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| Illustrative photo (Source: VNA) |
The first nine months of 2022 saw the fast recovery of the Vietnamese economy when COVID-19-related restrictions were removed.
The gross domestic product (GDP) in the first three quarters of this year expanded 8.83%, motivated by strong production and exports as well as the growth of retail and tourism.
Speaking to Vietnam New Agency, Dabla-Norris said that Vietnam’s inflation has stayed at a lower level than the majority of countries in the region.
Highlighting some policies that have contributed to the economic results so far this year, she mentioned the Vietnamese Government’s switching of the COVID-19 control strategy and the complete reopening of the country’s economy in March thanks to the super-fast vaccination campaign. This was the key for the resumption of economic motivations, she held.
The expert also underlined the country’s low interest rate and responsive monetary policies that have allowed businesses to return to operation, along with tax cuts to support labourers including income and environmental taxes to minimise the impacts of the global petrol price hike, and price freezes for some services, including power, healthcare and education, which have contributed to keeping inflation under control.
However, Dabla-Norris pointed to a number of challenges that Vietnam is facing, and gave a number of recommendations, especially on monetary and fiscal policies. She also welcomed the expansion of the trading band for the exchange rate recently, and advised Vietnam to maintain inflation at around 4% in 2023.
She underscored the need to maintain flexible policies and the stability of the financial system, along with the improvement of the business environment and the productivity of domestic firms as well as the capacity of labourers, and continuous economic digitalisation. Vietnam should also focus more on implementing reform policies in climate change to complete its target of net-zero emissions in 2050, she added.
In its latest global economic outlook report, the IMF predicted that the world economy will see a fall of 2.7%, while Vietnam will enjoy a growth of about 5.8%.
Export and import value totals 585.4 billion USD in 10 months
Preliminary statistics of the General Department of Customs show that the total export and import value of Vietnam’s goods in the first half of October 2022 reached 27.75 billion USD, down 12.6% compared to the second half of September 2022.
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| Export and import value totals 585.4 billion USD in 10 months |
The results brought the total import and export value of the whole country by the end of October 15 to 585.4 billion USD, up 14.5% over the same period last year.
In which, the total export value reached 296.3 billion USD, up 16.7% year on year, while imports were valued at nearly 289.1 billion USD, up 12.7%.
The export and import value of foreign direct investment (FDI) enterprises reached 407.21 billion USD, up 14.9% (equivalent to 52.92 billion USD) over the same period last year, while the figure of domestic enterprises was 178.23 billion USD, up 13.4% (equivalent to 21.06 billion USD).
In the first half of October 2022, the trade balance of goods had a surplus of 466 million USD. From the beginning of the year to the end of October 15, the trade surplus was 7.2 billion USD.
US magazine suggests Vietnam among best destinations for honeymooners
The US magazine Travel Leisure has recently suggested Vietnam among the 12 most amazing yet affordable honeymoon destinations for newlyweds.
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| Photo for illustration |
According to Travel Leisure, Vietnam is a romantic destination with many interesting services and experiences.
It suggested visiting the Valley of Love in Da Lat or enjoying the scenic views of Fansipan Mountain in Sapa for those who like to hike.
For couples looking for a honeymoon filled with food and culture, it is recommended that they go to Hanoi city, the capital of Vietnam.
If tourists look for beaches, spa services and relaxation, then Con Dao in Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, with clear blue beaches and white sand, is a very popular destination.
Other ideal destinations for honeymooners include Belize, Key Largo (Florida, US), Napa and Sonoma (California, US), Bermuda, Jamaica, Mexico, Honolulu (Hawaii, US), Costa Rica, Portugal, and Niagara-on-the-Lake (Ontario, Canada).
Agro, forestry, fishery export value rises over 14%
The total import-export turnover of agricultural, forestry and fishery products reached about 82.1 billion USD in Jan-Oct 2022, up 10.2% year on year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
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| Photo for illustration. (Source: VNA) |
Among them, export turnover reached over 44.9 billion USD, up 14.1%; imports were valued at 37.2 billion USD, up 5.8%. Thus, the trade surplus of agricultural, forestry and fishery products reached 7.7 billion USD, up 83.7%.
In the 10 months, exports of main agricultural products were over 18.8 billion USD, up 7.2%; main forest products, about 14.4 billion USD, up 10.7%; seafood, 9.4 billion USD, up 32.7%; livestock, 326.9 million USD, down 8.7%; and production input, nearly 2 billion USD, up 45.3%.
Since the beginning of the year, there have been 8 products or product groups earning export value of over 2 billion USD, including coffee, rubber, rice, vegetables, cashew, shrimp, pangasius, and wood products.
Many items achieved higher export value than the same period last year, such as: coffee, nearly 3.3 billion USD, up 33.4%; rubber, 2.8 billion USD, up 11.2%; rice, over 2.9 billion USD, up 7.4%; pepper, 829 million USD, up 4.7%; cassava and cassava products, 1.1 billion USD, up 16.5%; pangasius, over 2.1 billion USD, up 76.5%; and shrimp, 3.8 billion USD, up 20.3%.
However, a number of items witnessed reduced export value such as vegetables and fruit, nearly 2.8 billion USD, down 6.5%; cashew nuts, nearly 2.6 billion USD, down 15.3%; and livestock products, 326.9 million USD, down 8.7%.
Regarding export markets, in the 10 months, markets in Asia accounted for 44.1% of the market share; America, 27.9%; Europe, 11.5%; Oceania, 1.7% and Africa, 1.7%.
Wild sunflower week - Chu Dang Ya Volcano to take place in November
The week will officially take place in the volcanic area and some locations in two communes of Chu Dang Ya and Nghia Hung in Chu Pah district, the central highlands province of Gia Lai.
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| Wild sunflowers at Chu Dang Ya. (Photo: VNA) |
During the festival, visitors can not only immerse themselves in the atmosphere of a major cultural-tourism festival of Gia Lai province, but also experience many attractive cultural and sports events.
The festival’s feature which is expected to attract a large number of tourists is paragliding to see the panorama of nature from above.
Sports tournaments such as: running around famous landscapes, walking to conquer Chu Dang Ya Peak, or directly going to the majestic Chu Nam Peak to see the entire volcano covered in yellow. Besides, there will be traditional sports such as pushing sticks, walking on stilts, tug of war, sack jumping, and a contest “Conquering Chu Dang Ya Peak”.
Every mid-November, wild sunflowers bloom brightly at Chu Dang Ya, and red galangal flowers add brilliance to the volcanic area./.