What you need to know today in Vietnam:

Politics

-- Vietnamese Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and visiting Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni on Thursday agreed to beef up cooperation between the two countries in an effective and pragmatic manner, while taking their countries' bilateral relationship to a new development period, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Society

-- Both local and international weather forecasters have said that southern Vietnam may likely encounter a strong storm in early December. 

-- Police in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam said on Thursday they had detained six members of a racket storing, transporting, using, and trading explosives across districts and provinces.

-- The Vietnam Record Association on Thursday certified the Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Tropical Diseases as the oldest hospital in Vietnam. The medical institution is 160 years old.

Business

-- Stores have begun to sell Christmas embellishments to prepare for the festive season in Ho Chi Minh City.

-- Vietnamese spending on pharmaceutical products amounted to US$6.6 billion last year, according to the Vietnam Report.

Sports

-- "Cristiano Ronaldo drew a line under a tumultuous tournament build-up as he wrote his name in the record books to become the first man to score in five World Cups in a 3-2 victory for Portugal over Ghana on Thursday," Reuters reported.

-- "Brazil outclassed Serbia 2-0 in their World Cup opener on Thursday as Richarlison scored two second-half goals, including a spectacular overhead kick, though an ankle injury sustained by Neymar put a damper on their celebrations," according to Reuters.