Indonesian airline Garuda said Friday that it's canceling a multibillion-dollar order for Boeing's 737 Max 8 passenger jet after the plane was involved in two deadly crashes in less than five months.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Stood erect in a valley some 50km from Hanoi are three sculptures made from concrete that resemble three giant penises.

 Besides high import duties, completely-built-up (CBU) automobiles imported from Europe are also subject to strict requirements in Vietnam, leading to the shrinking of the market share of European CBU automobiles.

 The British Council in Vietnam has provided 17 officers of the Vietnamese People’s Army with an Academic English and IELTS preparation course, which is part of a training program funded by the UK Ministry of Defence.

 Japanese fingerstyle guitarist Satoshi Gogo, who was the special guest in the Vietnam tour 2018 of Korean guitar prodigy Sungha Jung, will perform in Hanoi, Danang and HCMC early next month.

PVN noted in a statement today, March 21, that a participation bonus in the oil and gas sector it paid to Venezuela was not “commission money” but was in fact an amount of money a contractor must pay the host country when signing contracts.

The Ministry of Finance has proposed PVN focus on expediting the divestment of domestic enterprises operating in sensitive business fields such as real estate, investment funds, securities and insurance, VietnamPlus news site reported.

 The Ministry of Transport on March 21 asked the Government for approval to use VND4.2 trillion (US$181 million) to upgrade runways at Noi Bai and Tan Son Nhat Airports.

 The Ministry of Health on March 21 requested the Bac Ninh government to direct the provincial Department of Health and local medical centers to stop conducting porcine tapeworm tests on children, the local media reported.

 Vietnam’s local currency (LCY) bonds outstanding stood at VND1,180.5 trillion (US$51 billion) at the end of December, down 5.3% quarter-on-quarter, but up 9.3% year-on-year, according to ADB’s latest report of the quarterly Asia Bond Monitor. 

The trimming off of 34 administrative procedures in Hanoi`s industry and trade has translated into the reduction of 116 working days, saving about VND2.4 billion (US$103,200).

 Given rapid urbanization, Vietnam is facing a series of problems that require large efforts to address, and “Cities for People” by award-winning Danish architect Jan Gehl would finally serve citizens in such cityscapes.

 Director of the Hanoi Department of Information and Communications Nguyen Ngoc Ky stressed that Hanoi’s 5G network testing is considered a basis to promote the capital’s e-government infrastructure.

 The gap between productivity level of Vietnam and regional peers has widened, placing growing pressure for Vietnam to catch up with those in the region, according to Vu Tien Loc, VCCI chairman.

Competent agencies must be aware of the qualifications of state personnel before the 13th National Congress, which is slated for 2021, Secretary General of the Communist Party of Vietnam and President Nguyen Phu Trong has said. 

Global private equity firm Warburg Pincus is said to be looking at acquiring Vietnam-based resort The Grand Ho Tram, DealstreetAsia reported.

 South Korea’s conglomerate SK Group, through its investment arm SK South East Asia Investment, has decided to invest US$1 billion acquiring shares of Vietnam’s leading privately run conglomerate Vingroup, according to Bloomberg. 

 Hanoi's Department of Tourism on March 22 organized a ceremony at the Temple of Literature to launch the volunteer team to support Thang Long – Hanoi tourism in 2019.

 Minister of Information and Communication (MIC) Nguyen Manh Hung highlighted the role of 5G – the next generation of wireless technology – as the pillar of the digital economy at the ASEAN Conference on 5G in Hanoi on March 21.

 A school in the remote area of Thanh Hoa Province is still seeing a high number of drop-outs and teenage mothers among students from low-income families.

 A group of Canadian visitors have called on people to gather litter on a beach in Binh Dinh Province’s Quy Nhon City.

 The annual Danang International Fireworks Festival will be cut in half from two months to one this year according to local authorities.

 Another cold snap is forecasted to hit the northern region from March 23.

 Vietnamese start-up Momo was recently ranked as the 10th most well-funded tech start-up in the Asia-Pacific region by global information services firm CBInsights.

 Vietnamese businesses have been urged to embrace digital transformation to remain competitive and enhance their value.