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.
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…
Finland’s PYN Elite fund names embattled Vietnam Airlines stock pick of the month
The fund doesn’t really give any clear reasons for making this call but does note that the government gave the airline an extension on a US$160 million loan. It should be noted, however, that this was to avoid insolvency with the airline currently operating on negative equity. It also should have been delisted from the HoSE years ago, however, the government intervened to stop that from becoming a reality. In light of this, naming Vietnam Airlines as the stock of the month is an interesting decision to say the least…
Vietnam records just one IPO in first half 2024, tied lowest among SEA peers
That single IPO was Hanoi-based DNSE Securities which officially listed under the ticker DSE on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange at the start of July. Notably, this was the first new listing of a securities firm on the local bourse in the last five years…
Vietnam opens thousands more trading accounts in June despite risks
An additional 106,417 stock trading accounts were opened in Vietnam in June, according to data from the Vietnam Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation. Of those, individual foreign investors accounted for 159 individual accounts with 27 for foreign organisations. The total number of active trading accounts in Vietnam is now 8,044,825, but this number is a little misleading…
First new securities firm in five years debuts on Vietnam bourse, shares fall
Contrary to the trend of foreign investors net selling billions of dollars from HoSE in 2024, foreign investors have been net buyers of DSE shares. Notably, Consilium Investment Management from the USA net bought more than US$ 6.6 million shares on July 2, accounting for more than 2 percent of DNSE’s value. Earlier in January, Finland’s Pyn Elite Fund also invested in DNSE buying 12 percent of the firm’s equity. As of July 5, foreign investors held 13 percent of DNSE’s shares–as a securities firm there is no foreign ownership limit…
More than half of Vietnam securities firms failing to meet disclose requirements
Information disclosures on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange have been cited by key stock market index makers FTSE Russell and MSCI as one criteria holding the local bourse back from being upgraded from frontier to emerging. The irony here is that these securities firms stand to probably benefit the most from a stock market upgrade…
Vietnam high-profile stock market manipulation trial to kick-off in July
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 will likely too…
In today’s Vietnam news: Foxconn expansion, No GMT for BOT projects proposed, Land prices falling, Cassava chip export restrictions proposed, Diamond trade as conditional
In today’s Vietnam news: VAT cut extension proposal, FDI recorded Jan – July, Bamboo Airways adds flights, Carbon market stalls, HCMC data centre capacity,
In today’s Vietnam news: PMI increases, Seafood export concerns US tariffs, SBV preferential loans for SMEs program, Credit growth reaches 8.38 percent, PM pushes
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