Mobile World slides backward on lower-than-expected profit: chairman
Mobile World Investment Corporation (MWG) is "sliding backward" as its 2022 profit is expected to reach VND4.4 trillion ($177.6 million) or 90% of last year’s figure, said the firm’s chairman Nguyen Duc Tai.
“This is the first year Mobile World has seen its profit go down,” he told a recent meeting with investors. However, Tai predicted that the company’s revenue growth target could be reached.
MWG aimed to reap a revenue and after-tax profit of VND140 trillion ($5.65 billion) and VND6.35 trillion ($256.4 million) this year, up nearly 14% and 30% year-on-year, respectively.
In the first 10 months of 2022, the corporation earned VND113.71 trillion ($4.59 billion) in revenue and VND3.84 trillion ($155 million) in profit, up from the same period last year and equivalent to 81% and 60% of the year's plans, respectively.
Explaining MWG’s possible failure in fulfilling its profit growth target this year, Tai said that the main reason is people's falling income, which leads to reduced purchasing demand. Amid difficulties, consumers tend to tighten spending, only purchasing necessities at cheaper prices, he added.
"This year is very strange as the year-end is often the time for people to work overtime but now they have their working time cut. With reduced income, many had to return to their hometown. Some companies even laid off employees," he noted.

MWG chairman Nguyen Duc Tai. Photo courtesy of BStyle.vn.
Another reason for MWG’s slowdown this year is the restructuring of its store chain. The company estimated that expenses incurred from asset liquidation and site return as a result of the closure of more than 400 stores amounted to VND500 billion ($20.18 million), which was recorded in the second- and third-quarter financial statements.
Answering the question "How long will this difficult situation last?" Tai said "it is difficult to predict - it would be the first quarter of next year at the earliest, and if unlucky, it would last until the third quarter of 2023."
"So the pilots [business owners] need to be clear-headed to navigate their planes through this bad weather territory, towards a bright future."
“If we expect something to pass quickly, it will be very difficult. The current context is not like the Covid-19 period when we locked down to protect our health, and we could act flexibly.
"Now we do not face a certain issue but a series of problems like inflation, war, exchange rate risks so we cannot expect difficulties to go away fast and the economy to recover within one to two months," he told investors.
Sharing the firm’s business strategy, MWG finance director Vu Dang Linh said the corporation would take a prudent and defensive strategy at present and in future.
MWG has changed its strategy by streamlining the chain of Bach Hoa Xanh stores and focusing on better control of inventories and costs. MWG would also implement a cautious financial investment strategy in collaboration with banks, he added.
Regarding investment activities, Mobile World will also stay prudent in expanding its chain of stores in Indonesia or the chain of An Khang pharmacies.
Doan Van Hieu Em, a board member, said MWG would open its first five stores in Indonesia in December. The chain expansion would only be considered in the first quarter or the beginning of the second quarter next year.
MWG planned to increase the number of An Khang pharmacies to 800 this year. However, by the end of the third quarter, it decided to stop at 500. Hieu Em said the company chose to take this chain one step at a time to evaluate its optimization, and would expand it at a favorable and appropriate time next year.
In the stock market, MWG closed the Friday session at VND37,800 ($1.53) per share, a drop of over 50% as compared to its peak of VND80,000 ($3.23) in April.
- Read More
Rixos debuts in Southeast Asia on Vietnam’s 'Pearl Island'
A new chapter in travel is unfolding in Southeast Asia as Rixos Hotels, the world’s leading all-inclusive brand, prepares to unveil its first-ever resort in the region.
Travel - Sat, July 12, 2025 | 6:48 pm GMT+7
Vietnam’s biggest airport project ‘races to the finish line’
The Ministry of Construction has requested investors of the Long Thanh International Airport to complete the main route by August 2025 to facilitate trial operations of the passenger terminal and other components.
Infrastructure - Sat, July 12, 2025 | 6:19 pm GMT+7
Singapore's YCH Group eyes developing logistics center in southern Vietnam economic zone
Tay Ninh province has pledged full support to Singapore’s YCH Group in developing a logistics center within its Moc Bai Border Gate Economic Zone.
Industries - Sat, July 12, 2025 | 1:48 pm GMT+7
Vietnam PM asks US firms to sustain support for 'reasonable, detailed tariff pact'
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has called on U.S. businesses to continue supporting the Vietnamese government in dialogues with U.S. agencies to soon reach "a reasonable, detailed tariff agreement for individual products and product groups".
Economy - Sat, July 12, 2025 | 11:32 am GMT+7
Mergers of Vietnamese provinces unlock new property development opportunities
The merging of Vietnamese localities is expected to create a strong "boost" for the real estate market as expanded planning space, synchronized infrastructure, and new land reserves are key factors driving the market's transformation.
Real Estate - Sat, July 12, 2025 | 11:00 am GMT+7
Measures proposed for Thailand to minimize US tariff impacts
Financial and banking experts in Thailand have warned that the U.S.'s proposed 36% tariff on Thai goods is likely to severely undermine Thailand's export competitiveness.
Southeast Asia - Sat, July 12, 2025 | 9:06 am GMT+7
Chinese construction major PCG eyes $383 mln underwater tunnel project in northern Vietnam
Pacific Construction Group (PCG), one of China’s leading construction firms, has expressed interest in developing a VND10 trillion ($383 million) underwater road tunnel in Quang Ninh, a coastal province in northern Vietnam.
Infrastructure - Sat, July 12, 2025 | 8:04 am GMT+7
Vingroup stocks pull VN-Index up for sixth consecutive session
VN-Index, which represents the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange, on Friday increased for the sixth consecutive session thanks to large-cap stocks, with foreign investors continuing to strongly net buy.
Finance - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 7:20 pm GMT+7
Coca-Cola inaugurates largest-scale Vietnam factory in Tay Ninh province
Coca-Cola Beverages Vietnam on Friday inaugurated a $136 million factory in Tay Ninh province, the largest-scale among its four facilities in Vietnam.
Industries - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 5:27 pm GMT+7
Vietnam halts use of German ODA loans for HCMC metro line
The Government has approved a proposal by Ho Chi Minh City to stop borrowing official development assistance (ODA) loans from Germany’s KfW development bank for Metro Line No. 2 and instead use domestic funds to avoid further delays.
Economy - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 3:25 pm GMT+7
Seventeen housing projects foreigners allowed to buy in HCMC
Ho Chi Minh City has announced a list of 17 residential projects located in areas where foreign organizations and individuals are allowed to own houses.
Real Estate - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 3:17 pm GMT+7
Auto enterprises to enjoy preferential import tariff policies
The Government has issued a decree amending and supplementing Decree No. 26/2023/ND-CP on the export and preferential import tariff schedules, as well as the lists of goods subject to absolute tax, mixed tax, and out-of-quota import duties.
Companies - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 2:13 pm GMT+7
Korean chaebol Samsung’s revenue makes up 13% of Vietnam’s GDP in 2024
Samsung’s revenue and export in Vietnam accounted for approximately 13.12% of the country’s GDP and 13.4% of its total export turnover in 2024, respectively, according to the National Statistics Office.
Companies - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 2:09 pm GMT+7
JPMorgan upgrades Vietnam stocks to overweight following US tariff deal
JPMorgan Chase has upgraded Vietnam stocks to overweight after the country became the first Southeast Asian nation to reach a preliminary tariff deal with the U.S.
Economy - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 11:38 am GMT+7
Vietnam government bond issuance surges nearly 70% in June
The Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) held 16 government bond auctions in June, raising nearly VND30.5 trillion ($1.2 billion), up 68.8% from May.
Finance - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 9:30 am GMT+7
Xuan Truong Company asked to make feasibility study for airport proposal in northern Vietnam
The Ministry of Construction has asked Ninh Binh authorities to prepare a feasibility study on the potential development of an international airport in the province, the ministry said in a report submitted to the Government regarding a proposal from private construction company Xuan Truong.
Companies - Fri, July 11, 2025 | 9:18 am GMT+7