A conference took place in the central city of Da Nang on March 14 to discuss ways to turn tourism into a pillar industry by 2020, with a focus on luxury cruise tourism. 

 A group of four female motorcycling enthusiasts from India have reached Vietnam as part of their journey to cover UNESCO World Heritage Sites in seven nations along Mekong River.

 Domestic firms must prepare for more opportunities in the future as a new wave of Japan’s investment into Vietnam is expected to stem from Japanese small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

 Tests on major brands of bottled water have found that nearly all of them contained tiny particles of plastic.

 The withdrawal of the $3.2-billion Vung Ro refinery and petrochemical complex shows that Vietnam needs to review large-scale projects and withdraw long-delayed projects, especially those of foreign direct investment (FDI).

The mature Loc vung (Barringtonia acutangula) trees around Hoan Kiem Lake have recently begun to shed their leaves, creating a romantic scene by the water.

VietNamNet Bridge - The news that Amazon, the world’s biggest online retailer, is arriving in March has stirred up the retail community.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Saigon Players, an English-language theatre group, will stage the comedy Shakespeare in Saigon by Australian director Cernarth Fox from March 15-17.

 VietNamNet Bridge – HCM City plans to earmark more than VND38 billion (US$1.6 million) this year providing free vocational training for people living in rural areas.

 Search and rescue forces have rescued all eight fishermen from a stranded fishing vessel in central Nghe An Province.

 The State-run Vietnam Southern Food Corporation (Vinafood II) raised nearly 1.16 trillion VND (51.1 million USD) from selling 22.97 percent of its stakes at an initial public offering (IPO) on March 14.

 Vietnam likely to export 6.5 million tonnes of rice in 2018

 Many domestic businesses expect the newly signed CPTPP will bring positive effects on Vietnam through the expansion of export market along with access to the abundant materials sources in CPTPP member countries. 

 The founder of a US start-up that promised to revolutionise blood testing has agreed to settle charges that she raised over $700m (£500m) fraudulently.

Although the stock market experienced vibrant transactions with total value of $368.7 million on both bourses on March 14, the VN-Index of the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange failed to hit the threshold of 1,140 points.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc visited the Australian National University (ANU), one of the world’s top ten research universities, right after his arrival in Canberra on March 14 (local time). 

 Vietnamese-Australian celebrity chef Luke Nguyen will join hands with the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines to bring Vietnamese cuisine to the world under an agreement inked between the two sides in Canberra, Australia on March 14.

 The Vietnam-Italy Autumn-Winter Fashion Week will take place in Hanoi from March 14-19 as part of activities to mark 45 years of the diplomatic ties between the two countries, designer Minh Hanh, member of the organising board, said on March 14.

 Striker Nguyen Van Toan of Hoang Anh Gia Lai FC won the 2017 Fair Play Award at an annual event organised by Ho Chi Minh City Law newspaper in HCM City on March 14.

The Government Inspectorate has announced conclusion of its inspection of the acquisition of AVG by State-owned communications giant Mobifone, and proposed starting legal proceedings and investigation into the case.