This is a brief rundown of what is being reported today in Vietnam and about Vietnam in the international press.
It endeavours to highlight the narratives currently shaping the country’s economic, financial, and business news landscape.
Ed’s note: I’m always looking for new sources with unique insights. If you have anything to share, reach out: mark.barnes@the-shiv.com
IMF raises growth forecast
Znews is reporting that the International Monetary Fund raised its 2026 Vietnam growth forecast to 8.2 percent in August from 7.1 percent in April. View source→
*Note that this is the headline, with the rest of the article actually about the economic data released by the National Statistics Office yesterday.
MoF suggests increase State funds at commercial banks
Nguoi Quan Sat is reporting that Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance has proposed increasing the amount of State Treasury funds that can be placed as time deposits at commercial banks.
Deputy Finance Minister Tran Quoc Phuong said the measure would give authorities greater flexibility to support banking-system liquidity and economic growth. View source→
*The point of this is to improve capital adequacy ratios so that banks can lend more. Risky if the State Treasury needs those funds back. Note that the State Treasury had already increased its deposits at major state-owned banks by 39 percent by the end of the first quarter of this year.
Inflation up
Thanh Nien is reporting that Vietnam’s consumer price index rose 4.89 percent year-on-year in August, up from 4.45 percent in July.
Transport prices jumped 4.09 percent from July as higher global fuel prices pushed up domestic petrol and diesel prices. View source→
FDI YTD
VN Economy is reporting that foreign direct investment registered in Vietnam surged 55.4 percent year-on-year to US$40.63 billion in the first eight months of 2026.
Newly registered capital nearly doubled to US$21.72 billion, with manufacturing and processing attracting the largest share at US$12.15 billion. View source→
Vietnam Today to launch on India’s Jio TV
Yahoo Finance is carrying a press release reporting that Vietnam Television’s English-language Vietnam Today channel will become available on India’s Jio TV platform from September 5.
The launch will give Jio TV customers in India access to what the announcement describes as “trusted news and a broader perspective on Vietnam.” View source→
* “Trusted” can be subjective, I guess.
Government bond auction results
Vietnam’s State Treasury raised just VND 2.54 trillion (US$96 million) from VND 17 trillion (US$645 million) of government bonds offered on September 3, according to a release from the Vietnam Bond Market Association.
The Treasury sold VND 2.5 trillion of 10-year bonds at 4.42 percent and VND 35 billion of 30-year bonds at 4.61 percent.
No three-, five- or 15-year bonds were sold, while yields on the successful 10- and 30-year bonds increased by one basis point. View source→
Taiwan semiconductor investment
The Investor is reporting that Taiwan’s Universal Scientific Industrial has approved an additional US$120 million investment in its electronics manufacturing operations in Hai Phong.
The investment will support expansion into products for data centres and artificial intelligence, including high-speed optical transceiver modules and AI accelerator cards. View source→
Trade deficit narrows
Bloomberg is reporting that Vietnam’s trade deficit narrowed to US$113 million in August, its smallest monthly gap this year.
It also notes that the government is reviewing import tariffs and working with electronics companies to reduce reliance on imported components and support domestic production and exports to help close the gap. View source→
*It’s interesting that the response is to look at import tariffs — Vietnam has a lot of free trade agreements that would likely get in the way of any increase. Also, increasing the cost of imports would likely widen the deficit, with any increase in localisation likely to take years to realise. It’s also interesting that this is the policy that the US is currently pursuing with very mixed results.
PMI rises
PMI is reporting that Vietnam’s manufacturing sector strengthened in August, with the S&P Global Purchasing Managers’ Index rising to 53.3 from 52.9 in July.
Manufacturing output grew at its fastest pace in just over two years, while new orders recorded their strongest expansion since October. View source→
GSM taxi company launch plans
Reuters is reporting that Vietnamese electric taxi operator Green and Smart Mobility plans to launch fleets in the United States, Sweden and the Netherlands by the end of 2026.
The Pham Nhat Vuong-controlled company plans further European expansion in 2027 ahead of a targeted Hong Kong initial public offering in 2028. View source→
*A stock exchange listing would mean financial disclosures — it would be interesting to see if this is actually a profitable business, though I would think, competing against asset-light operations like Grab and Uber, it would be fighting an uphill battle. Comparatively speaking, it would be difficult to scale, too.
My two cents: I think this is unlikely to go ahead, but I also said the same thing about VinFast’s IPO in the US for similar reasons, and I was wrong about that.
Stock market Thursday
Exchange rates Thursday
On September 3, in Vietnam, the black market US dollar buy rate was VND 25,770, and the sell rate was VND 25,810, a change of 305 and 60, respectively, for a mid-market rate of VND 25,790 (down 0.70 percent), according to prices quoted by Ty Gia USD.
Yesterday’s news
In today’s news: ForEx regs overseas investments SOEs, VinFast GSM 5m unit agreement, US cotton shipments to VN, Samsung semiconductor build-out VN, Tay Ninh data centre proposal, Manufacturing moving back to China?, MY-VN cooking oil recycling project, Toyota expansion, EU food safety warnings VN produce. View source→