The Knowledge to Decide

The recent US trade tariff announcement will impact Chinese imports worth USD60 billion. Will China’s reaction and the prospect of continuing tit-for-tat tariff hikes cause more panic across global markets? Leon Perera, CEO of Spire Research and Consulting, shared his thoughts in China Daily – Asia Weekly. As the US Treasury explores restrictions on Chinese investment in the country, the value of stocks plunged across Asian markets. Industries that might come under more scrutiny for possible higher trade tariffs include maritime equipment, new materials, automated machine robotics and tools along with new advanced information technology and high-tech shipping to name a few. Voicing concern, Perera pointed out that China’s focus will still be on minimizing an escalation of mutual tariff hikes. China has hugely benefitted from global trade and FDI flows. However, China is clearly prepared to pursue retaliatory tariffs of its own for strategic reasons – it has announced tariff h

O n 15 March, Spire and Yamada Consulting Group (YCG) jointly organized a breakfast seminar in Singapore for Japanese speakers, to share insights on Mergers & Acquisition (M&A) deals in Vietnam and investment trends for market entry. An English language seminar on the same theme was held the next day. The speakers were Leon Perera, Chief Executive Officer of Spire Research and Consulting, Eiji Asano, incoming Director for YCG Vietnam and Hafidz Omar, Senior Manager at Spire Research and Consulting. The speakers discussed the impact of growing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as well as the keen interest in Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) in Vietnam. Vietnam’s economy racked up a USD15 billion positive trade balance from 2015 with manufacturing, metals and textiles as the top export industries. Most of Vietnam’s FDI came from Asian countries like the Republic of Korea, China and Singapore. The speakers discussed pull factors for investors, like competitive

Vietnam’s economy has been among the fastest growing in Southeast Asia. Today, it is a key destination for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the region. In 2016, FDI climbed to USD24.4 billion, a 9 per cent growth compared to 2015. This is despite Vietnam suffering an epic drought in 2016 and a third of its vast population of 93 million people living in poverty. Vietnam has won a reputation as a cheaper manufacturing hub compared to China. Could FDI propel Vietnam to become Asia’s next Tiger economy? A growing economy With a USD200 billion Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Vietnam’s economy is tracking well since the start of deep economic reforms – known as Doi Moi – in 1986. Since 1990, its GDP per capita growth has been one of the fastest among emerging economies, at an average 6.4 per cent (yearly) growth in the 2000s. Vietnam has improved provision of basic services. In 2014, the part of the population living below poverty line fell to 13.5 per cent – down from approxim

With historic Myanmar elections ushering a new era of democratic rule, will foreign investors become bullish on the country? Leon Perera, Chief Executive Officer of Spire Research and Consulting shared his insights in The Business Times – Views from the Top section on what Myanmar’s election results signify for investors. The end of military rule after five decades marks a progressive step for Myanmar as a nation. Many foreign investors who had held back their investments due to the uncertainty prior to the election will now review their stance in light of the NLD’s victory at the polls. Perera opined that firms should now move decisively. The new government is bound to go into overdrive to attract investors but the degree of incentives they offer may decline as Myanmar’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) stock increases. Nonetheless, firms should space out investments to hedge against political risk. Moreover, such investment should be used to interact with the new governm

India remains a desirable investment destination for Japanese companies. Today, over a thousand Japanese companies operate in India, versus 550 in 2008. Despite the fascination with India, what challenges do Japanese companies face as they grow their India operations? Miyuki Morozumi, Director of Japanese Client Service of Spire Research and Consulting, shared her views in Thik Hai Magazine, a leading periodical of the Japanese community in India. Japanese companies are clearly adopting a more aggressive stance in entering the India market. Morozumi remarked that the National Capital Region (NCR) in particular has been a magnet for Japanese foreign direct investment (FDI) into India. Out of the 1,804 Japanese companies located in India, approximately 29% of them (517) were located within this region as at November 2012. She observed that Japanese investment in India is largely focused on manufacturing, with industrial and automotive production concentrated in the South. Howev