Import and export activities through border gates

Illustrative image. (Photo: SGGP) According to Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Dung, Chairman of Vietnam E-commerce Association (Vecom), in 2021, despite being heavily affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam's e-commerce still maintained a good growth momentum with an increase of about 20 percent and a scale of $16 billion. Keeping the growth momentum, Vietnam is now one of the countries with the largest e-commerce market size in the region, besides Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. Vietnam's internet economy in 2021 grew by 31 percent compared to 2020 and reached a scale of $21 billion. Of which, the online retail sector enlarged by 53 percent and touched a scale of $13 billion. There are two waves that have contributed to the steady development of e-commerce in Vietnam in 2020 and 2021 and will be the driving force for the next period. The first wave took place during the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, and the second one from June to September 2021, during the fourth … [Read more...] about Opportunities for e-commerce in Vietnam to boom

Kevin Coppel, Asia-Pacific managing director (left ) and Christine Li, Asia-Pacific head of research for Knight Frank in Singapore When the US-China trade tensions bubbled over in 2018, corporates found it increasingly difficult to carry out business in China due to sourcing uncertainties and rising costs. This trend only worsened in the face of the pandemic and resulting border closures. Businesses responded by pursuing opportunities to set up bases outside of China while still retaining a stake in one of the world’s strongest economies. The China+1 strategy thus emerged. It is based on diversifying its supply base into other countries in order to minimise the risk of disruptions arising from geopolitical tensions, trade wars and tariffs, as well as rising labour costs. These companies are not abandoning China but rather giving themselves options, enjoying the best of what China and other economies have to offer. In pursuit of the China+1 strategy, the spotlight is naturally … [Read more...] about Will Vietnam become a big geopolitical beneficiary?

Global food prices are expected to keep on rising this year due to the Ukraine conflict and other factors, Photo: Thanh Tung China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on May 11 that the consumer price index (CPI), the main measure of inflation and retail sales, increased by 2.1 per cent on-year in 2021 due to the impact of the recession and skyrocketing energy costs and food prices. Data released by the General Administration of Customs of China on April 13 recorded a decrease in China’s imports for the first time since August 2020. In March, China’s imports fell 0.1 per cent on-year. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vu Sy Cuong from the Academy of Finance warned last week, “Along with the conflict in Ukraine, China’s economic difficulties could exacerbate inflationary pressures in Vietnam.” China’s slowing growth is clearly felt by many manufacturing and export industries of Vietnam. Pham Van Viet, president of garment firm VitaJean Co., Ltd., said, “Restrictions on raw materials … [Read more...] about Global effects mar control of inflation

Kim Højlund Christensen, Danish Ambassador to Vietnam With the return of tourism and trade activities, can you see any movement from business and investment promotion delegations that are going to visit Vietnam? The Vietnamese government’s recent decision to lift entry restrictions and especially to resume the visa-exemption travel programme for countries, including Denmark, is great news and positively welcomed by the Danish business community. Many Danish companies are already planning their visits to Vietnam this month and early next month to meet with their local business partners in person. At present, there are over 130 Danish companies represented in Vietnam. Therefore, there will be a large number of business visitors and delegations from headquarters in Denmark or other locations in the region coming here in the near future to visit their production facilities or to find new investment opportunities. Besides that, we also expect to have trade delegations visit our … [Read more...] about Danish investors pinpointing rising potential of Vietnam’s green energy