From July next year ODA (official development assistance) funds received by the country will only be allocated to provinces facing difficulties and for programmes to improve public welfare and eliminate hunger and poverty rather than for large infrastructure projects, according to the Ministry of Finance.

The central province of Nghe An attracted a positive investment flow totaling VND150 trillion (more than US$6.6 billion) during the 2010-15 period.

The agricultural sector plans to slash rice cultivation by 100,000 hectares in 2016 to grow other grains used to feed animals, said Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat.

Vietnam sold a total of 244,914 cars in 2015, an annual increase of 55%, the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association announced on January 11.

The HCM City tax department has told Uber that it must declare and pay taxes as the ride-sharing service provider has consistently refused to do so, according to a tax official.

The northern province of Ha Nam has targeted a 15.3 percent increase in industrial production, valued at more than VND48.5 trillion (US$2.2 billion) this year. 

Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung said in an interview on VTV on January 10 that one of the key tasks that his ministry will fulfill this year is to balance the state budget.

Fairfax Asia Limited, a subsidiary of Canadian insurance and reinsurance firm Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, has bought 41 million shares in the BIDV Insurance Corporation (BIC).

Farmers in Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City, are farming ornamental Japanese koi fish and Japanese carp following an incentive programme launched by the city recently.

The Prime Minister has recently approved an overseas investment plan on building a cow farming and milk processing complex in Russia.

(VOV) - An international conference celebrating two decades of US-Vietnam relations will be held January 14 at the Reverie Saigon Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, according to an official announcement. 

Long An leads the Mekong Delta region in foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction, according to the Saigon Giai Phong (Saigon Liberty) newspaper.

The new incentives ushered in by the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community have prompted foreign investors to boost their investment in Vietnam. However, many local firms are missing out on opportunities offered by this trade liberalization mechanism.

The Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) led the power market in 2015 by supplying 23,580 MW or 60.8% of the country’s total power output of 38,800 MW, up 1.8-fold from 2010.

(VOV) -Vietnam received US$12.25 billion in 2015, higher than the level of US$12 billion one year earlier, according to the World Bank (WB).

The Government has issued Decree No. 135/2015/NĐ-CP stipulating indirect overseas investment.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has recently proposed that the Ministry of Transport recommend Aerospace Engineering Services JSC to be Airbus Group’s partner in building a facility to produce spare parts for aircraft.

(VOV) - The US was the leading destination for Dong Nai Province exports for calendar year 2015, according to official statistics just released by the Provincial Department of Industry and Trade.    

Although the amended Law on Social Insurance 2014 is expected to benefit labourers, domestic and foreign firms are concerned about growing production costs caused by increased social insurance payments.

Phu Quoc, 40 kilometres west of southern Kien Giang province, is the biggest island in Vietnam where hospitality investment has shaken up the emerging real estate sector here over the past few years.

Thailand plans to produce about 25 million tonnes of rice in the 2016-2017 crop instead of the normal production output of between 31-32 million tonnes in the last periods, according to the latest report released by the country’s Ministry of Commerce.

Experts say the new mechanism for exchange rate introduced by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has created flexibility, enabling both credit institutions and enterprises to exercise greater control over their business operations.

The price of domestic cars have soared since the beginning of this year due to the Government's adjustment of special consumption taxes on imported automobiles.

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh has asked the Finance Ministry to complete a draft resolution on tax incentives for IT firms and collect suggestions from relevant ministries and the Ministry of Justice for submission to the Government this month.

Ford Vietnam recently announced its sales in December last year rose 60% year-on-year to 2,634 vehicles, bringing the total cars sold in 2015 to the best-ever record of 20,740 units, up 48% against the previous year.

Malaysian Sime Darby Bhd, seller of 30 different brands of vehicles across Asia, recently established a unit in Vietnam to retail cars and spares.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai requested Vietnam's aviation industry to create breakthroughs in building and upgrading airports in a bid to name it in the top four in ASEAN. 

(VOV) -More than 400 young people and students joined the 2016 Business Startup Festival hosted by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in Hanoi on January 9.

(VOV) - Vietnam’s exports rose 8.1% in 2015 compared to a year earlier and were considered a highlight of the national economy with their expanded scale, contributing to GDP growth and generating more jobs for workers, particularly in the production of farm produce. 

HCM City is waiting for approval from the Government to expand a chain of software parks including into other provinces following the success of its Quang Trung Software City.