Hoai Duc district in northern Ha Tay province is widely known for its Son Dong traditional wood sculpture thanks to the skilful hands of young craftspeople who are keeping their ancestors craftsmanship alive.

The European Commission (EC) has decided to remove the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) applied to Vietnam’s leather shoe exports to the European Union (EU).

A delegation from the Aquitaine region, France, led by Jean Guerard, vice president of Aquitaine regional council has paid a three-day visit to northern Lao Cai province.

Mozambique hopes to boost economic cooperation with Vietnam, particularly in the area of agriculture, said a leading Mozambique official.

“Fruchtportal.de” a German news network has run an article saying the European Union (EU) is emerging as a potential market for Vietnam’s flower, vegetables and fruit.

As many as 128 Vietnamese and international companies are showcasing their products and services at the 2008 Vietnam Fisheries International Exhibition (Vietfish) being held in Ho Chi Minh City from June 12-14.

The Hanoi Securities Trading Centre (HASTC) will organize a bidding session for Government bonds worth a total of VND700 billion on June 16.

A trade promotion fair has opened in northern Thai Nguyen province by the International fair organising company (IFC).

Boosting exports is an effective measure to help ensure sustainable development of the plastics industry, Vietnam Plastic Association Vice Chairman Pham Trung Cang said.

The fourth Vietnam International Automobile Supporting Industries Exhibition (Vietnam AUTOEXPO 2008) opened in Hanoi on June 11 with the participation of leaders from ministries, departments and provinces and representatives from domestic and foreign groups.

As banks struggle to keep pace with inflation and the Government pushes for macro-economic stability, the State Bank of Vietnam has once again dramatically increased benchmark interest rates.

Vietnam has been placed first in the world in terms of employment growth in the private sector.

Domestic gold prices dropped slightly on June 10 when the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) traded gold at US$893.4/oz, down US$9.6/oz from June 9.

The 11th Southeast Asian Cocoa Conference will take place in Ho Chi Minh City on June 26-28 to discuss issues relating the growing of cocoa trees.

The Head of the Department for Pharmaceutical Products Control under the Ministry of Health, Truong Quoc Cuong on June 9 decided to set up a working team consisting of representatives from the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Industry and Trade to control drug prices in Hanoi, HCM City, Binh Duong and Dong Nai.

The Republic of Korea’s GS Engineering and Construction Corp. (GS E&C) broke the ground on the Tan Son Nhat – Binh Loi ring road project in Ho Chi Minh City on June 9.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in May showed a dramatic upturn, causing worries among the public and the business community about the country’s economic prospects over the next few months.

The Vietnam Oil and Gas Corp (PetroVietnam) inaugurated the Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical Company in the southern province of Binh Duong on June 9.

Fifty outstanding trademarks of enterprises in Hanoi will be honoured with the Sao Vang Thu Do (Capital City’s Golden Star) award.

The export price of 5 percent broken rice from both Vietnam and Thailand is expected to stay at around US$900 per tonne in the near future, according to the Trade and Business Information Centre (TBIC), under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Since early this year nearly 290 businesses have registered to open representative offices in the Central Highland province of Lam Dong with a total capitalisation of more than VND1,300 billion, up 12 times more than the same period last year.

The Securities Depository Centre has reported that more than 1,239 foreign investors were granted trade codes in the second quarter of this year. They included 112 organisations and 1,127 individual investors.

The pepper industry must improve its cultivation methods and processing technology to maintain its position as the world’s top exporter, the Vietnam Pepper Association has said.

Some 128 local and foreign companies in the fishery industry will show their products and processing and processing techniques at a three-day fisheries exhibition at the Ho Chi Minh City Exhibition and Convention Centre, due to open on June 12.

Localities should take tougher measures to increase the consumption of tra and basa catfish and reduce farmers’ losses, said Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) Cao Duc Phat.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has affirmed that Vietnam does not plan to devalue the Vietnamese dong and its value will be decided only by the supply and demand relationship on the market.

The domestic price of gold reached VND18.6 million per tael, even as high as VND18.88 million in some places on June 7, after the world’s gold prices spiked last night.

Ho Chi Minh City is seeking Japanese official development assistance (ODA) to invest in two metro projects at a total cost of US$2.13 billion.

The Dung Quat Economic Zone in central Quang Ngai province has so far this year attracted more 27 projects, with a combined capital of around US$500 million.

The European Commission (EC) has offered EUR10 million to a project to help Vietnam integrate deeper into global economic markets.