Johnson & Johnson has been ordered to pay $4.7bn (£3.6bn) in damages to 22 women who alleged that its talc products caused them to develop ovarian cancer.

 The Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee on July 12 issued a warning as a disciplinary measure against Truong Minh Tuan, member of the Party Central Committee.

 An explosion at an industrial park in China's Sichuan province has left 19 people dead and 12 others injured, officials say.

 One of the British divers who helped to save 12 boys and their football coach from a flooded cave in Thailand has insisted he was not a hero.

 VietNamNet Bridge – HCM City is facing ongoing issues from agro-product waste at its wholesale markets and has yet to come up with a solution, reported Nong thon Ngay nay (Countryside Today) newspaper.

Ha Anh Tuan, Director of the Centre for Policy Analysis under the Institute for Bien Dong Maritime Studies, writes to Viet Nam News on the legal implications of the arbitral tribunal’s ruling and its impacts two years on.

HCM City’s People’s Committee has asked the Prime Minister and relevant agencies to approve an extension of the second phase of its environmental sanitation project to 2030 as a foreign contractor has yet to be selected.

Vietnam’s trade activities still have not been affected significantly by the recent trade tension between the US and China because taxed goods are mostly certain types of  high-technology products. 

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has rejected a proposed location for dumping waste from dredging activities around the sea in the central province of Nghe An. 

 Many businesses in Binh Thuan said they face difficulties and called on provincial authorities to resolve them.

Inspectors of the Transport Ministry will verify nearly 100 job appointments and promotions at the State-owned Airport Corporation of Viet Nam (ACV) to see if the head of the corporation abused his power.

Given the boom in the number of Chinese tourists in HCM City, authorities have been urged to take preventive measures against the so-called “zero-dong” tours that cater to these tourists and adversely affect tourism revenue.

Young dancer and choreographer Hai Anh and her colleagues in HCM City are working to prepare for her performance at the 8th International Dancers & Choreographers’ Residency Festival in Singapore next month.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Ha Tinh Museum has announced the discovery of four pottery items created some 800 years ago at a location in Nghi Xuan District, central province of Ha Tinh.

The Vuon Chuoi archaeological site, though the most important and largest relic complex of the pre-Dong Son and Dong Son Cultures (700 BC - AD 100) in Vietnamese history, has long been on the brink of being wiped out.

 VietNamNet Bridge – In no surprise to anyone, infrastructure projects across Hanoi are lagging behind schedule.

 Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, new Head of Vietnam’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations, presented his credentials to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in New York on July 12.

 Vietnamese striker Le Cong Vinh has been named one of the seven best strikers in the history of the AFF Suzuki Cup, according to the tournament’s official website.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Images of houses and old apartment buildings with windows and balconies closed in with steel cages have been popular to Hanoians for many years.

A senior official of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) on July 4 told Thoi Bao Kinh Te Vietnam that commercial banks had not registered to buy dollars at preferential prices from SBV.

 Vietnam culture authorities have removed the ban on under-18 visitors from attending the first nude photo in Hanoi.

 Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue has reprimanded the Ministry of Transport for allowing higher fares to be applied to railway, air and bus services, resulting in the high consumer price index (CPI) last month.

 The southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau will organise a Sea Festival.

 Many people in Nghia Ky Commune, Quang Ngai Province, have blocked rubbish trucks from entering the waste treatment plant due to the unsanitary nature of the site.

 Two publications giving instructions on caring for rescued moon and sun bears, as well as guidance to plant herbal alternatives to bear bile were launched at a ceremony on July 10.