VietNamNet Bridge - A report of the State Bank showed that the bad debt of the entire banking system had dropped from 10.08 percent in 2016 to 6.7 percent by the end of June 2018.

 Fake discounts, which are occassionally applied by Lazada and other e-commerce platforms, may occur again on the Single Day promotion season this year.

VietNamNet Bridge - Lesser known and new smartphone brands have been making every effort to increase their presence in Vietnam. However, analysts believe they are not strong enough to change the market.

Vietnam’s ratification of the CPTPP is expected to boost the country’s labor reforms, according to a statement released on November 12 by the International Labor Organization.

VietNamNet Bridge - Environmental protection organizations have suggested that local authorities be responsible for controlling and stopping wildlife consumption in their localities. 

 Property services company Savills Vietnam believes that growing foreign direct investment and moving up in the value chain mean Vietnam’s industrial real estate sector has a bright future.

 The Ministry of Transport estimated that the total capital for developing the transport infrastructure in the country for 2018-2023 is estimated at roughly (US$48 billion).

 Vietnam is home to Asia’s most astonishing subterranean system.

 Vietnam exported a record high of nearly 1.8 million tonnes of coffee during the 2017-2018 crop, 12.7 percent higher than the previous one, the Vietnam Coffee-Cocoa Association (VICOFA) has said.

 PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc called on the US to support VN to win a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council for the 2020-2021 tenure at his meeting with Vice President Mike Pence.

 The number of Vietnamese students in the U.S. has increased consistently for 17 straight years, according to the Institute of International Education’s (IIE) annual “Open Doors” Report.  

 French photographer Nicolas Cornet is holding an exhibition at the French cultural center L'Espace in Hanoi to introduce a collection of nearly 50 photos featuring Vietnamese pagodas.

 The local healthcare sector only produces very basic equipment, while the majority of advanced healthcare equipment is imported from developed countries, heard a regional forum in Hanoi on November 12.

 A hacker released data on the FPT Shop store chain’s customers on RaidForums on November 13, Thanh Nien newspaper reported.

Vietnam Debt and Asset Trading Company (DATC) will expand its debt trading activities to all enterprises in the economy, including foreign-invested firms, aside from doing so with SOEs as usual.

 President of India Ram Nath Kovind and his spouse will pay a State-level visit to Vietnam from November 18 to 20. 

A former general director of MobiFone has been arrested for allegedly committing serious violations in a now-cancelled deal in which the mobile carrier had illegally acquired a 95% stake in private pay TV firm AVG.

Thousands of visitors have flocked to the Van Phuc silk village to attend the annual Van Phuc Handicraft Village Cultural Week, which is taking place from November 8 to 17.

 An enterprise and a driver received an administrative fine of over VND383 million for discharging dangerous waste into environment in the central city of Da Nang.

 American alto saxophonist and composer, David Binney will give performance at the Soul Live Project Complex in HCMC’s district 3 on November 17.