LONDON - Diminishing demand for late-night drinking and rising operating costs mean London's nightclubs are having to work harder than ever to keep their doors open.

AKITA -- A study is planned to analyze the impact of bear appearances on the daily lives and mental health of elderly residents in Akita Prefecture, which had the largest number of bear attack victims in Japan in fiscal 2025.

The People’s Committee of Da Nang City in central Vietnam has given its nod to the investment in two social housing projects in the Chu Lai Open Economic Zone, with a combined capital exceeding VND1.56 trillion (US$59.2 million).

Doctors at Children’s Hospital 2 in Ho Chi Minh City have saved two young boys in critical condition from hand, foot, and mouth disease caused by Enterovirus 71 (EV71), a strain known for its rapid and severe neurological complications, a hospital official confirmed on Friday.

The United States has launched two large-scale trade investigations under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 covering dozens of countries and territories, including Vietnam, over concerns related to excess capacity and forced labor, according to the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade.

SYDNEY - Australian energy and water utilities warn the strain on capacity from a more than A$100 billion ($70 billion) data centre build-out in the country's biggest state could sharply push up household bills.

Forty-six commercial banks in Vietnam pledged to lower both deposit and lending interest rates at a meeting with the State Bank of Vietnam on Thursday in a bid to ease financial pressure on businesses and households.

For two decades, researchers observed members of the Ngogo chimpanzee group of Kibale National Park in Uganda spend their days eating fruits and leaves, resting, traveling and grooming in their tropical rainforest abode. But this stable community then fractured and descended into years of deadly violence.

Leading Japanese printed circuit board (PCB) manufacturer Meiko Electronics will invest US$50 million to establish a new subsidiary in Vietnam, expanding production capacity as demand rises amid supply chain shifts to ASEAN, the company said in a statement.

The Vietnamese government has proposed reducing environmental and special consumption taxes on gasoline, diesel, kerosene, jet fuel, and mazut to zero, as global energy prices continue to rise due to instability in the Middle East.

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PARIS, France -- The emperor penguin has been declared an endangered species as climate change pushes the icon of Antarctica a step closer to extinction, the global authority on threatened wildlife announced on Thursday.

Authorities in Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday handled a sea turtle found dead on a Vung Tau beach, the second in less than a week, officials said.

Rare bird species, including spot-billed pelicans not seen for six years, have returned in large numbers to Tram Chim National Park in southern Vietnam over the past week, a park official said.

A consortium including Vietnam Maritime Corporation, Saigon Port JSC, and Terminal Investment Limited Holding S.A has submitted documents to develop the Can Gio international transshipment port project valued at VND128.872 trillion (US$4.9 billion) in Ho Chi Minh City.

Viet Duc University Hospital in Hanoi on Wednesday morning held a ceremony to honor the family of a 19-year-old British woman whose organ donation has saved three lives in Vietnam, transforming personal tragedy into a profound message of humanity without borders.

Authorities in Thai Nguyen Province, northern Vietnam have suspended a kindergarten principal after pork used in her school's meals tested positive for African swine fever, days after she and staff cooked and ate the meat in front of parents to demonstrate it was safe, officials said on Wednesday.

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FTSE Russell has reaffirmed its plan to upgrade Vietnam’s stock market from frontier to secondary emerging market status, effective September 21, and released a preliminary list of 32 Vietnamese stocks eligible for potential inclusion in the FTSE Global All Cap Index.

During the first week of April 2026, we gained firsthand insight into South Korea’s strategic investment in its cultural industry, observing its robust promotion of books, the history of writing, and iconic sites like the Dae Jang Geum film set.

Prime ministers of Laos, China, and Cambodia have sent congratulatory messages to Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung, expressing their readiness to work with the new leader to further strengthen bilateral relations with Vietnam.

The Ho Chi Minh City administration has announced plans to launch inspections of food suppliers and catering services that provide meals to schools, with a view to strengthening food safety compliance.

The Artemis astronauts hurtling back home after circling the Moon have had regular communication with their team on Earth, but on Tuesday they got to chat with colleagues floating elsewhere in space.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is expected on Wednesday to announce a ban on access to social media for children under the age of 15, according to a government briefing.

Vietnam’s coastal resort town of Mui Ne in Lam Dong Province has been named among the world’s top 10 trending destinations for 2026 by Booking.com, the online travel agency said on Wednesday.

A 56-year-old woman in Hanoi has safely delivered twin babies at Hanoi Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, marking a rare and high-risk pregnancy, the hospital said on Tuesday.

Da Nang will convert an unused restaurant and marina complex on Bach Dang Street along the Han River into a public space, a city official said on Tuesday, as the project has remained idle for years over legal issues involving its investor.

Parts of northwestern and central Vietnam recorded extreme heat on Tuesday, with temperatures reaching nearly 42 degrees Celsius, according to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.

HELSINKI/STOCKHOLM -- TikTok plans to invest one billion euros ($1.16 billion) to build a second data center in Finland in less than a year as it moves data storage for European users to the continent, company officials said on Wednesday.

Vietnam’s top labor body said on Tuesday it will seek feedback from workers, including via social media, on proposals to swap compensatory days off around the Reunification Day (April 30) and International Workers’ Day (May 1) holidays to create a longer break.

A critically endangered white-eared night heron has been recorded again at Ba Be National Park in northern Vietnam for the first time in more than a decade, according to researchers.

Good morning from Vietnam!

Phu Quoc Tourism Development and Investment JSC, the operator of Corona Resort & Casino Phu Quoc, in Phu Quoc Special Zone, An Giang Province, southern Vietnam, recorded a post-tax loss of nearly VND918 billion (US$34.8 million) last year, bringing its accumulated deficit to over VND5.8 trillion ($222 million) as of the end of 2025, according to its 2025 financial statement.

Rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure is pushing up data center construction costs across the Asia-Pacific region, at a time when Vietnam is emerging as one of the most cost-competitive locations for development, according to Cushman & Wakefield.

A consortium of Sovico Group JSC and HDBank has proposed the development of a 99-story financial tower in Thu Thiem New Urban Area, Ho Chi Minh City, with preliminary investment estimated at US$1.84 billion.