​​​​Vietnam's logistics industry still has great potential for strong development.

On October 31, in Ho Chi Minh City, the 2nd Vietnam Logistics Conference - 2024 with the theme "Transformation for breakthrough" took place, organized by Investment Newspaper.

The conference was attended by Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Do Thanh Trung; Deputy Director of the Import-Export Department of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Tran Thanh Hai, Director of the Inland Waterways Department of the Ministry of Transport Bui Thien Thu, along with representatives of management agencies, business leaders, and leading experts in the logistics industry.

According to managers and experts, the global logistics industry is being affected by many unfavorable factors such as uncertain global economic recovery, increasing geopolitical tensions, the risk of supply chain disruption still exists, declining consumer market demand, the impact of natural disasters such as super typhoon Yagi, etc.

Scene at the 2nd Vietnam Logistics Conference - 2024. Photo: Sy Dong

Despite the existing difficulties, the general forecast shows that the market still has a lot of potential for strong growth. According to the market outlook forecast of Precedence Research, the global logistics market size could reach 21.91 trillion USD by 2033, with a compound annual growth rate of 9.35% for the period 2024 - 2033.

In Vietnam, the logistics market value reached about 40 billion USD in 2023 and is expected to continue to grow at a rate of about 14 - 15% annually until 2025. The logistics industry currently contributes about 4 - 5% of GDP, and creates jobs for more than 1 million direct workers.

According to Mr. Le Trong Minh - Editor-in-Chief of Investment Newspaper, we continue to witness new advances in Vietnam's logistics industry with impressive figures. In particular, logistics has become one of the fastest growing industries in Vietnam, with an average growth rate of about 16%/year, contributing about 4.5% of GDP and rising to be among the top 5 countries in the ASEAN region.

Mr. Le Trong Minh - Editor-in-Chief of Investment Newspaper speaking at the conference. Photo: Organizing Committee

The free trade agreements that Vietnam is participating in, its strategic position in international trade routes, the attractiveness of the investment environment... are improving day by day, clearly illustrated by the growth of foreign investment flows, and import and export continuing to recover strongly after being negatively impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In particular, the Government's determination to promote major infrastructure projects across the fields of roads, airways, seaports, railways, etc., as well as strongly promote the dual transformation process including digital transformation and green transformation, is opening up many unprecedented opportunities for the development of Vietnam's logistics industry.

However, to make the road ahead for Vietnamese logistics a green one as many people expect, it is not simply based on existing potentials and advantages.

“Although the score has improved on the rankings, the 43rd position globally in the Logistics Performance Index implies that the Vietnamese logistics industry is not enough to just move forward, but also needs to break through to surpass in a world that is also changing rapidly. To break through, there definitely needs to be strong changes,” said Mr. Minh.

At the conference, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Do Thanh Trung also pointed out the shortcomings and limitations although Vietnam's logistics industry has achieved positive results in recent times.

According to Mr. Trung, policies and institutions for the Vietnamese logistics industry are still lacking and not yet synchronized, there is no complete legal framework for the logistics industry; transport infrastructure and logistics infrastructure such as warehouses, yards, and logistics centers are still limited and not yet synchronized, and there is no formation of smooth multimodal transport corridors; there is a lack of logistics centers in strategic locations, connected to the system of ports, airports, roads, and production facilities.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Do Thanh Trung pointed out the challenges and limitations of Vietnam's logistics industry. Photo: Organizing Committee

In addition, Vietnamese logistics enterprises are still limited in terms of qualifications, experience, capital, human resources, and weak competitiveness, often playing the role of subcontractors or agents for foreign corporations; human resources trained in logistics are still lacking, not meeting the requirements, especially the lack of highly qualified logistics personnel with the capacity to apply and deploy new technologies in enterprises.

The above-mentioned shortcomings and limitations are posing significant challenges for Vietnam in developing the logistics industry in the coming time. In addition, today's world is witnessing complex fluctuations in security, geopolitics and the rapid development of science and technology, especially digital technology such as Big Data, Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI) ... bringing significant challenges to the Vietnamese logistics industry.

“Logistics businesses that want to survive and develop must improve their operations, promote digital transformation, and invest in applying new technologies to improve operational efficiency and competitiveness. These are significant challenges for Vietnamese logistics businesses, most of which are small and medium-sized enterprises with limited experience, capital, and human resources,” said Mr. Do Thanh Trung.

However, this is also a great opportunity as businesses are pushed to make a faster, stronger, more substantial transformation. Businesses that better grasp new technology waves will outperform other businesses, just as countries that better grasp new technology waves will outperform other countries.

“The question is how can Vietnamese logistics enterprises grasp and apply new technologies, take advantage of the country's existing potential and the objective opportunities to be competitive both domestically and internationally, to develop Vietnam's logistics industry to match its potential and strengths,” Mr. Do Thanh Trung emphasized.

Source: https://congthuong.vn/nganh-logistics-viet-nam-con-nhieu-tiem-nang-phat-trien-manh-me-355914.html