1 MONGOLIA MARKS CENTENNIAL WITH A NEW COURSE FOR CHANGE WWW.EASTASIAFORUM.ORG PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      2 E-MART OPENS FIFTH STORE IN ULAANBAATAR, MONGOLIA, TARGETING K-FOOD CRAZE WWW.BIZ.CHOSUN.COM PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      3 JAPAN AND MONGOLIA FORGE HISTORIC DEFENSE PACT UNDER THIRD NEIGHBOR STRATEGY WWW.ARMYRECOGNITION.COM  PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      4 CENTRAL BANK LOWERS ECONOMIC GROWTH FORECAST TO 5.2% WWW.UBPOST.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      5 L. OYUN-ERDENE: EVERY CITIZEN WILL RECEIVE 350,000 MNT IN DIVIDENDS WWW.GOGO.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      6 THE BILL TO ELIMINATE THE QUOTA FOR FOREIGN WORKERS IN MONGOLIA HAS BEEN SUBMITTED WWW.GOGO.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      7 THE SECOND NATIONAL ONCOLOGY CENTER TO BE CONSTRUCTED IN ULAANBAATAR WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/20      8 GREEN BOND ISSUED FOR WASTE RECYCLING WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/19      9 BAGANUUR 50 MW BATTERY STORAGE POWER STATION SUPPLIES ENERGY TO CENTRAL SYSTEM WWW.MONTSAME.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/19      10 THE PENSION AMOUNT INCREASED BY SIX PERCENT WWW.GOGO.MN PUBLISHED:2024/12/19      КОКС ХИМИЙН ҮЙЛДВЭРИЙН БҮТЭЭН БАЙГУУЛАЛТЫГ ИРЭХ ОНЫ ХОЁРДУГААР УЛИРАЛД ЭХЛҮҮЛНЭ WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     "ЭРДЭНЭС ТАВАНТОЛГОЙ” ХК-ИЙН ХУВЬЦАА ЭЗЭМШИГЧ ИРГЭН БҮРД 135 МЯНГАН ТӨГРӨГ ӨНӨӨДӨР ОЛГОНО WWW.MONTSAME.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     ХУРИМТЛАЛЫН САНГИЙН ОРЛОГО 2040 ОНД 38 ИХ НАЯДАД ХҮРЭХ ТӨСӨӨЛӨЛ ГАРСАН WWW.NEWS.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     “ЭРДЭНЭС ОЮУ ТОЛГОЙ” ХХК-ИАС ХЭРЛЭН ТООНО ТӨСЛИЙГ ӨМНӨГОВЬ АЙМАГТ ТАНИЛЦУУЛЛАА WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     Л.ОЮУН-ЭРДЭНЭ: ХУРИМТЛАЛЫН САНГААС НЭГ ИРГЭНД 135 МЯНГАН ТӨГРӨГИЙН ХАДГАЛАМЖ ҮҮСЛЭЭ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     “ENTRÉE RESOURCES” 2 ЖИЛ ГАРУЙ ҮРГЭЛЖИЛСЭН АРБИТРЫН МАРГААНД ЯЛАЛТ БАЙГУУЛАВ WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     “ORANO MINING”-ИЙН ГЭРЭЭ БОЛОН ГАШУУНСУХАЙТ-ГАНЦМОД БООМТЫН ТӨСЛИЙН АСУУДЛААР ЗАСГИЙН ГАЗАР ХУРАЛДАЖ БАЙНА WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/20     АЖИЛЧДЫН САРЫН ГОЛЧ ЦАЛИН III УЛИРЛЫН БАЙДЛААР ₮2 САЯ ОРЧИМ БАЙНА WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/19     PROGRESSIVE EQUITY RESEARCH: 2025 ОН “PETRO MATAD” КОМПАНИД ЭЭЛТЭЙ БАЙХААР БАЙНА WWW.BLOOMBERGTV.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/19     2026 ОНЫГ ДУУСТАЛ ГАДААД АЖИЛТНЫ ТОО, ХУВЬ ХЭМЖЭЭГ ХЯЗГААРЛАХГҮЙ БАЙХ ХУУЛИЙН ТӨСӨЛ ӨРГӨН МЭДҮҮЛЭВ WWW.EAGLE.MN НИЙТЭЛСЭН:2024/12/19    

Events

Name organizer Where
MBCC “Doing Business with Mongolia seminar and Christmas Receptiom” Dec 10. 2024 London UK MBCCI London UK Goodman LLC

NEWS

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Panasonic taking next-generation TVs global www.asia.nikkei.com

BERLIN -- Panasonic's OLED televisions, released last fall in Europe, will become available in other markets starting next year, the Japanese company revealed Friday here at the IFA 2016 electronics expo.

Organic light-emitting diode TVs use next-generation panels containing organic compounds that produce their own light. Not only do the TVs produce clearer colors than liquid crystal display varieties, they also boast higher image refresh rates.

But OLED TV panels are difficult to mass-produce, with a limited number of suppliers. Last year only 335,000 of the TVs hit the market worldwide. More than 90% were produced by South Korea's LG Group.

Panasonic will combine panels procured from LG with its own image-processing technology, including image processors developed in-house. Scenes will be more crisp and detailed than conventional OLED TVs owing to the deeper blacks, the company said. To accomplish that, Panasonic is leveraging the expertise it built up with plasma TVs.

The Japanese launch of 55-inch and 65-inch TVs is slated for April at the soonest, followed by Southeast Asia and Latin America. At Japanese volume retailers, LG Electronics Japan's newest 55-inch OLED TV sells for roughly 470,000 yen ($4,500) and the 65-inch model costs around 900,000 yen.

Panasonic's 55-inch TV will likely be priced at about 500,000 yen. The Japanese manufacturer plans to justify the premium over the South Korean rival by playing up advantages like better picture quality.

Panasonic rolled out a 65-inch model in Europe last October with a sticker price of 9,999 euros ($11,160). The company will gradually add new markets while incorporating OLED TVs as a core product category along with LCD sets.

Panasonic's TV business posted its first profit in eight years for the fiscal year ended in March. Before then, massive red ink led the company to pull out from North America and China, among other structural reforms. Panasonic is aiming to sell some 6.4 million units worldwide this fiscal year, which is still 60% below the fiscal 2010 peak. The company is currently revolving its television business around 4K LCD models, with commercialization of higher-definition 8K TVs also in sight.

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China's Zhangjiajie glass bridge closes after two weeks www.bbc.com

A glass-bottomed bridge in China that was heralded as a record-breaker when it opened just 13 days ago has closed.
Officials said the government was planning urgent maintenance work in the area and the bridge closed on Friday, with a re-opening time to be announced.
But the US CNN network said a spokesman told them the bridge, spanning a canyon, was "overwhelmed by the volume of visitors".
He said there had been no accidents and the bridge was not cracked or broken.
The 430m-long bridge, which cost $3.4m (£2.6m) to build, connects two mountain cliffs in Zhangjiajie, Hunan province.
It hangs 300m over a canyon said to have inspired the landscapes of the film Avatar.
When it opened, it was said to be the highest and longest glass-bottomed bridge in the world.

The park made the announcement on the Chinese micro-blogging site Weibo
The bridge can accommodate 8,000 visitors a day but the spokesman told CNN that 10 times as many people wanted access daily.
Officials at the park announced the closure in a post on the Chinese micro-blogging site, Weibo.
They did not mention visitor numbers but said the government urgently needed to upgrade the area.
The post said that tour groups who had planned to see the bridge over the weekend might have "discretionary admission".
In response to the announcement, one social media user wrote: "I have booked everything and now you are saying you are closed... Are you kidding me?"

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WADA Suffers Daily Harassment From Russian Hackers – Director General Niggli www.themoscowtimes.com

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has suffered “daily” cyber attacks and harassment from Russia, WADA Director General Olivier Niggli said Thursday in an interview with Norway’s NRK news website.

“We have experienced hacking attempts every day for three weeks. It happens all the time and is very annoying,” Niggli said.

WADA has a “pretty good suspicion” that Russians are responsible, Niggli said, adding that the hackers involved are “well known to Western authorities.”

But Russia’s targeting of WADA extends beyond hacking.

“Russia is threatening us and our informers” he said. The attacks include bugging homes and stealing personal property.

According to Niggli, constructive relations with Russian authorities can only be achieved once Russia “stops seeing us as an enemy and recognizes it has a problem which needs to be solved jointly.”

Russian whistleblower Yulia Stepanova, whose testimony to WADA was a key element of its report into Russian doping, said in August that she feared for her life after WADA announced hackers had broken into her personal WADA online account.

Stepanova, in hiding with her family in the United States, claimed the hack was was motivated by a desire to discover her exact location. She has subsequently changed locations, she told journalists during a conference call. “If something happens to us then you should know it is not an accident.”

Over 100 Russian athletes were banned from competing at this summer’s Olympic Games following WADA's investigations into state-sponsored doping throughout Russian sport.

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Jack Ma: Wars start when trade stops www.cnn.com

Jack Ma has a warning for those who see globalization as a problem: When trade stops, wars can follow.
"We should keep on going along the path of globalization," Ma said Friday in Hangzhou, China. "Globalization is good... when trade stops, war comes."
The executive chairman of Alibaba (BABA, Tech30) said he hopes the anti-globalization fervor that currently grips much of the world will ease after U.S. elections in November. China, in particular, has been a target of heated rhetoric.
"Every time there's an election, people start to criticize China. They criticize this, they criticize that," Ma told CNN's Andrew Stevens. "[But] how can you stop global trade? How can you build a wall to stop the trade?"

G20 leaders are preparing to meet this weekend in Hangzhou, the city where Ma founded his e-commerce giant in 1999. Trade -- and globalization -- are likely to be major topics of discussion.
For his part, the 52-year-old Ma believes that globalization hasn't gone far enough. He said international trade must now be improved so that more people can enjoy its benefits.
Ma is hoping to pitch G20 leaders on an electronic world trade platform, or e-WTP, that would help small businesses expand their customer base globally, the way multinational corporations have been able to. It would also help eliminate tariffs, inspections and other red tape that can trip up mom and pop shops.
"We need solutions for young people to leverage the technology we have, so they can buy anywhere, sell anywhere, trade anywhere," he said. "If you want to get involved, just join."

The first G20 summit was held in 2008. The annual confab of the world's 20 largest economies has a mixed record on producing meaningful policy results, but Ma said the summit is a "great opportunity" for politicians to listen to business leaders.
"Every government says they love small businesses but what have they done for them?" Ma asked. "We should pull down all the barriers."

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Samsung issues recall for Galaxy Note 7 after battery fires www.reuters.com

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) will replace all Galaxy Note 7 smartphones equipped with fire-prone batteries and halt sales of the flagship product in 10 markets, a devastating blow for what had been a revival in the firm's mobile business.

Koh Dong-jin, head of the South Korean company's smartphone business, spoke at a news conference jam-packed with reporters and cameras where he expressed regret at the recall, which will affect markets including South Korea and the U.S. - but not China, where models feature a different battery.

The announcement on Friday comes just over two weeks since the premium device's launch, and follows reports of the 988,900 won ($885) phone igniting while charging.

The executive, who declined to comment on the number of phones needing replacement, said Samsung had sold 2.5 million of the premium devices so far. The manufacturer plans to replace not only phones with faulty batteries sold to consumers, but also retailer inventories and units in transit.

"I can't comment on exactly how much the cost will be, but it pains my heart that it will be such a big number," Koh said.

The scale of the recall is unprecedented for Samsung, which prides itself on its manufacturing prowess. While recalls in the smartphone industry do happen, including for rival Apple Inc (AAPL.O), the nature of the problem for the Galaxy Note 7 is a serious blow to Samsung's reputation, analysts said.

Analysts said the firm must act quickly to minimize damage to its smartphone recovery, after a string of product successes had reversed a fall in market share at the world's biggest smartphone vendor.

The firm has said it aimed for the Note 7 to maintain strong sales momentum in the second half of the year against stiffening competition from the likes of Apple Inc (AAPL.O), which is widely expected to release its latest iPhone next week.

"I am concerned more about a potential reduction in sales than recall costs," said analyst Jay Yoo at Korea Investment & Securities. "The recall is likely to be a blow to earnings."

Samsung said new sales of the Note 7 in affected markets would resume after it deals with replacements, a process it expects will begin in about two weeks. The firm would extend refund periods for affected customers and offer exchanges for other Samsung phones, Koh said.

Investors sold Samsung shares after the delay announcement on Thursday, stripping about $7 billion from the firm's market value. Sentiment recovered somewhat in Friday trade as the shares rose 0.6 percent compared with 0.3 percent in the broader market .KS11.

Credit Suisse said a recall or major shipment delays could wipe 1.5 trillion won ($1.34 billion) from Samsung's 2016 operating profit estimate of 30.2 trillion won in an "absolute worst case" scenario.

But the brokerage said that scenario was unlikely, as it expected Samsung to resolve problem before the fourth quarter of the year.

HI Securities analyst James Song said the replacement costs may be somewhat limited as Samsung could recycle components of the recalled phones save the battery.

"It is clever for Samsung to replace the affected models, not offering fixes. That helps enhance consumer confidence and help reduce potential falls in future sales," he said.

Hyundai Securities also said in a report on Thursday that the Note 7 problem should be resolved within "a few weeks". The brokerage retained its third-quarter operating profit forecast of 8.5 trillion won.

Samsung's mobile division accounted for about 54 percent of the firm's January-June operating profit of 14.8 trillion won.

($1 = 1,117.4300 won)

(This version of the story has been corrected to add dropped text in the second paragraph)

(Reporting by Se Young Lee; Additional reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Stephen Coates and Christopher Cushing)

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Uniqlo opens regional flagship store in Singapore www.nhk.or.jp

Japan's casual clothing chain Uniqlo has opened one of its biggest Southeast Asian stores in Singapore.

About 2,000 shoppers lined up before Friday's opening of Fast Retailing Company's regional flagship store.

The 2,700-square-meter outlet is one of Uniqlo's largest stores in Southeast Asia. It stocks 500 products, nearly as many as the company's Ginza flagship outlet in Tokyo.

A woman in her 20s who has often shopped at other Uniqlo branches said she's surprised with the size of the new shop. She added that she's glad to see items that she cannot find at other stores.

Uniqlo operates more than 120 outlets in 5 Southeast Asian countries, including Thailand and Indonesia. The new Singapore store is its first international flagship outlet in the region.

Fast Retailing Chairman Tadashi Yanai said his company wants to triple its sales in Southeast Asia over the next 5 to 10 years. Economic growth continues in the region.

 
 
 
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World Bank issues SDR bonds in China www.nhk.or.jp

The World Bank has issued landmark bonds denominated in so-called special drawing rights, or SDR, for the first time in China. The move is aimed at pushing the country's financial markets toward greater openness.

The SDR is a reserve currency administered by the International Monetary Fund. The value of SDRs is based on the US dollar, the euro, the pound, the yen and, starting next month, China's yuan.

The bonds' total value is to be 500 million SDRs, or nearly 700 million dollars. They are to be traded in yuan on the Chinese interbank market.

A group jointly set up by financial institutions in China and foreign banks including Japan's Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, is to handle the bonds.
By issuing the bonds, the World Bank hopes to offer more means to secure funds, and urge China to integrate into the global financial system.

An NHK reporter says China is keen to show its willingness to work toward financial reform, as the country is to host its first G20 summit next Sunday in Hangzhou.

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Putin calls for global oil output freeze www.rt.com

Despite the failure of talks in April, Russia hasn’t given up on the idea of a global oil production cap, President Vladimir Putin told Bloomberg at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.

“From the viewpoint of economic sense and logic, then it would be correct to find some sort of compromise. I am confident that everyone understands that. We believe that this is the right decision for world energy,” Putin said in the interview.

Talks on a production freeze between Russia and OPEC collapsed in April, after Saudi Arabia demanded that their economic and political rival Iran be part of the deal. However, Russia is still seeing the production cap as possible.

“I would very much like to hope that every participant of this market that’s interested in maintaining stable and fair global energy prices will in the end make the necessary decision,” said Putin. Prince bin Salman “is a very reliable partner with whom you can reach agreements, and can be certain that those agreements will be honored,” he added.

Putin is meeting Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the G20 summit in China next week.

“Our Saudi partners at the last moment changed their view. We didn’t reject the idea of freezing output. Our position hasn’t changed,” said the Russian President.

According to Putin, Iran has a right to return its oil market share after the sanctions against its energy sector were lifted.

“Iran is starting from a very low position, connected with the well-known sanctions in relation to this country. It would be unfair to leave it on this sanctioned level,” he said.

In April, Tehran categorically refused to cut production, aiming to return to its pre-sanction output level of 4 million barrels per day. Recent data from Iran has shown the Islamic Republic is approaching the goal, and has softened its stance on the possible output freeze deal with Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Analysts from Commerzbank and Citi have warned that the output cap rather than a production cut wouldn’t make any significant difference to the market suffering from oversupply. Saudi Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said last week the freeze would be "positive", but no “intervention of significance” is needed, as the market is rebalancing by itself.

While the era of low oil prices continues, Russia is still heavily dependent on crude exports. Moscow has been trying to diversify the economy by putting more effort into agriculture and other non-energy sectors.

On Friday, Brent crude was trading at $45.71 per barrel while US benchmark WTI was at $43.36.

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Exclusive: Google shelves plan for phone with interchangeable parts - sources www.reuters.com

Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google has suspended Project Ara, its ambitious effort to build what is known as a modular smartphone with interchangeable components, as part of a broader push to streamline the company's hardware efforts, two people with knowledge of the matter said.
 
The move marks an about-face for the tech company, which announced a host of partners for Project Ara at its developer conference in May and said it would ship a developer edition of the product this autumn.
 
The company’s aim was to create a phone that users could customize on the fly with an extra battery, camera, speakers or other components.
 
A spokeswoman for Google declined to comment on the matter.
 
While Google will not be releasing the phone itself, the company may work with partners to bring Project Ara’s technology to market, potentially through licensing agreements, one of the people with knowledge of the matter said.
 
Axing Project Ara is one of the first steps in a campaign to unify Google’s various hardware efforts, which range from Chromebook laptops to Nexus phones. Former Motorola president Rick Osterloh rejoined Google earlier this year to oversee the effort. Google sold Motorola Mobility to Lenovo Group in 2014.
 
Modular smartphones have generated great enthusiasm in the tech community for their potential to prolong the lifespan of a device and reduce electronic waste. But the devices are difficult to bring to market because their interchangeable parts make them bulky and costly to produce, said analyst Bob O’Donnell of TECHnalysis Research, adding that he was not surprised to see Google halt the project.
 
“This was a science experiment that failed, and they are moving on,” he said.
 
Project Ara was one of the flagship efforts of Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects group, which aims to develop new devices, but it had various stops and starts.
 
Last year, the company shelved plans to sell the modular phone in Puerto Rico with Latin American carriers.
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Mongolia-Russia-China Economic Forum 2016 approaches www.en.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ In the vision of promoting the Belt and Road Initiative, Erenhot of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China will be hosting the approaching Mongolia-China-Russia Economic Forum and trade fair. The Ninth Mongolia-China-Russian Economic Forum will be organized under a theme “Establishing economic corridor and promoting coherent development”.

The event aims to support the trilateral trade partnership, humanitarian exchange, cultural tourism and cross-border regional economic cooperation. Along with the official high-level meeting, side events and conferences will be held on the cross-border logistics, electronic trades, tourism, culture and education and cooperation in banking finance innovation.

In the economic forum, Mongolia will be represented by delegates from some 40 companies, while 270 entities are taking part I the exhibition. The previous year’s theme was “Promoting Silk Road Economy and Establishing Economic Corridor”.

Russia and China are the main trade partners for Mongolia. The country has made exports worth USD 2.5 billion, of which 1.2 percent went to Russia and 85 percent to China, as of the end of July. As of the imports (USD 1.8 billion), Mongolia imported 24.5 percent from Russia and 33 percent from China, according to the National Statistics Office.

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