HANOI, Nov 22 (Reuters) - These are some of the leading stories in the official Vietnamese press on Thursday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

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VIETNAM NEWS

-- The number of Internet users is about 18 million, only 10 years since it was first permitted by the government. About 55,000 Web sites are registered under the ".vn" domain.

-- Vietnam's first telecommunications satellite Vinasat will be launched soon, officials said.

-- A new tax law allows stock investors to either pay 0.1 percent tax on the revenues of each stock sale or 20 percent on net capital gains accumulated in a fiscal year.

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LAO DONG

-- The German government has approved a soft loan of 85 million euro ($125 million) to help build a metro system in Ho Chi Minh City.

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TUOI TRE

-- Around 500 Vietnamese fishermen have taken shelter in neighbouring countries as tropical storm Hagibis approaches, but more than 90,000 others are still at sea, an officer of the military border forces said.

-- Construction has started on a passenger terminal at Cam Ranh airport in the central province of Khanh Hoa with an investment of 197.5 billion dong ($12.2 million). The terminal would handle up to one million passengers a year.

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THANH NIEN

-- The government granted 1.9 trillion dong ($118 million) to supplement the registered capital of the People's Central Credit Fund to help boost its operations by 2009, a directive said.

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THOI BAO KINH TE VIETNAM

-- Trade between Vietnam and Russia would rise to $1 billion this year and double to $2 billion in the next three years, a Russian trade official said.

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