Retailers flock to Vietnam as consumer spending soarsVietNamNet Bridge - In 2014, Vietnamese were the most economical consumers in South East Asia in a Nielsen survey. Vietnam is an attractive retail marketIn the 2014 survey, 74 percent of Vietnamese said they would save money after covering essential living expenses. Vietnam is considered an attractive market for retailers thanks to the low saturation level and the high growth potential. Vietnam is considered an attractive market for retailers thanks to the low saturation level and the high growth potential. RELATED NEWSLogistics FDI rises in the face of retail expansionVN retail forecast to grow steadilyMai Chi

Investment policy in agriculture needs to changeDinh Trong Thang, director of the Department of Investment, under the Central Institute of Economic Management – Ministry of Planning and Investment talks to the newspaper Customs on what the country should do to attract enterprises to invest in agriculture. To encourage enterprises to invest in agriculture and rural development, the Government has issued the Decree 210/2013 on agriculture policy to encourage enterprises to invest in agriculture development. However, that Decree was promulgated before the issuance of the Land Law, Public Investment Law, Investment Law and Law on Construction. However, what the enterprises need is the Government’s policy on land acquisition so they can have large field to cultivate rice and use mechanisation in production. When big enterprises decide to invest in agriculture, no doubt, they have adopted strategies and clear objectives before making their decisions.

Thanh Hoa’s festival recognised national intangible cultural heritageA ceremony was held in Ngu Loc commune, Hau Loc district, the central province of Thanh Hoa, on April 6 to kick off the Cau Ngu (Whale worshipping) festival and receive a certificate recognising it a national intangible cultural heritage. Procession of Long Chau boatCau Ngu festival is a unique cultural feature of coastal localities, which has been preserved and passed down through many generations. The festival in Ngu Loc commune is considered the largest of its kind not only in Thanh Hoa but also across north central localities, attracting thousands of visitors. The main ritual in the festival is a procession of Long Chau boat from Bac Tho village to a platform at the commune’s stadium, where praying will be conducted every day during the festival. On the last day of the festival, the Long Chau boat will be burned at the seaside.

Will cash continue to flow into banks? However, the recent incidents of depositors losing money at some banks, plus the rise of many attractive investment channels, will divert cash flow from banks. However, the recent incidents of depositors losing money at some banks, plus the rise of many attractive investment channels, will divert cash flow from banks. However, analysts warned that the favorable conditions that helped drive the capital flow into banks will not exist in the time to come. The US dollar prime interest rate is anticipated, which will cause the greenback to appreciate.

Private sector enters to deal with airport overloadThe overload at the country’s airports is expected to be reduced as a wave of large investors are seeking investment opportunities in the aviation infrastructure segment. The overload at Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City remains a concern for the airport management board, especially during the Lunar New Year. Besides, the Hanoi People’s Committee has also grown concerned about the overload at Noi Bai International Airport. Accordingly, ACV will implement the VND680-billion ($30-million) first phase of upgrading Tan Son Nhat Airport’s runways and the VND1.23-trillion ($54.18-million) second phase’s escape lane. At Noi Bai Airport, ACV will upgrade runways and skidways during a 16-month project.

Foreign real estate developers return as crisis is overVietNamNet Bridge - Vietnam attracted $3 billion worth of foreign direct and portfolio investments to the real estate sector in 2017, a sharp increase of 80 percent over the year before. Singaporeans are the traditional investors in Vietnam’s real estate market, developing villas, apartments and high-end office and shopping malls. Difficulties in seeking landWith the 2013 Land Law, real estate developers, however, are having problems finding land. Forecasts about the real estate market in 2018 are all inclined towards optimism. RELATED NEWSReal estate M&As 2018: golden time for foreign capitalInvestors from Europe, US absent from Vietnam real estate marketKim Chi

Over the past four decades, the WHO has helped improve the quality of health care services and public health in Vietnam. The organisation helped Vietnam eradicate polio and neonatal tetanus, and build standards for public health care. Alongside, the two sides will raise the quality of the local health care system and the efficiency of finance resources for the sector, while tightening regulations related to pharmaceuticals, vaccines and health care products. As an active member of the WHO, Vietnam has joined all meetings and forums on international cooperation in health care. The country has also hosted conferences and events in the health care sector.

VN doctors use indocyanine fluorescence imaging to treat gastric cancerDoctors at Binh Dan Hospital in HCM City has performed surgery for the first time using indocyanine fluorescence imaging to treat gastric cancer. Doctors at Bình Dân Hospital in HCM City perform surgery on a patient with gastric cancer. Dr Tran Vinh Hung, director of Binh Dan Hospital, said that gastric cancer surgery using indocyanine fluorescence imaging requires surgeons with experience and training in knowing how to precisely inject the substance into the stomach. According to figures released at a conference last year, Viet Nam has more than 15,000 annual new incidences of gastric cancer, including more than 11,000 fatalities a year. Gastric cancer is the second most common cancer among men and fifth most common among women in Viet Nam.

Information ministry approves Vietnamese domain names licensed through auctionThe Ministry of Information and Communications has signed a decision approving the list of Vietnamese domain names “.vn” licensed through auction. The Ministry of Information and Communications signed a decision approving the list of Vietnamese domain names “.vn” licensed through auction. — Photo vneconomy.vnThe list of sites using the national domain name “.vn” that were licensed through auction includes national single-character second-level domain names and two-character second-level domain names. National single-character second-level domain names are created using any one of the 26 letters in the English alphabet and 10 digits from zero to nine. The two-character second-level domain names are created using two letters or digits from the English alphabet and 10 digits from zero to nine.

Vietnam suffers abject failure in promoting culinary tourismVietnam has rich cuisine culture but has proved inexplicably incapable of promoting tourism based on its cuisine according to local tourism experts. According to the World Food Travel Association, 25% of tourists questioned said they were interested in food when visiting a country. In 2017, the Vietnam Chef Association was established to develop a brand for Vietnamese cuisine. Vice head of Vietnam Tourism Association Vu The Binh said the food make the tours more interesting and tourism help promote the food. Tinh suggested adding cuisine tourism development plan into the national tourism master plan to 2020 with a view to 2030.

Vietnam middle class boomsMore than 70 per cent of the Vietnamese population has fully escaped poverty, with at least 14 million having joint the global middle class, a World Bank report found on Thursday. Between 2014 and 2016, a staggering three million Vietnamese people joined the global middle class. This rate was positively higher than the Government’s annual goal of 1.5 per cent reduction as outlined in its National Target Programme on Poverty Reduction for 2016-20. Households of ethnic minorities – the most vulnerable to poverty – living in poor conditions witnessed a record decline over the last decade. Close to two million ethnic minority people climbed the economic ladder, equivalent to the number of poor people declining from 8.4 million in 2010 down to 6.6 million in 2016.

Hanoi Social Insurance set deadline for insurance debt paymentHanoi Social Insurance has set a deadline of May 5 for 10 businesses in the city that owe social insurance premiums for a long time to pay up. Social insurance workers carry out administrative procedures in Hanoi’s Cau Giay District. At a dialogue between the agency and the businesses held on April 4, Vu Duc Thuat, deputy director of Hanoi Social Insurance said the enterprises must pay on time or the agency would report the case to the police.The total debt of these businesses amounts to VNĐ22.4 billion (nearly US$982,000), affecting the benefits of about 390 workers.These enterprises have owed debts ranging from VNĐ300 million to VNĐ6 billion between seven months and 55 months.At the meeting, representatives of the enterprises gave reasons for the delay in paying the debts.Most of them operate in construction and transportation so they have difficulties in getting back invested capital, according to the representatives.Despite the fact that many hydropower projects had been completed and handed over to investors, a representative from Balkal Commercial and Technology Company said the enterprise hadn’t received payment from investors.Representatives of the 10 enterprises have committed to repay the debt as soon as possible.Earlier in January, authorities in Hanoi ordered the city’s inspectors to inspect 80 enterprises with long overdue social insurance premiums.Inspections were conducted in January at 40 enterprises, retrieving more than VNĐ3.7 billion ($162,500) or 21 per cent of the total debt owed by these companies (more than VNĐ17 billion or $746,620).Of the 80 enterprises on the inspection list, 32 have paid off their debt amounting to some VNĐ11.1 billion ($487,500).

Central region promotes tourismDespite its great potential, tourism in the south central and Central Highlands regions has only awakened in the last three years. To boost sea tourism, relevant authorities and travel agencies have worked together. Binh Dinh province welcomed more than 8 million visitors in 2017, an impressive surge compared to around 4 million tourists a year previously. To overcome shortcomings, big travel agencies have worked with local agencies due to their advantages in geographical and cultural understanding. With immense tourism potential and, more measures to strengthen the region’s tourism sector, the number of tourists coming to the province and the South central and Central Highlands regions this year are expected to increase by 1.5 times compared to previous years.-VNA

Vu 'Nhom' and Tran Phuong Binh losing $8.8 million of Dong A BankThe investigation agency has determined that VND200 billion ($8.8 million) out of the VND600 billion ($26.4 million) Vu “Nhom” used to purchase Dong A Bank shares existed only on falsified documents by Tran Phuong Binh. At the end of 2013, Binh and Vu “Nhom” agreed that Vu would buy 60 million DAB shares with the total value of VND600 billion ($26.4 million). Then Vu “Nhom” bought 50 million DAB shares from four shareholders at the price of VND500 billion ($220 million). Thereby, Vu “Nhom” has to return VND200 billion ($8.8 million) to DAB, and relevant agencies will investigate and prosecute him later. Vu “Nhom” got $13.4 million from BinhAccording to newswire Tuoitre, Vu has changed his declaration.

She also highlighted the close cooperation between the Vietnamese NA and the IPU for nearly four decades, affirming that the partnership brought remarkable achievements. The event was organised by the Vietnam Association of Historical Sciences, the University of Social Sciences and Humanities under the Vietnam National University - HCM City, and the HCM City Association of Historical Sciences. Aichi and Ho Chi Minh City should design cooperation programmes in manufacturing and production areas, including automobile, machinery and high-technology agriculture, Phong proposed. He affirmed that Ho Chi Minh City will create optimal conditions for enterprises in Japan and Aichi in particular to invest in the city. The same day, Phong and the Ho Chi Minh City delegation visited Aichi’s agriculture experiment station to seek cooperation opportunities in high-tech agriculture.