Taiwanese firm lays off 65% of staff over lack of orders
Footgearmex Footwear Co., Ltd, a Taiwanese-invested footwear maker in Ho Chi Minh City, has laid off 65% of its 1,822 employees due to a serious dearth of orders derived from global economic slowdown.
The laid off workers included 936 with indefinite employment contracts and 249 with one-year contracts, the HCMC Federation of Labor said Wednesday.
Footgearmex Footwear Co., Ltd headquarters in Binh Tan district, HCMC. Photo courtesy of Intellectual newspaper.
The firm, located in An Lac ward, Binh Tan district, paid severance allowance to laborers working from 2008 or earlier per the Labor Code and two-month salary payments to all laborers who lost their jobs Wednesday.
The municipal center for employment services said it received 10,440 applications for unemployment support in October. The January-October figure was 128,000, up 26% year-on-year, it added.
Economic experts said in a meeting Tuesday that the city's economic situation is getting worse.
HCMC recorded economic growth of 9.97% in the first 10 months of this year, however, a higher pace next year is unlikely due to both internal and external factors, said HCMC Mayor Phan Van Mai.
Truong Minh Huy Vu from Vietnam National University HCMC said the global contexts are exerting negative impacts on the city economy, while official information on a series of economic crimes have also affected market sentiment.
Economist Tran Du Lich said high inflation and the U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) raising interest rates have pushed the global economy into stagflation. "Signs of global economic recession are pretty clear."
- Related News
- Read More
Grocery chain Bach Hoa Xanh opens 1st store in Hanoi, takes cautious northern Vietnam expansion approach
Bach Hoa Xanh, a grocery chain operated by Vietnam’s leading retailer Mobile World Investment Corporation (HoSE: MWG), has opened its first store in Hanoi, marking entry into one of the country’s most competitive consumer markets.
Companies - Sat, May 9, 2026 | 8:17 am GMT+7
Intel to continue expanding investment in Vietnam: exec
U.S. chipmaker Intel will continue expanding investment, supporting workforce training, and helping develop Vietnam’s semiconductor ecosystem as the country refines investment support mechanisms to retain large-scale high-tech projects, said its executives.
Industries - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 7:48 pm GMT+7
Vingroup’s VinMetal partners with Primetals for green steel complex in central Vietnam
Vingroup’s subsidiary VinMetal has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with global steel giant Primetals Technologies to develop a large-scale integrated steel complex in central Vietnam.
Industries - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 4:25 pm GMT+7
Hanoi pushes Sumitomo, BRG to accelerate $4.2 bln smart city project
Hanoi authorities have asked Japan’s Sumitomo and local conglomerate BRG Group to quicken the progress of the North Hanoi Smart City project as soon as legal procedures are finalized.
Real Estate - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 3:31 pm GMT+7
Moody's Ratings upgrades MBBank's deposit ratings to Ba2 from Ba3, outlook stable
Moody’s Ratings (Moody’s) has announced an upgrade of the local currency and foreign currency long-term deposit and issuer ratings for Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MB, HoSE: MBB) from Ba3 to Ba2, aligning with Vietnam’s sovereign rating (Ba2 positive). The outlook remains "Stable."
Banking - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 3:00 pm GMT+7
Vietnam welcomes leading Indian groups to expand energy, infrastructure cooperation: top leader
Vietnam is ready to create favorable conditions for capable Indian corporations and businesses to expand investment and operations in the country in line with its laws, while ensuring transparency and balanced interests among stakeholders, said Vietnam’s Party chief and President To Lam.
Economy - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 1:59 pm GMT+7
Vietnam airport operator ACV records slows disbursement for Long Thanh mega-airport project
Airports Corporation of Vietnam's (ACV) slow disbursement for the Long Thanh International Airport project, located in the southern province of Dong Nai, highlights implementation bottlenecks despite the company's strong profitability in Q1/2026 and substantial cash reserves for the country's largest aviation infrastructure project.
Companies - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 1:41 pm GMT+7
Vietnam property developers shift to asset-holding strategy for stable cash flow
Vietnamese property developers are increasingly shifting away from the traditional build-to-sell model and focusing instead on accumulating long-term assets capable of generating stable recurring income, as the industry adapts to lessons learned from the market downturn of 2022-2023.
Real Estate - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 12:07 pm GMT+7
Vietnamese, Indian firms exchange 27 agreements on aviation, tourism, logistics, technology
Vietnamese and Indian firms on Thursday exchanged 27 cooperation agreements aimed at boosting trade, investment, tourism and training between the two countries, thereby making bilateral partnership deeper, more practical and effective.
Economy - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 11:13 am GMT+7
MBBank ranks among Vietnam's leading lenders for SME working capital in key industries
Military Bank (MB) has emerged as one of Vietnam’s leading providers of working capital financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in key economic sectors, according to National Credit Information Center (CIC) data.
Banking - Fri, May 8, 2026 | 8:56 am GMT+7
Hanoi eyes massive replanning of Red River corridor, relocation of riverside communities
Hanoi plans to gradually relocate and reorganize all residential areas outside the Red River dike system as part of an ambitious urban redevelopment strategy aimed at transforming both banks of the river into a new economic and cultural corridor for the capital.
Economy - Thu, May 7, 2026 | 5:04 pm GMT+7
Thaco, VinFast, TC Group urge Vietnam gov't to keep auto sector under conditional business rules
Vietnam’s three major domestic automotive corporations - Thaco, VinFast and TC Group - have urged the government to maintain automobile manufacturing, assembly and import activities within the list of “conditional business sectors,” warning that deregulation could weaken the country’s long-term industrial strategy and expose local producers to unfair competition.
Economy - Thu, May 7, 2026 | 4:09 pm GMT+7
Prudential Vietnam remits $194 mln in retained earnings to parent company
Prudential Vietnam transferred over VND5.1 trillion ($194 million) in retained earnings to its parent company, Prudential Corporation Holdings, earlier this year, according to disclosures in its 2025 financial statements.
Finance - Thu, May 7, 2026 | 3:33 pm GMT+7
$120 mln export ambition: What drives Vietnam’s home appliance giant Sunhouse to strengthen position in global supply chain?
The prominent presence of Sunhouse, Vietnam’s leading home appliance brand, at the 139th Canton Fair reinforces its strategic direction to become a key manufacturing partner in the global supply chain.
Companies - Thu, May 7, 2026 | 2:10 pm GMT+7
Vietnam makes 'huge difference' in terms of accessibility criteria: FTSE Russell exec
Vietnam has made “significant progress in meeting the requirements” over the past two years for an upgrade from frontier market to secondary emerging market status, said Wanming Du, FTSE Russell's Asia-Pacific director of index policy.
Finance - Thu, May 7, 2026 | 11:54 am GMT+7
Taiwan's electronics major Lite-On to pump additional $149 mln into Vietnam arms
Taiwanese electronics maker Lite-On Technology plans to inject an additional $149 million into its wholly owned subsidiaries in Vietnam, as part of efforts to expand production capacity and strengthen its manufacturing footprint.
Industries - Thu, May 7, 2026 | 8:00 am GMT+7
