European firms report positive business climate in Q2
Overall, the assessment on the business situation among European companies in the last quarter is good, with 66.7 percent of the respondents describing it as “excellent” or “good”, and only 12.5 percent classifying it as “not good” or “very poor”.
EuroCham Chairman Michael Behrens commented: “The results for Quarter 2, 2016, show positive expectations for the near future and consistent satisfaction with the present situation.”
“EuroCham members maintain a positive view on the Vietnamese market and their business operations in the country, a result which does not differ from our last survey. This is a good sign for the current implementation of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, which is expected to strongly enhance European business and investment,” he added.
In regard to the macroeconomic outlook for Vietnam in the next quarter, from EuroCham members’ point of view, macroeconomic stability will likely continue, as 56.3 percent of the respondents indicated “stabilisation and improvement”. Another 9.4 percent expected deterioration, and 34.4 percent think that it will not change.
Around 49 percent of the respondents expected the number of orders or revenue to increase slightly in the next quarter. 15.6 percent of them were even more optimistic, expecting a significant increase of revenue in Q3.
Specifically, 43.8 percent of the questioned companies answered that they would increase investment, while 43.7 percent expected an increase in headcount, the survey found.
The survey was sent out to 883 members of EuroCham including some of the largest European investors in the country.
