Will foreigners be allowed to buy condotels? VietNamNet Bridge - Some experts have proposed allowing foreigners to buy condotels in Vietnam to attract the foreign cash flow. The HCMC Real Estate Association, has sent a document to PM and relevant ministries, proposing to allow foreigners to buy condotels to improve the liquidity of condotels, mobilize more capital, and facilitatetourism development. Meanwhile, other experts disagree and say that most condotels are located in coastal areas, and if Vietnam allows foreigners to buy condotels, it will be like allowing foreigners to own Vietnam’s coastline. “If allowing foreigners to buy condotels, it’s a must to say clearly which areas they can buy,” Hoi said.

HCM City: will $5 billion drive floods away? Money has gone, but floods have stayedHCMC has spent trillions of dong to implement many large projects and hundreds of small projects to prevent floods. In the last few years, the money was used to implement anti-flood projects in the central area, 550 square kilometers large. However, the municipal authorities still said it needed VND73.379 trillion more to implement anti-flood projects under Program 752 and Program 1547. In the last few years, the money was used to implement anti-flood projects in the central area, 550 square kilometers large.

40 civil servants resign, Da Nang’s talent program failsVietNamNet Bridge - Forty people in Da Nang’s high-quality human resources development program (Program 922) have refused jobs offered to them. Da Nang tries to attract talentsBy May, 93 people had quit Program 922 for “talents”, while 40 had resigned from their posts because of bad health or family reunion. Da Nang is the first locality in the country running training programs to develop high-quality human resources for the city’s state agencies. As of April 18, 2018, the city had sent 647 people to training courses under Program 922 which aims to produce 100 masters and PhDs. Da Nang withdrew the petition in 11 cases as the people involved had completed the reimbursement after the case went to trial.

LA basketballer to visit HCM CityBasketball player Danilo Gallinari, who plays for the Los Angeles Clippers team, will travel to HCM City to participate in the Junior NBA Việt Nam from June 22-24, according to the National Basketball Association (NBA). Danilo Gallinari, a player for the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, will travel to HCM City to participate in the Junior NBA Việt Nam from June 22-24, according to the announcement of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born in Italy, he is one of 108 international players from a record 42 countries and territories who were on opening-night rosters for the 2017-18 NBA season. Gallinari averaged 15.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2 assists per game in his first season with the Los Angeles Clippers. Gallinari will help coach 64 boys and girls selected from Regional Selection Camps in Hà Nội and HCM City.

Food-beverage sector strives to meet int’l food safetyWith a market of 93 million people, Vietnam has seen rapidly growing consumer demand for food and beverage (F&B) products, offering great opportunities for the sector to expand, experts have said. The country is expected to enter the top three Asian countries posting the highest growth rate of the F&B industry by 2020. Ly Kim Chi, President of the HCM City Food and Foodstuff Association, said that today’s consumers were willing to pay more for healthy and natural products. On May 29, the Vietnamese High Quality Business Association will, for the first time, take part in THAIFEX-World of Food Asia, the leading F&B trade fair in Asia, according to Vu Kim Hanh, chairwoman of the association. Hanh said that participation in trade shows was one of many ways to promote Vietnamese products.

Vietnamese Ambassador to US bids farewell to local officials, friendsOutgoing Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh has bid farewell to local officials and friends before returning home and concluding his mission in the US in late June 2018. Ambassador Vinh also had meetings with some US officials, including special Assistance to the President on Asia Matt Pottinger and Senator Jim Webb. On May 21, Ambassador Vinh hosted a reception at the Vietnamese Embassy in the US to bid farewell to officials from the US administration and parliament as well as businesspersons, scholars and friends, including Acting Assistant Secretary of State Susan Thornton. At the meetings, Ambassador Vinh thanked the US side for supporting him and the Vietnamese Embassy in fulfilling missions, contributing to strengthening bilateral relations in all areas. Ambassador Vinh assumed his post as Vietnamese Ambassador to the US from late November, 2014.

NA session: SOEs’ efficiency not match resourcesThe operation efficiency of State-owned enterprises (SOEs) during 2011-2016 had yet to match the resources they were holding, according to a report delivered to the National Assembly on May 28. In addition, the restructuring of badly-performing businesses and the withdrawal of State capital from ineffective investment projects remained slow. The supervision team suggested ministries, sectors and localities to complete and approve land use plans. The discussion session focused on the implementation of policies and laws on State capital and asset management and use in State-owned enterprises (SOEs) and equitisation of SOEs in the 2011-2016 period. Expressing his sympathy with solutions stated in the NA’s monitoring report, he said it is necessary to accelerate the completion of institution and legal framework for the State Capital Management Committee.

Govt vacillates on incentives in special economic zonesVietNamNet Bridge – The Government plans to develop three special economic zones, which it hopes will spearhead the country’s growth. — Photo zing.vnCurrently there are no special economic zones in the country though it has 18 coastal economic zones, 27 border economic zones and 325 industrial zones. The Ministry of Planning and Investment expects the three special economic zones to contribute billions of dollars to the economy each year from 2020 onwards. The Government has agreed in principle that the special economic zones will enjoy special regulations and fewer limitations to enable them to woo investors. The draft Law on Special Economic Zones (or Law on Special Administrative-Economic Units) reflects this strategy.

Bad debts tend to escalateVietNamNet Bridge - After considering the Q1 finance reports of 13 large and medium sized commercial banks, analysts say they have found that bad debts are increasing again. The figure was equal to 51 percent of total bad debts, higher than the 50.5 percent at the end of 2017. However, most of them were third-group debts, or subprime debts, amounting to 58.6 percent of total bad debts, while the fifth-group debts accounted for 18 percent. This is equal to 55.3 percent of the bank’s total bad debts which have increased from 1.61 percent to 1.87 percent. US$1=VND22,000RELATED NEWSMulti-trillion VND worth of bad debt put on saleVAMC targets VND140 trillion bad debts this yearKim Chi

Tomorrow's cities: Google's Toronto city built 'from the internet up'The vision is to have a bustling city that works for everyone -- Photo: SIDEWALK LABSOn Toronto's Eastern waterfront, a new digital city is being built by Sidewalk Labs - a firm owned by Google's parent Alphabet.It hopes the project will become a model for 21st-Century urbanism. Sidewalk Labs promises to transform the disused waterfront area into a bustling mini metropolis, one built "from the internet up", although there is no timetable for when the city will actually be built. These are real and prescient issues for the city of Toronto," he told the BBC. "Sidewalk talks about open data, but from the very start the one thing that they are not making public is their agreement with Waterfront Toronto." Waterfront Toronto is the organisation charged with revitalising the area around the city's harbour.

Outdated infrastructure blamed for rail accidentsOutdated infrastructure, limited funds and operator negligence have been identified as the main causes serious accidents on the rail. A report from the Vietnam Railways Corporation said that from September 16 2017 to April 15 2018, there were 199 rail accidents, killing 91 people and injuring 122 others. He went on to say that the corporation reviewed accidents to improve the sector with new technology and remove several level crossings. "However, it is also rare that so many serious rail accidents occur so close together as seen last week." Vu Quang Khoi, director of the Vietnam Railway Authority, said after every accident, Vietnam Railways Corporation were made to review operating processes to avoid similar cases.

Vietnamese athlete wins gold medal at Asian Taekwondo ChampsVietnamese athlete Truong Thi Kim Tuyen won the first gold medal for the country at the 23rd Asian Taekwondo Championship in Ho Chi Minh City. Truong Thi Kim Tuyen (middle) celebrates winning gold medal at the Asian Taekwondo Championships in HCM City on May 26Tuyen defeated Napaporn Charanawat from Thailand 13-5 in the women’s 46kg category. Last year, Tuyen beat Napaporn 19-8 in the semi-finals of the World Taekwondo Championships in the Republic of Korea, winning the first world silver medal in Vietnamese taekwondo history. In addition to Tuyen’s success, Pham Thi Thu Hien also brought home a bronze medal in the women’s 57kg category. The 23rd Asian Taekwondo Championship was held by the HCM City Department of Culture and Sports and the Vietnam Taekwondo Federation from May 24-28.

First Vietnamese becomes IAQ academicianDr. Ngo Van Nhon, Chairman of Vietnam Quality Association and President of Institute for Quality Assessment and Development in Ho Chi Minh City, has become the first Vietnamese to become an academician of the International Academy for Quality (IAQ). Dr. Ngo Van Nhon (R), Chairman of Vietnam Quality Association and President of Institute for Quality Assessment and Development in Ho Chi Minh City, has become the first Vietnamese to become an academician of the International Academy for Quality (IAQ) (Source: http://www.sggp.org.vn)The title was presented to Nhon at the recent IAQ general meeting in the US with the participation of more than 3,500 delegates from 45 countries. To become an academician at the IAQ, Nhon, who is also a member of the Asian Network for Quality, experienced a strict evaluation process over three years. Nhon was introduced by Vietnamese experts in the field and received sponsorship from IAQ academicians from Japan, Russia and India. The IAQ currently has 133 academicians representing 37 countries, including 44 from Asia.-VNA

Thao wins gold medal at Chinese Taipei Athletics OpenVietNamNet Bridge – Bui Thi Thu Thao won a gold medal in women’s long jump at the Chinese Taipei Athletics Open which wrapped up in Taipei Municipal Stadium on Saturday. Bui Thi Thu Thao (middle) poses with her gold medal at the Chinese Taipei Athletics Open. Last August, Thao won gold in the Southeast Asian Games after clearing 6.68m. Earlier, another Vietnamese representative Quach Thi Lan also won a gold medal in the women’s 400m with a time of 52.82secs. In the women’s triple jump, Vu Thi Men won the silver medal with a leap of 13.57m.

BTS become first K-pop band to top US album chartsSouth Korean boy band BTS have become the first K-pop artists to reach number one on the US album charts. The K-pop superstars are part of the so-called Korean Wave, the global rise of Korean music, drama and film. The new BTS new album, Love Yourself: Tear, topped the Billboard 200 music charts on Sunday, which are based sales, downloads and streams of albums. The devoted BTS ARMY have been celebrating their album success on social media. In 2017, their album Love Yourself: Her was the first K-Pop album to crack the top 10 US album charts, rising to number seven.