It is now nearly impossible to buy a new apartment at the VND 2 billion mark. According to a report in 2022 from Rever, a Southeast Asia technology firm in real estate brokerage, for VND1.5-1.8 billion, one can buy a 30-55 square meter apartment built 6-10 years ago in Thu Duc City, on the secondary market. The average income of workers in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) this year is about VND148 million a year, according to property listing platform Batdongsan.com.vn. By that calculation, it will take up to 24 years to save, with no spending on anything, just to buy an apartment. The type of apartment used in this survey costs VND3.5 billion per unit. The data also shows that Vietnam ranks first in Southeast Asia in terms of the gap between house prices and average worker incomes. From 2018 to 2021, the ratio of the difference between real estate prices and the average income of Vietnamese has continuously increased, surpassing even Singapore. On the other hand, Indonesia, Malaysia and … [Read more...] about A laborer needs to save for 25 years to buy an apartment
Rolling 10 year stock market returns
VN-Index extends its long winning streak
Logo of Vietcombank on its trading office in Tran Hung Dao Street, Ha Noi. The bank shares soared 2.25 per cent on Monday, led the market's bullish sentiment. — VNS Photo Ly Ly Cao Benchmark indices opened the week on a positive note, buoyed by the improvement of risk appetite. The VN-Index on the southern bourse Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) ended Monday at 1,052.25 points, a gain of 5.46 points, or 0.52 per cent. It logged a long rising streak of five days with the market's breadth inclining to the uptrend. Meanwhile, liquidity increased slightly, of which over VND9.7 trillion (US$413.2 million) worth, equivalent to nearly 557 million shares, was traded on HoSE. The VN30-Index also advanced 5.03 points, or 0.48 per cent, to close the trading day at 1,056.45 points. Twenty of the 30 biggest stocks in market capitalisation of the VN30 basket jumped, of which one hit the ceiling price. Eight stocks declined while two stayed flat. On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX), the … [Read more...] about VN-Index extends its long winning streak
Visa upgrade at heart of fresh approach to tourism
Visas, service quality, and technology were all part of discussions on a better-performing tourism sector Photo: Cuong Minh May’s National Assembly session is likely to help push ahead a revamp of the country’s rules on entry and exit for foreign visitors, after the Ministry of Public Security crafts amendments to the current law. The development will be an important basis for the issuance of new regulations related to the visa policy, removing difficulties for the tourism industry, and creating conditions to attract more international visitors this year, according to most observers. Dang Tuan Viet, deputy director of the Ministry of Public Secrutity’s (MoPS) Vietnam Immigration Department, said that the proposal emphasised two major areas related to unilateral visa exemption and electronic visa policy. The MoPS also proposes to expand the number of countries that can issue e-visas from 80 countries to the maximum. The MoPS will also ask to increase the temporary stay … [Read more...] about Visa upgrade at heart of fresh approach to tourism
Banks underwriting bonds should buy back bonds: Central bank
Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Commercial banks that underwrite and sell corporate bonds have to buy them back if investors so demand, the central bank has said. It followed a meeting with voters (members of the public) the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) held in Ho Chi Minh City amid the ongoing bond market troubles. Besides asking for underwriting banks to take responsibility for redeeming bonds, the voters also urged the SBV to tighten inspection of credit institutions to ensure they comply with regulations while investing in bonds. The SBV recently raided 11 banks and fined a number of them for violating regulations related to bond purchases. Under current regulations, banks must have an internal credit rating system and can only buy bonds if their bad debts ratio is below 3%. For bonds sold in the domestic market, when issuers cannot pay in full and on time the bond principal and interest, they must negotiate with bondholders for extending the term … [Read more...] about Banks underwriting bonds should buy back bonds: Central bank
Vietnam needs digital tourism map
Vietnam is in need of a national digital tourism map which features tourism resources, destinations, and service providers to support tourists as well as local tourism service providers. The proposal on the digital map has been made and attracted the attention of local enterprises, but it has yet to be rolled out. Nguyen Quoc Ky, chairman of Vietravel Holdings, a local travel firm, said the digital tourism map would meaningfully increase the competitiveness of Vietnam’s tourism sector and help sell more tours at higher prices. Thailand has well-connected tourism systems, including travel, lodging, and transport services. Thus, their tour prices are stable and reasonable. At a recent meeting to seek solutions for the local tourism development, Nguyen Huy Dung, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications, also suggested a digital tourism map for tourists as all travelers have a demand for information during their trips. “In the short term, a professional national website … [Read more...] about Vietnam needs digital tourism map
Tourists to My Son Sanctuary surges
The number of tourists to a UNESCO-recognised My Son Sanctuary in the central province of Quang Nam has been on the rise, nearly equal to prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the management board of My Son world cultural heritage site, the site has seen a monthly rise in travellers this year. Between January and March 20, My Son attracted 80,000 tourists, some 1,200 people visited the site daily before the pandemic. Tourists in My Son Besides South Korea, Japan and Europe, My Son has lured more tourists from markets such as Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and India. Visitors from India have sharply increased, accounting for 10 percent of the travellers to My Son. Phan Ho, director of the management board of My Son World Cultural Heritage Site, said that a goal of 180,000 tourists, including 130,000 foreigners had been set. Ho believed that this target would be fulfilled based on the return of foreign holidaymakers, especially those from South Korea and … [Read more...] about Tourists to My Son Sanctuary surges
VPBank sells 15% stake to Japan’s SMBC for 1.5 bln USD
Vietnamese lender VPBank on March 27 signed an agreement to sell its 15% stake to Japan’s Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) through a private placement. At the signing ceremony between VPBank and SMBC (Photo: VNA) With this deal, SMBC, a subsidiary of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc (SMFG), has officially become a foreign strategic investor of the Vietnamese bank. The investment from SMBC will help VPBank raise 35.9 trillion VND (approximately 1.5 billion USD) of Tier 1 capital (equal to 30,160 VND per share), increasing its equity to approximately 140 trillion VND from 103.5 trillion VND. Following the investment, VPBank will become Vietnam’s second largest bank in terms of equity, which allows it to serve a wide range of customer needs in various segments, including retail banking, corporate banking and SMEs. The robust capital stance will also back VPBank in serving large-scale enterprises, particularly the FDI and multi-national companies … [Read more...] about VPBank sells 15% stake to Japan’s SMBC for 1.5 bln USD
50th anniversary of Vietnam-Italy diplomatic ties celebrated in Ho Chi Minh City
In his remarks, Chairman of the People’s Committee Phan Van Mai highlighted the increasingly close ties between the two countries, saying over the past 50 years, the bilateral relationship has grown actively across spheres, both bilaterally and multilaterally. The good traditional friendship has also been consolidated and enhanced, the official added. Notably, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam presented Italy with more than 300,000 masks, while Italy donated 2.8 million doses of vaccines to the Southeast Asian nation. This vividly demonstrates the intensive and effective strategic partnership and friendship between the two countries, he said. Ho Chi Minh City, for its part, has actively worked to promote cooperation with Italy, Mai noted, adding that the relations between Ho Chi Minh City and Italy have reaped achievements in trade, investment, education and training, culture, and tourism. According to the official, the two-way trade reached 591 million USD last year. For … [Read more...] about 50th anniversary of Vietnam-Italy diplomatic ties celebrated in Ho Chi Minh City
Tea export value to China skyrockets
Illustrative image (Photo: vov.vn) Hanoi (VNA) - The export value of Vietnamese tea to China in the first two months of this year quadrupled from the same period last year, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs . China imported 426 tonnes of tea from Vietnam in the two months, representing rises of 121% in volume and 411.2% in value. The average tea export price in February alone surged by over 10% to more than 1,641 USD per tonne. China’s reopening of its border after the COVID-19 pandemic is the main factor behind the strong growth of tea exports to this huge market, reported the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Tea exports to Pakistan also enjoyed an upward trend, reaching 5,300 tonnes worth 9.4 million USD, up 5.8% in volume year on year. Although Taiwan (China) is Vietnam’s second largest tea consumer, tea exports to this market declined slightly over the two-month period. Statistics show Vietnam shipped 1,500 tonnes worth 2.4 million USD to … [Read more...] about Tea export value to China skyrockets