A file photo of Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang (left) and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte link arms during the ASEAN Plus Three summit in Vientiane, Laos. “The last administration hardly spoke to them,” finance secretary Carlos Dominguez said in an interview in the World Bank’s headquarters in Washington on Friday. Southeast Asian nations had in the past pushed for a united front against China, which prefers that disputes be settled through one-on-one talks. He’s eyeing investment from the China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, and the government will submit to the Philippine senate its application to join the bank over coming days. “That’s going to be a big source of funding for infrastructure spending.’’On the wider economy, the finance official played down investor concerns.

Source: Mint October 08, 2016 07:30 UTC