Hanoi (VNA) – Singapore-based website businesstimes.com.sg on December 26 published an article stating that five major trends will shape Southeast Asia in 2026, bringing with them significant opportunities for Vietnam.
The article wrote: “Front-loaded shipments, electronics exports and foreign direct investment (FDI) turned out to be the engines behind the region’s resilience this year.” With uncertainty remaining ever-present in Southeast Asia, five engines could power the region in the new year, namely trade resilience amid tariff troubles, domestic growth, FDI, sovereign wealth, and private capital.
According to the author, Southeast Asian states have been relatively less successful in their negotiations with the US compared to most of Asia.
“Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam should experience positive spillovers, albeit to a lesser extent, as they maintain meaningful exposure to food and agricultural exports,” noted Deepali Bhargava, chief economist for the Asia-Pacific at ING, as quoted by the article.
Besides external trade, many of the region’s growth drivers in the new year will come from its domestic economies.
Meanwhile, most of the region’s economies put up a strong showing in attracting FDI in 2025. Maybank noted that FDI metrics continued to improve in Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand in 2025, but slowed in Indonesia and the Philippines. The bank projected that these investments will continue their trajectory in 2026, with Indonesia set to experience a turnaround in its FDI woes.
Further, state investment vehicles are stepping up and playing a more active role in driving domestic growth through their sovereign wealth funds, said the article.
It added that with the region’s private capital space representing just 0.5% of the region’s gross domestic product – far below the global average of 1.5% – a rebound could be on the cards for 2026. Industry players are cautiously optimistic about the year ahead.
“Many regional (private market) players headquartered in Singapore and Indonesia are showing renewed activity, while Vietnam’s ambitious growth targets continue to create compelling opportunities,” Thom Abbott, head of South-east Asia, primary markets, at the London Stock Exchange, said as quoted by the author. “From a sector perspective, fintech, healthcare and energy remain areas of strong interest.”/.
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