SOJERN: Asia Pacific travel trends and insights
SAN FRANCISCO – South Korea is allowing for more travel flexibility for vaccinated travelers (no quarantine necessary). Australian tourism board is heavily promoting longer domestic vacations. Also, the Australian government appears to be eyeing a mid-2022 border re-opening. Covid cases … Continue reading SOJERN: Asia Pacific travel trends and insights
APA Calls for Stronger EU Commitment in Asia
BERLIN – “If we want to maintain the current level of prosperity in Germany and the EU, we must participate more actively in the dynamic developments in Asia-Pacific. The EU and its member states urgently need a common foreign economic … Continue reading APA Calls for Stronger EU Commitment in Asia
Forkast Ltd. raises $1.7 million seed money
HONG KONG – Forkast Ltd., a blockchain-focused multimedia platform, has successfully completed its seed funding round of US$1.7 million, which was oversubscribed. A group of global institutional investors and leading blockchain players participated, including Asia-based AMTD Group, Fenbushi Capital, Alibaba … Continue reading Forkast Ltd. raises $1.7 million seed money
Quad leaders define the Indo-Pacific century
TOKYO – “Namaste. Good morning. Konnichiwa. And from Australia, g’day.” So spoke Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison from Sydney, a short while after midnight Saturday, as he joined via videoconference the first-ever leaders’ meeting of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue. “It’s … Continue reading Quad leaders define the Indo-Pacific century
RCEP economies account for 29 percent of global GDP
Beijing – On Sunday, China and 14 other countries signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement at the virtual-hosted ASEAN Summit, formalizing the largest free trade agreement (FTA) in history. After an arduous eight-year negotiation period, a combination of … Continue reading RCEP economies account for 29 percent of global GDP
PATA: Digitalization essential for SME’s survival
Bangkok – Digitalization and innovation are key for SMEs to survive the pandemic as the travel industry emerges from the crisis, according to a report by the PATA, conducted by Twenty31 Consulting and supported by Agoda, revealed at the World … Continue reading PATA: Digitalization essential for SME’s survival
Maldives: Campaign to bring tourists back
Malé – The Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) has launched a major campaign with Skyscanner to promote the country as one of the safest destinations in the world for tourists. The three-month campaign will target the UK, as … Continue reading Maldives: Campaign to bring tourists back
RCEP: The world’s biggest free trade bloc launched
HANOI — The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement was signed among its 15 participating countries on Sunday, launching the world’s biggest free trade bloc. Participating countries include the 10 member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) … Continue reading RCEP: The world’s biggest free trade bloc launched
Asia-Pacific: Foreign arrivals plummet 67 percent
Bangkok – The moderate growth of international arrivals into Asia-Pacific destinations in 2019 has been derailed this year, no thanks to the appearance of the coronavirus which has led to the collapse of travel. According to the Annual Travel Monitor … Continue reading Asia-Pacific: Foreign arrivals plummet 67 percent
37th ASEAN summit scheduled for Nov. 12-15
HANOI — The 37th summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and related meetings will be held via video link from Nov. 12 to 15, according to Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc … Continue reading 37th ASEAN summit scheduled for Nov. 12-15