Here are today’s leading news stories:

COVID-19 Updates

-- Vietnam’s Ministry of Health documented 9,362 COVID-19 cases, including 4,134 in Ho Chi Minh City, on Monday evening, raising the national tally to 766,051, with 538,454 recoveries and 18,758 deaths.

-- An evaluation by the health ministry showed that 66 percent of neighborhoods in Ho Chi Minh City have met the criteria to be categorized as green zones, which are eligible to return to the new normal.

-- Phu Quoc City off southern Kien Giang Province has recorded 158 local infections since a fresh outbreak was recorded a week ago, the local steering committee for pandemic prevention and control reported on Monday.

-- Authorities in Hanoi have allowed residents to play sports and participate in physical activities in public from Tuesday, as long as these activities do not lead to gatherings of more than 10 people.

-- Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs received 2.6 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine donated by the German government at a ceremony on Monday.

-- The Vietnam Railways Corporation has announced a plan to resume passenger train service from October 1 along with measures to ensure safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Society

-- Police in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City confirmed on Monday they had arrested a 34-year-old man for allegedly murdering his 44-year-old neighbor before decapitating the victim due to a conflict.

-- A tropical depression is expected to enter the East Vietnam Sea in early October and evolve into a storm as it heads toward southern provinces, according to Ho Chi Minh City-based weather pundit Le Thi Xuan Lan.

-- Ho Chi Minh City police announced on Monday they were investigating the illegal trade of anti-viral drug Molnupiravir, which is used in the treatment of COVID-19.

Business

-- As of September 20, FDI inflows into Vietnam increased by 4.4 percent year-on-year to US$22.15 billion, the Vietnam News Agency quoted the Ministry of Planning and Investment as saying.

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