Vietnam’s leading tourism company Saigontourist said it is looking for Japanese partners to invest in the development of 12 new hotels and tourism complexes.
Originally posted here:
Saigontourist seeks Japanese investment for new hotel projects
With a well-developed infrastructure, a free-enterprise economy, generally pro-investment policies, and strong export industries, Thailand enjoyed solid growth from 2000 to 2008 – averaging more than 4% per year – as it recovered from the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98. Thai exports – mostly machinery and electronic components, agricultural commodities, and jewelry – continue to drive the economy, accounting for as much as three-quarters of GDP. The global financial crisis of 2008-09 severely cut Thailand’s exports, with most sectors experiencing double-digit drops.
Vietnam had an average growth in GDP of 7.1% per year from 2000 to 2004. The GDP growth was 8.4% in 2005, the second largest growth in Asia, trailing only China’s. Government figures of GDP growth in 2006, was 8.17%. According to Vietnam’s Minister of Planning and Investment, the government targets a GDP growth of around 8.5% for 2007.
- Vietnam expanded its export market by reducing import duties to zero to 5% in 2006 and has agreed to remove them completely by 2015.
- Vietnam has created a bid market to attract foreign investors not only from its Asean partners but also from outside the trading bloc, especially Europe and America.
- Vietnam has faced challenges, however, including intense competition from other Asean member countries. For instance, farmers have suffered from agricultural imports from China and Thailand.
- Fluctuations in regional markets have had a sudden and severe impact on the domestic market, especially in the financial sectors and on petroleum and investment capital.
- Vietnam’s state revenues suffered from a drop in business profits and tax contributions.
- The real-estate market froze and the labour market destabilized, reducing the number of employees in industrial zones, with many returning to rural areas.
- Pollution has become a problem because foreign investors had transferred underdeveloped or outdated technology without proper controls, and investment had been often approved at any cost.
With a country with over 86 million people and with more than 60% under the age of 35 (Source: General Department of Statistics of Vietnam, 2009), Vietnam’s education needs for this young population are huge. Despite attention by the government only about 1.6 million (about 2%) actually are now at higher education institutions. Each year approximately 1.2 million students graduate from secondary education but the enrollment to higher education is only around 300 thousand (Source: Department of Higher Education, MOET).
