Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has promulgated a government overall programme on practicing thrift and preventing wastefulness in 2017.

 Five Vietnamese officials overseeing urban planning in Vietnam, led by Deputy Minister of Construction Phan Thi My Linh, visited the Republic of Korea from April 3-7 to learn about the planning of green cities.

 A group of households providing homestay services in Ta Van commune, Sa Pa district, the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai, have received the “Homestay ASEAN” award.

 Foreign military attachés working in Vietnam have had a chance to tour the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, Ho Chi Minh City and central Khanh Hoa province as part of a plan from the Defence Ministry’s Department for External Affairs.

 Vietnam’s National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and Speaker of the Swedish parliament Urban Ahlin agreed to enhance their countries’ parliamentary relations during talks in Stockholm on April 6.

 In order for HCM City to have 500,000 enterprises by 2020, departments, agencies and districts must have specific solutions to support and encourage business households to transform themselves into enterprises.

 Police in northern Lao Cai Province on Wednesday evening discovered a coach carrying more than one tonne of explosive material and precursors on National Highway 279 in Van Ban District.

 A 19-year-old girl in the central province of Ha Tinh has received a letter of compliment from President Tran Dai Quang applauding her decision to donate her brain-dead mother’s organs.

A year after the environmental catastrophe of mass fish deaths caused by the Hung Nghiep Formosa Steel Corporation, residents along the central coast are trying to return to a normal life.

Search for the last missing victim in the Bac Lieu boat capsize is continuing on Friday, Bui Minh Tuy, chairman of Dong Hai District People’s Committee, said.

 HCM Securities Corporation (sticker HCM) is seeking its shareholders’ approval to scrap the foreign ownership cap of 49 per cent to pave way for the company to be wholly foreign invested.

 Viet Nam continued to be among the top five investors in Cambodia as of December 2016, with US$2.85 billion registered capital invested in 183 projects.

Eating American lobsters is now in vogue in Vietnam. They cannot be found at traditional markets and must be bought from online shops and shops specializing in distributing luxury imports. 

 Travellers looking to experience a slow pace of life should visit Hoàng Thu Phố Commune in the northern province of Lao Cai’s Bac Ha District.

 UK-based travel publisher Rough Guides has described Viet Nam’s north-south rail link as one of the most scenic routes in Asia.

 Viet Nam’s GDP in the second quarter of this year is forecast to expand 5.6 per cent or 6.27 per cent, depending on two scenarios, expert said.

The former chairman of Sacombank, Dang Van Thanh, and prestigious international partners will strengthen the financial capacity of Sacombank by increasing its charter capital by VNĐ20,600 billion (US$907 million).

Stricter punishment, particularly criminal charges, should be imposed on illegal sand exploitation activities, said Politburo member and president of the Viet Nam Father Land Front Central Committe, Nguyen Thien Nhan.

 The Vietnamese market is witnessing an increasing number of large bakery and confectionery companies, highlighting the sector’s potential for foreign investors, Dieter Dohr, general director-cum-chairman of GHM Company, said.

 The abnormal surge in domestic rice prices in this year’s winter-spring crop has caused some rice exporters, who had signed export contracts before the harvest season, to suffer losses during the first quarter.