Vietnam News – 27/7/2023

One company is trying to help former drug addicts find a new lease on life while helping reduce environmental waste at the same time. They produce environment-friendly straws and herbal tea from wild reeds with a workforce made up of a number of recovering addicts.

South China Morning Post – 6/8/2023

For more about the movement: https://sc.mp/4t0b

A new generation of Chinese are challenging the values and traditions that have been the foundation of the nation’s modern successes. Hard work, whether to build your future, beat your competitor or just get rich before you are too old, have long been core values in China. But what happens when a new generation of workers starts to question such ideas? Terms like “lying flat” and more recently “let it rot” have been used to describe a movement brewing among young Chinese who seem ready to give up when faced with challenges such as widespread unemployment and a high cost of living.

July 19, 2023 | 13:00 VIR

Economic growth has slowed in 2023 as tighter financial conditions weakened investment and consumer demand. Market adjustment to changing conditions in Vietnam has been held back by poor compliance with corporate reporting rules in both the private and public sectors.

Vietnam’s economic performance in 2022 beat expectations, lifted by strong export growth and a recovery in domestic consumption after the difficult years of the pandemic. Robust demand growth at home and abroad helped economic growth achieve 8.02 per cent for the year, second only to Malaysia in East and Southeast Asia.

Jonathan Pincus, Senior international economist United Nations Development Programme

Unfortunately, the rebound lost steam early this year. Demand in Vietnam’s main export markets weakened as central banks raised interest rates to control inflation. The Fed Funds rate – the interest rate at which the US Federal Reserve loans money to commercial banks – rose from near zero in April 2022 to 5 per cent last month, the highest in 15 years. Despite interest rate hikes, inflation has remained high around the world, even as energy prices moderated.