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Revenue to state budget increases over 10 percent The revenue to the state budget in the first 9 months of this year amounted to 1,084.7 trillion VND, representing 80.75 percent of the projection and an increase of 10.75 percent over the figure recorded in the same period last year, according to the Finance Ministry. Meanwhile, the expenditure from the state coffer was estimated at 116.3 trillion VND, with the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic being prioritised. By the end of September, 29.1 trillion VND from the state budget was spend on the fight and support to those adversely affected by the pandemic. Despite the serious impacts of the pandemic, the revenue still increased year on year thanks to the economic growth momentum in the last month of last year, the ministry said. For the rest of the year, the ministry will continue accelerating administrative procedure reforms on taxation, simplifying business conditions, and joining other forces in fighting …

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Traffic turned heavy on roads leading to Ba Ria - Vung Tau on Saturday morning after the southern Vietnamese province’s administration had removed medical control measures, including COVID-19 testing certificate mandate, imposed on arrivals. Residents of Ho Chi Minh City started searching for the new COVID-19 prevention and control regulations in Ba Ria - Vung Tau on Friday evening, when the provincial authorities announced the relaxation of curbs on socio-economic activities and medical controls. Accordingly, arrivals to the province are no longer required to present a negative COVID-19 testing certificate while beach-going and outdoor sporting activities such as walking, golf and tennis are resumed with a limited number of participants starting Saturday. Many people thus drove their vehicles from Ho Chi Minh City to Vung Tau, the popular beach city of the southern province, on Saturday morning. Vehicles pass through a tollbooth on a section of National Highway 51 in …

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Vietnamese Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong addresses measures to enhance friendship and cooperation between China and Vietnam during his ongoing official visit to Beijing from January 12 to 15. General Secretary Trong spoke with General Secretary of the Communist Party of China and Chinese President Xi Jinping following his arrival in Beijing on Thursday evening, the Vietnam News Agency reported. President Xi warmly welcomed the Vietnamese Party chief on the latter’s first China visit since the 12th Party Congress, saying the visit is a crucial step in deepening the Vietnam-China relationship. The Chinese leader stated that his country attaches significant importance to its ties with Vietnam and underlined its willingness to work with the Vietnamese Party, State, and people to strengthen the two nations’ bilateral cooperation and comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership. Replying to his host, General Secretary Trong affirmed that Vietnam has always respected its …

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American Ethan Hale has been eagerly checking for the latest news on Vietnam reopening its borders since early October. With recent reports on conditions for tourists to visit Vietnam, he has become more impatient. Hale has not seen his Vietnamese wife Tu Anh and his little daughter Minh Tu since early this year, when he left Hanoi for Saudi Arabia for work. As a technician in the oil and gas industry, he is allowed to return home every month, but has not been able to do so because Vietnam is yet to reopen its borders. "I keep blaming myself a lot for not being able to get back to my family." At the beginning of 2021, when Hale left Vietnam, the couple did not worry too much about the pandemic as Vietnam had recorded a low number of total infections at just over 830 cases. These days, he is hoping that he can return to Vietnam at least as a tourist. Ethan Hale with his wife Tu Anh and their daughter in Hanoi in early 2021. Photo courtesy of Hale Hale is …

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The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has imposed a VND45 million administrative fine on a rap band called "Nha Lam" for circulating a music product that offends beliefs and religions. According to Clause 4, Article 13 of Decree 38, besides the administrative fine of VND45 million (over US$2,000), this product must be removed from circulation.. "Nha Lam" rap band. Nearly two weeks ago, this troupe caused public outrage when it released the song “Thich Ca Mau Chi” with content blaspheming Buddhism, distorting the image of the Buddha. Not only Buddhist followers but also Vietnamese audiences and the media have harshly criticized this song. Facing the harsh reactions of Buddhist followers and the community, the rap band apologized twice on its Facebook page. After that, they went to Quan Su Pagoda (Hanoi) to repent. They promised to not repeat the mistake. The penitential ceremony was witnessed by Venerable Thich Duc Thien, Vice President, General Secretary …

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Access to low-cost technology was the topic of a discussion session of the ITU Ministerial Roundtable that took place on October 12-14. While 4G and 5G are gradually becoming more popular, nearly 50% of the global population has not yet had access to the Internet. It is not easy for all countries to perform digital transformation because of the difference in access to the Internet and technology. Access to low-cost technology was the topic of a discussion session of the ITU Ministerial Roundtable that took place on October 12-14, within the framework of the ITU Digital World hosted by Vietnam. ICT Ministers and many experts of ITU member countries discussed the issue of setting appropriate costs to help accelerate digital transformation and the role of governments in removing barriers to Internet access digital transformation. According to ITU’s data, more than 90% of the urban population and more than 70% of the rural population in the world have been covered …

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Thirty two percent of the agreed payment is what landlord Tran Ky Mui in An Nhon Commune in the central province of Binh Dinh got from Mobile World for leasing his building for the September-November period. The biggest electronics retail chain in the country ascribed the outstanding 68 percent the company being forced to shut down shops due to social distancing measures from July to September. This is why Mui only received VND24 million ($1,053) out of the total VND75 million. The unusual decision of the company forced Mui to hire a lawyer to either get his money or the building back so he could lease it to someone else. "At first I intended to give Mobile World a 50 percent discount. But as they repeatedly send letters with a disrespectful attitude, I decided not to give them a dime of discount." He was referring to the four letters Mobile World, with 949 outlets of the same name, has been sending to its landlords since June, demanding a discount from the lease, which had …

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Vietnam’s business hub Ho Chi Minh City will first resume interprovincial tours from November 1 before re-launching international tourism activities in early 2022, according to its plan for tourism recovery from COVID-19. The plan has been launched as the southern city and the country in general are loosening strict COVID-19 restrictions to resume socio-economic activities under ‘new normal conditions,’ a phrase the Vietnamese government uses to describe its new strategy of living safely with the coronavirus. Accordingly, the tourism recovery will follow a three-phase roadmap that requires strict compliance with epidemic prevention measures. In the first phase, which lasts from now to October 31, the city will reopen local tourism activities in “green zones”, meaning areas without known COVID-19 infection cases. People can select tours organized by travel companies or go by themselves to destinations in districts where the pandemic has been put under control. Hotels and …

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VinFast, a Vietnamese automotive manufacturer established in 2017, has announced that it will unveil two of its latest EV models at the 2021 Los Angeles Auto Show.  — Photo of Vinfast HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam’s electric vehicle index (EVI) has been announced for the first time, aiming to help enterprises in the value chain make decisions on production and business. The Vietnam Petroleum Institute (VPI) built and unveiled the index on Thursday after consulting domestic and foreign experts. According to the institute, policies, strategies and technological development are unstable and unpredictable elements that have great impacts on the development of the electric vehicle (EV) market. The VPI has used various signposts to assess the domestic EV market. Việt Nam’s EVI in the third quarter of this year reached 1.6 out of 5 points based on the signposts of policies, the network of charging stations, ownership costs, clients’ liking, GDP per capita, technology and the regional …

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