Vietnam adventures

The Vietnam Tourism Association (VITA) and the Korea Tourism Organisation of the Republic of Korea (KTO) sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Hanoi, September 28 (VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnam Tourism Association (VITA) and the Korea Tourism Organisation of the Republic of Korea (KTO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bolstering tourism cooperation in Hanoi on September 28. Accordingly, the two sides will share information related to tourism policies, market trends, statistics, bolster exchanges among businesses in the fields, and jointly organise promotion activities like tourism fairs, seminars and famtours, among others. Under the MoU , members of VITA will receive support in developing tours to the RoK, improving the tours' quality of tourism programmes and ensuring rights and benefits for Vietnamese tourists when travelling to the RoK , while enhancing service quality for Korean tourists in Vietnam. Vu The Binh, Chairman of VITA, said the … [Read more...] about Vietnam, RoK sign MoU to strengthen tourism cooperation

Vietnam’s GDP in the first nine months of this year rises by 4.24% year-on-year. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the first nine months of this year rose by 4.24% from the same period last year, the General Statistics Office (GSO) announced on September 29. In the third quarter, the country's economic growth rate was estimated at 5.33% compared to the same quarter of 2022. The GSO assessed that although the nine-month growth rate is only higher than those in the same period of 2020 and 2021 in the past 12 years, it showed a positive trend of increasing gradually over the quarters: 3.28% in the first quarter, 4.05% in the second quarter and 5.33% in the third quarter. In the January-September period, the agro-forestry-fishery sector expanded by 3.72%, contributing 8.03% to the total added value of the entire economy. The growth rates of the industrial and construction sector and the service industry were 5.19% and 6.24% with … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s nine-month GDP increases by 4.24%

According to the South Korean woman, songpyeon - made from rice powder and filled with red bean, mung bean, or black sesame paste - is a must-have dish at Chuseok (South Korean Mid-Autumn Festival). Chuseok is an occasion for South Koreans to celebrate their harvest and gather with family members. Local people often visit their deceased relatives’ graves and offer food to show their gratitude towards their ancestors. They also send their relatives and friends gifts, often food that can be consumed within the week, including songpyeon, ginseng, beef, or fruits. Songpyeon made by Kim Youn Kyong’s family, who came to live in HCMC 10 years ago, on September 28, 2023. Photo by VnExpress/Ngoc Ngan Kim said that she was surprised and slightly disappointed on her first Mid-Autumn Festival in Vietnam, since everyone was still working, compared to how people at home have three to four days off to return to their hometowns and visit their families. The whole family then … [Read more...] about South Koreans in Vietnam celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival

According to a recent survey conducted by the Incheon International Airport Corporation from August 7 to August 24 regarding passenger opinions, Vietnam is chosen by 14.5% of the respondents, ranking second on the list of most favored international travel destinations for Chuseok. Japan topped the list with a rate of 28.2%. Vietnam also placed second among preferred travel destinations for those aged 20 and 30 (13.8% of respondents) and those aged 40 and 50 (12.8% of respondents). This year, for the first time, the South Korean government designated October 2 as a one-off temporary holiday, extending the length of the Chuseok holiday to six days. If employees use their annual leave, they can enjoy a free-from-work period of up to 12 days. According to the survey, 38.2% of respondents preferred longer trips of more than a week, an increase from the 30.3% rate for the summer vacation this year. The proportion of people intending to travel abroad was 9.3%, the highest since the … [Read more...] about Vietnam a popular destination for Koreans on Chuseok holiday: survey

Vietnamese labourers wait for boarding procedures at the airport. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam is speeding up negotiations with Hungary in a bid to sign an agreement on sending and receiving Vietnamese labourers in the European country – an emerging market drawing great interest from labourers. Statistics from the Department of Overseas Labour under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, Vietnam has sent workers to Hungary since 2018. So far, more than 2,700 Vietnamese labourers have been dispatched to the market, with the number of workers increasing year on year, reaching 1,148 in the first nine months of 2023. The department has licenced 25 businesses to recruit and send Vietnamese labourers to Hungary. Vietnamese labourers have engaged in many sectors in Hungary, including construction, manufacturing-processing, wood processing, agriculture and hotel and restaurant services. They have enjoyed good salaries and social welfare in the country. … [Read more...] about Vietnam looks to increase labour exports to Hungary

Secretary of the VCG Party Committee Lieutenant General Bui Quoc Oai, who is also Political Commissar of the VCG, speaks at the event. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) Party Committee has seriously and comprehensively implemented the Politburo’s resolutions regarding national border safeguarding and national defence in cyberspace, heard a meeting in Hanoi on September 29. The meeting reviewed the five-year implementation of the Politburo's Resolution No. 33-NQ/TW on national border protection strategy and Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW on the strategy on national defence in cyberspace . The committee has effectively carried out a project disseminating the Law on Vietnam Coast Guard in the 2019-2023 period, consolidated the all-people defence posture in border areas, and supported fishermen in 28 coastal cities and provinces. A view of the meeting of the VCG Party Committee. (Photo: VNA) The force detected, seized and handled 4,490 cases … [Read more...] about Vietnam Coast Guard contributes to national defence in cyberspace

A court in Binh Phuoc Province, southern Vietnam on Thursday handed capital punishment to two Vietnamese and one Cambodian for trafficking nearly 32 kilograms of drugs from Cambodia to Vietnam. In particular, the court gave the death sentence to Nguyen Ngoc Hai, 29, and Dang Ngoc Quy, 24, residing in Binh Phuoc Province, along with Sbov Proeurn, 36, from Cambodia. Hai also got a life sentence for the illegal possession of drugs and a two-year jail term for the illegal storage of military weapons. In total, he will serve the death sentence. According to the indictment, on March 26 last year, a Cambodian man nicknamed 'Boss' made a phone call to hire Proeurn to transport drugs from Cambodia to Ho Chi Minh City at a cost of US$200 per kilogram. Proeurn later called his friend, Hai, and discussed a transport plan. They agreed that Proeurn would transport the drugs from Cambodia to the Cambodia-Vietnam border and Hai would be responsible for bringing them from the border to Ho … [Read more...] about 2 Vietnamese, 1 Cambodian condemned to death for trafficking drugs from Cambodia to Vietnam

Vietnam is home to over 300 green buildings, but that figure is much lower than the country's potential, according to a construction official at the Vietnam Green Building Week 2023. Themed 'Green Building Development Promotes Green Transformation in Construction Industry: Opportunities and Challenges,' the event was held by the Ministry of Construction in coordination with other units on Thursday in Ho Chi Minh City, Speaking at the event, Nguyen Tuong Van, Deputy Minister of Construction, said that state management agencies have encouraged businesses to develop green buildings on a voluntary basis and Vietnam has yet to introduce mandatory regulations on green building development. Currently, the country is home to about 300 green buildings with a combined floor space area of 7.2 million square meters. These green buildings include hotels, shopping malls, workshops, offices, and the headquarters of state agencies. Van revealed that Ho Chi Minh City took the lead in the … [Read more...] about Vietnam is lacking in green buildings: construction official

Apple authorized resellers across Vietnam began iPhone 15 deliveries at 00:00 on Friday. Customers started lining up to get the new iPhone 15 at shops in Ho Chi Minh City at midnight the day before the launch. FPT Shop, a retail chain owned by Vietnamese technology firm FPT, organized an iPhone handover event at three of its stores in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang City. At an FPT Shop outlet on Le Loi Street in downtown Ho Chi Minh City, its employees were busy handing over the first iPhone 15s to customers from 0:01 on Friday. A representative of FPT Shop, which is the first retailer in Vietnam to directly import Apple’s entire line of products, said that the chain had received over 30,000 pre-orders for the iPhone 15. The retailer handed over more than 5,000 iPhone 15s in its first few minutes of sales. Similarly, customers, mainly young people, began picking up iPhone 15s at mobile retailer The Gioi Di Dong’s TopZone store on Khanh Hoi Street in District 4, Ho … [Read more...] about Apple’s iPhone 15 goes on sale across Vietnam

Vietnam's gross domestic product growth accelerated in the third quarter from the previous three months, data showed on Friday, but fell short of this year's growth target as dull demand for exports overshadowed support from monetary easing. GDP in the July-September quarter is expected to have grown 5.33% from a year earlier, faster than the 4.05% expansion in the second quarter, the General Statistics Office said in a report on Friday. Capital Economics said the worst for Vietnam's economy was over but growth remained subdued by past standards. With inflation becoming a growing concern, however, it did not expect a further rate cut from the central bank. The third-quarter figure was much slower than growth of 13.71% in the same period of 2022, when its manufacturing-led economy managed a post-pandemic pickup following a 6% quarterly contraction in 2021. Factory powerhouse Vietnam is targeting growth of 6.5% this year, down from 8.02% last year, but most economists expect … [Read more...] about Vietnam sees Q3 GDP growth capped by weak external demand