ASEAN community festival celebrates with films and photos

 VietNamNet Bridge – A festival of photos and documentaries on the ASEAN peoples will be organised in December following the success of previous events in 2010 and 2013.

BUSINESS IN BRIEF 18/7

Farmers gain lower profit in H1, VND18 trillion raised in treasury bill sale, High-end apartments by West Lake attractive to customers, Many machines sold at MTA Vietnam 2015, Bosch joins hands with International University

Credit Suisse sells 5 million shares of Hoang Anh Gia Lai

 VietNamNet Bridge – On July 6-9, Credit Suisse sold 5 million shares of Hoang Anh Gia Lai JSC (HAGL). But this organization does not currently have any representative at HAGL.

Newly-passed laws, ordinances, resolutions announced

 The State President’s Office announced 11 laws, an ordinance and a resolution which were passed at the 9th session of the 13th National Assembly at a press conference held in Hanoi on July 17.

Man City add friendly in Hanoi to pre-season tour

 Vietnamese football fans will have a chance to see with their own eyes the stars of Manchester City as they face the Vietnamese National Team in a friendly match on July 27 to be played at My Dinh National Stadium.

Sub-committees set up to prepare for APEC 2017

  A national committee has been set up to co-ordinate the organisation of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum to be hosted by Viet Nam in 2017.

$1.74 million fine for environmental administrative violations

 Nearly 544 organisations and individuals were fined VND38 billion (US$1.74 million) in 1,183 environmental administrative inspections conducted in the first six months of this year.

Australia, VN jointly organise vocational training course

 About 47 managers from different vocational schools in Viet Nam are planning to apply their management skills after finishing a short-term training course in Australia.

Fire destroys 1,000sq.m of wood workshops in Hanoi

 A fire has destroyed 1,000sq.m of three wood workshops in an industrial complex in Dan Phuong District, the capital Ha Noi City.

JW Marriott Hanoi to host Oktoberfest

 Hotel and German Business Association to bring iconic German festival to Hanoi this year.

Care to be taken in MobiFone equitization

The equitization of MobiFone is not just a task for the company but also a central task of the Ministry of Information and Communications, Minister Nguyen Bac Son told a conference on July 15.

TPP negotiations entering final stage: Minister

 The general consensus seems to be that negotiations over the TPP will conclude sooner rather than later.

HCM City encourages multi-story factories

VietNamNet Bridge - The enterprises that build multi-story workshops for lease can access preferential bank loans under a city stimulus program.

Google's quarterly revenue and profits rise

 Google's profits rose 17% to $3.93bn in the three months to June from the quarter last year, boosted by an 11% rise in revenues to $17.7bn.

Foreign ownership law lifts securities market

 VietNamNet Bridge – The securities market in HCM City has seen positive changes since the issuance of Government Decree 60/2015 which would permit a higher rate of foreign ownership in domestic public companies.

New law to reform vocational training

 VietNamNet Bridge – The new Law on Occupational Education that took effect early this month can reduce the gap between workers' skills and employers' needs,

Illegal gold mining pollutes environment in Cao Bang

 VietNamNet Bridge – Illegal gold mining along the Hien River section flowing through Thach An and Nguyen Binh districts in Cao Bang Province has severely polluted the local environment over the last month.

The US billionaire who pours money into Vietnam’s garment industry

 VietNamNet Bridge - In the eyes of Wilbur L. Ross, the 200th richest American, Vietnam is an interesting destination for investment from the US.

Chattanooga shootings: Four Marines killed at Tennessee US Navy centres

 A gunman has killed four US Marines and injured several others at two US Navy buildings in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Five highlights of Toyota V-League 1-2015 Round 16

 VietNamNet Bridge – The 16th round of the 2015 V-League concluded on Wednesday, seeing FLC Thanh Hoa end Becamex Binh Duong’s long-lasting reign atop the table. Let’s review some of the biggest talking points in this round of play.

VNPT, Viettel ready for pilot IPv6 services

 The Viet Nam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) and the Viettel Group are set to implement a pilot project to move from Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) to IPv6.

Investors in convenience stores have mixed success

VietNamNet Bridge - Convenience stores look to be a very profitable business, but many investors have not had great success.

Vietnam, India promote defence training cooperation

The Telecommunications University under the Signal Corps worked with Indian Defence Attaché Colonel Paranvir Singh Punia in Vietnam on July 16 to discuss ways to accelerate the implementation of defence cooperation programmes.

Social News 17/7

 HCM City former market supervisor receives 13-year jail sentence, Fishermen involved in accident in Spratly waters rescued, Embassy in Malaysia supports crewmen exposed to poisonous gas, Korean marriage support project kicks off 

Photos: Eight newly discovered islands in Vietnam

 VietNamNet Bridge – With wild beauty, the islands of Hon Son, Hai Tac or Phu Quy have become new favorite destinations of many tourists.