Vietnam’s tea industry feels pressure from decline in exports
Vietnam’s tea industry feels pressure from decline in exportsVietNamNet Bridge - Analysts say it is time for Vietnam to focus on quality, rather than quantity, of tea exports. Vietnam’s tea exports to Pakistan, the biggest export market, dropped by 40 percent this year in comparison with the same period last year. Though the export price has increased recently, Vietnam’s tea export prices remain low. Around 98 percent of Vietnam’s tea exports are raw materials, in 50 kilogram packs. Developing high-quality teaHowever, the good news for Vietnam’s tea industry is the bright prospects of high-end product development.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 29, 2018 09:33 UTC
Vietnamese, US ambassadors talk bilateral ties
Vietnamese, US ambassadors talk bilateral tiesThe Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) recently held a dialogue on Vietnam – US relations with Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh and US Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink in Washington D.C.Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh (right) at the dialogueThe two ambassadors expressed their delight at great strides in Vietnam – US strategic partnership over the past years, especially in the fields of economy-trade, education-training, post-war recovery, people-to-people exchange, national defence-security and regional issues of shared concern. It was evidenced by successful visits last year by Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in May and US President Donald Trump in November, they said. They vowed to further boost bilateral ties, particularly in priority fields mentioned in the Vietnam – US Joint Statement during high-level visits in 2017, as well as shared experience and recalled joint work over the past three years. Both sides answered questions regarding the US’s strategy on the region, bilateral economic-trade, maritime security and safety cooperation, including the East Sea issue.-VNA
Source:VietNamNet News
April 29, 2018 08:15 UTC
What is the standard for ‘safe roasted coffee’?
What is the standard for ‘safe roasted coffee’? VietNamNet Bridge - Twenty-one tons of coffee in Dak Nong province made of battery powder have been seized as ‘dirty coffee’. \According to Nguyen Viet Vinh, secretary general of the Vietnam Cocoa and Coffee Association (Vicofa), one of the hottest issues now is the absence of national standards for roasted coffee. As a result, roasters add non-coffee elements into real coffee and sell their products as ‘genuine coffee’.“The lack of national standards for roasted coffee places difficulties on agencies to control coffee quality in the market, while ‘mixed’ coffee is labeled as genuine coffee,” he commented.The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has set up two standards related to coffee processing. Three tons of battery-made coffee was sold in Q1 2018.In principle, coffee roasters must declare the ingredients and label their products.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 29, 2018 01:22 UTC
Students’ mental health should be a focus
Students’ mental health should be a focusTimely advice could help ease negative feelings and deal with problems related to school, experts said. Studies conducted in another seven northern provinces also found that 20 per cent of students suffered psychological problems that required intervention. In order to achieve a comprehensive education, it was necessary to take care of mental health to help students overcome their problems and enhance their learning, Thanh said at a workshop on training school psychological counsellors held by the UE this week. He said the colleges specialising in school psychology training should offer more courses to help school counsellors. In the coming years, school counselling service will be reviewed to ensure physical and mental health for both teachers and students, and teachers who have psychological difficulties will be assisted while students will be empowered to cope with mental stress in general and psychology in particular.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 08:26 UTC
Travel firms see higher earnings as personal incomes rise
Travel firms see higher earnings as personal incomes riseVietNamNet Bridge - After collecting tens of billions of dong from selling tours at a tourism trade fair held in Hanoi earlier this month, travel firms hope they can earn the same at a similar event to be held in HCMC. The agency did not count the number of outbound travelers, but travel firms said the figures must be very high. The agency did not count the number of outbound travelers, but travel firms said the figures must be very high. Commenting about the ‘taste’ of Vietnamese travelers, a tourism expert said that low pricing can attract travelers, but this is not enough. Domestic travel firms say noMore Vietnamese prefer traveling abroadKim Chi
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 07:52 UTC
Bird’s eye views guaranteed in Stork Island
Bird’s eye views guaranteed in Stork IslandVietNamNet Bridge – If you looking for the best bird’s eye view, there’s only one place to go: Stork Island. Birds-eye view: An aerial view of the island. VNA/VNS Photos Minh DucGia Lac Commune, Gia Vien District, in the northern province of Ninh Binh, is home to thousands of white storks and other birds. Gia Vien District is located 10km north of Ninh Binh City, which has forests, mountains, plain, lakes, marshland and rivers. Local citizens: White storks account for the majority of the ’residents’ on the island.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 06:33 UTC
Techcombank places over 164m ordinary shares to investors
Techcombank places over 164m ordinary shares to investorsViet Nam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Techcombank) raised about VND21 trillion ($922 million) in its initial public offering (IPO) on Friday. All of more than 164 million ordinary shares were successfully sold to institutional investors at the final price of VND128,000 (US$5.62) per share, which valued the bank at $6.5 billion. The trading of Techcombank’s shares on the HCM Stock Exchange is expected to commence on June 4 under the stock code TCB. Just as important is that a number of these funds are investing in Viet Nam for the first time, ” Nguyen Le Quoc Anh, CEO of Techcombank, said. But most importantly, investors are very bullish on the growth of Viet Nam’s middle class as its young population enters the work force.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 02:37 UTC
$15billion projects proposed for Van Don
$15billion projects proposed for Van DonBusinesses proposed to develop three large-scale projects, expected to cost about US$10-15 billion, in Van Don special economic zone during a meeting this week with Quang Ninh’s leaders. Investors table three large-scale projects in Van Don special economic zone. It will be connected to Van Don Airport, railway station and the Van Don Heritage road in the southern part of the island. The third, Van Don - Mong Cai highway project, will have length of 100km, connecting Mong Cai border gate to Van Don special economic zone with central station at urban complex in the northern part of Cai Bau island. At the meeting, Quang Ninh Party Secretary Nguyen Van Doc spoke highly on these three proposed projects, adding that local authorities would create the most favourable conditions for investors in implementing their projects.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 02:37 UTC
Multi-channel shopping is vital for e-commerce growth
Multi-channel shopping is vital for e-commerce growthMulti-channel shopping is on the rise, becoming a vital factor which will help retail businesses expand sales channels, thereby increasing their reach to customers and enhancing the competitive edge given the online shopping boom in Viet Nam. The application of multi-channel shopping platforms is forecast to be the core focus of retail businesses, amplifying shopping experiences for customers. Utilising these platforms should be considered a vital factor in promoting products when more and more people are interested in shopping online and buying products through e-commerce sites. Many companies have selected the multi-channel shopping model. Therefore, the application of multi-channel shopping platforms is forecast to be the core focus for retail businesses, amplifying shopping experiences for customers that will become a brand differentiator for e-retailers.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 02:37 UTC
Agribank tackle account hack
Agribank tackle account hackThree out of twelve account holders at the Vietnam Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Agribank) had been reimbursed in full on Friday, following a series of unauthorised transactions from their accounts on Wednesday night. The three clients reportedly had their money stolen from Agribank ATMs, whereas the other cardholders’ accounts were hacked into using counterfeit cards at other credit institutions’ ATMs. If the loss is not the customer’s fault, Agribank promised to refund them in due course. With the increasing trend of high-tech criminals, Agribank strongly advises customers to maintain their card security and PIN codes, and register with Agribank E- Mobile Banking to receive notifications of changes in their account balance. On Monday, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) issued guidelines on ensuring banking service quality and security.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 02:26 UTC
Companies scratching heads over future
Companies scratching heads over futureAfter mobile operators announced a temporary halt of scratchcard payments in the past few days, digital and online gaming businesses said they had been hit hard. The sudden move without any warning put the businesses on the back foot, and saw a sharp drop in revenue. Many enterprises said they might have to cut number of employees or even delay or stop projects in the future, online newspaper ICTnews reported. Pham Quoc Thang, CEO of CMN Online, said by stopping scratchcard payment, the company’s revenue has dropped 80 per cent in recent days. As an alternative, many are looking at ways to connect with e-wallet businesses or set up their own payment channels.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 01:41 UTC
Making matcha, Vietnamese youth earn billions of VND
Making matcha, Vietnamese youth earn billions of VNDVietNamNet Bridge - In Thai Nguyen, one of the biggest tea growing areas of Vietnam, a young Vietnamese man is making a matcha product and earning billions of dong. Made-in-Vietnam matcha has high qualityYoung tea leaves, after picked, are cleaned, steamed and dried, in which leaf veins and petioles are removed in accordance with a specific formula. After that, the tea leaves are ground with a granite mill to create powder. The use of Japanese matcha, or powder from grown and processed green tea leaves, began in Vietnam three years ago. RELATED NEWSThe tea that mesmerises drinkersHanoi sees bubble tea boomChi Mai
Source:VietNamNet News
April 28, 2018 01:41 UTC
Hue Festival 2018 kicks off with firework show
Hue Festival 2018 kicks off with firework showA special art performance together with a firework display opened the Hue Festival 2018 at Ngo Mon (Noon Gate) Square in Hue imperial city on April 27 night. Within the framework of the festival, the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre on April 27 launched a centre that provides information about Hue imperial city and entertainment services using Virtual Reality (VR) technologies to explore the imperial city at Thai Hoa Palace. On the same day, a procession of 74 classic cars and motorbikes paraded through the main streets of Hue city to welcome the festival. There is also an international culinary festival featuring 100 booths from countries such as Laos, Thailand, China, France, Russia and Vietnam. It is home to five UNESCO-recognised heritages, namely the Hue ancient citadel relic complex – a World Cultural Heritage site; Nha Nhac (Hue royal court music) - an intangible cultural heritage item; Nguyen Dynasty’s wood blocks – a documentary heritage item; Nguyen Dynasty’s Chau ban (royal administrative documents) – part of the Asia-Pacific Register of UNESCO’s Memory of the World Programme; and literature on Hue royal architecture - a documentary heritage.-VNA
Source:VietNamNet News
April 27, 2018 15:22 UTC
Party chief urges greater anti-corruption efforts
Party chief urges greater anti-corruption effortsGeneral Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong has asked the Central Steering Committee for Anti-Corruption to instruct competent agencies to double efforts to ensure progress of investigation, prosecution and judgment of cases. Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong speaks at the meeting. The case regarding Mobifone Telecom Corporation's purchase of 95 percent of the Audio Visual Global Joint Stock Company (AVG) will be under direct supervision of the steering committee, he instructed. At the same time, the investigation and settlement of a number of cases directly monitored the by committee must by completed soon, he stressed. Party General Secretary Trong said fighting corruption is a very hard task, requiring the absolute sense of justice.-VNA
Source:VietNamNet News
April 27, 2018 15:22 UTC
PM meets Philippine President on ASEAN Summit sidelines
PM meets Philippine President on ASEAN Summit sidelinesPrime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc met Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in Singapore on April 27 on the sidelines of the 32nd Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc met Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in Singapore on April 27 on the sidelines of the 32nd ASEAN Summit. Bilateral trade surpassed 4 billion USD in 2017, an annual increase of 25 percent, with rice trade bringing about practical mutual benefits. The two leaders discussed regional and international affairs of common concern, including collaboration within ASEAN, the East Sea issue, and fight against marine crime. Concerning the East Sea issue, both sides highlighted the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and overflight in the waters.
Source:VietNamNet News
April 27, 2018 15:22 UTC