How does interest rates affect bonds

How about the first time you went to a supermarket in your new country overseas only to discover a favourite food item had a price tag that nearly knocked you off your feet? Or you visited accommodation while apartment hunting that was expensive yet missing what you consider to be basic features? When we move abroad we have to decide which toys, trinkets, and habits we’ll keep in our adoptive country and which we’ll let go. I recently wrote an article about the cost of living for an expat retiree in Vietnam and discovered during research that I was spending money on things out of habit, not need, and that I could save a fair amount by tweaking priorities:  How much does it cost an expat retiree to live in Vietnam? - Tuoi Tre... Part of that exercise was a sanity check on where money was going because the cost structure is quite different in Vietnam, so simply converting prices from a foreign currency to Vietnamese dong (VND) only tells part of the story. Some … [Read more...] about Out of sight…

An international workshop on Vietnam's economic prospects until 2025: opportunities and challenges brought by new-generation FTAs (Photo: dangcongsan.vn) Under its 5-year socio-economic development plan until 2020, Vietnam has maintained an annual GDP growth rate of more than 6.8%. Last year’s growth was more than 7% and this year is expected to exceed 7%. Vietnam  has achieved the GDP growth target set for the entire period. Inflation has been under control and the public debt ratio has been decreasing. But growth has been heavily dependent on capital. The support industry has grown slowly. The contribution of services with high added value has remained low. Logistics costs are high. Exports depend on foreign-invested enterprises. Most Vietnamese businesses haven’t participated in global value chains and their ability to innovate hasn’t improved much. At a recent international workshop on Vietnam's economic prospects until 2025, many experts pointed … [Read more...] about New-generation FTAs create opportunities, challenges for Vietnam’s economy

A sluice in a coastal commune in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang prevents saltwater intrusion. (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Authorities in provinces in the Mekong Delta and Can Tho city are dredging irrigation works and storing fresh water to cope with saltwater intrusion during the dry season. Saltwater intrusion is expected to be more severe this year because of low flooding levels and lower than usual rainfall during the rainy season, according to local authorities. During the dry season, saline intrusion will occur earlier than usual, causing a shortage of fresh water for agricultural production, according to the Southern Institute of Water Resources Research. Kien Giang province's People’s Committee has told agencies to dredge irrigation canals to improve water storage and to build temporary dams to prevent saline intrusion.  The province plans to … [Read more...] about Delta provinces take steps to control saltwater intrusion

A sluice in a coastal commune in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang prevents saltwater intrusion. (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Authorities in provinces in the Mekong Delta and Can Tho city are dredging irrigation works and storing fresh water to cope with saltwater intrusion during the dry season. Saltwater intrusion is expected to be more severe this year because of low flooding levels and lower than usual rainfall during the rainy season, according to local authorities. During the dry season, saline intrusion will occur earlier than usual, causing a shortage of fresh water for agricultural production, according to the Southern Institute of Water Resources Research. Kien Giang province's People’s Committee has told agencies to dredge irrigation canals to improve water storage and to build temporary dams to prevent saline intrusion.  The province plans to … [Read more...] about Mekong Delta provinces take steps to control saltwater intrusion