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Roundtable: Large foreign investment funds want to pour money into the Vietnamese stock market Quan Duc Hoang, chairman of A+ Fund, made the comments about foreign capital at the roundtable 'New Investments amid New Volatility' hosted by VIR at its headquarters in Hanoi on February 7. “Recently, I have business trips to work with big investment funds in the United States, the United Kingdom, and South Korea. Not one of these investment funds have a sensitive overview of the Vietnamese investment environment. They estimate that it is an ideal time for investors to collect a portfolio of shares,” Hoang said. “In spite of the difficult situation, during the past nearly 30 years, I have yet to see a large investment opportunity similar to the current situation because many Vietnamese enterprises are operating smoothly and generating good profits. Besides, we have yet to take thorough advantage of the opportunity from free trade agreements, especially EVFTA. The important note is … [Read more...] about Foreign investment funds plan to pour money into Vietnamese stocks

A vendor counts banknotes at a market in Vientiane, Laos, on January 9, 2023. (Photo Xinhua/VNA) Vientiane (VNA) – The inflation rate in Laos surged to 40.3% in January, a record high in the last 23 years, according to the Statistics Bureau under the Lao Ministry of Planning and Investment. According to the agency, the depreciation of the Lao currency kip against USD and Thai baht and the soaring prices of fuel, gas, and other imported goods are among the main factors driving inflation. High fuel prices have pushed up production costs in the country because it has to import machinery, animal feed, and fertilisers at increasingly high prices. Laos’s consumer price index has spiked unexpectedly since the beginning of last year. Inflation in May 2022 was recorded at 12.81% before rising to 23.61% in June, 25.62% in July, 30.01% in August, 34.05% in September, 36.75% in October, 38.46% in November and 39.27% in December. Overall, Laos's average inflation in 2022 is up to … [Read more...] about Laos’s inflation continues to rise in January, hits 23-year record

Through IFC's new investment, SeABank expects to at least double the number of lower and mid-end housing loans by 2026. — Photo courtesy of the bank IFC on Tuesday announced it has invested US$100 million in Southeast Asia Commercial Joint-Stock Bank (SeABank) which aims to boost access to housing loans. With a rapid annual urbanisation rate of 3 per cent, half of the Vietnamese population – about 50 million people – is expected to live in urban areas by 2040. This creates the need for an estimated 374,000 additional housing units every year. However, the limited availability of long-term funding has restricted access to housing finance, especially challenging for lower and middle-income homebuyers, who need longer-term funding due to low levels of income. Through the investment, SeABank expects to at least double the number of lower and mid-end housing loans by 2026. In addition, the project is expected to create thousands of new jobs in construction and other related sectors. … [Read more...] about IFC invests another $100m in SeABank to boost access to housing loans

HDBank has achieved 105 per cent of the 2022 targets approved by shareholders. The bank hopes to maintain its high growth momentum with an average rate of more than 25 per cent in the next five years. — Photo courtesy of the bank The Ho Chi Minh City Development Joint Stock Commercial Bank has announced its results for 2022, which show it exceeded all its targets and achieved high growth. Its profit before tax was VND10.27 trillion (US$435.8 million), up 27.2 per cent from 2021 and 105 per cent of the target approved by sharehoders. Its net fee income grew dramatically, while its prudential and profitability ratios were among the best in the industry. The total operating income topped VND5.87 trillion ($249.1 million) for the fourth quarter and VND21.97 trillion ($933 million) for the entire year, a year-on-year increase of 26.8 per cent and 31.1 per cent. The net interest income grew by 29.7 per cent and the net fee income by 53.4 per cent. Operating expenses and credit … [Read more...] about HDBank profits top $436m in 2022, 105 per cent of target

The following is the full text of the interview. Reporter: This year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations and 10th anniversary of strategic partnership between Singapore and Vietnam. How do you evaluate the Singapore-Vietnam relations in the past half century, especially in the last decade? What should the two countries do to further our bilateral cooperation and to advance the development of each country? Vivian Balakrishnan: The ties between Singapore and Vietnam have grown from strength to strength since we established diplomatic relations 50 years ago. We are longstanding friends and close partners that enjoy wide-ranging cooperation in many areas, both bilaterally and at multilateral fora. I am heartened that the bilateral relationship has continued to expand and evolve to tackle new challenges over the past decade. Our linkages are particularly strong in trade and investment. The 12 Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIPs) across Northern, Central, … [Read more...] about Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to enhance Singapore-Vietnam relations: Singaporean Foreign Minister

Entering 2023, Microsoft and Google announced global lay-offs of 10,000 and 12,000 employees, respectively. IBM laid off nearly 4,000 members, while Spotify cut about 6 per cent of staff. Since November last year, Meta, Amazon, and HP have also adjusted thousands of positions. Tech lay-off wave continues to bite at Vietnam’s heels, Illustration photo/ Source: freepik.com In Southeast Asia, Shopee parent company Sea Group, Crypto.com, e-commerce platform JD.ID, and GoTo – a merger between ride-hailer Gojek and e-commerce platform Tokopedia – are among the companies that experienced a drastic staff cut in the past year. GoTo in November 2022 cut 1,300 jobs, equivalent to 12 per cent of the number of employees, while Sea Group let go of 7,000 employees in the past six months. Both companies cited a common cause being challenging macroeconomic conditions. Industry insiders in Vietnam are generally wary of the effect this laid-off wave might have on the domestic market. … [Read more...] about Tech lay-off wave continues to bite at Vietnam’s heels

Rescuers in Turkey and Syria braved frigid weather, aftershocks and collapsing buildings Tuesday, as they dug for survivors buried by an earthquake that killed more than 5,000 people. Disaster agencies said several thousand buildings were flattened in cities across a vast border region -- pouring misery on an area already plagued by war, insurgency, refugee crises and a recent cholera outbreak. Through the night, survivors used their bare hands to pick over the twisted ruins of multi-storey apartment blocks -- trying to save family, friends and anyone else sleeping inside when the first massive 7.8-magnitude quake struck early Monday. "Where is my mum?" asked a distraught seven-year-old girl who was pulled -- her face, hair and pyjamas covered in dust -- from a collapsed building in Hatay, on the Turkish side of the border. Police officer Zekeriya Yildiz hugs his daughter after they saved her from the rubble in Hatay, southwest Turkey on February 6, 2023. Photo: … [Read more...] about Earthquake kills more than 5,000 in Turkey, Syria

Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Vietnam will send its four best athletes to compete for medals at the Asian Indoor Athletics Championships 2023 in Kazakhstan later this week. It is the first continental tournament in which Vietnamese competitors will participate after three years of the pandemic. All four have performed impressively in recent tournaments, including the 31st SEA Games and the ninth National Sports Games (NSG) in 2022. Multi-time SEA Games winner Nguyen Thi Huyen will compete in the women's 400m event. Huyen successfully defended her 400m and 4x400m titles at the regional sports event in May in Hanoi. Seven months later, her domination continued at the NSG in the capital city, setting her seasonal best of 53.37sec. The SEA Games record breaker Nguyen Thi Oanh will participate in the women's 1,500m and 3,000m events. While the 3,000m steeplechase is usually her preferred event, the 3,000m is held instead in the indoor tournament. Oanh had a … [Read more...] about Four athletes to represent Vietnam at Asian indoor tournament

The U.S. Bank will provide financing and leasing solutions for VinFast vehicles at VinFast showrooms and via the VinFast website. (Photo: VinFast) Hanoi (VNA) – VinFast on February 7 announced U.S. Bank (listed as US B on New York Stock Exchange) has been chosen as its preferred provider of retail financing and leasing of VinFast vehicles in the US. The announcement comes as VinFast - a Vietnamese electric car producer - is preparing to open more showrooms in California, and develop plans for more locations around the country soon. Under the partnership, the bank will officially provide financing and leasing solutions for VinFast vehicles at VinFast showrooms and via the VinFast website. Le Thi Thu Thuy, Vingroup Vice Chair and CEO of VinFast Holdings, said that with the goal of making electric vehicles accessible to everyone, VinFast is constantly looking for optimal solutions for customers. Thanks to this agreement, VinFast customers will have access to competitive … [Read more...] about U.S. Bank chosen to provide financing solutions for VinFast electric car users

Hanoi (VNA) - The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency. - National Assembly (NA) Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue asked agencies of the NA and its Standing Committee to keep a close watch on the macro-economic situation, as well as financial, monetary, stock and real property markets, while meeting their standing members on February 7. For urgent issues, NA agencies should actively and promptly work with relevant ministers and heads of ministry-level agencies to seek solutions, instead of waiting for question and answer (Q&A) sessions held by the legislative body and its Standing Committee. Read full story - The coming visit to Singapore by Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will be a key platform for both countries to reaffirm their excellent ties, said Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in his written interview with the Vietnam News Agency. Read full story - Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s upcoming … [Read more...] about ☕ Afternoon briefing on February 7