Young Lao Chess Team Wins 12 Medals from Singapore

Laos continues working to develop chess among younger generations.  A group of young Lao players has returned from Singapore with 12 medals after gaining international experience against competitors from across Asia and beyond. Team Laos competed in the 24th ASEAN+ Age Group Chess Championships from 7 to 17 August, earning wins across six podium finishes in Standard, Rapid and Blitz events. The Lao delegation included 24 players, who competed against young chess players from Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, India, New Zealand and other countries. In the Open U18 Standard team event, Kayden Sunjon Nguyen, Michael Sean Manalo and Kaysone Thongmanivong won bronze. The Girls U18 team of Alana Kittikhoun, Ryzia Lei Zheysha Suelo and...

Economy

Laos Economy Grows 5% in Year’s First Half, Government Holds to 6% Target

Laos’ economy expanded 5 percent in the first half of 2026, helped by a strong tourism season and growth in services, but slowed in the second quarter as the...

Attapeu Looks to Job Support as School Dropouts Rise

Attapeu is expanding its employment services as the province seeks to respond to labor shortages and help people who have left school find work, according to provincial media.   At a...

Laos Moves to Update Electricity Law for Energy Sector Shift

Laos is moving to update its electricity sector as the government prepares to adopt a revised Electricity Law aimed at supporting a greener, more modern and sustainable energy system. The...

Laos Cuts 7-Day Base Interest Rate to 7% as Economic Risks Persist

The Bank of Laos (BOL) has cut its seven-day base interest rate from 8 percent to 7 percent a year as inflation remains below the government’s 8 percent target. The...

Prime Minister Calls for Tighter Oversight of Boten SEZ Amid Development Challenges

Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone has called for stronger management of the Boten Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Luang Namtha as Laos seeks to expand the border area as a...

Laos-China Railway Trade Surges as Cross-Border Freight Hits New Highs

Trade along the Laos-China Railway continued to grow sharply in the first half of 2026, with imports and exports reaching CYN 17.17 billion (USD 2.53 billion), up 33.8 percent...

Travel

US Court Strikes Down 75-Country Visa Pause, but Ruling Does Not Lift Laos Travel Ban

A US federal judge has struck down a Trump administration policy that paused immigrant visa processing for nationals of 75 countries, including Laos. The ruling, issued on 21 August by US District Judge Jeannette Vargas in Manhattan, found that the State Department had exceeded its legal authority by stopping consular officers from individually assessing applicants and instead suspending visa issuance based on nationality. But the decision does not lift the separate US travel restrictions currently covering Lao nationals. Laos remains subject to a partial entry and visa suspension under a Presidential Proclamation issued by President Donald Trump in June 2025. That means the court ruling does not, by itself, reopen the US immigrant...

Laos Targets 6 Million Visitors in 2026 as Chinese Arrivals Projected at 2 Million

Laos expects to welcome between 5 and 6 million international tourists in 2026, with Chinese visitors projected to account for around 2 million of that total, according to government estimates. The numbers will be...

International Tourism in Laos Surges 13 Percent in First 10 Months of 2025

Laos welcomed nearly 3.8 million international tourists in the first ten months of 2025, a 13 percent increase compared to the same period in 2024. In figures released on 7 December, the Tourism Development...

Health & Environment

Young Lao Chess Team Wins 12 Medals from Singapore

Laos continues working to develop chess among younger generations.  A group of young Lao players has returned from Singapore with 12 medals after gaining international experience against competitors from across Asia and beyond. Team Laos competed in the 24th ASEAN+ Age Group Chess Championships from 7 to 17 August, earning wins across six podium finishes in Standard, Rapid and Blitz events. The Lao delegation included 24 players, who competed against young chess players from Singapore, Vietnam, the Philippines, India, New Zealand and...

Sport

Young Lao Chess Team Wins 12 Medals from Singapore

Laos continues working to develop chess among younger generations.  A group of young Lao players has returned from Singapore with 12 medals after gaining international experience against competitors from across Asia and beyond. Team Laos...

Laos Asks Police to Probe Suspected Match-Fixing at ASEAN Cup, Details Still Unclear

The Lao Football Federation (LFF) has reported suspected match-fixing by national team players to police, following the team’s four straight losses at the ASEAN Hyundai Cup 2026. The letter, dated 7 August, said the...

Politics

Laos National Assembly President Xaysomphone Phomvihane Dies at 69

Xaysomphone Phomvihane, President of Laos’ National Assembly and one of the country’s most senior political figures, has died aged...

Laos, Vietnam Set USD 4 Billion Trade Goal as Economic Ties Grow

Laos and Vietnam are pushing to take their economic partnership to the next level, with both countries targeting USD...

Trade, Energy, Tourism Drive Laos-Vietnam Economic Ties Past USD 1.3 Billion

Trade between Laos and Vietnam reached USD 1.305 billion during the first six months of 2026, as growing cross-border...

Laos Formalizes Shanghai Cooperation Organization Dialogue Partner Status

Laos has strengthened its regional ties after formally confirming its status as a Dialogue Partner of the Shanghai Cooperation...

Feature

Seven Lao Artists Are Taking Life Advice From Cats

Cats spend much of their day sleeping, stretching in the sun, at times hunting, or just watching the world go by. For a group of Lao artists, those habits have become the inspiration for art. Life feels busier than ever, and Laos is no exception. Seven artists in Laos have turned to cats to explore what many people seem to be searching for today: a little more freedom, self-acceptance and joy in the ordinary moments of everyday life. Their exhibition, Like a Cat's Tiny Life, running until 31 July at The Tamper Coffee & Studio in Vientiane, brings together paintings, illustrations and photography that ask a simple question: what can people learn from slowing down? Why Cats? “All seven of us wanted to create a small space filled with warmth through stories about cats. We wanted people to experience life through the artists’ small perspectives on cats,” artist Fanta Keomanila told The Laotian Times. For him, cats represent independence. He described them as animals that follow their own way, sleeping and resting when they choose and finding happiness in simple moments such as watching birds or lying in the warm sun, rather than conforming to...

Laos National Assembly President Xaysomphone Phomvihane Dies at 69

Xaysomphone Phomvihane, President of Laos’ National Assembly and one...

Laos, Vietnam Set USD 4 Billion Trade Goal as Economic Ties Grow

Laos and Vietnam are pushing to take their economic...

Trade, Energy, Tourism Drive Laos-Vietnam Economic Ties Past USD 1.3 Billion

Trade between Laos and Vietnam reached USD 1.305 billion...

Laos Formalizes Shanghai Cooperation Organization Dialogue Partner Status

Laos has strengthened its regional ties after formally confirming...

Railway Expansion, Education Reform Among Key Issues at National Assembly

Expanding the railway to southern Laos, rolling out a...