2. Geography
• Extending 1,650 km north
to south, Vietnam is only 50
km across at its narrowest
point
• Low, flat delta in south and
north; central highlands;
hilly, mountainous in far
north and northwest
3. CC
• Ho Chi Minh City 6 million
• HANOI (capital) 2.7 million
• Haiphong 1.9 million
• Da Nang 807,000 (2009)
4. Population
• 1 China 1.341
• 2 India 1.195
• 3 U.S. 311
• 4 Indonesia 238
• 5 Brazil 191
• 6 Pakistan 175
• 7 Nigeria 158
• 8 Bangladesh 150
• 9 Russia 142
• 10 Japan 127
• 11 Mexico 112
• 12 Philippines 94
• 13 Vietnam 90
5. The People
• Age Structure: 25% 14 and
under ; 75% born after
1975
• Median Age: 27.8 years
• Ethnic Viet 86%
• Religion—Buddhist 9.3%,
Catholic 6.7%, none
80.8%, but……
6. Labor Force
• 46.21 million (2010 est*.)
• Agriculture: 54%
• Industry: 20%
• Services: 26% (2009)
• Country comparison to the
world: 13
*CIA World Factbook 2011
7. System of Government
• Communist State
• Party Congress 1/11
• Prime Minister Nguyen Tan
DUNG (since 27 June
2006) will continue
• CPV will continue with its
grip on power
8. Looking toward the future
• “Vietnam is one of the best-
performing developing
economies in the world. It is
going through a far-reaching
transformation from an inward-
looking planned economy to
one that is globalized and
market-based. It has the
potential to be one of the great
success stories in
development.” World Bank
9. Growth!
• Real income has grown an
average of 7.2 percent per year
over the last decade
• GDP per capita has gone from
$189 in 1993 to $1,113 in 2010.
• Vietnam’s poverty rate has
fallen from 58 percent in 1993
to 10.6 percent in 2010.
10. Economic Milestones
• 1986 Doi Moi reforms proclaimed
• 1995 U.S. and Vietnam reestablish diplomatic relations;
Vietnam joins ASEAN
• 2001 Vietnam and U.S. sign BTA
• 2005 PM. Phan Van Khai visits the U.S.
• 2007 Vietnam becomes the 150th member of the WTO,
Commerce Secretary leads trade mission to Vietnam
• 2008 PM Nguyen Tan Dung visits the U.S.
• 2010 Vietnam becomes full member of TPP negotiations
13. Macroeconomic Instability
The GVN has favored economic growth over macro
stability.
• Growing inflation (12% in December 2010)
• Weakening currency/ Low foreign currency reserves
• SOE Reform (Vinashin)
17. Transparency International Rank Confidence
Corruption Perception
Index 2010
Singapore 1 9.3
Hong Kong 13 8.4
U.S. 22 7.1
Taiwan 33 5.8
South Korea 39 5.4
Malaysia 56 4.4
Thailand 78 3.5
Indonesia 110 2.8
Vietnam 116 2.7
Philippines 134 2.4
19. Trading Partner
• The GVN is committed to deepening its trade relations with
the United States.
• Engaged partner in Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) talks
and our bilateral Trade and Investment Framework
Agreement (TIFA) negotiations.
• In 2010, Vietnam moved forward on its commitment to WTO
obligations by implementing laws and regulations to increase
compliance of local industries.
20. TPP
• In November 2010, Vietnam joined the United
States, Peru, Chile, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei,
New Zealand, and Australia to participate as a full
member in the Trans-Pacific Economic Partnership
• TPP is a high-standard, 21st century Asia-Pacific
free trade agreement.
21. Best Prospects
Country Commercial Guide Vietnam
2011
• Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution
• Telecommunications Equipment and Services
• Oil and Gas Machinery and Services
• Information Technology (IT) Hardware and Software
• Airport, Ground Support Equipment, ATM Systems, etc.
• Environmental and Pollution Control Equipment and Services
• Medical Equipment
• Safety and Security
• Education and Training
• Franchising
• Plastic Materials, Equipment and Machinery
• Architecture, Construction and Engineering
22. How to contact us
U.S. Commercial Service Vietnam
Tel: {64 4 3850-5199}
Email Hanoi: Sarah.kemp@trade.gov
Email HCMC: James.mayfield@trade.gov
www.buyusa.gov/vietnam
www.export.gov
24. U.S. Exports to Vietnam
Grow by 19% in 2010!
• Vehicles: 445,968
• Machinery: 368,391
• Iron/Steel: 236,820
• Meat: 221,340
• Cotton: 171,770
• Plastics: 150,012
• Feed: 134,180
25.
26. Environmental Issues
• Logging and slash-and-burn
agricultural
• Water pollution and over fishing
threaten marine life populations
• Groundwater contamination
• Growing urban industrialization
and population migration are
rapidly degrading environment
in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City
27. Opportunities: Energy
• Double-digit increases in
consumption
• State owned EVN
monopoly
• Growing potential for
private sector involvement
• Renewables…
29. Opportunities: Water
• Key issue, growing
challenge
• USTDA grants
• Measurement, monitoring,
flood remediation and
control
• Treatment and purification,
water resource
management
30. Opportunities:
Green Building,
Architecture and Design
• Crane-spotting
• If it ain’t broke, knock it
down
• Short time horizon
• Green is coming
• Internationally driven
31. Summary Points on the
Environment Sector
• Vietnam has environmental issues, but awareness is
growing
• Difficult business environment, but opportunities
abound
32. U.S./Vietnam Collaboration
• Science and technology
• Technical assistance and
capacity building
• Water management
• Climate change
• Nuclear safety
• HIV/AIDS, AI, etc.
33. Financing
• ODA
• World Bank
• Asian Development Bank
• Emerging Private Sector
• Ex-Im Bank and OPIC…
34. Imports from Vietnam 2009
• 49.7 % APPAREL
• 11.3% FURNITURE
http://www.stopfakes.gov/int_ipr_ap.asp
• 10.5% FOOTWEAR
• Grand Total $12.3 billion
Notas del editor
Let me start with this slide, which gives the topography of Vietnam without political borders. Many of you will remember the pre-1975 maps of the two Vietnams—North and South, with a line in the middle at the Demilitarized Zone.. Now of course, there is one, united country.You’ll see in the North the green area which is the Red River delta where the capitol Hanoi is located. This area is where the Vietnamese have been growing and harvesting rice for centuries and is the area where the North Vietnamese culture was formed. Also note that the North borders China. After many wars and skirmishes, Northern Vietnam was occupied and ruled by the Chinese for a 1,000 years. Neither China nor Vietnam has forgotten this shared history to this day.Similarly, in the South, the green area is the Mekong River delta just North of which is Ho Chi Minh City, or Saigon as it is still called by many. The Mekong Delta area has been the rice growing area in the South for centuries , but in addition, Saigon has been the hub for domestic and interregional trade for centuries. Until today, HCMC remains the most vibrant trade and industrial center of Vietnam., though Hanoi and its adjacent provinces are also becoming increasingly industrialized.
One thing to note about Vietnam is the demographics:As this slide notes, 75% of the population was born after 1975, the date the so called “American War” ended. Today, especially amongst the young, America and Americans are popular and respected. I am told that it is very rare for an American to get anything but a warm welcome in today’s Vietnam.As far as religion goes, though only a relatively small percentage are officially counted as Buddhists, Catholics, etc., a very high percentage of Vietnamese do follow traditional family and community religious and social rituals, as a legacy of long and deep influence of China on Vietnam.For example, the Lunar New Year holidays , called “Tet” in Vietnam, is taken much more seriously in Vietnam than in most places in China. Also, based on the influence of Confucius and Mandarins, Vietnam until today is a very hierarchical society where the decisions are often made at the top.
