VN coffee industry feeling the heat from lower pricesVietNamNet Bridge - Since Vietnam mostly exports raw coffee instead of processed products, the sharp coffee price fall in the world market has had immediate impact on its exporters and growers. Coffee merchants said if the coffee price still stays at the low level for this crop, coffee growers may not continue growing coffee. There are over 150 coffee exporters, but only a few process coffee and export coffee products under their brands. “Building up Vietnamese high-quality coffee brand is an important solution to ensure the sustainable and effective development of Vietnam’s coffee value chain,” he said. RELATED NEWSNestle’s capsule coffee production gives push to Vietnam’s coffee industryVietnam’s coffee industry relies on merchantsKim Chi

Vietnam makes biotechnology progressAn international workshop organised by HCM City Open University discusses challenges facing the field of agricultural biotechnology. (Photo courtesy of the Open University)Vietnam’s rapid progress in research and application of biotechnology in agriculture is contributing to the country’s goals for green growth and farmers’ demands, according to experts. Nguyen Ngoc Bao Chau of the HCM City Open University’s Faculty of Biotechnology said that in the last five years “many institutes, universities, centres and startups in the country including HCM City have conducted research and developed effective applications for biotechnology in agriculture”. Chau was speaking on the sidelines of an international workshop on agricultural biotechnology held on August 29 by HCM City Open University. At the workshop, researchers, scientists, and students from universities in Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam gave presentations about their research.

The guest expressed his support for ASEAN’s one-stop shop mechanism which, he said, will facilitate technological application and trade. HCM City and various Japanese localities have fostered the exchange of delegations, cooperation activities, and experience sharing in smart city development and urban management, he added. Trade turnover between the Vietnamese city and Japan hit over 5 billion USD in 2017. According to the diplomat, with the rising position in the global arena, Vietnam hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Meeting in 2017. ASEAN economic ministers are due to meet with their counterparts from dialogue partner countries namely Australia, Canada, China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Russia and the US.

350kg bomb destroyed successfully in Yen BaiAuthorities of Yen Bai province on August 29 successfully deactivated a bomb weighing 350 kilogrammes. Authorities of Yen Bai province on August 29 successfully deactivated a bomb dropped during the US bombing of northern Vietnam from 1968-1970s. The bomb was discovered in Tan Thanh village, Yen Thai commune, Van Yen district. The provincial Military High Command’s sappers said the US-made bomb was dropped during the US bombing of northern Vietnam from 1968-1970s. Vietnam has already cleared hundreds of thousands of hectares of UXOs so far.-VNA

Miss University 2018 contest opensThe Miss University Vietnam 2018 contest was launched in Hanoi on August 29 for students aged 18-24 nationwide. Miss University 2017 Pham Thi Thu Ha (Source: hoakhoisinhvien.vn)Contestants can register from now until November 2 through the website hoakhoisinhvien.vn or at 64 Ba Trieu street, Hanoi. The contest offers total prize money of 500 million VND (21,500 USD). The winner will receive 200 million VND, while the runner-up will get 100 million VND, while the girl in third will win 50 million VND. Miss University Vietnam was launched in 2014 and has been held annually since.

President’s visits to Ethiopia, Egypt create momentum for bilateral tiesPresident Tran Dai Quang’s state visits to Ethiopia and Egypt from August 23-28 have created new momentum for bilateral relations between Vietnam and the two countries, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Vu Hong Nam has said. Nam stressed that the main purpose of President Quang’s visits was to forge economic, trade, and investment cooperation with Ethiopia and Egypt. During the visits, Vietnam signed several cooperation documents with the two countries, covering trade, agriculture, finance, oil, training, and cooperation between localities. At the end of the visits, Vietnam and the two countries issued joint statements chalking up major orientations to boost bilateral ties in the future, the Deputy Minister said. President’s visits to Ethiopia, Egypt record upbeat outcomesVietnamese President Tran Dai Quang and his spouse arrived in Hanoi on August 29 morning, rounding off their successful state visits to Ethiopia and Egypt.

Japan ICT Day 2018 opens in Hanoi to promote VN-Japan cooperationThe Japan ICT Day 2018 was opened in Hanoi on August 29, themed “Vietnam-Japan IT Cooperation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”At the opening ceremony (Source: http://congthuong.vn)The event is hosted by the Vietnam Software and IT Services Association (VINASA) and the Vietnam-Japan IT Cooperation Club as part of activities to celebrate the 45th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic ties. According to the Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Japan is currently facing a shortage of about 171,000 engineers, and is likely to lack a total 369,000 engineers – including 48,000 in the technology sector – by 2020. Held in Hanoi and Da Nang from August 27-31, the Japan ICT Day 2018 event has attracted 350 domestic and foreign delegates, including eight delegates from Japan. During the event, updated reports on the development of IT cooperation between Vietnam and Japan will be released. Japan ICT Day was first organised in 2007 and has been the best platform for Vietnam and Japanese companies seeking business co-operation opportunities over the past 10 years.

Da Nang – most popular summer destination for RoK touristsDa Nang city in central Vietnam is the most popular summer vacation destination of tourists from the Republic of Korea (RoK) this year, a shift from last year’s preference for Japanese cities. Son Tra Peninsula - a tourist destination in Da Nang cityThe RoK media quoted e-commerce website Ticket Monster (TMON) as saying that flight ticket sales in the July-August period showed Da Nang as the top foreign travel location. In this website’s rankings, Da Nang is followed by the Japanese destinations of Osaka and Fukuoka. Da Nang has emerged as a destination of leisure, media and spiritual tourism, as well as entertainment and shopping activities, and a venue of conferences. It welcomed more than 4 million tourists in the first half of 2018, surging by almost 30 percent year on year.

Hue airport expansion to cost ACV US$95 mlnThe Aviation Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) and local authorities in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue have agreed to invest 95 million USD in the expansion and upgrade of Phu Bai Airport. The two parties agreed in a meeting on August 28 that the investment would support a construction project of a new terminal and expanding the aircraft’s parking space.The new terminal, the airport’s second, will be constructed on a total area of 16,500sq.m. It will have two levels to facilitate arrivals and departures. The terminal will include a parking lot and a green park.The expanded aircraft parking yard will accommodate eight planes at the same time.ACV will cover the total cost of 2.2 trillion VND (95 million USD) while local authorities will provide clear land for construction.ACV official Le Xuan Tung said the process of terminal design and contractor selection is ongoing for work to commence by the second quarter of 2019.According to Phan Ngoc Tho, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, site clearance will begin next month and clear land will be ready for the work in the first quarter of next year.Construction work is expected to last 18 months.Once completed, the expanded Phu Bai Airport will accommodate five million passengers a year, one fourth of which foreign visitors.The airport is the only airline gateway for locals and visitors from Hue to reach Ha Noi, HCM City and Da Lat on daily flights operated by the national carrier Vietnam Airlines and budget carriers Jetstar Pacific and VietJetAir.-VNS

ASIAD 2018: Vietnam ranked 13th on 11th dayEarning two gold and three silver medals in Pencak Silat on October 29, Vietnam jumped to the 13th place in the medal tally on the 11th day of the ongoing Asian Games 2018 in Jakarta. Pencak Silat athletes Tran Dinh Nam and Nguyen Van Tri grabbed the gold medals for their performance in the men’s Tanding 70-75 kg and 90-95 kg.Meanwhile, the women’s team, consisting of Nguyen Thi Thu Ha, Nguyen Thi Huyen and Vuong Thi Binh, secured a silver medal after earning 464 points in the final round of Seni (artistic) event.Two more silver medals were pocketed by Nguyen Thi Cam Nhi in the women’s Tanding 60-65kg event and Nguyen Thai Linh in the men’s Tanding 55-60 kg event.Overall, the Pencak Silat team concluded its ASIAD participation on August 29, winning two gold, seven silver, and three bronze medals.The same day, Vietnam’s Olympic football squad lost to the Republic of Korea 1-3 in the semifinal match. The team will continue to compete for the bronze medal in their upcoming match on September 1 against UAE, who was defeated 0-1 by Japan.As of 10 pm on August 29, Vietnam had bagged 4 gold, 15 silver, and 13 bronze medals. Vietnam was previously in the 20th place, with two gold, 11 silver and 13 bronze medals recorded as of 10 pm of August 28.-VNA

The firm plans to allow all content creators to feature advertising breaks, so long as they hit certain metrics. Another report noted that although some Watch shows had attracted audiences numbering in their millions, they often struggled to retain them. "This seems to be a pattern with most Facebook Watch shows: lots of people sample, few return," wrote Verne Gay for Newsday. The BBC is not providing original content to Facebook Watch, but has not ruled out doing so in the future. "We've got a strong track record collaborating and experimenting with social media platforms to engage with BBC audiences," said a spokesman.

New circular to help boost Vietnam-China border tradeA newly-issued circular on foreign exchange management is expected to promote border trade between Vietnam and China. Payment can be made through banks or in cash in dong or yuan, according to the circular. Vietnam has seven provinces sharing the border with China, including Lang Son, Quang Ninh, Ha Giang, Lai Chau, Lao Cai, Cao Bang and Dien Bien. The Chinese yuan and Vietnamese dong are only used for payment in border areas of these provinces. Vietnam has overtaken Malaysia to become the largest trade partner of China in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Female scientist dreams of finding medicine to treat Alzheimer’sVietNamNet Bridge - Dr Tran Thi Phuong Thao from the Hanoi University of Pharmacy is synthetizing new Glutaminyl cyclase enzyme-inhibiting derivatives to treat one of the causes of Alzheimer's. The research Thao is pursuing is synthetizing the substances that inhibit Glutaminyl cyclace (QC), the enzyme in the human body involved in disease formation. The research Thao is pursuing is synthetizing the substances that inhibit Glutaminyl cyclace (QC), the enzyme in the human body involved in disease formation. When carrying out the research, Thao does not think she must succeed. RELATED NEWSFemale scientist helps create camera for space satelliteVN female scientist receives L’Oreal-UNESCO prize for nano silver researchThanh Mai

Thanh An Island, a hidden beautyVietNamNet Bridge – Not a tourist destination famous for beautiful landscapes, Thanh An Island in Can Gio District, 70km from the centre of HCM City, is nevertheless attracting more and more local and foreign visitors thanks to its peacefulness and wildness. Island time: More and more local and foreign tourists come to Thanh An Island in HCM City’s Can Gio District for its peacefulness and wildness. Visitors can catch a boat to Thanh An from Can Thanh Town from the ferry terminal located next to a Co-op supermarket. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh VuHave it all: Indulging in nature and tasting fresh seafood-- what more could you want? — VNA/VNS Photo Manh LinhOcean’s bounty: Visitors should not miss fresh and cheap seafood on Thanh An Island.

Should Vietnam accept small foreign-invested projects? The five largest FDI projects in the first seven months of the year had average registered capital of $25-70 million. Meanwhile, some foreign investors registered projects capitalized at several thousands of dollars only. J&P, a consultancy firm, for example, has registered capital of $3,000, Learntalk Vietnam from the Philippines $3,000, and Streamy from Ireland $2,600. The five largest FDI projects in the first seven months of the year had average registered capital of $25-70 million.