Lynette Lau

Singapore Management University Libraries — A vast amount of infrastructure has been suggested to strengthen connectivity within the economic network across China and the Indochina Peninsula. A particular example of manufacturing and industrial infrastructure would be Special Economic Zones (SEZs) that have been promoted to establish greater presence of a regional supply chain and develop hubs for innovation. It is upon this aspect of SEZs that the author will be exploring the benefits of building infrastructure through BRI that Southeast Asian countries can enjoy. Through the lens of endogenous growth, the author will examine how the building of SEZs can lead to a higher rate of technical progress. From picking an existing SEZ in Cambodia that is part of BRI – the Sihanoukville Special Economic Zone, and analysing it from the framework of an R&D endogenous growth model, the author aims to gain insight on how the operation of the SEZ affects (a) the share of labour devoted to R&D, and (b) the success of R&D process, and consequentially the growth rate of technology.

SMU Emerging Markets — Yandex N.V. is a diversified technology services business that is most recognised in Russia for its internet search portal. It is the national leader in providing internet-based services: in 2017, its web search engine, Yandex Search, covered 55.5% of the search market in Russia. Its venture into Autonomous Vehicles (AV) falls under its experiments component. Yandex is currently testing AVs of level 4 autonomy: the AVs are operating without human intervention for most circumstances, with an option for manual takeover in dangerous scenarios.

SMU Emerging Markets — Russia’s Autonomous Vehicle (AV) industry is a new and burgeoning industry, which is currently at the stage of creating and revising prototypes, and has not entered mass production yet. In the 2018 Autonomous Vehicle Readiness Index, it ranked 18th out of 20 countries chosen based on economy size and growth potential. By 2026, Russia is expected to cover 7.8% of the global software AV market, and specific segments utilising AVs such as robo-taxi and self-driving trucks are forecasted to exhibit the highest growth rates within the Russian industry- a CAGR of 54.82% and 48.42% respectively.

SMU Emerging Markets — Russia’s economy posted healthy signs of recovery in 2017, with a GDP growth rate of 1.5% yoy. This was largely generated by the services and industrial sectors, which contributed 62.2% and 33.3% of the GDP growth respectively. The industrial sector, which consists largely of energy-intensive machine-building equipment, transportation and communications, had a CAGR 7.9% from 2012 to 2017.

www.jipasg.org — Shadow banking in China is a phenomenon so integrated into the financial ecosystem that tackling it will inevitably affect other sectors in the economy, and generate much fear and anxiety among the public.

SMU Emerging Markets — As Russia continues its gradual economic recovery, its yoy GDP growth rate in Q1 of 2018 was slightly below the forecast level of 1.5%, at 1.3%. This was due to a slowdown in fixed capital investment and the construction sector. The Central Bank of the Russian Federation continues to maintain its confidence in a steady growth of the economy, projecting GDP growth rate to be in the range of 1.5% to 2% from the years 2018 to 2020. A supporting sign of this potential growth rate is the improvement in retail sales: April’s figure of a 2.4% increase is an improvement in comparison to March’s figure of 2.0%. From 2016 to 2017, the footwear industry grew by 4.3%, from RUB 733.6 billion to RUB 764.8 billion.

SMU Emerging Markets — Inter RAO Group is a diversified energy holding company that operates in electricity and heat generation and supply, as well as energy trading, equipment export and international electrical grid distribution. Looking at electricity generation alone, Inter RAO has the 3rd highest installed capacity among Russian companies as of 2017, at 32.7 GW. Consumers of Inter RAO’s generated electricity has increased by 2.9% from 2016 to 2017, from 14,219,051 to 14,636,840 units.

CNBC — Banks within the Asia Pacific region are set to face higher risks from property, Fitch Ratings said this month. That is, the ratings agency noted that banks in the region have achieved "relatively high exposure" to the property sector, and that has increased their vulnerability to any shock from the likes of an interest rate hike.

CNBC — About 3 percent of Facebook's annual advertising revenue could be at stake because of the scandal involving its handling of user data, according to a widely followed tech analyst. The social media giant may feel that lost revenue, which could range from $1 billion to $2 billion, as a result of the public revelations about Cambridge Analytica, according to Daniel Ives, the chief strategy officer at GBH Insights.

SMU Emerging Markets — Revenues from Russia’s freight industry totalled to US$29.0 billion in 2016, and this marked a CAGR of 3.8%, from 2012 to 2016. It contributed to approximately 6.3% of Russia’s 2016 GDP of US$1.28 trillion, where a total of 7.597 billion tons of freight was transported through Russia, including both international and local cargo.

CNBC — China is looking to invest for job creation - not mere trophies - according to an economist who analyzes the country. According to Ron Napier, the head of Napier Investment Advisors, Beijing is currently thinking: "We don't want sporting teams and trophy-type of investments."

SMU Emerging Markets — 2017 marked the first year since Russia exited a 2-yearlong recession, and recovery of the economy has been rather slow, and waning. GDP growth in Q3 of 2017 was at 1.8% on a y-o-y basis, short of the previously recorded 2.5% in Q2, which was the highest growth rate recorded in 4 years. The loss in momentum has been accredited to the weakness in industrial performance. However, the services sector managed to pull through with better growth rates, where information and telecom grew by 4.9%.

CNBC — The global cost of cybercrime has now reached as much as $600 billion - about 0.8 percent of global GDP - according to a new report. More worrying than that figure may be the massive growth from 2014, when the same analysis showed the cost was only as much as $445 billion.

SMU Emerging Markets — Vina San Pedro Tarapaca S.A., otherwise known as the VSPT Wine Group, was established in the year 2008. Currently, ownership of the company largely falls under CCU S.A., who controls 64.72% of shares, and the other 35.28% is taken up by minority shareholders. VSPT is made up of nine wineries across Chile and Argentina. These wineries help bring VSPT to a global platform, with its products reaching out to to domestic and international consumers.

smu.edu.sg — Singapore adopted the Westminster Parliamentary system of government from the United Kingdom. Under this system, the head of state and head of government are distinct roles that are held by different people. The head of state of Singapore is the President, and in the United Kingdom it is the monarch who holds that responsibility.

theblueandgoldsmu.com — I think I can attest for most that free visits to museums are nothing short of delightful. It is rather inconceivable that one could be greatly displeased by the free experience of appreciating modern masterpieces at the Singapore Art Museum, or learning about Singapore's heritage at the National Museum of Singapore.

theblueandgoldsmu.com — My visit to the National Museum of Singapore to view the exhibition What Is Not Visible Is Not Invisible was undeniably an enriching and memorable one. The exhibition, which presents selected pieces from the French Regional Collections of Contemporary Art (FRAC), embodies the theme of intangible synergy and provides visitors with a unique journey into personal introspection through vivid sensory engagement.

www.theblueandgoldsmu.com — Okay, let me make one thing clear first: I do not have a huge bosom. I am not a late bloomer, I am aware that nothing more is going to bloom, and I am perfectly at peace with that.