Politics

☕ Afternoon briefing on January 8

The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.
☕ Afternoon briefing on January 8 ảnh 1

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

- Prime Minister PhamMinh Chinh on January 8 asked the banking sector to maintain its role as the“blood of life” for the national economy, while addressing a conference inHanoi on January 8.

☕ Afternoon briefing on January 8 ảnh 2Prime Minster Pham Minh Chinh addresses the conference. (Photo: VNA)

The conference, held by State Bank of Vietnam(SBV), was connected with the bank’s branches in the 63 cities and provincesnationwide, with the attendance of representatives from different ministriesand agencies. Read full text

- Chairman of theNational Assembly (NA) Vuong Dinh Hue and Speaker of the Bulgarian NA RosenDimitrov Jeliazkov held talks in Hanoi on January 8, agreeing that the twoNAs will push ahead with implementing the recently signed memorandum ofunderstanding (MoU) on cooperation.

☕ Afternoon briefing on January 8 ảnh 3Chairman of the Vietnamese NA Vuong Dinh Hue (R) and Speaker of the Bulgarian NA Rosen Dimitrov Jeliazkov in Hanoi on January 8 (Photo: VNA)

Jeliazkov is paying an official visit from January5 to 9 – the first to Vietnam by a parliamentary leader of Bulgaria in 12 yearsand following his host’s visit to Bulgaria in September 2023. Read full text

- Minister of Industryand Trade Nguyen Hong Dien has affirmed the determination to strengthen tradepromotion and export to major markets, optimising free trade agreements (FTA),making full use of opportunities, and actively responding to challenges in 2024.

In an interview granted to Vietnam News Agency,the minister said that his ministry will coordinate with relevant agencies tosupport domestic firms to conduct trade promotion activities in new andpromising markets, while prioritising the supply of market information andtrade opportunities to increase market share in traditional markets and exploitnew ones. Read full text

- The Vietnameseeconomy did recover in 2023, Dr. Can Van Luc affirmed, describingquarter-over-quarter growth, rebounded sectors, and impressive results ineconomic integration as three highlights last year.

The first highlight was that the GDP grew quarterover quarter and by 5.05% for the whole year, higher than the global average ofabout 2.9% and the ASEAN average of 4.3%, he told a recent conference betweenthe Government and local administrations. Read full text

- Confidence amongthe European businesses operating in Vietnam is showing signs of resilience asthe latest Business Confidence (BCI) from the European Chamber of Commerce inVietnam (EuroCham), conducted by Decision Lab,  reached 46.3 points in thefourth quarter of 2023.

EuroCham Chairman Gabor Fluit commented that therewas definitely a positive trend underway, and while there was a long way to gofor a full recovery, businesses were feeling more hopeful. Read full text

- 2023 is a successfulyear for Vietnam’s rice shipment as export volume and prices hit an all-timehigh of 8.3 million tonnes and 4.78 billion USD.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment, the total rice output in the country increased 1.9% to 43.5million tonnes, meeting both domestic demand and export. Export pricesaveraged 663 USD per tonne as a result of high demand. Read full text

- The monthly averageincome of Vietnamese labourers in 2023 reached 7.1 million VND (over 291 USD)per person, up 6.9% compared to 2022, according to the General StatisticsOffice (GSO).

Meanwhile, the average income of male and femaleworkers stood at 8.1 million VND and 6 million VND, respectively. Read full text

- 2023 was asuccessful year for Vietnam’s multilateral external relations and culturaldiplomacy at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganisation (UNESCO), according to former Permanent Representative of Vietnamto UNESCO Ambassador Le Thi Hong Van.

☕ Afternoon briefing on January 8 ảnh 4The Vietnamese delegation at the 24th session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the World Heritage Convention in Paris on November 22 - 23, 2023. (Photo: VNA)

Firstly, the year saw the highest number of mutualvisits between Vietnam and UNESCO, contributing to deepening bilateralrelations, optimising the knowledge and resources from the organisation for thecountry’s development. Read full text

- Hanoi has beenhonoured in two categories of the Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best 2023 byTripAdvisor – the world's largest travel guidance platform.

Specifically, the capital city is ranked thirdamong the 20 Best Food Destinations, and 17th in the 25 Popular Destinations./. Read full text

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