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| Visitors at Vietnam's booth (Photo: VNA) |
Held under the theme "Your Road to the African Market," the forum, organised by the Arab-African Centre for Investment and Development (CAAID), highlighted the importance of implementing the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and fostering increased intra-regional trade.
The event facilitated hundreds of business-to-business meetings, fostering partnerships and collaboration among stakeholders seeking entry to the African market.
An accompanying exhibition showcased diverse sectors, including export, trade, agriculture, food processing, tourism, services, technology and digital transformation. Additionally, sectors like energy, construction, public administration, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, investment, finance, transportation, and environment were represented.
The Vietnamese Embassy and the Vietnam Trade Office in Algeria collaborated to set up a booth showcasing various Vietnamese products to potential African partners, such as coffee, pepper, cashew nuts, macadamia nuts, coconut rice, pharmaceuticals and handicrafts.
Vietnamese Commercial Counselor in Algeria Hoang Duc Nhuan said it is the fourth time Vietnam has joined the event with a view to understanding trade and investment policies across Africa.
According to Vietnam's customs data, the export turnover between Vietnam and Africa increased by 31.7% in the first quarter of this year. The trade figure between Vietnam and Algeria reached 75 million USD, up 16% year on year.
Foreign investors encouraged to invest in petroleum storage infrastructure
The Vietnamese Government has given green light to foreign investors to invest in developing oil and gas storage and supply infrastructure system, but they cannot participate in distributing, importing and exporting petroleum, reported Vietnam News Agency.
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| A petroleum storage system of PVOil in Thai Binh Province. (Photo: VNA) |
This was part of the recently approved plan to implement the national petroleum and gas storage and supply infrastructure planning for the 2021-2030 period with a vision to 2025.
State budget will prioritise the development of national storage infrastructure while the private investment will be used to develop storage infrastructure for commercial purposes of enterprises.
The Government encourages private investment in developing the national storage infrastructure following the established planning and standards to serve the national reserve goals.
To ensure national defence and security as well as social security, the Government also eyes to develop petroleum storage system in border areas, islands, and remote areas. These localities will develop storage systems below 5,000cu.m in consistency with the national planning.
Under the plan, the focus will also be on developing the petrol stations along new roads and in new urban areas with an appropriate roadmap to reduce the number of small-scale and inefficient stations.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade will be in charge of implementing and supervising the development of petrol and oil storage systems, ensure quality and progress as well as economic efficiency.
National coal group posts US$2.24 billion in revenue in four months
The Vietnam National Coal-Mineral Industries Holding Corporation Limited (Vinacomin) said it gained nearly US$2.24 billion in revenue in the first four months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 4%, reported Vietnam News Agency.
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| Vinacomin gains nearly 8.5 trillion VND (2.24 billion USD) in revenue in the first four months of this year. (Photo: VNA) |
It contributed VND8.46 trillion to the state budget. During the period, the corporation mined 13.72 million tonnes of coal, up 2% from the same time last year, and generated 3.42 billion kWh of electricity, or 6% higher than its set plan.
It eyes to produce 3.3 million tonnes of coal and import 1 million tonnes while producing 130,000 tonnes of aluminium, 9,450 tonnes of copper ores, 2,400 tonnes of copper sheets, and 850 tonnes of zinc ingots, as well as generating over 1 billion kWh of power.
With a view to realising the set targets, the group will direct its units to push ahead with production and capitalise on their resources and capacity. In the meantime, it will roll out plans to supply coal for power generation during the peak of the dry season, and focus on compensation and site clearance work in line with plans to ensure sufficient electricity.
Furthermore, it will enhance inspection on safety and security in order to protect resources, plant trees at landfills and construction sites, and maintain anti-dust measures at coal warehouses, and production factories near residential areas.
Vietnam among Koreans’ most favourite destinations in 2024 summer
Vietnam is witnessing an increasing number of hotel bookings from Korean travelers for this year's peak summer tourist season, reported Vietnam News Agency.
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| Vietnam among Koreans’ most favourite destinations in 2024 summer. (Photo: VNA) |
Data from the Booking platform Yeogi Eottae of the Republic of Korea showed that the number of hotel bookings by Korean visitors in Vietnam for the June - August period increased by 3 times compared to the same period in 2023.
Statistics from the Yeogi Eottae website released on May 2 indicated that as of late April, the number of hotel bookings in the two Southeast Asian countries is leading in the region.
The Southeast Asian countries are emerging as popular tourist destinations of Koreans in 2024 summer.
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| Korean tourists visiting HCM City. (Photo: VNA) |
Meanwhile, Hanoi topped the trend index ranking of Vietnam's favourite tourist destinations by the end of April released by Rankify Korea with 1,788 points. It was followed by Da Lat and Ha Long Bay with 1,379 points and 796 points, respectively.
According to Rankify Korea’s ranking, favourite tourist destinations in Vietnam are currently receiving significant attention of Korea visitors. The trend index is calculated by adding the search volume of keywords and Google Trends data from the previous week./.