BUSINESS IN BRIEF 19/12 Largest ceramics producer to list on HNX         The Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX) has approved the listing of Viglacera Corporation, Viet Nam’s largest producer of construction ceramics and tiles, with code VGC. HNX said in a statement on Monday that 65 million shares of Viglacera will be traded on the northern bourse on December 22. HNX also said Viglacera’s 307 million shares, which are now trading on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM), will be delisted on December 16 as the company moves to the HNX. Viglacera will start trading on the northern bourse with an opening price of VND15,600 per share (US$0.69), the average price of the last 10 trading sessions on UPCoM between November 25 and December 8. That would make the total starting value of Viglacera’s shares at VND1 trillion on the HNX. The company, with chartered capital of VND3.07 trillion, is headquartered in Ha Noi’s Nam Tu Liem District. The company was equitised in July 2014. The company is engaged in the production of construction material, real estate and construction work. Viglacera earned revenue of VND1.87 trillion and post-tax profit of VND196 billion in the third quarter of this year. After nine months, the company earned VND5.7 trillion in revenue and VND455 billion in post-tax profit.  Vietsovpetro to exceed annual gas target      Russia and Viet Nam’s oil and gas exploration joint venture, Vietsovpetro, will ship ashore around 1.6 billion cu.m of gas this year, 27 per cent more than its annual target. Of this, 654 million cu.m of gas will come from Lot 09-1, in the northwest of Bach Ho (White Tiger) oil field, a major oil field in East Sea’s Cuu Long basin, east of Mekong Delta. Speaking at the Vietsovpetro’s 47th meeting council held recently in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province, CEO Tu Thanh Nghia said the company would complete its yearly target of extracting 5.04 million tonnes of oil. This will bring the company’s total supply to more than 223 million tonnes of oil and 30.8 billion cu.m of gas, Nghia said. Vietsovpetro is expected to earn more than US$1.7 billion in revenue this year, making a profit of $247 million. More than $683 million will go into the state budget. It has cut $138 million in costs, exceeding 20 per cent of the annual target set by the council. High-tech agricultural production is the need: experts      A conference on building high-tech agriculture in Viet Nam, organised by the Digital Agriculture Association (DAA), will be held in HCM City on Sunday. At the conference, delegates will be hearing about successful experiences in high-tech applications in agriculture and build the value chain through the presentations of businesses, such as Seafood Co., Central Seafood Company, Hung Nhon JSC and Huy Long An-My Binh limited company. These companies are pioneers in the application of advanced technology with production and management by shifting from traditional farming methods to agricultural enterprises to obtain high efficiency in poultry breeding and fruit growing for export purposes. Central Seafood Company, in particular, has met the standard for high-tech business. At present, the company has six shrimps breeding farms equipped with US technology, capable of breeding10-12 billion shrimps per year. The company can sell 1,000 tonnes of shrimp annually. The event will also be an opportunity for the government, ministries and relevant agencies to hear opinions and proposals from businesses to implement timely support policies by working towards a new model of agriculture production. Based on the foundation of high-tech applications in manufacturing and integration of value chain, DAA has proposed high-tech complexes. The complexes will consist of large-scale agricultural production, where businesses will closely work together to achieve production targets with high-yield and high-quality products, which are competitive both in domestic and international markets. Nguyen Thi Lan Huong, vice president and general secretary of DAA Vietnam, said one of the most important tasks in the process of industrialisation and modernisation was to industrialise and modernise rural agriculture. Application of advanced technology should be promoted to meet standards of national and international activities in agricultural production. In addition, promoting people and businesses to create a high-tech agricultural production value chain was aimed at ensuring a healthy and prosperous life for the people and providing safe and clean food. World Bank’s Vietnam Development Report 2016, “Transforming Vietnamese Agriculture: Gaining More from Less,” launched in September, details the challenges and opportunities facing the sector. To remain competitive in the international market, the report said Viet Nam needed to improve supply, quality and food safety with added value. It outlines an agenda of short and longer-term strengthening of public and market institutions which will be needed to achieve the ambitious goals for Viet Nam’s agriculture and overall food system. Ousmane Dione, World Bank country director for Viet Nam, said, “’Business as usual’ is no longer an option for the sector. Growth has slowed down; it is vulnerable to climate hazards and leaves a large environment footprint. Change will help overcome these challenges, ensure the future of agricultural growth and better meet the expectations and aspirations of the people of Viet Nam.” The report offers various policy recommendations to address the challenges. The government can deploy an effective combination of improved regulations, better incentives and streamlined services to stimulate and push for greener agriculture and a more effective food safety and consumer protection system. It can help with policy instruments to better manage agriculture-related risks, as well as create and maintain a favourable enabling environment for agribusiness. In a more flexible, market-driven and knowledge-based agriculture system, reducing direct state involvement will make modernisation of the Vietnamese agro-food system smoother.  HCM City expects further investment from China’s Dalian city Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Council Pham Duc Hai has expressed his wish that more firms from the Chinese city of Dalian would invest in the southern metropolis in the near future.  In a reception on December 14 for Director of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress of Dalian city Li Jingrui, Hai said the municipal People’s Council and the People’s Congress of Dalian city have similar roles and functions so that the two people-elected agencies should work closely together to push forward bilateral ties, especially in the fields of economy, trade and investment.  He took this occasion to hail Chinese enterprises for their positive contributions to Ho Chi Minh City’s development.  Li, for his part, said the People’s Congress of Dalian expects to cooperate with the HCM City People’s Council to reinforce ties between the two cities.  The guest affirmed that Dalian businesses want to choose Ho Chi Minh City as an investment destination in the future. Quality salt production zone planned The central province of Quang Ngai has approved planning for a high quality salt zone on an area of 114ha in Sa Huynh town in Duc Pho district. The provincial authorities said the plan aims to develop Sa Huynh town as a major centre of salt production by 2020 and build a brand name of clean salt. As scheduled, the town plans to produce 11,000 tonnes per year, of which 55 percent will be high quality salt, and will increase the quantity to 14,000 tonnes by 2030. The province said the new high yield salt production zone would help local salt makers improve their annual income from 8.7 million VND (385 USD) to 22.4 million VND (991 USD) in 2020, and 29.3 million VND (nearly 1,300 USD) in 2025. Sa Huynh town, 70km south of Quang Ngai city, has 116ha of salt with 2,800 salt farmers, producing 9,000 tonnes of salt a year. However, in the first crop of 2016, over 4,000 tonnes of salt were not sold due to the low market price of 600 VND (0.03 USD) per kilogram. The province also plans to invest 95 billion VND (4.2 million USD) to develop infrastructure and mechanisation for the salt zone, between 2016 and 2025. Vietnam, Thailand seek to beef up trade-investment ties A conference to promote trade and investment ties between Vietnam and Thailand took place in Bangkok on December 14, as part of activities marking 40 years of diplomatic relations. The event drew the attendance of officials and businessmen from both countries. The Red River Delta province of Hung Yen and the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho took this occasion to introduce their business climate and attract investment. Participants discussed the Vietnam-Thailand strategic partnership, policies and projects available for foreign investors in Vietnam, as well as Thai import-export supporting policies. Having highlighted cultural similarities and close geographical locations between the two countries, the participants noted that the flow of Thai investment in Vietnam is much larger than the amount of Vietnamese investment in Thailand. By the end of July 2016, Thailand has been the 10th biggest foreign investor in Vietnam with 466 valid projects worth almost 9.5 billion USD. Thai projects have been present in 41 out of 63 Vietnamese provinces and cities, mostly in the sectors of processing, manufacturing, retails, construction and services. Meanwhile, Vietnam has 10 projects in Thailand valued at 25.8 million USD, ranking 22nd out of 55 countries and territories investing in the country. The participants stressed the need for more diplomatic-economic activities, trade and investment promotion events and market surveys that will encourage the formation of partnerships. They pointed to some potential sectors for cooperation, including garment-textiles, cosmetics, foodstuff and machinery. Vietnam-Thailand trade value increased to 11.5 billion USD in 2015 from 5.8 billion USD in 2009. The figure hit almost 10 billion USD by the end of October 2016 and is expected to reach 20 billion USD by 2020. Dong Nai: FDI disbursement meets annual target Disbursement of foreign direct investment (FDI) this year in the southern province of Dong Nai has reached 1 billion USD, meeting the target set for the whole year. However, according to the provincial Department of Planning and Investment, the figure represents only 80 percent of the previous year’s amount, which exceeded 1.2 billion USD. Deputy Director of the department Phan Minh Thanh said the province has lured nearly 1.9 billion USD in 2016 and disbursed over half of the total registered capital. The majority of disbursed FDI capital comes from projects invested by Japan, Taiwan (China), the Republic of Korea and focuses on the manufacturing, processing and electronic industries, Thanh added.  This year’s FDI disbursement was lower than 2015 because many new projects have their registered capital ranging between 50 – 100 million USD. They are developing infrastructure, recruiting workers and allocating capital, therefore, their disbursement hasn’t been completed. Besides, Asian investors from the RoK and Japan often disburse after the traditional Tet (Lunar New Year) holidays, according to Thanh. Over the past years, Dong Nai has reviewed its FDI projects to ensure effective implementation. In the coming years, more FDI enterprises will come into operation and recruit more labourers, particularly technicians, Thanh said. Dong Nai has lured a large number of FDI projects partly thanks to its position in the southern key economic region and convenient transport network. PM promises favourable conditions to DP World Group Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc received Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Chairman and CEO of the DP World Group from the United Arab Emirates in Hanoi on December 14, during which he affirmed that foreign investors are important part of the Vietnamese economy. He noted that over the past years, Vietnam has gained a number of achievements in attracting foreign investment, with 21,000 projects from 115 countries and territories worth over 300 billion USD by the end of 2015. In 2016, amidst global economic difficulties, Vietnam has managed to lure 18 billion USD in FDI, he said, adding that the result shows the attractiveness of the Vietnamese market. PM Phuc affirmed that the Vietnamese Government commits to creating optimal conditions for foreign investors, including DP World, while developing a healthy, competitive and equal environment for all businesses. The PM affirmed that Vietnamese agencies have been working hard to remove difficulties that DP World is facing, pledging that Vietnam welcomes and supports the group’s plan to cooperate with Vietnamese enterprises in exploiting seaports as well as building industrial parks in Vietnam. For his part, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem expressed belief in Vietnam’s economic development prospects. He highly values the potentials of seaport and logistics sectors of Vietnam. He held that Vietnam has great advantage in terms of workforce, which is an important factor for the development of industrial parks. He also voiced hope that the Vietnamese Government continue tackling obstacles facing the group, while creating favourable conditions for its projects. Quang Ninh chooses local investors for Van Don-Mong Cai Expressway project Deputy PM Trinh Dinh Dung has allowed Quang Ninh Province to decide on the investment and construction of the Van Don-Mong Cai Expressway.  The 96-km four-lane highway project that connects Van Don District and Mong Cai City in the north-eastern province is estimated to cost approximately USD800 million. The Export-Import Bank of China has offered a soft loan of USD300 million to finance the project. Earlier, the Ministry of Transport proposed that the government accept the loan from the Chinese bank but the proposal faced strong opposition from local economic experts and the public. Many people have expressed concerns while pointing out the bad quality and stagnant progress of many Chinese-invested projects in Vietnam including the Cat Linh-Ha Dong flyover project, the Da River Pipeline project in Hanoi, or the Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel Plant-Phase 2 project in Thai Nguyen Province. Quang Ninh Province People's Committee then sent a letter to the prime minister proposing to seek domestic loans for the expressway project and not accept China's bank loan. In an interview with the VietNamNet Newspaper in early August about their decision, the people’s committee chairman, Nguyen Duc Long, said that the project would play an important role in forming the Van Don Special Economic Zone and so should be carried out carefully and completed on time. "We've received submissions from several domestic investors who’ve proposed public-private investment partnerships," Long told the VietNamNet. "We’re considering a 70:30 spilt in terms of capital with 70% being sourced from investors and 30% from the provincial budget. I think this is a feasible plan for the four-lane expressway." At their meeting on November 21, Quang Ninh decided to choose group of investors including Cai Mep, Thai Son, Vinaconex E&C, BRJSC12, Khanh An and Cienco1 as investors in the project. VCCI proposes to further reduce insurance procedures for FDI firms The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) proposed Vietnam Social Insurance Agency to continue streamlining and reducing administrative procedures and intensifying electronic transactions for businesses including foreign direct investment (FDI) firms on December 16. The proposal was made at a conference hosted by the two bodies in Hanoi to supply FDI enterprises with information about the implementation of compulsory insurance policies. On behalf of businesses including FDI firms, VCCI said that the revised Social Insurance Law taking effect early this year has much improved the process of submitting and paying insurance premiums and more pleased businesses as well as workers than before.  A chamber survey covering FDI sector shows that 70.8 percent of respondents affirmed that they have no longer met with difficulties in doing social insurance formalities.  However, a number of enterprises have still unsatisfied with papers related to social, heath and unemployment insurances. Therefore, VCCI suggested the agency to simplify the insurance procedures at the maximum level to save time and cost for businesses and workers.  According to the Social Insurance Agency, 15,670 FDI firms attended the three compulsory insurances at the end of September this year, accounting for 7.6 percent of total attendees.  The number of workers having obligatory insurances at FDI firms is over 3.63 million, a year on year increase of 4.4 percent, which is expected to hike 7.3 percent for the entire year.  Compulsory insurance premium collected from the FDI sector is estimated to hit VND69,027 billion (US$3.03 billion) by the end of this year, up 20.4 percent over 2015. Arrears reach VND2,098 billion now, accounting for 3.9 percent of the total amount in need of collection. Duc Long Gia Lai invests VND 2,1 trillion in Chu Se district The central highlands province of Gia Lai People's Committee and Duc Long Gia Lai Group JSC (DLG) signed memorandum to invest in a VND 2,1 trillion expansion of the Eastern center of Chu Se district at the Investment Promotion Conference 2016 held in Gia Lai this morning. The DLG said the project has total investment capital of VND 2,210billion and covers an area of 75.1 ha in Chu Se district in the central highlands province of Gia Lai. The project has 3 main items including administrative area, park, residental area. It is estimated to start construction in 2017 and expected to be completed in 2020. Mr. Bui Phap from Duc Long affirmed the group will focus its efforts to ensure to put the center into operation on schedule. Phu My Hung introduces Midtown project The Phu My Hung Development Corporation, one of Vietnam’s leading real estate companies, has recently introduced its Midtown complex project, which it is developing in a joint venture with three Japanese investors - Daiwa House Industry Company, Nomura Real Estate Development Group, and Sumitomo Forestry Company - in the south of Ho Chi Minh City. This is the first condominium project where Phu My Hung has worked with renowned real estate corporations from Japan, in the Phu Hung Thai JSC joint venture. “This is the most expensive project built by Phu My Hung for three years,” a representative from Phu My Hung Corporation told VET. She did not, however, give specific investment figures for the project. “The complex will be completed within 2019,” she said. The project is aimed at the luxury customer segment. Most construction materials are imported from Europe and all design and construction units come from leading companies in the region. Phu My Hung Midtown is located on the two main boulevards of Nguyen Luong Bang and Tan Phu in the Phu My Hung urban area. The strategic location links the busy international and commercial area with the high-end Nam Vien residential area. With an administrative area, schools and multi-function buildings (an office, hotel and service complex), Phu My Hung Midtown also boasts a large green space. The complex has four buildings connected together on a total area of 56,331 sq m. Residents have access to conveniences such as a swimming pool, a barbecue area, a garden and yoga space on the rooftop terrace, a library and rooms for community activities.  The investors have set aside a strip of land next to the northern river bank for Sakura Park, which is being built in line with the idea of cherry blossom parks in Japan. There will also be a play area for children and a multi-purpose sports field. “We aim to make the Midtown complex a public space similar to that in The Crescent and be a new landmark in Ho Chi Minh City,” the company representative said. Founded in 1955, Daiwa House Industry Company is Japan’s largest homebuilder, specializing in prefabricated houses. It also is engaged in the construction of factories, shopping centers, and healthcare facilities, and the management and operation of resort hotels, golf courses, and fitness clubs. The Nomura Real Estate Group is one of the largest real estate investment management companies in Japan, with over $8.4 billion in assets under management. The Sumitomo Forestry Company is a comprehensive housing and wooden products corporation engaged in various housing-related businesses, such as wooden custom-housing and building materials manufacturing, distribution and sale via a global network. Draft rule requires Internet banking providers to respect copyrights Equipment and information technology infrastructure used for Internet banking services at banks must have copyrights and clear origins, according to a draft State Bank of Vietnam circular on Internet banking safety and security. The draft circular specifies that in case Internet banking service providers no longer receive support from equipment producers, they will have to upgrade or replace their systems as requested by producers, says a report on the Government portal (chinhphu.vn). Internet banking service systems must be deemed as vital and operated in line with the central bank’s regulations to guarantee safety and security for the information technology systems of the banking sector. Banks must protect customer details and encrypt all information about online transactions with customers. They will have to take measures to keep their customer database safe and secure, said the draft circular. Bank staff’s right to assess customer database must be limited or monitored, according to the draft. The draft circular sets four specific value caps for online transactions: below VND50 million, below VND200 million, below VND500 million, and VND500 million or above. For institutional clients, the limits are below VND500 million, less than VND1.5 billion and VND1.5 billion or above. New finance firm launched, focuses on average-income people Military Bank (MB) has launched MB Finance Co Ltd (Mcredit) to offer small loans for average-income people. Headquartered in Hanoi, Mcredit has initial chartered capital of VND500 billion (US$21.9 million), which is expected to rise to VND800 billion next year. The company looks to become a leading finance firm with a total workforce of 10,000 people by 2021. MB chairman Le Huu Duc said that in the 2016-2020 period, the bank wanted to become a leading financial corporation in Vietnam. With Japan’s Shinsei Bank holding a 49% stake following a deal signed last month, Mcredit is poised to achieve strong growth in the future as Shinsei has modern technology and more than 50 years’ experience in consumer finance. New finance firm launched, focuses on average-income people Military Bank (MB) has launched MB Finance Co Ltd (Mcredit) to offer small loans for average-income people. Headquartered in Hanoi, Mcredit has initial chartered capital of VND500 billion (US$21.9 million), which is expected to rise to VND800 billion next year. The company looks to become a leading finance firm with a total workforce of 10,000 people by 2021. MB chairman Le Huu Duc said that in the 2016-2020 period, the bank wanted to become a leading financial corporation in Vietnam. With Japan’s Shinsei Bank holding a 49% stake following a deal signed last month, Mcredit is poised to achieve strong growth in the future as Shinsei has modern technology and more than 50 years’ experience in consumer finance. Ice-to-fish ratio rule to be removed The Government will remove a regulation on ice and moisture content in tra (pangasius) fish fillets from a decree governing production, processing and export of tra fillets, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Deputy Minister Vu Van Tam said the regulation which sets the ice-to-fish ratio of tra fillets for export at 10% and the moisture ratio at 83% of net weight would be removed from Decree 36/2014/ND-CP which is being revised. Instead, the amended decree would include a set of national technical standards for frozen tra fillets, Tam told a seminar held Wednesday in An Giang Province to review the tra fish sector’s performance this year. “As assigned by the agriculture ministry, the National Agro-Forestry-Fisheries Quality Assurance Department (Nafiqad) has built those technical standards and submit them to the Ministry of Science and Technology for assessment and within this month, the agriculture ministry will issue them,” he said. In the new technical standards, the agriculture ministry will set the maximum ice and moisture ratios at 20% and 86% respectively. Vo Hung Dung, vice chairman and general secretary of the Vietnam Pangasius Association (VN Pangasius), confirmed the removal of the current ice-to-fish ratio from Decree 36 when reached by the Daily on the sidelines of the seminar. The regulation on ice and moisture content in tra fish fillets has been criticized by the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) and enterprises as it has spelled trouble for the sector. With the rule delayed several times, the Government has asked the agriculture ministry to amend the decree and develop a set of national technical standards on frozen tra fish fillets. The revised decree and new technical standards are expected to be approved within this month, said deputy minister Tam.  Govt gets tough on fraud in shrimp processing sector The Government has approved a plan in which stricter measures will be taken to ward off the illegal practice of injecting jelly into raw shrimp and the trading of jelly-injected shrimp, the Government said on its news site (chinhphu.vn). According to the plan, all shrimp farming and processing facilities in the nation's major shrimp farming areas like Ca Mau, Soc Trang, Bac Lieu and Kien Giang provinces will have to sign commitments to neither injecting jelly into shrimp nor buying jelly-injected raw shrimp by the end of next year. By 2018, Vietnam will basically have no facilities involved in the illegal practice, says the plan. Local authorities will have to raise awareness of the harm of putting jelly in raw shrimp, help distinguish jelly-injected and normal shrimp, handle infringement cases, and impose sanctions on violators. Authorities of Ca Mau, Bac Lieu, Soc Trang and Kien Giang will have to set up hotline phone numbers to receive information about violations, help shrimp farming and processing facilities to commitments and publicize a list of signatories. The ministries of public security, agriculture-rural development, and industry-trade will have to coordinate with the media to name those facilities illegally inject jelly into shrimp and publicize the sanctions levied. The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) will be responsible for organizing a program against jelly-injected shrimp. The agriculture ministry will conduct regular inspections to ensure strict compliance, and work with the industry-trade ministry to check if shrimp processors and traders respect the regulation in the transport and distribution processes. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Public Security will inspect and investigate facilities accused of injecting jelly into shrimp. VVF to be merged into SHB early next year The merger of Vinaconex-Viettel Finance JSC (VVF) into Saigon-Hanoi Bank (SHB) is expected to be complete early next year following the State Bank of Vietnam’s (SBV) approval.  The SBV on Wednesday issued a decision allowing the merger and revoking VVF’s establishment and operation licenses. The licenses will automatically expire when SHB registers the merged entity with the central bank. SHB will take over all the assets and liabilities of VVF. Within 45 working days from the date of the decision taking effect (January 12, 2017), SHB must complete procedures for business registration and disclose information as required by the prevailing rules. VVF is required to hand over all its assets and liabilities to SHB, return its establishment and operation licenses to the central bank, and announce its closure.   In mid-September, the central bank gave “in principle” approval to the merger of VVF into SHB. VVF’s chartered capital is VND1 trillion and SHB’s more than VND9.48 trillion. The merger deal was already approved by shareholders of the two businesses. The SBV has given the green light to SHB to establish a consumer finance company. At an extraordinary general meeting in late October last year, SHB shareholders passed the VVF-SHB merger plan. The bank said it would issue 100 million shares worth a combined VND1 trillion to make the share swap at a 1:1 ratio. SHB will restructure VVF and convert it into a consumer finance firm.    According to the SBV, Vietnam had had 16 finance companies by the end of last year. Increasing merger and acquisition (M&A) deals are expected to support the consumer finance market which holds huge growth potential. A number of banks have acquired finance companies to restructure them, increase their capital and sell part of their shares to foreign investors over the past years. Vietnam high on Japan investor radar In Southeast Asia, Vietnam has attracted the most attention from Japanese investors over the past three years, said Koji Maeno, chairman of the Japanese Business Association of HCMC (JBAH). Speaking at a roundtable meeting between HCMC authorities and Japanese businesses on December 14, he said Japanese firms were still eyeing Vietnam as a key destination for doing business. He said JBAH would carry out a variety of activities to shore up Japanese investment in the city in the coming years, including this roundtable meeting. Neighboring provinces including Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Long An and Ba Ria-Vung Tau have also expressed interest in holding such a roundtable between their leaders and Japanese investors to lure more investment from Japan, he noted. Le Thanh Liem, vice chairman of HCMC, said the city is determined to make its investment environment better and that Japan is always a key partner of the city in multiple aspects. Japan is now the sixth largest foreign investor in HCMC with 943 valid projects worth US$3.05 billion. Cat Lai Port says to process exports online next year Cat Lai Port will start next year to process containerized cargo exports online to speed up goods clearance and thus cope with worsening traffic congestion around the port area. Saigon Newport Corporation (SNP), the operator of Cat Lai Port, on December 15 met importers, exporters, logistics services providers and truckers to introduce its plan to process import and export documentations online. To reduce traffic congestion on the roads leading to Cat Lai, SNP deputy general director Ngo Minh Thuan said his firm would offer the online service for goods importers and exporters from January 1, 2017. In the initial time, businesses can submit import-export documents either in person or online. But documents of containerized cargo for export will be entirely processed online at the end of the first quarter of 2017. In the online procedure, businesses will get electronic invoices. On January 15, 2017, Cat Lai Port will completely shift to issuing electronic invoices, freeing businesses from the requirement to go to the port to collect paper invoices. Pham Truong Sa, head of the truck fleet at Tracimexo - Supply Chains and Agency Services JS Company (TRA-SAS), said it normally took his firm about 30 minutes to complete paper procedures for receiving cargo. The time required for online transactions will fall to a mere two minutes, accelerating the transport of export goods to the port. “The online procedures will certainly save a lot of time, energy and cost,” he said. Online procedures and fee payments have been piloted by SNP since early this year. Now 60% of exporters file for export procedures online. SNP expects to make all the remaining services online in the second or third quarter next year. Traffic congestion on the roads leading to Cat Lai Port has recently worsened. At present, Cat Lai Port handles about 17,000 truck visits a day, 13,000 of them by container vehicles, according to the HCMC Department of Transport. Therefore, online documentation processing and fee payments are highly expected to ease traffic congestion in Cat Lai Port area. Central city and Gifu Shinkin bank ink MoU on investment      The Da Nang Investment Support and Promotion Board, and Japan’s Gifu Shinkin Bank, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on co-operation, investment promotion for small and medium-sized enterprises from Japan in the central Vietnamese coastal city. Gifu Shinkin, the largest bank in Gifu, Japan, has more than 156,000 customers, of which seven are Japanese enterprises in Da Nang. Director of the city’s Investment Support and Promotion Board, Le Canh Duong, said this was the first MoU that the board has signed with a Japanese bank. He said Japan is the biggest investor in Da Nang, with 113 projects worth $397.5 million – 10.78 per cent of the accumulated foreign direct investment (FDI) projects in the city – creating 32,000 jobs. Duong said 84 per cent of Japanese investment is focussed on manufacturing, food processing, construction and information technology, while healthcare, real estate, tourism and education have emerged as new investment fields among Japanese investors in recent years. Bank Chairman Masatoshi Takahashi said many Japanese investors eye Da Nang investments and are eager to explore the investment environment there. Takahashi said a business delegation from Aichi will visit Viet Nam next March, and Da Nang will be a favored stop. Đà Nẵng has smoothed the way for Japanese investors by setting up a Japanese to support investors by explaining administrative procedures, investment licences, policies and other issues. The city has developed an Information Park on 344ha of land in Hoa Vang District and an IT park on 55.6ha nearby, where space has been reserved for IT investors from Japan. The city also plans to build an industrial park for small- and medium-sized businesses from Japan on 134ha. Da Nang will begin construction of the Japan-Viet Nam Culture Centre in Ngu Hanh Son District and launch a new direct flight from Da Nang to Osaka next year. The Route Inn Group from Japan has started construction of a coastal resort, the first of its kind in Viet Nam, with a total investment of $18 million, while the Japanese JP Holdings company plans to invest in a high-quality kindergarten education project in the city from next year, with estimated capital of $5 million. According to the latest reports, Da Nang has attracted 423 foreign investment projects worth $3.68 billion to date. Last year, the board also inked a MoU with KPMG, one of the largest audit, tax and advisory firms in the world, on co-operation, investment promotion and providing service for businesses and investors in Da Nang. The central city greatly improved its administrative reform and Provincial Competitive Index over the past few decades, but poor investment promotion abroad has prevented key investors from approaching the city and central region in recent years.  Improvement urged in e-authentication      The National Electronic Authentication Centre (NEAC) should put in place technical solutions to manage providers of certificate authentication (CA) services, said Nguyen Thanh Hung, deputy minister of Information and Communication. Hung said at a conference in Ha Noi on Thursday that the centre should enhance check-ups of the CA service providers, as well as on-site training of their human resources. CA service is used to certify information of online transactions. Local businesses are obliged to use CA for implementation of electronic tax and e-customs declaration. The centre should promote international co-operation in CA services as the development of the information and communication sector is dependent on international integration, he said. He also instructed the centre to design both short-term and long-term projects for its further development. La Hoang Trung, NEAC’s director, said the centre paid attention this year to building policies and legal documents for CA operations. It co-operated with the ministry of Finance’s Planning and Finance Department on a directive regulating collection fees, declarations and management of CA systems, which will take effects at the beginning of next year. Last year, the centre reviewed applications to provide CA services of four companies including SmartSign, Newtel-CA, Safe-CA and VNPT-CA. SmartSign was granted a licence to provide the service on Nov. 4. The other licences have still not been issued. The centre also applied for special CA operation of SeaBank for the banking sector. It has promoted international co-operation with KOICA–NIPA, signing memorandum of understanding with the Laos National Internet Centre (LANIC). It also co-operated with the Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA) to implement a project for advanced CA infrastructure in Viet Nam, as well as ICT co-operation in ASEAN region. The centre will implement co-operation activities to promote CA applications by State agencies, localities and businesses in 2017. It will also provide consultancy for setting up of CA applications in State-owned groups and corporations and provide training courses on CA services for companies.  Private sector’s role in national economic development Vietnam now has 500,000 private enterprises which employ more than 15 million people and contributes 40% of the national GDP. Vietnam has adopted many policies to develop the private economic sector. The 12th National Party Congress, which has insisted on building a socialist-oriented market economy, considers the private sector a key driver of the national economy where stakeholders in different sectors are equal under law. Associate Professor Doan Minh Huan, Deputy Editor-in-chief of the Communist Review, said “Ensuring equality between economic sectors provides the private economic sector with more opportunities to access land and credit, even the resources of the public sector. The policies on public-private cooperation have ensured that the private sector will cooperate with the state sector to exploit the available resources.” Most private companies are small and lack the connectivity and capacity to respond to risks. Tran Kim Chung, Deputy Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management, underscored the need to ensure healthy competition and equality between businesses so that private enterprises can grow. According to Chung, “the most essential thing is to improve the market mechanism. We should enhance transparency, renovate the state management, stabilize the macro-economy, and eliminate problems that reduce investment effectiveness.” To support the contribution of the private sector to the national economy, Vietnam has implemented corporate solutions in which businesses identify their competitive advantages and disadvantages, focus investment on their core business, and improve the management capacity. Pham Thi Thu Hang, Secretary General of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said “The Chamber is identifying obstacles faced by enterprises for a report to the government. In addition to a government resolution on supporting and developing businesses until 2020, we are devising an action plan to help private companies and SMEs.” Addressing the recent Vietnam Business Forum, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc reiterated the government’s commitment to perfecting market institutions policies, and laws, continuing administrative reform, enhancing national competitiveness, and facilitating conditions for the domestic private and FDI sectors. He said “FDI businesses should trust in Vietnam’s reforms and accelerate the transfer of advanced technology, human resource training, and the sharing of corporate governance experience. FDI enterprises should also honor their responsibility to society and join hands with Vietnam in protecting natural resources and the environment.” In the socio-economic development strategy until 2020, Vietnam has pledged to create the most favorable conditions for Vietnamese enterprises, especially private businesses, to promote competitiveness and economic self-reliance. Vietnam posts brisk sales of beef from France The Vietnam government has lifted a 15-year ban on the import of French beef effective as of December 15, of last year. France is currently the largest cattle producer in the EU and dominates the beef trade in the political-economic union of 28 member states with its estimated 510 million strong population.  In June 2015, the World Organization for Animal Health declared the French beef industry as having a negligible risk for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), more commonly known as Mad Cow Disease. This is the best possible sanitary status that can be attained for BSE, reserved for the countries that have demonstrated a perfect management of the disease and that have had no reported cases for a minimum of ten years (April, 2004 for France). Before this upgrade, the French industry had been classified under the already commendable category of ‘controlled risk status’. The initial goal in this past first year of implementing the trade deal with Vietnam was to build trust with Vietnamese consumers, noted French Ambassador to Vietnam M. Bertrand Lortholary. This was done so Vietnamese consumers would come to know that the meat is safe to eat, the French Ambassador added. Beef products had been banned in the Southeast Asian country since 2000, after BSE swept through Europe with devastating effect. The deal to allow French beef into Vietnam came last December on the heels of the signing of a free trade agreement between the EU and Vietnam officials. Vietnam initially authorized 23 beef producers in France to begin exporting. For the past year, only frozen beef has been allowed into Vietnam, said French Ambassador Lortholary, to allow the Vietnam government to gauge the ramifications to the local industry and consumers’ reception to it. One of the key benefits of French beef is its traceability, said the Ambassador, noting that the origin of most beef varieties can be traced directly back to the individual cow that gave birth to the calf the beef originates from, as detailed records are kept on all calves. For comparison purposes, for Australian beef, another major exporter to the Vietnam market, traceability stops at the farm level.  Accordingly, French beef standards are much more in line with strict US standards, aimed at rigorously ensuring food safety.  French breeds such as the Limousin, Charolais or Blonde d'Aquitaine are much larger than those from other countries like Australia and the US, often weighing in at one and on-half metric tons. Sales in Vietnam have been brisk in the first year with French beef producers having sold an estimated 370 metric tons, said Ambassador Lortholary, noting plans are in the works to start shipping fresh beef to the Southeast Asian country soon. VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VET/VIR