PRESS DIGEST - Vietnam newspapers - December 25

HANOI, Dec 25 (Reuters) - These are some of the leading stories in the official Vietnamese press on Tuesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

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NHAN DAN

-- Vietnam should strive to achieve 9 percent economic growth in 2008 and cut the number of poor families to 12 percent from 15 percent this year, when the economy should expand 8.44 percent, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung told a cabinet meeting.

-- Two Vietnamese ships collided off the central coastal province of Quang Ngai, causing the spill of 173 cubic metres (6,109 cu ft) of diesel off Dung Quat port. The two ships for were detained for investigation.

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SAIGON GIAI PHONG

-- Vietnam's energy waste is estimated at $1 million a day, a survey by the Science, Technology and Environment Ministry and Dutch organisation EDP found. The country would be short of 8.6 billion kwh of power next year, up from 6.6 billion kwh this year.

-- Vietnam would establish a fund next year to protect oil product importers from risks of fuel price changes that would be adjusted every three to six months, an Industry and Trade Ministry source said.