Legal loopholes cause loss of revenue to state coffers

 VietNamNet Bridge – Given the legal loopholes that exist in current tax laws, many have found it easy to circumvent government regulations and decisions by  ministries and agencies.

Da Nang promises fun-filled beach festival

 VietNamNet Bridge – The central city of Da Nang will host a beach festival speckled with sports, art, flash mob bikini performances, and culinary events on My Khe and Pham Van Dong beaches during April 30-May 5.

Political News Headlines 28/4

 IPU organising board meets; Prime Minister pledges to help businesses; Vietnam, Laos review border marker planting; APF committee convenes in Ha Noi

Vietnamese gymnast wins gold medal in Croatian competition

 VietNamNet Bridge – Gymnast Phan Thi Ha Thanh won a gold medal at the Grand Prix Osijek on Saturday in Croatia.

Coastal regions ravaged by flood tides

 VietNamNet Bridge – Rising sea levels caused by climate change and offshore land exploitation for building hydroelectricity plants are threatening the safety of the locals and Ba Dong Beach.

Vietnam warned its “SEZ dream” may make it suffer

 VietNamNet Bridge – While international economists have pointed out that the special economic zone (SEZ) model has failed in many countries in the world, Vietnam still vows to develop SEZs to attract more investors.

University education renovation: old wine in new bottle

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has announced a series of changes in the university entrance mechanism to be applied to the 2014-2015 academic year. However, the ministry’s efforts have not been highly appreciated.

World Cup 1998 champion wants to lead Vietnam national team

 VietNamNet Bridge – Marcel Desailly is a finalist in the race for the post of chief coach of the Vietnam national football squad, says President of the National Coaching Council, Mr. Nguyen Sy Hien.

Banks’ bad debts estimated at $14.6 billion

At the April press conference of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) on Friday, the non-performing loans of the banking sector by the end of February were announced at VND122 trillion ($5.8 billion), accounting for 3.86 percent of the total debt balance.

Vietnamese tourists exempted from entrance fees to Hoi An

 VietNamNet Bridge – On Friday, officials of Hoi An met with tourism officials to discuss ways to deal with the ongoing public furor over its recent decision to enforce an entrance fee to the ancient town.

VinaPhone on hot seat for measles video

 VietNamNet Bridge - Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked relevant bodies to clarify VinaPhone’s messages inviting its subscribers to watch a video clip about the death of an 8-year-old boy at the Hanoi-based Central Children's Hospital.

Railway official suspended for his words

 VietNamNet Bridge - On Friday, Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang suspended the Head of the Vietnam Railway Administration for his statements related to the Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway project.

Mini-plough devised to till terraced fields

 VietNamNet Bridge – A farmer in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai has invented a mini-ploughing machine for terraced fields in inaccessible areas.

Hanoi’s Liberation Day to features fireworks at 30 locations

 VietNamNet Bridge - Hanoi will organize firework displays at 30 locations from 9pm to 9:15pm on its 60th anniversary of the Liberation Day, October 10.

Social News Headlines 28/4

Vietnam’s first hiking train gets running; Without land, ethnic families remain deep in poverty; Cashier who stole gets life sentence; Worker killed by explosion at ice plant; Nation's biggest airport adds new domestic terminal section

BUSINESS IN BRIEF 28/4

 Viet Nam achieves $700m trade surplus; Vinamilk forecasts downswing in profits for 2014; Mekong Delta rice yield surges after zoning, irrigation work; HCMC to host major regional IT event

Wind industry lacks momentum

 VietNamNet Bridge – Despite the Government's push to develop wind power, Viet Nam has only three plants that use this alternative source of energy, as the country lacks experts in the field and prices remain low.

Beautiful Vietnamese ao dai in Japan anime

VietNamNet Bridge – Drawing paintings in Japanese anime style is a very popular trend in Vietnam and the world. Interestingly, Vietnam’s ao dai appear in many anime paintings.

Hanoi’s lakes from flying cameras

 VietNamNet Bridge - From a height of over 200m, Hoan Kiem Lake and West Lake look clean, green and peaceful in the bustling city.

Vietnam seething over Chinese ODA-funded project

 VietNamNet Bridge – A proposal made by the Chinese contractor in the Cat Linh-Ha Dong railway project has been denounced by experts as “illegal” and “unacceptable”.

Long holiday offers big break for tour companies

  A sharp increase in the number of people choosing different tour packages during the upcoming extended holiday next week has offered a golden opportunity to tourist companies to maximise turnover.

A paradox in human resource training

 VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam currently boasts 72,000 unemployed bachelor's and master’s degree holders, which poses something of a paradox between the real market and university training demands.

Farmers losing ground to sand mining

 VietNamNet Bridge – Farmers in a number of provinces are pleading for help as they lose arable land to sand mining operations.

Professional matchmaker sets up shop in VN

 VietNamNet Bridge – After completing her education at the Singapore Institute of Management (SIM) and Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University in Viet Nam with a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree,

China’s slowdown to impact Vietnam

 VietNamNet Bridge – Having close trade relations with China, Vietnam will undoubtedly feel the effects of its neighbor’s slowdown in economic growth.