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Hanoi has logged 548 new cases of chickenpox so far this year, with the most recent 70 infections recorded just this week, according to statistics from the Hanoi Center for Disease Control (CDC). There have been no deaths linked to the ongoing outbreak. Chickenpox is on the rise compared to last year, and many of the patients are preschool and elementary school students, which respectively account for 36.5 percent and 38 percent of the total infections. So far, 18 out of Hanoi’s 30 districts have been affected by the outbreak, with Chuong My, Me Linh, Ba Vi, and Nam Tu Liem Districts having each detected over 30 cases. In the outlying district of Chuong My, the local medical center had reported five clusters of 237 chickenpox cases as of March 21. In Ho Chi Minh City, children's hospitals citywide said that they have recorded normal rates of hospital admissions and treatment linked to chickenpox. However, as chickenpox cases tend to surge between February and June, parents … [Read more...] about Chickenpox outbreak spreads in Hanoi

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday raised interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point, but indicated it was on the verge of pausing further increases in borrowing costs after the recent collapse of two U.S. banks. Fed Chair Jerome Powell sought to reassure investors about the soundness of the banking system, saying that the management of Silicon Valley Bank "failed badly," but that the bank's collapse did not indicate wider weaknesses in the banking system. "These are not weaknesses that are running broadly through the banking system," he said, adding that the takeover of Credit Suisse seemed to have been a positive outcome. The Federal Open Market Committee policy statement also said the U.S. banking system is "sound and resilient." Even so, Wall Street ended sharply lower after Powell told a news conference that officials were still intent on fighting inflation while also eying the extent to which recent bank failures had cooled demand and slowed lending. The … [Read more...] about U.S. Fed delivers small rate hike amid global banking turmoil

The energy transition in Vietnam is tied to the rapid growth of the economy, urbanisation, and industrialisation. We have seen the strong aspiration of the government to speed up the energy transition while meeting the requirements of economic development and the goal of becoming a high-income country by 2045. Energy transition is more seen as a potential engine for employment, and this trend will likely grow, helping to build support for renewables. John Rockhold, head of the Power and Energy Working Group under the Vietnam Business Forum Fossil energy sources are gradually being replaced by green and clean energy sources, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and combating climate change, while Vietnam is one of the first countries to renew its nationally determined contribution to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 2020. The roadmap for the country’s transition process towards green and sustainable development will not only need to ensure … [Read more...] about Displaying readiness for the energy transition in Vietnam

In December, the EU officially approved a directive for companies to pay a minimum tax rate of 15 per cent from 2024. Our neighbouring markets such as Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong are heading towards the official application of GMT policy from 2024 or 2025. Thomas McClelland - Country tax leader Deloitte Vietnam Countries with foreign investment in Vietnam, like South Korea and Japan, will implement new tax policies or announce a draft tax reform, moving towards the application of the GMT from the fiscal year 2024. The impact of the policy on Vietnam is clear and urgent, and requires the authorities to take timely action before it is too late. Firstly, to protect tax collection, Vietnam could consider the immediate solution of implementing a qualified domestic minimum top-up tax to gain the right to collect the top-up tax rather than the tax going to another country. This mechanism can simply be understood as a domestic mechanism in which the calculation of … [Read more...] about Vietnam must revisit policies to develop implementation of global minimum tax

The absence in adjustment of power rates, tuition, and hospital fees contributed to an extremely low growth rate of GDP in 2020–2021 or an excessively high one in 2022, as well as relatively moderate inflation throughout 2020–2022. In the first two months of 2023, average core inflation climbed to 5.08 per cent, outpacing the average consumer price index (CPI) growth of 4.6 per cent. Dr. Vu Dinh Anh - Market Price Research Institute Ministry of Finance For 2023, public investment is seen as an economic boost. Investment capital generated from the state budget in February 2023 was anticipated to be almost $1.3 billion, an increase of 36.9 per cent compared to the same month last year. The expected amount of newly registered foreign direct investment up to February 20 was $1.76 billion, which was 2.8 times more than that in the same period in 2022. Slowdown in industrial development and a lack in investment capital are barriers that must be resolved to prevent a downturn … [Read more...] about Focused spending can set a solid base for positive outcome

Some branches are taking care of the registration fee for car buyers, but sales are still not being boosted, photo Le Toan In a document sent to the prime minister last week, the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA) along with other associations asked the government to extend the payment of special consumption tax and reduce the registration fee of domestically manufactured and assembled cars by a half this year, in order to stimulate demand. A VAMA representative said that the domestic car sales market is in a gloomy situation, and has been struggling like many other industries since 2020. “In order to stimulate market demand, we need strong enough policies like extending the payment of excise tax in 2023 and taking 50 per cent off the registration fee. These should be applied as soon as possible,” emphasised the representative. To combat the effects of the pandemic, the government chopped the registration fee in half for domestically manufactured and assembled … [Read more...] about Auto makers project bumpy years ahead