Vietnam Authorities Move to Stop Protestant Christmas Events

HANOI, Vietnam (Compass Direct News) – In what appeared to be part of a central government crackdown on Protestant Christianity in Vietnam, hundreds of Christians from 10 northern provinces were locked out of a Christmas celebration that was supposed to take place here on Sunday.

The throngs who arrived at the National Convention Center (NCC) in the Tu Kiem district of Hanoi for the Christmas event found the doors locked and a phalanx of police trying to send them away, sources said. Deeply disappointed, some of the Christians began singing and praying in the square in front to the center, they said.
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Vietnam's 2010 inflation may hit 9.2%

HANOI: Rising food prices are expected to push Vietnam's inflation rate to more than nine per cent this year, data showed Friday, piling pressure on the country's leaders to restore economic stability.

The news comes after the the country's donors warned that rising inflation and weakness in the dong currency could seriously hurt the nation's growth prospects.

The General Statistics Office said consumer prices would likely rise 9.2 per cent in 2010, well up from 6.88 percent last year and higher than the government's target ceiling of eight per cent.


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Vietnam's Economic Troubles Deepen

Vietnam's economic troubles have deepened as its sovereign credit rating has been lowered by a global rating agency for the second time this month.
Standard and Poor's Ratings Services announced Thursday that it was lowering Vietnam's long-term rating by one notch to BB minus, putting it on the same level with Bangladesh and Mongolia.
Moody's Investors Service took similar action eight days ago, citing the risk of a balance-of-payments crisis and problems at the state-owned ship-building company Vinashin.
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