Vietnamese athletes won 425 gold, 301 silver and 319 bronze medals this year, according to the Vietnam Sports Administration (VSA).
Of the gold medals, 46 were in world championships, 64 in Asia and 315 in Southeast Asia.
During a meeting in Hanoi on December 25 to review the VSA’s activities and launch tasks for 2018, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Ngoc Thien lauded the country’s sporting achievements this year, especially at the 29th Southeast Asian Games.
He suggested the VSA continues refining the amended Law on Physical Training and Sports, preparing for the 18th Asian Games (ASIAD 18) to be held in Indonesia, Olympics qualifying rounds and other tournaments, regional and global.
The sector should step up mass sports movements and strive to perform well at ASIAD 18 and regional, continental and world championships, he said, adding that the sector also needs to work with the media to popularise information related to sports.
VSA Director Vuong Bich Thang said the sector offered feedback on legal regulations in the field and promoted the campaign “All people take exercises following the example of great Uncle Ho”.
On the occasion, Director of the High-Performance Sports Department II Nguyen Trong Ho and head of the Vietnam Sports Hospital’s Surgery Department Nguyen Van Vy received certificates of merit from the Government.
Vice Director of the National Centre for Sports Training in Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Van Sung was awarded with the Labour Order, third class.
Major Vietnamese cities, including Saigon, went fireworks-free last year following the Communist Party’s call for austerity.
Ho Chi Minh City is going to throw four firework parties on New Year’s Eve instead of one as announced last week, pending government approval.
The 15-minute shows are set to take place at Thu Thiem Tunnel that links districts 1 and 2, Dam Sen Park in District 11, Cu Chi Tunnels in Cu Chi District and Rung Sac Square in Can Gio District.
Fireworks are also planned for the Lunar New Year, or Tet, at the above-mentioned locations, as well as the outlying districts of Nha Be and Hoc Mon.
A light show in front of the city’s town hall on Le Thanh Ton Street and a countdown just a short walk away on Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street in District 1 are also on the list.
The city intends to use private funding to pay for the celebrations.
Major Vietnamese cities, including Saigon, Hanoi and Da Nang, skipped their fireworks shows to celebrate the new year in 2017 following the Communist Party’s call for austerity. The Party asked cities and provinces to reallocate the money planned for fireworks shows to help the poor and the needy, especially those hit hard by natural disasters.
Flooding and storms left 390 people dead or missing in Vietnam in the first 11 months of 2017. The toll surpassed last year’s losses, when disasters killed 264 people.
HCMC also skipped fireworks shows for its Reunification Day on April 30, but brought back the lights for the country’s National Day on September 2, to a lot of fanfare.
Bad debts have gone down and the real estate market is warming up.
Successful bad debt cuts and the upbeat real estate market have given Vietnamese banks a good year as they expect net profits to increase 44 percent from 2016.
Returns on assets (ROA) and equity (ROE) in the banking sector have both reached the highest levels in five years, according to a report from the National Financial Supervisory Commission issued Tuesday.
Local banks have managed to clear VND70 trillion or more than $3 billion worth of bad debts in the past year, while the rising property market has boosted credit growth, the report said.
The commission reported an estimated 19 percent credit growth this year, and the sector’s total assets have increased 17.3 percent.
Many bank executives told VnExpress earlier that their pretax profits are going to beat the annual targets by 50-100 percent.
Some are seeing their profits surging tenfold compared to several years ago.
Bad debts in Vietnamese banks, mostly incurred due to a slowdown in the country’s real estate market in the early 2010s, have been cut to 2.34 percent of loans by the end of September 2017, down from 2.46 percent at the end of last year, according to the State Bank of Vietnam. The central bank set up an institution to deal with toxic loans, the Vietnam Asset Management Corp., in late 2013.
Credit ratings agency Moody’s in October upgraded its outlook for Vietnam’s banking system from stable to positive for the next 12-18 months, reflecting the country’s strong economic prospects and positive outlook for most rated banks.
The M&A deals made in 2017 are expected to have the value of $2 billion, and the same value or higher has been predicted for 2018.
According to Dang Xuan Minh, CEO of AVM Vietnam & Vietnam M&A Forum, the Vietnamese market has been witnessing a second M&A wave since 2015 and it will continue in 2018.
The total value of M&A deals has been increasing year after year. Minh said there are three reasons for him to believe that the current growth will continue in 2018.
First, the equitization of state-owned enterprises has accelerated. Second, the market now sees a strong rise of many private businesses and Vietnamese enterprises making M&A deals.
Third, more foreign investors are showing interest in Vietnam. Since 2016, HCMC has been the investment destination recommended for investors.
Meanwhile, Can Van Luc, a respected economist, pointed out that the enactment of the National Assembly’s Resolution No 42 on bad debt settlement will be a major factor in accelerating M&As in the real estate market.
A report shows that property is the mortgaged asset for most bad debts, which accounts for 62 percent of total mortgaged assets at VAMC (Vietnam Asset Management Company).
Therefore, analysts believe there are great opportunities for M&A activities in the real estate market.
JLL’s investment director Nguyen Thi Van Khanh said foreign investors will be the major driving force for the M&A deals in the time to come, especially those from Asia, including Thailand, Japan and Singapore.
US-based Warburg Pincus has cooperated with VinaCapital to set up a hotel development joint venture worth $300 million. Mapletree from Singapore has taken over Kumho Asiana Plaza Saigon, and Keppel Land plans to develop the land plot in Thu Thien Urban Area.
Son Kim Land has announced it has raised $100 million worth of funds from the international market. Meanwhile, Becamex IDC in September signed a strategic cooperation with Warburg Pincus.
“With high GDP growth rates, open policies and promising capitalization rates, foreign investors want to make investments in Vietnam,” Khanh said.
However, in order to attract foreign capital, the Vietnamese market and real estate developers have to maintain the attractiveness of their projects.
Phan Xuan Can, chair of SohoVietnam, a consultancy firm, noted that the opportunities are not reserved for all.
Habico Tower on Pham Van Dong street in Bac Tu Liem district in Hanoi, for example, has been left idle for the last 10 years because no investor can be found to restart it.
Meanwhile, another project in the same area kicked off after a Vietnamese investor signed a cooperation contract with a foreign investor.
Advertisements of soft drinks and other ‘unhealthy products’ are also being blacklisted, said Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
Soft drinks will be prohibited from all school canteens across Vietnam in an effort to improve children’s health and height.
Advertisements of the sweetened beverage and other “unhealthy products” are also banned from schools, said a new directive signed by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
The nutrition and health conditions of Vietnamese children should have received greater public attention and been taken more seriously, the directive reads.
Nearly a quarter of Vietnamese children are undernourished while the number of overweight kids is rising, especially in big cities, it said, adding that the average height of Vietnamese people is still well under that of many other countries.
The PM also requested schools to closely work with families to ensure student are more physically active, and receive nutritious meals which comprise enough vegetables, fruits and not too much salt.
In September, the Ministry of Finance suggested imposing a special consumption tax rate of 10 or 20 percent on sweetened beverages by 2019, saying the tariff aims at tackling obesity and related illnesses.
A study conducted by the Vietnam National Institute of Nutrition last year found that around 6 percent of children under five years of age in Saigon were undernourished, and the matter was especially serious in rural districts.
The obesity rate hit 19 percent among school-age children last year, according to the city’s health department.
They found that obesity levels have been increasing faster in downtown areas, where the average income and living standards are higher.
The proportion of obese Vietnamese children aged from 2 to 19 had stretched to 6.8 percent, according to another study by the University of Washington released in June.
E-banking, the latest trend in the Vietnamese banking system, has not completely been able to replace conventional banking customs although the majority of baby boomers (those born in 1945-1960) and generation X (1961-1980) show insignificant interest in modern banking services.
A member of the Board of Directors (BOD) at a Vietnam-based commercial financial institution (FI) asserted, “In recent times FIs in Vietnam have put a lot of effort into providing online banking solutions in order to appeal to millennials (those born in 1980-2000) and generation Z, (born after 2000).”
However, “A large number of existing clients of Vietnam-based FIs are middle-aged and senior citizens. Specifically, savings worth $2-3 million with terms of up to 36 months were mainly deposited by customers born in 1945-1970,” he added.
To strengthen their relationship with regular customers, especially senior customers, a remarkable number of FIs launched various loyalty programmes, such as retro music shows, saxophone concerts, and scenic tours especially created for VIP customers.
Besides, the implementation of digital banking in Vietnam has encountered plenty of barriers since the current legal framework does not accommodate the digitalisation of the banking system or incentive policies endorsing electronic banking services.
E-banking has yet to reach the majority of customers
Dang Duc Huy, deputy director of Retail Banking at Sai Gon Commercial Bank (SCB), said “FIs in Vietnam should think twice before restructuring the conventional banking model since such moves would be cost-ineffective and are unlikely to generate an instant stream of income.”
To date, a fair number of FIs in Vietnam have introduced a variety of online banking services, such as the Digital Lab of Vietcombank, Live Bank of TPBank, and the MyVIB application of VIB, aiming to enhance customer experience via electronic transaction channels.
Exceptionally, VPBank promoted the distribution channel as a stand-alone digital-based branch, called Timo, whose products and services as well as sales policies are entirely independent of the parent bank.
After years off the grid, Huynh My Truc Lien, a Vietnamese chef whose restaurants welcomed two former US presidents, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, made a comeback with a signature lobster pho dish priced at VND499,000 ($22), newswire Vnexpress reported.
The Vietnamese chef, who spent years working in the culinary area in the United States before returning to Vietnam to launch the Pho 2000 brand, unveiled that a lobster noodle dish served at a restaurant in Las Vegas was the inspiration behind the new culinary concept. After conducting a taste-test at various pho-serving restaurants across Vietnam, she came up with her own recipe which could be more palatable for local and even foreign customers.
The pho dish (Vietnamese noodle soup) topped with lobster was introduced at a high-end gastronomic outlet owned by Lien and her husband, with the price of half a million dong, aiming to draw the attention of discerning customers.
Additionally, a bowl of lobster pho features typical ingredients such as silken tofu, mushrooms, seafood stock with a touch of garnish, like parsley, sliced red chili, and ground black pepper. The Vietnamese chef added seafood like clams and the signature ingredient, a whole lobster weighing 400 grammes that she hand-picked from the central region of Vietnam.
Before going off the radar, the chef and her husband had failed in their attempts of launching four new restaurants due to bad timing and their inability to maintain consistent quality when simultaneously running a large chain of culinary outlets. Therefore, until now, Lien has only been operating two restaurants situated in the centre of Ho Chi Minh City.
In spite of the thriving business of the pho “industry” in Ho Chi Minh City, Pho 2000 has not witnessed the same popularity as it did in the 2000s.
At the end of 1999, the brand name Pho 2000 was born with its signature pho. During the early years of business, the pho chain was the place to go, especially after former US President Bill Clinton and his daughter had a meal at Pho 2000 Saigon during his official visit in Vietnam as well as the visit of former US President George W. Bush at Vietnam House (another pho shop under the management of Pho 2000) in 1995.
On the heels of the billion-dollar auction of Sabeco, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has just released a list of 10 large enterprises in the industry and trade sectors to conduct state divestment in 2018, attracting the attention of foreign and domestic investors.
Tran Kim Oanh, director of Vietrade’s Centre for Industry and Trade Investment Promotion at MoIT, said that the list of the 10 enterprises to be divested by MoIT in 2018 contains many big names.
Specifically, MoIT is expected to divest at least 24.86 per cent from Petrolimex, 46.75 per cent from Vietnam Electricity Construction Joint Stock Corporation (VNE), 63.54 per cent from Machines and Industrial Equipment Corporation (MIE), 53.48 per cent from Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex), and 57.92 per cent from Vietnam Steel Corporation (coded TVN).
The list contains firms from various sectors, such as Foreign Trade Freight Forwarding and Warehousing JSC (Vietrans), General Import-Export and Construction JSC, Vietnam Plastic Corporation (Vinaplast).
Of these, investors are mostly interested in sector-leading enterprises like Petrolimex, Vinatex, TVN, and bigger corporations. However, the representatives of MoIT said that the remaining firms on the list are all operating in highly potential sectors, including processing and manufacturing, construction, agricultural and fisheries production, as well as warehousing and logistics.
Regarding the 2018 M&A market, Nguyen Quoc Viet, deputy general director of AVM Vietnam which provides professional services on investment and business, pegs high hopes on the M&A trend in the industrial sector and said that M&A activities are abuzz, posting significant figures.
Viet said that the industrial sector ranks second among the top five sectors leading the Vietnamese M&A market in 2016 and 2017. Notably, there were 269 M&A deals with a total value of $1.1 billion in this sector in 2016, the brunt of which (118 deals) took place in the consumer goods and retail sector.
“Loosening the ownership limit for foreign investors at public companies will enable the M&A market, especially in the industrial sector,” assessed Viet.
Vu Ba Phu, director general of Vietrade under MoIT, assessed that there are shortcomings in the quantity and nationality of investors taking part in the M&A market as almost all foreign investors come from Asia (mainly Japan, South Korea, and Thailand), keen on taking a slice from the growing consumer goods, financial services, distribution, retail, construction material, and chemicals sectors.
However, North American and European investors have only taken part in such fields as oil and gas as well as consumer goods. Thereby, it is necessary to spur promotion activities and attract investment from these regions.
Vietnam went fireworks-free last year after the Communist Party called for austerity to help the poor and flood victims.
Ho Chi Minh City is going to put on a 15-minute fireworks show next week to celebrate the new year after scrapping it in 2017 under a national austerity policy.
The city’s government has announced its programs on the midnight of January 1, 2018, which will include the pyrotechniques performance at Dam Sen Park in District 11, a light show in front of the city’s town hall on Le Thanh Ton Street and a countdown event steps away on the Nguyen Hue walking street.
Many streets and shopping malls in Saigon have already turned on Christmas lights.
Major Vietnamese cities, including Saigon, Hanoi and Da Nang, went fireworks-free last year following the Communist Party’s call for austerity. The Party asked cities and provinces to reallocate the money planned for fireworks shows to help the poor and the needy, especially those hit hard by natural disasters.
Flooding and storms left 390 people dead or missing in Vietnam in the first 11 months of 2017. The toll surpassed last year’s losses, when disasters killed 264 people.
HCMC also skipped fireworks shows for its Reunification Day on April 30, but brought back the lights for the country’s National Day on September 2, to a lot of fanfare.
Students have been told to stay at home and around 650,000 people are being evacuated in southern Vietnam.
Typhoon Tembin entered the East Sea, known internationally as the South China Sea, late Saturday and is forecast to hit Vietnam’s Mekong Delta on Monday night.
Tembin is similar in strength to Typhoon Linda, which struck the region 20 years ago, leaving more than 3,000 people dead or missing.
As of 5 a.m. Monday, the typhoon was 330km (105 miles) east of Con Dao Island, with wind speeds at 135kph (84mph).
The typhoon is approaching southern Vietnam at a speed of 25kph, and is forecast to hit provinces from Ba Ria – Vung Tau to Ca Mau carrying winds of around 100kph late night, December 25.
After making landfall, the typhoon is forecast to move west at a speed of 20-25kph. By 4 p.m. on December 26, Tembin will be 100km west of Tho Chu (Kien Giang Province), with maximum wind speeds of 75kph. Afterwards, it will weaken into a tropical depression over the Gulf of Thailand.
Heavy downpours are forecast for coastal areas south of Quang Ngai Province for Monday and Tuesday, with the Mekong Delta experiencing up to 150mm of rain.
Mass evacuations
At a teleconference on Sunday, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc instructed the southern provinces to be cautious and focus on preparing for the coming storm.
“The strong storm combined with high tide could cause disastrous damage if we’re not cautious,” Phuc said.
He instructed provinces to mobilize soldiers, police officers and young people to help reinforce buildings and evacuate residents from dangerous areas while ensuring the safety of workers, officers and oil rigs.
“All unnecessary meetings must be canceled to focus on dealing with the storm,” Phuc said.
Provinces and towns including Ba Ria – Vung Tau, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau, Kien Giang and HCMC are preparing for mass evacuations.
Bac Lieu alone is evacuating about 350,000 people, while Ca Mau is evacuating nearly 100,000, Ba Ria-Vung Tau 78,000 and Tien Giang 40,000.
In Ben Tre, where the storm is expected to make landfall, authorities are evacuating about 20,000 households living along the coast. Meanwhile Ho Chi Minh City is also evacuating 5,000 people in the coastal Can Gio District.
Many provinces have instructed all students and workers to stay at home except for disaster response personnel. All ships at sea are also required to steer to safety.
The changes in the storm’s direction can have major impacts on the most vulnerable areas, said Hoang Van Thang, deputy minister of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The western coast includes populous areas like Phu Quoc and Nam Du islands, which are heavily reliant on fishing and vulnerable to landslides.
Thang also ordered local authorities to forcefully evacuate communities living in boats and makeshift houses in the Mekong Delta.
“We can consider material damages after the typhoon passes, but we must not allow any human casualties due to late evacuation,” Thang added.
Before entering Vietnamese waters, Typhoon Tembin had already wreaked havoc in the Philippines, killing more than 200 people.
Southern Vietnam is rarely hit by stormy weather, but the memory of Typhoon Linda, which is considered one of the worst disasters to hit Vietnam in the past century, lingers on.
Tran Quang Hoai, director of the National Department of Natural Disasters Prevention and Control, said the region’s lack of experience will increase risks with the coming typhoon.
Hoai said there could be a similar scenario to Typhoon Damrey, which hit the usually gentle Nha Trang in the central coast and its neighbors in November, leaving 108 people dead or missing and causing $1 billion in damage. Officials have blamed the heavy destruction on the near-total lack of experience and preparation.
Flooding and storms left 390 people dead or missing in Vietnam in the first 11 months of the year, and caused damage worth around VND52.2 trillion ($2.34 billion), according to the General Statistics Office.
The toll surpassed last year’s losses, when disasters killed 264 people and caused nearly VND40 trillion ($1.75 billion) in damage.
Selecting a business location in Vietnam often comes down to seeing the pros and cons of Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City. And for a good reason as those are by far the biggest and most important hubs in Vietnam.
However, we also explore some alternatives. How about building up your business in the major maritime city Da Nang? Or Haiphong, industrial hub with population over 2 million people.
Where and why to set up business in Vietnam?
Choosing location for the business usually comes down to the following aspects:
Ease of access on infrastructure
Demand for your line of business in the area
Space availability and rental prices
Labour availability
Average monthly wages in the area
High speed internet availability
Here are the 10 biggest cities in Vietnam to consider:
City
Population in 2017
GDP per capita US$
Ho Chi Minh City
8,426,100
5,428 (2016)
Hanoi
7,587,800
3,425
Da Nang
1,046,876
2,506 (2014)
Haiphong
2,103,500
2,857(2015)
Bien Hoa
1,104,495
–
Hue
354,124
2,100 (2016)
Nha Trang
420,521
3184 (2011)
Can Tho
1,237,300
2,980 (2013)
Rach Gia
245,328
–
Qui Nhon
537,320
1625 (2010)
Doing business in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City?
Ho Chi Minh City as the biggest economic hub
Ho Chi Minh City is the economic hub of Vietnam. According to Jones Lang LaSalle, demand for office space continues to grow 8-10% annually over the next ten years as HCMC continues to grow faster than the rest of the counry. The key benefits of the dynamic HCMC are:
Availability of workforce
Main hub for corporate headquarters
Railway access and proximity to seaport
Vietnam’s People’s Committee expects the city’s annual GDP per capita to triple to US$14,300 in the next 10 years. In 2016 it was US$ 5,428. Foreign direct investment contributed 23.8% to GDP in 2016.
The city government set the target and projects the 2017 GDP growth in HCMC to be 8-8.5%.
The Vietnam E-Commerce Association announced in 2017 that both HCMC and Hanoi are considered as highly developed locations for e-business and lead the Vietnamese market. With only a slight gap in between the two, HCMC led the list with 78.6 points, followed by Hanoi 75.8 points.
Hanoi as the political centre
Hanoi is home to most of the legislative and government bodies. In terms of economic growth it is a little bit behind Ho Chi Minh City. That also results in lower labour costs.
Thanks to its geographic location and connectivity to neighbouring countries, Hanoi trading opportunities are extremely convenient, either for domestic or international routes. Plus, almost all ASEAN capitals are reachable via air transport within 3 hours, making life convenient for travelling entrepreneurs.
Business culture differences between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City
HCMC is busy, yet known for a more casual and vibrant feel. This also reflects in the business attire. More and more people on the streets seem to have adjusted their office-gear according to their lifestyle. Hanoi mostly respects the sleek white-collar appearance.
When doing business in Hanoi, greet or be greeted with a cup of hot tea. Traditions are kept in honor so often you see that tea is poured into cup (and using the same one to fill the next). If coffee has been your treat during workday, you will get used to the Hanoian style strong tea rinsed with plenty of tea leaves. Meanwhile, in HCMC the life is simpler and it is likely you’ll see people carrying a soda or a Lipton tea.
It is rainier and colder in Hanoi compared to HCMC. Forgetting your raincoat every now and then is a real downside when running from one business meeting to another.
Whichever destination is more compatible to your business needs and personal expectations, both HCMC and Hanoi are listed as the world’s most dynamic cities:
2nd tier cities for business location in Vietnam
Both HCMC and Hanoi are highly used for foreign investments. This means, the process of setting up a company in these two areas is normally smoother than anywhere else in the country.
Remote locations might have less experience with foreign investors, thus the process can be lengthy and not transparent. Despite that, the same very remote locations provide many investment incentives.
While most foreign investors choose between Hanoi and HCMC, there are several 2nd tier cities in Vietnam to consider. Many of them come with a population higher than 1 million people and various strong economic benefits.
Haiphong with over 2 million people
Haiphong is Vietnam’s third largest city. Located in the northern part of the country, this city’s population has reached 2 million people. Haiphong is commonly highlighted for its value as a seaport. Thus, the profile of the city matches with foreign investors looking into maritime industry.
Also, Haiphong was the country leader in foreign direct investments in 2016 which shows the increasing curiosity amongst investors towards maritime business. The amount invested was US$ 2.74 billion.
Here are some of the features why an investor would benefit from setting up a company in Haiphong:
Seaport
International airport
Overland road network
Railway
Da Nang with over a million people
Knowing the benefits of HCMC and Hanoi there are alternatives worth considering for your business location in Vietnam.
Here are a few benefits of setting up a company in the country’s fourth largest and picturesque city, Da Nang:
First-class airport
Port of Da Nang
Railway
Open Source Software education available
With the extensively improving infrastructure, the city sees potential in several business fields. In fact, according to VietnamNet, Da Nang’s IT and communication sector earned US$ 58 million from software exports last year.
City’s coastline is appealing for real estate while excellent international air connectivity makes trading convenient. Entrepreneurs in the seaport and airport logistics can benefit from choosing Da Nang. In fact the Da Nang port joint-stock company starts with the 2nd stage of the Tien Sa port expansion project. Traffic in the port will develop and there is capacity for more large size vessels. Successful outcome will result investors having increased amount of opportunities for trading.
When setting up a company in Vietnam, you want to know about the competitiveness in the market in advance. Da Nang is also continuing to lead the rankings of Provincial Competitiveness Index amongst the 63 Vietnamese provinces and cities.
Comparing Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi
Labour costs
Labour force in Vietnam is relatively young, cheap, large and skillful. However, the salaries still vary greatly between rural and urban areas, as well as depend on the field of expertise.
Some of the highest paid professions in Vietnam are in the field of:
Mineral and metallurgy
Banking
Pharmacy
Also, based on First Alliances Salary Report for 2016, below is the average wage expectation in the two cities:
Position
Salary range in Hanoi US$
Salary range in Ho Chi Minh City US$
Head of Marketing / Marketing Director (Consumer Goods – Sales & Marketing)
5000 – 12000
5000 – 12000
Financial Controller
2500 – 4000
4000 – 6000
Chief Accountant / Accounting Manager
1000 – 2500
1700 – 2500
Senior Business Analyst
1000 – 1500
1200 – 1500
.Net/ Front End/ PHP/ Java/ Sharepoint/ Ruby on Rail
600 – 1800
600 – 1500
While in the chosen fields the expected wages are higher in HCMC, the salaries often vary in real life. What also counts is the size of the company and how many years of experience a candidate has.
Living costs
Living costs have very much to do with you being successful in both your personal and professional life. Hence, to remain or develop a better quality in life, here are some facts to consider before choosing your business location in Vietnam:
According to the cost of living survey by The Economist Intelligence Unit, Asia hosts five out of world’s six most expensive cities. However, in the 2016 ranking list, Hanoi is on the 59th position and HCMC on the 78th position.
This article was originally published on www.emerhub.com
Author: Maarja Pehme
Bitcoin, one of the most talked-about phenomena in the financial services sector, has been ceaselessly brought into the limelight due to its ambiguity regarding the face value as well as the potential legal and regulatory risks challenging Bitcoin “whales.”
Over the course of 2017, the crypto-currency witnessed an escalation in price, reaching the shocking rate of $20,000 per bitcoin.
Speaking at a recent Bitcoin-themed talk show, Truong Thanh Duc, chairman of BASICO Law Firm, specified that, “No specific regulations or codes directly related to Bitcoin have been enacted. Therefore, Bitcoin cannot be regarded as an official payment method or a type of asset or legal document to effect payment.”
“However, selecting Bitcoin as a payment method does not constitute a crime. If anyone were to be accused, it should be the credit institutions accepting Bitcoin and the creators of the virtual currency,” he added.
Despite the heated debate, Bitcoin remained one of the most engrossing topics in finance throughout the year 2017, sparking up a brand new game of investment for hundreds of thousands of Bitcoin “miners” as well as growing into a market of hundreds of billions of dollars.
Talking about the nature of the digital currency, Nguyen Duy Hung, chairman of Saigon Securities Company (SSI) and president of the Bboard of Directors (BOD) of PAN Group, asserted, “Bitcoin cannot be treated as an actual form of currency due to the lack of legal basis and exchange rate as well as the recognition as a legitimate currency by central and state banks. Besides, Bitcoin or any other form of crypto-currency based on the blockchain technology could barely replace the existing payment methods. Bitcoin is nothing more than an advanced technology which might be applied in the payment transactions.”
Apart from the potential risks of a “speculative bubble” bursting, Bitcoin traders are completely unprotected by the legal system and have no access to guarantees in case of losing their investment. To add, the virtual currency is wholly outside the scope of traditional methods of determining value and is sufficient to unpredictable price fluctuations.
Furthermore, Tran Huu Duc, director of FPT Ventures, noted that the virtual market has been heavily manipulated by the unrealistic price of Bitcoin and the short-run benefits for participants. The struggle between the anti-Bitcoin group (including several countries’ governments) and the pro-Bitcoin group will likely decide the fate of Bitcoin, either rocketing to millions of dollars per unit or crashing completely.
Dominik Weil, co-founder of Bitcoin Vietnam, shared his honest thoughts on the Bitcoin players: “The majority of Bitcoin players and subscribers, or crypto-market “bulls,” are flocking to create their own Bitcoin accounts simply to gain profit, expecting another surge in price to resell their Bitcoin.”
Annually, Vietnam reports over 15,000 fresh stomach cancer cases including 11,000 deaths, announced at a scientific seminar lately held in Hoan My Sai Gon Hospital.
Stomach cancer ranks the second popular cancers amongst male after lung cancer and ranks fifth cancers amongst female.
Head of Digestion Department of Japan’s Kyoto Miniren Dr.Kinoshita Koshi said that at present diagnosis and treatment of stomach cancer at early stage developed much in the world.
In developed countries like Japan, more and more stomach cancer patients undergo endoscopic surgery to remove tumor when the disease is detected at early stage.
However, in Vietnam, early detection of cancer is not easy because of the lack of periodic examination to ensure the early screening of cancer in the majority of people. Only people with high risk of gastric cancer undergo endoscopy as per medical workers’ advice.
As per international medical experts, Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) or removing abnormal areas in the lining of the stomach is for people who have a very early stage cancer that’s small and within the inner layers of the stomach.
However, most gastric cases in Vietnam are detected late; accordingly, the type of surgery is hard to be applied.
A range of activities have been carried out by Vietnam tourism sector and other related authorities to realise the single ASEAN visa policy.
Forming the ASEAN single visa system is considered to be a key solution to facilitate tourism development across the region.
In 2013, at the first Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS) tourism ministerial meeting held in Ho Chi Minh City, gathering representatives from Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, the tourism industry leaders within the ACMECS welcomed this initiative and discussed a solution for the core cooperation issue – a common visa for the five countries to promote free travel.
At the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2016 within the framework of the 19th ASEAN Tourism Ministers’ Meeting held in the Philippines in January 2016, Vietnam’s tourism leaders announced that the country has been intensifying the implementation of various programmes and plans to closely associate Vietnam tourism with ASEAN tourism, in line with the ASEAN Tourism Strategy 2016-2025, towards the common goal of building a common attractive destination of ASEAN and to develop an effective and dynamic ASEAN Community.
Currently, Vietnam is taking a range of measures to support the domestic tourism industry in taking opportunities and enhancing competitiveness from the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community.
In the immediate future, Vietnam has been together with other countries to focus on implementing the mutual recognition agreement on tourism workers within ASEAN, based on the ASEAN Common Competency Standards for Tourism Professionals, as well as developing ASEAN tourism standards and certification procedures for green hotels, residential accommodation, public toilets, spa services and clean tourist cities and community-based tourism. Cooperation will also focus on building ASEAN tourism programmes on nature tourism, cultural and heritage tourism, community-based tourism, cruise tourism, waterway tourism and medical tourism.
There is a common Schengen visa model between the 26 European Union member states. Accordingly, international travelers only need to apply for a visa at the consular office in the “main destination” of their trips, where they will perform the main purpose of the trip with their longest stay or where they first arrive.
In principle, ASEAN countries highly value the common ASEAN tourist visa initiative for non-ASEAN citizens. However, the roadmap for implementing this initiative depends on the specific conditions of each country.
One direction to accelerate this initiative is to encourage the formation of visa associations in voluntary and similar groups. Cambodia and Thailand have jointly offered visas for citizens of 35 countries and territories since 2013. Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia and the Philippines have also agreed on a flexible common visa programme.
In fact, the process of forming the ASEAN single visa system requires the identifying and harmonising of differences in views, policies and development levels, as well as visa fees, administrative procedures, security and benefit sharing of visas, in addition to the common tourism information system among member countries and the need for consistent and coordinated awareness among agencies within each country.
As a general economic sector with great potential, tourism is creating more than 12% of the GDP and tens of millions of direct and indirect jobs for the entire ASEAN. The application of a common visa system enables visa holders to travel freely among the countries in the block, along with e-visas and visa exemption expanding, is considered key measure to stimulate the development of tourism in particular and the economy in general of each country and ASEAN community, the third largest market in the world with a population of more than 600 million people.
Heading towards a single ASEAN tourism visa system is a good solution to facilitate the visa application process, thereby, driving visitors to stay longer and spend more on their journeys in order to facilitate tourist flow more regularly. At the same time, it would contribute to consolidating intra-regional cohesion and spreading mutual development for the benefit of each country and the interests of the ASEAN community.
In 2017, Vietnam saw soaring foreign investment capital inflows totalling at $35.6 billion, up 44.2 per cent compared to 2016. Phan Huu Thang, former director of the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency, told VIR about the spotlight review of 2017 as well as the motivation and recommended the strategies in attracting foreign investment capital in 2018.
2017 has been a successful year for Vietnam in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) capital. What were the highlights of the year in your opinion?
This year quickly overcame expectations both in terms of quality and quantity in foreign investment attraction. Notably, in the ten months of this year Vietnam reported record high foreign investment inflows with $28 billion primarily from APEC economies. The figure was expected to increase to $30 billion by the end of the year, however, by the end of November it was already at $33.09 billion, signifying a year-on-year increase of 82.8 per cent. Even more, the final figure was $35.6 billion.
Regarding policies, the government asked the Ministry of Planning and Investment to co-ordinate with relevant agencies and the provincial authorities of Quang Ninh, Khanh Hoa, and Kien Giang to quickly draw up the Law on Special Administrative-Economic Zones. Despite the heated debate about the contents of the draft law, it will contribute to attracting FDI in the upcoming year once it is approved by the National Assembly next year.
These sweet fruits show that government has been very successful in creating a favourable investment environment for foreign investors, as committed.
The APEC Vietnam 2017 had a wholly positive impact on the country’s FDI attraction this year. What motivations stand behind such an increase in 2018?
The APEC’s role in record high foreign investment and FDI inflows cannot be denied. It is sure that the APEC will position Vietnam as a desirable destination for an increasing number of investors. Thanks to hosting the APEC 2017, Vietnam has become better known among foreign investors, reaching those who had yet to consider investing in Vietnam. Besides, being named among the world’s leading economies, such as the US, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Singapore or China has improved Vietnam’s position tremendously.
Besides, back in 2006-2008 after Vietnam hosted the APEC for the first time, we saw a massive wave of foreign investment, setting an FDI record in 2008 with $71.7 billion. On this basis, Vietnam can be optimistic about foreign investment capital inflows in 2018 as well as the subsequent years.
It needs to be added that 2017 marked the 30th year that Vietnam opened its doors to FDI. During these three decades, Vietnam has gradually affirmed its position in the international arena, producing constant growth that has become one of the major factors attracting foreign investment capital.
This year, the processing and manufacturing as well as the property sectors have still received the largest foreign investment capital volumes. Will market dynamics or government initiatives re-route investment flows to other sectors in 2018?
The 4.0 revolution with the appearance of Bitcoin, blockchain, as well as e-wallets, among others, is impacting investment trends on a global scale and Vietnam will not be unaffected. However, we only expect to see distinct changes from 2020 onwards, therefore manufacturing and processing, power distribution and manufacturing, and property will remain the top foreign investment channels in the year ahead. On the other hand, we are looking at increased capital inflows in the M&A market space.
How is Vietnam planning to attract FDI in 2018?
First, Vietnam will continue to focus on attracting high-tech and environmentally friendly projects. Notably, Vietnam will stimulate investment in renewable energy projects, high-tech agriculture, as well as smart cities, among others.
Second, Vietnam will build solutions to create balance in FDI attraction, instead of focusing on Hanoi, Haiphong, Bac Ninh, Binh Duong, Ho Chi Minh City, and Thanh Hoa.
Third, the country will try to attract FDI while keeping our national identity and safeguarding the environment.
