🇻🇳 Vietnam

Latest Dispatches

• Stanford, MIT top US universities for student return on investment — A new ranking of American universities prioritizes graduates' financial outcomes over traditional prestige metrics. Strong STEM programs emerge as key drivers of value for students seeking the best return on their educational investment.
• Singapore ranks among world's top OnlyFans spenders despite wealth — Singapore's users contributed an estimated US$18.8 million to the content subscription platform OnlyFans during its most recent audited financial year, placing the city-state 17th globally in per-adult spending on the service.
• Singapore Changi leads Southeast Asia airports; Hanoi Noi Bai posts fastest growth — Singapore Changi Airport maintains its position as Southeast Asia's busiest hub by departing seat capacity in September, while Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport is experiencing the region's most rapid capacity expansion.
• Former urbanite builds eco-tourism empire from family forest plot — After years of unsuccessful business ventures in the city, Vietnamese entrepreneur Ngo Huynh Trang returned home to develop her family's six-hectare forest into a thriving eco-tourism enterprise generating approximately $380,000 annually.
• Four Chinese nationals deny kidnapping Singaporean at Malaysia airport — Four Chinese nationals have pleaded not guilty in a Malaysian court to charges of kidnapping a 72-year-old Singaporean man at Penang International Airport and demanding a S$1 million ransom. The defendants face potential sentences of up to 40 years if convicted.
• Security researchers discover WeChat vulnerability allowing account hijacking via missed calls — A California-based cybersecurity firm has identified a critical flaw in WeChat that could allow attackers to compromise user accounts through a single unanswered call. The vulnerability, which has since been patched, potentially exposed over one billion users to account takeover attacks.
• Hanoi plans centennial makeover of Hoan Kiem Lake historic district — Hanoi is preparing a major urban renewal project centered on the Hoan Kiem Lake area, featuring expanded public spaces, selective building demolitions, and a new triumphal arch as its focal point. The transformation is part of the Vietnamese capital's long-term vision for revitalizing its historic core.
• Vietnam proposes schedule shift to extend Culture Day into four-day break — Vietnam's Ministry of Home Affairs has put forward a workday adjustment plan designed to create an extended weekend around the country's inaugural Culture Day celebration in late November.
• Vietnam, France chart deeper ties through strategic partnership accord — Vietnam and France have pledged to strengthen implementation of their comprehensive strategic partnership during an official visit to Paris by top Vietnamese leadership. The commitment comes as Party General Secretary and President To Lam attends an international space summit at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron.
• Majority of Vietnamese teens lack practical reading skills, OECD finds — Nearly 60 percent of Vietnamese 15-year-olds fail to demonstrate basic reading proficiency needed for everyday situations, according to an international assessment by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.
• Vietnam proposes extended seven-day Lunar New Year break for 2027 — Vietnam's Ministry of Home Affairs has recommended a week-long Tet holiday for civil servants and public sector workers in early 2027, subject to government endorsement.
• Indonesia's Kawah Ijen: World's Most Acidic Lake — Located in East Java, Indonesia's Kawah Ijen crater lake holds the distinction of being the world's most acidic body of water, with pH levels plunging below 0.3 in many areas. The extreme chemical conditions create a rare natural phenomenon: luminous blue flames that illuminate the crater after dark.