A Shared Path | A railway that unlocks countless opportunities

STORY: A Shared Path | A railway that unlocks countless opportunities DATELINE: Oct. 18, 2023 LENGTH: 00:05:30 LOCATION: Beijing CATEGORY: ECONOMY STORYLINE: Laos Laos, the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia, has been longing for ways to reach out to the world. Leave home village and have far-reaching vision. --Lao proverb 32-year-old Sida Phengphongsawanh is a train maintenance worker at the Laos-China Railway Company. She's been dreaming of becoming a train driver. The job on the China-Laos Railway has brought her one big step closer to her dream. Kunming, China SOUDNBITE (Lao): VIENGXAY PHOUDTHAVONG, Lao internet celebrity "Hello, I'm Viengxay Phoudthavong. Conductors on the train have all undergone training sessions. They can speak both English and Laotian." 32-year-old Viengxay Phoudthavong is a Ph.D. student in China's Yunnan, a province bordering Laos. For him, pursuing studies and a career in China has been a dream come true. On his social media account, Viengxay often shares interes

Pressure on Turkish economy increases as euro falls against USD: expert

STORY: Pressure on Turkish economy increases as euro falls against USD: expert DATELINE: Sept. 16, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:56 LOCATION: ISTANBUL, Türkiye CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. various of dollars 2. various of the expert 3. various of Turkish flag 4. Turkish central bank 5. various of trade and exchanges in Türkiye 6. SOUNDBITE 1 (Turkish): CENK AKYOLDAS, Finance coordinator, Istanbul-based NGO World Trade Business Development Council 7. various of beach in Türkiye 8. SOUNDBITE 2 (Turkish): CENK AKYOLDAS, Finance coordinator, Istanbul-based NGO World Trade Business Development Council STORYLINE: A Turkish expert has said in a recent interview that euro's continuous depreciation against the dollar has increased the pressure on the Turkish economy, foreshadowing new challenges amid the country's already record-high inflation. With energy insecurity and surging inflation hanging over Europe, the euro has been in freefall this year. While the dollar, buoyed by the U.S. federal reserve's consecutive interes

Thai economist says U.S. interest rate hikes add capital outflow risks, hurt economies

STORY: Thai economist says U.S. interest rate hikes add capital outflow risks, hurt economies DATELINE: June 25, 2022 LENGTH: 00:01:48 LOCATION: Bangkok CATEGORY: ECONOMY SHOTLIST: 1. SOUNDBITE (English): KIRIDA BHAOPICHITR, Research director for int'l economics and development policy, Thailand Development Research Institute 2. various of Thai economy STORYLINE: Kirida Bhaopichitr, a senior Thai economist from Thailand Development Research Institute, has said that the U.S. interest rate hikes will increase the risk of capital outflows in emerging economies, and will put countries with too much U.S. dollar-denominated debt in trouble. SOUNDBITE (English): KIRIDA BHAOPICHITR, Research director for int'l economics and development policy, Thailand Development Research Institute "(There) definitely will be risk for countries, especially countries that have a lot of capital inflows that are short-term and can flow out easily. So those countries definitely will face the outflows issue, because when their interes