Japanese investors highly evaluate Vietnam’s business environment

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Annually, around 6,000 Japanese firms seeking investment opportunities in Vietnam, with many keen to expand the provision of services.

Japanese companies highly evaluate Vietnam’s business climate and tend to boost investment in the manufacturing industry, heard a press conference held by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) Office in Ho Chi Minh City on March 4.

In 2018, Japan poured the largest amount of foreign direct investment (FDI) into Vietnam with total registered capital of nearly 8 billion USD, making up 31 percent of the Southeast Asian country’s total FDI.

In particular, investment in the manufacturing sector during the year increased 3.6 times against 2017 to reach over 1.67 billion USD.

Takimoto Koji, head of the JETRO Office in HCM City, said Japanese businesses highly evaluate the business environment in Vietnam as well as the country’s political and social stability.

In 2019, the manufacturing industry remains the most attractive field to Japanese businesses, he said.

Each year, the office receives around 6,000 Japanese firms seeking investment opportunities in Vietnam, with many keen to expand the provision of services.

Some operating in the fields of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics also invest in Vietnam through purchasing stakes in local firms.

With a population of over 90 million people, Vietnam has a large-scale consumption market with high growth potential. Therefore, several Japanese enterprises specializing in production for exports are likely to tap into the market.

According to a JETRO survey, 2018 was the third consecutive year in which Vietnam received a record number of new Japanese investment projects, standing at 630. It was also the fourth consecutive year that 70 percent of Japanese businesses operating in the country revealed that they will expand their investment in Vietnam.

Japanese enterprises recommended that Vietnam improves its legal system to attract more foreign investors in the coming time.

To be advised about how to start your business in Vietnam, your may contact JETRO office or GBS, a business legal services firm in Ho Chi Minh City at: info@gbs.com.vn, website: https://gbs.com.vn

–VNA

Great gifts for the lady in your life

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Holiday gifting to a special lady usually goes one of two ways:

1.You’ve been planning gifts all year and cannot handle keeping them a secret.

2. You push off gift shopping until the last minute and end up begging her friends for ideas.

If you’re in the latter camp, we get it — picking out the perfect gift to encapsulate how much she means to you can be a lot of pressure.

Obviously, you know that wowing her is a must — but what’s actually romantic is proving that you actually put thought into it. Flowers, chocolate, and blinged-out jewelry are nice, but they tiptoe the generic line and sometimes scream, “I literally did not try at all.” Sure, they make great stocking stuffers, but assuming that every woman wants those cliché gifts is a bit archaic, right?

Instead, we’re suggesting gifts that show that you listen to her: Gifts that she’s mentioned in passing, gifts that accompany her favorite hobby, or gifts that will fix a specific problem she complains about. Even if they’re not technically personalized, they still kinda are. You can also also give makeup kit with eyelash glue remover to your special someone.

At Vietnam Insider, we’ve compiled a list of the best gifts for each type of woman, including tech devices, self care items, subscription boxes, and more. It’s all stuff with a specific purpose that she’ll use over and over again, and every time she does, she’ll think of you. (Cue heart eyes emoji.)

BEST FOR THE BEAUTY GURU

A ring light makeup mirror

Help make her morning routine a bit more streamlined. This wall mounted, eight-inch mirror claims that its ring light mimics natural sunlight for the most accurate reflections possible, ensuring that she’ll see any makeup mishaps before leaving the house. The light also turns on via motion sensing — so she can sit and stand freely without covering the stainless steel in fingerprints.

 

BEST FOR A TRUE LADY

A chic watch

A classy watch is pretty much guaranteed to be a good move. MVMT, a popular online retailer known for seriously sleek timepieces, offers a massive variety of watches to match any lady’s tastes. Dainty details like rose gold bezels, marble faces, leather bands, and more combine beautifully with MVMT’s classic minimalistic design, making these pieces of arm candy something she’ll never want to take off.

 

BEST FOR THE LADY WHO HATES DIAMONDS

A pair of Gucci stud earrings

Fancy jewelry is always one of the go-to gifts for women — but if your gal is not into diamonds, you’ll need another plan. These heart-shaped stud earrings from Gucci are simple enough to match even the most conservative wardrobes, but will still have her feeling like a bonafide model. Because they’re sterling silver, they’ll be able to last as her everyday earring for years. (There’s a matching bracelet and necklace, too.)

 

BEST FOR EVERY TYPE OF WOMAN

Align Pant II

There is not a woman out there who wouldn’t adore a new pair of yoga pants from lululemon — even if she can’t tell a downward dog from a humble warrior. These lightweight, high-waisted pants are made from sweat-wicking fabric and are available in 14 flattering shades. So whether she’s heading to class or doing a quick Whole Foods run, these are the pants she’ll live in all year long.

BEST FOR THE BOOKWORM

The Kindle Paperwhite

Any bookworm knows the struggle of dropping a paperback into a bath. Gift her an e-reader and she’ll love you forever. The all new, 2018 Kindle Paperwhite offers the look of physical pages with the convenience of LTE and her books in one place — now waterproof. With the help for a Kindle Unlimited subscription, she’ll get access to thousands of titles and can burn through her reading list in style. Click here for details

BEST FOR THE ACTIVE LADY

The Fitbit Charge 3

The sophisticated Fitbit Charge 3 rocks a sleek OLED screen and comes in an assortment of classy, muted color options to match even her dressiest outfits. Just released in October, the Charge 3’s personalized fitness score will help her to track her progress and monitor her heart rate, as well as track sleep and count steps and calories. Click here for details

BEST FOR THE APPLE JUNKIE

The iPhone XS

Do you even need reasoning for this one? If she’s Team iPhone (or if you’re trying to convince her to go team iPhone), gifting the beautiful edge-to-edge OLED screen, fast charging, and better-than-ever LTE of the iPhone XS is sure to impress her. With three colors and a Max option, it’s a true step up from the X. Click here for details

 

BEST FOR THE LADY WHO LOVE BEING BIHIND THE WHEEL OF A CAR

Mercedes GLC 300

Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class is a compact luxury SUV that can seat up to five people. It comes standard with a 241-horsepower, turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and a nine-speed automatic transmission. Rear- and all-wheel-drive versions are offered, as well as a coupelike body style with a sloping roofline over the rear doors.

With its comfortable ride, cabin space and interior quality, the GLC has a lot to offer compact luxury SUV shoppers, and the range of models means there’s probably one that fits her needs. Click here for details

Vietnam extends the list of countries qualifying for e-visas to 80

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Vietnam extends list of countries eligible for e-visa by 34 to 80 and extended the scheme to January 31, 2021. The new countries include major source markets in Europe.

Nationals of those countries (see list below) can now apply on the web for a single-entry tourist e-visa with a validity of 30 days for a fee of $25. The e-visa replaces the visa-on-arrival and the conventional embassy visa. It has to be printed out and shown at immigration. The one-page visa sticker that took up an entire page in the passport is thus a thing of the past, at least for short-time travelers.

Related: How to get your Vietnam Visa Online

Payment and delivery of the e-visa is done entirely online and takes three working days. A credit card for payment is obligatory. The e-visa is valid for entry at any of 28 border checkpoints, including eight international airports.

The original legislation that launched the e-visa programme was first announced January 25, 2017 and covered two years with 40 nationalities eligible for the online visa and was later increased to include 46 nationalities. It was identified as pilot project.

The project delivered results in that Vietnam saw roughly 15.5 million international tourist arrivals in 2018, a 19.9-per cent rise over the previous year. A target of 18 million international tourists has been set for 2019.

Countries eligible for e-visas to Vietnam as of February 1, 2019:

Andorra, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Chile, China (including Hong Kong and Macau passports, but not Chinese e-passports), Denmark, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nauru, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Philippines, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Salomon Islands, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Timor Leste, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela and Western Samoa.

Via-exempt countries for Vietnam:

90 days: Chile

30 days:Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Laos

21 days: Philippines

15 days: UK, France, Italy, Spain, Germany (until June 30, 2021)
Belarus (until June 30, 2020)
Japan, South Korea, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Russia, Finland

14 days: Brunei, Myanmar

Banking, real estate sectors post high profits

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Most sectors saw profits grow last year in Vietnam, led by banking, real estate and food & beverage.
The banking sector recorded the highest after tax profits of all sectors at VND68.01 trillion ($2.92 billion), up 31.3 percent over 2017, according to a recent report by the Saigon Securities Inc (SSI).

It also accounted for 25 percent of total profit made by all sectors.

Vietcombank remained the most profitable bank with a 61 percent rise in after tax profits over 2017 to VND14.64 trillion ($629 million), according to financial database provider FiinPro.

Techcombank followed with VND8.46 trillion ($363.48 million), up 31 percent, and BIDV came third with VND7.36 trillion ($316.22 million), up 8 percent.

The real estate sector enjoyed the second highest after tax profits among all sectors at VND43.33 trillion ($1.86 billion), up 78 percent from 2017 and accounting for 16 percent of total profit from all sectors, the SSI report said.

The food and beverage sector came third at VND33.17 trillion ($1.42 billion), up 13 percent, following by industrial products and services at VND32.52 trillion ($1.39 billion), up 21.3 percent.

Although the chemical industry recorded just VND9.39 trillion ($403.4 million) in after tax profits, this figure had doubled from 2017, the highest growth rate among all sectors.

The media also recorded strong profit growth at 76.3 percent, while the retail and industrial products sectors saw respective increases of 28.4 percent and 21.3 percent.

Among the sectors saw their profits decline, the worst performer was oil industry, with profits going down 47.7 percent over 2017 to VND4.74 trillion ($203.63 million) last year.

The mineral exploitation and construction sectors also saw their profits fall by 27 percent and 18.3 percent respectively, while that of securities fell 11.2 percent last year over 2017.

Source: Vnexpress

Vietnam climbs in ranking of top countries

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Vietnam’s up five notches in a ranking of countries with a rich heritage, high growth rate and business openness.
A recent report of U.S. News and World Report has ranked Vietnam 39 out of 80 economies, up from 44 last year.

U.S. News & World Report is an American media company that publishes news, analysis, consumer advice, and rankings. More than 20,000 people from across the globe participated in this study.

The final rank is determined by each country’s sub-rank in nine categories – Adventure, citizenship (human rights), cultural influence, entrepreneurship, heritage, movers (economic growth rate), openness for business, power and quality of life.

Vietnam scored high in heritage, movers and open for business with 19, 16, 25 points respectively.

The country gained very high marks for having great food, a rich history, and being different and unique under the mover category.

In the open for business category, Vietnam got an almost perfect score for its cheap manufacturing costs.

A screen shot of U.S. News and World Report’s Best countries overall rankings 2019.

According to the annual report, Switzerland retains its spot as the best country in the world in 2019. Completing the top 3 list are Japan, which jumped three spots to take the second place, and Canada, which dropped one spot down to third place this year.

The world’s leading economy the U.S. also retained its spot at number 8, while China climbed four spots to 16 this year.

In the Southeast Asian region, Vietnam is ranked below Singapore (15), Thailand (26) and Malaysia (38) and above Indonesia (43), the Philippines (50) and Myanmar (61).

The bottom ranked economy in this year’s ranking is Iraq, followed by Iran (79) and Angola (78).

Source: Vnexpress

Cambodian man nabbed for allegedly killing Vietnamese ‘xe om’ driver

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A Cambodian man has been arrested for purportedly murdering a Vietnamese motorbike taxi (xe om) driver in an incident where he claimed to have acted out of self-defense.

Colonel Luu Thanh Tin, deputy director of the police department in the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang, confirmed on Sunday that officers had apprehended Soc Tha, a 64-year-old Cambodian national.

Tha, a temporary resident in Kien Giang, was captured when he was staying in Cambodia, according to Tin.

The murder suspect was escorted to Kien Giang for investigation on Saturday, Tin added.

The incident happened at around 9:00 pm on January 22, when Tha had a Vietnamese motorbike taxi driver named L. carry him to a friend’s house in My Thuan Commune, Hon Dat District, according to his statement.

After negotiation, the driver and passenger agreed that the ride would cost VND70,000 (US$3).

But upon arriving at the destination, Tha found out that his friend was not at home, thus he asked L. to take him to another place.

Moments into the second journey, the driver demanded that Tha pay him for the first trip.

L. wanted VND170,000 ($7.3) instead of VND70,000, explaining that he had previously quoted the wrong price, citing differences between “daytime and nighttime fares.”

As Tha refused to pay, the driver requested that he get off his vehicle, sparking an argument between them.

As they were quarreling, the driver pulled out a knife and attacked Tha, according to the Cambodian man’s account.

The passenger managed to disarm his attacker. When L. ran away from the scene, Tha chased after him and cut his throat with the victim’s own weapon.

Tha dumped the body in a roadside ditch and rode L.’s motorbike to nearby An Giang Province. He then abandoned the vehicle and headed to Cambodia.

The suspect insisted that his action was self-defense.

Kien Giang police said further investigation is ongoing, adding that the suspect was convicted of murder in 2011 by the provincial People’s Court and had served a seven-year jail term.

Source: Tuoitrenews

American Idol judges wowed by Vietnamese contestant in new season premiere

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A Vietnamese contestant surprised three judges of American Idol in Sunday’s Season 2 premiere with her audition that could “transcend all language barriers” to “connect people.”

Judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan all fell for Myra Tran, whose Vietnamese name is Minh Nhu, when she sang a rendition of “One Night Only,” originally performed by Jennifer Hudson in the 2006 movie musical “Dreamgirls,” which earned her an Oscar for best supporting actress, in the premiere on ABC.

The three high-fived and said lovely words of her sweet performance, comparing the Vietnamese girl to Kelly Clarkson, who won the show’s first season on Fox in 2002.

“You’re up there with the Kelly Clarksons of the world; that’s the only way that I can say it,” Bryan said.

“There’s nothing we can compare you to,” Richie added. “You have stepped into a zone that’s yours, and what I want you to do from now on is rule your zone.”

“I think if you keep singing, you’re really gonna connect people,” Perry said.

“We can really feel who you are through the music.

“I feel like music transcends language barriers.

“And you’ve just showed us that.”

The judges then said Tran would go to the Hollywood, meaning she made it through the next round.

Tran won The X Factor Vietnam as Minh Nhu in 2016, when she was just 17 years old.

The X Factor Vietnam is the Vietnamese version of The X Factor, a UK television music talent show for aspiring pop singers drawn from public auditions.

Source: Tuoitrenews

Facebook Plans to Become World’s Biggest Central Bank?

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Facebook is making its own digital currency and could become the largest bank in the world. Here’s why…

“Facebook is looking at pegging the value of its coin to a basket of different foreign currencies…held in Facebook bank accounts.”
— “Facebook and Telegram Are Hoping to Succeed Where Bitcoin Failed”, By Nathaniel Popper and Mike Isaac, The New York Times, Febraury 28, 2019.

According to The New York Times (NYT), Facebook is creating its own cryptocurrency. It would be used on WhatsApp, which Facebook owns, to facilitate transactions between users.

Facebook’s move is clearly to counter the threat from up and coming messenging rivals Telegram and Signal. NYT said that the Facebook secret effort to build its own cryptocurrency “started last year after Telegram raised an eye-popping $1.7 billion to fund its cryptocurrency project”.

Between Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram, which Facebook owns, there are a collective 2.7 billion users. If Facebook decides to back the value of its own digital with a basket of foreign currencies, then it could potentially become the largest central bank in the world — because that’s what central banks do; print money backed by a basket of foreign currency reserves.

Not only will this become monumental in world economic history, it is also going to become a serious and rapid threat for the existing giants of the finance industry.

Bye bye Visa and MasterCard

The two largest credit card companies in the world are Visa and MasterCard. They provide us with the ability to transact without carrying cash. They then settle those transactions with our banks.

If Facebook issued its own digital currency, and all its users had a Facebook mobile wallet with Facebook coins in it, then the need for credit cards will diminish more and more.

You make a purchase online, you pay for it with Facebook coins. Many apps have already integrated user sign-in with Facebook accounts. Payment is just another step away.

You buy a latte at Starbucks, you tap your phone at the counter to pay with Facebook coins instead of Apple Pay or Google Wallet. Facebook will definitely roll out marketing incentives for users to pay with their Facebook mobile wallets at the point of purchase. This is how existing mobile wallets battle it out for market share.

And if Facebook is backing the conversion value of its coins with real world money, few would see the need to convert the Facebook coins in and out of their Facebook mobile wallets frequently.

But why would you buy Facebook coins to deposit into your mobile wallet in the first place? Because of e-commerce.

E-Commerce F.0

When Facebook coins launch, it could bring e-commerce to a whole new level.

Facebook will achieve its dream of online merchants being able to post and sell items directly within its apps, down to the payment process. No more typing in credit card or PayPal account details. Online shopping will become a two-step process in Facebook apps. I see, I like, I click buy, I hit confirm. Facebook coins move from my mobile wallet to the seller immediately.

There will be no exchange rate spreads and far lower transaction fees. Social networks, instant messaging and e-commerce will become truly integrated. Consumers will come to expect the convenience of two-click transactions. Existing e-commerce platforms using traditional payment gateways will have to adapt to compete.

Note: The above scenarios has been the case in China with WeChat wallet and Alipay for many years now.

Facebook becomes the biggest currency in the world

The NYT report said that, “ The Facebook project is far enough along that the social networking giant has held conversations with cryptocurrency exchanges about selling the Facebook coin to consumers.”

This could potentially create the biggest private currency exchange market in the world. The world’s population is about 7.7 billion people. China is the most populous country in the world at 1.4 billion. WhatsApp alone has 1.5 billion users. Put Facebook Messenger and Instagram into the equation, no other currency has anything close to a potential user base of 2.7 billion. That’s what the Facebook coin could become — the most held and used currency in the world!

It will spawn a foreign exchange market the size of which the world has never seen. Facebook could potentially become more powerful than any other central bank.

At the same time, as Facebook coins become more and more frequently traded by users, a market for Facebook coin derivatives will emerge — Facebook coin futures, forward contracts, options, interest rate swaps etc.

Facebook the next Silk Road?

The NYT article also said, “The big question facing Facebook is how much control it would retain over the digital coin. Working with cryptocurrency exchanges would take at least some of the regulatory burden off Facebook…but..it will be harder for the company to make money from transaction fees and easier for criminals to use the coin for illegal purposes.”

Facebook faces a real dilemma here. It has gotten a lot of public backlash for selling user data in recent years. But if it swings to the other extreme and guarantees absolute privacy like rivals Telegram and Signal, then it could potentially become another Silk Road, the Internet black market that first popularized Bitcoin when users started using it to buy and sell drugs.

NYT says Facebook coins could be issued as early as the first half of this year. The world will know the answers to the above scenarios soon.

As for me, I’m betting on something big to happen with cryptocurrencies. Investment bank JPMorgan is also issuing its own digital coin, but only for the institutional payments market. I’ve noticed that the last two times JPMorgan championed a new solution, that innovation goes mainstream, but not before it causes a crisis…

According to a report on Medium

Vietnam tourism eyes North Korea opportunities

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Vietnam is expected to become a transit point for international visitors to North Korea, said Ha Van Sieu, head of Vietnam National Administration of Tourism.

According to Sieu, the North Korean tourism agency would come to Hanoi in March to discuss tourism co-operation. They will discuss the probability to make Vietnam another transit point to North Korea besides China and this will become more feasible if Vietnam has a direct flight route to North Korea.

A North Korean delegation will attend Vietnam International Travel Mart which will be held in Hanoi from March 27 to 30 to promote their country and tour packages.

Tourists can currently book tours to North Korean with Chinese companies. They can travel by car, train or fly from Beijing to Pyongyang. HCM City Department of Tourism said several local firms in HCM City had organised tours to North Korea but they also had to co-operate with Chinese companies.

If Vietnam becomes a transit point to North Korea then local firms and authorities can be more independent and pro-active in organisation and management. The department also said that they were ready and prepared if the number of international tourists coming to Vietnam to visit North Korea increased.

According to a report on Lao Dong

Hanoi recalls lands for Formula One race

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Hanoi Chairman Nguyen Duc Chung has proposed to the prime minister to transfer the authority over the land in Nam Tu Liem District from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to Hanoi People’s Committee.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism planned to build two stands with 5,000 seats on 6.8 hectares of land and the rest would be used for supporting buildings. However, while the project hasn’t been started yet, the land has been leased out for short terms of three months, six months and one year.

The restaurants and parking lots have been shut down and cleared when the land was recalled.

Hanoi will host a race of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship in April 2020 in the My Dinh National Sports Complex. The 5,565km long track is designed by the German engineer’s company, Tilke. The race will start from My Dinh Stadium to Thang Long Boulevard and finish at My Dinh Stadium.

Chung said hosting the Formula One race was an opportunity to promote Vietnam and Hanoi to the world.

According to a report on Dtinews.

2019 Geneva Motor Show: The hottest cars we can’t wait to see

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The Geneva Motor Show is the first major European auto show of 2019.

The show will feature the latest offerings from Aston Martin, Bentley, Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Polestar, VW, Subaru, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mazda, and Pininfarina.

As the trend in the industry goes, electric vehicles and hybrids will play a major role at the show.

The show will be open to the public from March 7 to the 17 at the Palexpo in Geneva, Switzerland with media days held on the 5th and 6th.

The 2019 Geneva Motor Show is the first major European car show of the year. As a result, the world’s automakers go big for Geneva. Car makers pull out all the stops to show off their latest and greatest.

In years past, Geneva has been known as the show where the next great supercars are shown for the first time. That tradition continues as it once again plays host to the latest from Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Pininfarina.

The show also features a host of more practical offerings from mainstream mass market and luxury brands including Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Polestar, VW, Subaru, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, and Mazda.

The 2019 Geneva Motor Show will be open to the public from March 7-17 at the Palexpo Arena in Geneva, Switzerland. Media days will be held on March 5 and 6.

Here’s a closer look at the 18 hot cars we can’t wait to see:

Geneva has long been known as the hottest show for supercars. That streak continues in 2019 where Ferrari will debut the new F8 Tributo. The F8 will be the replacement for the current 488 GTB.

Ferrari

Lamborghini will introduce the latest convertible version of its Huracan supercar dubbed the EVO Spyder.

Lamborghini

Legendary Italian design house Pininfarina is also expected to unveil a hot new supercar called the Battista.

Pininfarina

Aston Martin will show off a new hybrid hypercar called the Project 003.

Aston Martin

Moving away from supercars, Aston Martin’s Lagonda brand is expected to introduce an electric SUV based on 2018’s Lagonda Vision Concept.

Aston Martin

Volvo’s performance EV brand Polestar will show their new Polestar 2 sedan that’s designed to compete against the Tesla Model 3.

Polestar

Audi is set to show of its e-tron GT concept and also unveil a new electric SUV called the Q4 e-tron.

Audi

In Geneva, Honda is set to unveil the prototype of its upcoming compact EV.

Honda

Nissan is expected to introduce an electric crossover concept called the IMQ.

Nissan

Toyota will show off its new Corolla GR sport hot hatch and …

Toyota

… the GR Supra GT4 Concept.

Toyota

Mazda will introduce a new crossover SUV that’s expected to be called the CX-4.

Mazda

Subaru will introduce the new Viziv Adrenaline Concept. Not much is known about it. Although it looks to be a small crossover.

Subaru

Mercedes will show off its GLC compact crossover SUV fresh off a facelift.

Mercedes-Benz

Volkswagen will show off its new subcompact T-ROC R hot crossover and …

Volkswagen

… a new diesel Touareg V8 TDI SUV.

Volkswagen

Bentley’s higher performance Bentayga Speed will make its world debut in Geneva.

Bentley

The iconic British luxury brand will also introduce the WO Edition Mulsanne sedan.

Bentley

Read original article on Business Insider

ELSA – Vietnam’s app for English pronunciation wins over learners

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Learning English through apps is not a new idea in Vietnam, but in 2018 Vietnam’s startup community saw the arrival of the ELSA app, or “English Language Speech Assistant”, which raised $3.2 million for its AI-assisted language learning platform. This pre-Series A round of funding was led by Monk’s Hill Ventures, which invests in post-seed stage startups in Southeast Asia.

Unlike other platforms that focus mainly on teaching grammar and vocabulary, ELSA uses AI and speech recognition technology to help language learners with their pronunciation. “Our main focus is always on making the best product possible with better technology and a more engaging experience for users, while continuing to grow user numbers around the world,” Ms. Van Dinh Hong Vu, Co-Founder and CEO of ELSA, told VET.

AI app in 4.0 era

ELSA’s strength lies in its proprietary AI technology in speech recognition, acting as a personal virtual pronunciation coach that gives instant and precise feedback on every sound you make. The app operates by listening to the learner’s voice and then comparing their pronunciation with the correct English pronunciation to provide feedback.

It also provides suggestions on how speakers can improve certain elements of pronunciation by explaining how to shape their mouth or tongue. Users can download the app on Android and iOS easily, and ELSA then offers five-minute assessment test to identify the user’s pronunciation proficiency and their challenges. This information is then used to build a personalized curriculum, tailored to the user’s current abilities.

There are around 600 lessons and more than 3,000 words on the ELSA app in a variety of topics, such as hotels, holidays, family, food and drinks, travel, entertainment, and education. The app is updated regularly with seasonal and timely topics, like lessons featuring holidays or even the latest movies. Each lesson is just two minutes and users complete five exercises that get progressively harder, including pronunciation of words, phrases, and sentences.

ELSA recently developed a tool called Teacher Dashboard to help teachers integrate ELSA into their English teaching programs and monitor student progress. It is also introducing customized modules for companies to train their staff on industry-specific content. For example, the app has just released the Hotel module in collaboration with FPT Education, to help with training staff at five-star hotels in Da Nang.

“Pronunciation is always the biggest challenge in learning English and a barrier to speaking fluently and confidently, because when you speak English you need to speak clearly to ensure better communication at work and in many circumstances in daily life,” Ms. Vu said. “ELSA helps people solve that challenge in the most effective, personal, and economical way.”

Based on experience

Founded in 2015, the idea for ELSA came from its co-founder’s personal experience in trying to learn English. “When moving to the US for my MBA and Masters in Education at Stanford, my first year was very challenging because of my inability to speak English fluently, even though I was among the top students in English when I studied in Vietnam,” Ms. Vu remembers. “Many times people misunderstood me, and I lost confidence and felt quite embarrassed.”

She believes that most Vietnamese who have studied abroad had a similar experience in their first year, but there was no good solution to resolve it. She therefore decided to develop ELSA with her co-founder, to provide proprietary speech recognition technology.

ELSA now has more than 4 million users from 101 countries and territories and has been growing organically in Vietnam, reaching almost 2 million users. The results ELSA has achieved are due to its team focusing on understanding the needs of Vietnamese learners and turning that understanding into product features and content that provide a better learning experience and encourages learners to improve their speaking skills every day.

Ms. Vu recognizes the potential the Vietnamese market holds for ELSA’s development. “There is huge demand for English training in Vietnam for education and for career development, driven by globalization and, especially, by the significant growth in FDI,” she added. “On the cultural side, Vietnamese are lifelong learners who are willing to invest resources into upgrading their English skills. Young Vietnamese are highly educated and tech-savvy, and there is also a major trend towards adopting mobile app learning solutions.”

Many people, however, remain unaware that pronunciation is a core skill, and this represents an obstacle for ELSA. And while people are willing to pay high tuition fees for English classes, when it comes to learning via apps they expect it to be free. “We would have loved to make it free for everyone but then we wouldn’t have the resources to develop a world-class EdTech product to improve people lives,” she explained. “We are making ELSA subscriptions as affordable as possible, equal to just one cup of coffee a month.”

Vu expects that ELSA’s proprietary speech recognition technology will help 1.5 billion English learners around the world speak English fluently and with confidence in the near future, with Vietnam being a key priority.

According to a report on VN Economic Times

Pilots’ job-hopping causing problems for Vietnamese airlines

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The shortage of qualified pilots is getting more serious in Vietnam as more air carriers receive licenses to operate in the country.

“Vietjet Air welcomed pilots from Vietnam Airlines and was willing to pay 1.2-2 times higher,” a former pilot of Vietjet told Zing.vn. “Bamboo Airways even pays more than Vietjet.”

“Vietnamese pilots are being hunted not only in Vietnam, but in other countries as well,” he said.

The story reflects the stiff competition among airlines to recruit qualified pilots. Two years ago, Vietnam Airlines, the national flag air carrier, saw the resignation of many pilots.

A report from Vietnam Airlines to the Ministry of Transport in June 2018 showed that it had 1,138 pilots, including 853 Vietnamese citizens and 285 foreign citizens. Foreign pilots accounted for 25 percent of total pilots of the air carrier.

Another report showed that by the end of 2019, Vietnam Airlines would need 1,293 pilots, but it plans to recruit 155 pilots more than needed in case pilots resign.

The air carrier seems to be well aware of the lack of pilots which may lead to a ‘brain drain’. A senior official of Vietnam Airlines said the high growth rate of the global aviation industry, especially in Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia, has led to the pilot shortage in Vietnam.

“Pilot job hopping has put pressure on airlines,” the report says.

In 2015-2017, 223 pilots left Vietnam Airlines. The figure was 33 in the first five months of 2018, including 25 foreign and eight Vietnamese. Meanwhile, 15-20 other pilots were expected to resign.

The senior executive said that 2017 was the ‘hottest year’ for airlines with a high number of pilots resigning. This was because Chinese airlines were offering high pay to lure talent. The job hopping was less frequent in 2018.

However, he predicted that the problem would reoccur as more air carriers are preparing to take off and need pilots.

Vietnam Airlines now pays VND120 million a month on average and plans to increase the pay this year.

In 2019, the main pilot of a Boeing 787 can receive VND208 million a month on average, while the pay could be up to VND250 million. Meanwhile, the figure is VND126-150 million for an assistant pilot.

As for A321 Neo, the pay is VND180 million on average and maximum of VND240 million for the chief pilot, and VND101-136 million for deputy pilot.

However, the rates are unattractive to Vietnamese pilots. Vietjet Air now pays VND180 million to a A320 pilot, or nearly double that paid by Vietnam Airlines.

According to a report on Vietnamnet

What is the future of Vietnam’s property market?

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Analysis by Mr Matthew Powell, Director Savills Hanoi of the Savills Vietnam Residential Sales 2H.2018 Report explores how high will the high – end go?

Strong demand

There continues to be a market for luxury residential products as Vietnam affluent class grows and fuels demand. The number of HNWIs in Vietnam and their wealth have increased steadily since 2013 and are expected to continue the upward trend.

Meanwhile, the amended housing law, which allowed foreign property ownership in Vietnam, has been facilitating cross- border demand for prime property from regional peer countries. Thanks to this policy since July 2015, many higher end projects have quickly sold its quota to foreigners, with the majority of buyers from Taiwan, Hong Kong and Korea. Foreign demand, fuelled by the growth of HNWIs in Asian countries, is expected to expand further.

International players

In recent years, high total returns have drawn foreign investors to Vietnam luxury residential market. As market returns are increasing with strong capital growth and healthy rental yield, more international developers & operators are expected to enter the high – end segment in Hanoi and HCMC. These global players will bring along large capital flows and introduce new concepts of prime property to Vietnam residential market. Branded residence for example, is an emerging model of luxury lifestyle products recently brought to Vietnam by international hotel groups. Brand association with a well – known hotel brand provides the development with benefits from the same qualities of that brand by association and design, thus offering an “edge” over non – branded luxury projects.

New luxury concepts are pushing high – end products higher but there remains a long way to go for Vietnam prime property till international standards of luxury. The large gap between the average price of luxury products in Hanoi & HCMC and other peer cities implies room for further upgrades.

Technology disruption

Technology is rapidly evolving. Industrial 4.0 will bring new technologies to life and undoubtedly change our environment significantly: the way we live, work, shop and socialize. For prime property, as the price range is uncapped, there is more room for integrating new technologies in residential products: from designing to marketing & showcase to operation & management. In the future, we could imagine an architecture that adapts to human need, rather than the other way around – a living, tailored space that is moulded to its inhabitants’ needs, characters, and desires.

Worldwide, digital technologies are being integrated within the physical space. Interacting with the building management system, a smartphone app makes it possible for occupants to check in, order services, book facilities & regulate environmental settings with an unprecedented degree of personalization. In Vietnam, announcement of Smart City project in Dong Anh, Ha Noi in April 2018 sent the residential market to a smart frenzy. Smart features have become a desirable quality in housing products, and a critical quality in luxury sector. Developers want them in their products; buyers want them in their homes. Technology is now the path to future – proof high – end residential developments.

The challenges

Land is scarce, especially in prime urban locations, which makes high – end property development difficult. The process and procedures from land clearance and compensation, to licensing and bidding can be lengthy and complicated, especially for foreign investors. In fact, there are many foreign developers eager to enter the market, however they are unable to secure land in attractive locations.

Attractive returns may drive investors to the luxury segment but as prime property market refines and evolves, developers and products will be filtered. There will be winners and losers. With abundant supply, high – end sector will remain a buyer’s market, which means the key to survival for developers is staying at the top of their game and constantly keep up with emerging market trends.

 

Source: Mr Matthew Powell, Director Savills Hanoi (from Portfolio – Savills Vietnam Residential Sales – 2H.2018)

Will Vietnamese e-Commerce competitions still have enough vacancy for new warriors?

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The development of Vietnam’s e-commerce industry in recent years is a fierce battle.

In addition to the bright and prominent names such as Shopee, Tiki, Lazada, Sendo, Thegioididong, Adayroi, etc. There are also many brands that have to withdraw from this war like Beyeu.com, Deca, Foodpanda, Lingo, etc or most recently Vui Vui (vuivui.com) of the Mobile World was officially closed from the end of November 2018. With this such a market, do e-commerce entrepreneurs still have “room” to develop?

AccoThe biggest competitors of e-commerce startups have been not only Shopee, Tiki or Lazada but also a social network (social commerce). According to commercial shopping statistics via social networks in 2018, the percentage of purchases through Facebook reached 70%. Among those who shop through social networks, 33% buy goods through both Facebook and Zalo, 37% only buy products via Facebook. This helps us realize clearly that Vietnamese consumers are still prioritizing Facebook to shop more often.

 

The development of Vietnam’s e-commerce industry in recent years is a fierce battle. @ Source: Asia Plus

Vietnam e-commerce – fertile but also full of startups: In recent years, the strong development and significant changes of Vietnamese e-commerce is something everyone must recognize. In 2018 only, Vietnam’s e-commerce had achieved a total revenue of 2,269 million USD (up 29.4% compared to the previous year) and with this result Vietnam has been in the top 6 of 10 major e-commerce markets in Southeast Asia.

The number of customers buying on e-commerce sites also increased significantly by 2.6%, reaching 49.8 million people (accounting for more than 50% of Vietnam’s population) and of which 72% are shopping on mobile applications (source: Statista – 2018, VECITA – 2017).

The biggest obstacle of e-commerce in the present time has been probably the Vietnamese’s habit of buying. This is not only a challenge for startups but also makes it difficult for e-commerce giants such as: Buyers still have doubts in online buying and selling process, afraid of being cheated, lack of interaction between the seller and the buyer, in particular here is the advice of the seller to match the needs of the buyer. The consumers still want the habit: see- touch- try on the product before deciding to buy for ensuring. A product of thousands of sellers with general information, it is difficult to find out what is a reasonable price for the product to buy, forming a feeling of fear of buying.

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