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| Illustrative image (Source: VNA) |
The 2023 Asia-Pacific Investor Intentions Survey released recently by CBRE Vietnam showed that Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi are among top 10 most attractive destinations for trans-border investment. Particularly, for the first time, Ho Chi Minh City ranked third in the list, even above Australia.
Vietnam drew greatest attention from investors from Asian countries and territories, including Hong Kong, Singapore, China, the Republic of Korea and Japan.
With a forecast urbanisation rate of 42% in 2025, Vietnam has high potential in real estate market development. With more people rising to the middle class, the country has become a magnet for real estate investment.
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| Vietnamese real estate remain attractive to foreign investors (Photo: baodautu.vn) |
At the beginning of 2023, Singaporean firms conducted a number of large-scale deals in Vietnam.
Keppel Land, a real estate developer that is running more than 20 projects worth 3.5 billion USD around the world, signed a memorandum of understanding with Khang Dien Group of Vietnam to cooperate in residential area building and sustainable urban development projects in Ho Chi Minh City in February.
Keppel Land CEO Louis Lim said that the firm is keen on strengthening its presence in Vietnam, one of its major markets with great long-term potential.
Meanwhile, Sembcorp Development has also reached a deal with Becamex IDC on partnership in developing five green, smart and sustainable industrial parks in Vietnam in the next three years with total investment of about 1 billion USD. These industrial parks will be built to meet green, smart and sustainable criteria, using high technologies in management.
The report “Vietnam Real Estate: Perspectives from China and Southeast Asian Countries” by PropertyGuru Group said Vietnam’s open economic policy and integration into global supply chains have made growth possible. Therefore, a resilient supply chain is key to Vietnam’s economic strength and increasing the attractiveness of real estate to foreign investors.
If Vietnam’s transport infrastructure of seaports, highways, high-speed railways and airports is expanded and completed, real estate in Vietnam will be a more attractive destination for foreign capital, both direct and indirect investment, the report said.
According to the Foreign Investment Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the real estate sector drew the second largest amount of foreign direct investment among all sectors in 2022, attracting more than 4.45 billion USD, accounting for 16.1% of the country’s total.
Dak Lak province ready for 8th Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Festival
Arrangements have been in place to ensure the success of the 8th Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Festival, scheduled to take place in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak from March 10 to 14, Vietnam News Agency quoted the organising committee saying that.
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| A check-in site on Phan Dinh Giot pedestrian street in Buon Ma Thuot city is opened to serve visitors to the coffee festival. (Photo: VNA) |
With 18 official activities to be held, the festival aims to popularise the brand and promote the development of specialty coffee in Vietnam while gradually turn Buon Ma Thuot city into a world coffee destination.
It is set to see the participation of 37 international delegations, including the Embassies of the US, Australia, Mongolia, Morocco, Angola, and Saudi Arabia in Hanoi; the Consulates General of India, Cambodia, Cuba, and Russia in Ho Chi Minh City; and the Consulate General of Laos in Da Nang city. Two arts troupes from Champasak province of Laos and Jeollabuk province of the Republic of Korea will also perform at the festival.
The event is expected to attract about 50,000 visitors, according to the organising committee.
Twelve travel companies have designed 42 tours offering diverse experiences to visitors during the festival, the Dak Lak Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, adding that it has asked tourism service providers to make the best preparations to ensure absolute safety for and leave good impression on visitors.
Deputy director of the department Nguyen Thuy Phuong Hieu noted local administrations have been requested to coordinate with the departments of health, industry and trade, and market surveillance to step up management and monitoring of prices, security and order, disease prevention, and food safety.
Three festival information centres will be opened, and three hotlines will also put into service to receive feedback from local residents and tourists.
Besides, the provincial People’s Committee has also demanded public security and military units work with local authorities to guarantee order and safety and stay ready to respond to any circumstances, Hieu added.
Nguyen Tuan Ha, Standing Vice Chairman of the Dak Lak People’s Committee and head of the organising committee, said the Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Festival is a national event, giving the province a chance to develop the coffee industry, boost economic growth, and improve the life quality of local ethnic groups. Therefore, the provincial administration has ordered relevant units to make the best preparations to win satisfaction from locals and visitors.
Quang Tri launches first free night tour to historical sites
The first free night tour to historical sites throughout the central province of Quang Tri has opened for 42 tourists, including a group of Laotian students and people from other localities, reported the Voice of Vietnam.
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| Visitors release floating lanterns to pay tribute to the dead. (Photo: Congluan.vn) |
The first stop of the tour was at Quang Tri Citadel where visitors participated in a requiem aimed at commemorating and paying tribute to fallen soldiers who died in Quang Tri Province during the resistance war against the United States.
Visitors spent time listening to stories from the fierce 81-day-and-night battle of the anti-American War during the summer of 1972.
Tourists were then guided to the Thach Han River which lies just 500 metres from the citadel. Visitors were then able to take boat tours in order to release floating lanterns and flower banquets to pay tribute to the dead.
They walked along the river bank where they sampled local foods and purchased some local specialties and souvenirs before concluding the night tour.
Nguyen Van Ha, vice chairman of the Quang Tri Tourism Association, said the night tour would bring a wonderful experience and create unforgettable memories for tourists, while simultaneously helping them to promote local tourism images via new products.
Wood exports decrease during two-month period
Vietnam’s exports of timber and wood products during the opening two months of the year dropped by 34.8% to US$1.6 billion against the same period from last year, reported the Voice of Vietnam according to details given by the General Department of Vietnam Customs.
Of the figure, the export value of wood products stood at an estimated US$982 million, a year-on-year drop of 47.5%. February alone saw the export value of timber and wood products reach US$800 million, down 10.9% compared to last year's corresponding period.
The shortage of orders coupled with the prolonged Lunar New Year holiday can be seen as the reasons behind the sharp fall in timber and wood exports in January.
Wooden furniture exports therefore recorded the strongest decline with wooden frame chairs taking the lead with US$164 million, down 52.9% compared to the year previously, followed by living room and dining room furniture with US$119.3 million, down 63.1%, and bedroom furniture with US$79.5 million, a fall of 64.7%.
Most notably, wood pellets and woodchips witnessed an increase in value due to the increasing scarcity of energy in many countries around the world, thereby pushing the demand for these products.
According to information given by the Vietnam Timber & Forest Products Association, the country earned over US$787 million from wood pellet exports last year, up over 90% on-year.
The average export price of wood pellets reached a record high compared to the previous 10 years, reaching more than US$189 per tonne in December last year.
The export volume of wood pellets to Japan and the Republic of Korea accounted for 97.5% and 96.7% of the country’s total export turnover, respectively./.