Last September, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc launched the construction of Vingroup’s automobile manufacturing complex in the northern port city of Hai Phong. The automobile manufacturing complex will be the production centre of Vietnam’s first national car, Vinfast. Bloomberg reported in September 2017 that conglomerate Vingroup plans to invest up to US$3.5 billion to build a manufacturing and research and development complex.

The 2018 Winter Olympics in the South Korean city of Pyeongchang drew to a close yesterday with athletes from South and North Korea emerging for the closing ceremony under their own national banners. A stark contrast from the opening ceremony which saw a unified Korean entrance into the Pyeongchang Olympic Stadium – displaying the flag of a unified Korean peninsula. From the get-go, the games were more than just about snow and sports – they were also about diplomacy.

Member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are now, more than ever, exposed to the risks of climate change and environmental degradation. More nations have now answered the clarion call of the Paris Agreement and are including investments for projects that help protect the environment under their respective national agendas.ASEAN cannot afford to be left behind.

As the name suggests, isolated grids – also known as mini grids, off grids or micro grids – are standalone grids that are not connected to other power grids. They involve small scale power generation of between 10 kilowatt (kW) and 10 megawatt (MW) and are usually deployed in rural communities living in inaccessible, remote areas. Rural electrification is a potent enabler of economic growth and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region is not short of such areas.

SMEs contribute 50% of ASEAN countries' gross domestic products (GDP) and drive 30% of ASEAN countries' exports, according to a joint 2018 report by the United Overseas Bank (UOB) and Dun & Bradstreet released in February 2018. 1,235 SMEs across Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam were surveyed in a bid to better understand how SMEs in these countries were positioning themselves within an evolving business landscape.

Officially, Brunei is known as Negara Brunei Darussalam - negara meaning country and Darussalam translating from Arabic to mean “abode of peace.” This sultanate with a rich cultural background and history, celebrates its National Day today, the 23rd of February. Brunei lies within the island of Borneo, sandwiched between the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak to its east and west, respectively.

This year, Cambodia and Japan will celebrate 65 years of diplomatic ties. According to Hidehisa Horinouchi, Japanese ambassador to Cambodia, both countries will commemorate the occasion by holding a number of exchange events in Cambodia, such as an annual music festival featuring all kinds of music genres, as well as a few educational and cultural events showcasing Japanese culture in Cambodia.

Southeast Asia has abundant energy resources but is generally slow to diversify its energy mix to include renewable energy (RE) sources, according to the ‘Renewable Energy Market Analysis – Southeast Asia’ report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). This is due in part to problems accessing adequate financing for such projects.

The rivalry between China and the United States seems to be heating up – this time outside of the economic sphere. Just a couple of months after President Trump’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos where he called out China on their alleged unfair trade practices, US admiral Harry Harris has come out saying that the US must prepare for the possibility of war with China.