Since the beginning of August, the interbank interest rates have stayed at high levels of 4.5-4.6 percent per annum for overnight, 1-week, 2-week and 1-month term loans, the highest rates since late 2016, Vietnamnet reported.
Interest rate rising sharply
The General Statistics Office’s (GSO) report shows that the total money supply (M2) in the first six months of 2018 increased more rapidly than credit growth.
By June 20, 2018, the credit growth rate of the entire banking system had reached 6.35 percent compared with the end of 2017, or VND413 trillion.
Meanwhile, the M2 had reached 7.96 percent, or VND652 trillion. The figures showed that banks had abundant cash.
However, a lot of ‘strange’ things have happened recently in tier-2 market, where transactions among commercial banks, and between commercial banks and the State Bank occur.
Over the last six weeks, the interbank interest rate has been fluctuating. Since the beginning of August, the interbank interest rate has been hovering around the high level of 4.5 percent per annum.
The fact that the interbank interest rate has remained high over many consecutive weeks reflects the tight liquidity of the banking system, according to Bao Viet Securities (BVSC).
BVSC’s research team affirmed that tension in the interbank market has begun influencing the tier-1 market. The deposit interest rates applied by commercial banks are rising, especially for 6-12 month term deposits. Ban Viet, SHB, Techcombank and Vietbank, for example, have raised interest rates by 0.1-0.3 percent.
Money being withdrawn
What has caused the tight liquidity of the banking system in the last two months, which was quite contrary to the abundance in the first six months of the year?
The State Bank does not update data about the credit and M2 growth rates monthly. However, BVSC noted that the M2 growth has slowed down in the last two months.
The M2 increased sharply in the first six months of the year as a result of the State Bank’s purchase of foreign currencies.
The forex reserves by early May 2018 had reached $63 billion, increasing by $11 billion over the end of 2017. As such, in the first five months of the year, the central bank pumped a large amount of money, estimated at VND250 trillion, to buy $11 billion.
The forex reserves by early May 2018 had reached $63 billion, increasing by $11 billion over the end of 2017. As such, in the first five months of the year, the central bank pumped a large amount of money, estimated at VND250 trillion, to buy $11 billion.
Also according to BVSC, from July 30 to August 28, 2018, the State Bank withdrew VND23.687 trillion through OMO and bonds.
Meanwhile, the dong has not been pumped into circulation to buy foreign currencies since the beginning of Q3. The State Bank even had to sell $2 billion to ease the dong/dollar exchange rate tense, which means that VND46 trillion was withdrawn from circulation.
Analysts commented that SBV’s policy has two purposes – curbing inflation and easing pressure on the exchange rate.
Government concern over capital and capabilities keeps Bamboo Airways grounded.
Uncertainty surrounds the debut of Vietnam’s third low-cost carrier as authorities continue to mull approval of the airline just a month before its inaugural flight.
Bamboo Airways, part of real estate developer FLC Group, is awaiting its operating license ahead of flights scheduled for October.
Authorities are believed to have doubts about the carrier’s financial fitness and operational capabilities. Still, FLC remains optimistic and plans to begin ticket sales later this month.
At a prelaunch event for the airline in late August, FLC founder and Chairman Trinh Van Quyet said Bamboo Airways is ready to take off after four years of preparation. He said the airline shares similarities with full-service carriers, providing a number of high-quality amenities at low prices.
The carrier is eyeing 24 domestic and 16 international routes by the end of 2023, mainly to destinations where FLC has resorts, including central Vietnam’s Binh Dinh Province and the northern city of Thanh Hoa.
It has already signed a memorandum of understanding for the purchase of 24 Airbus A321 jets, and is expected to buy large aircraft from Boeing, including 787 Dreamliners.
Bamboo Airways was officially established in July. If the operating license is granted, the carrier’s maiden flight will be between Hanoi and Quy Nhon, the capital of Bunh Dinh Province, on Oct. 10.
A website appeared online in August with ticket and promotional information, making it appear that the carrier had already obtained its license. The Ministry of Transport ordered the site taken down, and Bamboo Airways denied involvement.
Observers believe one reason authorities are dragging their feet is the weak creditworthiness of emerging real estate developers like FLC. The company, established in 2008, experienced rapid growth driven by its resort developments. Revenue reached 11.64 trillion dong ($500 million) in 2017, almost a sevenfold increase from 2013.
FLC’s financial base is seen as weak compared to Vingroup — Vietnam’s largest real estate company — which is expanding into automobile manufacturing. FLC is also considered weaker than Vietjet Aviation, which includes a bank among its group members.
In July, Bamboo Airways increased its stated capital to 1.3 trillion dong, nearly double the initially planned 700 billion dong, as if to quell government concerns.
Concern over too much competition in Vietnam’s LCC market is also holding up the license. The country’s airline market, formerly dominated by state-run Vietnam Airlines, underwent a drastic change after Vietjet Aviation debuted in late 2011. By the first half of 2017, the newcomer held 43% of market share, up from just 8% in 2012 and eclipsing Vietnam Airlines’ 42% share.
LCCs have generally been improving their positions. Jetstar Pacific Airlines, the budget carrier of Vietnam Airlines, claims over 10% of market share.
In July 2017, Vietjet tied up with Japan Airlines to operate flights between Hanoi and Japan’s Narita Airport starting in January 2019. The Vietnamese carrier is looking to tap into an expected increase in Japan-bound passengers as Tokyo ramps up efforts to attract foreign workers.
Foreign airlines, like Malaysia’s AirAsia and some Chinese LCCs, are targeting Vietnam, where the airline market has grown more than 20% annually on the back of the country’s growing middle class.
If successful, Bamboo Airways will increase pressure on Vietnam Airlines, heating up competition in the domestic airline market.
A popular local film festival that went on hiatus last year is coming back next month with renewed energy and purpose.
The 10th Viet Film Fest, organized by the Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Assoc., will run Oct. 12-14 at AMC Orange 30 at the Outlets at Orange.
The festival will screen 30 films from around the world — 13 features and 17 shorts. The fest will also present panels, Q&A sessions, opening and closing receptions, an awards ceremony and a free “Youth in Motion” program.
“We want to be a platform to encourage immersion filmmakers,” said festival director Thuy-Van Nguyen. “At the same time, filmmaking is an art in which our voice is heard. When I watch certain movies and see a familiar face, a Vietnamese face, an Asian face, I feel like I can relate to that person. That’s my voice being heard.”
The Viet Film Fest has also become an important platform — the largest outside of Vietnam — for Vietnamese filmmakers to showcase their work, Nguyen said.
“I believe it is an important part of the culture here in Orange County,” Nguyen said.
Organizers, filmmakers and about 240 community members attended a red carpet launch party Sept. 9 at AMC Orange 30. The program included performances by pop singer Diem Lien, keyboardist Uyen Phuong, singer and DJ Kim Thanh and Melione, a Vietnamese American hip hop artist.
“I’m very grateful they asked me to come back,” said Melione, a Garden Grove native who performed for the fest’s last launch party in 2016. “In general, Vietnamese people need more opportunities and more outlets, especially in the entertainment industry. I don’t think we’re represented often or represented well.”
After red carpet arrivals and some opening comments and performances, the festival presented a video introducing the 2018 lineup to the audience, which was comprised mostly of Vietnamese Americans. Opening the festival on Oct. 12 will be “Summer in Closed Eyes,” directed by Cao Thuy Nhi, a cross-cultural love story set in Hokkaido, Japan.
Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s “The Island,” screening Oct. 13, was shot entirely in Pulau Bidong, the largest and longest-running refugee camp after the Vietnam War.
“Actress Wanted,” directed by Minh Duc Nguyen, was filmed completely in Orange County. It’s a domestic thriller that will make its world premiere Oct. 13 during the festival.
Other highlights include a retrospective presentation of “The Purple Horizon,” originally released in 1971; screenings of the Vietnamese box-office hits “The Girl From Yesterday,” “100 Days of Sunshine” and “Go Go Sisters”; “Farewell Halong,” the fest’s sole documentary feature, a German production spotlighting the displacement of Ha Long Bay villagers by the Vietnamese government; and “The Way Station,” directed by popular Vietnamese actress Pham Thi Hong Anh. She will be present at the Oct. 14 screening.
“Hanh, Solo” on Oct. 13 will showcase the Vietnamese American millennial voice. Star, producer and co-writer Hanh Nguyen will attend the comedy screening.
On Oct. 14, the fest will present “Kiss and Spell,” a film and program honoring the late Stephane Gauger, an Orange County filmmaker and graduate of Cal State Fullerton who died in January after suffering a stroke at 48. “Kiss and Spell” was his final feature.
Closing the festival at 7 p.m. Oct. 14 will be “Murder in the Lens,” in the rare-for-Vietnam genre of crime-thriller and film noir.
This year, more than 50% of the films at the Viet Film Fest were either directed or produced by women. Organizers say this reflects the ongoing momentum of the #MeToo, #OscarsSoWhite and Time’s Up movements.
The festival started in 2003 as the biennial Vietnamese International Film Festival. In 2013, the event switched to an annual format, presenting works by Vietnamese filmmakers every April. After skipping 2017 to regroup and re-organize, the Viet Film Fest was moved to October.
“We were competing with too many other events in April,” said Ysa Le, executive director of VAALA. “It was also hard to schedule events for students during spring break.”
Tickets for the film fest are $13 for general admission, $11 for students and seniors, and $15 for opening or closing nights. Admission to the opening or closing parties is $50. An all-access badge is $250.
Rivals up their games as ride-hailing and related services grow in Southeast Asia.
The fierce competition between Southeast Asia’s leading ride-hailing service Grab and its Indonesian rival Go-Jek is set to explode across borders as the latter rolls into Vietnam with plans for further regional expansion.
Go-Jek, whose services were until recently confined to Indonesia, on Wednesday announced its full launch in Vietnam. It now offers motorbike ride-hailing and courier services in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the country’s two largest metropolitan areas.
Operating through its local partner Go-Viet, the Indonesian company is challenging Singapore-based Grab’s dominance in Southeast Asia’s fastest growing economy, which is already home to more than a dozen small local ride-hailing players.
While Grab operates under one brand in eight Southeast Asian nations, Go-Jek chose to go local, using the Go-Viet brand for its Vietnamese operations — a decision made after “massive debate” conducted within the company, according to Go-Jek founder and CEO Nadiem Makarim.
The name Go-Jek derives from the Indonesian word for the country’s ubiquitous motorbike taxis, “ojek.” While that has made for a “powerful and sticky” brand in Indonesia, Makarim thought it would not resonate in the Vietnamese market. Hence, Go-Viet was chosen, along with a red jacket emblazoned with a star for drivers’ uniforms — a look that mirrors the national flag.
“Our principle is consumer first,” Makarim said in an interview with the Nikkei Asian Review on Wednesday. “And if consumers will embrace a brand that they think as their own, and it’s special and it’s part of their identity like Go-Viet, then that’s even better.”
Go-Jek has chosen to brand its services as Get in Thailand, a market it will soon enter. “Let’s give each country the ability to not only determine their own destiny, but also determine their own identity,” the CEO said.
Makarim claims that the brand is already working, saying that Go-Viet has grabbed 35% of the market for two-wheeled ride hailing in Ho Chi Minh City — the country’s business and financial hub — following its soft launch there less than two months ago. The app has been downloaded 1.5 million times.
Nadiem Makarim – CEO of Go-Jek
But Makarim admitted that interoperability is not yet available for Go-Jek and Go-Viet users, who must download two different apps to use the services in Indonesia and Vietnam. This puts it at a disadvantage to Grab’s single app, which can be used across borders.
Nevertheless, partnering with Go-Viet — established in March — is expected to give Go-Jek more freedom to expand in the country. Go-Viet co-founder and CEO Nguyen Vu Duc said the company is planning to offer additional services that are currently available only to Indonesian users, with car hailing, food delivery and mobile wallet Go-Pay at the top of the list.
“We also will provide Go-shopping, on-site cleaners and beauticians in your home,” Nguyen said. “All of these will be rolled out in Vietnam based on market demand.”
Meanwhile Grab, currently available in 36 Vietnamese cities, has been facing regulatory hurdles to further expansion after assuming the operations of rival Uber, which exited Southeast Asia in April.
Uber’s legacy in Vietnam still lingers, however, with some former Uber executives having joined Go-Viet, including Nguyen. Go-Viet is also attractting former Uber drivers and customers.
Thanh Hung, once an Uber driver in Ho Chi Minh City, said he originally tried to work with Grab following Uber’s departure, but was turned off by the working style. “After Go-Viet launched in Vietnam, I registered to work with them,” he said. “I’m happy, and many other ex-Uber drivers are also working for Go-Viet thanks to the company’s good driver policies,” saying that these include a better commission.
Former Uber customer Lan Huong said she loved the Uber app. “After Go-Viet launched, I tried [their app] and saw the company as a good alternative, as their fares are still cheap,” she explained. “But more importantly, some Go-Viet [drivers] told me that a lot of ex-Uber drivers are now with Go-Viet, so they are supposed to provide the same services.”
Go-Jek’s arrival appears to be pushing Grab to improve its Vietnamese operations. The company is reportedly offering drivers better incentives and launched food delivery in May — the same month that Go-Jek announced its $500 million expansion plans to Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines.
Moreover, on Tuesday, just a day before Go-Viet’s official full launch, Grab announced a “strategic partnership” with Hanoi-based digital payment service provider Moca “to expand mobile payments more rapidly across the country.”
Makarim, who was friends with Grab co-founder and CEO Anthony Tan while both were at Harvard University in the U.S., said that while the “fierce” competition makes it hard to turn a profit in ride-hailing, it has a good side: spurring innovation.
“If it wasn’t for our competition, Go-Jek would not be as motivated to innovate and get this big,” Makarim said. “So really, we’re growing markets together,” explaining that the market is huge and that “the most important thing is actually converting people to the new way of doing things.”
Go-Jek is reportedly making profits from its other services, but not ride-hailing.
Prior to the announcement of the Go-Viet partnership, Go-Jek claimed 105 million downloads of its app in Indonesia and had 1 million drivers operating in 144 cities and districts.
Grab claims 8 million drivers and agents in 234 cities across Southeast Asia and 109 million app downloads.
In response to the new competition, a Grab spokesperson said: “We have not seen our market share fall in Ho Chi Minh City since the start of August. In Vietnam, our business continues to grow tremendously. Transport is displaying strong month-on-month growth while our new verticals, such as food and parcel delivery, are growing robustly.”
“We welcome competition in the market … When done right, competition betters the market,” the spokesperson added.
Apple just unveiled three new iPhones, including a 6.1-inch iPhone called the iPhone XR.
While the other two new phones, the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, will be available this month starting September 21, the iPhone Xr won’t be available for awhile – it starts shipping October 26, with preorders going live a week before that.
Among the many other standout features in the iPhone XR, most notable are its colors. It’s reminiscent of the iPhone 5C, the ceramic candy-colored phone that was a more affordable version of the iPhone 5S when it went on sale back in 2013.
The iPhone XR will be available in six colors when it becomes available. And since all opinions should be taken as facts, here’s our definitive ranking of the six new colors, from worst to best:
The massive arrival of Chinese enterprises to Vietnam to set up woodwork processing workshops has raised concern that China may exploit Vietnamese origin to export products to the US and avoid high taxes.
Thanh Nien quoted Tran Viet Tien, director of Lavanto Home Décor, as saying that if China counterfeits Vietnamese origin to export products to the US, this will badly affect Vietnam’s exports to the US and the Vietnam brand. The US is a big export market for Vietnam.
China is a big woodwork supplier to the US market. The US decision to raise tax on woodwork imports from China will lead to higher prices of woodwork products and lower purchasing demand.
The high growth rate in woodwork exports from Vietnam to the US will bring adverse effects in the long term because the US may set up technical and tariff barriers to restrict imports.
The US is a big export market for Vietnam and any changes will be ‘dangerous’ for Vietnam.
An analyst said if China wants to counterfeit Vietnamese origin, it may set up processing workshops in northern provinces in Vietnam to take full advantage of the cheap labor force here.
Meanwhile, Nguyen Chien Thang, chair of Scansia Pacific in Dong Nai province, thinks that it would be more difficult to counterfeit the Vietnamese origin for woodwork, because the products are cumbersome and require high transportation fees.
However, he said small Chinese enterprises may come to Vietnam and open workshops under Vietnamese names. If so, the domestic woodwork industry will be affected.
In principle, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the US imposition of high taxes on Chinese woodwork products will bring great opportunities to Vietnam.
Thang said the number of US clients showing interest in Vietnam’s woodwork products has begun to increase. It is understandable: they want to find alternative suppliers.
However, Thang doesn’t think it will be easy for Vietnamese manufacturers to exploit the US market, because the number of US companies investing in Vietnam is relatively high.
In order to increase exports to the US, analysts said, Vietnam need control material imports. Vietnam has to import 20-30 percent of materials it needs in 2018 and following years.
In 2017, Vietnam imported $363 million worth of materials from China, an increase of 27 percent over the year before. The use of Chinese materials means that Vietnam’s products will bear high tax.
Meanwhile, the other big material suppliers for Vietnam tend to tighten their wood exports.
Steel manufacturers have also voiced concern about the possibility of Chinese enterprises counterfeiting Vietnamese origin to export products to the US.
H&M has been open in Vietnam for one year, while Zara celebrated its two-year presence in Vietnam recently. Both fashion brands have prospered here thanks to the number of Vietnamese fashion fans.
H&M collects VND1.8 billion a day
H&M’s 2017 finance report showed that its newly opened markets, including Vietnam, brought good profits. In the last three months of 2017, the fashion brand earned VND179 billion in Vietnam.
The business has been gong smoothly this year with revenue of VND176 billion in the first quarter and VND148 billion in the second quarter, or VND1.8 billion a day.
Most recently, H&M announced the opening of two new shops, slated for September 8. The shops will be located at Vincom Nguyen Chi Thanh in Hanoi and Crescent Mall in HCMC.
If counting the two new shops, H&M has six shops in Vietnam with three each in large cities of Hanoi and HCMC. Vietnam is witnessing the most rapid network expansion among H&M markets.
One year ago, when the Swedish brand opened the first shop in HCMC, thousands of young people were seen queuing at the shops.
Fredrik Famm, CEO of H&M Southeast Asia, commented that being a young and developing market, Vietnam has made a great contribution to H&M growth in the region.
Zara earns VND5.3 billion a day
Having fewer shops in Vietnam, Zara earns three times more than H&M, about VND5.3 billion a day.
Zara’s shops in Vietnam are under the management of Inditex’s partner in Indonesia – Mitra Adiperkasa (MAP).
MAP set up Mitra Adiperkasa Vietnam to run Zara and three other legal entities to sell products at Pull & Bear, Stradivarius and Massimo Dutti in Vietnam.
In 2017, according to MAP, with the opening of new Pull & Bear, Stradivarius and Massimo Dutti in September and Zara in Hanoi in November, the total revenue of the entire Mitra Adiperkasa in Vietnam soared to VND1.1 trillion.
In the first half of 2018, MAP Vietnam’s revenue continued to increase by 133 percent compared with the same period last year to VND950 billion.
MAP does not report the revenue for every brand, but analysts believe that most revenue is from Zara.
Having fewer shops than H&M, every Zara shop seems to have better business results than H&M. The Spanish brand has not made any announcement about its expansion plan in Vietnam.
Americans have comprised the largest continent of visitors to the Son Doong Cave in 2018.
Of 873 visitors who have joined the restricted tours to explore Son Doong, the world’s largest natural cave, in the first eight months of the year, 290 were Americans.
Vietnamese were next with 154, followed by Australians with 76, according to Oxalis, the travel agency that has exclusive rights to host the tour.
Oxalis said the Son Doong cave will be closed to tourists from September until the year-end to allow for restoration of cave ecosystem.
The four-month closure of the cave aims to minimize impacts on the cave’s ecosystem including its flora and fauna. It also aims to minimize water pollution inside the cave.
Tours to the largest cave in the world has reduced its original duration of six days and five nights to four days and three nights, and the number of tourists allowed to take them has been doubled.
Son Doong, part of the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in central Vietnam, has hogged the international spotlight since its opened to tourists in 2013.
The New York Times has named it among the world’s top eight travel destinations, while the National Geographic has it a “natural wonder” in Asia.
The cave opened to tourists in 2013, four years after members of the British Cave Research Association finished their exploration and declared it the world’s largest.
Local resident Ho Khanh first discovered the cave in 1991, and rediscovered it almost 20 years later, opening it up for exploration.
Oxalis is now the only company licensed to bring tourists through Son Doong. A four-day expedition costs $3,000, and there are bus routes running from Hanoi to Dong Hoi, the capital town of Quang Binh, and then to the park.
Quang Binh Province government recently has raised the limit for number of tourists allowed to visit the cave from 640 to 900.
The province has over the past years proposed several developments, including a cable car system to boost tourism in the area, but these have met with strong opposition from environmentalists and the public.
Apple’s polished iPhone line-up comes with tools to help users dial back their smartphone obsessions, amid growing concerns over “addiction” and harmful effects on children.
An iOS 12 mobile operating system that will power new iPhones unveiled on Wednesday (Sep 12), and be pushed out as an update to prior models, has new features to reduce how much they distract people from the real world.
Apple senior vice president of software engineering Craig Federighi said of iOS 12 at a developers conference earlier this year the new system offers “detailed information and tools” to help users and parents keep tabs on device use.
A new “Screen Time” tool generates activity reports showing how often people pick up their iPhones or iPads, how long they spend in apps or at websites, and numbers of notifications received.
Users will be able to set limits on time spent in apps. Parents will be able to get activity reports from their children’s iPhones or iPads, and impose time limits on apps from games and news to social media and messaging.
The operating system will also allow people to designate “down time” when iPhones or iPads can’t be used – perhaps a child’s bedtime or a grown-up’s meditation hour.
Activist investor Jana Partners and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), which both have stakes in Apple, early this year called on the company to give parents more tools to ensure children are using its devices in ways that aren’t hurting them.
The investors reasoned that doing so would pose no threat to Apple, because the company makes the bulk of its money selling devices, not from how much people use them.
Apple has been working to ramp up revenue from services and digital content such as music and movies, but most of the cash it takes in comes from iPhone sales.
The letter cited a growing body of evidence that excessive smartphone use may be having negative consequences on young people.
A study of teachers found the vast majority felt smartphones were a growing distraction at schools, eroding the ability of students to focus in class and a seeming cause of social and emotional difficulties.
Dog meat selling will be banned in the inner districts of Hanoi from 2021 according to the local Department of Animal Health.
Speaking with the Lao Dong Newspaper on Wednesday, director of the Department of Animal Health, Nguyen Ngoc Son, said that the city now has 1,013 restaurants selling dog and cat meat and 15 shops selling the animals as domesticated pets.
“Following a direction from the city’s People’s Committee to call on residents to ease off eating dog meat, we are building a plan to gradually phase out the slaughtering and trading of dog meat,” Son said. “By 2021 there will be no dog meat restaurants in the city centre.”
The Hanoi People’s Committee on Tuesday issued a statement urging local districts authorities to widely send warnings to residents about the risks of spreading diseases including rabies, cholera and spirillosis caused by eating dog and cat meat.
The committee also said that the trading and slaughtering of dogs and cats have badly affected the image of Hanoi.
Therefore the city officials hope that the popularity of eating dogs and cats would decline.
The call has attracted lots of attention from the public many of whom support the city government.
“That’s a good thing that integration brings to us,” a reader commented on an article about the news on Dantri Newspaper. “We see how animals, especially pet dogs and cats are treated by our foreign friends and we’ve realised that they deserve better treatment.”
However, many dog and cat meat lovers have considered the call ridiculous. They said that dogs and cats are just like pigs and cows, and that dog meat is a traditional dish and there was no point in giving it up.
Roasted, boiled or steamed, dog meat is regularly served in Hanoi.
According to the committee, there are now about 493,000 dogs and cats in the city, the vast majority of which are kept as domesticated pets.
Three people have died from rabies in Hanoi since the beginning of this year, and two others were confirmed infected with the disease, according to official figures.
Foreigners net bought strongly on September 13 after four sessions of net selling.
On HSX, the VN-Index ended the day at 987.95 points, up 0.94 points (0.10 per cent), while the VN30-Index closed at 957.17 points, down 1.50 points (0.16 per cent).
On HNX, the HNX-Index finished at 112.66 points, up 1.01 points (0.91 per cent), the HNX30-Index 204.65 points, up 1.68 points (0.83 per cent), and the UPCoM-Index 51.72 points, (0.52 per cent).
Liquidity on HSX was VND3.18 trillion ($136.6 million) and on HNX was VND791 billion ($34 million).
Food and beverage stocks to gain ground included TLG, VCF and KDC, by 0.7, 0.4 and 0.2 per cent, as BHN lost 1.4 per cent, SAB and TAC 0.4 per cent, and VNM 0.2 per cent.
Gainers in banking included BVH, TCB, BID, VCB and CTG, by 4.2, 0.8, 0.7, 0.6 and 0.5 per cent, as VCI lost 1.3 per cent, VPB 0.8 per cent, and MSN 0.2 per cent. EIB closed at its opening price.
In energy, NT2 gained 3.7 per cent, PPC 2.2 per cent, and PVD 1.6 per cent, PLX lost 1.7 per cent, PVT 1.1 per cent, and GAS 0.9 per cent, and PGD closed at its opening price.
The Top 5 shares bought by foreign investors were HDB, HPG, VCB, KDH and YEG.
GEX was the largest net sold share on HSX, followed by DHG, VJC, PC1 and NCT.
HAD was the largest net sold share on HNX, followed by TNG, PVS, PVC and S55.
Vietnamese online travel agency Vntrip.vn has announced that it has completed the merger of Atadi.vn, one of the leading providers of cheap airfares in the country, according to an official release.
The move comes shortly after the online travel app raised its third round of funding from Switzerland’s IHAG Holding which saw its valuation go up to $45 million in August.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed but Vntrip CEO Le Dac Lam told DEALSTREETASIA in an interaction that the value of the deal is in the seven-digit-dollar range.
“Our goal is acquiring the best local players to create a domestic travel giant that can dominate the Online Travel Agent (OTA) sector,” he said.
Atadi.vn, one of the first low-cost ticket hunting website in Vietnam, is known as “cheap ticket supermarket” that allows users to search, compare and book tickets from multiple airlines on the same interface. The company targets a gross merchandise value of VND500 billion ($21 million) this year.
Vntrip.vn, which launched in late 2014 and was operational in early 2016, is one of the largest website booking system for hotels in Vietnam. It has a network of more than 8,000 hotels in Vietnam and over 1 million hotels in 200 other countries.
To date, Vntrip.vn has built itself a network of over 11,000 hotels across the country.
Vntrip raised $3 million in a series A funding from a small consortium of overseas investors led by former Alibaba veteran John Wu in 2016. The online travel agency also secured an undisclosed investment from Hendale Capital, a Hong Kong-based late-stage investment firm in 2017.
Prior to Vntrip.vn, several booking and tourism startups from Vietnam have raised venture capital funding in the past year. Vietnam’s Triip in April announced that it raised an undisclosed sum of funding from Japanese strategic investor Gaiax and individual investor Nguyen Duy.
Japan and Vietnam on Thursday urged the United States to rejoin a sprawling Pacific trade deal, almost two years after President Donald Trump’s withdrawal dealt a major blow to what would have been the world’s largest free trade pact.
Trump pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal in one of his first post-election moves as part of his “America First” clarion call, declaring the 12-nation trade pact a “job killer”.
The 11 remaining countries have pledged to move ahead with the deal, which could go into effect by the end of this year, although in a significantly watered-down version without the US.
They have kept a door open for Washington’s return, and have also not ruled out allowing other non-Pacific countries to join the deal.
Japan’s foreign minister on Thursday encouraged the US to come back to the pact, speaking at a regional World Economic Forum (WEF) where concerns over trade protectionism have dominated discussions.
“We believe TPP is still the best option for (the) United States,” Taro Kono said.
“It will be very attractive for American industries, American farmers to join it.”
Japan, the largest remaining economy in the TPP, has led the charge to keep it alive.
The newly rebranded deal, dubbed the CPTPP (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership) and which forms a market of 500 million people, could go into effect by the end of 2018, Kono added.
Vietnam’s foreign minister Pham Binh Minh echoed Kono’s appeal, calling the deal “a very high-standard agreement”.
Vietnam stood to be the biggest winner from US involvement before Trump’s withdrawal from the pact, which would have opened access to US markets for its cheap manufactured goods — from shoes and shirts to mobile phones and computer processors.
For smaller signatories like Vietnam, unfettered access to US markets was a major draw.
In its original iteration, the free trade bloc would have made up 38 percent of the global economy. Today, the remaining signatories comprise about 13.5 percent.
Japan and Vietnam’s comments come after Trump said in April the US could re-enter the agreement if it was a “better” deal.
Leaders at this year’s regional WEF summit for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have railed against protectionism and called for breaking down trade barriers.
Trade in the region has grown at breakneck pace in the past decade, transforming some of Southeast Asia’s poorest countries into fast-growing export economies.
Earlier at the summit, which closes Thursday, Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo compared trade disputes to “infinity wars” — a reference to the latest Avengers movie — vowing to fight protectionism.
“Not since the Great Depression of the 1930s have trade wars erupted with the intensity that they have today,” said the leader, who is seeking re-election next year.
“But rest assured I and my fellow avengers stand ready to prevent Thanos from wiping out half the world population,” he said, referring to the film’s villain.
Mangkhut is set to be the strongest typhoon this year, hitting populous areas
Nearly 43 million people in the south-east Asian region could be affected by it
With winds up to 172mph, it will hit the Philippines today and China or Vietnam on Saturday
It’s expected to be the strongest storm ever to strike densely packed Hong Kong
Super typhoon Mangkhut – expected to be the strongest typhoon this year – is rapidly gathering momentum in the Pacific as it heads towards populous Asian coasts. Dailymail reports.
With powerful winds set to reach 278 kilometres per hour (172 miles per hour), Mangkhut is expected to hit the Philippines today before striking financial hub Hong Kong as well as southern China’s Guangdong Province or northern Vietnam by the weekend.
The tropical cyclone – having already hovered through Marshall Islands and Guam earlier this week – could also impact Taiwan.
Nearly 43 million people in the south-east Asian region could be affected, according to United Nations’ Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System.
Mangkhut is expected to be as strong as Haiyan – a super typhoon that killed more than 6,200 people in the Philippines in 2013.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development of the Philippines has set aside 1.7 billion Philippine Pesos (£24 million) worth of emergency funds and stockpiles in preparation for the possible extreme weather, according to the government-run Philippine Information Agency.
Classes have also been cancelled in some areas of Luzon in the path of the typhoon.
People recover motorbikes from a flooded fields while the Doksuri storm hits in Ha Tinh province, Vietnam September 15, 2017. REUTERS/Kham
According to a report on VNexpress – a local media of Vietnam, Weather forecasters have predicted that four to six typhoons and tropical depressions could develop off the country’s east coast from now until the end of the year. Around two to three storms will make landfall in Vietnam and batter the central region, they have said.
Last month, typhoon Bebinca turned into a tropical depression after it made landfall in the northern province of Thanh Hoa, bringing heavy downpours and gusty winds lasting many hours, killing 10 people in the north-central and northern highland regions.
Vietnam was struck by a record-breaking number of 16 tropical storms last year that left 389 people dead or missing and injured 668 others, mostly in northern and central regions. Damrey, one of the most destructive storms last year, hit the country in November and killed at least 106 people.
Vietnam has a chance this week as World Economic Forum host to show curious foreign investors they can ship exports from the fast-growing country to China or the United States without the hazards of a widening Sino-U.S. trade dispute.
The annual event from Tuesday through Thursday in Hanoi this week gives Vietnam access to multinational companies, some of whom have not visited for more than a decade, said Frederick Burke, partner with the law firm Baker McKenzie in Ho Chi Minh City. About 1,000 delegates were due to attend the event with a program focused on Vietnam’s broader location, Southeast Asia. Ralph Jennings reports on VOA.
Vietnam looks to foreign investment in export manufacturing to keep its economy growing at 6-7 percent. It will probably impress on delegates this year that investors can ship goods to China as well as the United States without getting embroiled in the Sino-U.S. trade war, experts say.
“At the end of the day it’s about business and getting a bigger slice of the global economy, and that’s all happening,” Burke said. “It’s the first time we’re seeing a lot of the big multinationals come in and have a look at Vietnam from a perspective of, with the changing trade flows and the global economy, how is Vietnam in a position to strengthen its position in the supply chain.”
Sidelines take center stage
The World Economic Forum’s event in Vietnam, which includes leaders from Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Myanmar, features discussions on aging populations, the Internet economy and high-tech agriculture. Some of the nine leaders in attendance are scheduled to speak during the sessions.
The 47-year-old forum advocates government-private sector cooperation, and many see it as a pro-free trade organization today.
But it’s the sidelines that will matter for Vietnam, analysts believe. Business people will see new infrastructure in the country and may learn about government incentives to bring in export manufacturers. “They’re really rolling out the red carpet for everybody…and trying to accommodate,” Burke said.
Production in Vietnam costs less than in the traditional factory go-to country China, a selling point for the Vietnamese economy over the past 10 years.
Vietnam may also use the forum to push for multi-country free trade agreements, said Carl Thayer, Southeast Asia-specialized emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales in Australia. Its call would counter U.S. President Donald Trump’s focus on bilateral deals instead.
Vietnam hopes, for example, for finalization of an 11-member country Trans Pacific Partnership after its 12th member, the United States, withdrew from the trade deal last year.
With a Sino-U.S. “trade war on the sidelines,” Vietnam will be able to gauge what other leaders think, Thayer said. They might worry, as Vietnam does, that the trade dispute will shake steel exports and hold back the digital economy, he said. The U.S. announced tariffs earlier this year on steel from much of the world.
“Part of hosting these summits is designed to have everybody see Vietnam as a solid international good citizen that’s contributing to the good, and for its own interest as well,” Thayer said.
Vietnam as a China alternative
Last month the United States imposed 25 percent tariffs on $16 billion worth of Chinese goods following the same rate on another $34 billion worth of products in July. Beijing responded in each case by raising tariffs by the same amount on U.S. imports. The U.S. government has vowed to increase tariffs further.
Exporters that ship to the United States from Vietnam would save money compared to peers in China, with little risk to their cross-border supply chains, an associate with the business consultancy Dezan Shira & Associates in Ho Chi Minh City said earlier this year.
Firms that ship from Vietnam to the United States now include Intel and Samsung Electronics. Chinese companies are keen to set up more factories in Vietnam, touching off protests in June over fears in the Southeast Asian country that they would get too much access to special economic zones.
Vietnam counted the United States as its top single-country export destination last year, when it shipped $46.5 billion worth of goods to the U.S. market. Exports to the United States grew 12.5 percent in August, while exports to China expanded by 30 percent. Foreign investment last year contributed to exports worth $155.24 billion.
Vietnam may be able to convince business people at the forum that it’s ideal for intermediate goods such as electronics components, said Alicia Garcia Herrero, Asia Pacific chief economist with the French investment bank Natixis. She added Vietnam is “well placed” as a China alternative because it trades with both China and the United States.
“If they play that card, I think they could do well,” she said.
“This means more FDI into Vietnam, because people will realize that this is a good platform to get a least part of the China business in terms of value chain into the U.S., and I think this is very, very appealing to Vietnam,” Garcia said.
