Chief negotiators of the 11 remaining countries of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement began two-day talks in Tokyo, Japan on September 21 to discuss changes and freezes to parts of the deal following the withdrawal of the US earlier this year.
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At the meeting, Japanese chief negotiator Kazuyoshi Umemoto expressed his hope that the countries would take a big step forward towards the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders’ Meeting scheduled for November in Vietnam.
He reaffirmed the significance of establishing a free and multilateral trade system based on high-standard rules in the Asia-Pacific which really fits the 21st century.
“It is also important to continue to pursue the possibility of the US coming back to this framework and for that purpose it’s very important to implement the TPP as early as possible”, he added.
The talks are expected to cover proposals such as a clause to preserve copyrights and trademarks for 70 years after the creators die and a clause that calls TPP members to open public procurement, allowing foreign companies to join bids.
Another issue that needs to be addressed is a clause stating that the TPP can only come into force after six economies, accounting for 85% or more of the original 12 signatories’ combined gross domestic product, complete domestic procedures. So far, just Japan and New Zealand have ratified the deal.
As the United States alone represents more than 60% of the initial members’ GDP, it is impossible for the pact to come into effect under the current terms.
The TPP was inked in February 2016 by Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam, covering around 40% of the global economy.
Right after taking office in January 2017, US President Donald Trump announced the country was pulling out the pact as it hurts US jobs and he prefers bilateral trade negotiations.
Currently, Japan is the largest economy among the remaining negotiators. Tokyo wishes to reach an agreement among the countries to maintain the pact which had taken long time of negotiations before it was inked in February 2016.
However, it is possible that some countries can call for re-negotiations on import and export tariffs.
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The annual event, which will be held on August 18-19, 2026, at the ICE International Exhibition Centre, 91 Tran Hung Dao Street, Hanoi, is expected to attract around 324 delegates and feature 21 booths representing credit institutions, payment intermediary service providers, and technology companies.
Vietnam should give priority to areas where it has potential to build strengths, particularly manufacturing and packaging.
Vietnam has built a solid semiconductor and electronics industry before joining ITSI, attracting major US semiconductor companies. Intel Products Vietnam is one of Intel's largest assembly and testing facilities worldwide, while chip design companies such as Synopsys, Cadence, Marvell and Qualcomm have established engineering and research centres in the Southeast Asian country.
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Durian exports reached nearly 1.1 billion USD in the first six months of 2026, up 32% year-on-year. The industry's strongest export season, however, is still ahead.
The country's agro-forestry-aquatic product exports reached nearly 42.8 billion USD in the January–July period, up 7.5% year-on-year and equivalent to almost 60% of the annual target of 74 billion USD.
During the first seven months of 2026, Vietnam attracted more than 38 billion USD in registered FDI, up nearly 58% year-on-year. More importantly, the increase was driven by large-scale, high-tech projects rather than a surge in the number of new investments, signalling a significant improvement in the quality of capital inflows.
Manufacturing and engineering posted the strongest recruitment growth, with hiring demand surging 70% year-on-year, driven by production expansion, supply chain restructuring and sustained investment inflows in high-tech manufacturing.
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Household deposits at banks reached a new high of 10.8 quadrillion VND (414 billion USD) at the end of May, up more than 108 trillion VND from April and increasing by 4.76% from the beginning of the year, equivalent to nearly 492 trillion VND.
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Under the province's master plan for 2021–2030 with a vision to 2050, An Giang will prioritise investment in five strategic sectors: strategic infrastructure; processing industries and clean energy; trade, services, logistics and border-gate economy; high-quality tourism; and high-tech agriculture, ecological development and the circular economy.
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