Japan to grant e-visa for Vietnamese group tour from November 1

Singer Dong Nhi's family explores Japanese culture. Photo: JNTO

The Embassy of Japan in Hanoi and the Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City will issue e-visas for Vietnamese tourist groups through designated travel agencies starting November 1, as announced on the embassy's website. Japanese consular offices will still carry out the traditional visa issuance process as usual, and the visa will remain valid.

The e-visa will be issued to Vietnamese passport holders residing in Vietnam who apply for a short-term, single-entry tourist visa with a validity of 15 days.

Cultural and artistic exchanges praise Vietnam-Laos friendship

The cultural and artistic program celebrating the remarkable friendship between Vietnam and Laos, held on October 29, attracted many Lao officials, students and the Vietnamese community in Vientiane.

The program praised President Ho Chi Minh and the importance of the special relationship between Vietnam and Laos, thus strengthening the bond between the overseas Vietnamese community and the motherland and continuing to nurture the eternal, vibrant and sustainable relationship between Vietnam and Laos.

Deputy PM inaugurates Thi Vai LNG storage facility

On October 29, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang inaugurated the Thi Vai Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Warehouse, a key national project in the southern province of Ba Ria - Vung Tau with a total investment of VND6.5 trillion (US$266.3 million).

The LNG storage facility, invested by PetroVietnam Gas JSC (PV Gas), has a storage capacity of 180,000 cubic meters and an average gas throughput of one million tons of LNG per year. The storage project's Phase 2 will soon be implemented to increase throughput to three million tons per year.

Eight cooperation agreements signed at VIDEX 2023

At the closing ceremony of the Vietnam-Cambodia Defense Economic Production Exhibition 2023 (VIDEX 2023) held last week in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh, eight cooperation agreements and memoranda of understanding were signed between Vietnamese and Cambodian enterprises.

The event featured more than 50 business matching sessions and technology and trade links between Vietnam and Cambodia, both on-site and online, attracting more than 200 Vietnamese and Cambodian enterprises.

Exhibition and photo book of late photographer Hoang Thach Van on display in HCMC

The late photographer Hoang Thach Van's work "Bustling Haverst Season".

The opening ceremony of the exhibition and the launch of the photo book "Rural Painting" by the late photographer Hoang Thach Van was held on October 29 in Ho Chi Minh City as a tribute to his dedication to photography in the southern region and nationwide.

The exhibition showcases 65 artistic photographs in the genre of street life, selected from the collection Van diligently built over the past 30 years. The event will run until November 4 at the Ho Chi Minh City Photography Association, located at 122 Suong Nguyet Anh Street, District 1.

Total retail sales of consumer goods and services up 9.4% in 10 months

Total retail sales of consumer goods and services increased by 9.4% year-on-year in the first 10 months of 2023, according to the General Statistics Office. Trade and service activities were reported to be quite buoyant in October. Accommodation and food services grew by 15%, while sales of travel and tour services increased by 47.6% from January to October.

130,000 new businesses registered in Vietnam in 10 months

The number of newly established enterprises in the first 10 months exceeded 130,000, with registered capital of more than VND1.2 trillion ($49.2 billion), an increase of 4.7% over the same period last year, according to the General Statistics Office.