Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai said recently the ministry would consider increasing the price of electricity this year.

Vietnam faces a possible return to a trade deficit this year after three years of enjoying surpluses, experts said pointing to the sharp rise in imports and increasing difficulties facing exports.

The Vietnamese Government has issued a series of conditions required to set up a foreign-invested vocational training institution in Vietnam, expected to take effect from March 20.

The Central and Central Highlands Region has been told to work harder to make tourism a key economic sector of the whole region.

 Forty nine objects featuring the Mong ethnic minority group are being displayed at the La Rochelle Natural History Museum of France’s Nouvelle Aquitaine region from January 31 till December 31, 2019.

 The northern border defence war in 1979 has demonstrated Vietnam’s strength and intelligence in critical situations. 

 China’s Huawei Technologies believes it stands a good chance of being chosen to supply 5G network equipment to Vietnam’s mobile carriers, Fine Fan, the Chinese company’s local chief executive told Nikkei Asian Review in an interview. 

 There is no doubt that the EVFTA would create a turning point in Vietnam – EU relations, said Nicolas Audier, co-chairman of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham), in an interview with the Dau Tu (Investment) Newspaper. 

 Japan-based Taisho Pharmaceutical has registered to purchase an additional of nearly 1 million shares in Vietnam’s DHG Pharmaceutical, lifting its holding in the latter to nearly 35%.

Viettel and Vinaphone proved winners during the three-month trial period of offering the mobile number portability (MNP) service to customers, while Mobifone struggled to keep customers, according to Vietnam Telecommunications Authority.

 MAM. Manufaktur für aktuelle Musik group from Germany will perform the contemporary version of Arnold Schönberg’s musical work “Pierrot Lunaire” at the HCMC Conservatory of Music on February 19.

 A spring-themed exhibition is running at the Center of Art-Photography Exhibition in Hanoi to depict spring from artists’ diverse dimensions.

VietNamNet Bridge - Small production areas for refining and processing vegetables and fruits are now bringing big job opportunities to enterprises.

Vietnam’s accession to the CPTPP, and the enforcement of the EVFTA will set a string of challenges for local government and businesses to adopt an Industry 4.0 model in ­Vietnam.

VietNamNet Bridge - The absence of research-oriented training and paltry budget for scientific research have been cited to explain the low number and quality of internationally published articles in social sciences in Vietnam.

 The Ministry of Finance is studying a plan to cut the prices for the calculation of special consumption tax on locally made cars with nine seats or below. 

 Hanoi-based Bach Mai Hospital recently admitted many patients infected with the H1N1 bird flu, who were all in critical condition. 

 The Directorate for Roads of Vietnam has asked Vietnam Expressway Corporation (VEC) to abolish its practice of banning vehicles from traveling on its expressways by February 28 as it does not have the mandate to issue such rules.

 Poultry and cattle smuggled into Vietnam can potentially trigger an outbreak of infectious diseases, such as H5N1 and H7N9 bird flu and African hog cholera, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien.

 The Hanoi People’s Procuracy has lodged an appeal over part of the municipal court’s first-instance verdict against Danang-based business tycoon Phan Van Anh Vu, alias Vu Nhom, and his accomplices, the local media reported.