Read what is in the news in Vietnam today:

Politics

-- Sixteen contracts worth US$286.3 million in total and 17 cooperation agreements between Vietnam’s defense units and businesses from various countries such as the U.S., India, France, and Belgium were signed at the Vietnam International Defense Expo 2024 held in Hanoi from December 19-22.

-- The Ministry of National Defense announced that the Vietnam International Defense Expo 2024 will extend the opening hours of some booths until Monday, instead of Sunday as originally scheduled, to serve more visitors.

Society

-- The National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting announced that a tropical depression in the southern East Vietnam Sea is expected to strengthen into a typhoon within Monday, which will become the 10th storm to enter the sea in 2024.

-- Ho Chi Minh City Urban Railway No. 1 Company Limited, the operator of metro line No. 1, reported that 78 trips were run on Sunday, the first day of official service, carrying around 54,600 passengers between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm.

-- The average fertility rate in Ho Chi Minh City for 2024 is estimated at 1.4 children per woman, a slight increase from 1.32 in 2023, but is still very low, according to Pham Chanh Trung, head of the Ho Chi Minh City Population and Family Planning Branch.

-- Ho Chi Minh City aims to have full 5G coverage by 2025, a target emphasized by city leaders during a meeting with members of the Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in Ho Chi Minh City on Sunday.

Business

-- Vietnam’s state-owned oil distribution firm PetroVietnam Oil Corp (PV Oil) reported a record revenue of over VND131 trillion ($5.15 billion) for 2024, marking a 19-percent increase compared to last year.

Lifestyle

-- Hue City in central Vietnam and Hanoi have been ranked among the top 50 best food cities in the world for 2024 by the world-renowned culinary website Taste Atlas.

Sports

-- The Football Association of Singapore announced that tickets for the first leg of the 2024 ASEAN Championship semi-final against Vietnam at Jalan Besar Stadium, with a capacity of 6,000, sold out in six hours.

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