July 16- The Vietnamese Commerce and Information Technology are making the final preparations for the launch of a portal for foreign markets on September 1st.

The new portal also aims to attract local business.

In addition, there will be versions of the Vietnam export portal in English and other foreign languages that will showcase Vietnamese enterprises and products.

July 10 - Russia's second largest mobile phone operator Vimpelcom is investing almost US$270 million in a joint venture with Vietnam's Global telecommunications Corporation.

Vimpelcom announced Tuesday it had secured a 40 percent stake in the GTEL-Mobile venture and will start providing services in Vietnam next summer.

July 7 - Work has begun on what will be Vietnam's largest steel plant, part of a US$7.9 billion complex that will include a deep-sea port, Thanh Nien reported Monday.

The complex, located in central Ha Tinh province and run by Taiwan-based Formosa Heavy Industries Corp., will be Vietnam’s largest steel production facility when it is completed, with an expected annual capacity of 7.5 million tons.

The plant is expected to take four years to complete and cost an estimated US$7.87 billion. The project is the largest foreign direct investment Vietnam has seen and when completed, will employ around 10,000 locals.

June 12 - Vietnam will soon have its very first casino at the Ho Tram Strip resort in southern Vietnam. To be constructed at a cost of US$4.2 billion, the casino which will only be accessible to foreigners, is one of the largest investments in Vietnam's tourism infrastructure. The builders, Canadian-based Asian Coast Development, say that the casino will be part of a resort which will have two five star hotels.

Vietnam has become the most popular destination for the hospitality industry in south east Asia, as it offers the same climate and low cost conditions as neighboring Thailand or Indonesia, but is not yet saturated. This has spurred an impressive volume of infrastructure development and construction activities to cater to the country's newfound source of income.

June 4 - Vietnam emerged as the most attractive emerging market destination for retail investment  in the seventh annual Global Retail Development Index (GRDI), a study of retail investment attractiveness among 30 emerging markets conducted by management consulting firm A.T. Kearney.

Vietnam's leap to first place in the 2008 GRDI from fourth place in 2007 was driven by strong GDP growth, changes to the country's regulatory structure favouring foreign investors and increasing consumer demand for modern retail concepts, the report said.

The report states that while Vietnam's US$20 billion retail market pales in comparison to India or China, the absence of competition and 8 percent GDP growth, make it an attractive expansion opportunity for global retailers.

May 9 – The U.S. Department of Commerce has cleared Vietnam from apparel import dumping citing insufficient evidence to warrant an investigation. The agency studied 12 months of apparel import data beginning from Vietnam’s entry into the World Trade Organization in 2007.

The move is part of U.S. efforts to prevent dumping practices wherein a product sold in the importing country is less than the price of that product in the market of the exporting country.

“Our department will continue our commitment to examine imports from Vietnam to ensure that apparel is not dumped into the U.S. market, threatening American manufacturers’ competitiveness,” said Assistant Commerce Secretary David Spooner in a press release.

May 8 - Vietnam is considering lowering corporate income taxes from 28 percent to 25 percent.

A proposed corporate tax cut would help lure more foreign investors to Vietnam without lowering government tax revenues, said several National Assembly representatives Wednesday.

Lawmakers focused on a proposed amendment to 1997’s Corporate Income Tax Law at the National Assembly on Wednesday that would cut corporate income taxes by three percent.

May 5 - Although America is in a de facto recession, sending both trade and stocks into a slump from Germany to Jakarta, international businesses seem as eager as ever to pour investment capital into Vietnam.

No doubt some of the influx comes courtesy of ongoing government efforts to accelerate FDI disbursements. The government hopes to attract US$22 billion in FDI for 2008, and disburse more than $10 billion. With $8 billion of FDI in the first four months of this year alone, Vietnam seems well on its way to hitting its 2008 target.

Recent FDI projects are representative of the breadth and scope of international business that sees Vietnam as a profitable frontier for international expansion.

UK real estate investors Protego will have a fund worth some half billion U.S. dollars established in Vietnam by late June. The fund will focus on upscale apartments, luxury estates, and branded resorts in suburban and coastal areas of Vietnam. Domestic developer Qudos Asia and HBP Group will partner on the massive project.

April 24 - Some of Vietnam’s hottest sectors – banking, finance, and hi-tech, are struggling to find enough talent capable to keep up with the economy’s runaway growth.

Banks increase their capital, network, and number of branches at every opportunity. One mid-size bank wants to increase its staff of 3500 by more than 50 percent this year. A spate of new securities firms seeking to capitalize on recent stock regulations have sent demand for skilled financiers soaring. And Ho Chi Minh City’s Hi-Tech park needs more than 14,000 new workers by 2009.

Despite increased salaries and attractive bonuses, the industry is still facing HR shortages, for the simple reason that there just aren’t enough Vietnamese with the right skills.

April 22 - Vietnam is considering opening the country to overseas fund management companies in accordance to its accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2007.According to the finance ministry, the proposal is has already been sent to the Prime Minister for approval that will allow investors to establish 100 percent foreign-owned fund management companies.

The move hopes to entice foreign investment and improve the economy. The proposal calls for investment firms managing securities worth at least US$300 million and have a minimum registered capital of $500 million.
The draft specified that only when WTO commitments are met that fund management companies will be allowed to handle money raised outside the country.

Presently, foreign fund management companies are required to operate only with a local partner. There are 31 such companies existing in the country today along with Vietnamese investment managers.