Industry

Myanmar is well known for the untapped potential of its extensive mineral portfolio. Home to the world’s largest deposits of jade and some of the most sought-after rubies, it also has substantial deposits of lucrative metals as well as industrial minerals. Despite significant deposits, foreign investment across Myanmar’s mining sector has...

Myanmar’s manufacturing sector reached a turning point in 2018 as liberalisation, tax reforms, infrastructure improvements and the development of special economic zones (SEZs) helped turn the country from a low-cost regional production base to a rising manufacturing destination with capacity on the rise. The sector has an advantage due to the...

The global economy is entering the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), or Industry 4.0, based on the application of new digital and automated technologies in production processes and service delivery. These changes are bringing emerging markets improved productivity, as well as risks – namely, reshoring and the displacement of human labour by...

Myanmar instituted sweeping increases to the national minimum wage in 2018, boosting the rate to MMK4800 ($3.40) per eight-hour day, up from the MMK3600 ($2.55) rate set in September 2015. The changes come as Myanmar’s fast-paced growth draws an increasing number of rural workers into the larger cities for employment in the surging garment and...

Myanmar’s growing retail sector received a boost in 2018 with regulations aimed at encouraging foreign investment in the sector and the economy as a whole, with more foreign brands now entering the market.