First Fujimart to open in Vietnam this month

Fujimart Vietnam Retail, a joint venture between Japanese trading house Sumitomo and local retail and real estate conglomerate BRG Group, will open its first Vietnamese supermarket in Hanoi this month.
First Fujimart to open in Vietnam this month ảnh 1The first FujiMart using modern Japanese-style will open in Hanoi this month (Photo courtesy of BRG)

Hanoi (VNA) – Fujimart Vietnam Retail, a joint venture betweenJapanese trading house Sumitomo and local retail and real estate conglomerateBRG Group, will open its first Vietnamese supermarket in Hanoi this month.

The Fujimart hopes to use its modern Japanese-style retail expertise to attractincreasingly well-off consumers in the country.

Keisuke Hitotsumatsu, CEO of Fujimart Vietnam, said through the Fujimart retailmodel, both BRG and Sumitomo hope to provide Vietnamese people with delicious,nutritious and safe food.

“Though the retail market is very competitive, Vietnam’s macro-economy recentlyshowed that the demand of the Vietnamese retail market is growing at adouble-digit rate. We recognise the trend will continue as Vietnam’s economicprospects are very positive, making Vietnamese living standards get better dayby day,” he said.

He added that the food retail market is about to undergo a major transformation,as growing interest in food safety shopping could shift from traditional wetmarkets to modern supermarkets.

In 2017, Vietnam’s retail sector earned nearly 129 billion USD, up 11percent from 2016, a high growth compared with other nations in Southeast Asia.

With an over-90 million population, nearly 70 percentof which are at working age, 34 percent living in urban areas and annual incomeper capita reaching 2,385 USD, Vietnam is considered to have huge room forretail growth.

Hanoi and HCM City are the two most developed cities, with atotal combined retail area of 2.5 million square metres.

However, the figure represents an average of 0.2 squaremetres per person, much lower than in other regional cities, such as Thailand’sBangkok at 0.89 square metres, Singapore (0.75 square metres), China’s Beijing(0.65 square metres), Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur (0.64 square metres) andIndonesia’s Jakarta (0.44 square metres).-VNA
VNA

See more

The VSS reported that total accumulated reserves across the social, health, and unemployment insurance funds now top 1.5 quadrillion VND. (Illustrative photo: VNA)

VSS pledges tighter fund management, diversified investments

The VSS will also impose stricter financial discipline in fund management, while pursuing broader diversification of investment portfolios, as guided by the principle of “safety, sustainability, and efficiency”. This approach aims to secure strong liquidity for prompt benefit payouts and support growth in Vietnam’s capital markets and overall economy.

The ceremony unveiling AFT Connect portal (Photo: nhandan.vn)

AFT Connect portal links Vietnamese clean food producers

The platform is expected to serve as shared digital backbone enabling stakeholders in the clean food sector to gradually digitise, standardise, and publicly disclose information, ultimately aiding the fight against unsafe products and protecting consumer interests.

A Vietcombank employee guides a client in biometric process (Photo: qdnd.vn)

Vietnam's biometric surge powers digital banking overhaul

As the Party identified breakthroughs in science – technology and innovation as a key driver of national progress, the mastery and adoption of biometric technologies must go hand in hand with safeguarding public trust, data security, and citizens’ interests, all aligned with the people-first philosophy guiding the country's digital agenda.

A spring fair kicks off in the central Da Nang city on January 22, 2026 (Photo: VNA)

Da Nang 2026 spring fair features 200 booths

The fair features a diverse range of products and services, focusing on items for Tet such as food and beverages, regional specialties, OCOP products, and rural and industrial goods; fashion, footwear, cosmetics, and sports equipment; health care products and beauty services; household items, interior and exterior décor, and handicrafts; as well as equipment, technology, and services in sectors like electronics, automobiles, and telecommunications.

The Ministry of Finance is working to establish a mechanism for regular and ongoing dialogue with international credit rating agencies, including Fitch, Moody’s and S&P. (Illustrative image: VNA)

Fitch Ratings upgrades Vietnam’s senior secured long-term debt rating to BBB-

The rating for Vietnam’s secured long-term debt was raised to BBB-, equivalent to investment grade, one notch higher than the country’s long-term foreign-currency rating on unsecured debt, which remains at BB+. The upgrade followed Fitch’s review under its revised Sovereign Rating Criteria issued in last September, said the Ministry of Finance.

A view of the site where the Ninh Thuan 1 Nuclear Power Plant is located in Phuoc Dinh commune, Khanh Hoa province (Photo: VNA)

Nuclear experts urge century-long commitment at 14th Party Congress

VietNuc’s executive board, including Chairman Bui Nguyen Hoang from the Électricité de France SA (EDF) (EDF), Ung Quoc Hung from Setec Nucléaire Group, and Vu Minh Ngoc from French National Radioactive Waste Management Agency Andra, hoped that the Congress would refine mechanisms and policies to better tap OV nuclear talents.

Ahmad Haikal Hasan, Head of the Halal Product Assurance Organising Agency (BPJPH) of Indonesia, speaks at the seminar (Photo: VNA)

Indonesia ready to cooperate with Vietnam in halal sector

Ahmad Haikal Hasan, Head of the Halal Product Assurance Organising Agency (BPJPH) of Indonesia, described Vietnam as a “potential supplier” of halal products with the capacity to play a larger role in the market, particularly in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector. He revealed a plan to visit Vietnam next week to discuss the country’s progress in the global halal industry.

Delegates perform the opening ceremony. (Photo: VNA)

Thailand Week 2026 opens in Hanoi

The event brings together more than 100 companies, including Thai enterprises and Vietnamese importers, across about 120 booths. It features a wide range of Thai products aligned with consumer trends in Vietnam, including food and beverages, health and beauty, mother-and-baby and pet products, fashion and jewellery, household goods and tourism services.

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

Vietnam remains Singapore’s third-largest seafood supplier in 2025

Data released by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority of Singapore (ACRA) show that Singapore spent 125.5 million SGD (97.7 million USD) importing seafood from Vietnam last year, up 10.7% year on year, accounting for 10.3% of the city-state’s total seafood import market.