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Thailand: Labour body calls for poll pledge on wages

The minimum wage hike has emerged as the latest hot potato for the ruling Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) after labour groups piled pressure on the government not to backtrack on its election promise. Meanwhile, the Democrat Party has urged the government to adopt its income guarantee initiative to help achieve the target of raising the […]

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China exodus a boon to Asean

More manufacturers have relocated from China to Southeast Asia over the past few years, largely because labour costs on the mainland have become less and less competitive. The trend has been reinforced by the China-US trade war that began in 2018. A new research report by the property consultancy JLL indicates that Vietnam, Thailand and […]

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Aria Putera Ismail
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Malaysia: SME Bank targets higher financing

KUALA LUMPUR: SME Bank Malaysia Bhd, which is embarking on a two-year transformation programme, is targeting to approve RM3.5bil in financing to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) this year. Group president and CEO Aria Putera Ismail (pic) said the amount, which it is targeting to approve, is higher than last year’s figure of RM1.8bil. Since […]

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Philippines: Tighter timeline set to fasttrack unsolicited proposals for ports

MANILA, Philippines — A tighter timeline to finalize concession agreements has been set by the government  for proponents who have submitted unsolicited proposals for port projects. Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) general manager Jay Santiago said he has been ordered by Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade to wrap up negotiations for unsolicited proposals within a maximum of […]

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