Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Investment News and Commentary from Emerging Markets in Asia - China, India and ASEAN





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2point6billion.com discusses investment news and events from the emerging markets of Asia - including India, China and the ASEAN countries. It is produced by the Asian foreign direct business advisors at Dezan Shira & Associates from their offices across emerging Asia.



Culture & History

After Canceling Border Talks, China’s General Ma Heads to India

Dec. 7 – China’s General Ma Xiaotian, deputy chief of the People’s Liberation Army General Staff, will be leading a delegation to meet with Indian Defense Secretary Shashikant Sharma on December 9, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hong Lei confirmed at a press conference on Monday.

“The two sides will hold in-depth talks about the regional situation as well as bilateral defense exchanges and cooperation,” Hong said. He noted that China attached great importance to the 15th round of Sino-India boundary talks, but didn’t reveal any further information. Continue reading

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Corruption Remains Problematic in China and India

Dec. 6 – Despite their recent rise in the global economic landscape, China and India are perceived as two of the more corrupt nations in the world, according to an index released last week by Transparency International (TI).

TI, a non-governmental organization monitoring corporate and political corruption throughout the world, explained that their Corruption Perceptions Index ranks countries according to perceived levels of public-sector corruption and are based on surveys carried out by independent and reputable institutions. The Berlin-based group scored 183 countries on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being highly corrupt and 10 being very clean. Continue reading

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Mongolia Enthrones Its Dalai Lama

Op-ed Commentary: Chris Devonshire-Ellis

The Ninth Bogd Khan Jebttsundamba Khutughtus

Dec. 5 – Mongolia has confirmed the ninth Bogd Jebttsundamba Khutughtus in a ceremony at the Gandantegchinlin Monastery in Ulaanbaatar. As the spiritual leader of Mongolian Buddhism, the ninth Bogd is the equivalent of the Dalai Lama in Tibet, although ranking below him in title. “Bogd Khan” loosely translates as “High King,” while “Genghis Khan” translates as “King of Kings.” Actually, “Bogd Khan Ul” is also the name of one of Mongolia’s highest and most holy mountains.

Mongolia’s Bogd Khans date back to the 1600s, when the first Bogd, the renowned artist monk Zanabazar, was recognized as such by the then-Panchen Lama and Dalai Lama of Tibet. Zanabazar remains a highly regarded figure in Mongolia, with an entire museum dedicated to his works. He was a superb craftsman, creating many priceless bronze carvings of Buddhas, and also invented (taking the form of written Uyghur script as the base) the first version of modern Mongolian written language – much of which is still in use today. Continue reading

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Clinton Begins Historic U.S. Trip to Myanmar

Dec. 1 – U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton began her historic trip to Myanmar on Wednesday, marking the first appearance by an American diplomat of her rank in the long-isolated Southeast Asian country in 56 years.

In November, U.S. President Barack Obama announced that he would send Clinton to Myanmar in response to the country’s “flickers of progress,” referencing a series of reforms made by the Myanmar government. Continue reading

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India and China Continue to Struggle with Poverty

Nov. 30 – Despite rapid growth and their large proportions of global GDP, many people in China and India continue to live in poverty.

In this year’s United Nations Human Development Index (a measure based on well-being as judged by income, education and life expectancy) China was ranked 101st out of 187 countries while the World Bank ranked the country 95th in terms of GDP per capita.

In an effort to improve the living standard of its low-income population, China’s central government announced during a national meeting on poverty alleviation on Tuesday that it would raise the country’s rural poverty line to RMB2,300 (US$361) in terms of annual net income, a number almost doubling last year’s RMB1,274. Continue reading

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China-India Call Off Border Talks Due to Dalai Lama Speech

Nov. 29 – China and India have put off sensitive border talks scheduled to take place in New Delhi this week over a speech to be given by the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, whom the Chinese government has persistently accused of fomenting dissent and actively seeking to challenge China’s sovereignty.

Chinese officials were scheduled to come to New Delhi for the 15th round of special representatives’ talks, which were supposed to start on Monday, November 28. According to the plan, the talks would mainly cover Arunachal Pradesh, an area that has been claimed by China as “South Tibet.” Continue reading

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China Drafts New Anti-Terrorism Bill

Oct. 25 – An anti-terrorism draft bill was submitted to the National People’s Congress, China’s top legislature, for discussion on Monday. The draft bill defines terrorist activities as behaviors that have caused or are intended to cause casualties, major economic loss, damages to public facilities, social disorder, or endanger society through violent, destructive, threatening or other measures by provoking social panic in order to coerce the government. Continue reading

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2point6billion.com provides news, commentary and analysis on business, culture and politics throughout China and India. The stories are contributed by the business experts at Dezan Shira & Associates, who have offices throughout south east Asia.



Dezan Shira & Associates provide a range of services for companies looking to undertake foreign direct investment into Asia, These include corporate establishment, accounting, tax, payroll, audit and due diligence. To learn more about the firm, please contact one of our specialists at china@dezshira.com, download our corporate brochure or visit at us www.dezshira.com


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