Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung (L) and the UK’s Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Chris Philp sign a Letter of Intent on cooperation in digital economy and digital. (Photo: VOV)
He was accompanying Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on a trip to Glasgow to attend the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow in the UK).
During the course of the meeting, both sides shared their strategic orientations, national schemes, and projects on developing the digital economy and digital society of each country, in addition to initiatives and support policies to promote the digital economy.
They also exchanged possibilities aimed at expanding co-operation, as well as strengthening co-ordination among management agencies in digital transformation. This is along with boosting links in the digital economy, digital business connections, whilst jointly developing and organizing the implementation of initiatives within the framework of the UK-ASEAN Innovation Partnership and the Asia-Pacific Digital Trade Network.
They signed a Letter of Intent regarding the co-operation in the digital economy and digital transformation. This letter of intent acknowledges the common goals of the numerous parties, including sharing experience in building a favorable environment for the digital economy and digital transformation.
Philp also used the event to introduce a plan to carry out initiatives which can expand co-operation in digital economic development with the Asia-Pacific region and ASEAN, through the UK-ASEAN Digital Innovation Partnership. In addition, he also showcased a program to support ASEAN in carrying out digital trade platforms, along with standards and architectural frameworks for smart building.
Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung (L) and the UK’s Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Chris Philp sign a Letter of Intent on cooperation in digital economy and digital.
From 2022 the Ministry of Information and Communications will consider implementing Vietnam-UK digital forums, investment promotion programs, and seminars so that businesses can find partners, expand into new markets and co-operate in projects on the digital economy and digital transformation.
The same day saw Minister Hung hold a working session with representatives from the trade association techUK and the UK-ASEAN Business Council, during which he affirmed co-operation between the two nations’ digital enterprises boasts huge potential. Therefore, this needs to be expanded moving forward, with the supporting and connecting role of both nations’ management agencies and related associations.
TechUK and UKABC also introduced a range of plans and initiatives aimed at developing the digital business community, promote digital innovation, build a favorable environment for digital startups, as well as open international co-operation programs. Efforts to expand partnerships with countries and regions, especially the Asia-Pacific region and ASEAN, will also be made.
From 2022, the Ministry of Information and Communications will consider implementing Vietnam-UK digital forums, investment promotion programs, seminars so that businesses can find partners and cooperate in projects on the digital economy and digital transformation.
PM’s France visit expected to lift two-way trade
Illustrative image (Photo: tapchitaichinh.vn)
Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to France from November 3-5 at the invitation of his French counterpart Jean Castex is expected to open up new opportunities and lift bilateral ties to a new height, reported Vietnam News Agency.
France is always one of the top trade partners of Vietnam in the European Union (EU). Two-way trade grew by 15.7 percent annually on average during 2011-2019. France is now the fourth largest importer of Vietnam in the EU with a share of nearly 10 percent of the country’s exports to the region, according to a representative from the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Department of the European-American Markets.
Due to the impacts of COVID-19 pandemic, two-way trade declined by 10 percent year-on-year in 2020 to 4.8 billion USD. Vietnam’s exports to France reached 187.9 million USD in September 2021 and 2.25 billion USD in nine months of this year, down 9.9 percent annually, mostly footwear, apparel, household appliances, agro-forestry-fisheries, gemstones, jewelries, electronics, mechanical engineering tools, rubber, coal, plastics, bamboo and rattan items.
Meanwhile, Vietnam mainly purchased high-value and hi-tech goods from France, including pharmaceuticals, machinery and equipment, and transport vehicles, amounting to over 1.5 billion USD last year, down 4.3 percent annually.
As of August 20, France ranked 16th out of 140 countries and territories investing in Vietnam with 632 valid projects worth more than 3.6 billion USD.
In order to increase the presence of Vietnamese agro-fisheries in France, experts suggested outlining strategies to attract consumers as well as specific action programs to build trust and prove product quality.
Thanh Ha lychees in a supermarket in France (Photo: VNA)
According to the Vietnam Trade Office in Vietnam, there are huge opportunities for Vietnamese goods to navigate France but its requirements are also high. Therefore, suppliers need to continue maintaining product quality, or invite French experts and skilled workers to Vietnam to inspect quality.
To lift two-way trade to a new height, experts proposed that Vietnam should ask the EU and France in particular to work closely together with the country to make the best use of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement./.
Forty-two wind power plants put into commercial operation
Forty-two out of 106 wind power plants registering for commercial operation received Commercial Operation Date (COD) acceptance as of October 29, according to Vietnam Electricity (EVN), reported Vietnam News Agency.
The 42 plants have a total capacity of 2,131.3 MW.
At Hong Phong wind power farm (Photo: vneconomy.vn)
Under the Prime Minister’s Decision dated September 10, 2018 amending and supplementing several regulations on incentives for wind power projects in Vietnam, fixed preferential price of offshore wind power is 2,223 VND (9.8 US cents) while that of inland wind power is around 1.927 VND (8.5 US cents), excluding VAT.
The above prices are applied to wind power projects with a part or the whole plant having commercial operation date before November 1, 2021 and applied for 20 years from the date of commercial operation.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Circular dated January 15, 2019 on the development of wind power projects and sample contracts for wind power purchase, sellers must send the draft document on trial operation process to buyers, thus setting the date of commercial operation and calculating power output during trial run.
With the regulation, tens of wind power projects are at the risk of failing to start operations as schedule.
Total retail sales of consumer goods and services rise 59.8% in October
Total retail sales of consumer goods and services in October was estimated at 56 trillion VND, up 59.8% from the previous month and up 5.1% compared to the same period last year, according to the Hanoi Statistics Office.
Total retail sales of consumer goods and services rise 59.8% in October. (Photo: hanoimoi.com.vn)
Specifically, this month, the city urgently carried out safe and flexible adaptation plans to effectively control the COVID-19 epidemic in the area; step by step reopening many commercial activities, services, restaurants, hotels, transportation and tourism after a long period of restriction and temporary shutdown to prevent and control the epidemic.
Retail sales of goods reached 32.3 trillion VND, up 25.5% from the previous month and down 6.8% from the same period last year; hotel and restaurant revenue reached VND 5.3 trillion, 2.1 times higher than the previous month and up 9.2% over the same period.
Tourism and travel revenue reached 304 billion VND, a sharp increase compared to September but only equal to 68.8% of the same period last year; while revenue of other services posted 18.1 trillion VND, up 35.7%.
In the first 10 months of 2021, retail sales of consumer goods and services totaled 440 trillion VND, down 7.8% year on year. Specifically, retail sales of goods reached 301.9 trillion VND, accounting for 68.6% of the total and down 4%. Specifically, revenue of gems and precious metals decreased by 28.7%; wood and construction materials declined by 22.5%; means of transport dropped by 19.3%; and apparel fell by 10%.
Hotel and restaurant revenue reached 33.8 trillion VND, accounting for 7.7% and down 20.9%. Tourism revenue reached 2.5 trillion VND, accounting for 0.6% and down 53.4%. Other service revenue reached 101.8 trillion VND, accounting for 23.1% and down 11.5%./.