Livestock sector accounts for 15 percent of Mongolia’s GDP www.news.mn

Over the past 25 years, Mongolia’s GDP has tripled, poverty has fallen and education has improved, allowing us to become a middle-income country. This is due, in part, to the livestock sector – one of our oldest economic sectors – which contributes around 15 percent of gross domestic product, and still holds untapped potential.

EU project supports non-mining product export through trade discount system www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ Advisory day for private enterprises which are supplying products to the European Union countries or plan to make export was held today at the Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI).

Mongolia aims to earn $1 billion from tourism by 2020 www.akipress.com

AKIPRESS.COM - Mongolia has set a goal of hosting one million foreign tourists and earning one billion U.S. dollars in 2020, said the country's environment and tourism minister on Wednesday.

Erdene Becomes First Cross-Listed Company on the Mongolian Stock Exchange, Closes an Oversubscribed Financing www.erdene.com

Halifax, Nova Scotia – June 14, 2018 – Erdene Resource Development Corp. (TSX:ERD) ("Erdene" or "Company") is pleased to announce that it has launched a secondary listing of its common shares on the Mongolian Stock Exchange (“MSE”) and closed the associated offering of 4,000,000 common shares to Mongolian residents (“Mongolia Offering”). The Company’s common shares issued under the Mongolia Offering will commence trading under the symbol “ERDN” on the MSE on or about June 19, 2018, as the first cross-listed and currently only precious metals exploration and development company listed on the MSE. “The Government of Mongolia has long expressed interest in having international investors list their mining and exploration projects on the MSE as a means to develop its capital market while providing shared benefits to local investors,” said Peter Akerley, President and CEO of Erdene. “Our listing is the result of two years of active collaboration with the Government of Mongolia to develop the necessary framework to accommodate cross listing of companies that are listed on international exchanges. Today we have added a significant number of new Mongolian shareholders to Erdene by way of our offering in Mongolia and MSE listing. The high level of investor and public interest in this offering has only strengthened our belief in the important role the local capital markets have in financing mineral exploration and development opportunities.” “We would like to welcome Erdene on the Mongolian Stock Exchange as the first cross-listed company in Mongolia,” said Altai Khangai, the CEO of the MSE. “This opens tremendous opportunity for the Company to connect with its stakeholders in the country.” Mr. Sumiyabazar Dolgorsuren, Mongolia’s Minister of Mining and Heavy Industry, added: “Erdene Resource Development is the first to cross list its shares in Mongolia, and we are grateful that mining companies are looking to be transparent and open to the Mongolian public.”

Mongolian explorer raises £13.7m through share placing www.energyvoice.com

Mongolian oil explorer Petro Matad has raised £13.7 million through the placing of 136m shares.

Toyota to invest $1 billion in Southeast Asian ride-hailing firm Grab www.reuters.com

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) has agreed to invest $1 billion in Southeast Asian ride-hailing firm Grab as a lead investor in the company’s ongoing financing round, which was launched after it bought the regional business of Uber Technologies Inc [UBER.UL].

The investment by Toyota is the largest-ever by an automaker in the global ride-hailing sector, the six-year old start-up said in a statement on Wednesday.

Asia-Pacific region parliamentarians to convene in Ulaanbaatar www.mongolia.gogo.mn

Chairman of the Social Policy, Education, Culture and Science Standing Committee in Parliament Yo. Baatarbileg, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Country Representative for Mongolia Naomi Kitahara, and political party representatives announced that parliamentarians from Asia-Pacific countries and international population experts will convene in Ulaanbaatar for the Strengthening Parliamentarians for the Achievement of Sustainable Development Goals: Aging, Fertility and Youth Empowerment conference on June 12.

Mongolia’s volume of trade reaches USD 5.1 billion www.news.mn

During the first five months of 2018, Mongolia conducted trade with 131 countries and its foreign trade turnover reached USD 5.1 billion, reported the National Statistics Office.

Mongolia’s industrial output figures shows increase of MNT 1.1 trillion www.montsame.mn

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ In the first 5 months of 2018, the gross industrial output reached MNT 6.0 trillion, showing an increase of MNT 1.1 trillion (23.3%) from the same period of the previous year. The main factor of this increase was due to an increase of mining and quarrying gross output by MNT 827.1 billion (23.7%), of which mining of coal by MNT 511.2 billion (48.0%) and mining of metal ores by MNT 252.0 (12.6%) billion.

IFC holds joint corporate governance forum to enhance investor protection, develop capital markets in Mongolia www.developmentaid.org

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, held the 10th annual Corporate Governance Forum in Ulaanbaatar. The event focused on enhancing investor protection, which is timely, as almost half of the state-owned enterprises in Mongolia are to be privatized over the next two years. The forum was co-hosted by the Financial Regulatory Commission (FRC) of Mongolia and the Corporate Governance Development Center (CGDC).

More than 100 regulators, policymakers, business leaders, and corporate governance professionals attended the forum. Experts highlighted the importance of proper disclosure and transparency in companies’ reporting to better protect investors. They also discussed the latest local and international regulatory developments related to corporate governance.

“Attracting both foreign and local investment is important for the Mongolian economy, but we need to make sure that our corporate governance standards meet international best practices and provide adequate protection for investors,” said FRC Chairman Davaasuren Sodnomdarjaa. “Good corporate governance is essential to building sustainable companies and further developing Mongolia’s capital markets.”

Investor protection is gaining prominence, especially because public participation in the Mongolian stock market is likely to increase after the government’s recent approval of a plan to privatize almost half of the state-owned enterprises between now and 2020.

Since its inception 26 years ago, the Mongolian Stock Exchange has made tremendous progress, recording its highest turnover last year. Market capitalization rose about 67 percent compared to five years ago, with several successful initial and secondary public offerings attracting interest from both foreign and Mongolian investors.

The Mongolian translation of the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance, a globally recognized benchmark for assessing and improving governance practices, was also launched at the forum. Studies show that stronger governance enhances company performance and reduces risks, thus making such companies more attractive to investors.

“To build a vibrant capital market, Mongolia needs to strengthen the supervision of listed companies and enforcement of market regulations. Introducing international principles and standards will cultivate a stronger corporate governance culture among Mongolian companies,” said Tuyen D. Nguyen, IFC Resident Representative in Mongolia. “We believe the forum will help regulators and other market participants to stay on top of the latest developments and adopt effective measures to cope with emerging governance issues.”

Since 2009, IFC has been supporting Mongolia’s efforts to enhance corporate governance practices, including the development of a corporate governance scorecard in 2013 and regulations governing related-party disclosures to protect minority investors. These efforts are part of the broader IFC Corporate Governance Program in East Asia and the Pacific, which is implemented in partnership with the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs of Switzerland.