The supply of retail space in Vietnam’s largest city may double in the next three years, with major projects in the eastern section of the city, accompanied by new residential areas and a new Metro route.

The floor area of retail space of urban areas and shopping centers in Districts 2, 9, Thu Duc, and Binh Thanh is growing, all of which is expected to start operation from now to 2018.

In the first quarter of 2015, the Vincom group opened nearly 28,000 m2 of retail space in the eastern region of Ho Chi Minh City. In District 2, the group announced investments in project Masteri to develop 120,000 m2 of commercial floor for Vincom Mega Mall Thao Dien.

In Binh Thanh district, Vingroup has developed the project Vinhomes Central Park, which is a miniature city with convenient shopping, dining, and entertainment area of up to 59,000m2.

District 2 will be the home to many shopping centers in the near future, including the complex Cantavil An Phu, Parkson with a total floor area of 17,815 m2 and Pearl Plaza with nearly 21,000 m2.

Not far away, Thao Dien Pearl also announced it would offer 20,400 m2 of commercial retail space in 2016. At the same time, The Sun Avenue and Lexington Residence buildings will come into operation. The apartment complex Estella Height promises to provide more than 37,000 m2 of retail space for the eastern part of the city.

That's not to mention a series of giant estate projects in the East such as Keppel Land (District 2), Dai Quang Minh (near Thu Thiem), Thu Duc House (District 9 and Thu Duc), Khang Dien, Nam Long and Gia Hoa (District 9) which will have vast areas of retail space.

Head of the Market Research and Development Consultant Division of CBRE Vietnam, Ms. Duong Thuy Dung, said new and large retail centers in the east of HCM City will compete with shopping malls located downtown and in South Saigon.

Dung said the emergence of international retail giants from Thailand and Japan, along with the expansion of Vingroup and local retailers in east Saigon has made the race for market share fierce. "In the first quarter of 2015, the price for retail space has moved slightly, showing signs for a good year," she added.

Director of Dat Lanh Real Estate, Mr. Nguyen Van Duc, said: "Infrastructure boom and the emergence of the No.1 metro route have had a huge influence on the real estate market in HCM City in general and shopping centers in east Saigon in particular."

According to Duc, the explosion of retail centers in the eastern part of the city was inevitable because thanks to the construction of the metro route, transport will be much more convenient. Moreover, east Saigon has no pollution or traffic jams, and is safe, so more people are moving to this area.