Miscellany - VietNam News

S. Korea's plastic surgery fad goes extreme

South Korea's obsession with plastic surgery is moving on from standard eye and nose jobs to embrace a radical surgical procedure that requires months of often painful recovery.

Programme marks birth of one millionth HIV-free baby

This month somewhere in sub-Saharan Africa the one millionth baby will be born without HIV to a mother who suffers from the disease, thanks in large part to a decade-old US aid programme.

S. Korea opens bidding on $7.3 bn fighter jet deal

South Korea formally opened bidding on Tuesday on a US$7.3 billion deal to provide 60 advanced fighter planes, with three aviation giants vying for what is the Asian nation's largest defence contract to date.

Tens of thousands protest Confed Cup costs in Brazil

Youths have clashed with police in central Rio as more than 200,000 people rallied in major Brazilian cities to protest the billions of dollars spent on the Confederations Cup and higher public transport costs.

Mysterious Steve Jobs emails hang over Apple trial

The late Steve Jobs took centre has stage in the latest twist in the Apple antitrust trial on ebooks.

Obama defends Internet snooping program

President Barack Obama has sought to allay fears about secret US intelligence programmes, rejecting comparisons with the policies of his predecessors George W. Bush and Dick Cheney.

Deadly car bomb hits soldiers near Damascus: NGO

A car bomb killed an undetermined number of soldiers and wounded at least 20 others late Sunday at an army checkpoint near a military airport in Damascus, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Czech PM Necas quits amid corruption scandal

Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas said on Sunday he would step down amid a massive corruption scandal in which his top aide and alleged lover was indicted for bribery.

Australian court agrees, we're not all male or female

A landmark ruling won by an Australian gender trailblazer which finds that sex does not just mean male or female could have broader implications as society becomes more accepting of diversity, experts say.

EU ministers seek accord on US free trade talks

EU trade ministers try on Friday to reassure France on its prized "cultural exception" so free trade talks can be opened next week with the United States which believes that no issues should be excluded.

Iran votes in key presidential contest

More than 50.5 million people are eligible to vote for a new president to succeed Ahmadinejad, who is barred from standing for a third consecutive term under the constitution.

InHistory

October 30 in History

Hightlight

Income not the only measure of poverty

Viet Nam's poverty rate is estimated at around 10 per cent but the number of people who do not achieve social well-being is believed to be much higher. It's necessary to go beyond income when defining people's experiences.

Clouds cover VN weather forecasting

Viet Nam has so far only accomplished 30 per cent of the workload to modernise weather forecasting technology and upgrade monitoring systems.

Viet Nam private equity outlook bounces back

Investors viewing Viet Nam's investment environment favourably has increased over the last six months, according to a bi-annual survey on the nation's private equity outlook done by Grant Thornton Vietnam.

City taxi inspectors urged to crackdown on violations

Taxis operating in HCM City will be subject to greater scrutiny and punishment in the coming months, says Duong Hong Thanh, deputy director of the city's Transport Department.

Shares slide but outlook remains bright