Factors affecting the level of bank competition : empirical evidence in Vietnamese commercial banks

Purpose: There is increasing interest in the trends and requirements associated with improvement in the competition of commercial banks. Many studies have been conducted on this topic in Vietnam as well as in the rest of the world. In the present study, the factors affecting the level of competition in the banking system in Vietnam have been studied. Design/Methodology/Approach: We employ the Bayesian Multilevel Generalized Linear Model to identify the factors affecting the level of competition in the banking system in Vietnam. Findings: The findings show that the eight variables that affect the level of competition in Vietnam commercial banks were identified, including previous-year competition, equity on total assets ratio, loans on total assets ratio, operating expense on the operating income ratio, return on equity, bank size, economic growth, and inflation rate. Moreover, the results demonstrated that during the 2008–2009 crisis, there was a positive relationship between the crisis and the Lerner index. Practical Implications: Based on the research results, we provide policy implications to improve the competitive status of commercial banks in Vietnam. Originality/Value: The results of the present study would serve as a basis for assisting the policy-makers and the other stakeholders to better understand the current state of bank competition and the factors affecting the level of bank competition, which would assist them in formulating strategies and solutions to improve bank competition in Vietnam.peer-reviewe

Undernutrition during Pregnancy

Experience in being pregnant is exciting but is very challenging. The term “undernutrition,” as used in this chapter, focuses more on inadequate intake of energy and nutrients to meet the desired outcome of a healthy mother and her baby. Evidence shows that women with undernutrition before and during pregnancy have increased risk of metabolic disorders (i.e., gestational diabetes mellitus) and are at increased risk of complications during labor and birth. To date, nutritional therapies promoting healthier pregnancies fall into the following two major categories: (1) management of gestational weight gain and (2) the prevention or treatment of nutrient deficiencies related to pregnancy. A literature search on PubMed, the Cochrane library, Google scholar, and Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature was conducted to identify the relevant nutritional therapies. As a result, this chapter will analyze and discuss gestational weight gain and its effect on the health of women and her baby. The chapter briefly proposes evidence-based nutritional therapy for gestational diabetes as well as gestational common nutrient imbalance, such as vitamin D, folic acid, and omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid deficiency. The recommendations, in this chapter, would be a partial answer for these problems in Asia

A review on microalgae and cyanobacteria in biofuel production

Today, fossil fuel shortages and climate change impacts have led mankind to the search for an alternative energy. With many advantages, bioenergy is a promising source to replace conventional energy. However, biofuel productions in the first and second generation are likely to add more concerns to the problems in water scarcity and threats to food security. Meanwhile, third generation biofuels obtained from microalgae and cyanobacteria are able to overcome existing challenges thanks to their rapid growth rates, abilities to fix CO 2 , high yields in lipid extraction and capabilities to be grown in non-arable lands. Microalgae and cyanobacteria appear to be the only ones among renewable sources that are capable of producing a wide range of biofuels including biohydrogen, biomethane, bioethanol and biodiesel.In this study, we present an overview about microalgae and cyanobacteria use for the production of biofuels in fundamentals, including their biology, cultivation systems taking into account the hydrodynamic conditions, harvesting, and processing. The review also provides a general picture at the current status of this renewable energy industry

The Prospective Evolution of the Vietnamese Power Sector: The Vulnerability and Externality Analysis

With its rapidly increasing power demand of 16% p.a since 1990s along with its limited supply power capacity, how sustainable is Vietnam's electricity development? What are the major factors explaining its performance relative to other Asian countries? To answer these questions, this paper examines the Vietnamese power system from the 1990s to 2040 by using LEAP simulation. Twelve vulnerability and externality indexes regarding social-economic-environmental dimensions are calculated to assess vulnerability levels of the sector in seven scenarios. External costs of CO2, NOx, SO2 and PM10 are calculated to examine how far the costs could affect on the electricity cost in Vietnam. In sensitivity analysis, the paper assesses the impacts of international coal price's fluctuations on the electricity price and the trade balance of Vietnam. The study confirms that Vietnam's power sector will become more vulnerable to fossil fuels' prices, environmental pollutants and climate change if the sector goes for the current policy pathways. With the efficiency scenarios examined in the study, the sector would be more independent and less vulnerable. To reduce the vulnerabilities, the study suggests that Vietnam should promote energy efficiency and electricity generation from non-fossil fuels and internalize external costs into the power sector. Vietnam needs also get involved in international financial mechanisms for clean development and technology transfer programs to efficiently exploit its renewable energy potentials