South Asia, South East Asia, Africa, Middle East / North Africa, Latin America, Other.

China and India Are Key Destinations for FDI

Global Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is forecast to reach US$775 billion this year, up 30% from 2003, with China and India key destinations, according to Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). By 2008, FDI is expected to have climbed back to US$1.2 trillion, a level near its peak in 1999-2000, the EIU said in a report.

Japan Ranks Vietnam as Fourth Country for FDI Potentials

A survey conducted by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation ranked Vietnam as the fourth most promising destination for Japanese investment in 2003. Hiroshi Suzuki, chief representative of the bank in Hanoi, said Vietnam’s business environment helped the country improve its ranking by one notch. He said the worsening economic climate in Indonesia and the Philippines also helped Vietnam’s position.

Thailand Signed an Agreement with Japan for Further Technological S

The federation of Thai Industries (FTI) signed an agreement with its Japanese counterpart for closer economic cooperation, mainly in the automotive and electronics industries. The Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement (JTEPA) has been developed in advance of Thai Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra’s visit to Japan last week, when the two countries are expected to announce comprehensive discussions on a bilateral free trade area agreement.

Australia and China Agreed to Explore a Free Trade Pact

Australia and China agreed to begin work on a Trade and Economic Framework to enhance bilateral trade and investment in May 2002. Since the period, Australia and China have held a number of discussions on the Framework with the aim of concluding a broad and non-treaty arrangement which will strengthen the bilateral trade relationship to the mutual benefit of both countries.

The EU Relation with Hong Kong will Size Up in Future

Bilateral relations between Hong Kong and Europe have improved in the past decade. On the economic front, the European Union (EU) is Hong Kong’s third largest trading partner after the mainland and the United States. Meanwhile, Hong Kong remains an important regional base for European companies. As of June 2003, 28 EU-based companies set up regional headquarters in Hong Kong and 641 EU enterprises regional offices in the city.

UNCTAD 2003 World Investment Report Sees the End to Slump in FDI Fl

The United Nation Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) published “The World Investment Report 2003” on September 4. UNCTAD forecast in this report global investment flows are likely to rise steadily in 2004. In this year, it depressed the levels reached in 2002.

ASEAN Secretary General Calls for a More Speedy Elimination of Intr

Rudolfo Severino, Asean secretary-general proposed that Southeast Asian nations should advance the 2010 deadline for dismantling all tariff barriers in order to cope with rising competition for investment.
Mr. Severino mentioned that in the current competitive environment, in which other regions were making themselves cheaper, the imposed deadline is not up to the required pace. Therefore, Asean member states should impose more benchmarks among themselves to achieve zero tariffs at a faster pace and should do more to dismantle non-tariff barriers of intra-regional trade which accounts for about 20% of the region’s annual total trade of more than US$700 billion, according to officials.

Greater Foreign Investment Facilitated: Foreign Ownership Cap in th

Cap on foreign ownership for local telecom firms in Thailand set to be reversed to 49%. The current cap of 25% was set last year. The move will benefit most of the local telecom operators since most of them exceed the previous 25% limit of the share of foreign ownership of the, which was criticized for being contrary to the goal of attracting foreign investment- much needed fund in the aftermath of the 1997 crisis. The raise on the cap is expected to bring benefits to the consumers through greater competition of domestic firms whose businesses would be made viable through availability of foreign financing. Thus, better services and quality can be expected as well as the general reduction in price.

Tratados son "gancho" de Chile para inversionistas

El acceso que ofrecen mercados como EE.UU. y Corea son la principal causa del ascenso de Chile como país ideal para hacer negocios.