Vietnam Morning News For October 30

Vietnam’s consumer price index up 0.33% in October
The consumer price index (CPI) in October rose by a slight 0.33% against the previous month and 3.89% compared with a year earlier, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
— Nhan Dan Online

Vietnam owns US$40 billion of coal capacity under construction and planned
Carbon Tracker researchers found that from 2010 to 2017, coal generation increased 72% in Vietnam.
— The Hanoi Times

Forestry sector in 5.72 billion USD trade surplus
Vietnam’s forestry sector enjoyed a trade surplus of 5.72 billion USD in the first 10 months of 2018, according to the Vietnam Administration of Forestry (VNForest) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
— VietnamPlus

Petroleum law to be revised to facilitate sustainable growth of oil sector
It is time to make amendments to the current Law on Petroleum to legally facilitate the development of Vietnam’s oil and gas industry and implement the strategy for sustainable development of the maritime economy until 2030 and with a vision towards 2045.
— VietnamPlus

Vietnam’s export up 14.2 pct in 10 months
Vietnam reaped export turnovers of nearly 200.3 billion U.S. dollars in the first 10 months of this year, gaining a year-on-year surge of 14.2 percent, the General Statistics Office said on Monday.
— Xinhua

Vietnam Wants to Grow Film Industry
Vietnam’s movie business is growing quickly. New theaters are being built across the country. Young filmmakers are entering the market.
— VOA

Chinese tourists to Vietnam surge in 10 months
Vietnam welcomed roughly 4.2 million Chinese visitors in the first 10 months of this year, or 32.6 percent of the total international arrivals, posting a year-on-year rise of 28.8 percent, the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism said on Monday.
— Xinhua

Pressure weighs on Vietnam’s steel industry
Despite suffering the succession of lawsuits, anti-dumping tax imposed from abroad, as well as the increasingly fierce competition in the domestic market, Vietnam steel industry still targets to grow more than 20% in this year.
— Nhan Dan Online

Vietnam’s business formations in Jan-Oct up 4.3% to nearly 110,000
The Vietnamese government targeted to have 135,000 newly established enterprises in 2018, which is part of the objective of having one million enterprises by 2020.
— The Hanoi Times

HCM City specifies key agricultural products
The administration of Ho Chi Minh City has issued a list of key agricultural products to develop to improve the income and living standards of rural residents.
— VietnamPlus

Project seeks to make textile sector more green
A project to make the textile industry more environment-friendly has been launched in Ha Noi by the World Wide Fund for Nature and the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association.
— Bizhub

Banks race to fund green energy projects
Commercial banks are rushing to provide loans for green energy projects amid a wave of investment in the growing industry, dubbed a landmark for the country’s renewable energy outlook.
— Viet Nam News

Only 20% of Vietnamese firms invest in branding
Merely 20% of Vietnamese enterprises have invested in building brands with the focus on the domestic market and have yet to register their brands in foreign markets.
— Nhan Dan Online

Solutions discussed to boost enterprises’ participation in logistics
Experts gathered at a seminar held by the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) in Hanoi on October 29, to discuss policy recommendations to support logistics development in Vietnam.
— Nhan Dan Online

Vietnam Jan-Oct coffee exports seen up 21.5 pct, rice to grow 3.4 pct
Vietnam’s coffee exports grew 21.5 percent and rice exports 3.4 percent year-on-year in the first ten months, government data showed on Monday.
— VnExpress

State’s divestment plan set for failure
As the stock market is experiencing strong volatility and shows little signs of strong recovery, the State may struggle to sell its stake in State-owned enterprises (SOEs) on schedule.
— Bizhub

Hungry SMEs need banks to change their ‘risk appetite’
Vietnam’s SMEs are hungry for credit, but banks have to change their ‘risk appetite’ to respond positively, an expert says.
— VnExpress

Foreign investors optimize Vietnam’s beverage market
Foreign beverage producers are expanding footprint in Vietnam to capitalize high growth potentials of the estimated US$4 billion market.
— The Hanoi Times

Co To moves toward sustainable seafood sector
Co To island district in the northeast of Quang Ninh province is working to ensure sustainable aquaculture development.
— VietnamPlus

ESP Capital invests in food recipe portal Cooky
Vietnamese homegrown venture capital firm ESP Capital recently announced it has completed a second seed round investment in Vietnamese food recipe portal Cooky, raising $500,000 in a funding round led by an existing backer.
— Vietnam Insider

Customs agency faces large-scale smuggling cases
A number of large-scale smuggling cases employing sophisticated methods have recently challenged the country’s customs agency.
— VietnamPlus

55 children suffer food poisoning after meal in Saigon church
Dozens of children aged seven to 12 had to be hospitalized with food poisoning Sunday after attending a church service in HCMC.
— Vietnam Insider

Industrial real estate developers see great opportunities in Vietnam
The movement of foreign investors relocating their production bases to Vietnam will be a driving force for the development of the industrial real estate sector.
— VietNamNet Bridge

Tight monetary policy won’t have big impact
The State Bank of Vi?t Nam has shown it is determined to continue with a tight monetary policy for the rest of the year with its decision to refuse to increase bank’s credit limits to constrain inflation and strictly control lending to high-risk sectors.
— Viet Nam News

Vietnam successfully tests homemade stents in heart surgeries
Made-in-Vietnam stents successfully tested in HCMC’s Cho Ray Hospital can help reduce angioplasty costs significantly, medial experts say.
— VnExpress

Vietnamese firms display fashion products at Hong Kong fair
Thirty-five leading manufacturers of handicrafts, garments, textiles, and fashion accessories and garment-related industries in Vietnam are displaying their products at an international fair in Hong Kong that opened on October 27.
— VietnamPlus

Grab writes to PM over new transport decree
Grab have petitioned Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to oppose the Ministry of Transport’s proposal to amend the operation of app-based taxi services.
— VietNamNet Bridge

Don’t waste public money, get selective: parliament members
Vietnam should prioritize and reserve public investment for the most important projects and strictly evaluate money spent, parliament members say.
— VnExpress

Most goods categories witness price hikes in October
Ten of the 11 goods categories have seen price increases in October, raising the consumer price index (CPI) by 0.33 percent from the previous month, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).
— VietnamPlus

Feature photo Vietnam Electricity Corporation

This week’s Vietnam morning news feature photo acknowledges World Cities Day, October 31.

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Vietnam morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Vietnam news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies, not politics.