The competitiveness and efficiency of the Vietnamese banking sector in the face of financial liberalisation

This thesis provides empirical evidence of the impact of financial liberalisation on the competitiveness and efficiency of the Vietnamese banking sector by applying a combination of non-parametric frontier estimation methods, stochastic frontier methods and Tobit panel data regression techniques. There have been few studies in Vietnam linking financial liberalisation to banking sector competitiveness and efficiency. In the thesis, these parametric and non-parametric methods are applied in a pilot study to measure the allocative efficiency at branch level of the Vietnam Bank for Agricultural and Rural Development (VBARD) – the largest bank in Vietnam in terms of total assets. The technical efficiency of the Vietnamese banking sector at bank level is then estimated using the same methods. The empirical investigation of the thesis is based on the use of branch-level data and bank-level data for a sample of more than 50 branches of VBARD across the country over the period 2004–2008 and around 40 banks over the period 2002–2012. Using data envelopment analysis (DEA) to measure allocative efficiency at branch level and technical efficiency at bank level and using stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) to estimate cost and profit efficiency at branch level, the thesis suggests that the contributions of financial liberalisation to bank efficiency are generally mixed, depending on the measures of bank efficiency used and the sub-periods taken into account. The thesis presents weak empirical evidence of the positive impacts of financial liberalisation on efficiency improvements of the Vietnamese banking sector at both branch and bank level. Banking efficiency is inconsistently increased over the period of financial liberalisation as the financial market is more liberated and the size of the banking sector substantially increased. Hence, industry rationalisation through reconsolidating and restructuring mergers and acquisitions (M&A) is required. The thesis suggests that both financial liberalisation and greater competition contribute to lower profit efficiency and higher costs for banks. The thesis indicates that the Vietnamese banking system is dominated by large banks and that the state-owned commercial banks (SOCBs) are more efficient than the joint stock commercial banks (JSCBs), mainly because of their competitive advantage in terms of size. Furthermore, Vietnamese banking efficiency at both branch and bank levels is significantly improved by high levels of capitalisation, larger size and a better labour force, while it is hampered by low loan quality. The findings also suggest that the northern banks in Vietnam are more efficient than the southern banks. The empirical evidence of the thesis is also focused on investigating the impact of financial liberalisation on bank technical efficiency and productivity growth, making use of a two-step approach consisting of DEA and Tobit panel data regressions. The analysis conducted across the different location groups (north and south) suggests that the impact on the technical efficiency of banks is more pronounced in the northern areas than in the southern areas. Furthermore, the Tobit estimation takes into account bank-specific differences in terms of total assets, the equity–total assets ratio, the labour–capital ratio and the provision–capital ratio; the evidence suggests that these influences are also mostly significant under financial liberalisation. As a result, the thesis suggests that financial liberalisation reinforces an independent impact on the technical efficiency of banks

Managing capital flows: The case of Viet Nam

Thanks to reforms and international integration, Viet Nam has recorded impressive economic development achievements. Deepening integration and accession to the WTO has brought about both new opportunities and challenges to a country on its way to accelerating reform and development. The recent surge in capital inflows has led to a financial boom in Viet Nam as well as risks, especially in the context of macroeconomic policy inconsistencies, weaknesses in the banking sector and financial supervision. The macroeconomic policy responses so far (up to February 2008) seem to be less effective in stabilizing the economy and in reducing policy inconsistencies as well as financial risks. The key question for Viet Nam, now, is how to sustain economic growth and sound financial development while mitigating possible financial risks. This paper recommends a broad reform package including tackling the bottlenecks in the economy (the weaknesses of economic institutions, infrastructure, and human resources), modernizing the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), and strengthening risk management in the banking sector and financial supervision system. The focus is also on capital market development based on improvement of its fundamentals and the reform of large state-owned corporations. In particular, this paper argues for having a firm commitment to combating high inflation and combining tightened monetary policy with a more flexible exchange rate and tightened fiscal policies. The scope and scale of the macropolicy mix should aim to test the market for necessary adjustments rather than create policy shocks. Considering the evident policy inconsistencies, prudential screening and monitoring should be strengthened to prevent speculative financial activities

Dataset of Vietnamese students’ intention in respect of study abroad before and during COVID-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 Pandemic had completely disrupted the worldwide educational system. Many schools chose the online delivery mode for students in case learning losses incurred during social distance decree. However, as to these students who are currently in the study abroad planning stages, reached an intention crossroads, whether standing for certain unchanging decisions in study abroad destinations or changing swiftly due to the unexpected policies in quarantine. This case opened to interpretation, which was based on our e-survey since 3 May to 13 May 2020 with 397 responses covering a range of Vietnamese students. In this dataset, we focused on (i) Students’ Demographics; (ii) The previous intention of students to study abroad before and during the Covid-19 ravaged and (iii) Their intention afterwards

Mitigating effect of embankment to adjacent pipe with CDM columns

Pipelines are valuable infrastructures that covering a large area or expanding to long distance for the transporting function. This leads to the variety of loads and effects applied on such buried structures. A thread to pipeline integrity is the construction of the embankment on the soft soil which leads to the displacement of the pipe adjacent to the slope. This displacement will effect to the increase of internal force or causing failure of the near-by pipes. The use of concrete pile to improve the soil properties may be a solution; however, the cost for this is expensive. To propose an alternative solution for the problem, this study uses a system of cement deep mixing, CDM, columns as the solution for protecting the pipe. A simple 2D Finite Element, FE, model using Plaxis software has been established based on the equivalent soil approach which considering the CDM columns and their surrounding soil as an unified soil. The effectiveness of the proposed solution has been numerically investigated and proven. The lateral displacement of pipe and the maximum ring bending moment and other internal forces are significantly reduced with the appearance of the CDM columns. The selective parametric study has been implemented revealing the critical input variables are the distance of pipe to the slope and the length of the CDM column

Factors associated with 90-day mortality in Vietnamese stroke patients: Prospective findings compared with explainable machine learning, multicenter study

The prevalence and predictors of mortality following an ischemic stroke or intracerebral hemorrhage have not been well established among patients in Vietnam. 2885 consecutive diagnosed patients with ischemic stroke and intracerebral hemorrhage at ten stroke centres across Vietnam were involved in this prospective study. Posthoc analyses were performed in 2209 subjects (age was 65.4 ± 13.7 years, with 61.4% being male) to explore the clinical characteristics and prognostic factors associated with 90-day mortality following treatment. An explainable machine learning model using extreme gradient boosting and SHapley Additive exPlanations revealed the correlation between original clinical research and advanced machine learning methods in stroke care. In the 90 days following treatment, the mortality rate for ischemic stroke was 8.2%, while for intracerebral hemorrhage, it was higher at 20.5%. Atrial fibrillation was an elevated risk of 90-day mortality in the ischemic stroke patient (OR 3.09; 95% CI 1.90–5.02, p 0.05). The baseline NIHSS score was a significant predictor of 90-day mortality in both patient groups. The machine learning model can predict a 0.91 accuracy prediction of death rate after 90 days. Age and NIHSS score were in the top high risks with other features, such as consciousness, heart rate, and white blood cells. Stroke severity, as measured by the NIHSS, was identified as a predictor of mortality at discharge and the 90-day mark in both patient groups

The fluidic molecular trajectory and the Nano-droplet production ability

This paper studies the liquid Nano-droplet production ability using molecular dynamics simulation methodology. The research parameter is performed at the temperature of 310 Kelvin (K), the pressing force of 10.0 × 10−10 Newton (N) and the ejective hole diameters of 25 and 40 Angstrom (Å). The research result shows that liquid Nano-droplets finally were not produced for the ejective diameter of 25 Å. The Nano-jets were not only non-destruction from nozzle’s surface to produce the droplets but also movement downward to come back the nozzle’s surface. The molecular trajectory is very zigzag and curved both inside and outside the ejective container. In the contrary, when increasing the ejective diameter to 40 Å, the liquid Nano-droplet was produced in the same the ejective time and compressible force magnitude. The molecular trajectory is quite straight after ejecting out the outside of the container. Meanwhile, for the nozzle diameter size of 40 Å, the Nano-droplet was not only production but also movement up to leave away the nozzle’s surface under same above conditions. That proves that the ejective diameter has the influences to the moveable direction and Nano-droplets formation ability in the whole ejective process

An update and reassessment of vascular plant species richness and distribution in Bach Ma National Park, Central Vietnam

Bach Ma National Park (BMNP) is recognized as an essential biodiversity hotspot in Vietnam because of its diverse topography, high species richness and threatened and endemic species. This study updates the richness and distribution of vascular plant species in the BMNP by intergrading data from literature, field surveys, key-informant interviews and participatory observations. Our results showed that the park has a high diversity of vascular plants with 1,874 species belonging to 192 families, 6 phylums including Psilotophyta, Lycopodiophyta, Equisetophyta, Polypodiophyta, Pinophyta, and Magnoliophyta. It also indicates that 199 out of 1,874 vascular species in the BMNP are listed as endangered, precious and rare plant species of Vietnam. In particular, 55 species are part of the IUCN 2020 list, in which 9 are critically endangered species (CR), 15 are endangered species (EN), and 31 are vulnerable species (VU). According to the rankings of the Red List Vietnam (2007), 6 species of CR (accounting for 13.64% compared with the whole country), 36 species of EN (20%), and 52 species of VU (26%) were found in this area. The results provided that vascular plant species are distributed into 2 types based on high altitude (threshold at 900m), but there are no dominant communities. The findings may be essential information for foresters and biologists to recognize and use it as the newest update for their next scientific research in conservation and resource management.Vườn Quốc gia (VQG) Bạch Mã được xem là một điểm nóng đa dạng sinh học quan trọng ở Việt Nam vì địa hình đa dạng, độ phong phú loài cao, đặc biệt là các loài đặc hữu và nguy cấp. Trong nghiên cứu này, chúng tôi đã cập nhật sự phong phú và phân bố của các loài thực vật bậc cao tại VQG Bạch Mã bằng cách kết hợp dữ liệu từ tổng quan tài liệu, khảo sát thực địa, phỏng vấn người am hiểu và điều tra có sự tham gia. Kết quả cho thấy VQG có hệ thực vật bậc cao phong phú với 1.874 loài, thuộc 192 họ, 6 ngành bao gồm Psilotophyta, Lycopodiophyta, Equisetophyta, Polypodiophyta, Pinophyta, Magnoliophyta. Kết quả chỉ ra rằng 199 trong số 1.874 loài thực vật bậc cao tại VQG này được xếp vào danh sách các loài nguy cấp của Việt Nam. Đặc biệt, có 55 loài thuộc danh mục của IUCN năm 2020, trong đó có 9 loài Cực kỳ nguy cấp (CR), 15 loài Nguy cấp (EN) và 31 loài Sẽ nguy cấp (VU). Trong khi đó, theo xếp hạng của Sách Đỏ Việt Nam (2007), nghiên cứu cho thấy có 6 loài CR (chiếm 13,64% so với cả nước), 36 loài EN (20%) và 52 loài VU (26%). Phát hiện của chúng tôi cũng chỉ ra rằng đặc điểm phân bố của các loài thực vật bậc cao ở VQG Bạch Mã gồm 2 kiểu rừng dựa trên độ cao (mức 900m), nhưng không có quần xã nào chiếm ưu thế. Các kết quả này được kỳ vọng sẽ là nguồn thông tin cần thiết cho các nhà hoạt động lâm nghiệp và sinh vật học sử dụng nó như một bản cập nhật mới nhất cho các nghiên cứu khoa học tiếp theo trong bảo tồn và quản lý tài nguyên

Estimating the cost of illness of acute Japanese encephalitis and sequelae care in Vietnam and Laos: a cross-sectional study

Background Japanese encephalitis (JE) is a leading cause of acute encephalitis syndrome and resulting neurological disability in Asia and the Western Pacific. This study aims to estimate the cost of acute care, initial rehabilitation and sequelae care, in Vietnam and Laos. Methodology We conducted a cross-sectional retrospective study using a micro-costing approach from the health system and household perspectives. Out-of-pocket direct medical and non-medical costs, indirect costs, and family impact were reported by patients and/or caregivers. Hospitalization costs were extracted from hospital charts. Acute costs covered expenditures from pre-hospital to follow-up visits while sequelae care costs were estimated from expenditures in the last 90 days. All costs are in 2021 US dollars. Principal findings 242 patients in two major sentinel sites in the North and South of Vietnam and 65 patients in a central hospital in Vientiane, Laos, with laboratory-confirmed JE were recruited regardless of age, sex, and ethnicity. In Vietnam, the mean total cost was $3,371 per acute JE episode (median$2,071, standard error [SE] $464) while annual costs were$404 for initial sequelae care (median $0, SE$220) and $320 for long-term sequelae care (median$0, SE $108). In Laos, the mean hospitalization costs in acute stage were$2,005 (median $1,698, SE$279) and the mean annual costs were $2,317 (median$0, SE $2,233) for initial sequelae care and$89 (median $0, SE$57) for long-term sequelae care. In both countries, most patients did not seek care for their sequelae. Families perceived extreme impact from JE and 20% to 30% of households still had sustained debts years after acute JE. Conclusions JE patients and families in Vietnam and Laos suffer extreme medical, economic, and social hardship. This has policy implications for improving JE prevention in these two JE-endemic countries

Multiple Recurrent Acute Ischemic Strokes Treated by Thrombectomy in a Patient with Acute Pulmonary Embolism

BACKGROUND: Thrombectomy is recommended to treat for an acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patient with anterior large vessel occlusion. However, there were neither detailed guidelines nor systematic reviews of acute ischemic stroke patients having multiple times or re-occluded arteries. CASE REPORT: In our case report, we struggled a multiple (4-times) AIS patient underwent by one intravenous r-tpA and 3 remaining of endovascular treatment of thrombectomy. Especially, the finding of both pulmonary embolism and cerebral arteries occlusion in this patient made us difficult to decide the appropriate treatment plan. The patient was considered having multiple cardiac thrombi pumping out to the brain and pulmonary vessels even in treatment with NOAC (New Oral Anticoagulant). Our priority, normally, was to recanalize the brain vessels compared to the pulmonary arteries. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, based on this noticed case study, we want to share our experiences on the diagnosis of ischemic stroke, the strategy in treatment and prevention with anticoagulant therapy

Spatiotemporal evolution of SARS-CoV-2 Alpha and Delta variants during large nationwide outbreak of COVID-19, Vietnam, 2021

We analyzed 1,303 SARS-CoV-2 whole-genome sequences from Vietnam, and found the Alpha and Delta variants were responsible for a large nationwide outbreak of COVID-19 in 2021. The Delta variant was confined to the AY.57 lineage and caused >1.7 million infections and >32,000 deaths. Viral transmission was strongly affected by nonpharmaceutical interventions