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| Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) |
Vietnam News Agency reported that breaking records on its own, Ho Chi Minh City boasted a remarkable annual surge of 43.3% in remittances, reaching an impressive 9.46 billion USD – a figure that also marked a 10-year high.
This sum, as highlighted by Deputy Director of the State Bank of Vietnam’s municipal branch Nguyen Duc Lenh, not only surpassed foreign direct investment (FDI) in the city by 2.7 times but also accounted for nearly 14% of its gross regional domestic product. This unprecedented success was attributed to a growth in overseas labour.
Over the past five years, Ho Chi Minh City has demonstrated its dominance in attracting overseas remittances, claiming 44.1% of the country’s total in 2018 and steadily increasing to an impressive 55.03% in 2022, Lenh said.
Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Vo Van Hoan underscored the significance of this positive growth, emphasising its potential to fortify exchange rates, stabilise the foreign exchange market, and propel the city’s overall economic development.
A report from the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs revealed that Vietnam has garnered over 190 billion USD in remittances over the past three decades, nearly matching the total FDI disbursed during the same period.
Among the countries contributing to this influx, the US took the lead, followed by the UK, Australia, and Canada. Meanwhile, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan (China) played pivotal roles as major labour markets.
Lenh said the Vietnamese Government has issued many policies to encourage OVs to do business at home and send cash to their families.
The revised Real Estate Business Law, which will take effect on January 1, 2025, also improves the opportunity for OVs to invest and trade in real estate on par with their domestic counterparts, thus further fueling the positive momentum in remittance growth, he added.
Philippines remains Vietnam’s biggest rice importer
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| Illustrative photo (Photo: VNA) |
Vietnam views the Philippines as one of its most important rice importers, Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien has told visiting Secretary of the Philippine Department of Agriculture Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr.., reported Vietnam News Agency.
Currently, the Philippines is Vietnam’s sixth biggest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the 16th in the world. It remains Vietnam’s biggest rice buyer. Last year, two-way trade reached 7.8 billion USD, down only 0.1%.
Dien stressed the significance of Laurel’s visit to bilateral trade, especially the rice trade, and affirmed that the two countries are important trade partners of each other in Southeast Asia.
Within the framework of the state visit to Vietnam by Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr. on January 29 and 30, the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and the Philippine Department of Agriculture signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on rice trade.
The deal set out major cooperation orientations and activities to boost collaboration in rice trade in the next five years. It demonstrates the friendship and good cooperation between the two countries, and is expected to benefit both economies.
Dien suggested the two sides build a plan to materialise the MoU after it takes effect, urged Laurel to instruct concerned agencies to closely coordinate with the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to implement procedures on food safety and sanitary and phytosanitary measures, and soon open doors for each other's fruits and meat products.
The two sides should optimise the existing bilateral cooperation mechanisms, especially the Vietnam - Philippines joint trade subcommittee, he added.
Laurel, for his part, shared Dien’s view on the two countries’ potential for agricultural product trade, noting Vietnamese rice accounts for 85% of imported rice in the Philippines.
He suggested Vietnam shared its forecast for rice production this year, and suggested the country maintain its stable rice supply to the Philippines.
Dien affirmed that Vietnam stands ready to supply rice to the Philippines in a stable and long-term manner.
Garment sector eyes 44 billion USD in export this year
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| Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) |
The garment and textile sector has set a target of 44 billion USD in export turnover this year, up 10% year-on-year, reported Vietnam News Agency.
According to the Vietnam Textile & Apparel Association (VITAS), garment and textile exports last year reached 39.5 billion USD, down 10% year-on-year.
VITAS Chairman Vu Duc Giang said that in 2023, Vietnam's textile and garment products were exported to 104 countries and territories – a record number.
Businesses underwent significant changes but they made efforts to diversify their exports with 36 items.
The main markets of Vietnamese garment and textile exports were the US, Japan, the European Union (EU), the Republic of Korea, China, and Southeast Asia, together with some new markets such as Africa and Russia.
VITAS Vice Chairman Truong Van Cam said that 2024 will still see many challenges for the industry, pointing to the extended producer responsibility (EPR) and the EU's carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), as well as the strategy of “sustainable fashion” instead of “fast fashion”.
To achieve its set goal, the industry is implementing various solutions, with a focus on diversifying customers, markets, and products; speeding up digital transformation; and greening production, said Cam.
AeonMall Vietnam to develop shopping centre in Da Nang
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| At the signing ceremony between TTC Land and AeonMall Vietnam (Photo: https://nguoidothi.net.vn/) |
The Saigon Thuong Tin Real Estate Joint Stock Company (TTC Land) and AeonMall Vietnam Co., Ltd on January 30 officially announced a plan to construct an Aeon Mall shopping centre as part of the TTC Plaza Da Nang project, which is developed by TTC Land in central Da Nang city, Vietnam News Agency.
TTC Plaza Da Nang is a modern complex building project in the central region, including 18 floors with four commercial floors (Aeon Mall), 126 tourist apartments, 150 hotel rooms, and more than 30,000 sq.m of office for rent. It is one of the key projects in the locality.
The partnership is expected to promote the existing advantages of both sides, thus affirming the brands of TTC Land and AeonMall in Vietnam.
Tetsuyuki Nakagawa, General Director of AeonMall Vietnam, said after over 10 years of development in the Vietnamese market, AeonMall Vietnam is gradually realising its goal of opening 30 shopping centres in the coming time.
Dang Van Thanh, Chairman of TTC Land, spoke highly of the long-term vision and strategy of Japan's largest retail conglomerate as it considers Vietnam as its second key market to expand investment and business activities in.
AeonMall is a well-established and reputable retail centre brand that has successfully attracted a large number of Vietnamese customers, he said, adding that the partnership will help promote sustainable business activities for both sides.
The TTC Plaza Da Nang project is scheduled to be completed and become operational in late 2025. It is expected to bring numerous opportunities for both companies to provide quality products and services to the local community, contributing to fostering growth and sustainable development of the retail market in Da Nang.
Vietnam records 47.6-fold increase in electronic invoices
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| Illustrative photo (Photo: VNA) |
The General Department of Taxation has reported a surge in the number of electronic invoices directly generated from cash registers, reaching a remarkable 104.8 million last year which represented a 47.6-fold increase compared to the initial implementation period, Vietnam News Agency.
By the end of last year, the country recorded 40,355 businesses registering to use electronic invoices generated from cash registers, or 94.36% of the planned target.
General Director of the general department Mai Xuan Thanh said the sector has rolled out the e-invoice system in 2021, contributing to reforming administrative procedures, reducing costs and improving business productivity.
Nguyen Thi Lan Anh, head of the Tax Administration Department for Small and Medium Enterprises, Business Households and Individuals, said several local tax authorities have achieved high results in the initiative, such as Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Dong Nai and Quang Ninh.
In concerted efforts to facilitate the widespread adoption of electronic invoices generated from cash registers nationwide, tax authorities have embarked on campaigns to encourage taxpayers to seamlessly transition to and embrace this innovative form of invoicing, she added./.