Here are today’s leading news stories:

Society

-- Three fishermen were in a severe condition and had to be rushed to the mainland, while ten others were trying to help rescue forces find three more lost victims at the scene of an accident where the fishing boat BV 9496 TS had been knocked down by waves in the sea some 26 miles from the southern Vietnamese province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau.

-- The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture and Sports is seeking approval from the municipal People's Committee for a plan to build a VND1,430-billion (US$61.49 million) museum that is projected to span eight hectares in District 9.

-- The Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee has just announced that it had decided to change the names of six streets in District 7, including two sections on D1 Street, Valley No. 487 on Huynh Tan Phat Street, N1 Street, the branch street from Tan Thuan 2 Bridge and Street No. 13.

-- The Ministry of Public Security announced on Friday that its investigative police agency had charged and banned former Deputy Minister Tran Viet Tan and former Deputy Minister Bui Van Thanh from leaving their places of residence for “showing irresponsibility, causing serious consequences” while in office.

Business

-- Once a realty- and retail-focused conglomerate, Vietnam's Vingroup on Friday night officially launched four smartphone products that use the mobile operating system VOS developed on the Android platform and transferred by Spanish technology firm BQ, as part of its transformation into a technology and industrial group.

-- Vietnam’s key agricultural products, including rice, coffee, tea, cashew nuts, and peppercorn, were introduced at the Ukrainian Food Expo 2018, which was held in Ukraine’s capital city of Kiev, drawing the participation of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and more than 250 local and foreign businesses.

-- The garment-textile sector has grossed over $36 billion in exports this year, up 16.01 percent against the previous year, the highest rise over the past three years, compared with 12.1 percent in 2015, 4.07 percent in 2016, and 10.8 percent in 2017, Vu Duc Giang, chairman of the Vietnam Textiles and Apparel Association, said at a conference in Hanoi on Friday.

Lifestyle

-- Balade en France 2018 (Walk in France), an event of French food, cosmetics, technological products and music that is organized by the French Embassy in Vietnam, the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food and the People’s Committee of Hanoi, began in the Vietnamese capital city on Friday night to end the celebration of the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations between France and Vietnam as well as the fifth anniversary of their bilateral strategic partnership.

-- Painter Nguyen Thu Thuy and her teammates are in a hurry to complete a large mural painting featuring a lotus flower pond on a 400-square-meter wall at Terminal 2 at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi.

-- Greek conductor Petros Karpathakis will lead a special Christmas concert at the Municipal Theater in Ho Chi Minh City on December 19.

Sports

-- Around 1,500 police officers will be deployed to ensure security and safety before, during and after the return game of the 2018 AFF Championship final, which will take place at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi at 7:30 pm on Saturday, where Vietnam are hoping to beat Malaysia to lift the trophy for the second time in a decade.

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