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Vietnam may become upper-middle-income country in 2023: Japanese centre (nationthailand.com)

Vietnam may become upper-middle-income country in 2023: Japanese centre

Dec 17. 2020A tra catfish processing line for export. Việt Nam is seen sustaining a growth rate of about 6 per cent in 2035 thanks to strong exports. — VNA/VNS Photo Vũ Sinh 

By Viet Nam News/ANN

HÀ NỘI — The Japan Centre for Economic Research (JCER) has predicted that Việt Nam will become an upper-middle-income country in 2023, and its GDP will surpass that of China’s Taiwan in 2035.

The JCER recently released a medium-term forecast of Asian economies entitled “Asia in the coronavirus disaster: Which countries are emerging?”, which addresses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and looks at how Asian economies are faring compared with others around the world.

In the standard scenario, JCER assumes that the pandemic is a transient event that will not affect economic structures over the medium term.

Under this assumption, only China, Việt Nam, and Taiwan are on track to maintain positive year-on-year growth rates in 2020. 

Việt Nam is seen sustaining a growth rate of about 6 per cent in 2035 thanks to strong exports. This would propel the Vietnamese economy past Taiwan’s in 2035 in terms of scale, and make it the second-largest economy in Southeast Asia after Indonesia.

Việt Nam is poised to achieve upper-middle-income status in 2023, with per capita income headed for US$11,000 in 2035, according to JCER.

The report also included a severe scenario that describes an outcome in which the coronavirus not only damages today’s economy but also affects urbanisation, trade openness, research and development (R&D) spending, and a host of other factors, undermining countries’ potential growth rates over the medium term.

In this scenario, the growth of the US, Việt Nam, Singapore, and others in 2035 would be significantly lower than those under the standard scenario, largely due to trade blockages. Việt Nam’s economic scale at that time is projected to still be smaller than that of Taiwan, JCER said. — VNS

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Zoom to set up R&D centre in Singapore, hire hundreds of engineering staff (nationthailand.com)

Zoom to set up R&D centre in Singapore, hire hundreds of engineering staff

Dec 17. 2020

By Prisca Ang
The Straits Times/ANN

SINGAPORE – Zoom Video Communications, which owns the ubiquitous video-conferencing platform Zoom, is expanding its footprint in Singapore by opening a new research and development (R&D) centre and doubling the size of its data centre here. 

The US tech giant will also hire hundreds of staff for the R&D centre in key engineering roles, it said in a statement on Wednesday (Dec 16). 

“This commitment represents a growing strategic investment in the country, where Zoom has already had a presence for two years,” it said. 

A Zoom spokesman told The Straits Times that the firm aims to open the R&D centre by the third quarter of next year “or when it’s safe for all our employees to go back into the office”. 

He declined to say how much Zoom invested in the new facility and expanded data centre.

The firm added that the expansion in Singapore will supplement its existing R&D centres in the United States, India and China, and support Zoom’s engineering leadership team, which is based at its headquarters in San Jose, California. 

“Zoom selected Singapore for its exceptional engineering talent. The company has already begun recruiting engineers in the area and looks forward to selecting office space as pandemic-related remote work subsides,” it said. 

Zoom will also double the capacity of its data centre in Singapore, to better serve users in the Asia-Pacific. 

Mr Velchamy Sankarlingam, Zoom’s president of product and engineering, said the new R&D facility and expanded data centre in Singapore will play a critical role in Zoom’s continued international growth. 

“Singapore is pro-business, ranks as one of the friendliest countries to set up a company, and continues to be a favourite for regional headquarters as it boasts exceptional talent, strong infrastructure, and is a perfect gateway for engaging the wider Asia-Pacific region,” he said. 

Mr Chng Kai Fong, managing director of the Economic Development Board, said Zoom has transformed the way people work, learn and socialise. 

He added: “In some ways, we are more productive and fulfilled. And this is only the beginning in re-inventing how we work, live and play. So I am thrilled that Zoom will be partnering Singapore to set up an R&D centre to explore possibilities.”

Zoom is not the only tech giant that has strengthened its presence in Singapore. 

In February, social media platform Twitter said it will set up its first Asia-Pacific engineering centre here and create 65 technical jobs. The centre will be set up at the company’s Asia-Pacific headquarters in the CapitaGreen building in Shenton Way.

WeChat owner Tencent Holdings has chosen a co-working space for its first office in Singapore, reported Bloomberg in October. 

Chinese tech giant ByteDance, which owns popular video app TikTok, is also moving to a bigger office in the financial district. It reportedly signed an agreement to lease three floors measuring over 60,000 square feet at One Raffles Quay. 

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S. Korea extends advisory against overseas travel amid pandemic (nationthailand.com)

S. Korea extends advisory against overseas travel amid pandemic

Dec 17. 2020Incheon International Airport (Yonhap) 

By The Korea Herald/ANN

The foreign ministry on Thursday extended the special advisory recommending against traveling overseas for another month amid the prolonged coronavirus pandemic.

The advisory calls for South Koreans not to go abroad unless the trip is essential and for those staying outside of the country to take extra precaution. The measure will be effective until Jan. 16 and can be extended again.

The extension came as foreign countries maintain their entry restrictions and the majority of international flights remain suspended over COVID-19 concerns, the ministry said. (Yonhap)

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[China] Strong recovery ready to bolster global economy (nationthailand.com)

[China] Strong recovery ready to bolster global economy

Dec 17. 2020Two new models of the Fuxing high-speed train are parked at China State Railway Group Co’s branch in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, on Tuesday. The trains will operate on the Yinchuan-Xi’an High-Speed Railway, which is scheduled to open on Dec 26. [Photo by Yuan Jingzhi/For China Daily] 

By XU WEI
China Daily/ANN

Effective measures to control COVID-19 and policy support set stage for rebound

China is expected to lead the global economic recovery next year, with major economic organizations and economists projecting a robust performance by China’s economy and foreign businesses remaining committed to the Chinese market.

With the country having adopted effective measures to put the COVID-19 pandemic under control and its economy continuing to bounce back in recent months, the organizations and economists have expressed confidence in a stronger economic performance from China, which will inject key momentum into the global recovery and growth next year.

On Friday, a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, the Party’s core leadership, underlined the need to maintain economic growth within a reasonable range, adhere to the strategy of expanding domestic demand and pursue a higher level of opening-up.

“China, which started recovering earlier, is projected to grow strongly, accounting for over one-third of world economic growth in 2021,” said Laurence Boone, chief economist at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, at the release of the organization’s Economic Outlook earlier this month.

“A solid recovery is expected to continue in China, with GDP growth projected to be around 8 percent in 2021 and 5 percent in 2022,” the organization said in the report.

It added that China’s strong recovery will help global GDP return to pre-crisis levels by the end of next year. “The recovery in industrial production in China has also boosted demand for many raw materials in commodity exporting economies, particularly metals.”

It said that China’s policymakers are now withdrawing its monetary stimulus, which was needed during the outbreak, as the economic recovery has gained momentum in recent months.

The National Bureau of Statistics said on Tuesday that China’s growth in industrial value added increased by 7 percent year-on-year in November, from 6.9 percent in October. Retail sales, a key gauge of consumption, was up by 5 percent year-on-year, the fastest level of the year, the bureau said.

The inflow of foreign investment to China grew by 6.3 percent year-on-year to 899.38 billion yuan ($137.7 billion) between January and November, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

The OECD projected that China’s fiscal policy will remain supportive, with a number of tax cuts and extensions of social benefits promoting consumption amid weak consumer confidence.

However, the organization said that more ambitious structural reforms in social protection, and a more equitable provision of public services, are needed for consumption to rebound.

Lu Ting, chief China economist at Japanese brokerage Nomura Securities, said a rebound of global demand will enable China’s exports to maintain a high rate of growth, underpinning the growth of the economy.

“There is a great chance that vaccines will be used on a large scale globally, which will greatly ease the impact of the pandemic. During this process, we believe a global economic recovery is on the horizon,” he said.

Well-balanced recovery

Fitch Ratings, a global credit rating agency, forecast in a research document early this month that China’s economic recovery will be increasingly well-balanced in 2021, after successful containment of the coronavirus, and with many activity indicators now at pre-pandemic levels.

Fitch also predicted improved growth outlooks in the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions and Taiwan, saying that economic activity in these markets will be supported by stronger growth on the Chinese mainland, which will provide a boost to exports and, potentially, a partial recovery in tourism through restricted travel bubbles.

Louis Kuijs, head of Asia Economics at Oxford Economics, a British think tank, said that he expects spending by China’s private sector to step up in 2021, while policy support retreats as the country’s economic recovery matures.

“We expect China’s growth to rotate in 2021, with momentum picking up in household consumption and corporate investment, while investment in infrastructure and, to a lesser extent, real estate, slows down,” he said.

Meanwhile, foreign businesses in the Chinese market have remained resilient, optimistic and committed to that market despite disruptions from the pandemic in 2020.

A survey conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai in November, which polled 124 United States companies, said about 82 percent of respondents had no plans to move their manufacturing facilities offshore over the next three years.

A survey of British businesses in China, conducted by the British Chamber of Commerce in China, found that 82 percent of the companies cited market potential as a reason to increase investment in China in 2021.

China was the No 1 priority for 39 percent of the chamber’s surveyed businesses, and a second or third priority for a further 18 percent, the chamber said in the report, which was released this month.

“Given its size and importance to the global economy, China remains a top investment destination for British businesses already in-market,” it said.

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Cases in Malaysia exceed China’s (nationthailand.com)

Cases in Malaysia exceed China’s

Dec 17. 2020

By JOSEPH KAOS Jr
The Star/ANN
PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia’s 1,295 new Covid-19 infections meant that its cumulative number of cases has now exceeded that of China’s.

At a press conference yesterday, Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the country now has 87,913 confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic.

The figure has surpassed the 86,770 cumulative cases reported yesterday by China.

The world figures are led by the United States, which has recorded about 17 million cases.

Yesterday, Malaysia saw seven more Covid-19 deaths, bringing the death toll to 429 in the country so far.

Dr Noor Hisham said of the deaths, five were in Sabah and one each in Selangor and Kelantan.

However, 1,204 Covid-19 patients have been discharged, which means 72,733 people or 82.7% have recovered.

The number of people with active Covid-19 infections in Malaysia is now 14,751. Some 113 patients are in intensive care, with 62 requiring ventilator support.

In yesterday’s cases, Dr Noor Hisham said 10 cases are imported infections, while the rest are local transmissions.

Selangor continued to record the highest increase of the day, with 481 confirmed cases, or 37.1% of yesterday’s total.

This is followed by Sabah with 268 cases (20.7%) and Kuala Lumpur with 232 (17.9%).

The Teratai cluster recorded the highest increase of the day out of all 196 active clusters, with 143 new cases.

Linked to workers of glove manufacturer Top Glove, the Teratai cluster is currently the largest cluster in the country with 5,683 confirmed cases so far.

Dr Noor Hisham said eight new Covid-19 clusters have been detected in the country, four of them linked to workplaces.

The Tapak Bina Permai cluster in Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur has 48 cases so far, after 1,087 workers underwent targeted screening.

The Tapak Bina Laut cluster involves the districts of Lembah Pantai, Cheras and Kepong in Kuala Lumpur.

Dr Noor Hisham said 542 individuals have been screened, in which eight people have tested positive so far.

Another construction site cluster, the Tapak Bina Matahari cluster, is based in the Titiwangsa district in Kuala Lumpur, and has a total of 15 cases with 778 people tested.

Dr Noor Hisham said the Puncak Galaksi cluster is related to a targeted screening conducted among workers of a warehouse in Selangor.

“Until today, 541 individuals have been tested and 56 positive cases have been found, ” he said.

Outside of the Klang Valley, new clusters were found in Sabah (Bukit Punai cluster, seven cases), Pahang (Inten cluster, eight cases), Johor (Cahaya Mahsuri cluster, 32 cases) and Perak (Seri Tasik cluster, seven cases).