Vietnam’s central bank will gradually widen the band in which the country’s currency is allowed to trade against the U.S. dollar, Pham Huu Phuong, head of the central bank’s representative office in Ho Chi Minh City, told a state run newspaper on Thursday. The dong is presently allowed to trade against the dollar within a three-percent band around a midpoint rate set daily by the central bank. Vietnam’s exchange rate has experienced a turbulent past few months, due primarily to the global rise of the dollar since the onset of the financial crisis, as nervous investors pulled money out of emerging markets like Vietnam. The dong had been rising against the dollar early in the year due to large inflows of foreign investment. It then dropped sharply in late spring on fears of a currency crisis due to rampant inflation. It ...

The narrow-based index covers just the 10 largest and most liquid stocks trading in Vietnam. Standard & Poor's has launched the S&P Vietnam 10 Index, covering the largest and most liquid companies in Vietnam. The index adds to S&P's existing set of Asian equity indexes targeting some of the biggest names and biggest markets. S&P offers an index on the 50 largest stocks on the National Stock Exchange of India, the S&P NCX Nifty; the S&P HKex LargeCap, which targets the 25 largest Hong Kong-traded stocks; and indexes for Chinese stocks based outside mainland China through its S&P/CITIC China 30 and S&P/CITIC China 50 indexes. Vietnam has previously only been covered by S&P in broad-based Asia indexes. FTSE already offers two indexes covering stocks that trade on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange; the FTSE Vietnam All-Share Index, covering 90% of the stock universe; and the more narrow FTSE Vietnam Index. The top five ...

By Martin Hutchinson Contributing Editor Forbes Magazine has come out with its list of "Best Countries for Business" - and Denmark ranks as the world’s most business-friendly market. But unless an investor is looking to set up shop in one of these countries, you wouldn’t expect this list to be all that valuable. After all, it’s one thing to know that when a company operates in a business-friendly market, its employees and corporate officers will be well treated, and the company itself will be afforded respect. But does that necessarily allow us to predict whether or not investments in that country will appreciate in value? The truth may actually surprise you. Okay, it’s mean to leave you in suspense until the end. You can find out whether a good business climate is correlated with economic growth by comparing the country’s ranking ...

“I, Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States of America, do declare that said national emergency still continues to exist and pursuant to said…” With those mealy words, America’s Depression-era president ventured from bad luck into treachery. The Executive Order he issued on the 5th of April 1933 confiscated Americans’ private holdings of gold, then valued at $20.67 per ounce. Then, in January, 1934, the U.S. president fixed the price of gold at $35. All of sudden, Americans’ dollars had been devalued by 69.3%. Whether this act of nationwide larceny did the economy any good or not, we cannot say. It was not until after World War II that the economy fully recovered the spring in its step. And U.S. stock prices didn’t return to their ‘29 highs until 1950. But there is hardly an act of government so foolish or so maladroit that subsequent politicians won’t provide an encore. This week, ...

Vietnam is suffering from a 25%-plus inflation rates and in an effort to save its plunging currency, suspended the importation of gold.

Vietnam investors are so intensely buying gold as a hedge against inflation that gold importation has become one of the largest trade deficit contributors.

The government can try to stop investors from buying gold, but it won’t work. Inflation is here and gold is the right way for investors to protect themselves.

By Jason Simpkins Associate Editor As far as foreign direct investment in Asia is concerned, China is still the undisputed leader, drawing approximately $42.78 billion in just the first five months of the year, an increase of 55% from the same period a year ago. But China is coping with a number of growing pains that include higher wages and a strengthening currency. That has left a void for other emerging markets to step up and take the place of a multinational corporation’s best friend. China used to be thought of as the world’s factory floor - a haven of cheap labor and minimal regulatory oversight for large multinational companies. The result was a massive influx of foreign investment and rapid gross domestic product (GDP) growth. But the country has outgrown this model and is shifting from low-skill, labor-intensive industries to a higher standard ...

By Jason Simpkins Associate Editor Flooding in the Midwest has devastated much of the region’s corn crop, and caused prices to skyrocket. However, major rice and wheat producers are expected to have bumper crops this year, offering some hope that food prices could soon recede. The price of corn for July delivery jumped Monday to an all-time high of $7.60 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. It was the eighth straight day of trading in which the price hit a record high. The price has already shot up 71% this year, boosting food prices worldwide and fueling what is fast becoming a global inflation epidemic. Fortunately, there are signs that the price of rice and wheat could recede sharply in coming months and relieve some of the inflationary pressure. In fact, the price of wheat is already on the way down ...

I have been interested in and invested in Vietnam since the fall of 2006. I bought the Vietnam Opportunity Fund (VOF.L) at $2.48, sold half of it at $4.73 a few months later and still have some shares now trading at $1.99.The fund hovered along at down a little for the year before starting to swoon about a month ago, consistent with the VN Index which is down 59% YTD.The GDP has been en fuego, but less than in China, which has proven too hot to handle as now inflation appears to be running at 25-30%.As I wrote several times along the way about Vietnam, a destination like this is going to have huge booms and huge busts along the way.The story on the ground, which of course includes the inflation ...

I had a very interesting meeting with the largest athletic shoe company in the world, Yue Yuen Industrial (0551.HK). The soles of tennis shoes are made from 'synthetic' rubber, a combination of petroleum-based chemicals as well as rubber. Since the cost of oil is soaring, so is the cost of synthetic rubber. That doesn't mean Yue Yuen International is headed for trouble. It does mean that they'll need to improve productivity and/or raise prices to compensate for the raw materials increase. I did have a fascinating discussion with the CEO about the success of their manufacturing plant in Vietnam.