Interest rates

S&P forecast Vietnam’s GDP will grow 6.9% in 2022 before settling closer to its long-term trend of growing 6.5%-7% from 2023 onward. S&P Global Ratings on May 26 raised its long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings on Vietnam to 'BB+' from 'BB'. S&P expects Vietnam's economy to continue its upward trend. Source: S&P The rating agency also affirmed the country’s short-term rating at ‘B’ with a stable outlook. “The stable outlook reflects our expectations that over the next 12-24 months, Vietnam's economy will continue to recover from the challenges posed by the pandemic over the past two years. This will support the external position and rein in fiscal deficits,” it noted. S&P added it could raise the ratings if Vietnam's institutional settings improve considerably, in ways that augment policy predictability and transparency. Such favorable changes in the policy environment could bolster investor confidence in the … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s long-term credit rating upgraded to “BB+”: S&P

Illustrative photo. (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The S&P Global Ratings on May 26 raised its long-term sovereign credit rating on Vietnam to “BB ” with a “stable” outlook on the back of strong economic recovery, according to the Ministry of Finance. It is a very positive move when S&P Global Ratings upgraded Vietnam’s sovereign credit rating amidst numerous global uncertainties and challenges, the ministry said in a statement, adding that it reflects an international recognition of Vietnam’s efforts to stabilise and recover the macro-economy and reinforce the socio-political foundation. Vietnam is one of the only two Asia-Pacific nations that have had its ratings upgraded since the beginning of this year, factoring in that Vietnam’s economy remains on a solid track to recovery following the complete removal of domestic and cross-border mobility restrictions, outstanding improvement in COVID-19 vaccination rates and a flexible shift in virus control strategy. It is … [Read more...] about G&P Global Ratings raises Vietnam’s sovereign credit rating

The State Bank of Vietnam sets the daily reference exchange rate for the US dollar at 23,109 VND/USD on May 27, up 4 VND from the previous day. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The State Bank of Vietnam set the daily reference exchange rate for the US dollar at 23,109 VND/USD on May 27, up 4 VND from the previous day. With the current trading band of /-3 percent, the ceiling rate applicable to commercial banks during the day is 23,802 VND/USD and the floor rate 22,415 VND/USD. The opening-hour rates at commercial banks stayed stable. At 8:30 am, Vietcombank listed the buying rate at 23,030 VND/USD, and the selling rate at 23,340 VND/USD, unchanged from the rates at the end of May 26. BIDV also kept both rates unchanged at 23,070 VND/USD (buying) and 23,350 VND/USD (selling). During the week from May 23-27, the daily reference exchange rate were adjusted down on the first two days but then turned around to follow an upward trend. It ended the week up 8 VND from the … [Read more...] about Reference exchange rate up 4 VND on May 27

Vietnam’s rate of child labor is 9.1 percent, around two percentage points lower than the average in the Asia-Pacific region, an official told a workshop held in observance of World Day Against Child Labor 2022 (June 12) on Friday. The 9.1 percent equates to more than one million children in the 5-17 age group engaging in labor, Deputy Minister of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Ha cited results of a survey done in 2018 by her ministry, the General Statistics Office, and the International Labor Organization (ILO). The country’s child labor rate has been on the decline since 2012, when it was 15.5 percent, according to Ha. However, the issue has lingered and tends to take place in informal fields, such as household enterprises and manufacturing and production supply chains, which makes it difficult to detect. Therefore, the Vietnamese government has sped up multiple efforts to end child labor in all its forms, Ha emphasized. In contrast with the Vietnamese … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s child labor rate lower than Asia-Pacific average: official

People and tourists choose to buy tours at the Hong Ngoc Ha travel booth during Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Festival 2022 Specifically, national carriers Vietnam Airlines, Pacific Airlines, and the Vietnam Air Services Company (VASCO) have prepared to supply more than 7.1 million seats during the peak summer season from June 1 to August 15, an increase of 10 percent compared to the same period before the Covid-19 epidemic. On average, during the peak summer season, these airlines will operate 430 domestic flights, especially those to Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City. With international routes, Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines provide over 852,000 seats, equivalent to more than 3,600 flights, only 40 percent of the number in 2019 because international travel demand has not recovered as before. Vietravel Airlines also said that the demand for travel and tourism will increase, so it has planned to increase the number of aircraft and frequency of flights to the Central … [Read more...] about Millions of travelers book tours for summer vacation

That is the statement of Le Quoc Thinh, Director of Cuc Phuong Tourism Services Joint Stock Company (Vedana Resort) when introducing events aiming at promoting Cuc Phuong and Ninh Binh tourism after a long period of shutdown due to COVID-19. According to Chairman of Nho Quan district People’s Committee Hoang Khac Tiep, “Nho Quan is endowed with many historical relics and landmarks such as Van Trinh cave, Yen Quang lake, Dong Chuong lake, Cuc Phuong hot mineral water.” In particular, with the natural reserve area and new-stone-age cultural relics, Cuc Phuong National Park has received the title of Asia's leading national park for two consecutive years (2019, 2020) rated by World Travel Awards. It is worth mentioning that Nho Quan has nearly 30,000 ethnic people living in Muong villages. The strategy set by the district is to exploit existing indigenous cultural elements to combine with the trend of ecotourism, which is thriving in Ninh Binh province. Tourists have opportunities to … [Read more...] about Green Tourism – An ideal way to spread Muong ethnic culture

After a year of not raising tuition fees due to the impacts of Covid-19, the Hanoi people's council passed a resolution on May 20 to hike public preschool and high school tuition fees for the 2022-23 academic year. The fees would double at first and subsequently increase by 20-40 percent every year. Sen, 43, lives in Hanoi’s Ha Dong District with her husband and two daughters, the other in 10th grade. She cleans houses for hourly wages while her husband is a laborer. They pay the highest tuition rate since their household registration is in Region 1, which comprises the capital’s inner districts. In addition, she may be required to pay VND300,000 ($12.93) per child per month for the following academic year, which is 1.4-2 times the current fee. Tuition fees for middle and high schools in Region 1 will gradually rise over the next three years to VND410,000, VND530,000, and VND650,000, respectively. Meanwhile, Sen and her husband's incomes fluctuate every month: Sometimes … [Read more...] about Hanoi parents brace for tuition hikes

US stocks rally again as China premier warns on Covid-hit economy, illustration photo source: freepik.com After a positive session in Europe, the S&P 500 finished Thursday's session up two percent, positioning the broad-based US index to potentially snap a seven-week losing streak depending on Friday's session. "The market was very oversold, and way overdue to bounce," Adam Sarhan of 50 Park Investment said shortly before the market closed. "And what's happening now, the market is bouncing pretty strong." Stock markets have taken a beating this year as central banks have begun to raise interest rates in order to curb the highest consumer price rises in decades. But US stocks pushed higher on Wednesday after investors took a positive view of the Federal Reserve minutes, which raised hopes that while the central bank would move aggressively to lift interest rates, it might be able to halt additional rate hikes as soon as this summer if inflation recedes. Wall Street kept … [Read more...] about US stocks rally again as China premier warns on Covid-hit economy

Asian markets track Wall St higher, tech fuels Hong Kong rally- illustration photo source: freepik.com The positive mood put the region on course to end the week on a healthy note, and came after Federal Reserve minutes indicated the US central bank could take a breather in hiking interest rates if inflation shows signs of easing later in the year. Still, confidence on trading floors remains at a premium owing to a range of crises including soaring prices, tighter monetary policy, China's Covid-19 lockdowns and the war in Ukraine. Investors were in a buying mood Friday as Hong Kong jumped more than two percent, with market heavyweight Alibaba piling on more than 11 percent and search engine Baidu advancing 15 percent. The two firms posted better-than-expected sales growth in the January-March quarter, soothing fears about the impact of Covid and inflation on their bottom lines. Hong Kong's tech index jumped nearly three percent, with other giants also enjoying buying … [Read more...] about Asian markets track Wall St higher, tech fuels Hong Kong rally

Land and housing prices have increased by 20-25 per cent in urban areas. — VNA/VNS Photo Experts have warned that the high rate of inflation will cause the domestic housing market to continuously see prices increase, but liquidity decrease. According to real estate consultant Le Quoc Kien, the market from the middle of last year until now has seen low transactions as the land and housing prices have increased by 20-25 per cent in the urban areas and 30 per cent in the suburban areas. Meanwhile, the price has surged by 50 per cent in the neighbouring provinces. Therefore, he predicts that investors who do not face the pressure of bank debt will not sell real estate in the next 6-12 months because they will have to look for other assets. They do not want to keep cash in a period of high inflation. Meanwhile, investors who suffer pressure from banking loans will be forced to sell property when inflation is high. According to the General Statistics Office, core inflation in April … [Read more...] about Housing market sees price increase, liquidity decrease