VIETNAM TODAY

Riot police and hundreds of protesters clashed in the Tunisian capital Friday, as a new cabinet was sworn into office.

Villagers in central Hue are busy making Banh in, a traditional cake made from green beans and sugar, to prepare for Tet.

Hanoi authorities are determined not to have firecrackers as a part of this year’s Tet celebrations.

The State Bank of Vietnam will lower the interest rate if the consumer price index increases at around 1.4 per cent in February, said its governor.

A seminar was held in Hanoi to mark the 70th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh’s return to Vietnam after living abroad for 30 years to find a way for national liberation.

The prime minister has decided to step up oversight of improper toll stations nationwide.

Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak addressed the nation for the first time since deadly protests erupted against his regime.

Day-trippers from Vietnam have withdrawn millions of dollars from Cambodian cash machines to benefit from a sizeable gap between the official and black market rates of the USD.

Many experts expect the average gold price in 2011 to rise higher against 2010 prices.

The German Football Federation is planning to cash in on hosting the Women's World Cup with a football version of the children's doll Barbie.

The Prime Minister has approved a transport strategy in the southern key economic zone for 2020, putting public transport at the helm of urban development, especially in Ho Chi Minh City.

The Hanoi Electronics Corporation will start construction of a $35 million software park in Hanoi’s outlying district of Long Bien in the first quarter of the year.

Vietnam successfully sent flower seeds to space for scientific research.

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said the country must demonstrate fiscal discipline to gain investor confidence, after its credit rating was cut for the first time in eight years.

90 more flights using ATR 72 aircraft will be available from January 27 – Feb 1 and February 4 -14.

The police in Hanoi have installed ‘first warning’ equipment at a Vietnam Prosperity Bank's ATM to increase security.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem met with ambassadors and representatives of international organisations in Hanoi on January 27.

Nearly 400 children from poor families in central Thanh Hoa Province received warm jackets from World Vision last week.

Tunisia braced Friday for public reactions to a shake-up of the cabinet aimed at quelling huge daily protests.