COVID-19 Updates

 Singapore: The Circuit Breaker and a Third Stimulus (3 Apr – Ongoing)

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced on 3 April, Friday, that the country would be entering a period of enhanced movement restrictions from 7 April until 4 May. The regulations, called a “Circuit Breaker” by the government, intensified existing measures in a bid to halt the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). All non-essential businesses, recreational and entertainment venues were to close during this period, while students were to go on home-based learning. In addition, residents were advised to only leave their houses for reasons such as medical appointments and exercise. However, the government subsequently passed a law banning social gatherings in both public and private places, and offenders would face a fine of up to S$10,000 and a jail term of up to six months. The regulations were also tightened further after thousands of warnings were handed out in the early days of the Circuit Breaker, with first-time offenders of the social gathering ban now facing fines instead of warnings.

Sources: PMO, The Straits Times, SCMP

Separately, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat announced a third stimulus package for the island nation on 6 April, Monday. The support measures under what was called the “Solidarity Budget” amounted to S$5.1 billion, and were targeted at saving jobs and supporting businesses and families amid intensified movement restrictions. The government would, for example, subsidise 75% of the first S$4,600 of gross monthly wages for all 1.9 million local workers for April, where they had earlier proposed a range of subsidies from 25-75% depending on the sector. Singaporeans over the age of 21 would also receive a one-off solidarity payment of S$600, an increase of S$300 announced during an earlier budget. In total, the government has pledged roughly S$60 billion to combat the economic impact of COVID-19, and plans to draw on a total of S$21 billion from the nation’s reserves.

Sources: MOF, The Straits Times, Channel NewsAsia, SCMP

Indonesia: Jakarta and West Java Implement Social Restrictions as Jokowi Mulls Mudik Restrictions (10 Apr – Ongoing)

Jakarta and West Java were the first two provinces in Indonesia to be granted permission by the Ministry of Health to impose large-scale social restrictions, or PSBB, on 8 and 11 April. The two provinces account for a significant proportion of infected patients in Indonesia, with roughly half the national total in Jakarta alone. The official permission of the Ministry of Health enforced the legality of actions taken by the Jakarta government, including the closure of most office and business activities and a ban of gatherings of more than five people. The West Java government is also reviewing the need for restrictions in their province, and plans to increase COVID-19 testing once the PSBB is in place. Separately, President Joko Widodo “Jokowi” declared the outbreak to be a national disaster on 13 April, but has reportedly refused to consider a lockdown on the capital.

Sources: Jakarta Globe, The Straits Times, Channel NewsAsia, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Globe

A rising concern in Indonesia is the upcoming Idul Fitri exodus, or mudik, in May. With as many as 19.5 million people having returned to their hometowns during the 2019 mudik, many are worried that the event could cause a massive surge in infected numbers. President Jokowi has resisted pressure for a total ban on mudik, citing tradition and economic factors, and has instead urged travellers to remain in self-isolation for 14 days. His government has, however, banned civil servants (Including soldiers, police officers and state-owned enterprise employees) from making such journeys. West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil also requested that the Indonesian Ulema Council issue a religious edict (fatwa) to forbid this year’s mudik. Indonesia’s two largest Muslim organisations, Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah, have already advised people against participating in mudik.

Sources: Reuters, Indonesia Expat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Globe

Malaysia: (Another) MCO Extension and a Third Stimulus Package (6, 10 April)

Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced on 10 April that the country’s Movement Control Order (MCO) would be extended by another two weeks to 28 April. The MCO, which has been ongoing since 18 March, involves the closure of non-essential businesses and harsh movement restrictions. The Ministry of International Trade and Industry initially announced that certain sectors (i.e. Car workshops, laundry services) would be allowed to reopen during this period, but later removed hair salons, barbershops and optical shops from the list after health concerns were raised. The Malaysian government also announced a nationwide prohibition on Ramadan bazaars throughout the MCO period.

Sources: The Straits Times, Malay Mail, Free Malaysia Today, Malay Mail

Prime Minister Muhyiddin announced Malaysia’s third stimulus package on 6 April. Aimed at helping struggling small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), the US$2.3 billion package would increase the allocation for the previously announced wage subsidy programme. It would also support the offering of a special grant of US$694 for micro-SMEs. In all, Malaysia pledged to spend around 17% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on these three stimulus packages. Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz said that this would raise the budget deficit from 4.0% to 4.7%.

Sources: The Star, Channel NewsAsia, SCMP, Reuters

Myanmar: New Year Celebrations Cancelled and More Relief Measures (4, 13 Apr)

Authorities in Myanmar are discouraging people from travelling during the 10-day Thingyan Festival that falls on April 17 this year. President U Win Myint on 4 April instructed all state and regional governments not to allow civil servants to travel during Thingyan, except for funerals. Yangon and Mandalay have also restricted people from entering and leaving their homes during the holiday. State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi had warned of an increase in a number of covid-19 cases and urged people to celebrate the New Year without the “water play”. She used her newly created personal Facebook account to communicate COVID-19 challenges to citizens.

The government also announced it was extending its order prohibiting international commercial flights from landing in Myanmar until April 30. The country has stopped the entry and exit of people traveling through borders gates with neighbouring China, India, Thailand, Laos and Bangladesh. The gates have only been opened for the flow of goods.

Sources: Myanmar Times, The Irrawaddy

Myanmar has been rolling out a series of relief measures to support businesses affected by COVID-19. Traders are exempted from import license fees for all medicines and medicinal raw materials with immediate effect from April 11. Application fees to invest in Myanmar have been decreased and microfinance lenders have been instructed to allow the deferring of payments. The government also extended income and commercial tax payments for the second and third quarters of the fiscal year to be made at the end of the fiscal year.

Source: Myanmar Times

Thailand: Partial Curfew and a Third Stimulus (3, 7 Apr)

Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha announced in a televised address that Thailand would undergo a nationwide night-time curfew from 3 April, Friday. The curfew, which does not have an explicit end-date, will run from 10 pm to 4 am, and violators could face up to 2 years in prison and a fine of up to 40,000 baht, or US$1,222. It is the latest in a series of restrictions announced by each province and agency, including closures of businesses and venues such as malls and parks. The government has said that they are not intending to extend the curfew to 24 hours, but announced that they would prepare stricter measures if the number of cases continues to rise.

Sources: The Straits Times, Channel NewsAsia, Bangkok Post

The Thai cabinet approved a US$57.9 billion economic stimulus package on Tuesday, 7 April. This is the third stimulus announced by the Thai government, and pushes its total expenditure to US$73.7 billion or 14.2% of Thailand’s GDP. It builds upon measures announced in earlier stimuli, including a monthly cash handout of 5,000 baht (US$153) for 9 million workers, and new measures such as more financial support for soft loans to SMEs. The Bank of Thailand is also poised to inject US$12.2 billion into Thailand’s corporate bond market to help companies with bonds maturing in 2020 or 2021 to refinance. The Bank had earlier downgraded Thailand’s growth outlook for 2020 from a 2.8% expansion to a 5.3% contraction, the biggest faced by the country since the Asian Financial Crisis. In order to finance this expenditure, the Thai government said that it will explore domestic and foreign funding options to borrow up to US$30.6 billion.

Sources: Nikkei Asian Review, The Straits Times, Bloomberg

Vietnam: Social Distancing Urged and Increased Production of Medical Equipment (1,3,8 April)

Vietnam’s Prime Minister has urged the public to continue social distancing measures as the government reviews its guidelines on 15 April. Authorities implemented social distancing rules on 1 April, allowing only providers of essential goods and services to remain open. Meantime, Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance expanded a list of industries eligible for extension of tax and land lease payments. The Prime Minister approved the decision on 8 April giving a relief to a variety of sectors including transportation, warehouse, textile, garment and construction industries.

Sources: Vietnam News, Vietnam Investment Review

Vietnam has been ramping up production of medical equipment domestically. The country’s largest conglomerate, Vingroup announced it would produce ventilators and thermometers. The company is using both its VinFast automobile factory and VinSmart electronics factory to provide manufacturing support for medical products. Vietnam has also been donating masks to Europe and provided medical aid to China, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. The country also donated 450,000 made-in-Vietnam DuPont protective suits to the United States on 8 April.

Sources: Vietnam News, Reuters