What you need to know today in Vietnam:

Politics

-- The Embassy of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in Hanoi hosted a banquet on Thursday evening to commemorate the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and North Korea (January 31, 1950 – 2025).

Society

-- A strong cold spell will begin affecting and dominating northern and central Vietnam from Friday, while the weather in the south remains largely unchanged.

-- After failing to meet the restaurant owner on Wednesday afternoon, an interagency inspection team from the Nha Trang City People's Committee returned on Thursday evening to work with the owner of Aroma Beach in Nha Trang following allegations of overcharging tourists.

Business

-- During the 2025 Lunar New Year festival, tourism activities in Ho Chi Minh City showed positive signs, with revenue increasing 17.4 percent year over year to reach VND7.69 trillion (US$304 million).

-- The purchase price of coffee in the Central Highlands has reached VND131,500 ($5.2) per kilogram. According to businesses, prolonged concerns over supply shortages in Brazil and Vietnam are the primary factors keeping prices high.

-- The U.S. automotive website Autoblog has listed the electric vehicle models set to hit the market in 2025. Notably, the lineup includes VinFast's VF 6 and VF 7, with a starting price of around $30,000.

-- India's reopening of rice exports, along with increased self-sufficiency in some countries, has driven down the price of Vietnamese export rice from over $620 per tonne to $441 per tonne.

World News

-- "An Australian state lawmaker has changed his name to 'Aussie Trump,' in what he said was a protest against the country's ruling centre-left Labor Party," Reuters reported.

-- The United Nations World Food Program urged the international community and 'all donors' Thursday to help feed millions of Gazans and rebuild the war-ravaged Palestinian territory, according to AFP.

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