Here are the leading news stories about Vietnam you should not miss today, March 12.

Politics

-- Vietnam’s State President Truong Tan Sang is scheduled to attend a business forum in Mozambique on Saturday, as part of his official visit starting Friday to the South African country.

Society

-- A 38-year-old man who was driving dangerously apparently under influence of drug was arrested after a police chase that stretched dozens of kilometers in Ho Chi Minh City on Friday.

-- Poland can support Vietnam in dealing with challenges of energy, clean water and informatics and computer technology, Polish Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade Lenita Toivakk told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper during her visit to Hanoi on Friday.

-- The Vietnamese National Committee for Traffic Safety launched Friday the 2016 Vo Lang Vang (Golden Steering Wheel) contest to look for drivers and transport firms with outstanding driving safety record in northern Vietnam.

-- An unidentified man set fire on himself in an apparent suicide inside a rubber forest in the southern province of Dong Nai on Friday.

Business

-- Gold price in Vietnam closed Friday at VND34.08 million (US$1,520) a tael, still lower than the global closing price of VND34.34 million ($1,533) a tael. (1 tael = 37.5 grams)

-- The nation brand of Vietnam is only higher than that of Cambodia, but much lower than other regional countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, the Asia-Pacific director of brand valuation and strategy consultancy Brand Finance told a forum in Hanoi on Friday.

-- Vietnam Airlines has warned against a Facebook page that dupes passengers in Japan into buying fake tickets of the national flag carrier.

Lifestyle

-- Several Vietnamese public figures, including pianist Trang Trinh, actor Hong Dang, culinary blogger Phan Anh and taekwondo athlete Nguyen Minh Tu, have been chosen as Vietnam’s "K-culture supporters,” a campaign launched to introduce and support the South Korean culture wave, or hallyu, across the world.

-- A piece of what is believed to be Vietnam's hallmark bronze drum has been found in Ha Tinh, the first discovery of its kind in the north-central province, the provincial museum said Friday.

Sports

-- Five footballers of V-League side Dong Nai FC received jail terms of up to six years for match fixing on Friday, nearly two years after their arrest in July 2014.

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