Frontier market Vietnam has the right strategy to make it a foreign direct investment hotspot, according to one strategist. The Vietnamese government has recognized that “instability isn’t going to attract foreign direct investors” Andy Ho, chief investment officer at VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” Wednesday. “Over the last five to 10 […]

A Chinese-backed plan for Cambodia to build the Mekong River’s biggest dam would destroy fisheries that feed millions and worsen tensions with Vietnam, the downstream country with most to lose from dams on the waterway, according to a three-year study commissioned by the Cambodian government. The report, posted this month on the website of the […]

India, bolstered by recent peace signals from North Korea, is moving to strengthen ties with the reclusive regime. Indian Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh arrived in Pyongyang with a delegation of officials on Tuesday for a two-day stay, meeting with a host of senior officials such as Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho […]

Days after securing a stunning election victory, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s government has delivered a potentially risky fiscal maneuver by replacing the goods and service tax (GST) with a sales and service duty. The Ministry of Finance said this week that it will lower GST to zero percent from June 1 and reintroduce a […]

South Korea is seeking to mediate to bridge the gap between the United States and North Korea as they appear to have “some kind of difference in stances” ahead of a planned summit, an official at South Korea’s presidential Blue House said on Thursday. The comments come after Pyongyang on Wednesday threatened to pull out […]

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.3 hit eastern Japan on Thursday, the Japan Meteorological Agency said. The epicentre of the quake was off the coast of Chiba prefecture, the agency said, adding that a tsunami warning had not been issued. There were no immediate reports of damage. Source: cnbc china Earthquake jolts eastern […]

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) stepped into the currency market and bought another HK$4.710 billion ($600 million) in Hong Kong dollars on Wednesday U.S. time as the local currency hit the weaker end of its trading range. That was in addition to HK$4.789 billion in Hong Kong dollars that the city’s de facto central […]

Hong Kong is raising its guard against the threat of money laundering as its vulnerability to financial crimes is seen on the rise. The city, long an oasis of good government and transparent finance in a region that often struggles with corruption and illicit money dealings, is well aware of its reputation and wants to […]

Japan is considering slapping tariffs on U.S. exports worth $409 million in retaliation against steel and aluminium import tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, public broadcaster NHK said on Thursday. The government is preparing to notify the World Trade Organization of the plan, a necessary procedure under global trade rules, this week, NHK said. The […]

Malaysia said it will introduce a sales and service tax to partly offset the shortfall in revenue from effectively scrapping a goods and service tax (GST) from June. The Mahathir Mohamad-led government, which won last week’s general election, said on Wednesday it would lower GST to zero percent from June 1. Ousted leader Najib Razak […]