Economy
Protesters Challenge Oil Exploration in Kherlen Tohoi Block
Published: 2026-08-15
A protest on August 14 opposed oil exploration in the Kherlen Tohoi XXVIII block, spanning areas of Dornod and Sukhbaatar provinces, as Mongolia seeks crude supplies for the refinery being built in Altanshiree soum, Dornogovi Province. Activists G. Solongo and G. Adilbish, joined by a small number of local residents, went to the exploration site to oppose drilling and entered the camp facilities, according to reports. Matad soum’s governor ordered Mongolia Foyson Energy to vacate the land by August 17, alleging unauthorized land use and construction of temporary accommodation. The company signed a production-sharing contract with the Mineral Resources and Petroleum Authority on November 21, 2024, and plans to invest US$49.7 million over eight years, including geological and seismic surveys and 13 exploration wells. The refinery is targeted for commissioning in 2028.
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Government Begins Review to Streamline Routine Business Permits
Published: 2026-08-15
The government has begun oversight work intended to make routine permits faster and less bureaucratic for individuals and legal entities. Under Resolution No. 329, adopted on August 5, 2025, the Cabinet approved an action plan to implement the Economic Freedom Law and amendments to the Investment Law and the Permits Law adopted alongside it. The Government Control Agency is monitoring how authorities nationwide issue permits classified as simple permits under the Permits Law. In Ulaanbaatar, a working group will conduct reviews from August 12 to 21; it presented its guidelines and directions on August 15. The review is intended to ensure that authorized bodies deliver these services promptly and without unnecessary administrative procedures, supporting a better operating environment for businesses.
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State Budget Spending Rises MNT 2.6 Trillion in First Seven Months
Published: 2026-08-15
Mongolia’s consolidated state budget collected MNT 19.8 trillion in revenue and grants during the first seven months of 2026, according to preliminary National Statistics Office figures. The office reported that revenue was 19.6 percent higher than in the same period a year earlier, and separately reported an increase of MNT 3.3 trillion. Balanced revenue and grants reached MNT 17.3 trillion, while total expenditure and net lending totaled MNT 19.5 trillion, producing a MNT 2.2 trillion balanced-budget deficit. The office reported expenditure was 15.5 percent higher year on year and separately reported a MNT 2.6 trillion increase. Tax revenue totaled MNT 16 trillion; social insurance contributions, value-added tax, and income tax rose, while excise-tax receipts fell 16.2 percent. Goods and services, capital expenditure, and current transfers also increased.
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Ulaanbaatar Consumer Prices Fall as Meat and Potato Costs Decline
Published: 2026-08-15
Average prices for essential consumer goods in Ulaanbaatar were 1.1 percent lower than the previous week and 2 percent lower than the previous month as of August 10, the National Statistics Office reported. Bone-in mutton fell 1 percent to MNT 27,063 per kilogram, while boneless beef sold for MNT 37,223 per kilogram and bone-in beef fell 0.9 percent to MNT 32,230. Domestic potatoes recorded the sharpest cited change, declining 18.2 percent from MNT 3,523 to MNT 2,883 per kilogram. Other major consumer prices in the capital were stable week on week. In provincial markets, flour, sugar and diesel prices increased, while meat, dairy products and rice prices edged down. The reports said essential-goods prices are expected to rise alongside petroleum-product prices as economic growth moves into double digits.
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Infrastructure
Ulaanbaatar Enforces Odd-Even License Rule Through September 12
Published: 2026-08-15
Ulaanbaatar began an odd-even vehicle license-plate restriction on August 15 as the city prepares for the new school year and the UN Convention to Combat Desertification COP17 conference. The rule applies across the capital’s six central districts, without zone-based limits, from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. through September 12. Vehicles with odd final plate digits may travel on August 15, 17, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29 and 31, and September 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. Even-numbered vehicles may travel on August 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28 and 30, and September 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12. Green-plate electric vehicles, public transport, compliant taxis, authorized food-delivery vehicles, diplomatic transport, school and employer buses, utility vehicles, funeral vehicles, and identified media vehicles are exempt.
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COP17 Brings Parking Closures Around Major Ulaanbaatar Markets
Published: 2026-08-15
Parking areas at the Narantuul and Dunjingarav trade centers will close temporarily during COP17, while the parking area at the Shine 100 Ail trade center will close completely. The restrictions are linked to the 17th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. Only public transport and emergency-service vehicles may enter the closed parking areas. Traffic will also be restricted on roads between the southwest junction of Dunjingarav trade center and the junction connecting it to East General’s First Street; from Narantuul’s southwest side to the southeast junction of Uguumur Market; and between the southwest sides of Narantuul and Dunjingarav. Additional short-route buses will operate on Officer-Narantuul-Dunjingarav and 120 Myangat-Home Plaza-Narantuul-Dunjingarav routes.
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Society
Police Find Missing 10-Year-Old’s Body in Khovd Province
Published: 2026-08-15
Police found the body of a 10-year-old girl on August 14, nearly two weeks after she was reported missing in Norjinkhairkhan bagh, Buyant soum, Khovd Province. The girl left home on foot at about 9:00 a.m. on August 1, saying she was going to help harvest watermelons; her disappearance was reported at 8:40 p.m. on August 2. Police have detained two people from a neighboring household as suspects. One report said the suspects told investigators the girl had been struck by a tractor and indicated a burial site in a vegetable field. Scene examination and the investigation, including work by officers sent from Ulaanbaatar, are continuing. Whether the suspects’ account is true and the girl’s cause of death will be determined from the autopsy conclusion and investigation results.
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Environment
Four Rivers Exceed Flood Stage as Water Levels Rise
Published: 2026-08-15
Several rivers in Mongolia were above flood stage on August 15, according to the latest hydrological report. The Tuul River at Lun soum, the Sugnugur River near Sugnugur resort, the Baydrag River in Bayanburd bagh of Buutsagaan soum, and the Kharkhiraa River in Tarialan soum were each 5 to 20 centimeters above flood level. Separately, water levels on the Balj River at Dadal soum, the Ulz River at Bayan-Uul soum, and the Sugnugur and Tuul rivers at Bosgo rose by 5 to 20 centimeters from the previous day. The report described the Balj and Ulz as fed by the eastern slopes of the Khentii Mountains, while the Sugnugur and Tuul were fed by its western slopes. Authorities urged people traveling, camping, or staying near river basins to take flood precautions.
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