In this week’s Vietnam News Roundup: Cam Ranh airport eyes expansion to 36m passengers; dong weakens on black market despite SBV support; doubts raised over growth model; SK exits PVOIL; Ninja Van quits Vietnam; PMI slows; VN-Index rises as foreign outflows continue, and more.
In case you missed it…
Vietnam Stock Market Outlook September 2025: Proceed With Caution
The year 2025 has been an interesting year for the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE), which has broken a number of records, climbing well above its previous high of 1,528.57 points recorded back in 2022. Markets are, however, fickle and as good as this might look on the surface, underneath, there is cause for concern. Read More »
Aviation news
Cam Ranh airport expansion plan to become one of Vietnam’s largest
Cam Ranh International Airport in Khanh Hoa is set for major expansion, with capacity targets of 25 million passengers by 2030 and 36 million by 2050, if a new master plan for the airport goes ahead, The Investor has reported → view source.
This is part of Vietnam’s broader airport development strategy, where regional tourism hubs like Cam Ranh are scaled up.
This plan, of course, is very ambitious, but it is only a plan and has not been approved or funded.
It is, however, useful as a directional indicator of where Vietnam’s aviation planners see demand emerging.
See also: Vietnam’s Aviation Industry 2025: Growth, Key Players, Foreign Ownership, & More
Banking and finance news
Local currency strengthens against the greenback
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) allowed the local currency to strengthen further against the greenback this week, with the central exchange rate ending Thursday at VND 25,248, 20 dong lower than the same time last week.
This puts the currency down 3.72 percent since the start of the year.
Conversely, on the black market, the dong weakened by 165 points, the mid-market rate shifting from 26,685 to 26,850, suggesting the dong is still being overvalued through official channels.
The SBV, however, continued to pump money into the economy.
There were just under US$6.6 billion worth of reverse repos outstanding as of the close of business on September 4. This was down from US$7.25 billion at the same time last week.
There were no new treasury bills issued; however, there were still US$65.7 million worth outstanding as of last night.
See also: How Low Can the Vietnamese Dong Go? Why It’s Sliding & What Might Happen Next
Economy news
Questions raised over Vietnam’s growth ambitions under one-party rule
Vietnam aims to become Asia’s next tiger economy by 2045, but it seeks to do so under one-party socialist rule, an untested development path with outcomes far from assured, political theorist Jake Scott has said in a post published by the Foundation for Economic Education → view source.
Scott argues Vietnam’s approach is distinct from East Asian tigers, drawing comparisons with European “tiger” economies like Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Slovakia, which achieved rapid growth by both liberalising and democratising at the same time.
He also points out that Vietnam faces constraints like state-owned enterprise dominance, US classification as a non-market economy, and risks of inefficiency and cronyism.
See also: Vietnam’s Private Sector Development Push: Unpacked
Energy news
South Korea’s SK Group extends Vietnam exit reducing position in PVOIL
SK Energy, part of South Korea’s SK Group, has cut its holding in PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (PVOIL, UpCoM: OIL) by 10.8 million shares, leaving it with a 4.19 percent stake, The Investor has reported → view source.
The divestment means SK Energy is no longer a major shareholder.
Of note, SK Group has been scaling back its Vietnam exposure after once being among Vietnam’s most active strategic foreign investors.
This reality fits with a broader exit from Vietnam’s stock market by foreign firms, which have divested to the tune of more than US$6 billion since the start of 2024.
See also: Vietnam’s Foreign Investor Stock Sell-Off: Unpacked 2024
Logistics news
Singapore’s Ninja Van to exit Vietnam express delivery market
Ninja Van has announced it will withdraw from Vietnam’s express delivery market, advising customers to stop creating new orders as it winds down operations by 30 September 2025, Dan Tri has reported → view source.
The firm says it’s part of a broader restructuring plan to reallocate resources and develop new logistics services.
Of note, Vietnam’s express delivery market has expanded rapidly with e-commerce growth, drawing intense price competition among domestic and foreign players.
Ninja Van’s exit reflects margin pressure in a crowded field.
See also: Last-Mile Delivery in Vietnam 2025: Market, Challenges & Trends
Manufacturing news
Vietnam PMI slows in August on weaker new orders
The S&P Global Vietnam Manufacturing PMI eased to 50.4 in August, down from 52.4 in July, signalling only marginal improvement in business conditions → view source.
Key details:
- Output: Expanded for the fourth consecutive month, though growth slowed compared with July.
- New orders: Fell after July’s rebound, driven by a solid drop in exports, marking the tenth straight month of contraction.
- Employment: Declined for the eleventh month running as spare capacity remained.
- Input costs: Rose at the fastest pace in 2025 so far, linked to material shortages, tariffs, and higher transport costs.
- Output prices: Increased for the third month in a row as firms passed on higher costs to customers.
- Confidence: Improved to a six-month high, with firms expecting demand to recover, though optimism stayed below the long-run average.
See also: Manufacturing in Vietnam 2025
Stock market news
VN-Index gains 14.58 points, foreign traders continue to exit
Over the last three trading sessions (markets were closed Monday and Tuesday for the Independence Day holiday) to the close of business on August 28, foreign investors net-sold US$276.54 million worth of HCMC Stock Exchange (HoSE) stocks.
This brings the total net sold by foreign traders for the year-to-date to just shy of US$2.91 billion.
Conversely, the VN-Index closed Thursday at 1,695.44 points, up 14.58 points since last Thursday.
Foreign trader activity, last five trading days
| Buy | Sell | Change | ||||
| Date | VND | US$ | VND | US$ | VND | US$ |
| 29/8 | 3,053 | $115.69 | 6,684 | $253.28 | -3,631 | -$137.59 |
| 1/9 | Markets closed for the Independence Day holiday | |||||
| 2/9 | Markets closed for the Independence Day holiday | |||||
| 3/9 | 3,090 | $117.09 | 5,972 | $226.30 | -2,882 | -$109.21 |
| 4/9 | 4,146 | $157.10 | 4,931 | $186.85 | -785 | -$29.75 |
| Total | 10,289 | $389.88 | 17,587 | $666.43 | -7,298 | -$276.54 |
VND = billions; US$ = millions; source: HSX
See also: Explainer: What’s Driving Vietnam’s Stock Market Rally?
The week ahead
There are a handful of events coming up this week. For more information, see: Doing Business in Vietnam: Events Directory 2025.