives a speech at the rst Myanmar-Cerman Business Forum in Yan-
gon.
K
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
8
Contd. P 24...(Log Lxport) Contd. P 24...(Log Lxport)
India Needs to Pay Close Attention to
Myanmar Trade
AK Ramdas
M
yanmar and India are
neighbours, and have
a 1,640 kilometre long
border with Myanmar along
with Indias eastern states, with
Mizoram being the closest to
them. As against this, Pakistan
und ndIu sIure u 1,8oo km bor-
der.
Indias relations with My-
anmar have had their ups and
downs and presently, the atmos-
phere is improving, thankfully,
for the better. China, on the
other hand, is fully entrenched
in Myanmar, and has booming
trade relations with them. India
need to make its presence felt in
as many areas as possible, and
its current trade with Myanmar
Is ubouL $1.8; bIIIIon. TIIs cun
be increased.
In the recent times, not long
ugo In December, unIIuLeruIIy,
Myanmar closed its land bor-
der at International Gate Nos
I & II with India and there was
an organised rally where local
people claimed that India was
not honouring its international
boundary. As usual, it had to be
handled with care by the Union
Home Minister.
Indias trade and related pro-
ject developments in Myanmar
have been slow but this could
have been increased manifold,
if only the Indian government
had regularly sponsored trade
delegations and had held India
international trade fairs in that
country. Indians would rather
take a holiday to other parts in
the near east, but shudder to
think of Yangon to visit.
Trade development can take
place when India has regular
ships sailing between the two
countries. At present, only when
there are ship loads available,
un exporLer cun sIIp Lo Yun-
gon. Myanmar has three ports
und LIese cun IundIe 8oo,ooo
TEUs (twenty feet equiva-
lent units) annually. But India
doesnt have a regular container
vessel to carry its cargo.
AILer u IoL oI eorLs, IL up-
pears now, that the Shipping
Corporation of India (SCI), a
government undertaking, has
volunteered to make available a
vessel that can carry 1500 TEUs
provided the Union govern-
ment can give them a subsidy
oI Rso crore ($q.8 mIIIIon) un-
nually! If there are regular sail-
ings, there is no doubt that this
can increase to 36,000 TEUs
over a period of time. Shipping
Corps container vessel, if made
available, under this condition,
can cover Chennai, Yangoon
and Colombo; and if there is ad-
equate cargo, they can berth at
Krishnapatnam also.
The point at stake is, should
the government accede to their
demand and give them an an-
nual subsidy of Rs30 crore? SCI
has made this demand, as they
are already a loss making con-
cern, and if regular cargo was
not available to the above ports,
their loss will only mount. In-
dias stake in Myanmar is too
important and large; the gov-
ernment must not dilly-dally
on LIIs Issue, und conhrm LIeIr
willingness to subsidise the
sailings to Yangon and back. In
fact, they could include other
ports such as Sittwe also, which
Is under expunsIon, II Myunmur
has no objection.
Right now, Essar Projects Ltd,
a construction contractor from
ndIu, Is execuLIng LIe porL-
cum-inland waterway and is
building the Sittwe port and a
jetty at Paletwa, besides being
InvoIved In dredgIng LIe 18km
of the river Kaladan, between
these two points, to make it
more navigable than it is today.
Essar hopes to complete this
project by June this year, and
wIII uIso suppIy sIx curgo ves-
sels.
Whats important to note is
that from the jetty at Paletwa,
Mizoram border is only
109.2kms away, though another
250km highway would be need-
ed to connect it to Aizwal, the
capital. It is imperative that no
time is lost in calling for tenders
to build this. No purpose will
be really achieved if there is no
road communication, of inter-
national standard, to transport
the goods either way. Many of
the Myanmar highways have
been built by the Chinese.
Myanmar, Bangladesh and Sri
Lanka are important and close
friends for India, who have to be
handled with care. There can be
great trade among all the three.
As India now discusses the is-
sues with Myanmar, which has
oLIer nuLuruI resources Lo oer,
it must move seriously in public
relations campaigns in all the
three countries; and promote
trade by conducting fairs that
can display products and ser-
vices.
India must remember that
China is breathing down its
neck in Myanmar, all because it
has so far neglected to take seri-
ous interest in this country.
AK Ramdas has worked with
the Engineering Export Pro-
motion Council of Indias Min-
istry of Commerce. He was
also associated with various
committees of the Council. His
international career took him
to places like Beirut, Kuwait
and Dubai at a time when these
were small trading outposts;
and later to the US.
Myanmar Summary
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Iabourers from Myanmar II sacks with charcoaI they brought from Myanmar to seII after crossing the Indo-Myanmar border
bridge at the border town of Moreh, in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur.
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Myanmar: Transactions After
The Log Export Ban
Htet Aung
M
yunmur`s Iog exporL
ban is set to begin im-
mediately as the 2014-
1 hnuncIuI yeur begIns, wIIcI
will be midnight on the March
31. It is understood that at this
time all loading of logs bound
Ior exporL wIII be IuILed.
Myanmar Timber Enterprise
(MTE) issued a statement on
pre und posL Iog exporL bun pro-
cedures recently.
BeIore LIe Iog exporL bun, puy-
ment for log shipments must be
mude ebruury z8 und IoudIng
of vessels must be concluded
before March 31, the statement
said.
Buyers having outstanding
balances on purchase contracts
may conclude purchases at con-
tracted FOB prices provided the
logs are processed inside the
country. In this case payments
are to be made in full before
June 30.
From July 1, all remaining un-
sIIppedJunpuId Iogs under ex-
isting contracts will become the
property of the MTE and sold
by open tender, MTE said.
The Enterprise said after
March 31 industrial raw logs
will be sold by open tender to
sawmills and factories operat-
ing under Myanmar Investment
Myanmar Summary
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
9
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 10...(Yingluck) Contd. P 10...(Yingluck)
Myanmar Smugglers Get Rich on Yinglucks
13 Billion Rice Subsidies
A populist subsidy on rice by Tailands ruling party is enabling smugglers from neighbouring Myanmar to make a quick buck at
the expense of Tai taxpayers
David Eimer
F
or the rice smugglers of
Myawaddy, business has
never been better.
A scrappy, dusty Burmese
border town, Myawaddy has
long been notorious as an illicit
trading hub for drugs, guns and
precious gems.
Now, Myawaddy has become
u cenLre Ior LIe LrumckIng oI
a more nutritious but scarcely
Iess prohLubIe producL, us rIce
smugglers take advantage of
the substantially higher grain
prIces on oer In neIgIbourIng
Thailand.
In Myawaddy, 50 kilos of rice
sells for 16. But in Thailand,
the same amount is worth 30,
a consequence of the ruling
Pheu Thai Partys controversial
subsidies to the rice farmers
who make up much of its sup-
port base.
Known as the rice-pledging
scheme, the populist policy has
cost the government more than
13 billion, prompting the IMF
to warn that the scheme is un-
dermining the economy.
But the rice subsidies are
also a huge source of anger
among the largely middle-class
anti-government protesters
who have taken to the streets
of Bangkok to try and topple
Prime Minister Yingluck Shi-
nawatra and her Pheu Thai par-
ty from power.
They allege that not only has
Luxpuyers` money been squun-
dered to buy votes for Pheu
Thai, but that millions has dis-
appeared into the pockets of the
poIILIcIuns und omcIuIs oversee-
ing the scheme.
Last month, Thailands Na-
tional Anti-Corruption Com-
mission (NACC) announced
a probe into the rice-pledging
policy, only adding to the pres-
sure Yingluck is under.
The prime minister was
forced to call a snap election
that took place on February 2
which was boycotted and la-
belled as illegitimate by the op-
position in a failed attempt to
end the political crisis gripping
Thailand. Results are yet to be
announced. Yinglucks role as
head of the national rice com-
mittee means she could face
criminal charges arising from
the NACCs investigation.
The commission is ready to
charge 15 other people, includ-
ing a former commerce minis-
ter, with corruption linked to
the rice programme, spokes-
man Vicha Mahakun told a
news conference.
This month, China ditched a
huge rice deal to buy 1.2 million
tonnes of rice from Thailand,
uround u hILI oI LIe counLry`s
unnuuI exporLs, due Lo uncer-
tainty over its agricultural sec-
tor.
While the subsidies have
played a major part in causing
LIe LurmoII enguIhng LIe TIuI
cupILuI, Ior LIe rIce Lrumckers
the policy has resulted in huge
gains.
Boats loaded with what the
smugglers coyly describe as
chicken feed travel daily
across the narrow stretch of
the Moei River that separates
Myawaddy in Burma from the
neighbouring Thai town of Mae
Sot.
On the outskirts of Myawad-
dy, The Telegraph watched as
lorries pulled into a compound
close to the river bank guarded
by Burmese soldiers. Sacks of
rice were swiftly unloaded and
transferred to waiting boats.
We started sending chicken
feed to Thailand in big quanti-
ties a couple of years ago, said
LIe omcer In cIurge oI LIe soI-
diers. Its transported mostly
at night. Generally, well send
100 sacks at a time.
Each sack is 50 kilos.
Some enterprising individu-
als sling sacks of rice on their
backs and simply wade across
the Moei River.
It is the equivalent of smug-
gling tea into China, or opium
to Afghanistan, because until
2012 Thailand was the worlds
IurgesL rIce exporLer.
That began to change follow-
ing the governments decision
in October 2011 to pay almost
double the market price for rice
to farmers. The policy was con-
ceived as a reward for the rural
voters who make up much of
the ruling partys power base.
But it was also a highly am-
bitious attempt to corner the
global market in rice, with the
government gambling on stock-
piling vast amounts of grain it
couId IuLer seII uL u Iuge prohL.
The scheme, though, has in-
sLeud buckhred In specLucuIur
fashion. A worldwide slump in
rice prices means that the gov-
ernment has spent almost 13.5
billion buying rice it is unable
Lo seII uL u prohL, IeuvIng IL wILI
u vusL mounLuIn - 18 mIIIIon
tons of unsold grain, nearly as
much as the country produces
in a year.
Meanwhile India and Viet-
nam have now overtaken Thai-
land as the worlds leading rice
exporLers.
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Workers at the Udon Permsin rice mill pile up sacks full of rice to for storage in the northeast province of Udon Thani, Thai-
land.
N
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
10
From page j...(Yingluck)
From page j...(Yingluck)
And with prices for rice far
higher than in neighbouring
countries, up to 750,000 tons
of rice is being smuggled into
Thailand annually, where it
Is pussed o us IocuIIy-grown
grain so that it can be sold to
LIe governmenL uL LIe urLIhcIuI
price.
The government is running
InLo serIous hnuncIuI Lrou-
ble from the scheme, said
Dr NIpon Puupongsukorn, un
economIsL uL LIe TIuIIund De-
velopment Research Institute
who has made a study of the
subsidy policy.
Rice isnt like wine; you cant
keep it forever. The longer
the government stockpiles it,
the more it will depreciate in
value. With the average sal-
ary in Myawaddy just 2.50 a
day, there is plenty of incentive
for people to smuggle rice: a
42-year-old smuggler, who gave
his name as Brother Tone said
he could earn up to 60 a day,
almost 25 times as much.
Nor do the smugglers have to
worry about getting caught. As
long as you have permission
from the army and pay the right
people, its no problem. No one
goes to prison for this in Bur-
ma, said Tone.
SLoppIng LIe smuggIed ow
is a near impossible task for
the Thai authorities. We have
q omcIuIs Lo cover uImosL qo
miles of the border, said Supa-
chai Sasomboon, deputy direc-
tor of the Mae Sot customs post.
So its very hard to police the
border.
Thailands economy is now
under mounting pressure from
boLI LIe Inux oI smuggIed
grain and the spiralling costs of
the rice-pledging scheme itself.
The credit agency Moodys
has already warned that it could
lead to Thailands rating being
downgraded.
Worse still for Yingluck, the
policy has come to symbolise
what the anti-government pro-
testers regard as Pheu Thais
abuse of power.
People see rice-smuggling
us u vIcLImIess crIme, suId Dr
NIpon. BuL IL`s LIe TIuI Lux-
puyers wIo ure suerIng.
The Telegraph
Bangladeshi PM to Attend
BIMSTEC Summit in Myanmar
B
angladeshi Prime Minis-
Ler SIeIkI HusInu wIII y
to Myanmar on March 1
to attend the third Bay of Ben-
gal Initiative for Multi-sectoral
Technical and Economic Coop-
eration (BIMSTEC) Summit to
be hosted by Myanmar, sources
In LIe prIme mInIsLer omce suId.
The seven-nation economic
forum groups Bangladesh, My-
anmar, India, Thailand, Nepal,
Bhutan and Afghanistan and
the summit is slated for March
1-4 in Nay Pyi Taw.
The sources said Sheikh Hasi-
na will hold a meeting with In-
dian Prime Minister Manmo-
han Singh on the sidelines of
the summit.
The group earlier decided that
DIuku wIII IosL LIe secreLurIuL
of the economic forum.
TIIs wIII be LIe hrsL vIsIL oI
Hasina to a foreign country af-
ter she became Prime Minister
for the third time after winning
the parliamentary election on
January 5 this year.
The First and Second BIM-
STEC Summits were held in
Thailand in 2004 and India in
zoo8. Myunmur ussumed BM-
STEC Chair in 2009. Xinhua
Myanmar Summary
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for Multi-sectoral Technicaland
Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)
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2C2P Launches POS Service with
Visa and MasterCard
Su Su
2
C2P, a Singapore-based
payment solutions pro-
vider, launched a complete
point of sale (POS) service in
Myanmar in partnership with
local bank Myanmar Citizens
Bank (MCB).
The service enables merchants
in Myanmar to accept major in-
ternational payment cards from
both Visa and MasterCard.
The POS system will also come
with online real time reports,
slips with merchant logos, and
pre-authorisation for call centre
sales, the company said.
Such services are still new in
Myunmur. MusLerCurd hrsL In-
troduced a POS service to the
country in March of last year
by partnering with local banks.
VIsu uIso roIIed ouL ILs hrsL POS
service in Myanmar at around
the same time.
The companys move was
hinted at when the founder and
group CEO shared with Tech
in Asia that the company had
raised $2 million in Series B
Contd. P j...(zCzP)
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
11
Myanmar Summary
British Professor with The Same Name As A Myanmar
Heroin Kingpin: Banks Keep Getting Confused
Jamila Trindle
T
he US sanctions black-
list is meant to stop ter-
rorists, drug lords, and
weapons traders from getting
access to their money. Unfortu-
nately, it also ensnares a lot of
people who just happen to have
the same name as one of those
alleged criminals. Professor
Stephen Law, who shares the
name of a prominent Burmese
heroin dealer, has discovered
LIuL hrsLIund.
The British Stephen Law is
a soft-spoken professor at the
University of London where he
has taught philosophy for 17
years and plays the drums in a
bund cuIIed TIe Heuvy DexLers.
Hes also the author of books like
Believing Bullshit: How Not to
Get Sucked Into an Intellectual
Black Hole. The Burmese one
is a wealthy drug kingpin who
was sanctioned by the Treasury
DepurLmenL In zoo8 und uguIn
in 2010 because of his ties to the
countrys ruling junta. Treasury
omcIuIs suId uw`s compuny,
Asia World, received lucrative
government construction con-
tracts because of his close ties
to the regime. The second Law
uses several aliases and is be-
lieved to split his time between
Myanmar and Singapore.
The two Laws have little in
common excepL LIeIr nume,
and the fact that it appears on
LIe Treusury DepurLmenL sunc-
tions list has hit each of them
hard. The British Law said
that bank transfers from Eu-
rope take weeks to get to him
and that packages from abroad
often fail to arrive. When an
American friend sent him a
drum, it was held up at customs
and then sent back to the Unit-
ed States. When he asked his
bank why a travel reimburse-
ment from Austria was held up,
they wouldnt tell him.
Ive been having these prob-
lems for years but I never un-
derstood what it was or why
it was happening to me, Law
said.
Law, who describes himself
as a fairly well-known atheist
In LIe UK, hrsL LIougIL IIs re-
ligious views might have some-
how landed him in hot water.
But then someone on Twitter
uIerLed IIm Lo LIe Treusury De-
partment list, which includes
the name Stephen Law.
Law recently wrote a letter
Lo LIe Treusury DepurLmenL
complaining about his prob-
lems accessing his own money
or receiving gifts from abroad,
but the department has yet to
respond or take steps to ensure
he isnt confused with the Bur-
mese Law.
The British Laws troubles
are the inadvertent byproducts
of the US governments ongo-
Ing pusI Lo cuL o uIIeged drug
kingpins, war criminals, and
nuclear weapons proliferators
Irom LIe InLernuLIonuI hnun-
cial system. Washington uses
targeted sanctions to single out
individuals and companies and
make it illegal for US banks
and companies to interact with
them. While broad trade em-
bargoes against countries like
Cuba havent worked, freez-
ing the assets of individuals
has proven a successful tool
for pressuring them into doing
what the US government wants,
whether thats ending support
for terrorists or giving up ties to
nurcoLIcs LrumckIng.
WIen LIe Treusury DepurL-
ment adds a new name to the
list, it issues a press release
that includes their reason for
the new designation. Banks and
companies are responsible for
making sure they dont do busi-
ness with the sanctioned per-
son. Becuuse LIe hnes cun be
so IIgI - LIe Treusury DepurL-
ment raked in $137 million for
sanctions violations in 2013
compunIes ure oILen exLremeIy
cautious about handling trans-
actions for people whose names
are at all similar to those on the
list. Most major banks check
transactions against rosters
maintained by outside compa-
nies like Thomson Reuters. If
a name is too similar to those
on the sanctions list, the trans-
actions will be held up while
banks methodically check the
persons address and birthdate
to make sure theyre not aiding
an alleged wrongdoer.
Treusury omcIuIs decIIned Lo
comment on Laws case, but a
spokeswoman said they always
endeavour to make public all
uvuIIubIe bIo-IdenLIher InIor-
mation including addresses,
dates of birth, places of birth,
and passport numbers, among
other information. Law, for his
part, has taken to the Internet
Lo express IIs exusperuLIon.
This has proved frustrating,
time-consuming and also costly
to me personally, Law wrote in
a blog post. Its incredibly sub-
tle title: How the US Treasury
imposes sanctions on me and
every other Stephen Law on
the planet. FP
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
LOCAL BIZ
12
From page ,...(\anbao)
From page ,...(\anbao)
The demonstrations
eventually led to a police
crackdown, injuries to
villagers and monks, and
prompted the govern-
ment to set up a commis-
sion led by an opposition
party leader to investigate
the projects feasibility.
In March 2013 an in-
vestigation by the com-
mission supported con-
tinuation of the project
provided investors made
necessary improvements.
In July 2013, a new
contract was signed with
LIe prohL-sIurIng ruLIo
revised from 4:45:51 be-
tween the Myanmar state
company Myanmar Min-
ing Enterprise, UMEHL
and Wanbao to 51:19:30.
Under the new contract,
Wanbao will also invest
$2 million annually for
mine reclamation and
invest $1 million in cor-
porate social responsibil-
ity (CSR) activities before
beginning production. In
addition, all investors will
allocate 2 percent of their
neL prohL Lo CSR ucLIvILIes
throughout the project.
China is the largest in-
vestor mostly in hydro-
power, mining and gas
and oil projects in its
impoverished Southeast
Asian neighbour which
Ius suered Irom decudes
of economic stagnation,
corruption and sanctions.
Chinese companies lead
actual investment in My-
anmar with $14.12 billion,
or nearly 42 percent of the
total $33.67 billion, from
1q88 LIII SepLember zo1,
uccordIng Lo hgures Irom
the Myanmar Investment
Commission.
Myanmar people often
fear the big investment
projects, rooted in Myan-
mars military past, that
uppeur Lo expIoIL nuLuruI
resources more for the
benehL oI ILs InvesLors
than for its local resi-
dents.
The Letpadaung copper
mine is not the only pro-
jecL Lo suer seLbucks.
In September 2011, My-
anmar President Thein
Sein ordered suspension
of the $3.6 billion Myit-
sone Hydropower Project
in upstream Ayeyawady
River as a result of op-
position from residents.
That project was backed
by China Power Invest-
ment.
Following suspension
of the project, Myanmar
witnessed a sharp fall in
its foreign direct invest-
ment as Chinese investors
feared political uncer-
tainty might cause heavy
losses.
I nvestor pullout
Chinese investment in
Myanmar plunged from
ubouL $1z bIIIIon In zoo8-
11 to $407 million in the
zo1z-1 hscuI yeur. Non-
Chinese investment failed
to make up the shortfall,
threatening Myanmars
economic development.
Chinese companies
tend to speak to the big
bosses und exerL u Lop-
down Inuence, u poIIcy
that worked well under
the Myanmar military
junta, said Li Zuqing, a
Myanmar-based ethnic
Chinese and dean of the
Mandalay-based Fuqing
Computer and Language
School, but that no long-
er works nowadays [as
people demand democ-
racy and transparency].
The Chinese companys
edgIIng CSR ucLIvILIes
are little known by the
Myanmar general pub-
lic as they do not have a
spokesperson and it is
hard for local media to
speak to the company,
May Thingyan Hein, CEO
of Myit Ma Kha News
Agency, told the Global
Times.
She believes that Wan-
bao lacks transparency
and should publish its
compensation standards
so that the media can su-
pervise its allocation and
distribution among the
people.
A group of villagers who
are also newly recruited
workers at an orienta-
tion training for Wanbao
told the Global Times that
they are glad of a job, and
hope the project can start
production soon so that
they can get higher pay.
Some countrymen are
unwIIIIng Lo sucrIhce LIeIr
plot of land as it is the only
heritage they can pass on
Lo LIe nexL generuLIon,
LIey expIuIned.
New workers at the
company can earn about
$1,200 in annual sal-
ary, which compares
with $3,000-$5,000 an-
nual income a household
can make farming, said
U Than Lwim Lwim, a
36-year-old villager.
He said he hoped to
earn a $300 monthly sal-
ary as a skilled worker at
the company in the fu-
ture. GT
SilkAir to Fly Singapore-Mandalay Route
S
ilkAir, the regional wing
of Singapore Airlines, an-
nounced that it will launch
its services in Yangon-Manda-
lay route in a bid to increase its
network of 47 destinations in
LIe AsIu PucIhc.
Subject to applicable ap-
provuIs, SIIkAIr wIII oer LIree
weekIy cIrcuIur IgILs beLween
Mandalay and Yangon, Myan-
mar, from June 10, the compa-
ny said. It will also launch three
IgILs Lo KuIIbo In LIe PIIIIp-
pines through circular-routing
IgILs wILI Cebu Irom Muy z;.
Mandalay will be the airlines
second destination in Myanmar
after Yangon, while Kalibo will
be SilkAirs third destination in
the Philippines after Cebu and
Htet Aung Duvuo.
The services will be operated
with Airbus A319 and A320 air-
craft, featuring both Business
and Economy Class cabins,
SilkAir said.
We ure excILed Lo udd boLI
Kalibo and Mandalay to our
neLwork und ure conhdenL LIuL
they will be well-received, said
SIIkAIr cIIeI execuLIve esIIe
Thng.
As the regional wing of Sin-
gapore Airlines, SilkAir plays
u roIe Lo exLend LIe SIngupore
Airlines Group network by
seeding and developing emerg-
ing destinations, he said.
The two new services will
be connected via Singapore to
more than 90 cities in the joint
Singapore Airlines-SilkAir net-
work.
Note: Singapore (SIN), Cebu (CEB), Kalibo (KLO), Yangon (RGN), Mandalay (MDL)
*All timings local
The second largest city in My-
anmar, Mandalay is the centre
of culture and religion in the
country. The city is home to the
Royal Palace as well as many
other attractions built during
LIe Konbuung DynusLy. Bugun,
long considered one of the
worlds greatest archaeological
sites, is also accessible through
Mandalay.
Kalibo is the capital of Aklan
province and gateway to the
idyllic Boracay island in the
Philippines. The island is known
for its white sandy beaches and
crystal clear waters.
The two new services will be
introduced during the airlines
Northern Summer operating
season, between March 30 and
Oct 25. SilkAir is also making
network adjustments during
this season, comprising capac-
ity increases on several routes
and reductions on others, it
said.
Myanmar Summary
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W
M
C
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
REGIONAL BIZ
13
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Airbos Suys Asiu-Pucic Will be Key
Driver of Growth
Siva Govindasamy and
Tim Hepher
A
irbus claimed bragging
rights as the Asia-Pacif-
ics dominant aircraft
supplier last week, saying the
regions fast growing economies
and rising passenger demand
will continue to drive demand
over LIe nexL zo yeurs.
The European planemaker
suId LIuL In zo1, IL won 8o per-
cent of all new business in the
AsIu-PucIhc wILI ;q hrm or-
ders. It also delivered 331 new
aircraft, or over half of all new
planes that entered into ser-
vice with the regions airlines, it
added.
Speaking at the Singapore
AIrsIow, senIor execuLIves
from the European planemaker
added that they were optimistic
about more orders from the re-
gions full-service carriers and
budget airlines despite ongo-
ing concerns about the health
of emerging markets, many of
which are located in the Asia-
PucIhc.
The message from me is
very cIeur. TIIs (AsIu-PucIhc) Is
where the action will be for the
industry in the coming years,
Fabrice Bregier, head of Airbus
planemaking division, said at a
news conference.
There is demand for 11,000
uIrcruIL worLI $1.8 LrIIIIon In
the 20 years to 2032, said Air-
bus. TIe LoLuI eeL sIze Is ex-
pected to more than double to
over 12,130 jets, based on av-
eruge unnuuI Lrumc growLI oI
.8 percenL und repIucemenL oI
nearly 3,770 aircraft in service
today, it added.
Growing urbanisation means
LIuL z oI LIe 8q megu cILIes
In zoz wIII be In AsIu-PucIhc,
where there will also be 90 cit-
ies with more than one million
passengers, said the company.
China will also overtake the
United States as the worlds
largest domestic airline market
by 2032, said Airbus sales chief
John Leahy.
There is no doubting the
ImporLunce oI LIe AsIu-PucIhc
market both today and in the
future, he added.
Even though airlines from the
emerging markets account for
an increasingly large portion of
its order book, Bregier said that
he is not too concerned about
the current worries about that
market segment.
Airbus is also looking for more
partnerships with companies in
the region, said Bregier.
In China, where the compa-
ny Ius u hnuI ussembIy IIne In
Tianjin for the current genera-
tion of the A320 family of air-
craft, he added there remains
the possibility of assembling the
upgraded re-engined A320neo
variant.
Airbus has also been promot-
ing a regional variant of its
A330 widebody aircraft, which
it says will suit services between
high-demand slot-restricted
airports in countries like China.
Airbus is also on track to de-
IIver ILs hrsL Ao Lo QuLur AIr-
ways by the end of 2014, said
Bregier.
The company also announced
that Vietnamese low-cost carri-
er VIeLJeLAIr Iud pIuced u hrm
order for 63 A320 family of air-
craft. Reuters
Microsoft Denies Global Censorship of China-Related Searches
Paul Carsten
M
icrosoft Corp denied
last week it was omit-
ting websites from its
Bing search engine results for
users outside China after a Chi-
nese rights group said the US
hrm wus censorIng muLerIuI LIe
government deems politically
sensitive.
GreatFire.org, a China-based
freedom of speech advocacy
group, said in a statement on
Tuesday last week that Bing was
hILerIng ouL boLI EngIIsI und
Chinese language search results
Ior Lerms sucI us DuIuI umu,
LIe exIIed TIbeLun spIrILuuI
leader whom Beijing brands as
a violence-seeking separatist,
charges he denies.
Microsoft, responding to the
rights groups allegations, said a
system fault had removed some
search results for users outside
China. The company has in the
pusL come under hre Ior cen-
soring the Chinese version of
internet phone and messaging
software Skype.
Due Lo un error In our sys-
tem, we triggered an incorrect
resuILs removuI noLIhcuLIon Ior
some searches noted in the re-
port but the results themselves
are and were unaltered outside
of China, Stefan Weitz, senior
director for Bing, said in a state-
ment emailed to Reuters.
Weitz did not say if the error
Iud been hxed und MIcrosoIL
omcIuIs In BeIjIng decIIned Lo
elaborate.
Microsoft sent a shortened
version of the statement to Chi-
na-based media organisations
which omitted all reference to
GreatFire.org and did not ad-
dress the allegations.
There were too many points
in the original statement, a
China-based Microsoft spokes-
woman told Reuters.
Reuters reporters found that
Bing omitted several websites
that showed up on the search
engine of rival Google Inc when
LIey seurcIed Ior DuIuI umu
in Chinese from Singapore. The
English-language search results
on both engines were similar.
Chinas ruling Communist
Party sees censorship as key to
maintaining its grip on power,
recognising that social media
oers u pIuLIorm Ior cILIzens
to air grievances and criticism
of the government, a potential
trigger for social unrest.
This censorship often means
foreign internet companies
must tread a careful path in
CIInu Lo expIoIL busIness op-
portunities without compro-
mising a carefully nurtured
image as champions of open
societies and free speech.
AII InLerneL hrms operuLIng In
China comply with the govern-
ments web censorship require-
ments.
Microsoft has made no secret
of its aim to build a bigger pres-
ence in China, a market where
its software is widely used but
rarely paid for.
Microsoft was criticised for
censoring the Chinese version of
Skype, which it ran jointly with
Hong Kong-based TOM Group.
In November, Microsoft said
it had formed a new joint ven-
ture with Guangming Founder,
and advocacy group GreatFire.
org said Skype in China was no
longer being censored. Reuters
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
REGIONAL BIZ
14
Myanmar Summary
Singapore Eyes up to 40
Boeing or Airbus Jets
S
ingapore Airlines has be-
gun weighing a potential
order for dozens of wide-
body jets as it compares Boe-
Ing`s revumped ;;;X uguInsL
Europes Airbus A350, three
sources familiar with the mat-
ter said.
The airline is looking at a po-
tential order for as many as 40
;;;X uIrcruIL In u deuI poLen-
tially worth $15 billion at list
prices, the sources said, asking
noL Lo be IdenLIhed.
However, a decision is not im-
minent since the airline is keen
to closely study the Boeing 777-
qX`s economIcs.
We dIscuss eeL requIre-
ments with manufacturers on
a regular basis in line with our
longstanding policy to maintain
u young und modern eeL, u
spokesman for the airline said
by email.
Any discussions with manu-
IucLurers ure kepL conhdenLIuI,
however.
Asked about interest in the
BoeIng ;;;X, CIIeI ExecuLIve
Goh Choon Phong told Reuters
the airline was gathering infor-
mation on the aircraft as a po-
tential future replacement for
ILs exIsLIng ;;; eeL.
He declined to discuss further
deLuIIs or Lo conhrm wIeLIer IL
was actively involved in talks.
When there is something to
announce we will do so. We do
noL conhrm our (purcIusIng)
campaigns until there is a deci-
sion, he said.
TIe ;;;X wus IuuncIed wILI
record orders uL LIe DubuI AIr-
show in November. The largest
oI Lwo vurIunLs, LIe ;;;-qX, wIII
carry 406 passengers and enter
service in 2020.
Boeing launched the latest
versIon oI ILs mosL prohLubIe
plane in an attempt to leapfrog
Airbuss 350-seat A350-1000.
A major customer of both jet-
makers, Singapore Airlines has
hrm orders Ior ;o AIrbus Aos
and options for another 20.
It can convert some of those
to the A350-1000 variant for
long-haul requirements and is
seen as certain to receive coun-
ter-bids from Airbus to avoid or
blunt any Boeing order.
Airbus and Boeing both de-
clined to comment. Reuters
Bangladesh Tea Output
Climbs 1.6pc to Hit Record
Ruma Paul
B
angladeshs tea produc-
tion in 2013 grew by 1.6
percent from a year ear-
lier to a record 63.5 million kg,
u senIor omcIuI oI LIe Leu bourd
said, thanks to favourable
weather.
The country has become a
net importer of tea after rank-
Ing us LIe worId`s hILI-IurgesL
exporLer In 1qqos, due Lo un ex-
ponential increase in domestic
consumption.
The record output means
Bangladesh could import less
this year to meet domestic con-
sumption, which is rising by 4.5
percent annually, in line with
steady economic growth, and
stands now at around 65 mil-
lion kg.
However, Bangladeshi buyers
imported a large volume of tea
from India in recent months,
market sources said.
Tea is sold at the countrys
sole auction centre, in the port
city Chittagong, where most of
it is picked up by domestic buy-
ers.
usL yeur, BungIudesI exporL-
ed 540,000 kg of tea, down from
1.56 million kg in 2012. Paki-
stan, the United Arab Emirates
and Saudi Arabia are the main
importers of Bangladeshi tea.
Reuters
Thai Government Admits Lack of
Power to Renew Troubled Rice Scheme
Apornrath
Phoonphongphiphat
T
hailands caretaker gov-
ernment said last week
it did not have the power
to renew a rice subsidy scheme
wIen IL expIres uL LIe end oI
February, risking further alien-
ating farmers angry over late
payments for their current crop.
Prime Minister Yingluck Shi-
nawatra, assailed since Novem-
ber by a largely urban, middle
class protest movement bent on
drIvIng Ier Irom omce, Is now
facing unrest among her Puea
Thai Partys natural supporters
in the countryside, where many
farmers have gone unpaid for
their rice for months.
Yingluck has led a caretaker
udmInIsLruLIon sInce Decem-
ber, when she dissolved parlia-
ment and called a snap election
in an attempt to end the anti-
government street protests.
As a result, the governments
spending and borrowing pow-
ers are heavily curtailed.
We are just a caretaker gov-
ernment, which has no power
Lo exLend uny poIIcy. TIe rIce-
buying scheme will end auto-
muLIcuIIy on ebruury z8, Vur-
athep Rattanakorn, a minister
In LIe prIme mInIsLer`s omce,
told Reuters. Reuters
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
Singapore Airlines ._
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.:.. .. _. ~~ .:_. .._~: .~ e~
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_ ._ ~ ..~ e~ ._ .:~ ~ . . .
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_._ ~ ..:.. .. ~:. _e_ ._ .q,
~~~ .~e~._.:~~...~
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...: .:...q.. .~
e~._.:~~....:.._ ._~:
.... ~ ~.e.. .~e~._.:~
..:~~.:.~_.:.~ ~ . .. ._~: .
._. .q._.
Farmers hold signs as they take part in a rally demanding the Yingluck administra-
tion resolve delays in payment from the rice pledging scheme, outside the Com-
merce Ministry in Nonthaburi province, on the outskirts of Bangkok.
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A Boeing 777-9x model plane.
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
REGIONAL BIZ
15
Myanmar Summary
China Dashes Hollywoods Hopes for
Greater Access in 2014
C
hina will maintain its
strict quota for imported
Hollywood movies this
year, rejecting reports it had
planned to increase access for
US hIms Lo LIe worId`s second-
largest cinema market, the of-
hcIuI XInIuu news ugency re-
ported.
The Hollywood Reporter
cited a source recently saying
LIe counLry`s hIm bureuu wus
mulling increasing Hollywoods
quota in China to 44 from the
currenL q hIms IL uIIows eucI
year.
US studios have been taking
steps to appeal to the fast-grow-
Ing CIInese box omce, wIIcI
IIL z1.8 bIIIIon yuun ($.6 bII-
lion) last year. Production
companies like Viacom Incs
PurumounL PIcLure und Dreum-
Works Animation SKG Inc have
hired Chinese actors and set up
co-productions with Chinese
hrms Lo muke Inrouds In LIe
mainland market.
But Chinas often draconian
hIm reguIuLors IoId u LIgIL grIp
over the market, controlling the
Inow oI IoreIgn hIms In order
Lo proLecL LIe box omce sIure oI
domestic ventures.
An unIdenLIhed omcIuI Irom
Chinas State Administration of
Press, Publication, Radio, Film
und TeIevIsIon LoId XInIuu LIe
2014 quota would hold in-line
with an agreement signed in
2012, when China increased the
quoLu Irom zo hIms Lo LIe cur-
rent level.
Hollywood has traditionally
domInuLed CIInu`s box omce,
buL CIInese hIms overLook LIeIr
US rIvuIs In zo1 LukIng over 8
percenL oI LIe box omce, uc-
cordIng Lo XInIuu.
HoIIywood-mude hIms cun
someLImes hnd IoopIoIes Lo
get into the Chinese market, in-
cluding creating joint-produc-
tions with Chinese partners to
skirt the ban or gaining entry as
a non-US production. Reuters
Swati Pandey
India IT Sector Exports Seen
Picking Up Pace in FY15
E
xporLs by ndIu`s T ouL-
sourcIng secLor ure ex-
pected to rise 13-15 per-
cenL In LIe hscuI yeur sLurLIng
April, an industry lobby group
said last week, as an improv-
ing global economy encourages
banks and companies to boost
spending on technology.
T servIces exporLs In zo1q-1
are forecast to rise to as much
$99 billion, according to the
National Association of Soft-
ware and Services Companies
(Nasscom).
The increase in growth rate
compares with an estimated 13
percenL rIse In hscuI zo1q, LIe
lobby added.
Clearly compared to what we
saw in the industry 12 months
ago to now, we are seeing a far
more positive momentum in
our major markets, Nasscom
Chairman Krishnakumar Nata-
rujun, uIso cIIeI execuLIve oI T
hrm MIndLree Ld, LoId reporL-
ers.
Last month, the International
Monetary Fund raised its glob-
al economic growth forecast
Ior LIe hrsL LIme In neurIy Lwo
years.
Indias biggest IT services
ouLsourcIng hrms, nIosys und
Tata Consultancy Services, have
forecast stronger growth for IT
spendIng In LIe nexL hscuI yeur
by their main customers in Eu-
rope and the United States.
Myanmar Summary
~ . e. - .~.~.~ ~.~
,_.._: outsourcing ~_. . ~ ,
.:.._ .:._ -_. .~ .~ ._
_:.q...~ ~, q:..,.. ~
q:. . , .~ _. ~~ .:. q, ..: . , .
:.._~:. .q._.
~. : . .. :..q.~._ .~.,~ .~~
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.:.- ,_.._:~_~ .....:.
~:. ~ .~~ .:... ._ .~~,~~
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,_.._:~,..:..~,.:.. ~..
q~,..'.: .e~ qq .:
. ._~: . ~ . e..: e ~ . ~, ..:
.~.~.:.~.._~. (Nasscom)
- ._.:_~:..~~q .q._.
~~, _:.q...~ ~.~~.
q:..,..: ~, q:..,.~q._e
.,.,..._. .,.._ ~ ..
e. ~. , ~ ~ . e. - .~ .
~.~~.~,_.._: outsourcing
~_~ .~_..q._~.~.:.
~:. . .e _~_ .|~ ~. ~...~ ~
_~ ..:.~ ~.:.~.:.~: ..:.
..q.:.._~ .~_..._~:.
Nasscom . ~_. ,_.._:
..,._e.._ Mindtree Ltd -
~...:.._e.. Krishnakumar
Natarajan ~ .~..:~.:.~:.
._.:_~:..._.
~_._ _._ . q:. ._~.q, . . ~e
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...:..q.e_e.~.~~..,.._ ..
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_~.....:_~_.. ,.q~...q.
..,..:._e._~._ ViacomInc
- Paramount Picture . Dream
Works Animation, SKG Inc ~
._ ~,~.. .,...:.:.~
:.q...~: ~,~..,.q.:..
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Workers are pictured beneath clocks displaying time zones in various parts of the world at an outsourcing centre in Bangalore,
India.
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]ury member of FiIm seIection Un Certain Regard actress Zhang Ziyi poses on the red carpet as she arrives for the screening
of the Im UnIy Cod Forgives in competition during the
th
Cannes Film Festival in Cannes.
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INTERNATIONAL BIZ
16
Myanmar Summary
Barclays to Cut 12,000 Jobs,
Pays Bigger Bonuses
7,000 jobs will go in Britain; Paid out 2.4 billion pounds in incentive awards last year
Steve Slater and Matt
Scuffham
B
urcIuys PIc expecLs Lo
uxe up Lo 1z,ooo jobs
this year to cut costs and
counter falling income at its in-
vesLmenL bunk, wIere prohLs
slumped last year.
BuL IL Is uIso puyIng sLu IIgI-
er bonuses, risking a backlash
Irom LIe poIILIcIuns und Luxpuy-
ers who bailed out much of the
IndusLry durIng LIe hnuncIuI
crisis.
The bank said last week that
7,000 of the jobs will go in Brit-
uIn und IuII oI LIe uecLed sLu
LIere Iud uIreudy been noLIhed.
The latest cuts are not concen-
trated in any single business
area.
CIIeI ExecuLIve AnLIony Jen-
kins, who took the helm in 2012
after an interest rate rigging
scandal, is pulling Barclays out
of some investment banking
ucLIvILIes us purL oI eorLs Lo
clean up standards and improve
returns. The bank last year tar-
geted 1.7 billion in annual cost
savings.
It said it paid 2.4 billion ($3.9
billion) in incentive awards last
year after raising bonuses in its
investment bank by 13 percent
despILe LIe prohL decIIne.
That helped to lift Barclays
compensation-to-income ratio
to 43.2 percent last year from
40 percent in 2012. It said it
was still aiming for a compen-
sation ratio in the mid-30s.
Jenkins defended the increas-
es, saying Barclays had to com-
pete with global rivals to recruit
LIe besL sLu. He suId LIe bunk
was having constructive talks
with investors over pay.
We need to recruit people
from Singapore to San Francis-
co. We need the best people in
the bank to drive long-term sus-
tainable returns for our share-
holders, Jenkins said. Reuters
Recovery Firms in Advanced Economies,
Led By US, Japan
Leigh Thomas
T
he outlook for most ad-
vanced economies is im-
proving, with recoveries
in the United States and Japan
IeudIng LIe wuy, LIe OECD`s
latest monthly leading indicator
showed last week.
The Paris-based Organisation
for Economic Cooperation and
DeveIopmenL suId ILs IeudIng
indicator covering 33 member
countries had reached its high-
est level since February 2011
In December, IndIcuLIng LIuL
growLI wus hrmIng.
TIe IndIcuLor, meunL Lo ug
early signals of turning points in
economic activity, rose to 100.9
In LIe hnuI monLI oI zo1, edg-
Ing up Irom 1oo.8 In November,
LIe OECD suId.
Among the major economies,
the United States reading im-
proved to 101.0 from 100.9,
reaching its highest level since
MurcI zoo8 - jusL beIore LIe
worsL oI LIe hnuncIuI und eco-
nomic crisis triggered by the
bursting of a sub-prime debt
bubble.
Japan saw its indicator move
up to 101.4 from 101.3 in No-
vember, also hitting its highest
IeveI sInce LIe hnuncIuI crIsIs
as the central bank boosts the
economy with unprecedented
monetary stimulus.
The crisis-weary euro zone
was not left out, with its read-
ing rising to 101.1 from 100.9,
wIIcI LIe OECD suId IndIcuLed
a positive change in momen-
tum.
n BrILuIn, LIe OECD suId ILs
reudIng wus sLeudy In Decem-
ber from November at 101.3.
The trend was less upbeat in
the major emerging markets
Lrucked by LIe OECD, wILI
Chinas reading stable at 99.3
and Russias indicator also un-
changed at 99.7.
Indias reading deteriorated
slightly to 97.0 from 97.2 with
economic activity below its
Iong-Lerm Lrend, LIe OECD
said. Reuters
Myanmar Summary
Court Delays Istanbul
Airport Project
Ozge Ozbilgin
A
22 billion ($30 bil-
lion) project to build a
third airport in Istanbul
will be delayed for at least 10
months after a Turkish court
sought further investigation
into its environmental impact,
a group challenging the project
said.
A consortium of Turkish con-
sLrucLIon hrms mude LIe wIn-
ning bid last May to build and
operate the airport, which Tur-
key hopes will become one of
the worlds largest by passenger
numbers and is championed
by Prime Minister Tayyip Er-
dogan. Ankara aims for it to be
operuLIonuI by zo18.
The state airports authority
responded to the court ruling by
saying the project was continu-
ing as planned.
But the head of Turkeys
Chamber of Environmental En-
gineers (CMO) said the Istanbul
court had halted implementa-
tion of a positive environmental
impact report, obligatory to ob-
taining the green light for such
projects.
The court halted the imple-
mentation of the report pend-
Ing IurLIer experL reporLs,
which will mean it being sus-
pended for a minimum period
of 10 months to a year, CMO
Chairman Baran Bozoglu told
Reuters.
The State Airports Authority
(DHM) suId LIe courL decIsIon
amounted to a temporary sus-
pension.
Logos are seen outside a branch of Barclays bank in London.
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~q~. ~.~,.~ ~_
..:~._ e, .e ~..q
~, ..'.: ,~ . e ,~, e .q ~~ e
._.:~....~:. ~q~~q:.,.~
e ...:~ . . .q.. . ~ , .._ .:~
.~ ~, .~ ~..' ~~ ..~ .q:~ .
.:._e...'.__e...:._~: .,:~
Barclays Plc ~.~._ ,.~-
~,~.q~.:.. q..._....~
~ ~.~....:.~ ~:...q,
e. . . ~ ~. . ..:...| . ~~~~ ~
~ .e . :.qe e q ._~: . . q._ .
Barclays Plc - q.. ._. . . . ~
~.,_e .,.._..~ ~_.~.
qq. ~.....:._~: _-~,q
~..~~..|. ~~~ ~ ..:.
.:..__e._.. ~..~.eq._
~....:.~~~~:. ~._~:.
_~:._.._e.._~:.._. ~..|~.
._.:_~:..._.
~ ~:. . . ~. ~~, ._. .:..:
..q,. ~.qq.~.~~.:..q,
~~ ~ q .. ._. . . . . q:~ . . , .
..:q~.~~.~ ~~ ...~
~_~ .~~ ~_e. ~:~, .~ . ...:
. ._ ~. ..: ~q:q .. Anthony
J enkins ~ q.~,.._~:. .q
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. , . ._ . . ~ ~ - ~ , ~.q ~
..~:...:.,..~. : .~:...|
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...: e.~._ ~..._~.
.:.~ .~ ..:.q:.~: ...:~ .~:
...~. .. q _ . . . , . ._ . . ~
~..._~.~_e. .~:...| .,
. e ~..q ~, ..'.: ,. . e ,
~...~..._~:. .q._.
e....:.~._. ~_.~..:.
~....:._. ,.-q..._....
~~ ~..._~..:.~ ~,
q:.. , .~ ~ ._. .... ._~: . . q
._ .
e _e . _. . . .:.- . . . :. .q. , _.
.....~.:.~q e...:.-
...:..q.._ ~.~~.:._~:..
~..q~,. .,~- ...:..q._.,
._.~:..,.:_..~ .~,..
...: .,._~: . OECD . ~.~
~.~.:.~q .q._.
. q. ~._.. ~ . .. :..q.. ...| ...:
q~.. e _e.~.~~.q.~e~._.
_~._e.._ OECD . ._.:_~:..~
~q ~~~ ... .e.e:~|q..._
~e ~ . ..| . ,, . ._ . .. :.
.q.~ , .~ -~.~: .. .~._.~.,
~.q.~ .~:.~ .q:~q.
._~:. .q._.
.,.._._. .~:.~
,.~,.~.~ ~~~., . ~~~., .
~ .~~ .:. _. . ~. : _:.q.~~.
~~_ .~:.. ._ ~_. . .~ .~~ .
~..~.q._e.._~:. .q_.. _.
~ .~~ .:_. .._ -e ~ -..'..
.:.._~:_e.._e .q._.
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P j...(Court Lelays)
Contd. P j...(Court Lelays)
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INTERNATIONAL BIZ
17
Myanmar Summary
Israel Takes Step towards Becoming A Gas Exporter
Australias Woodside buys 25 percent stake in Leviathan; Domestic production seen by 2017, exports to follow
I
srael has taken a step
closer to becoming a
nuLuruI gus exporLer
after Australias Wood-
side Petroleum Ltd signed
a deal to take a 25 percent
stake in the huge East
Mediterranean Leviathan
gus heId.
The Australian com-
pany, considered a leader
In LIe boomIng IIquehed
natural gas (LNG) sec-
tor, signed a preliminary
agreement recently to buy
a quarter of the Leviathan
heId o LIe cousL oI srueI
for up to $2.55 billion.
Leviathan is estimated
to hold about 19 trillion
cubic feet (540 billion cu-
bic metres) of natural gas,
enough to supply all of
Europe for over a year.
TIe heId Is beIng deveI-
oped by US-based Noble
Energy Corp , which will
remain the projects lead
partner with a 30 per-
cent stake, while the other
groups involved, Israels
DeIek Group, Avner OII
ExpIoruLIon und RuLIo
OII ExpIoruLIon, wIII eucI
sell one-quarter of their
stakes to Woodside.
Woodside is one of the
leading companies in the
world in the ... develop-
ment of LNG facilities.
The company brings with
IL rIcI experIence ... und
wIII be u sIgnIhcunL boosL
for the Leviathan partner-
sIIp, DeIek DrIIIIng und
Avner said in a statement.
Woodside sees the Le-
viathan project as an im-
portant part of its strat-
egy to diversify outside of
Australia. It is also con-
sidering projects in My-
anmar and Ireland.
DespILe LIe prospecL
oI IucruLIve gus exporLs,
analysts said Leviathan
would initially serve Is-
raels domestic market.
Leviathan will be ini-
tially developed as a do-
mestic gas project with
gross producLIon oI 8oo
million cubic feet per day
und hrsL gus expecLed In
2017, Bernstein research
said in a research note.
Once domestic supplies
are up and running, Bern-
stein said that Woodsides
involvement in the pro-
jecL meunL LIuL exporLs
in form of LNG would be-
~.q._. . .e q Leviathan
.:~.:~ . . . ~ ~ ~
qee: q:..,....
..:~ _ .~ ~:. _..._~..
WoodsidePetroleumLtd .
.~ . ~ .q. .. _...,:~ ~. .q.
~.,_e .:~.:~.~.
. _e. .:q, ~~ ~ ._.. . .
.~:.~..~ ..:~....
._._e.._~:. .q._.
~ .~~ e _e ..:..: .:~
.:~.~_~ ...:.,
.~_e. e.qeeq..: _..
._~..~ . ~ ~.,_e Leviathan
..~~~ qee: q:.
.,.~:. ~..q~, ..'.:
. . e _e ~e e
q, ~_~ ..:~ _ . ~ .~ . ~
.q...._~:. .q._.
Leviathan . . ~ ~ ~.,_e
.:~.:~...:~ ~-..
~ q.e ~-.~: ,~
.e, ~q.._~:. .,
. , .:._. . ..:~._ .q:.
..:.~~~ ~....~:
~ . . .~ .:~ . .... ._
_e. ._ . e ..:~.:~ .
come more likely.
There will be up to 9
trillion cubic feet of gas
exporLs. AILIougI IL re-
mains uncertain whether
gus exporLs wIII be us NG
or pipeline, Woodsides
involvement increases
LIe probubIIILy oI u ouL-
ing LNG scheme.
Analysts said the Levia-
LIun heId muy uIso IoId
sIgnIhcunL oII reserves oI
up to 720 million barrels,
und LIuL drIIIIng wus ex-
pected to begin in 2015.
Pi peli ne Or LNG?
The biggest question
regurdIng gus exporLs Is
whether they will come in
the form of a pipeline or
LNG terminal.
Israel has the option to
build a pipeline to serve
Europes large but stag-
nating gas market or to
InvesL In u more expen-
sIve NG exporL LermInuI
which would allow ship-
ments to Asias markets,
where prices are cur-
rently twice as high as in
Europe.
Contd. P 22...(Israel) Contd. P 22...(Israel)
In this handout image provided by Albatross, The Tamar drilling natural gas production platform is seen
some 25 kilometers West of the Ashkelon shore in February 2013 in Israel.
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
18
Myanmar Summary
Thai Businesses Urged to Expand
Investment into Myanmar
Phyu Thit Lwin
T
hai business operators
Iuve been urged Lo expund
their investment projects
into neighbouring Myanmar,
timely for the establishment of
the ASEAN Economic Commu-
nity (AEC) by 2015, Thai News
Agency (TNA) reported.
Thai Ambassador to Myan-
mar Pisanu Suvanajata told
TNA that Myanmar has opened
its door to foreign investment
for two years, with China be-
coming its largest foreign inves-
tor so far, followed by Thailand
and Hong Kong.
Pisanu said that many other
rival countries in the Associa-
tion of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) and Asia, namely South
Korea and Japan, are now also
eager to invest in Myanmar.
Pisanu suggested that Thai-
land should, therefore, have
a clear investment direction
toward Myanmar so that the
country will not be slower than
oLIer rIvuI counLrIes In benehL-
ing from investment opportuni-
ties in the neighbouring econo-
my.
The Thai envoy pointed out
that Thailand has the edge over
many other rival countries, as
LIe counLry sLunds jusL nexL Lo
and has positive relations with
Myanmar.
Thailand is also capable in in-
vestment areas that Myanmar
needs, including infrastructure,
product, construction and ser-
vice sectors, as well as health,
beauty, insurance sectors and
other labour-intensive busi-
nesses, he said.
Myanmar Summary
..q ...:..q...,.q.:.
._ ~.,..._e.._ _.,.:
.~ q..._......,..:.~:.
~......:.:.q, ~~~,.._..
~~ ~ ~.~: ~_ .e: ..:
q~._ ~:.e...:..q.~.~~_.
. ~.,~.._.._..:q~.:..
q,~~~_e.._~:. Thai News
Agency (TNA) . .~..e:_..
._.
_.,.:..q: ..~.~_e.
. Pisanu Suvanajata ~ _.,.:
. ~.,_e q .. ._. . . . ~. ~.. .
.~:..:.~~~ ~.|.e.~~..
_~ . . ._ . : . . .~: q .:_. _e. _. .
~,~.._ ~_~...q..._...
. ~_e. q. ~_ .,.. .. .
.e:.~:~.:._. ~,~.
.,:~~ ~.:...q..._...:..
.:.~_e. ~. .. .q. ~_ .,_~._~:.
TNA . ._.:_~:..._.
_. .. ~.,_e ._. _., .:
.~ ..:q~._ q..._....
. . ~ , ..:.~ ~..~.:q .. ._.~
.:.. : ..: q ~ . :.. .: ~_.:..
.:.~ .,:~.~ ~.,...
._e...: _.,.:.~.q q...
_. . . . ~. .~: ..:.~ qq . ._ _e.
._~:. Pisanu ~ ~_~...._.:
_~:..._.
YCDC Invites Foreign And Local
Companies to Implement Housing Projects
Kyaw Min
T
Ie Yungon CILy DeveIop-
menL CommILLee (YCDC)
has invited tenders from
interested local, foreign and
joint venture companies for the
ImpIemenLuLIon oI seven dIer-
ent housing and car park build-
ing projects, according to an an-
nouncement.
The projects will be developed
in accordance with plans ap-
proved or to be approved by the
YCDC, IL suId.
The information on respec-
tive project will be stated in
the instructions to bidders, and
tenders shall be submitted for
each project separately, the an-
nouncement said.
The tenders shall be submit-
ted in two envelopes, one for
technical proposal and the oth-
er Ior hnuncIuI proposuI, YCDC
said, adding that the tenders
shall be prepared in compliance
with the Instructions to Ten-
derers.
The Committee said bidders
may obtain further information
about the tendering from its of-
hce uL EngeerIng DepurLmenL
BuIIdIng, Yungon CILy DeveIop-
menL CommILLee, durIng omce
hours.
Tender documents for the
project will be available at the
above address from February
z durIng omce Iours.
The announcement said a
complete set of each of tender
documents for Housing Projects
(North Okkalapa Township,
Dugon MyoLIIL (NorLI) Town-
sIIp) und AordubIe HousIng
ProjecL (Dugon MyoLIIL (EusL)
Township) may be purchased
upon payment of non-refund-
able fee of $300 by means of
overseas account transfer to
currenL uccounL No. - 1 - DA
- o6-q1886 (MTB), Myunmur
Foreign Trade Bank, Yangon or
upon payment of non-refunda-
ble fee of K300,000 to Yangon
CILy Bunk AccounL No, DY-q
through the above department.
A complete set of each of ten-
der documents for the rest of
the projects may be purchased
upon payment of non-refunda-
ble fee of $500 or K500,000.
YCDC suId LIe Lenders sIuII
be deIIvered Lo LIe ubove omce
on or before 1400 hrs, March
31. Any tender submitted after
the designated date and time
will not be considered, it added.
The announcement said
tenders for Housing Projects
(North Okkalapa Township,
Dugon MyoLIIL (NorLI) Town-
sIIp) und AordubIe HousIng
ProjecL (Dugon MyoLIIL (EusL)
Township) must be accompa-
nied by tender security in the
form of a bank guarantee valid
Ior sIx monLIs In LIe umounL oI
$50,000 issued by local or for-
eign bank, which must be cor-
respondent bank of Myanma
Foreign Trade Bank, Yangon.
The amount of tender security
in the form of bank guarantee
for the rest of the projects will
be $100,000.
The tenders will be opened in
u sessIon Lo be IeId uL LIe omce
oI Yungon CILy DeveIopmenL
Committee in the presence of
representatives of bidders on
the date and time as may be no-
LIhed Lo LIe bIdders, YCDC suId.
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Thai Ambassador to Myanmar Pisanu Suvanajata makes a gesture during an inter-
view with Myanmar Business Today.
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
19
Myanmar Summary
From page 6... (Court Lelays) From page o... (zCzP)
From page 6... (Court Lelays)
WWWD: What Would Warren Do?
David Mayes
I
sometimes am hesitant to
constantly refer back to the
strategy and thinking of
Wurren BueL us II Ie Is some
kind of mystical guru who can
do no wrong, but the truth of
the matter is that there is no
other investor out there who
has managed to accumulate
more wealth via investing. In
practice I often do some things
LIuL ure noL uIwuys BueL-IIke,
and to be frank maybe that is
why I am still working and writ-
ing this article rather than sip-
ping fruity cocktails on some
super yacht in the Mediterra-
nean. I am often reminded of
those old what would Jesus do
bumper stickers and shirts that
were so popular for a while, and
it makes me wonder if it would
not be a good practice to try and
view every potential investment
us II you were Wurren BueL.
There are of course some im-
portant distinctions that need
to be made here of course, be-
fore starting down this line of
thinking. First of all, there are
many non-equity investments
that have great low or negative
correlation to the traditional
stock market which are far too
small for a massive investor
sucI us Wurren BueL. TIus
his overall options are more
IImILed. TIe IpsIde oI LIIs, Is
that when considering future
cusI ows IIs mussIve sIze cun
ensure he either can buy a big
enough chunk to take control
und ensure LIose cusI ows ure
in fact realised, or at least hold
sIgnIhcunL Inuence wILI mun-
agement to ensure the company
continues to be run properly.
You and I (at least me for sure
anyways) do not have that kind
oI Inuence wIen we buy InLo
a company most of the time.
There is nothing to stop a new
management team from com-
ing in and running the business
into the ground.
Since we cant change the
above facts we just have to ac-
cept these pros and cons and
work within our own portfolio
sizes. An interesting note to
start with is that even though
Wurren BueL Is u reIuLIveIy
old man, who by all traditional
thinking should be retired, the
Oracle of Omaha will likely
work until he no longer can and
still claims that his favourite
holding period for an invest-
ment is forever.
This alone in my opinion is a
very valuable insight into the
way the man thinks and why he
avoids many asset classes. Even
trend following CTA funds,
which are essentially trading
hrms, do noL Iuve LIIs per-
petual quality to them. Grant-
ed, many of them will produce
large returns with low volatil-
ity for decades, but many go
bust or eventually close down
their doors. Companies like
Cocu CoIu und McDonuIds on
LIe oLIer Iund, Wurren BueL
expecLs Lo be uround Iorever,
or at least in the sense of any
timeframe that is relative to our
short lives here on Planet Earth.
He also claims very modestly
to avoid investments he doesnt
understand, yet I think this is a
polite way to say he doesnt un-
derstand why everybody else on
Wall Street is too dumb to see
LIe obvIous uws In LIe compuny
or sectors business model. My
guess is that he didnt avoid the
tech dot com bubble because he
didnt understand it. He under-
stood quite well they had market
share they could not defend, or
jusL uL ouL poor busIness modeIs
to start with.
I have just read a study about
Facebook, where it was predict-
ed it will go the way of Myspace
over the coming decade or so.
I dont know to be honest, but
it seems reasonable to me that
there is a good chance it will not
be cool enough for kids in the
coming years and newer, and
hipper social media platforms
that their parents arent on will
replace it. At the time of this
writing, the companys stock is
trading at a mind boggling 156
times earnings. Think dotcom
bubble era valuations. It has
a market cap of $150 billion. I
will not argue that social media
is not here to stay and I am sure
it will continue to grow. Howev-
er, on the question of investing
in social media companies such
as Facebook, I may be wrong
but I think I know what Warren
would do.
David Mayes MBA provides
wealth management servic-
es to expatriates throughout
Southeast Asia, focusing on
UK Pension Transfers. He can
be reached at david.m@fara-
mond.com. Faramond UK is
regulated by the FCA and pro-
vides advice on pensions and
taxation.
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Investor Warren Buffet arrives for the premiere of the Im WaII Street. Money Never SIeeps in New York.
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The decision will not halt the
work and operations. The pro-
cesses connected with the pro-
ject are continuing as planned,
it said in a statement.
The CMO is a professional
body that regularly challenges
projects it says may pose a risk
to the environment. Reuters
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funding earlier this year.
Antonio Corro, country man-
ager for Myanmar and Thailand
at MasterCard, said that the
rollout of POS terminals by My-
anmar Citizens Bank will bene-
hL InLernuLIonuI vIsILors IookIng
for convenient and secure pay-
ment channels when they arrive
in Myanmar.
The POS solution runs on
zCzP`s PCDSS eveI 1 (Puy-
menL Curd ndusLry DuLu Se-
curity Standard Level 1) pay-
ment platform. According to
LIe compuny, PCDSS eveI 1
is the highest security standard
recognition set by the payment
industry.
Headquartered in Singapore,
2C2P processed over $500 mil-
lion worth of online payments
in 2013, with operation across
nine countries in Asia. PayPal,
In conLrusL, dId $18o bIIIIon
worldwide in 2013.
Myanmar Summary
........q:._eq..~.:.~
.:~ . ... ._ . . , . _ e. ..:
.~:.~._..~ 2C2P ._ _._
~ .~ ~. . _e. ._ _., .:. .:.
.:.~ (MCB) .....|._ point
of sale(POS) ~, ..: . .:.~ ..:
q~.,_.e .q._.
~..|~,..:.._ _.,.:.q
~ , ._ .:.~~ ~ Visa. MasterCard
.:.. ~_._ _._ . q:. ...... ~~
.:.~._. .~.....:...__e.
._. e.~,..:.._ _.,.:.
~~ ~ ~, ..: . ~.. _ e. _..
MasterCard. POS ~,..:.~:.
.,.._.. .~.~ _._~.
~.:......|._ .~..:q~
.._.
Visa ._._. ,.-.....
~,..:.~:. ~..|~.,~~._
. .~ ..: q ~ . ._~: . . q._ .
MasterCard - _.,.:.. .
. ...~ ~ ., .,:_e. ._ Antonio
Corro ~ 2C2P . POS ~,..:
..:.~ ..:q~_..._ .e~_..
.~.q._ ........,. _e. ._.
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
20
Enabling Sustainable Value Chains in Asias
Apparel Frontier: Getting the Job Done
Part IV of this series on creating sustainable apparel value chains explores how to practically catalyse the shift toward sustainable value chains via
investing for fnancial return and social and environmental objectives.
Maximilian Martin
M
yanmar is undergoing
rapid modernisation.
There is both momen-
tum in a number of sectors and
much work to catch up remains
uIeud. As un exumpIe, Luke
banking. Today, the countrys
commercial banking system is
only partially developed; there
are currently 1.9 commercial
bank branches per 100,000
InIubILunLs, compured Lo 8.1
in neighbouring Bangladesh.
Bilateral and multilateral de-
velopment projects are under
way to put the corresponding
institutional infrastructure in
place, including modernising
domestic capital markets with
technical assistance from the
Tokyo SLock ExcIunge. Over
time, modernisation will help
enabling capital investment
into productive activities in the
reuI economy IncIudIng LexLIIe
and garments, the focus of to-
days post.
An I nvestment Mi ndset i s
Key for I ndustr y Upgr ad-
i ng
This series has focused on ap-
parel and argued that there is
a major value-creation oppor-
tunity in the wings. The cluster
becomes unstoppable wherever
sustainability can be successful-
ly integrated in the value crea-
tion formula while managing
total cost. The apparel indus-
try thus can become both very
large in the coming years and
make an important contribu-
tion to socioeconomic progress
in Myanmar. To illustrate this
point, the new report released
by Impact Economy a global
impact investment and strategy
hrm - LILIed CreuLIng SusLuIn-
able Apparel Value Chains, dis-
cusses a number of best prac-
LIce exumpIes und urgues LIuL
a focus on the manufacturing
stage provides one of the most
promising avenues for industry
transformation in terms of so-
cial and environmental perfor-
mance and competitiveness.
The challenge now is to de-
termine how to achieve this
transformation in practice and
at scale. An investment mindset
is the key fresh ingredient here,
both for fostering total resource
productivity and for securing
transparency across the supply
chain improving infrastruc-
ture and working conditions in
the process. Social and environ-
mental performance require-
ments are becoming ever more
stringent. But transformational
and sustainable improvements
will never be brought about by
simply sending more inspectors
to police factories, not building
Iong-Lerm muLuuIIy benehcIuI
relationships between buyers
and producers, or without up-
grading manufacturing.
I nvesti ng i n Physi cal
I nfr astr uctur e Upgr ade i n
Appar el Can be a Wi n-Wi n
Given the generally low re-
source productivity in the in-
dustry, there is a win-win op-
portunity for investment capital
to improve social and environ-
mental conditions while also
enabling producers to save
money (especially in the case
oI InvesLmenLs In energy em-
ciency). This is possible because
these types of investments cap-
ture a higher margin by enter-
ing higher-value added produc-
LIon, wIIcI LIen drIves hnuncIuI
returns.
or exumpIe, $6o bIIIIon
total investment is needed by
2030 to support the countrys
growth potential, $320 billion
in infrastructure alone. Myan-
mar is a frontier economy and
is already attracting invest-
ment in the garment sector. The
country attracted $42 billion
in foreign direct investment
In hscuI yeur zo1z-zo1, LIe
overwhelming bulk of which
went to investments in power,
oil and gas. Myanmars 2012
Foreign Investment Law allows
for 100 percent foreign owner-
ship without the need for a local
partner. The law has improved
the investment environment by
providing special incentives as
well as important regulation re-
gurdIng IoreIgn excIunge, dIs-
pute resolution, and the ability
Lo deducL cerLuIn expendILures
Irom Luxes und obLuIn reIIeI on
import duties.
I nvesti ng for Fi nanci al
and Soci al/ Envi r onmental
Retur n
To be sure, uncovering in-
vestment opportunities can be
challenging in practice. Critical
constraints include local man-
agement bandwidth and trans-
parency. Even here, though,
promising solutions have come
into view. An investment part-
nership between the UK devel-
opmenL hnunce InsLILuLIon CDC
and leading Swedish hedge
fund group, Brummer & Part-
ners AB provides a helpful illus-
tration for how an investment
sLruLegy LIuL LurgeLs boLI hnun-
cial returns and social and en-
vironmental improvements can
play out on the ground. Along-
side other investors including
FMO, the IFC and Norfund, as
well as commercial investors
such as pension funds and high
neL-worLI IumIIy omces, LIe
CDC InvesLed $1o mIIIIon InLo
LIe hrsL BungIudesI-Iocused
frontier private equity fund tar-
geLIng hrms In neIgIbourIng
BungIudesI`s exporL, ugrIcuI-
ture, health, education, IT and
services sectors.
Investee Ananta Apparels
Limited (AAL) highlights the
social and environmental im-
pact potential of this invest-
ment approach. AAL is among
the top 10 manufacturers of
woven product in Bangladesh
and is one of the countrys lead-
Ing uppureI exporLers. TIe com-
pany specialises in denim prod-
ucts with monthly production
cupucILy oI 1.8 mIIIIon woven
bottoms across three factories
LIuL comprIse 8o,ooo squure
feet and employ about 13,000
workers. Major customers in-
clude leading retail brands such
as H&M, GAP and the Bestsell-
er Group. AAL has embarked
on un umbILIous expunsIon
plan, which involves the relo-
cuLIon oI AA`s exIsLIng cusuuI
woven bottoms factory to a new
custom built facility south of
DIuku, und LIereby repIucIng
its original factory in downtown
DIuku.
This development is an op-
portunity to provide adequate
physical infrastructure, particu-
larly in a country where 90 per-
Myanmar Summary
Contd. P 21... Contd. P 21...
Workers tailor and arrange clothing at a garment factory at Hlaing Tha Yar industrial zone in Yangon.
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Transformational and sustainable
improvements will never be brought about by
simply sending more inspectors to police
factories, not building long-term mutually
beneficial relationships between buyers and
producers, or without upgrading manufacturing.
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..._ e _e .~ .~~ .q.. . ~ , ..:.
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.,_.. ~~..~:~..,.. ,_.._:
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~.....q....~~.:.~._.
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e.~. ~_~....~ ..~.
e_e.~.~~.:..q, ..:q~_..
~:._e ._ . . ~_ ~. . . . , .
~.|~~ ~,~.....,..:.
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~.:.~.:.~:..:.~ e,~..:.
. .~: ._ _e. ._ .~_ .. . . , .
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
21
Myanmar Summary
From page zo...
cent of buildings are not com-
pliant with the building code.
TIe projecL wIII cosL upproxI-
mately $24.4 million, of which
LIe C wIII provIde u hnuncIng
puckuge Ior up Lo $8 mIIIIon.
The social and environmental
ImpucLs IncIude upproxImuLeIy
1,oo expecLed new jobs; LecI-
nology transfer as AAL intends
to adopt global best practices
in terms of lean manufactur-
Ing concepLs, IucLory emcIency,
worker productivity and energy
emcIency sLundurds oI LIe over-
all industry; new local supply
chain linkages as the project
will generate incremental busi-
ness for medium and small en-
terprises in the value chain, in-
cluding accessory and package
suppliers, service providers and
logistics support.
The government stands to
benehL once LIe projecL gen-
eruLes Lux revenues. And one
should not underestimate the
overuII demonsLruLIon eecL oI
a company that is able to com-
mit to adopting best practices
in corporate governance, envi-
ronmental and safety compli-
ance, labour standards, and en-
ergy emcIency In BungIudesI`s
readymade garment industry
while still remaining competi-
tive. There is no logical reason
why a similar approach should
not work in Myanmar.
Conclusi on: Appar el Quo
Vadi s?
The conditions for change
are moving into place in the
LexLIIe und gurmenL IndusLry,
especially in Myanmar where
enthusiasm to catch up with
its neighbours is at an all-time
high. The green transformation
of the global economy is in pro-
cess, and the resulting savings
potential is considerable in an
industry with low total resource
productivity. Solutions to social
Issues ure oI course dImcuIL Lo
implement but an era of innova-
tion and less time constrained
responsible investment capital
is starting to make its impact.
Whats more, sustainable forms
of consumption will catch on
eventually as the information
revolution fosters ever-greater
transparency.
DIsrupLIon In ILs muny Iorms
is on its way. One respondent
to the online survey for Creat-
ing Sustainable Apparel Value
Chains commented: Within a
10-20 year period I think the in-
dustry will be changed severely
by higher customer awareness
on labour standards and envi-
ronmental issues, production
techniques such as robotics,
-D prInLIng und new muLerI-
als, and increases in costs due
to higher raw material prices.
Getting the job done and set-
ting Myanmar on a path to be-
coming a leading sustainable
apparel cluster is possible. This
shift will require transferring
best practice, collaboration be-
tween government, industry
associations, producers, buyers
and civil society, and the guts to
act.
We do not know how the
world will look in 2030 or in
2050, but we do know that
there will be demand for ap-
parel products as long as there
are people. 9 billion people will
have to clothe themselves, not
to mention look and feel good
while doing it. The Rana Plaza
disaster, and the ongoing fall-
out and consequences, illus-
trates that an unrelenting and
unforgiving pursuit of growth is
simply too risky for the industry
to continue.
The analysis presented here
shows that systemic transfor-
mation that drives both better
social and environmental per-
formance and greater competi-
tiveness is possible for My-
anmar, Asias current apparel
frontier, sustainable apparel
value chains hold the prospect
oI sIgnIhcunL deveIopmenL dIvI-
dends. An old Burmese proverb
says, Collect the water while it
rains. It would seem that the
opportunity to leapfrog is now.
About the Author :
Dr Maximilian Martin is the
Founder and Global Managing
Director of Impact Economy.
He also serves as Founding
Faculty in Residence at Ashoka
U and Lecturer in Social En-
trepreneurship at the Univer-
sity of St. Gallen. He previously
served as founding global head
and managing director of UBS
Philanthropy Services, head of
research at the Schwab Foun-
dation, senior consultant with
McKinsey & Company, instruc-
tor at Harvards Economics
Department, and fellow at the
Center for Public Leadership,
Harvard Kennedy School.
From page zo...
People work at a garment factory of Hlaingtharyar Industrial Zone in Yangon.
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Myanmar Investment Forum to Be Held for The First Time in New York
W
ith the intention of
attracting investors
from the US, the My-
anmar Investment Outreach
Business & Investment Forum
wIII be IeId Ior LIe hrsL LIme In
June 2014, according to U Aung
NuIng Oo, DIrecLor GeneruI oI
LIe DIrecLoruLe oI nvesLmenL
and Companies Administration
(DCA).
Aye Myat The forum will discuss Myan-
mars investment laws and reg-
ulations to provide an overview
of the penal and legal code sur-
rounding the business environ-
ment as well as the investment
opportunities in the countrys
evolving sectors, said U Aung
Naing Oo.
Organised by US-based Pen-
insula Press, the forum is main-
ly sponsored by local companies
such as KBZ Bank, City Mart
HoIdIngs, oI HeIn, DeIco MIn-
Ing, SIwe Tuung DeveIopmenL,
Myanmar Citizens Bank, Green
Construction Group and UMG.
AccordIng Lo KuLIIeen DeIucy,
manager of Peninsula Press for
Southeast Asia Region, a news-
letter with emphasis on Myan-
mars political and economic
changes is soon to be published
in over 160 countries.
~..q~,.. q..._.....:.
~ ...:.q,~~~ Myanmar
Investment Outreach Business &
Investment Forum ~:. ...
..~_~.~_e. ~~, ... ~,.~
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
22
From page ;...(Israel)
INVESTMENT & FINANCE
..~~~:. ~..q~,~._.
.~ Noble Energy Corp ~
.~ q ~. , ~ ~.~: ~
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Although an LNG ter-
minal would allow access
to global markets, the
cheaper option of a pipe-
line to Turkey and the
Palestinian Authority has
recently gained traction.
From a Woodside per-
spective its clearly not
good news, said Mac-
quarie Equities analyst
Adrian Wood.
Critics of the pipeline
option point out, howev-
er, that unresolved mari-
time claims in the East
Mediterranean will make
IL dImcuIL Lo geL LIe InLer-
governmental deals in
place that would allow the
laying of a pipeline from
Israel to Turkey.
Another option for the
project would be to build
a joint LNG terminal with
Cyprus, which has also
found large untapped gas
reserves, and which could
be jointly developed with
Israel as they are close
Lo LIe evIuLIun heId,
although analysts here
point out that Israel is re-
IucLunL Lo exporL ILs gus
through a foreign state.
Long Negoti ati ons
Negotiations between
Leviathans partners and
Woodside dragged on for
more than a year as Isra-
els supreme court debat-
ed whether to allow natu-
ruI gus exporLs, gus heId
studies were completed
and options on develop-
ing the gas were debated.
The Israeli high court
uILImuLeIy uIIowed ex-
ports of up to 40 percent
of produced natural gas.
The proposed new deal,
which Woodside aims to
hnuIIse In MurcI, wouId
also give Woodside a roy-
alty on commercial oil
production. That includes
an up-front payment of
$8o mIIIIon.
Analysts say there is
currently a global race to
deveIop new gus heIds us
soon as possible before
the vast new supplies pull
down prices and threaten
return of investments.
The United States is
expecLed Lo begIn NG
exporLs oI ILs vusL sIuIe
gas reserves in 2015, and
Australia is also trying
Lo become u Lop NG ex-
porter this decade, while
Mozambique and East Af-
rica also hope to develop
their newly found huge
osIore gus reserves
within the coming years.
Reuters
From page ;...(Israel)
~. .q. - Delek Group,
Avner Oil Exploration .
Ratio Oil Exploration ~.
, .~ -q e e:.:.~ Woodside
..q:...:._~.__e.._.
Woodside ._ LNG .:~
...,..:.~..:q~.,
..: ~.:.~,.~.~.:.
. ~.~~.._e._.. ~.~
~_~....~._. ~.:.
~_.:.q .,._ ~~ ~ . . ~ , .
~~~ ~.,~~e~~.q
.:...__e.._~:. Delek
Drilling . Avner ~~
._.:_~:..._.
Japanese Firms Eye Myanmars Bounty
Bi Shihong
J
apan, mired in its continu-
ously sluggish economy
and declining internation-
al clout, has been undergoing a
critical period of change in re-
cent years. Myanmar, situated
between China and India as a
buer zone, Ius become more
sIgnIhcunL Lo Jupun uILer breuk-
ing its decades-long isolation,
and has been labelled as the last
paradise for investment with
boundless business opportuni-
ties by Japanese media.
Myanmar is confronted with
severe problems like ethnic
conIcLs und reIIgIous cIusI-
es, so it has to rely on promi-
nent economic development to
maintain social stability.
Nay Pyi Taws demands for
boosLIng economy hL rIgIL
into Tokyos ambition to seek
more business opportunities
in the democratically progress-
Ing counLry. TIe Lwo LIus hnd
common ground to strengthen
bilateral economic cooperation.
The Thein Sein administra-
tion has set economic devel-
opment as its top priority and
called for Japanese enterprises
to increase their input in Myan-
mar on many occasions.
The Japanese leadership also
stated that they would motivate
uII Iorces Lo hII LIe InvesLmenL
gap of Japan in Myanmars in-
frastructure construction and
talent training over the past two
decades, constructing a new
type of bilateral relationship.
Japans Ministry of Economy,
Trade and Industry called for
cooperation between enter-
prises and government to boost
InIrusLrucLure exporLs In un-
LIcIpuLIon oI hercer compeLILIon
between Japanese companies
with their US and European
counterparts in Myanmar, espe-
cially after the sanctions against
Myanmar are fully lifted.
Now in the last virgin market
of Asia, some Japanese enter-
prIses ure exIng LIeIr mus-
cles across a wide spectrum of
busIness, sucI us hnunce, In-
frastructure construction, logis-
tics, and manufacture.
With large-scale corpora-
tions such as Mitsui, Itochu,
Marubeni, Toyota Tsusho, and
Mitsubishi setting up their of-
hces In Nuy PyI Tuw, Jupun Ius
devoted itself to contesting op-
portunities in electricity gener-
ation, transportation and natu-
ral gas development.
Japanese manufacturing gi-
ants like Toshiba, Hitachi and
Panasonic are also deepening
their footprints in Myanmar.
L Is expecLed LIuL Jupunese
manufacturers establishing fac-
tories in Myanmar will generate
consIderubIe economIc benehLs
and employment.
Nonetheless, there are still
many barriers given Myanmars
unsound commercial environ-
ment with its lack of skilled
labourers, underdeveloped
transportation system, frequent
blackouts and restriction on re-
mittances of foreign currencies.
By August 2013, China re-
mained the biggest investor of
Myanmar while Japan ranked
the 11th. The annual trade vol-
ume between Nay Pyi Taw and
Tokyo is merely over $1.6 bil-
lion. Some Myanmar politicians
have voiced their dissatisfaction
with Japanese enterprises lack
of initiative to invest.
Local media summarised
4L, namely Look, Listen,
Learn, and Leave, to describe
some Japanese companies
performance while some hold
these enterprises are all mouth
and no trousers.
Meanwhile, the negative side
of Japanese investment in My-
anmar has begun to emerge. Its
unknown whether the pragmat-
ic Japanese companies will fur-
ther enlarge their investment
and whether this direct invest-
ment could generate quick ben-
ehLs Ior Myunmur.
DurIng LIe process oI de-
veloping the Thilawa Special
Economic Zone, the Japanese
enterprises involved report-
edly attempted to use quiet
dialogue in solving entangled
probIems IIke Iund exproprIu-
tion and compensation, re-
sulting in local discontent and
protests because of opaque and
IneecLIve communIcuLIon.
There are also local denounce-
ments on the reluctance of Ja-
pans foreign aid mechanisms
like the Japan International Co-
operation Agency, and of some
Japanese politicians to com-
municate with local communi-
ties and media. It remains to be
seen how the quiet economic di-
plomacy of Japan will function.
The Abe cabinet aims at reju-
venating the Japanese economy
through shaping Myanmar into
a big production base and vast
market. However, despite great
economic potential, it takes
time to complete infrastruc-
ture construction, and vigorous
rights movements in the young
democratic country add uncer-
tainties to foreign investment.
Moreover, with more US and
European enterprises swarm-
ing into Myanmar, Japanese
enterprises are facing more
competitors.
Nuy PyI Tuw Is expecLIng more
economIc benehLs brougIL by
Japan rather than political
trouble. It views Japan as a
rich country which is generous
with its investment in Myan-
mar, but it values the US more
as Washington holds the key for
Myanmar to integrate into the
international community.
Therefore, Japans economic
ambition and diplomacy in My-
anmar is, to a large degree, one-
sided, and its unknown whether
LIe eecLs oI LIe hnuncIuI dIpIo-
mucy couId IIve up Lo expecLu-
tions if Japan continues to pri-
oritize seeking its own interests
rather than candidly helping My-
anmars economic development.
Bi Shihong is a professor at
the School of International Stud-
ies, Yunnan University. Views
expressed here are the authors
own and does not necessarily re-
ject Mcnmcr usiness Todc's
editorial policy. GT
Myanmar Summary
L
iu

R
u
i/
G
T
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._~:.._. ~~~,..._.
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
PROPERTY & REAL ESTATE
23
Myanmar Summary
Nay Pyi Taw to Get Myanmars Second Parkroyal Hotel
Pan Pacifc Hotels Group announces four pipeline projects across Asia Pacifc
S
ingapore-based Pan Pa-
cIhc HoLeIs Group un-
nounced that it will open
its second Parkroyal Hotel in
Myanmars capital Nay Pyi Taw
in April, in line with the groups
expunsIon eorLs ucross AsIu
PucIhc.
Pun PucIhc HoLeIs Group
(PPHG), a subsidiary of Sin-
gapore-listed UOL Group Ltd,
said the new hotel will feature
18o rooms, wIIcI wIII open In
two phases, and comprise an
all-day dining restaurant, spa,
gym, swimming pool and a
range of meeting facilities.
The group said it decided to
open the hotel following the
success of Parkroyal Yangon,
one of Yangons few upscale ho-
tels.
Parkroyal Nay Pyi Taw will
muke LIe group LIe hrsL InLer-
national hotel brand in Myan-
mar to enjoy a presence in two
of the most important cities
the central business hub of
Yangon and the seat of the gov-
ernment administration Nay
Pyi Taw.
As the capital of Myanmar,
Nuy PyI Tuw Is expecLed Lo IosL
a series of international events
and summits including the
ASEAN Summit this year.
PPHG said the new hotel will
be located in the vicinity of My-
anmar International Conven-
LIon CenLre (MCC), LIe omcIuI
venue of government functions,
and that Parkroyal Nay Pyi Taw
will look forward to receiving
many foreign and local digni-
taries once operational.
The group also signed three
more management contracts in
Australia and China, alongside
Myanmar.
With these additions, the
Shein Thu Aung
group now owns and/or man-
uges 8 IoLeIs, resorLs und ser-
viced suites with about 12,000
rooms in Asia, Oceania and
North America, including those
under development.
With its prevailing global
economIc und LourIsm Inu-
ence, AsIu PucIhc Is u key growLI
region for the Group and we are
delighted to be making headway
in our target markets where we
have already established iconic
hotels, says Bernold Schroed-
er, cIIeI execuLIve omcer, Pun
PucIhc HoLeIs Group.
Our four latest management
contract signings will comple-
menL our exIsLIng properLIes Lo
strengthen the Groups pres-
ence ucross AsIu PucIhc und
win over more customers to
our PurkroyuI und Pun PucIhc
brands.
The fourth Parkroyal hotel in
Australia and second in Mel-
bourne PARKROYAL Mel-
bourne will open in 2016 in
LIe DIgILuI Hurbour PrecIncL
oI MeIbourne DockIunds. TIe
new IoLeI wIII spun LIe hrsL 18
storeys of The Altus, a 37-storey
IoLeI und upurLmenL compIex,
und Iuve z81 rooms.
Located along Sha river and
opposite the University of Elec-
tronic Science and Technology,
within the oldest cultural dis-
trict in Chengdus city centre,
PPHG`s hrsL PurkroyuI IoLeI In
China Parkroyal Chengdu is
scheduled to open in 2017. Part
oI u mIxed-use deveIopmenL
comprising high-end residen-
LIuI unILs, u IoLeI, omce und re-
tail spaces, Parkroyal Chengdu
will feature 360 guestrooms, an
all-day dining restaurant, spe-
ciality restaurant, poolside bar
and restaurant, lobby bar and
lounge, ballroom and meeting
spaces.
One of Chinas premier tour-
ist destinations, Zhuhai will be
Iome Lo Pun PucIhc ZIuIuI -
LIe sIxLI Pun PucIhc properLy
in the China. The 300-room
Pun PucIhc ZIuIuI wIII open
its doors in 2017. It will feature
conference facilities, a Chinese
restaurant, all-day dining res-
LuurunL, execuLIve Iounge, Iob-
by bar and lounge, a swimming
pool and gym.
~:q..e~...~ ..,.~..
. .:.~ ..: q ~ .~ q ._ . ~:.
~._..~ Pan Pacifc Hotels Group
._ _.,.:.- ~....q._..~:
.,_._.~:~ .:._ -_.._ ,.
- .~e._.:~ Parkroyal e~e
~:. e . . . :.._ e ~ _., ._~_:
.._.
e.e~e..,.._~.._ UOL
Group Ltd - ..,.._e...:
Pan Pacifc Hotels Group (PPHG)
~ ..e..._e~e~..._
~.,...|. ~~ .|~.__e.~:
~. ., ~:. .~, ..: . .... ._
.:...:~. ~._._..q..,q:
~ e .~ . . q :.~:.~.:., .q~ .~,
~.q._~._..|~.__e.._~:.
._.:_~:..._.
q,~,q e~e_~..:.~ ~..
~.|~~ _e. ._ Parkroyal Yangon
- .~:_...:.._~: e.~.
.,:~.e~e..~:. e..q,
~~~ .._e~._.._e.._~:. .q
._. e...~,.._ _.,.:.-
~.q.~.|.._. _._e.._ ~.
...q._..~: .,_._.~:. ...:.
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~_q.:._ ..... ~_.__._
.q: e~e..,.~..._._e.
._.
_.,.:.-_..~: .,_._.~:
~ e...~~. ~:.e...
.~........~.|~~ ~_.__._
.q:.~..~.:.~_.:.~ -_._.
..~...:.q.__e.._. PPHG
- ._.:_~:..~~q e~e~..
._ _.,.:~_.__._.q: ~,-.
q..~: (MICC) ~,.~,:.~
~_q.__e.._~:. .q._.
~..|e~e..,._~.._ _..
._~... ~, ~ . ~ ~ ._ .
.,:~. e~e...,..q...:
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._~: . . q._ .. .. :..q.. .q .. :.
. . , ..:.~ .~~ .~: .. , .:.
._~: ~:q .. e ~ ...._ e ~e
..,._~.~~~ ~.~~.:~
._.,q:_e..:._~:.. ..:.,.
:.._...~~.:.~ ..,..:.
~:. ~.~: . . ...: q ~ .:.
._~~~ ~..._.:~.._~:. Pan
Pacifc Hotels Group - ~. ..:
~q:q.. Bernold Schroeder ~
._.:_~:..._.
A Parkroyal hotel in Singapore.
W
M
C
Authorities to Construct One More Overpass in Yangon
M
yanmar trans-
port authorities
are planning to
build one more overpass
in Yangon in its contin-
ued eorLs Lo overcome
LIe duIIy Lrumc jum, IocuI
media reported.
The estimated $17-mil-
lion Myaynigone overpass
bridge construction pro-
ject is located at one of
LIe mosL Lrumc-congesLed
areas in Yangon.
TIe yover consLrucLIon
will be carried out as a
special project of the Yan-
gon Region Government
In LIe hscuI yeur zo1q-1,
which begins in April.
The contract for the pro-
ject is yet to be signed.
DespILe compIeLIon
of three main overpass
brIdges, Lrumc jum sLIII
remains, adding to the in-
convenience of the public.
The overpasses already
built are those of Hledan,
Shwegondaine and Bay-
InLnuung wIere Lrumc
jam occurred almost all
day round.
According to the citys
road transport admin-
istration, the number of
motor vehicles operating
in Myanmar stood at 3.9
million as of September
2013, including 3.347 mil-
IIon moLorcycIes, 8z,816
passenger cars, 102,537
trucks and 20,504 buses.
Yangon has a population
of more than 6 million
and an area of 795 square
kilometres. Xinhua
Myanmar Summary
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~_..:~.:..__e._..~.
.|. . ~ , .~:..:._ ~~ . .
., .. .~ .~ ._ _e. ._~: .
. q._ .
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
24
From page ...(Cold Standard)
From page ...(Cold Standard)
From page 8...((Log Lxport))
From page 8...((Log Lxport))
PROPERTY & REAL ESTATE
Myanmar: Tourist Boom Sees Hotels
Jostling for Position
Fiona Carruthers
A
few years ago, Austral-
Iun expuL Bob PercIvuI
was writing a novel and
conducting guided walks in the
small village of Baisha in China.
Then he discovered Myanmar.
I moved to Yangon and start-
ed a new guiding business by
forming a partnership with the
already established Myanmar
Tourism Company (ACL Trav-
el), Percival said.
He Is noL LIe onIy expuL LukIng
advantage of Myanmars tour-
ism boom.
Accor Southeast Asia boss
Patrick Basset described My-
anmar as the last frontier for
tourism in the region. The
French company is planning to
open sIx IoLeIs LIere LIIs yeur.
Tourism has soared from
300,000 visitors in 2010 the
year pro-democracy leader
Aung Sun Su KyI wus hnuIIy re-
leased from house arrest to 2
million tourists last year.
The Myanmar Investment
Commission has granted per-
mission for about $2 billion
worth of investment in hotels
and tourism-related business as
the country of about 50 million
people struggles to keep up with
LIe Inux. Under LIe TourIsm
Master Plan launched last year,
Myanmar hopes to welcome 7.5
million arrivals by 2020.
SucI hgures Iuve gIobuI Io-
LeI cIuIns In urgenL expunsIon
mode: OrIenL-Express, wIIcI
already runs The Governors
Residence, the best hotel in
Yangon, has just added a new
river cruiser, Orcaella, to its
exIsLIng bouLIque sIIp, Roud
to Mandalay. Meanwhile, Pen-
insula Hotels has secured a
property to refurbish, and Hil-
ton and Best Western are also
eyeing locations and potential
local partners. Last April the
compuny compIeLed u deuI Lo hL
out the former Burma Railway
Company building in Yangon as
u hve-sLur IoLeI wILI AusLruIIun
company Meinhardt doing the
refurbishment.
Pun PucIhc HoLeIs Group un-
nounced a conditional joint
venture with Myanmars Shwe
Tuung Group Lo buIId u q8-
room z-sLorey Pun PucIhc Io-
tel in downtown Yangon.
AusLrude uIso opened un omce
in Yangon last year. Tourism is
a huge growth area but at this
stage its mainly the big interna-
tional companies dominating,
said Melinda Tun, a Myanmar-
born Sydney lawyer. And Aus-
tralians are at the forefront; the
general manager of Shangri La
hotels in Myanmar is Austral-
ian.
They have just opened new
Iuxury upurLmenLs, LIe SIungrI
La Residences, in Yangon, and
are planning another hotel in a
couple of years.
Accors Patrick Basset said:
We anticipate the tourist num-
bers will grow with the same
momentum [as seen over the
past two years], and include
more longer-haul tourists.
Weve just signed a Pullman
hotel in Yangon and will soon
open LIe NovoLeI Yungon Mux.
We are also looking into several
potential projects in Yangon,
Inle Lake, Bagan and Manda-
lay.
People always want to visit
exoLIc desLInuLIons und Myun-
mar is becoming a major play-
er in Southeast Asia, enticing
more new and returning tour-
ists to the area. SMH
Fiona Carruthers is Deputy
Editor, Travel at Sydney Morn-
ing Herald.
Myanmar Summary
_..._~....:. .q._.:..,
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~:. . , . ..:. . ~,_ .e ~ .q..:.
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Company (ACL Travel) . ~~ .~
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Asia . .._._e.._ Patrick
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quIres u o vs ;o percenL prohL
sharing ratio between a foreign
company mining in Myanmar
and the government. However,
Myanmar plans to loosen re-
sLrIcLIons on goId exporLs In Lwo
years.
Many international investors
have entered the country, and
they want to buy gold. Wheth-
er we can sell or whether they
can bring the gold outside of
the country will be a big prob-
lem. When Myanmar joins the
ASEAN Free Trade Area, the
government should solve the
problem, said Y Kyaw Win,
secretary of Myanmar Gold En-
trepreneurs Association.
A Reuters database shows that
Myanmar allowed only com-
panies from China, Thailand
und SouLI Koreu Lo expIore Ior
minerals within its borders as
of 2012. Mining companies
from Australia and Russia are
also involved, but often through
third-parties. Commission approval and to
mills and factories from the pri-
vate sector.
Teak log Grades 6 and Grade
7 will be grouped together and
re-designated as Grade 6. Logs
that do not fall in the category of
Grade 6 will be sold as Grade 7.
Grades for Padauk logs (Ptero-
carpus macrocarpus) will re-
muIn us currenLIy used, excepL
LIuL LIe ExporL RejecL Grude
(ER) wIII be cuIIed DomesLIc
Quality.
For other hardwood logs what
Is currenLIy Lermed ExporL
Quality will become First Qual-
ILy und ExporL RejecL Grude wIII
become Second Quality. Logs
that are to be sold by open ten-
der will be parcelled in Yangon
and in other suitable locations
outside Yangon.
Auction deposits will be
$3000 for companies owned by
Myanmar nationals; and $5000
for companies owned by for-
eigners.
If full payment for the suc-
cessful lots is not made within
60 days, the respective lots will
revert to MTE for resale by open
tender, MTE said.
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The lobby area of Traders Hotel in Yangon.
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
AUTOMOBILE
25
Myanmar Summary
Toyota to Stop Making Cars in Australia from 2017
Follows similar plans announced last year by GM, Ford; Toyota says exit will afect about 2,500
jobs
Maggie Lu Yueyang
T
oyota Motor Corp said
last week it would stop
making cars and engines
in Australia by the end of 2017,
marking the end of an era for a
once-vibrant auto production
base and the loss of thousands
of direct and indirect jobs.
Toyotas decision follows the
pIunned exILs oI GeneruI MoLors
and Ford Motor announced last
year and would leave no global
automaker remaining in Aus-
tralia as high costs and a strong
currency make it an unattrac-
tive production base.
We did everything that we
could to transform our busi-
ness, but the reality is that there
are too many factors beyond
our control that make it unvi-
able to build cars in Australia,
ToyoLu AusLruIIu PresIdenL Mux
Yasuda said in a statement.
About 2,500 jobs will be af-
fected when the plant stops
building cars in 2017, the com-
pany said.
ToyoLu`s exIL Irom AusLruIIu
after more than half a century
there is a setback to Prime Min-
ister Tony Abbotts conserva-
tive government, which is seek-
ing to manage a slowdown in
the $1.5 trillion economy as a
decade-long mining investment
boom slows.
This is obviously devastat-
ing news for everyone involved
with Toyota. Its devastating for
me and for the government,
Abbott said in Canberra.
Union leaders were more vo-
cal in their criticism of the gov-
ernments handling of the auto
industrys woes.
The loss of the automotive
manufacturing industry in Aus-
tralia will have far reaching con-
sequences around the country
and throughout the economy,
said Australia Council of Trade
UnIons (ACTU) SecreLury Du-
vid Oliver.
Theyve (the government)
done absolutely nothing to
keep Toyota in this country, he
added, warning that A$21 bil-
IIon ($18.8o bIIIIon) wouId be
wiped from the economy and
that some regions would go into
recession.
Vehicle production in Austral-
ia has nearly halved in the past
decade to just above 200,000 in
Transport Plan to Avoid
Heritage Buildings
A
uthorities should avoid
heritage buildings in
Yangon while imple-
menting the Comprehensive
Urban Transport Plan for
GreuLer Yungon, un omcIuI Irom
the Japan International Coop-
eration Agency (JICA) said.
Shinji Yo Okusawoka, a rep-
resentative of JICA, which is
implementing the multi-billion
dollar project, said the heritage
buildings are major tourist at-
traction and bring much-need-
ed foreign currency to the state
coers.
When drawing up plans, we
have to consider the environ-
ment and social surroundings.
If the project does not cause any
damage to heritage buildings
and the environment people
will welcome the plan and we
can carry on with the project,
he said.
TIere ure 18q IIsLorIcuI Ier-
itage buildings in Yangon, ac-
cordIng Lo LIe Yungon CILy De-
veIopmenL CommILLee (YCDC).
The centre of downtown Yan-
gon was selected last October
for entry in the World Monu-
ments Funds 2014 Watch List,
a biannual list of heritage sites
which are threatened or in need
of preservation.
Non-prohL NGO LIe Yun-
gon Heritage Trust (YHT) has
proposed to designate small
zones within the city centre as
heritage areas and envisions a
joint public-private collabora-
tion whereby private investors
restore heritage buildings for
commercial use while main-
taining the character of the ar-
eas. In June, Philips announced
a partnership with YHT to in-
sLuII zoo ED-IIL bIue pIuques
to highlight key cultural herit-
age sites in the city.
Htet Aung
Mazda Cars Now Available
for Purchase by Instalment
Kyaw Min
J
apanese automaker Mazda
Motor Corps cars can now
be purchased by instal-
ment, the carmakers author-
ised dealer in Myanmar said
last week.
A customer have to pay 20
percent of a cars price as down
puymenL uL hrsL und LIe resL cun
be settled through Ayeyarwady
Bank by instalments, Thet Su
Mon, sales manager from Cycle
and Carriage Automobile My-
anmar (CCAM), said.
The company gave prospec-
tive customers a chance to test
ride Mazda cars from 12 to 16
February at Junction Square in
a bid to lure more buyers. Maz-
du CX, CX-q, BT-o und Muz-
da2 were also on sale at the fair.
Customers buying cars
through cash purchase were
given 5-10 percent discount,
Thet Su Mon said.
Automobile dealer U Myo
Aung from Old Thirimingalar
car dealing station said, It
would be very convenient for us
and Mazda enthusiasts to buy
Mazda cars now. Its a special
opportunity and as a car dealer
we can take advantage of this
oer und muke prohLs.
Mazda cars are manufac-
tured with SkyActiv technol-
ogy to save fuel consumption.
Test driving Mazda cars before
buying is a special chance for a
buyer, a Mazda car enthusiast
Aung Lin said.
Inoue Hiroshi, chairman of
Mazda Motor Corp, announced
in September last year that the
carmaker will launch an au-
thorised showroom in 2014
with CCAM. Mazdas showroom
is located on Kabar Aye Pagoda
road in Yangon and the service
centre is on Ywar Ma road in In-
sein township.
CCAM is the sole dealer for
Mercedes and Mitsubishi au-
tomobiles in Myanmar besides
Mazda.
As part of a plan to sell cars
in all member countries of the
Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), Mazda plans
to send a range of vehicles to
Myanmar rather than only sell
Iow-grude modeIs, ILs CIIeI Ex-
ecutive Masamichi Kogai told
Reuters last year.
The purpose is to build our
brand and create Mazda fans,
he said.
Myanmars new car market
started to bloom around 2011,
after the quasi-civilian govern-
ment of President Thein Sein
took over and overturned im-
ports restrictions of the military
government.
There are around 340,000
passenger cars registered in
Myanmar, government data
shows, shared among a popu-
Myanmar Summary
Toyota Motor Corp ._ ~~
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~: _..._~...~:..q.q.~_~.
~~ Max Yasuda ~ .,.._
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Myanmar Summary
2012 from more than 400,000
in 2004. Sales of locally made
veIIcIes Iuve suered In recenL
years as a stronger Austral-
ian dollar makes imported cars
more competitive. Reuters
A Mazda CX-5 model car at an autoshow.
R
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q,~,_.~ ....,..~.e.q.
...~:..,.:..q, _._..ee.
..: .q.~. ~. .:.~.~: ~_
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(J ICA) . ._.:_~:..._. (J ICA)
~e.:..e~.._e.._ Shinji
Yo Okusawoka ~ .. .~ e .~.
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~.:._.q..:..:.~ ...:.
..: ~.~~q:.:._e._.. ._.:.
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lation of more than 60 million
people. Most of the cars are
Japanese.
About half a dozen companies
from Japan, India, South Korea
and the United States are cur-
rently manufacturing cars or
have showrooms in Myanmar.
.,.- ..:.~:~:...,.
_~._e...: Mazda Corp -
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Junction Squre ~.......:.
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
26
INTERNATIONAL AND DOMESTIC FLIGHT SCHEDULE
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
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
AUTOMOBILE
27
Myanmar Summary
Okano Lubricants Appoints Local Dealer
J
apanese motor oil produc-
er Okano has appointed
local distributor Lotus
BIossom Co Ld us ILs omcIuI
representative in Myanmar, the
companies said.
The high performance en-
gine oil will attract car owners
in Myanmar who uses Japanese
curs, Dr Soe TIu Aung, dIrec-
tor of Lotus Blossom Co Ltd,
said.
Okano Jidousha Shoukai
Company, which sells engine
oil and lubricants, is over 100
years old and is one of the lead-
ing motor oil producer in Ja-
pan.
Isao Okan, a representative
of Okano Jidousha Shoukai
Company, said: The engine
oil brands OKANO Q7 and
OKANO Q8 ure LruIy Jupunese-
Phyu Thit Lwin made product and these can
guarantee fully synthetic engine
oil. New automobiles consum-
ing diesel, petrol and CNG can
be driven between 5,000 and
8,ooo kIIomeLres usIng LIese
engine oil.
For big cars and trucks Okano
will introduce its OKANO Q9
(15W-40) engine oil in Myan-
mar soon, he said.
Yangon to Use
Smurt Trumc Light
Controllers
T
he Yangon region gov-
ernment is planning to
use InLeIIIgenL Lrumc IIgIL
controllers to allay the woeful
Lrumc sILuuLIon In LIe Iormer
capital and commercial hub of
Myunmur, un omcIuI suId.
The system will be introduced
in the city with assistance from
Japan, Aung Khin, Yangon re-
gions transport minister, said.
The system was tested at the
cILy`s eIgIL-mIIe juncLIon In De-
cember last year.
The minister said the test re-
sults were satisfactory, and the
authorities are now in talks
with Japan International Coop-
eration Agency (JICA) to install
the system in the intersections
wIere mosL Lrumc jums occur.
Yangon has more than 160
Lrumc IIgILs, uccordIng Lo esLI-
mates.
Su Su
Tutu Motors Q Net Prot Triples on
Jaguar Land Rover Sales
T
ata Motors Ltd, Indias
biggest automaker by
revenue, saw third-quar-
Ler neL prohLs LrIpIe Lo LIeIr
highest in a year-and-a-half on
sLrong demund Ior ILs Iuxury
Jaguar Land Rover vehicles and
a one-time accounting gain.
BrILIsI Iuxury curmuker JR,
which Tata Motors bought in
zoo8, Ius been proppIng up
prohLs uL ILs purenL Ior LIe
past two years. The unit sold
a record 425,006 saloons and
sports utility vehicles in 2013 in
countries including Brazil, Chi-
na, India and the United States.
The company beat forecasts
Aradhana Aravindan
and posted last week a 195 per-
cenL Increuse In neL prohL Ior
LIe OcLober-December quurLer
oI q8.o bIIIIon rupees ($;;o.
million), its highest quarterly
prohL sInce MurcI zo1z.
Tatas domestic operations
posLed u neL prohL oI 1z. bIIIIon
rupees for the quarter, while
prohL Irom JR more LIun dou-
bled to 619 million ($1.01 bil-
lion). Reuters
Myanmar Summary
Myanmar Summary
OKANO Engine Oil - _.,.:
.- ~q:.~~..~_.~e.:.
. e _e. ..: Lotus BlossomCo.,Ltd
. .,.._..:.~:. ~ee....
..: ..:.~:e:.q.:.~~~
. . ...: q_ ~.~: .. ._e. ..:
OKANO Engine Oil ~ _._~.
. ~...~_._e.._~:. Lotus
Blossom Co.,Ltd . Director
..|~~:....~:~ ._.:._.
~. .| OKANO ~ ~ ~
_ e, _ e . .q: . . ..: OK A NO
J I DOUSHASHOUKAI ~ . ~
..~~._ .,.~ ~.~
.~~.. .. ~~~ .~:q.,_._e._..
.,.- ...~~~ ,.|~~.
.,q:. ...:.~q._~:. .q
._.
q, ~ , ~ ...._ ~ .~. .q._
_.,.:.-...:..q._..~:_e...:
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._eq .q, ~.~..:~...,.
....,..:.~ ~.._..:..__e.
._~:. ...:.q.~,_~._:, ~:~,
q.~..~ ._.:.._.
e..,.~:. ~.._.q, .,.
. .:~ . ~ _ . .:._.. . .... :.._
e q,~,~...._~. ...:
.~.e.q.~,_~. ..~:.~
._.:_~:..._.
.,.._.. .~:.~ q,~,
_. ....._ ~..|.,.~:.
.....~.._.._....._~:. ~,
_~ .-._.:_~:..~ ~q .. ... ~. ._..
~._ .~.,._ ~. , .~,. e e
.~:.._~:. .q._ .
A showroom attendant polishes a Jaguar vehicle at a Jaguar Land Rover showroom
in Mumbai.
V
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~.e.- ..:.~:~:...,.
_~ ._e. ..: TataMotors Ltd ._
~~ e. ...~ ~:.~ ~.:.~
~_.~.qq.._ , .. .._.~~
.:._.. ,.- ~....:.~:~:.~..
~.:._e.._ J aguar Land Rover
~:..:.~:. ~e . ~:. ~. , .~: .. ,
.._~: e.~. ~_.~.~.~~
.:._.._e.._.
~~, ...~ q:~. ~,~
~ . e. ~..q ~, ~ ~.|~~ .
.:.~ Tata Motors Ltd ._
..,.~:.~...q ,,~~' ...
~:.~.:.~. .~..: .. _ .. :.
.e..:._~:..:.~ .q:...
q._~:. .q._.
Models display Okano lubricants during a launching ceremony in Yangon.
P
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February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
28
IT & TELECOM
Myanmar Summary
LG Jumps into Fitness Tech; Unveils
First Flexible OLED TV
Kyaw Min
S
outh Korean electron-
Ics gIunL G mude ILs hrsL
Ioruy InLo hLness LecI
by introducing two wearable
products Lifeband Touch and
Heart Rate Earphones recent-
ly, the company said.
Lifeband Touch is an activity
tracker that is compatible with
heart rate monitors (HRM) as
well as smartphones. The Heart
Rate Earphones allow users to
measure their heart rate while
exercIsIng. BoLI LIe producLs,
unveiled at the 2014 Interna-
tional Consumer Electronics
Show (CES) in Las Vegas, can
wirelessly link up to each other.
The company said both de-
vices are designed to help users
take greater control over their
health.
Connected to smartphones
(Android and iOS), the devices
can transmit data to the LG
Fitness app, or to a number of
other third party apps such as
MyFitnessPal, Runkeeper or
MapMyFitness, LG said.
Lifeband Touch features a
LoucI OED puneI Lo dIspIuy
time, biometrics, incoming calls
and music controls, and the
buIIL-In -uxIs ucceIeromeLer
and altimeter allows the de-
vice to accurately measure key
performance indicators such
as distance, speed, number of
steps, calories consumed and
projected pace. All this infor-
muLIon Is vIsIbIe on LIe OED
display.
The company said the device
has been engineered to be light-
weight and simple to use it
incorporates a motion-sensing
algorithm that automatically
turns on the display when the
wearer rotates her wrist. Life-
bund ToucI uIso oers wIreIess
connectivity via Bluetooth to
Models display LGs Lifeband Touch at the 2014 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
L
G
transmit data to a smartphone
or receive data from third party
devices.
The Heart Rate Earphones
feature PerformTek sensor
technology which measures
bIood ow sIgnuIs Irom LIe uu-
rIcIe, LIe exLernuI purL oI LIe
ear to capture accurate biomet-
ric data such as heart rate and
muxImuI oxygen consumpLIon
(VOz mux). A cIIp-on meduI-
lion connected to the earphones
provides Bluetooth connectiv-
ity, enabling the unit to send
data to a smartphone.
We wanted to introduce
weurubIe hLness producLs LIuL
meL LIe expecLuLIons oI Lo-
days tech savvy consumers and
brought something new to the
table, which in our case meant
excepLIonuI desIgn, comIorL und
functionality, said Jim Clay-
Lon, execuLIve vIce presIdenL oI
G`s New BusIness DIvIsIon In
the Home Entertainment Com-
pany.
The uniqueness of our wear-
able devices is that they werent
jusL desIgned Ior exercIse buL
also for day-to-day use in the
omce or uround LIe Iome. WILI
Lifeband Touch, you can get call
und LexL noLIhcuLIons senL Irom
your smartphone while the
Heart Rate Earphones are per-
fectly happy playing back music
uII duy even wIen you`re noL ex-
ercising. These are much more
LIun jusL hLness
devices.
Lifeband Touch
and Heart Rate
Earphones will
be available
starting in the
United States in
LIe hrsL IuII oI
2014, to be fol-
lowed by rollouts
in other markets.
TV that chang-
es shape
The company
also unveiled the
worId`s hrsL Iex-
IbIe OED TV uL
the CES. With
this TV unit,
viewers can con-
trol the angle of curvature to
Iuve vIewIng experIences suIL-
ed to their particular needs, the
company said.
G`s IexIbIe OED TV Is u
product that has to be seen to
be beIIeved becuuse IL dehes
description, said HH (Hyun-
hwoi) Ha President and CEO
of LGs Home Entertainment
Company.
WIuL curved Is Lo uL, exI-
ble is to curved. LG continues to
lead the evolution of televisions
InLo LIe nexL generuLIon.
The curvature of the display
oI G`s IexIbIe OED TV cun
be altered using the TV remote
to suit the viewers preference.
The range of curvature was de-
termined by taking into account
IucLors LIuL uecL LIe vIewIng
experIence sucI us screen sIze
and viewing distance.
Models display LGs Flexible OLED TV at CES 2014.
L
G
LGs Lifeband Touch.
L
G
.~: ~ q .e:.- ~ .~ .q:,.
~ . ~ _~ ._e. ._ LG ._ ~~ .
~. ._.. ..: Lifeband Touch .
Heart Rate Earphones ~~:. .~
.~..._..~:._e ~,..:_~..q.
,_ .._:~_~ .. .. ... .
._~:.~.q.~ .~..:~....
_._e.._~:. ._~:....~ ~.~.
._.:_~:..._.
Lifeband Touch ._ heart rate
monitors (HRM) ..~e,.~.
~e~~.._..._ ..q:...:
q ~ . ._.q:. .~ _e. ._ . Heart Rate
Earphone .:.._ ~.._...:.
.. ~ ., ._.. . .,. . . .. , . , .~
~ .~:.... :.. ._ _e. ._ . ~. .|
~~, ....~:. e....,.
.._ .~.-.~.~ _......:
~_ ._ _ ._ . q: ~ .~ .q:,.
~ , ._ .:._.. ~ .~ . ~ .~ . _. .
_e._.. ~..|~~, .._ _~..
.~.~~.._..._~:.._. .q
._. e.~~, ....._
~.._...:.~ ,.~-~,..:.q.
. .~ .~ _ . . , ... ..: q ~ .
q,~~~ q_qe_ ~..._..
_e.._~:. ~.~. ._.:_~:..._.
..~ e , ..:.. . ~ .~ q:~ e .
~.~.q:,.~~, .....
~.~~.~.:.~:. LG Fitness
app . .._.:......._~:. .q
._.Lifeband Touch ~ touch
OLED panel biometrics e , .~~
..'. . .:.. ~. ~~ .~. .|~
._ ~_. ~, ..:.q... ~ ., ._.. .
.,. ~ ~q , . , . ~~ :~.~. ._.. . .
~.q~~~ ~e.q..:~...,.
~.q ._ ~ ~ ~ .~:q, ~~ ~
accelerometer . altimeter ~
.|~ ._~: .._. . q._ ..~ ~..:
_e..~.,._ .~.~.~~.~
~:...~._. OLED .~.:_.
~ .~ _. . ._ _e. ._ .e. ~ .~
.q:,. ~. .~..: .. _ .._
..| ..| .|..|.. ~. e ~~ ~. ._..
q, ~~..:._.._e.._~:.
._. ~.~. ._.:_~:..._.
Lifeband Touch ~.,_e
..~e,.. Bluetooth .~..
.~.~.~~.~.:. .._.:....
._.. ~_.:. third party ~..
~..: .. _ ..:.. .~ .~. ~
~.~.:.~._. .~.qe.:..
.__e.._. Heart Rate Earphones
~ PerformTek ~:,.,_.._:
.|~_.. ...-~..'~~.,..:..
........,.~ ~.~:....._
_e.._.
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
IT & TELECOM
29
Myanmar Summary
Ooredoo Launches Myanmar Website
Phyu Thit Lwin
Q
atars Ooredoo, which
was granted a telecom
IIcence om cIuIIy In eb-
ruary by the government, has
IuuncIed ILs om cIuI websILe
In Myunmur, LIe LeIecom hrm
said.
The website, www.ooredoo.
com.mm, is available in both
English and Myanmar lan-
guage.
Ooredoo has maintained a
sIgnIhcunL socIuI medIu pres-
ence since it won a licence to
operate in Myanmar in June
last year. At the time of writing
this report, the companys My-
anmar facebook page had over
165,000 likes, while its Nor-
wegian rival Telenors facebook
page had about 46,000. Oore-
doo Myanmar is also present
on other social media platforms
like Twitter, LinkedIn and Ins-
tagram.
Ross Cormack, CEO of Oore-
doo Myanmar, said: From now
on we must work ... to launch
uILer sIx monLIs oI LIe eec-
tive licence date. ... Myanmar
peopIe Iuve very IIgI expecLu-
tions towards the products and
services we will be delivering in
a few months time.
Earlier the company said it
will launch 3G mobile services
In Myunmur wILIIn sIx monLIs
oI LIe om cIuI IIcence grunLIng
date and cover 97 percent of the
popuIuLIon In hve yeurs.
We must keep our promises
in delivering our services and
products to the people of Myan-
mar. Keeping the promises by
word of mouth isnt enough,
Cormack said.
_., .:~. .q~ ..... ._ .~ . e
.q...~ qq._.._e.._ ~:~:
. - .~ . e .q.. . , ._~ ._e. ..:
Ooredoo ._ .e.e:~|q.~
_.,.:.~~~ ,.~- ~q:.~
~~ . ~ ~:. ~_ .: . _. ._e. ._~: .
. q._ . www.ooredoo.com.mm
~~.~~:. _.,.::.:.~:..
~..:.:.~:....._e _~_,
. q, ..: q ~ :.._~: . . q._ .
.,.._.. ~..~ _.,.:
. ~ .~ . e .q.~ .|..'e . ~
~.|~.qq._...,:~ Ooredoo
._ ~.q..|..:....e:~..~
.~..:q~._.._e.._. _.
~.~- facebook .:.~.:~
._. Like ..|. ~'~~~ ~ qq
:...:._. _.~ .,:.~..~
. e .q.. . , ._e. ..: Telenor -
facebook .:.~.:._ Like
..|. ,'~~~ .: qq:.._.
~_. Ooredoo Myanmar ~.,
_e ....e:.:._e.._ Twitter,
Linkedin . Instagram ~~
._ .q .,._~: . . q._ . Ooredoo
Myanmar - .~.~_e.. Ross
Cormack ~ _.,.:_._..:.._
._~:..~,_.e~~. ..~-
~~,.:.. ~,..:..:.~..'
~.,..:..,._~:.._. ._.:
_~:..._.
KI, Somitomo in Tulks to OHer Myunmur Mobile Phone Services
J
apanese telecommunica-
LIons hrm KDD und Lrud-
ing house Sumitomo are
jointly in talks with the gov-
ernment of Myanmar about
launching a mobile phone ser-
vice in the country, a move set
to pit the Japanese consortium
against two foreign rivals that
were already given much-covet-
ed telecommunications licences
there.
TIIs wouId murk LIe hrsL en-
try into Myanmar's potentially
huge cell phone market by Jap-
anese companies. The duo has
obtained preferential negotiat-
ing rights to form capital and
business alliances and set up a
joint venture with the state-run
Myanmar Posts and Telecom-
munications (MPT).
TIe LIree ure expecLed Lo
compile a business plan by the
end of March, laying out details
including how to split the costs
of building base stations and
other infrastructure.
With an initial investment of
some 100 billion yen ($974 mil-
lion), the partners aim to set up
base stations so they can pro-
vide high-speed wireless service
us eurIy us nexL hscuI yeur In
Yangon and elsewhere.
At present, only one in 10
people have cell phones in My-
anmar. MPT has a monopoly in
the sector but has struggled to
make the service widespread
becuuse oI IundIng dIm cuILy
und u Iuck oI quuIIhed engI-
neers. Aiming to raise the pen-
eLruLIon ruLe Lo 8o percenL In
three years, the government ap-
parently considered privatising
MPT, in a bid to attract foreign
technology and money.
Last June, the Myanmar gov-
ernment held a tender for li-
cences granting the right to
provide cell phone services in
LIe counLry. TIe KDD-SumI-
tomo alliance took part,
but lost out to Telenor
of Norway and Qatars
Ooredoo. With these two
hrms eucI scIeduIed Lo
launch their own services
as early as this fall, the market
will likely be split among three
players.
Last year, Sumitomo built 50
base stations in Myanmar that
can support the high-speed LTE
data service, after a request
from the government. For its
purL, KDD Iud been IookIng
for a second emerging market
uILer MongoIIu Lo expund InLo.
As the ranks of middle-income
consumers grow in Myanmar,
cell phones are increasingly in
demand. Raising the market
peneLruLIon ruLe Lo 8o percenL
would bring 40 million new us-
ers into the market. Nikkei
Myanmar Summary
A staff member talks on the phone at the reception desk at the Yatanarpon Tel-
eport (YTP) ofce in Yangon.
Yatanarpon to Receive
Telecom Licence
Htet Aung
T
he Myanmar ministry of
communications and in-
formation technology is
planning to award a telecom li-
cence to the Yatanarpon Public
Company to run communica-
tion services across the nation,
local media reported.
Yatanarpon Teleport Compa-
ny is currently selling internet
lines and pre-paid cards but is
also investing in other busi-
nesses. The four telecom com-
panies (including MPT) will
also participate in fair competi-
tions, the ministry said.
The ministry earlier signed
nationwide licence agreements
with foreign telecom companies
Telenor and Ooredoo. State-run
Myanmar Posts and Telecom-
munications (MPT) was for a
long time the sole operator.
Ooredoo said it will employ
Myanmar nationals at 90 per-
cent, provide telephony ser-
vices and launch 4G networks.
Telenor said it will provide 2G
and 3G networks and use HSPA
and LTE technologies to install
mobile networks. Both Oore-
doo and Telenor said they will
charge calls initially at K25 (2.5
cents) per minute and sell SIM
cards at K1,500 ($1.5) each.
Myanmar Summary
S
o
e

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s
., .~ . e .q.~ . ~ KDDI .
. . ~ . ~ ._ _., .:. ~ . . .
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.q._.
.. ... .. ~. ._.. .|~ _., .:.
~ .~.e.q....:.qq:..
_~._ ._.:..~:..q~:_~. .
_e...: Telenor , Ooredoo ~.
e_.qeeq.,._. .,~.~.:.
._ ~.:.~.:.~:..:.q.,._
_., .: . . e , ....~ ~ ~ .. .._~: .
..~..~ .~..:~...qeeq
.,._.
~..|.,~.~._ .~.~,
~ _., .: .~ . e .q.. . , .. _ . .
_ ..,..:.~ .~....:ee
q.,_.. .~.._ ~._..~..:~
~~.:. ._...:q~.:.._.
._ ~.~ .:..|~ ._ _e. ._ . .~
.e.q...,..:.~:. ~_.:q,
~~~ ~,.~.,_e e,.. ~~~
. e ~..q ~, ..'.: , . . e ,
~:. q..._....:.eeq~: q,~,
. ~_.:..,q:.:.~ .:.__:
.q...~~. ~~... ~_.,..
_., . , ._. _~ .. .~ . e .q.~, ..:
. .:. ~ .:~ . ... . :. . q, _e.
._~:. .q._.
.~ . e .q.. .~ .~.~ ~.~
,_ .._:~, _~ ._:,._ q~,:. ~.:.
.~.~~:. .~.e.q.~,..:
..:.~ ....:.q,~~~ .~
. e .q.. . ~. . ~ ....q, _. .
.,._~:. .q._.
q~,:.~e..~.~._ .~q
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._e_~~.:.~ .q:......,._
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~~ .~.e.q.~.~ , .._.
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_e. ._~: . ~, _~ ._:,. ._.:_~:.. ._ .
A screenshot of Ooredoo's recently launched website.
M
B
T
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
30
SOCIAL SCENES
Mercedes-Benz Launches CLA Class @ Myanmar
Int'l Fashion Week 2014
A booth at Myanmar Int'l Fashion Week 2014.
Phyu Tit Lwin
MCs present Mercedes-Benz CLA Class.
Phyu Tit Lwin
Te unveiling. Phyu Tit Lwin
Models pose in front of a Mercedes-Benz CLA Class
car. Phyu Tit Lwin
Models pose in front of a Mercedes-Benz CLA Class
car. Phyu Tit Lwin
Visitors look at the Mercedes-Benz CLA Class.
Phyu Tit Lwin
Executives look at the Mercedes-Benz CLA Class.
Phyu Tit Lwin
Executives look at the Mercedes-Benz CLA Class.
Phyu Tit Lwin
Gripz Myanmar's Flagship Store Opening
A model displays Gripz products.
Phyu Tit Lwin
Models at the launching ceremony. Phyu Tit Lwin
MC introduces Gripz prod-
ucts. Phyu Tit Lwin
A model displays Gripz
handbag. Phyu Tit Lwin Gripz products. Phyu Tit Lwin
Lotte MGS Beverage Opening Ceremony
Lotte and MGS executives pose for photos. Lotte
67
th
Anniversary of Shan State Day
Shan ethnic people perform during the ceremony
celebrating the 67
th
anniversary of Shan State Day
in Yangon. U Aung/Xinhua
Pa-Oh ethnic girls perform during the ceremony.
U Aung/Xinhua
Lahu ethnic people perform during the ceremony.
U Aung/Xinhua
Pa-Oh ethnic girls perform during the ceremony.
U Aung/Xinhua
A Pa-Oh ethnic girl performs during the ceremony.
U Aung/Xinhua
An Akha ethnic girl smiles during the ceremony.
U Aung/Xinhua
Shan ethnic people perform during the ceremony.
U Aung/Xinhua
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
31
CLASSIFIEDS
February 20-26, 2014
Myanmar Business Today
mmbiztoday.com
32
ENTERTAINMENT
Israeli Bestseller Now Available
in Myanmar Language
A
n Israeli bestseller chil-
drens book has been
translated from Hebrew
into Myanmar language in a
bid to promote reading among
young children in the Southeast
Asian country.
Isralei author Michal Snunits
TIe SouI BIrd, wIIcI wus hrsL
pubIIsIed In 1q8, wus Lruns-
lated as part of the framework
and the events celebrating the
60
th
anniversary of the estab-
lishment of diplomatic relations
between Israel and Myanmar,
the Israeli embassy in Yangon
said.
The embassy has aided in
translating the book from He-
brew and also redesigned it
as part of its special education
project, it said.
As purL oI LIe projecL`s nexL
stage, the embassy will donate
thousands of the books copies
Kyaw Min
to schools and public libraries
throughout the country.
We believe that this dona-
tion on behalf of the people
of the book will contribute in
promoting reading habits of the
young generation in Myanmar,
the Israeli embassy said, add-
ing that the embassy acted as
a bridge between Israeli chil-
drens books and the children of
Myanmar.
The book was introduced dur-
ing the writers participation at
the Irrawaddy Literary Festival
2014 at Mandalay Kuthodaw
Pagoda from February 14 to 16.
Michal Snunit was born
in Kibuttz Ein
Hahoresh, Israel.
She studied thea-
tre and literature at
Tel-Aviv University,
and worked in ag-
riculture, with kib-
butz children before
becoming a journal-
ist and magazine
editor from 1976 to
1q8o.
In addition to her
poetry, she has writ-
ten for young read-
ers and her book,
The Soul Bird, a
national and inter-
national bestseller,
was awarded the
hrsL InLernuLIonuI
prize for children
books in Geneva in
1993. The Soul Bird
has been translated
into more than 25
languages.
In 2005, Michal was award-
ed the Israel Prime Ministers
Prize, and in 2006 The Soul
Bird was awarded Book of the
Year by the Ministry of Educa-
LIon In MexIco. TIe SouI BIrd
has also been translated into
perIormunce, hrsL by LIe Dunce
TIeuLre oI DusseIdorI In zoo8,
und by LIe SwedIsI Dunce TIe-
atre in 2010.
Her other books available
in international translations
include: Come and Hug Me;
Hand in Hand With God Or:
When a Wish Meets a Star; and
The Way of Love.
Israeli writer Michal Snunit with her
book The Soul Birds Myanmar transla-
tion.
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The book cover of The Soul Bird in English.
The Pandaw Kalay on the Irrawaddy River in Myanmar.
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Pandaw Unveils Lost Burma
Shein Thu Aung
S
Ingupore-bused Iuxury rIver cruIse hrm Punduw Is buIIdIng
smaller, shallow-draft vessels to open up the virtually un-
tapped spectacular upper reaches of the Chindwin and Ir-
rawaddy rivers in Myanmar, the company said.
TIIs wIII meun yeur-round cruIsIng Ior LIe hrsL LIme LIrougI some
of the most picturesque mountain and forest scenery in Southeast
Asia right up to near the Indian border with calls at towns and tiny
villages rarely seen by tourists.
Australian representative for Pandaw, John Boyd, said the com-
pany, which currently operates 11 vessels in Myanmar and Vietnam
with two more scheduled for 2014, was concentrating on building
sIuIIow-druIL sIIps Ior more In-depLI expIoruLIon.
This was contrary to the policy of other river operators frantic to
build or buy large capacity less-navigable river craft for the already
crowded Pagan-Mandalay sector of the Irrawaddy, he said.
The new shallow-draft 40-passenger Pandaw Kindat and Pandaw
Kalaw can cruise to areas in Myanmar no other commercial vessel
can reach, he added.
All Pandaw craft are replicas of pre-World War II colonial river
steamers with teak and brass staterooms.
The tiny Pandaw Kalay, which went into service in January, is the
shallowest draft vessel in Myanmar (75cm), the company claims.
With one spacious owners suite and only four main deck state-
rooms, it is aimed at the private charter market.
Yangon river cruise services boom in Myanmar
Y
angon river cruise servic-
es, one of the privatised
sectors in Myanmar, has
been booming as local business-
people make more investments
in Myanmars tourist sector.
The number of tourists enjoy-
ing the sightseeing tour on the
rIver owIng pusL LIe Iormer
capital is on the rise, state-run
media reported.
The river cruise service allows
visitors to celebrate birthday
party and other special celebra-
LIons on Iuxury bouLs.
A sightseeing cruise tour is
priced at about $5 for locals and
$20 for foreign tourists. Price
may vary depending on the
types of cruises.
Myanmar Port Authority re-
cently started upgrading the
Aye Myat Wadan jetty where private-
owned cruises are allowed to
dock.
TIere ure sIx cruIses oerIng
sightseeing tours along Yan-
gon river. Cruise services are
expecLed Lo be operuLed uIong
Ayeyarwady river also.
The number of tourist arrival
Is expecLed Lo rIse LIIs yeur us
muny IoreIgn vIsILors ure ex-
pected to visit Myanmar to at-
tend ASEAN-related summits
to be hosted by Myanmar dur-
ing its ASEAN Chairmanship in
2014.
Last year, Myanmar attracted
over 2 million tourists, of whom
1.14 million entered through
border guLes und 88,q;6
through airports.
Myanmar targets 3 million
tourist arrivals in 2014.
A diver prepares to dive in the Yangon River in search of coal from a sunken ship in Myanmar.
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