Small and medium–sized enterprises (SMEs) have been urged to improve their competitiveness amid rapid global integration, to grab opportunities as signs of economic recovery are already emerging in 2015.

Vietnam imported medicines worth US$2 billion last year, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 8.3%, chinhphu.vn website reports.

A movie on Nguyen Ai Quoc's life in Thailand will be premiered to launch a nationwide film week to celebrate the 85th anniversary of the Vietnam Communist Party.

Representatives of Indian travel agents from Hyderabad, India will begin a series of Familiarisation (FAM) to Hoi An, My Son and Danang, the first of which will take place from January 30 to February 2.

Vietnamese living abroad remitted over US$5 billion to HCM City last year, 4.2% higher than in 2013, according to figures released at a meeting held by the city's Committee for Overseas Vietnamese on January 21.

A collective cheer went up from the young students as a large school of fish surfaced in a pond in Can Tho City, rushing to eat the feed scattered by a farm worker.

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam on January 20 exhorted winners of the nation's Golden Globe Awards to continue contributing to national development with further achievements in scientific research.

Vietnam Football Federation's (VFF's) Chairman Le Hung Dung said VFF will meet with a representative from European football giant Manchester City for a collaboration plan in the future.

Swiss company Candino has created 1,888 watches, with images of Vietnam's flag, map, and Hoang Sa (Spratly) and Truong Sa (Paracel) archipelagos, which are on sale in HCM City.

Several measures have been suggested by economic experts to help the banking sector reduce the non-performing loan (NPL) ratio to less than 3% in 2015, as required by the Government.