Author: the-shiv
What Vietnamese businesses want from President Biden’s Hanoi stopover
VN Express is covering what Vietnamese businesses are looking for from US President Joe Biden’s trip to Hanoi. Key takeaways: Eds note: Whereas the geopolitics of Biden’s visit to Hanoi are well documented, in Vietnam there seems to be little interest. The focus domestically is on trade with the United
US product transfer firm opens factory in southern Vietnam
US firm Kurz, which specialises in thin-film transfers and decorative producs, has opened a factory in Vietnam’s Quy Nhon province, Plastics Technology is reporting. In the original press release, the company says it’s investing 35 million euros (US$37.5 million) in the new facility. It is slated to produce plastic finishings
Vietnam’s offshore wind (OSW) targets in doubt
“To meet the PDP8 scheduled target, the OSW projects should have been identified, investors selected, and permits issued by now,” according to a blog post from the law firm Shearman and Sterling. The law firm points out that the typical lead time for OSW projects is 5 to 7 years
Anticipated technology transfers from FDI to local firms not happening in Vietnam
Technology transfers from foreign to local firms are not happening, Tung Dinh Dang, Deputy Director of the Department of Technology Assessment, via Tuoi Tre. Instead, foreign firms are only transferring technology to their Vietnamese subsidiaries. Dang says, the workers often using the technology do not have the skills or education
Banks can now offer customers refinancing loans
Vietcombank and BIDV are among the first banks in Vietnam to allow customers to borrow in order to pay loans at other banks, The Investor is reporting. Regulations that restricted taking out loans to pay off other loans were rolled back earlier this month. Why it matters: By giving customers
Vietnam’s credit growth languishes, businesses don’t want to borrow
Vietnam’s credit growth has reached just 5.33 percent as of the end of August, The Investor is reporting. This is slightly up from July’s 4.56 percent but substantially far away from the 14 percent target for the year. Consider this: The article notes that businesses are reluctant to borrow and
Malaysian real estate firm enters Vietnam market with HCMC land purchase
Malaysia’s Skyworld Development is set to invest US$14.15 million in land in HCMC on which it intends to build an apartment building, the New Straight Times is reporting. Context: The real estate sector has found itself almost frozen after several high-profile arrests related to bond issuances. The economy is also
Australia is chasing stronger ties with Vietnam
Australia wants a comprehensive strategic partnership with Vietnam, an upgrade from the current strategic partnership, according to VN Express. Vietnam and Australia have drawn much closer in recent years as trade friction with China has seen the land downunder look for alternative markets for its products. Cotton exports from Australia
International school in Hoi An shuts down unexpectedly, owner does a runner
VN Express is covering the closure of an international school in Hoi An whereby the foreign owner closed down the school and left the country rather than declaring bankruptcy. The article says a report has been lodged with the local police but if there is money to be refunded it
Vietnam’s 2023 growth target ‘extremely difficult’ to reach says deputy minister
Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Phuong Quoc Tran has told Vietnam News that reaching the government’s 6.5 percent GDP growth target by the end of the year will be challenging–at the end of June growth was at 3.72 percent. He says low demand is weighing heavily on exports and
Coffee price decline likely temporary
The Ministry of Industry and Trade’ Import-Export Department is anticipating that a recent decline in coffee prices will slow down, according to Vietnambiz. Vietnam is the world’s second largest coffee producer after Brazil. In the first half of 2023, coffee exports earned Vietnam US$2 billion.
Lack of, slow policy development may hinder wind power development in Vietnam
The Investor has a write-up of the Global Offshore Wind Report 2023 in which it highlights that a lack of timely supporting policy can be off putting to investors. Specifically, Vietnam introduced a policy a few years ago that would see wind farms completed by the end of 2020 paid
Japanese to build biomass plant in northern Vietnam
Japanese firm Erex is considering building a 50 megawatt biomass plant in Vietnam’s Bac Kan province, according to The Investor. This is alongside a number of other biomass power projects in neighbouring provinces. Under Vietnam’s Power Development Plan 8, approved earlier this year, biomass is slated to account for 2,270
Spanish football league to help develop football in Vietnam
Vietnamnet is reporting that the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and the Spanish football league (La Liga) have signed an MOU in a first step toward the Spaniards providing training and talent development to the local league. Why it matters: Vietnam loves football but the local league has been plagued by
Lack of access to capital still weighing on business in Vietnam
Vietnam needs to cut interest rates further to stimulate borrowing, according to an article in The Investor. Credit growth, at 4.73 percent in June, is well below the 14 to 15 percent target for the year. The article goes on to reference several experts who support a further reduction in
Demand needs to be addressed in VN’s economic recovery, too
Loosening monetary policy in Vietnam will only work if flagging demand is addressed too according to Binh Duy Le, Director of Economica Vietnam, and reported by VN Economy. In recent weeks, Vietnam’s economic focus has been on increasing exports and reducing business costs through interest rate and fee cuts. Le,
Vietnam’s outbound FDI climbs over US$416 million to August 2023
Vietnam’s outbound investment topped US$416 million in the first eight months of 2023, the Vietnam Investment Reviewis reporting. Vietnamese investors now have 1,665 overseas projects valued at US$22.1 billion.
VPS sees the real estate market recovering in the second half of 2023
The real estate market in Vietnam will only start to properly recover when lending interest rates drop another 2-3 percent, according to VPBank Securities Company (VPS) as reported by Business Forum Magazine. The magazine goes on to quote VPS as saying the challenges facing the real estate market will ease
Calls for US-Vietnam free trade agreement
Business Forum Magazine is carrying comments from economist David Dapice, who’s calling for a free trade deal between the US and Vietnam. Notably, the US was slated to be a member of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement of which Vietnam is a part, but the world’s biggest economy pulled out under
Virtual banking data from Visa somewhat questionable
Doanh Nhan Online is carrying an article about a Visa report from May this year (found here) in which 90 percent of Vietnamese consumers express an interest in virtual banking services. Something to think about: The report also mentions that 76 percent of consumers in Vietnam had gone cashless for
In today’s Vietnam news: Internet cafe opening hours restricted, Crypto transfers tax, Proposal courts investigative power reduced, WB upgrade VN to UMI status, Fuel
In today’s Vietnam news: MB Securities fined off-book margin lending, Borrower capacity proof limit lifted, Counterfeit shampoo and body wash, Electronics retailer IPO, Investors
In today’s Vietnam news: Hanoi low-emissions zone begins, Tougher penalties for social media, Regulatory delays hamper protein company acquisition, VietJet Australia?, Gold bar tax
This is an interview with Chris Walker, a Vietnam Sourcing Expert with Vietnam Factory Tours how rising oil prices and the Middle East crisis are
This is an interview with John Gardner, CEO and Founding Partner, at Optimum Hospitality in Ho Chi Minh City. It covers fuel price impacts on:
This is an interview with Dr Nuno F. Ribeiro, Associate Professor, International Tourism & Hospitality Management at Copenhagen Business College, formerly of RMIT Vietnam. It