Freshwater mangroves, known among scientists as barringtonia acutangula, usually begin to blossom in the sixth lunar month.

 Vietnam’s no. 1 chess player Le Quang Liem impressively defeated reigning world rapid chess champion, Vassily Ivanchuk, after 41 moves.

Cueists from HCM City claimed the top three positions at the 2017 International 3-Cushion Billiards Tournament, which wrapped up in the southern province of Binh Duong on July 16 after three days of competition.

The central province of Quang Nam plans to build four hydro-power plants in the mountainous district of Nam Tra My for socio-economic development of a key national ginseng centre.

The concert “The Four Seasons”by the HCM City Ballet and Symphony Orchestra (HSBO) will take place at the HCM City Opera House, No. 7 Lam Son Square, District 1, on July 19.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The photo exhibition entitled “Prejudice against Professions” will open at MAM Art, 36 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi from July 19 to 23. 

 VietNamNet Bridge - A presentation by sound designer Morinaga Yasuhiro will be held at 2pm, July 21 in Hanoi by the Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange as part of its cultural exchange activities in 2017.

There are more than 2,200 Vietnamese students in New Zealand, while recent data from Education New Zealand revealed a 97 percent increase in the number of first-time student visas in the first five months of 2017.

 VietNamNet Bridge – A photo exhibition on Buddhist sites/heritage will be held at the Indian Cultural Center, 63 Tran Hung Dao Street, Hanoi, from July 17 through 28.

 VietNamNet Bridge - A 12-year-old boy in Dak Nong Province was playing with a knife with his cousin when the blade slipped from the handle and entered the victim's forehead. 

 VietNamNet Bridge – The HCM City Department of Transport said that of the 37 traffic jam hotspots in the city, 10 sites are becoming more congested.

 VietNamNet Bridge - According to a draft circular of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), foreigners will be permitted to deposit savings in VND and foreign currency at commercial banks in Vietnam.

Vietnamese government has given the greenlight to BMW to access and run maintenance services on a batch of 700 BMW cars being held at Vietnamese ports after Euro Autowas charged with scandalous violations of counterfeit paperwork.

 Increasing crude oil prices helped PetroVietnam exceed its revenue and profit targets by 15 per cent in the first half of 2017.

Vietnam’s mergers-and-acquisitions market has the potential to draw more Asian investors to a growing pool, as they search for opportunities away from slowing domestic markets. 

Deputy PM Vuong Dinh Hue has tasked the Ministry of Finance and the Government Office to publish the list of 730 equitized State-owed enterprises which have not registered shares trading and listed on stock market. 

 According a report from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, demand for automobiles will likely reach  between 800,000-900,000 units by 2025 and 1.5-1.8 million by 2030.

 Finally, on July 11 the State Bank of Viet Nam decided to fulfill the business community’s expectations, cutting interest rates by 0.25 to 0.5 percentage points, the first such cuts since 2014.

 International brand names are starting to grab the attention of HCM City’s fashion-conscious people, clearing the way for more ready-to-wear clothing stores in Viet Nam.   

 Viet Nam is likely to reach total export turnover of US$200 billion for 2017, increasing more than 13 per cent from last year and exceeding the set target.