☕ Afternoon briefing on September 29

Hanoi (VNA) – The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency on September 29.

- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on September 29 hosted an official welcome ceremony for his Cuban counterpart Manuel Marrero Cruz who is on an official friendship visit to Vietnam. Following the ceremony, the two leaders held talks. Read full story

- National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue and other NA deputies of northern Hai Phong city met with voters in Thuy Nguyen district on September 29, ahead of the 15th parliament’s fourth session. Read full story

- Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 13.67% in the third quarter, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO). The three months posted such high growth as the same period last year which saw the COVID-19 pandemic breaking out strongly and seriously affecting production and business activities. Read full story

- Vietnam’s consumer price index (CPI) in the third quarter of this year expanded 3.32% as compared with the corresponding time last year, the General Statistics Office (GSO) said at a press conference in Hanoi on September 29. Read full story

- Vietnam estimates a trade surplus of 6.52 billion USD in the first nine months of this year. In the same period last year, the country posted a trade deficit of 3.44 billion USD. Read full story

- Work started on September 29 on flight management works – the component Project No.2 in the first phase of the Long Thanh International Airport Project in the southern province of Dong Nai. They are large-scale infrastructure works with the most complex technology ever built by the Vietnam Air Traffic Management Corporation (VATM). Read full story

- Vietnam welcomed about 1.87 million international arrivals in the first nine months of this year, 16.4 times higher than the same period last year but much lower than that in the same time in 2019 before COVID-19 broke out, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO). Read full story

- Vietnam is among the world’s best performers in digital banking, with around 15 trillion VND in total poured into digital transformation, Le Anh Dung, Deputy Director of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV)’s Payment Department, told a talk show on September 28. Read full story

- The Vietnam - UK Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) has substantially assisted Vietnam’s coffee sector to expand its market share in the UK, according to the Foreign Trade Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT). Read full story

- VinFast delivered the first batch of electric scooters of Evo200 model from its factory in northern Hai Phong city on September 29. The e-vehicle maker said those of the latest model that can travel for the longest distance (205km) on a single charge and have the “best price” - 22 million VND (over 920 USD) for both Evo200 and Evo200 Lite versions. Read full story

- The MM Mega Market Vietnam Company, in collaboration with some trade promotion organisations and the Italian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City, opened the Taste of Italy week in the southern metropolis. Read full story

- More than 500 athletes nationwide on September 29 joined the Ultra Trail Cao Bang 2022 in the northern mountainous province of Cao Bang – home to a UNESCO-recognised geopark.

Organised by the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the tournament, scheduled to last until October 2, featured foot races ranging from 10km to 200km. Read full story./.