Vietnam

Nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, are bought and sold in Southeast Asia through games such as Axie Infinity. (Source images from Axie Infinity website)
Technology

Southeast Asians jumping on NFT bandwagon to boost incomes

But signs of falling liquidity in nonfungible token markets could mean trouble

14 June 2021
Vietnam's establishment of a new maritime militia unit in the Gulf of Thailand is designed to test the reaction of countries in the region, including China, according to one scholar.
South China Sea

Vietnam expands maritime militia off southern coast

New squadron of ships, platoons and light weapons debuts in sovereignty assertion

12 June 2021
Protesters spill beer in Bangkok in February in opposition to new rules on online liquor sales. (Photo courtesy of Craft Beer Association of Thailand)
Food & Beverage

Stiff ASEAN liquor laws stun beer brands from Chang to Carlsberg

Multinationals pivot to untested nonalcoholic beer as growth markets falter

12 June 2021
With more than 6,000 Vietnamese falling ill in the new COVID-19 wave, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on June 5 launched a vaccine fund. (Source photos by Reuters and VGP)
Coronavirus

Vietnam vaccine fund secures Samsung and Toyota donations

Foreign companies heed call to donate as country struggles to contain outbreaks

9 June 2021
Facebook sees opportunities for growth in Vietnam's vast base of rural internet users. (Source photos by AFP/Jiji and EPA/Jiji) 
Technology

In rural Vietnam, Facebook finds a new approach to growth

Social media giant betting on chat-based e-commerce and online video

9 June 2021
Vingroup's Grand World resort on the island of Phu Quoc is designed to lure tourists from Southeast Asia's more established resort islands. (Photo by Tomoya Onishi)
Business trends

Vietnam's 'last paradise' intends to challenge Phuket and Bali

Vingroup carves a modern-day Venice into the island of Phu Quoc

6 June 2021
Health workers wait to be inoculated in March at the start of COVID-19 vaccination program in March. The country has launched a fund to finance the purchase of 120 million doses by year's end.
Coronavirus

Vietnam launches $1.1bn COVID vaccine fund: 5 things to know

South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan donors chip into Hanoi's campaign

5 June 2021
VinCommerce, one of SK Group's investment targets, runs convenience stores and supermarkets across Vietnam. (Photo by Tomoya Onishi)
Business trends

South Korea's SK Group bets big on Vietnam's 100m consumer market

Third-ranked chaebol looks to transform VinCommerce into another Amazon

5 June 2021
A box of Sinopharm's coronavirus vaccine: Vietnam has been the only ASEAN country not to receive shots from China.
COVID vaccines

Vietnam approves China's Sinopharm vaccine for emergency use

Supply shortage pushed Hanoi to allow doses despite Beijing tensions

5 June 2021
Hoa Phat has acquired rights to the Roper Valley iron ore mine in Australia, which has the capacity to produce 4 million tons yearly. (Photo courtesy of Hoa Phat)
Materials

Vietnam steelmaker buys Australian iron ore mine to secure supply

Hoa Phat's move comes as world's largest steelmaker China boosts production

4 June 2021
Bottles of beer move along a production line at a factory of Saigon Beer Corporation (Sabeco) in Hanoi
COVID vaccines

Vietnam brewer Sabeco aims to secure COVID vaccines for workers

Other companies expected to follow suit as government signals private purchases

3 June 2021
Morning commuters make their way to work in buses and motorcycles at an industrial park in Bac Giang, Vietnam. (File photo by Getty Images)
Interview

Vietnam's 'new COVID variant' part of existing Indian strain: WHO

Virus curbs remain key as vaccine shortage threatens companies in supply chains

3 June 2021
Vietnamese authorities have started vaccinating thousands of factory workers. (File photo by Getty Images)
Coronavirus

Vietnam vaccinates Samsung workers amid battle with COVID variant

Inoculation drive at factories comes as Hanoi struggles to control outbreaks

2 June 2021
First Gen's floating LNG terminal is expected to save time and money on construction. (Photo courtesy of First Gen)
Energy

Southeast Asia scrambles for LNG with gas fields tapping out

Philippines and Vietnam build terminals in preparation for first imports

2 June 2021
Malaysia will shut most industries through June 14 as it goes into a nationwide lockdown.
Coronavirus

Toyota and Honda shut production as Malaysia enters lockdown

Infection surges in Southeast Asia threaten global supply chains

1 June 2021
Many Vietnamese migrate as technical interns to Japan where wages are higher than in other Asian countries. (Photo by Ken Kobayashi) 
Japan immigration

Vietnamese migrant workers fall sharply amid COVID-19 pandemic

Japan, key recipient, has closed borders to foreigners since mid-January

31 May 2021
Astrid's engaging interface rewards learners for progress and encourages them to keep playing. (Source photos by Yuki Kohara)
Technology

Candy Crush-powered challenger enters Vietnam's edtech market

Learning from popular game, Sweden's Astrid faces potent rivals of its English app

31 May 2021
A health worker labels a test-sample tube during the coronavirus outbreak in Hanoi, Vietnam. The country has found a new coronavirus variant that shares characteristics from the Indian and U.K strains. 
Coronavirus

New 'Vietnam variant' threatens further havoc to supply chains

'Fight pandemic like an enemy,' PM says as country scrambles to protect factory hubs

30 May 2021
Medical workers stand outside a quarantined building in Hanoi.
29 May 2021
A TSMC plant: Taiwan and Vietnam, hailed as early victors in the battle against COVID-19, are now witnessing new outbreaks. (Photo courtesy of TSMC)
Coronavirus

Taiwan and Vietnam race to shield tech industry from COVID

Early success little comfort as vaccine drives lag behind West

29 May 2021
Vietnamese authorities blame a more infectious strain of COVID-19 first detected in India for recent outbreaks that threaten the country's key manufacturing centers in the north. (Source photo by AP) 
Coronavirus

Vietnam faces 'risk to fall behind' without vaccination: EuroCham

Hanoi sets up vaccine fund to secure doses worth $1.1 billion

28 May 2021
Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh convened an urgent online meeting with the authorities in Bac Giang and Bac Ninh on Wednesday to try to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the two provinces which are home to many manufacturers, including Samsung Electronics and Canon. (Source photos by EPA/Jiji and Reuters)
Coronavirus

Vietnam PM warns COVID-hit supply chain still at 'very high risk'

Vaccination accelerated for workers in northern production hub

27 May 2021
Hanoi-born chef Hoang Tung, center, leads the kitchen staff at the maverick high-end restaurant A by Tung. Located in the hipster-gentrifying Tan Dinh ward, Tung's restaurant exemplifies the new generation of Vietnamese chefs who are daring to reconceptualize the country's culinary traditions, with a side of their own personal histories and experiences. (Photo by Mervin Lee)
Life

A new generation of renegade Vietnamese chefs breaks through

Innovative cuisine movement is firing shots being heard all over Asia

26 May 2021
Containers are loaded onto a ship at Tien Sa port in Da Nang city, Vietnam.
Trade

US says Vietnam tires are subsidized by undervalued currency

Commerce Department also accuses South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand of dumping

25 May 2021
Southeast Asian nations get relatively large proportions of their tax revenues from corporations.
Economy

Southeast Asian nations are stepping up taxation efforts

Moves to increase revenue from companies aim to fix pandemic-ravaged state finances

23 May 2021