Floods in southeast asia

The number of new deaths increased for the fourth consecutive week, increasing by seven percent compared to last week, with over 76,000 new deaths reported, according to the WHO.

The outbreak was especially violent in India as the country reported 873,296 new cases, an increase of 70 percent compared to last week. It also saw the number of new deaths growing by 51 percent. The United States came the second with a five percent increase of 468,395 new cases; and Brazil listed the third with a rise of 463,092 new cases.

In terms of global COVID-19 new deaths, the South-Asia, Southeast Asia and Western Pacific region saw sharp surges with the Western Pacific displaying an increase of 189 percent in number, the Philippines leading with the grim record of 1,321 new deaths, 400 percent more than last week.

Furthermore, new virus variants continue to spread to other countries, with the variant B117 first identified in the UK reported in 132 countries, the variant B 1351 originating from South Africa present in 82 countries, and the P1 first identified in Brazil now established in 52 countries.

The WHO also noted that existing vaccines have displayed reduced efficacy against variants, even if the related studies remained limited in number.

As an example, the AstraZeneca vaccine saw reduction in post-vaccine neutralization for variant B117, while it saw “substantial reduction” for the variant originating from South Africa.

Studies also reported “evidence of more substantial reduction” in post-vaccine neutralization of the variant first found in Brazil for AstraZeneca, Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines.

Earlier this week, the WHO stressed that measures such as wearing masks and hand hygiene were still important as “we are in a critical point of the pandemic right now.”.

However, this figure is a bit lower than the Asia Pacific and global average of 65 percent and 64 percent, respectively, according to a survey conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), which interviewed 2,800 family business leaders in 87 economies, including 33 from Vietnam.

For 2022, 33 percent of surveyed family business leaders from Vietnam expect quick, aggressive growth, higher than the regional average of 28 percent and the global figure of 21 percent.

Business expansion and technology adoption are the key priorities of Vietnamese family businesses in the coming years, the survey found. While 55 percent said they would focus on creating new products and services, 52 percent mentioned increased use of new technology.

Over half (52 percent) of the Vietnamese respondents expect that the next generation to become majority shareholders within five years’ time, but just 36 percent said they have a formal succession plan in place.

Vietnamese family businesses seemed to lag behind in terms of digital capabilities, with just 30 percent saying they were strong in this area against the global average of 38 percent.

Family businesses are a core economic factor in any country, including Vietnam. The 100 largest family businesses contribute about 25 percent of the country’s GDP, Vu Tien Loc, Chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), has noted.

Among the 50 best listed companies in Vietnam are many family businesses, including Vietnam’s biggest listed company Vingroup, budget airline Vietjet Air, major education company Thanh Thanh Cong, and Vietnam’s largest ice-cream producer Kido.

As many as 95 percent of Vietnamese enterprises are family businesses and the majority are led by the first generation or the first two generations, he added.

The Vietnamese economy is forecast to grow seven percent per annum in 2021-22, largely driven by increased export and investment, Fitch Ratings said in a post on its website on Tuesday.

“Strong export growth and a successful campaign to contain the spread of COVID-19 have supported Vietnam’s economy through the pandemic,” the American credit rating agency remarked.

Other parts of Vietnam’s economy have proved robust despite tourism, one of the country’s main sectors, hit the hardest by the coronavirus crisis.

The government posted 2.9 percent in GDP growth last year, placing Vietnam among a handful of nations globally that reported positive economic growth amid the pandemic stress.

“Growth was buoyed by external demand, with goods exports rising by 6.9 percent,” Fitch Ratings stated.

“Domestic activity was also supported by the limited spread of COVID-19 in the country.

“Just 1,465 cases and 35 deaths from the virus were officially recorded in 2020.

“We expect growth to remain strong, at around seven percent annually, in 2021-2022, buoyed by continued export expansion and higher investment.”

The Southeast Asian country’s COVID-19 tally has reached 2,733, with 2,445 patients having recovered from the respiratory disease, as of Wednesday evening, according to the Ministry of Health’s data.

Growth prospects will be reinforced by a pandemic fiscal package for 2020-21 of about VND292 trillion (US$12.7 billion), or roughly 3.6 percent of the 2020 GDP, Fitch Ratings forecast.

Goods exports rose 23.8 percent year on year in the first quarter of this year, supporting real economic growth in the quarter of 4.5 percent year on year.

Vietnam is benefiting from such new trade agreements as the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, as well as the country’s cost competitiveness.

“Rapid increases in public infrastructure investment and FDI should bolster the sustainability of strong medium-term growth,” Fitch Ratings said.

Vietnam’s generally robust economic outlook remains subject to risks, as its vaccination program has moved slowly, beginning only on March 8, the company observed.

The nation has so far received 928,800 coronavirus vaccine doses from direct purchases or the COVAX scheme, co-led by the World Health Organization, according to the health ministry’s figures.

Over 60,000 people have been vaccinated against COVID-19 as of Wednesday evening.

“Vaccine hesitancy among the public appears low, which is a positive sign, but Vietnam’s confirmed vaccine orders cover a lower proportion of the population than in some neighboring states, such as Indonesia and Malaysia,” Fitch Ratings said.

“Should the country experience a major COVID-19 outbreak before vaccines are widely rolled out – prompting lockdowns – growth prospects and public finances could be affected.”

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AFP