Michael Kokalari, Chief Economist at VinaCapital, reports that there is still cause for optimism amid fears of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) competition from India. Vietnam's economic growth has gotten off to a slow start this year, with GDP growth of just 3.3% in Q1 versus 8% in 2022. The steep decline stems from a drop in the demand for “Made in Vietnam” products by consumers in the US, which is Vietnam's largest export market. Vietnam’s exports to the US plunged 20% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2023 after growing by 13% YOY in the first quarter of 2022. That..

By Dr. Andreas Stoffers Country Director Vietnam Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation Vietnam The Global Minimum Tax in Vietnam - A Challenge for Both the Country and Foreign Investors Vietnam's economic policy is once again the focus of foreign investors. The Global Minimum Tax (GMT) is something that Vietnam, along with over 140 countries worldwide, has to come to terms with. The task now is to clearly examine the impact on Vietnam's state budget and take appropriate measures to ensure that Vietnam remains attractive for FDI and does not lose revenue to the state budget. Time is running out, as the GMT is due..

Until the beginning of this year, the economic climate in Vietnam was characterised by great optimism. In fact, despite the global COVID-19 crisis, Vietnam had come through the last two years relatively well. A major contributing factor seems to be the opening up of the economy and the country after the harsh lockdowns of last summer. Indeed, Prime Minister Chinh’s opinion expressed in September 2021, “We must live with the disease”, is diametrically different from China’s zero coronavirus strategy. Nevertheless, dark clouds still appear in the sky. New areas of tension are emerging. It is becoming clear that Vietnam’s economy..

The issue of equality has been raised throughout history. In its various forms, inequality has often given rise to revolutionary ideas and revolutions. So, what could be more natural than to call for greater equality? However, it is necessary to discuss what equality means. Does it only refer to equality before the law and equal opportunities? Or does it mean equal living conditions? In an emerging economy like Vietnam, inequality shows in many places. While most Vietnamese lived in similar economic situations around 1975, this changed drastically after Doi Moi in 1986. The perception of the rich in society is..

When Vietnamese factories started shutting their gates in the middle of 2021 following a Covid-19 outbreak that had finally burst through the country’s seemingly robust defenses, it made international news. With one of the world’s hottest suppliers of consumer goods finally succumbing to the full force of the pandemic, retailers around the globe were left grasping for solutions to meet their anticipated Christmas demand from first-world consumers who have long since been ready to leave the coronavirus behind. For manufacturers operating within Vietnam, this is a nightmare scenario. Over the past two decades, Vietnam has slowly become the beneficiary of..

He current transformations brought about by blockchain technology and digital currencies have caused a disruption in many areas of the economy However, it remains exciting under which exact conditions digital money will establish itself and what forms the competition will take. This is where Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) come into play. However, not all CBDCs will be based in only DLT systems like blockchain, several remain based in conventional central bank infrastructure. Hence, CBDCs are to be clearly distinguished from non-state currencies such as Bitcoin, Etherium or Ripple, which are created by blockchain technology. China is, according to experts,..

What will the business and economic landscape look like in an (eventual) post-pandemic world. Some local industry leaders share their thoughts. KNOWING WHAT THE FUTURE holds in such uncertain times is not an easy task, but the business community, as always, must do its best to gaze into the crystal ball. In order to look at what’s ahead for Vietnam’s business sector, [C] Vietnam spoke to four corporate leaders in Vietnam to gauge their thoughts on what the future holds and how businesses will change and adapt post-pandemic. Chung Seck, Partner and Head of M&A Practice at Baker & McKenzie..

APAC countries are an extremely diverse grouping, making multi-country market entry a potentially daunting prospect. But given the market’s size and importance, there is no shortage of newcomers keen to take on the locals on their home turf. SMRITI DHINGRA IS THE DIRECTOR of Experience Management Services with SAI Digital, a Vietnam-based eCommerce agency. [C] Vietnam asked her to share her insights and lessons from the company’s synchronized expansion into Japan, Singapore, Australia and the Philippines earlier this year. LAY THE GROUNDWORK AND BIDE YOUR TIME For SAI Digital, Dhingra said going multi-market wasn’t so much in reaction to market..

THE DAWN OF A CRISIS While Vietnam has experienced an unprecedented boom in recent decades, Covid-19, or rather the economic crisis that followed the global reactions to it, was a real game-changer. The effects of the crisis, into which Vietnam has fallen completely through no fault of its own, were visible to the naked eye, especially in the sector of hospitality and tourism. Foreign trade, investments and the not negligible remittances from Viet Kieu also put pressure on the economy. In spring 2020, it was not yet clear whether Vietnam would be able to master this Herculean task. VIETNAM’S CRISIS..

By Michael Tatarski Up until 2017, Vietnam had a relatively undeveloped renewable energy sector, with the exception of hydropower, which has been a major electricity source for decades. That year, the Vietnamese government introduced its first feed-in tariff for solar power, which established a set price for produced solar energy – and everything changed. Investors and developers rushed in to take advantage of the tariff, which was for projects completed by the end of 2019, and within that year, 4.5 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity were installed, meeting a goal the central government had set for 2025. Now, the country’s..