8th in PISA 2015 science performance
Viet Nam ranks 8th out of 72 countries in terms of its scientific performance, according to a report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Vietnamese pupils scored 525 points, higher than the average 493 points to rank 8th in science and 495 points and 490.487 points to stand at 22nd place in mathematics and 32nd place in literacy, respectively.
Growth prospects may improve next years
Viet Nam’s medium-term outlook remains favorable, and its growth prospects may improve to 6.3% from 2017-2018, according to the World Bank’s latest Taking Stock report released on December 5.
The fundamental drivers of growth – resilient domestic demand and export oriented manufacturing – remain in force, said the World Bank.
Climbing 14 places in global enabling trade index
Viet Nam advanced 14 places in the Enabling Trade Index of the World Economic Forum, now ranking 73rd out of 136 economies, according to the Global Enabling Trade Report released on November 30.
The advancement is largely driven by improvements in border administration, with improved customs efficiency (now at 66th) and reduced times for documentary and border compliance for both importing and exporting (a reduction of approximately 30 total hours for both cases), according to the Report.
These changes reflect recent efforts by the Government to streamline procedures at the border and reduce the burden of inspections by multiple agencies, but the country has a long way to go and rise to international standards.
Jumping five places in WB’s electricity access rankings
Viet Nam has jumped five places to 96th position in terms of electricity access, one of the criteria the World Bank uses to rank 189 economies on the ease of doing business.
Factors like the number of procedures, and time and cost to be connected to electricity all improved from 2015. In particular, the time required for a business to obtain a permanent electricity connection for a newly constructed warehouse has reduced from 59 to 46 days.
Improving business environment and national competitiveness is one of the Government’s key priorities.
Up nine notches in World Bank Doing Business 2017 report
Viet Nam climbed nine spots in the latest World Bank survey that ranks economies worldwide by measuring their business environment.
Vietnam jumped from 91st to the 82 nd spot out of 190 economies measured in the Doing Business 2016: Equal Opportunity for All report, the 14th edition of the World Bank’s flagship publication.
The Southeast Asian country posted improvements in such indicators as Getting electricity (up five places); Protecting minority investors (+31); Paying taxes (+11); Trading across borders (+15); and Resolving insolvency (+1).
Listed in Top 30 most attractive emerging market list
Viet Nam has been named in the Top 30 most lucrative emerging retail markets in the world for foreign investors in A.T. Kearney’s Global Retail Development Index since 2008.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) in October quoted a Nielsen’s survey as saying that 34% consumers frequently shop at commercial centers, 29% at supermarkets and 22% at convenience stores and mini-stores.
EU businesses upbeat about VN’s business environment
European Union enterprises were positive about the business environment in Viet Nam as a large number of them planned to increase investment in the country, according to a Business Climate Index (BCI) survey for Q2 of the European Chamber of Commerce in Viet Nam (EuroCham).
Accordingly, the majority of European enterprises acknowledged that the country’s macroeconomic stability will likely continue, with 56.3% of respondents forecasting “stabilization and improvement” and just 9.4% of respondents expecting declining macro-economy.
EuroCham reported that around 49% of the respondents expect the number of orders or revenue to increase slightly in the next quarter. Up to 15.6% of them were even more optimistic.
VN named in Asian Mighty Five list
Viet Nam entered the list of MITI-V (pronounced “Mighty 5) countries which were seen to be an Asian powerhouse emerging over the next few years, The Nation of Thailand reported.
The five countries include Malaysia, India, Thailand, Indonesia and Viet Nam.
The expectation is expressed in the 2016 Global Manufacturing Competitiveness Index (GMCI) in which by 2020.
Advantages from those Southeast Asian countries are various tax preferences, lower import tariffs, and less tax on export-oriented raw materials.
VN Index listed among 10 best performing markets
Vietnamese stock market (VN Index) is still listed among the best performing markets in the world in the World Market Indices (Indexq) in February.
Economy enters stable trajectory
Wen Wei Po, a Hong Kong-based Chinese language newspaper on January 25 published an article saying that abundant domestic demands, robust foreign investment, and strong open market policies of the Government have laid a solid foundation for the Vietnamese economy to enter stable and fast growth trajectory.
HSBC: Economic growth becomes more stable
Despite lower economic growth forecast, HSBC still listed Viet Nam in the list of regional pioneers and solid medium-term development.
According to HSBC, Viet Nam’s economy expanded 5.6% in Q1 due to agricultural difficulties like droughts and saltwater intrusion. In addition, the recently proposed administrative tightening measures will curb credit growth at certain levels and could lead to less investment.
The bank revised their GDP forecast down to 6.3% for 2016 and 6.6% for 2017.
ANZ: Economy outperforms regional peers
Despite low economic growth than forecast in Q1, 2016, the Vietnamese economy is outperforming other countries in the region, according to the ANZ Bank.
The bank expects Việt Nam’s GDP to rise 6.9% in 2016 and 6.5% in 2017 despite agricultural recession.
Fitch affirms VN at “BB-” outlook stable
Fitch Ratings affirmed Viet Nam’s Long-Term Foreign-and Local-Currency IDRs at ‘BB-‘with a Stable Outlook. The issue ratings on Viet Nam’s senior unsecured Foreign- and Local-Currency bonds are also affirmed at ‘BB-‘. The Country Ceiling is affirmed at ‘BB-‘ and the Short-Term Foreign-Currency IDR at ‘B’.
The ratings reflect the country’s strong macroeconomic performance and favorable medium-term growth prospects against high public debt, low foreign-reserve buffers, and relatively weak structural indicators.
Moody’s considers raising ratings for VN’s banks
The Moody’s has issued a press announcement on considering raising the ratings for some Vietnamese commercial banks.
Accordingly, the Moody’s is considering increasing a baseline credit assessment (BCA) and counterparty risk assessments (CRA) for An Binh Bank (ABB), Asia Commercial Bank (ACB), Bank for Foreign Trade of Viet Nam (Vietcombank), Military Bank (MB), Sai Gon-Ha Noi Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SHB) and Viet Nam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (Vietinbank).
The move reflects prospects of the Moody’s on Viet Nam’s macro-economy as the nation’s economics have shown positive signs with the GDP growth of 6% in the 2016-2017 period.
Paradises for tourists
CNN Travel recently posted an article on their website in which they promoted travel to Viet Nam and what they referred to as five ideal tropical paradises. Here are the photos and locations they touted.
Nha Trang
“Palm tree shaded beaches, striking ancient temples, cheap hotels, fresh seafood grilled right on the beach, mind-numbing booze cruises for just a few bucks and a lively bar scene where locals, expats and tourists happily mingled at oceanfront places like the Sailing Club made Nha Trang a fun place to party and relax”, says CNN.
Whale Island
Whale Island is an eco-friendly resort with basic amenities just a two-hour boat ride from Nha Trang.
There’s an abundance of activities for nature and water sport lovers, including diving, snorkelling, sailing and kayaking.
Hon Tre Island
Per CNN, Vinpearl Land on Hon Tre Island is Viet Nam’s version of Disney World, which has a water park, aquarium and clear, calm beach, all in one place for about US$30 dollar admission per person.
“Vinpearl has a resort on a separate part of the island complete with a lush 18-hole golf course designed by IMG Worldwide”.
Phu Quoc island
“The Phu Quoc Prison museum is worth a visit for those wanting to learn more about the area’s past”, says CNN.
The island is also famous for fish sauce. Produced on the island, it’s considered the best in the world and an essential ingredient in Vietnamese cooking.
Con Dao
The small island of Con Dao may be the next frontier for Vietnam island hoppers charmed by the idea of exploring a beautiful place before the rest of the world moves in.
“Diving here is said to be the best in Viet Nam, CNN writes in the article.
Vietnamese dishes enter Top 100 most delicious foods
Vietnamese ‘Pho’ (noodles with beef or chicken), ‘bun cha’ (rice noodles with grilled pork) and ‘banh mi’ (Vietnamese sandwich) were listed among the world’s top 100 famous food by the World Records Union (Worldkings).
Worldkings described “pho” as a traditional dish and one of the most typical dishes of Vietnamese cuisine.
‘Bun cha’ was described as a specialty of Ha Noi. It is a perfect combination of grilled pork, salad and sweet and sour sauces.
Worldkings also said that ‘Banh mi’ was a popular in Viet Nam and can be found everywhere. It has very different tastes in different regions in the country./.
By Hai Minh
VN in eyes of international community in 2016 Related image(s)
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