Distinguished Professor of Music at Washington State University Gerald Berthiaume will be the special guest of honour for two upcoming concerts at the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music.

Co-working spaces with a special focus on startups are opening in response to the explosion in the number of startups.

VietNamNet Bridge – Primatologists have identified the 25 most endangered primates globally, of which three are endemic to Viet Nam, according to a press release from the Fauna & Flora International (FFI) - Viet Nam Programme.  

 The People’s Court of Ho Chi Minh City on December 16 opened a trial for violators of regulations on lending in credit organisations’ activity and fraudulence at the branch 7 of the Vietnam Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development.

Banks in the last three years have rushed to provide retail banking services, encouraged by the increased spending of middle-class income earners. Fifty-three percent of the 95 million population are of working age.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The Indian Yoga Association (IYA) opened its first Viet Nam office at VYOGA on 59 Nguyen Thai Binh Street in HCM City's Tan Binh District yesterday, Dec 15.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The National Futsal Cup is scheduled to kick off at Rach Mieu Gymnasium in HCM City on December 21.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Do Khanh Binh brought home a gold medal from the first Asian Weiqi (Go) Open Championship 2015-Fulda Cup in Malaysia, which ran last week.

 Missosology on December 14 chose Vietnamese representative Pham Huong in the first place of its top 15 sixth Official Hot Picks for Miss Universe 2015.

Despite not appearing in top 13 of Miss World’s talent contest, Vietnamese representative Lan Khue was still selected to perform at ‘Dances of the world’audition shows in the upcoming final night.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism held an award ceremony on December 15 to honour winners of the festival of photos, reportage and documentary films on peoples in the ASEAN Community.

 ArchDaily has cited the 2.5 House (a/k/a Khuon Studio) in the Tan Binh District of Ho Chi Minh City as one of the architectural masterpieces of the world.

VietNamNet Bridge - The valuation of Vietnamese companies on the stock market is lower than 40-50 percent than in neighboring markets, according to Dominic Scriven.

The HBSO Symphony Orchestra will perform the Unfinished Symphony by Austrian composer Franz Schubert under the baton of well-known conductor Tran Vuong Thach at the HCM City Opera House on Saturday.

 VietNamNet Bridge – During winter, a fine carpet of mustard blossoms overtakes Moc Chau. The mustard blooms in the winter, from late November to March.

 In 2015 the insurance market has achieved its best performance of the last five years, growing at nearly 22 per cent and earning revenues of US$3.1 billion, the head of the insurance watchdog told an ongoing conference in HCM City.

 A woman from Cao Bang Province, with a huge facial tumour, is being treated by doctors at the Ha Noi Central Oral and Maxillofacial Hospital.

 Viet Nam has been asked to set up a training model for volunteer health workers and assistant doctors in the use of traditional medicine in primary health care in the ASEAN Community.

 The rate of smokers aged 13-15 in Vietnam fell by 1 percent from 3.3 percent in 2007 to 2.5 percent in 2014, according to a related survey by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organisation.

 The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) Operation Centre adjusted the reference exchange rate between the Vietnamese dong (VND) and the USD up by 90 VND on the morning of December 15.