Indonesia has a serious issue as far as meeting the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution go. The quickly evolving landscape and potential demands on the country’s workforce is shaping into a real concern.

Shares on Shanghai's new Nasdaq-style technology board soared Monday, with one firm rocketing more than 500 percent, as investors rushed to grab a piece of China's latest market liberalisation in a frenzied debut.All 25 components on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's Sci-Tech Innovation Board, or STAR Market, were driven sharply higher in a hearty initial endorsement of China's plan to use the board to help fund fast-growing tech firms and discourage them listing abroad.Anji T

The manager of a sausage factory near Moscow, Arslan Gizatullin says his halal business has been feeling the pinch – not so much from Russia's sluggish economy but competitors vying for a piece of a growing Islamic market.Ever more producers are catering for the domestic Muslim community, which accounts for around 15 percent of Russia's population and is set to expand, and in some cases are also setting their sights on export. "In the last few years in general, halal&#

A plunge in exports and the worst growth rates for a decade have fuelled concerns about the outlook for Singapore's economy, with analysts saying the figures offer a warning that Asia is heading for a slowdown as China-United States (US) tensions bite.While it may be one of the smallest countries in the world, the export hub is highly sensitive to external shocks and has long been viewed as a barometer of the global demand for goods and services.The affluent city-state is highly dependen

With Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam alone hosting over 10 percent of the world’s unbanked population, providing the right infrastructure to bridge this gap is key to ASEAN’s sustained growth.The unbanked and underserved form a significant part of ASEAN’s population, with research firm CB Insights recently stating that just 47 percent of adults in ASEAN had a bank account while only a third of the region’s SMEs had access to loans or lines of credit last year. The region’s financi

Rapid technological transformation is changing the world economy, and along with it, the economic landscapes of ASEAN member states. Wealth creation through human knowledge and creativity is steadily outpacing the wealth creation from natural resources.

Myanmar’s garment industry has cemented itself as an important engine of sustainable development, with the country now the region’s latest hub for low-cost clothing. With minimum wages lower than China, Cambodia and Vietnam – all neighbouring countries with established garment manufacturing sectors of their own – Myanmar has attracted orders from international retailers such as Adidas, Gap, H&M and Marks & Spencer.Leading the country’s manufactured goods expo

The ASEAN Post recently published an article entitled “Empty bellies in Lao” which highlighted the serious and persisting issue of malnutrition among Laotian children. One of the main reasons malnutrition has become an issue in Lao for a long time now is that the country is poor.

Eased visa requirements for citizens from six countries are the latest in a string of visa relaxation policies that Myanmar has rolled out in a bid to boost tourism amidst fall-out from the ongoing Rohingya crisis.Visitors from Australia, Germany, Italy, Russia, Spain and Switzerland can now apply for visas on arrival in Myanmar, where they will have to pay a US$50 visa fee at the country’s three international airports during a one-year trial period which will start on 1 October as stated by

Businesses are increasingly turning to Peer-2-Peer (P2P) financing to cater to their financing needs, with last week’s tie-up between Malaysia’s Funding Societies and regional e-commerce giant Lazada a perfect example of the current revolution taking place. P2P financing platforms such as Funding Societies connect credit-worthy local micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with individuals and institutional investors through a digital marketplace, significantly increasing access