Belt And Road Weekly Investor Intelligence #121            

Tuesday, February 21, 2023         

Compiled by Chris Devonshire-Ellis     

This week we look at logistics development opportunities in a complimentary magazine download devoted to the subject and discuss cross-border advertising in Vietnam. In Central Asia, we examine Afghanistan and Kazakhstan’s BRI involvement in two detailed articles, and in the Middle East see how Dubai’s extraordinary growth is matched to its own 2030 development policy. Russia-China tourism gets a boost as does Russian-Mongolia tourism as Asian countries look to attract the Russian tourism ruble in changing travel dynamics. China’s BRI is spreading across Eurasia with increasing numbers of countries also taking up the development baton first created by the BRI.

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ASEAN

Vietnam’s Logistics Sector: Opportunities in Air, Sea, and Land Connectivity

The latest issue of Vietnam Briefing Magazine, titled “Vietnam’s Logistics Sector: Opportunities in Air, Sea, and Land Connectivity”, is out now and currently available to subscribers as a complimentary download in the Asia Briefing Publication Store. We discuss Vietnam’s Air Freight sector and Airports, Seaports and Shipping lines, and moving goods by rail and road, examining where the foreign investment opportunities are.

Cross-Border and Digital Advertising in Vietnam: An Overview

The digital age has made cross-border advertising much easier to do. In Vietnam, however, there are a number of rules and regulations governing digital advertising. Here’s what digital marketers need to know before engaging in digital or cross-border advertising in Vietnam.

CENTRAL ASIA

The Future of the Belt and Road Initiative in Afghanistan: Obstacles, Opportunities, and The Taliban’s Perspective

We discuss the latest trends in Afghanistan’s geopolitical and investment development as part of the Belt and Road Initiative.

China’s 2023 Trade and Investment with Kazakhstan: Development Trends

China has been one of the largest trading partners of Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan, in turn, is China’s largest trading partner among five Central Asian states. For example, in 2021 total import and export of goods between China and Kazakhstan reached US$25.25 billion, being 17.6% higher than the previous year. We examine the trade and investment trends.

Mongolian Banks To Accept Russian MIR Debit Cards

The list of countries who will permit access to Russia’s MIR banking system is growing with Mongolia set to join shortly. The head of the Department for the Coordination of Tourism Policy at the Ministry of Environment and Tourism of Mongolia, set out the plans last Thursday, stating that the country’s authorities have almost completed preparatory work with local banks. Mongolia is looking to attract Russian adventure tourists.

MIDDLE EAST

An Introduction To Dubai’s Industrial Development Strategy

Dubai is scaling up efforts to transform itself into a global industrial and manufacturing hub and attract major investments across key sectors such as aerospace, pharma and medical equipment, and more. This is consistent with the Dubai Industrial Strategy which projects an additional US$5 billion in its industrial sector growth by 2030.

UAE Coordinating INSTC Freight With Turkmenistan

The President of Turkmenistan, Serdar Berdimuhamedov has been meeting with the UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, discussing large-scale transport system projects to be developed in Turkmenistan. Both sides have stated there are great prospects for establishing relations with foreign partners with extensive experience in this field, including well-known UAE companies.

UAE-India Bilateral Trade Up 10% Since CEPA Trade Agreement Signed

The UAE-India Closer Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), a trade deal signed off on February 18 last year and now at its first anniversary, has helped bilateral trade rise by 10% in the past twelve months. Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, the UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, said “It is a landmark agreement that has created a powerful nexus of fast-growth nations who are helping to redefine the future of trade. And it has delivered from day one.”

RUSSIA

Russia, China, Resume Visa-Free Mutual Tourism Group Travel

Russia and China have reinstated an agreement on visa-free group trips, which was suspended during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Russian Economic Development Ministry has stated. Cross border tourism had reached over 4 million travellers in 2019 before the covid pandemic.  

January 2023 Russia-Azerbaijan Bilateral Trade Up 62.4% YoY

Russia-Azerbaijan bilateral trade surged by 62.4% in annual terms to US$336.3 million this January, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan. While Azerbaijan’s exports to Russia dropped by 5.5% year-on-year to US$68.5 million in January, Russia’s exports to Azerbaijan surged almost twofold to US$267.8 million.

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