Investors from Europe, US absent from Vietnam real estate marketVietNamNet Bridge - Asian real estate developers have increased their presence in Vietnam, while European and American investors have remained indifferent to the market. Creed Group from Japan has taken over Lacasa project initially invested by Van Hung Phat Real Estate. He said that real estate, by nature, has close relations with local rules, and legal issues could be why western investors are less interested. Western investors act as financial investors of listed real estate firms. The analyst said that European and American firms tend to focus on real estate related services.

Vault murals officially inauguratedVietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese and South Korean artists worked together to turn the walls of the railway viaduct on Phung Hung Street in downtown Hanoi into pieces of art. The murals are the result of an art project to renovate Phung Hung Street and introduce art into urban areas which began in August last year. The railroad viaduct starts from the Phung Hung-Tran Phu crossroads and runs to Long Bien Train Station, passing through Phung Hung and Gam Cau streets. Musical: The art project serves the community by creating a public space and cultural activities. Colourful walk: A panoramic view of Phung Hung Street.

Indonesia returns 16 Vietnamese fishermen ahead of TetThe Vietnamese Embassy in Indonesia on February 12 completed procedures to receive 16 Vietnamese fishermen from Indonesian agencies at Soekarno Hatta International Airport in Jakarta. Nguyen Thanh Giang, who is in charge of consular affairs at the Vietnamese Embassy in Indonesia, is talking with Vietnamese fishermen before they return home. This is the last batch of freed Vietnamese fishermen in the year as Vietnam’s traditional New Year (Tet) is approaching. Most of the fishermen hail from Kien Giang and Tien Giang provinces in the south and the central provinces of Binh Dinh and Thanh Hoa. They are witnesses at trials held for Vietnamese captains and chief mechanics who were arrested by Indonesia for breaching the country’s territorial waters while fishing.

Phu Tho to host Phet ball festivalThe annual Phet Ball Festival in the northern province of Phu Tho is slated to take place on February 26 – 28, or the 11st – 13th day of the first lunar month. The six lucky Phet balls (Photo: vnexpress)The organising board, at a meeting on February 12, said the spring festival, where people compete to seize six lucky balls, will increase the number of participants to 200 this year, double that of last year. Associated traditional rituals during the event remain unchanged, it said. The participants will be selected from Tam Nong district’s Hien Quang commune. They will be split into two teams, competing for the balls on a restricted area spanning 2,000 square metres.-VNA

Vietnam strives to attract more investment in solar powerVietnamese localities are taking measures to attract more investment in renewable energy, especially solar power. However, the exploitation of solar power in Vietnam has not matched the great potential. For example, An Hoi photovoltaic power plant, the first solar power project connected to the Con Dao grid in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau province since late 2014, has a capacity of only 36 kWp and electric power of over 50 MWh. Experts suggested Vietnam take advantage of abundant sunlight by building more solar power plants. Together with the policy of renewable energy development, there should be a pricing mechanism to attract investors, they said.-VNA

Vietnam strives to attract more investment in solar powerVietnamese localities are taking measures to attract more investment in renewable energy, especially solar power. However, the exploitation of solar power in Vietnam has not matched the great potential. For example, An Hoi photovoltaic power plant, the first solar power project connected to the Con Dao grid in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau province since late 2014, has a capacity of only 36 kWp and electric power of over 50 MWh. Experts suggested Vietnam take advantage of abundant sunlight by building more solar power plants. Together with the policy of renewable energy development, there should be a pricing mechanism to attract investors, they said.-VNA

Shares gain on oil and banking stocksVietnamese shares posted a strong comeback on February 12 after a two-day collapse, due to strong investor interest in large-cap stocks that led the market upturn on expectations of good earnings reports. Market trading conditions turned positive on February 12, with 469 gaining stocks against 155 decliners, while 297 other stocks remained unchanged. Large-cap stocks also had a good trading day as 26 of the 30 largest shares by market capitalisation advanced in the VN30 Index. Foreign investors were net sellers with 450.67 billion VND on HOSE, focusing on HPG (228.03 billion VND), VRE (103.00 billion VND), and VNM (60.44 billion VND). In addition, they sold a net of 9.44 billion VND on the HNX.

Finance Ministry urged to revise automobile industry lawsThe Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has asked the Ministry of Finance to remove the special consumption tax for locally-manufactured auto parts. This is part of a recommendation document that MoIT sent to the finance ministry in order to revitalise domestic automobile industry in the future and reduce the import of autos. “Locally-assembled autos in Viet Nam have a similar price doubling as those seen in regional countries and much higher than other countries which have a stable automobile industry such as Japan and the United States,” said the report. "The domestic automobile industry has not yet reached the standards of the real automobile industry because most are at the level of simple assembly; the production line mainly consists of four key stages including welding, painting, assembly and inspection. MoIT has on numerous occasions warned that if such privileges and incentives were not approved, the domestic automobile industry would find it difficult to compete with imported cars.

VN confectionery products hold their own against foreign rivalsPeople are preferring confectionery products from Vietnamese manufacturers than foreign products in preparing for the coming Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday. At Ben Thanh Market, traditional candied lotus, coconut, squash, soursop, and sweet potato from local brands such as Bao Hien Rong Vang, Bao Minh and Thai Huong are popular. According to Mai, 70 per cent of confectionery products in Binh Tay market are from Vietnamese manufacturers. But this year, she chose products from famous Vietnamese brands in the supermarket to ensure quality. I choose organic products from prestigious manufacturers to prepare for Tet.” — VNS

Ethnic people in Quang Ngai prepare for TetEthnic communities in mountainous areas of the central province of Quang Ngai are preparing offerings and rituals for the traditional Lunar New Year (Tet) celebration in their own unique style. Dinh Van Bon, a resident in Son Ha district, Quang Ngai province said: "I saw my grandparents and my parents do it every New Year festival, and follow them. Among the H’re traditional offerings at Tet, the Gagu (a variant of Tét cake (cylindrical sticky rice cake) is indispensible. Dinh Thi Luu​, a resident in Son Ha district, Quang Ngai province told reporters: "We offer Tét cake to pray for prosperity and good health". In these days, the sound of gongs can be heard everywhere in Son Tay as Cadong ethnic people’s are celebrating their traditional festival.

Australian cow imports drop dramaticallyVietNamNet Bridge - Importing Australian cows to fatten and slaughter domestically was once a profitable business, but has changed dramatically in recent years. Australian cow imports drop dramaticallyVo Quan Huy in Hiep Hoa commune of Duc Hoa district in Long An province was one of the first farmers who imported Australian cows to fatten for sale in the domestic market. Importing Australian cows to fatten and slaughter domestically was once a profitable business, but has changed dramatically in recent years. He said 2013-2015 was the golden period for businesses and farmers who imported Australian cows. RELATED NEWSVietnam imports 16,000 Australian cows a monthVietnam to import inexpensive Australian cows as demand for beef growsMai Thanh

Amazon plans hundreds of layoffsAmazon is cutting hundreds of positions at its headquarters and global operations, a reset that comes after several years of significant growth. The cuts were first reported by the Seattle Times, which said the actions are focused on streamlining the firm's consumer retail business. The firm's website shows many of the new positions report to Amazon Web Services, the firm's profitable cloud computing division. Previous consolidations at the company have led to layoffs in some areas. Last year, Amazon closed Diapers.com and other sites operated by Quidsi, which it announced a deal to acquire in 2010 for about $500m.

Unilever threatens to pull ads from Facebook and GoogleUnilever has threatened to withdraw ads from platforms like Google and Facebook if they do not do enough to police extremist and illegal content. He said it was in the interest of digital media firms to act before "advertisers stop advertising". During 2017, Google brought in £4.4bn in revenue from online advertising, while Facebook collected £1.8bn, according to eMarketer. Experts in digital media say that more buyers of advertising will have to join Unilever to spur change. In December, the European Commission warned the likes of Facebook, Google, YouTube, Twitter and other firms that it was considering legislation if self-regulation continued to fail.

Storm season to start early in 2018Storms and tropical depressions are expected to arrive in the East Sea early in 2018, with a high chance of a storm forming in the south of the East Sea in mid February, said Hoang Duc Cuong, Director of the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorology Forecasting (NCHMF). Thunderstorm, lightning, whirlwind, and hail are predicted to occur nationwide in April and May, particularly in the north, Central Highlands, and south regions. Droughts and water shortage on small scale are predicted for the south central region and Central Highlands. The water level on the upper source of Mekong River will be similar to that of the same period in 2017. Salt intrusion in the south will be lower than average and similar to that of the same period in 2017.- VNA

VNR will sell shares of the four firms that are traded on the stock market at market prices at the correct times. The second project is an ESTEC digital plant spanning an area of nearly 1ha and drawing a total investment capital of VND182 billion. Besides, Pyn Elite bought two million shares in Ho Chi Minh Infrastructure Investment JSC (CII) to increase its holding to 27.4 million shares or 11.13 per cent. Entering Vietnam in 2013, PYN Elite is the third largest foreign-investment fund in the country with a total investment capital of $491.4 million. The project is supposed to receive total investment of around VND182 billion ($8 million) and is to be carried out in two stages.