VietNamNet Bridge – Vo Tri Thanh, deputy director of the Central Institute For Economic Management, spoke to the Sai Gon Economic Times on the impacts of the TPP and the FTA with the European Union.

 VietNamNet Bridge – A survey conducted last year of nearly 2,600 Vietnamese families shows that one-third of them support same-sex marriage.

 Market watchdogs ask for city help to fight smuggling; Non-tariff barriers high in trade with EU; ACV prepares for airport expansion; Vietnam should have trustees in bankruptcy; Housing stimulus package criticised for slow disbursal

 VietNamNet Bridge – 2014 looks to be a busy year in Vietnamese sport, as the country’s athletes prepare to take part in many important sporting competitions, both at home and abroad.

VietNamNet Bridge – It has been an unusual meeting of minds and skills for local craftsman Vo Anh Tan and partner Axel Lukassen from the Netherlands.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The draft amendments to the Real Estate Trading Law have loosened some property trading conditions for foreigners and overseas Vietnamese but foreigners are still prohibited from trading houses in Vietnam.

 A H’Mong boy must ‘catch’ his wife, while a Thai boy has to ‘steal’ one, but among the Chu Ru ethnic people it’s the girls who do the taking.

 VietNamNet Bridge – For people in Kim Trung commune, Hung Ha district, Thai Binh province, hunting rats has become their breadwinner because they can earn tens of million dong each season.

VietNamNet Bridge – Samsung’s cell-phone production factory in Thai Nguyen Province has started operation after nearly one year of construction, said a source from Samsung Vina Electronics Co. Ltd.

VietNamNet Bridge – Isei Takehiro, PhD, is a world-renowned Japanese mining safety expert who has volunteered to work in Viet Nam in order to help decrease the probability of accidents in this risky occupation.

 VietNamNet Bridge – A recent survey found that many firms in Vietnam prefer to ask gangsters’ help to collect debts because of cumbersome legal proceedings and lack of efficiency of law enforcement, one official said.

 VietNamNet Bridge – A recent rumour that the rich receive more health insurance benefits than the poor is factually incorrect,

VietNamNet Bridge – Famous Vietnamese pop singer Thai Thuy Linh expressed shock upon discovering the seemingly endless number of Facebook pages falsely claiming to represent her on the Internet.

Economists all have affirmed that Vietnam would witness a strong foreign capital inflow this year. However, it is unclear if the investors come to Vietnam to implement their long term business strategies, or just to seek temporary shelter.

VietNamNet Bridge – Last week Viet Nam News asked readers to share their thoughts about whether high-school boards should ban students using smart phones in the classroom. Here are several comments:

VietNamNet Bridge – The urban poor in Viet Nam face barriers in accessing preferential policies on housing, vocational training, job creation and technical transfer, Ngo Truong Thi,

 VietNamNet Bridge – The execution ground of Long Binh, in Tan Phu Ward, District 9, HCM City, has been cleared for an urban construction project, but thousands of prisoners’ remains have yet to be claimed by their families.

VietNamNet Bridge – An old man in the northern province of Bac Ninh has ridden his bicycle to various villages, collecting old folk tunes, for the past 50 years.

VietNamNet Bridge – An impending merger between Southern Bank and Sacombank is the latest move in Vietnam’s banking restructuring process.  

 Underground commercial center awaits investors; Government-backed loans still rise despite restrictions; SOE equitisation to quicken; Shipbuilding industry sees 25-30 pct growth annually