The visitors joined the students in a life-skills training session where the girls practiced perseverance, critical thinking, negotiating, and leadership skills. Former US First Lady Michelle Obama accompanied by actresses Julia Roberts and Vietnamese-born Lana Condor and “Today Show” co-host Jenna Bush Hager were in Vietnam early this week to promote girls' education to help reach their full potential. Former US first lady Michelle Obama stands for a photo with female students at Can Giuoc High School in Long An province, Vietnam on Dec 9. Photo: AP On Monday [December 9], the visitors talked with girls at a high school in the Mekong Delta province of Long An to listen to the students talk about their schoolwork and challenges. The visitors talk with students. Photo: AP The visitors also joined the students in a life-skills training session where the girls practiced perseverance, critical thinking and negotiating and leadership skills that … [Read more...] about Michelle Obama, Julia Roberts promote girls’ education in Vietnam
Higher education budget cuts how are they affecting students
US asks Vietnam to cut import tariffs on agricultural products
The proposed tariff cut is aimed to balance bilateral trade relations. The US has requested Vietnam to cut its import tariffs on a number of agricultural products in 2020 and afterwards, according to Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance (MoF). The items subject to tariff reduction include chicken and processed chicken meat, almond, grape, wheat, pork, potato, among others, aiming to balance bilateral trade relations. A reduction of import tariffs on these products would be included in the government’s revised Decree No.125 on amendments to certain articles of Decree No.122 on export duty schedule, preferential import duty schedule, and lists of commodities and their flat tax rates, compound tax rates and outside tariff quota rates. Specifically, tariff on chicken and processed chicken meat is proposed to be cut from the current 20% to 14.5% in 2020, and 0% in 2028. The US also requested Vietnam to reduce tariffs on fresh apples and grapes to 0% in 2020 while the tariffs on wheat, … [Read more...] about US asks Vietnam to cut import tariffs on agricultural products
Vietnam’s business environment changing for the better: European commerce chamber
Vietnam’s government has been praised for its economic and administrative development by the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham), an organization representing over 1,000 European businesses. “The chamber appreciates the continued constructiveness and openness of the government in understanding the essential role of businesses and treating them as partners in increasing trade, investment and economic development,” EuroCham stated in the 10th edition of its Whitebook. EuroCham praised the government for cutting over 5,000 administrative procedures and creating opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises to enter the market. “We can see positive changes and results in completing Vietnam’s regulations and law,” said Nicolas Audier, co-chairman of the chamber. The Whitebook also describes Vietnam as having one of the strongest economic growth rates in the world over the past two decades, with average annual GDP growth of 6.4 … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s business environment changing for the better: European commerce chamber
K-Research revises down Thailand’s GDP growth to 2.5 percent
Illustrative photo (Source: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/) Bangkok (VNA) – The Kasikorn Research Centre (K-Research) has revised down Thailand’s economic growth this year to 2.5 percent from the initial projection of 2.8 percent and projected the next year’s growth at 2.7 percent. K-Research’s economists said they lowered the growth projections due to lackluster export performance, less-than-expected overall investment and delay in the enactment of budget expenditure bill for the fiscal year 2020. Nattaporn Triratanasirikul, K-Research Assistant Managing Director, said the economic growth next year is projected to grow 2.7 percent or within a projection range of 2.5-3.0 percent. Meanwhile, exports may continue to shrink due to poor economic performance of Thailand’s major export markets, the US-China trade war which is unlikely to be resolved anytime soon as well as the stronger Thai baht, amid the expectation of more Fed’s rate cuts which will … [Read more...] about K-Research revises down Thailand’s GDP growth to 2.5 percent
Hit by Double Woes, Hong Kong Property Market Heads for an Uncertain 2020
Home prices saw the steepest increase ever in early 2019 before the gains were trimmed by weakened sentiment and falling sales in the second half of the yearOffice rents peaked in Q1 and have since fallen over the course of 2019The retail sector was hardest hit by the social unrest which stifled any hope of a rebound in retail rents for core submarketsThe volume of major property transactions shrank to a 10-year low alongside the decline in commercial real estate rentsThe leasing and investment outlook across all sectors in 2020 is set to remain subdued as US-China trade tensions and local social unrest continue to weigh on sentiment.HONG KONG, CHINA - Media OutReach - 10 December 2019 - The Hong Kong property market has borne witness to the city's turmoil in 2019. Home prices experienced their steepest increase in the first half of 2019 but have seen those gains trimmed in recent months in the face of the growing social unrest. The ongoing trade tensions and … [Read more...] about Hit by Double Woes, Hong Kong Property Market Heads for an Uncertain 2020
