Southern localities remain attractive destinations for Japanese investors thanks to the completion of infrastructure systems and an improved business environment.

Recently, many Japanese firms, including Nitto Denko Corporation, Yuwa Co. Ltd., SKM Vietnam Co. Ltd., and AEON Co., Ltd., have received licences to expand their factories in Binh Duong province with a total investment of 168 million USD.

At the same time, Matsuya R&D Vietnam Co., Ltd, which specialises in producing medical equipment, has also launched its sixth factory in Dong Nai.

Currently, Binh Duong, the southern industrial hub, is a favourite investment destination of Japanese investors who have invested nearly 6 billion USD in 350 projects in the locality, making Japan the province’s second biggest foreign investor.

Mai Hung Dung, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Binh Duong said that the locality defines Japan as its strategic investor, therefore, it has rolled out various measures to attract more Japanese investors.

Meanwhile, Dong Nai is hosting 272 Japanese-invested projects with a combined capital of 5.59 billion USD. Japan ranks third among foreign investors in the province in terms of the projects number and capital.

Another favourite southern locality for Japanese investors is Long An, where 138 Japanese-invested projects worth 767 million USD are operating, making Long An the leading hub for Japanese projects in the Mekong Delta region.

Since the beginning of 2023, a series of inter-regional infrastructure projects have been launched in the southern region, which is the primary factor that turns the region into a magnet for foreign investors.

The Belt Road No.3 project with a length of 76.3km, crossing four localities of HCM City, Binh Duong, Dong Nai and Long An started in June. Construction of Bien Hoa-Vung Tau expressway project and Phuoc An bridge connecting Cai Mep-Thi Vai port has also been launched, along with the expansion and connections of many national highways.

Besides, many industrial parks in the southern key economic region have been expanded to create land funds for investors.

The reform of administrative procedures in many localities has also made foreign investors more confident in the southern localities.

Experts say that with the removal of bottlenecks in infrastructure and investment environment, southern provinces and cities will attract a strong wave of investment not only from Japan, but also from Western Europe and North America.

HAG to issue 130 million shares

Hoang Anh Gia Lai Joint Stock Company, which is listed on the Hochiminh Stock Exchange with stock code HAG, has announced a plan to issue 130 million shares via private placement.
As per the plan, those HAG shares will be offered at VND10,000 each, much higher than the current market price.

With this plan, Hoang Anh Gia Lai JSC is expected to mobilize VND1.3 trillion to repay debt and inject capital into its subsidiaries.

Specifically, the company will use VND323 billion for principal and interest payments for the bonds it issued on June 18, 2012.

It plans to spend VND277 billion restructuring the debt that Lo Pang Livestock JSC owed to TPBank, and inject VND700 billion into another subsidiary, Hung Thang Loi Gia Lai Company Limited. The disbursement is expected to be made from 2023 to 2024.

Hoang Anh Gia Lai JSC announced a plan to sell nearly 162 million shares at VND10,500 each in September 2022. However, the plan failed due to unfavorable market conditions.

Measures to sustain economic growth for the rest of 2023

Tax cuts are one of the most powerful instruments to boost domestic consumption under the current economic conditions where little room is left for monetary policy.

That remark was made by economic expert Trần Đình Thiên at the workshop "Fostering the Development of Domestic Market and Macroeconomic Stability" on Wednesday.

He said tax cuts hurt fiscal revenue, but it has to be done to spur consumer spending. In fact, a VAT cut of 2.0 per cent has been introduced under the rationale and it worked: Total retail sales of goods and services rose by 10 per cent in the first eight months of 2023.

As the economic indicator began to slow down in recent months, he called for deeper cuts on VAT to keep the ball rolling. He also underlined the need for measures to cut the time lag between policy formulation and implementation to improve the effects of tax policy.

"A VAT cut of 2.0 per cent is no longer enough for the economy. Companies want the VAT to be kept at lower levels, either 3.0 or 4.0 per cent," said Thiên.

Regarding monthly financial assistance, the economic expert went so far as to suggest a support package of between VNĐ3 million (US$123) to VNĐ5 million for every family in the country to boost consumption. Higher consumption, in turn, would act as a catalyst for higher production.

Phùng Thế Vinh, Deputy Director General of Kangaroo Group, said the Government had been responsive to the economic downturn. It has instructed the State Bank of Vietnam to cut lending rates to improve firms' access to cheap money.

However, the firms could not absorb the preferential loans as expected, leading to abundant untapped liquidity in the banking system and a velocity of money far lower than that in the previous years.

For the rest of the year, Vinh urged the government to keep exchange rates and interest rates stable, which, he believed, is essential to a business environment conducive to the firms.  

Lê Huy Khôi, Head of the Department of Science and Training Management, Vietnam Institute of Industrial and Trade Policy and Strategy, suggested several measures to sustain economic growth for the last months of 2023.

The first measure involves the disbursement of public investment. He said the Government should accelerate the delivery of public money to stimulate output as public investment is a driver of economic growth.

The next measure requires a rise in wages to improve worker income. With higher income, people would spend more, providing fresh impetus to domestic demand. Another measure centers around deeper cuts in interest rates to raise credits to the economy.

"Interest rates are still high. We need to slash them further to support firms," said Khôi.

Experts call for popularising Cần Giờ specialities by building brands

Building brands will enhance the value of Cần Giờ District’s agricultural specialties and enable them to reach more consumers in the domestic market and beyond, a seminar has heard in HCM City.

Speaking at the “Cần Giờ specialties and solutions to build brands of HCM City agricultural specialties" late last week, Trương Tiến Triển, deputy chairman of the district People's Committee, said the city’s only coastal district has 43,000ha of agricultural land, including 10,000ha for aquaculture with an output of 30,000 tonnes a year.

It also has 200ha of mango orchards mainly in Cần Thạnh town and Long Hòa Commune, he said.

“This is the Hòa Lộc mango variety. Farmers use fish protein to fertilise them and so the fruits have high quality and a very special taste.

“The swift-breeding industry has also developed rapidly in the district in the last 10 recent, bringing high value, and its edible bird nests are considered to be of better quality than in other areas.”

Other key agricultural products include brackish-water shrimp, oyster, clam, pangasius kunyit, and salt, he said.

The district has many specialities, but a majority without a brand name and consumers elsewhere in the country do not know about them, meaning they fail to fulfil their commercial potential, he said.

Mango, bird's nest and pangasius kunyit were registered for trademarks by 2019 by the Intellectual Property Office of Vietnam, and oyster and nipa nectar are expected to get them soon, he said.

Before the seminar the city Department of Industry and Trade and district People’s Committee organised a tour of production facilities for retail chains like Saigon Co.op, Central Retail, MM Mega Market, AEON, and Satra, and food and techlonogy experts.

Nguyễn Nguyên Phương, the department’s deputy director, said the district has diverse and quality products including some other localities do not have such as nipa nectar.

But their production is small and so not very efficient, he said.

“Building brands and developing markets for the products will be much more convenient if there is support from local authorities in developing raw material areas and ensuring product quality.”

With its unique soil, Cần Giờ is the best place to develop speciality agricultural brands for HCM City, he said.

“From preliminary evaluation, we see that edible bird's nest is a very promising product, and so the city will trial brands for Cần Giờ’s bird’s nest products as a specialty city product.”

Nguyễn Quách Nhi, food and FMCG commercial director at e-commerce company Tiki, said the edible bird’s nest market size is estimated to be worth more than US$8 billion a year globally and $800 million in Việt Nam, with an annual growth rate of 20 per cent.

Việt Nam's edible bird’s nests are highly regarded by major markets for their superior quality and potential to be priced higher than similar products from other countries, he said.

"In particular, Cần Giờ bird's nest is considered to have outstanding quality. Many large bird's nest manufacturers have registered production area codes in Cần Giờ."

It has many advantages to establish itself as the "world's best" bird nest brand, he added.

Looking at it from another perspective, distribution businesses said the output of bird's nests and other specialities from the district is still modest.

So it is necessary to develop a zoning plan for raw material areas and demonstrate to consumers the difference of its products compared to other localities, enhance product promotion and more, they added.

Võ Hoàng Anh, private label director at Saigon Co.op, said manufacturers must identify specific advantages of each product and choose appropriate positioning to create competitiveness for the product.

He emphasised the need for specialised enterprises to establish links with farmers to organise production and ensure stable quality to build consumer trust.

Distribution systems that participated in the field trip and seminar said Cần Giờ products are of good quality and suitable for modern distribution channels, with advantages in transportation to the city’s center for consumption.

However, their presence in supermarkets is limited.

They expressed their willingness to support local manufacturers and farmers from the beginning phase of production and in quality management to promoting their products in the market.

In addition to brand building, the district needs to differentiate their products, and their prices must remain competitive and focus on developing stable raw material areas to ensure quality and output to meet future demand, they said.

Efforts should be directed towards promoting the creation of geographical indications and trade indications for the products, embracing technologies in production and processing to increase their added value, they added .

Japanese investors pump $732 million into Hưng Yên

Fourteen Japanese businesses have registered to invest US$732 million in northern Hưng Yên Province's industrial parks. 

These firms were granted investment certificates by local authorities during a conference here on Wednesday, VTC News reported. 

The licensed projects included a $132 million plant producing LCD polarising films used for smartphones and cars. The plant, being financed by Nitto Việt Nam Co, has a designed capacity of 48 million products per year. 

A $45 million Cot Vietnam factory that manufactures electronic components for mobile phones and computers is expected to churn out 144.6 million units annually. 

Among others were an automotive parts manufacturing plant, capitalised at $50 million; a factory on producing mechanical and engineering equipments valued at $31 million and the construction of ready-built factories for rent, worth over $29.6 million. 

During the conference, Trần Quốc Văn, Deputy Secretary of the provincial Party Committee cum chairman of the provincial People's Committee praised the long-term relationship between Việt Nam and Japan. 

Văn said his province has signed cooperation agreements with Kanagawa provinces and Nikaho City of Japan since 2015. 

In his speech at the event, Văn also briefed Hưng Yên's geographic advantages such as locating in the centre of the Red River Delta, belonging to the northern key economic region, adjacent to the eastern gateway of Hà Nội and near Nội Bài International Airport and major seaports of the North. That has helped facilitate the provincial socio-economic development, especially industrial development.

Currently, the province is home to seven industrial parks (IPs) under operation, covering more than 1,600ha. It is striving to have 17 operational IPs by 2024, 21 IPs by 2030 and 33 IPs by 2050. 

In 2022, the province's State budget revenue reached VNĐ51.4 trillion. Its gross regional domestic product (GRDP) last year grew about 12.8 per cent. Over the past eight months of this year, the locality's GRDP growth was at 8.21 per cent.

According to Văn, the above-mentioned achievements were largely thanks to the contributions of the business community, especially Japanese firms.

Japan is now the province's leading source of foreign investment, with 173 valid projects worth over $4 billion, accounting for 61 per cent of total foreign investment registered in the locality, he said. 

For his part, Nguyễn Hữu Nghĩa, Secretary of the provincial Party Committee, said  that Hưng Yên would always stand side by side and accompanying businesses.

Provincial authorities and relevant departments and sectors were willing to create favourable conditions and the most active support for investors when investing and doing business in Hưng Yên, Nghĩa said, adding that the province considered the success of businesses as its success.

In the future, Hưng Yên would make every effort to improve the province's investment environment, implement many transportation infrastructure projects and build essential infrastructure facilities of IPs.

Nghĩa added that the province would also focus on training highly skilled human resources, and developing urban areas and tourism services while promptly removing difficulties and guiding administrative procedures for businesses, especially Japanese ones. 

Borrowers struggle to benefit from new lending policy

Borrowers are finding it challenging to obtain new loans from banks to settle their existing debts at a different bank, despite the recent implementation of a regulation permitting debt transfer.

The State Bank of Vietnam's Circular No 06/2023/TT-NHNN, effective from September 1 this year, enables borrowers to secure loans from alternative banks to settle their outstanding loans at their original bank.

Since the introduction of this lending policy, banks have offered appealing interest rates, as low as 6-7 per cent per annum, to entice new clients. Nonetheless, borrowers have reported difficulties in moving their current debts to a different bank to benefit from reduced interest rates.

A borrower said he was especially interested in this new lending policy as he had borrowed nearly VNĐ2 billion from a bank three years ago to buy an apartment and the interest rate of the loan is currently more than 14 per cent per year. He therefore hoped to get a new loan from another bank that is introducing a low interest rate of 6-7 per cent.

However, after working with the new bank, he discovered the low rate is only applied during the preferential period of 24 months at most. Since he borrowed three years ago, the preferential period had expired. Therefore, even if he transfers the debt to the new bank, they will apply a floating interest rate of around more than 10 per cent per year. If calculated carefully, the total amount he would have to pay is almost the same at both banks. Besides the interest rate, he would also need to pay other fees such as an early repayment fine and appraisal fee to transfer the loan to the new bank.

Another borrower also learned about the new lending policy and found it was infeasible for her family to benefit from the policy. She explained that if she wants to transfer her loan to a new bank to enjoy the lower interest rate, she would need to pay off the loan at the old bank, satisfy the mortgage, and then remortgage the asset to secure a loan at the new bank. Alternatively, she could use another asset as collateral for a loan at the new bank. However, the borrower said both measures are not feasible for her family because she cannot borrow enough to pay off the old debt and release the collateral, nor remortgage with a new asset.

Finance expert Đinh Trọng Thịnh said that in theory, the new lending policy provides borrowers with more flexible options. For instance, if they find another bank offering better incentives or lower interest rates for loans, they can opt to borrow from that bank to repay their current loan at the original bank. This forces banks to compete fairly, equitably and healthily in the loan market. However, most large loans at banks require collateral. Thus, it is challenging for borrowers to prepay their debts at one bank and have collateral to borrow from another.

Thịnh proposed that the State Bank of Vietnam allow commercial banks to lend based on the existing collateral. He explained that as information about loans and collateral is available at the information centre of the banking system, banks can facilitate conditions for borrowers to transfer debts from one bank to another without having to satisfy the mortgage from the old bank.

The new bank can use the available information about collateral at the old bank to re-evaluate and approve loan applications, instead of requiring customers to remortgage another asset or satisfy the mortgage at the old bank. This would make it easier for borrowers to access new loan sources, and banks would also become more competitive, Thịnh said. 

SBV rolls out measures to reign in raising US-VND exchange rate

Measures have been taken by the State Bank of Vietnam to reign in the rising US dollars against the VNĐ. 

According to an SBV report, the exchange rate for the greenback broke the VNĐ24,000 mark on September 11 and reached its highest level at VNĐ24,076 on Monday.

On the black market, the USD exchange rate on Monday was trading at around VNĐ24,320 - 24,400, an increase of about 170 VNĐ compared to the previous week.

Commercial banks reported a USD exchange rate of VNĐ24,500-24,600 earlier this month, a 3.3 per cent increase year-to-year compared to the same period last year. 

The VNĐ is facing significant pressure as the DXY index (a measure of the strength of the US dollar against a basket of six major currencies) has risen for the 10th consecutive week, marking the longest upward trend in recent years.

Economists and experts said actions taken by the US Federal Reserve (Fed) including raising interest rates and US government bond yields are contributing factors to a rising DXY index, which has reached 106 points, the highest level in the last six months. 

MB Securities (MBS) said in a report if the Fed was to continue raising interest rates by another 0.25 percentage points in November, the exchange rate could reach as high as VNĐ24,300 - 24,500 in the final months of 2023. 

In addition, SBV's recent loosening of monetary policy, in contrast to the tightening in the US, has put extra pressure on the US-VNĐ exchange rate. This is, however, not unique to Việt Nam as China and Japan, two major Asian economies, have also been loosening their purse strings. 

In contrast to the Fed's recent interest hikes, the SBV has slashed interest rates four times since May last year. 

However, experts said the SBV had ample time to prepare before making its moves and the risk was considerably lower this year. Factors that support the central bank's moves included Việt Nam's high trade surplus, inflow of FDI and remittances, which all contribute to the country's foreign currency supply.

Trần Ngọc Báu, CEO of WiGroup, a financial market research company, said the rise of the greenback was within the SBV's anticipation, and that the possibility of a sharp increase at the end of 2023 remained minimal. 

Dr Cấn Văn Lực, a member of the National Advisory Council for Monetary Policies said even if another round of interest increase was to take place in November, as announced by the Fed, fluctuation would likely be insignificant as the market would have had enough time to prepare. 

However, a rising exchange rate will still produce negative effects including higher costs for production and imported consumer goods, especially for private businesses.

Nguyễn Việt Hùng, a financial officer at the Đông Anh Mechanical Corporation said a fluctuating exchange rate would likely hurt import-independent businesses. 

Textile, leather, footwear and fruit businesses have been struggling with fluctuating exchange rates since the beginning of the year as the higher exchange rate has pushed up costs for importing machinery, equipment, and raw materials, significantly reducing the profits.

Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Nguyễn Thi Hồng, said maintaining the US-VNĐ exchange rate would likely remain a challenging task. 

She said it was important to look at the bigger picture while managing the exchange rate.

"A higher exchange rate benefits export-oriented businesses, but domestic production relies heavily on imports, with the import/GDP ratio close to 100 per cent. So, when the exchange rate rises, importing businesses face difficulties," she said. 

Her deputy Đào Minh Tú said the central bank must find a balance between interest rates and exchange rates. 

The Southeast Asian economy's trade surplus, estimated at US$20.1 billion in the first eight months of the year, as well as a record 24 per cent increase in FDI inflow are to serve as much-needed buffers for the remaining months of 2023. 

The SBV has also been making its own moves to address the rising exchange rate including the recent issuance of treasury bills, which has net absorbed nearly VNĐ30 trillion from the banking system. 

Economist Đinh Trọng Thịnh said SBV's key objective is to absorb excess money from the market, which has been produced by the government's economic stimuli including increasing public spending and slashing VAT and interest rates post-COVID-19. 

Novaland says making efforts to restructure debts

Property developer Novaland has said it is making efforts to restructure its debts and negotiate arrangements to strike a balance between the interests of bondholders and other creditors.

It said after nearly a year of economic hardships the real estate market is showing signs of recovery. 

Nevertheless, the tightening of lending policies and lingering market uncertainty remain significant hurdles, impacting the liquidity of companies, including its own, which has yet to stabilise as anticipated, it said.

In the event, its revenues and ability to raise new capital have been significantly affected, it admitted. 

“Cash accounts for the company's projects are closely monitored by banks. Consequently, Novaland faces difficulties in meeting payment obligations to both domestic and international creditors as planned.”

Novaland, which has issued international convertible bonds worth US$297 million listed in Singapore, recently engaged in discussions with an ad hoc group of bondholders about liquidity challenges that have made it unable to meet the $7.8 million interest payment obligation in time. 

It is negotiating with the group for a debt restructuring plan with support from advisory firms such as Deloitte, Sidley Austin LLP and YKVN.

It is currently undergoing comprehensive restructuring, and requires additional time for recovery, and so is seeking the co-operation of creditors to stabilise operations and fulfil financial obligations, the company said.

In recent times, with the Government's guidance and the determined efforts of local authorities and agencies, legal and investment obstacles faced by projects such as NovaWorld Phan Thiết, Aqua City, The Grand Manhattan, and others have gradually been resolved. 

The company has also resumed work on its projects like Victoria Village, NovaWorld Hồ Tràm, Aqua City, NovaWorld Phan Thiết, and The Grand Manhattan with the support of financial partners such as TPBank, MBBank and VPBank.

NovaWorld Phan Thiết, a 1,000-hectare tourism and entertainment economic city, has become a popular tourist destination. Its golf course, Circus Land amusement park and Wonderland Water Park are open seven days a week now. 

NovaWorld Phan Thiết is also progressively enhancing its resort, recreation and amusement facilities, and hopes to get five million visitors in 2024. 

Durian traders face losses amid falling prices

Durian traders in the Central Highland province of Dak Lak are facing big losses over the past two weeks as prices have sharply fallen.

Nguyen Duy Trung in Krong Pak District recently invested a large sum in durian trading after seeing the fruits were providing good prices and many people were earning big profits.

"It was a bit too late when I stepped in as the prices started to fall," Trung said. "I signed the purchase contracts with the farmers at high prices but now the prices have continued to fall as some countries have cut imports of the fruits from Vietnam."

According to Trung, durian fruits were priced at over VND90,000 per kilo three weeks ago, but they have now dropped to VND70,000 per kilo.

Another trader, Pham Duy Khoi said that he and some others were cheated by a store which exports the fruit to China.

"The exporter who is based in Tan An Ward, Buon Ma Thuot City collected the fruit from us but failed to pay us," Khoi said. "We gathered at the store asking for payment which amounted to over VND5 billion on September 23 and 24. We also reported the case to local police."

Director of the Dak Lak Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nguyen Hoai Duong, said that the province had over 12,000 hectares of durian with output reaching over 200,000 tonnes this year.

"Both farmers and traders have enjoyed good profits thanks to the high prices this year," he said. "At present, some markets have temporarily halted imports, leading to falling prices. We've called for better sharing and co-operation between farmers and traders to overcome this difficult time."

New rating agency approval shores up credit confidence

Vietnam’s corporate bond market is set for a transformative leap with the entrance of a new credit rating agency, paving the way for renewed confidence and alignment with global standards.

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) last week certified VIS Rating, enabling its operations as a credit rating agency. Backed by global giant Moody’s and top Vietnamese financial entities, the agency emerged from an initiative by the Vietnam Bond Market Association.

Starting from October 4, VIS Rating intends to offer high-quality credit rating services to domestic issuers, aiming to meet the demands of investors, issuers, and market players. CEO Tran Le Minh said it aspires to be recognised for reliability and top-tier credit services in Vietnam.

Since its inception in 2021, VIS Rating has harnessed Moody’s expertise to develop methodologies, recruit elite personnel, and produce substantial research on the corporate bond scene.

Wendy Cheong, regional head for Asia-Pacific at Moody’s Investor Service said, “VIS Rating extends Moody’s footprint in Asia-Pacific and embodies the premier services we offer in Vietnam. Our goal is to infuse global best practices and enhance VIS Rating’s potential.”

As Vietnam’s bond market expands, credit ratings will become crucial for capital access, strategy formulation, and ensuring investor trust during market shifts.

Moody’s Singapore stands as the major shareholder of VIS Rating, holding a 49 per cent stake. The other founding shareholders include ACB Securities, Dragon Capital Finance, VNDirect Securities, and two others, each holding 10.2 per cent.

Beyond VIS, FiinGroup remains active with a number of major clients. Its brand FiinRatings in Vietnam has also carved out a unique position in the market, anchored by its 15-year legacy in data analysis and independent research, further bolstered by the support of S&P and the Asian Development Bank.

In mid-September, it launched Bond Portal, providing insights into the corporate bond market and equipping investors with analytical tools.

FiinGroup chairman Nguyen Quang Thuan highlighted the growing necessity of credit ratings, not only in addressing the current issues of Vietnam’s corporate bond market, but also in shaping the growth trajectory of the banking sector in line with international norms.

“Beyond mere real estate coefficients, applying credit ratings for risk management is vital,” Thuan said, citing the State Bank of Vietnam’s move towards adopting credit risk coefficients rather than solely relying on property-related coefficients.

He believes that a wider acceptance of credit ratings would significantly foster the development of institutional investment infrastructures such as insurance funds, mutual funds, and bond funds, making the market more attractive to foreign investors.

“For instance, insurance firms or pension funds should predominantly allocate their assets to investment-grade bonds or debt instruments, only allowing a small portion for speculative-grade products,” he said.

Drawing a parallel with international practices, Thuan highlighted how countries like Thailand provide “deemed approval” for high-rated public bond offerings, alleviating regulatory clearances.

He also pointed to the Indian government’s stipulation in March this year, necessitating contractors bidding for motorway projects to possess a minimum BBB rating, thus ensuring project continuity and adherence to schedules.

Thuan also tackled concerns regarding why independent organisations were needed for credit ratings, when banks and securities firms could potentially undertake this role. “Independence and market-wide consistency are pivotal. Advisers or bondholders might find it challenging to offer impartial assessments when trading those very products,” Thuan said.

On the topic of FiinRatings competing with VIS Rating, he said that such competition was beneficial.

“The market benefits from multiple entities. It ensures choices for businesses, investors, and policy solutions for regulators. This is a complex service. Collaborating with a skilled entity accelerates the growth of Vietnam’s capital market and the nascent credit rating sector,” he said.

However, citing lessons from other capital markets, he also cautioned Vietnam against licensing a glut of credit rating agencies, pointing to pitfalls like rating shopping, as witnessed in China.

Vo Thanh Hung, Deputy Minister of Finance said, “Although credit channels hold significant weight, the stature of securities and bond markets is rising. When observing the scale, they seem almost parallel. Especially the corporate bond segment, which has weathered the notable market fluctuations well,” Hung said.

In a bid to navigate these evolving terrains, the MoF has acted swiftly. “We’ve initiated refinements in the legal segment, and dialogues have been established between businesses and potential investors, aiming to disseminate clear information and allay market fears,” Hung added. “July saw the inauguration of a distinct trading channel for corporate bonds. Presently, there are over 1,600 such bonds actively traded,” he said.

Hanoi promotes trade and investment potential to investors

A number of activities were held in Hanoi on September 27 to promote the capital's investment potential and strengthen trade between organisations, businesses, and investors.

The event was held by Hanoi Centre for Investment, Trade, and Tourism Promotion (HPA) in collaboration with the Hanoi Young Business Association.

As many as 100 businesses showcased their products, services, and outstanding technologies during the event, seeking business and investment opportunities with both domestic and foreign companies.

Le Tu Luc, deputy head of the HPA, said that the event was organised to introduce Hanoi's investment, trade and tourism promotion achievements, strengthening cooperation between international investors and businesses in Hanoi and the surrounding area.

"The HPA's organisation of this event not only helps businesses in Hanoi and the neighbouring provinces introduce their products, but also enables domestic and international businesses to connect and cooperate," he emphasised.

Over the past eight months, the city has attracted $2.34 billion worth of foreign investment, accounting for nearly 12.9 per cent of the country's total investment capital and increasing by 2.89 times over the same period in 2022. Investors from Japan, Singapore, South Korea, the United States, and the EU continue to operate large projects in the city.

They focus their investments on real estate, manufacturing and processing, construction, entertainment, accommodation, food and beverages, health, education, and more.

Bui Quang Minh, deputy head of the Hanoi Young Business Association, said that the programme was organised to demonstrate the strong support of the Hanoi authorities for the business community, expanding trade opportunities between local businesses and the whole country, and contributing to promoting the capital's socioeconomic development.

The event also highlighted the culture and attractive tourist destinations in Hanoi, thereby helping the tourism industry to flourish.

Source: VNA/SGT/VNS/VOV/Dtinews/SGGP/VGP/Hanoitimes