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Myanmar Steps onto the World Stage

Myanmar, also known as Burma, has been closed to the world for much of its recent history. However, the country is now going through a process of opening up and liberalization.

Since President Thein Sein was elected in 2011, Myanmar has implemented a plethora of political and economic reforms. This new political outlook has resulted in the lifting of the long-existing international sanctions regime that had been imposed upon the country.

Report: ASEAN Should Facilitate Visa Procedures

A joint report from the UN World Tourism Organization and World Travel & Tourism Council suggests that facilitating ASEAN visa procedures could attract between 6 and 10 million additional international tourist arrivals by 2016.

ASEAN 5 Prepares for Integrated Payment System

The five largest members of ASEAN – Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines and Thailand have agreed to implement an integrated payment system to enable real time gross settlement (RTGS) systems to be in effect by next year.

ASEAN Tax Comparator

In this article, we outline the key corporate and individual income tax rates for the 10 member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

ASEAN Tourism Forum Conference Concludes on Positive Note

SINGAPORE – At the 33rd ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) in Sarawak, Malaysia last week, ASEAN nations reported a 12 percent increase in tourist visits since 2012. Adopting the theme ‘ASEAN – Advancing Tourism Together,’ Malaysian Minister of Tourism and Culture Nazri Abdul Aziz declared the ATF a resounding success by highlighting the ASEAN community’s rapid […]

IMF Boosts Philippines Expected Growth to 6.3 Percent

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised this year’s growth forecast for the Philippines to 6.3 percent, up from a previous estimate of 6 percent. The upgrade is based partly on a slightly more optimistic outlook of advanced economies, and partly on the on-going reconstruction work that will be required as a result of the […]

ASEAN CEOs Most Confident On Growth

HANOI – A report issued by PricewaterhouseCoopers shows that CEOs based in ASEAN are far more bullish about growth prospects than any other region globally. The 17th Annual Global CEO Survey, which measures investor confidence, puts ASEAN-based Chief Executives at 45 percent optimistic as against 39 percent globally. ASEAN CEOs also expressed stronger long-term confidence […]

Malaysia to Open Up To Foreign Auto Manufacturers

As the country seeks to regain its position as an Asian auto hub, Malaysia has eased restrictions in its auto market with foreign investors now being able to manufacture all types of hybrid and electric passenger cars, including small passenger cars. The changes were announced on Monday as part of the country’s new National Automotive Policy (NAP).  […]

Southeast Asian M&A Deals in 2013 Highest on Record

SINGAPORE – According to a recent report from Mergermarket, during the first three quarters of 2013 Southeast Asia saw 273 merger & acquisition deals. Totaling US$49.8 billion, this was the highest result on record in terms of both deal value and deal count on Mergermarket’s records. This is up 4 percent compared to 2012’s Q1-3 result […]

New Issue of Asia Briefing: Payroll Processing Across Asia

In Asia Briefing Magazine’s first issue of 2014, we provide a country-by-country introduction to how payroll and social insurance systems work in China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, India and Singapore. We also compare three distinct models companies use to manage their payroll across various countries with external vendors, and explain the differences among three main models: country-by-country, managed, and integrated models while highlighting some benefits and drawbacks of each.