Kyat stands around K3,500 in FX market despite CBM reference rate of K2,100

by ECONOMY

According to foreign currency dealers, the central bank’s reference remittance rate is set at K2,100 per US dollar, but in the foreign exchange market, it is around K3,500 per dollar. The Central Bank of Myanmar has issued a statement to set the foreign currency exchange rate within the Central Bank reference rate ± 0.3% starting from 10 August. Therefore, those related to the dollar business, including exchange counters and banks, set the buying price of one dollar at K2100 and the selling price at K2,106.

Although, in the external market, the buying price of one dollar was around K3,400 and the selling price was around K3,500 on 3 September. In the last few days, the foreign market rose to more than K4,500 per dollar, while the domestic gold price rose to a record high of K37,000,000 per tical. Therefore, the Central Bank of Myanmar has been selling dollars to sectors that need US dollars through foreign exchange bidding to control the increase in dollar prices. In 2021, the Central Bank of Myanmar sold $443.8 million in a foreign currency competitive auction.

At the end of September last year, when the local currency market rose to a record high of over K3,000 per US dollar, the domestic gold price rose to a record high of K2,220,000 per tical. Therefore, the Central Committee on Ensuring Smooth Flow of Trade and Goods is working to ensure that there are no delays or difficulties in domestic and foreign trade activities. As the stability of the gold and currency markets is very important, it aims to support the activities of the central committee on the one hand.

Under the command of the central committee, the gold and currency market will be monitored to ensure the stability of domestic gold and currency prices. The Monitoring and Steering Committee on the Gold and Currency Market was established on 17 December 2021. The task of the committee is to speculate on the local gold market, look into transaction lists as necessary to verify and identify purchases, check whether the rules of payment issued by the Central Bank of Myanmar are followed and take action under the existing laws, rules, regulations, orders and directives. Relevant officials will identify and take effective actions over illegal holders of foreign currencies and illegal traders and market players. 

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

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Trade Dept notifies exporters of payment for terminal handling charge, inspection cost, commission from 35% of export earnings

by TRADING

The Trade Department under the Ministry of Commerce has notified on 29 August that exporters have to pay terminal handling charges, inspection costs and commission from 35 per cent of export earnings. They must pay them 35 per cent of export earnings. They do not need to request approval from the Foreign Exchange Supervisory Committee (FESC) regarding this case, according to the committee’s meeting (43/2022). Therefore, the Republic of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry has notified the related associations of the directive of the FESC.

Regarding the relaxation of the procedure, the shipping process is expected to go smoothly. However, as they must pay 35 per cent of export earnings, the amount of dollars they can sell themselves has become lower, the Myanmar Enterprise Solutions posted on its Facebook Page. According to the CBM’s notification dated 5 August 2022, exporters have to convert only 65 per cent of the hard currency they earned into local currency within one working day.

The CBM issued a statement dated 16 August 2022 that exporters can use 35 per cent of export earnings or sell them to authorized dealers (banks) or make remittances to others. Regarding foreign accounts of the exporters at the banks, 65 per cent of earnings must be exchanged for local currency within one working day. Banks must conduct transactions from the remaining 35 per cent for the use of exporters or remittances or selling them onto ADs, and those entities (companies, institutions and individuals) must sell them to the ADs or use themselves within 30 days of earnings. Exporters must seek the approval of the Foreign Exchange Supervisory Committee to carry out cross-border transactions. 

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

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Companies registered on MyCO exceed 8,200 in past eight months: DICA

by INVESTMENT

The number of companies registered on the online registry system, MyCO, topped 8,274 in the past eight months (January-August) this year, the statistics released by the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA) indicated. The registration and re-registration of companies on the MyCO website commenced on 1 August 2018, in keeping with the Myanmar Companies Law 2017. The figures of registered companies stood at 8,011 in 2021, 15,080 in 2020, 17,380 in 2019 and 8,506 in 2018, as per statistics of the DICA.

The previously registered companies had to re-register on the MyCO and a total of 46,377 companies were re-registered on the MyCO between 1 August 2018 and 31 January 2019. In addition, all registered companies need to file annual returns (AR) on the MyCO registry system within two months of incorporation, and at least once every year (not later than one month after the anniversary of the incorporation), according to Section 97 of the Myanmar Companies Law 2017. According to Section 266 (A) of the Myanmar Companies Law 2017, public companies must submit annual returns and financial statements (G-5) simultaneously.

All overseas corporations must submit ARs in the prescribed format on MyCO within 28 days of the financial year ending, as per Section 53 (A-1) of the Myanmar Companies Law 2017. As per DICA’s report, over 400 companies are suspended every month for failing to submit AR forms within the due date. As a result of this, newly established companies are required to submit ARs within two months of incorporation or face a fine of K100,000 for filing late returns.

The DICA has notified that any company which fails to submit its AR within 13 months will be notified of its suspension (I-9A). If it fails to submit the AR within 28 days of receiving the notice, the system will show the company’s status as suspended. Companies can restore their status only after shelling out a fine of K50,000 for the AR fee, K100,000 for restoration of the company on the Register, and K100,000 for late filing of documents. If a company fails to restore its status within six months of suspension, the registrar will strike its name off the register, according to the DICA notice.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

Republic of the Union of Myanmar
State Administration Council

by ECONOMY

Order No 61/2022
7th Waxing of Tawthalin 1384 ME
1 September 2022

Appointment and Duty-Assignment of Minister of Yangon Region

The State Administration Council has appointed and assigned U Myo Myint Aung to the duties
of Minister for Economy of the Yangon Region government under Section 419 of the Constitution.


By Order,
Aung Lin Dwe
Lieutenant-General
Secretary

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

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Agricultural machinery exempt from applying for import licence

by TRADING

Starting from 1 September 2022, the items related to agricultural machinery included in the HS code lines declared by the Ministry of Commerce are exempted from obtaining an import licence, according to the notification released by the Trade Department under the MoC on 31 August.

In a bid to support the country’s agricultural development and facilitate the imports of agricultural machinery, 70 HS lines concerning the agricultural machinery and equipment were eased from licence requirements from 1 September. Those items can be imported in line with the regulations of the respective departments.

At present, Kyat is depreciating against foreign currencies in the local forex market. The foreign exchange rate stood at K110 for a Thai Baht, K560 for a Chinese Yuan and K4,000 for a dollar. Consequently, imports nearly came to a halt due to the Kyat devaluation, importers stressed. Among the import items, the price of agricultural inputs such as fertilizers is soaring. Additionally, the price of fuel oil used in agricultural machinery is rocketing as well.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

Fuel prices down by over K200 per litre after CBM’s FX intervention

by ENERGY

Fuel prices fell by over K200 per litre after the Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) declared to provide more than 200 million US dollars for the fuel oil sector, according to the market report. On 31 August, fuel prices stood at K2,605 per lire of Octane 92, K2,670 for Octane 95, K3,245 for diesel and K3,330 for premium diesel. On 1 September, the fuel prices slipped to K2,375 per litre of Octane 92, K2,440 for Octane 95, K3,140 for diesel and K3,225 for premium diesel. The figures showed a decrease of K230 per litre of Octane 92 and Octane 95 and K105 per litre of diesel and premium diesel respectively.

The CBM declared on 31 August that it will provide more than US$200 million through the foreign exchange market according to the decision made by Foreign Exchange Supervisory Committee in order to ease the commodity inflation triggered by fuel price hike. The fuel prices descend accordingly. After the exchange rate against the US dollar hit over K4,000, fuel prices skyrocketed in recent days. In early August, fuel prices stayed upward on the dollar price. As a result of this, some fuel stations in regions and states allegedly faced a shortage of supply. Nonetheless, some petrol stations were allegedly suspending fuel sales and setting limited sales on the possible shortage of fuel oil, sparking consumers’ concerns and raising fuel prices.

They seemed to take advantage of the consumers’ concerns for their benefits, according to the statement released by the Central Committee on Ensuring Smooth Flow of Trade and Goods on 16 August. The committee has assured adequate fuel supply until this month. It is also working together with Myanmar Petroleum Trade Association to ensure a steady fuel supply in order for the energy consumers to mitigate concerns, the statement mentioned. Therefore, the consumers can complain about the halt in fuel sales and limited sales through the contact numbers of the respective regions and states if they find those stations that violate the rules, the committee stated. The committee is governing the fuel oil storage and distribution sector effectively not to have a shortage of oil in the domestic market and ensuring price stability for energy consumers.

The Petroleum Products Inspection and Supervision Department, under the guidance of the committee, is issuing the daily reference rate for oil to offer a reasonable price to energy consumers. The reference rate in Yangon Region is set on the MOPS’ price assessment, shipping costs, premium insurances, taxes, other general costs and profit per cent of Singapore. The rates for regions and states other than Yangon are evaluated after adding the transport costs and retail reference rates daily cover on the state-run newspapers and are posted on the media and official website and Facebook page of the department on a daily basis starting from 4 May.

As per the statement, 90 per cent of fuel oil in Myanmar is imported, while the remaining 10 per cent is produced locally. The domestic fuel price is highly correlated with international prices. The State is steering the market to mitigate the loss between the importers, sellers and energy consumers. Consequently, the government is trying to distribute the oil at a reasonable price compared to those of regional countries. Some countries levied higher tax rates and hiked oil prices than Myanmar. However, Malaysia’s oil sector receives government subsidies and the prices are about 60 per cent cheaper than that of Myanmar. Every country lays down different patterns of policy to fix the oil prices. Myanmar also poses only a lower tax rate on fuel oil and strives for energy consumers to buy the oil at a cheaper rate. 

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

On August 31st, the domestic gold price in the external market was around 37 lakh per tical, which had risen to a record, dropped to around 30 lakh on September 1, leading a lot of resale

by ECONOMY

On August 31st, the domestic gold price in the external market was around 37 lakh per tical, which had risen to a record, dropped to around 30 lakh on September 1, leading a lot of resale, according to the gold dealers. On September 1, the Yangon Gold Association set the reference price at 2001,000 kyats per tical, while the domestic gold price in the foreign market was around 3200,000 kyats. It is believed that the gold market first opened.

After that, on September 1st at 2:30 p.m., the domestic gold price in the external market reached 30 lakh and fell again. On August 31, the Yangon Gold Association set a reference price of 20,210,000 kyats per kyat, but the domestic gold price in the external market rose to a record high of around 37 lakh. Last August 31, the price of bark sawn started at around 3030,000 per kyat and reached a record high of 3120,000 at noon on August 30. On August 30th, around 3:00 p.m., bark gold rose to around 3,175,000 kyat per kyat in the foreign market.

As for the record price, the gold price reached 26,000,000 per kyat on August 12th, and reached a record high of 27,000,000 in the morning on August 13, and over 28,000,000 in the afternoon. From 2016 to 2021, there have been several record gold prices in the country. On August 13, 2019, Kyat 1,237,000, on September 5, 2019, Kyat 1,315,000. 1335500 kyat on August 7, 2020, February 6, 2021
1,420,000 Kyats per day.

The price of gold exceeded 800,000 kyats in 2016, 900,000 kyats in 2017, 100,000 kyats in 2018, 1100,000 kyats and 1200,000 kyats in 2019, and in September 2019, it rose to over 1,310,000 kyats. On February 6, 2021, it reached a record high of 1,420,000 kyats. The price of gold is set based on the foreign exchange rate, but it is known that most of the gold shops only sell at the market price. In actual purchase, payment is made only at the external market price.

Source: Daily Eleven

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Over $13 billion earned from overseas trade within 4 & 1/2 months

by TRADING

The Ministry of Commerce stated that the country pocketed over US$13 billion from international trading in four and a half months of the 2022-2023 financial year. Myanmar exported $6537.504 million worth of goods and imported $6,507.207 million worth of goods. The total trade volume from 1 April to 19 August this financial year was $13,044.711 million.

The trade value of the previous year was $10430.457 million. Comparing the same period of the previous two financial years, foreign trade income increased by $2,614.254 million in the 2022-2023FY. According to the MoC statements, the State bags over $16.079 billion of foreign trade value in the six months of the 2021-2022 Mini-Budget period and surpassed the trade income of the same duration in the previous year.

The trade income value of Myanmar from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 was $16.079 billion and $15.971 billion were earned in the same period of the previous year. The National Planning Law mentioned that $15.5 billion of export value and $14 billion of import value were expected as per the annual price index for the 2022-2023 financial year.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

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Republic of the Union of Myanmar Announcement of Central Committee on Prevention, Control and Treatment of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

by COVID

5th Waxing of Tawthalin 1384 ME
30 August 2022

As it is necessary to continuously control infection of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), it is hereby announced that public requests, orders, notifications and directives (except for easing the restrictions) released by the Union-level organizations and Union ministries up to 31 August 2022 have
been extended until 30 September 2022 for prevention, control and treatment of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

Fuel prices remain upward spiral, up by K750-1,100 per litre within month

by ENERGY

The fuel prices are spiking and indicating a sharp increase of K750-1,100 per litre within one month, according to the fuel market. On 1 August 2022, the fuel prices in the Yangon market stood at K1,820 per litre for Octane 92, K1,890 for Octane 95, K2,195 for premium diesel and K2,135 for diesel. The prices jumped to K2,570 for Octane 92, K2,635 for Octane 95, K3,335 for premium diesel and K3,255 for diesel on 30 August, showing a rise of K745-750 per litre of Octane 92 and 95 and K1,120-1,140 per litre of diesel and premium diesel respectively. Fuel price spike made it difficult to create a better living, a taxi driver told the Global New Light of Myanmar (GNLM).

“Taxi fare was only K3,000 for a distance between downtown and Kyauktaing in Thakayta Township. Now, the rate has doubled. So, I have to take a bus,” said a company staff member. The Supervisory Committee on Oil Import, Storage and Distribution of Fuel Oil stated that domestic fuel prices is following the price index set by the Mean of Platts Singapore (MOPS), the pricing basis for many refined products in southeast Asia. The Central Bank of Myanmar raised the reference exchange rate for a dollar from K1,850 to K2,100, whereas the exchange rate against the US dollar hit over K3,500 in the grey market. Since early August, the fuel prices have gradually increased tracking the soaring safe-haven dollar value against the Kyat.

Consequently, some fuel stations in regions and states allegedly faced a shortage of supply. Nonetheless, some petrol stations are allegedly suspending fuel sales and setting limited sales on the possible shortage of fuel oil, sparking consumers’ concerns and raising fuel prices. They are taking advantage of the consumers’ concerns for their benefits, according to the statement released by the Central Committee on Ensuring Smooth Flow of Trade and Goods on 16 August. The committee has assured adequate fuel supply until this month. It is also working together with Myanmar Petroleum Trade Association to ensure a steady fuel supply in order for the energy consumers to mitigate concerns, the statement mentioned.

Therefore, the consumers can complain about halts in fuel sales and limited sales through the contact numbers of respective regions and states if they find those stations that violate the rules, the committee stated. The committee is governing the fuel oil storage and distribution sector effectively not to have a shortage of oil in the domestic market and ensuring price stability for energy consumers. The Petroleum Products Inspection and Supervision Department, under the guidance of the committee, is issuing the daily reference rate for oil to offer a reasonable price to energy consumers. The reference rate in Yangon Region is set on the MOPS’ price assessment, shipping costs, premium insurance, taxes, other general costs and profit per cent.

The rates for regions and states other than Yangon are evaluated after adding the transport costs and retail reference rates daily cover on the state-run newspapers and are posted on the social media and official website and Facebook page of the department on a daily basis starting from 4 May. As per the statement, 90 per cent of fuel oil in Myanmar is imported, while the remaining 10 per cent is produced locally. The domestic fuel price is highly correlated with international prices. The State is steering the market to mitigate the loss between the importers, sellers and energy consumers. Consequently, the government is trying to distribute the oil at a reasonable price compared to those of regional countries. Some countries levied higher tax rates and hiked oil prices than Myanmar. However, Malaysia’s oil sector receives government subsidies and the prices are about 60 per cent cheaper than in Myanmar. Every country lays down different patterns of policy to fix the oil prices. Myanmar also poses only a lower tax rate on fuel oil and strives for energy consumers to buy the oil at a cheaper rate. 

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar