Global crisis hits business confidence in Vietnam

CA - Vietnam 's Business Confidence Index (CBI) fell from 123 to 116 points between the third quarter of 2011 and January 2012 due to global economic turmoil.

About 160 local enterprises in 11 key sectors were surveyed by WVB Vietnam Financial Intelligence Service Company Limited (WVB FISL) between mid-December 2011 and mid-January 2012. The surveyed enterprises are leading small – and medium-sized enterprises in terms of prestige, turnovers, assets and employees.

On Vietnam 's economic outlook for 2012, 33 percent of the surveyed enterprises believed that the country's economic situation will remain almost identical to that of the previous year, while 7.6 percent of the respondents said the situation will worsen.

Especially, 95.6 percent of respondents believed that the inflation rate will remain in the two-digit range. As a result, nearly 30 percent said they will not hire new workers and 7 percent said they will cut down their workforce this year.

Regarding revenue growth, nearly 44 percent of respondents said there will be no revenue growth this year while 12 percent of companies interviewed worried that their revenue will be decreased.

A majority of 65.2 percent was optimistic about increased profits while 28.5 percent of enterprises believed their profits will be the same as in 2011. Only 6.3 percent worried their profits will fall this year.

Finally, 74.5 percent of the surveyed enterprises said getting access to loans for production will be a challenge, and 26.7 percent said they will approach bank credits, while 28.2 percent will seek business partners to establish joint-ventures.