8 southeast asian countries

"Even in the very tough environment we are seeing, our employees have maintained a high quality and reliable service for our customers and this is helping us deliver stellar performance year after year," said Jens Lottner, CEO of Techcombank. Last year, the bank continued to reduce costs while focusing on building deposits in its current accounts and savings accounts (CASA), which Lottner described as a "stable and cheap" source of funding. Techcombank’s CASA ratio, which reflects the percentage of the bank’s total deposits that are CASA, jumped from 46.1 percent in 2020 to 50.5 percent last year, on its way to the bank’s target of 55 percent by 2025. Techcombank’s net interest margin (NIM), a measure of the difference between the interest received by the bank and the amount paid out to lenders, also increased 69 basis points to 5.6 percent during the year. "Together, these improving metrics, along with our effective cost management, translated into an excellent profit before tax … [Read more...] about Techcombank eyes seat at top Southeast Asian banking table

Cyclist Dinh Thi Nhu Quynh successfully defended her women’s SEA Games mountain bike cross-country title after finishing first at a Hoa Binh race on May 16. (Photo: VNA) Hoa Binh (VNA) – Cyclist Dinh Thi Nhu Quynh successfully defended her women’s SEA Games mountain bike cross-country title after finishing first at an event held in Hoa Binh city, the northern province of Hoa Binh, on May 16. The Vietnamese athlete earned a gold medal in the same category in SEA Games 30 in the Philippines three years ago. Quynh competed against 14 others from six Southeast Asian countries – Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam – in the 15.6-km race. Her Vietnamese teammates Ca Thi Thom and Vu Thi Kim Loc also vied for the title. Quynh clocks one hour, 18 minutes and 6 seconds in the 15.6-km race. (Photo: VNA) Quynh clocked one hour, 18 minutes and 6 seconds. Zainal Abidin Nur Assyira from Malaysia crossed the line in one hour, 22 minutes and 14 … [Read more...] about Cyclist Quynh successfully defends SEA Games cross country title

US President Joe Biden meets with ASEAN member countries' leaders during the US-ASEAN Special Summit on May 13 (US time) in Washington DC. — VNA/VNS Photo Dương Giang HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính said he hopes major powers, who are all partners to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), to work towards stable relations and responsible, healthy competition, for the sake of regional and global peace and security. The Vietnamese Government leader made the statement as he addressed the highly anticipated US-ASEAN Special Summit on Friday (May 13, US time), the first one to have been held in Washington DC during the 45 years of US-ASEAN partnership. The summit includes a meeting between ASEAN leaders and US President Joe Biden, a session between ASEAN leaders and US Vice President Kamala Harris on maritime security and COVID-19, and a session between ASEAN leaders and the US cabinet on climate, clean energy, and infrastructure. US leaders have … [Read more...] about Vietnamese PM wants major countries to respect ASEAN’s central role, int’l laws: US-ASEAN Summit

National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue (L) and his Lao counterpart Saysomphone Phomvihane co-chair the event. (Photo: VNA) Vientiane (VNA) – National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue and his Lao counterpart Saysomphone Phomvihane co-chaired a conference to share experience in designing mechanisms and policies supporting post-pandemic socio-economic recovery and development in Vientiane on May 16. The Lao NA leader said that the event is a good chance for both sides to learn from each other to promote post-pandemic socio-economic recovery and development. For his part, NA Chairman Hue underlined that COVID-19 pandemic has posed problems to most countries around the world, including Laos and Vietnam. He highlighted the Vietnamese NA’s close coordination with the Government and relevant agencies to collect ideas from voters, people, experts, scientists and the business community inside and outside the country on measures to respond to the pandemic. He noted … [Read more...] about Vietnamese, Lao NAs share experience in designing post-pandemic socio-economic recovery policies

Table tennis players of Malaysia in a match with Vietnam at SEA Games 31 on May 17 (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - Concern over Malaysia’s standings on the medal tally chart has grown as the country dropped to sixth place at the end of the ninth day of the 31st Southeast Asian Games ( SEA Games 31 ) in Vietnam. The national contingent has been in the top five spots in the biennial Games, except for the 1983 edition in Singapore, where Malaysia placed sixth. With today’s meagre haul of three gold medals in pencak silat, gymnastics and athletics, Malaysia currently has 19 golds, 24 silvers and 44 bronzes, and is sixth, having dropped a spot from fifth at the start of the day. As of May 16, Vietnam obtained 197 medals, including 88 golds, topping the tally and leaving other competitors far behind. At the second place on the tally was Thailand with 36 gold medals, followed by the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia , who secured 30, 24, 23, and 19 gold … [Read more...] about SEA Games 31: Malaysia concerned about medal standings

The event drew the attendance of Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Chairman of National Assembly Vuong Dinh Hue and Party, State, and city leaders. Meanwhile, Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore Tan Chuan-Jin, heads of contingents of participating countries, and more than 10,000 athletes, coaches, members of 11 contingents from 11 Southeast Asian countries also attended the ceremony. During the event, President Nguyen Xuan Phuc delivered a speech to officially open the regional sports event in Vietnam. The ceremony was organized with a special art program on the nearly 8,000-m2 stage, with the participation of more than 1,000 artists and athletes, contributing to introducing the beautiful images and cultural traditions of the host country Vietnam as well as honoring the cultural identity of the Southeast Asia countries, so as to tightening solidarity and friendship via the sports event. The ceremony not only popularized images of Vietnam but also showed the country’s … [Read more...] about 31st SEA Games officially opens

Dragon fruit is one of the key crops of Long An Province. — Photo baolongan.vn Demand for Vietnamese dragon fruit in foreign markets is increasing, with many importers interested in high-quality fruit from Viet Nam. The Viet Nam Trade Promotion Agency, the Department of Industry and Trade of Long An Province, and the trade offices of the Vietnamese Embassies in New Zealand and Australia jointly organised a consulting session on exporting dragon fruits to Australia and New Zealand in the southern province of Long An last week. Speaking at the event opening, the Vietnamese Ambassador to New Zealand, Nguyen Van Trung, emphasised the importance of promoting agricultural co-operation, agricultural product trade and market opening for the strategic partnership between Viet Nam and New Zealand. Viet Nam wants New Zealand to share its experience and support Viet Nam in building an international brand and value chain for the global commercialisation of dragon fruit, following the … [Read more...] about Promoting dragon fruit exports to Australia, New Zealand

Illustrative image (Photo: Internet) Hanoi (VNA) – The Megabank of Taiwan has applied for permission to open a branch in the northern port city of Hai Phong , according to the Dau Tu (Investment Review) newspaper. It is noteworthy that Megabank is just one among several Taiwanese banks looking to open branches in Vietnam’s northern localities in anticipation of a wave of investment into the Southeast Asian country by technology enterprises. Taiwanese banks were among the first to arrive in Vietnam, along with the wave of Taiwanese investment in the country in the 1990s. At that time, they mostly operated in Ho Chi Minh City to serve thousands of Taiwanese-invested enterprises in southern localities. Taiwan has the largest number of banking branches and rep offices in Vietnam, with the presence of over 10 banks. Taiwanese investors are running 2,764 FDI projects in Vietnam, and most of them use services of Taiwanese banks. Banking experts said Taiwanese banks … [Read more...] about Taiwanese banks look to benefit from investment shift to Vietnam

Vietnam will remove the pre-entry COVID-19 test requirements for all foreign arrivals starting Sunday, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has directed. The direction, effective at 0:00 on May 15, comes as the numbers of COVID-19 infections and deaths drop both in Vietnam and around the world. In a dispatch issued on Friday, the PM cited the World Health Organization as announcing that the COVID-19 pandemic has tended to reduce in both patient numbers and fatalities on a global scale and that basic vaccines are still effective against variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. In such context, many countries have been taking steps to ease COVID-19 restrictions, including removal of pre-entry testing, the document said. PM Chinh requested the Ministry of Health to closely monitor the epidemic situation and provide timely and appropriate instructions. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs must direct Vietnamese agencies abroad to ask people wishing to enter Vietnam to comply with epidemic … [Read more...] about Vietnam to lift pre-entry COVID-19 test requirements for entrants on May 15

Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has hailed the U.S.’s policy to support a strong, independent and prosperous Vietnam and affirmed that the U.S. is one of leading partners of the Southeast Asian country. PM Chinh made the statement at his meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington, D.C on Friday on the sidelines of the ASEAN – U.S. Special Summit that took place on May 12 to 13. Chinh had earlier arrived in the U.S. on Wednesday for his weeklong trip to the country and attendance of the summit, at the invitation of U.S. President Joe Biden. The PM congratulated the U.S. on successfully responding to the COVID-19 pandemic and bringing life back to normal, as vividly illustrated by the hosting of the summit, in which the U.S. State Department as well as Secretary Blinken personally play a very important role. The Vietnamese government leader also extended his thanks to the U.S. government and people for offering Vietnam nearly 40 million doses of … [Read more...] about US among top important partners of Vietnam: PM Chinh