The loan was approved by Parliament on Wednesday and will cover 20 percent of Myanmar’s deficit for the year as spending increases due to impacts of COVID-19.
Over 80 percent of tourism businesses surveyed are extremely affected by the pandemic, the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism-backed survey says.
Serge Pun says megaprojects under China’s Belt and Road Initiative are crucial to Myanmar’s recovery from COVID-19 as they can create employment.
This week Myanmar saw major pledges from the World Bank and Alibaba as the government promised COVID-19 relief will reach businesses beyond Yangon.
During a call on Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Myanmar President U Win Myint discussed how to speed up cooperation on Belt and Road Initiative projects.
The Chinese ambassador to Myanmar has pushed to incorporate Beijing’s key strategic development projects into Myanmar’s COVID-19 Economic Relief Plan.
The Myanmar government rolled out its COVID-19 relief plan and announced investment projects, interest rate cuts and tax breaks on medical supplies as some factories reopened.
State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said her government’s comprehensive COVID-19 response plan would soften the economic blow of the pandemic and leave no one behind.
The Central Bank of Myanmar has cut interest rates again, taking its total reduction to 3 percentage points in less than two months as the economy reels from COVID-19.
The Myanmar government adopts measures to support factory workers, stabilize commodity prices and delay the lottery, and the World Bank will loan the country US$50 million.
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