Earlier this month, the Dong Nai Department of Customs issued a decision suspending priority customs treatment for Panasonic. The decision does not specify exactly what the well known Japanese brand failed to do, only citing Article 45 of the Customs Law. The company has been suspended for 60 days from accessing priority customs treatment.

Quorum failure adds to woes of Vietnam securities firm hacked back in March

the-shiv June 18, 2024

It’s not clear why it failed to make quorum nor when another annual general meeting might be scheduled. That said, it’s also not clear that this is necessarily a big problem, however, it does speak to a bad run for VNDirect which was shut down for a week by hackers back in March. This has seen its share price on a steady decline since falling from VND 21,278 on March 21 to just VND 17,500 as of today–a decline of just shy of 22 percent.

Vietnam banks sell gold online to relieve pressure on site, demand surges

the-shiv June 18, 2024

This move, however, may have inadvertently facilitated a spike in demand giving people who don’t have the time to wait in queues at banks a more efficient means to buy the relatively cheap gold on offer. Of note, Agribank reported that at one point there were 50,000 attempts to register to buy gold at one time through its online portal…

Korean Soju to be made in Vietnam from 2026

the-shiv June 18, 2024

HiteJinro Group will join a slew of other well-known beverage makers with factories in Vietnam including Heineken, Coca-Cola, and Pepsi. These firms stand to benefit from not only a rapidly growing consumer market in Vietnam but also a number of benefits that come with manufacturing in Vietnam including low-cost labour and tax incentives…

Marine spatial plan to be presented to Vietnam National Assembly this week

the-shiv June 18, 2024

The marine spatial plan is set to be the cornerstone for the development of Vietnam’s coastline. It has, however, been a long time coming. Work began on the marine spatial plan in 2018 but is still ongoing with a broad range of stakeholders from a diverse range of industries–defence, oil and gas, fisheries, and tourism to name but a few. Not to mention the geopolitical implications related to carving out a swathe of the South China Sea or East Sea as it is known in Vietnam. With this in mind, it may be a while longer too…

Vietnam reservoir flood release indicative of reduced hydro, more coal power strategy?

the-shiv June 17, 2024

This is interesting in that hydropower has been underutilised this year compared to last. Just 15 percent of Vietnam’s power came from hydro from January to April of this year, compared to 25 percent for the same period last year. At the same time it has been reported that about 64.6 percent of Vietnam’s electricity came from burning coal in April, whereas in 2023, on average, coal was responsible for just 46 percent of Vietnam’s electricity supply.

Vietnam PM suggests foreign workers for executive roles at state-owned enterprises

the-shiv June 17, 2024

In the past the leaders of SOEs have always been members of the Communist Party of Vietnam which has significantly reduced the talent pool from which to draw–there are currently only a little over 5 million members of the party or around 5 percent of the population. This also leaves these positions open to being filled through political jostling and networking often connected to seniority and an individual’s position within the party more broadly, rather than merit and qualifications…

China’s BYD Vietnam market entry conspicuously coincides with EU, US EV import tariffs

the-shiv June 17, 2024

This is in the context of antidumping tariffs on electric vehicles in the US and EU which may see China look for alternative markets for their vehicles. With a reasonably big population and rapidly rising incomes, not to mention being just a stone’s throw away, Vietnam is a prime choice…

Three Vietnam internet cables reported down days before possible Putin visit

the-shiv June 17, 2024

This could not have come at a worse time. Not only is the National Assembly currently in session but there have been reports the Russian president, Vladimir Putin could be in Hanoi as soon as Wednesday. With the eyes of foreign governments and international media likely to fall on Hanoi in the event the Russian leader does make his way to Vietnam, demand for information out of the country is likely to be high.

Vietnam officially considering anti dumping tariffs on Chinese steel

the-shiv June 17, 2024

If anti dumping duties are introduced Hoa Phat Steel, which trades on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange under the ticker HPG, would likely be one of the key beneficiaries. Stocks in the firm are some of the most heavily traded on a near daily basis among foreign investors. Foreign ownership in the firm is currently capped at 49 percent with 24.92 percent of the company’s shares currently held by foreign traders.

Illegal Vietnam gambling sites sponsoring sports teams in Europe

the-shiv June 15, 2024

Gambling in Vietnam is illegal but is still rampant. There have been some attempts to legalise the practice, particularly sports betting, with guidelines for a pilot program legislated back in 2017, but no business has as yet taken up the opportunity. This is in large part due to very restrictive regulations that limit the size of a bet to VND 1 million or about US$42 and to just a handful of sports. A minimum capital contribution of VND 1 trillion or US$42 million is also required…

Vietnam looking at introducing sugar tax on soft drinks

the-shiv June 15, 2024

Dubbed the ‘sugar tax’ this has been raised several times in the past. The American Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam came out against the idea back in 2018 arguing there was no evidence legislating a sugar tax would reduce consumption of sugary drinks. That said, a study on a similar tax in Mexico found that the consumption of sugary beverages fell 6 percent in its first year of implementation…

Vietnam improves slightly in MSCI 2024 Global Market Accessibility Review

the-shiv June 14, 2024

Of the 18 criteria listed, on six Vietnam had no issues, on four it had no major problems but could use some improvement, but for the remaining eight it was marked as needing improvement. Vietnam has been actively courting an upgrade to its market classification from FTSE Russell and MSCI. Though it still looks ot be some ways away this latest report from MSCI does suggest it is moving in the right direction.

Vietnam ministry proposes 100 percent special consumption tax on alcohol

the-shiv June 14, 2024

Of note, major beer makers in Vietnam, including the makers of the popular Beer Saigon and Beer Hanoi brands reported falling profits in 2023. A crackdown on drink-driving has partially been blamed alongside the pending increase in taxes on alcoholic beverages–though nothing has been confirmed and its not clear how a future tax increase might have influenced last years sales.

Vietnam News Roundup: June 7 to June 13

the-shiv June 14, 2024

This week’s Vietnam news roundup covers foreigner ownership changes at local banks, reports Vietnam might start importing more gold this year, the 8 million trading accounts reportedly opened with the local bourse, labour shortages for one New Balance and Adidas supplier, and more…

Vietnam car sales increase in May, but down year-to-date

the-shiv June 13, 2024

Of note, an article in Business Forum Magazine has lamented that the bulk of this decline was in locally produced vehicles and suggests this might presage an even greater decline of the local car manufacturing industry. It points out that import tariffs have come down considerably on motor vehicles under the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement but are also declining as a result of the European-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement which should see tariffs on cars imported from Europe reduced to zero by 2030.

Claims Vietnam to allow gold imports later this year rebuffed

the-shiv June 13, 2024

There was a similar situation last month whereby Reuters reported that the state power provider had asked a key Apple supplier to reduce its power consumption, however, the state power provider later came out and said this wasn’t accurate. It should be noted that government ministries and departments and state-owned enterprises generally do not respond to requests for comment from foreign media. With this in mind, a simple solution might be to reform this practice.

Vietnam bank lowers foreign ownership limit below Aussie bank’s current holding

the-shiv June 13, 2024

It’s not clear what this might mean for Australia’s Commonwealth Bank nor why they bank made this decision. It could be to give local shareholders greater control over what the Commonwealth Bank does with its stake or could also be that the bank wants to diminish the influence of foreign banks on its local operations…

Vietnam port pushes back on allegations of pilfering from goods for export

the-shiv June 13, 2024

The allegations now include 1.68 tons of coffee missing from a shipment to Egypt in January; four shipments of pepper to the Philippines, Korea, Thailand, and Japan from March that were each missing between 1.5 and 4.6 tons; and three pepper shipments to Malaysia and Norway between September last year and March this year that were each missing between 200 kilograms and 3.3 tons of product…

Vietnam aviation forum highlights outsized debate over rising local airfares

the-shiv June 13, 2024

It’s not exactly clear why airline ticket prices have become such a huge focus in the local media and this could suggest that said coverage is slightly disproportionate to the problem it purports to cover. It’s also worth bearing in mind that the local aviation industry has been having a difficult time of late and this may be simply adding to its woes…