Politics

-- The fourth meeting of the ASEAN Committee on Women plus 3 (ACW+3) opened in Vientiane, Laos on October 18 to discuss ways to boost regional cooperation in women-related issues and sustainable environment.

-- The ninth meeting of the ASEAN Expert Group on Food Safety opened in Hanoi on October 17, attracting many healthcare experts in the region.

-- Vietnam always attached importance to strengthening friendship and comprehensive co-operation with nations in Central and Eastern Europe, including Bulgaria, said Minister of Finance Vuong Dinh Hue at a meeting with Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Simeon Dyankov yesterday.

Society

-- Police Thursday indicted Nguyen The Ngoc, 37, former chief accountant of the Falcon Shipyard, a subsidiary of the loss-ridden Vinalines, on charges of “embezzling assets.”

-- 20 orange agent victims will cycle across the country under a Korea – Vietnam friendship program. The tour will run from November 1 to 26, with the participants expected to cycle 1,751km across 19 provinces and cities of Vietnam.

-- Hanoi police Thursday had to open fire to arrest three men with suspicious behaviors on Pham Van Dong Street. Police later seized six cakes of drugs.

-- A huge number of workers said they have been saddened by the news that the basic wages were demanded by the Minister of Finance not to be increased in May 2013.

Business

-- Toyota Vietnam said it will begin recalling 5,299 Corolla Altis and Vios that have a technical fault in the switch of the electric windows of the vehicles from November 3.

-- Financial experts have warned the public against a recent advertisement circulated on the Internet that one can deposit their money to enjoy the whopping interest of 22 to 30 percent a year.

-- Singapore-based SembCorp Utilities Pte Ltd has recently announced that it will earmark US$2 billion to set up a thermal-power plant in the central province of Quang Ngai.

Lifestyle

-- South Korean actress Cha Ye Ryeon has been chosen as the ambassador for the Vietnam – South Korea Film Festival, which kicked off on Thursday.

-- Organizers of the upcoming Bang Kieu in concert 2012 said they have sold out 3,000 tickets for the show that will kick off on October 28.

Sports

-- The brother and sister of Quach Cong Lich, 19, and Quang Thi Lan, 17, have caused a stir in the local athletics as they won three gold medals and smashed a national record that has been unbeatable over the last 10 years during their maiden participation at the national athletics championships.

-- Vietnam will play Turkmenistan in the opener of the 2012 VFF Cup that will run from October 24 to 28 in Ho Chi Minh City’s Thong Nhat Stadium.