The food and gas price increases have prompted poor people save money by using low cost fuel, including scraps of fabric, nylon, or leather. Though they can cut down the spending with the initiative, their health has been seriously damaged.

Every square meter of land in the areas is priced at billions of dong, which is equal to the price of an apartment in new urban areas.

VietNamNet Bridge – A lot of well-known US ice cream brands have jumped into Vietnam, or they are considering penetrating the market.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) is considering laying down a new policy, forcing groupon websites to pay a deposit and take insurance policies in order to protect consumers’ rights.

The Competition Administration Department (CAD), an arm of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT), which conducted a survey on 10 business fields, has found out that oligopoly exists in six of them.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam recorded a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of 5.03 percent in 2012, announced the General Statistics Office (GSO) in a press briefing in Hanoi on December 24.

ADB grants $251m loans to Viet Nam; HCM City districts call for delayed projects to be cancelled; Agro-forestry and aquatic exports earn US$27.5 billion; Foreign direct investment pledges go down

Senior managers of Ethanol Plant absconding, leave huge debts;  Mekong Delta flower business blooms; Slight December CPI increase in major cities; Big banks and groups to be audited next year; New ATM fees to burden cardholders

It is highly possible that the State Bank would slash the deposit interest rate further--by one percent, to make it easier for businesses to access bank loans. However, economists have warned that this would do more harm than good.

Assoc. wants furniture quality higher to safeguard consumers; Conditional cashew export seen hitting small traders; Vietnam’s bond market grows the fastest in East Asia; Small apartments still built; SOEs going unchecked