Coldest major cities in the world

Hoang Viet Tien-Head of Strategic Advisory, Insider Mobile games and e-sports account for a major share of the blockchain sphere, and in addition to the play-to-earn wave from blockchain games, new waves are coming such as SocialFi (earning income through social activities), CALO (exercise to collect utility tokens), and Genopets (nurture and evolve Genopes to train and battle for rewards). A new report by DappRadar and the Blockchain Game Alliance suggests that 2022 will be a benchmark year for crypto games developers. The report reveals that $2.5 billion in investments were raised in Q1 alone this year, adding that developers could see this figure balloon to $10 billion by the end of the year. Compared to previous years, these figures also suggest the niche has become a key sector for investors. In 2021, for example, just $4 billion was raised throughout the whole year. In Vietnam, there are about 3.99 million gamers and more than 60 per cent are between the ages of 18 and … [Read more...] about Staying safe in the booming blockchain and GameFi world

E-sport players from the Philippines . Illustrative photo. (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The Philippine national team chef de mission Ramon Fernandez has given Vietnam a thumbs-up as the host of the 31st Southeast Asian Games ( SEA Games 31 ), saying the host has been “warm, hospitable” and running a tight ship. "The accommodations of our athletes, coaches and other staff of the Philippine team are comfortable. We have been treated well. There have been no major complaints,” Fernandez told Philippine News Agency reporters. He said that the problem he has heard so far was the transport from the hotels of the participants to the training and competition venues, which was understandable since Vietnam, like the rest of the region, was still coping with the COVID-19 pandemic. “The organisers have been apologetic about this issue and have addressed our concerns as soon as they can whenever the transport problems crop up,” Fernandez, also a commissioner of the Philippine … [Read more...] about Philippine team leader gives thumbs-up to Vietnam as SEA Games host

Low-income housing projects will be prioritised in major cities, particularly Hanoi and HCM City. Real estate giant Vinhomes has announced plans to build 500,000 social housing apartments priced below VND1 billion across the country over the next five year. In August this year, the firm will start its first project. Low-income housing projects will be prioritised in major cities, particularly Hanoi and HCM City Housing and Urban Development Corporation has recently started work on a social housing project in the northern province of Hanoi to offer 564 apartments priced at just VND380 million (USD16,521) each. Thanh Hoa provincial authorities have approved a low-income housing project in Thanh Hoa City which will provide up to 2,400 apartments. Meanwhile, Ninh Binh Province has agreed on a project to build 2,153 apartments at Gian Khau Industrial Park and neighbouring areas. Four low-income housing projects in the country were completed in the first … [Read more...] about More low-income housing projects to be carried out

The ASEAN - US Special Summit takes place in Washington D.C. on May 12 - 13. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – A US official has described the recent ASEAN - US Special Summit as a “tremendous success” while addressing a press briefing held by the Asia Pacific Media Hub of the US Department of State’s Bureau of Public Affairs on May 17. Daniel J. Kritenbrink , Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, was cited by state.gov of the US Department of State, as saying that this was the largest in-person summit of the Biden - Harris administration to date, and it displayed the full breadth and depth of the US’s foundational relationship with ASEAN. He said the core driver of the ASEAN - US partnership is their combined 1 billion people, including over 7 million Americans with ties of family and heritage to the countries of Southeast Asia. The Educational and Cultural Affairs Bureau and US universities are doing throughout Southeast Asia to strengthen … [Read more...] about US officials speak on ASEAN – US Special Summit

An overview of the event to launch the report (Photo: WB) Hanoi (VNA) - For Vietnam to realise its aspiration for reaching high income status by 2045, the country will need to shift its economic growth model and sharply improve the government’s capacity to coordinate and implement economic policy reforms and public investments, a World Bank Group report says. The World Bank Group ’s Systematic Country Diagnostic Update , entitled "How Will Vietnam Blossom? Reforming Institutions for Effective Implementation”, emphasises that Vietnam's traditional growth model faces major challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, slowing globalisation, and the country’s increasing vulnerability to external shocks, especially climate risks. After identifying a series of policy responses and reform priorities, many of which are not new, the report argues that adapting institutions will be the key to success. Vietnam’s GDP per capita has increased five fold over the past three … [Read more...] about Vietnam should shift economic growth model for further development: WB report

The rise in consumer prices is making it harder for the Bank of Japan (BOJ) to convince markets it will keep monetary policy ultra-loose and as the gains fuel public concerns about pushing up living costs. The nationwide core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes volatile fresh food costs but includes those of energy, surged 2.1% in April from a year earlier, government data showed on Friday. That marked the fastest rise in a single month since March 2015 and matched the median forecast in a Reuters poll. The gain was much stronger than a 0.8% year-on-year rise in March, as the impact of mobile phone fee cuts from April last year that have pulled down overall CPI since then starts to fade from yearly comparisons. The overall rate of price increases in Japan has remained modest compared with much sharper rises in the United States and other advanced economies, as sluggish wage growth in the world's third-largest economy makes it harder for firms to raise prices. The BOJ … [Read more...] about Japan April consumer prices post biggest jump in over 7 years

Shannon Leahy, trade commissioner for Austrade, and general director of BRG Retail Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy. Photo: Austrade Australia is one of Vietnam’s major suppliers of beef ad lamb products. Local consumers can enjoy a growing range of Australian products from fresh fruits, dairy, seafood, and beverages including a diverse range of sparkling, red, and white wines. Cherries, citrus, table grapes, milk, yoghurt, cheese, cereals, juices, rock lobsters, and abalone are just some of the beloved Australian products that have made it into Vietnamese stores, restaurants, and homes. General director of BRG Retail Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy said, “Vietnamese consumers increasingly demand clean, fresh, and delicious products with premium quality and transparent origins regardless of if they are eating out or at home. Australian suppliers can offer exactly what they want, including high-quality sustainable meat, delicious fruits, the finest dairy and cereals, and premium seafood … [Read more...] about Vietnamese consumers’ growing interest in Australian F&B products

Patrick Lenain-Former assistant director Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Pressures on global supply chains are also a key headwind in the recovery. Supply chain disruptions are not new: health precautions imposed over the last two years have already caused major bottlenecks. Major shipping hubs such as Los Angeles and Shanghai have operated with reduced capacity, with long waiting times to get shipments processed across the borders. With the pandemic fading away, congestion in international supply chains has eased a bit since December 2021. In the United States, government agencies have worked with shippers, retailers, and port authorities to speed up the movement of goods. For instance, ships waiting to unload containers in US ports have declined by 35 per cent, thanks to 24/7 operations and large recruitment of workers. However, the lack of US truck drivers has emerged as a new problem. Action was taken to hire 30,000 additional truck drivers, … [Read more...] about Will international stress disrupt Vietnam’s economic recovery?

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) last week again warned that the ocean is faced with increasing threats and multiple risks posed by climate change, natural disasters, environmental pollution, over-exploitation of natural resources, and unsustainable economic activities. “Global warming and marine litter are threatening marine resources, including widespread bleaching of coral reefs. Globally, an estimated 8-20 million tonnes of plastic enter the ocean every year. In Vietnam, around 2,000 tonnes of plastic waste leaks from the country into the ocean every day. It is estimated that there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050,” said Caitlin Wiesen, resident representative in Vietnam of the UNDP. The global ocean economy contributes an estimated $3 trillion per year, or about 5 per cent of the world’s GDP and comprises industries ranging from oil and gas, shipping and ports to renewable energy, fisheries, marine ecosystems and tourism. The value of the … [Read more...] about Blue economy model gathering pace

Thao Nguyen - Senior investment manager Ascend Vietnam Ventures Social commerce, a subset of e-commerce that refers to the process of buying and selling goods or services directly within social media platforms, is not new. In Vietnam, long before traditional e-commerce established a foothold with tech-savvy consumers, such activities largely took place on major social media platforms. Serving both big-city shoppers and the majority of the population who live outside of core urban centres, social commerce made up about 65 per cent of Vietnam’s $22 billion e-commerce in 2020, presenting the highest rate in Southeast Asia, according to Bain & Co. Within the last two years, we have been seeing a new wave of startups emerging in this sector and beginning to harness the untapped potential of Vietnam’s social commerce playing field. Some of those have attracted almost $14 million in funding in Q1 this year. Compared to the regional rate of 44 per cent, Vietnam’s social commerce … [Read more...] about Vietnam poised for the next level of social commerce via innovative startups