Myanmar

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar (or more commonly known as Myanmar) has an area of 676,578 square kilometres, making it the second largest country in Southeast Asia. It shares borders with Bangladesh, China, India, Laos, and Thailand. Naypyidaw is the capital of Myanmar, and Yangon, as the former capital, is the country’s most important commercial centre.

The official language and primary medium of instruction of Myanmar is Myanmar (the same name as the country). The people are referred to as the Myanmar people or also Myanmar. The Myanmar consists of various ethnic groups, broadly consisting of Burmese (65%), Shan (6.4%), Karen (5.2%), Kachin (1.8%), Chin (1.6%), Mon (1.5%), and Rakhine (1.5%). English is also spoken in cities like Yangon and Mandalay in the north, particularly by the educated urban elite, and is the second language learned in government schools.

Myanmar’s official currency is the Myanmar kyat (MMK).

Myanmar’s economy is supported by abundant natural resources and commodities. Its largest export is natural gas, which is providing an increasingly important revenue stream.

Myanmar has an economic and trade agreement with Turkey and economic agreements with China, Cuba, Kuwait, Malaysia, and Singapore. It also has trade agreements with Bangladesh, China, India, Israel, Korea (Republic of), Laos, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Myanmar is a member of the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA), a signatory to the ASEAN Framework Agreement on Services (AFAS), and a party to the Framework Agreement on the ASEAN Investment Area (AIA). The AFTA provides for a particular schedule on duty reduction/exemption among ASEAN members (i.e. ASEAN Trade In Goods Agreement). As a member of ASEAN, Myanmar is a party to the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement, the ASEAN-Korea Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation, the ASEAN-Japan Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Partnership, the ASEAN-India Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Agreement, and a free trade agreement between ASEAN and Australia and New Zealand. Negotiations for an EU-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement commenced in May 2007.

PwC offers a full suite of business services in Myanmar, including:

• Mergers and acquisitions advisory.
• Capital projects and infrastructure advisory.
• Market entry advisory and market studies.
• Risks advisory.
• Taxation, customs, and excise duties advisory.
• Human resources advisory and international assignment services.
• Accounting, incorporation, and corporate secretarial services.
• Anti-corruption and corporate restructuring.
• Business and technology consulting services.
• Initial public offer and capital market services.
• Corporate governance and risk advisory services.