FM Logistics in Bac Ninh Province. The logistics market of Viet Nam currently is at a basic development stage, however in the next few years, there will be rapid development of modern and high-quality logistics centers. — Photo FM Logistics
Viet Nam’s logistics industry has grown tremendously alongside the upsurge in the demand for home delivery in 2020 despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including social distancing and lockdowns, participants heard at a forum on January 5.
The event, entitled “CEO Forum: Viet Nam warehouse industry trend”, aims to enhance the competitiveness of logistics enterprises in Viet Nam against new market trends.
Logistics experts said that in 2021, the circulation of commodities from export and import merchandise to consumer goods and the development of e-commerce exchanges will continue to be industry trends. In addition to transportation, warehouses are crucial infrastructure in the service supply chain, as the key trend is the growing expansion of logistics centres.
Viet Nam's logistics sector is at a basic development stage, however in the next few years, there will be a rapid development of modern and high-quality logistics centres.
According to Jones Lang LaSalle (JJL), Viet Nam's logistics industry is seeing positive prospects as many investors are still interested in the field, regardless of the short-term impact of COVID-19. In the last 24 months alone, nearly US$3 billion was invested in the warehouse system and modern logistics centres. In particular, durable and high-quality materials for optimal fire protection and temperature inside warehouses are key elements.
“Previously, warehouses were of a small scale, only to serve business purposes. The current trend is that enterprises or leaders in the industry invest in large scale warehouses integrating multiple functions to form logistics centres. The second trend is to improve administration through information technology and automation. The third trend is to apply green logistics or renewable energy in management and operation of logistics centres and warehouses,” said by Le Duy Hiep, Chairman of Vietnam Logistics Business Association.
“Investors and businesses used to not pay attention to the lifespan of logistics centres, however, when customers’ requirements are increasingly stricter, the basic infrastructure will not meet their needs. Therefore, investors will consider project lifespan and cost effectiveness of the logistics centre to serve the supply chain, in which construction materials will be the focus to ensure the safety of goods,” said Trang Bui, Head of Markets, JLL Vietnam.
At the forum, enterprises also are spoke about the current status quo and future trends of the logistics warehouse industry in Viet Nam and experience of logistics in other ASEAN countries, including goods distribution centre model of FM Logistics and safety systems for logistics warehouses of NS BlueScope Vietnam. — VNS