The Vietnam Railway Corporation (VNR) hopes to raise at least 139 billion VND (6.2 million USD) in 2018 from selling its ownership in 15 subsidiary and affiliate companies, reported online newspaper baodautu.vn.
Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Ngoc Dong recently signed Document 1142/BGTVT-QLDN, approving VNR’s selling of its holdings in those 15 companies.
The 15 companies have total charter capital of 680.5 billion VND, and VNR holds one-fifth of the figure, equal to 139.1 billion VND based on the face value of shares (10,000 VND per share).
Those firms are divided into three groups. Nine of them are those in which VNR had previously sold parts of its ownership, including Transport Investment and Construction Consultant JSC, Da Nang Construction JSC and Railway Urban and Infrastructure Development Investment JSC.
Four of the 15 companies are those in which VNR had previously put its shares up for sale, but failed to draw attention from investors. Those included Railway Construction Corporation and Project 3 Construction and Investment JSC, which are traded on the stock market.
The remaining companies are mining business Dong Mo Stone JSC and My Trang Stone JSC. VNR will make its first attempt to sell stakes in these two companies.
Though shares of these companies are apparently unattractive to investors, they are highly valued by securities firms. Shares of My Trang Stone JSC are valued at 11.2 times their face value, 4.2 times for Dong Mo Stone JSC and 2.3 times for Railway Construction Corporation.
If the sales are carried out successfully, VNR could raise more than 139 billion VND, to increase its spending on purchasing new rail cars and upgrade large railway stations this year.
“The management board of VNR should ask for opinions from the finance and planning and investment ministries so that it could develop the plan to sell its shares in those companies, while assuring the deals comply with existing regulations and provide high income to the State budget,” Deputy Minister Dong said in the document.
In order to make the sales more attractive to investors, in November 2017, VNR proposed its divestment plans to the Ministry of Transport, including starting prices and offering methods.
Under the plan, VNR will offer shares in packages for bidding on the Hanoi Stock Exchange and financial institutions, seeking to sell the remaining shares in the nine companies in which it had previously sold part of its ownership.
VNR will sell shares of the four firms that are traded on the stock market at market prices at the correct times. Also, the State-run railway corporation will offer shares of the two stone mining companies for sale on the Hanoi Stock Exchange.
To declare the starting prices of the sale, VNR proposed that the Ministry of Transport allow it to use the share price valuations conducted by financial institutions.
According to Dong, the divestment plans were also sent to the ministries of Finance and Planning and Investment to collect feedback.
In response, the Ministry of Planning and Investment said the plans may work well for the four companies trading on the stock market, and for Dong Mo and My Trang stone miners, as they comply with the Government’s Decree 91/2015/NĐ-CP dated October 13, 2015 on management of State capital in businesses.
However, the planning and investment ministry raised some concerns over the divestment plans for the four companies in which VNR planned to sell shares on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM), as the market prices of the shares were lower than the face values.
Under Document No. 10065/VPCP-KGVX, the Deputy PM agreed with proposals by the Ministry of Home Affairs for a one-day holiday for Vietnamese Culture Day in 2026, and a seven-day Tet holiday and a four-day National Day holiday in 2027.
By 2030, Vietnam aims to rank among the world’s top 40 in the GII; raise total social investment in R&D to at least 2% of GDP, with non-State funding accounting for over 60%; increase international scientific publications by an average of 10% annually; and raise the number of patent applications and granted patents by an average of 16-18% annually.
The State Bank of Vietnam set the daily reference exchange rate at 25,624 VND/USD on October1, down 3 VND from the previous day.
Quang Ninh's GRDP grew 15.04% in the third quarter, also leading the country.
Vietnam needs flexible incentives and specialised green financial instruments, stronger inter-sectoral coordination, improved local governance capacity and a more complete MRV data system, said Ramla Khalidi, Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam.
As the country enters a new development phase with greater demands for stronger marine-economy growth, institutional bottlenecks have emerged and need to be addressed.
Experts from the Institute of Vietnam and World Economy under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences noted the quality of recent growth as the high growth rate has been recorded against an increasingly higher comparative base.
Vietnam's Halal exports remain modest at around 900 million USD a year, accounting for less than 1% of the global market. Most exports are still raw agricultural and seafood products. Only around 1,000–1,300 Vietnamese businesses obtained or maintained Halal certification during 2024–2026.
Vietnam needs a comprehensive policy framework to remove legal and procedural bottlenecks and create conditions for offshore wind power projects to access long-term investment capital, helping to unlock the country’s substantial offshore wind potential, said insiders.
Under a decision of the municipal People’s Committee on establishing an inter-agency working group, departments and agencies are responsible for identifying facilities subject to greenhouse gas inventories, developing emissions-reduction plans and studying projects capable of generating carbon credits.
According to data from the Vietnam Customs cited by the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), shrimp exports reached 478.5 million USD in August, up 4.2% from the same month last year. The eight-month total stood at 3.3 billion USD, representing a year-on-year increase of 12%.
Vietnam is seen as a potential market, with considerable room for growth in real estate, particularly commercial property, compared with some regional markets. Strong Vietnam-Russia ties and opportunities to establish foreign-invested enterprises are also considered favourable for Russian investors.
For 2021-2030, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam proposed bringing forward the investment in a parallel taxiway system and a connecting taxiway north of Runway No. 2 at Phu Quoc International Airport, in order to connect with the aircraft maintenance and repair facility (hangar) planned for the northern area of the airport.
For LNG-fired power to fulfill its role in Vietnam’s energy transition, bottlenecks in institutions, infrastructure, electricity pricing, PPAs, power dispatch and financing must be addressed together.
From policy and infrastructure to industrial real estate, Vietnam’s FDI advantages are broadening towards a more integrated production ecosystem, offering investors a stronger combination of conditions for high-value, technology-intensive and long-term projects.
As trade expands, systemic bottlenecks across transport networks, warehousing, ports, border gates, and industrial zones are becoming more apparent. Experts emphasise the need to shift from a fragmented, project-by-project approach toward strategic management structured around trade corridors and integrated supply chains.
The company will buy non-performing loans from credit institutions and foreign bank branches, recover and dispose of debts and collateral, restructure loans and support lenders in resolving bad debts.
Do Ngoc Hung, Trade Counsellor and head of the Vietnam Trade Office in the US, said what stands out is not only the growth in trade volume but also the increasingly deep economic ties between the two countries.
According to the Ministry of Finance, State budget revenue in the first eight months of 2026 was estimated at 2.02 quadrillion VND (77.7 billion USD), equivalent to 80% of the annual estimate and up 16% year-on-year. Domestic revenue reached 1.75 quadrillion VND, accounting for 86.6% of total revenue and rising 16.6%.
Hanoi aims to achieve average annual export growth of at least 12% during 2026-30, with the city seeking to diversify export markets, boost high-tech and value-added products and reduce reliance on traditional markets.