VIETNAM

Coca-Cola Awaits Green Light: Coca-Cola Co. said two Vietnamese government agencies have agreed to talks that could ultimately lead to the soft-drink giant’s return to the Southeast Asian country. As companies from across Europe and the Far East jockey for position in the communist country, Coke is hoping to set up a bottling plant for the sale of its soft-drink products. The company signed a memorandum of understanding with the Vietnam National Foodstuffs Import & Export Corp. and Chuong Duong Beverage Factory providing for future joint-venture discussions. Vietnam is now subject to a U.S. trade embargo imposed in 1975, after U.S. involvement in the country ended. But the U.S. government last year introduced new rules allowing American companies to prepare for the lifting of the embargo.