Hoàng Trọng Thủy, an agriculture expert, talks to the newspaper Kinh tế & Đô thị (Economic and Urban Affairs), on the important role of agriculture in national socio-economic development

Like many other countries across the world, Vietnam has been badly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, experts still forecast a positive prospect for the Vietnamese economy after the pandemic is stamped out.

For many economies, 5G innovation promises an opportunity to scale the economic ladder in a technological arena that will undergird the connectivity-based and data-driven Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). But for major powers, 5G innovation is an emerging battlefield for technological, economic and military domination. For all its economic promise, this next-generation technology has the potential to be a nightmare in the making for ASEAN — an organisation that lists choosing sides between major powers as one of its most prominent concerns.

The European Union has announced that it is mobilizing €350 million (US$ 378 million) to assist Southeast Asian countries in the battle against COVID-19.

Thailand loses duty free access for 42.2 billion baht in exports to the US market from today, 6 months after Washington warned it would pull back on trade privileges unless the kingdom committed to labour rights reforms. Once trade preferences for Thai products are removed they are subject to tax of between 4% and 5%, making them more expensive in the lucrative US market.

Volatility in global supply chains following COVID-19 is both a challenge and an opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to make inroads into the global supply of Halal products, a workshop in Hanoi on April 28 heard.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on Friday said he has notified Congress that the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement will take effect on July 1, a month later than initially proposed.

Vietnam flattened its coronavirus infection curve with a sledgehammer, and after some early success, it’s now starting to open up its economy again.

Vietnam’s digital economy is anticipated to rapidly grow to the point where it makes up approximately 20% of national GDP by 2025, with the figure expected to rise further to 30% by 2030 ​

Key export commodities, such as shrimp and pangasius, are forecast to be prosperous in terms ofexports in the near future, contributing to increasing fisheries export turnover after the pandemic.