Early this month, on the 40th anniversary of Shenzhen’s designation as a (SEZ), Chinese President Xi Jinping unveiled a blueprint for building the city into a trade, finance, and technology hub. Most China-watchers have focused on what this means for Hong Kong, Shanghai, or at most the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area.
Aung Gyi is forced to fish covertly under the shroud of night in western Myanmar waters as China bids to transform the strategically key region into a shipping and industrial hub, squeezing out locals who fear being left behind in the gold rush.Myanmar has declared Rakhine state, associated by many worldwide with the military’s 2017 bloody crackdown on Rohingya Muslims, open for business – but locals fear they are being left out of the gold rush as new rules restrict traditional practises.Pad
The United States (US) Department of Homeland Security has fined several companies for evading President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports from China by rerouting them through Cambodia’s Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone (SSEZ).
Indonesia wants to re-position its Batam island as an alternative shipping and manufacturing hub to Singapore with a potential to draw US$60 billion in new investment.Batam and nearby islands – located at less than 30 kilometres (km) south of Singapore – have attracted about US$20 billion worth of investments since the government began promoting them as an industrial area in the 1970s.
Ever since the National League for Democracy (NLD) was elected to government at the end of 2015, Myanmar’s economy has been opening up and quietly growing steadily. In an effort to open up its economy, the government in Myanmar has taken various steps in making the country more attractive to investors.
Vietnam boasts one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, optimistic citizens and a stable government. But below the surface of positive data points lies discontent that spilled over during recent protests across the country.On Sunday, hundreds of anti-riot police blanketed central Ho Chi Minh City, the nation’s thriving commercial centre, to prevent demonstrations after thousands of Vietnamese took to the streets across the nation the previous week.
To consolidate its growing economy, Vietnam is looking to launch Special Economic Zones (SEZs) to boost growth and to attract foreign investments to the country. The three SEZs are slated for development in Van Don, North Van Phong and Phu Quoc. According to Vietnam Investment Review in January 2018, draft laws for the SEZs are being discussed and are nearing completion. Vietnam’s economic growthVietnam’s economy in 2017 was deemed to be one of the best performing in the region.
The recent approval of Thailand’s new Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) bill is a step forward by Thailand's military government to rapidly industrialise the nation, but it should also consider the risks involved in doing so too quickly. The EEC refers to the economic zone in Thailand that comprises of the three eastern provinces of Chachoengsao, Chonburi and Rayong, spanning a total distance of 13,285 square kilometres.
