Worst 5 year period stock market

People shop at a supermarket in Hanoi. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Vietnam is becoming an attractive retail market for companies all over the world with many regional and global FDI investors recently announcing plans to increase capital and expand distribution networks here. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Vietnamese retail market is worth 142 billion USD and is expected to increase nearly 2.5 times to 350 billion USD by 2025. In January, total retail sales of consumer goods and services decreased by 6% on-month to more than 481.8 trillion VND (20.4 billion USD) due to weaker demand as many commodities were purchased ahead of the Lunar New Year. People spent more on festival activities post Tet, said the General Statistics Office. However, it still rose 13% year-on-year. For the first two months of the year, the country’s total retail sales of consumer goods and services advanced 13% over the same period of 2022 to over 994.1 trillion VND. … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s retail market proves attractive for foreign investors

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

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

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

Tran Van Thu, a local in Chau Thanh District’s Tien Long Commune, measured the salinity level in the Ba Lai and Ham Luong rivers last week. Both are tributaries of the Tien River, a branch of the Mekong River in Vietnam, which runs through Ben Tre and feeds much of the delta province’s fruit, vegetable and rice crops. Tran Van Thu holds a tool that read the salinity level in a river in Chau Thanh District, Ben Tre Province at 0.34 ppt, March 2023. Photo by VnExpress/Hoang Nam According to Thu, each of the two rivers that surround his 6,000-square-meter durian farm carried salinity levels of 0.34 (ppt). This was devastating news as his durians need fresh water with salinity levels of less than 0.2 ppt. "Every day, the river water only stays within the safe levels for about an hour, so I have to take every chance I can get [to get fresh water to the farm]." Thu’s family used to cultivate rambutan for a living, but after losing the entire farm to drought and salt … [Read more...] about Drought killing Mekong Delta durian with salt

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

Vietnamese companies prioritize environmentally friendly and sustainable practices as part of their efforts to ensure long-term growth. More than 85% of Vietnam's 500 fastest-growing companies (FAST 500) have committed or plan to comply with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards, according to a survey conducted by the Vietnam Report Company (Vietnam Report). Electronics production at SGK Company (Chuong My Industrial Park), a component supplier for Samsung. Photo: The Hanoi Times As the global community continues to prioritize environmentally friendly and sustainable practices, Vietnam is also placing a great deal of emphasis on achieving carbon neutrality by the year 2050. FAST500 companies are aware of the importance of ESG standards and are in the process of adopting this strategy, the report states. Specifically, 14.8% of companies surveyed had initiated and implemented some of their ESG obligations, while 37% had fully planned and … [Read more...] about Over 85% of major Vietnamese companies are committed to ESG standards

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