Caffe Bene, South Korea’s biggest coffee shop chain, has announced six sub-franchise agreements with Vietnamese partners after one year of operation in the country.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has agreed in principle to add a chip production project of Saigon Industry Corporation (CNS) to the hi-tech industries development plan towards 2020.

VietNamNet Bridge – Matthieu Ginestet of France won first place in the stamina category at the annual Le Fruit Off-Road Triathlon on weekend, which saw more than 200 participants in six events from 19 countries this year.

 U.S. Senator John McCain, strongly criticizing China’s illegal reclamation in the East Sea, said last week the U.S. would help Vietnam defend its coastline in the face of provocative Chinese behavior.

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese cueists have set a modest goal of one gold medal in the billiards&snooker event at the 28th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Singapore starting next month. 

 Well-known shipbuilding firm Damen of the Netherlands is expected to buy a 49 per cent stake in the Ha Long shipbuilding company, the Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (SBIC) said.

 The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has recommended the Prime Minister to direct the State Bank of Viet Nam to issue a licence to Singapore's United Overseas Bank (UOB).

 Police in Ho Chi Minh City have confirmed that they arrested last month a Salvadorian man who had allegedly trafficked 42 kilos of cocaine into Vietnam over the past year.

 VietNamNet Bridge – A short animated cartoon making contest was launched for amateur and professional filmmakers by the South Korean Cultural Centre yesterday, June 1.

 The foreign exchange market has stabilised after fluctuations caused by the State Bank's recent decision to devalue the Vietnamese dong by 1%, according to independent market analysts.

 The second Vietnam-Republic of Korea cartoon festival to take place in Hanoi from June 13-16, according to the Korean Cultural Centre in Vietnam.

 The celebration for the first International Day of Yoga will be held at Hanoi’s Quan Ngua Sports Complex on June 21.

 For the first four months of this year, 3,249 small enterprises have closed their business, and 19,000 others temporarily stopped operations, a survey conducted by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) has found.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmalek Sellal, said during their talks in Algiers on June 1 that they were determined to further strengthen cooperation between the two countries.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The French School of Asian Studies (Ecole Francais d'Extreme Orient - EFEO) and the Museum of Fine Arts of HCM City are jointly holding the exhibition Viet Nam Through a Lens consisting of 100 photographs

VietNamNet Bride - The Prime Minister’s instruction not to license construction works in coastal areas has been applauded by experts and travel firms. Millions of people in coastal provinces are awaiting the revival of the beaches.

 Danish Ambassador to Vietnam John Nielsen, in a late May visit to HCM City, introduced a new documentary that will provide the public with information on preventive measures against natural disasters.

The Day of Vesak - or the day of Buddha's birth - was celebrated at Quan Su Pagoda in the capital city yesterday by the Viet Nam Buddhist Sangha (Order of Monks).

 VietNamNet Bridge – Northern Hai Phong City's People's Committee has decided to close Tam Bac Coach Station from the middle of this month to develop a park there.

 VietNamNet Bridge – People in the southern and central provinces of Viet Nam are not only suffering from the scorching weather, they are afraid it could lead to forest fires and destroy fields of sugar-cane.