China asean year of innovation

Auramon Supthaweethum, Director-General of the Ministry of Commerce’s Department of Trade Negotiations. (Photo: https://elevenmyanmar.com/) Bangkok (VNA) – Thailand ’s Ministry of Commerce is aiming to finalise Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sri Lanka and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in the second and third quarters of 2024. As reported by the English-language daily newspaper The Nation, Auramon Supthaweethum, Director-General of the ministry’s Department of Trade Negotiations, said the three markets are significant, with a combined trade value of up to 31 billion USD annually. Accordingly, the Thailand-UAE FTA negotiations are in progress and are expected to conclude within this year following four rounds of talks. Products expected to benefit include food, textiles, clothing, leather goods, wood products, rubber, and plastics, as well as such services as transportation, finance, and business consultancy. The … [Read more...] about Thailand eyes concluding three FTAs next year

Hoang Thi Len, 38, is being held for questioning, they said Sunday, Vietnam News Agency reported. S., a native of the northern Cao Bang Province, moved to live in Ea Sup District in Dak Lak after her marriage in 2014. There she got acquainted with Len, a local. In 2018 S. told her husband and his family that she would visit her family in Cao Bang along with Len, and took her year-old daughter along. She never returned. In August this year S. reached out to her sister on Wechat, a Chinese messaging and social media app. She said Len had tricked and sold her to a man in China as his bride. She said she got beaten constantly and was forced to work hard. The sister reported the information to the police. A task force was set up with officers from the Ministry of Public Security, Dak Lak police and border guards in the north. On September 17 they managed to rescue S. and her daughter and brought them back to Dak Lak. They later arrested Len. She told the police … [Read more...] about Mother, daughter rescued 5 years after being trafficked to China

An oil rig of Petrovietnam (Photo: VietnamPlus) Hanoi (VNA) – Forty-eight years since its establishment, the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (Petrovietnam) has become a multi-billion-dollar enterprise and made breakthrough and comprehensive development strides. Petrovietnam was set up on September 3, 1975 with the goal of helping guarantee national energy security and serving as a pillar of economic support for national development. Shortly after the date of national reunification (April 30, 1975), on September 3 the same year, the Vietnam General Department of Oil and Gas, the predecessor of Petrovietnam , was established under the Council of Government in efforts to realise late President Ho Chi Minh’s aspiration to develop an oil and gas industry of the country. Nearly half a century has passed, Petrovietnam has managed to master the most cutting-edge technologies and build a complete oil and gas industry. From 1986 to 2022, it posted more than 400 billion USD in total … [Read more...] about Petrovietnam in step with 48 years of national development

Wood chips for export (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - Wood pellets and wood chips are a bright spot in the shipment of forestry products, said head of the Wood Chip Section under the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association (Viforest) Thang Van Thong. Statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs showed that wood chip exports brought home 1.1 billion USD in the first seven months of this year while wood pellets earned 380 million USD. Following the heated growth in the last half of 2022, the average export price of wood pellets decreased by nearly 3% to around 157 USD per tonne in the first half of this year. The Republic of Korea (RoK) and Japan have been the two major importers of wood pellets from Vietnam, accounting for nearly 100% of the total volume and value of Vietnam’s exports to all markets since 2019. During January-June, Japan spent over 195 million USD on importing more than 1.16 million tonnes of pellets from Vietnam, up 5.65% in volume and … [Read more...] about Wood pellet, wood chip exports – a bright spot: official

Vietnam’s logistics industry has been one of the fastest-expanding areas boosted by the country’s GDP over the years, and the country’s rising manufacturing and e-commerce have also contributed to this growth. Pritesh Samuel - Head of Business Intelligence at Dezan Shira & Associates Vietnam’s aim to develop itself as an export-driven economy is another reason why logistics play a vital role in supporting economic growth and facilitating trade. In fact, the total export and import turnover of goods in the first six months of 2023 reached $316.65 billion. Aviation, maritime, and road networks contribute to the bulk of freight. Vietnam’s ports handled around 733.18 million tonnes of cargo in 2022, this increase was up by 4 per cent compared to 2021. Container throughput was estimated at 25.09 million TEU, up 5 per cent from 2021. The volume of cargo transported by road was 1.2 billion tonnes in 2021. Goods are mainly transported by road transport, which accounts … [Read more...] about The growth drivers for logistics arena

illustration photo/ Photo Le Toan The very first logistics centre from Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIP) is now being constructed in the south-central province of Quang Ngai, and will be completed and put into use by the end of this year. Being built according to Lotus standards of the Vietnam Green Building Council, the 6-hectare Sembcorp Logistics Park will boast three modern single-storey warehouse blocks. Singapore’s Sembcorp Development, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sembcorp Industries, and its state-owned joint venture partner in Vietnam, Becamex IDC Corporation, in August also announced the addition of four new VSIPs. According to Charles Chong, director of Sembcorp in Vietnam, the country has developed strongly in recent years and will continue to be an important manufacturing country in the Asian region. “With the positive growth momentum of production activities and investment attraction, along with the government’s infrastructure upgrade plan, the … [Read more...] about Logistics investors heat up the market

UB office in Batu Kawan Penang, Malaysia UBCT, which on September 29 was rebranded to UB Group, was founded in 1995 in an attempt to revolutionise inventory tracing in the semiconductor industry. The company embarked on a transformative journey, starting with a focus on specialised machine servicing within the molding industry. By 2006, the company transitioned into research and development, specialising in material management systems and development for the semiconductor Industry. Over the years, it evolved and expanded, introducing innovative software solutions for dashboards and command centres and successfully implementing total lights-off manufacturing solutions in collaboration with their Shanghai counterpart. In 2017, the company shifted its focus to cutting-edge automated warehouse solutions. Subsequently, a new division emerged, dedicated to AI and autonomous robotic solutions, embracing the future of automation. The rebranding to UB Group this year reflects its … [Read more...] about UB’s Smart Solutions for Industrial 4.0

Lower-than-expected growth in advanced economies and China could reduce external demand for Vietnamese exports. Vietnam's economic growth for 2023 is set to hit 4.7%, primarily influenced by weak domestic and external demand . Production of aircraft components at MHI Aerospace Vietnam. Photo: Pham Hung/The Hanoi Times The World Bank released the forecast in its latest East Asia and Pacific October 2023 Economic Update. However, there's optimism for a recovery in the following years, with growth expected to reach 5.5% in 2024 and 6.0% in 2025. The main driver of this growth will be domestic demand, although at a slower pace than in previous years. In terms of inflation, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is projected to average 3.5% this year, largely due to scheduled increases in civil servant salaries. In the following years, assuming stable energy and commodity prices, inflation is expected to decline to 3.0% in both 2024 and 2025. On the fiscal side, … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s GDP growth forecast to expand by 4.7% in 2023: WB

Energy is one of the key pillars in Vietnam-Germany relations over the past decades with a series of projects and programs operated by The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) – the German Development Agency. A delegation of nearly 50 German companies led by Minister-President of the German state of Lower Saxony , Stephan Weil, has expressed their interest in renewable energy and energy efficiency , the field in which the Federal Government of Germany has cooperated with Vietnam for years. Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) and Minister-President of the German state of Lower Saxony , Stephan Weil, in Hanoi on October 1. Photo: VGP Other fields of potential cooperation that the Lower Saxony’s government and businesses want to focus on include vocational training, skilled labor migration, tourism, digitalization, and Industry 4.0. The issues were stated by Prime Minister-President Stephan Weil at … [Read more...] about Lower Saxony wants to invest in energy transition in Vietnam

The transaction is an equity investment in the form of Convertible Dividend Preference Share (CDPS) to be issued at a price of VND85,000 ($3.49) per share, which can be converted into ordinary shares at a 1:1 conversion ratio. In addition to the normal dividends payable (if any) to the company’s shareholders, the CDPS has no preference dividend for the first five years, then followed by a 10 per cent preference dividend at par value of each outstanding CDPS per annum from the sixth anniversary onwards. On the tenth anniversary of the issuance, the outstanding CDPS will be mandatorily converted into ordinary shares of Masan Group. Masan is also in discussion with other investors to upsize the investments to up to $500 million, which is subject to prevailing market conditions and the company’s capital needs. Proceeds from the transaction will be used to strengthen the company’s financial position and de-lever its balance sheet. This marks Bain Capital’s first-ever investment in … [Read more...] about Bain Capital leads Masan Group’s equity funding round