Ample room remains for Vietnam’s rice exports to Africa
HCMC – Given Africa’s need to import around 17.7 million tons of rice from now to the year-end, Vietnamese businesses have ample opportunity to boost rice exports to the African markets for the rest of the year, according to the Asia-Africa Market Department under the Ministry of Industry and
Over 20 banks lower deposit rates
HCMC – Over 20 banks have cut deposit interest rates, with the highest rate now set at 8.5% per year. The rate cuts followed the recent State Bank of Vietnam’s (SBV) interest rate reductions. Deposit interest rates are down by 0.5 percentage point for the tenor of less than six months. Meanwhile,
VND230 trillion mobilized for Covid-19 combat in 2020-2022
HCMC – More than VND230 trillion, or roughly US$10 billion, was mobilized to directly serve the Covid-19 prevention and control effort between 2020 and 2022, according to a report by a National Assembly (NA) supervisory delegation. The National Assembly spent a whole day today discussing
HCMC to improve public administration reform index
HCMC – HCMC authorities have rolled out a plan to improve the city’s public administration reform index (PAR index) and residential and business satisfaction with public services this year. The city People’s Committee has assigned departments, agencies of districts and Thu Duc City to build a plan
Vietnam’s outbound investments down in Jan-May
HCMC – Vietnamese businesses have poured US$316.4 million into their projects overseas in the past five months, down 6.5% against the same period last year, according to the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment. In the year till now, 47 new projects have received
Struggling to survive
As Vietnam’s apparel producers are grappling with excess inventory and declining orders, local manufacturers are having to move on in the face of financial constraints and weakening global demand. During an interview with The Saigon Times, Truong Van Cam, vice chairman and general secretary of the
Bringing back international travelers
Vietnam needs an effective short-term marketing campaign to attract international tourists from key source markets, especially those with untapped potential. Statistics from the General Statistics Office show that Vietnam gained revenue of around VND196,600 billion from serving 3.7 million
Achilles heel in tourism
Vietnam’s tourism industry has made only meager strides in diversifying its products despite years of growth. Many businesses have focused on developing new tourism products to attract visitors, especially since the country resumed tourism after the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result, more and more
Bright outlook amid monetary easing
Monetary policy is gradually shifting from tightening to easing again. Following the two interest rate cuts in late March, the central bank has signaled another rate reduction is coming. Money goes around flexibly Contrary to former concerns, the stock market was undergoing fairly positive
Biting the bullet
Flagging demand has compelled manufacturers to reduce their production and workforce. Shoe manufacturer PouYuen, which makes sneakers for global brands like Nike and Adidas, is reportedly set to cut nearly 6,000 jobs in HCMC. Working amidst worries According to a leader of PouYuen Vietnam Group,
Recovery unabated amid uncertainty
2023 looks to be a challenging year for the global economy, with global growth decelerating owing to monetary tightening and the Russia-Ukraine military conflict continuing to weigh on activity. Persistent inflation pressures, and now financial sector problems in the U.S. and Europe, are injecting
Off to a good start
The National Assembly Standing Committee reached a consensus to send the NA the draft of a resolution on piloting new policies for HCMC’s development at the fifth NA sitting that began on May 22, 2023. Apart from its endorsement of a new resolution as a replacement of Resolution 54 on a special
