Artist explores the soul through distorted facesVietNamNet Bridge – Portraits expressing people’s loneliness and misery are on display at an ongoing exhibition by visual artist Nguyen Cong Hoai. Emotions: Portraits expressing people’s loneliness and misery are on display at the on-going exhibition of visual artist Nguyen Cong Hoai. With the title Ngot, Ngop (Suffocated), the exhibition comprises 18 portraits of people who are suffering pressure and torment. He is known for portraits expressing people’s complicated inner feelings. Inner life: A visitor considers artworks by Nguyen Cong Hoai at the exhibition.

Texas explosions: New Austin blast 'may be tripwire-activated'Police in Austin, Texas, have warned the public that a fourth explosion there may pose a new threat. Police have sealed the area around the scene of the blast -- Photo: REUTERSThey said they were investigating reports the explosion, which injured two people, was activated by tripwire. The police they say they are working under the belief that the explosions are connected. The latest blast came hours after officials announced a new $100,000 (£71,000) reward for information. He added: "We do believe that this was a bomb that exploded, but it was not similar to previous explosions.

Hoi An debuts VN’s largest outdoor visual arts showVietNamNet Bridge – The show Hoi An Memories, the largest outdoor visual arts performance ever in Vietnam, debuted yesterday at Hoi An Impression Theme Park in the central province of Quang Nam. The colourful and musically dazzling night show, with a cast of nearly 500 actors and actresses, recalls the memories of Hoi An as a prosperous trading port over a 400-year period. — VNS Photo Thu HangThe colorful and musically dazzling night show, with a cast of nearly 500 actors and actresses, recalls the memories of Hoi An as a prosperous trading port over a 400-year period. The show is a key component of the Hoi An Impression Theme Park that will open in the second quarter of this year. The 10-hectare theme park in Hoi An includes indoor and outdoor theatres, shopping and entertainment complexes, and 200 hotel rooms.

VN stocks gain further, boosted by property stocksVietnamese shares were positive on Monday morning, led by real estate stocks and positive investor confidence. Among the strongest gaining property developers were Vingroup (VIC), Dat Xanh Real Estate Service and Construction Corp (DXG) and Novaland (NVL). The market breadth was positive with 202 gaining stocks against 184 declining ones, while 115 other stocks ended flat. The stock market was boosted by the growth of real estate stocks. Among the strongest gaining property developers were Vingroup (VIC), Dat Xanh Real Estate Service and Construction Corp (DXG) and Novaland (NVL).

Large forested area in Quang Binh destroyedA large area of forest in the central province of Quang Binh has been found to be illegally destroyed for timber. The area is in Tuyen Hoa District’s Thanh Hoa Commune. Authorities in Tuyen Hoa District have detected up to 429 pieces of wood, equal to 97 cubic metres, logged at different places in the forest; but the majority was found still on site in the forest. The wood mount is being transported to Khe Nung Forest Protection Board. The forest plays a very important anti-flash flood role for not only Tuyen Hoa but also Quang Trach District and Ba Don Town in Quang Binh Province.

In the personal care product segment, five leading manufacturers are all multinationals, Unilever, P&G, Unicharm, Kimberly Clark, Colgate Palmolive and Unza. The fact shows that Vietnamese have higher confidence in foreign brands than in domestic brands. As for home care products, Lix is the only Vietnamese company dominant in the urban market. The fact shows that Vietnamese have higher confidence in foreign brands than in domestic brands. P/S is not the only Vietnamese cosmetics brand falling into foreign hands.

The ministry said many organisations and persons took advantage of information technology and the internet to organise online gambling rings through betting or card games. Rikvip began operations on April 18, 2015 on the websites rikvip.com and rikvip.vn, featuring 42 games simulating different forms of gambling. They also used the National Payment Corporation of Vietnam (NAPAS) services to help gamblers send money to game accounts from bank accounts while issuing Vcard and GoCoin game cards with the same purpose. The gambling organisers set up a system of gambling agencies nationwide, including 25 tierl-1 agencies and 5,852 tier-2 agencies. Leaders of the ministry assigned the investigation to the Investigation Security Agency under the Department of Public Security of Phu Tho province.

HCM City to auction 5,200 resettlement apartmentsVietNamNet Bridge – HCM City will auction 5,200 resettlement apartments and land lots out of nearly 14,000 unoccupied apartments and land lots initially designed for resident relocation, the Department of Construction has told a media briefing. Others include 1,000 units in the resettlement area of Vinh Loc B Commune in Binh Chanh District and 200 units in the Phu My resettlement project in District 7. Before the change, the State paid compensation for residents at a lower rate than market prices, therefore, they usually took the resettlement apartments rather than the money. Another reason that resettlement apartments have remained unoccupied is according to regulations, before relocating residents, the city has to make resettlement areas ready for them to move in. At least 3,790 apartments were built for District 2’s Binh Khanh resettlement area, but very few people have moved in.

New cultural programme preserves traditional valuesVietNamNet Bridge – Dem Hoa Le (Wonderful Night), a cultural programme that offers cai luong (reformed opera) and hat boi (classical drama) shows, will be staged every week at Cho Lon Theatre in HCM City’s District 5, known as Chinatown. The first show will feature two excerpts from the play San Hau (The Reign) in tuong, a Vietnamese traditional theatrical form originating in the 12th century. “We have received support from traditional artists, cultural researchers and local authorities to stage Dem Hoa Le. He decorated his first ao dai in 1989 when the country’s first beauty contest Miss Ao Dai was held in HCM City. The programme Dem Hoa Le offers two shows on Saturday and Sunday night at 7pm at Cho Lon Theatre, 190 Hong Bang Street, District 5.

Other crops to be planted on 120,138ha of rice fields in the southSome 120,138 ha of rice fields affected by a lack of water and saltwater intrusion in the southern region will be used to grow other crops in 2018, according to the Department of Crop Production under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). Corn, peanut, soybean, vegetables and fruits were grown on 16,500 ha of rice fields in the region in the 2017-2018 winter-spring crop. Growing fruits such as orange, grapefruit, longan, mango, rambutan, dragon fruit and durian in rice paddies in the south is becoming more popular because they have higher economic efficiency. In recent years, the MARD and authorities of localities have promoted switching crops on rice land areas affected by lack of water. In the context of climate change and prolonged drought, the switch also helps save irrigation water.-VNA

Turkey conducts second review of Vietnam’s V-shaped conveyor beltsThe Turkish Ministry of Economy has received a request for a second sunset review of anti-dumping measures applicable to Vietnam’s V-shaped conveyor belts (V-belt), according to the Vietnam Trade Office in Turkey. The Turkish Ministry of Economy has received a request for a second sunset review of anti-dumping measures applicable to Vietnam’s V-shaped conveyor belts (V-belt) (Photo: Department of Trade Defence under the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam)The current duty on the V-belts imported from Vietnam is set at 4.55 USD per kg. The office said the investigation was initiated in 2006 and anti-dumping measures were applied in 2007. Turkey conducted the first sunset review in 2012 and kept the duty at 4.55 USD per kg. Upon receiving the petition, the Turkish authorities will consider evidence showing whether removing the duties will stop the dumping and causing losses to domestic production or not.-VNA

Vietnamese youth-run top baby brand goes to JapanNguyen Tuan Anh on March 17 launched an outlet to sell baby products and maternity wear of the UK-based Mamas & Papas brand in Japan. Nguyen Tuan Anh (Photo: Tomo/VNA)Anh, an IT engineer and Director of the NAL Pal Company, has been chosen to be the official distributor of the brand in Japan. Anh, born in 1983, said he will use both traditional and online marketing and sales strategies to promote the products in Japan. Beside a new shop in Tokyo-based Odaiba mall, he will sell Mamas & Papas products at other shopping centres in Tokyo, such as Roppongi and Ginza. The products will also be featured in Japanese magazines, namely Baby-mo, Bizmom, Hers, Crea, Baby life and Luxe, among others, according to Anh.-VNA

Int’l U19 football event to start on March 22VietNamNet Bridge – The International U19 Football Tournament will begin on March 22-30 instead of March 20-30, the event’s organising board announced. Vietnam U19 team seen in a training session as they prepare for the international U19 event. So Vietnam U19 team will make every effort to give fans interesting matches. The team are the harmonious combination of the four best teams of the national event, and many of them are national players,” said coach Vu Hong Viet. The hosts Hoang Anh Gia Lai, who finished third in the same event held last year, have strengthened their force with young talents Nguyen Duy Kien and Nguyen Van Van.

Koreans flood VN finance firmsInstitutions from the Republic of Korea (RoK) have increased their investment in Viet Nam’s financial market significantly, expecting to gain from the market, thanks to the economic growth outlook. In January, RoK’s Shinhan Card Co Ltd, a subsidiary of the Shinhan Financial Group (Shinhan), announced the acquiring of 100 per cent stake of Prudential Vietnam Finance Company at a cost of US$151 million. Last year, Shinhan Bank Vietnam, a wholly owned unit of Shinhan Bank, also acquired the retail division of ANZ in Viet Nam. Besides the acquisition and capital contribution to Vietnamese financial institutions, Korean investors have also increased their presence in Viet Nam’s financial market through comprehensive co-operation with local financial firms. In mid-April, Korea Development Bank (KDB) marked its presence in Viet Nam through a comprehensive cooperation agreement with BIDV.— VNS

Sand sediments strand ships in central provinceVietNamNet Bridge – The serious encroachment of sand sediment along Lach Bang Sea Port in Tinh Gia District of central Thanh Hoa Provine has been blocking many cargo ships and fishing vessels as they try to approach the port. In 2016, the total amount of goods transported to the Lach Bang Sea Port was 246,000 tonnes. On the Lach Bang wharf, small boats formed a long line – they had no goods to transport to hore. Nguyen Van Dong, owner of two fishing ships in Hai Binh Commune, said his ships have been unable to sail since the end of the Tet holidays (Viet Nam’s Lunar New Year festival). Sand sediments along the sea port could easily strand the ships,” he told Natural Resources (Tai Nguyen Moi Truong) Newspaper.