A lot of lending is going on in the form of dollars, which is reflecting international interest rates. |
China is accounting for ever larger proportions of research and development financing, but Vietnam is still not in that game yet. |
In just about every sector you can think of, there's been an ongoing process of reform. |
The risk for Vietnam if it opens its borders to trade but does not upgrade technically to make value-added products, it becomes an assembly factory and producer of raw materials for China. You have to remember how poor Vietnam actually is. I'd be worried over the long term whether it can achieve an increase in value-added products the way that Malaysia, Taiwan and South Korea did. It does not yet have the policy tools to provide a national program of technology upgrading. |
The Vietnam accounting standards for non-performing loans show a rate of about 4 percent. But if they were to apply international standards the rate would probably be closer to 15 percent, a very high rate indeed. |
You'll find tremendous enthusiasm among the foreign community for Vietnam as the next rising star. |