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Tag: Vietnam

  • Global giants eye Vietnam e-commerce logistics market

    Global giants eye Vietnam e-commerce logistics market

    The world’s largest container shipping line Maersk and U.S. express delivery company FedEx are seeking to enter Vietnam’s e-commerce logistics market. Ditlev Blicher, regional managing director for Asia-Pacific, A.P. Moller – Maersk (Maersk), was in the country this week, three months after the Danish company spent US$3.6 billion on acquiring Hong Kong firm LF Logistics.

    He said with LF Logistics’ expertise in omnichannel orders, Maersk would have a better position in the global e-commerce market, including Vietnam. He said that his company plans to offer business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) delivery services.

    Hoan Dang, head of omnichannel order fulfillment at Maersk Vietnam and Cambodia, said with the acquisition of LF Logistics, his company could join hands with e-commerce platforms to handle goods orders in the Vietnamese market.

    FedEx is integrating its services with e-commerce platforms to enable online retailers to use them without leaving them. Hardy Diec, managing director of FedEx Express Indochina, said e-commerce would continue to flourish in Vietnam.

    Earlier this month, his company opened a new $2-million operations center in Hanoi’s Bac Tu Liem District. Vietnam will be one of the top 10 countries for FedEx in terms of trade volume growth over the next five years.

    Vietnam will achieve the highest growth in the digital economy in Southeast Asia between 2022 and 2025, a report by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company have forecast. Its digital gross merchandise volume will likely reach $23 billion in 2022 and $32 billion by 2025.

    According to global firm Allied Market Research, Vietnam’s express delivery market is expected to be worth $4.88 billion by 2030 after growing at 24.1% annually, with the growth of e-commerce being one of the main drivers.

    Logistics firms are expanding their services and lowering prices.

    This month Lazada Logistics announced it would start offering omnichannel deliveries for online shops.

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  • Gold prices continue to drop

    Gold prices continue to drop

    Prices of gold bars branded SJC on Monday dropped 0.4% from the weekend to VND67.35 million ($2,716.82) per tael.

    Selling prices of gold rings remained unchanged, reaching VND54.05 million per tael. A tael is equal to 37.5 grams or 1.2 ounces.

    Globally, gold prices slipped on Monday, as a stronger U.S. dollar made the greenback-priced metal more expensive for buyers holding other currencies.

    Spot gold was down 0.2% at $1,752.66 per ounce, as of 0016 GMT. U.S. gold futures fell 0.1% to $1,751.80, according to Reuters.

    SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.2% to 908.96 tonnes on Friday from 906.93 tonnes on Wednesday.

  • Vietnam’s seafood exports nearing $11 bln in 2022

    Vietnam’s seafood exports nearing $11 bln in 2022

    Vietnam’s seafood exports this year could reach $11 billion for the first time, spearheaded by shrimp, pangasius and tuna, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

    Truong Dinh Hoe, VASEP general secretary, said at a conference in HCMC Saturday that by November, seafood exports had already crossed $10 billion, so by the end of the year, it could reach $11 billion for the first time.

    The largest seafood export markets for Vietnam are the U.S., Japan, China and the EU. The EU, the U.S., and China account for 60% of the global seafood trade and 50% of Vietnam’s export turnover in the first ten months of this year.

    Hoe said all sectors of the seafood industry grew 18-77%, but exports began to slow down amid lower purchasing power, higher interest and fluctuating exchange rates. He added that as the world enters a recession and inflation increases, demand is falling globally.

    As such, Vietnam’s seafood industry would face tough competition from competitors that offer lower costs and prices, like Ecuador or India.

    Economist Dinh The Hien said that the global economy would worsen in 2023, directly affecting the seafood industry.

    “However, businesses shouldn’t be too pessimistic; they should search for new opportunities to grow,” he said.

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  • Tech professionals in Vietnam prefer foreign companies

    Tech professionals in Vietnam prefer foreign companies

    Six takeaways from the most-updated nationwide report reveal what IT professional salaries and expectations in 2022-2023 look like.

    Designed to address and understand the multifaceted IT job market with tons of “rosy myths” about salary and tasks, “Salary & Job Expectation of IT Professionals in Vietnam 2022-2023” builds on a detailed analysis of 1,257 IT workers’ responses across the country.

    With an employee-based orientation, the latest report reveals, including but not limited to, IT professionals’ salaries based on positions and experiences, expectations among employers, and desired improvement areas.

    Information technology (IT) jobs have been in high demand as technology products and services become more integral to our lives. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects the computer science and IT industry’s employment rate to grow 21% from 2021 to 2031, much faster than the average for all occupations.

    The job market in Vietnam is not an exception, which is witnessing an expansion in the IT field regarding the number of companies and jobs. While there are still unexplored facets in the field, the report titled “Salary & Job Expectation of IT Professionals in Vietnam 2022-2023”, for the first time ever, has been released to reveal in-depth aspects of IT jobs based on 1,257 responses from IT professionals.

    Game, Data, and AI/Machine Learning positions have the highest salary compared to others with the same years of experience.

    According to self-report salaries from IT professionals in different types and years of experience, IT professionals in the field of Data and AI/Machine Learning, who have at least three working years, can earn a monthly salary of VND30,500,000.

    Meanwhile, with the same experience, Front-end Developers and Designers make only VND23,000,000VND and VND28,000,000 per month, respectively. Even professionals with more experience in the job market receive lower salaries or just slightly higher than those in Data and AI/Machine Learning positions.

    Four-year experienced Back-end and Full-stack Developers, for instance, have a median monthly salary of VND30,000,000 and VND29,000,000, correspondingly. Mobile Developers with five experienced years can make VND33,500,000 per month. In contrast, by merely acquiring two years of experience, a Game Developer can receive a monthly salary of VND27,000,000.

    Trendy and specialized programming languages like Python, TypeScript, and Go may guarantee higher pay than other skills. IT professionals mastering these languages have a monthly salary of VND30 million to VND40 million with three to five years of experience. HTML/CSS, conversely, is the lowest-paid skill, with a salary of VND16 million per month.

    With skills in Dart and C# programming languages, it may be more challenging for IT professionals to earn a competitive salary. Their monthly median salary is VND22,500,000, with four-year experience, and VND28,500,000, with five-year experience.

    JavaScript, Bash/Shell, and Ruby languages are worth keeping an eye on if IT professionals want higher earnings, thanks to their essentiality and productivity.

    The Covid-19 pandemic might impact the way employees in all professions think about their working modalities. A total 70.2% of 1,257 IT professionals participating in the research were attracted and cared more about job offers that allowed hybrid working mode. Nevertheless, it was not their top concern when applying for a job.

    The top four topics an IT professional would love to discuss during a job interview include the working style of future leaders, company culture, company/product development potentiality, and new challenges to conquer.

    Interestingly, while salaries do not appear as IT workers’ most prioritized consideration, a large number of them expected to receive at least a 20% salary increase to accept a new job offer.

    Salary is the main deciding factor for IT employees when it comes to reasons for quitting their current job. Unsatisfying salaries and rare/no chances to raise wages are the top two motives leading IT professionals to give up. Two more are no challenges in working tasks and rare/no promotion opportunities. Employees may find no conquering tasks when their assignments are too easy, on a small scale, or already in shape. Factions and politics at the workplace also contribute to employee decisions to resign.

    Regarding an ideal company, IT professionals tend to refer to corporations originating from European countries, America, or Canada. Vietnamese companies come in third place, which is moderately higher than Australian and New Zealand corporates.

    Once again, flexibility to work at home or no timekeeping required plays an important role to make employees stay loyal. Other factors concerning company culture are getting along with colleagues and reasonable workload, particularly, limited overtime tasks.

    A clear vision of prospective growth from the company, leaders and themselves is the most significant preference of IT professionals when considering staying with a company. They would love not only to know their development and promotion potential but also to have leaders who can provide explicit foresight and orientations.

    Most IT professionals want to enhance their technical skills & knowledge for short-term plans, covering 60% of responses, while switching to management skills and positions involve long-term objectives.

    The top two improvement areas that they focus on are English and technological expertise. They are looking forward to learning new programming languages including Python, Go, and TypeScript at 25,3%, 22,4%, and 15%, respectively. If you find those languages familiar, yes, you read it from the second takeaway. It is reasonable to learn skills that bring you more stipend.

    The report has been released for the very first time, conducted and published by ITviec, the leading job site for IT recruitment in Vietnam. The report’s findings aim to provide employers a better understanding of each IT position/type, thus, developing more successful job offers.

    Qualitative information was gathered via in-depth interviews with professionals in typical IT roles. An online survey was employed consisting of multiple short questions and can be completed within 20 minutes. Qualified respondents are ITviec users and from other sources that do not relate to the ITviec platform. The report does not include IT freelancers and people who do not work in IT.

  • Bank deposit interest rates surpass 10%

    Bank deposit interest rates surpass 10%

    Some banks have hiked deposit interest rates to 10-10.35% amid low liquidity in the system. NCB is paying the highest interest rate of 10.35% for 12-month deposits of VND1 billion (US$40,300) downwards made online. For six-month deposits, it is offering 10%. Over the past month, lenders have increased deposit interest rates frequently, even weekly in some cases.

    At least ten banks are now offering more than 9% deposit interest rates. Most have also launched promotions offering higher rates than officially listed to attract depositors. MSB is offering 9.9% to new clients if they place a deposit of at least VND1 million.

    Many, including Kienlongbank, GPBank, BaoVietBank, PGBank, OCB, VPBank, VietBank, Sacombank, and SeABank, are paying over 9% for 12-month deposits. Public banks are offering around 8% for 12 months.

    For periods of below six months most banks are paying around 6%. Banks lack liquidity and so have had to sharply hike the rates to meet the needs of business borrowers, Nguyen Quoc Hung, general secretary of the Vietnam Banks Association, said.

    The director of a large bank said the tightened bond and property markets mean some lenders have to increase deposit interest rates to ensure liquidity steeply.

    In the last two months, interest rates on deposits of six months or more have increased by 1.5-2.5 percentage points, leading to higher lending interest rates. Floating interest rates are predicted to soon surge to 15% yearly for individual borrowers and 11-12% for businesses.

    Now they are around 13% and 9%.

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  • Old iPhones back in vogue as new models remain beyond reach

    Old iPhones back in vogue as new models remain beyond reach

    With the iPhone 14 series expensive and difficult to obtain, many Vietnamese consumers are turning to used models.

    Huy Quoc of Hanoi has been looking to buy a phone with about VND20 million ($800) in hand. Originally, he planned to buy an iPhone 14 or an iPhone 14 Pro Max via instalment payments. Retail prices of iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max are in the VND28.9-32.5 million ($1,165-1,310) range.

    However, after a few weeks of deliberation, he decided to buy a used 13 Pro Max in mid-November. Quoc said the “99%” (almost new) iPhone 13 Pro Max 256 GB cost him VND 20.5 million.

    He felt the price and six-month warranty provided by the store made his purchase a reasonable choice given his current budget and needs.

    “Even though it’s not the latest product, this is still a phone model with a more advanced configuration and design than the regular iPhone 14, with more stock, no waiting and not as costly as the 14 Pro Max,” he said.

    Many people seem to have adopted Quoc’s approach. Several retailers in Vietnam say that the number of people looking to buy used iPhones has increased significantly in November.

    The most bought used models are the Pro series of iPhone 12 and 13, and the regular and Pro Max versions of iPhones 11.

    The CellphoneS chain said that sales of second-hand iPhones in October and November increased by 40% compared to the previous months.

    “The iPhone 13 Pro Max is the most popular item among consumers, accounting for 40-45% of old iPhone sales,” said Nguyen Lac Huy, the company’s representative.

    At the HnamMobile chain, the iPhone 11 Pro Max model launched three years ago and currently priced at VND11 million continues to be the most popular old model, accounting for nearly 40% of second-hand phone sales, followed by 12 Pro / Pro Max, 13 Pro / Pro Max, each with 20%.

    According to Xa Que Nguyen, CEO of HnamMobile, pre-owned iPhones are now quite large in number and vary in models.

    “In the context of the genuine iPhone 14 being in short supply and of high price, older models, especially the Pro and Pro Max versions, are becoming the go-to option for many domestic users,” Nguyen said.

    According to store representatives, after sales of the iPhone 14 began mid-October, many people bought new models, indirectly creating a supply of used iPhones in the market.

    The new 128 GB VN/A iPhone 13 Pro Max is currently selling for about VND27 million, while an old one can be bought for VND20-21 million. The old iPhone 11 costs VND7-8 million, VND3 million lower than the new one. The iPhone 11/12 Pro Max can only be purchased as used devices.

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  • Workers worry about pink slip as global economic woes dry up orders

    Workers worry about pink slip as global economic woes dry up orders

    With her company planning to cut its payroll from 300 to 20, Ngoc has a constant dread of being fired, and does not even dare take sick leave.

    “Everyone goes to work with a constant worry, not knowing who will be fired next,” she says.

    She returns home at 9 p.m. after four straight shifts. “Our company does not have new orders, and so people have to manage existing ones.”

    She works for a steel company in the southern province of Long An that does not have enough cash flows to pay salaries and so is laying off workers gradually.

    Those still with jobs have to work harder and harder.

    Ngoc works overtime, but does not get extra pay though the law requires payment of 150-300% of normal wages for overtime.

    “My salary is VND250,000 (US$10) per day. My overtime rate remains the same. But I don’t dare quit since I don’t know what to do next.”

    Ngoc is one of many workers worried about losing their job amid the fewer orders due to rising global inflation and economic instability.

    The Long An Province Trade Union of Industrial Parks recently reported that more than 4,100 workers in local industrial parks have been sacked or had their working hours reduced.

    In another province next to HCMC, Binh Duong, some 28,000 workers have been laid off without compensation this year, and 240,000 others have cut their working hours.

    In Ho Chi Minh City, 2,858 workers have been let go from 27 companies.

    More than 61,400 people in Hanoi applied for unemployment benefits in the first 10 months of this year, up 14% from the same period last year, according to the Hanoi Employment Service Center.

    The HCM City Business Association said a number of textile and apparel businesses have had to downsize their workforce and production as a result of lack of orders and financial challenges.

    As the pandemic faded away orders had surged from the fourth quarter of 2021, and this lasted until July this year.

    But recently consumption has declined drastically as a result of high inflation, particularly in Vietnam’s major textile and apparel export markets such as the U.S. and E.U.

    The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has had a significant impact on logistics and raw material costs. Some 95% of textile and apparel exports to Russia have come from Vietnam, but shipments have fallen by 42% during the conflict.

    Other challenges businesses must deal with include the strengthening dollar, rising oil prices and surging bank interest rates.

    Le, a garment worker in Binh Duong, has also been particularly worried since her company has laid off close to 1,000 employees recently.

    Those remaining are rotated due to the lack of orders at the moment.

    She says: “There is far less work to do. It will take us just two to three hours to complete the work. The salary is not enough for daily expenses, but I don’t know where to apply for a new job since all companies face the same challenges.”

    Mai, a worker at a leather footwear company in Ho Chi Minh City, is not so lucky and is set to get a pink slip this month.

    She says: “Many of our company’s products are unsold. Frequently buyers complain about and return products, which causes the inventory to swell. Before Covid sometimes I would not have time to relax, but now I spend way too much time not working.”

    Most people are trying to retain their jobs at least until Tet so that they can get the annual bonus.

    “After a year of hard work, everyone looks forward to the Tet bonus to take care of our family. If I quit now, there will be no Tet bonus, and getting a new job at year-end is incredibly difficult.”

    A loan package worth VND10 trillion ($402.37 million) out of a total of VND20 trillion has been urgently rolled out to provide immediate support to workers at industrial parks across the country since tens of thousands are losing their jobs or having their working hours and wages reduced.

    The union is also making an effort to assist workers during this Lunar New Year.

    The Binh Duong Province Confederation of Labor is trying to mobilize resources along with union funding to support workers through the difficult period until they can return to work.

    Le and other workers hope things will get better in the new year.

    The Bac Giang Province native says she will try to stay at this job at least through Tet. She feels luckier than others for still having a job though it does not pay too well.

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  • Electric motorbike startup raises another $8 mln

    Electric motorbike startup raises another $8 mln

    Vietnamese electric motorbike startup Dat Bike has secured $8 million in a funding round, bringing the total since its establishment to $16.5 million.

    The round was led by returning investor, Singapore-based Jungle Ventures, with participation from GSR Ventures, Innoven Capital, Wavemaker Partners, and Delivery Hero Ventures – the investment arm of Foodpanda’s parent firm.

    The startup will use the new round of funding to invest in technology, scale production, product development and hiring talent, said Nguyen Ba Son, founder and CEO of Dat Bike.

    Founded in 2019, Dat Bike says its revenue grew 10 times over the past 12 months.

    The launch of its latest model, Weaver 200, has solved the problems of performance and range as it has a maximum capacity of 6,000W, covering 200 km with a 3-hour charge, Son said.

    The startup has also launched Dat Charge – an ultra-fast charging station for its electric bikes, which allows charge for a 100km trip in 20 minutes and 150km in 30 minutes. This is the highest electric bike charging speed in the country at present, according to the company.

    After four years of operations, Dat Bike has three stores in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi and Danang. It plans to enter other Tier 1 cities, including Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, Nha Trang, Binh Duong and Can Tho, soon.

  • Gold prices surge as Fed signals slower rate hikes

    Gold prices surge as Fed signals slower rate hikes

    Marked ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are placed in a cart at the Krastsvetmet non-ferrous metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia March 10, 2022.

    Gold prices rose as soon as the U.S. Federal Reserve announced that it may slow the pace of interest rate hikes in the future. The price of SJC branded gold bars surged VND100,000 ($4.04) from the previous day to VND67.6 million per tael. A tael is equal to 37.5 grams or 1.2 ounces.

    The selling price of gold rings also increased by VND200,000 to VND54.1 million per tael.

    SJC gold prices are typically higher than the world average by some VND15.5 million per tael

    The minutes of the Fed’s Nov. 1-2 meeting showed that a “substantial majority” of Fed policymakers agreed it would “likely soon be appropriate” to slow the pace of interest rate hikes.

    Fed fund futures are now pricing in an 85% chance of 50-basis point (bps) increase in the December meeting, after four straight 75 bps hikes.

    Globally, gold prices bounced above the key $1,750an ounce level on Thursday, consolidating gains after minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest meeting signalled slower interest rate hikes.

    Spot gold rose 0.4% to $1,755.73 per ounce by 0321 GMT. U.S. gold futures advanced 0.6% to $1,755.90.

  • Dollar drops against dong

    Dollar drops against dong

    TPBank let the dollar slide 0.004% to VND24,854. Techcombank sold it at VND24,852, down 0.004%.

    The State Bank of Vietnam set its exchange rate at VND23,671, also down 0.004%.

    The dollar was sold VND24,940 at unofficial exchange points, down 0.4% from Wednesday.

    The U.S. dollar was broadly weaker on Thursday as investors, encouraged by the prospect of a slower pace of interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve, placed bets on riskier assets.

    The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 0.066% at 105.830, after sliding 1% overnight.

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  • Mercedes recalls nearly 1,000 vehicles over fire risk

    Mercedes recalls nearly 1,000 vehicles over fire risk

    Mercedes is recalling 966 cars in Vietnam due to fire risks related to electrical short circuits in the trunk control modules and faulty trim bars on rear doors.

    The recall covers three models – C300, GLE, and GLS imported via official channels in Vietnam. Of these, 126 recalled Mercedes C300 cars were made between May 2021 and May 2022.

    The remaining 840 units – GLE 450 4Matic, GLS 450 4Matic, GLS Maybach 480 4Matic, and GLS Maybach 600 4Matic – were made between July 2019 and January 2022.

    With the C300 model (W206 generation), there is a risk of rainwater ingress at the rear trunk. Moisture can thus seep into the signal acquisition and actuation module (SAM module) inside the trunk, the carmaker said.

    In this case, short circuits may occur in the control modules and fire risks cannot be eliminated entirely. In addition, short-circuiting can lead to various other problems, such as taillight damage. The company has recalled vehicles to fit a waterproof cover over the module that receives the signal and activates it to prevent problems.

    The GLE and GLS models are being recalled to repair the trim bar in the triangular window (rear door) because they may not meet specifications due to deviations in the assembly process. As a result, the decorative bars may detach from the vehicle while in motion, potentially causing accidents or injuries to other road users.

    The above models are being recalled at Mercedes Vietnam’s authorized dealers system nationwide, and repairs are done free of charge. Fixing the error on the C300 takes about 60 minutes, and procedures for the remaining lines about half that time. The recall program will run from November 10, 2022 to December 31, 2027.

    Mercedes Vietnam has said that it will also provide free error correction support for C300, GLE, and GLS models not imported via official channels that are on the global recall list of Mercedes AG.

  • VinFast ships first electric vehicles to US

    VinFast ships first electric vehicles to US

    VinFast had shipped its first batch of 999 cars to the U.S., capping a five-year bid to develop an auto production hub in Vietnam for markets in North America and Europe.

    The company said that the first cars are expected to be handed over to customers by the end of December.

    VinFast Chief Executive Le Thi Thu Thuy said some of the VF 8 electric SUVs being shipped on Friday would be sent to U.S. car subscription service Autonomy but the majority would go to retail buyers who have ordered the car.

    Thuy said VinFast expected to be able to ship a second batch of cars to the United States, its first export market, around January.

    VinFast is in the process of building an electric vehicle plant in North Carolina that is awaiting final regulatory approval from local officials.

    Thuy said the company expected to start production at the North Carolina factory from July 2024 and that electric vehicles built there would qualify for incentives under the terms of the Inflation Reduction Act signed by U.S. President Joe Biden.

    The Inflation Reduction Act, as currently written, requires automakers to have 50% of critical minerals used in EV batteries come from North America or U.S. allies by 2024, rising to 80% by the end of 2026.

    Major automakers have said those targets are unrealistic and it was not immediately clear how VinFast would meet the sourcing requirements.

    “The IRA came as a surprise to all of us but it doesn’t really impact our strategy in the U.S.,” Thuy told Reuters. “As soon as we start manufacturing cars in the U.S., our customers will be eligible (for) the tax incentive.”

    VinFast said last week that Autonomy had ordered 2,500 electric vehicles, its largest corporate order to date. VinFast has said it has almost 65,000 orders globally in total and expects to sell 750,000 EVs annually by 2026.

    The North Carolina factory project is running months behind schedule, based on the company’s initial targets, and the first shipment of EVs built by VinFast was short of the initial goal to deliver as many as 5,000 cars built at its factory in Haiphong by December.

    VinFast officials said the number 999 for the vehicles shipped in the first batch had been chosen because it is considered a lucky number in Vietnam.

    “There is no luckier number than 999,” Thuy said. The Panamanian-chartered transport ship used to send the first shipment of VinFast EVs had the capacity to carry up to 2,000 vehicles, officials said.

    Shares in VinFast’s listed parent company, Vingroup, which also has property and resort development businesses, were up 5.41% on Friday morning.

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  • Thai durian farmers feel threatened as Vietnam makes China debut

    Thai durian farmers feel threatened as Vietnam makes China debut

    Thai farmers who’ve enjoyed a virtual monopoly in exporting fresh durian to China are worried about Vietnam entering the fray because the latter’s proximity to the importer generates several advantages.

    When Vietnam’s first batch of fresh durian was exported to China under official quota in September, Thai farmer Busaba Nakpipat said she was concerned about heightened competition in a market that Thailand has dominated for decades.

    “Thailand used to be the only country allowed to export fresh durians to China, while Vietnam used to export processed durian,” she said. “But now Vietnam is our competitor and it worries me.”

    During a trip to Vietnam in September, Busaba saw an increasing number of durian orchards and found there was large potential in the country to further expand cultivation of the special fruit.

    Vietnam has been exporting processed durian to China for years, but now that the export of fresh durian to the world’s largest consumer market has been approved, local farmers see a great opportunity to make bigger profits.

    China has approved exports of fresh durian from nearly 3,000 hectares in Vietnam. It took Vietnam four years to negotiate the approval as China has become a difficult market with high quality standards.

    “Our exports need to meet Chinese consumers’ standards and we need to respect their desires and regulations. That is how we can ensure a sustainable export channel to this market,” said To Ngoc Son, deputy head of the Asia and Africa division under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

    Industry insiders in Thailand view this development with some trepidation because its market dominance is threatened now.

    Thailand was the first country to export fresh durian to China. In 2021, Thai durian exports to China grew at a record 68% year-on-year to more than 875,000 tons.

    However, Vietnamese farmers have an advantage over their Thai counterparts because they can afford to pick durians for export later than in Thailand. Shipments from Vietnam take less time to reach China, said Thai academic and agriculture specialist Sakda Sinives.

    “Even without any clear difference in terms of taste … the riper fruit from Vietnam will slowly attain higher prices from buyers, while the price of durians from Thailand will fall. This quality control issue is why Thai [durian production] will fall as farmers can no longer shoulder the costs,” Sakda said.

    Sakda said that many traders operating in Thailand – more than a few acting on behalf of buyers from mainland China – have moved to Vietnam, lured by higher profit margins though very few Vietnamese farms have received export approval from China, he added.

    Long way to go

    However, Vietnamese officials say farmers in the country have a long way to go in improving their standards and practices to ensure export of high quality fruit.

    The nearly 3,000 hectares of durian orchards approved for exports to China only account for 3.5% of total area dedicated to cultivating the fruit.

    In the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, where many durian orchards are located, only 16 out of 25 applications were approved by Chinese officials.

    “Some farmers are not aware of the benefits of being approved. Of those who have been approved, some do not keep a careful record of their farming activities,” said Vo Thanh Toan, an agriculture expert in Krong Pak District.

    Other officials have said that Chinese buyers have warned Vietnamese farmers about the failure to follow their standards by growing durian in the same area with other fruits, which increases the risks of pests and diseases. Some farmers have been warned about low hygiene and weak anti-Covid-19 measures.

    Nguyen Thi Thu Huong, deputy head of the Plant Protection Department, expressed concern at a recent forum that some Vietnamese durian farmers who have not been approved by Chinese officials are looking for ways to export to the neighboring country illegally.

    Farmers have registered to export 1.3 million tons of durian to China a year, which is double the approved amount by Chinese officials, suggesting that unapproved farmers are trying to add their fruit to the inventory of approved ones, she said.

    “If Chinese officials find out, all our negotiations and efforts of the last four years will be thrown away.”

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  • Gold demand recovers to its pre-pandemic level

    Gold demand recovers to its pre-pandemic level

    Vietnam’s gold consumption reached 45.6 tons the first nine months of 2022, compared to 45 tons during the same period in the pre-pandemic year of 2019.

    In Q3, the country’s gold demand more than tripled to 12 tons from 3.3 tons a year earlier. Bullion and coin sales rose to 8.5 tons from 2.4 tons, and jewelry sales to 3.5 tons from 0.9 tons, according to a report by the World Gold Council.

    Andrew Naylor, Managing Asia-Pacific Director of (excluding China) of WGC, said Vietnam’s economic recovery boosted gold demand in Q3.

    In the first nine months of last year, consumption was just 34.5 tons because of pandemic impacts .

    In Vietnam, gold prices in have gained by over 9.3% since the beginning of the year.

    On Tuesday, gold price at the state-owned Saigon Jewelry Company (SJC) dropped 0.15% to VND67.4 million ($2,712) per tael. A tael is equal to 37.5 grams or 1.2 ounces. Jewelry firm DOJI maintained its price at VND67.4 million.

    In total, the world’s gold demand amounted to 1,181 tonnes in July-September, up 28% from 922 in the same period in 2021, the WGC said.

    Demand for gold was also strong from jewelers and buyers of gold bars and coins, the WGC said in its latest quarterly report, but exchange traded funds (ETFs) storing bullion for investors shrank.

    Gold is typically seen as a safe asset for times of uncertainty or turmoil, but many financial investors sold shares in gold-backed ETFs as interest rates rose and pushed up returns on other assets.

    “Looking ahead, we anticipate central bank buying and retail investment to remain strong,” Reuters quoted WGC analyst Louise Street as saying.

    “We also expect to see jewelery demand continue to perform strongly in some regions such as India and Southeast Asia,” she said.

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  • Gasoline prices drop after 4 consecutive hikes

    Gasoline prices drop after 4 consecutive hikes

    Vietnam’s RON95 gasoline price dropped 0.34% to VND23,780 ($0.96) per liter after rising in the last four adjustments.

    E5 RON92 price fell 0.18% to VND22,670.

    Diesel dropped 0.72% to VND24,800. The Ministry of Finance has acknowledged an updated transportation cost of importing fuel to Vietnam in the Monday adjustment for the second time this month.

    Vietnam’s refined fuel imports in the first 10 months of 2022 rose 22.8% from a year earlier to 7.13 million tonnes, but costs rose 123.8% to $7.37 billion.