Politics

☕ Afternoon briefing on June 25

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

☕ Afternoon briefing on June 25

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

- Party General Secretary and State President To Lam has called on Vietnam’s youth to embrace a new spirit of responsibility and dedication, urging them to think broader, learn faster, work better and contribute more to the nation’s development.

Addressing the opening session of the 13th Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union National Congress for the 2026–2031 term in Hanoi on June 25, the Party and State leader told 788 delegates representing more than 5.1 million HCYU members and nearly 22 million young people nationwide that the country is entering a new stage of development in which young people are not only inheritors of the revolutionary cause but also direct architects of the future. Read full story

- Bui Quang Huy has been re-elected First Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union (HCYU) Central Committee for the 2026–2031 term.

The newly-elected HCYU Central Committee and its Standing Board, Secretariat and Inspection Board for the tenure also made their debut at the the 13th National Congress of the HCYU in Hanoi on June 25. Read full story

potal-luong-khach-tham-quan-cac-khu-di-tich-lich-su-o-thu-do-tang-dot-bien-85993742.jpg
The Hoa Lo Prison historical site is a popular destination among visitors (Photo: VNA)

- Vietnam is strengthening its appeal to international travellers, combining vibrant cities, rich cultural experiences and diverse natural landscapes to attract growing interest from key source markets worldwide.

According to online travel platform Agoda, searches for accommodation in Vietnam by Chinese travellers surged 164% year-on-year in the first five months of 2026, the fastest growth among international source markets. Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Poland rounded out the top five fastest-growing markets. The figures are based on accommodation searches from the platform’s 10 largest international markets between January 1 and May 31. Read full story

- Vietnam is positioning itself as one of the promising markets among emerging economies in 2026, attracting growing interest from international investors as global capital shifts toward economies with strong fundamentals, technological development and deeper integration into global supply chains.

After years of lagging behind the US stock market, emerging markets are staging a strong comeback in 2026, supported by attractive valuations, a weaker US dollar and stronger economic growth prospects. Read full story

- Exports will remain a key driver of Vietnam’s ambition to achieve double-digit economic growth in the coming years, officials and industry representatives said at a conference held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade in Hanoi on June 25.

The event, chaired by Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Tuc, took place as the Government accelerates measures to implement socio-economic development goals for 2026–2030. Read full story

- Vietnam should leverage its global network of Vietnamese experts working at leading universities, research institutes and technology companies to make breakthroughs in the AI era, according to Assoc. Prof., Dr Nguyen Thanh Phuong of the Department of Information Engineering, Computer Science and Mathematics (DISIM) at the University of L’Aquila in Italy.

Phuong told Vietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondent in Rome that Vietnam should develop a “borderless national intellectual network”, enabling Vietnamese professionals living abroad to contribute as visiting professors, strategic advisers, research leaders or co-directors of key laboratories. Such a model would help tap into global expertise without requiring specialists to return home permanently. Read full story

- Vietnam expects to export about 5 million tonnes of rice in the first half, earning an estimated 2.36 billion USD, up 5.7% annually in volume but down 3.3% in value, reported the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. The average export price is estimated at 473.6 per tonne, down 8.6%.

In the global market, the rice trade keeps running into geopolitical headwinds. Even as energy prices have eased from earlier highs, logistics costs remain steep, pinching supply and demand and cooling trading activity. An easing of tensions in the Middle East is expected to help trade flows recover, but the world energy market is still rattled, and a full comeback is probably a long way off./. Read full story

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