The construction of the Dung Quat polypropylene packaging production plant started in Dung Quat Industrial Zone in Binh Tri village, Binh Son District in Quang Ngai province on April 26.

The Kinh Bac Corparation broke the ground on the Phuong Nam industrial zone in Uong Bi town, Northern Quang Ninh province.

A seminar looking at development models in Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) member countries after the global financial crisis started in the central coastal city of Nha Trang on April 26.

A 150,000-DWT Floating Storage and Offloading (FSO) Unit 5 of the Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group (Vinashin) disembarked on April 26, bound for Bach Ho oil field.

Licences have been granted to 40 projects abroad with a total investment of US$200 million since early this year, said the Overseas Investment Department under the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

A seminar was held in the Mekong delta city of Can Tho on April 25 to discuss solutions to build a multi-purpose irrigation system for fresh and brackish water in line with climate change scenario.

The first Vietnamese Fruit Festival closed in the southern province of Tien Giang on April 24.  

Bidding package No 10 of Noi Bai-Lao Cai expressway began in Kim Thanh industrial zone in the northern border province of Lao Cai on April 24.  

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in April increased by only 0.14 percent compared to March, but was up 9.23 percent over the same period last year, said the General Statistics Office (GSO).

More than 150 businesses are showcasing their products and services at the Vietnam Seafood Trade Fair opening on April 24 in Can Tho city in the presence of Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

The Vietnam Aircraft Leasing Company (VALC) has received the first ATR72-500 under a contract to buy these 5 airplanes between the company and France’s Avion de Transport Regional (ATR).

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai on April 23 kicked off the construction of the third bidding package of the Ho Chi Minh City-Long Thanh-Dau Giay highway in southern Dong Nai province.

Channel News Asia based in Singapore has quoted the US communications company AT&T as saying that it sees Vietnam as its most promising market in the ASEAN region.

The Asian Coast Development Ltd (ACDL) group from Canada has been licensed to operate a Las Vegas-style casino in Vietnam for the very first time.

Vietnam Airlines has announced that it will open a direct air route connecting Hanoi and Chu Lai in the central province of Quang Nam and restore flights between Hanoi and Vinh.

The Ministry of Information and Trade (MoIT) is working with the European Commission to remove barriers that face Vietnamese businesses when exporting their products to the European Union.

Japanese entrepreneurs see Vietnam as an extremely attractive investment destination with a great potential for industrial production, especially textiles and garments and industrial components, according to the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).

Five contracts to build the US$2.1 billion Mong Duong thermo-power plant No 2 in the northern province of Quang Ninh were signed on April 22.

Aviation-tourism cooperation is vital to the development of the two sectors and greatly benefits the country, Nguyen Van Tuan, Director General of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), said in Hanoi on April 22.

More than 200 Vietnamese and foreign businesses are showcasing their products at the Vietnam International Home Décor and Gifts Fair which opened in Ho Chi Minh City on April 22.

Domestic gold on April 22 rose by VND30,000/tael reflecting a concurrent rise in world gold prices.

Hanoi’s goods and services turnover in the first four months of the year reached nearly VND266,235 billion, up 24.9 percent against the same period last year.

The Commonwealth Bank (CBA) of Australia will take a 15 percent stake in the Vietnam International Bank (VIB).  

A national seminar held in Tien Giang province on April 21 focused on developing the agricultural sector by linking it closer with the tourist industry.

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has issued new regulations allowing commercial banks to introduce negotiable interest rates on medium and long-term deposits.

The State Steering Committee on Tourism is proposing the government exempt visa fees and refund value-added taxes (VAT) for international tourists in August and September of this year.

Vietnam is seeking to sign an agreement with Russia on the quality of agro-forestry and seafood exports, said an official of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) on April 21.

Forty one domestic manufacturers are showcasing their items at Asia’s largest fair of its kind being held at Asia World-Expo-Hong Kong.

In an effort to help petrol dealers stabilise prices, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has decided to reduce petrol import tax rates from 20 percent to 17 percent beginning on April 21.

Ho Chi Minh City’s consumer price index (CPI) in April rose by 0.23 percent over the previous month, up 4.02 percent from early this year, according to the city’s Statistics Office.