Manufacturing & Industry
This category focuses on industrial production, from electronics and textiles to automotive and heavy industry. It covers FDI trends, supply chain developments, factory expansions, and government regulations shaping the industrial landscape. As a key driver of economic growth, manufacturing plays a crucial role in global supply chains, technological advancements, and industrial competitiveness.
Esports match fixing highlights breadth of corruption in sports in Vietnam
Professional sports leagues in Vietnam have struggled to develop on the back of limited investment and low pay for sports players that has resulted in players developing side hustles like match-fixing. More prominently, the Vietnamese Premier League was voted the third most corrupt league in the world back in 2016, and not much has been done to clean up Vietnamese soccer since–As recently as February, five players were charged for match fixing…
Tax from cross border service providers hits US$157.4 million in Vietnam so far this year
This is perhaps most interesting in the context of Vietnam’s Cybersecurity Law. Specifically, the law requires foreign firms to open a local office, which many of them have simply not done, hence, paying the aforementioned tax as a cross border service provider…
State Bank of Vietnam says there is no shortage of gold
This comes in the context of a rush to buy gold in Vietnam after the State Bank announced it would start selling gold from its reserves at well-below market prices to try and close the gap between local and world gold prices. Previously, the State Bank had tried to auction off its gold to several gold companies and financial institutions but the price was set relatively high and interest from these institutions was lacklustre at best…
Several Starbucks have gone cashless in Vietnam
In terms of reducing the security risks associated with handling cash, this move by these Starbucks stores makes sense. As far as speed and convenience go, however, it’s not clear that this has been achieved. Of note, QR code transfers can sometimes take some time with multiple steps involved–logging to a bank account, scanning the code, approving the purchase etcetera.
Vietnam’s zero-VND feed-in-tariffs plan for rooftop solar dumped
The plan was issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and was designed to tackle the issue of over production that surfaced in Central Vietnam several years ago. Said over production, however, was more the result of projects being approved outside of the plans and policies that were in place for solar power development. Specifically, the Government Inspectorate found that the Power Development Plan 7 had set out to see 850 MW of solar power by 2020, however, a total of 168 solar projects with a total capacity of 14,707 MW were approved in that time…
Vietnam records win for R&D with new Motorola facility in HCMC
Back in 2019, Vietnam issued Decree 13/2019/ND-CP, which was designed to drive investment in research and development. To do this, it offered tax breaks, preferential loans, and reductions in land and water fees.
Vietnam e-commerce traders struggle to profit on Amazon: state media
A recurring theme in the local media has been the challenges local firms face accessing markets overseas. More free trade agreements should, and does, mean greater market access in other parts of the world, however, in most developed markets quality requirements are much higher than they are in Vietnam. Whereas this does incentivise local producers to improve the quality of their products, improving the quality of their products comes at a financial cost…
Vietnam’s corporate bond issuances in 2024 well down on 2023
Of note, bond market reforms issued at the end of 2022 resulted in the bond market freezing up with issuances reduced to a trickle. These reforms were then put on hold in March of 2023 and the bond market bounced back. They did, however, come to an end at the end of the year and subsequently a renewed fall in bond issuances is playing out…
Vietnam coal emissions jump on reduced hydropower supply
Vietnam committed to being net-zero by 2050 at the 26th Conference of Parties, however, there have been a number of roadblocks. A Just Energy Transition Partnership agreement, for example, signed back in 2022, was touted as the foundation for a move to greener power generation. Leaked British diplomatic cables, however, suggest there is little confidence among the JETP partners…
Vietnam News Roundup: May 31 to June 6
This week’s Vietnam news roundup covers the latest news from Pacific Airways, the State Bank’s new gold strategy, Vietnam’s latest PMI, Lotte Finance’s increased investment in consumer finance in Vietnam, Hitachi suing over the metro in HCMC, a move to process Vietnam’s rare earth minerals in-house, and more.
Swiss high-end watchmaker opens outlet in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City
The number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals–persons with a net worth greater than US$30 million–has grown exponentially in recent years. According to Frank Knight’s Wealth Report 2024 estimates, Vietnam had 752 of these uber-rich at the end of 2023 and that number is expected to grow to 978 by 2028…
Vietnam will not export rare earths to encourage local industry development
With the huge demand for rare earth minerals and the ongoing geopolitical tensions between the world’s biggest rare earths producer, China, and the world’s biggest rare earths consumers the US, Vietnam has the attention of rare earth miners and processors the world over. A clear direction forward, however, is still somewhat elusive but there has been a lot of movement in the industry over the last twelve months.
Vietnam university applies height restrictions to business management courses
Of note, local businesses have been struggling to keep up with their foreign counterparts for some time. The share of Vietnam’s exports belonging to foreign invested enterprises, for example, is around 70 percent. This revelation from the School of Management and Business may shed some light on why that is.
Vietnam Airlines to lease planes to unprofitable budget airline subsidiary
For some context, Pacific Airlines has no planes because it gave them back to its lessor in exchange for having VND 3 trillion or US$118 million worth of debt cancelled. This was months ago and the airline hasn’t run a passenger flight since. With this in mind, it’s difficult to see any organisation other than Vietnam Airlines leasing aircraft to Pacific Airlines moving forward which could limit the airlines growth.
Vietnam ministry looks to end VAT, import tax exemption on e-commerce imports
Low-value Chinese-made goods are all over Vietnam’s major e-commerce sites and can be exported from China and arrive in Vietnam very quickly and easily given the two countries are so close. This proximity also means that shipping is relatively cheap too, and in this respect it does seem that the only real difference is that goods from China, with this VAT exemption in mind, are cheaper…
South Korean consumer finance firm doubles down on Vietnam
Of note, demand for credit has plummeted over the last year or two as thrifty Vietnamese have tightened their belts. By the end of March credit growth was at just 1.34 percent. That said, credit cards have not proven to be very popular in Vietnam in general, with consumers tending to spend only what they have. In fact, just 6 percent of Vietnamese had a credit card according to a 2021 report from the World Bank…
Concerns raised for Vietnam ag producers re: EU-Thailand trade deal
For context, Vietnam’s seafood exports have benefited enormously from the myriad of trade deals the country has signed on to, however, sustainability has become a key issue. Overfishing is rife, hence the yellow card, and this has the potential to have long-term ramifications for many of Vietnam’s coastal, fishing dependent communities. That said, this yellow card coupled with the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement has, at least ostensibly, been a driver for change and speaks to the non-trade benefits of Vietnam’s many free trade agreements…
Korea launches anti-dumping probe into three Vietnam steel firms
Steel has been at the centre of a number of antidumping investigations of late. Hot-rolled coil steel from China in particular has been possibly the most prominent, however, Vietnam has also started to feature particularly as a means of circumventing anti-dumping tariffs elsewhere. For example, earlier this month the EU extended anti-dumping measures on cold-rolled stainless steel from Indonesia to include Vietnam to avoid Indonesian steel producers from using the country as a workaround…
Vietnam’s new gold price strategy sparks rush to buy cheap gold
Previously, the State Bank had tried to auction off its gold to several gold companies and financial institutions but the price was set relatively high and interest from these institutions was lacklustre at best. Of note, a number of gold shops ran out of gold bars yesterday, some reportedly in just one hour. With little utility in general, and even less for consumers, it looks very much like these gold purchases are for investment purposes.
Vietnam’s Purchasing Managers’ Index flat in May
Overall a relatively positive month for Vietnam’s manufacturing sector and the maintained growth trajectory, however small, is still consistent and may suggest a more stable sector than has been seen over the last year or so.
In today’s Vietnam news: GS TL on AI, Saigon Economic Times last issue, Fuel prices cut, Vinhomes issuing more bonds, Counterfeit Korean cosmetics store,
In today’s Vietnam news: Power supply imports, Hanoi boulevard project protests, Antidumping duties coming for boxes, Maersk container terminal project Hanoi, Vinpearl foreign investment,
In today’s Vietnam news: Credit limits removed for some major projects, Estonian web security company market entry, Vingroup’s Vuong becomes major shareholder LP Bank,
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