Behind a secondhand shop in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, is the story of a man who made what many may consider an astonishing life choice, Ye Zizhen reports. From Wu Kaisi’s appearance in the workplace-an expansive mustache, long hair and wearing a T-shirt and shorts-you might never guess that he has what it takes to be a lawyer. Wu, born in 1995 and originally from Shanxi province, grew up in a family that had rather high career expectations for him, and in 2016, with a bachelor’s degree under his belt from the law school of South China University of Technology in…
Author: Asia News Network
The Lao government has formed a committee to overhaul the operations of Electricite du Laos (EdL) as part of its efforts to strengthen business operations across all state enterprises. The committee will suggest measures that will enable EdL to earn more revenue and pay off the debts it has accumulated. The new committee was established under a Prime Ministerial Decision, with Deputy Minister of Finance Phouthanouphet Xaysombath appointed as head of the committee. Deputy Minister of Energy and Mines Thongphath Inthavong has been appointed deputy head, while senior officials from other relevant bodies including EdL managing director Chanthaboun Soukaloun are…
China is facing a severe Covid-19 pandemic situation because of the increase in infections in places such as Shanghai and Jilin province. Although it is important to take strict prevention and control measures, including implementing lockdowns if needed, to contain the resurgence of the novel coronavirus, especially the more contagious Omicron variant, it is equally important for local governments to ensure the measures have the minimum effect on economic activity. To boost the economy, the first priority is to prevent infections. And China’s dynamic clearing policy has proven highly effective in this regard. True, taking strict measures to control the…
Vietnam has set a goal of achieving an average export growth rate of six-to-seven per cent in the 2021-2030 period, following the government’s recently-released strategy on imports and exports. Specifically, the country sets an annual average export growth goal of eight-to-nine per cent between 2021 and 2025 and five-to-six per cent in the subsequent five years. Meanwhile, annual import growth is expected to average five-to-six per cent in 2021-2030. The growth will be seven-to-eight per cent in 2021-2025 and four-to-five per cent in the following five years. Under the strategy, the state expects to achieve a trade balance by 2025…
India has suggested to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank (WB) to temporarily give Sri Lanka – grappling with its worst financial crisis – the tag of a lower-income country to help the island nation restructure its debt. Sri Lanka is currently classified as a middle-income country. India also proposed that Sri Lanka be given emergency funding similar to the one granted to conflict-hit Ukraine in March this year, reports the New Delhi correspondent of the Daily Star. The suggestions were made by Indian finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to the IMF and WB at a meeting in Washington…
Thailand exported 93,840 cars last month, down by 10.21 per cent year-on-year due to a shortage of parts and semiconductors for some car models, the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) said on April 25. “However, car export in March rose 18.11 per cent compared to February,” FTI vice-president and spokesman Surapong Paisitpattanapong said. In the first quarter of 2022, Thailand exported 243,124 cars, down 5.81 per cent year-on-year. However, the value of cars and components exported in the first quarter came in at 217.60 billion baht ($6.39 billion), up 2.82 per cent year-on-year, he added. A shortage of parts and…
North Korea and Russia have developed their ties and sent the strongest ever support to each other on the international stage, as their reinforced relations have contributed to ensuring peace and security in Northeast Asia, the North Korean state newspaper said Monday in a special article. The Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, published the special article to mark the three-year anniversary of the summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 25, 2019. “The friendly relations between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Russia, which have been…
President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s delegation to Japan met with key figures, including Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, on Monday and agreed to improve Korea-Japan relations — the state of which is considered to be at its worst since the normalization of diplomatic relations in 1965. After meeting with Foreign Minister Hayashi in the morning, Rep. Chung Jin-suk of the People Power Party, who led the seven-member delegation, told reporters, “The two countries agreed to maintain and strengthen cooperative relations as good neighbors who share liberal democracy, market economy values and future tasks.” He said they talked about making efforts to “reach a…
More than two decades ago, few high-brow readers in China took online literature seriously as the bar for publishing online was so low that anyone could be a writer, not to mention the prevalent melodramatic genres such as romance, fantasy and time travel. However, given the current numbers of both writers and readers and its influence, online literature has become an important component of the cultural life of Chinese people. It also shoulders increasing responsibilities to create good stories, encourage more people to read, and help achieve the goal of building a “strong culture” by 2035, according to a study…
Two large Lao and Thai fuel operators, PTL Holding Co Ltd (PTLH) and PTT Oil and Retail Business Pcl (PTTOR), have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the joint development of and potential investment in a fuel tank farm and logistics operation at the Vientiane Logistics Park in the Lao capital. The agreement was inked in Vientiane last week by PTTOR senior executive vice-president for International Marketing, Songpon Thepnumsommanus, and PTLH CEO Chanthone Sitthixay. PTLH and PTTOR decided to enter into the MoU as the two parties wish to explore opportunities and develop potential collaboration in relation to joint…