Ever growing demand

South Korea was the largest petroleum supplier of Vietnam, with 3.22 million tons, up 96% year on year. Vietnam imported nearly 8.9 million tons of oil and petroleum products in 2022 worth $9 billion, nearly double that of the previous year, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC). Locals buying petrol products at a gas station in Hanoi. File photo In December 2022, the country imported nearly 950,000 tons of oil and petrol products worth $823 million, up 22% in quantity and 11% in value against November. Diesel made up a lion’s share of the imported volume with 4.74 million tons, accounting for 54% of the country's imported petroleum in 2022. In 2022, the country consumed 1.7 million tons of gasoline, 2.3 times more than in 2021; and 1.46 million tons of jet fuel, representing 2.2 times on-year, and 16% of imported oil. South Korea was the largest petroleum supplier of Vietnam, with 3.22 million tons, up more than 96% year on year; … [Read more...] about Vietnam spends US$9 billion on oil imports in 2022

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s Van Hoa newspaper published his apology on Friday, which said it was a personal story and not meant to offend anyone. The comedian and director of the Vietnam National Drama Theater had posted "Mother’s slap" three days earlier to seemingly take a potshot at people who criticized his TV show. In the story, a woman cooks "banh chung" (glutinous square rice cake) every year for Tet, but her son, who does not know how to make it himself, always criticizes it. It read: "This year is no exception. At 8pm on Lunar New Year’s Eve, I criticized the cake after the first bite. My mouth has two sides, one to chew on ‘banh chung’ and the other to criticize the cake. "Not really because the cake is not delicious, not necessarily because it is bad, but because it is not what I imagined, it is not what I wanted. I criticize it because I have the right to criticize, because it is my mother’s responsibility to cook cakes as I want them." In the … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s famous comedian apologizes to TV audiences