Weekly Business News from Myanmar

Myanmar Economic & Trade Cooperation Conference was held in Yangon in order to boost economic cooperation between Hunan and Myanmar
China (Hunan) – Myanmar Economic & Trade Cooperation Conference was held on Monday afternoon in Yangon. The Vice Governor of Hunan Provincial People’s Government, the Vice President of UMFCCI, Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Myanmar and Chinese entrepreneurs joined the 1-day conference. To implement the Myanmar-China Economic Platform which relates to the Silk road is already under discussion. This conference focused on business cooperation between Myanmar and Hunan Province of China and building up Silk Road Station. President, Lenercom International Engineering Co., Ltd., Lao Wen said “The purpose of that event is to encourage Hunan enterprises; the companies come to Myanmar and to invest here, set the tree here, to boost the economic between Hunan and Myanmar. And also, incentive and encourage to let the Myanmar’s companies to know where is Hunan and how Hunan is opening on all the business and they encourage businessman in Myanmar to come to Hunan and invest there. So there is the 2 ways hope to encourage business opportunities.”
Mandalay’s iron smelting industry using iron scrap is now facing challenges to survive due to the lack of technology, capital, skilled labour and regional competition
The iron smelting industry using iron scraps is facing challenges to survive, according to the business managers and owners in Mandalay. The industry’s challenges include the lack of technology, capital, skilled labour as well as regional competition - key difficulties shared by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in other sectors. What iron melting factories in Mandalay are uniquely facing is the scarcity of raw materials. A major blow to that scarcity is illegal trading, said U Maung Maung Oo, secretary of Mandalay Industrial Zone Management Committee. “Iron merchants are selling raw [products] to Thailand via illegal routes. Previously, it was illegal trading but these days, it has increased. Local business persons cannot give that much price as the people on the other side,” he said.
Myanmar's exports to the United States worth USD $ 205.6 million, surpassing imports in the current mini-budget period from April to July 2018
Myanmar’s exports to the United States surpassed imports from April to July of current mini-budget period (April to September), according to the data of the Ministry of Commerce, state media reported. Myanmar’s trade with the United States was worth US$320.5 million, with exports worth $205.6 million and imports worth $114.8 million.
In partnership with Myanmar Golden Rock International (MGR), power management company Eaton will expand into Myanmar market
YANGON, MYANMAR — Eaton announced its expansion into the Myanmar market through a partnership with Myanmar Golden Rock International Co., Ltd (“MGR”), a leading technology solutions provider in the country. Eaton is an international company providing electrial solutions for a wide variety of sectors. Eaton is a power management company with 2017 sales of $20.4 billion USD. Eaton’s history stretches back to its founding in 1911 in New Jersey, USA. Asia Pacific is a key growth market for Eaton since the company established its presence in the region through the 1970s. Today, the company manufactures in 47 major manufacturing facilities and employs more than 20,000 people across Asia Pacific. Eaton’s entry into the Myanmar market builds on the company’s positive growth momentum in the region. Widely considered Asia’s final frontier, Myanmar presents immense potential for exponential growth, particularly in the power and energy market. Even with abundant energy resources, only 30 per cent of the population in Myanmar has a stable supply of electricity, an infrastructural constraint that brings substantial challenges to the country’s development and economic growth.
In partnership with Myan Shwe Pyi Tractors Limited (MSP), Yoma Strategic will enter the heavy equipment rental sector
Singapore-listed Yoma Strategic announced a partnership with US Caterpillar’s Myanmar dealer to enter the heavy equipment rental sector in a bid to leverage on the upturn in the resource and construction industry. On September 24, Yoma Fleet, the automotive and heavy equipment financing subsidiary of Yoma Strategic, signed a partnership agreement with Thaketa-based Myan Shwe Pyi Tractors Limited (MSP),a supplier of power systems, machines and services to the agriculture, construction, forestry and mining industries. MSP is also the authorised independent dealer of Caterpillar-branded equipment in the country. A number of large-scale infrastructure projects are currently in the pipeline in Myanmar, where infrastructure development is critical for the country’s economy. “These projects include power stations, ports, special industrial zones, and upgrades to existing transportation networks. Under its National Transport Master Plan, the Myanmar government is planning to allocate US$21.4 billion to rail, road, port and aviation projects by 2030,” the press statement said.
Consumer Price Index (CPI) reached 144.17 percent in late August which is up 8.18 percent when compared to the same period last year
Consumer Price Index (CPI) in late August reached 144.17 per cent, up 8.18 per cent compared with the same period last year, according to the report on the CPI and inflation rate issued by the Central Statistical Organization (CSO) at the Ministry of Planning and Finance. According to the calculation using 2012 as the base year, the CPI for the food group hit 156.88 per cent and the non-food group, 126.27 per cent. According to the calculation using 2012 as a base year, the CPI hit 132.42 per cent in May, 2017, 139.51 per cent in late February, 139.11 per cent in late March, 139.82 per cent in late April and 141.13 per cent in late June. In late August, Kayin State saw the biggest change in the CPI with 6.05 per cent. Kayin State faced natural disasters seriously. Commodity prices have gone up due to a decline in the trade flow and high transportation costs, according to the CSO.
State owned Myanma Economic Bank (MEB) will lend K250 billion to local small and medium-sized enterprise (SMEs) in the 2018- 2019 fiscal year, in addition to managing JICA's two-step loan for SMEs
State-owned Myanma Economic Bank (MEB) is planning to lend K250 billion to local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in 2018-19 fiscal year. The loan does not include loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), said Daw Nilar Wai, Assistant General Manager of MEB (Yangon Office). Earlier this month, JICA said it will lend 11.5 billion Japanese yen (K151.685 billion) to SMEs in 2018-19 through domestic banks. The two-step loan will be managed by MEB under its SME loan programme. The interest rate for the MEB loan will be 9 percent, while JICA’s loan will be carry a lower interest rate of 8.5pc interest, targeting entrepreneurs. Meanwhile, MEB will offer funds to more established SMEs in the manufacturing, production and trading, import substitution, recycling and energy saving as well as services sectors. SMEs that borrow from the MEB must channel at least half the funds into fixed capital and the other half as working capital.
Myanmar’s export to foreign countries exceeded USD$7.64 billion in mini-budget period from 1 April to 14 September 2018 which is up $ 1.6 billion when compared to the same period of last fiscal year
Myanmar’s exports to foreign countries reached US$7.64 billion between 1 April and 14 September of mini-budget period, showing an increase of $1.6 billion compared to last fiscal year, according to the Ministry of Commerce, state media reported. As of mid-September, the figure is up by $1.6 billion compared with $6 billion in the similar period of last year. Of the seven export groups, agriculture and forestry sectors showed a decline in exports, while exports of livestock, fishery, minerals, finished industrial goods and other export groups increased. Export values were registered at $1.9 billion for agro products, $160 million for livestock, $266 million for fishery products, $879 million for minerals, $86.3 million for forestry products, $4 billion for manufactured goods and $1 billion for other goods.
Business communities are pointing out the lack of government authority’s management on Kyat depreciation while the Myanmar government blames it on currency manipulation and trade war between US and China
YANGON—While Myanmar’s government has blamed currency manipulation and the trade war between the United States and China for the record depreciation of the kyat against US dollar, business circles are pointing out the Myanmar government’s mismanagement and the Central Bank of Myanmar’s poor performance. The kyat-dollar exchange rate has increased steeply from 1,344 kyats per US dollar on June 1 this year to over 1,600 kyats per US dollar in the third week of September. “There are only a few big players in the market who trade US dollars. In the past, the exchange rates would be stable once the government controlled them. But [the current government] won’t do that. It doesn’t want to do that. So we are tracking money transactions now,” the President’s Office spokesperson U Zaw Htay told reporters in Naypyitaw on Friday. The government is doing an investigation and will then take appropriate action, said U Zaw Htay.
Union Minister for Transport and Communications held talks with Chief Executive Officers from Seoul Metro to discuss cooperation on metro train services in Myanmar
Union Minister for Transport and Communications U Thant Sin Maung held talks with Mr. Kim Tae Ho, Chief Executive Officer of Seoul Metro, at the company’s head office in Seoul, the Republic of Korea, on 18 September over metro train services. At the meeting, they sought prospects for cooperation in metro train services between Myanma Railways (MR) and Seoul Metro. The Union Minister visited the state-run KORAIL Company in Daejeon and met with Senior Vice President of KORAIL Mr. Chung In-Soo.