18 Aug, 2023

NewPay Signs Trilateral Agreement For Laos-China Trade Facilitation

At the 7th China-South Asia Expo (referred to as the South Expo), Lao NEWPAY Technology Joint Venture Co., Ltd., Yunnan Haohong Supply Chain Co., Ltd., and Fudian Bank Co., Ltd. jointly signed a tripartite agreement to establish the China-Laos Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Service Center.On the tenth anniversary of the "Belt and Road" initiative and the tenth year of the South Expo, in order to actively serve and integrate into the "Belt and Road" construction, support the China-South Asia Expo as an important platform for economic and trade cooperation between China and South Asian countries, and promote comprehensive cooperation between Laos and Yunnan, China, Lao NEWPAY Technology Joint Venture Co., Ltd., Yunnan Haohong Supply Chain Co., Ltd., and Fudian Bank Co., Ltd. have established a strategic partnership. By integrating resources and jointly supporting extensive economic and trade exchanges between China and Southeast Asia, as well as accelerating the development of Yunnan's port economy, the China-Laos Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Service Center is hereby established.With the support of the governments of China and Laos, the China-Laos Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Service Center will continue to facilitate international connectivity, accelerate the construction of various channels such as China-Laos, China-Vietnam, China-Myanmar, Laos-Vietnam, Laos-Thailand, Laos-Myanmar, and enhance the effectiveness of the China-Laos railway "Golden Line." It will promote the seamless connection between the "Lancang-Mekong Express" and initiatives like the China-Europe Railway and the Lancang River-Mekong River international shipping route. The center will also focus on promoting energy and digital information channels, strengthening the construction of international logistics hub nodes, and enhancing the capacity and level of interconnectivity and mutual trust with neighboring countries.The China-Laos Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Service Center, based on cooperation and mutual benefit and in compliance with the laws and regulations of the countries involved, aims to provide one-stop, offshore, and convenient services to facilitate China-South Asia and Southeast Asia economic and trade exchanges. Leveraging the geographical and policy advantages of Yunnan and their respective domestic and overseas institutions, the center actively supports Yunnan Province in becoming a strategic link between the domestic market and international markets in South Asia and Southeast Asia, contributing to the construction of a premier cross-border regional service platform.The establishment of the China-Laos Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Service Center injects new energy into economic and trade cooperation among Laos, China, and ASEAN countries, promoting deeper collaboration in various industries and creating new markets. The center provides a comprehensive logistics information infrastructure, efficient logistics informatization support, and convenient cross-border fund settlement services, forming a closed-loop logistics supply chain management and fund circulation. It aims to enhance cross-border settlement convenience and support the exploration of new trade domains. The parties will use China-Laos trade as a pilot to promote facilitative economic and trade cooperation between China and Southeast Asian countries, accelerate the development of trading in the digital realm, and formulate regional rules and standards through technology. Additionally, the center will actively support the construction of national logistics hubs in Kunming (commerce and service-oriented, port-based, and airport-based) and Mohan (land-based border port), and cooperate to connect the logistics hubs along the China-Laos railway with important western land and sea channels like the North Bay International Gateway Port in Guangxi, the Chongqing Logistics and Operation Center, and the Chengdu National Important Commerce and Logistics Center, fostering a logistics hub alliance and promoting market-oriented operations.The center will construct an international bulk commodity distribution center, utilizing the advantages of the China-Laos railway and the rich resources of agricultural, forest, and mineral products along its route. It will work with local governments and relevant enterprises to expedite the layout and construction of regional international bulk commodity distribution centers for steel, non-ferrous metals, coffee, rubber, vegetables, and other products along the China-Laos railway route. The center will actively seek national policy support and establish strategic material and bulk commodity reserve bases along the China-Laos railway.Collaboratively building cross-border supply chains and the cross-border logistics industry will support regional industrial cooperation and economic development. By establishing a comprehensive logistics information infrastructure and an efficient logistics informationization support system, the center will create an industry-linked logistics big data trading center and logistics-industry aggregation platform. It will enhance the functionality of open-platform logistics carriers, using Kunming as a strategic hub to radiate to South Asia and Southeast Asia, focusing on building the Lancang-Mekong import and export international logistics service network. The goal is to achieve a "three networks, one center" pattern, consisting of provincial networks, domestic networks, international networks, and a logistics big data trading center. The parties will cooperate to address investment and financing issues and provide increased financial support to various projects that align with policy direction.The center will establish a "bank + foreign trade comprehensive service platform" to facilitate cross-border settlements and support the healthy development of new forms of trade. The platform will provide international supply chain comprehensive services for enterprises from home and abroad, including qualification handling, customs declaration and inspection, international logistics, overseas warehousing, global store opening, data product selection, intellectual property, cross-border training, overseas sales, cargo insurance, import and export tax refunds, foreign trade agency, and foreign trade consultation. Through tripartite collaboration, efficient and convenient online and offline payment services will be realized, reducing settlement costs.The China-Laos Cross-Border Trade Facilitation Service Center will support local governments in optimizing the business environment. The parties will strengthen information exchange on cross-border logistics transportation and logistics enterprise development between Laos and Yunnan Province, China. Continued support will be provided to micro and small enterprises in related industries, assisting local governments in constructing service platforms through tripartite cooperation. Additionally, exploring risk-sharing and compensation mechanisms and establishing risk compensation funds for micro and small loans will help optimize the government's business environment.The center will provide specialized scenarios for new forms of trade. It will vigorously innovate and develop online financial services models related to cross-border logistics, and establish cross-border transaction, mailing, and distribution networks for South Asia and Southeast Asia. Together, they will explore the "China-Laos Express + trade + internet" model.

04 Aug, 2023

Indonesia invites ASEAN to discuss Post-2025 Vision

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia has invited all ASEAN member countries to discuss the ASEAN Post-2025 Vision by involving all related stakeholders, a government official said."We need a balanced time and resources to carry out this task and achieve the target," Assistant Seputy for Regional and Sub-regional Economic Cooperation at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs Netty Muharni said.It is necessary to adjust the work plan that has been prepared previously to ensure that this vision can be agreed upon in 2025, Muharni said in a statement issued on Friday regarding the recent meeting of the Working Group for ASEAN Economic Community Post-2025 Vision.The WG Post-2025 meeting had been held in Senggigi, West Nusa Tenggara, on July 29, 2023, was attended by officials from ASEAN countries.Muharni noted that the ASEAN Post-2025 Vision is currently being prepared and developed by the High-Level Task Force on ASEAN Community Vision (HLTF-ACV).She said that five important agendas were discussed by the working group, namely its work plan to prepare the vision and second, gathering of inputs for a survey to ensure that the ASEAN vision reflects needs and inclusiveness.The survey will include a wider range of stakeholders from sectoral agencies and academics to the general public, she added.The third agenda is focusing on discussion with related sectors. Muharni informed that the discussion will focus on specific topics according to each stakeholder's background.The main targets of the discussion would be business actors, academics, international institutions, and the general public. It is also hoped that each ASEAN member country will carry out discussions nationally.Fourth, the implementation of the Post-2025 ASEAN study, which was carried out thematically, by assessing megatrend issues and new potential areas that need to be included under the economic pillar.She said that the results of the study are also expected to provide recommendations to increase the effective development of the Post-2025 ASEAN Vision.The last agenda is the coordination mechanism in the economic pillar, which is related to the simplification of processes for supporting the preparation of the Post-2025 ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Vision, she added.The meeting also discussed the preparation for an interface meeting between the High-Level Task Force on ASEAN Economic Integration and the High-Level Task Force on ASEAN Community Post 2025 Vision (HLTF-ACV).According to her, the face-to-face meeting will focus on coordination mechanisms for supporting the preparation of the ASEAN Post-2025 Vision based on the three pillars."Thank you for the dedication and active participation of all the delegates. We have discussed important issues and shared information that needs to be further developed in the post-2025 ASEAN vision," she said.The next Working Group Meeting for the ASEAN Economic Community Post-2025 will be held in Vientiane, Laos, on February 23–24, 2024.