China

22May By Desk TeamNo Comments
China

Coronavirus outbreak: Oil prices drop as China abandons target for 2020 GDP

Oil prices fell 5% on Friday after China failed to set an economic growth target for 2020, sparking concerns that the coronavirus pandemic will continue to depress fuel demand in the world's second-largest oil user.Brent crude dropped US$1.56, or 4.3%, to US$34.50 a barrel by 0323 GMT, after gaining nearly 1% on Thursday.West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude declined by US$1.79, or 5.3%, to US$32.13 a barrel, having gained more than 1% in the last session.In a week-long meeting kicked-off by China's National People's Congress (NPC) on Friday, the government said it omitted the 2020 target, while pledging to issue 1 trillion yuan (US$140 billion) of special treasury bonds to support companies and regions hit by the pandemic.Abandoning the growth target "could be interpreted as putting less fo...
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PEZA reports investment performance amidst the Enhanced Community Quarantine
20May mmBy Brian ThompsonNo Comments
China, Market, USA

PEZA reports investment performance amidst the Enhanced Community Quarantine

Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Director General Charito “Ching” Plaza on Tuesday shared the top investment promotion agency’s performance for the first quarter of 2020 amidst the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).“PEZA’s investments continued to be challenged for the First Quarter of 2020. On top of this issue is still the continuing uncertainty posed by the rationalization of incentives under the pending legislative measures that have created uncertainties. Added to this is the current pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus, which has caused a tremendous and immediate impact on PEZA’s export manufacturers and exporters of IT-enabled services (BPOs),” stated Plaza.“Before the declaration of the ECQ on March 16, 2020, PEZA’s total approved investments from January to February 20...
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Digital Payments Startup GPay Awarded Vietnam License
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China

Digital Payments Startup GPay Awarded Vietnam License

The State Bank of Vietnam granted FinTech startup GPay a 10-year license to provide intermediary payment services in the country — electronic payment portals, payment services, digital money transfer services and eWallet services. GPay, a member company of the Vietnam investment firm G-Group, joins a tight FinTech market in Vietnam with 33 other firms licensed for intermediary payment services. In 2019, Payme, FinViet, EPay, PayTech, Dibee and Smart Net were granted licenses from Vietnam’s central bank. “GPay has a supportive ecosystem from G-Group with above 20 million users of financial platforms, game community, social network and technology companies. We will invest more in technology and hiring talents, and will have Series A funding round soon too,” Cong Tran, a board member of GPay,...
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Vietnam-based e-commerce enabler OnPoint raises $8m Series A
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China

Vietnam-based e-commerce enabler OnPoint raises $8m Series A

Vietnam-based e-commerce enabler OnPoint has raised over $8 million in Series A fundinground led by Kiwoom Investment and Daiwa-SSIAM Vietnam Growth Fund II L.P,according to an announcement. The new funding, which brings the total funding raised by OnPoint to date to an eight-digitnumber, will enable the company to invest in strategic technology, recruit talent, and developdata-driven capabilities to provide better services to its clients. Founded in December 2017, OnPoint enables consumer brands in pushing their presence one-commerce platforms, social channels, or via brand-owned websites. The company claims that it has served more than 50 brands to date. Its clients includeL’Oreal, Shiseido, P&G, Rohto, Beiersdorf, Unilever International, Watsons, KimberlyClark, Unicharm, CJ Group. I...
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Vietnam International bank has just announced the first quarter 2020 result
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China

Vietnam International bank has just announced the first quarter 2020 result

Stable business growth Total revenue of VIB in quarter I (Q.I) was VND2.260 billion, of which service revenue reached VND411 billion, accounting for 18%. Operating expenses (OPEX) reached VND1.029 billion. The bank saw a rise in cost to income ratio (CIR) to 46%. Profit before tax (PBT) was VND1.075 billion. From the beginning of the year, VIB has promptly taken actions on cost-cutting and actively participated in a programme to prevent Covid-19, set up by the State bank of Vietnam (SBV) and the Government. The bank’s leader has proactively reduced salaries to support customers. Maintain a strong balance sheet in the context of market volatility As of March 31, 2020, total assets of the bank reached VND193 trillion, while outstanding credit balance reached VND135 trillion, up 4% compared t...
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South-east Asia’s growth forecast to be 1% in 2020: ADB
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China, Singapore

South-east Asia’s growth forecast to be 1% in 2020: ADB

WITH the Covid-19 outbreak, South-east Asia's gross domestic product growth is expected to slow sharply to just 1 per cent in 2020, before rebounding to 4.7 per cent in 2021, according to an Asian Development Bank report on April 3. This is down from 2019's full-year growth rate of 4.4 per cent. The report, Asian Development Outlook 2020, forecasts that for developing Asia as a whole, growth will slow to 2.2 per cent in 2020, before rebounding to 6.2 per cent in 2021. All Asean economies will see a growth slowdown because of Covid-19 and a consequent global slump, especially given their strong trade and investment ties with a slowing China, said the report. Thailand is expected to perform the worst with a 4.8 per cent contraction, "continuing a steady slide in recent years"."Growth in the ...
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Coronavirus: Millions of jobs at stake in South-east Asia
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China, Singapore

Coronavirus: Millions of jobs at stake in South-east Asia

BANGKOK - Millions of jobs could be lost in South-east Asia as economies grind to a halt amid efforts to contain the coronavirus pandemic, wreaking havoc particularly in countries with weak social protection systems. A report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Escap) says regional governments should - and still have ample policy space - to both save jobs as well as support minimum living standards for households. In the policy paper on the Asia Pacific region issued last week (March 26), Escap noted that while exact data on the impact of the pandemic on employment remained unavailable, "the impact is likely to be substantial as services and labour-intensive manufacturing comprise over 80 per cent of the region's informal sector and small and medi...
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SE Asia Stocks-Vietnam leads plunge as region battered by oil rout
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China, Singapore

SE Asia Stocks-Vietnam leads plunge as region battered by oil rout

* Vietnam marks worst day since March 30    * Malaysia's worst session in over four weeks Southeast Asia markets closed lower ledby Vietnam stocks on Tuesday, rattled by a historic crash inU.S. oil prices that laid bare the disruption caused by thecoronavirus pandemic.     The plunge, which pressured global markets, was a result ofa storage squeeze which turned holders of U.S. crude contractsexpiring later on Tuesday to forced sellers. This amid a lack ofdemand for oil as countries around the world observe lockdownsto curb the spread of the coronavirus.    "The impact of negative oil means different things fordifferent Asian economies - but if you have to generalize, itisn't great news," Robert Carnell, regional head of research,Asia-Pacific at ING, wrote in a note.    Such a big negative ...
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Facebook, three Indonesian firms in early talks for mobile payment approval: sources
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China, Singapore

Facebook, three Indonesian firms in early talks for mobile payment approval: sources

Facebook Inc is preparing to apply for regulatory approval in Indonesia to launch mobile payments in partnership with three local digital fintech firms, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The plan, if approved, could be among the first such services under the unified payment service Facebook Pay it, which the social media platform unveiled in November. It allows users across its various platforms including WhatsApp and Instagram to make payments without exiting the app. The move comes amid early partnership talks between the social network and ride-hailing and payments firm Gojek. Four sources said Facebook wants to capitalize on the Indonesian market and is preparing for regulatory approval in the country. The three e-wallet operators are Indonesian ride hailing firm Gojek’s Go...
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Rationale behind issuance of Indonesia’s ‘pandemic bond’
20May By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, China

Rationale behind issuance of Indonesia’s ‘pandemic bond’

Earlier this month, the Indonesian government issued a series of three sovereign US dollar-denominated bonds totaling US$4.3 billion. The three bonds are the RI1030, worth $1.65 billion with a tenor of 10.5 years, the 30.5-year RI1030 worth $1.65 billion, and the 50-year RI0470 worth $1 billion. The last has the longest tenor among dollar-denominated bonds issued in Asia. Indonesia is also the first country in the region to issue global bonds as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The issuance of the "pandemic bond" series is one of the most visionary measures stipulated in regulation in Regulation in lieu of Law (Perppu) No. 1/2020 on state finance and financial system stability, in addition to the fiscal stimulus deployment, the budget deficit cap adjustment to above 3 percent, and the ...
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