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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 2/1
Buy-to-let
offers ideal investments
Buy-to-let
property has been highlighted as a possible bright point in an otherwise
gloomy property market.
According
to Truong An Duong, head of the
“However,
this investment psychology has changed drastically. Besides the capital gain
aspect, investors now also pay attention the property’s ability to bring in a
stable flow of revenue,” Duong said.
The
instability of gold or stock markets has also encouraged individual investors
to lean towards the buy-to-let option.
He
said in some of the projects Savills was selling there were an
increasing number of apartments that have been bought and leased out.
Savills’
study shows that the current gross yields from buying and leasing apartments
have reached 4 to 6 per cent per year.
Due to
the interest rate ceiling being continuously adjusted downward since last
year, this yield rate is quite attractive to investors, especially those who
have favoured real estate as an investment channel.
For
buy-to-let investors, having a stable source of tenants remains critical when
reaching a purchase decision.
Some
developers have offered numerous programmes to support purchasers of
buy-to-let apartments, such as guarantees of leasing revenue during the first
year, or aid in searching for tenants without commission fees.
Some
developers offer buyers flexible payment schedules such as partial payment
upon handover, with the remainder being paid during the next two to three
years with little or no interest.
Reasonable
prices are another reason that the buy-to-let option has attracted investors.
Buy-to-let
apartments on mid to high-end developments are preferred by most foreigners
who currently work and reside in the cities.
Besides
expatriates who reside in serviced apartments or villas, foreigners with a
more limited housing budget opt to rent buy-to-let apartments.
The
rent for buy-to-let units is normally 20 to 30 per cent lower than serviced
apartments in the same location and development.
Foreign
Direct Investment (FDI) inflows to
Foreign
tenants often prefer Grade A or Grade B apartments.
There
are a range of housing for lease in Hanoi, from high-end apartments (100 to
150 square metres) leased at VND18 to 30 million per month per unit, mid-end
apartments from VND12 to 18 million per unit per month, and low-quality
houses at VND1.5 to 2 million per unit per month.
FDI
increase set to follow Yen Bai’s new incentives
In an
effort to boost foreign direct investment, the
In
order to attract foreign direct investment (FDI), especially investment
capital from
From 2010-2015,
the province will set up five IPs covering a total area of 1,182 hectares,
and 19 handicraft and industrial clusters covering 1,100 hectares.
Currently,
site clearance and infrastructure at some IPs and clusters have been
completed and are available for investors. The 120-ha Au Lau IP, the 112-ha
Minh Quan IP, the 12-ha Dam Hong industrial cluster and the 70-ha Au Lau
cluster are all now ready to welcome investors.
Another
400ha IP in the south of the province has so far succeeded in attracting 17
projects with a total financial commitment of VND2 trillion ($95.2 million).
In
addition to the establishment of IPs, Yen Bai is granting a series of
incentives to investors in terms of land rental. The province is also giving
support to investors in terms of site clearance, construction of
infrastructure, training local labourers and trade and investment promotion
activities. For instance, Yen Bai applies the lowest land rental and can
supplement 50 per cent of site clearance costs for investors.
The
province has also simplified administrative procedures to cut time, cost and
redtape for investors.
“Yen
Bai pledges to provide the most favourable conditions and support as much as
possible administrative procedures, helping investors to start their projects
as soon as possible,” stressed Pham Duy Cuong, chairman of the provincial
People’s Committee.
According
to the Yen Bai Department of Planning and Investment, the province has
attracted 21 FDI projects, capitalised at $109.6 million.
In
2013, Yen Bai licensed two FDI projects to build export garment factories.
Noticeably, these FDI firms made combined revenues of $26.18 million, up 20
per cent on-year. Businesses seeing good performance in 2013 included R.K
Vietnam Marble with revenues of $15.84 million and YBB Calcium Carbonate,
generating $8.67 million.
Yen
Bai province, situated in the centre of the northern midland region, has an
important position in the Kunming-Lao Cai-Hanoi-Haiphong economic corridor.
The province has a large forestry land area of 469,968 ha and forest coverage
rate of 51 per cent, ranking third in
In
addition, Yen Bai has a plentiful supply of minerals such as iron, quartz,
limestone and gemstones.
With
such advantages, the province is a favourable site for the development of agro-forestry
attached to material zones such as forestation, paper and pulp processing,
planting and processing of cinnamon, tea, coffee and cassava, fruit trees,
flowers, mining, mineral processing and metallurgy.
Yen
Bai has also shown great potential for the development of tourism as it is a
mountainous province with various natural beauty spots such as Tham Le cave,
Xuan Long grotto, Thuy Tien grotto, Thac Ba lake, Suoi Giang eco-tourism site
and Muong Lo valley.
Early
start urged for new airport
If
work on
Dinh
Quoc Thai, chairman of the Dong Nai provincial People's Committee, added that
the Government should begin the Long Thanh Airport Project early to help
speed up economic development of
Thai
said over 10,000 people would be affected by land reclamation for the airport
project, adding that there must be two large resettlement projects with total
capital of VND7.2 trillion ($342.86 million) to pave the way for the Long
Thanh Airport project.
"To
help boost
According
to the Airport Corporation of Viet Nam (ACV), the first stage (2014 - 20) of
the airport project requires investment of $5.6 billion and the capital would
be raised from various sources. State funds and Official Development
Assistance capital will make up around 53 per cent.
The
5,000-ha airport project, approved by the Government in 2005, should begin
soon so the first stage will be completed in 2020 to share the burden with
It
will be 32km long from Bien Hoa military airport, 43km from
According
to Japanese consultants, construction of
Low-to-mid
end real estate set to make a recovery in
Interest
in the property market in the central city is expected to rise in low and
medium priced neighborhoods after the Da Nang People's Council announced new
rates for 2014.
Under
the new rates, land fronting Nguyen Van Linh, Hung Vuong and Le Duan streets
will become the central city's most expensive real estate, with prices of
VND25.2 million (US$1,200) per square metre or 37.5 per cent less, in
comparison to last year's price of VND40.32 million ($1,920).
Meanwhile,
each square metre of commercial real estate in the main downtown is to range
from VND15.2 million ($723) to VND21.8 million ($1,038).
Further,
a square metre of new residential property in outlying areas will be priced
at VND5 million ($238).
The
decreased price of land is meant to end the stagnation in the real estate
market in the central city, as seen in recent years.
According
to vice chairman of the city's Property Association Vo Van Cuong, sales of
real estate in the city in 2013 saw a sharp decline of 80 per cent.
"It's
actually a poor year for selling property in the city. We estimated that
12,000 plots of land from 26 projects had been available, even as they were
intentionally offered with large discounts under special promotional
programmes," Cuong said.
"In
the final quarter of the year, investors offered a mass sale at reduced
prices, but the city's property market saw a slump in different sections of
resettlement and residential apartments and urban areas," he said.
"Sun
Group, a property developer, has reduced sales prices for lands in its urban
project in Cam Le District from VND500 million ($23,800) for a 100sq.m plot
to VND340 million ($16,200)," he mentioned.
He
added that the Golden Hills urban project in Lien Chieu District has offered
the public a 50 per cent price decrease, from VND4.5-5.5 million per square
metre to VND2-2.3 million, to boost sales in the final quarter of the year.
Meanwhile,
Nguyen Minh Tien, a real estate broker, said land prices in the central city
have been falling sharply.
"Investors
could earn a big profit from lucrative land purchases in the past few years,
but they rarely spend money in property speculation. Brokers now only expect
a small profit to deal with huge inventories," Tien said.
He
also suggested that speculators would earn profits in the long term through
the purchase of small and medium plots for housing.
Investors
also offer a five-month deferred payment for land plots valued at VND500
million to lure buyers.
The
vice chairman of the Da Nang Property Association, Cuong, said he expects
apartments with prices of VND3-5 million per square metre would be attractive
to buyers in the first quarter of next year.
At the
same time, tourism property developments has attracted foreign investment.
According
to the city's investment promotion centre, investment in resorts and tourism
made up 22 per cent of the city's total FDI projects in 2013.
Cement
sector grows while steel market stagnates
The
construction material sector has seen a rebound in cement and ceramic tile
production, while steel and brick production remained stagnant.
Vice
chairman of the Viet Nam Cement Association Hong Trong Kim said that the
cement industry will meet the target of selling 56 million tonnes of cement
this year.
With
trade promotion methods succeeding in expanding the market, despite a price
hike of VND80,000-120,000 (US$3.63-5.45) per tonne in the third quarter, the
country's largest cement producer Vicem has expanded its share in the domestic
market from 34 per cent in 2012 to 37 per cent this year. It has also
enhanced exports to the Middle East and
Another
large cement producer Fico also reported that it met this year's target by
early December, with a total sales of 1.7 million tonnes of cement, earning
it a turnover of VND2.2 trillion ($100 million) and a profit of VND50 billion
($2.27 million).
Deputy-general
director of ceramic tile producer Viglacera Nguyen Minh Tuan said the company
is also expected to earn a turnover of VND10.5 trillion ($477.27 million)
this year. The company aims to achieve an export turnover of $75 million by
2015, a 25 per cent increase.
Not as
optimistic as cement and tile producers, construction brick producers,
especially small-sized ones, estimated that industry consumption will dip in
2013 as compared with last year and that the sector will not meet its annual
target of selling 20 billion units of bricks.
The
steel sector also faced difficulties this year due to decreasing demand in
the wake of economic hardships.
Vice
chairman of the Viet Nam Steel Association Nguyen Tien Nghi said that the
sector sold roughly 4.6 million tonnes of steel this year out of 5 million
tones of output. Of the 4.6 million tonnes, 2.5 million tonnes were exported.
Due to
the low demand, steel producers had to cut prices by VND700 per kilo from the
third quarter to boost sales.
Nghi
forecast that it will be difficult for consumption to rise next year, adding
that it will grow only around 2-3 per cent. Steel producers also plan to
increase their exports to 30 per cent.
Exporters
target EU quality standards
Local
firms should focus on improving competitiveness in the quality of export
products for the European Union (EU) market in the future, said a trade
official.
Vu Ba
Phu, Minister Counsellor of the Viet Nam Embassy in
He
added that the EU is now
The EU
has been a commodities market for
This
year was a difficult one for the EU market because it didn't make much of a
recovery, but
The
export of textiles, garments, leather and footwear products have maintained
stable growth, while the export of electronics and electrical and telephone
products have made a year-on-year increase of 50 per cent, Phu noted. But the
export of seafood and coffee products to the EU has dropped sharply.
However,
the EU has seen growth in some economic sectors, and it will overcome the
economic crisis after implementing numerous solutions, Phu said.
Therefore,
To
enter the EU market, local exporters should access
Additionally,
they should change the focus from competitiveness in price to competitiveness
in output, quality and efficiency because the EU market accepts high import
prices and asks for high quality, stability, customer care services and
commitment to product quality, he pointed out.
The
local enterprises should invest in building factories in
Moreover,
direct investment in
At
present, enterprises from Viet Nam and the EU expect the bilateral free trade
agreement to be finalised as soon as possible because it will bring low
tariffs for products from Viet Nam and the EU in the two markets, with the
aim of reducing prices and diversifying goods.
It
will be a great chance for local firms to increase their exports to the EU
when the agreement comes into effect, Phu remarked.
Central
highlands region develops cooperative economy
Cooperative
economy model has boomed in the central highlands over the recent years, says
the Tay Nguyen Region Steering Committee.
The
cooperative model has made considerable contributions to the socio economic
development in the region, changed minority people’s old farming habit and
renovated rural agriculture, added the committee.
The
cooperative economy model has been seen in agriculture, industry, handicraft,
transport, services, construction, credit organisation and commerce areas.
Cooperatives have been mainly operated in the rural areas of the region.
Individuals,
ethnic families have invested capital or properties in cooperatives. They
have operated, managed cooperatives by themselves.
Local
authorities in the central highlands have offered financial, training and
technology policies to support cooperatives in the region.
Provincial
authorities in the central highlands have provided working capital,
machinery, or land to help ethnic minority people develop their agricultural
cooperatives.
The
central highlands region has currently attracted hundreds of thousands
labourers working at its three cooperative alliances, 949 cooperatives and
10,513 collective units.
Vietnam’s
export to Germany hits 4.3 billion USD
With
the figure,
Vietnam’s
major export lines to the European country during the period included
telephones and spare parts, garments and textiles, footwear, coffee,
computers, electronic products and spare parts , aquatic product, wood and
wooden products.
In the
first half of this year, the two countries posted a two-way trade value of
nearly 3.7 billion USD, up 29.5 percent over the same period last year.
Last
year, it was over 6.47 billion USD, up 16.3 percent over 2011.
In
2013,
The
figures were unveiled by the HCM City Business Association, which also
pointed to a hard year in 2014 for those businesses which still use backward
technologies and yet sharpen their competitiveness.
At the
association’s recent meeting to review its performance in 2013, the municipal
authorities informed that the attraction of foreign direct investment was
fruitful, noting a surge in both number and value of projects from
They
also noted that almost all State corporation and groups headquartered in the
city generated profits and the city’s GDP grew 9.3 percent against 2012.
These
good performances have created momentum for businesses to move forward in
2014, the municipal authorities said, however, asking these players to
persist in restructuring their operations and work together with their
association to promptly address troubles that may arise.
From
January 2014, the city will continue allowing businesses to register their
operation online along with further streamlining administrative procedures to
facilitate their smooth, efficient activities.-
Fungus
farming models promise to mushroom
Mushroom
farming models can be applied on small acreage and suitable for all regions
of the country as they boast abundant natural materials. Overview by
A
recent prime ministerial decision highlighted mushrooms as a national
product; and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) also
signed a national product development project for edible and pharmaceutical
mushrooms.
This
is an important legal framework for the country in general and
Foreseeing
the development trend of the mushroom market, right from 2011, the municipal
Department of Science and Technology has supported Thanh Cao Kinoko Import
Export Co., Ltd to deploy an edible and pharmaceutical mushroom production
project on the company’s three-ha area in Doc Tin commune, Chuong My
district.
The
area was converted from inefficient sericulture to mushroom production. The
successful mushroom farming model will be replicate in many other localities.
It is estimated that every year, the company and its member units use from
1,000-1,500 tonnes of straw, sawdust, bagasse, stems and cobs to grow
mushrooms, and produce from 500-700 tonnes of fresh mushrooms worth of 10-15
billion VND.
“The
resources of straw, sawdust, stems and cobs in the commune are enough to
produce thousands of tonnes of mushrooms per year, meeting fresh food demands
of Perfume Pagoda tourists and Hanoi’s population,” Director of Thanh Cao
Kinoko Import Export Co., Ltd Duong Thi Thu Hue said.
According
to the Centre for Plant Biotechnology under the Agricultural Genetics
Institute, with a great number of mushroom farming skilled workers,
relatively widened mushroom markets, and abundant resources of straw,
sawdust, stems and cobs, Hanoi is fully conditional for production of one
million tonnes of mushrooms per year.
Centre
director Dinh Xuan Linh said
By a
rough reckoning, farming mushroom may yield 20-fold higher than farming rice
and 10-fold than farming vegetables per ha; meanwhile, farmers can utilise
resources of straw, sawdust, stems and cobs.
In the
coming time, the municipal Department of Industry and Trade ought to develop
a mushroom development project until 2020 focusing on a number of pilot
models for replication, along with conducting researches for high quality
varieties and promoting mechanization in mushroom production.
Mushroom
farming models can be applied on small acreage and suitable for all regions
of the country. However, mushroom production requires implementation of a
series of closed technologies from the stage of breeding, material handling,
care, harvesting, storage and processing. So, when replicating mushroom
farming models in rural areas it is important to focus on training and
science and technology transfer to farmers./
Binh
Dinh invests 2.7 mln USD in rural roads
The
central
According
to Director of the provincial Transport Department Tran Chau, the province
also paid attention to a programme that helps extend concrete roads in
villages, with 167 tonnes of cement for every kilometre.
In
2013, more than 142 kilometres of new roads were built, bringing the
percentage of the province’s concrete roads to 64 percent.
The
provincial People’s Committee is also directing authorities and localities to
work with investors to well implement compensation and ground clearance work
for projects to upgrade and expand National Highways 1A, 1D and 19 in the
province.-
Dong
Nai fails to fulfil yearly export target
The
southern
According
to the provincial Department of Industry and Trade, the target failure was
caused by the impacts of the gloomy economy and fierce competition from other
countries, forcing businesses to revise their plans and strategies.
Some
enterprises had to switch over to the domestic market, while export markets
contracted and the price of some agricultural products dropped sharply, the
department added.
In
December alone, the province’s export revenue was 929.4 billion USD,
increasing 1.5 percent over the previous month and 17.5 percent over the same
period last year.
The
state-owned sector contributed 76.2 million USD to the total, a 3.4 percent
rise year on year, while locally-run enterprises earned more than 1.17
billion USD, up 4.2 percent over the same period in 2012.
Particularly,
foreign-invested businesses recorded the highest revenue in exports at over
9.636 billion USD, up 10.2 percent year on year but equivalent to only 93
percent of the set target.
The
US, Japan, China and European countries were the major markets of Dong Nai,
consuming the locality’s key products of garments and textiles, footwear,
computers, electronic accessories, wood and wooden products, coffee, rubber
and cashew nuts.
In
2014, Dong Nai will strive to reach 9-10 percent in export growth compared to
2013.
Contract
signed for Soc Trang thermal power plant
An
engineering, procurement and construction contract was signed in
The
signatories were the Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) -
investment owner of Long Phu Thermal Power Plant 1 - and the contractor
consortium between Power Machines, BTG Holding and PetroVietnam Technical
Services Corporation (PTSC).
Long
Phu Thermal Power Plant 1 has a total investment of nearly 30 trillion VND
(roughly 1.5 billion USD). It has a capacity of 1,200 MW and is capable of
generating 7.8 billion kWh a year.
The
construction of the plant’s first generator is scheduled to last 48 months,
and 52 months for its second.
PetroVietnam
said the coal-burning plant, part of the Long Phu power complex which also
includes two others with a combined capacity of 4,400 MW, once operational
will help ensure national fuel security and make contributions to
socio-economic development and economic restructuring in Soc Trang province
and the Mekong Delta in general.
In the
1993-2013 period,
Two
major multilateral donors in the agriculture and rural development sector
remained the World Bank (WB) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). As of
2013, these two partners funded 3.15 billion USD, accounting for 57.3 percent
of total ODA for agriculture. ADB remained the largest donor with 1.6 billion
USD, accounting for nearly 30 percent of total ODA capital for agriculture.
In
terms of bilateral donors,
According
to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, total ODA capital for
the agricultural sector has significantly contributed to the development of
the sector in recent years. In particular, ODA capital for the agricultural
sector has contributed to reducing the poverty rate in
In
addition, thanks to ODA capital, agricultural infrastructure, power
infrastructure, schools and communal medical stations have been improved.
Moreover, ODA capital has contributed to promoting the application of
scientific and technological achievements into agriculture and strengthening
scientific research and technology transfer through technical assistance
projects. In particular, many plants and livestock have been researched and
put into production.
To
attract more ODA capital, the ministry said it would select programmes and
projects in accordance with the sector’s standards; and improve mechanisms,
policies and management apparatus to implement ODA projects, contributing to
gaining the trust of donors.
It
will also propose to the government to prioritize investment in agricultural
infrastructure such as irrigation and dykes; restructure the agricultural
sector to ensure sustainable development; improve rural socioeconomic
infrastructure; implement the new rural area construction programme; and
adopt measures to respond to climate change.-
CII
issues VND2.3 tril. of bonds next year
The
HCMC Infrastructure Investment Joint Stock Company (CII) will issue VND2.3
trillion, or some US$110 million, worth of bonds next year to finance its
expansion schemes in 2014, CII leaders said at a meeting with investors on
Thursday.
The
total amount will include VND1.13 trillion worth of convertible bonds to its
existing shareholders and VND1.2 trillion worth of ordinary bonds for the
firm’s financial restructuring.
In
particular, the convertible bond sales will be used to finance projects in
the investment portfolio of CII, service interest and principal sums of the
firm’s bonds issued six years ago and supplement its working capital.
The
five-year term bonds will have a face value of VND1 million and a coupon of
12% per annum. At the time of conversion, the price of one share used for
converting one bond is fixed at VND11,000.
According
to CII general director Le Quoc Binh, issuing convertible bonds with a high
coupon is to ensure its success in attracting investors to meet rising
capital demand for new schemes.
If the
new bonds are not sold out, they will be issued to CII staff members totaling
around VND40 billion, Binh said, adding if failing to realize the bond sales
as planned, CII will seek to mobilize capital from other investors.
Besides
the aforesaid convertible bonds, Binh reported that VietinBank already
committed to buying VND1.2 trillion worth of bonds issued by CII next year to
ensure the funding for projects to be carried out by the company. The bond
coupon set for Vietinbank is the 12-month average deposit rate plus 3.6
percentage points annually, he stated.
Also,
Vietinbank will purchase all the debts of CII and its subsidiaries with a
total value of roughly VND3.4 trillion besides offering new loans to the
enterprise to execute its investment portfolio.
Regarding
the 2014 sales and profit plan, CII has set a target of some VND768 billion
for revenue and VND233.7 billion for after-tax profit, which are seen as
pretty high figures by investors at the meeting in the context that this
year’s January-September after-tax profit only posted over VND10 billion.
At the
meeting, CII leaders presented an operational restructuring plan towards
reshuffling a number of operational segments and establishing five member
companies. The new subsidiaries will include
CII
will maintain a minimum stake of between 40% and over 50% at the aforesaid
companies, Binh said.
Restructuring
will make it easier for the company to evaluate operational efficiency of
every investment segment to make prompt decisions on expanding or divesting
capital without affecting other areas, according to Binh.
Binh,
however, noted that the restructuring might push up management and operation
costs and that such a time-consuming plan might cause bad impacts on CII’s
activities in short-term.
Lending
rates lower than deposit rates
Many
local banks have offered lending rates lower than deposit rates to push up
credit growth in the final month of this year, prompting the central bank to
ask its inspectors to look into the matter.
According
to a former banker, the phenomenon has rarely happened. Capital has piled up
at banks in recent times, so lenders have applied this measure to extend more
loans to businesses. In fact, banks will suffer losses from the low lending
rates.
Many
banks have a lot of demand deposits at an interest rate of just 1-2% per
annum but they have used just a small part of the deposits to give loans.
Given a six-month deposit rate of 6.5% per annum plus 1.5-2% cost, banks will
suffer huge losses when lending at 5-6% per annum, the banker said.
Of
course, only good customers can enjoy such low lending rates. As the number
of strong corporate clients has declined, banks are trying to keep the
customers at any price, he added.
In
addition, some good enterprises have forced banks to give them low lending
rates since they are ready to shift to another lender.
Earlier,
only large banks could offer low lending rates while small lenders with
limited capital sources failed to join the race. However, many small banks
have also slashed lending rates as the competition has turned fierce.
Tran
Ngoc Tam, deputy general director of Nam A Bank, said that preferential loans
are always available to good enterprises but the credits make up a fraction
of the total outstanding loan.
Banks
must try to raise earnings from lending activities. Otherwise, they will get
hurt by their own preferential loan programs, Tam said.
Many
banks have offered loan programs with lending rates lower than mobilization
rates but the programs are often limited in scope and value. Besides, banks
just apply the low rates in the first three months, so the credits will not
cause strong impacts on their earnings.
The
central bank has sent a document to its local branches, asking them to
inspect credit institutions that offer lending rates below mobilization
rates.
Liquidity
of banks has improved sharply in recent months, raising competition in
lending activities.
More
fruit products in Dong Nai meet VietGAP standards
Grapefruit
and mango grown in Vinh Cuu district in the southern
The
two others kinds of fruit cultivated in line with VietGAP standards are
rambutan and durian.
The
Agricultural and Service Cooperative in Tan Trieu commune has 21 out of its
350 hectares of grapefruit trees certified as meeting the standards.
Meanwhile,
the Agricultural, Service, Trade and Tourism Cooperative in Phu Ly commune
received recognition for 32 hectares of mangoes with an annual output of
6,000 tonnes.
Chairman
of the Vinh Cuu People’s Committee Nguyen Huu Ly said that over the past two
years, the two cooperatives have received financial and technical assistance
from the provincial and district authorities in grapefruit and mango
cultivation following VietGAP standards.
Head
of the Tan Trieu Cooperative Phan Tan Tai said in the upcoming Lunar New Year
event, his cooperative will sell over 300 tonnes of certified grapefruits at
500,000 – 700,000 VND (24-33 USD) per dozen.
According
to the VFA, the export situation in 2014 will continue to be difficult
because of excess supply and competition.
Although
a decline in demand, Southeast Asia will remain
The
VFA forecast that the quantity of rice exported in 2013 fall by 1.12 million
tonnes compared to last year, equivalent to 14.5 percent. By November 30,
rice exports reached 6.143 million tonnes..
The
Mekong Delta key economic zone, including Can Tho city and An Giang, Kien
Giang and Ca Mau provinces, is striving to raise its industrial proportion to
40 percent by 2020, up 8.3 percent against this year’s figure.
According
to the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region, in order to fulfil the
target, the localities will rearrange State-owned enterprises operating in
seafood processing, which is seen as the regional spearhead industry.
The
enterprises will receive support to upgrade their equipment and technologies
while increasing their processing capacity, using on-the-spot materials in Ca
Mau and Kien Giang.
The
localities will expand seafood exports to countries in Asia, Europe and
Apart
from fisheries, the economic hub will also focus on building canned food
facilities in Can Tho and fish oil processing plants in Kien Giang, Ca Mau,
An Giang and Can Tho.
More
large-scale rice processing centres equipped with cutting-edge technologies
will be established in An Giang, Kien Giang and Can Tho while a number of new
storehouses will be set up in Can Tho, An Giang, Kien Giang and Ca Mau with
capacity ranging from 18,000 tonnes to 450,000 tonnes.
Three
power plants , including O Mon, Ca Mau and Kien Luong, with a total capacity
of between 9,000 and 9,4000 MW will be developed in the service of industrial
production.
The
localities will also invest in infrastructure, especially the transport
network, to connect the key economic zone with the Southeastern region and
other regions nationwide.
They
will also make its easer for enterprises and economic sectors to engage in
infrastructure projects under Build-and-Transfer (BT) and
Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) agreements.
Vinh
Long fails to fulfil yearly export target
The
Mekong Delta
The
result, equivalent to only 82 percent of the province’s yearly target, was
due to a decrease in exports of key products as well as difficulties from
markets and a lack of diverse currency earners.
Decline
was seen in five out of eight major export products, including rice, aquatic
and agricultural products, vegetables and other goods. On the other hand,
turnover from apparel, footwear and handicrafts exceeded their target by 5-10
percent.
According
to Nguyen Van Con, Vice Director of the provincial Department of Industry and
Trade, both rice and aquatic products faced difficulties in 2013 due to
changes in import demand and policies.
Rice,
which accounts for 42 percent of the locality’s total export turnover, saw a
decrease of 23.32 percent in volume and 33.14 percent in value at 160 million
USD, he revealed.
Meanwhile,
the export of aquatic products, the second largest currency earner, also fell
sharply by 42.81 percent, he added.
In
2014, Vinh Long will strive to raise its export turnover to 380 million USD.
To reach the goal, the province will apply a number of measures to diversify
its export products, focusing on pharmaceuticals, pottery and processed food.
The
locality will support local businesses in enhancing trade promotions in
traditional markets and promising ones such as
In
addition, Vinh Long will give incentives to aquaculture product processing
and farming firms, enabling them to access credit sources to expand
production, thus diversifying export products, Con added.-
Primary
tasks of trade counsellors released
Minister
of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang has stressed five main tasks of Vietnamese
trade counsellors and minister-counsellors to develop overseas markets at a
meeting with trade counsellors in
Accordingly,
together with strengthening trade promotion and actively participating in
trade promotion programmes in the host countries, the trade counsellors have
to intensify
They
also have to fulfil their tasks as staff of a Vietnamese trade representative
office abroad, and learn about the models of importers in the host countries
before introducing the models to domestic businesses to help them change
their appropriate products.
Minister
Hoang said that
Vietnamese
products are now available in nearly 200 countries and territories.
Despite
declining prices of several commodities and the narrowing of several markets,
many major exports of Vietnam still exceed the set target, including garments
and textiles, footwear, wood and wood products, computers and electronic
products, Hoang said.
The
minister noted that in the time to come, the ministry will intensify the
process of transferring the industrial product structure to improve added
value and ensure quality and safety requirements.
Priority
will also be given to mobilising all resources to invest in projects to
produce more goods for export.
He
added that the ministry will also support businesses to help them make full
use of benefits brought by bilateral economic agreements and the free trade
area agreement between ASEAN and other countries to boost exports.
Credit
growth yet to meet target
It is
unlikely that the banking sector will reach its 12 percent credit growth
target this year, when to date the figure is only 8.5 percent, according to
Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) Nguyen Dong Tien.
However,
the Deputy Governor said banks have reported sharp credit growth in VND,
while lending in foreign currency has dropped.
Additionally,
mid and long-term credit also saw rapid increases, meeting the economy and
businesses’ demand for long-term investment.
According
to the Deputy Governor, the SBV has made certain adjustments in its credit
growth policy, to make lending mechanism more flexible while preventing bad
debts from rising.
At the
National Assembly meeting earlier in November, SBV Governor Nguyen Van Binh
said he expects credit growth to reach 11-12 percent in 2013.
Several
economists, however, shared the view that it will be hard to meet the target,
adding that the most important thing to do now is tackle bad debts and not
let new ones develop.-
Source:
VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Tư, 1 tháng 1, 2014
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