VietNamNet Bridge – A set of musical instruments made from coconut shell by two artisans was recognized as a national record at the Coconut Festival, which closed on April 11 in Ben Tre province.

The decision to lower the interest rate to 12 percent in early April still surprised observers.

The Nigerian government on Thursday said about 70,000 newly born babies in the West African country are HIV positive.

The State Securities Commission (SSC) has kicked off a campaign of “health general examination and inspection” over securities companies. The companies to be dislodged from the market would show their faces in some more days.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will consider promoting the Trang An eco-tourism complex in the northern province of Ninh Binh on the well-known global TV network CNN in the coming time.

Raymond Aubrac, one of the leading figures of the French resistance during the Second World War and a long-time friend of Vietnam, passed away in Paris on April 10 aged 97.

Vietnam and Cuba issued a joint statement at the end of Vietnamese Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s official visit to Cuba from April 8-12.

Vietinbank sells off loads of shares; Tourism revenue hit nearly US$2 billion in Q1; Firm announces plans to delist in capital; Bank offers free services to help firms; Vietnam Airlines aims to expand fleet; Vietnam Airlines aims to expand fleet

VietNamNet Bridge – To escape Ha Noi's summer heat, I imagine that many people are like me and think about the thick green forest and high mountains of Cao Bang Province, 300km north of the capital.

China's economy expanded 8.1 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2012, slowing from 8.9 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Friday.

The failed satellite launch by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea early Friday has prompted international concerns, with Washington and Seoul condemning the act as a violation of UN resolutions and a threat to regional stability.

Switzerland casts plaques of Ha Long Bay in bronze; Applicants invited to take part in Miss Sport Viet Nam; By smoking on catwalk, model raises debate; France remains important partner of Hue Festival; The Cold Room at  Zero Station

VietNamNet Bridge – The Government has issued a decree to raise the common minimum wage rate from the current VND830,000 to VND1.05 million (US$50.45) per month, an increase of 25 percent, from May 1, 2012.

VietNamNet Bridge – Science and technology have significantly contributed to promoting the restructuring and growth of the national economy and the rising value of high-tech products will account for 45 percent of GDP by 2020.

 French cruise ship visits Viet Nam; Cheap holiday tours snapped up; Country seeks to attract Russians; Tourism Day fest promotes local trips

VietNamNet Bridge – With only a few weeks remaining before the London Olympic organisers announce the final list of participants, Vietnamese athletes are hastening to pick up the last tickets.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) said it has not received any applications for making outward investments from the Vietnamese businessman Pham Dinh Nguyen, who won the bid to buy the US smallest town Bufford.

VietNamNet Bridge – Viet Nam's ministries and sectors simplified more than 2,800 administrative procedures in the first quarter,

VietNamNet Bridge - Tuyet Loan, 62, who is called "Vietnam's Jazz Queen," had an impromptus show with American band--Mary McBride, in HCM City on April 11.

VietNamNet Bridge – A drum festival titled “Sound of Vietnamese Spirit” took place at Nghinh Luong Dinh, on the bank of Huong River, Hue City on the evening of April 10.