The State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) has set a credit growth target of 18 per cent for this year, and it pledged to continue measures to keep credit growth suitable to the country’s economic development.

Chung cake, green bananas, pork pies, peach and kumquat trees are much sought after when the Lunar New Year festival or Tet is nearing.

 Japan’s Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will accept the formal invitation of numerous Vietnamese leaders and make their first-ever visit to Vietnam in early March, reports the Japan Today newspaper.

 The Red Sunday programme will take place across 25 provinces and cities nationwide this year, with 40 blood donation events scheduled.

 Banh Tet La Cam is the traditional violet sticky rice cake of the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho. Let's take a tour to see how it is made.

  Vietnam International Bank (VIB) will make its debut on the market for unlisted public companies (UPCoM) on January 9, offering around 564.4 million shares at the starting price of VND17,000 each.

 A classical concert featuring guitarist Tran Tuan An will take place at the French Cultural Exchange Center, L'Espace, in Hanoi on January 7.

 The Dung Quat Economic Zone (EZ) Authority aims to attract US$2.5-3 billion investments in the zone by 2020, quangngai.gov.vn reports.

Three news sites in Vietnam have been fined a total VND80 million for publishing articles with inappropriate content about convicted child sex offender comedian Minh Beo.

 16 national treasures will be displayed for the first time at the National Museum of Vietnamese History.

 The State Bank of Vietnam announced they intend to restructure five banks this year.

 More challenges and difficulties will face the local economy in 2017, said Nguyen Duc Thanh, head of the Vietnam Institute for Economics and Policy Research.

Alcohol abuse may increase the risk of heart attacks and other cardiac problems even in people who don’t have a family history of heart disease or other known risk factors, a study suggests. 

 VietNamNet Bridge – The HCMC government will implement 80 traffic infrastructure projects with total capital of VND39,263 billion (US$1.72 billion) this year in a bid to ease congestion,

 VietNamNet Bridge – LaBrassBanda band who has been known for its trademark mixture of Bavarian folk music and ska-punk will perform at 3A Station in HCMC’s District 1 on January 11. The city will be the first destination on their world tour.

Chinese tourists have made up half of international arrivals to Nha Trang City in the central province of Khanh Hoa this year, forcing the local government to find ways to diversify its source markets, instead of heavily depending on China.

VietNamNet Bridge – The Ha Noi Traffic Police have yet to impose any fines despite many road users having been recorded driving in the lanes reserved for the bus rapid transit (BRT) system over their first few days of operation.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Sticking a ‘safe’ logo onto food products is one of the capital city’s recent efforts to fight off unsafe food, and the public is discussing and debating its effectiveness.

Trying to attract more audiences, experimenting with new plays and genres, applying many creations in technology and arts in plays, and engaging with foreign theatres, are among orientations that Vietnamese theatrical units implemented in 2016,

VietNamNet Bridge –  Viet Nam is expected to produce six-in-one vaccines in 2017 or 2018 and by 2020 these will be used widely in the country, according to the health ministry.