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.
New Vietnam stock exchange trading system delayed again
Earlier this week, it was reported that the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange’s new KRX trading system would go online on May 1. This has since been delayed by the State Securities Commission–the SSC–according to Bloomberg. The SSC’s reasons are that the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange has failed
Vietnam’s VinPearl and Xanh GSM possibly listing in 2024
Chairman of Vietnam’s biggest conglomerate Vingroup, Pham Nhat Vuong, has floated the idea of listing the Vinpearl resorts and hospitality arm of Vingroup, Reuters has reported. Furthermore, he also suggested the ride hailing service he founded, that is currently the biggest buyer of electric vehicles made by Vinfast, which is
Vinhomes CEO says firm will not financially support Vinfast
The fact that she is even being asked about it is very telling as to how local investors view Vinfast’s prospects even if the local media is firmly on Vinfast’s side. (Full article is in The Investor). Vingroup owns about 60 percent of Vinhomes, and the head of Vingroup has
The State Bank is both buying and selling treasuries at the same time
On Wednesday the State Bank of Vietnam both bought VND 5,671.97 worth of treasuries from five local banks and sold another VND 5,500 billion to five Vietnamese banks. It’s not clear what the thinking is behind this but as far as keeping the exchange rate where it is, these two
Talking about speeding up the implementation of Vietnam’s revised Land Law
Vietnam’s revised Law on Land was slated to come into force on January 1, 2025, however, key decision makers are pushing for the National Assembly to move the start date up to as soon as July 1 of this year, Zing News is reporting. This looks to be in an
Vietnam’s Real Estate Market Recovery 2024: Unpacked
At the beginning of last year, construction work on buildings in Vietnam was slowly winding down as the real estate industry ground to a halt. Hard hats were hung up and cranes ten stories high fell dormant leaving the cement shells of unfinished residential towers standing dark and empty–cold reminders
HCMC-based real estate tycoon sentenced to death on fraud charges
Truong My Lan, the head of property developer Van Thinh Phat was sentenced to death this week convicted of a number of charges including embezzling US$12.5 billion. Local news coverage is more or less all the same. See: Vietnam property tycoon Truong My Lan sentenced to death in multi-billion dollar
Vietnam construction material makers stills struggling to find buyers
A number of construction materials firms reported losses last year and are now asking for government support, specifically more large scale infrastructure projects, Doanh Nhan Vietnam is reporting. This is not a good sign for the real estate industry in that construction firms, presumably in the know, are not banking
Vietnam’s foreign reserves on table if VND decline continues: SBV Deputy Governor
Banks were selling US dollars for upwards of 25,000 Vietnamese dong a piece on Thursday, the most a single US dollar has been able to buy ever, according to VN Express. In response, the Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), Dao Minh Tu, has said that the
Importers, exporters disagree over Vietnam’s currency strategy
A 1 percent increase in the value of the US dollar could equate to a US$12.1 million annual loss for Vietnam ‘s national carrier, according to Dang Ngoc Hoa, chairman of Vietnam Airlines, and reported by VN Express. The chairman of PetroVietnam, Le Manh Hung, is also advocating for keeping
VN Express reader’s letter ticks right boxes: borrow money, buy real estate
VN Express is running a letter from a reader known only by their first name, Van, in which Van says taking out a loan to buy a house in Hanoi’s Old Quarter was one of their best decisions. Van essentially says that the appreciation in the value of the property
Vietnam real estate inventories jump as firms struggle to complete projects
Tuoi Tre has gone through the financial statements of 60 Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange listed real estate firms and found that there has been an increase in inventory of 3 percent over the end of 2022 and 30 percent over the end of 2021. They valued the inventory
Vietnam C.bank starts issuing T-bills to reduce pressure on dong
The State Bank of Vietnam issued VND 14.999 trillion or US$609 million yesterday in a renewed attempt to halt the devaluation of the local currency, The Investor is reporting. Key takeaways: Overnight loans account for 90 percent of transactions and were attracting an interest rate of 1.17 percent on March
This opinion piece re: US dollar, gold prices in Vietnam
Penned by Nguyen Huu Huan, an economist at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics, this piece in The Investor makes several points about US dollar and gold prices in Vietnam. These include: Gold fever is being driven by a lack of other investment options; The rising price of
Survey finds lack of capital preventing Vietnamese businesses from borrowing
A total of 41 percent of businesses in a Ho Chi Minh City Business Association–known by the acronym HUBA–survey said they could not borrow capital because they had no unmortgaged collateral left, VN Express is reporting. The association argues that valuations on agricultural land are low and that inflation is
Black market US dollar prices in Vietnam highest ever
On the black market in Vietnam the US dollar is fetching up to 25,600 Vietnamese dong, the highest price it has ever pulled, according to Tuoi Tre. Conversely, the State Bank of Vietnam’s (SBV) floating peg is currently sitting at 24,012 with official channels permitted to buy the dong for
Fears about regulatory changes to off-the plan loans in Vietnam unfounded
The Investors has run an article by Nguyen Van Dinh, a real estate legal expert, in which he argues recent regulatory changes to home loans, specifically the use of homes that have not been completed to secure financing, are not a cause for concern as has been reported in the
Vietnam’s New Law on Land to make site clearance easier
Vietnam’s new Law on Land, will remove land price brackets set by the state which should see land values increase, which should lead to less complaints from landowners when their land is acquired, which should make site clearance much easier, Luat Vietnam is reporting. In the past, the national government
Vietnam to restrict mortgages for off-the-plan dwellings from July 1
The Ho Chi Minh City Real Estate Association (HoREA) has raised concerns about new regulations that will only allow banks to issue home loans on completed buildings, Tuoi Tre is reporting. These new regulations are outlined in Circular 22/2023/TT-NHNN. The article does not offer specific details as to what these
Vietnam dong exchange rate closing in on 12-month high
US dollars were selling for 24,970 Vietnamese dong on the black market this morning, Zing News is reporting, getting closer to last October’s high of 25,280. Official rates are also getting close to their 2023 high with the official exchange rate set by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) this
In today’s Vietnam news: Fuel prices cut, Double-digit growth target reinforced, New airport services delay approval requested, TikTok VN investment, Bybit in Vietnam, LG
In today’s Vietnam news: VN renews antidumping tariffs on Thai sugar, Power supply challenges continue, USTR tariffs forced labour, AMRO growth forecast downgrade, Foreign
In today’s Vietnam news: Fund outflows May, New HCMC airport trial operations to begin September, M&A HCMC 2026, Compensation for gas-to-electric bike switch Hanoi,
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