Standard & Poor's Global Ratings has affirmed its ratings of three large Vietnamese banks.

 A large crack has appeared in National Highway 217 in the central Thanh Hoa Province’s Muon Min Commune, forcing households living nearby to shift to ensure their safety.

 At least seven people died and four were injured, while one person was missing after torrential rains hit the northern and north-central regions over the past few days.

 Residents in Block N5 of Dong Tau apartment building in Hanoi's Thinh Liet Ward are concerned about their safety after the lobby floor partially caved in last week.

 Vietnam’s top badminton player Nguyen Tien Minh was unable to pull off a miracle win against Lin Dan, the two-time Olympic champion, on the ninth competition day of the Rio 2016 Olympics, August 14 (local time). 

 The Management Board of Hoa Lo Prison historical relic site in Hanoi on August 15 received valuable remembrances from the family of Water Eugene Wilber, a US pilot who was detained in the prison from 1968 to 1973. 

 Laptop sales have plateaued despite companies launching new products to stimulate the market, with insiders blaming it on the economy and a switch by consumers to tablets.

 The Maritime Bank is operating as usual with ensured liquidity, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has confirmed. 

 The Lao National Assembly sought closer links in many fields with its Vietnamese counterpart, Lao National Assembly Vice Chairman Somphan Phengkhammy has remarked.

A draft law on the guard force was discussed for the first time at the second session of the 14th National Assembly Standing Committee that opened at the parliament’s headquarters in Hanoi on August 15. 

 Vietnamese are coming to terms with corruption as only 3 per cent of those who were forced to pay under the table said they would go to the police, according to UNDP research.

 Disco band Boney M and Chris Norman, former lead singer of the Smokie band, will perform in Hanoi this October.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment is developing a plan on restructuring the economy by 2020 aiming to renovate the growth model towards improving efficiency and competitiveness of the economy. 

 The State Bank of Vietnam early this month approved in-principle Woori Bank’s proposal to set up a wholly-owned bank in the country.

 Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) divers on August 14 recovered the remains of a Vietnamese fisherman who went missing when a fishing boat sank in waters off Bintulu 11 days ago.

Vietnamese cultural television channel NetViet - VTC10 has recently officially launched terrestrial digital broadcast in the US state of California, under the system of the television station Kaza TV.

 The Vietnam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre for Zone 2 in Da Nang has rescued a Singaporean sailor who fell serious ill on the Cook Islands flagged vessel Sam Young offshore central Da Nang city.

 Chinese authorities refused to allow Vietnamese fishing ships, which encountered bad weather at sea, entry to Bong Bay Island for shelter.

 At least six people died, one is missing and three were injured after torrential rains swept through the northern and north-central regions over the past few days.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Domestic and international experts discussed ways to overcome the various challenges HCM City faces and make it a smart city at a seminar on Thursday.