Services & Trade
This category includes the service sector, retail, logistics, finance, e-commerce, and tourism, alongside trade policy and investment trends. It covers import/export dynamics, banking regulations, stock market movements, and infrastructure development. With increasing integration into regional and global trade, this section provides insights into consumer behavior, foreign investment, and evolving service industries.
Electronics Retailer Digiworld: Vietnam Stock Overview
As the core business of Digiworld, the electronic devices segment has been challenged by declining demand and intense competition–in the broader market, electronics retail chains like FPT Shop and Mobile World, have also closed a number of underperforming stores. With this in mind, Digiworld has implemented a horizontal development strategy, which involves adding new brands and entering new industries through mergers and acquisitions…
Vinh Hoan (seafood): Vietnam Stock Overview
Vinh Hoan, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange under the ticker VHC, is a leading Vietnamese seafood company. Established in 1997, it has become one of the world’s largest pangasius exporters, with a strong presence in the US and Europe…
Gelex Electric: Vietnam Stock Overview
Of note, in August 2024, 300 million shares in Gelex Electric were officially listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange under the ticker GEE. Previously, the stock had been traded on the Unlisted Public Company Market…
Vietnam Stock Reviews: Khang Dien (real estate)
In the first half of 2024, KDH’s revenue declined by 3.5 percent, and profit dropped by 32.5 percent compared to 2023. That said, Khang Dien has two major projects slated for sale in the fourth quarter of 2024, including the Emeria & Clarita—low-rise housing and apartment developments in Thu Duc City, co-developed with Singapore’s Keppel Land, featuring 200 townhouses, villas, and 600 apartments. As these projects are completed and launched, business results are expected to improve.
Vietnam Stock Review: Techcombank
In 2023, pre-tax profit and total operating income went on to decline by 10.5 percent and 1.2 percent year-over-year, respectively, mostly due to rising interest costs on deposits outpacing income from lending. This was common among many banks that had aggressively mobilized capital at high interest rates in late 2022 but subsequently struggled to lend after the housing bubble bursting in October of that year. That said, 2023 was a better year, with the stock price rising 45 percent from November 2022 to December 2023.
Delistings grow for Vietnam’s key stock exchange
Delisted stocks are moved to the Hanoi Stock Exchange or Unlisted Public Companies exchange, but trading on these platforms can be risky. Due to limited information and a smaller trading pool, they can be more susceptible to speculation and price volatility. This can make it challenging to accurately assess a company’s value and increase the risk of investment losses.
Credit to Vietnam’s real estate industry shows steady growth March to May
Of note, Vietnam’s real estate industry has been struggling for the last two years in the wake of the Evergrande crisis in China in 2022. This led Vietnam to take a long hard look at its own real estate industry in which it found the prevalent misuse of investor funds, particularly those acquired through the bond market, and that a number of real estate firms were grossly over-leveraged.
Two Vietnam stocks in, two out in frontier markets index review
MSCI has removed Vietnam’s EVN Finance and Petrovietnam Nhon Trach shares from its Frontier Markets Index as part of its August Index Review. On the flip side, it has added Vietnam’s Binh Duong Water and Nam A Bank to the index. Of note, Vietnam’s stock market indexes have been in the news a lot lately as the country pushes for an upgrade from a frontier to an emerging market. There are, however, a number of obstacles still standing in the local bourse’s path before an upgrade can be made.
Vietnam Stock Reviews: Should you buy Novaland?
Given a number of challenges and uncertainties, buying Novaland shares at this time should be considered carefully. The company’s financial health, operational performance, and overall real estate market conditions pose significant risks…
Vietnam’s VinHomes jumps on buyback news but foreigners exit stock en masse
Foreign investors, however, followed their own path, using the increased local demand to net-dump 1,935,886 shares worth around US$72 million. This has further diminished foreign ownership in the firm–at the start of last year foreign investors held about 24.30 percent of Vinhomes shares, that number has since come down to just 15.08 percent. ..
Affordable Housing in Vietnam for Foreign Firms 2024
FDI can be a significant contributor to solving Vietnam’s affordable housing shortage, but it’s not a silver bullet. The development of affordable housing in Vietnam is hindered by a complex number of factors. Bureaucratic hurdles, land scarcity, and tightening credit conditions have created a challenging environment for both domestic and foreign developers, writes Huong Nguyen.
Vietnamese dong undervalued by 33.3 percent: Economist Big Mac index
Of note, since the start of the year, the Vietnamese dong has only devalued against the US dollar by about 4.5 percent since January 1. This has been on the back of efforts by the State Bank to keep the local currency from devaluing further against the US dollar by issuing treasury bills and burning through its US dollar and gold reserves…
Former head of Vietnam’s FLC Group sentenced to 21 years in jail for fraud
Prior to Quyet’s arrest, FLC had been a major real estate developer in Vietnam. The company had properties all over Vietnam as well as an airline–Bamboo Airways–with Quyet at one point reportedly a US dollar billionaire. Well known in Vietnam–idolised by some for his business savvy–his arrest drew a lot of media coverage and his trial has too.
World Bank recommends Vietnam raise alcohol excise tax to 155 percent
The World Bank reportedly does not believe the current tax increase slated for beer and wine in Vietnam are sufficient–The Ministry of Finance has a plan on the table to increase the SCT to 90 percent for beer and between 60 to 100 percent for wine and liquor. This would be an increase from 65 percent on beer and between 35 and 65 percent for wine and hard liquor depending on the alcohol content…
Vietnam land values set for big jump as new Law on Land takes effect
Land values in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City could jump by up to 51 times their current values if new draft land prices for the city are approved next month, Tuoi Tre is reporting. Already pricey areas of HCMC would also jump by up to five times with high-end shopping strip Dong Khoi Street set to command up to VND 810 million, or US$32,000 per square metre. This is one outcome of the new Law on Land…
Vietnam’s HCMC feels affordable housing crunch on high land, construction costs
Notably, from 2018 to the third quarter of 2023, the land price for sale in the South and the North increased by 71 percent and 54 percent, respectively. On average, in urban areas, land costs account for about 10 percent of the cost of apartments and 20 to 30 percent of the cost of townhouses…
What Does a Devalued Yen Mean for Vietnam?
Earlier this year the Japanese yen hit a 38-year low against the greenback and it’s currently sitting about 15 percent lower now than it was at the start of the year. Similarly, the Vietnamese dong took a big fall but has been propped up by the State Bank which has by extension kept the local currency higher against the Yen too. This article looks at what that might mean for Vietnam…
Vietnam construction firm posts record quarterly profit, but not from construction
A closer look, however, reveals that most of this profit stemmed from financial activities, not core construction operations. Specifically, the firm booked nearly VND 503 billion or US$19.86 from the liquidation and sale of fixed assets. Additionally, financial revenue doubled year-over-year to US$1.82 million due to the sale of several of its subsidiaries and affiliated companies. Of note, back in June, Hoa Binh announced that it would divest entirely from loss-making affiliated companies…
Serviced apartment supply in Vietnam capital up on higher FDI inflows
This is, in part, because FDI inflows boost into the capital city, according to Savills. Of note, in the first half of 2024, Hanoi had the fourth highest inflow of FDI in Vietnam recording US$1.18 billion, accounting for 7.78 percent of the country’s total registered FDI…
Singaporean CapitaLand planning US$110 million investment in Vietnam industrial land
Of note, foreign businesses have been a key driver for the Vietnamese real estate market this year. From January to June, more than US$2.4 billion worth of foreign direct investment was registered in the sector, a significant jump from US$1.53 billion in the first six months of 2023…
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