A meeting to designate possible cooperation activities between Ho Chi Minh City and Japan was opened in the southern Vietnamese city on March 12.

A Vietnam-Hungary business forum took place in Hanoi on March 12 with nearly 120 enterprises from the two countries in attendance. 

(VOV) - The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in collaboration with the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) on March 12 co-hosted a workshop in Hanoi aimed at improving Vietnam’s business climate index (BCI).

(VOV) - Vietnam and Thailand are holding fresh talks to bolster rubber cooperation.

(VOV) - Public Private Partnerships are at the heart of the government's attempts to attract private infrastructure investment for public projects such as hospitals, universities, highways, bridges, airports and municipal buildings.

Breakthrough decisions are needed to bring optimism and prosperity to the economy in 2015, said economic expert Le Trong Nhi.

(VOV) - AES-VCM Mong Duong Power Company Limited (AES Mong Duong) on March 12 announced that the 621 MW Unit 1 of Mong Duong II, the first and largest BOT coal-fired power project in Vietnam, has entered commercial operations ahead of schedule.

Enterprises in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long took part in a trade fair in Kampong Speu town in the Cambodian province of the same name. 

The military-run telecommunications group Viettel aims to become one of the world’s top 10 telecom companies by 2020 with a presence in 30-35 countries, the firm’s executives told Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung at a working session on March 11.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the support industry need better support policies to enhance competitiveness and participate in the global value chain, experts stated.

Construction work began in an urban area on the coast of Ha Long Bay in the northern province of Quang Ninh on March 10.

Banks in HCM City are vying with one another to offer preferential loans in an effort to achieve the year's credit growth target of 13-15%.

A wide range of wooden furniture products are on display at the Vietnam International Furniture and Home Accessories Fair 2015 (VIFA-EXPO 2015), which kicked off on March 11 in Ho Chi Minh City. 

Fostering a culture of innovation is essential to improve productivity, including embracing technological advances in production and management, said business operation expert Nguyen Dang Tien. 

(VOV) - Domestic petrol prices are jumping up from VND713-VND1.616 per litre on the afternoon of March 11, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. 

(VOV) - Ha Nam provincial People’s Committee Chairman Mai Tien Dung has affirmed the province’s willingness to give priority to Japanese businesses, particularly those in the support industry.

(VOV) - Speakers at a conference in Buon Ma Thuot City revealed on March 11 that in 2014 Vietnam shipped US$3.4 billion of coffee to more than 60 countries, making it the second largest international exporter.

The Ho Chi Minh City Investment and Trade Promotion Centre (ITPC) will organise a wide range of activities in Cambodia and Myanmar during 2015 to promote trade and investment in the nations, said ITPC Director Pho Nam Phuong at a seminar on March 10.

(VOV) - The Japanese heavy industries leading corporation, IHI inaugurated its factory IHI Infrastructure Asia (IIA) in Dinh Vu Industrial Park in the northern port city of Hai Phong on March 10. 

(VOV) - Thailand’s Kasikorn Bank recently further extended its footprint into the Vietnam banking and financial services market with the opening of additional branches in Hanoi and HCM City. 

Foreign-invested textile and garment projects are no longer welcomed in many provinces in Vietnam because the gains they bring are smaller than the losses.

An environmental tax on petrol and other fuel in Vietnam will rise by 300% after the National Assembly approved a tax hike to offset an expected shortfall in budget revenue.

Though Vietnam has never been considered a hi-tech power, locally made hi-tech brands have become popular with consumers.

Vietnam and the EU will continue the 12th round of negotiations on the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) on March 24 in Hanoi, which is expected the last session before the negotiations are concluded and the agreement signed.

Nearly 24,000 firms from 14 cities and provinces have paid their corporate taxes electronically since the e-filing system was launched over a year ago, said General Director of Taxation Bui Van Nam.

As many as four round-trip journeys will be added to the international route connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore from May 30, 2015, announced low-cost carrier Vietjet Air on March 10. 

Vietnam and Malaysia recorded a trade revenue of US$671.6 million in January, up 11.9 percent annually. 

The Ha Long Shipbuilding Co. Ltd began construction on a platform supply vessel PSV 3300 for the Netherlands’s Damen Shipyard Group in the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh on March 10.

The Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands (VASI) organised a Vietnam-Philippines conference on March 10 in Hanoi to evaluate the implementation of bilateral cooperation in coping with oceanic oil spills and to outline future collaboration plans.

(VOV) - Coffee is grown widely throughout districts in Dak Lak province and a cup of freshly brewed Buon Ma Thuot in particular has a rich coffee aroma and taste that is favoured globally.