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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 22/7
On
July 25, 2015 at Hanoi Daewoo Hotel the HBI Joint Stock Company will
officially open for sale luxury apartments under its
Located
on the two façades of Nguyen Huy Tuong and
Each
of the apartments here is a small home steeped in natural light and filled
with fresh air of the surrounding ecological system. The superiority of
Commenting
on the factors that explain why
Residents
of the project will easily travel to the surrounding areas and neighborhoods
because
The
customers only need to pay 25 per cent of the apartment value in the first
installment; and in the next installment the customers pay from 5 – 10 per
cent each time according to the construction progress of the project. The
last 5 per cent will be paid when the developer hands over the ownership
certificate of the apartment.
With
the above payment policy,
In
case customers seek financial loans, VP Bank will support a loan of up to
entirety of the apartment value (if the collateral is another real estate)
and 80 per cent of the apartment value (if the collateral is acquired from
the loan), with the interest rate of 6.9 per cent and the grace period during
the first two years.
This
offer from VP Bank will enable many customers, especially young families and
employees with the initial accumulation of VND500 million ($23,250) to own a
modern apartment with all amenities and guarantee perfect quality of life at
the capital.
Commenced
from January 2015, the project is expected to be completed and officially
handed over to customers in mid-2017.
One-day
visa eligible enough for foreign housing ownership in
Foreigners
and overseas Vietnamese are eligible for housing ownership in
The Ho
Chi Minh City Real Estate Association (HoREA) thus held a conference on July
17 to solicit feedback on the new housing rule from foreign individuals and
organizations.
Yoshida
Akio, head of the Vietnamese representative office of
But they
are still in the dark about such issues as what kind of visa they need to
have to be eligible for the housing ownership, and whether the allowed stay
of the visa matters.
Yoshida
said he was wondering if he was still able to buy an apartment if he was to
stay in
Nguyen
Trong Ninh, deputy head of the department for housing and realty market
management under the construction ministry, said foreigners only need a valid
visa for immigration to be allowed to buy houses and apartments in
“For
businesses, investment funds or branches of foreign banks, they must be
operating in
In the
meantime, foreign individuals only need to have entry visas and a written
guarantee that they do not have diplomatic immunity, the official added.
“Even
visa with only one day of allowed stay is eligible for house and apartment
purchases,” he asserted.
Under
the Law on housing, the foreign ownership of house and apartment has a
maximum term of 50 years since obtaining the ownership certificate.
When
the 50-year term expires, the owner can apply for an extension by the same
term.
If an
apartment is transferred, the new owner is only allowed to own the property
for the remaining term.
Truong
Anh Tu, director of sales and marketing with Sacomreal, a realty firm, said
the company has received many questions regarding the valid term of ownership
from foreign customers.
“If
the foreign owner wants to sell his apartment to others, will the new owner
be allowed to own it for another 50 years, or the remaining term?” he said.
“How
many term expansions can the owners apply for, and are there any fees for
that?”
Ninh
said the new owner is only allowed to own the property for the remaining
term, and an apartment can only have its term expanded for one time.
HoREA
chairman Le Hoang Chau said such regulation is not really reasonable.
“The
new owner should also be allowed to own the property for another 50 years,
and to later extend the ownership term,” he said.
VASEP:
Shrimp exports will bounce back
Vietnam
shrimp exports in the six months leading up to July tumbled 29% year-on-year
to US$1.20 billion in gross revenue on the back of very weak demand for
farmed shrimp in the US and other key global markets.
According
to the latest statistics from the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters
and Producers (VASEP), the lower than expected figures led to an overall 16%
drop to US$2.99 billion in aquatic exports for the six-month period.
US
importers are said to have large inventories of frozen shrimp and are holding
off on the ‘big buy’ for the year-end holidays, which usually comes in June or
July report several executives in the global shrimp market.
Marc
Nussbaum, president of International Marketing Specialists, a
Nussbaum
told Undercurrent News that most
World
production of farmed shrimp is up, and wholesale prices are down, but US
retailers have not passed the lower prices on to consumers, so demand in the
“I
think the problem is really lack of demand,” said Jim Gulkin, managing
director of Siam Canadian Group a frozen seafood supplier based out of
Gulkin
said retailers are not trying to move volume. They just want to
increase (profit) margin and don’t mind if they sell less.
Raw
material prices in
Deputy
General Director of
Consequently,
VASEP has revised its annual forecast for shrimp exports downwards by 17% to
US$3.2 billion in gross revenue in 2015.
Secretary
General of VASEP Truong Dinh Hoe remains optimistic and reports there are
still positive signs for the shrimp market throughout the remainder of the
year.
The
shrimp output of major competitors such as India, Indonesia and Thailand
failed to reach their set targets for this past June and as a consequence
their inventories are low, Hoe underscored.
Hoe
added that with some good fortune shrimp prices may even bounce back by
5-10%.
In
addition, recently signed free trade agreements between
To be
prepared to tap these opportunities, businesses should take extra precautions
to strictly comply with regulations on food safety and technical standards of
foreign markets, he stressed.
SBV
interest rate management benefits businesses
The
State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has flexibly managed the interest rate policy to
suit the market and currency exchange demand and support businesses, stated
SBV Deputy Governor Nguyen Thi Hong.
Currently,
interest rates are at an ideal level, the same level as in 2005-2006, she
noted, adding that both deposit and lending interest rates have dropped
compared to those at the end of 2014.
Specifically,
deposit interest rates fell 0.2%-0.5% per year, mostly for over six-month
terms, while lending interest rates declined by 0.2%-0.3% per year, standing
at about 6%-9% annually for short-term loans and 9-11 percent for middle- and
long-term ones.
Recently,
inter-bank interest rates have decreased sharply to about 3%-3.5% per month,
which is relatively low and stable, she said.
Through
the rest of the year, the SBV will continue flexibly introducing and
withdrawing money from the market for banks to boost credit growth and better
meet market demand, said Hong.
The
bank will also keep interest rate at a stable level while keeping a close eye
on the operation of commercial banks for timely monetary adjustments,
ensuring management targets set earlier this year.
Hong
re-affirmed that the SBV will keep fluctuations of the VND/USD exchange rate
at a maximum of 2% in 2015, as set in its policy for the year, despite the
fact that the rate has already been adjusted by 1 percent twice this year.
This
is part of efforts to guide the market and help import and export enterprises
actively define their production plan in line with developments of the
domestic and global currency market.
Hong
said that although the devaluation of the VND may benefit exporters, it would
negatively affect manufacturers of export products made from imported
materials, since the cost of raw materials will be higher.
She
noted that the textile and garment sector had to import 82.5% of materials in
2013, the wood sector - 70%, and footwear - 60%.
Although
the devaluation might benefit farmers in exporting agro-forestry and fishery
products, it would also raise the price of fertilizers, pesticide and
agricultural equipment and machinery. As such, exchange rate adjustments to
improve price competitiveness would only be slightly effective in supporting
exports, she held.
At the
same time, total imports of
Statistics
show that about 90% of
After
careful analysis and assessment, the SBV will stick to the policy of
maintaining the fluctuation of the VND/USD exchange rate in 2015 at 2% as set
earlier this year, Hong concluded.
State
budget collection to reach 20% of GDP
State
budget collection for the next five years is expected to make up 20%-21% of
the GDP, Deputy Minister of Finance Do Hoang Anh Tuan said at a meeting of
the Ministry’s Party Committee on July 17.
Tax
and fee collections are expected to range between 19%-20% of the GDP and
domestic collection (excluding collections from crude oil) is set to reach
80% of the state budget revenue by 2020, according to Tuan.
The
sector also aims to keep the budgetary overspending at 4% of GDP and the
public debt below 65% of GDP by 2020.
In
order to realise the targets, the sector needs to pursue a tight and
effective fiscal policy, improve the management of tax collections to reduce
the impact of decreasing budget revenues from natural and mineral resources,
Tuan said.
He
also underlined the importance of the private sector in increasing investment
resources for the society.
Meanwhile,
Minister Dinh Tien Dung highlighted the opportunities and challenges faced by
the sector in international integration from 2015-2020.
The
sector needs to build synchronous and transparent financial institutions in
line with the development of the market economy and international
integration.
Administrative
procedure reform in the financial sector is a priority of the period to
ensure a favourable business climate and enhance the competitiveness of the
economy, Dung said.
He
also urged science and technology application in the sector to improve
effectiveness in tax collections, customs and stocks as well as strengthening
the role of monitoring and supervision of public finances to ensure security
of the public budget and prevent corruption and waste.
Reports
at the meeting showed that state budget collections from 2011-2015 nearly
doubled those from the previous five-year period.
Embankment
raises rice production levels
Farmers
in
The
village's rice fields cover 200ha. More than two thirds are on low-lying land
and would often become submerged, causing farmers a lot of difficulties.
So 27
of the village's households started building an embankment for more than 9ha
of crops early last year. It worked well over the past year, raising the
village's average productivity from 4 tonnes per hectare to 6 or 6.5 tonnes
per hectare.
Vo
Dong Khoa, a farmer with 3,000sq.m of rice, said that before he wasted a lot
of time and petrol pumping water from his fields.
"If
the water level rose in the harvest period, there was no dry place to air the
rice, so I had to put them in water and the quality decreased," said
Khoa. And he couldn't use the wet rice straw to feed his cows because it went
rotten. But since the embankment was built, his problems have evaporated.
Nguyen
Thanh Tri, another farmer in the village, said that thanks to the embankment
and the use of more technology, his fields' productivity increased.
With
the embankment, Tri and other households in the embankment areas signed a
contract with the Ben Tre Hi-tech Application Centre to produce seed rice.
Producing
seed rice doubled the farmers' incomes compared with planting rice, Tri said.
Vo Van
Dung, a representative from the My Thanh Commune Farmers' Association, said
that since the embankment was built, the local farmers have followed the crop
schedule more closely. They also chose the same rice seeds to make the
cultivation easier.
The association
would work with the households on a plan to expand the embankment, he said.
Crop
restructuring increases productivity,value
The
development of high-quality crop seeds and seedlings as part of
In
recent years, different crop and animal varieties were provided to farmers in
However,
he said the agricultural seed sector had not kept pace with those in other
regional countries. Limitations exist in management as well as in technology
and equipment.
In
addition, the domestic seed industry is faced with competition from imported
seeds.
As
many as 47 enterprises are active in producing and trading crop seeds and
seedlings in the city. Most of them are private companies.
Last
year, they produced 15,400 tonnes of seeds, up 6.5 per cent compared to 2013,
serving about one million hectares of cultivation, with rice varieties
accounting for 56.1 per cent, maize 33.6 per cent, and vegetables 5 per cent.
Besides supplying the domestic market, about 451.4 tonnes of crop seeds were
exported last year. Thanks to new varieties as well as suitable production
technology, vegetable productivity has increased significantly in recent
years, from 19.07 tonnes/ha/crop on average in 2006 to 23.8 tonnes/ha/crop
last year.
Average
production value on each hectare of land rose to VND325 million (US$14,921)
/ha/year last year, two times higher than the figure in 2010.
Orchids
are one of the key plants under the city's agricultural restructuring
programme, which plans to shift from traditional to urban agriculture, Xo
said, director of the
In
recent years, the
The
city has also identified ornamental fish as a spearhead industry under its
restructuring plan for the agricultural sector until 2020.
Ornamental
fish have a higher value produced on the same area as other plants and are
suitable to urban agriculture.
The
city produced 90 million fish last year, with 11.2 million heads exported.
Under
the city's ornamental fish development plan until 2020, the city will strive
to produce around 200 million heads a year and earn about US$30-$50 million
from exports.
Nguyen
Tuan of the Research Institute for Aquaculture No 2 said the ornamental fish
industry had provided significant earnings to many countries, with total
ornamental fish trade worldwide reaching more than $400 million a year.
The
city's ornamental fish exports remained modest, less than $10 million each
year, compared to $50-$70 million in
The
city has advantages in cultivation conditions, but management and trading
experience remain limited.
The
Cuu Long (
More
than 9 million tonnes are expected to be harvested, 143,000 tonnes higher
than a year ago because of increased yields.
The
country's rice bowl planted the grain on more than 1.6 million hectares,
fractionally down from last year's summer-autumn crop.
But
farmers are likely to be hit by unstable demand and low prices. Speaking at a
seminar in
The
region should focus on improving rice quality and increase export value, he
said.
In the
summer-autumn crop, average-quality rice varieties are grown on 25 per cent
of the area, according to statistics from local agriculture departments
though the ministry's Plant Cultivation Department has warned it should not
exceed 10 per cent.
Next
the delta plans to grow the autumn-winter rice crop on 827,000ha, 12,256ha
more than a year earlier, mostly high-quality varieties.
In
The
autumn-winter crop is sown during the rainy season and harvested in mostly
dry weather, meaning its quality is superior to that of the summer-autumn rice.
It is also easier to sell because the output is not large. But the crop faces
risks like the annual flooding in the
Mai
Van Nhin, deputy chairman of the Kien Giang Province People's Committee, said
the delta provinces should schedule their sowing properly to avoid the
floods.
Upstream
provinces should carefully calculate the release of flood water to avoid
losses in downstream provinces, he said. All provinces should regularly
consolidate their dykes and irrigation works to ensure safety for the
autumn-winter rice.
Doanh
said the Plant Protection Department should improve its forecast of rice
diseases.
The
National Agriculture Extension Centre needed to propagate farming techniques
on the media, he said.
The municipal
Department of Industry and Trade has recently completed Phase 1 of its
project, which focuses on mechanics, electronics-communications,
rubber-plastics, food processing, and textiles and garments.
FDI
enterprises, especially large corporations such as Intel and Samsung, have a
great demand for spare parts supplied by domestic businesses, according to
Nguyen Phuong Dong, deputy director of the Industry and Trade Department.
"The
Department of Industry and Trade is being proactive by connecting local
businesses operating in the support industry with FDI enterprises, especially
large ones," Dong said.
Recently,
HCM City People's Committee issued Decision No1026 on a trial construction of
high-rise factory models for lease at the Sai Gon Hi-Tech Park, Tan
Thuan-Linh Trung Export Processing Zone and
The
three- to eight-storey factory will have a total area of 10,000 sq.m – 40,000
sq.m. It will be divided into small areas covering 100 sq.m, 200 sq.m, 500
sq.m, 1,000 sq.m and 3,000 sq.m.
The
factory will create favourable conditions for international investors,
especially for local SMEs and Japanese businesses in the support industry
that want to make long-term investments in
Nguyen
Bach Hoang Phung, deputy head of the HCM City Export Processing and
Industrial Zone Authority (HEPZA), said that HEPZA had urged investors to
quickly implement the high-rise factory models with preferential policies.
The
first high-rise factory is expected to start operation in August next year.
HEPZA
also plans to create specialised areas for support industry businesses,
covering a total of 200 ha at
Dong
said that SMEs were the key factor in the development of the support
industry. Ninety-five per cent of businesses in
As a
result, they have weak competitiveness because their products are low quality
and have high costs.
Japanese
businesses face difficulties in acquiring materials and parts in
The
purchase ratio for materials and components of Japanese manufacturers in
Hirotaka
Yasuzumi, executive director of JETRO in
He
urged the Government and the business community to develop new policies to
help the support industry.
Hiroshi
Tahara, a financial specialist at the Japan Finance Corporation, said the
Japanese Government in the past had issued credit guarantee policies to help
SMEs in
Tahara
said that
Banks
expect robust growth in 2015
The
business performance of commercial banks is expected to improve in the third
quarter, helping the banks achieve much better results in 2015 as against
last year. In a recent survey of business sentiment among commercial banks by
the State Bank of
The
sector could post annual credit growth of 18.2 per cent this year, higher
than an earlier estimate of nearly 17 per cent, while bad debts may account
for 2.49 per cent of total outstanding loans, below the Government target of
3 per cent, the survey found.
Good
liquidity would be a key factor helping credit growth accelerate in the last
two quarters, the banks said. They expect deposits to grow 6.8 per cent in Q3
and 15.8 per cent for the whole year.
Lending
rates in Q3 are forecast to fall by roughly 0.13 percentage points, which
will bring down the year's rates by 0.44 percentage points from the 2014
level.
Retail
property sales climb in two main cities, but not rents
The
retail property segment in the two major cities of Ha Noi and
In its
quarterly report on the two cities, the consulting firm said in Ha Noi, the
occupancy was 84 per cent, stable quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) and up 7.2
percentage points year-on-year (y-o-y). Meanwhile, the average rent was
VND841,000 (US$38.7) per sq.m per month, decreasing 0.9 per cent q-o-q and 10
per cent y-o-y.
Department
store occupancy increased by one percentage point q-o-q, while shopping
centre occupancy remained stable q-o-q. In the first half of 2015, Ha Noi's
retail sales were approximately VND210 trillion ($9.63 billion), increasing
10.3 per cent y-o-y.
Without
inflation, the real growth rate was 9.6 per cent y-o-y. With free-trade
agreement participation and the expected signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership
in 2015, the competition between domestic and foreign retailers would
continue, Savills Viet
In the
second quarter, Ha Noi's retail supply was approximately 950,000sq.m,
increasing by 3 per cent y-o-y.
In the
second half of this year, approximately 353,000sq.m from 16 projects will
enter the market. Two notable projects are Vincom Nguyen Chi Thanh and Aeon
Mall Long Bien, which will provide more than 165,000sq.m. Meanwhile, the
retail property segment in
The
average rent decreased by one per cent q-o-q to touch VND1.3 million ($59)
per square metre per month. Shopping malls and department stores' occupancy
rates have been stable since the previous quarter at 92 per cent and 97 per
cent, respectively.
Retail
podium occupancy was at 82 per cent, down two percentage points q-o-q, but
this decrease had no impact on the overall occupancy.
The
average rent for department stores increased by one per cent to reach more
than VND1.3 million, while it fell by two per cent to touch VND1.33 million
in shopping malls.
The
rent for department stores increased by three per cent year-on-year, but decreased
by two per cent in shopping centres and retail podiums.
In the
first half of the year, HCM City retail sales increased by 11.8 per cent
y-o-y to touch VND256 trillion ($11.75 billion), significantly higher than
the 7.7 per cent rate a year earlier and higher than the national figure of
10.2 per cent.
The
growing population and middle class in
In Q2,
two new shopping malls and one new supermarket entered the market, increasing
the total retail stock by five per cent q-o-q to reach 940,000sq.m.
The
retail market is expected to expand faster in secondary and suburban areas
than in the central business district due to upgrades in infrastructure and
new residential projects.
According
to the second report in the series, Asia Pacific Consumer Survey - How We
Like to Shop Online, released last week by CBRE, online shopping has
overtaken bricks-and-mortar retail as the most popular method of purchase in
certain Asian markets.
Consumers
in the 18-24 age group — known as ‘Generation Z' — are also set to play an
influential role in the regional retail market in the coming years. As a
result of factors such as these, landlords and retailers would need to be
proactive in order to remain competitive, the survey reported.
"For
emerging markets, given the lack of quality retail space — particularly in
lower-tier cities — advances in technology and logistics networks mean that
online retail is often the most efficient way for retailers to reach their
customers," Jonathan Hsu, head of Occupier Markets Research, CBRE Asia
Pacific, said.
The
ability to compare products without having to physically visit individual
stores is another key factor for the region's consumers when shopping online.
This trend is more prominent in emerging markets such as
Hoa
Phat Group profits due to rising steel sales
The
Hoa Phat Group has posted consol-idated revenue of more than VND13.6 trillion
(more than US$623.4 million) for the first half of this year.
It
earned a consolidated profit of more than VND1.9 trillion (more than $87.09
million) during the same period.
It has
thus achieved 61 per cent and 83 per cent of its revenue and profit targets,
respectively, for the year.
Sales
of the group's two major products, construction steel and steel pipes,
contributed the most to its H1 growth.
According
to the group's report, it sold 675,000 tonnes of construction steel, seeing a
52 per cent year-on-year increase. It controlled 22.1 per cent of the steel
market in the first half of the year.
Meanwhile,
196,000 tonnes of steel pipes were sold in the first six months of 2015,
which is a 44 per cent year-on-year increase. This helped the group
consolidate its top position in the country, with a market share of nearly 22
per cent.
In the
second quarter of 2015, it earned quarterly revenue of more than VND7.7
trillion (nearly $353 million) and more than VND1.25 trillion ($57.45
million) in profit, an increase of 15 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively,
over the same period last year.
The
group's real estate business also showed positive signs. Some 20 per cent and
42 per cent, respectively, of the Pho Noi A and Hoa Mac Industrial Zones in
Hung Yen and Ha Nam Provinces have been rented by local and international
firms. In addition, most of the apartments in its
Hoa
Phat is currently constructing basements in an office and apartment complex
in Ha Noi. The project, involving an investment of VND1.5 trillion (nearly
$69 million), consists of four buildings with more than 600 offices and
apartments which are expected to go on sale in 2016.
Speaking
during a meeting with investors on Thursday, Hoa Phat Group Chairman Tran
Dinh Long said the business results were achieved due to the group's strong
financial condition and low total debt-to-asset ratio of 28 per cent.
Asked
about the progress of some major projects the firm is investing in, Long said
VND3.8 trillion ($174.2 million) would be invested in the third phase in the
Hoa Phat integrated steel complex in Hai Duong Province, which would have a capacity
of 750,000 tonnes per year. The construction was expected to be completed in
September 2015, and the blast furnaces would become operational by the end of
this year, he said.
The
firm has imported most of its raw materials because the Thach Khe iron ore
mine in Ha Tinh Province has not become operational.
"The
proportion of imports of ore depends on the Thach Khe iron ore mine. If the
mine begins operations, the rate of ore imports will be low; if not, the
import ratio will increase to 80 per cent," Long said.
The
group has also implemented a plan to develop its cattle feed business. It has
invested in a food processing factory in Pho Noi A Industrial Zone with a
capacity of 300,000 tonnes per year. The factory is expected to begin
operations in the first quarter of 2016.
Investors
and securities firms are struggling with two taxes the Government imposes on
their bonus shares, Dau tu chung khoan (Securities Investment) newspaper
reported earlier this week.
Investors
are the ones being directly affected by the tax policies. Under the Law on
Individual Incomes, shareholders have to pay two taxes for their bonus
shares. One of the two is equal to 5 per cent of the share value when
investors receive bonus shares as dividends, and the other is 0.1 per cent of
the total trading value when those shares are sold.
These
taxes reduce investors' benefits or profits, and they could lead to
unfairness between securities firms, as some of them only collect taxes from
their clients' trading activities.
At the
moment, shareholders have two problems. First, they still have to pay taxes,
even when they suffer losses from trading shares. Second, receiving bonus
shares for dividends will cost shareholders more in taxes than receiving cash
for dividends if they exchange bonus shares for cash.
Investors
said they should be charged one tax instead of two when they received bonus
shares for dividends, and the Government should not impose taxes on them when
they sell bonus shares on the market.
They
said removing a tax would help reduce the gap between securities investment
and other sectors in which investors pay less or no taxes for their activity,
including the banking sector.
On the
other hand, securities firms have to deal with more challenging problems –
they have to deal with both clients and Government agencies.
According
to the General Department of Taxation, a company doesn't have to collect
taxes from bonus shares when they pay them to shareholders as dividends. But
the company must collect two taxes from investors when they sell their bonus
shares.
The
problem for securities companies arises when investors don't accept that they
have to pay two taxes on a single transaction.
Investors
also question their brokers, accusing them of too strictly following the
rules while other brokerage firms skirt them, making their investors pay only
one of the taxes.
Thus,
those firms that follow the rules are facing complaints from their clients,
who feel they're getting fewer benefits.
Nhu
Dinh Hoa, director general of Bao Viet Securities Joint Stock Company (BVSC),
said the securities market could decrease, making such tax policies
discouraging for investors and securities firms.
He
said listed companies had already paid individual income taxes when they paid
dividends to shareholders. This meant it was unreasonable to collect more
taxes from shareholders' bonus shares.
If
companies paid bonus shares from their capital surplus, which is created when
the company issues shares at higher than face value, investors wouldn't have
to pay taxes for those bonus shares because the company only returned the
initial investment to shareholders, he said.
If the
securities firms could not distinguish bonus shares from initial shares, they
would be unable to collect taxes from trading activities between investors,
Hoa said. In addition, investors could avoid paying taxes by changing their
accounts from one brokerage firm to another after receiving bonus shares.
Banks
must explain debit card charges
On
July 17 the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) issued an official document
requesting debit card issuers urgently review their charges and fees and
ensure they comply with Circular No. 35/2012/TT-NHNN.
Charges
and fees must be publicly available in accordance with the law and banks must
carefully explain these charges and fees when signing contracts with
customers. Any changes to these charges and fees must be notified to
customers in a timely manner.
The
interest rate on overdrafts must also be listed publicly. The SBV document
requests that banks receive feedback from customers and respond to customer
questions about charges and fees as well as interest rates.
Customers
have recently been forced to pay a number of basic service charges, such as
card issuance fees, annual fees, withdrawal fees, transfer fees, and balance
inquiry fees, and fees for lost or stolen cards.
Vietnamese
economy in the first half of 2015 creates stable growth momentum
The
Vietnamese economy witnessed positive changes in the first half of the year
in which GDP increased nearly 6.3% against the same period last year. It’s
also the highest rate since 2011.
It’s
predicted that
The
index of industrial production posted a strong rise at 9.6%, much higher than
the last two years. The development of businesses recorded active signs with
45,400 newly-registered enterprises, contributing more than 60% to GDP.
Vu
Tien Loc, chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said
although businesses are still facing many difficulties, their confidence has
gradually improved. Many of them are planning to expand production and
trading with performance being relatively positive.
"I
think such confidence will continue to be fostered by the government’s effort
to speed up the renovation and open its market as part of free trade
agreements that
By the
end of June, the average consumer price index (CPI) increased 0.86% against
the same period last year. The rise is said to be rather low compared to the
recent decade, helping the government control inflation, reform the way to
set price for public products and services in line with market mechanism, and
reduce input costs for companies.
In
spite of positive performances in the early 2015, the
Particularly
the agricultural sector is predicted to see more difficulties, said Tran Dinh
Thien, director of the Vietnam Institute of Economics.
He
added that biggest and objective risk is natural calamity which will affect
agriculture and social stability. Lack of water will cause difficulties for
not only agriculture, but also industry and service because electricity and
water are essential to daily activities. This year the El Nino pattern and
abnormal heat wave will have direct impacts on agricultural production.
Second
if the agricultural sector keeps having difficulties,
But to
that end, it requires more efforts and flexibility of ministries and relevant
agencies, and especially the coordination of fiscal and monetary policies and
measures to prevent illegal imports and counterfeit goods.
Director
General of the General Statistics Office Nguyen Bich Lam commented on the
second scenario which, he said,“is more feasible above all because the
Ministry of Industry and Trade has recently signed a trade deal with the
Republic of Korea under which Vietnam can export more seafood to this market.
Second we hope that by the end of this year, the European market will import
our farm produce including seafood to prepare for their New Year
holiday."
"From
now to the year-end, the government will facilitate the best possible
conditions for agriculture and work out solutions to intensify exports and
minimize imports. By this way, the Vietnamese economic panorama will become
more satisfactory," Lam noted.
Despite
advantages in the short-term,
Car
sales increase 58 percent over last year
Sales
of automobiles rose in most segments during the first half of the year in
comparison with the same period last year.
In its
latest report, the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturer' Association said that
some 103,500 vehicles were sold in the Vietnamese market during the period,
an increase of 58 percent period-on-period. Sales included 45 percent from
small cars, 75 percent in commercial vehicles and 136 percent from
special-purpose vehicles.
In
June, the sale of passenger cars reached the highest volume in every segment
with 9,796 units, a growth rate of 9.2 percent compared with the previous
month. Meanwhile, commercial car sales saw an increase of 0.5 percent to
7,834 units, while special-purpose autos lost 8.1 percent to 1,083 units.
As the
purchasing power of passenger cars depended upon VAMA members, that of
commercial and special-purpose vehicles increased for car importers.
The
month also saw an unbalanced growth rate between locally-assembled complete
knock down (CKD) and imported complete built units (CBU).
It was
further reported that domestic sales reached 14,448 CKD units and 4,238 CBUs
in June, increasing by 3 percent and 9 percent, respectively.
According
to Toyota Motor Vietnam (TMV), a member of the VAMA, the company's total
sales volume reached 4,289 units in June, increasing by 25 percent compared
to the previous month. This is also the highest sales volume of TMV in 2015.
Of
note, the all-new Vios continued to lead in sales with 1,106 vehicles sold in
the passenger car segment, 42 percent higher than the same period last year.
For
CBU models distributed by TMV, in the first 6 months, the total sales volume
increased by 72 percent, compared with same period last year with 2,782
units. Figures showed that Hilux leads in CBU models with 744 sold units.
Nearly
480 trillion VND for developing power grid
The
Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) has spent nearly 480 trillion VND (22.3 billion
USD) to develop power plants and grids from 2011-2015 in compliance with the
national power development plan.
In the
past five years, some 34 power generators with a total capacity of 9,852
megawatts were put into operation and work started on the construction of ten
power projects nationwide. Particularly, the Son La Hydro-Power Plant
designed with a 2,400-megawatt capacity was completed three years earlier
than scheduled, bringing huge economic benefits to the country.
Other
projects such as the Vinh Tan 2 thermal power plant and Duyen Hai 1 thermal
power plant have made great contributions to ensuring power supply to the
southern region.
As
many as 865 transformer stations and transmission lines were connected to the
national grid during the period. The EVN also completed the 500-kilovolt
Pleiku-My Phuoc-Cau Bong high voltage line and the 220-kilovolt Dak Nong-
Phuoc Long-Binh Long line to increase the transmitted power between the north
and the south.
However,
the EVN said that power overloads are occurring in some localities due to a
number of delayed projects spurred by insufficient capital, slow land
clearance, natural calamities and design changes.
In a
bid to meet investment demands, the group targets to mobilise over 600
trillion VND (27.9 billion USD) from 2016-2020 through official development
assistance loans and issuing domestic and international bonds.
The
group will scrutinise provincial and municipal power development plans
nationwide to adjust investments in line with practical needs; ask relevant
ministries and organisations to facilitate administrative procedures, land
clearance and power planning; and build advanced economic technical standards
for the grid to improve efficiency and reduce losses during transmission.
In the
next five years, the group will complete 11 power plants with a combined
capacity of 5,819 megawatts while ensuring progress of key power projects and
making preparations for the country’s first nuclear power plant in Ninh Thuan
province.
PM
okays Ca Mau seaport investment plan
Prime
Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved the Ministry of Planning and
Investment's 2.5-billion-USD investment plan to build Hon Khoai seaport in
the southern
PM
Dung on July 17 ordered the ministry and the provincial People's Committee to
complete the administration procedures required for Public Private
Partnership projects.
The
seaport would be built on Hon Khoai island in Ngoc Hien district, 14.6km from
Ca Mau and 42km from the province's Nam Can Economic Zone. The island has an
area of 4.2 square kilometre and is located northwest of the
Once
completed, the seaport will have the capacity to accommodate the largest
vessels used for commercial activities around the world.
In
June, the Ca Mau People's Committee submitted a proposal on the seaport to
the Government and recommended Cong Ly Consutruction, Commerce and Tourism
JSC as the project's investor.
The
company recommended the construction of a system of sea dykes, large harbours
for vessels of up to 250,000DWT, transfer harbours for smaller vessels from
5,000 to 100,000DWT, facilities for pilot boats, patrol boats, and bridges
and roads to connect the port to the mainland.
According
to the proposal, Cong Ly JSC will finance about 15 percent of the seaport
project and foreign investors will chip in 85 percent.
The
provincial People's Committee said the seaport would play an important role
in the development of its Nam Can Economic Zone and enhance national
security.
In
December 2013, the Vietnam Maritime Administration proposed that the
Government build and develop deep sea ports that meet international standards
for large-tonnage ships.
The
Government estimated that cargo transported through the country's seaports
would reach 400 to 410 million tonnes this year, 640 to 680 million tonnes by
2020 and 2,100 million tonnes by 2030.
The
country has 39 seaports installed along its coastline, which stretches more
than 3,260km.
Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VET/VIR
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Thứ Tư, 22 tháng 7, 2015
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