Slump in market

Many hazardous types of rodenticides that were prohibited several years ago are now widely sold at pesticide shops, hawker stalls, and grocery stores, posing a threat to residents’ health and lives in Vietnam. In Hanoi, several types of rat poison, without labels or clear origin, are sold everywhere, from hawker stalls to convenience stores. At a grocer's at Thanh Cong B Wet Market, at least three types of rat poison are on sale at a price ranging from VND20,000 (US$0.85) to VND300,000 ($1.27). “Rodenticides mixed with unhusked rice were less effective to kill rats, while rats die immediately eating the poison with red liquid inside,” said the owner of the grocer's. The poisonous drug originates in China, said the owner. “I do not know the ingredients of this type, but the rat poison works well. Rats die right after eating a piece of cake and food mixed with a few droplets of the liquid drug,” stressed the owner. A search for rodenticides with keywords 'Rat poison' on … [Read more...] about Hazardous rat poison flooding Vietnamese market

Asian markets bounced Tuesday from the previous day's rout, with lenders boosted by easing concerns of another financial crisis, while focus turned to the Federal Reserve's policy decision later in the week. The panic that characterised trade over the past 11 days appeared to have faded after authorities in leading economies pledged support for depositors and troubled banks following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank in the United States. Still, the takeover of troubled Credit Suisse by UBS for $3.25 billion fanned concerns about what could be next on the chopping block, and analysts warned it was too early to say that the crisis was over. The move to save Credit Suisse aimed to prevent a wider crisis as it is among the 30 global banks considered "too big to fail". All three main indexes on Wall Street ended on the front foot -- with the Dow more than one percent up -- while European markets were also comfortably higher, helped by promises of … [Read more...] about Asian markets rebound as bank fears ease, Fed decision in view

Customers at Vietcombank's branch. VCB led the stocks which pulled the VN-Index most on Monday. — VNS Photo Mai Huong Shares opened this week on a negative note on both major stock exchanges as pessimistic news from the financial market continued to affect investors’ psychology. On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, the VN-Index gave up more than 22 points, or 2.11 per cent, to close Monday’s trade at 1,023.10 points. The southern bourse’s index lost nearly 1 per cent last week. Meanwhile, the HNX-Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange decreased 1.39 per cent to end at 201.62 points after losing 1.6 per cent last week. The market breadth leaned heavily to the sellers with 612 losers and 176 gainers. Nineteen of the 25 stock industries tracked by vietstock.vn lost, of which 19 posted an average loss of more than 1 per cent. Only one sector – ancillary production – increased by 0.3 per cent on average. The biggest losers included agricultural production, securities, retail, … [Read more...] about Shares open new week on negative note amid uncertainty

Silicon Valley Bank. According to VinaCapital, the SVB collapse by itself will end up being neutral for Viet Nam’s stock market and economy. — Photo courtesy of Reuters The Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) collapse by itself will end up being neutral for Viet Nam’s stock market and economy, Michael Kokalari, chief economist at investment fund VinaCapital, has said in a report. “Furthermore, we see no substantial risk that the dynamics which negatively impacted SVB and certain other regional US banks could significantly impact the profitability and/or solvency of banks in Viet Nam.” It was widely reported that latent losses on SVB’s securities portfolio coupled with a drop in deposits at the bank were the main factors that led to its rapid insolvency, it said. Vietnamese banks also held Government bonds on their balance sheets, and the prices of 10-year Vietnam Government bonds (VGBs) had dropped by around 15 per cent since mid-2021 and yields surged. However, VGB holdings only … [Read more...] about Silicon Valley Bank collapse not to impact VN: VinaCapital

ADC Pharma in Can Tho Province. As the domestic pharmaceutical market holds a lot of potential, local producers are urged to improve their competitiveness for expansion. — VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Liem It is critical for pharmaceutical companies to improve competitiveness with a focus on research and development (R&D), production technology and digitalisation. According to experts, this will help them expand their shares in the domestic market which remains being dominated by imported drugs and extend their international reach. Viet Nam’s pharmaceutical market has significant potential. The Ministry of Health estimated the market at US$6.9 billion in 2021 while BMI Research forecast the market to reach $16.1 billion in 2026 with a compound growth rate of up to 11 per cent. According to Nguyen Dieu Ha, general secretary and office chief of the Vietnam Pharmaceutical Companies Association (VNPCA), there are 55 foreign-invested pharmaceutical companies in Viet Nam as of the end of … [Read more...] about Pharmaceutical companies urged to invest in R&D, improve competitiveness

Gold ring dropped 0.09% to VND55.85 million per tael. A tael equals 37.5 grams or 1.2 ounces. Globally gold prices edged higher on Tuesday, with investors looking forward to the Federal Reserve policy meeting as expectations grew that the U.S. central bank would slow its monetary policy tightening given the upheaval in the banking sector, Reuters reported. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $1,982.59 per ounce, as of 0317 GMT. U.S. gold futures also rose 0.2% to $1,986.30. According to the CME FedWatch tool, markets are pricing in a 26.2% chance that the Fed will stand pat at the end of its March 21-22 meeting, with a 73.8% chance of a 25 basis-point (bps) hike. "Gold is trading around the $1,980 level and well within yesterday's range, which was clearly a game of two halves," said Matt Simpson, a senior market analyst at City Index. "A pause (in rate hikes) could send gold back above $2,000 initially, but for it to hold onto those gains, we'd need to see a lower dot plot and … [Read more...] about Gold prices retreat

The index closed 22.04 points lower after losing 2.26 points on Friday. Trading on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) fell by 5.21% to VND9.75 trillion ($413.44 million). The VN-30 basket, comprising the 30 largest capped stocks, saw 28 tickers dropped. TPB of private TPBank led the fall with a 5.3% drop, followed by VCB of state-owned lender Vietcombank, down 4.4%. POW of electricity producer Petrovietnam Power Corporation lost 4.1% and SSI of leading brokerage SSI Securities Corporation closed 3.9% lower. PLX of fuel distributor Petrolimex and VPB of private lender VPBank stayed unchanged. Foreign investors were net sellers to the tune of VND346.24 billion, mainly selling HPG of steelmaker Hoa Phat Group and VIC of private conglomerate Vingroup. The HNX-Index at the Hanoi Stock Exchange, where mid and small caps list, was down 1.39% while the UPCoM-Index at the Unlisted Public Companies Market was down by 0.54%. … [Read more...] about VN-Index plunges with no blue chip in green

Local authorities said Monday they had found the tusks, which were illegally trafficked from Africa in three suspicious containers. The containers belonged to a haul that began in Angola, was then transported to Singapore, and finally to the Nam Hai Dinh Vu Port in Hai Phong. The containers were inspected when authorities noticed that the receiver’s details were labeled inaccurately. One container alone contained over 7 tons of elephant tusks, and authorities said the total amount of trafficked goods could amount to dozens of tons. The Hai Phong Customs Department said the amount of elephant tusks found was the largest haul to ever be discovered in the city. Earlier this month, Hai Phong customs officers also found a total of around 610 kg of trafficked elephant tusks on two occasions. Vietnam outlawed the ivory trade in 1992, but the country remains a top market for ivory products prized locally for decorative and medicinal purposes, according to conservation groups. … [Read more...] about Tons of ivory found at northern port

Hoang Quan, an office clerk in Da Nang’s Thanh Khe District, says ads with scantily dressed women and gambling games often appear when he surfs the message board or watches Reels on Facebook. "The ads are suggested by Facebook and displayed at specific times: After 4 p.m. it is gambling; in the evening it is sexy and suggestive content," he said. Tuan Phuong of Ho Chi Minh City, another Facebook user, sees similar ads pop up constantly. "Toxic content appears next to posts. Every time I scroll through a few posts of my friends, the News Feed inserts a gambling ad," he says. He says he is flustered when he sees Facebook livestreams with inappropriate content when he is sitting with his child in the evenings. In a VnExpress survey this month 96% of participants said they had seen gambling and other offensive ads on Facebook, with 81% saying they are frequent. An ad with an offensive image on Facebook. Photo by VnExpress/Khuong Nha The situation seems to have … [Read more...] about Gambling ads, adult content make Facebook ‘toxic’

The initiative came after Hanoi and HCMC, Vietnam's two biggest cities, were ranked near the bottom in a global ranking of public toilet density of 69 cities by QS Supplies, one of the largest bathroom wholesalers and retailers in the U.K. They have only 0.01 public toilets available per square kilometer, higher only than the Egyptian capital Cairo, which has 0.002. Paris topped the ranking, with the French capital having seven per square kilometer, followed by Sydney (3.64) in Australia and Zurich (2.9) in Switzerland. After the ranking made local headlines, the HCMC People's Committee ordered districts to build more public toilets, starting with District 1. Le Duc Thanh, the district chairman, said the coffee shops that have agreed to let people to use their toilets for free include Highlands, Trung Nguyen, King, Katinat, and Thuc, and the restaurants include Din Ky and Hozzizon. He said the district would call on more businesses to do the same. Vu Nguyen Quang Vinh, the … [Read more...] about 100 cafes, eateries in downtown HCMC to open their toilets to public