This is a brief rundown of what is being reported today in Vietnam’s state-approved media and some others.
It compiles coverage from official outlets like Dan Tri, Tuoi Tre, and VN Express, highlighting the narratives currently shaping the country’s economic, financial, and business news landscape.
See yesterday’s news headlines →
State Treasury US$ purchases
Thanh Nien is reporting that the State Treasury purchased US$150 million or VND 3.9525 trillion from commercial banks on 27 November, its 16th purchase this year.
The article notes that in the first six months of the year the State Treasury bought US$1.9 billion or VND 50.065 trillion across 11 transactions.
Ed.’s notes: Article is not clear what the US dollars are for – suggests foreign reserves/external debt.
Ninh Binh airport plans
Dau Tu Kien Thuc is reporting that Ninh Binh has proposed an international airport project with an estimated cost of VND 23.218 trillion or US$881.1 million.
The plan targets construction in 2027 and operations from 2029, with a projected passenger capacity of 4.5 million in 2030 and 10 million in 2050.
Ed.’s notes: About 90 kilometres from Hanoi which already has an international airport – its common for tourists to visit Ninh Binh from Hanoi on a day trip.
There is also a proposal on the table for an international airport in Bac Ninh worth US$7.45 billion. It sits about 40 km from Hanoi.
HD Bank Vietjet divestment
Tuoi Tre is reporting that HD Bank has approved a plan to divest from Vietjet Air as part of its strategy to reduce non-core investments.
HD Bank holds 6 million Vietjet Air shares, equal to 1.01 percent of the airline, the article says.
Ed.’s notes: Vietjet CEO Thao Nguyen is on the board of HD Bank. She is also its third largest shareholder and the second largest shareholder in Vietjet.
Credit-risk provisioning jump
Dan Tri is reporting that banks have increased credit-risk provisioning as sector-wide bad debt has risen 19 percent to more than 274 trillion dong (US$10.40 billion).
Financial statements from 27 commercial banks have shown total loan-loss provisions of about 230 trillion dong (US$8.73 billion) at the end of the third quarter, up 11 percent from late 2024.
Land-use fees petition
Thanh Nien is reporting that the Ministry of Finance has responded to proposals put forward in a petition, with respect to land-use fees when converting agricultural land to residential land.
The petition says current prices are beyond household incomes and asks for lower fees, reduced personal income tax, exemptions for disadvantaged families, and long-term instalment options.
The Ministry has responded by saying it acknowledges the sharp increases in new land-price tables and is drafting a special resolution to ease obstacles, the publication says.
Official response VAT challenges
Dan Tri is reporting that the Ministry of Finance has proposed restoring input VAT deductions without prepayment for unprocessed agricultural goods, removing 5 percent VAT on animal feed inputs, and eliminating the requirement that sellers must file tax before refunds are issued.
The Ministry of Finance has noted that current value added tax rules have caused large cash-flow blockages for businesses, especially traders of agricultural products and created unequal treatment between domestic and imported goods
Ed.’s notes: This has been an ongoing issue – article noted for official response to these concerns, possible resolution in pipeline.
Ocean plastic denial
VnExpress is reporting that officials have rejected claims that Vietnam releases up to one million tonnes of plastic into the ocean each year.
Nguyen Thanh Yen from the Environment Department has said there is no official survey on national plastic waste and that foreign estimates vary widely.
He has stated that the figures are unrealistic because high-value plastics are collected by waste pickers, who treat them as income, and that low-value plastics are still gathered in major cities and sent to waste-to-energy plants.
Ed.’s notes: Acknowledgement of lack of data = acknowledgement of importance of data. Supporting argument anecdotal. #justsaying.
Its not clear what study or organisations this article is referring to either.
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Coca-Cola tax ruling
Tuoi Tre is reporting that the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Court has rejected Coca-Cola Vietnam’s lawsuit against the Tax Department and has upheld a back-tax and penalty order of 821.4 billion dong or US$31.2 million.
They have also ordered 471 billion dong or US$17.9 million in back taxes, penalties and interest, which the company has already paid.
Ed.’s notes: Lacks significant detail – doesn’t state what arguments were made or why they were accepted/rejected.
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Corporate transparency calls
Tuoi Tre is reporting that at a 27 November briefing in Ho Chi Minh City, experts said Vietnamese companies must strengthen transparency and governance to attract large foreign capital after the stock market’s upgrade to emerging status.
Institutional investors highlighted transparency, fair treatment of minority shareholders and effective boards as key requirements, the publication says.
Ed.’s notes: Noted for contrast with article above.
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Education reforms response
VnExpress is carrying an op-ed penned by Hoang Ngoc Vinh, the former Director of the Department of Vocational Education, about proposals allowing only specialised medical and law universities to train doctors and lawyers.
His core argument is that restricting medical and law training to so-called specialised universities is misguided because labels do not ensure quality, and modern medicine and law require multidisciplinary environments, strict standards, strong oversight and independent assessment rather than branding.
Ed.’s notes: Stems from report yesterday that education department was looking to only allow specific schools to certify doctors/lawyers.
Vinh seems to be saying that this is a distraction from the core problems, but much more diplomatically.
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Vingroup-VinFast debt to equity conversion
Dau Tu Kien Thuc is reporting that Vingroup has committed to convert up to 80,000 billion dong or US$3.04 billion of VinFast’s outstanding loans into equity.
It has reported that VinFast will issue up to 5 billion preferred shares to Vingroup to execute the conversion at a ratio of 10.1 preferred shares for one common share.
Ed.’s notes: Vingroup and VinFast tightly linked ownership structure = converting VinFast’s debt into equity does not fundamentally change the economic reality of the group (not great) – Debt obligation still in system somewhere.
Conditional business line cut expansion
Nha Dau Tu is reporting that the Ministry of Finance has increased the planned cuts in conditional business lines in the amended Investment Law from 25 to 50.
It says that Minister Nguyen Van Thang told the National Assembly on 27 November that further reductions will continue.
Stock market performance Thursday
the-shiv is reporting that the VN-Index closed at 1,684.32, up 3.96 points or 0.24 percent, with a total trading value of VND 21,217.66 billion or US$805.22 million, and foreign traders net-selling US$0.83 million worth of equities, Thursday, according to the latest data from the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange.
Exchange rates Thursday
the-shiv is reporting that on November 27, in Vietnam, the black market US dollar buy rate was VND 27,670 and the sell rate was VND 27,750, a change of 70 and 70, respectively, for a mid-market rate of VND 27,710 (down 0.25 percent), according to Ty Gia USD.
Meanwhile, the State Bank of Vietnam’s central exchange rate was set at VND 25,152, while the Google Finance mid-market rate stood at VND 26,376.
Textile, leather and footwear materials exports
the-shiv is reporting that Vietnam exported textile, leather and footwear materials to the tune of US$204 million in October, 2.70 percent over September, according to preliminary data from Vietnam’s General Department of Customs.
Year to date, Vietnam had exported US$2,006 million worth of textile, leather and footwear materials by the end of October.
Beer production
the-shiv is reporting that Vietnam produced 419.86 million liters of beer in October, up 4.64 percent from 401.25 million liters in September, according to the latest data from the National Statistics Office.
Over the first ten months of the year, output reached 3,759.63 million liters.
Imports from Taiwan
the-shiv is reporting that in October, Vietnam imported US$3 billion worth of goods from Taiwan, down 0.80 percent over September, according to preliminary data from Vietnam’s General Department of Customs.
So far this year, Vietnam has imported US$27,107 million worth of goods from Taiwan.
Exports to the Netherlands
the-shiv is reporting that in October, Vietnam exported US$1.23 billion worth of goods to Netherlands, up 8 percent over September, according to preliminary data from Vietnam’s General Department of Customs.
So far this year, Vietnam has exported US$11,026 million worth of goods to Netherlands.
