GM Heading To Myanmar As Part Of U.S. Trade Delegation
Myanmar was once a pariah state known for its brutal military government and mistreatment of human rights activists like Aung San Suu Kyi. But democratic reforms and an easing of trade sanctions by Western governments means that doing business in Myanmar is now feasible – and GM is the latest automaker looking to establish a footing in the Asian country.
GM will be heading to Myanmar as part of an American trade delegation that includes companies like Target, General Electric, eBay and Honeywell, under the auspices of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
As a resource-rich nation in Southeast Asia with a population of nearly 50 million people, Myanmar is a potentially lucrative market for auto makers. Some observers have likened Myanmar to Thailand, another auto sales and manufacturing standout in the region. Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn once dubbed Myanmar a “star” and Hyundai is already setting up shop in the country.
More by Derek Kreindler
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New market my ass. These companies are just shopping for the lowest wage country to outsource to.
More importantly than people, for a market, is people who can afford stuff. How's the living wages in Burma? I'd say it will be a while before people there started buying Suburbans and Escalades.
I spent time working in Myanmar. It has a long way to go. The government has been the overbearing thinker for the people for a while,with education being uneven and lacking critical thinking courses. On a funny note, I was there when a friend...from England..set up the first and only internet portal, which was under the gaze of the generals...but in my apartment I had CNN International to share with anyone. The questions I got about our way of life and our market economy got a lot of questions. I learned as much or more from them as they did me.
Having been there a year ago, the ones who do have cars drive 20+ year old Sentras and Corollas. I asked and they cost in the range of $8000 or so. No driver licences, the barrier to entry is buying a car (most people drive Chinese scooters/motorcycles, called things like "Bonda Nightbird", that cost in the $300-500 range). There's a huge pent-up demand for something cheap and effective, like a Tata Nano (or GMDAT's various penalty boxes).