Chinese railway group to replace director; Three fishermen die of strange snails; EU provides IT packages to gov't agencies; Vietnam students to join world youth conference; VN-China hotline rules set

 Foreigners and overseas Vietnamese people exiting the country from Cam Ranh airport in Khanh Hoa province will be eligible for value added tax (VAT) refunds on purchases of Vietnamese products.

VietNamNet Bridge – Top Vietnamese badminton player Nguyen Tien Minh has pulled out of the men's individual event in the national tournaments this year.

 HCM City to host martial arts event; Vien's US training to cost $200,000; Women's volleyball event to kick off

BKAV, a large technology group in Vietnam, has said that “it is 10 years ahead of Microsoft, Google and Samsung” in terms of smarthomes. Lumi Vietnam has also jumped into the smarthome market.

 VietNamNet Bridge - Mekong Capital has registered to sell 2.24 million shares of a total of more than 15 million shares of Mobile World that the fund currently holds.

 An additional 14 historical, architectural and archaeological relics nationwide have been listed as special national relic sites under the Prime Minister’s decision.

 Vietnam sent a record-high 105,000 guest workers abroad in 2014, 113 percent of the year's target, according to the Overseas Labour Management Department.

 The People’s Committee of central Quang Tri province began a trial run of the “one-stop-shop” customs model at the Lao Bao-Densavan border gates between Vietnam and Laos on January 5.

Angelito Capindo Rojas, chef of sunken cargo ship Bulk Jupiter, was handed over to representatives of Philippine Embassy in Vietnam on January 6 in Vung Tau city, southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau.

The Vietnam Football Federation said on January 6 that its Vice Chairman Tran Quoc Tuan has been appointed as head of the management team of the upcoming 2015 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup finals.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The flight carrying Mr. Nguyen Ba Thanh from the US to Vietnam was canceled due to bad weather and the rumors "Thanh was poisoned" is false, said Prof. Pham Gia Khai of the Central Healthcare Board on January 6.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Forest ranger officials and residents in the Central region said the protection of forests turned over to communities could not be properly managed due to shortcomings in policies.

Along with more large Vietnamese enterprises investing in Laos, Laos’ leading enterprises are also seeking business opportunities in Vietnam based on the advantages of economic relations.

Analysts believe that the Malaysian retailer Parkson has had to shut down one of its shopping malls in Hanoi because it has been taking a loss over the last few years. But other sources say the reason is a “three-party civil dispute”.

The National Assembly Television Channel made its debut in Hanoi on January 6, with Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung in attendance.

VietNamNet Bridge – Domestic Internet connections will not be affected by the cut of AAG cable system but international links from Vietnam will encounter problems for three or four weeks.

 The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has permitted the National Money Printing House (NMPH) to produce gold bars and gold souvenirs, according to the instructions of the bank's governor.

Chief Judge of the Supreme People’s Court Truong Hoa Binh and his Singaporean counterpart Sundaresh Menon have agreed to soon sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between the two supreme courts.

 Standing Deputy Minister of Public Security, Sen. Lieut. Gen Dang Van Hieu hailed Vietnam’s working visit by Director General of Security of the Ministry of Defense of Israel Amir Kain as an important landmark in bilateral defence ties.