SOE equitisation lets down investorsEven though the government has been trying its best to boost the equitisation of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to attract private investors over the past few years, the poor performance and small sales percentage of many such enterprises have disheartened many interested parties. Moreover, the particularly small rate of SOE stakes offered to foreign firms also makes it hard for foreign investors to engage in the operation of SOEs. Other stake holders include strategic investors (7.3 per cent), employees (1.6 per cent), trade unions (0.6 per cent), and other types of investors (9.4 per cent). What can foreign investors do after they buy their stakes? Foreign investors are facing many difficulties in participating in SOEs’ equitisation.

Fintech changes financial landscapeA handful of winners have been named in a large-scale fintech challenge, providing inspiration and opportunities for many other fintechs to capture. Vietnam can be very proud of these first-generation fintechs and, in the years to come, it can expect further innovative financial solutions, both from local and international fintech startups, to help it achieve a financial inclusion goal and nurture a fintech ecosystem. They will help promote the development of Vietnam’s fintech ecosystem through their innovative financial solutions.One of the judges at the FCV, Buncha Manoonkunchai, senior director of the financial technology department at Bank of Thailand, said that he sees great prospects on the country’s fintech horizon. And even though the infrastructure is not here yet, the ideas and the way they [fintech participants] think are so advanced. As such, a collaboration in fintech areas between countries, according to Manoonkunchai, could help Vietnam fulfil its financial inclusion goal and promote financial co-operation between Thailand and Vietnam, by using standards like standardised QR codes, for instance.A borderless fintech ecosystem seems attractive.

Of the total sales, 16.87 million tonnes were consumed domestically and 727,000 tonnes were exported. Coal inventories of the sector were around 7.35 million tonnes, down 1.66 million tonnes from the beginning of the year. In June, Vinacomin aims to produce 3.4 million tonnes of coal and sell 4 million tonnes, of which 3.77 tonnes will be sold to domestic customers and 230,000 tonnes exported, thus reducing the coal inventories to under 7 million tonnes. The group has revised its coal sale target from 36 million tonnes to 38 million tonnes in 2018. Of which, mining contracted 7.6% while processing and manufacturing increased 9.1% and electricity production and distribution expanded 11.2%.

VN Index falls, investors advised to buy equitiesVietNamNet Bridge - Investors have been advised to buy equities in the context of the bear market. It took four months for the VN Index to climb from 900 points last December to 1,200 points on April 9, 2018. When the VN Index dropped to the 900 point threshold, it met the resistance threshold, so the sell-offs will stop. First, in Vietnam’s stock market history, in 2009-2018, the VN Index never decreased by more than 20 percent. RELATED NEWSStock market thrives, expectations soar for “emerging market” statusVietnam’s stock market: it’s the age of mid-cap stocksChi Mai

Accordingly, shrimp importers must fully abide by SIMP’s requirements by December 31, 2018.Specifically, they must be US citizens with International Fisheries Trade Permit from NOAA, declare necessary data to ensure legal imports. Such data must be kept within two years.VASEP General Secretary Truong Dinh Hoe said the US has high demand for aquatic products, especially shrimp. It imports nearly 600,000 tonnes of shrimp for domestic consumption.However, Vietnam’s shrimp export to the US only accounts for 10 percent annually, or around 60,000 tonnes. Meanwhile, Vietnam could ship 150,000 tonnes to the country so that firms need to improve quality and competitiveness to expand their market share.VASEP has recently sent a document to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development suggesting measures for sustainable shrimp production and export. It asked the government to heed high-level diplomatic activities so that the US could rapidly lift trade barriers, especially anti-dumping taxes on shrimp.VNA

US’ religious freedom report makes biased assessment of VietnamThe US Department of State’s 2017 International Religious Freedom Report continued to give biased assessment and cited untrue information on Vietnam, stated Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang. Foreign Ministry Spokerperson Le thi Thu HangResponding to questions from reporters on the US’s report on June 8, the official affirmed that: “Vietnam pursuits the consistent policy on respecting and ensuring the right to freedom of religion and belief of all citizens. She highlighted that the country has promulgated the Law on Belief and Religion and issued decrees guiding the enforcement of the law. At the same time, citizens’ practices of religion and belief have been ensured, reflected through thousands of religious festivals and activities every year. Vietnam acknowledges that the US Department of State’s report has mentioned the country’s certain progress in ensuring and facilitating religious and belief practices, but regrettably, the report continued to make partial assessment and cited incorrect information on Vietnam, Hang stated.

Nghe An: a relaxing getawayVietNamNet Bridge – For anyone looking for an escape from the bustle and heat of city life, Nghe An Province is the place to go. On the job: Locals sell fish in Cua Hoi fish port. Ngu Island is also known as Song Ngu (Twin Fish), because it is shaped like two fish emerging from the sea. Here, visitors can catch a spectacular view of Cua Lo and Cua Hoi beaches and Ngu Island. Hustle and bustle: Cua Hoi is one of the largest fish ports of Nghe An.

Vietnamese boy wins chance to attend FIFA World Cup FinalA lucky Vietnamese boy by the name of Nguyen Le Thanh Son has won the opportunity of a lifetime, as he will get to escort a football star onto the pitch at the FIFA World Cup 2018 Final in Moscow on July 15. A lucky Vietnamese boySon, a 5th grade student at Chu Van An Primary School, won the McDonald’s Player Escort Programme, which is open to all children aged between six and 10. According to FIFA’s website, the initiative gave almost 1,500 children from all over the world the opportunity to walk on to the pitch hand-in-hand with their footballing idols. As scheduled, Son will fly to Russia on July 12 and attend a number of side-line activities held by McDonald’s and FIFA (International Federation of Association Football). Son said he is very proud to become the first and only Vietnamese child to win a place on the programme.

Car owners to be fined for wedding photo shoot on highwayThe police said they would fine the owners of 30 cars which illegally parked on the Hanoi-Hai Phong Highway to take wedding photos on June 7. Wedding photo shoot on the Hanoi-Hai Phong Highway on June 7The representative of the Traffic Police Department's Team 2 said, "We have been informed about the case but it was difficult to apply the fines in person. We'll issue fines to the car owners using images from the security cameras. The cars have license plates from Hanoi so we'll clarify the information and ask the car owners to go to the police stations to pay fines." At 9.45 am on June 7, 30 wedding cars casually parked on Hanoi-Hai Phong Highway when going through Hai Duong Province to take photos.

Photos on Vietnamese land and people on display in UkraineA photo exhibition on Vietnamese land and people is on-going in Ukraine to strengthen the friendship between the two countries. It also highlights milestones in the friendship between Vietnam and Ukraine. Through the more than 100 photos displayed at the exhibition, Ukrainian visitors are expected to have a better understanding of Vietnamese land and people and the sound relations between the two countries. Vietnam and Ukraine established diplomatic ties in 1992. Last year, two-way trade was worth 355.5 million USD, a 34.5 percent increase from 2016.-VNA

US$43 million to be spent for tunnel to ease traffic jam in HCM CityHo Chi Minh City is planning to spend over VND1 trillion ($43.8 million) to build a tunnel in An Phu intersection in District 2 to tackle traffic congestion, announced the Department of Transport in HCMC yesterday. According to the Department, the city People’s Committee sent a document to the Ministry of Transport on the tunnel project in order to solve traffic gridlock. As per the project, the four-lane tunnel will connect HCMC- Long Thanh - Dau Giay. City authorities expect to complete the project soon to settle the traffic congestion between Mai Chi Tho Street and motorway HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay. However, the Vietnam Expressway Corporation (VEC) announced the project can begin only by 2020 because from now to December, 2019, 15 paper works relating to the project must be finished.

Tisco and MCC still unable to close EPC disputeThe fate of the long-delayed Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel Plant remains uncertain due to the unfinished negotiations of the new EPC package between Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel JSC (Tisco) and the Chinese constractor MCC. According to the report, in August 2017, the Chinese contractor MCC offered a $136.89 million engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) contract to complete the construction of the unfinished segments of the project. In another move, earlier in March, Tisco was considering taking MCC to court to deal once and for all with the overlong dispute over the EPC contract. The Chinese contractor MCC offered a $136.89 million engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) contract instead of the previous offer of $105.4 million. At present, a number of articles in the EPC contract have yet to reach a compromise.

Technological contest in HCMC aiming at building smart cityThe new season of the biannual technological creations contest titled solutions and technologies to build a smart city has been launched by the Vietnam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA), HCMC Department of Science and Technology, HCMC Federation of Labor, Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union in HCMC. Technological solutions in the forms of products, equipment, material, procedures, and microorganism material will be assessed via the scale of technological creations of the contest. Excellent projects will then be sent to the National Contest of Technological creations. Since 1990, the technological contest has contributed to timely and effectively honoring all silent efforts of many organizations as well as individuals for their creativity and work. In that previous season, the medical field dominated the whole contest with 6 out of 25 submitted projects winning the award.

Police discover illegal dump site in Binh DuongAuthorities in southern Binh Duong Province have discovered that a company had been illegally dumping untreated industrial waste in the Tan Uyen Commune. Untreated waste at the dump site in Tan Uyen Commune. The province’s Environmental Police on Wednesday caught a truck in the act of transporting industrial waste into the commune for dumping. The site currently has around 80 tonnes of solid industrial waste, including nylon and fabric, among others, according to the police. Lien was required to clear the dump site.

Startup jupviec.vn secures funding from US fundJupViec.vn, a household service start-up connecting domestic workers and customers via mobile phone apps, has received an undisclosed investment from San Francisco-based investment fund Patamar Capital. Started in 2012, JupViec.vn provides domestic help services to more than 10,000 customers in Hanoi and HCM City through its network of 3,000 housemaids. Started in 2012, JupViec.vn provides domestic help services to more than 10,000 customers in Hanoi and HCM City through its network of 3,000 housemaids, including hourly help, daily help and post-construction industrial cleaning. This is the second fundraising of JupViec.vn since it received a six-digit seed funding from Japan’s CyberAgent Ventures in 2015. Patamar Capital Fund has invested in many popular start-ups in Viet Nam, such as TOPICA and iCare Benefits (or Mobivi).