JAKARTA: Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday proposed to parliament a budget of 3,304.1 trillion rupiah (US$216.24 billion) for next year, setting a target of 5.2 per cent for economic growth in what will be his final year in office. The budget proposal is about 6 per cent bigger thanContinue Reading
BEIJING: Floods have damaged corn and rice crops in China’s key northern grain-producing belt, traders and analysts said, with more rain in the forecast as another typhoon approaches, threatening to add to global food inflation pressures. The hit to China’s cereal crops – the full extent of which is notContinue Reading
On top of investor-friendly policies and political stability, businesses said they also see potential in the Timorese people.
Pelican Paradise said efforts have been made to hire and upskill local constructors to take on various big projects.
For A-Smart Holdings, a Singaporean-owned company which operates in areas such as print manufacturing, smart technologies, real estate and investment, works are underway to build two buildings comprising residential and retail lots.
“This country is young and full of opportunities,” said the firm’s chief executive officer Lim Huan Chiang, adding that early movers have an advantage in the market.
“The local people are very hardworking, and they are educated. So we want to get some of them to be trained and involved in our construction work. When the project is completed in future, we promise we will hire them and provide jobs to the local population.”
“STRONGER THAN THE HIMALAYAS” The two countries share a 596-kilometre frontier near the Siachen Glacier in the Karakoram Mountains, one of the world’s tallest ranges. Pakistan politicians frequently trot out the phrase “stronger than the Himalayas, deeper than the ocean, and sweeter than honey” to portray the depth and closenessContinue Reading
In addition, rising uncertainties in the job market, overshadowed with pessimism and unease, have also prompted residents to cut spending. The jobless rate for the 16 to 24 age group reached an unprecedented 21.3 per cent in June, having been on an upwards trajectory since 2020. It is expected to rise furtherContinue Reading
BATONZ connected her with Miyaji, who pledged to keep the firm’s employees, clients and trucks. “I’m more relieved than sad,” she said. “I didn’t think our company had any value.” The glut of affordable small businesses can be a boon for young people looking to break into a sector. AmongContinue Reading
TOKYO: Hong Kong has started strengthening radiation inspection of seafood imports from Japan, Kyodo news agency reported on Saturday (Jul 22). The tighter inspections started in mid-June and customs clearance of Japanese seafood was delayed by about three hours compared to the normal situation, the report said. Hong Kong onContinue Reading
Zhang’s research focused in part on the impact of the outbreak on the manufacturing hubs of Suzhou and Kunshan in eastern China. “Employment there only recovered to two-thirds of pre-COVID levels till March, when COVID-19 faded,” she wrote. “Young people remain major workers in the manufacturing sector, so they wereContinue Reading
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s parliament approved a domestic debt restructuring plan on Saturday (Jul 1) that is crucial to continue a US$2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The plan passed with a majority of 122 votes in the 225-member parliament. Sri Lanka tumbled into its worst financial crisisContinue Reading
China’s ruling Communist Party appointed central bank deputy governor Pan Gongsheng as the bank’s party secretary on Saturday (Jul 1), a move the Wall Street Journal said would be a prelude to becoming governor. The party’s Central Organization Department announced the decision at a meeting on Saturday afternoon, the People’sContinue Reading