Laos president says must lure more countries to invest
"Laos needs to rebuild its economy and become economically independent," Thongloun Sisoulith said in an exclusive interview last Friday on the sidelines of Nikkei's annual Future of Asia forum.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Asahi Shimbun
8 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Myanmar's military retakes a strategic town 2 years after the resistance captured it
Army soldiers pose in front of the sign for the town of Demoso in Myanmar's eastern state of Kayah, which the military government claimed to have recaptured from resistance forces on Aug. 19, 2025 (Myanmar Military via AP) BANGKOK--Myanmar 's military has regained control of a strategic town in eastern Kayah state from the opposition's armed forces after nearly two years, state media reported Wednesday. The recapture of Demoso in Kayah state — also known as Karenni — came as the military has stepped up activity in recent months, on the ground and with airstrikes, to retake areas controlled by the resistance ahead of elections it has promised to hold on Dec. 28. Demoso, located about 110 kilometers (70 miles) east of the capital Naypyitaw, has been a focal point for Myanmar's civil war since the military took power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. The town had been under the control of the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force, or KNDF, and allied resistance forces in Kayah since the groups launched joint offensives against army bases in the state in November 2023. A report in the state-run Myanma Alinn newspaper on Wednesday said Demoso, near the state's capital of Loikow, was captured by the army on Tuesday after 16 days of operations to retake it. The report said six bodies and five weapons were seized, adding that some members of the security forces were also killed. The newspaper published photos of soldiers who recaptured the town in front of the hospital, fire department and town hall. The KNDF and other local resistance groups did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In a statement posted Monday on Facebook, the KNDF accused the military of carrying out unlawful arrests of civilians, deliberate shootings and killings without cause and the use of civilians as human shields in attacking Demoso. Kayah, the smallest of Myanmar's seven states and dominated by the Karenni ethnic minority, has experienced intense conflict. The provisional government formed by resistance groups in Kayah, including the KNDF, said Monday that at least 32 civilians were killed, five were wounded and several were missing after the military on Sunday bombed a hospital in the town of Mawchi, about 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Demoso. In a separate incident, an airstrike killed at least 21 people Thursday in the town of Mogok, the center of the Southeast Asian country's gem mining industry, according to reports in Myanmar's independent online media. The army has not mentioned the strikes and usually says it only attacks legitimate targets of war, accusing the resistance forces of being terrorists.
Yomiuri Shimbun
9 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Japan's Nikkei Stock Average Falls as Tech Shares Track US Peers Lower
TOKYO, Aug 21 (Reuters) – Japan's Nikkei share average fell on Thursday as investors sold stocks to book profits from a recent rally, with technology stocks tracking U.S. peers lower. As of 0215 GMT, the Nikkei .N225 dropped 0.5% to 42,689.22. The index is headed for a third straight session of decline, slipping from record highs hit earlier this week. The broader Topix .TOPX slipped 0.42% to 3,085.78. 'Investors kept selling stocks to book profits, but some investors who were not able to buy shares during the rally picked up stocks on the dip… (which) capped the Nikkei's losses,' Shinkin Asset Management's senior fund manager Naoki Fujiwara said. Chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron 8035.T fell 2% and technology investor SoftBank Group 9984.T lost 2.05%. On Wall Street, the Nasdaq .IXIC and S&P 500 .SPX fell overnight as investors sold tech stocks and moved into less highly valued sectors. .N Drugmaker Daiichi Sankyo 4568.T lost 5.75% to become the worst performer among the 225 stocks on the Nikkei. Bucking the trend, shares of chip-testing equipment maker Advantest 6857.T rose 1.95%, rebounding from a 5.6% loss on Wednesday. Cable makers, considered a gauge for demand for data centers, rose, with Furukawa Electric 5801.T and Fujikura 5803.T gaining 1.54% and 1.28%, respectively. The market awaited remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who is expected to speak on Friday at the Fed's annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, for policy signals. Investors have been pricing in a 25-basis-point rate cut in September, according to data compiled by LSEG. Shinkin Asset's Fujiwara said the market already priced Powell's dovish comments, so remarks that are in line with expectations may trigger a sell-off in local stocks next week. 'For the Nikkei to rise further, the market needs to confirm the Fed's rate cut in September, and the fate of Japanese politics and Japanese corporate outlook for the second half of the year,' Fujiwara said.
The Mainichi
11 hours ago
- The Mainichi
Tokyo stocks fall in early trading on weak chip shares
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Tokyo stocks were lower early Thursday as some semiconductor-related shares tracked overnight falls by their U.S. counterparts, but losses were limited as investors hunted for bargains after the Nikkei index declined the previous day. In the first 15 minutes of trading, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average fell 120.53 points, or 0.28 percent, from Wednesday to 42,768.02. The broader Topix index was down 11.33 points, or 0.37 percent, at 3,087.58. On the top-tier Prime Market, the main decliners were pharmaceutical, land transportation and transportation equipment issues. At 9 a.m., the U.S. dollar fetched 147.29-30 yen compared with 147.28-38 yen in New York and 147.62-64 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Wednesday. The euro was quoted at $1.1650-1651 and 171.58-65 yen against $1.1644-1654 and 171.66-76 yen in New York and $1.1644-1646 and 171.90-94 yen in Tokyo late Wednesday afternoon.
