Cushman & Wakefield forecast on November 13 that Asia-Pacificregion, including Vietnam, will be the world’s most dynamic retailmarket over the next 10-20 years thanks to its lower prices than manyparts of the world and improved living standards.

According toJames Hawkey, the firm’s Managing Director of the Asia-Pacific retailteam, Vietnam, with a population of over 90 million, has a hugepotential for the development of the retail market, catching eyes ofglobal leading retailers.

Although middle-income earnersincrease rapidly in Vietnam , the country still lacks retail channelsfor this group, he said.

Domestic retailers outweighinternational ones in terms of updated information on space and customerdemands whilst foreign brands have advantages in capital andexperience, noted Matthew B. Winn, Managing Director of Cushman &Wakefield’s global retail team.

However, they are able to sharethe market, contributing to diversify the market and better servecustomers, he said, adding that with the presence of global brands,domestic retailers will have to improve their product quality andpatterns as well as services.

According to Cushman &Wakefield, Vietnam’s retail market has enjoyed an average annualgrowth of 21.2 percent in the last five years, hitting a value of 124billion USD in 2013.

Especially, Ho Chi Minh City, thecountry’s southern economic hub, currently has eight trade centres, 19shopping malls, five retail centres and 69 supermarkets, covering atotal area of 865,000 sq.m.

It is estimated that the city will see additional 1.5 million sq.m of retail space in the next 5-7 years.-VNA