Saigon Times Podcasts

The HCMC People’s Committee and the Mekong Delta provinces jointly held a conference on July 21 to unveil an action plan to implement their agreement on socio-economic development cooperation in 2023 and the 2024-2025 period.

The Hanoi People’s Court yesterday, July 28, handed down a 16-year prison term to To Anh Dung, former deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, for receiving bribes from those arranging repatriation flights during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Part of the roadsides and sidewalks in HCMC will be leased for various purposes, such as car parking, business and hosting cultural activities, starting this September.

A 2.7-kilometer residential frontage road that runs parallel with the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway will be opened to traffic by the end of this month, according to the HCMC Department of Transport.

After seven years of negotiations, Vietnam has become the first Southeast Asian nation to sign a free trade agreement (FTA) with Israel, which will result in tariff cuts by up to 92% for Vietnamese goods exported to Israel.

Four State-run banks have further reduced interest rates for deposits of various tenors in a bid to make loans cheaper for businesses that are struggling to survive tough times.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade has announced that the U.K. will recognize Vietnam as a market economy.

A US$20-billion loan was proposed for the development of HCMC’s urban railway network at a conference yesterday of the newly-established Southeastern Region Coordination Council.

Vietnam will purchase around 20 million tons of coal from Laos annually in the next five years to ensure national energy security.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said during her visit to Vietnam that the U.S. is willing to support Vietnam in enhancing the manufacturing of semiconductor chips and the development of renewable energy.

The annual international event, InnoEx, will take place in HCMC on August 24 and 25, aiming to foster innovation and development in Vietnam and Southeast Asia’s thriving business community.

Work is being sped up on the second phase of the Eastern North-South Expressway project, with more than 500 working groups deployed to its construction sites nationwide.

The HCMC Department of Natural Resources and Environment has proposed auctioning dozens of land plots and a staggering 3,790 apartment units in Thu Thiem New Urban Area, just opposite to the central business district.

Storm Talim has impacted several local airports in Vietnam, leading to changes in flight schedules at various airports.

European businesses operating in Vietnam are exhibiting reduced confidence in the local market, resulting in a 4.5-point decline in their Business Confidence Index (BCI) from the current score of 43.5, according to a recent survey conducted by Decision Lab.

The total length of Vietnam’s expressway network will exceed 1,850 kilometers by the end of 2023, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Duy Lam said at a meeting on July 13.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has conducted an inspection in which Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) was found to be responsible for the power supply crunch, most recently in northern Vietnam, due to its slow investments in electricity infrastructure.

The Maran Gas Achilles, an Egyptian-flagged vessel carrying 70,000 tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG), has arrived at the Thi Vai LNG Terminal in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, making it the first LNG ship to come to a Vietnam port.

To Anh Dung, former deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, and 53 other defendants will stand trial today, July 11, for allegedly receiving bribes in the process of operating repatriation flights during the Covid pandemic.

Vietnamese and Singaporean businesses and organizations have signed 12 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) to strengthen collaboration in digitization, human resources, and sustainable development.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has worked out two scenarios for economic growth in the second half of this year.

HCMC recorded over 82,500 workers leaving their jobs and submitting unemployment insurance claims in the first six months of this year, an increase of over 5,000 people over the same period last year.

HCMC expects a significant number of job openings in the coming months, driven by positive economic developments.

HVN shares of Vietnam Airlines will only be traded in the afternoon session from July 17 due to the carrier’s delay in submitting its audited financial statement for 2022.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has signed three agreements with the Vietnamese Government to provide official development assistance (ODA) loans totaling over VND10.6 trillion.