7 fundamentals of sustainable business growth

Greener trade and investment is crucial to tackling climate change in Asia and the Pacific and will require governments in the region to work together more closely, according to a new report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). While trade and investment have fueled remarkable economic growth in Asia in recent decades, it has also led to large increases in carbon dioxide emissions in the region—which is more vulnerable to the effects of climate change than any other. Reversing this trend will require measures such as promoting trade in environmental goods and services, nurturing green businesses, developing carbon pricing mechanisms, and strengthening regional cooperation through trade and investment agreements, according to the Asian Economic Integration Report (AEIR) 2023, released by ADB today. “Asia and the Pacific’s remarkable growth has lifted millions of people out of poverty, but this has come at an environmental cost,” said ADB Chief Economist Albert Park. “The region now … [Read more...] about Sustainable trade and investment key to Asia and Pacific’s green future

Foreign tourists visit Vietnam (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) - Despite near-term trade headwinds, tourism has emerged as a source of growth for Vietnam to mitigate the challenges ahead in 2023, according to the “Vietnam at a glance” report released by HSBC on February 6. The report stressed that January’s data showed Vietnam continues to face difficulties in trade and the inflationary pressure of increasing prices. However, in spite of slowing trade, there are still pockets of resilience in Vietnam’s economy, and tourism will be a key one in 2023. Following its re-opening last March, Vietnam’s domestic tourism has been soaring, easily surpassing its 2022 target of 60 million to over 100 million tourists. Meanwhile, international tourism, which previously accounted for 60% of tourism receipts, saw a tepid recovery post COVID-19, with tourist arrivals reaching 3.6 million, only 20% of 2019’s level. But there are good reasons to expect a more meaningful recovery, in … [Read more...] about Tourism – a source of growth in Vietnam for 2023: HSBC

The latest move from the Fed marked eight consecutive rate hikes since March 2022, with no signs that it has reached the peak of its hike journey. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dinh Trong Thinh, a financial expert from the Vietnam Association of Financial Advisers, predicted that a rate hike of 25 percentage points was anticipated. Thinh stated that, in general, the pressure on the USD/VND exchange rate from the Fed’s interest rate hike is not significant. Pressure on to support new economic growth, photo Le Toan Dr. Le Dang Doanh, former head of the Central Institute for Economic Management, also believes that the Fed’s interest rate rise is targeted to contain inflation in the US, since inflation has begun to fall from the previous year’s low level. The USD price will adjust as a result. “A change in the price will influence the exchange rate between it and VND, impacting import-export businesses and foreign-invested enterprises,” said Doanh. On the other hand, deposit interest … [Read more...] about Pressure on to support new economic growth

New momentum For over one week now, more than 94% of businesses in the Southern economic hub has resumed their production with over 95% of workers being back to work after Tet holiday. Workers at Go Vap district-based Joint Stock Company 28.1 under the Corporation 28 of the General Department of Logistics, which specializes in garments making, are working with the highest capacity, focusing on orders from the U.S., Australia, and European countries. Working for the company for more than 21 years now, Nguyen Van Hong from Hai Duong province said that good income and policy offered by the company make him feel secure at work. Despite difficulties facing the garment sector due to COVID-19, his company has ensured orders uninterrupted, so workers have resumed work since the beginning of the lunar New Year. In addition, good Tet welfare policy has helped keep workers attached to the company. Senior Colonel Tran Doan Thoan, Director of Joint Stock Company 28.1 informed that the … [Read more...] about Businesses in Ho Chi Minh City speed up production to achieve set targets

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’s GDP growth reaches 8.02% this year, a record high in the 2011-2022 period as the economy is recovering strongly, General Director of the General Statistics Office (GSO) Nguyen Thi Huong told a press conference in Hanoi on December 29. The agro-forestry-fishery sector expanded by 3.36%, contributing 5.11% to the total added value of the whole economy. The industry-construction sector grew by 7.78%, contributing 38.24% while the service industry rose by 9.99%, making a 56.55% contribution to the economy. About the economic structure 2022, the agro-forestry-fishery sector accounted for a proportion of 11.88%, industry and construction 38.26%, services 41.33% and product taxes, exclusive of product subsidies, 8.53%. With an annual growth of 7.18%, final consumption contributed to 49.32% of the general growth. Asset accumulation rose by 5.75%, contributing 22.59%, while trade in exports, imports and services adding … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s GDP expands by 8.02% in 2022

A tomato farm in Don Duong district, Lam Dong province, joining the platform of Koina (Photo courtesy of Koina) HCM City (VNA) – VinaCapital Ventures, a technology-focused venture capital fund of the Ho Chi Minh City-based VinaCaptial Group , has announced an investment of 1 million USD into Koina, an agritech startup founded in Vietnam. The investment from VinaCapital Ventures is part of Koina’s seed fundraising round. Koina, established in 2021, aims to build a large and efficient agricultural ecosystem in Vietnam by connecting farmers with financial organisations, suppliers, and retailers. Its “Farmer Platform” is intended to help farmers access loans, publicise prices, and give guidance on good agricultural practices. Thi Nguyen, co-founder and Chairman of Koina, said the funding from VinaCapital Ventures will help his firm expand sales channels and increase investment in technology to control quality and boost the value of agricultural products of Vietnam. … [Read more...] about VinaCapital Ventures pours 1 million USD into agritech startup

HSBC predicted in its latest report on Vietnam’s economy that the Southeast Asian country will see a recovery of the number of Chinese visitors by 50-80 percent in 2023 compared to the pre-pandemic volume. In other words, Vietnam is set to welcome three to 4.5 million Chinese tourists this year. The increasing return of Chinese tourists following China’s border reopening on January 8 will notably contribute to the growth of Vietnam’s tourism, which can be a key sector for the latter in 2023, offsetting the decline in trading and manufacturing, according to HSBC experts. In a broader view, the experts believe that the Vietnamese economy will witness a shift from goods to services, which they consider a driver for economic stability despite the trade slowdown. Red represents Chinese tourists as a percentage of the total number of international visitors to countries in Southeast Asia. After Vietnam resumed inbound and outbound tourism in March 2022, its domestic … [Read more...] about Chinese visitors to Vietnam to reach 3-4.5 million in 2023: HSBC

Hai An Transport and Stevedoring Joint Stock Company's after-tax profits were up 90% from 2021 at VND1.050 trillion (US$44.49 million); Petrovietnam Transportation Corp's (PVTrans) was up 39% to VND1.16 trillion; and Vietnam Petroleum Transport's (Vipco) rose by 25 times to VND246 billion. Other logistics firms too reported excellent numbers. Gemadept’s after-tax profits surged by 60% to VND1.15 trillion, its second highest since 2000 when it first publicized financial statements. Vosco’s profits decreased by 0.4% to VND490 billion, but were still the second highest since it listed on the stock market. Vinalines said profits fell by 23% to VND2.5 trillion, but were still second only to 2021. According to data from Freightos, one of the world’s largest freight booking platforms, the cost of sending a container from Asia to the U.S. fell by more than 80% late last year. In the third quarter of 2021 it had been at a record $20,000 per 40-foot container. But thanks to the … [Read more...] about Big shipping firms report record profits

The Vietnamese company, a subsidiary of conglomerate Vingroup JSC (VIC.HM), has been moving to expand in the United States, where it hopes to compete with existing automakers. A VinFast spokesperson said headcount would not shrink in Vietnam where most of the company's staff, including its factory and engineering operations, are located. It was not immediately clear how many jobs would be affected by the U.S. restructuring. VinFast said it had hired about 150 people in the United States, many in sales, support and distribution roles as part of a model that bypasses traditional dealerships. The company, which started operations in 2019, said last week that it would delay its first batch of deliveries to the United States to the second half of February. In late January, VinFast said it was merging its U.S. and Canadian operations into a single business unit. It did not announce any job cuts at the time. VinFast said in a statement to Reuters it was looking to "streamline" … [Read more...] about EV startup Vinfast to cut US jobs amid restructuring

Vo Tri Thanh *Vo Tri Thanh Viet Nam achieved and exceeded 14 out of 15 targets assigned by the National Assembly for 2022 with many impressive numbers including GDP growth, export turnover and the number of newly-established and re-opened businesses. Only labour productivity was under expectations. Viet Nam’s labour productivity was expected to increase by between 4.7 per cent and 5.2 per cent on average in 2022, higher than the average growth rate of 4.7 per cent in 2021 but behind the target of 5.6 per cent set for the whole of 2022. On January 10 this year, the Government issued Resolution No 06/NQ-CP on the development of a modern, efficient, sustainable and integrated labour market serving quick socio-economic recovery, setting the average labour productivity target for 2023 at more than 6.5 per cent. Labour productivity is an important economic indicator that is closely linked to economic growth, competitiveness and living standards within an economy. According to … [Read more...] about Viet Nam wrestles with labour productivity issue when heading to innovation-based development