Weekly Business News from Myanmar

The British development agency DFID suspended funding for Myanmar’s timber industry reform project due to the Rakhine crisis
British development agency DFID has suspended funding for a timber industry reform project because of the Rakhine crisis. BRITAIN HAS cited the crisis over Rakhine State for a decision to suspend funding for Myanmar’s effort to join a European Union initiative aimed at combatting illegal logging and promoting effective forest governance. Myanmar has been preparing to sign the EU’s Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade – Voluntary Partnership Agreement since early 2015. The EU adopted the FLEGT Action Plan in 2003 and two years later introduced the voluntary partnership agreements, under which the European Commission is empowered to negotiate bilateral trade deals with timber exporting countries.
Myanmar government will open five out of twelve pearl farms in Tanintharyi Region for local and foreign visitors starting from October 2018 in order to boost tourism industry
Myanmar will open five out of twelve pearl farming sites in Tanintharyi Region for local and foreign visitors starting from October, according Myanmar Pearl Enterprise (Myeik). The aim is to boost the tourism industry, but only tourists who have purchased a pack-age from tour companies are allowed. Individual visitors are not allowed to visit the sites, said Daw Aye Aye Cho, Deputy Manager of Myanmar Pearl Enterprise (Myeik). The sites that have been opened are Pearl Island, Jalan Island, Shwe Island, Nga Lone Laphel Island in Kawkthaung District, and Done Pale Aw Island. Interested visitors must buy tickets to the site one day in advance. “We work with tour companies. Local visitors must pay K15,00 and foreigners $15 to our office. And we do not allow motor boats expect the ones from our department because oyster breeding is very sensitive,’’ she said.
Domestic airlines will not raise airfares to compensate for higher jet costs despite rising global oil prices
Despite rising global oil prices, domestic airlines have no plans yet to raise airfares to compensate for higher jet fuel costs. They said this will help encourage domestic air travel while the number of foreign travelers within the country is still low. “We haven’t increased our fares even though fuel costs have risen. We have no plans to change the air fares now because we are trying to attract more travelers,” Daw Aye Mra Tha, general manager of Air Kanbawza (Air KBZ) told The Myanmar Times. Air KBZ operates flights to 11 domestic destination using six ATR-72 aircraft. Due to rising oil prices and the weakening kyat, the cost of importing jet fuel has increased for local airlines. U Zaw Min Aung, deputy CEO of Golden Myanmar Airlines, said his airline has considered raising airfares to cover the higher cost of jet fuel but finally decided against it.
Vice President U Myint Swe urged the authorities to step up efforts in advancing eco-tourism and conservation of biodiversity during his visit to Wingabaw Elephant Camp and Moeyungyi Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary in Bago Region
Vice President U Myint Swe called for stepping up efforts for developing eco-tourism and conservation of biodiversity in his visit to Wingabaw Elephant Camp and Moeyungyi Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary in Bago yesterday. The Vice President first visited the Wingabaw Elephant Camp located 14 miles from Bago and he was welcomed there by Bago Region Chief Minister U Win Thein. At the briefing hall, Managing Director of the Myanma Timber Enterprise U Saw John Shwe Ba reported on establishing the camp and conservation of elephants and arrival of visitors to the camp. After hearing the report, Vice President U Myint Swe stressed the need to conserve the elephants in region as part of efforts to ensure that the elephant population does not decline. He also urged the forest police force and authorities to work together for stepping up efforts for fighting wild elephant poaching.
Singapore Myanmar Investco (SMI) which is listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange will expand in retail market by distributing Brazilian flip flops brand, Havaianas in Myanmar
Singapore Myanmar Investco (SMI), which is listed on the Singapore Stock Exchange, has secured an exclusive agreement to distribute and market Brazilian flip flops brand, Havaianas, in Myanmar. The agreement could see SMI open a network of Havaianas stores across Myanmar over the next five years. “We expect to further broaden the distribution and marketing of Havaianas across all major tourist destinations in the country as well,” Mark Bedingham, president and CEO of SMI, said in an October 8 statement. Havaianas will help SMI broaden and diversify its retail brand portfolio in Myanmar. Last year, SMI secured exclusive rights to distribute and market cosmetics brand Shiseido in Myanmar for a period of three years. The first Shiseido outlet in Myanmar will open in Yangon’s Junction City shopping mall.
Government authorities are exploring new untouched beaches in Ayeyarwady Region to bolster the booming tourism industry
HINTHADA- The government is now exploring untouched beaches in Ayeyawady Region with the aim to bolster the booming tourism industry. At present, the development of tourism industry has given first priority to the Gaw Yan Gyi Island and Shwe Thaung Yan Beach. “In the past, the visitors went to Shwe Thaung Yan Township by boat. At that time, a businessman built a hotel in Shwe Thaung Yan and it was named as Shwe Thaung Yan. Now, the construction of a bridge has been completely finished. In recent days, the Regional Minister arrived at the bridge while inspecting works done to spruce up the environment around the beach. The tar-paved road is being built on the concrete bridge. Upon completion of the road, visitors from Chaungtha Beach can easily go to the Shwe Thaung Yan Beach as transportation is now accessible.. Businesses had already invested in real estate there. The Shwe Thaung Yan Beach will be overtaking the Chaungtha Beach’s popularity soon,” said Zaw Lin Tun, Deputy Director of Hotel and Tourism department in Ayeyawady Region.
Myanmar International Manufacturing Industry Fair 2018 (MIMIF) will be held during 1st to 4th November 2018 at the Yangon Convention Centre (YCC)
The 4 in 1 Myanmar Intl Manufacturing Industry Fairs 2018 (MIMIF) will run from November 1st to the 4th at the Yangon Convention Center (YCC). The event is an international exhibition and business forum for machinery, technology, raw materials and manufacturing solutions for industries in plastics, printing, packaging, agricultural, food processing, wood processing and machine tools. The show will bring over 150 global brands across all manufacturing industries and equipped with latest technology. As the demand rises for plastic products and packaging solutions, many manufactures are looking to get into the Myanmar market. The trade show will introduce Haitian, Bimetal, Bausano with their advanced injection molding machines and extrusion lines; Auger, Chung Shan, Zhengrun will showcase their economical energy saving packaging machines. With the implementation of new technologies, the plastics, printing and packaging industry will be able to increase production to further meet the world's rising demands.
Three international organizations will invest more than USD $ 750,000 in Myanmar’s traditional textile industry in next two years with the aim to improve and preserve the local textile market and improve the global market share of Myanmar-made products
Three international organisations will invest more than US$ 750,000 in Myanmar’s textile industry over the next two years. This will involve Myanmar Artisans, a social enterprise, Turquoise Mountain, a non-government international organisation and DaNa Facility, which is under the UK Department for International Development, DaNa Facility announced on October 10. “The variety of hand-woven arts in across Myanmar is very astonishing. We’re proud to support these products and ensure they reach value-added market by cooperating with local weavers,” said Harry Wardill, representative of Turquoise Mountain’s Myanmar operation. The Myanmar Artisans Project, which will initially be carried out in Kachin, Chin and Shan States and later expanded to the other states and regions.
Yangon Region Government introduced new restrictions on the sale of foreign liquor after lobbying from local producers
YANGON — The Yangon Region government introduced new restrictions on the sale of foreign liquor following lobbying from local producers, Frontier has learned. Late last month the Yangon Region Department of Consumer Affairs told licensed liquor retailers and wholesalers in the city that they could no longer sell foreign liquor unless they could show it was legally imported, threatening them with prison time if they failed to comply. The order has effectively made it impossible for stores to sell imported liquor due to a decades-old import ban. U Myint Cho, the head of the department for Yangon Region, confirmed that the crackdown was prompted by local producers’ complaints about the sale of foreign liquor in Yangon stores. “We found that illegally imported spirits were being sold at low prices and this is not good for domestic producers,” he said. “And who knows whether the products are real or fake.” Among those opposed to relaxing the import ban is liquor tycoon U Aung Moe Kyaw, owner and chair of International Beverages Trading Company Group, which was reported in a 2014 study to dominate the domestic whisky market with an 80 percent share that was generating revenue of US$100 million a year.
Business communities in Myanmar made efforts to enact the IP laws to protect intellectual property (IP) rights and encourage business in the works
Businesses in Myanmar still rely on outdated colonial-era laws enacted by the British more than one hundred years ago to protect intellectual property (IP) rights. The encourage growth, draft laws are being formulated in the Hluttaw to update the country’s regulations covering IP rights, copy right law, industrial law, patents and trademarks for enactment. To date, the country has relied on the Registration Act (1909) and Myanmar Copyright Act (1914) to resolve issues concerning IP. IP rights laws are one of the cornerstones of development and relied upon not only by local businesses but also foreign investors, making vital for the development of the country’s economy. “Currently, our country does not have comprehensive, up-to-date IP laws. There are no exclusive laws to protect IP so we need better IP laws urgently. If we have Intellectual property rights law, we can strongly clarify conflicting claims with tools such as ntellectual property registration certificates before taking action, said U Moe Mynn Thu, Myanmar council member of the ASEAN Intellectual Property Association.