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
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Hanoi targets annual export growth of 5.5% until 2030
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
Vietnamese steel industry calling for wider investment from overseas entities
Vietnamese steel industry calling for wider investment from overseas entities, photo Le Toan Posco Yamato Vina Steel JSC, a joint venture between South Korea’s Pohang Iron and Steel Company and Japan’s Yamato Holdings, is contemplating constructing a second facility in Vietnam. Lee Youngwoo, general manager of Posco Yamato Vina, wants to “establish a robust sales network” across Vietnam while enhancing scrap supply security. In 2020, Posco Yamato Vina was the first to manufacture wide H-shaped steel in Vietnam. According to Lee, the business built a representative office in Haiphong last year in order to “create additional prospects for collaboration” with clients. In the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Posco Yamato Vina operates a steel mill with a capacity of one million metric tonnes per year and produces section steel with a capacity of 500,000 tonnes per year. Following a lack of foreign investment in steel manufacturing in recent years, many observers see Posco … [Read more...] about Vietnamese steel industry calling for wider investment from overseas entities
State budget revenue up 1.3% in Q1
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
Britain, building post-Brexit ties, to join trans-Pacific trade pact
Britain on Friday said it had struck a deal to join an 11-country trans-Pacific trade pact which includes Japan and Australia as it looks to deepen ties in the region and build its global trade links after leaving the European Union. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Britain had agreed to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), in a move his office said was the biggest trade deal since Brexit. A previous government impact assessment estimated the deal would add just 0.08% to GDP in the long term, but Britain has strategic - not just economic - motives, as it can now influence whether applicants China and Taiwan may join the group. "Joining the CPTPP trade bloc puts the UK at the centre of a dynamic and growing group of Pacific economies," Sunak said, adding the deal demonstrated "the real economic benefits of our post-Brexit freedoms." Britain has been looking to build trade ties following its departure from the EU in 2020, … [Read more...] about Britain, building post-Brexit ties, to join trans-Pacific trade pact