Vietnam’s ratio of public debt to GDP stood at 61.3% at the end of 2017, lower than an earlier estimate of 62.6%, according to the Ministry of Finance.

The trial of 46 banking executives and staff accused of violating economic regulations that resulted in $400 million going missing opened in HCMC on January 8, but the former Chairman of the State-owned bank BIDV was absent without reason.

The Hanoi Stock Exchange has announced it will conduct two auctions of shares in SeABank and TPBank held by MobiFone on February 7.

The Vietnamese government has just issued ten decrees to implement Vietnam’s special preferential import tax commitments made in its free trade agreements with various partners.

Almost all of the $6.6 million and VND1.3 trillion ($59 million) that PetroVietnam paid to PVC as advance payment for the $1.7-billion Thai Binh 2 thermal power plant was used to pay for PVC’s loans in banks.

 2017 witnessed an increasing number of apartments for sale both in general and in the secondary segment (particularly in Hanoi), as reported by commercial property and real estate services firm CBRE.

  Legendary cyber security expert Mikko Hypponen will visit Vietnam for a discussion on information security at a seminar scheduled for November 18 in Hanoi, according to the Ministry of Information and Communications.

 Bac Me Hydropower Plant in Ha Giang Province has gone into operation without a licence and caused serious damage to the national highway as well as houses.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The number of foreign tourists coming to HCM City on cruise ships remains relatively low because of a lack of ports for cruise ships, according to tourism experts.

 Military officers in the central province of Ha Tinh have safely defused a 250-kilo bomb found by local people.

Additional cold spell to the north may continue to freeze Mount Fansipan on January 9 and 10.

 General Director of Vietnam Airlines Duong Tri Thanh said that it would take a long time to break even or make profit through direct flights to the US.

 Consumer lending in 2017 surged sharply by 65 per cent compared to 50.2 per cent in 2016, according to estimates of the National Financial Supervisory Commission (NFSC).

 Global technology company Xiaomi, in partnership with Digiworld on Saturday opened the first authorized Mi Store in Viet Nam.

 Many banks have reportedly gained high profit last year, helped by strong credit growth and initial gains in the settlement of bad debt.

 Viet Nam achieved its highest ever cashew exports in a year in 2017 with shipments worth US$3.52 billion.

 The Ministry of Planning and Investment has proposed the government to hasten efforts aimed at improving the business environment in 2018.

 The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has just published a paper announcing the initiation of a sunset review of the anti-dumping measures applicable to utility scale wind towers imported from Viet Nam.

 Saigon Heat has added two players, Maxie Esho and Michael Williams, to strengthen its line-up for the ongoing ASEAN Basketball League (ABL).

 Police here have busted a weapons-trading ring involving electric guns, scimitars and bayonets, which were being sold online in Viet Nam.