PRESS DIGEST - Vietnam newspapers - March 19

HANOI, March 19 (Reuters) - These are some of the leading stories in the official Vietnamese press on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

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VIETNAM NEWS

-- The Agriculture Ministry is urging the government to come up with a rescue plan for exporters of agricultural products to avoid what could be an industrywide crisis due to the continuing fall of the U.S. dollar.

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LAO DONG

-- The government has asked the National Assembly Standing Committee to include discussions of a project to expand Hanoi in its working session next month.

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TUOI TRE

-- Bird flu outbreaks have affected poultry in three districts in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai, bordering China, the Animal Health Department said.

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THANH NIEN

-- Mekong Delta farmers have been harvesting a bumper winter-spring rice crop while prices are also high, Agriculture Minister Cao Duc Phat said.

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THOI BAO KINH TE VIETNAM

-- Vietnam had an estimated surplus of $1 billion in its current account in the first quarter of this year after a surplus of $3 billion to $4 billion at the end of last year.

- - - - (Reporting by Hanoi Newsroom)