"While PRC's $585 billion stimulus plan to build roads, housing and other projects has grabbed headlines, microloans for farmers and entrepreneurs may be a more sustainable path to rural consumption and growth that officials say is the key to continued expansion. Slowing growth has pushed as many as 30 million migrant workers from cities back to their villages in search of jobs.

With rural incomes averaging less than a third of urban incomes the government has prioritized credit to fuel growth in the countryside, where 54 percent of the population lives. Microfinance provides small loans of a few thousand yuan to people in poverty who can't get regular bank funding. Migrant workers who've returned to their villages are good candidates for small loans. They understand how markets work because they lived in the more- commercial coastal areas."

"The Philippine government may have to recast its deficit spending target of $4.2 billion. It has no choice if it wants to prime the economy. The central bank has urged the government to be more aggressive in its deficit spending, saying the goal of balancing the budget is less important now than easing the impact of the economic downturn. But what more can the government do? It can encourage the private sector to increase spending to complement government spending.

It can also encourage families of overseas Filipino workers that receive remittances to start spending their savings, as many of them have apparently been holding on to them. Now that economists have predicted that the global recession will end this year, the country should prepare for the opportunities ahead. Companies should gear up their exports for the recovering markets abroad. We can also prepare workers for new demand for labor overseas once host economies rebound."

"China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), the largest energy producer in PRC, will begin building gas and oil pipelines through Myanmar in September, state media reported. The lines will cut delivery time for crude from the Middle East and Africa, with ships delivering oil that can then be pumped overland, replacing the shipping route via the congested Malacca Strait.

A 1,100-kilometer line capable of delivering 400,000 barrels of crude per day will run from Myanmar's Rakhine state to China's southwestern Yunnan province. Meanwhile, from 2012, a pipeline with an annual transportation capacity of 12 billion cubic meters, will move natural gas to Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, the report said."

"Garment firms in southern Viet Nam have turned on their recruitment engines as export orders rally for the first time since the global economic crisis hit. Industry insiders say the situation had completely reversed itself since the global recession had sparked a slump in orders beginning last September.

The number of export contracts had increased remarkably over the past few weeks. Export contracts had rebounded since late-April and small apparel firms were no longer concerned about a plunge in demand."

"Tired of lining up and inaccurate advice, people in India are logging onto medical health services for consultations, appointment scheduling, recommendations on healthcare providers and treatment. From childcare to fitness, the online healthcare model is offering patients reliable and multiple solutions. The sheer convenience of a specialist being just a phone call away can drive users to an online model.

Most experts see online portals as complementary to traditional modes of consultation rather than a replacement. Roughly half the patients seek advice for general complaints such as fever, cold, headaches or coughs, which can be treated by over-the-counter drugs."

"Bangladesh expatriates who are living abroad are demanding that they may have a bank of their own. At present, almost all the state-controlled banks and private commercial banks are effectively servicing remittances. Expatriates should take the initiative to open their own bank, if they can raise the necessary capital.

The purpose of the bank would be to establish industries in the country. The expatriates should also be encouraged to take all initiatives to provide big finance to the viable infrastructure programs of the country. No bank should exist for the purpose of remittances only. The expatriate bank could also provide loans to those who have valid job permits."

"Bank assets in Uzbekistan are shrinking and authorities' capacity to bail them out appears limited. In late May, Moody's raised questions about the quality of deposits held in Ipoteka Bank and Alokabank as well as the central bank itself. Experts fear the lack of money in circulation is slowing the growth of bank deposits, and doubt the government is going to be able to honor pledges to inject more money into the banking system.

In a response to the international crisis in late 2008, the government said it would buy shares in six commercial banks and channel subsidized loans to industry through them. However, by the spring, there was evidence that the banks were still in poor shape, as they limited the amount of cash people could withdraw."

"At least three women die every month on an average in Bhutan from pregnancy related complications, according to a report. Excessive bleeding after delivery or post-partum hemorrhage is the main cause, which accounts for 55 percent of deaths. Home delivery was the main reason for maternal deaths in Bhutan.

Only about 50 percent come to health facilities for deliveries. In some areas, it's also due to quality of heath services. Maternal death is more common in the southern and eastern districts. In newborns, blood infection causes 34 percent of deaths. Fifty percent of maternal deaths occur during the first 24 hours after delivery, while in newborns, it's in the first week."

"After nearly 20 years of economic reforms, the plight of a vast majority in India is hardly showing any signs of improvement. An economy that is hailed as an emerging global economic superpower, India lags in various social dimensions. The country still has a highly undesirable rate of under-nourishment. India also has one of the lowest routine immunization rates in the world.

Given an annual birth cohort of 24 million surviving infants and an under-five-years-old mortality rate of 74/1,000, this results in over 12.5 million under-immunized children each year. India also ranks low in infant mortality rate, even lower than Bangladesh. Despite significant economic progress, a fourth of the nation's population earns less than the government-specified poverty threshold of 40 cents per day."

"Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) has said it plans to connect six new power plants with total capacity of more than 1,100 megawatts to the national power grid this year. The additional power supply aims to meet increasing domestic demand. All of the plants are currently undergoing trial runs and are expected to begin commercial operations between now and October.

The national power utility said it expects to boost this year's sales volume to 86.6 billion kilowatt-hours with demand for electricity expected to grow 13 percent. EVN said it supplied more than 74.2 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity last year, including 53.1 billion kilowatt-hours from its generators and more than 21 billion kilowatt-hours purchased from domestic and overseas producers."

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