K pop star whose hit 2012

SINGAPORE - A technical glitch at entry points into Singapore led to rare delays at one of the world's busiest airports on Friday, with snaking queues and disgruntled passengers for several hours as automated immigration lanes suffered problems. The city-state's immigration authority said it had "resumed normalcy" at checkpoints by 4 p.m. local time (0800 GMT) and was investigating the cause of the disruption, after earlier reporting "system slowness" at selected checkpoints, including, Changi Airport and two land border crossings with Malaysia. Changi, one of the busiest gateways in the world, had warned passengers to expect delays and authorities urged postponement of non-essential travel. Passengers queue at the departure hall of Changi Airport Terminal 3 in Singapore March 31, 2023. Photo: Reuters It handles nearly 150,000 passengers a day while about 300,000 people cross daily at the Woodlands and Tuas causeways linking Singapore with Malaysia. Posts on … [Read more...] about Singapore sees rare travel delays as tech problem hits immigration checkpoints

The plan's implementation seeks to capitalize on Hanoi's import-export advantages and promote the city's socioeconomic development toward green growth and rapid and sustainable progress. Hanoi aims to sustain an annual export growth rate of 4.4-5% between 2023 and 2025 and 5.1-5.5% between 2023 and 2030. Electronics production at Channel Well Technology Vietnam at Quang Minh Industrial Park, Hanoi. Photo: Pham Hung/The Hanoi Times The goals were included in the action plan to achieve Hanoi's import-export strategy until 2030, which was signed off on March 30 by Vice Chairman of the municipal People's Committee Nguyen Manh Quyen. The implementation of this plan seeks to leverage Hanoi's import-export advantages and support its socioeconomic development toward green growth, rapid and sustainable progress, and a stable growth rate in import-export activities. The emphasis is on the direct export promotion of key and advantageous city goods and attracting … [Read more...] about Hanoi targets annual export growth of 5.5% until 2030

On March 31, the event occurred adjacent to the Hanoi Cooperative Alliance's headquarters in Van Quan Ward, Ha Dong District. More than 100 cooperative groups of cooperative alliances from Hanoi and provinces all over the country participated in a week-long fair promoting the sale of farm produce and handicrafts recognized by the One Commune One Product (OCOP) program to showcase their products and agricultural models linked to eco-tourism. Hanoi's authorities attend the opening ceremony of the event. Photo: Trong Tung/ The Hanoi Times Do Huy Chien, the chairman of the Hanoi Cooperative Alliance, stated that the week-long fair aims to promote farm goods, processed foods, and OCOP items related to rural and agricultural sectors and traditional craft villages from Hanoi and other areas. "The event is also intended to link tourism promotion activities between the city and localities throughout the country, contributing to increasing the brand value of … [Read more...] about Hanoi hosts a week-long exhibition showcasing OCOP farm products

Directors and audience hold talks after the screening (Photo: VNA) Paris (VNA) – Documentary films produced by young Vietnamese directors are being screened in a special programme entitled “L’aventure Varan Vietnam” (Adventure of Varan Vietnam ) under the umbrella of the Cinéma du Réel 2023 (International documentary film festival) which is underway in Paris from March 24- April 2. Director Ha Le Diem’s “Nhung dua tre trong suong” (Children of the Mist), Tran Phuong Thao’s “Uoc mo lam cong nhan” (Pomelo), “Chuyen di cuoi cung cua chi Phung” (The last journey of madame Phung) by Nguyen Thi Tham are three among 20 works introduced at the event. The works were created in training programmes conducted by Varan Vietnam Productions since 2004. Speaking at a screening, Vietnamese Ambassador to France Dinh Toan Thang highlighted the significant meaning of the event in welcoming the 50th anniversary of Vietnam- France diplomatic relations and the tenth anniversary of the … [Read more...] about Vietnamese documentary films screened in France

At a press conference on March 30 to report the collection of State budget in the first quarter of 2023 (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - State budget revenue reached an estimated 491.5 trillion VND (over 20.9 billion USD) in the first quarter of 2023, equivalent to 30.3% of the estimate, and up 1.3% from the same period last year, the Ministry of Finance reported on March 30. Twenty-eight of the 63 provinces and centrally-run cities nationwide recorded state budget revenue hitting 28% of their yearly estimates. Twenty-three provinces and centrally-run cities saw the higher revenues than in the same period of 2022, while 40 others reported lower revenues. Meanwhile, the accumulated expenditure in the first quarter was equivalent to 17.5%  of the yearly estimate. The Ministry of Finance said expenditures in the last three months were carried out as planned, meeting requirements for socio-economic development, defence, security safeguarding, state management, debt repayment, and … [Read more...] about State budget revenue up 1.3% in Q1

JAKARTA -- Indonesian property firm PT MNC Land launched on Friday a 1,040 hectare (2,570 acre) tourism complex on Java island, where former U.S. President Donald Trump's company will operate a hotel and a golf course. Indonesian President Joko Widodo also inaugurated a special conomic zone within MNC's tourism project, which is called Lido City and located around 60 km (37 miles) south of the capital Jakarta in the Bogor area. MNC Land said the special economic zone status means investors or developers can benefit from corporate and luxury goods sales tax cuts and some leniency on permits, adding benefits included an 80-year building rights title and foreign ownership. It was not clear whether the Trump Organization would also benefit from tax breaks, which include a tax holiday for corporate tax for 10 to 20 years based on the investment value. During his presidency, Trump had kept ownership of his global business empire, but handed off control to his two oldest sons through … [Read more...] about Trump’s Indonesia partner launches tourism complex on Java

Inspectors examine a container at Cai Lan port in Quang Ninh province. More ports need to be built to promote inter-regional ties. (Photo: VNA) Thai Binh (VNA) - The Red River Delta is a region of geopolitical, economic, cultural, and social importance to Vietnam , according to Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung. The minister made the remarks at a seminar "Promoting investment, trade, and services to strengthen inter-regional ties" held on March 30 in Thai Binh province. He said in more than 15 years, the region saw a remarkable economic advancement with an average annual growth rate of 8.93%, far higher than the country's level. In 2022, its GDP hit 2.89 quadrillion VND (123 billion USD), contributing to nearly one-third of the national GDP. Its income per capita was 1.3 times as high as the national average, at 123.4 million VND per annum. Despite the impressive economic growth, the region still faces some major obstacles. First, its transition … [Read more...] about Red River Delta – national economic powerhouse: Official

An overview of the event (Photo: baotainguyenmoitruong.vn) Hanoi (VNA) – A conference was held in Hanoi on March 31 to review a German-funded project under the moniker “Support to Vietnam for the implementation of the Paris Agreement” (VN-SIPA). The project was funded by the German Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) under the International Climate Initiative (IKI) and implemented by the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ) from 2019 to 2023. Addressing the event, Tang The Cuong, Director of the Department of Climate Change under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, said as one of the countries that are hardest hit by climate change, Vietnam has made strong commitments to joining hands with the international community in responding to climate change. The Government of Vietnam ratified the Paris Climate Accords in 2016 and issued a plan to implement the agreement. At the 26th UN Climate Change Conference … [Read more...] about German-funded project supports Vietnam in implementing Paris Agreement