Business

Free trade agreements (FTAs) between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union, the Republic of Korea (RoK) and the European Union (EU) will be signed in 2015.

Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh and Singaporean Minister of Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang co-chaired the 11th Ministerial Meeting on Vietnam-Singapore Economic Connectivity in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue on April 17.

US enterprises have invested in 17 out of 21 industries in Vietnam, with the majority located in the accommodation and food service industry, the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment said.

Vietnam was expected to maintain the second fastest growing economy in ASEAN-5 in 2015, according to the International Monetary Fund's latest World Economic Outlook.

BNP Paribas- a French bank and financial services company and the low-cost carrier Vietjet Air on April 15 signed a US$60 million credit agreement to financeVietjet’s purchase of five aircraft in the Airbus A320 family in 2015 and 2016.

The central city of Da Nang maintained its status as the most competitive locality in the country, topping the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) for the second consecutive year.

The European Union has committed to continue its provision of technology to improve the legal framework for nuclear safety in Vietnam, EU Ambassador to Vietnam Franz Jessen said in Hanoi yesterday.

The Ministry of Finance has confirmed that the country's sole oil processing facility – the Dung Quat Oil Refinery – will not be closed thanks to a recent import tax reduction on petroleum products.

The Vietnam Business Annual Report 2014 was released in Hanoi on April 15 with a focus on enterprise development in agribusiness.

Japan overtook China in February as the top foreign holder of U.S. Treasury securities, a position Japan last held in August 2008.

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Producers and Exporters (VASEP) recently forecast the overall export value of tuna to increase slightly by 4% on-year to US$510 million for 2015.

Young entrepreneurs nationwide can register for the 3rd Start-Up Wheel competition, which aims to help them gain expertise, experience and support, from April 14 to May 15.

Vietnam-Cuba bilateral trade jumped more than 45% to US$207.5 million last year, including US$206 million from Vietnam exports and US$1 million from its imports.

Thai and Japanese products are dominating the Vietnam marketplace, creating a greater competitive environment for local manufacturers.

HCM City, considered a financial center of Vietnam, could lose its stock market in the future because the watchdog agency plans to merge the Hanoi and HCM City stock exchanges into one Vietnam Stock Exchange headquartered in Hanoi.

Foreign banks, especially those from Asia, have been strengthening their investment in Vietnam in recent years.

Vietnam is moving away from a "cheap labour" workforce to one more skilled to better compete in a climate of global integration, a senior industry minister said.

Vietnam is expected to record GDP growth of six percent in 2015, slightly weaker than the 6.2 percent forecast by the government, the World Bank has said.

It is urgent to assist domestic businesses to become a strong pillar of the Vietnamese economy, an economy whose growth has been largely fostered by foreign direct investment (FDI) in recent years, experts said.