At first I think it is not a good day to visit the Independence Palace. It is blazing hot at 1:30 p.m. as Saigon has just entered the “hotter” season. To reach the palace itself, visitors have to walk a long way from the gate under the merciless sun.

When Starbucks opened its first outlet in Vietnam in early 2013, many said the US chain would have a hard job convincing locals to switch from stronger coffee at the simple cafes that line almost every city street and the more sophisticated outlets run by local chains Trung Nguyen and Highlands Coffee.

Vietnamese tax inspectors have found multiple violations at the local subsidiary of German retail giant Metro, estimating them to be worth VND507 billion (US$23.7 million).

Vietnam is changing rules to allow foreign investors bigger stakes in local banks in its latest move to rebuild a financial sector battered by bad debt, according to the country's prime minister.

About VND830 million (US$38,500) was raised for disadvantaged students in Ho Chi Minh City and nearby areas in a walk joined by 3,000 people on April 19.

Here is a list of the most stunning caves in Vietnam compiled by news website Zing.vn.

The Drug Administration of Vietnam said on April 16 it has imposed a two-year ban on medicine imports of two foreign companies that were found to sell unqualified medicines and pharmaceutical materials with unclear origins.

Customs officers at Hanoi's Noi Bai Airport on April 16 discovered 65.42 kilograms of rhino horns and ivory being shipped from France on a Vietnam Airlines flight.

A private clinic in Ho Chi Minh City has suspended a Chinese doctor who allegedly almost killed a woman with an unauthorized procedure to terminate her 17-week pregnancy.

The Ministry of Finance recently lowered import tariffs on some fuel products in a move to stabilize domestic retail prices before an environment tax increase this May.