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.
Vietnam records first trade deficit in nearly two years
Of note, in S&P Global’s monthly Purchasing Managers Index updates over the last year or so, the fact that Vietnamese manufacturers were burning through inventory rather than importing more, has been reported every other month. This was in the context of lower demand for Vietnam’s exports, a reality that seems to be changing–exports were 15.8 percent higher than in May of last year–and in which case businesses need to scale back up and import more inputs.
Vietnam gold auction alternative unveiled, SBV to supply gold through banks
This decision came about after a series of gold auctions, in which 47,000 taels of gold were sold to an assortment of banks and gold retailers failed to impact the local gold price to the extent the SBV had hoped…
Vietnam electric vehicle maker’s US factory possibly delayed: Reuters
Work started on the North Carolina right around the same time that VinFast shipped its first electric vehicles to the United States. VinFast’s electric vehicles, however, have not been popular in the US and have received some pretty damning reviews. Furthermore, the company is also being sued for alleged disclosure violations, patent infringement, and unpaid rent, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the US is investigating a car crash in California in which four people died when the VinFast car they were driving crashed into a tree…
How Vietnam feels about imported Chinese cars: insights from local media
It’s not clear how the author of this article drew these conclusions with no sources listed and it reads a lot more like an opinion piece than hard news. These observations, however, could just as easily be applied to consumers in developed markets of Vietnamese electric vehicles…
Vietnam sets price bracket for LNG power negotiations
In Vietnam, for power projects, the MoIT typically sets a maximum and minimum price within which EVN then negotiates with individual power producers. It’s not clear what the purpose of these price brackets is and announcing the maximum price EVN can pay in advance seems counterintuitive to the negotiation process. Regardless this is the process through which most power project prices are determined…
Intel executive laments poor labour productivity in Vietnam
Labour productivity is a recurring theme in Vietnam with the country trailing in Southeast Asia. In 2021, it was fourth to last of ASEAN member states (excluding Burnei), ahead of only Myanmar, Cambodia, and Lao. According to the Asian Productivity Organisation Vietnamese workers were productive to the tune of…
Vietnam National Tourism Administration disputes WEF tourism rankings
The administration claims that the ‘socio-economic impact of tourism’ indicator, which placed Vietnam 115th, contradicts the findings of Vietnam’s General Office of Statistics, however, in the WEF report this indicator is grouped under sustainability and looks at job quality, wages, and gender parity. By comparison, the GSO tends to focus on the number of tourists and how much money they spend. This is not really comparing apples with apples.
Vietnam’s C.bank to abandon gold auctions in favour of ‘new strategy’
On the one hand, the State Bank wants to bring down the price of gold which is much higher than the world gold price because there is more demand than there is supply. On the other hand, the State Bank doesn’t want US dollars leaving the country because this creates inflationary pressure on the dong. If it sounds like these policies are contradictory then that is because they are…
South Korean firm announces Vietnam rare earth partnership
This announcement seems like a positive step forward but there seems to be a lot of moving parts when it comes to rare earth mining in Vietnam and this press release seems a little too clean-cut. For example, there were a…
Hanoi university signs agreement with Australian mining firms
With reserves estimated to be the second biggest in the world after China, and rare earth minerals becoming increasingly necessary in a slew of electronics, miners from all over have been actively courting partnerships with Vietnamese mining firms. Needless to say, partnerships with local universities is one way for these firms to open doors…
State Bank of Vietnam denies change of exchange rate policy
With Forex reserves being spent hand over fist trying to keep the dong from devaluing, there has been speculation that greater intervention may be needed, specifically an interest rate hike. On Thursday Bloomberg reported that Malayan Banking Berhad was expecting an interest rate hike possibly as early as this week…
Vietnam’s lowest paid civil servants on less than US$200 a month
If a plan to raise the salaries of Vietnam’s lowest paid civil servants is approved, it will see their pay increase to no less than VND 5 million, about US$200 a month. This will be roughly in line with the region 1 minimum wage from July 1st but still quite
Vietnam e-wallet legislation will not apply to cryptocurrencies
The State Bank has clarified a new decree that was issued to clarify what is and is not considered electronic money. Specifically, the bank has said that the absence of a mention of cryptocurrency in the new decree means that it is in fact not regulated as opposed to media
Korean credit card firms struggle to crack Vietnam market
Indeed, 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…
UK Pork approved for export to Vietnam
Of note, back in March it was reported that the a submission had been made by Vietnamese meat producers to the Government of Vietnam requesting additional technical barriers on imported meats. This was necessary, they argued, to level the playing field with other meat producing countries.
Vietnam News Roundup: May 17 to May 23
This week’s Vietnam news roundup covers the latest news on Vietnam’s foreign reserves, updates on VinFast’s mounting troubles in the US, conflicting claims over electricity conservation, the USDA trade mission to Vientam, bad debts, open market operations, and more.
Vietnam rare earth mine owner seeks partner for mine exploitation and more
The company, Lavreco, which is a subsidiary of Vinacomin-Minerals Holding Corporation which is part of state-owned miner Vinacomin, has had the licence on the mine for over ten years but progress has been slow. Of note, the company recorded revenue of just US$9,800 in 2022…
Unpaid taxes blamed on late payment from Electricity Vietnam
EVN was selling electricity at a loss for most of last year and 2022 and the start of this year too. This saw the state-owned enterprise accumulate losses of over US$1.5 billion. It has never been made clear how these losses have been covered but, in light of these claims, it could very well be that power producers may be footing the bill.
Vietnam issued regulations for e-wallets, cryptocurrency
Authorities in Vietnam have been talking about regulating cryptocurrency for some time. Definitive regulations, however, have been somewhat elusive with parties engaged in the cryptocurrency trade relying on a patchwork of other regulations–digital payments guidelines, for example, to guide the industries development…
Vietnam minimum wage regions to change at next wage hike
The four regions by which Vietnam defines what minimum wage should be paid where, are to be updated this year when the minimum wage rises in July. This will see several local government areas move up a bracket giving an extra boost to minimum wage workers in these areas. Moving
Vietjet’s parent company calls for stronger aircraft leasing protections just weeks after a UK court authorised the seizure of the airline’s overseas assets. Meanwhile,
In today’s news brief: HP and Asus shift production back to China, Tesla begins hiring in Vietnam, Saigon Commercial Bank closes all but three
In today’s briefing: LPBank’s construction lending has surged 127 percent following revelations that Vingroup’s chairman and his wife became major shareholders. Meanwhile, Vietnam faces
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