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Việt Nam continues successful economic story. — VNA/VNS Photo

BERLIN — Credendo Group’s offices in Germany and Austria have published a study to evaluate the level of risk in Việt Nam, which emphasises that the Southeast Asian country is continuing its successful economic story after its good performance in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.

The article quotes the latest country study of Credendo, saying that Việt Nam has been one of the few highly resilient countries during the unprecedented COVID-19 shock.

The swift, strict and very effective containment of the virus after the outbreak in neighbouring China largely explains this, it says, noting that an early travel ban, testing and wide-scale contact tracing on top of the containment measures have helped keep the virus under control.

While most countries were severely hit and hindered by the economic impact of the virus, Việt Nam’s economy continued to operate at a good albeit slower pace despite an initial high level of business disruption, it says.

Credendo’s study shows that in 2020, Việt Nam had exceptional economic performance while advanced and emerging economies in all the world’s regions have suffered a record recession.

The study says for Việt Nam, the global demand slump was more than offset by the strong global demand for medical products, electronics and computers resulting from the COVID-19 crisis. Hence, exports of goods grew last year.

Increased public investments in infrastructure also played a significant role in supporting economic activity. A more accommodative monetary policy – including the State Bank of Việt Nam’s policy interest rate cut from 6 per cent to 4 per cent – brought an extra stimulus.

According to Credendo, Việt Nam remains largely immune to the further waves of the virus that are currently affecting many parts of the world. Hence, the Vietnamese authorities will take time to vaccinate the population.

Việt Nam is confidently looking ahead to continue the country’s economic success story, which has been characterised by average growth of 6.8 per cent in the past two decades.

The study stresses that an impressive outcome in the COVID-19 context lies in the fact that Việt Nam’s economic and financial risks have not increased. Even though GDP growth reached its lowest level since the mid-1980s, it was in positive territory in 2020 – unlike for most of the country’s peers in the region – and is expected to accelerate strongly this year and towards 6.5 per cent – 7 per cent in 2022.

Meanwhile, Việt Nam’s external debt ratios remain low and debt service has barely increased, whereas the current account surplus is persisting despite some narrowing, it says, adding that post-COVID-19 prospects are positive for those risk factors on the back of a global economic recovery.

So far, Việt Nam has been benefitting from the changing commercial environment and ongoing supply chain re-organisation.

The study says COVID-19 has shaken global supply chains, which could benefit Việt Nam in the long term, as it is seen as a stable investment location for business relocation in South-East Asia.

In addition, free trade agreements (FTAs) that Việt Nam signed in the 2019-20 period, such as the European Union-Việt Nam FTA (EVFTA) or the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), will help boost its trade and FDI inflows.

Over the past few years, Việt Nam has become a magnet for the biggest multinationals such as Samsung and Apple, which are attracted in particular by strong growth prospects, a low-cost workforce and an investment-friendly climate, to set up large manufacturing sites.

Credendo’s article also stresses that at the 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Việt Nam, which ended in early February, the general political direction for the coming years was confirmed, with the economy and its continued liberalisation as a key priority and guarantor of the social and political stability.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Credendo has kept its political risk ratings unchanged. The ST political risk rating is likely to remain at a solid 2/7 thanks to resilient liquidity. It forecasts that the assessment will be improved further after the COVID-19 pandemic ends, the global economic situation normalises and Việt Nam’s strong economic momentum resumes.

Credendo is a European credit insurance group with offices across the world. This group operates in all areas of commercial credit insurance and political risk insurance, as well as provides risk insurance products worldwide. — VNS

One slide from Boeing’s 2020 Commercial Market Outlook (CMO) ranks Việt Nam in the top 5 countries which add the most airlines capacity between 2010-19.

HÀ NỘI — Southeast Asia will need 4,400 new airplanes valued at US$700 billion to support expanding demand for air travel over the next 20 years, said Darren Hulst, Boeing vice president of Commercial Marketing.

In an online conference yesterday, Hulst quoted Boeing’s 2020 Commercial Market Outlook (CMO), saying: “The intra-Southeast Asian market will become the fifth largest in the world by 2039, and the vast domestic and regional air-travel network across the region positions it well for a post-pandemic recovery.”

With low-cost carriers providing affordable service and added capacity, CMO estimated traffic growth in Southeast Asia to grow by 5.7 per cent annually in the next 20 years, making the region the second largest aviation market in the Asia-Pacific region after China.

Boeing, at the same time, projected the region’s commercial airplane fleet to grow 5.3 per cent annually during the period while the demand for aftermarket commercial services could reach US$790 billion.

Hulst said: “Southeast Asia’s fundamental growth drivers remain robust. With an expanding middle-class and growth in private consumption, the region’s economy has grown by nearly 70 per cent over the last decade, which increases propensity to travel,” adding: “Governments in the region continue to recognise the travel and tourism sectors as important drivers of economic growth.”

Boeing’s vice president said: “Indonesia, Thailand, Việt Nam, Malaysia and the Philippines are the markets that most contribute to the growth in the global aviation market. They are also places with more room for expansion because of the emerging middle class, which could be 60 million new passengers in the next 15 years.”

Hulst also considered Việt Nam as the fastest growing market in terms of growth of air travel in the region with the advantage of a strong domestic market and the recent control of the pandemic.

Mentioning the demand for airplanes in the region, he said though the near-term airplane deliveries were impacted as a result of the pandemic, Boeing estimated operators would need more than 3,500 new single-aisle airplanes in the region by 2039 as the low-cost-carriers have the highest market penetration globally.

The airplane maker said twin-aisle airplanes such as the 777X and 787 Dreamliner still remain foundational to Southeast Asia’s air travel industry, adding one in four twin-aisle airplanes delivered to the broader Asia-Pacific region would go to a carrier operating in Southeast Asia. It forecast the region would need 760 new widebodies by 2039.

As the region’s commercial aviation services growth remained promising in the long term, said the CMO, Southeast Asia commercial services were valued at $790 billion over the next 20 years, a slight increase from last year’s projection, driven largely by growth in freighter conversions and digital solutions and analytics. With such estimation, Southeast Asia expected to require 183,000 more commercial pilots, cabin crew members and aviation technicians.

Globally, Boeing forecast the demand for 43,110 new commercial airplanes and the demand for aftermarket services to be equivalent to US$9 trillion over the next two decades when world air cargo traffic was projected to grow 4 per cent annually due to solid industrial production and world trade. The CMO said freighters would remain the backbone of the cargo industry with the need for 930 new and 1,500 converted freighters during the same span. — VNS

Nam Ô Reef, located in Liên Chiều District, Đà Nẵng City, is in the most beautiful time of the year, attracting many people and tourists. — VNA/VNS Photo Trần Lê Lâm

ĐÀ NẴNG — About 17km from central Đà Nẵng City, Nam Ô Reef is like a beautiful hidden gem, waiting to show its beauty when spring arrives.

Nguyễn Thành Nam has been leading tours in Đà Nẵng for more than a decade and he says most tourists cannot help but be amazed at the beautiful nature of Nam Ô Reef.

“The reefs combine with beautiful sand, clear blue seawater, and green trees to become a must-visit destination for nature lovers when coming to Đà Nẵng,” said Nam.

“During spring, when the tide recedes, rocks of different shapes and sizes reveal they are covered with green moss. They look so beautiful, just like green pearls.”

Born in Đà Nẵng and spending his childhood living near the reef, Nam has been coming to the place since it was just a pristine beach where fishermen in Nam Ô Village made their living.

“The name can be referred to as ‘The beach located in the south of Châu Ô’, it also means ‘southern gate’,” said the 35-year-old tour guide.

“Nam Ô Reef is about 500m long jutting out into the sea with a dense layer of rock hidden under the cool blue seawater. There’re many rock layers, stacked to form many unique shapes.”

“By lunar January, when the weather warms up, green moss begins to grow on the rocks. The best time to enjoy this moment is dawn when the sun comes up, the tide recedes, beautiful rocks formed in all shapes are revealed, mixed in the sand and covered with a carpet of green moss,” he added.

Rocks covered with green moss appear like hidden gems at the low tide. — VNA/VNS Photo Trần Lê Lâm

Visitor Anh Thư from Thanh Khê District of Đà Nẵng said:

“Đà Nẵng has many beautiful beaches such as Mỹ Khê, Phạm Văn Đồng and Mân Thái. However, this is the first time my family has gone to Nam Ô.”

“The air here is so fresh. At this time of spring, the rocks are covered with a layer of green moss which is so charming.

“This is an opportunity for my whole family to experience the life of fishermen in the coastal fishing village. This place is also an ideal destination for photographers,” said Thư.

Speaking of photography, nearby the reef, Quang Thanh from HCM City was looking the best camera angles for his photos.

“I’m a photographer from Sài Gòn and I come here to capture the beauty of this place. It has to be spring if you want to get the best out of it.

“I took many pictures about the moss season in the central coastal provinces. In Nam Ô, large and small rocks mix with many different shapes and combine with the dawn light passing through the rocks, creating very vivid and unique photos,” he said.

Tourists come to visit and take photos at Nam Ô Reef. — VNA/VNS Photo Trần Lê Lâm

After getting up in the early morning, you can buy delights from the sea caught by fishermen in the village.

Fresh squid, shrimp, and fish thrashing when being pulled from the sea and the enthusiasm of the local people give tourists an unforgettable experience.

This place is also home to the Nam Ô fish sauce village which has existed for more than 400 years. Last year, the village was honoured as the National Intangible Cultural Heritage. — VNS

Shopping on Shopee e-commerce platform. — Photo congthuong.vn

HÀ NỘI — The Vietnamese e-commerce market is forecast to continue to boom in 2021, with revenue surpassing last year’s figure.

A report by the Việt Nam e-Commerce and Digital Economy Agency (iDEA) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade showed that with 53 per cent of the population participating in online shopping, the e-commerce market in Việt Nam grew 18 per cent, reaching $11.8 billion last year, accounting for 5.5 per cent of total retail sales of consumer goods and services nationwide.

Nguyễn Thế Quang, the agency’s deputy director, said e-commerce had had an impressive year of growth and would continue to explode this year and beyond.

According to the national master plan on e-commerce development in 2021-2025, by 2025, up to 55 per cent of the population will participate in online shopping, with the average value of online purchases of goods and services reaching US$600 per person annually.

The revenue of the B2C e-commerce model increases by 25 per cent each year, reaching $35 billion, accounting for 10 per cent of the total retail sales of goods and services in the whole country.

Việt Nam has a growth rate of retail market share among the top three countries in the region.

From 2015 up to now, the growth rates of the three largest internet economies in the region have averaged 35 – 36 per cent, of which, Việt Nam grew by 36 per cent, Indonesia 41 per cent, and the Philippines 30 per cent.

Nielsen research shows that, since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, the demand for shopping on e-commerce floors has increased sharply.

Last year, 70 per cent of Vietnamese people had access to the internet and 53 per cent of e-wallet users made payments when buying online, up 28 per cent compared to 2019.

In Hà Nội and HCM City, e-commerce activities grew strongly and accounted for 70 per cent of the total number of e-commerce transactions of the country.

According to Amazon Việt Nam, Vietnamese sellers exceeded $1 million in sales on Amazon last year, a three-fold increase from 2019.

Experts predicted e-commerce would continue to thrive in this year and created a new impetus for economic growth, at the same time, this was also an opportunity for Vietnamese businesses to build new business strategies and approach modern distribution channels, helping to expand markets and recover from the pandemic.

Amid digital transformation and the development of the online shopping market, iDEA has implemented the Online Vietnamese Store programme on three major e-commerce floors in Việt Nam, including Tiki, Sendo and Voso.

The programme has created a new playground for manufacturing enterprises to develop distribution systems with digital transformation solutions and apply e-commerce and digital technologies in connecting the domestic market.

Đặng Hoàng Hải, director of iDEA , said the agency would implement the GoOnline programme to accompany businesses in the e-commerce application process.

The programme has the companionship of telecommunications, technology and e-commerce systems in the country, targeting manufacturers, businesses and individuals nationwide who want to access and apply e-commerce.

Promoting e-commerce in parallel with perfecting the electronic payment system and improving the quality of shipping activities would create a very exciting and potential shopping and trading environment. — VNS