Vietnam closed 2025 with a historic trade milestone as total export-import turnover reached US$930 billion, despite sluggish global growth, fragmented international trade and increasingly dense technical barriers.

Vietnam’s coffee industry opened 2026 on a strong note, earning nearly US$1.09 billion in January alone, up 39.5 percent compared to the same period in 2025.

Eight Vietnamese banks have reached total assets of at least VND1 quadrillion (US$40 billion), marking a new milestone for the sector, with three private lenders entering the group for the first time.

Ho Chi Minh City is running out of room for traditional growth models. With new drivers like technology and innovation still constrained, the city faces a decisive moment as it targets GRDP growth of 10 percent or more in 2026.

Vietnam has five years to lift GDP per capita to US$8,500 by 2030 - an ambitious target that demands structural reform and new growth engines.

From reduced land conversion fees to electronic property IDs and relaxed building permits, 2026 marks a pivotal shift in Vietnam’s real estate regulatory framework.

This year’s sudden spike in overnight rates on the interbank market to around 17 percent per year in a single session startled many observers.

Le Anh Trung, Chair of the Dak Lak Durian Association, said the durian industry is entering a new stage of competition and must have stronger digital, communication, and standardization capacity.

Rising deposit interest rates have pushed up lending rates at many banks as lenders seek to avoid shrinking profit margins.

Vietnam’s commitment to net-zero emissions is driving sweeping changes across energy, industry and agriculture, reshaping the foundations of long-term growth.

As policymakers set their sights on double-digit expansion, the challenge lies in aligning public investment, private enterprise and macro stability into a coherent growth strategy.

The Ministry of Finance has proposed upgrading Vietnam Railways (VNR) Corporation into Vietnam National Railway Group to advance the domestic railway industry with the focus on implementing the North-South high-speed railway mega project.

The Ministry of Science and Technology has granted Starlink Services Vietnam a license to provide fixed and mobile satellite telecom services.

The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has moved to tighten oversight of artificial intelligence (AI) in the banking sector, requiring lenders and e-wallet providers to notify customers in advance when AI systems are used to interact directly with them.

Without real estate as collateral, startups are not able to borrow capital to research and expand production. In some cases, approval emails have arrived after more than a year when the companies had already been forced to close.

Nine Vietnamese companies have been included in TIME magazine’s list of the 500 Best Companies in Asia-Pacific for 2026, highlighting the country’s growing corporate presence across multiple industries.

Vietnam has retained its position as Singapore’s 10th largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching 4.5 billion SGD (around 3.5 billion USD) in January, up 33.9% year on year.

The Finastra Financial Services State of the Nation 2026 report shows that 94% of financial institutions in Vietnam plan to increase investment in AI over the next 12 months.

The gradual operation of metro lines in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City is a major milestone in the development of urban transport infrastructure.

Farmers in the Mekong Delta are getting high yields and good prices for rice grown under the rice – shrimp farming model.