Politics

☕ Afternoon briefing on January 6

The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.

☕ Afternoon briefing on January 6

Hanoi (VNA) - The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.

- Party General Secretary To Lam has asked the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai to promptly review targets and tasks, and specific solutions to address bottlenecks and obstacles hindering its development and realise the goals set in the 16th provincial Party Congress's Resolution.

At a working session with the province's key officials on January 6 morning, the Party chief emphasised the determination to turn Gia Lai into a prominent locality in the central coast and Central Highlands regions, which thrives based on organic agriculture, diverse ecosystems, rich and unique cultural heritage, and sustainable social and environmental development, towards stronger growth and improving the quality of life for its residents. Read full story

- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh received UN Under-Secretary-General for Digital and Emerging Technologies Amandeep Singh Gill, who is also UN Secretary-General António Guterres’s Envoy on Technology, in Hanoi on January 6.

Welcoming Amandeep Singh Gill to Vietnam, Chinh emphasised that Gill's presence is a clear testament to the UN’s commitment to promoting international cooperation on technology, particularly in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), digital transformation, and innovation, which are strategic fields vital to the development of each nation and play a key role in shaping the future of humanity. Read full story

- The National Assembly (NA) Standing Committee convened its 41st session on the morning of January 6, marking its first meeting of the year.

In his opening address, NA Chairman Tran Thanh Man emphasized the substantial workload ahead in 2025. Read full story

- The friendship between Vietnam and Cuba is very special, built on a foundation of solidarity, cooperation, and mutual trust in all areas. The Vietnam-Cuba Friendship Year 2025 will be an opportunity to honour this unique historical legacy between the two peoples, according to newly-appointed Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam Rogelio Polanco Fuentes.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) on the occasion of the New Year 2025, Polanco Fuentes said that the friendship is built on a history of close ties throughout their struggles against colonialism and imperialism, as well as in the process of building socialism. After the historic visit to Cuba in September 2024 by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam, the bilateral relations have developed to a new, comprehensive, effective, and sustainable level. Read full story

- Vietnam's total trade revenue reached 786.29 billion USD in 2024, up 15.4% year-on-year, with a trade surplus of 24.77 billion USD, the General Statistics Office (GSO) said at a press conference in Hanoi on January 6.

The December value was 70.53 billion USD, up 6.2% month-on-month and up 15.9% compared to the same period last year, according to the agency. Read full story

- Vietnam’s foreign direct investment (FDI) disbursement reached an all-time high of approximately 25.35 billion USD last year, an annual increase of 9.4%, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency (FIA).

Despite a slight 3% year-on-year decrease in total FDI commitments, which amounted to 38.23 billion USD, the country recorded positive indicators in several areas. A total of 3,375 new projects worth 19.7 billion USD were approved, up 1.8% and down 7.6% year-on-year, respectively. FDI inflows targeted 18 of Vietnam’s 21 economic sectors, with the manufacturing and processing industry taking the lead with 25.58 billion USD, followed by real estate with 6.31 billion USD. Read full story

- The Vietnamese economy demonstrated remarkable resilience in 2024 and was estimated to achieve a growth rate of 7.09% despite global uncertainties, General Director of the General Statistics Office (GSO) Nguyen Thi Huong said on January 6.

At a press conference in Hanoi, Huong stated that this growth rate, while slightly below those of 2028, 2019, and 2022, showed the remarkable recovery and positioned the country as a regional economic bright spot. Read full story

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The image of the Vietnam’s national team is posted on FIFA's official social media page. (Photo: VNA)

- The world football governing body FIFA showed special interest in Vietnamese football by congratulating its men’s national team on winning the ASEAN Cup 2024 and encouraging striker Nguyen Xuan Son, who unfortunately suffered a serious injury in the second leg of the final in Thailand on January 5 evening.

On its official social media page, FIFA posted images of the Vietnam’s national team lifting the ASEAN Cup 2024 trophy along with a brief but meaningful congratulatory message: Southeast Asian Champions, champions in the hearts of all Vietnamese people! accompanied by two symbols - the Vietnamese flag and the championship trophy./. Read full story

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