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A market in Malaysia (Photo: Bernama) Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – Malaysia’s consumer price index (CPI) in April increased 2.3 percent to 125.9 compared with 123.1 in the same month last year, the Department of Statistics Malaysia has said. The increase surpassed the average inflation in Malaysia for the period of between January 2011 and April 2022 (1.9 percent). Chief statistician Mohd Uzir Mahidin said food inflation in April was higher at 4.1 percent with 89.1 percent of food items in the food and beverages group recording increases. He pointed out that the increase in food inflation , which contributed the highest to the overall weight of CPI , remained a major contributor to inflation. Inflation for this group increased 4.1 percent in April 2022 compared to the same month of the previous year. On a monthly basis, the CPI increased 0.2 percent compared to March 2022, attributed by food and non-alcoholic beverages, transport, recreation services and culture, … [Read more...] about Malaysia: Food inflation pushes April CPI

Petrol retail prices in the country have been adjusted many times over the past few months, Photo: Le Toan In Vietnam, gasoline prices continue to increase, and after the adjustment on May 11 by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and the Ministry of Finance, each litre of E5 RON92 petrol increased by 6.5 US cents to $1.26 per litre while RON95 climbed by 6.7 US cents to $1.30 per litre. On May 17, the price of US WTI crude oil remained at a high level of over $114 per barrel while Brent oil maintained its upward momentum at $114.28 per barrel. Before the next adjustment, which was due on May 21, petrol prices in Vietnam were forecast to continue to increase to higher levels. The ministries first adjusted gasoline prices on January 11 due to a decrease in global supply, production output by Kazakhstan and Libya, and oil inventories of the United States. According to Decree No.95/2021/ND-CP, effective from January, there will be three adjustments each month to the … [Read more...] about Vietnam riding the wave of inflationary unpredictability

The number of Viettel's inventions has been on the rise, covering both military and civil fields. — Photo courtesy of Viettel Viettel Aerospace Institute (VTX), a member of Viettel Group, was officially granted an exclusive protection certificate by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for two works in the field of optoelectronics and materials industry. 'Spherical mirror optics for medium-wave thermal imaging equipment' was invented in 2017, solving the problem of self-study, designing and manufacturing camera cores, and minimising the dependence on imports from abroad. Meanwhile, the invention of a 'method for making high-temperature synthetic materials' helps produce materials that can meet the harsh working conditions in the military field. The number of Viettel's inventions has been on the rise, covering both military and civil fields, affirming its position as a technological pioneer. Viettel has been granted 56 patents in Viet Nam and 11 patents in the US by … [Read more...] about Two new Viettel inventions granted exclusive protection certificate in the US

Legislation review necessary to increase tempo on public disbursement activities, illustration photo/ baodautu.vn Assoc. Prof. Pham The Anh from the National Economics University said that changing the slow disbursement of public investment would be very challenging because of legal risks and responsibility. “I don’t think the slow disbursement is due to the lack of motivation by those responsible for the implementation,” said Anh. “In the past two years, the bottlenecks in public investment were related to the legal environment,” he added, citing legal problems in land clearance. “The Vietnamese government still has the ability to keep up with the disbursement speed by reviewing the legislation related to public investment decisions.” In 2022, the government expects to disburse $17.69 billion according to Decision No.2048/QD-TTg dated December 6, 2021 on assigning state budget investment for 2022. “The latest directives are aimed at disbursing public investment on schedule … [Read more...] about Legislation review necessary to increase tempo on public disbursement activities

Vietnam ICT Summit 2017 is the platform for administrative agencies and IT enterprise community to discuss solutions and strategies with the objective of taking Vietnam to join the industrial revolution 4.0. On September 6, the first theme in the Vietnam ICT Summit 2017 of “Vietnam: Digital Transformation in Industry 4.0” has been discussed. In particular, the Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam has given the opening speech at the summit. As such, the Deputy Prime Minister stressed, industrial revolution is more and more influencing various aspects of socio-economic in the world, as well as in Vietnam. This is not only an opportunity for Vietnam to transform, but also poses a potential threat to the country. The Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam gave a speech at the summit. According to the Deputy Prime Minister, in 2017, the global innovation index (GII) of Vietnam has increased 12 places to the 47th rank, thanks to the significant contribution from IT … [Read more...] about Industrial revolution 4.0: Human resources are key

Kevin Coppel, Asia-Pacific managing director (left ) and Christine Li, Asia-Pacific head of research for Knight Frank in Singapore When the US-China trade tensions bubbled over in 2018, corporates found it increasingly difficult to carry out business in China due to sourcing uncertainties and rising costs. This trend only worsened in the face of the pandemic and resulting border closures. Businesses responded by pursuing opportunities to set up bases outside of China while still retaining a stake in one of the world’s strongest economies. The China+1 strategy thus emerged. It is based on diversifying its supply base into other countries in order to minimise the risk of disruptions arising from geopolitical tensions, trade wars and tariffs, as well as rising labour costs. These companies are not abandoning China but rather giving themselves options, enjoying the best of what China and other economies have to offer. In pursuit of the China+1 strategy, the spotlight is naturally … [Read more...] about Will Vietnam become a big geopolitical beneficiary?

Many retailers in phone and electronics segments focus on developing online channels to survive during the coronavirus pandemic period. To survive adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic, many Vietnamese tech retailers have quickly boosted their sales on online platforms as their physical stores nationwide have to close until April 15 to comply with the prime ministerial directive stipulating measures to combat the pandemic. Photo: MWG Significant demand on tech products Mobile World Investment JSC (MWG), the largest tech retailer in Vietnam, saw a surge in demand in online shopping since the beginning of April as more than 10% of its 2,000 phone and electronics stores, mainly in Hanoi, have to close. Dang Thanh Phong, PR manager of MWG, told Hanoitimes that its revenue from online sales accounted for 13% of the total phone and electronics revenue in March, higher than that of the previous months. Due to the closure of its stores, sales in … [Read more...] about Vietnamese tech retailers manage to survive Covid-19 pandemic

Kim Højlund Christensen, Danish Ambassador to Vietnam With the return of tourism and trade activities, can you see any movement from business and investment promotion delegations that are going to visit Vietnam? The Vietnamese government’s recent decision to lift entry restrictions and especially to resume the visa-exemption travel programme for countries, including Denmark, is great news and positively welcomed by the Danish business community. Many Danish companies are already planning their visits to Vietnam this month and early next month to meet with their local business partners in person. At present, there are over 130 Danish companies represented in Vietnam. Therefore, there will be a large number of business visitors and delegations from headquarters in Denmark or other locations in the region coming here in the near future to visit their production facilities or to find new investment opportunities. Besides that, we also expect to have trade delegations visit our … [Read more...] about Danish investors pinpointing rising potential of Vietnam’s green energy

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lê Thị Thu Hằng at Thursday's press briefing in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo Phạm Kiên HÀ NỘI — Whether any country, including Việt Nam, will officially accede to the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) unveiled by US President Joe Biden earlier this week, depends on the outcomes of the discussions, foreign ministry spokesperson Lê Thị Thu Hằng said on Thursday. On May 23, the US White House announced the launch of the much-awaited economic initiative, with the claimed dozen of initial partners – Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Việt Nam – which together cover 40 per cent of the global GDP. Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính attended the kickstarting ceremony for the discussions for the framework, Hằng noted, in response to queries on clarification of the first group of participating countries during the press … [Read more...] about Discussion outcomes will determine Việt Nam’s accession to Indo-Pacific economic initiative: foreign ministry