The Sapphire Princess cruise docks at Bà Rịa Vũng Tàu port to welcome Vietnamese travellers. – File Photo Cruise travel is growing rapidly in Viet Nam due to the country’s increasing affluence, experts said. According to Cruise Line International Association, the rise in demand for cruises is the largest in Asia, rising by 126 per cent between 2012 to 2016 to 4,100 passengers. Experts attributed the growing demand to the most rapidly growing middle class population in Southeast Asia. A report from the Boston Consulting Group said the middle and affluent classes in Viet Nam would double to 33 million, or a third of the population, by 2020. Talking about the potential of the Vietnamese market, Princess Cruises, a premium cruise line, said, “With the rise of the middle class, the demand for holidays abroad will also increase among Vietnamese opting for cruise travel to destinations such as Europe and around Asia.” The company told Viet Nam News that last year its vessels visited Viet Nam 22 times, berthing in the Phu My, Nha Trang, Cai Lan and Da Nang ports with 58,000 visitors. Seeing the potential of the market, the company this year plans 31 voyages to Viet Nam this year with over 80,000 guests. “Viet Nam has become an increasingly popular destination for our guests from the US, Australia, and Europe as well as Asian countries, and cruising is one of the best ways to explore this magnificent part of the world,” Farriek Tawfik, director for Southeast Asia,… [Read full story]
Heavy selling drives VN-Index downPhuong Thao HCMC – The VN-Index lost ground on August 2 after three consecutive sessions of gains as sellers turned active. The index of the HCMC stock exchange dropped a slight 0.07% against the previous day at 786.23 points. On the HCMC market, trading volume and value increased 6% to nearly 219 million shares worth VND4.1 trillion. Bloc deals contributed VND446.7 billion to total turnover, including those of 15.8 million shares of lender EIB worth VND172 billion and two million shares of sugar company SBT valued at VND78 billion. Among the bank stocks, BID and CTH…... [read more]
Profit taking drives VN-Index downPhuong Thao HCMC – The local stock market saw profit taking pressure soaring on August 8 after a three-day winning streak, sending the VN-Index down 1.41 points, or 0.18%, at 791.57. There were 19 stocks in the VN30 basket falling while 10 others increased. Notably, sugar stock SBT plunged to the floor price for the second straight day, closing at VND33,850 a share on matching volume of 545,000 shares. Another sugar stock BHS, which is going to be merged into SBT, also dropped to the floor price of VND20,300 per share with over 4.9 million shares…... [read more]
Bank stocks drive VN-Index upPhuong Thao HCMC – Bank stocks drove up the market on November 22, with the VN-Index adding a massive 14.36 points, or 1.56%, from the session earlier at 932.66. Given high cash flow, BID went up to its ceiling price of VND25,700 per share with over four million shares changing hands. CTG climbed 6.8% at VND22,650 a share with matching volume of 4.5 million shares. Other bank stocks also such as VCB, VPB and STB advanced strongly on high turnover. MBB was the volume leader in the sector with 11.3 million shares traded, followed by STB…... [read more]
The 2nd Global Cruise Tourism Conference was successfully concluded at the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre in Langkawi, Malaysia. The August 5 to 6 conference had a number of prominent speakers, including Mr. Farriek Tawfik (Director of South East Asia, Princess Cruise, Ms. Chin Ying Duan (Corporate Communication Manager, Singapore & SE Asia Royal Caribbean Cruises (Asia) Pte Ltd,), Mr. Oh Kean Shen (MD Pen Marine Sdn Bhd), Mr. Jassem Zaiton (Cruis Manager,DNATA), Mr. Grant Holmes (VP,Cruise Solutions, Inchape Shipping Services) Dato' Isaac Alexander (CEO Tropical Charters), Mr. Hisham Awny (Tourism Manager, Kasr Al Baroun Travel), Mr. Wicky Sundram (Executive Dirctor…... [read more]
GAS drives up stock market Phuong Thao By Phuong Thao - The Saigon Times Daily HCMC – The strong rally of GAS, the largest firm by market cap, sent the local stock market up strongly in the second straight winning session on August 5. The VN-Index added 8.69 points, or 1.45%, against the previous day to close at 607.73. According to Viet Capital Securities Company, GAS shares traded at almost three times higher than its average daily volume after its unconsolidated second-quarter earnings report shows a 6% year-on-year rise in profit and a 21% increase in revenue. “The company’s first-half…... [read more]
