Poor waterway infrastructure hurts HCM City tourismDomestic waterway tourism in HCM City can not develop with its current weak infrastructure system. The situation became worse as local authorities planned to boost the local waterway tourism. “At the present, the city has 1,800 metres of wharfs and the city must use at least 1,000m if they want to boost the local waterway tourism sector,” he suggested. The similar situation has happened to the Hoang Trieu Investment Joint Stock Company with 15 canoes for waterway tourism services. “Local authorities should encourage investment for new tourism waterway ports,” he added.

VPBank to increase charter capital to US$1.18bnViet Nam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPBank) will organise its shareholders’ meeting on March 19 with an important plan to increase its current charter capital. VPBank aims to increase its charter capital from VND15.7 trillion (US$689.7 million) to more than VND27 trillion ($1.18 billion) in 2018. — Photo vietnamfinance.vnThe bank aims to increase its charter capital from VND15.7 trillion (US$689.7 million) to more than VND27 trillion ($1.18 billion) in 2018. At the meeting, VPBank will discuss plans to distribute its profit, increase charter capital by paying stock dividend, issue shares and review its licence. To increase its charter capital, VPBank will continue to issue shares for domestic and foreign investors.

Quang Nam local resident hands over rare primateA local resident in central Quang Nam Province’s Dong Giang District has handed over a red-shanked douc langur (pygathrix nemaeus) to the district’s forest management unit, according to local authorities. – Photo VnexpressCo Lau Deo, from A Ting Commune, bought the primate from a local person last month. Therefore, local forest rangers will continue raising it for a short period before releasing it in the wild,” Khanh told VnExpress online newspaper. The primate is listed in the IIB group as endangered in the Red Book of Viet Nam and is on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s Red List of Threatened Species. Destruction of its natural habitat is another threat to the species, according to IUCN.

Five workers die after falling in Red RiverFive workers died and four others are missing after falling down with cargo in the Red River in northern Lao Cai Province on Sunday. Nine workers fell in the Red River in Ban Vuoc Commune, Bat Xat District in northern province of Lao Cai. — Photo dantri.com.vnAccording to the province’s Military Command, the workers were transporting iron cargo across the border to China when the accident took place. Among the victims, the oldest was 46 years old while the youngest was 17. He said the bodies of the deceased were found on Monday evening and were handed over to their families.

Local cosmetics sector needs preferential policiesVietnam needs more preferential policies to attract investors to the local cosmetics sector, economic experts have recommended. In addition to offering incentives to foreign cosmetics firms, Viet Nam should come up with measures to encourage the growth of local beauty products, experts recommend. The organic cosmetics sector is expected to double in value this year, she said, adding that this has encouraged multiple cosmetics manufactures to switch to organic products. While organic beauty products are expected to be on-trend, imported cosmetics will be preferred to local ones, he added. Local beauty productsLocal beauty companies are encountering many challenges, given the significant growth of the imported beauty sector and expansion of cosmetics distribution systems by foreign firms.

Activities of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in New ZealandPrime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his spouse arrived in Auckland international airport on March 12 afternoon (local time) to begin an official visit to New Zealand. PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc meets mayor of NZ’s Auckland cityPrime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (4th, left) and Auckland’s mayor Phil Goff (4th, right). Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has urged New Zealand’s Auckland city to expand its cooperation with Vietnam, especially in economy and trade, contributing doubling two-way trade between the two countries in the time ahead. Auckland now houses nearly 3,000 Vietnamese, he said, highly valuing their contributions to the local development.-Prime Minister visits AUT, talks to Vietnamese expats in New ZealandPrime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (front, second, right) visits the Auckland University of Technology on March 12Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his spouse met with representatives of Vietnamese people in New Zealand when visiting the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) on March 12. ​Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) meets with Mayor of Auckland Phil Goff At a meeting between Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Mayor of Auckland Phil Goff Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (front center) takes photo with overseas Vietnamese in New Zealand Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc speaks at a meeting with overseas Vietnamese in New Zealand Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc visits Auckland University of TechnologyVNA

Chilean ambassador receives friendship insigniaOutgoing Ambassador of Chile to Vietnam Claudio Andres De Negri Quintana has been honoured with the “For Peace and Friendship among Nations” insignia of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO). Outgoing Ambassador of Chile to Vietnam Claudio Andres De Negri QuintanaPresenting the insignia to the ambassador at a ceremony on March 12, VUFO Vice President Bui Khac Son lauded the diplomat’s successful term in Vietnam. He stressed that the award aims to acknowledge the ambassador’s contributions to the friendship and cooperation between the people of Vietnam and Chile as well as other Latin American countries. He said he hopes that the ambassador, in any capacity, will continue contributing to developing the friendship and collaboration between the two nations. For his part, Claudio Andres De Negri Quintana said he was honoured to receive the insignia, the most notable reward of the VUFO.

Over 70 charged for online gamblingVietNamNet Bridge – Police of northern Phu Tho Province have launched legal proceedings against more than 70 defendants for their alleged involvement in a major gambling and money laundering case. Phan Sao Nam, former chairman of VTC Online Telecommunications Company. Earlier, the Phu Tho police seized more than VND1 trillion (US$43.9 million) from the gambling ring, and found that an estimated $3.6 million in foreign currencies was transferred to overseas accounts. He will be jailed for initial four months to be investigated for “organising gambling” as a crime under the Penal Code 1999. The former policeman was suspended from his role by the end of 2017 for his alleged involvement in the online gambling rings, the very crime his post required him to fight.

M&As in the plastics industry: opportunities or challenges? VietNamNet Bridge - With an annual growth rate of 20 percent and market value of $5 billion in 2017, plastic packaging will continue to be a profitable industry. PP is the main material that thousands of plastic packaging enterprises must use. The plastic industry has a relatively low profit margin of 5 percent, while the loss rate is up to 7 percent. RELATED NEWSThe battle in the plastic industry among local, foreign rivalsVietnam’s plastics industry becomes the ‘aiming point’ of foreign investorsNam Bui

For his part, Minister Ye Aung said Vietnam and Myanmar boast time-honoured relations which have been upgraded over time. HCM City, Phnom Penh seek stronger cooperationAt the talks. For his part, Khuong Sreng said environmental pollution, urban waste and the rapid increase of private transport means are major challenges facing Phnom Penh during the process of urban development. At the talks, representatives from departments and agencies of HCM City and Phnom Penh discussed issues relating to transport management, waste treatment, urban planning and investment attraction. The GMS Cooperation Programme is the most complete cooperation programme that involves Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, and China’s Yunnan and Guangxi provinces.

Japan bank considers funding PetrolVietnam’s gas projectThe Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) is considering funding the Block B&52/97 project of the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetrolVietnam) using loans without a government guarantee. According to PetrolVietnam, the project, worth nearly 10 billion USD, is one of the two largest gas projects in Vietnam. The Block B&52/97 project includes two sub-projects. It is invested by PetrolVietnam, PetroVietnam Gas Corporation (PV Gas), MOECO and PTTEP. The Block B&52/97 project is expected to bring ashore 5.06 billion cu.m of gas per year within 20 years, meeting gas demand of power plants in the south.

Nepal plane crash survivors describe chaosSurvivors and witnesses of a plane crash in Nepal have described scenes of chaos when the aircraft went down, killing at least 49 people. Basanta Bohora, who escaped the plane, is recovering in hospital -- Photo: EPA"The plane was going up down, right and left, up down. So I thought that was some air traffic only," Sanam Shakya, another one of the 22 survivors, told AFP. While the airline blames air traffic control, the airport says the plane landed from the wrong direction. Monday's crash was the deadliest since a Pakistan International Airlines plane crashed in 1992, killing all 167 on board.

PM attends Vietnam-New Zealand Business ForumPrime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc advocated boosting cooperation between Vietnam and New Zealand in fields of mutual interest such as education-training, organic agriculture, smart agriculture, and infrastructure while addressing the Vietnam-New Zealand Business Forum in Auckland on March 13. PM Phuc told the audience that Vietnam’s business environment has been significantly improved in recent years as seen in assessments made by the World Bank and the World Economic Forum. At the forum, PM Phuc answered many questions raised by New Zealand businesses regarding Vietnam’s policies to better business environment and attract investment in infrastructure development. For his part, Lukas Paravicini affirmed his firm is very interested in the Vietnamese market, adding that Fonterra has cooperated with many Vietnamese dairy firms. The same day, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc received Kim Willoughby, Director of Deosan Company; and Victor Truong, Director of Richmond Company.

Warburg Pincus to pump over $370m into TechcombankTwo separate legal entities managed by Warburg Pincus would invest over 370 million USD in the Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Techcombank), announced the bank on March 12. Warburg Pincus is a leading global private equity firm focusing on growth investing. As the pre-eminent private equity investor in Vietnam, this transaction of Warburg Pincus represents the largest-ever private equity investment in the country and brings Warburg Pincus’ total investment in Vietnam to over 1 billion USD. Jeffrey Perlman, managing director and head of Southeast Asia at Warburg Pincus, said: “The investment in Techcombank marks our continued commitment and strong belief in the long-term prospects for Vietnam. Warburg Pincus started investing in Southeast Asia in 2013 with Vietnam as its maiden market.

Vietnamese kids access 4.0 technology at younger ageLike many other countries, Vietnam is entering the fourth industrial revolution with many opportunities and challenges, of which, the most challenging thing is human resources. Experts acknowledge that training in information technology and human resources to serve Industry 4.0 should begin with young generations. Instead of playing games, kids can create their own games – a new way of learning for many Vietnamese kids. Creative Technology Institute - Teky is the first institute in the area for kids from kindergartens, founded by Dao Lan Huong who has worked in information technology for several years. Dao Lan Huong, Founder of Creative Technology Institute TEKY told reporters: "I find that it’s a huge benefit for kids to start learning programming earl.