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In a news report the liner cited the
nation's "remarkable economic development"
as its reason for heading there.
The breadth of opportunities, lifting
of the climate of repression coupled with
a poster boy sort of impression of Myanmar;
have all added to the overriding importance
of planting one's stake in the country,
says BIMCO chief shipping analyst Peter
Sands.
"Being a first mover, allows you
to obtain a lot of knowledge and experience
about the way to do business in a specific
place or nation.
It means getting your local contacts
and network up and running before the market
really takes off and it becomes time to
harvest.
Myanmar is likely to become a significant
exporting nation of containerised goods
as it develops and opens up more and more
toward the outside world.
"The liner companies [are] in the
better position when the manufacturing business
is set up ˇV as a natural first point of
contact to get your cargo exported, as your
business grows too," he said.
But then it is not just the promise of
natural resources and an ideal strategic
location between the Asian powerhouses of
India and China.
Foreign confidence in the country has
over the last two years without bias, been
steadily increasing.
That potentially stands to move a clip
higher with a recently passed law that will
now effectively remove the mandatory $5
million investment cap for foreign companies
such that they enjoy a 50 per cent stake
in joint ventures with local partners.
Even with the new explosion of interest
in Myanmar, as was the case with Vietnam
some years ago, the initial challenges of
infrastructure development and of keeping
roads, sea ports and rail lines up to scratch
is a mind-blowing thought.
There are currently just eight coastal
ports in the country to date.
The dearth of good ports not just undercuts
Myanmar's potential to be a leading hub,
but most of these ports are so very primitive
that they "lack mechanised handling
facilities" says one Asian Development
Bank report, Myanmar in Transition, Opportunities
and Challenges.
Its most ambitious port project, the
multi-billion dollar Dawei (pronounced as
Davoy) port project remains mired in controversy
over funding and political sensitivities.
That is especially so when another nation
like Thailand is as involved in its construction
as are some European companies.
Another "complication" is the
nation's topography. Forbidding mountain
ranges, gullies and water-clogged deltas
makes the construction of container ports
extremely challenging owing to the constant
need for dredging. The current lack of technical
expertise to tackle this is a fact that
container lines may find off-putting.
Yet even with grave challenges, there
is nothing to discount the breathtaking
pace of change breaking out all over the
country and the infectious spread it lends
to the globe's maritime universe.
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