US to urge more of its companies to invest in Myanmar

Companies in the US will be encouraged to explore investing in Myanmar, US-ASEAN Business Council CEO Mr Alexandar C Feldman said during a meeting between a delegation from the council and the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI ) in Yangon on Monday.

“The main point is to promote investment get more US companies involved. We aim to promote bilateral trade as well as cooperation,” Feldman said.

The meeting was also attended by US Ambassador to Myanmar Mr Scot Marciel, who said the US would attempt to promote investment and trade in Myanmar to help create more jobs and boost the country’s economy.

Members of the US delegation discussed cooperation, job creation, infrastructure development, developments in Myanmar’s economy, and industrial development.

Among those in the delegation were representatives from global companies such as Abbott, Amazon, Bower Group Asia, Chevron, Chubb, Coca-Cola, US ICT, Diageo, Ford, Google, Mastercard, and Visa.

US businesses have been investing in Myanmar since the re-opening of Myanmar’s economy. Many US companies that have invested in Myanmar have spoken with the UMFCCI about expanding their businesses. 

“Companies in fields such as petroleum products and insurance, big companies like Google, Mastercard and Visa were represented in the delegation. UMFCCI will support them by assisting their plans to expand their businesses here in the future,” said U Maung Maung Lay, vice chair of the UMFCCI. 

“The US-ASEAN Business Council sees many good opportunities in Myanmar. So it has brought more American companies from different fields. They have positive opinions on Myanmar. They came and met with us with the aim of doing more business in a country that has good prospects for growth,” said U Maung Maung Lay.

He added that the US-ASEAN Business Council will invite new investments in Myanmar in sectors such as telecoms, insurance, wholesale, and distribution.

According to statistics from the Ministry of Commerce, Myanmar’s trade with the US has been steadily rising, from US$293 million in 2011 to US$718.4 million last year. As of July this year, trade between the two countries stood at US$847.5 million.

As of August, US investments in the country totalled US$432.8 million

Nguồn: Myanmar Times