In the first eight months of this year, there were a total of 1,924 newly-registered FDI projects worth 8.87 billion USD, up 69.5% year-on-year in the number of projects, and up 39.7% in value.
Meanwhile, 830 projects had their capital adjusted, with a total added amount of 4.5 billion USD, up 22.8% and 39.7% year-on-year, respectively.
There were also 2,268 capital contributions and share purchases, with a total amount of 4.4 billion USD, down 6.5% and 62.8%, respectively.
During January-August, 13.1 billion USD of foreign-invested projects was disbursed, up 1.3% against the same period of last year.
Foreign investors have invested in 18 industries out of 21 economic sectors of Vietnam. Which, processing and manufacturing continued to rake the largest FDI capital, with nearly 13 billion USD, accounting for around 67.8% of the total.
It was followed by real estate business and banking - finance, with over 1.76 billion USD and 1.54 billion USD, respectively.
A total of 100 nations and territories poured capital into Vietnam during the period, with Singapore topping the list with more than 3.8 billion VND, accounting for 21.2% of the total. It was followed by China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea.
Vietnam wins AFF U23 Championship after penalty shootout
The Vietnam national under-23 team defended their AFF U23 Championship title with a 6-5 victory against Indonesia in penalty shootout in Rayong Stadium, Thailand on August 26 night. (Photo: VNA)
The Vietnam national under-23 team defended their AFF U23 Championship title with a 6-5 victory against Indonesia in penalty shootout in Rayong Stadium, Thailand on August 26 night, according to the Vietnam News Agency.
After a goalless 120 minutes, the match had to be decided on penalties, with keeper Quan Van Chuan proving to be the hero saving a penalty from Ernando Ari.
The match started with Indonesia's young starlets on the front foot. Vietnam had to deal with enormous pressure and forced to play defensively.
In the 26th minute, Rifky Setiawan's free kick from 20 metres could have opened the score for Shin Tae-yong's men, had it not been for Chuan's acrobatics.
Five minutes later, Vietnam replied with a great opportunity for Nguyen Minh Quang on the counter. Quang was through on goal, but his shot hit the outside of the post. As he went for the rebound, Quang was brought down by Alfeandra Dewangga inside the box and the referee pointed to the spot.
Nguyen Quoc Viet, a scorer in the semifinal win over Malaysia, stepped up, but his penalty was saved by Ernando.
After Viet’s miss, Indonesia had even more mental advantages on their side, and took full control of the game. This momentum carried on into the second half, as the men from Indonesia created more opportunities than Vietnamese.
The most dangerous of which came in the 77th minute, when Sananta Ramadhan's free kick rattled not only the crossbar, but the hearts of Vietnamese fans everywhere.
The game was also notably plagued with vicious fouls and tackles from both sides, but Vietnam, having learned their lessons in the group stage match against Philippines, kept their cool and stayed strong in defence for the rest of the match.
In extra time, as fatigue kicked in, both teams played more carefully and the match ended goalless after 120 minutes.
Five players from both sides confidently took their spot kicks, until keeper Ernando stepped up to take the sixth penalty.
Having saved a penalty earlier in the first half, Ernando could have been the hero for Indonesia, but fate chose Van Chuan, as the Hanoi FC goalkeeper pushed away Ernando's shot, in an ironically similar fashion to Ernando's earlier save against Quoc Viet.
18-year-old Thai Ba Dat, one of Vietam’s rising stars, then successfully took the decisive kick that gave Vietnam victory and the title.
The win marked Vietnam’s successful title defence, after success at the 2022 AFF U23 Championship in Cambodia.
After the tournament, some of the players will be chosen to join with Philippe Troussier's Vietnam Under-23 team, who are preparing for the AFC U23 Asian Cup qualifiers in September.
Vietnam focuses on development of 6G equipment
The Ministry of Information and Communications has just established a team to develop 6G equipment with the participation of three telecommunications businesses Viettel, VNPT and MobiFone, as well as some agencies from the ministry.
The research team, led by Nguyen Thien Nghia, deputy director of the Authority of Information Technology and Communications Industry, will focus on reviewing the system of legal documents to promote the development, evaluate and test 6G equipment.
They will also propose regulations on management, assessment, inspection and testing of the equipment to promote the deployment of the 6G network.
6G is the next generation of networks after 5G, and that is attracting many countries and major technology companies in the world to invest in research and application.
In addition, the team will study international experiences on strategy for development, assessment, and testing of 6G equipment and have proposals on the development of 6G equipment in Vietnam.
The group will also monitor the 6G equipment research and development in the world, such as equipment type, supportive band, price, and standardisation.
The team will attend international and domestic conferences and seminars related to 6G equipment development, assessment, inspection and testing; and have international cooperation in research and development of 6G technology and equipment.
Earlier, the Ministry of Information and Communications also established a steering committee to promote research and development of 6G mobile information technology.
This committee focuses on researching and proposing strategies, mechanisms and policies to create a legal environment, and promote research and development on standards, application, information safety, production and commercialisation for 6G mobile communication devices and services in Vietnam.
The committee also follows those activities of 6G research and development conducted by international organisations and advanced countries in the world.
Thereby, it proposes a roadmap for research, production and commercialisation of 6G equipment and services; and solutions to support Vietnamese enterprises in manufacturing and commercialising 6G equipment and services.
According to the ministry, there are five 5G equipment manufacturers in the world, and many countries in the world have begun researching 6G. Vietnam is determined to keep abreast with the world in developing 6G.
Vietnam is ready for 6G development when the ministry is developing standards for 6G. Many universities and research institutes also embark on 6G research.
A representative of Viettel said that the company has embarked on researching the manufacture of 6G equipment and obtaining 6G patents. VNPT said it would focus on researching a 6G ecosystem.
The 6G standard and commercialisation are expected to start in 2028, while commercialisation in mass manner can take place in 2030. Humans and machines will be the main subjects of 6G networks with advanced services, such as augmented reality, high-precision mobile holograms and digital replicas.
The researchers said that smart homes will be widely deployed when smart devices are able to be connected and controlled remotely. Intelligent traffic with control systems, autonomous vehicles, flying taxis can be deployed based on 6G network technology.
In the business report of the first six months of 2023, Viettel said that it has promoted to convert subscribers from 2G and 3G to 4G, increasing the number of 4G subscribers. It also tested 5G services in 55 provinces and cities.
Especially for the 5G project, this group said that it still ensures the set schedule on development this network. Viettel has been testing 5G services and evaluating quality of them. It expects to provide 5G services in mass manner from the third quarter of 2023.
Meanwhile, both VNPT and MobiFone in their business report for the first six months of the year as well as their plan for the last six months of 2023 have not mentioned 5G development activities, vneconomy.vn reported.
Exports add tens of billions of USD to coffers thanks to FTAs
Vietnam’s exports have gained tens of billions of USD each year from free trade agreements (FTAs) that Vietnam is a signatory, the Vietnam News Agency quoted the information of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).
Statistics of the General Department of Customs showed that after nearly three years since the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) took effect, export turnover from Vietnam to the EU has experienced tremendous growth, with 14.2% in 2021 and 16.7% in 2022.
According to a survey on FTAs in Vietnam published earlier by the Center for WTO and Integration under the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), nearly 41% of Vietnamese enterprises said that they have enjoyed at least some benefits from the deal.
Of which, the most common benefits are from preferential tariffs for import and export goods and positive effects in increasing orders, revenue, and profit.
According to the VCCI, currently markets that have signed FTAs with Vietnam still have many barriers, especially in terms of technical standards. However, in the long run, the agreements will still be effective when the economy is prosperous and consumption demand in the market recovers.
According to the MoIT, Vietnam has now signed and implemented many new generation FTAs, and a free trade agreement with the first partner in West Asia, Israel, has also been signed, offering the opportunity to reduce up to 92% of tariff lines for Vietnamese goods to this country.
However, Vietnam's agricultural products entering the EU recently have not achieved the expected growth rate. The main reason is the prolonged Covid-19 epidemic, followed by the Ukraine-Russia war. These events are causing countries to enter an economic recession, having to tighten spending, while a series of key Vietnamese goods such as marine products, furniture, cashew nuts, and rubber are in a difficult situation because of inflation. However, many enterprises have eyed orders from different markets, including Africa.
Nguyen Ngoc Luan, CEO of fruit coffee chain Meet More said that incentives on tax reduction have helped Vietnamese enterprises have more opportunities to increase exports but major markets are facing difficulties this year due to the recession affected by the prolonged war.
Many businesses have been affected as purchasing power has dropped sharply from the US, Australia, Russia and the EU. Currently, many businesses have signed contracts to export to Africa, but it is difficult to offset the decline from other markets.
Vietnam's vegetable and fruit exports to the EU market have faced the same situation. The EVFTA helps Vietnam eliminate up to 94% of tax lines for vegetables and fruits (previously with a tax rate of 10-20%), creating a competitive advantage over Thailand and China.
The representative of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetables Association also affirmed that the opportunity for Vietnamese fruits and vegetables in the European market is huge because the market size is up to 62 billion EUR, equivalent to 43% of the total trade value of fruits and vegetables worldwide. However, this year's fruit and vegetable export growth is mainly due to the increase of China while low growth has been seen in the countries that have signed FTAs with Vietnam
Luan shared that the trade agreements help reduce import tax rates, but cannot stimulate consumer demand when the market reduces purchases. Once customers do not buy, the tax reduction is not effective.
In order to take fully advantage of the FTAs, the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposed the Government consider setting aside its own capital to support enterprises to tap these agreements more effectively.
Accordingly, the State Bank of Vietnam together with ministries and agencies should work with commercial banks to deliver appropriate credit with preferential interest rates to support businesses that want to improve production capacity.
At the same time, enterprises themselves also need to increase access to “green” credit sources, in order to promptly meet increasing standards from export markets./.