Read what’s in the news today, January 30!

Politics

-- Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Tuesday held separate meetings with the ambassadors of Chile and Canada in Hanoi to promote trade and investment ties between Vietnam and the two countries.

-- Officials from the Cambodian provinces of Svay Rieng and Pray Veng visited Vietnam’s Long An Province in the Mekong Delta on Tuesday to extend their Lunar New Year greetings to the administration and people of Long An ahead of the upcoming Tet holiday.

-- Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security and the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office of South Korea on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the prevention and combat of cross-border crimes as Minister To Lam and Prosecutor General Moon Moo-il held talks in Hanoi.

Society

-- Representatives from the Vietnamese Embassy in Malaysia on Tuesday visited Doan Thi Huong, a suspect in the February 2017 murder of North Korean national Kim Jong-nam who is detained in the state of Selangor – to inform her about the upcoming trial and encourage her to keep hold of her health and stay optimistic.

-- Jail terms of 30-42 months have been sought for two former deputy ministers of Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security, Tran Viet Tan and Bui Van Thanh, who are being tried in Hanoi for “lack of responsibility” in a case of mishandling public land linked to Da Nang business tycoon Phan Van Anh Vu.

Business

-- Hanoi needs to take a different approach in order to attract and effectively use foreign direct investment (FDI), given new opportunities and challenges that are expected to pop up in the next decade, Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue said at a working session with municipal leaders on Tuesday.

-- Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has approved a plan to implement the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which was ratified by the country’s lawmaking National Assembly in November 2018, and required government bodies at all levels to spread information on CPTPP among groups likely to be affected by the deal, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises.

-- Foreign direct investment flow to Vietnam witnessed a significant yearly increase of 52 percent to top US$9 billion in the first month of 2018, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, as Japan’s FDI disbursement also rose 9.3 percent year-on-year to $1.55 billion.

-- Vietnam’s consumer price index (CPI) in January rose 0.1 percent over the previous month and increased 2.56 percent year on year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO), which noted that the figure is optimistic considering it being the month before the Lunar New Year festival, when consumer prices typically hike in Vietnam.

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