Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Myanma Agricultural Development Bank has been distributing over K13 billion in loans to farmers in Sittway for growing rice in rain-fed fields this year
The Myanma Agricultural Development Bank has disbursed more than K13 billion in loans to farmers in Sittway Township for planting rice in rain-fed fields this year. “Out of the 26 Village-tracts in the township, farmers from 24 Village-tracts have obtained loans at K150,000 per acre so far. Farmers can get loans for up to 10 acres of land,” said U Kyan Gyi, the Manager of the Sittway branch Myanma Agricultural Development Bank. The bank branch has been disbursing agricultural loans to Sittway rice farmers since 13 May, covering over 1,700 farmers cultivating rice on 9,100 acres of land. The bank had disbursed more than K15 billion to farmers in Sittway last year and has so far recovered 99 per cent of the loans.
In collaboration with local digital payment service provider, Ongo, Myanmar Microfinance Company (BRAC) will provide the fully digitize the latter’s loan repayments in Myanmar
Ongo, a local digital payment service provider, last week announced a partnership with BRAC Myanmar Microfinance Company (BRAC) to fully digitise the latter’s loan repayments. Under the agreement, BRAC borrowers can quickly and easily pay back their loans with the Ongo mobile app or with an Ongo QR Card at any of Ongo’s 1800 agents across Myanmar. BRAC, which aims to create employment and income opportunities for people living in poverty, particularly women, has lent more than US$76 million to a total of 131,319 borrowers since 2014. Ongo operates in 55 Myanmar cities to over 130 corporate clients, 26,000 merchants and 500,000 consumer users. All Ongo mobile wallet accounts are regulated by the Central Bank of Myanmar under the Mobile Banking Licence directive, in partnership with Myanmar Oriental Bank.
By cooperation with a local distributor, Dagon Win Win, Thailand’s leading beverage company, Ichitan Group launched its new energy hybrid energy drink “T247” in Myanmar market
In order to seize on the burgeoning trend for healthy beverages within the expanding Myanmar market, a new energy hybrid energy drink, named “T247”, has been launched. This new drink is backed by Ichitan Group, Thailand’s leading beverage company, in cooperation with Dagon Win Win, a leading local distributor. Their ambitious goal is to achieve 60 MB sales in the first year. Tan Passakornnatee, the President of Ichitan Group, PLC., said: “Myanmar is one of the fastest growing economies in Southeast Asia, and has a lot of potential. Considering the continuous GDP growth from 6.1 percent in 2013 to 8.4 percent in 2017, the country has seen rising disposable income among households. According to a consumer survey by Frost & Sullivan, a large portion of the population is young and hardworking, and they enjoy energy drinks over soft drinks. This trend has boosted the energy drink’s popularity, rising from only ten brands in 2010 to the 15-20 brands available today.”
Ministry of Commerce permitted nine wholly foreign retail and wholesale providers to operate in Myanmar
Two years after the Myanmar Investment Commission's announcement, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) has permitted nine wholly foreign retail and wholesale providers to operate in the country. These include investors from Japan, Thailand, US, Singapore, and the Netherlands. The nine non-Myanmar companies are able to secure a green light from the authorities since the government moved to partially open up the retail and wholesale market two years ago. The Myanmar Investment Commission issued the List of Restricted Activities No. 15/2017 in April 2017, which allowed foreign businesses to invest in retail and wholesale without restriction. It then took the commerce ministry over one year to follow up with a Directive. They include Mycare Unicharm Co, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, DKSH, Toyota Tsusho, Unilever, Mega Lifesciences and NTT Com Myanmar, which is the latest entity to receive an MOC permit.
Ministry of Hotels and Tourism (MOHT) ordered business owners in tourism industry to stop collecting payments in the form of US dollars
For the second time, the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism (MOHT) has ordered business owners in the Myanmar tourism industry to stop collecting payments in the form of U.S. dollars. If companies want to continue accepting U.S. dollars, a letter sent by the MOHT to the Myanmar Tourism Federation (MTF) said, they must apply to become an authorized dealer (AD) with a money changing license from the Central Bank. The letter was signed by MTF General Secretary U Kyi Thein Ko and sent to the MTF’s 11 affiliate organizations last Thursday. Its authenticity was confirmed to The Irrawaddy on Friday by a tourism ministry official. Dated June 11, it said the move is part of a Central Bank plan to de-dollarize the Myanmar economy, and it ordered the entire industry to follow the procedure under the authority of Myanmar’s Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, which prohibits conducting business in or exchanging foreign currencies without Controller-granted permission or AD status.
Myanmar will export recycled plastic pellets to China due to the high demand of plastics pellets in China
Myanmar will be exporting recycled plastic pellets to China under a new agreement, according to an industry body. Arrangements are underway to export the plastic pellets, which are made from melting the old plastic materials, to China, said U Soe Min, acting chair of Recycling Subcommittee which is affiliated to Myanmar Plastic Entrepreneurs Association. Plastic resin pellets (also known as nurdles) are raw materials the size of a lentil used in manufacturing plastic products such as soda bottles, caps and food containers. Recycling plastic in this method also keeps it out of landfills where it can take 500 years to break down. Two months ago, a sample batch of recycled nurdles was exported to China, and the country said that it will be purchasing the full volume of export, he said. However, the exact amount and date of the export has not yet been discussed.
French energy giant Total and Germany’s Siemens have proposed scaling back their projects in Tanintharyi Region over the government financial terms
YANGON — The European consortium behind a 1,230-megawatt power project in Tanintharyi Region has proposed scaling back its plans amid stalled talks with the government over financial terms. However, a senior government official told Frontier the revised proposal is unlikely to be accepted and the project now faces the prospect of suspension or cancellation. French energy giant Total and Germany’s Siemens received a notice to proceed in January 2018 from the Ministry of Electricity and Energy for the Kanbauk project, which would reportedly entail investment of US$2.1 billion. The initial proposal included a liquefied natural gas floating storage regasification unit, the power plant and 450 kilometres of 500kV transmission lines linking Kanbauk in Tanintharyi's Yebyu Township with Payagyi in Bago Region.
Government will call for re-tender to upgrade on Kawthaung Airport in Tanintharyi Region
YANGON-As Tender winner Company Golden Myanmar Airlines relinquished rights to carry out the upgrading tasks on Kawthaung Airport in Taninthayi Region, government will be calling for a re-tender to upgrade Kawthaung Airport, according to the Ministry of Transport and Communications. “Golden Myanmar Airlines Public Company backed off from Kawthaung Airport upgrades. So, we are going to call for a re-tender. We have some criteria that must be amended. The remaining two companies will be competing to sign the contract,” Deputy Minister Kyaw Myo from the Ministry of Transport and Communications told The Daily Eleven. Plans were underway to upgrade three domestic airports: Heho Airport in Shan State, Kawthaung Airport in Taninthayi Region and Mawlamyaing Airport in Mon State to the international standard by joining hands with private companies.
Inflation rate in Myanmar reached 7.28 percent during 2018-2019 fiscal year
Inflation rates in Myanmar during the 2018-2019 fiscal year were two percent higher than anticipated. The inflation rate in March reached 7.28 percent, according to U Maung Maung Win, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Planning and Finance, when he spoke at the recent session of the country’s highest legislature, the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw. Inflation rates reached 6.8 percent in the March of FY 2016-2017, and 4.03 percent during FY 2017-2018. “Because of the higher rate of the [U.S.] dollar, the currencies of many countries dropped against the dollar’s value. This had an impact on the Myanmar Kyat, causing higher local demand and reducing the value of our currency,” he added.
The Asia Foundation with the collaboration of UK's Department for International Development, published the first Myanmar Business Environment Index 2019 (MBEI) in Yangon
Businesses in Myanmar are concerned about infrastructure quality and skilled labour availability, the latest report on private sector economic governance reveals. The Asia Foundation has published the Myanmar Business Environment Index 2019 (MBEI), with support from the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) through the DaNa Facility. The report is a diagnostic tool for government and the private sector to better understand the local business environment. It aims to provide the authorities at different levels with evidence to pursue decentralised economic governance reforms. Six key findings were highlighted by the report which includes the issue of formalisation, difficulty of bureaucratic procedures, businesses’ concerns, and challenges. Based on a nationwide survey of 4874 businesses in the services and manufacturing sectors, the MBEI reflects the feedback from private enterprises across the country.