Vietnamese enjoy TET

Vietnamese enjoy Tet in Laos, France, India, Sri Lanka, Chile

Posted: 11 Feb 2013 09:43 PM PST

A dance at the gathering in Chile

In the first days of the 2013 Year of the Snake, Vietnamese in Laos flocked to Phat Tich and Bang Long pagodas to ask for peace, wealth and luck, as well as to extend New Year greetings to each other.
It is also a chance for younger generations of Vietnamese in Laos to discover their culture.
They also prayed for the further development of the traditional relations between Laos and Vietnam, to make their work or business in Laos more comfortable.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year (February 10), a ceremony was held in Truc Lam Pagoda in Villebon-sur-Yvette , France , to pray for peace for Vietnamese people living in Paris and its neighbouring regions.
More than 300 people including Ambassador Duong Chi Dung participated in the ceremony hosted by Buddhist Monk Thich Phuong Duong.
After the ceremony, the visitors had a chance to enjoy Vietnamese vegetarian food provided by the pagoda.
On the same day, representatives of Vietnamese monks studying in India worked with the Vietnamese Embassy in the country to hold a ceremony to greet the New Year and ask for peace.
Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Tan wished the monks good health and briefed them on Vietnam’s achievements over the past year.
On the evening of February 9 (last day of the 2012 lunar year), the Vietnamese Embassy in Sri Lanka organised a ceremony to welcome the 2013 Lunar New Year.
Among the participants were guests from the host country, ambassadors and diplomatic representatives from a number of countries, overseas Vietnamese, and Vietnamese students.
In Chile, a warm gathering was held by the Vietnamese Embassy to bring in the New Year. It attracted not only overseas Vietnamese but also guests from the host country.
Ambassador Ha Thi Ngoc Ha highlighted achievements in the relations between Vietnam and Chile in 2012, including the highest ever rise in two-way trade, which reached US$561 million, an increase of 15.26% from 2011.
(VNA)

Vietnam no longer a retail hotspot, new rankings show | Look At Vietnam

Vietnam no longer a retail hotspot, new rankings show 

June 16, 2012

Vietnam is no longer ranked in the top 30 most attractive retail markets

Vietnam has fallen out of the annually compiled list of top 30 most attractive retail markets, a result that belies great expectations raised when it officially opened to foreign retailers in 2009.
The country topped A.T. Kearney’s list of developing countries that retailers should enter in 2008, only to fall to 6th, 14th and then 23rd in the following years. The global management consulting firm last year said the country remained attractive, thanks to its growing population.
But now, Vietnam is no longer ranked in the top 30.
According to A.T. Kearney, many developing countries have become more competitive this year, with smaller markets that deliver new growth opportunities rising in the rankings, including Georgia, Oman and Mongolia. The three markets cracked the top 10 this year.
Brazil is the number one market for the second year in a row, “driven by a growing middle class economy, high consumption rates, a large, urban population, and reduced political and financial risk,” the company said. It is followed by Chile and China.
News website VnExpress cited local experts as saying the new result was not a surprise since market conditions have deteriorated in recent years, with consumption falling and business closures rising.
“Last year Vietnam’s retail market posted a growth of only 5 percent, a very humble figure compared to the usual 20 percent in previous years,” said economist Pham Chi Lan.
Vu Dinh Phu, chairman of a local supermarket association, said many retailers, both foreign and local, have complained about complicated investment procedures and high rentals.
There has to be a "large-scale overhaul" to revive the market, he said.
Even though the market has been open for more than three years and several foreign retailers have already made their presence felt in Vietnam, many foreign business groups continue to say that they are still being treated differently than locals.
In particular, they have called for elimination of the Economic Needs Test, which restricts the number of outlets that a foreign retailer can open in Vietnam.

Chile’s wine to be introduced in Vietnam - Chile’s wine to be introduced in Vietnam

Chile has selected Ho Chi Minh City as a venue for introducing its claret as part of the country’s promotion programme in Asia.

Chile ’s Trade Commission (ProChile) has also enlisted Hong Kong, Taipei, Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo as other destinations during the programme scheduled for between May 18 and June 1.

According to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV), Chile ranked eighth among the world’s leading wine producers, with its output reaching 8.6 million hectoliters last year.

The country is now the largest wine exporter in Latin American and the fifth largest in the world with 5.8 million hectoliters.

In 2008, Ho Chi Minh City was one of the Asian places hosting the Chilean Week to boost two-way trade and investment as well as promoting the image of the South American country in this continent.