BCM NewsWire Issue 456

1. BUSINESS COUNCIL of MONGOLIA
NewsWire
www.bcmongolia.org
info@bcmongolia.org
Issue 456 – December 9, 2016
BCM NewsWire provides short summaries of news collected from around the world. Each
article is kept to a maximum of 150 words for brevity, but click on the link next to
“Source” to read the full article.
NEWS HIGHLIGHTS:
Business:
• Rio Tinto boss insists Mongolia dispute is 'bump in the road'
• TT fully mobilized, again
• Investigation into Development Bank reports mismanagement of funds
• Mongolia Mining Corp could see debt deal before year-end
• Clean Energy Asia to commission Tsetsii wind farm in 2017
• Nomin supermarket chain opens organics department
• KAIST to open smart farms in Mongolia
• Alltech Marketing Selenium-Enriched Eggs in Mongolia
• Kincora announces private placement, debt settlement
• Development Bank director appointed
• Students receive Oyu Tolgoi scholarships for 2016-2017
• Hogan Lovells supports Mongolian Save the Children chapter
• Rio Tinto reshuffles top management
Economy:
• Mongol Bank: FX auctions, T-bills
• Moody's points to fiscal, external positions for downgrade
• Mongolia says bank bondholders will be repaid in full
• Deficit narrows, Mongol Bank reports
• Minimum wage hiked 25%
• Food Prices drop amid economic decline
• Mongolia hikes coal prices, points to recovery
• Mongolia to spend MNT5 bn to fight air pollution in UB
• Russian Railways launches train service for China–Mongolia–Russia route
• China’s export hikes take effect at three border points
• Mongolia plans to generate energy from trash
• Thousands at risk of homelessness from urban redevelopment failings
• Once booming, Mongolia's economy veers from riches to rags
• Amid economic crisis, Mongolians risk their lives for do-it-yourself mining
• First frost on border between China and Mongolia
• Miners and students evacuated from earthquake
• Japan provides grant to overhaul school and kindergarten buildings
• Archeology sheds light on Mongolia’s uncertain nomadic future

2. Politics:
• President issues decree for soil preservation
• Economic Policy Council re-organized
• Mongolia ratifies the Trade Facilitation Agreement
• Mongolian Democratic Party holds first convention in a decade
• Mongolian National Democratic Party leader resigns
• Opera singer appointed as cultural envoy
• Mongolian pop singer becomes UNICEF special envoy
• Mongolian and Russian Justice Ministries sign cooperation program
• Russian diplomat 'beat Mongolian rapper over Swastika outfit'
• Russian Ground Forces to hold drills with Mongolia and more
• Mongolia, Fiji named as joint winners of global inclusion award
• Steppe by steppe: Mongolian anthropologist studies a society in transition
• The Dalai Lama in Mongolia: 'Tournament of Shadows' Reborn
BCM Updates:
• Job vacancies at member organizations
• Member-to-Member Special Offers & Benefits
Economic Indicators:
• Inflation
• Central Bank Policy Rate
• Currency Rates
*Click on titles above to link to articles.
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BUSINESS
RIO TINTO BOSS INSISTS MONGOLIA DISPUTE IS 'BUMP IN THE ROAD'
The boss of FTSE 100 miner Rio Tinto Group has insisted a dispute with China over copper

3. exports from Mongolia will be resolved shortly. Jean-Sebastian Jacques, the French
executive who was promoted to the top job in July, said the Anglo-Australian miner was
used to working with the authorities and hoped to resume exports soon. Last week, Rio’s
subsidiary in Mongolia suspended copper shipments from its vast Oyu Tolgoi mine after
Chinese authorities closed a border crossing and ordered copper to be shipped via a
different route. The miner expressed concerns that queuing trucks were being made to
wait in sub-zero temperatures.
Jacques, who shepherded Oyu Tolgoi into production in his previous role as head of
copper, said the miner was used to such “bumps in the road.” “Each time we would work
with the authorities and each time it was resolved. I’ve no doubt it will be resolved this
time,” he said.
Source: Telegraph, Reuters
TT FULLY MOBILIZED, AGAIN
Mongolia has repaid more than three-quarters of its debt to Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd.
(Chalco) as it resumes normal mining operations at the East and West Blocks at the Tavan
Tolgoi coking coal mine. Mongolia has had to repay USD350 million to Chalco as part of an
offtake agreement and loans that must be repaid in coal deliveries. Mongolia’s loan
balance is now at USD80 million after five years of operation, with many disputes, and
delays along the way.
The state-owned miner Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi last month negotiated to double the price it
sells its coal to distributor TTJV Co. to USD50 a ton. That, however, is still well below the
market price, which has spiked as a consequence of the coal mines shut down in China as
it attempts to ween itself off the black stuff.
Source: Mongolia.GoGo.mn
INVESTIGATION INTO DEVELOPMENT BANK REPORTS MISMANAGEMENT OF FUNDS
A probe into the Development Bank of Mongolia has accused the bank of poor management
of its funds and financing projects not approved by government or Parliament. The bank
put its funds at risk by holding three-quarters of all its cash in just Trade and Development
Bank and Ulaanbaatar Bank, reported the task force led by the vice minister of justice and
domestic affairs, Enkhbayar B. Both Ulaanbaatar Bank and Trade and Development Bank
have shareholdings in the Development Bank.
Development Bank has borrowed MNT5.37 trillion to finance projects to build
infrastructure and launch operations to produce goods commonly imported in the country,
such as construction materials. The bank lent 59 percent of those borrowed funds to state-
owned companies, and the rest to private companies. MNT259.8 billion lent to private
companies are owned by politicians in the Mongolian People’s Party and MNT345.8 billion
by Democrats. MNT1.21 trillion was lent to commercial banks.
Source: Udriin Sonin
MONGOLIA MINING CORP COULD SEE DEBT DEAL BEFORE YEAR-END
Mongolian Mining Corp. expects to close a deal for a reduced principal payment on USD600
million bonds due next year by the end of the year, the Hong Kong-listed miner said in a 7
December statement. Mongolian Mining has been in talks with investors since last March
after missing a coupon payment. “[D]ebt restructuring talks with its creditors are
progressing well and a deal could be reached before the end of the year, the country's
Vice Minister Badamsuren Khookhor said on Monday.”

4. "Progress has been quite successful for the moment," Badamsuren told Reuters in an
interview on the sidelines of an investment conference in London. "I hope negotiations can
be done by the end of the year." The company's bond, due to mature in March, has traded
at distressed levels of around 15 cents in the dollar in February, though has recovered in
recent weeks to just over 50 cents, according to data from Reuters.
Source: Business Recorder
CLEAN ENERGY ASIA TO COMMISSION TSETSII WIND FARM IN 2017
Clean Energy Asia LLC expects to complete its USD120 million Tsetsii wind farm in
December 2017, according to the renewable energy company’s chief executive. Tsetsii is
the second wind farm for Mongolia after Clean Energy’s parent company Newcom Group
commissioned the 50-megawatt Salkhit wind farm in 2013.
The plant is expected to produce 170 million kilowatt hours of electricity each year, or
enough to provide energy to 120,000 families in Mongolia. Clean Energy was established in
2012 as a joint venture between Newcom LLC and SB Energy Corp., the renewable energy
arm of the SoftBank Group. Newcom and Softbank have provided 30 percent of investment
into the project while the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and JICA
have provided the remaining 70 percent.
Source: Udriin Sonin
NOMIN SUPERMARKET CHAIN OPENS ORGANICS DEPARTMENT
The Nomin supermarket chain will bring a variety of new organic products to its shelves.
The group with 20 locations throughout Ulaanbaatar hosted a open day for organic
products on 5 December.
A law that would ban products from being marketed as organic without meeting certain
criteria will take effect from 1 January 2017.
Source: Unuudur
KAIST TO OPEN SMART FARMS IN MONGOLIA
One of South Korea’s top-tier research universities has signed a partnership with the
Mongolian government over expanding smart farms here. The Korea Advanced Institute of
Science and Technology (KAIST) said on 30 November that the partnership will help the
country to reduce its heavy reliance on foods imports, as the intelligent farming platforms
will enable local residents there to harvest vegetables during extremely unfriendly climate
conditions.
As the country's temperature in a winter season―which runs from October to April―drops
to some -40 degrees, it has been almost impossible for Mongolian people to harvest any
vegetables or fruits, the KAIST said. But the recent partnership will help the country
dramatically enhance its self-sufficiency for vegetables, as the Internet of Things (IoT)-
converged farm management systems are expected to help users manage and keep track
of harvest information in real-time.
Source: Korea Times
ALLTECH MARKETING SELENIUM-ENRICHED EGGS IN MONGOLIA
Tumen Shuvuut, one of the largest layer companies in Mongolia, announced in a press
conference plans to begin marketing selenium-enriched eggs made with Sel-Plex organic
selenium to Mongolian consumers nationwide. During the press conference, the company
explained that the selenium egg is being launched to help alleviate a persistent selenium

5. deficiency in the Mongolian diet that was identified in a recent study by the country’s
Ministry of Health.
The new product will be available in supermarkets and other retail outlets beginning in
December. Alltech will continue to provide technical and other assistance to Tumen
Shuvuut as they introduce this first-ever selenium-enriched egg to be marketed in
Mongolia. “Based on trials conducted with our flock using Sel-Plex, the research reports
showed that the 0.5-ppm enriched eggs were more likely to offset the selenium deficiency
in the Mongolian population,” said Bold Jigjid, chief executive of Tumen Shuvuut LLC.
Source: animal.agwired.com
KINCORA ANNOUNCES PRIVATE PLACEMENT, DEBT SETTLEMENT
Kincora Copper Ltd. plans to launch a private placement for about 1.4 million shares to
raise USD500,000, it announced on 7 December. Proceeds from the sale of shares priced at
CAD0.345 each will go toward exploration of its copper and gold projects in Mongolia and
general working capital.
Kincora also settled its debt to a subsidiary of High Power Ventures, HPX Techco Inc., for
the so-called IBEX transaction that consolidated a package of exploration licenses. HPX
Techno has received 186,831 shares priced at CAD0.345 each to settle USD48,576 worth of
debt.
Source: Kincora Copper Ltd.
DEVELOPMENT BANK DIRECTOR APPOINTED
A new director has been approved to head the Development Bank of Mongolia, following
the dismissal and investigations into its previous management. The Jargaltulga Erdenebat
cabinet on 7 December approved the appointment of Batbayar Balgan as executive
Director. Previously, he worked as an accountant, economist and chief officer at the
budget policy department at the Ministry of Finance and has acted as a government
representative on the board of directors for the Development Bank and State Bank LLC.
Source: Montsame
STUDENTS RECEIVE OYU TOLGOI SCHOLARSHIPS FOR 2016-2017
Oyu Tolgoi LLC has awarded scholarships to 21 Mongolian students at universities in
Mongolia and abroad for the 2016-2017 academic year. Twenty of the recipients come
from leading Mongolian institutions. The scholarships will cover tuition fees, monthly
allowances, dormitory fees. “At the heart of development of any nation, lie people,” said
the Education Ministry official Munkhbaatar M. at the ceremony where the awards were
granted.
These scholarships are a continuation of a program led from 2010 to 2015 that delivered
200 scholarships to universities in Mongolia and 30 abroad in partnership with the Ministry
of Education and Oyu Tolgoi. Umnugobi Aimag students who will take scholarships from
Oyu Tolgoi’s Gobi Oyu Development Fund will be announced on 9 December, Oyu Tolgoi
posted on its website.
Source: Montsame
HOGAN LOVELLS SUPPORTS MONGOLIAN SAVE THE CHILDREN CHAPTER
Hogan Lovells LLP has provided legal advice pro-bono for a comprehensive global
citizenship program. The law firm assisted the national chapter of the international group
Save the Children by providing technical legal review of the draft Law of Mongolia on Child

6. Rights and the draft Law of Mongolia on Child Protection. Those laws were adopted by the
Mongolian Parliament in February 2016
Adoption of the laws is a major milestone in advancing child protection in the country.
Hogan Lovells continues to cooperate with Save the Children on official English translations
of the laws and implementing regulations, as well as providing free legal advice to other
NGOs, such as Good Neighbours.
Source: NAMBC
RIO TINTO RESHUFFLES TOP MANAGEMENT
The chief executive of Rio Tinto, the miner under scrutiny for questionable payments in
Africa, has further reshuffled his top management team, replacing a senior executive and
adding a new member to the group that runs the FTSE 100 company. Jean-Sébastien
Jacques, who took control of the Anglo-Australian company this year and had a heavy hand
in the talks that resolved disputes with the Mongolian government for the Oyu Tolgoi mine,
has appointed Vera Kirikova as head of human resources and put Simone Niven, head of
corporate affairs, on its executive committee.
The reshuffle marks the latest move by Mr Jacques to reshape the top team at Rio. In his
five months in charge, the French executive has replaced the boss of iron ore, Rio’s most
profitable business, installed a new copper chief and promoted the heads of safety and
innovation. It comes as Jacques tries to address an unfolding payments crisis in Guinea
that is threatening Rio’s reputation as one of the world’s best managed miners and
worrying shareholders. “It’s clear as an industry we need to lift our game in how we
attract and retain top talent,” said Mr Jacques in a statement.
Source: Financial Times
ECONOMY
MONGOL BANK: FX AUCTIONS, T-BILLS
The Bank of Mongolia on 8 December sold USD24.05 million (out of bids for USD46 million
and CNY62 million) from commercial banks at currency auction for a closing rate of
MNT2,478. The bank received no swap agreement offers.
On 7 December, the central bank issued MNT132 billion worth of one week bills at a
weighted interest rate of 15 percent. Also that day, it received MNT31 billion in bids for
12-week treasury bills with a face value of of MNT31 billion (originally MNT60 billion) sold
at a discounted price and at weighted average yield of 16.99 percent. It canceled 28-week
bills with a face value of MNT30 billion due to a lack of bids.
Source: Bank of Mongolia
MOODY'S POINTS TO FISCAL, EXTERNAL POSITIONS FOR DOWNGRADE
Moody's Investor Services says a sharp deterioration in fiscal and external position underpin
Mongolia's Caa1 rating, despite strong medium-term growth potential. Banks' credit
profiles are under pressure,expect continued deterioration in asset quality, liquidity,
capitalization in next few months.
Moody’s said it expects real GDP growth to average zero this year, before picking up
modestly to 1.0 percent in 2017 and 3.5 percent in 2018. Success in securing bilateral,
multilateral support would stabilize government's liquidity & economy's external positions
for a period. It also expect very large fiscal deficits to remain in 2017 and 2018.
Source: Reuters

7. MONGOLIA SAYS BANK BONDHOLDERS WILL BE REPAID IN FULL
Development Bank of Mongolia bondholders can expect their debts to be repaid in full
when they fall due next year, a senior finance official said on Friday, even as the state-
backed bonds traded below par just three months before maturity. On Friday, Mongolian
finance ministry officials held talks with groups such as the International Monetary Fund
and World Bank to present their plan to buoy the economy. Deputy Finance Minister
Khurelbaatar Bulgantuya told a news conference following the talks that Mongolia hoped
to work with partners to refinance USD580 million in sovereign-backed debt from the
Development Bank of Mongolia due in 2017.
The government could lighten its burden on interest on loans with new "soft" loans that
offer easier terms and lower interest for repayment, she said. Renegotiating its debt for a
smaller repayment on the principal, known as a haircut, "would be the last resort," she
said. "With the IMF, we're looking to refinance."
Source: Reuters
DEFICIT NARROWS, MONGOL BANK REPORTS
The deficit in the current, capital and financial accounts is 31 percent higher narrower
from last year, the Bank of Mongolia reported. The central bank reported a USD443.3
million surplus in the capital account, but that was still 32 percent less than 2015.
Source: Montsame
MINIMUM WAGE HIKED 25%
The minimum wage is set to increase by a quarter to MNT240,000 a month. The National
Committee of Labor Consensus decided on the hike last April to take effect at the start of
the year. Government data shows that between 4 and 5 percent of Mongolian labor force is
paid the minimum wage.
Source: Unuudur
FOOD PRICES DROP AMID ECONOMIC DECLINE
The prices of meat, vegetable and dairy prices have all dropped, according to an index
from the National Statistical Office. An index of staple food commodities had dropped by
1.05 percent as of 30 November, according to the report. Prices for mutton with the bone
fell by 7.9 percent month-on-month, while beef with the bone fell by 6.5 percent. The
prices for a number of vegetables had declined considerably since October. The one
exception was turnips, which saw a whopping 26.2 percent price increase. Compared to
October, one liter of processed milk dropped by 2.9 percent in November while the price
of raw milk remained the same.
Source: UB Post
MONGOLIA HIKES COAL PRICES, POINTS TO RECOVERY
Erdenes Tavan Tolgoi LLC, Mongolian state-owned miner of the world's largest undeveloped
coal deposit, announced it had negotiated an 85 percent price jump in its average selling
price to USD50 a ton from December, rising to USD60 per ton for 2017. Erdenes TT had
been selling its coal at only USD32 a ton as part of a settlement for debt owed to the
Aluminum Corp. of China, or Chalco. In another part of Tavan Tolgoi, Mongolia Mining
Corporation had already struck a deal to sell its premium washed variety of coal at USD107
per ton.
Around 1,500 trucks make it across the border each day, drivers and border guards said.

8. That equates to USD4 billion of annual revenue from coal. For Mongolia's USD12 billion
economy, this would mean a 25 percent jump in GDP, returning the economy to the type
of dizzying growth rates seen last decade, said Nick Cousyn, the Chief Operating Officer
for BDSec JSC.
Source: SX Coalr
MONGOLIA TO SPEND MNT5 BN TO FIGHT AIR POLLUTION IN UB
The government is spending MNT3.5 billion to pay for the zero charge for energy at night
to encourage the use of electric heaters over burning coal and more harmful materials for
what looks to be an especially cold winter. The Ministry of Environment plans to spend
MNT5 billion next year for combating air pollution in the capital city, said the ministry’s
head of natural resource management, D. Davaasambuu. The Jargaltulga Erdenebat
cabinet has also ordered the use of gas engines over diesel for public buses to cut down on
emissions.
Source: Undesnii Shuudan
RUSSIAN RAILWAYS LAUNCHES TRAIN SERVICE FOR CHINA–MONGOLIA–RUSSIA ROUTE
Russian Railways (RZD) in cooperation with SWIFT Transport International Logistic Co. has
launched the first container train from China to the European part of Russia, via Mongolia.
The train composed of 57 conventional wagons loaded with consumer goods, electric
equipment and car parts traveled from Tianjin Port to Vorsino railway station in Kaluga
region. The lead time, including Ereen-Zamin-Uud (China-Mongolia) and Sukhbaatar-
Naushki (Mongolia -Russia) border crossings, is 10 days.
The project aims to develop economic cooperation between Russia, China and Mongolia, in
framework of Eurasia’s Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
Source: Think Railways
CHINA’S EXPORT HIKES TAKE EFFECT AT THREE BORDER POINTS
A hike in customs fees by the Chinese government that took effect this month will affect
goods crossing three land port borders between Mongolia and China, according to
government official D. Ganbold. The tax on coal passing through the Gashuun Sukhait,
Bichigt and Shivee Khuren ports has been raised from CNY5.2 to CNY8 per ton, beginning
from 1 December. Deliveries of copper valued at above CNY10,000 will be taxed at 0.2
percent.
Source: Montsame
MONGOLIA PLANS TO GENERATE ENERGY FROM TRASH
Mongolia is enlisting partners from the Asian Development Bank, Austria and and Japan for
plans to build a processing plant to transform waste into energy. Planners hope to
generate 8 megawatts of energy from 150,000 tons of trash each year. The design would
be developed using standards from Singapore.
Source: Undesnii Shuudan
THOUSANDS AT RISK OF HOMELESSNESS FROM URBAN REDEVELOPMENT FAILINGS
Mongolian authorities’ are failing residents of Ulaanbaatar with an urban redevelopment
process that is putting thousands of people at risk of forced eviction and homelessness,
Amnesty International said. The 55-page policy briefing, “Falling Short: The Right to
Adequate Housing in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia” highlights the plight of residents in Mongolia’s

9. capital and reviews an urban redevelopment agenda that is marred by a lack of
information on eviction, compensation and resettlement. “Families are living in fear that
they will be left homeless as a result of urban redevelopment. The authorities are falling
short in their responsibilities to protect residents’ rights,” said Nicholas Bequelin, East Asia
Director at Amnesty International.
The current redevelopment plan for Ulaanbaatar is focused on 24 ger areas where
approximately 9 percent of the city’s 1.3 million residents live and public housing which is
deemed unsafe or structurally unsound.
Read the full report here.
Source: Amnesty International
ONCE BOOMING, MONGOLIA'S ECONOMY VEERS FROM RICHES TO RAGS
Inside Mongolia's largest open-air market in the capital city of Ulaanbaatar, it doesn't feel
like the economy is on the brink of collapse. Alleyways are packed with people selling
carpets, fabric, clothes and more. Everyone here seems to have a riches-to-rags story.
"Business is terrible," says candy seller Erdenejargal. "More and more people are
unemployed and they can't afford anything. They ask me about the prices. I tell them.
They leave."
Bontoi Mogi , who runs the market intelligence firm Cover Mongolia, says an International
Monetary Fund (IMF) emergency bailout won't be enough to prevent Mongolia from
defaulting on billions of dollars worth of loans. Some of that debt is owed to its neighbor,
China—whose economic and political influence many Mongolians fear, but seems poised to
loan even more money to Mongolia. "Despite our public fear of China, what our politicians
do is go to China," Mogi said.
Source: NPR
AMID ECONOMIC CRISIS, MONGOLIANS RISK THEIR LIVES FOR DO-IT-YOURSELF MINING
On a hillside overlooking the steppes, an entire family shovels jet-black chunks of coal into
a truck. Every half-hour or so, they fire up a machine that steadily pulls a steel cable
attached to what looks like a roller-coaster car emerging from a hole in the ground. It
takes five minutes before it arrives full of more coal. “The leather factory I worked at
went bankrupt,” says Enkhbat, 47, as he wipes sweat from his face.
A 2014 report by the San Francisco-based Asia Foundation estimated that one in five rural
Mongolians—100,000 people—are mining coal and gold on their own to make ends meet.
Such mining is legal with the proper license, but Nalaikh’s abandoned mines are filled with
several unlicensed brigades that are mining illegally. According to official figures, about a
dozen workers die inside these mines each year, but the actual number is likely much
higher.
Source: OPB.org
FIRST FROST ON BORDER BETWEEN CHINA AND MONGOLIA
A border zone with the Xinjian Uyghur Autonomous Region in China has seen its first frost
of the year. Winter in this region is especially cold, and frosts occur quite frequently. Last
Sunday, the 183rd regiment of the 10th division on the border between China and Mongolia
was covered in frost for the first time this winter due to a sudden drop in temperature.
Source: Global Times

10. MINERS AND STUDENTS EVACUATED FROM EARTHQUAKE
Authorities evacuated more than 700 people from areas throughout Umnugobi Aimag on 2
December, following earthquakes measuring between 1.5 and 3.8 magnitude. Some 20
tremors were reported by the National Emergency Management agency. Electrical power
was cut for several hours at the Tsogttsetsii Soum, located near the Tavan Tolgoi coal
mine, as a result of the earthquake.
Source: News.mn
JAPAN PROVIDES GRANT TO OVERHAUL SCHOOL AND KINDERGARTEN BUILDINGS
Japanese outgoing Ambassador T. Shimizu is capping off his stay here with the complete
overhauls of a kindergarten and two secondary schools. The USD205,498 project is part of
Japan’s “Grassroots – Human Security Project,” (GGP) and will include the construction of
school buildings and dorms at Khongor Soum, Darkhan-Uul and Tudevtei Soum, Zavkhan
Aimag. The kindergarten will be build at Saintsagaan Soum, Dundgobi Aimag. Construction
is expected to complete by September 2017 "Upon my completion as ambassador of Japan
to Mongolia, I am very pleased that my final duty is to sign a GGP,” said Shimizu.
During his tenure as ambassador, Shimizu brought many investment and loans to Mongolia,
including USD700 million in soft loans to construct the new Ulaanbaatar international
airport under construction at Khushig valley and USD80 million in aid to build a hospital for
the University of Medical Sciences. He also directed USD50 million worth of loans to 1,000
Mongolian engineers to study in Japan.
Source: Mongolia.GoGo.mn
ARCHEOLOGY SHEDS LIGHT ON MONGOLIA’S UNCERTAIN NOMADIC FUTURE
Around the world, traditional subsistence practices provide a resilient source of ecological
knowledge that improves humanity’s ability to respond to environmental crises. In Central
Asia, a herding lifestyle practiced for millennia is increasingly threatened by the speed and
magnitude of climate change. Although the global mean temperature is predicted to rise
by 2Celsius over the coming century, this trend will likely be more severe in high altitude
and high latitude environments.
It’s unclear exactly how the future may play out for nomads in eastern Eurasia.
Nonetheless, it seems unlikely that wet and productive environment that accompanied the
emergence of horse culture in the region will characterize the near future. As arid
conditions stretch further northward, many herders “caught between a desert and a cold
place.” As climate change endangers Mongolia’s herding traditions, it also threatens
ecological knowledge essential to our collective resilience to environmental disaster.
Source: The Guardian
POLITICS
PRESIDENT ISSUES DECREE FOR SOIL PRESERVATION
President Tsakhia Elbegdorj has ordered on soil protection and the establishment of a day
for officially recognizing the importance of this issue. The decree came in observation of
World Soil Day on 5 December. The president ordered the creation of a program with
short-medium- and long-term goals and laws for protecting soil. He also ordered data be
collected annually to monitor the quality of soil in the country.
Source: Unuudur

11. ECONOMIC POLICY COUNCIL RE-ORGANIZED
Prime Minister Jargaltulga Erdenebat has ordered the restructuring of Mongolia’s Economic
Policy to better align it with the current government and its aims to heal the ailing
economy. The council is mainly responsible for working with government and the private
sector to develop economic policy and resolving issues. The adjunct council is led by the
prime minister of Mongolia and includes representatives of the National Statistics Office,
the Bank of Mongolia, the Mongolian National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the
Confederation of Employers, the National Council of Promoting Private Sector, the
Institute of Economic Research and Sciences and the National University of Mongolia.
The Business Council of Mongolia is also represented on the Economic Council.
Source: Montsame
MONGOLIA RATIFIES THE TRADE FACILITATION AGREEMENT
Mongolia has ratified a World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement that could reportedly
boost global merchandise exports by USD1 trillion a year by slashing trade costs and
cutting red tape at the border. Mongolia and Dominica’s ratifications leaves just 10 more
ratifications needed to bring the Trade Facilitation Agreement into force,. Dominica’s and
Mongolia’s instruments of acceptance were submitted to the WTO on 28 November.
Besides benefiting existing traders, implementing the agreement is foreseen to help new
firms export for the first time. The agreement is expected to increase the number of new
products exported as much as 20 percent for developing countries, by 35 percent for lesser
developed countries.
Source: Montsame
MONGOLIAN DEMOCRATIC PARTY HOLDS FIRST CONVENTION IN A DECADE
The Democratic Party held its first party convention in a decade to discuss party reforms
after a devastating defeat last June. The Democrats currently have just 9 members in
Parliament compared with its majority from 2012 to 2016. In total, 1,210 delegates
attended the convention, including 450 elected officials.
Also on the agenda was the appointment of a new party leader to succeed former MP
Enkhbold Zandaakhuu, who failed to win back his seat in the parliamentary elections.
Candidates include a former senior advisor to President Elbegdorj Tsakhia. Tsagaan P.
Erdenebat D., Bold L., Erdene S., Batzandan J., Gantumur L., and Batkhuu G.
Source: News.mn
MONGOLIAN NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY LEADER RESIGNS
The leader of the National Democratic Party, Enkhsaikhan Mendsaikhan has resigned
following his appointment as ambassador to Sweden. Enkhsaikhan will be succeeded by
Tsoggerel B. after the party failed to win any seats in the parliamentary elections last
June.
Source: News.mn
OPERA SINGER APPOINTED AS CULTURAL ENVOY
Opera singer E. Amartuvshin has been appointed as Mongolia’s cultural envoy. Amartuvshin
currently sings at the Mariinskii Theatre in St Petersburg. His career took off when he won
second place at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and won the
Audience Award at the BBC Singer of the World event in Cardiff.
A ceremony for the honor was held on 6 December. Mongolia has appointed cultural

12. representatives for government since 2015. Their responsibilities includes promoting
cultural, historic, humanitarian and scientific relations around the world.
Source: News.mn
MONGOLIAN POP SINGER BECOMES UNICEF SPECIAL ENVOY
Mongolian State Laureate and pop singer Bold D. has been appointed as a special envoy of
the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) for the fight against air pollution. ‘I will rise a voice
against air pollution and invigorate other parents like me,” said Bold, who is best known as
leader of the Mongolian boy band Camerton at a ceremony for his appointment.
Source: News.mn
MONGOLIAN AND RUSSIAN JUSTICE MINISTRIES SIGN COOPERATION PROGRAM
Mongolia has signed a cooperation agreement with Russia’s Ministry of Justice. The
minister of justice and home affairs Byambatsogt S., signed the agreement for 2017 and
2018 during a visit to Russia this week.
Source: Montsame
RUSSIAN DIPLOMAT 'BEAT MONGOLIAN RAPPER OVER SWASTIKA OUTFIT'
A top Mongolian rapper was beaten into a coma by a Russian diplomat after wearing a
swastika on stage, his lawyer and family have claimed. Amarmandakh Sukhbaatar was
performing in the country's capital Ulaanbaatar when the alleged attack took place.
Russian news reports said he was hit over the head with a bottle and repeatedly kicked in
the face. The Russian embassy said it was investigating, but called local press reports
"distorted."
The rapper had taken to the stage in a red deel embroidered with a swastika. Though
associated with the Nazis, the swastika is a traditional symbol in Mongolia that pre-dates
Hitler. Sukhbaatar's father, Sevjidi Sukhbaatar, told a news conference that his son spent
about 10 days in a coma after the beating.
The Russian official accused of attacking the rapper has not been identified. Lawyer
Gankhuugiin Batbayar said the suspect in the beating had not been arrested, adding: "[He]
must be investigated according to Mongolian law, no matter his status or immunity as a
diplomat."
Source: BBC
RUSSIAN GROUND FORCES TO HOLD DRILLS WITH MONGOLIA AND MORE
Russian Ground Forces plan to hold joint drills with forces of India, Pakistan, Mongolia,
Vietnam and Nicaragua in 2017, the Defense Ministry told journalists on Thursday. "In
2017, it is planned to hold drills of formations and units of the Ground Forces in six joint
military drills of peacekeeping and anti-terrorist course, with formations of the Armed
Forces of India, Mongolia, Vietnam, Nicaragua and Pakistan, as well as with formations of
the Armed Forces of CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organization) member countries,"
the ministry said.
The Russian Defense Ministry reminded that last year joint international drills were held
with the Armed Forces of Mongolia, India, SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization) and
CSTO member countries — "Selenga-2016," "Indra-2016," "Peaceful Mission — 2016,"
"Indestructible Brotherhood — 2016," "Frontier-2016," as well as the joint Russian-Pakistani
mountainous drills "Friendship-2016."
Source: Tass.com

13. MONGOLIA, FIJI NAMED AS JOINT WINNERS OF GLOBAL INCLUSION AWARD
Mongolia was recently announced as the joint winner of the 2016 Global Inclusion Award in
Stockholm Sweden on 28 November, along with Fiji, for the Asia & Pacific region during
the 2016 global inclusion awards. The global inclusion awards is an initiative of the Child
Youth & Finance International to recognize and honor governments, financial service
providers, civil society organizations, institutions, initiatives, and individuals for advancing
economic empowerment of young people at a national, regional and international level.
Source: Fiji Times
STEPPE BY STEPPE: MONGOLIAN ANTHROPOLOGIST STUDIES A SOCIETY IN TRANSITION
Anthropologists often work best with one foot inside a society and one foot outside it:
They are steeped in a culture, but detached enough to analyze it. For Manduhai
Buyandelger, this vantage point is part of life itself. She is a Mongolian anthropologist at
MIT, whose work illuminates her home society and very much derives from her own
insider-outsider relationship to it. Buyandelger is a city dweller raised in downtown
Ulaanbaatar. Growing up in Mongolia during the Cold War, she attended Russian schools,
giving her an uncommon perspective on both her own nation and the Soviet regime that
was controlling it. “All these things gave me ways of thinking about diversity and cultural
differences,” Buyandelger said.
Her work reflects this. Buyandelger’s first book, “Tragic Spirits,” about the surprising
return of shamanism to post-Soviet Mongolia, concluded the return of older religious
practices was a way for Mongolians to re-establish their national identity. Her current book
project examines women in Mongolian politics, as they establish themselves in the rapidly
changing, free-market culture that has altered their social roles.
Source: MIT
THE DALAI LAMA IN MONGOLIA: 'TOURNAMENT OF SHADOWS' REBORN
The five-day visit by the Dalai Lama was called a religious event by the government of
Mongolia. In fact, the trip can be seen as the latest move in a geopolitical chess game that
has been going on since the 16th century. The Dalai Lama held a press conference where
he announced the recent rebirth of the Jebtsundampa Khatagt in Mongolia. The
Jebtsundampa Khatagt, meaning the “Reverend Noble Incarnate Lama,” is the traditional
title bestowed upon the patriarchs of Mongolian Buddhism.
The newly born Tenth Patriarch is believed to be a reincarnation of a highly placed lama or
tulku in a lineage that had nearly been extinguished in the early 20th century. The
announcement puts into play a geopolitical contest where the exiled Tibetan leader and
the Governments of Mongolia, China, and India all have a stake in its outcome, to varying
degrees.
M.A. Aldrich is a lawyer, author and resident for nearly 30 years in East and Central Asia.
His book Ulaanbaatar: Beyond Water and Grass is due to be published by Hong Kong
University Press next year.
Source: The Diplomat, Foreign Policy
JOB VACANCIES AT MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS
1. University of the Humanities hiring Human Resource Manager and English Language
Instructor. Deadline for application: 19 Dec 2016. For more information, please contact at

14. humanresources@humanities.mn
Please click here to view full list of Job Vacancies at member organizations.
MEMBER-TO-MEMBER SPECIAL OFFERS & BENEFITS:
- Orchuulga 24 is providing 15% discount on written translation services to BCM Members
- MNC HD TV offers BCM members 20% discount from the fee to be showcased in their “The
Story of Business/Бизнесийн түүх” TV program.
- American University of Mongolia is offering BCM members a 20% discount on all of ELI
Summer Courses.
- Matoza LLC is offering 15% special discount to BCM members on Intensive Business English
Language Course in Poland with a Sightseeing Trip.
Please click here to view full list of Member-to-Member special offers & Benefits.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
INFLATION
Year 2006 6.0% [source: National Statistical Office of Mongolia (NSOM)]
Year 2007 *15.1% [source: NSOM]
Year 2008 *22.1% [source: NSOM]
Year 2009 *4.2% [source: NSOM]
Year 2010 *13.0% [source: NSOM]
Year 2011 *10.2% [source: NSOM]
Year 2012 *14.0% [source: NSOM]
Year 2013 *12.5% [source: NSOM]
Year 2014 *11.0% [source: NSOM]
Year 2015 *1.9% [source: NSOM]
September 30, 2016 *-0.1% [source: NSOM]
*Year-over-year (y-o-y), nationwide
Note: -0.7% y-o-y - Ulaanbaatar City, September 30, 2016
CENTRAL BANK POLICY LOAN RATE
December 31, 2008 9.75% [source: IMF]
March 11, 2009 14.00% [source: IMF]
May 12, 2009 12.75% [source: IMF]
June 12, 2009 11.50% [source: IMF]
September 30, 2009 10.00% [source: IMF]
May 12, 2010 11.00% [source: IMF]
April 28, 2011 11.50% [source: IMF]
August 25, 2011 11.75% [source: IMF]
October 25, 2011 12.25% [source: IMF]
March 19, 2012 12.75% [source: Mongol Bank]
April 18, 2012 13.25% [source: Mongol Bank]
January 25, 2013 12.50% [source: Mongol Bank]

15. April 8, 2013 11.50% [source: Mongol Bank]
June 25, 2013 10.50% [source: Mongol Bank]
July 30, 2014 12.00% {source: Mongol Bank}
January 14, 2015 13.00% {source: Mongol Bank}
January 14, 2016 12.00% [source: Mongol Bank]
May 6, 2016 10.50% [source: Mongol Bank]
August 18, 2016 15.00% [source: Mongol Bank]
CURRENCY RATES – 8 DECEMBER 2016
Currency Rate
U.S. dollar USD 2,475.65
Euro EUR 2,664.54
Japanese yen JPY 21.79
British pound GBP 3,129.47
Hong Kong dollar HKD 319.19
Chinese Yuan CNY 359.82
Russian Ruble RUB 39.03
South Korean Won KRW 2.13