2017 is one of the most successful years of Vietnam’s diplomacy, said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in a recent article. 

 Fruit and vegetables have surpassed traditional farm produce such as rice, rubber, tea, and cashew nuts to become a major foreign currency earner in the agricultural sector. 

HCM City People’s Committee this year will focus on carrying out National Assembly’s Resolution No 54 on piloting special policies on land management, investment, finance and the state budget for the city. 

 The Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) will organise 15 auctions to offload 559 million shares in January.

 Foreign traders not present in Vietnam will have the right to export or import under Vietnamese law and international treaties that the country has signed.

 The People’s Procuracy of Hanoi has indicted five Colombian nationals accused of “property theft” in accordance with Article 138 of the Penal Code. 

 An explosion reportedly killed at least two children and injured eight people early Wednesday morning at a scrap warehouse in the northern province of Bac Ninh’s Quan Do Village in Yen Phong District.

 Vietnam’s top ten athletes in 2017

 A tropical pressure in the East Sea has developed into a storm, with it set to be the first storm to hit Vietnam this year. 

 Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh launched the Year of Traffic Safety 2018 during a ceremony in Hanoi on January 3. 

 Ten infectious diseases are entitled to compulsory vaccination under an expanded national vaccination programme (NEVP) that started on January 1.

 Stocks ended the first trading day of 2018 in the green on the two national stock exchanges, reflecting investors’ optimism about the market outlook this year.

 Vietnam’s strongest male badminton players will compete at the Princess Sirivannavari Thailand Masters which is scheduled for January 9-14 in Bangkok.

As of December 31, 2017, the total assets of the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) reached VND1.05 quadrillion ($46 billion).

It was a positive end for the Vietnamese manufacturing sector in 2017 with the Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rising to 52.5 in December from November’s 51.4.

The growth rate of co-working space has been 53 percent globally over the last five years, while in Vietnam, co-working space supply has been growing 58 percent per year.

Vietnam had a successful sporting 2017, and the country’s athletes hope to build on this solid foundation at the Asian Games, the AFF Cup and various domestic and international events.

 Eight more villages in Me Linh and Phu Xuyen districts in Hanoi have recently been recognised as craft villages by the municipal People’s Committee.

The Ministry of Information of Cambodia has presented the Order of Cooperation and Friendship to 12 Vietnamese diplomats and press correspondents in recognition of their sound cooperation with the ministry and other relevant Cambodian agencies.

 A seven-year-high growth rate, being listed among the world’s top 10 cities with fastest tourism growth, and breakthroughs in administrative reforms were some of Hanoi’s achievements in 2017.