Burma signs flurry of oil, gas deals

Friday, 22 June 2012 13:08 Mizzima News

Burma has signed nine oil and gas exploration deals with foreign companies since March as part of its push to jump-start the economy, according to domestic media.

State-owned Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise said the deals allow companies in Asia and Europe to explore for oil and natural gas, theMyanmar Ahlin newspaper reported this week.

“It was the first time in the history of Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise to sign nine agreements within such a short period,” the article said.

It provided no financial details, but said Burmese companies are involved in all nine deals.

The foreign firms are EPI Holdings of Hong Kong, Geopetro International Holding of Switzerland, Petronas of Malaysia, Jubilant Energy of India, PTTEP of Thailand, Istech Energy of Indonesia and CIS Nobel Oil of Russia.

The ministry said 10 foreign companies were exploring for oil at 24 offshore energy fields, while eight overseas firms were exploring 20 inland fields.

The article said many foreign companies are expressing interest in exploring for oil and natural gas in other inland and offshore fields.

Burmese President Thein Sein said in a televised speech on Tuesday that economic development is the centerpiece of the country’s “second wave”of reforms to be initiated in the July session of the Parliament.

On Thursday, Mizzima reported that Dr. Kan Zaw, the deputy minister for Ministry of National Planning & Economic Development, said western firms would become the No. 1 investors in Burma in the coming years, replacing China and Thailand, currently the top investors, who both have large stakes in the oil and gas sectors.

Total foreign investment in Burma reached US$ 40.699 billion in 458 projects as of March 2012, since the country opened to foreign investments in late 1988, according to official figures. “Until 2012, China stands as the top investor in Myanmar with about $30 billion in investments,” Kan Zaw said. Other top countries are Hong Kong and South Korea.

“In the coming years, Singapore is expected to be another large investors,” he said.

The minister said the government’s new investment law would put Burma in line with international standards and make it more competitive with other countries in the region.

“The new investment law will allow foreign companies do business in Myanmar for 70 years in total, with extensions step by step on investment permits,” he said.

He quoted a Burmese saying, “The more pleasant the house, the more guests will come.”

Recently, Burma, in response to a shortage of electricity, signed memorandums of understanding to build power plants involving companies in the United States, South Korea and Japan.

Bangkok Ranks 1st among Asia/Pacific Cities in MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index

PRESS RELEASE June 21, 2012 2:32 pm

Bangkok will welcome more than 12.2 million visitors in 2012

MasterCard Index Reveals 12.2 Million Visitors with Cross-Border Spending of US$19.3 Billion in Bangkok

According to the MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index released today, Asia/Pacific cities continued their ascendance as global destinations in 2012, with nearly half of the world's top 20 cities by visitor arrivals and expenditure heralding from the region. Bangkok will welcome more than 12.2 million visitors in 2012, with visitor cross-border spending of US$19.3 billion, which represents a growth rate of 16.6%.

This is the second installment of the MasterCard research, which is used as a barometer for understanding the global economy and the dynamic flow of commerce across the world. The MasterCard Index of Global Destination Cities ranks cities in terms of the number of their total international visitor arrivals and the cross-border spending by these same visitors in the destination cities, and gives visitor and passenger growth forecasts for 2012. This Index and the accompanying reports are not based on MasterCard volumes or transactional data.

The Index projects sustained growth among emerging market cities with the top ten Asia/Pacific destinations expecting a 9.5% growth in visitor arrivals for 2012 and a 15.3% surge in cross-border spending. In the Index's top ten global cities, Bangkok ranks 3rd place, with a 6.5% growth in visitor arrivals for 2012 and a 16.6% growth in cross border spending, followed by Singapore (4th), Hong Kong (6th) and Kuala Lumpur (10th). Bangkok is the number one destination city in Asia/Pacific, both in terms of number of visitor arrivals and cross-border spending, reflecting its strong and abiding appeal to tourists from the rest of the world. To view the Index as an interactive map, please click here.

Cities in Asia/Pacific once again led the charge globally with eight of the top 20 cities by international arrivals, with Bangkok ranked third globally with projected visitors to top 12.2 million visitors this year. Singapore was in fourth rank with 11.8 million visitors, with Hong Kong sixth with 11.1 million visitors, and Kuala Lumpur ranked 10th with 8.1 million visitors expected.

The region also ranked highly on visitor spending with Bangkok ranked third globally with US$19.3 billion expected to be spent by inbound passengers in 2012, a 16.6% jump from last year. Singapore leapt two places to fifth overall with US$12.7 billion, up 12.7% on last year. Seoul moved into the top ten with US$10.6 billion in cross-border spend, an increase of 16.2%, while Tokyo, still recovering from the triple disasters of 2011 moved up four places to 14th, is officially the world's third-fastest growing market (24.2%) in terms of cross-border spending.

In terms of growth in visitor numbers six out of the top 20 fastest growing cities in the Index were from Asia/Pacific with Tokyo second globally behind Rio de Janeiro (28.6%) with a 21.5% growth in visitor arrivals. Taipei and Beijing also featured in both the top ten growth cities by visitor arrivals and cross-border spending.

"Asia's destination cities continue their rise, expecting a significant upward trend in visitor arrivals and cross-border spend—most of them on the back of large double digit growth," observed Dr. Yuwa Hedrick-Wong, global economic advisor, MasterCard Worldwide.

London once again topped the world's cities by visitor numbers with 16.9 million inbound passengers expected in 2012, ahead of Paris in second place with 16 million inbound passengers expected.

London also ranked first on cross-border expenditure, ahead of New York in second place, with estimated expenditures in these cities for 2012 amounting to US$21.1 billion and US$19.4 billion respectively.

While cities in Europe and the US still ranked highly in the MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index, Dr. Hedrick-Wong said that the number of emerging market cities featuring in the Index showed Asia's growing role in the global economy.

"The leading Asian cities are some of the most sought after destinations for visitors from all over the world, and the Index indicates that they will continue to thrive into 2012," he said.

"Another interesting trend that we observe is a rise in cashless payments with many international travelers opting to do electronic transactions rather than using cash. The trend is a response to an increasing demand for safe, simple and smart payments, and highlights the rising importance of cashless commerce for both business and leisure travel," Dr. Hedrick-Wong concluded.