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.
Hong Kong based Apple supplier to build aluminium factory in Vietnam
This move aligns with the rapidly growing demand for aluminum in Vietnam spurred by new factories belonging to major electronics manufacturers from Taiwan and South Korea, like Foxconn and LG–Foxconn has announced an increase in its investment in Vietnam to US$52.6 million, and LG is set to complete its factory complex in 2025 doubling its investment in Vietnam.
Vietnam News Roundup: July 26 to August 1
This week’s Vietnam news roundup covers foreign trader stock market activity, credit growth, the consumer price index for July, foreign direct investment data, S&P’s Purchasing Managers’ Index, an EU dumping complaint against Vietnamese steel, and more…
[press release] Rockbird Media Brings Retail, E-Commerce Summit to Vietnam
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – Following the successful run of the Retail & E-Commerce Summit Asia (RESA) across Southeast Asia, rockbird media is thrilled to unveil the next chapter of the summit in a new destination: Vietnam. Under
Vietnam on track to become world’s fifth-biggest coal importer
The International Energy Association Coal Mid-Year Update 2024 has found that Vietnam is on track to become the fifth biggest importer of coal in the world. Vietnam’s coal imports were up 38.6 percent in terms of volume and 14.5 percent in terms of value by the end of June…
Vietnam Purchasing Managers’ Index remains steady at 54.7: S&P Global
S&P Global’s Vietnam Purchasing Managers’ Index recorded 54.7 points in July which was the same as in June. S&P Global says this was on the back of a ‘substantial rise’ in new orders. It does, however, note that to fulfil these orders firms relied largely on finished goods already on
India’s Adani considering Vietnam seaport, airports, thermal power investments
Of note, Adani is currently invested in just two projects in Vietnam, a wind power plant and a solar power plant the latter of which has run into problems with poor infrastructure forcing the plant to curb power production back in 2022.
Is a Sugar Tax Right for Vietnam?
A sugar tax has been on the cards for Vietnam for some time now and may be drawing closer to becoming a reality. It has, however, been met with broad push back from industry and industry groups. This article looks at the public debate around a possible sugar tax in Vietnam, the impact it might have, and what foreign-owned businesses should be mindful of in this context.
Dumping complaint received by European Commission RE: Vietnamese steel
Trade remedies against Vietnam’s exports have increased significantly in recent years in large part due to Chinese firms using Vietnam as a thoroughfare to avoid tariffs on Chinese exports in other parts of the world. Electric bikes and solar panels, for example. It’s not clear that this is the case with HRC but if the EU finds as such it should not come as a surprise…
Korea, US partnership on rare earths to boost industry in Vietnam
Of note, the US Geological Survey’s Mineral Commodity Summaries 2024 estimated Vietnam’s rare earth reserves to be in the vicinity of 22 million tons. China, which has the largest reserves, for comparison, is estimated to have double that at 44 million tons, and Brazil which comes in third place has roughly 21 million tons. But having all of these reserves is one thing, getting them out of the ground is quite another…
How is the EVFTA Working Out for Vietnam?
On Thursday, Vietnam and the European Union will mark the fourth anniversary of the European Union Vietnam Free Trade Agreement or the EVFTA for short. This agreement has brought down tariff barriers and boosted trade but it hasn’t been without its challenges, some of which still persist. This article looks at how this landmark agreement has been implemented, the challenges it has faced, and the challenges it still faces…
Vietnam animal feed imports up 9.6 percent in first half 2024
This is partly because corn and soya beans, common components in animal feed, are produced domestically but at low yields and subsequently a higher cost compared to global prices. Vietnam imports these commodities from countries such as Brazil, Argentina, and the United States. In the first half of 2024, Vietnam’s import value of corn and soya beans reached US$1.2 billion and US$561 million respectively…
Olympics kicks off but Vietnam won’t be watching with no broadcast rights
Notably, Vietnam was relatively late securing the rights to the Tokyo Olympics with a deal only made two-days before the opening ceremony. A last minute deal this time around, however, seems unlikely–it would be very last minute. That said, it’s not clear there is a lot of interest in Vietnam in the Olympics anyway and it could be that cash strapped local media outlets are saving their money for sports, namely soccer, that are hugely popular in Vietnam and subsequently command much bigger audiences…
Deputy PM pushes for greater grid feed-in allowances for rooftop solar
Of note, originally the MoIT had been pushing for no feed-in tariffs on rooftop solar. It had then, at the request of the government, reluctantly agreed to have feed-in tariffs–paid at about 2.6 cents per kilowatt-hour–but limited to just ten percent of the installation’s capacity. This is off the back of past rooftop solar policies causing broad challenges for Vietnam’s electricity sector…
Taiwan electronics giant to manufacture Nintendo Switch gaming consoles in northern Vietnam
This investment aligns with a broader trend of Taiwanese manufacturers diversifying their supply chains by expanding operations in ASEAN, especially into Vietnam. In addition to Foxconn, other Taiwanese electronics giants such as Pegatron, Compal, and Wistron have also established manufacturing facilities in the country…
Vietnam credit growth reaches 6 percent to June
Of note, last year, credit growth limits languished for the better part of the year. In October, however, when it became clear that the same 14 percent credit growth target would not be hit, Vietnam’s banks embarked on some very aggressive marketing campaigns. Rising bad debts in the first six months of this year, however, could suggest there were some quality issues with these loans.
US logistics, supply chain management firm opens Vietnam office
Of note, in 2023 Vietnam’s transportation and storage sector surpassed VND 502.56 trillion or US$19.807 billion, constituting 4.92 percent of the country’s total GDP. This could represent broad opportunities for foreign firms, however, foreign ownership limits in logistics services can be very restrictive. For example, foreign firms are prohibited from owning more than 34 percent of an airline…
Vietnam News Roundup: July 19 to July 25
This week’s Vietnam news roundup covers foreign trader stock market activity, bad debts, GDP targets, offshore wind developments, a new waste-to-energy plant in HCMC, soft drink market forecasts, and the latest developments in Vietnam’s quest to have its designation as a ‘non-market’ economy revoked by the US Department of Commerce, and more…
Vietnam bad debt hits 6.9 percent
Of note, pursuant to amendments to Circular 39 made in June, loan applications for less than VND 100 million or about US$4,000 no longer need to detail a plan for the borrowed funds. Also back in November and December of last year, to meet annual credit growth targets, Vietnam’s banks embarked on some pretty aggressive lending campaigns that saw credit growth jump considerably but in what looked like mostly consumer loans. It could be that some of these loans are now turning bad…
Vietnam market-economy review outcome postponed to August
Of note, Vietnam’s efforts to be redesignated a market economy for trade remedies purposes has been met with quite a bit of resistance in the United States. Its case for redesignation is also pretty shaky in a few areas, currency convertibility and government, for example. As such it’s not really clear which way the DOC might fall…
Vietnam targeting GDP CAGR of 10.18 percent to 2030
Vietnam’s GDP is currently US$4,620 according to IMF data which would mean Vietnam’s GDP would need to grow at a compounded annual growth rate–a CAGR–of 10.18 percent. For comparison, in the last five years Vietnam’s GDP has grown on a CAGR of just 6.08 percent…
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