Despite their overwhelming popularity around the world, McDonald’s and Burger King have not risen to dominance during the long years in Vietnam.
At the launch of its first restaurant in Vietnam in 2014, McDonald’s expected to reach 100 stores in Vietnam within 10 years. However, after four year it only has 16 stores across the country. Burger King, similarly, managed to open 11 stores in total in seven years of operations in the country, despite its initial target of opening 60 stores across the country in 2012-2017.
According to market research company Kantar Worldpanel western fast food simply does not suit the palates of the majority of Asian people. However, the two global fast food giants are blossoming in Japan and China, both of which are famous for their traditional cuisines.
Accordingly, Burger King opened 700 stores in China by 2016 and has 98 outlets in Japan currently. McDonald’s also has 2,500 stores in China and 2,975 stores in Japan.
So, what is the problem in Vietnam, a market that for all intents and purposes should be identical to other Asian markets?
Many experts stated that Western fast food could easily succeed in other countries thanks to its appeal of being fast and easy to take away, which is completely suitable for the fast-paced life in many countries. This would also explain the success of the two giants in Japan and China.
In Vietnam, a country famous for its diverse street food, a good variety of reasonably priced food is always within reach, which negates McDonald’s and Burger King’s primary advantages.
CNBC.com quoted Hao Tran, co-founder of Vietcetera, as saying: “Fast food in the US is popular because you can easily take it with you on the go. In Vietnam, if you need the same thing, you can go to the street vendors to get a bowl of pho or banh mi. It’s faster than McDonald’s, so their speed has no value in Vietnam.”
According to data from the European Commission, Vietnamese people spend the majority of their income on food, including 78 per cent on street food, and just one per cent on fast food.
Vietnam has 540,000 food stores, including 430,000 street vendors, 80,000 restaurants, 22,000 cafes and bars, and only 7,000 fast food stores. CNBC.com states that the variation in the number of food stores in Vietnam partly come from historical factors.
Accordingly, 20 years after the war’s end, fast food brands started to appear in the country, when the food business in Vietnam was already developed and diversified. From the time, many food stores are private houses, where they use the upper floors as living space and sell food on the ground floor.
Furthermore, while the US consumers tend to select their own meal in fast food stores whether they go alone or in a group, Vietnamese people prefer family-style food vendors to eat the same dishes together. Therefore, dishes that can be shared are more culturally compatible with Vietnamese consumers and will hold the upper hand.
All products bearing luxury brands come to Vietnam through two big distributors – DAFC and Tam Son.
In Vietnam, Jonathan Hanh Nguyen is a well known businessman, known as the ‘branded goods King’, because he owns IPP Group, the distributors of many famous brands in the world.
The distribution activities of IPP Group are carried out through its two subsidiaries –DAFC and ACFC. The former holds the right to distribute the most luxurious brands in the world.
Established in 2005, DAFC was the official partner and distributor of Salvatore Ferragamo and Bally. The company then ran two shops with 20 workers in HCMC.
DAFC became the distributor of Burberry in 2007 and a series of other brands such as Rolex, Bvlgari, Cartier and Tudor four years later. Dolce & Gabbana was the first shop located in Rex Arcade shopping center. DAFC holds the right to distribute more than 40 brands.
Targeting the upper class, the company does not focus on expanding networks, but on improving the low number of shops in Hanoi and HCMC.
According to VIRAC, a consultancy firm, DAFC’s revenue in 2017 reached VND970 billion. Prior to that, in 2015 and 2016, the company earned VND800 billion and VND862 billion, respectively, with the average growth rate of 10 percent per annum.
In late March 2018, the company increased its capital by twofold from VND100 billion to VND200 billion. DAFC’s two big shareholders – IPP Group and Le Hong Thuy Tien, CEO of IPP Group – hold 90 percent and 10 percent shares, respectively.
The only rival of IPP Group in the luxury product distribution market is OpenAsia Group, which is associated with Doan Viet Dai Tu, also a well known businessman.
OpenAsia Group distributes luxury branded goods via Tam Son International.
Established in 2005, Tam Son is the distributor of the most luxurious fashion brands in Europe, from Hermes, Bottega Veneta, Saint Laurent to Hugo Boss and Kenzo.
The company is also the partner of Swiss watch manufacturers such as Vacheron Constantin, Piaget and Chopard. In 2017, the company joined a new business field when setting up Tam Son Yachting, which has become the partner of Bénéteau Group.
The number of brands distributed by Tam Son is lower than DAFC, but Tam Son’s business results are not inferior to DAFC.
In 2017, Tam Son reported revenue of VND1.337 trillion. The figures were VND948 billion and VND1.117 trillion in 2015 and 2016, which mean the growth rate of 18 percent per annum.
The Wealth-X report about super-rich people in the world showed that Vietnam is among 10 economies with the highest growth rate of super-rich people in 2012-2017.
Vietnam International Bank (VIB) has become the first bank in Vietnam providing intelligent verification solution for online transactions (Internet Banking and Mobile Banking) with high-valued identification capacity and providing appropriate advanced OTP.
With this outstanding technology solution, customer benefits will be:
Safer with high value financial transactions.
More comfortable when getting OTP directly on MyVIB.
More convenient for customer when traveling abroad without phone roaming.
Easier for online application.
Completely free.
Difference from normal OTP, MyVIB Smart OTP has the ability to identify high-valued transaction and provide appropriate advanced OTP. This helps to protect transactions safer.
MyVIB Smart OTP becomes special when it helps to get OTP directly on MyVIB instead of SMS or Token. With this new solution, the customers do not have to open OTP generation software, they just need to enter PIN of MyVIB Smart OTP directly on MyVIB. Then, OTP will be automatically filled in. Therefore, customers do not have to move between applications while making transactions as well as remember OTP, helping them save time.
The outstanding advantage of MyVIB Smart OTP is that it does not require mobile phone services, enabling customers who travel or work abroad without using roaming service or Token key to make quick banking transactions.
Customers can register MyVIB Smart OTP service directly on MyVIB application with 2 simple steps without going to the bank’s branches and use it for free.
“Connecting Journey” is a cross-country relay race with the participation of 3,000 FPT members lasting 31 days to celebrate 30 years of establishment of FPT.
The journey represents the pioneering spirit to overcome new limits and challenges that has always been the guiding star during the past 30 years of FPT development.
On September 4, Vietnam Book of Records (VietKings) – the only Record organization in Vietnam awarded Vietnam Record for FPT in two categories: “The longest running relay (2,600 km)” and “The largest number of athletes in Vietnam (3,000 people)”. Being impressed by the great ideas, united and persistence spirit and efforts of 3,000 FPT members as well as wishing to further promote Vietnam’s record values to the world, VietKings has offered and supported FPT to register for the World Record and deliver the presentation to WorldKings Council. After days of appraisal, WorldKings announced to award the certificate of World Record for the Connecting Journey of FPT.
Dr. Duong Duy Lam Vien – Secretary-General of Vietnam Record Association cum CEO of VietKings said: “As the only Record organization in Vietnam, we are happy and willing to support any individual or any organization who dares to think, dares to do, dares to be different to conquer and create new values, especially those contribute to the introduction and promotion of the image of Vietnam and Vietnamese people. Having been working with the FPT team from the beginning, and appointing two VietKings experts to directly participate in and monitor daily developments during 31 days of the journey, I am really touched by the aspirations, efforts and results that FPT Group achieved. We have demonstrated to WorldKings Council that Vietnam has great records coming from great ideas and spirit to overcomes all challenges.”
Mr. Biswaroop Roy Chowdhury – Vice President of WorldKings commented: “WorldKings recognizes the records and appreciates the top values that an individual or a team attempts to make. It sometimes takes a month or a year, but sometimes takes a whole life to accumulate and achieve. We also encourage individuals and organizations to set new records that are meaningful and able to convey the humanitarian message to the community. And the record that FPT made is very impressive.”
The journey spans across 29 provinces and cities starting from km 0 at Lang Son Friendship Port and ending at Cape Ca Mau. FPT flag has been raised by athletes across 2,600 km along the length of the country. Mr. Bui Quang Ngoc – CEO of FPT Group said: “The Connecting Journey has re-enacted the completion process of the North-Southvbackbone route extending from Lang Son to Ca Mau that FPT performed with an incrediblevspeed in a record time of 9 months 10 days to bring Internet to all the regions in the country. During the 30 years of development, thousands of FPT members have always been the pioneers no matterwhat and have overcome many challenges together. These pioneering spirit, intense determination and persistent perseverance of a team full of intellect and creativity have molded FPT as it is today. We are proud that the efforts of the Connecting Journey have been acknowledged by the world and have supported our determination to become the world’s leading digital conversion company.”
The Juventus Vietnam Football Academy officially made debut on September 30 under the cooperation of the Binh Minh Sports Marketing Corporation (BMG) and Italy’s Serie A giant, Juventus.
The academy, stationed in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, has been equipped with modern infrastructure, promising to offer learners with training methods of European standards with the participation of professional trainers from the Turin-based football team.
Addressing the debut ceremony, Nguyen Huu Thang, former coach of Vietnam’s national team and BMG Chairman, stated that the joint hands between BMG and Juventus will create the best environment to foster football passion in Vietnamese children.
The training offered by both Juventus and Vietnamese talented trainers will help to result in a generation of qualified, professional and moral footballers who will be a source of players for domestic professional clubs, the national team as well as other FCs around the world, he said.
Former Juventus star David Trezeguet stated that the Italian club has opened its academy in many countries with the view of contributing to the development of the world football.
It is time to establish one in Vietnam aiming to train Vietnamese potentials in the future, he said, asking learners to strictly abide by the professional training process set by trainers in order to bring their talents into full play.
At the event, the Juventus Vietnam Football Academy introduced its first generation of learners, including 30 players aged 11 and 30 others aged 13. These 60 will be provided with free nutrition and training to develop their talents and become professional footballers in the future.
In addition to the professional training programme, the academy also implements the community football model, training those aged 3-17 without examination. During the training process, the outstanding learners will be selected to a class for the gifted to join professional training courses.
Currently, numerous football academies have been set up in Vietnam including Hoang Anh Gia Lai – Arsenal JMG Academy, Fund of Vietnamese Football Talents Football Club (PVF), and Viettel Football Academy.
Vietnam warehousing market by Number of Warehouses (Southern Vietnam and Others); by End User (Retail, Electronic Devices, Textile and Footwear, Wooden Products and Others); by International and Domestic Companies; and by Business Model (Industrial / Retail Freight, Container Freight, Cold Storage, Agriculture and Others); Company Profile of Major Players (Damco Vietnam, Sotrans Vietnam, Vinafco, Kerry Logistics Vietnam, Bac Ky Logistics Vietnam, Nippon Express Vietnam, Vietnam Airlines, Transimex Saigon Corporation, Sea and Air Freight International, Vinalink Logistics, PetroVietnam Transport Corporation, Noi Bai Cargo Terminal Services and Others)
Many distribution centers in Vietnam are turning to technology and robotics to help them increase efficiency, accuracy and overall productivity in the near future.
Rising prominence of online shopping coupled with increasing usage of smartphones in Vietnam is expected to increase the warehousing needs for E-commerce companies in order to effectively store their products.
Analysts at Ken Research in their latest publication “Vietnam Warehousing Market Outlook to 2022 – By Business Model (Industrial / Retail Freight, Container Freight, Cold Storage, Agriculture and Others) and by End User (Retail, Electronic Devices, Textile and Footwear, Wooden Products and Others)” believe that resource expansion / diversification, automation in warehousing and appropriate location preferences for setting up a logistics hub will create a positive impact on the market.
Vietnam has become a manufacturing hub for various industries such as automotive, retail, pharmaceuticals, agriculture and others. As geographical considerations of shipping directly to consumers become more complex, many IT companies in the country are expanding their management systems and solutions which will allow warehouses to become more flexible in order to meet customer requirements in the future.
Warehousing facilities plays a vital role in the overall supply chain process. In Vietnam, the companies operating within this segment were witnessed to adopt a warehouse management system that supports multi-location management, through effective order management, auto-refilling of inventory, auto generate purchase order to supplies and receiving automatic updates against inbound orders. For instance, DHL Vietnam plans to invest in new facilities and IT solutions including a warehouse management system and transportation management system to increase the company’s efficiency and visibility. Emerging warehousing technologies such as EDI Communications, drones, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), cloud storage and usage of robotic technology are further expected to boost the demand for warehousing facilities in Vietnam Rising cross border trade activities between Vietnam and its border countries such as China, Laos and Cambodia will support the warehousing industry in Vietnam for effective storage needs. Approximately 95.7% of total warehouses are situated within the international border area and the remaining 4.3% is located at the main border gate.
Vietnam warehousing market is expected to register a positive CAGR of 13.4% during the forecast period 2018-2022. The market is further expected to be driven by continuous flow of FDI from foreign multi-nationals and the government’s efforts towards the development of logistics infrastructure and consistent economic growth.
According to General Statistics Office of Vietnam, first 9 months 2018, international tourist arrivals up 22.9%
Some 11.61 million foreign tourists arrived in Vietnam in the first nine months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 22.9 per cent, according to the General Statistics Office.
Growth in the number of international tourist arrivals in the third quarter was 14.9 per cent against the same period last year; lower than the 30.9 per cent and 23.1 per cent, respectively, recorded in the first and second quarters.
The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) has conducted promotional activities in foreign markets during September, including in Canada and the US, where policies, destinations, tourism products and services were introduced in an effort to attract more tourists.
The US remains one of Vietnam’s top five tourism markets, reaching 614,000 in 2017, up 11 per cent against 2016. As at August this year, 486,000 tourists from the US had arrived in Vietnam, a year-on-year increase of 14.5 per cent.
Tourist arrivals from four other leading markets totaled 6,704,043 in the first eight months, including 3,402,308 from China, 2,286,714 from South Korea, 545,721 from Japan, and 469,300 from Taiwan (China).
Vietnamese manufacturing growth slowed to its lowest level in 10 months in September but business confidence pointed to a rebound in the coming months, according to an industry gauge.
The latest Nikkei-Markit Vietnam manufacturing purchasing managers’ index fell to 51.5 last month, from 53.7 in September, although still above of the 50-point mark separating expansion from contraction.
The headline PMI reading, while marking the thirty-fourth straight month of growth, reflected slower rises in output, new orders and employment.
However, business confidence rebounded from the record low recorded in August amid rising fears over the fallout from the US-China trade war.
“Company plans and expected growth of new orders supported optimism that output will increase over the coming year,” according to IHS Markit, which compiles the survey.
Still, Andrew Harker, associate director at IHS Markit, said that “while remaining positive overall, demand conditions are clearly less buoyant than they were during Q2”.
Cyclos once dominated the streets in Vietnam, but now they’re all clustered around touristy areas, filled with foreigners in big tour groups. From near ubiquity to the edge of extinction, here’s the fascinating history of the cyclo in Vietnam published on The Culture Trip by Matthew Pike
The xích lô
Before the cyclo arrived in Vietnam, there was the rickshaw, a harsh and cruel means of transportation, which even the French authorities found to be inhumane. So, in the early 1930s, the French Public Works Ministry began trials on three-wheeled replacements, showcasing their new designs in Paris with high publicity shows that featured Tour de France winners in the Bois de Boulogne. Two years after those first prototypes, a man named Pierre Coupeaud designed and built his own version to bring to French Indochina.
Pierre Coupeaud was in an ideal position at the time. He’d been living in Indochina since the early 1920s and owned the “Établissements Pierre Coupeaud et Cie” – a bicycle company in Phnom Penh. After he returned to Cambodia with his prototype, Pierre Coupeaud received a contract from the local government to build a fleet of his new “vélo-pousse”, as the cyclo was called back then. He tried to do the same in Saigon, but the authorities there weren’t interested, stating that they found this new invention to be too revolutionary. That’s when he had a brilliant marketing idea: a time trial.
Phnom Penh to Saigon on three wheels
On February 9 1936, two local cyclists left Phnom Penh in a vélo-pousse. They were heading for Saigon, followed by officials in a car who were timing them with chronometers. The duo traveled all night, making the 240km (149-mile) trip in just 17 hours and 20 minutes – considerably faster than any rickshaw. The display was a huge success.
Following the race, the mayor of Saigon relented and permitted for the use of 20 of these new contraptions in his city. As it turned out, the authorities had been correct in their assessment: The cyclo was in fact revolutionary, but not in a subversive way. By the early 1940s, almost every rickshaw in Saigon had been replaced by the new xích lô.
As colonialism in Vietnam came to a violent and long overdue end following World War II, with the French finally withdrawing after their defeat at Diem Bien Phu in 1954, the cyclo endured as the popular means of transportation. It was better than bicycles for hauling cargo and groups, such as mothers with children, and most people simply couldn’t afford a bicycle. A cyclo ride wasn’t cheap at first, but that soon changed.
When they were in power, the French had tightly controlled local industry, but now the local manufacturers could also produce cyclos. The design was simple to copy, and the materials could be found relatively cheap in local markets, especially those with plundered goods. As the war shifted to a fight against imperialism, the cyclo grew both in number and popularity.
During the Vietnam War – or the American War, as it’s known in Vietnam – only the military and the very rich could afford cars and motorbikes. Cyclos were much more common. Some drivers operated either as freelancers, in much the same way that xe ôm drivers still work today, but most worked for private companies. After the Fall of Saigon, in 1975, the new authorities organized the cyclo drivers into large cooperatives. These cooperatives lasted until the late 80s, when market forces changed everything.
In comes the motorbike
Before the Vietnamese government enacted the Đổi Mới policy in 1986, which allowed for market competition in a socialist oriented economy, the motorbike was still prohibitively expensive for the average person. Only wealthy people could afford a Vespa or a Simson. As the economy grew, motorbikes proliferated, with Honda’s iconic Super Cub leading the way. The country went from just 500,000 motor vehicles in 1994 to 14 million in 2004.
By the turn of the century, people began to look down on those who used bicycles and cyclos. Everyone who was anyone drove a motorbike, or they used a motorbike taxi, which was faster and cheaper than riding a cyclo.
There was only one market left for cyclos: large and heavy goods that couldn’t be carried by motorbike – and if you’ve ever been to Vietnam, then you already know that people will carry just about everything on a motorbike here. The cyclo was on the verge of extinction.
Welcome to Vietnam
As Vietnamese people embraced the motorbike, cyclo drivers found themselves hounded out of business in every major city. Motorbike drivers complained that cyclos clogged traffic, because they were slow and wide. In response, authorities forced cyclos off the major streets. By the mid 2000s, the cyclo had been pretty well banned in every major city.
The drivers had to either join an expensive trade group or risk having their cyclos confiscated by traffic inspectors. To compensate for their difficulties, many cyclo drivers turned to scamming people, which brought even more pressure. Word spread that it wasn’t wise to ride a cyclo, so the numbers fell even more.
Nowadays, tourists are the only substantial customer base for cyclo drivers. Foreigners enjoy cyclo rides because they offer a more peaceful view of the surroundings, especially in places like Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, where the traffic is insane. But the number of operators is still strictly regulated. Because of this, it’s estimated that there are fewer than 300 cyclos left in downtown Ho Chi Minh City, and even fewer in other cities.
And it isn’t just regulation. In Vietnam’s booming economy, workers have more options for work these days. It isn’t easy driving a cyclo. They often work during the hottest hours of the day and for wages that fluctuate depending on the number of tourists. It simply isn’t an attractive line of work anymore.
The end of the cyclo
The cyclos near tourist areas – places like the Citadel in Hue and the Old Quarter in Hanoi – are now the last of their kind, aside from workers moving heavy loads over short distances in rural areas. The motorbike was the beginning of the end, and with the latest surge in new vehicles hitting the roads in Vietnam, there won’t be any place left for the cyclo on Vietnam’s busy roads.
The cyclo is a relic nowadays, an image of Vietnam that only exists for tourist money and photo ops.
Vietnam has launched a ministry-level government agency aimed at boosting the performance of some of the Communist nation’s biggest state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
The new Commission for the Management of State Capital (CMSC) at enterprises will manage 19 state-owned companies in which the government holds stakes with a combined book value of 1,000 trillion dong ($42.9 billion), the government said on Sunday.
The list includes state oil and gas firm PetroVietnam, flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, top oil distributor Petrolimex, mobile operator MobiFone and State Capital Investment Corporation, which owns shares in Vinamilk, one of Vietnam’s top listed companies.
The Southeast Asian nation has for years sought to boost SOEs through stake sales, internal restructuring or stock market listings, but progress has fallen short of targets.
“Increasing efficiency of SOEs and, from there, increasing our economy’s competitiveness is essential,” Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said at Sunday’s ceremony to launch the CMSC.
Vietnam created SOEs as national champions to lead key economic sectors, but its efforts have been stymied by corruption and poor management.
CMSC has signed an agreement with Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings to share capital-management knowledge and has proposed similar agreements with China’s state-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.
The new agency is ready to take over management of the 19 state-owned enterprises from Oct. 1, said CMSC Chairman Nguyen Hoang Anh, with the potential to take on more in the future. ($1 = 23,325.0000 dong)
The provincial military command declared that the remains of two pilots of a training fighter jet, which fell into a mountain in 1971, have been discovered in Vietnam’s northern Thai Nguyen province.
Local searching crews discovered the remains and some of the pilots’ belonging such as gloves and parts of clothes on Tam Dao mountain in Thai Nguyen.
The MiG-21U plane disappeared from the radar on April 30, 1971 during attesting flight over an area in the two provinces of Thai Nguyen and Vinh Phuc.
Vietnam has been trying to track the crashed plane for years.
Elon Musk agreed Saturday to step down as chairman of Tesla and pay a $20 million fine in a deal to settle charges brought this week by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Under the settlement, which requires court approval, Musk will be allowed to stay as CEO but must leave his role as chairman of the board within 45 days. He cannot seek reelection for three years, according to court filings.
He accepted the deal with the SEC “without admitting or denying the allegations of the complaint,” according to a court document.
Separately, Tesla agreed Saturday to pay $20 million to settle claims it failed to adequately police Musk’s tweet.
“The $40 million in penalties will be distributed to harmed investors under a court-approved process,” the SEC said in a press release.
The company also agreed to appoint two new independent directors to its board and establish a board committee to oversee Musk’s communications.
Tesla declined to comment. A spokesperson confirmed Musk will be permitted to remain a member of the board.
The announcement from the SEC comes two days after the agency filed a lawsuit against Musk, claiming he misled investors. The suit centers on tweets Musk sent on August 7 in which he said he had secured funding to take Tesla private at $420 a share, causing the company’s stock to soar. He had not secured the funding, the SEC said.
The lawsuit sought to ban Musk from serving as an officer or director of any publicly traded company.
Musk called the SEC’s suit “unjustified.”
“I have always taken action in the best interests of truth, transparency and investors,” he said. “Integrity is the most important value in my life and the facts will show I never compromised this in any way.”
CNBC, citing unnamed sources, reported that the agency filed the suit on Thursday after Musk refused an earlier settlement offer. Under that deal, Musk would have had to pay a “nominal fine” and leave his role as chairman for two years. He chose not to accept the terms because “because he felt that by settling he would not be truthful to himself,” according to the outlet.
A representative for Musk did not immediately reply to CNN’s request for comment Saturday.
Jay Dubow, a partner at Pepper Hamilton and a veteran of the SEC’s enforcement division, said it was “unusual” that the SEC agreed to let Musk stay on as chief executive but exit the chairman role.
It’s surprising considering “the conduct at issue, if [the SEC] really thought it was egregious,” Dubow said. “The CEO is certainly more involved than the chairman in day-to-day operations.”
He suggested the SEC may have determined that removing Musk as CEO would cause more harm to Tesla’s share price, and thus harm investors.
Barclays analyst Brian Johnson estimated in a recent note that Tesla’s stock has a $130 “Musk premium,” which could disappear if he leaves.
Still unclear is whether or not the Department of Justice will file criminal charges against Musk.
Tesla confirmed earlier this month that the DOJ was investigating whether Musk’s comments about taking his company private constituted criminal activity.
Dubow, the former SEC official, said he suspects nothing will come of it.
“My guess is that it’s still possible the DOJ will pursue something, but…it’s more likely than not that the DOJ chooses not to pursue this,” he said.
The settlement has likely assuaged the SEC, mitigating the DOJ’s incentive to act.
The US Federal Reserve (Fed)’s third interest rate hike this week would not affect Việt Nam’s economy significantly as the move was foreseeable, according to experts.
Fed policymakers on Wednesday lifted the benchmark overnight lending rate by a quarter of a percentage point to a range of 2 per cent to 2.25 per cent.
The Fed’s move comes amid a complicated international market with the accelerating US-China trade war and central banks in some countries tightening monetary policy.
However, according to Cấn Văn Lực, chief economist at the Bank for Investment and Development of Việt Nam, the Fed’s interest rate hike had been forecast so international and domestic markets were prepared for it.
Lực said the Fed’s move should not concern Việt Nam’s financial and monetary markets as the domestic macroeconomy was stable while outstanding loans in US dollars were less than 8 per cent of total outstanding loans.
Lực estimated that the country’s foreign debt would increase insignificantly as US dollar debts account for just a third of the country’s total while the hike could be offset by the depreciation of other currencies.
Lực also believed the exchange rate would remain stable thanks to the State Bank of Việt Nam’s daily reference exchange rate policy and the nation’s high foreign reserve.
The Fed’s impact on the capital inflow into Việt Nam’s stock market was also insignificant, especially after the Vietnamese market on Thursday was classified as a frontier market and added to FTSE Russell’s watchlist for a possible future upwards reclassification as Secondary Emerging, he said.
Reports also showed that in the past nine months, foreign investors remained net buyers of US$1.5 billion in Việt Nam’s stock market, he said.
However, Việt Nam still needed to monitor another Fed rate hike in December, three more next year, and one increase in 2020, while the global current economic situation remained complicated.
Sharing the same view, Ngô Đăng Khoa, head of markets at HSBC Vietnam, said that the pressure of the Fed’s interest rate hike on Việt Nam’s exchange rate and interest rate still existed as the Fed was not finished there.
“This pressure will depend on fluctuations of the Chinese renminbi as China is one of Việt Nam’s largest trade partners,” Khoa told cafef.vn. Export value to China accounts for more than 20 per cent of Việt Nam’s total trade turnover, and Việt Nam has the largest trade deficit with China.
The Fed’s policy to continue increasing interest rates would also put more risks on Việt Nam’s capital inflows and inflation, Khoa said, adding that regulations to stabilise the domestic macroeconomy would become more challenging.
In a report released on Wednesday, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) also noted that despite the downward revision for growth this year, Việt Nam’s inflationary pressures were likely to persist in the short term.
According to the ADB, the đồng has exhibited more weakness since July and could come under continued pressure as US interest rates rise and the dollar strengthens. Depreciation of the renminbi against the dollar, if it continues, could further put pressure on the đồng, adding to inflation, the ADB said.
Vietjet Air has opened sales for tickets on the new Phu Quoc – Seoul route, to welcome in the year-end festive season.
The new route connects the two famous destinations and satisfies demand among local people and tourists while contributing to the development of trade and integration in the region.
The Phu Quoc – Seoul route will be a daily service starting from December 22, with a flight time of some five hours 30 minutes per leg. Flights depart Phu Quoc at 3.30pm and arrive at Seoul at 10.45pm, returning from Seoul at 1.45am and landing in Phu Quoc at 5.35am (all local times).
Tickets for the new route are available via all sales channels, with a special promotion running from 12pm to 2pm (GMT+7) every day on http://www.vietjetair.com (compatible with smartphones at https://m.vietjetair.com) and http://www.facebook.com/vietjetvietnam (click the “Booking” tab). Payment can be made with international debit and credit cards, including Visa, MasterCard, AMEX, JCB, KCP, and Union, or with any ATM card issued by 34 Vietnamese banks and registered with internet banking.
Part of Kien Giang province, Phu Quoc is known as “Pearl Island” and is the largest in Vietnam. Now a famous travel destination, the island continues to attract significant investment in tourism and resort real estate.
In launching the new route, Vietjet not only brings safe, civilized and modern air travel to local people and tourists but also promotes trade and contributes to improving local investment.
Aiming to be a “Consumer Airline”, the carrier has continually opened new routes, added more aircraft, and invested in modern technology, while offering more add-on products and services to serve all customer demands.
It currently operates 60 A320 and A321 aircraft on more than 385 flights daily, carrying more than 60 million passengers to date on 95 routes to destinations in Vietnam as well as overseas, such as Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Thailand, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia and elsewhere.
Vietjet plans to expand its network across the Asia-Pacific region and is continuing to grow its regional network. It recently signed contracts to purchase new, modern aircraft from the world’s leading aircraft manufacturers.
It is an official member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) with IOSA Safety Certification. In addition to being in the “Top 500 Leading Brands in Asia 2016” and “Best Recruiting Brand in Asia” for many consecutive years. Vietjet was also honored as “Best Asian Low Cost Carrier” in the TTG Travel Awards in 2015 and was named among the Top 3 Fastest Growing Facebook Fanpages by Socialbakers.
Visitors to Hoang Su Phi able to admire beautiful terraced rice fields and take in September 28-30 festival.
A cultural and tourism festival promoting the beauty of Hoang Su Phi and ethnic minority culture in northern mountainous Ha Giang province is taking place from September 28 to 30.
The highlight is the showcasing of typical products from the district, such as traditional craft, embroidery, weaving, souvenirs, local specialties, and tea, while photos introducing local destinations are also on display.
Ritual ceremonies, festivals, traditional dance and traditional games of ethnic minority groups will take place, with the major participation of the Mong people.
There will be a paragliding competition at Nam Ty commune for those who wish to contemplate charming terraced rice fields from above, while others can also enjoy the yellow terraced rice fields while on terra firma.
The harvest season in Hoang Su Phi falls in September and October, creating an immense sea of yellow fields that attract thousands of tourists to Ha Giang province every autumn. On November 1, 2011, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognized 760 ha of Hoang Su Phi’s terraced rice fields, across six communes, as a national heritage.
Ha Giang welcomed more than 1 million visitors in 2017, up 20 per cent against 2016, and earned VND1 trillion ($43 million) in tourism revenue.
