The Laos-China Railway Company has proposed to the Lao government to increase the price of train tickets this year, due to considerable exchange rate fluctuations and the depreciation of the Laotian Kip (LAK).
Since the LCR sells train tickets in LAK, the ever-increasing exchange rates with stronger currencies like the Chinese Yuan or US Dollars, have been causing unprofitability for the company. In response to the proposal, the Lao government has allowed the price of train tickets to be increased by no more than 20%.
Minister of Public Works and Transport Ngampasom Meuangmany recently informed the 5th Ordinary Session of the 9th National Assembly that the increasing amount was decided based on research by a team whose members include officials from the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Bank of the Lao PDR, and the National Transport Committee.
The company will provide more information about the price hike in the coming days, including when it will be implemented.
Meanwhile, almost two years after the completion of the Laos-China Railway, some residents in Vientiane Capital are still awaiting compensation for 308 plots of land that they had to give up for its construction, which authorities are hoping to clear by the end of this year.
