Million USD ships sold at dirt price

After more than a year of being abandoned, the Speedy Falcon ship of the Oil and Gas Transport Company has been sold at the price equivalent to one-sixth of the original price and cheaper than the price for scrap.

HCM City’s major discotheque stormed by hundreds of policemen

VietNamNet Bridge - Hundreds of police officers made a raid on the Diamond, a major night club in HCM City, at 1am on January 20.

Facebook's new search product not threat to Google in near term: analysts

Facebook's newly unveiled search tool has the potential to generate revenue but is unlikely to challenge the core business of Google in the near term, analysts said Wednesday. 

Exporters feel excited about widened door to Japanese market

Vietnamese enterprises have geared up to prepare to boost their exports to the Japanese market – the market which is believed to open more widely after the official visit by the newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Shares predicted to continue correction

 VietNamNet Bridge – The 13-day rally of the VN-Index finished with two declining sessions last week. On the HCM City Stock Exchange, the VN-Index slid 1.8 per cent over the previous Friday's close to 454.16 points,

SOCIETY IN BRIEF 21/1

Vice President presents Tet gifts, Thousands of young people join “Red Sunday” campaign, Customs officers bust fraud, crime case, New Year presents for AO victims

Cancer hospital opens in Da Nang

 VietNamNet Bridge – The US$71.4 million Da Nang Cancer Hospital was inaugurated on Saturday after three years of construction. VND220 billion ($10.5 million) was raised through Government bonds.

Vietnam sovereignty documents on display

 VietNamNet Bridge – An exhibition showcasing newly-discovered documents relating to Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago opened in the central city of Da Nang on January 20.

Vietnam wins championship title at “Centaur Dance Showdown 2012”

 VietNamNet Bridge – The national dance group S.I.N.E defeated six international rivals to be crowned champions of “Centaur Dance Showdown 2012” in Singapore on January 18.

Nguyen Manh Hung’s planet

 VietNamNet Bridge – ‘One Planet’ featuring new works by Nguyen Manh Hung on Thursday opened at Galerie Quynh in District 1.

Businessmen admitted to mental hospitals at the year end

VietNamNet Bridge - According to the doctors, the number of mental patients for economic reasons rose highly in 2012, especially at the end of the year. Many patients used to be big bosses and famous businessmen.

Foreigners collect rubbish in Ha Long Bay

On January 16, 120 international and Vietnamese volunteers collected garbage in fishing villages and the coast of Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh Province. This is part of the campaign to protect the environment of the world's natural heritage.

District Chair apologizes to the people for breaking law on land revoke

On January 20, in the presence of hundreds of people and leaders of Quang Ngai province, Mr. Pham Vinh, Chair of Son Tinh District apologized to Mr. Do Huu Tri’s family for making a wrong decision on land revocation.

No more measures for Greece if reforms carried out: Lagarde

 No additional measures would be necessary for Greece if it carries out the reforms under its bailout programme, IMF chief Christine Lagarde said in an interview with the Sunday edition of Kathimerini.

Tran Duc Quy brings aliens into exhibition

VietNamNet Bridge - After the success of the series of installation works with the theme “Life Portrait,” this time artist Tran Duc Quy continues to make the audience astonished by the strange creatures in his exhibition.

Park boss offers $5mil. reward for anyone who proves his wife’s debts

The owner of the Dai Nam Tourist Area has offered VND100 billion ($5 million) of reward for anyone who can prove that his wife mortgaged his property for loans.

Tragicomedy about student-mothers

After several times of having sex without being pregnant, Cam was sure that she was infertile. Until her stomach grew up, she still thought that she suffered from flatulence...

Netizens support transgender teacher in Binh Phuoc

VietNamNet Bridge - An online society entitled "Advocates for teacher Pham Le Quynh Tram" has been set up to appeal to supporters for Quynh Tram, as well as against the proposal to cancel the decision to recognize her female sex.

Transport Minister to punish bad road builders

VietNamNet Bridge - "Quality is the honor of the transport sector. We have to feel shame when we see bad roads. Those who built bad roads must be seriously handled," Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang emphasized.

US scientists find evidence of ancient Martian lake

 A US spacecraft orbiting Mars has provided evidence of an ancient crater lake fed by groundwater, adding further support to theories that the Red Planet may once have hosted life, NASA said Sunday.

US probe of Boeing fire finds battery did not overheat

 The US agency in charge of transportation safety on Sunday said a fire sparked after a Boeing 787 Dreamliner landed in Boston was not caused by an overcharged battery.

BUSINESS IN BRIEF 21/1

US$200 mln invested in Khanh Hoa’s luxury tourism; State budget for HCMC transport sector falls sharply; Banks’ earning profiles change much; SSC to develop new investment funds; Demand for IT manpower outnumbers supply

MOET too deeply intervenes in schools’ business?

The Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has imposed its will on schools when requesting the schools to stop enrolling students for economics training majors.

The door to Japanese software market opens more widely

Vietnam has become the priority choice for Japanese partners when they look for the reliable partners to outsource software products. However, they keep worries about the lack of faithfulness of the workers of small software firms.

It’ll take 10 years to treat HVS’ nix particles

It will take Khanh Hoa province at least 10 years to treat the “mountain” of one ton of nix particles – the waste from the Hyundai – Vinashin (HVS) shipyard.