Vietnam news in brief - March 10

OJapan-Vietnam Festival in Ho Chi Minh City

The opening ceremony of the festival in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Japan Vietnam Festival

The 9th Japan-Vietnam Festival, to be held on March 9-10 in Ho Chi Minh City, includes trade, culinary and tourism exchanges, promotion of Vietnamese-Japanese products, cultural and artistic exchanges between the two countries, as well as seminars and discussions to promote Japanese tourism in Vietnam.

Vietnam overtakes Chile to become second largest exporter of fruit and vegetables to China

Thanks to a significant increase in durian exports, Vietnam has overtaken Chile to become the second largest exporter of fruits and vegetables to China. According to China's customs report in 2023, the total value of Vietnam's exports of fruits, vegetables and processed products to  China reached US$24.4 billion.

Thailand continues to lead in exports of these commodity categories to China, with a trade value of $8.6 billion, while Vietnam secures second place with $3.4 billion. Vietnam's market share in China almost doubles in a year, rising from 8% in 2022 to 14% in 2023.

Longstanding Vietnamese soy sauce brand exported to the US

Two containers of Black Cat soy sauce produced by Nam Duong International Food Company - one of Vietnam's longest established brands - have been exported and will be sold in 37 states across the US. Following inspection and approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the company has received official export status for Vietnamese branded products.

Approximately 80% of the products will be distributed through Vietnamese supermarkets, while the other 20% will be for sale in the Korean, Taiwanese and Thai markets. The company also plans to sell to major US retail channels such as Walmart and Amazon.

Two Korean business delegations to engage in direct trade in Hanoi

On March 12, two delegations of exporting companies from Gyeongbuk and Chungbuk Provinces (South Korea) will meet Vietnamese importers at the Lotte Hotel in Hanoi. Organized by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA Hanoi), this is the first Korea-Vietnam trade event in 2024. Based on the needs of companies from both countries, KOTRA Hanoi has arranged nearly 100 one-on-one business meetings for the upcoming trade event.

Vietnam to set up an additional 113 stations to monitor air quality

According to the Vietnamese government's recently released National Environmental Monitoring Plan, Vietnam will install an additional 98 air quality  monitoring stations by 2030 and another 15 after 2030. Together with the existing 106 stations, the country will have a total of 216 stations. Of the 98 new real-time automatic monitoring stations, 62 will be located in densely populated areas to alert people to the health effects of air pollution. In addition, six stations will be set up in regions where the impact on people is minimal. These stations will automatically monitor air quality in real time, including particulate matter (PM 2.5, PM 10), sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO) and ozone (O3).