PRESS DIGEST - Vietnam newspapers - May 5

HANOI, May 5 (Reuters) - These are some of the leading stories in the official Vietnamese press on Monday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

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FINANCIAL NEWS:

TUOI TRE

-- The higher import duty on new cars, which was raised to 83 percent from 70 percent, has considerably driven up sticker prices and slowed down the sale of imported cars.

-- Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Corporation REE.HM announced revenues in the first quarter this year rose to 275.26 billion dong ($17.2 million), up 49 percent compared to the same period of last year, but it suffered a loss of 106.15 billion dong ($6.6 million) due to losses on stock investments.

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ECONOMIC AND GENERAL NEWS:

HANOI MOI