Catch up on the news in Vietnam today:

Politics

-- Director-General of the World Trade Organization Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who is on a working visit to Vietnam, hailed the country’s socio-economic development achievements, saying the Southeast Asian country is a typical example to many other countries.

-- Vietnam resolutely opposes actions that infringe on the country’s sovereignty and related rights over its Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago, deputy spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang said at a press conference in Hanoi on Thursday in response to China’s illegal opening of a hotpot restaurant on the group of islands.

-- Ho Chi Minh City and China’s Shanghai City share many similarities and hold great potential and favorable conditions to elevate their ties to new heights, secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen said at an online meeting between leaders of the two cities on Thursday.

Society

-- The Ho Chi Minh City Urban Railway Management Board has added more security guards and service dogs at night at Long Binh Depot of Ho Chi Minh City’s metro line No. 1 after vandalism smeared railcars late last month.

-- Some restaurants and shops in Ho Chi Minh City have suspended their operations for several hours over the past few days due to a power cut.

-- A seven-seater automobile was running on a National Highway 32 section in Phuc Tho District, Hanoi on Thursday when it suddenly burst into flames.

-- Police in Ho Chi Minh City have initiated legal proceedings against a woman whose three-year-old son was allegedly abused and allowed to use meth by her lover in Hoc Mon District.

Business

-- Taiwanese shoemaker PouYuen Vietnam Co. Ltd., the largest employer in Ho Chi Minh City, said on Thursday that it would lay off over 5,700 workers. The firm did not renew its employment contracts with some 2,300 workers in February, blaming a lack of orders.

Lifestyle

-- A company from Macau, China has proposed organizing the professional international boxing tournament IPBU in Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa Province, south-central Vietnam in September this year.

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