(VOV) -Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade to revamp regulations and policies to promote industrial production and services for robust and sustainable growth at a review meeting in Hanoi on December 31.

The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) officially came into being on December 31, opening up opportunities for more intensive cooperation in various areas among member countries.

Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang praised Vietnam Airlines for its prominent outcomes in 2015 at a conference in Hanoi on December 30, affirming that the firm’s good performance significantly contributes to the transport sector’s achievements in the year. 

Ho Chi Minh City collected nearly VND280 trillion (US$12.6 billion) to the local budget in 2015, surpassing the yearly estimate by 5.04% and posting an annual increase of 10.7%.

Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), the country’s third-largest lender by assets, is seeking governmental permission to cooperate with France’s Aeroport de Paris to jointly invest in Airports Corporation of Vietnam.

The Vietnam Information Technology Press Club announced the top ten domestic information and communication technology (ICT) events of 2015.

Vietnam grossed US$2.2 billion from selling fruits and vegetable abroad, a record yearly increase of 47%, according to the General Statistics Office.

As of December 25, the 20richest millionaires on the stock market who were born in the 80s had total assets of VND4.16 trillion (over US$200 million). Some of them are spouses or brothers and sisters.

Vietnam has issued detailed regulations for foreign investors in 17 business sectors in a drive to improve the investment climate of a fast-growing country blighted by bureaucracy, but now seeing record inflows of foreign capital.

The Vietnamese government has published a list of 17 business sectors that are open to foreign investors, with some conditions, in a bid to improve the investment environment following this year's record inflow of foreign capital.

London-based Standard Chartered Bank sees Vietnam’s strong efforts to embrace regional and global economic integration as a boost to its business in the country, where it is fully committed to investing in the nation’s growth through a robust and sound long-term strategy.

The buy-to-let trend has been sweeping across major cities in Vietnam, offering high yields and a stable investment strategy for buyers.

Mergers and acquisitions in Vietnam's textile and garment industry have increased, in a bid to take advantage of free trade agreements, especially the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), experts said.

Ho Chi Minh City's Construction Department has announced that it is co-operating with the Ho Chi Minh City Institute for Department and Research (HIDS) to survey the demand for social housing with the aim of creating a plan to develop social housing in the city in the next five years.

The State-owned Vietnam Railways (VNR) has seen certain success in its equitisation process as 23 out of its 24 subsidiaries have completed initial public offerings (IPOs) to date, said VNR Deputy General Director Doan Duy Hoach.

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh has asked the Finance Ministry to execute policies favourable for businesses, thereby improving national economic competitiveness, in light of plummeting oil prices.

Vietnam’s economy may grow 6.7%-6.8% next year, according to the National Financial Supervisory Commission (NFSC).

Starbucks Vietnam on December 29 introduced Starbucks Reserve® Vietnam Da Lat, its first single-origin coffee from the country, which will go on sale at its Vietnamese stores from January 4, 2016.

Mobile network provider MobiFone has introduced two new roaming services, called Roam Saver and Data Roam Saver, to help customers reduce the cost of voice, SMS and data services. 

Fierce competition looms large on the domestic market when more and more free trade agreements (FTAs) come into effect, Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai warned at a meeting between the Government and ministries and local authorities on December 29.

The northern Vinh Phuc province will create favourable conditions for investors in general and overseas Vietnamese in particular to invest in the locality, said a provincial People's Committee official.

Analysts have warned that the kieu hoi flow (overseas remittance) to Vietnam would slow, while Vietnamese may deposit dollars at Laos banks instead of Vietnamese as a result of the State Bank’s 0% interest rate policy.

(VOV) - Vietnam’s military-run telecoms group Viettel earned a revenue of US$1.5 billion from overseas markets this year. The group now boasts of ten foreign markets in Asia, America and Africa with a total population of 260 million.

(VOV) - Viglacera Corporation will set up a joint venture (JV) with Cuba’s Geicon Company to produce sanitary ware and ceramic wall and floor tiles in San Jose and Santa Cruz in Cuba in 2016.

Ho Chi Minh City attracted US$4.6 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2015, up 47% from previous year, according to the municipal People’s Committee.

(VOV) - Overseas Vietnamese (OVs) remittances to HCM City hit US$4.76 billion in the first 11 months of this year, said Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy director of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), HCM City branch.

Vietnam’s banking restructuring scheme, launched by the central bank four years ago, has achieved almost all of its important objectives, a senior official of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) said at a recent press conference in Hanoi.

Thailand, the 2nd largest economy in ASEAN, has developed strategies to make the most of opportunities as well as be flexible enough to cope with challenges arising from the upcoming ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). 

The National Financial Supervisory Commission (NFSC), the economic advisor to the Vietnamese government, has prepared a report to review the country’s economy in 2015, which has witnessed many positive improvements in the face of challenges.

Thailand invested 64.75 billion THB (about US$1.9 billion) into other ASEAN nations, accounting for 27% of the total of 242.9 billion THB channelled overseas from January to September this year, according to the Bank of Thailand.