Vietnam news in brief - January 8

Supercruise ship with 2,700 tourists visits Hue

The Celebrity Solstice cruise ship. Photo: chanmayport.com.vn

The Celebrity Solstice cruise ship with 2,700 passengers from the UK, US and France docked at Chan May Port in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue on January 7. Tourists will visit famous scenic spots and enjoy local cuisine in Thua Thien-Hue, Danang City, and the central province of Quang Nam. In 2024, Chan May Port is expected to welcome 32 cruise ships with nearly 60,000 passengers. The figure to the port for 2023 was 25 cruise ship arrivals with 33,000 international tourists.

EVN seeks new power sources from Laos

State-owned power utility EVN on January 7 signed 19 contracts to purchase some 2,700 MW of electricity from 26 Lao hydropower plants. The Lao authorities also promised to change policies to facilitate Vietnamese operations in the hydropower and mining sectors. EVN aims to stabilize the power supply to support local businesses in 2024. The group targets a maximum total output of 269.3 billion kWh and limits transmission losses to 6.05% in 2024.

Vietnam dominates the US pepper market

Vietnam is the largest exporter of pepper to the US market, accounting for 23.5% of the commodity's total export value. In 2023, Vietnam exported 267,000 tons of pepper with an estimated value of US$912 million, an increase of 16.6% in volume, according to the General Department of Customs.

Vietnam's automobile industry shrinks in 2023: GSO

VinFast's factory in Dinh Vu Economic Zone, Cat Hai District, Haiphong City. Photo: Vingroup

Vietnam's car imports in 2023 were estimated at $2.8 billion, down 27% year-on-year, while import volume fell by a third year-on-year to nearly 118,000 units, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO). In December, Vietnamese bought only 6,500 cars from overseas suppliers for a total of US$165 million, down 14.5% in value and volume from November. Meanwhile, production of domestically-made cars fell by 12% year-on-year to 347,400 units.

CT Group eyes high-speed rail project
Ho Chi Minh City-based technology and urban developer CT Group has proposed that the government grant it a license to lead the construction of a high-speed railway linking the city to the southern metropolis of Cantho. The railway is part of the Mekong Delta project under the National Railway Development Plan for 2021-2050. The project is estimated to cost nearly $10 billion and will cover 174 km through the two cities and four provinces of Binh Duong, Long An, Tien Giang, and Vinh Long.

THACO invests in agricultural production and processing  in Laos

Truong Hai Auto Group (THACO) has invested in an agricultural production and processing complex in Laos and the Lao government has approved the project. This large-scale integrated and circular agricultural production complex covers a total area of 27,384 hectares in the Attapeu and Sekong provinces. The project consists of 10,000 hectares of specialized fruit cultivation (8,000 hectares of bananas and 2,000 hectares of pineapples) and 14,000 hectares of fruit cultivation combined with livestock farming (5,000 hectares of mangoes, pomelos and durians), as well as 210,000 heads of cattle.

FPT Play honored as outstanding Vietnamese entertainment platform in 2023

FPT Play has won the first prize in the Outstanding Vietnamese Entertainment Platform category selected by the Tech Awards 2023 jury. The Tech Awards, themed "Life ON - Technology Activating Life", was held on January 5-6 at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center in Ho Chi Minh City. The event saw the participation of over 90 nominated brands, products, applications, and platforms, divided into 18 categories with three content areas: digital products, household brands, and platforms.