US authorities plan to announce a record $1.9 billion settlement with British bank HSBC to end allegations of money laundering, The Wall Street Journal reported on its website.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Teams of inspectors will begin checking retail and wholesale goods in major cities to ensure food safety for the upcoming Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday.

Deputy Foreign Minister Ho Xuan Son has stressed the significance of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in an article on the occasion of the convention’s 30 th anniversary, which falls on Dec. 10.

More than 10 commercial banks have submitted applications to the State Bank of Vietnam, seeking the permission to trade bullion gold. This is really a lucrative business field, in their eyes.

The words “taking off” or “in full swing” have not been used any more when talking about the prospect of e-commerce in Vietnam, because they were used many years ago and the predictions did not come true.

The goal of physical education at general schools is to help students improve their health. However, this remains unattainable. The majority of Vietnamese students dislike the learning subject.

Big real estate firms have tried to escape from the projects invested under the mode of “exchanging infrastructure items for land,” and from the golden land areas they once had to struggle hard to obtain.

Three officers of the Sai Gon Port Customs Division have been suspended following clearance given to a container of fashion clothing and accessories imported from China that were found to carry made-in-Italy labels.

One of the highlights of Vietnam's foreign policy in 2012 is promoting and deepening relationships with key strategic partners, upgrading relations with important partners, promoting substantive economic relations with other countries and regions.

The mobile ad market remains a fledgling, but it is the aiming point of a lot of advertisement and IT firms, simply because it is very promising.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Late writer Vu Trong Phung's works have been made into a television series expected to be aired in Viet Nam next year.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Ngu Hanh Son (Marble Mountains) is a famous destination in Danang City that tourists should put it their itinerary.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Public Security's Police Investigation Agency last Thursday announced its decision to prosecute Vu Tien Son on a charge of "organising for people to flee the country."

Bad debts stunting Vietnam’s economic growth; Enterprises start to stop depending on banks;  Hanoi, HCM City to announce property price index; Mongolia, VN recognizes market economy

 VietNamNet Bridge – Shares saw modest gains on the HCM City Stock Exchange last week, with the VN-Index ending Friday's session at 383.80 points, an increase of 1.58 per cent over the previous week's close.

VietNamNet Bridge – Top models and celebrities appear in a photo book by well-known fashion designer Do Manh Cuong.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Public security officers in HCM City arrested last Thursday a group of 52 people from mainland China and Taiwan on charges of swindling by using hi-tech telecom devices.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Almost one week after the second Ha Noi international film festival, movie lovers in Ha Noi have already stopped talking about it.

VietNamNet Bridge – Reports on the feasibility of two nuclear power plants would be completed next year, then submitted to the Government, said Nguyen Manh Hung, deputy head of the project management board. 

 VietNamNet Bridge – Economists have outlined three alternative scenarios for the national economy in 2013, each extrapolated from the hypothetical GDP growth rates of 5, 5.68 and 6.34 percent.