Vietnam ready for ASEAN People Forum 2015; Pilot issuance of Criminal Record Cards by post approved; Quang Ngai to send farmers to study agricultural development abroad; Few industrial clusters have wastewater systems

Parkson opens first mall in Da Nang; Senior SHB executive arrested; Mobile World receives $2m in shares after bonus payout; State Treasury to issue G-bonds in Q1; Guidelines issued on selling public firms

VietNamNet Bridge – The Government has issued Resolution 01/NQ-CP on socio-economic management and State budget estimates this year, and one important part of the resolution is the gradual removal of subsidies for State public service units.

VietNamNet Bridge – The decision by Parkson to close Parkson Landmark, one of its nine shopping malls in Vietnam, has alarmed and angered the public.

Many Vietnamese have been buying bank notes, souvenirs and interior decor items with a goat-like shape or images of a goat, preparing to welcome the new lunar year, the year of the goat.

 VietNamNet Bridge – As of April 30, 2015, HCM City will put into operation 10 electric cars, which will travel around the central area of District 1 with fares of VND20,000 ($1)/person.

A series of vestiges found in the Tran Temple and Lang Ngoi ward in Hung Ha district, northern Thai Binh province, has revealed evidence about the position of the Lo Giang royal palace built in the Tran Dynasty in the 13th century.

 The Russian central bank has revealed the huge cost of trying to prop up the value of the rouble.

VietNamNet Bridge – A General Department of Customs’ report showed that farm exports from foreign-invested enterprises have been increasing steadily year by year.

Ministry warns of hand, foot, mouth disease; HCM City to add more 23 CNG buses; Thousands of calls to healthcare hot line for poor service; Two killed in car-motorbike collision; Hanoi Air Traffic Control Centre inaugurated

YAN launches new channel for women and families; Vietnam Cultural Week shines in Rome; Drama highlights cai luong art

The signing of a joint statement expanding the partnership between Vietnam and Japan has opened the door to new long-term cooperative efforts in outer space technology between Vietnam and Japan.

The Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee wrapped up its 10th meeting in Hanoi yesterday with a review of the leadership and direction of the Politburo and the Party Secretariat in 2014

The Twitter and YouTube accounts of the US military command were suspended for a few hours after being hacked by a group claiming to back Islamic State.

 The first mega cruise ship to benefit from Vietnam’s new ‘US$5 visa fee’ docked on January 12 at Tan Cang-Cai Mep port in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province carrying an estimated 1,200 passengers.

 Divers in the Java Sea have retrieved the cockpit voice recorder from the crashed AirAsia flight QZ8501, say officials.

 VietNamNet Bridge – US Magazine Condé Nast Traveler has introduced a photo collection of Saigon along with suggestions of things to enjoy in the “sleepless city”.

VietNamNet Bridge – Automobile manufacturers said a new proposal by the HCMC Department of Transport to restrict private car ownership goes against the Government’s strategy to develop the automobile industry into a strong one.

Nguyen Ba Thanh, head of the Party Central Committee’s Internal Affairs Commission, remained in stable condition over the weekend after he was carried back by an air ambulance from the United States to Danang for treatment.

 The phone area codes in 59 out of the country’s 63 cities and provinces will not be changed from March 1 as previously planned by the Ministry of Information and Communications.