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Lao PDR, or more widely known as Laos, is a lower to middle-income economy and boasts one of the fastest growing economies in the East Asia and Pacific area.
The country offers a diverse amount of opportunities and in its population alone is an example of this with its 49 broad ethnic groups and 4 linguistic groups.
Australia and Laos have longstanding economic ties that especially focus on deepening community relationships and development cooperation.
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Due to its powerful existing relations, local Laos students are encouraged to take the opportunity of studying abroad in Australia. Ailani is one of these students and decided to go and study in Australia.
Now, as a successful young working woman, Ailani wants to pay back some of the study loans she had to take out through her years of study and also invest into her parents lives. She does a study of all the money transfer companies available to transfer money back to Vientiane in Laos and draws up the table below using 1,000 AUD.
| Money transfer company A | Money transfer company B | |
|---|---|---|
| Exchange rate− | 1 AUD = 5,662.8130 LAK | 1 AUD = 5,804.79024 LAK |
| Transfer fee | 25 AUD | 10 AUD |
| Amount of LAK received in Laos for 1,000 AUD | 5,662,813.00 LAK | 5,804,790.24 LAK |
| Transfer time | 10 minutes | 2-4 days |
| Transfer options | Phone, online account, agent | Online, phone, mobile app |
| Difference in LAK | 141,977.24 LAK | 141,977.24 LAK |
Ailani might not need to live in a weekly fear that there will be emergency cash situations as she keeps a constant flow of sending money over to Laos, but one should always be prepared. She has found in her research that Moneygram and Western Union both offer emergency cash transfers to Laos in multiple locations. Below are locations for some of the bigger areas in Laos.
Back to topWith some transactions, the actual amount received will not necessarily be received in the native currency of Laos. It is advised to make a note that any currency exchange can only happen at an official bank outlet.
Timing is also important in Laos and most money transfer services won’t offer services after 5pm. This means that Ailani and her parents will need to time the trips well with workdays to visit an agent location before it closes - or before available currency runs out!
Always take along something to carry the money in that doesn’t scream to everyone around you the obvious fact that you have fats amount of cash. Carry the cash in a way that fits into your normal day in life, for example, an envelope in your briefcase.
Australia business parties have a history of investing in the rich natural resources that Laos offers. Even though it has shown strong Real GDP growth that has averaged above 8% since 2009, Laos still relies heavily on economic donor support as a Least Developed Country according to worldwide classification.
Australia supports the Lao PDR and supported its bid to join the World Trade Organisation. Australia is Laos’ 8th highest source of exports with a focus on merchandise trade that comes in at a total between the two of A$38 million.
The trade in services between the two have average at A$33 million and there has been protected relationships between Laos and Australia to cultivate investments in the Laos mining sector.
According to the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, “Australia and Laos are parties to the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) which entered into force on 1 January 2010 in Australia and 1 January 2011 in Laos.
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