Vietnam’s retail market welcomed many new projects in both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City last year and the retail real estate market in both cities continued to maintain solid growth in rental prices, real estate consultants CBRE has reported.

Rental prices in prime locations continued rising last year due to the active participation and expansion of many luxury and high-end brands.

In Hanoi, the rental price for ground floor space in the central area stood at $162 per sq m a month, an increase of 13 per cent year-on-year. In Ho Chi Minh City, the average rental price per sq m in the central area was around $240 a month, up 6 per cent from the previous year. Of note, there were almost no empty retail spaces in the central areas of both cities.

Associate Director of CBRE Vietnam’s Research & Consulting Services, Ms. Pham Ngoc Thien Thanh, said commercial centers are operating relatively well with a consistently high occupancy rate. Many foreign retail brands, especially high-end and luxury brands, have reported positive revenue in the Asia-Pacific region compared to elsewhere, so there is a demand for store expansions.

According to Ms. Thanh, new outlets will contribute to the rising retail market during 2024. Five new projects are set to open in Hanoi with a total rental area of nearly 40,000 sq m, while in Ho Chi Minh City, two large-scale shopping malls are set to open this year with a total rental area of nearly 70,000 sq m.