HCM City: criminal proceedings begin against Carina Plaza fireSpokesperson of HCM City police Nguyen Si Quang on March 26 said criminal proceedings started against a case of serious blaze which burned the local apartment complex Carina Plaza on March 23. Police officers at scene of the Carina Plaza fireThe proceedings are in line with the 2015 Criminal Code’s Article 313 on violation of fire safety regulations. Detailed information will be announced at a press conference of the municipal People’s Committee scheduled for March 29, he added. 1648 Vo Van Kiet street District 8, Carina Plaza is a high-end apartment complex including three buildings with 15-21 storeys and 736 apartments. As many as 13 people died and tens of others were injured when the blaze started at 0:30 from the parking basement between Buildings A and B of Carina Plaza.

Da Nang hosts regional drill on health response to disastersA regional collaboration drill on health response to disasters opened in the central coastal city of Da Nang on March 26, gathering ten ASEAN state members and representatives from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Ten emergency medical teams were involved in the second regional collaboration drill in Da Nang city. Through the project, JICA will obtain specific feedback and develop a regional cooperation mechanism for health emergencies in response to natural disasters. Head of Da Nang Health Department Ngo Thi Kim Yen said that the coastal city is vulnerable to natural disasters. Da Nang and Quang Nam report to the Government and the Ministry of Health for support.

Bright prospects for Vietnam-France relationsGeneral Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong highlighted the bright prospects for Vietnam-France relations in his recent article published by Le Monde newspaper on the occasion of his ongoing visit to France from March 25-27. Pursuing an external policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation and development, Vietnam is pushing ahead with international integration. International cooperation and exchanges in various fields from culture, society, science and technology to education and training are developing extensively. The community is closely connected with both countries and always an important bridge in Vietnam-France relations. These outcomes have yet to match the cooperation potential of Vietnam-France relations.

Astrotourism activities kick off at observatory in Khanh HoaVietNamNet Bridge - Travel firms are thinking of developing astrotourism activities to attract domestic and foreign travelers. The Khanh Hoa Observatory in the central region has become part of tours designed by some travel firms. Another observatory, larger than the one in Nha Trang, is being built at the Space Museum in Hoa Lac Hi-tech Park in Hanoi. Vietnam welcomed more than 13 million foreign visitors in 2017 and served 73.2 million domestic tourists to earn $23 billion. The country vows to attract 15 million foreign travellers this year and obtain total revenue of VND620 trillion.

Vietnam Book Day 2018 to be launched next monthVietnam Book Day 2018 will be held in Hanoi on April 18-22 to celebrate the culture’s love for the written word. Vietnam Book Day 2017 (Photo by 2017)The fifth event of its kind will take place at Thong Nhat Park in Hai Ba Trung District. The event celebrates reading and the people who are involved in book publishing and distribution, such as authors, editors, publishers, distributors and librarians. Vietnamese on average only read four books a year, which is comparatively low in comparison with Singapore, where a person reads 14 books a year or in Malaysia, where each person reads 10 books a year. Dtinews/VNA

Novelist Ho Anh Thai spins Van Gogh taleVietNamNet Bridge – The Tre Publishing House has published Tranh Van Gogh mua de dot (Buying and Burning Van Gogh), a new novel by Ho Anh Thai. Truth teller: Novelist Ho Anh Thai. The painting is then bought by a Vietnamese businessman, who pledges to save the painting, for double the price. In the novel, Thai said, the mystery is why the boss, a corporate tycoon, decides to burn Van Gogh’s painting, which he has bought for $165 million. International mystery: Tranh Van Gogh mua de dot (Buying and Burning Van Gogh), a new novel by Ho Anh Thai.

H&M profits sink amid weak salesSwedish fashion giant H&M - the world's second-biggest clothing chain - has posted a 61% profit fall for the three months to February amid weak sales. Recently it warned of weaker demand in some stores and also said sales had fallen for the second quarter in a row. Most will be H&M stores, but 90 will be its newer spin-offs including & Other Stories, Cos and Monki. H&M said that rise was higher than planned, and would mean "increased markdowns" in the second quarter of 2018 compared with last year. However, the retailer said it expected sales and profits to return to growth.

VND, USD exchange rate to hit VND22,900: HSBC forecastsThe exchange rate between the dong and the US dollar will be stable and end at VND22,900 per US dollar by the end of 2018, predicts Ngo Dang Khoa, head of Global Markets, HSBC Bank Viet Nam. By the end of February, the inflation rate in Viet Nam was 3.15 per cent. In 2017, food prices were low, leading to negative growth compared to 2016. Therefore, this year, inflation is likely to jump when food prices rise even slightly. HSBC predicts that by the end of the year, Viet Nam’s inflation will return to 3.7 per cent.

Korean food firms moving to Vietnamese marketThe Republic of Korea's distribution and food processing companies are shifting to Vietnam from China amid tougher business conditions and strained bilateral relations in the world's most populous market, the RoK’s Yonhap news agency reported. A Lotte Mart outlet in Ho Chi Minh City. Sales at EMart's mall in Ho Chi Minh City, which opened in December 2015, rose to 52 billion won in 2017 from 41.9 billion won in 2016. CJ Cheiljedang Corp., a Korean leading food manufacturer, has bought several food processing firms in Vietnam, hoping to achieve more than 700 billion won of sales by 2020. It has invested 70 billion won in the construction of a food processing factory in Ho Chi Minh City.

Da Nang cracks down on foreign tour guidesVietNamNet Bridge – The Ministry of Public Security has set up an interdisciplinary inspection team to supervise foreigners’ compliance with the regulations on their entry, exit, and residence in central Da Nang City. — VNA/VNS Photo zing.vnThe move was made after many foreigners were reported to illegally work as tour guides in Da Nang City, affecting the tourism sector, security and order in the city. The team is comprised of representatives of the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs and Da Nang inspectors. The petition, with 130-140 signatures, also argued that these tour guides distorted Vietnamese history and culture while serving tourists. The city currently has 623 Chinese-speaking tour guides licensed by the Department of Tourism.

Hanoi apartment residents on edge following deadly blaze in HCM CityVietNamNet Bridge – Residents of apartment buildings in the capital city are getting restless after a deadly blaze claimed 13 lives in the upscale Carina Plaza in HCM City last week. Recently, residents in the apartment buildings of Trang An Complex (Cau Giay District) hung out red banners on their balconies, which read, “Take care of the fire. Do not blame the residents”, to protest what they deemed an irresponsible attitude on the part of the building owner following a fire incident on March 20. The lacklustre response of the complex’s owner, GP Investor, after the fire did little to assuage the incensed residents. Apartment buildings having 20-40 floors are popping up in multitude throughout the city’s districts, most notably in Hoang Mai, Thanh Xuan, Cau Giay and Nam Tu Liem.

HCM City beauty salon doctor fined for surgery deathA doctor who owns a beauty salon in HCM City has been fined VND64 million (USD2,909) following the death of an American man during a loose skin removal surgery. Viet Thanh beauty salonDr. Nguyen Viet Thanh performed surgery on Edward Hartley, 53, who died during the operation in July last year to remove loose skin around his hip. Hartley had lost 18 kilos, so he came to Viet Thanh cosmetic surgery clinic in District 10 for excess skin removal. Viet Thanh Beauty Salon, which was licensed in May 2016, has been shut since the incident. Dr Thanh has been fined VND64 million for carrying out the unlicensed surgery and for violating human resource and hygiene regulations during the operation.

Massive profits slated for finance and banking sector in 2018Throughout the annual general meetings (AGMs) season, numerous commercial banks unveiled remarkable business targets for the year ahead, promising huge revenues, profits, and charter capital raises. Vietnam's finance and banking sector saw a substantial recovery showcased in past achievements and ambitious targets in for 2018Nguyen Duc Vinh, CEO of VPBank, asserted that the bank's shareholders approved the plan to reach VND10.8 trilllion ($474.12 million) in pre-tax profit by the end of 2018. Over the same time period in 2017, the bank managed to raise its charter capital from VND9.181 trillion ($403.04 million) to VND15.706 trillion ($689.49 million). Additionally, the bank planned to raise its charter capital to VND16.6 trillion ($728.74 million) by the end of 2018 and to VND18 trillion ($790.2 million) by the end of 2019. In 2017, Techcombank gained a pre-tax profit of over VND8 trillion, which was 200 per cent of the previous year's pre-tax profit figure and 400 per cent of the same category in 2015.

VN Government issues new decree on multi-level marketing plansThe Government has issued a new decree which it says will help build a "clean and transparent multi-level marketing environment". Therefore, on March 12, 2018, the government issued Decree 40/2018/ND-CP to promote the management of business activities, replacing Decree 42. This ban will protect the interests of consumers and genuine multi-level marketing enterprises, he said. The new decree prohibits businesses from providing false or misleading information about the benefits of participating in multi-level marketing, features and uses of goods, as well as activities of multi-level marketing businesses. On the other hand, the State also bans organisation of seminars, conferences and training courses on the multi-level marketing model without the authorisation of the multi-level marketing enterprises.

Vietnamese banks thrive following foreign partners’ divestmentVietNamNet Bridge - Concerns were once raised when a number of foreign partners decided to divest from Vietnamese banks, but banks’ financial reports show satisfactory business performances. In the 2004-2006 period, foreign investors were warmly welcomed by Vietnamese banks which believed that foreign capital and technology would help them thrive. Foreign partners usually ask Vietnamese banks to diversify their portfolios,” he said. In many cases, contributing capital to Vietnamese banks did not bring high benefits to foreign partners. However, Thoi Bao Kinh Te Sai Gon said that Vietnamese banks remain attractive to foreign investors.