Southeast Asia

Go-Jek to expand beyond Indonesia

Go-Jek, Indonesia’s first billion-dollar startup, is looking to expand its ride-hailing services to three to four countries in Southeast Asia, escalating its rivalry with Grab and Uber Technologies.Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Nadiem Makarim didn’t specify the countries or services that Go-Jek will target, but said in an interview they will be places with a large population and where cash rules, hinting that Go-Jek’s digital payment service will be a key part of its push into new ma

2 October 2017
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ASEAN Roundup: September 25 - October 01, 2017

This week, tensions have been running high particularly in Bali as its iconic volcano – Mount Agung – which threatens to erupt at any moment. Over 144,000 people have fled the rumbling volcano, but Indonesian officials urged evacuees who live outside the immediate danger zone to return home. According to an official statement made by the Bali Government Tourism office, the threat level of Mount Agung was raised from level three (alert) to level four (danger).

1 October 2017
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The tides are changing in favour of renewable energy

The Southeast Asian region is gifted with rich and diverse renewable energy sources. With the abundance of renewable energy sources in the region, it is timely for ASEAN nations to focus on renewable energy installation amidst diminishing fossil fuel reserves and the growing environmental concerns over fossil fuels and climate change, in particular.

1 October 2017
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Working towards a better Southeast Asia

"There is no straight path from your seat today to where you are going. Don't try to draw that line. You will not just get it wrong, you'll miss big opportunities. And I mean big-like the Internet," Sheryl Sandberg, the Chief Operating Officer of Facebook, said during the annual Class Day ceremonies at Harvard College in the US."Careers are not ladders, those days are long gone, but jungle gyms.

1 October 2017
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Thai Ambassador: Kra Canal is a no go

“The return on investment is not attractive enough to go ahead with the plan. International canals like Panama and Suez have been effective because they are essential to trade, cutting off weeks and months of travel," Damrong Kraikruan, Ambassador of Thailand to Malaysia, said in a special media briefing held in Kuala Lumpur.“The most Kra Canal would save shippers is only a few days. Another factor to consider is would west-going ships use it or will they go down to Singapore?

29 September 2017
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Technology under the sea in Southeast Asia

Do you know how the internet works? Have you ever wondered how you could be sitting at home in Singapore or any other Southeast Asian country and be able to watch the latest "Game of Thrones" trailer on YouTube which was released in the US?

29 September 2017
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Southeast Asian women in the workforce

The workplace is not an unfamiliar territory to women in the Southeast Asian region. The Philippines ranks ninth in the world for gender equity where women are given the opportunity to participate in politics, to have multiple seats on company boards and so on. However, the lack of gender diversification in the workplace is still immensely visible in local and international companies alike throughout the region.

28 September 2017
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Electric car-sharing service to roll into Singapore

An electric car-sharing service will be launched in Singapore in December, in what the company behind the scheme said Wednesday was a first for Southeast Asia.BlueSG, a subsidiary of France's Bollore Group, said that 80 cars and 30 stations where vehicles can be picked up and dropped off would be operational by the end of the year.The group plans to roll out 1,000 of its custom-built Bluecars by 2020, as well as numerous stations and charging points.The affluent city-state – whose genera

27 September 2017
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Southeast Asia Soars With Low-Cost Airlines

In 2001, entrepreneur Tony Fernandes bought a debt-ridden airline company for only one Malaysian ringgit (0.26 dollar). Sixteen years later, from a staggering debt of 40 million Malaysian ringgit (11 mililon dollars), AirAsia has grown tremendously to reach a market cap of 11.6 billion dollars. From a single route between Langkawi and Kuala Lumpur, the low-cost carrier now flies to more than 165 destinations spanning 25 countries.

26 September 2017
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No women on the board of these Asian billionaires

Even by Asia’s low standards when it comes to having women on corporate boards, the progress of the region’s billionaires is lagging: Most of the richest men in China, Japan and South Korea run companies with few, if any, female board members. The situation is particularly extreme among Asia’s biggest tech companies with billionaire founders.

26 September 2017
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Data centres are booming in Southeast Asia

The data centre landscape in Southeast Asia is poised to expand, driven by new developments, innovation and rapid growth in the digital economies within the region. The demand for data centres in the region is expected to increase due to the increase in the use of mobile phones, internet access, smart cities, big data analytics and social media applications.

26 September 2017
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Stable Vietnam currency aids central bank in growth push

Vietnamese working abroad and sending money home will help keep the currency stable and enable the central bank to focus on supporting economic growth, a senior official said.Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy head of the State Bank of Vietnam in Ho Chi Minh, said remittances to the city are forecast to rise 10 percent to 5.5 billion dollars this year, helping ensure enough supply of foreign currency.

26 September 2017
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