Entering 2023, Microsoft and Google announced global lay-offs of 10,000 and 12,000 employees, respectively. IBM laid off nearly 4,000 members, while Spotify cut about 6 per cent of staff. Since November last year, Meta, Amazon, and HP have also adjusted thousands of positions. Tech lay-off wave continues to bite at Vietnam’s heels, Illustration photo/ Source: freepik.com In Southeast Asia, Shopee parent company Sea Group, Crypto.com, e-commerce platform JD.ID, and GoTo – a merger between ride-hailer Gojek and e-commerce platform Tokopedia – are among the companies that experienced a drastic staff cut in the past year. GoTo in November 2022 cut 1,300 jobs, equivalent to 12 per cent of the number of employees, while Sea Group let go of 7,000 employees in the past six months. Both companies cited a common cause being challenging macroeconomic conditions. Industry insiders in Vietnam are generally wary of the effect this laid-off wave might have on the domestic market. … [Read more...] about Tech lay-off wave continues to bite at Vietnam’s heels
Vietnam national petroleum group
Tech group lay-off wave reaches Vietnam
After Meta, Amazon, Twitter, and Tesla, Xiaomi has become the next name to join the list of leading tech companies forced to cut staff. In a December 20 announcement, a Xiaomi representative confirmed that about 10 per cent of the total workforce will be affected by the reduction policy implemented by the company to “optimise full-time and organisational rationalisation”. Tech group lay-off wave reaches Vietnam, illustration photo/ source freepik.com Xiaomi had over 35,300 employees as of the end of September, according to its third-quarter earnings report. It is expected that about 5,000 Xiaomi employees will ultimately be affected in the near future, mainly those working in the smartphone and internet service business units. The decision by the fifth-largest smartphone vendor in the Chinese market comes after seeing a 9.7 per cent drop in Q3 results on-year. Xiaomi is not the only tech company in Asia to start laying off staff. A week earlier, online commerce … [Read more...] about Tech group lay-off wave reaches Vietnam
National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines posts highest flight delay rates
The national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines had the biggest number of delayed flights in 2022 with 11,486 flights or nearly 12.50 percent. According to a report announced by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) on February 6, six local airlines conducted a total of 312,841 flights in 2022, with 89.70 percent on time, a decrease of 5 percent compared to 2021. Of the six airlines, last year Vietnam Airlines operated the highest number of flights with 115,987 flights, followed by Vietjet with 115,349, Bamboo Airways with 51,959. Pacific Airlines, Vasco, Vietravel Airlines conducted 16,567, 8,084, and 4,895 flights, respectively. The national flag carrier also posted the highest delay rate with 14,486 delayed flights or nearly 12.50 percent. It was followed by Vietjet with 11.50 percent. CAAV said late-arriving aircraft was the main cause of delays (accounting for 67.60 percent) in addition to other excuses, such as poor management and bad weather. There were … [Read more...] about National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines posts highest flight delay rates
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to enhance Singapore-Vietnam relations: Singaporean Foreign Minister
The following is the full text of the interview. Reporter: This year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations and 10th anniversary of strategic partnership between Singapore and Vietnam. How do you evaluate the Singapore-Vietnam relations in the past half century, especially in the last decade? What should the two countries do to further our bilateral cooperation and to advance the development of each country? Vivian Balakrishnan: The ties between Singapore and Vietnam have grown from strength to strength since we established diplomatic relations 50 years ago. We are longstanding friends and close partners that enjoy wide-ranging cooperation in many areas, both bilaterally and at multilateral fora. I am heartened that the bilateral relationship has continued to expand and evolve to tackle new challenges over the past decade. Our linkages are particularly strong in trade and investment. The 12 Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIPs) across Northern, Central, … [Read more...] about Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to enhance Singapore-Vietnam relations: Singaporean Foreign Minister
Lao newspaper praises growth of Communist Party of Vietnam
The article wrote that since he was young, witnessing Vietnam being oppressed, poor and hungry, Nguyen Tat Thanh (President Ho Chi Minh) nurtured an aspiration to find a way to save his country and bring independence to the Vietnamese people. After a 30-year journey abroad searching for national salvation with revolutionary activities in 28 countries globally, he always held a strong belief and aspiration for national independence. In 1941, he returned to the country and directly led the Vietnamese revolution. From 1941 to 1945, he led the Vietnamese people through myriad difficulties to the great victory of the August Revolution in 1945. After the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was established, President Ho Chi Minh wished to make the country wealthy, bring freedom, well-being and happiness to the people, it stressed. In his Testament, President Ho Chi Minh expressed his final wish that “the entire Vietnamese Party and people stay united and build a peaceful, unified, … [Read more...] about Lao newspaper praises growth of Communist Party of Vietnam
Baby elephant Bao Ngoc – an icon of Vietnam-Germany friendship
A ceremony to name the new born elephant was held on February 2 with the name “Bao Ngoc” (valuable gem) was chosen. Vietnamese Ambassador to Germany Vu Quang Minh said that the baby elephant is an icon of the Vietnam-Germany friendship. Elephant Voi Nam was born in 2002, marking a big event for the Leipzig Zoo as the zoo’s elephant herb had a new member after 66 years. Voi Nam and female elephants which are all from Asian countries last year gave births to two elephants and are expected to welcome two others in the next few weeks. Thomas Guenther, director in charge of Asian species at the zoo, said that the protection of species, especially the conservation of endangered species, is an important task. In some tropical countries, forest elephants have been listed in the red book, and are also one of the most endangered wildlife species in the world. The mating of elephants of Vietnamese origin with those from countries with the same ecosystem is both a measure to maintain … [Read more...] about Baby elephant Bao Ngoc – an icon of Vietnam-Germany friendship
Committed to empowering a brighter future
ASEAN countries like Vietnam are not spared from the impact of climate change. Rapid economic development also means increasing demand for energy and power to meet the pace of growth, which leads to an increase in CO2 emissions. The journey to a cleaner future Takeshi Masuyama, Managing director, regional head of Vietnam, MUFG Bank, Ltd. The Vietnamese government has announced in various international forums its commitment to address environmental issues, and has firmed up its national net-zero target. In addition, the announcement of the Vietnam Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) in last December is another milestone and will further rally the private and public sectors towards accelerating the country’s green transition. MUFG is part of the working group convened by the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) supporting the JETP initiative for Vietnam. The sustainability mission Since announcing our Carbon Neutrality Declaration in 2021, MUFG … [Read more...] about Committed to empowering a brighter future
Ho Chi Minh City among top markets for data centre development
The remaining top 10 markets in the category are: Columbus, Santiago, Johannesburg, Atlanta, Nashville, Phoenix, Austin, Denver, and Chicago, according to a report released by Cushman & Wakefield Vietnam on February 2. The annual report, now in its fourth year, ranks major data centre markets around the world according to 13 weighted categories including market size, connectivity, power cost and environmental risk to determine the top overall markets in each category. According to the latest Q4 2022 Ho Chi Minh City marketbeat report, the average rental price reached $159 per sq.m per lease cycle, up 3 per cent on the quarter and 10 per cent on-year. Vietnam is a frontier data centre market Vietnam may be a frontier data centre market, but it has numerous fundamentals that would suggest great potential for development. The country currently has 70 per cent internet penetration, with an estimated 29 million people yet to get online. Over 48 per cent of Vietnam’s … [Read more...] about Ho Chi Minh City among top markets for data centre development
Earthquake kills more than 5,000 in Turkey, Syria
Rescuers in Turkey and Syria braved frigid weather, aftershocks and collapsing buildings Tuesday, as they dug for survivors buried by an earthquake that killed more than 5,000 people. Disaster agencies said several thousand buildings were flattened in cities across a vast border region -- pouring misery on an area already plagued by war, insurgency, refugee crises and a recent cholera outbreak. Through the night, survivors used their bare hands to pick over the twisted ruins of multi-storey apartment blocks -- trying to save family, friends and anyone else sleeping inside when the first massive 7.8-magnitude quake struck early Monday. "Where is my mum?" asked a distraught seven-year-old girl who was pulled -- her face, hair and pyjamas covered in dust -- from a collapsed building in Hatay, on the Turkish side of the border. Police officer Zekeriya Yildiz hugs his daughter after they saved her from the rubble in Hatay, southwest Turkey on February 6, 2023. Photo: … [Read more...] about Earthquake kills more than 5,000 in Turkey, Syria
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s Singapore, Brunei visits look toward cohesive ASEAN
In an interview with the press ahead of the PM’s trip from February 8-11, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet stressed that the relations between Vietnam and the two countries are based on a lot of similarities in politics, economy, culture, and people-to-people exchange. The trip is of great significance, he said, noting that this is the first by Pham Minh Chinh in his new position that aims to manifest the consistent policy of prioritizing relations with neighboring countries and ASEAN, as set at the 13th National Party Congress. He added that this is also the first official visit by a leader of the Vietnamese government to Singapore over the past five years, and to Brunei over the past nearly 16 years. Therefore, the visits are expected to deepen the strategic partnership with Singapore, an important economic partner of Vietnam, and the comprehensive partnership with Brunei, also a promising economic partner, according to the official. For Singapore, the visit … [Read more...] about Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s Singapore, Brunei visits look toward cohesive ASEAN