Briefs

Panasonic Corporation has |begun construction to expand its wiring-device and circuit-breaker manufacturing capacity at Panasonic Eco Solutions Vietnam Company in the southern province of Binh Duong.
A new factory will be built near the company’s existing plant to enhance its responsiveness to the increase in demand for wiring devices and circuit breakers in Vietnam in recent years.
The new factory will be built on 3,000 square metres.
The existing factory produces about 53 million wiring devices and 13 million circuit breakers annually.
With an additional factory, the company aims to double its production capacity by fiscal year 2020.
The company said there were also plans to explore the purchase of 18,000sqm adjacent to the current factory premises to expand in the future to address further increases in demand.
The company eventually aims to supply wiring devices and circuit breakers produced in Vietnam to other Southeast Asian countries as well as the local market. – Viet Nam News

Myanmar divided into 3 development categories 
The Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) has established three development categories, offering different income-tax exemptions depending on the level of development. 
Under the Myanmar Investment Law, the least developed zones include 14 townships in Kachin state, seven each in Kayah and Kayin, nine in Chin, 35 in the Sagaing region, four in Tanintharyi, five in Bago, 13 in Magway, two each in Mandalay and Mon, 17 in Rakhine, 42 in Shan and 10 in Ayeyawady. 
Bago has the most moderately developed zones with 23 townships, followed by Ayeyawady with 17, Shan with 14, Mandalay and Yangon with 13 each, Magway with 12, Mon and Nay Pyi Taw with eight each, Taningtharyi with seven, Kachin with four and Sagaing with three. 
In addition, 14 townships in Mandalay and 32 in Yangon were listed as “developed” zones.
The investment promotion plan has prioritised townships instead of regions and states. 
Investors in the least developed regions will receive an income tax exemption for seven years, while investors in “moderately” developed townships will get five-year exemptions, and investors in developed regions will get three years of tax breaks. 
With government approval, the MIC is able to designate the development level of townships, the Ministry of Planning and Finance stated. |– Myanmar Eleven

VN industrial production lagging
The Vietnamese Index of Industrial Production (IIP) rose by 2.4 per cent year on year in the first two months of 2017, much lower than the 6.8-per-cent growth seen in same period last year, according to General Statistics Office (GSO) data.
The processing and manufacturing sector, which accounts for more than 70 per cent of total industrial production in the country, saw a lagging IIP rise of 6.6 per cent, compared with 8.1 per cent in 2016.
Two other IIP sectors – electricity production and distribution and waste treatment – also lagged behind last year’s corresponding period with 9.3 per cent and 6.6 per cent respectively.
Meanwhile, the mining industry experienced a significant decline of 13.5 per cent in the two-month period.
GSO statisticians blamed the sluggish IIP growth in the reviewed period for the week-long break during the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday and a slowdown in local consumption power, which forced enterprises to curb their production capacities.
Key industrial products that posted IIP reductions included crude oil (down 15.6 per cent), mobile phones (8.9 per cent), sugar (10.2 per cent) and cloth (1 per cent).
On a positive note, IIP increased significantly for other major products such as rolled steel (up 35.4 per cent), television sets (16.7 per cent), seasoning powder (12.8 per cent) and fresh milk (11.4 per cent). – Viet Nam News