VietNamNet Bridge – A spokesperson for Song Da No2 Joint Stock Company (SD2) called up a magazine to grumble that steel prices have skyrocketed, pushing up costs for his company by billions of dong since the prices started to rise.

 The local tourism sector has fully recovered, thus entering a new stage of development, said Nguyen Van Tuan, head of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT).

 The National Assembly (NA) and Government should take more radical measures to improve the investment climate, fight corruption and ensure food safety in the years ahead, lawmakers said during a plenary session on April 1.

 The 4th ASEAN Chief Justices’ Meeting took place in Ho Chi Minh City on April 1, focusing on the institutionalisation of the meeting itself to improve the efficiency of the cooperation mechanism in the bloc.

 Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh held meetings with leaders of foreign countries and international organisations on the sidelines of the ongoing Nuclear Security Summit in Washington D.C. on March 31 (local time).

 It is necessary for related sides to avoid taking unilateral actions that complicate the situations and affect the negotiations and delineation in the waters off the mouth of the Tonkin Gulf, said Deputy Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Pham Thu Hang.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has given a nod of approval to the establishment of Hoa Lam International University of Medicine and Pharmacy invested by Hoa Lam-Shangri-La Healthcare LLC.

 After March 31 certain enterprises will be not permitted to borrow foreign currencies from banks and then exchange it into VND to buy materials, according to Circular No. 24 from the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

 VietNamNet Bridge – Overseas Vietnamese and all those living in Viet Nam, including foreigners, are invited to enter a photo competition. The contest theme is "Vietnamese Rivers". The contest is open until June 20.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Vietnam women’s team beat Iran to take the lead after three rounds at the Asian Nations Cup Chess Team Championship on Wednesday.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Viet Nam national men’s football team will play friendly matches to prepare for the upcoming third qualifying round of the AFC Asian Cup 2019, according to the Viet Nam Football Federation.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam’s top three under-16-years-old male tennis players will represent the country in the Asia/Oceania Junior Davis Cup tennis tournament scheduled to be held in New Delhi, India starting Saturday.

 Three coach operators have jointed a pilot program to offer rides for about VNĐ40,000 (US$1.8) per ride from downtown Hanoi to Noi Bai International Airport beginning this month.

 Authorities of Quang Ngai Province have asked the Government to suspend operations of a hydropower plant worth trillions of VND for illegal deforestation.

 Preparations for the election of deputies to the 14th National Assembly and People’s Councils for 2016-2020 are being conducted in line with the law and progressing smoothly, according to the National Election Council (NEC)’s Office.

Nearly 150 cinematic works have registered to compete for the 2015 Golden Kite Awards, announced President of the Vietnam Cinematography Association Dang Xuan Hai on March 31.

 David Sapterstein, Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom, and a delegation from the US Department of State took a fact-finding tour in Vietnam from March 26 to 31.

 The Vietnamese Embassy in Mozambique called on local agencies to take effective measures in order to ensure security and safety for Vietnamese and their property amid increasing armed conflicts in the country.

VietNamNet Bridge - The state-owned enterprises (SOEs) using foreign loans for production and business fields which bring profits will no longer get a government guarantee for loans.

In the severe drought that has lasted for several months, water levels of hundreds of reservoirs in the Central Highlands are at 30-40% of capacity. In Dak Lak, 250 lakes are dry and the numbers are 17-40-5 in Dak Nong, Kon Tum, and Gia Lai.