(VOV) - The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) raised its USD/VND reference rate by 1% to 21,890/USD on August 19, the third adjustment to-date this year. 

(VOV) - Vietnam spent US$208 million on importing 9,504 completely built-up (CBU) cars in July, an increase of 56% in quantity and 51% in value compared to the same month last year, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

Apple Inc. is likely to officially set up its subsidiary in Ho Chi Minh City as the iPhone maker is reportedly scheduled to meet with the municipal administration on the establishment of the Vietnam business.

With nearly 44% of its population using the Internet, Vietnam has become the latest target market of 500 Startups, a seed fund and accelerator for Internet startups.

The Ministry of Finance has announced a plan to increase luxury taxes on cars with large engines after the government said big vehicles that take up much space and consume much fuel must be restricted.

The resort real estate market is scorching hot with investors rushing to inject money, but experts warn that the hot growth may not be sustainable.

(VOV) - Kinh Do Binh Duong JSC has announced that it has shipped 20 tonnes of moon cakes (around 100,000 pcs) to the US to prepare for the upcoming mid-Autumn festival. 

As the country is anticipating a boom in franchising in the near future, experts say the legal framework governing franchising is in dire need of improvement.

The General Department of Customs reports that Vietnam has spent US$4.1 billion in the first seven months on importing raw materials and animal feed for domestic livestock industry.

Building steel output in July reached 613,000 tonnes, posting 51.5% increase over the same period last year and marking the record high in the past 10 years, said the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA).

Global air, sea and road forwarding firm DHL has rolled out an integrated road freight network that links five key Asian cities of Singapore, Penang (Malaysia), Bangkok (Thailand), Hanoi (Vietnam) and Shenzhen (China) to tap the acceleration of road freight growth in Asia Pacific.

A delegation of 15 Philippine businesses operating in food, packing and business franchises attended a trade exchange in Ho Chi Minh City on August 18 with Vietnamese enterprises to seek cooperation opportunities in the country.

Can Tho will issue regulations on the operations of the Vietnam – Republic of Korea industrial technology incubator in the city, said Nguyen Minh Toai, Director of the municipal Department of Industry and Commerce.

(VOV) - As a consequence of China’s devaluation of its currency, the yuan, last week by roughly 4% against the US dollar, Vietnam exporters will struggle to remain price competitive in both the domestic and overseas markets.

(VOV) - The structural construction on the first tower of the Blooming Tower project will officially be completed in October 2015, according to Sin Yong Kyu, General Director of the Korea Investment & Development on August 18.

(VOV) - On August 28, Vice Chairman of the Binh Duong People’s Committee, Tran Thanh Liem, and other provincial officials hosted a meeting with more than 70 businesses from the Republic of Korea (RoK) operating within the province.

(VOV) - The Mekong Connect Forum scheduled to take place in southern Can Tho province on September 4 will provide an excellent chance for businesses from four Mekong delta provinces to enhance connectivity for prospective development.

The impact of the Vietnam – Republic of Korea (RoK) free trade agreement (FTA) in solidifying the two countries’ economic ties was the main topic during a workshop in the northern province of Thai Nguyen on August 17.

Ho Chi Minh City will build a special economic zone encompassing districts 7, Nha Be, Binh Chanh and Can Gio in order to fully tap the southern economic hub’s potential and advantages for further development.

The first two-deck high speedboat Green-lines DP was piloted on the Sai Gon River on August 16 to replace the old hydrofoils that had been used between HCM City and the southern coastal city of Vung Tau.

The Ministry of Finance (MOF) said that Vietnam’s public debt was still within the safety line but economists say they can see high risks.

(VOV) - Vietnam commits to improving investment environment and creating favourable conditions for businesses, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh affirmed business leaders at a forum held by Forbes Vietnam in HCM City on August 17. 

Cars with various engine displacement values are expected to enjoy a rebate in the special consumption tax in Vietnam as of July 1, 2016, according to a revised draft on Tax Law issued by the Ministry of Finance recently.

With most of the high-priority measures in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) blueprint already adopted, policymakers and businesses need to work closely on the remaining challenges to achieve benefits of full economic integration beyond 2015, a new report recommends.

Experience in budget decision, examination and oversight have been shared among representatives from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar together with foreign experts in finance-banking during the 6th joint workshop which opened in the central coastal city of Danang on August 17. 

(VOV) - China’s central bank last week cut its currency reference rate for three straight consecutive days sending the world’s financial markets into a tailspin and causing the VND/USD exchange rate to surge to VND22,200 per US dollar.

Faced with a large deficit, the government is cracking down on the usage of the state budget.

A real estate bubble of the kind seen in 2007 is not likely to occur this year or 2016, according to Le Hoang Chau, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Real Estate Association (HoREA). 

The Japanese Hokugan Company intends to build an ocean tuna and other aquatic products processing plant in the Dong Tac fishing port, Tuy Hoa city of the central coastal province of Phu Yen in the near future. 

Investments in Vietnam by businesses from the Republic of Korea (RoK) in the first six months of this year rose 82.2% year on year, said a report on the Sai Gon Giai phong newspaper.