Singapore daily: Vietnam to develop into a new Asian tiger
In an article entitled “Roar of a new Asian tiger”, Singapore’s daily Business Times recently shared that Vietnam’s economy is now booming, while the World Bank describes it as one of the most dynamic and emerging countries in the entire East Asian region.
Vietnam recorded a 2.6 percent increase in gross domestic product in 2021 and its economic recovery from the pandemic is expected to accelerate this year.
According to the article, Vietnam recorded a 2.6 percent increase in gross domestic product in 2021 and its economic recovery from the pandemic is expected to accelerate this year. DBS Group Research forecasts that GDP growth will reach 8 per cent in 2022, boosted by an accommodative monetary policy.
In addition, Knight Frank’s latest Wealth Report estimates there were about 19,500 high-net-worth individuals in Vietnam in 2020, defined as those with assets of at least US$1 million. By 2025, that number is expected to grow by almost 25 per cent to hit 25,000.
From bicycles to flashy cars, slums to luxury condos, Vietnam's roads and skylines have undergone a dramatic transformation over the last 30 years, the article noted, adding that many Singapore companies, including CapitaLand and Keppel, have invested heavily in the country as they seize the abundant opportunities.
Business Times also pointed out the drastic changes of Vietnam's economy in recent years, including a wealth boom, everything from gold-plated hotels to luxury apartments and flashy sports cars, showing the rise of Vietnam's ultra-rich and how they are spending their cash: start-up funding, Vietnam has long been known as South-east Asia's coding farm, where talent and wages are in a sweet spot for companies to use it as a base for their technical development; and renewable energy, Vietnam currently boasts the most solar power of any South-east Asian nation today with 16.6 gigawatts of installed capacity as of 2020.
Other remarkable changes worth mentioning include the labour crunch, businesses and factories across Vietnam are still struggling to return to anywhere near full capacity with Covid-induced labour shortages crippling output; property play, Vietnam has been attracting capital from property companies in Singapore, including CapitaLand, Keppel and Mapletree Logistics Trust; and construction demand, Vietnam's construction industry is set to continue its recovery in 2022 with several large-scale infrastructure projects set to move through different stages of development.
