Up north and beyond into Thailand, much is happening, economically. BIMP-Eaga has been around too long and nothing much of a headway had come out of it.
Saturday, 19 December 2009
Ministry vows to make region a trade hub
Via Bangkok Post: The Commerce Ministry has vowed to turn the violence-plagued provinces in the deep South into a commercial and investment hub in collaboration with neighbouring Malaysia.
Thailand and Malaysia would jointly develop five economic areas in five southern provinces of Thailand and five neighbouring cities in the northern region of Malaysia, said Deputy Commerce Minister Alongkorn Ponlaboot.
He visited Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat yesterday to listen to what the local business sectors in the region as well as their Malaysian counterparts had to say about the joint economic development policies of both countries.
The five economic areas to be developed are trade, tourism, investment, logistics and the halal business, said Mr Alongkorn.
Business operators in Narathiwat told Mr Alongkorn to encourage the government to extend them soft loans and push to set up a large new trade centre.
Pot Phaibunkasemsuk, president of the Southern Border Provinces Chamber of Commerce, said the local business operators wanted the government to accelerate implementation of those economic relief measures the cabinet has approved for operators affected by southern violence.
The chamber also wanted the government to subsidise the expansion of NGV stations and financially support heavy truck operators in the restive areas to convert to gas-fuelled vehicles in order to bring down transport costs.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
IMPROVED LOGISTICS SERVICES
DHL launches Economy Select Service that offers up to 30% in cost savings
April 22, 2009, 3:49pm
DHL Philippines, the leading express and logistics company, announced the launch of its full suite of intra-Asia DHL Economy Select service to include both inbound and outbound shipments in the Philippines and 17 other locations in Asia Pacific. DHL Economy Select offers the convenience of door-to-door delivery of non-time-sensitive, inbound and outbound consignments within Asia Pacific, at attractive prices, without any compromise in service quality or access to DHL’s in-house customs expertise.
Unlike DHL’s premium guaranteed ‘time-definite, next-day’ service to most locations within Asia Pacific, DHL Economy Select service has a transit period of between two to four business days, depending on location. However, customers will enjoy further cost savings of up to 30 percent, especially for shipments of over 45 kg. With DHL Economy Select, the shipments are handled at the same level of service appropriated to other smaller, time-sensitive parcels, allowing customers to benefit from full end-to-end checkpoint visibility and simplified paperwork due to the provision of a single invoice with no hidden transportation costs upon delivery.
“As the market leading Express player, we’re mindful of the current economic climate and have developed a product tailored to meet our customers’ needs. With the near-term economic outlook, businesses are looking at every aspect of their operating costs. With up to 30 per cent cost savings for shipments over 45kg, DHL Economy Select offers customers the flexibility of sending less urgent items at a reduced cost, but with the assurance of the security and reliability of our premier Express services”, said Dan McHugh, CEO, DHL Express Asia Pacific.
“DHL Economy Select is an ideal economic and cost-effective delivery service for less urgent business-to-business shipments, while still offering the hassle-free convenience of a door-to-door service that DHL is known for,” said Ahmad Mohamad, DHL Country Manager for the Philippines. “We have always been committed to offering a wider range of services to our customers to give the flexibility to choose which type of service is perfect for their changing needs.”
“Since our launch in October last year, DHL Economy Select has been widely received among customers in the Philippines. Driven by the strong demand for the service, it’s timely for us to extend DHL Economy Select to inbound shipments as well, as we continue to offer greater cost efficiencies for our customers,” Ahmad Mohamad added.
DHL Economy Select is now available as a fully inbound and outbound intra-Asia service offering in Australia, Bangladesh, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam. This service will be extended between Asia Pacific/ Europe and Asia Pacific/ US by Q4 2009.
DHL is the global market leader of the international express and logistics industry, specializing in providing innovative and customized solutions from a single source.
DHL offers expertise in express, air and ocean freight, overland transport, contract logistic solutions as well as international mail services, combined with worldwide coverage and an in-depth understanding of local markets. DHL's international network links more than 220 countries and territories worldwide. More than 300,000 employees are dedicated to providing fast and reliable services that exceed customers' expectations.
DHL is a Deutsche Post World Net brand. The group generated revenues of P60 billion in 2006.
BlogNote: This is what service is all about. Its about going beyond what is already being provided. This augurs well for the economy in facing up with the sort of weakening economy that we are in now.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Malaysia's Economic Outlook
The following are excerpts from the article written by Khoo Kay Peng at khookaypeng.blogspot.com. It sure does make a good read.
1. Malaysia's gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate was forecasted to drop to zero percent as the global financial crisis evolved into a deepening sub-regional industrial crisis in Southeast Asia, according to the United Nations' regional arm, the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Escap).
2. Escap observed that the crisis has moved rapidly from its first stage of a financial crisis emanating from developed countries and causing contagion in Asia and the Pacific, to a second stage of crisis for the real economy in the region based on plummeting exports and curtailed domestic demand.
3. The organisation believed that Southeast Asia could be among the most affected by the crisis, given its integrated industrial production base and linkages to the global supply chain, thus deepening unemployment. It expected an overall economic growth rate of 1.2 percent for Southeast Asia this year, the lowest among the developing Asia Pacific sub-regions.
4. This situation does not augur well for the country. Based on several observations, the unemployment rate is expected to climb to more than 5% by the end of this year. The economy is heavily dependent on FDIs and exports to support growth. Both of them have plummeted this year. A number of companies I have spoken too are taking precautions by averting financial and investment risks. Most of them will not make any new investment this year.
5. This will result in further reduction in jobs creation. The main problem for the country is how to generate enough jobs for the society if the economy is projected at zero growth. It will be difficult for Malaysia to create enough jobs at 3-4 percent growth, worse if it is at zero percent. Another 600,000 are expected to join the job market this year. The government has offered grants to those who are interested to pursue postgraduate degrees. However, this offer is not expected to reduce the number of new entrants significantly.
6. Another worry is policy flip-flops from the government. It has imposed a double levy on foreign workers but was told to review its decision by several BN leaders. The ministry of human resource has postponed the levy hike by another month. It will have to decide on it soon. I have argued that the issue of foreign workers will have to be analysed in a long term perspective. Sending back low skilled and cheap foreign workers will not create immediate jobs for the locals. Most of them are not willing to work in the same environment as the foreign workers.
7. The government needs a firm review on these areas:
* Address immediate economic bottlenecks e.g. technology and production gaps, skills gap, industrial development process, archaic labour, investment and trade rules and regulations etc.;
* Create new industries and new jobs;
* Address important issues on market reforms to strengthen private sector governance, rationalize the role of GLCs;
* Promote transparency in GLCs such as EPF, Khazanah and SOCSO;
* Enhance key performance indicators on public projects and announce the members of the technical monitoring committee on the second stimulus publicly;
* Pursue real process improvements in the public sector to cut and reduce wastage and inefficiency;
* Regain public confidence on the economy; and
* Rebuild the administration confidence
8. The main problem remains the lack of political discipline within the ruling coalition. We want more serious, non-partisan and non-rhetorical discourse and discussion on the economy. So far, the government has provided us with neither direction nor leadership.
9. The work is cut out for Najib but the nation's focus will be drifted again to the by-elections. After 7th April, expect Penanti and Bukit Lanjan to follow up. When can we start to focus on the economy despite the gloom?
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Sabah's Consumers Woes-The Cause To The High Cost of Living
Doing away with Sabah cabotage policy 'inevitable'
LIBERALISATION by doing away with the cabotage policy for Sabah is inevitable in the long run if the state wants to be more competitive, according to the Institute of Development Studies Sabah (IDS).
IDS executive director Datuk Dr Yaakub Johari said, at the moment, protectionism for Malaysian-flagged ships was considered a short-term agenda and in principle, not healthy to continue for too long.
"We believe it's part of the global trend. Liberalisation in the long term helps to reduce cost," Yaakub said.
"Definitely, in the long run we have no choice, it's an open economy. Eventually, if we do not open up, our neighbours (countries) will do something against us," he said on the sidelines of the Gabungan Badan Ekonomi Masyarakat Bumiputera Sabah convention.
He was asked to comment on repeated calls by various local bodies here for the cabotage policy for Sabah to be abolished to do away higher shipping costs.
Yaakub, who presented a paper on "Sabah Development Corridor: Development Concept and Strategies" at the convention, said one of the challenges faced by the corridor was the cost of doing business due to high shipping costs.
He said the high cost of doing business in Kota Kinabalu was compounded by the existing cabotage policy, which was a factor impeding economic growth.
The progressive removal of cabotage policy, leading to forging of alliances with other major ports and shipping liners and liberalising shipping licences to increase competition among local operators, will contribute to lower freight costs, according to Yaakub.
The Federation of Sabah Manufacturers recently reiterated the need to abolish the policy, saying that the move could also pave the way for the Kota Kinabalu Sepangar container port to become a hub for the BIMP-EAGA region.
Its president Datuk Wong Khen Thau said if the policy was lifted, some industries would be able to compete better, with direct impact on the exports market and growth of business volume.
Sabah, he said, needed to rely on shipping for transporting goods from the peninsula due to the absence of road links and railways.
Besides the federation, various other parties have been asking the government to do away with the cabotage policy and the government last year announced an independent study to review the mechanism but so far the results have yet to be released.
Source: Business Times
LIBERALISATION by doing away with the cabotage policy for Sabah is inevitable in the long run if the state wants to be more competitive, according to the Institute of Development Studies Sabah (IDS).
IDS executive director Datuk Dr Yaakub Johari said, at the moment, protectionism for Malaysian-flagged ships was considered a short-term agenda and in principle, not healthy to continue for too long.
"We believe it's part of the global trend. Liberalisation in the long term helps to reduce cost," Yaakub said.
"Definitely, in the long run we have no choice, it's an open economy. Eventually, if we do not open up, our neighbours (countries) will do something against us," he said on the sidelines of the Gabungan Badan Ekonomi Masyarakat Bumiputera Sabah convention.
He was asked to comment on repeated calls by various local bodies here for the cabotage policy for Sabah to be abolished to do away higher shipping costs.
Yaakub, who presented a paper on "Sabah Development Corridor: Development Concept and Strategies" at the convention, said one of the challenges faced by the corridor was the cost of doing business due to high shipping costs.
He said the high cost of doing business in Kota Kinabalu was compounded by the existing cabotage policy, which was a factor impeding economic growth.
The progressive removal of cabotage policy, leading to forging of alliances with other major ports and shipping liners and liberalising shipping licences to increase competition among local operators, will contribute to lower freight costs, according to Yaakub.
The Federation of Sabah Manufacturers recently reiterated the need to abolish the policy, saying that the move could also pave the way for the Kota Kinabalu Sepangar container port to become a hub for the BIMP-EAGA region.
Its president Datuk Wong Khen Thau said if the policy was lifted, some industries would be able to compete better, with direct impact on the exports market and growth of business volume.
Sabah, he said, needed to rely on shipping for transporting goods from the peninsula due to the absence of road links and railways.
Besides the federation, various other parties have been asking the government to do away with the cabotage policy and the government last year announced an independent study to review the mechanism but so far the results have yet to be released.
Source: Business Times
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
BIMP-Eaga News: Transport & Logistics
Asean SRNH may be more viable than BIMP-Eaga
Expanding the local system of roll-on, roll-off ports to Southeast Asia may be more viable for an archipelagic country like the Philippines than with those of the subregional trade bloc with oil producing nations like Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, a logistics expert said.
According to EnricoBasilio, director of CRC Transport and Logistics Institute, expanding the country’s Strong Republic Nautical Highway (SRNH) to Asean countries can benefit the Philippines since the country is strategically located right in the middle of almost every country in the region.
“This is just a concept. We haven’t done the real analysis yet but I think this should be more viable for us,” Basilio said.
The concept of expanding the SRNH to the Asean region was brought up by Paul Apthorp of TNT Worldwide Express and presented during the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) conference in November last year.
Aphthorp said due to the extensive road network in Mekong subregion and cross-border trade in Thailand, Vietnam, China, Laos the Philippines can also benefit in the transshipment. The operation of TNT in the Philippines is struggling as its strategy was to use road networks rather than air links that the bigger logistics firms like UPS, DHL, and Fedex have been employing for the past years.
“If the international ships pass by our country, we can earn revenues from the “pass-through” activities, benefiting our ports and trucking industry, as well as creating value adding activities,” Basilio said.
Basilio estimates that if the Philippines can only get at least 10 million of the 60 million containers carried by vessels in the region in a year. “We have so many potentials of benefiting from the overseas shipping,” he said.
At the moment, the country is a member of the four-nation BIMP-Eaga (Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area), but trade has hardly picked up after more than 14 years in existence.
Expanding the local system of roll-on, roll-off ports to Southeast Asia may be more viable for an archipelagic country like the Philippines than with those of the subregional trade bloc with oil producing nations like Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, a logistics expert said.
According to EnricoBasilio, director of CRC Transport and Logistics Institute, expanding the country’s Strong Republic Nautical Highway (SRNH) to Asean countries can benefit the Philippines since the country is strategically located right in the middle of almost every country in the region.
“This is just a concept. We haven’t done the real analysis yet but I think this should be more viable for us,” Basilio said.
The concept of expanding the SRNH to the Asean region was brought up by Paul Apthorp of TNT Worldwide Express and presented during the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) conference in November last year.
Aphthorp said due to the extensive road network in Mekong subregion and cross-border trade in Thailand, Vietnam, China, Laos the Philippines can also benefit in the transshipment. The operation of TNT in the Philippines is struggling as its strategy was to use road networks rather than air links that the bigger logistics firms like UPS, DHL, and Fedex have been employing for the past years.
“If the international ships pass by our country, we can earn revenues from the “pass-through” activities, benefiting our ports and trucking industry, as well as creating value adding activities,” Basilio said.
Basilio estimates that if the Philippines can only get at least 10 million of the 60 million containers carried by vessels in the region in a year. “We have so many potentials of benefiting from the overseas shipping,” he said.
At the moment, the country is a member of the four-nation BIMP-Eaga (Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area), but trade has hardly picked up after more than 14 years in existence.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Sabah Allocates RM10 Million To Enhance Skills
KOTA KINABALU, Feb 9 (Bernama) -- The Sabah state government has allocated RM10 million to develop human resources at all levels of its ministries, departments and agencies this year, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Aman.
He said the state government understood the importance of enhancing skills of its public servants to ensure good governance.
"The public sector is a very important institution to ensure administration and governance. Without that institution, a government will lose its ability to administer and implement plans efficiently and effectively. So we allocate this money to enhance skills of state employees," Musa said at a function to commemorate the Sabah state-level Public Services Day at the Tun Raffae Auditorium at Menara Tun Mustapha, here today.
Musa also called on senior state and Federal public servants to ensure that the quality of services and the public delivery system in Sabah was at a high standard.
He urged state employees to elevate the service performance as well as help to ensure the success of the state's development agenda including the Sabah Development Corridor.
The Sabah Information Department was picked as the winner of the Public Information Centre Award for this year's Sabah Public Services Day.
-- BERNAMA
He said the state government understood the importance of enhancing skills of its public servants to ensure good governance.
"The public sector is a very important institution to ensure administration and governance. Without that institution, a government will lose its ability to administer and implement plans efficiently and effectively. So we allocate this money to enhance skills of state employees," Musa said at a function to commemorate the Sabah state-level Public Services Day at the Tun Raffae Auditorium at Menara Tun Mustapha, here today.
Musa also called on senior state and Federal public servants to ensure that the quality of services and the public delivery system in Sabah was at a high standard.
He urged state employees to elevate the service performance as well as help to ensure the success of the state's development agenda including the Sabah Development Corridor.
The Sabah Information Department was picked as the winner of the Public Information Centre Award for this year's Sabah Public Services Day.
-- BERNAMA
Thursday, January 29, 2009
SDC NEWS-Air Travel Facilities
Currently, Terminal 1 of KKIA is used for regular fare airlines, while Terminal 2 is for low-cost carriers. The upgraded Terminal 1 will be able to cater to 10 million passengers annually, and Terminal 2 will be transformed into a full-fledged cargo terminal.
KKIA will also be able to cope with the anticipated increase in cargo volume, which, in 2006, was 19.2 million kg, an increase of 10.5% over 2005 figures, while cargo loaded rose 11.1% to 18.5 million kg in the same period.
Also in the pipeline is the expansion of the Sandakan airport, currently considered a second eastern gateway to Sabah.
A new airport in Lahad Datu is also being considered to accommodate Airbus 320 size aircraft which will support the development of aquaculture and tourism.
According to officials from Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd, KKIA is expected to attract more flights to and from Sabah, especially from the Far East, such as Hong Kong, China and Korea, and Australia.
KKIA will also be able to cope with the anticipated increase in cargo volume, which, in 2006, was 19.2 million kg, an increase of 10.5% over 2005 figures, while cargo loaded rose 11.1% to 18.5 million kg in the same period.
Also in the pipeline is the expansion of the Sandakan airport, currently considered a second eastern gateway to Sabah.
A new airport in Lahad Datu is also being considered to accommodate Airbus 320 size aircraft which will support the development of aquaculture and tourism.
According to officials from Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd, KKIA is expected to attract more flights to and from Sabah, especially from the Far East, such as Hong Kong, China and Korea, and Australia.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
SDC — Strengthening Sabah’s infrastructure and logistics: The Role of Sabah Ports
1. The SDC blueprint has identified strategies to make “The Land Below the Wind” a regional trading hub through modern infrastructure and logistics.
2. The logistics element is one of the strategies aimed at addressing the current high cost of doing business in the state. The strategy for cost reduction is three-pronged:
* Lowering freight and logistical costs through a progressive review of the Cabotage Policy for shipping;
* Enhancing the cost competitiveness of ports in Sabah via alliances with other global port operators and shipping liners; and
* Establishing the Sepangar Free Zone (SFZ), which is annexed to SBCP, by providing attractive incentives to potential investors to set up their manufacturing facilities and distributions in SFZ.
3. Subsequently, the new SBCP and part of Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP) will be positioned as the main logistics hub and free trade zone to act as the catalyst and support for industrial development.
1. The SDC blueprint has identified strategies to make “The Land Below the Wind” a regional trading hub through modern infrastructure and logistics.
2. The logistics element is one of the strategies aimed at addressing the current high cost of doing business in the state. The strategy for cost reduction is three-pronged:
* Lowering freight and logistical costs through a progressive review of the Cabotage Policy for shipping;
* Enhancing the cost competitiveness of ports in Sabah via alliances with other global port operators and shipping liners; and
* Establishing the Sepangar Free Zone (SFZ), which is annexed to SBCP, by providing attractive incentives to potential investors to set up their manufacturing facilities and distributions in SFZ.
3. Subsequently, the new SBCP and part of Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP) will be positioned as the main logistics hub and free trade zone to act as the catalyst and support for industrial development.
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