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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Cabinet complete: Four remaining ministers appointed www.news.mn

In the election, which took place on 29th June, the Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) won 63 seats in the 76-seat Great Khural (Parliament). At a meeting of the State Great Khural, which assembled on July 29, the majority of the new members of parliament backed the nominations by MPP for the offices of the four remaining ministers. P.Sergelen was appointed Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry, G.Monkhbayar as Minister of Construction and Urban Development, A.Tsogtsetseg as Minister of Health, and P.Gankhuu as Minister of Energy.

Two weeks ago, the State Great Khural appointed 11 new members to Prime Minister J.Erdenebat’s cabinet. However, the MPP board was forced to withdraw four nominees for the ministerial offices of Construction and Urban Development, Food, Agriculture and Light Industry, Health and Energy. The reason why Parliament could not finalize the appointments was linked to the conclusions of the Independent Authority against Corruption (IACC) regarding possible conflict of interests of the MPP-nominated candidates. Prime Minister J.Erdenebat’s completed cabinet is as follows:

U.Khurelsukh - Deputy Prime Minister,

J.Monkhbat - Chief of Cabinet Secretariat,

B.Choijilsuren - Minister of Finance,

N.Nomtoibayar – Minister of Labour and Social Welfare,

B.Bat-Erdene – Minister of Defence,

Ts.Monkh-Orgil – Minister of Foreign Affairs,

Ts.Oyunkhorol- Minister of the Environment and Tourism,

S.Byambatsogt –Minister of Justice and Domestic Affairs,

Ts.Dashdorj – Minister of Mining and Heavy Industry,

D.Ganbat – Minister of Road and Transport Development,

J.Batsuuri – Minister of Education, Culture, Sciences and Sports,

P.Sergelen - Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry,

G.Monkhbayar - Minister of Construction and Urban Development,

A.Tsogtsetseg - Minister of Health,

P.Gankhuu - Minister of Energy.

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O.Erdembileg appointed First Deputy Governor of Central bank www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ First plenary session of the State Great Khural, formed after the 2016 parliamentary elections, have backed the resolution on appointing Erdembileg Ochirkhuu as the First Deputy Governor of the Bank of Mongolia (BoM).

O.Erdembileg was born in Ulaanbaatar in 1976, graduated from the National University of Mongolia, majoring in economy and finance in 1998. He has defended a master’s degree in Development Economics in 2002 at the Australian National University.

Mr Erdembileg worked as an officer, a head of department and divisions at the Ministry of Finance in 1998-2007, economist and chief economic analyst at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2007-2013, adviser to the Director of Board of the Golomt Bank in 2014-2015, and the first deputy director of Golomt Bank since 2015.

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NHK tests ultra high-definition broadcasts www3.nhk.or.jp

Japan's public broadcaster, NHK, has started testing an ultra high-definition video system that provides images dramatically sharper than those available through current high definition television.

The network is running daily broadcasts using 8K technology, which provides resolution 16 times as great as the system now in use, and 4K, which has 4 times as many pixels.

NHK says the technology provides a detailed stereoscopic effect and more realistic audio.

At a ceremony in Tokyo on Monday, NHK President Katsuto Momii said the system represents a new page in the history of broadcasting.

Parliamentary vice-minister of communications Keiichi Koshimizu said the test broadcasts are a world first. He said Japan has a great opportunity to promote the technology abroad.

NHK plans to conduct the test broadcasts from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. It will extend the hours this month for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

The broadcasts can be seen on display screens at NHK centers across Japan. During the Olympics, they can also be seen at public viewing sites in Tokyo and Osaka.

Compatible tuners are yet to go on sale.

NHK plans to start full-fledged broadcasts in 2018, 2 years before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

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KPMG changes graduate interviews to suit millennials www.bbc.com

Accountancy firm KPMG has changed its graduate recruitment process to suit people born between 1980 and 2000 - the so-called millennial generation.
Instead of conducting three separate assessments over several weeks, it will now combine the process into one day.
The firm says the change will mean applicants will find out if they have got a job within two working days.
It made the change following research suggesting millennials were frustrated by lengthy recruitment processes.
KPMG said its survey- conducted among 400 of this summer's new graduates applying for a graduate job at a UK firm - found that more than one-third were annoyed about how long they had to wait to hear the outcome of an interview, and how long the recruitment process took.
But the biggest complaint, made by more than half of those surveyed, was about not receiving any feedback if they were unsuccessful.
'Best brains'
KPMG chairman Simon Collins said the company felt it had to make the changes to make sure it could compete with smaller start-up or tech firms, which often offer a faster recruitment process, to secure the best graduate employees.
"We are competing with the full gamut for the best brains and talent leaving university: getting our graduate recruitment right is crucial to the long-term success of our business," he said.
The accountancy firm's move comes in the wake of several other big firms shaking up their graduate recruitment process.
In June, Goldman Sachs said it had scrapped face-to-face interviews on university campuses in a bid to attract a wider range of talent.
Work-life balance
The US investment bank has now switched to video interviews with first-round undergraduate candidates, in a move aimed at helping it to attract graduate recruits from a broader range of disciplines.
And last year, professional services firm professional services firm Deloitte said it had changed its selection process so recruiters did not know where candidates had gone to school or university.
It said the move was aimed at preventing "unconscious bias" and recruiting a more diverse "talent pool".
Analysis suggests millennials will make up 75% of the global workforce by 2025.
Several surveys suggest that these younger workers are not motivated by the same factors as previous generations, such as a job for life, but instead value a good work-life balance and a sense of purpose beyond financial success.

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Uber to invest $500 million in global mapping project: FT www.reuters.com

Ride-hailing service Uber [UBER.UL] has decided to invest $500 million into an ambitious global mapping project to wean itself off dependence on Google Maps and pave the way for driverless cars, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.

The San Francisco-based company is ramping up spending in new technologies such as mapping and driverless cars following new investments into the company earlier this year.

A representative for Uber could not immediately be reached for comment.

(Reporting by Catherine Ngai; Editing by Marguerita Choy)

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Chinese consortium agrees to $4.4 billion deal for Caesars online games www.reuters.com

A Chinese consortium that includes game developer Shanghai Giant Network Technology Co Ltd and e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA.N) founder Jack Ma has agreed to acquire Caesars Interactive Entertainment Inc's online games unit for $4.4 billion in cash, the companies said.

Caesars Interactive Entertainment is currently owned by Caesars Acquisition Co (CAC) (CACQ.O) and Caesars Entertainment Corp CRZ.O. The sale will be a boon to the two affiliated companies, which are looking for cash as they embark on a complex merger.

The deal follows a period of exclusive negotiations between Caesars Interactive Entertainment and Giant's consortium that were first reported on July 21 by Reuters.

Caesars Entertainment's main operating unit, Caesars Entertainment Operating Co Inc (CEOC), is currently involved in an $18 billion bankruptcy and is seeking creditor approval for a restructuring plan. The transaction between CAC and the Caesars Entertainment parent is part of a complex web of deals that have come under scrutiny by CEOC's creditors.

Chinese companies are eager to expand beyond their home country, which boasts the world's largest online gaming market. In June, Tencent Holdings Ltd (0700.HK), China's biggest gaming group, agreed to buy a majority stake in 'Clash of Clans' mobile game maker Supercell from SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) in an $8.6 billion deal.

Caesars' online games business, known as Playtika, makes its games such as Bingo Blitz and Slotomania available on Apple Inc's (AAPL.O) App Store. Playatika will continue to operate independently with its own management team and its headquarters remaining in Herzliya, Israel, following the deal, the companies said.

Playtika players use virtual currency that cannot be exchanged for real money, although players can spend money by buying items in the games. Caesars' World Series of Poker and real-money online gaming businesses are not part of the deal, according to the companies.

Giant is one of China's biggest gaming companies, with nearly 50 million monthly active users and several top-grossing mobile titles. It was taken private in 2014 for $3 billion by a group of buyers that included company Chairman Yuzhu Shi and private equity firm Baring Private Equity Asia Ltd. It is now valued at more than $12 billion.

The Chinese consortium involved in the deal also includes Ma's private equity firm Yunfeng Capital, China Oceanwide Holdings Group Co, China Minsheng Trust Co, CDH China HF Holdings Company Limited, and Hony Capital Fund, the companies said.

The merger between the owners of Caesars Interactive Entertainment is intertwined with the bankruptcy of CEOC, whose restructuring plan hinges on billions of dollars of cash and equity from its parent.

CEOC's creditors have accused the parent company of looting choice assets from its operating unit and leaving it bankrupt. Caesars has said the acquisitions were done at fair value.

While proceeds from a Caesars Interactive online games unit sale will help the bankruptcy estate, junior creditors may still object to the distribution of the funds because more money will end up in the hands of first lien banks and lenders.

Junior creditors led by Appaloosa Management remain the biggest hold-outs in the CEOC bankruptcy, and have said they have as much as $12 billion in claims against Caesars Entertainment and its private equity backers, Apollo Global Management LLC (APO.N) and TPG Capital LP.

(Reporting by Liana B. Baker in New York and Allison Lampert in Montreal; Additional reporting by Tracy Rucinski in Chicago)

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Tokyo poised to elect Yuriko Koike as first female governor www.bbc.com

Former Japanese Defence Minister Yuriko Koike looks set to be elected as the Japanese capital's first woman governor, exit polls project.
Public broadcaster NHK and other media forecast Ms Koike as the winner after polls closed at 20:00 (11:00 GMT).
If confirmed, one of her key challenges will be curbing the financial problems plaguing Tokyo's preparations to host the 2020 Olympic Games.
Scandals linked to the Games forced the last two governors to resign.
"I will lead Tokyo politics in an unprecedented manner, a Tokyo you have never seen," Ms Koike, 64, told cheering supporters,
"While feeling the weight of this result, I want to thoroughly push the metropolitan government forward as the new governor."
Tokyo's ill-tempered election
In all, 21 contenders were vying to lead the sprawling capital and a number of other cities in the prefecture.
Ms Koike, politician Hiroya Masuda and journalist Shuntaro Torigoe were the front-runners.

In all, 21 contenders were vying to lead the sprawling Japanese capital and other cities in the prefecture
Sunday's election was called after previous governor Yoichi Masuzoe resigned last month following fierce criticism over allegations that he used official funds to pay for holidays, art and comic books for his children.
Mr Masuzoe, who won election promising a scandal-free administration, denied breaking the law, but admitted to ethical lapses around his spending.
His predecessor, Naoki Inose, also quit over a funding scandal in 2013 soon after Tokyo won the right to host the Olympics.
Since then Tokyo's preparations for the 2020 Summer Olympics have been hit by scandals, overspending, administrative fumbles and construction delays.
One of the new governor's first duties will be to travel to Rio at the end of the 2016 Olympics in August to accept the Olympic flag as the next host.

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Energy majors look to Asia-Pacific for growth www.asia.nikkei.com

FRANKFURT, Germany/NEW YORK -- American and European energy giants have begun pouring money into the Asia-Pacific region to tap a growing market, especially as crude prices show signs of a modest recovery.

Exxon Mobil of the U.S. announced July 21 that it had agreed to buy InterOil, a natural gas explorer based in Papua New Guinea, for up to $3.6 billion. InterOil owns rights to some of the world's richest gas fields.

Papua New Guinea has low labor costs and is close to major consumers of liquefied natural gas, including Japan, South Korea and China. Exxon Mobil decided to make its biggest acquisition since 2012 in hopes that crude rises from the current level of $50 a barrel by 2020, when InterOil is expected to begin LNG production.

The industry began moving toward consolidation in 2014 amid a downturn in crude prices. Royal Dutch Shell decided in April 2015 to purchase U.K.-based BG Group. Industry watchers expected other energy majors to follow suit, but they held back as crude continued to decline.

The InterOil deal signals changing tides as industry titans battle over smaller players while cheap crude keeps equipment and labor costs low. Papua New Guinea-based Oil Search, backed by French giant Total, had reached an agreement to buy the company in May but was eventually outbid by Exxon Mobil.

BP has plans for expanding the Tangguh LNG project in Indonesia, in which such Japanese companies as Inpex and Mitsubishi Corp. also have interests. An estimated $8 billion will be invested to boost annual output by 50% to 3.8 million tons.

Tangguh is the most competitive LNG project for delivering gas to such markets as Japan, CEO Bob Dudley said last Tuesday.

Asia accounts for three-quarters of global LNG demand, and consumption in such countries as China and India is only expected to grow. In contrast to crude oil development, where governments usually take the lead, most LNG projects are headed by corporations.

Chevron and partners including Exxon Mobil have agreed to invest a total of $36.8 billion in a Kazakhstan oil project to expand crude oil production there to a daily 260,000 barrels. The crude can be transported directly from the field to China via pipeline.

An immediate jump in crude prices remains unlikely, and overall investment by oil majors continues to fall. Exxon Mobil is behind on its planned capital expenditures of more than $23 billion for the year, according to Vice President Jeff Woodbury. Shell is also cutting down on investments.

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UK and China regulators discuss framework for financial projects www.reuters.com

British and Chinese securities watchdogs are discussing an agreement that will pave the way for landmark financial services projects between the countries, sources said, easing fears that Britain could be a less attractive partner for such deals after last month's vote to leave the European Union.

Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) are cooperating on a regulatory framework for a scheme for distributing fund products in each other's jurisdiction and a proposed London-Shanghai link for trading shares, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Britain, home to the EU's biggest finance sector, has been pushing in recent years to deepen its financial services ties with China, which has agreed to these and other cross-border financial services schemes as part of the UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) program.

The UK's former Chancellor George Osborne and Chinese vice premier Ma Kai said at last September's EFD meeting in Beijing that they would explore the creation of a London-Shanghai equity link and mutual funds recognition scheme, but neither government has provided further details.

The formal cooperation between the FCA and CSRC signals that the projects are going ahead, with one source saying the discussions had remained "very positive".

Some market watchers had raised concerns that leaving the EU, which puts in doubt the UK's future access to the trading bloc and its "passports" to provide financial services there, could scupper such projects by limiting their potential scope and appeal.

"So far none of the cross-border exchange initiatives has been derailed by the risk of Britain leaving the European economic area and the associated passporting rights," said Frederic Ponzo, managing partner at financial services consultancy GreySpark Partners in London.

"What is clear is that the CSRC and the FCA will not stop cooperating after the vote to leave the EU," he added.

A second source said the FCA and CSRC were exploring a regulatory agreement similar conceptually to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) inked by the CSRC and the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) prior to the launch of the Hong Kong-Shanghai stock trading link in November 2014.

The Hong Kong-China MOU created a framework for policing the scheme, including sharing trading data and coordinating on investigations, although it was not clear if a UK-China cooperation would be as far reaching, the sources said.

Details of the regulatory agreement may be announced at the next EFD meeting in the Autumn, though this has not been decided yet, both sources said. One said the UK and China may also unveil cooperation on so-called "fintech" initiatives.

Both said, however, that Britain and China did not expect to announce any major new financial services initiatives at this year's EFD meeting, the date for which has not been set but will likely be held in October or November in Britain, a third source said, while both countries analyze the implications of Britain's exiting the EU.

The FCA declined to provide comment. The CSRC, UK Treasury and Chinese Ministry of Finance did not respond to requests for comment.

(Reporting by Michelle Price; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard and the Beijing newsroom; Editing by Will Waterman)

 
 
 
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Aeon to enter Myanmar's retail market www3.nhk.or.jp

Japanese supermarket chain Aeon is about to become the first Japanese retailer to operate stores in Myanmar.

Aeon intends to launch a joint venture with Creation Myanmar Group of Companies in early August to operate food supermarkets in the booming Southeast Asian country.

The new company will run 14 supermarkets that the local partner currently operates mainly in Myanmar's largest city of Yangon. It will begin opening new stores by the end of the year.

A number of Japanese firms are racing to invest in Myanmar which is called Asia's final frontier.

Aeon hopes to establish an advantageous position in the Myanmar market by making early inroads into the country.

It has already begun operating supermarkets and shopping malls in 5 Southeast Asian countries.

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