According to the detailed research of our analytic team, the anticipated recovery of the Brunei economy in 2021 has been derailed by the materialization of key downside risks—pandemic resurgence, unanticipated domestic oil and gas production disruptions, and delays in the commencement of FDI projects.           Domestic economic activity has been severely impacted by the re-imposition of containment measures. The Brunei economy shrank by 2.2 percent year on year in the third quarter of 2021, the fourth consecutive quarterly decline. Upstream and downstream oil and gas production have been weaker than expected, while some service activities have been hampered by mobility restrictions. Retail sales declined sharply in Q3 2021, reflecting limited consumer spending due to stay-at-home orders and voluntary social distancing to avoid contracting the virus. The contractions across almost all retail activities highlight the severity of the second COVID-19 wave, contrasting the resilience during the first wave in 2020.           The recovery in the hotel sub-sector has been halted by the second COVID-19 wave. Hotel occupancy rates had

Vietnam suffered a challenging 2021, as it was hit hard by the pandemic, resulting in stringent lockdowns and affecting economic growth. Sustained pressure from COVID-19 outbreaks and supply chain disruption are likely to continue to have an impact into 2022. Nevertheless, with Vietnam slowly reopening, foreign investors maintain an optimistic outlook, with GDP projected at 6.5 percent in 2022. Vietnam Briefing examines some significant events that occurred this year and how they are likely to shape Vietnam’s business environment in 2022.     Vietnam’s 2021 was by far one of the most challenging years to date. While Vietnam was lauded globally for controlling the pandemic in 2020, the Delta variant proved overwhelming, resulting in strict lockdowns, interrupted production, and disrupted supply chains.     While most western countries suffered an excruciating 2020, Vietnam’s 2021 was harsh, with the pandemic hitting Vietnam’s GDP hard. In Q3 2021, Vietnam recorded its first-ever negative GDP, since 2000 significantly affecting businesses and its people significantly. Nevertheless, Vietnam still expects a positive GDP and as the government switches to a ‘living with the pandemic’ strategy,

          After passing through a pandemic, technology and sustainability tend to be replaced. People got used to working and studying while working from home, which is why technology has played an important role in the 2000s. People are living different lives than before. Many scientists and doctors mentioned that in 2022, the pandemic was forecasted to be an endemic disease. Here are the 10 mega trends for 2022. 1. Green innovation and nature-based solutions: Technology investment in green innovation and clean energy be able to adapt in the supply chain, such as increasing alternative energy portions in order to reduce emissions of greenhouse gasses, changing operation strategies in both manufacturing and service sectors, including whatever caused negative impacts in the supply chain, and increasing environmental awareness. 2. Hybrid Working: Owing to the over 2 year isolation of people, 91% of employees require “hybrid working”, which before was only 9%. Hybrid working procedures are being converted into the new normal in society. The Cisco Global Workforce Survey found that businesses have been facing the challenges of a

In this article you will find the best advice from our professional and experienced analytic team regarding the fact that you want to start a business in Malaysia. In this post, we have put together a list of the most profitable small business ideas in Malaysia to inspire you to start your own business venture. Malaysia is a southeast Asian country. The country has a highly open, upper-middle-income economy. The country’s economy is shifting into higher value-added activities in both industry and services. In addition, the country is a leading exporter of electrical appliances, electronic parts and components, palm oil, and natural gas. Manufacturing has a large influence on the country’s economy, accounting for over 40% of the GDP. The 2016 edition of the World Bank’s “Ease of Doing Business” report ranks Malaysia at 18 in the world and the second in Southeast Asia—behind Singapore. In addition, the government is moving towards a more business-friendly environment by setting up a special task force to facilitate business called PEMUDAH. The objective of the scheme is to simplify the business environment in

With 2020–2021 so severely disrupted, our team of highly professional and experienced analysts at Thunder X Pay started looking ahead to 2022 and what changes could be on the horizon that could positively impact doing business in Myanmar (Burma). Context While Myanmar responded early and decisively to the COVID-19 pandemic thereby limiting adverse health impacts, evidence from the Myanmar COVID-19 Monitoring Platform shows that impacts on households’ welfare were significant. Border movement restrictions starting in February and a complete lockdown between March and April forced non-essential businesses to cease operations and prevented people from traveling to work. Meanwhile, about 100,000 economic migrants returned from Thailand alone. As a result, in May 2020, about 54 percent of households’ main workers reported not working and about 16 percent of firms had temporarily closed. The easing of restrictions between May and August contributed to a partial rebound of the economy, which is still suffering from the impact of reduced global demand, border trade disruptions, and potential changes in consumer behaviors. Strict stay-at-home orders were introduced in Rakhine State in mid-August, followed by similar orders

The gold market has increased in order to reach its highest level since 2020 on March 8th as investors seek secured assets in response to Russia’s conquering of Ukraine. At the end of 2021, the gold price reached $1,828.60 an ounce and declined by 2.9% for the year, while investors tended to avoid metals in anticipation of higher interest rates. “The war in Ukraine has significant and obvious implications for commodity prices, which could lead to a more persistent inflationary shock. For the time being, direct implications of the conflict as a growth shock are more limited in the US, given that direct trade flows are marginal. But indirect implications are more relevant, as ongoing disruptions to supply chains are likely to have a spillover impact, while inflation is also likely to act as a tax on consumers. In turn, the market continues to price-out a 50bp Fed hike for March, but the implications for the subsequent rate path are less clear.” Our highly professional team persisted that the simple moving average (SMA), together with the exponential moving average (EMA),