Vietnam plays active role in GMS trade, investment cooperationVietnam has proactively participated in trade and investment cooperation activities in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), which comprises Cambodia, China’s Yunnan and Guangxi provinces, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, over the past 25 years. The expressway, the longest of its kind in Vietnam, is considered a strategic part of the Kunming (China)-Lao Cai-Hanoi-Hai Phong road corridor under the GMS cooperation programme. Based on its strategic location and speed of development, Vietnam has a key role in the regional economic cooperation, according to Bundik. Fourthly, the GMS countries are well positioned geographically to connect South Asia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. Last but not least, the GMS countries’ development is backed by a strong sense of cooperation and frameworks for working together through such mechanisms as the GMS.

Investors happy about new cut in corporate income taxVietNamNet Bridge - The stock market has shown positive reactions to the disclosure of the government’s intention to slash the corporate income tax (CIT) from 20-22 percent to 15-17 percent. HSC believes that the tax reduction will not have a big impact on the tax collections, but will bring significant economic benefits. The figure is equal to 3.5 percent of total revenue from CIT collections and 0.8 percent of total revenue from tax collections. The stock market bounced back after the announcement as investors hope large corporations will also enjoy the tax reduction. Nguyen Tri Hieu, a finance expert, commented that the tax reduction, if applied only to SMEs, will be significant.

Development of organic fertiliser key to VN’s future agricultureVietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam has identified organic agriculture as the way forward, and why the development and promotion of the product is key to achieving their goals. Farmers harvest rice grown with organic fertiliser in Vi Thanh Commune, Vi Thuy District of the Mekong Delta Province Hau Giang. One signal is the growing demand for environmentally friendly and organic production, which makes organic fertiliser "an inevitable trend". The development of organic fertiliser would not just help better the quality of soil in the long-term, but also propel the growth of organic agriculture. A growing number of enterprises who collaborate with farmers have also switched to the use of organic fertiliser as customers’ demands for organic fertiliser is mounting.

Vietnam spends $194 million on pesticidesViet Nam spent US$58 million to import pesticides and raw materials in March, lifting total imports of the commodities in the first three months of this year to $194 million. The imports mainly came from China, accounting for 54.2 per cent of the total value, Thoi bao Kinh te Viet Nam (Viet Nam Economic Times) reported. According to statistics from the Department of Plant Protection, Viet Nam currently has about 1,700 pesticide active ingredients with 4,080 goods. Apart from pesticides, the country also imports a lot of fertiliser. It is estimated that the volume of imported fertiliser in March reached 350,000 tonnes, worth $100 million.

Massive breeding of tra fish poses risks to farmers, environmentVietNamNet Bridge – Diep Thi Nguon, a farmer in Long An Province, says she decided to breed tra fish in recent years because of the anticipated high profits. Households in Tân Hưng District in Long An Province dig ponds to breed tra fish on their rice fields. “After the first tra fish breeding crop, I plan to dig even more ponds,” Nguon said, pointing to her rice field. For example, on average, a farmer earns a profit of VND100-300 million per hectare for breeding fish. Although tra fish breeding brings higher income than rice farming, the local authority discourages farmers from the practice because of the challenges related to output.

Lack of upmarket office space makes HCM City red hot for developersThe HCM City office market is rife with opportunities for property developers, especially the grade A and B segments which have been labouring under a shortage for the last couple of months, experts said. The city’s office market is rife with opportunities for property developers, especially the grade A and B segments which have been labouring under a shortage. Several recent reports mention the shortage and affirm that finding grade A or B office space is not easy in the city. The grade B segment saw major absorption. The new tenants are also seeking office space larger than 1,000sq.m.

Localities urged high vigilance in response to forest firesLocalities nationwide have been urged by the Vietnam Administration of Forestry to prepare measures to prevent forest fires and mitigate damage caused by fires. Localities nationwide are urged to prevent forest fires and mitigate damage caused by fires. Forest ranger teams should work with people’s committees to direct and examine efforts to prevent forest fires while forest owners are responsible for upgrading firefighting facilities. Localities must monitor forest fire warnings on the forest protection department’s website: kiemlam.org.vn and any forest fires should be reported to the forest protection department under the Vietnam Administration of Forestry via 098 666 8333. Forest fires have already hit some provinces, including Binh Thuan, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Lao Chau, Dien Bien and Hai Phong.-VNA

Power is sufficient for upcoming dry season: EVNVietNamNet Bridge – While the backbone of Vietnam’s electricity remains hydropower, the State-owned Electricity Viet Nam (EVN) says power supply will be ensured for the coming dry season. Additionally, the group’s affiliate, the National Power Transmission Company, was asked to ensure safe operation and continuous transmission of power grids, especially the 500kV north-south line. In the first quarter, the EVN’s companies completed 41 electricity works nationwide and upgraded transmission stations in many northern and southern provinces. In March, power produced was 17.1 billion kWh, of which commercial electricity was 14.1 billion kWh. Power savingAside from ensuring uninterrupted power, campaigns aiming to encourage the industrial sector and public to save energy will also be ramped up when the weather starts to turn dry and hot.

Hanoi to undertake an urgent mission in heritage preservationVietNamNet Bridge – Constructed 300 years ago, Co Che Village’s temple in Phuc Tien Commune, Phu Xuyen District boasts sculptures vividly reflecting the local folk life in the distinctive style of the Le Trung Hung Dynasty. Van Mieu (Temple of Literature), a symbolic building of Hanoi, is among a few historical relics enjoying careful preservation. The data of Ha Noi Department of Culture and Information shows that among 6,000 historical sites of the city, 2,000 are damaged. Urgent missionHanoi raises hundreds of billion dong to repair historical relics annually, not to mention investments from the private sector. In the long-term plan to preserve Hanoi culture by 2030, the city expects to restore and repair 70 per cent of national historical relics.

MOF has vowed to collect tax from Google’s and Facebook’s earnings in Vietnam, and is drafting a regulation on tax management over e-commerce activities. The tax payments will be carried out under the withholding mode. SBV’s Governor Le Minh Hung said MOF has the legal right to issue regulations, guide tax declarations, and report and collect tax. Lawyer Truong Thanh Duc believes that MOF’s idea is a good solution allowing it to collect tax from Facebook and Google, which remains an impossible mission at this time. The revenue from ads that foreign companies, especially Facebook and YouTube, can collect is estimated to amount to 80 percent of total revenue.

Hue Festival show depicts Hoang Sa sovereigntyVietNamNet Bridge – A show in the upcoming Hue Festival, which starts on April 28, will feature performances on Vietnam’s island sovereignty. According to Huynh Tien Dat, deputy director of the Hue Festival Centre, the event’s organiser, the show will be a key part of this edition of the Hue Festival. The Hue Festival is a biennial cultural event taking the first time in 2000. The centre is a local government body managing all relics related to the dynasty in Hue and is the biggest local partner of Hue Festival Centre in creating the event. The show’s first chapter will include scenes depicting the Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa.

Korean cueists shine at Asian Carom Billiards ChampionshipCueists of the Republic of Korea shone in the three-cushion carom category at the Asian Carom Billiards Championship 2018 held in Ho Chi Minh City on April 8, bringing home the top four prizes. Cho Jae-ho wins first prize in the three-cushion carom category at the Asian Carom Billiards Championship 2018In the final round, Cho Jae-ho defeated his countryman Heo Jung-han 40-28 to win the first prize and pocketed cash worth 2,000 USD. However, Vietnam’s billiard players did not perform well in the three-cushion carom category. In the one-cushion carom category, Vietnam’s Ngo Dinh Nai won the first prize with 1,000 in cash. The third prize went to Vietnam’s Pham Quoc Tuan and Lee Seung-jin of the Republic of Korea, who earned 300 USD each.-VNA

Vietcombank offloads 6.67 million shares in OCBThe Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) will auction off its 6.67 million shares of the Orient Commercial Bank (OCB). The northern bourse said that OCB’s charter capital has reached 5 trillion VND (220 million USD) with more than 110 units nationwide. Last year, the bank earned 816 billion VND (35.9 million USD) in after-tax profit, double the amount in 2016. Meanwhile, lending surged 25 percent to more than 48.1 trillion VND (2.11 billion USD). Apart from OCB, Vietcombank currently holds shares in Eximbank and Military Bank.-VNA

Vehicles required to be sealed with energy labels by 2020Energy labels will be made compulsory for newly-assembled and unused imported automobiles or motorbikes under a draft Circular outlined by the Transport Ministry’s Vietnam Register. Per the draft, vehicles must have energy rating labels before being sold. Statistics showed that there were 3.76 million automobiles and more than 55.1 million motorbikes and motorised vehicles nationwide as of March 15. Energy labeling has long been used in the European Union, the US, Australia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, China, Singapore and India. The circular would make labeling compulsory from January 1, 2020 following a voluntary period until December 31, 2019.-VNA

Syria conflict: Strikes hit Syrian airfield, state media reportSeveral people have died or were injured after a military airport in Syria came under missile attack, the country's state media reported. It follows international alarm over a suspected chemical attack on the rebel-held town of Douma. But US officials have denied launching a missile attack. "At this time, the Department of Defense is not conducting air strikes in Syria," the Pentagon said in a statement. Both Syria and Russia deny a chemical attack took place, and have reached an evacuation deal with the rebels who hold Douma.