Here are the leading news stories about Vietnam you should not miss today, February 20, 2016.

Society

-- A raging fire broke engulfed four warehouses in Rach Gia, the capital of the southern province of Kien Giang, from 4:00 – 9:00 pm on Friday, destroying assets worth billions of dong. (VND1 billion = US$44,643)

-- Hundreds of dead ducks were found floating on the Da Rang River in the south-central province of Phu Yen on Friday, with authorities still investigating to find where they came from.

-- A 60-year-old and his 45-year-old friend both died of unknown reason when they were drinking coucal bird-soaked alcohol in the southern province of Long An on Friday.

-- Ho Chi Minh City will earmark some VND13.5 trillion (US$602.68 million), VND8.7 trillion of which is borrowed from Japanese loan, to launch the third stage of a program to improve the city’s water environment, the municipal administration said Friday.

-- Prosecutors in the southern province of Dong Nai launched a probe on Friday into the murder attempt of Chinese national Wen Yi Min, who slashed five members of the family of his Vietnamese wife on February 14.

Business

-- Vietnam may have to borrow some $39.5 billion in official assistance development (ODA) loans for the 2016-20 period, according to a plan recently approved by the government.

-- Vietnam’s steel industry suffered a $6.54 billion trade deficit in 2015, with China accounting for 52 percent of the Southeast Asian country’s steel imports, the Vietnam Steel Association has said.

-- The Vietnamese Minister of Transport on Friday issued an announcement, officially recommended that people not buy the made-in-China affordable electric cars being advertised on Facebook as they do not meet safety standards.

-- The Ministry of Transport and its finance counterpart on Friday simultaneously released documents, urging transportation firms to cut fares, following a fuel price cut that sent petrol price to a six-year low on Thursday.

Sports

-- Vietnam were trounced 1-13 by Iran in the second semifinal in the ongoing AFC Futsal Championship in Uzbekistan on Friday, but the loss does not affect the team’s qualification for the FIFA Futsal World Cup, to take place in Colombia in September.

-- The 2016-17 season of V-League, Vietnam’s top-tier football league, kicked off today, February 20.

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