Read what is in the news today in Vietnam: 

Politics

-- Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone and his spouse are scheduled to pay an official visit to Vietnam from January 6 to 7 at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh, marking his first trip to the neighboring country since taking office in December 2022.

-- Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Tuesday sent a message of sympathy to his Japanese counterpart Kishida Fumio over huge losses in human lives and property caused by the 7.6-magnitude earthquake that struck Ishikawa Prefecture and adjacent areas in central Japan a day earlier.

Society

-- As of 9:00 pm on Tuesday, the Vietnam Embassy in Japan had reported no Vietnamese casualties or injuries in the massive earthquake.

-- On Tuesday night, a fire broke out at an electric vehicle repair and sales shop situated along Tran Cung Street in Bac Tu Liem District, Hanoi. The incident resulted in substantial property damage, although no injuries were reported.

-- Police in Thua Thien-Hue Province, central Vietnam on Tuesday said that they broke up an illegal online football betting ring whose transactions exceeded US$7.3 million.

-- The Agency for the Development of France (AFD) will invest 37 million euros ($40.6 million) to address landslides along Hoi An Beach in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam, comprising 35 million euros ($38.4 million) in AFD loans, two million euros ($2.2 million) in non-refundable aid, and five million euros ($5.4 million) in counterpart capital from the provincial budget. The project is scheduled to commence in 2024 and finish in 2025.

-- The Ministry of Transport has urged the prime minister to review and approve a proposed investment increase of nearly VND1 trillion ($41 million) for the recently-inaugurated 23-kilometer-long My Thuan-Can Tho Expressway, traversing Vinh Long and Dong Thap Provinces.

-- The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has green-lighted a project, costing over VND1.45 trillion ($59.6 million), to intensify water extraction from the Hau River for aquaculture in Bac Lieu Province.

Business

-- Vietnam’s rubber exports amounted to around 2.14 million metric tons in 2023, valued at $2.89 billion, marking a slight 0.04-percent decrease in volume and a 12.7-percent decline in value compared to 2022, according to the General Department of Customs.

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