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Nine out of 10 city-dwellers breathe highly polluted air every day, Vietnam at risk: WHO

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Air pollution levels remain “dangerously high” in many parts of the world, with nine out of every 10 people living in cities breathing air containing high levels of pollutants.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that seven million people a year die because of air pollution, with people living in parts of Vietnam at risk.

Using data from 2013 to 2015, it says people living in Longford, Westmeath, Limerick, Galway City, Bray and Wicklow ingest quantities of particulate matter that includes sulfate, nitrates and black carbon, which pose risks to human health.

However, improvements in air quality since 2015, including an extension of the smoky coal ban, has resulted in improvements.

But the most recent air quality report from the Environmental Protection Agency says that while no limits above EU levels were detected, more stringent WHO levels were exceeded at up to 11 sites in 2016, suggesting improvements are needed. The Government says up to 1,500 people die prematurely every year because of air pollution.

The WHO report examined quality in more than 4,300 urban areas across 108 countries and found that most air-pollution-related deaths occurred in low and middle-income countries.

“Air pollution threatens us all, but the poorest and most marginalised people bear the brunt of the burden,” said WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

“It is unacceptable that over three billion people – most of them women and children – are still breathing deadly smoke every day from using polluting stoves and fuels in their homes. If we don’t take urgent action on air pollution, we will never come close to achieving sustainable development.”

The seven million who die every year are exposed to fine particles in polluted air that penetrate deep into the lungs and cardiovascular system, causing diseases including stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases and respiratory infections, including pneumonia.

Ambient air pollution alone caused some 4.2 million deaths in 2016, while household air pollution from cooking with polluting fuels and technologies caused an estimated 3.8 million deaths in the same period.

In Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, air pollution at construction sites is five or six times higher than the standard. According to the city’s environmental protection sub-department, local air pollution is mainly caused by floating dust. The latest report by Vietnam News Agency mentioned.

Facebook announces dating feature for meeting non-friends

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Facebook is invading Tinder’s space with a new set of dating features.

It will let people opt in to creating a dating profile on Facebook. It will only be visible to non-friends who also opted into dating. Facebook will match you by a slew of preferences. And because it has more data on you than any other app, it could deliver more relevant matches. The feature will start testing later this year.

Related: Is coffee a good for a date

Facebook explains that “potential matches will be recommended based on dating preferences, things in common, and mutual friends. They’ll have the option to discover others with similar interests through their Groups or Events.”

Here’s how Facebook dating will work:

Opt in to a create a profile with just your first name. Your profile won’t be visible to friends, users who aren’t on the dating feature, and it won’t show up in the News Feed.
You’ll browse Events in your city and Groups that match your interests. You can select to “unlock” one for dating. You’ll then see the profiles of other dating users who’ve unlocked that surface.
You can browse through people’s profiles that show off a few of their photos plus some basic information about them. You’ll be shown people based on mutual interests and friends, plus other data Facebook has on you.
If you both are interested, you’ll be able to start a conversation with someone in a special inbox that’s separate from Messenger and WhatsApp. For safety, only text can be sent for now.

Tons of marriages start on Facebook already, so there’s a big opportunity for the company to build long-term relationship-focused matching — opposed to apps like Tinder that focus on quick hookups. Investors clearly think Tinder is in danger, considering shares of its parent company Match Group fell 17 percent after Facebook announced its entry into dating.

Still, the question is whether Facebook has built enough barricades between its social network and new dating feature. Users might find it creepy to do it all in one app. And if they get burned by a bad experience either in the dating chat or offline, they could blame Facebook. Still, as Facebook Chief Product Officer Chris Cox explained, dating was always a natural fit for Facebook thanks to its ubiquity, data and trusted platform for identity.

At the very least, you’ll be a lot less likely to get catfished on FaceDate.

Source: TechCrunch

Canada Green Day to promote building a sustainable future

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The 2nd Annual Canada Green Day by Cancham will be organized on Saturday, May 19th, 12:00-17:00 at Canadian International Shool, No. 86, Road 23, Tan Phu Ward, District 7, HCMC, Vietnam.

The 2nd Annual Canada Green Day will be another fun-filled family day focused on building environmental awareness and sustainability. Canada Green Day will feature the Get Green Competition, a competition for student teams to create sustainability initiatives for their local communities. Winners will be awarded VND 22,500,000 to implement their initiatives. To learn more about the Get Green Competition and last year’s winning teams, please visit the below links.

1st Annual Get Green Competition winners

Canada Green Day will also feature food and beverage vendors, music, and lots of games! Fun for the whole family!

Have questions about Canada Green Day or the Get Green Competition, contact Ryan at ryan@canchamvietnam.org.

The winners of the Get Green Competition in 2017

Source: Cancham Vietnam

Auto import falls in 4 months in Vietnam

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Vietnam imported completely-built automobiles and components for assembly totaling nearly 1.2 billion U.S. dollars in the first four months of this year, falling 32.2 percent on-year.

Specifically, the country imported over 6,700 completely-built automobiles worth 198 million U.S. dollars, posting respective decreases of 79.8 percent and 69.8 percent, according to the last updates from Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam on Wednesday.

In April alone, Vietnam spent 80 million U.S. dollars importing 2,500 automobiles.

Early this year, few automobiles, especially cars, were imported to Vietnam because traders were not well-prepared to comply with a new governmental decree which requires traders to provide more relevant certificates and to undergo more tests than before, according to local experts.

Under the decree, traders are only permitted to import automobiles if they can provide valid vehicle registration certificates issued by authorities from the countries of origin, and they are supposed to have one vehicle from each batch shipped to Vietnam undergone emissions and safety tests.

Last year, Vietnam spent over 5.3 billion U.S. dollars importing 94,000 completely-built automobiles and components for assembly. Meanwhile, its total automobile sales were 272,750 units, according to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association.

Total vehicle sales in Vietnam will increase to over 284,400 units this year, global research company BMI Research forecast recently, explaining that passenger car demand will be driven by reduction in tax rates on vehicles with engine sizes of 2.0 liters or less, and the elimination of tariffs on completely-built units from ASEAN member countries in January.

By Cheng Cheng

Southeast Asian stocks slip ahead of Fed decision

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Southeast Asian stock markets were mostly lower on Wednesday ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy statement where investors await clues on the future pace of monetary tightening.

The Reuters reports, Malaysian stocks snapped a three-session gaining streak to fall 1.3 per cent on broad-based losses.

CIMB Group Holdings Bhd was the biggest drag on the index, falling as much as 4.0 per cent, while Axiata Group slipped 2.3 per cent, reports Reuters.

Indonesia fell 0.2 per cent, with United Tractors down 2.6 per cent, and Semen Baturaja sliding nearly 8.0 per cent. An index of the country’s 45 most liquid stocks was down 0.2 per cent.

Thai shares slipped 0.2 per cent as energy and real estate stocks weighed on the benchmark. Oil and gas company PTT Pcl was the biggest drag, down nearly 1.0 per cent.

Singapore was flat as gains in industrials were offset by losses in technology stocks. The index is hovering at a near 10-1/2-year high.

Philippine shares fell 0.2 per cent after three straight sessions of gains, while Vietnam dropped 1.2 per cent.

Nearly 80 people die in road crashes during holiday

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Seventy-nine were killed and another 79 injured so far in 113 traffic accidents nationwide during the Vietnam Reunification Day-Labour Day holiday combo that ended on May 1.

The National Traffic Safety Committee of Vietnam reported and released on Vietnam News, number was recorded from the beginning of the holiday on April 28 until May 1 when people started flocking back to big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Thirty seven accidents occurred on May 1 alone, killing 27 road users and injuring 33.

The traffic situation this year was slightly improved compared to that in the same period last year. The number of crashes went down by 12 while tolls of dead and injured also decreased by 19 and 11 respectively.

Accidents disproportionately occurred on roads with 112 crashes, killing 78 and injured 79 people. Only one accident was recorded on the rail tracks.

The main reason for the accidents, according to the National Traffic Safety Committee, was drunk driving, speeding and driving without helmets or in the wrong lane. The majority of those who died were motorbike drivers.

The committee also noted serious congestion on a number of national highways and particularly the gateways to Hanoi and HCM City on the first and last days of the holiday as city folks left and returned to the cities.

It received more than 140 phone calls and messages from citizens to complain mostly about overcrowded and overpriced coaches running from Hà Nội to other provinces like Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, and Yen Bai and vice versa.

The traffic police forces nationwide reported to have dealt with 25,904 traffic violations during the holiday, levied fines of up to VND13.9 billion (US$619,500) and revoked 872 driving licences.

First four months of 2018, there were more than 6,000 traffic accidents, with over 2,700 fatalities and over 4,600 injured, a drop of 349 cases, seven fatalities and 483 injured compared with the same period last year. A report by Vietnamese National Traffic Safety Committee appeals.

The 5 biggest announcements from Facebook’s F8 developer conference keynote

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Facebook just wrapped day one of its F8 developer conference keynote, which comes at an unfortunate time this year after the Cambridge Analytica data scandal seems to have put Facebook at odds with how it is handling user data within its developer community. Nevertheless, the show had to go on, and Mark Zuckerberg tried his best to keep developers excited about continuing to build on his platform.

The CEO spent a brief moment of the keynote rallying developers to keep building and using their skills to bring people together. To do so, the company unveiled several updates coming to its product lineup, including the core Facebook app, Instagram, Oculus, and WhatsApp.

FACEBOOK DATING IS COMING

Facebook is already a combination of several services you use online — Facebook Marketplace is to Craigslist as Stories is to Snapchat — and now it appears the social network is coming after Tinder next. Today, Zuckerberg announced that Facebook will soon offer a dating feature that allows people to browse potential matches at inside groups or events you’re interested in attending. The feature will allow people to message each other using only their first names, and start conversations that are separate from the core Facebook or Messenger app.

Facebook did not say when the feature will launch, but just minutes after the announcement, Tinder and OkCupid parent company Match Group saw its stock plummet as low as 20 percent from $46.22 to $36.12 per share at the time this article published.

OCULUS GO
The $199 standalone virtual reality headset from Facebook is now available for purchase after Amazon accidentally put preorders up hours before the official launch. The new Oculus Go will support social experiences like Watch Party, multiplayer games, and even live shows such as concerts and experiential theater.

In addition to the headset, there will now be an Oculus TV hub for users to stream content from ESPN, Netflix, Showtime, and more. Some of these services have been available via Hulu for some time, but the new hub should add more options for those investing in the new headset.

MESSENGER REVAMP

Facebook has already admitted that it’s allowed Messenger to become extremely bloated after unbundling it from the core Facebook app, and now, it looks to be simplifying — at least visually. Messenger VP of product David Marcus says the overall refresh is focused on making things cleaner and faster, with an upcoming dark mode teased in a short promotional video.

ALL-IN ON INSTAGRAM STORIES
Most of the updates for Instagram today arrive to the app’s most popular feature to date: Stories. Soon, users will be able to user AR face filters from brands and influencers without waiting for Instagram to release its own. Users will also get more third-party integrations when uploading a story. For example, a GoPro clip could be cropped and ported right to Instagram Stories or you can share what you’re currently listening to on Spotify while offering a deep link within a story to open that song in a viewer’s own Spotify app.

Instagram is also continuing to transform into a full-fledged messaging app, with new video calling features that will allow group conferencing as well.

WHATSAPP GETS A FEW UPDATES, TOO
After a moment of thanking WhatsApp founder Jan Koum in regards to his recent departure, Facebook moved right into sharing stories about how impactful WhatsApp has been around the world. The Stories feature also appears to be taking off well on WhatsApp: Facebook revealed that 450 million users share a story on WhatsApp daily. Additionally, 65 billion messages are sent on WhatsApp every day.

While WhatsApp is not getting a refresh quite as dramatic as Messenger, it will be receiving a few minor updates such as group video calls and stickers. Features targeted at businesses are to come, though the company did not outline specifically what during the keynote.

Perhaps what Facebook didn’t say is equally important to note. During the keynote, Zuckerberg did not mention Cambridge Analytica’s Aleksandr Kogan at all, and he only used moments in the opening remarks to poke fun at himself about when he testified in Congress early last month and to inform developers that app reviews are back on after a brief pause to investigate potential bad actors. Clearly, it was a move to excite developers than warn them — with Zuckerberg looking and sounding more upbeat than he has been in recent public appearances.

Source: The Verge

All the new rumored Instagram’s Story features that might destroy Snapchat

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Twitter user Jane Wong has done some digging through Instagram’s code and in the process discovered several unreleased features that could be released in the future.

Instagram is reportedly testing these features with some users, but has yet to officially announce them. It’s possible these features might never see the light of day. We’ve reached out to Instagram for comment.

But if Instagram does release them, Snapchat might be in deep trouble. The new features would give Instagram users more control over their account and content and further drive them to dump Snap.

Mute users
I’m pretty sure we all want the ability to mute a user without offending them with an unfollow. Whether it’s a muting co-worker or annoying friend, giving users a mute button would be a godsend.

Slow-motion for Stories
Instagram Stories is already larger than all of Snapchat and adding new features will only further that lead. In recent months, Instagram’s added a “Type” feature that lets users write text-based stories and a “Focus” feature that takes portrait-style photos and videos with a blurred background.

Calendar view for Instagram Stories archive
Currently, you can see your archived Instagram Stories in a grid. But wouldn’t it be nicer if it was a little easier to browse through? Enter: calendar view.

Calendar view looks like a much cleaner way to see how often you post to Stories.

Video calling
Rumor has it Instagram is preparing to bring a video calling feature to the app. Snapchat already lets users video call with each other and while this would be another catch-up feature, it’d be yet another way to keep locked within its walls. Who needs Snapchat, FaceTime or Skype if Instagram lets you do it?

Source: Mashable

Ivanhoe Eyes Vietnam Production Slate With Pacific Horizon

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Ivanhoe Pictures has partnered with Pacific Horizon Pictures to devise a slate of local-language films in Vietnam.

Among their first planned movies is a remake of Indian survival drama “Trapped.” The pair are also close to a joint acquisition of remake rights to Colombian thriller “The Hidden Face.” The variety.com – a subsidiary of Penske Business Media, LLC reported.

The ambition is for the two companies to co-develop material, that Ivanhoe will co-finance and which Pacific Horizon would executive produce for audiences in Vietnam.

Pacific Horizon is a startup production company founded by Louie Nguyen investor and producer at HK Films (“Sweet Twenty,” “The Housemaid”,) and by veteran U.S. producer Rick Ambros. It has offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Los Angeles.

“(Pacific Horizon Pictures’) insight and understanding of the Vietnamese film industry is invaluable and we are eager to continue expanding Ivanhoe’s local language slate with this exciting partnership,” said John Penotti, president and CEO of Ivanhoe.

Ivanhoe’s upcoming projects include the Warner Bros. co-production “Crazy Rich Asians,” set for release in the U.S. on August 17, 2018; and the 3-part Netflix series “Ghoul,” a Hindi-language thriller produced by Ivanhoe, Blumhouse Productions, and Phantom Films set to premiere on Netflix India in 2018. Ivanhoe also has a four-year, multi-picture co-financing pact with Fox International Productions (FIP) to produce local-language films in India, South Korea, China, Japan, and Taiwan.

By Patrick Frater

Vietnam manufacturing improves in April

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Vietnam manufacturing growth picks up in April with sharp increase in new orders and output, particularly strengthening firms in export markets, according to an industry gauge. A report by Nikkei mentioned.

The Nikkei Vietnam Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index, or PMI, rose to 52.7 in April, up from 51.6 in March. A reading above 50 signals an improvement, while one below 50 points to a contraction in manufacturing activity.

With the rise of client demand, production rose at faster rate. Employments growth has been registered in 25 successive months. However sharp input cost inflation contrasts with weak pace of rise in output prices.

Andrew Harker, Associate Director at HIS Markit which compiles the survey, said “the ability of Vietnamese manufacturers to secure new business was at the forefront of the latest PMI survey, with new export business up particularly sharply in April.” Harker adds that their “competitive pricing” explains their “will to accept reduced margins in exchange for securing greater volumes of new work.”

For more information, visit: http://www.markiteconomics.com/Survey/Page.mvc/PressReleases

Best Western to open its second Vietnam resort in 2019

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Best Western Hotels & Resorts has plans to open a new BW Premier Collection beachfront resort in Vung Tau, Vietnam.

The Saint Simeon Resort, BW Premier Collection is currently under construction in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province on Vietnam’s south-central coast. The 135-room hotel is opening in the first quarter of 2019 and is near Ho Chi Minh City and Long Thanh International Airport.

“Best Western continues to expand across Asia at a rapid pace–introducing new brands and welcoming new hotels tailored to meet the needs of today’s travelers,” Ron Pohl, SVP and COO for Best Western Hotels & Resorts, said in a statement. “We’re excited to bring the BW Premier Collection brand to Vietnam, as its hotels are known for their local flare and upscale amenities-delivering a truly unique guest experience. We look forward to Saint Simeon Resort becoming a preferred hotel for travelers visiting the beautiful port city of Vung Tau.”

“Vietnam is an important market for Best Western and we are delighted to secure yet another fantastic property in such an exciting destination-Vung Tau,” Olivier Berrivin, Best Western’s MD of international operations, Asia, said in a statement. “With its prime beachfront location and close proximity to Ho Chi Minh City, we fully expect this elegant resort to become extremely popular with local and international guests alike.”

Saint Simeon Resort will be the company’s fourth BW Premier Collection property in Asia. The brand’s first property in the region—the Hotel Nagasaki, BW Premier Collection in Japan—opened in 2017. Amaranth Suvarnabhumi Airport recently joined the BW Premier Collection portfolio in Thailand. Construction is also underway on the brand’s second Thai hotel, BluPhere Pattaya, BW Premier Collection. The property is slated to open in 2019.

The Saint Simeon Resort will also be Best Western’s second property in Vietnam. The group also has plans to develop a Best Western Premier hotel and resort in the southern island of Phu Quoc. The 565-room Best Western Premier Sonasea Phu Quoc is expected to open in January 2019.

Source: Hotel Management

Vietnam Morning News – May 2

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Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

PV Gas forecasts lower earnings for 2018
The PetroVietnam Gas Corporation (PV Gas), a subsidiary of the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam), is targeting 55.7 trillion VND (2.47 billion USD) in its total revenue and 6.43 trillion VND (283.2 million USD) in post-tax profit for 2018, heard the company’s annual shareholder meeting last week.
— VietnamPlus

Steel exports and consumption saw strong growth in April
Vietnam’s steel exports soared to over US$1 billion during the first quarter of the year and heads toward a strong upward trend.
— The Hanoi Times

Vietnam’s Vingroup drives industrialization with diversification
Vietnamese property developer Vingroup is fast becoming one of the country’s most diverse conglomerates, even as it still relies on the real estate business for the bulk of its sales.
— Nikkei Asian Review/ VI

Petrol firms suggest increasing E5-RON 95 price difference
Despite increasing E5 gasoline consumption in the first quarter, gasoline enterprises still propose different retail prices for E5 and RON 95 fuel.
— VietnamNet Bridge

EC delegation to inspect IUU fishing in Vietnam
The delegation will inspect the country’s implementation of the EC’s nine recommendations related to the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
— VietnamNet Bridge

NSRP releases first commercial petroleum product
Nghi Sơn Refinery and Petrochemical LLC (NSRP) in Nghi Sơn Economic Zone in Thanh Hóa Province launched its first shipment of refined product, GASOLINE RON 92 (MOGAS92), on May 1.
— Viet Nam News

Recent Agribank thefts may have featured skimming devices
A set of skimming devices includes an ultra-small camera set up with a sighting on the ATM’s keypad, a card skimmer inserted into the card slot, and a keypad skimmer placed over the ATM’s keypad.
— VietnamNet Bridge

Vietnam Airlines considers creating cargo unit to boost revenue
Vietnam has become a major manufacturing hub, providing an air freight opportunity for the state-owned carrier.
— Bloomberg/ VI

Slovakia May Have Assisted in Vietnam’s Alleged Abduction of Oil Executive: Reports
Slovakia may have inadvertently assisted Vietnam’s secret police in spiriting away a former state oil executive who was allegedly kidnapped from Germany, according to media reports and sources, who say fallout from the incident has “cast a shadow” on a trade deal between Vietnam and the EU.
— Radio Free Asia

Goods, services sales value in April up 9.5%
The total retail sales value of goods and services in April was estimated at more than VND 350.5 trillion (US$ 15.4 billion), 1.7% higher than last month and 9.5% higher than in the same period last year, according to a report by the General Statistics Office (GSO).
— Nhan Dan Online

Vietnam’s largest casino to open gates next year
Macau’s biggest junket operator Suncity Group Holdings Ltd. is undaunted in its ambition to start operating Vietnam’s largest casino in the central province of Quang Nam. The project is expected to be launched next year.
— VietnamNet Bridge

Industrial production index increases by 9.4% in April
The index of industrial production (IIP) in April saw an increase of 9.4% over the same period in 2017.
— Nhan Dan Online

From Doi Moi reforms to Vietnamese billionaires
After more than 30 years of Doi Moi, the Vietnamese economy has begun to see its own local billionaires who while contributing to national development, are in need of a facilitating environment to continue prospering.
— VietnamNet Bridge

Salinity intrusion is leading to freshwater troubles in coastal Vietnam
In recent years, increased salinity intrusion in the Mekong Delta, due to changing climate and fluctuations in river water levels especially during the dry season in coastal regions, has affected agriculture especially rice farming livelihoods.
— Mekong commons

HCM City to get high-quality farm products from Long An
Agricultural businesses in the Mekong Delta province of Long An are looking at ways to increase supplies of their products to Ho Chi Minh City, the largest economic centre in the southern region.
— VietnamPlus

ACA Investments pours extra $100 million in retail and logistics ops
ACA Investments, Japan’s leading fund management company and an affiliate of Sumitomo Corporation, will spend $100 million on conducting M&A deals in the retail and logistics sectors in order to increase its presence in Vietnam.
— VietnamNet Bridge

Ho Chi Minh City students build start-up from ‘scraps’
A 27-year-old Vietnamese is behind a start-up company specializing in collecting scraps to sell and raise money to help local children in need.
— Tuoi Tre

Eximbank embattled after scandals
Eximbank is facing an uphill battle to regain the trust of its shareholders and depositors, following a series of embezzlement and fraud scandals.
— VietnamNet Bridge

S Korea appoints ex-Samsung executive as Vietnam ambassador
South Korea has been criticised for naming Kim Do-hyun, a former Samsung executive, as the country’s new ambassador to Vietnam, home to one of the electronics group’s biggest operations.
— Financial Times

Vietnam remembers over 3,000 killed in Cambodia’s Pol Pot war
Only three people from an An Giang’s commune survived the killings 40 years ago, according to historical records.
— VnExpress

Vietcombank breaks its earning record of all time
Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank, HSX: VCB) continued its impressive performance in the first quarter of 2018, posting pre-tax profit record high of more than 4.3 trillion VND (189.4 million USD).
— Vietnam Insider

First four months, Vietnam welcomes over 5.5 million foreign tourists

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The number of foreign visitors arriving in Vietnam in April was estimated at 1.3 million, raising the total figure for the first four months of 2018 to 5.5 million, up 29.5% over the same period last year.

The Nhan Dan Online, a local news channel reports. Foreign tourists visiting Vietnam in April rose 25.2%, attracted by a wide range of events such as the Festival of Vietnamese Ethnic Groups in Hanoi, and the Asian Food and Culture Festival in Hanoi and Quang Ninh province.

Of the total visitors in the first four months, 4.1 million came from Asia, with Chinese tourists topping the list at 1.7 million, followed by 1.1 million from the Republic of Korea.

Visitors from Europe were estimated at more than 843,000, of which Russian tourists accounted for the largest share at an estimated 262,000.

The numbers of tourists coming from the Americas and Oceania were 357,000 and 163,000 respectively.

During the period, nearly 15,000 Africans tourists also visited Vietnam, an annual increase of 22.5%.

Vietcombank breaks its earning record of all time

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Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank, HSX: VCB) continued its impressive performance in the first quarter of 2018, posting pre-tax profit record high of more than 4.3 trillion VND (189.4 million USD).

Vietnam News Agency reported. According to the accumulated financial report of Vietcombank, which had posted a record pre-tax profit of more than 11 trillion VND (484.5 million USD) last year, its pre-tax profit in the first quarter of 2018 skyrocketed by 59.3 percent against the same period in 2017, the highest quarterly growth rate gained by the bank so far. With this surge, the bank met one third of its annual plan by the end of March.

In the first quarter of this year, the bank’s credit segment brought in more than 6.19 trillion VND (272.6 million USD) of net profit, up 17S.5 percent compared to the same period last year. Its net profit in the service segment posted a surge of 35.5 percent to 881 billion VND (38.8 million USD).

Net profits from other services accounted for 1.6 trillion VND (70.4 million USD) from January to March, 2.8 times higher than the first quarter of 2017, while capital contribution and share acquisition were estimated at 351 billion VND (15.4 million USD), 3.5 times higher than that of the first quarter.

Vietcombank set aside 66.71 trillion VND (2.93 billion USD) in the first quarter to buy bills issued by the State Treasury and the State Bank of Vietnam, raising its total value of the investment channel to 68.71 trillion VND (3 billion USD) by the end of March.

The bank’s equity was at 56 trillion VND (2.46 billion USD) as of March 31, 2018, up 6.7 percent compared to the start of the year. Its deposits were at 731 trillion VND (32.2 billion USD), up 3.2 percent, while lending rose by 6.29 percent to 577.6 trillion VND (25.44 billion USD).

The bank expects its total assets to grow by 14 percent and capital mobilisation and credit to grow by 15 percent, while keeping bad debt to less than 1.5 percent.

WPP takes full control of Vietnam and Asia assets from Dentsu

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Advertising company WPP PLC (WPP.LN) said Tuesday that it has acquired full ownership of a number of agencies in the Asia-Pacific region for an undisclosed price in a share swap with Japan’s Dentsu Inc. (4324.TO). MarketWatch reports.

WPP said it has acquired full control of the Y&R and Wunderman joint-venture agency assets across Southeast Asia and in Taiwan, as well as Dentsu Sudler & Hennessey in Japan.

The deal includes Y&R in Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand; as well as Wunderman in Taiwan and Thailand, said WPP.

In exchange, Dentsu has acquired full control of the Dentsu Y&R and Wunderman Dentsu agencies in Japan, the Japanese company said in a statement.

WPP said the deal marks its commitment to expanding in key markets via a “strong pan-Asian network offering,” and that its Asia-Pacific companies generate revenue of almost $4.8 billion, including associates.

On Monday, WPP said a strategic review of its assets is underway in the wake of the surprise exit of former chief executive Martin Sorrell due to an internal probe into an allegation of personal misconduct.

Joint Chief Operating Officer Mark Read told analysts in a call on Monday that selling down some of WPP’s minority stakes is an option to reduce the company’s debt.

By Adam Clark