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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 27/3
VHG to
delist if restructuring fails
Beleaguered Viet
Han Investment and Production (VHG) would delist if its restructuring plan
failed, according to the company's recent annual meeting.
The board of
directors would assess the possibility of success of the restructure and, at
the same time, choose a reasonable time to delist, if necessary, so the
maximum benefits to shareholders would be assured.
The company has 25
million shares listed on the HCM City Stock Exchange.
Under the
restructuring plan, VHG will probably be split, merged or establish new
subsidiaries. It will have to transfer assets and shares in subsidiaries and
associates to other entities.
The company will
also settle and liquidate its projects, such as D'Evelyn Tower Da Nang,
D'Evelyn Beach Quang
Last year, it
planned to established a VND100 billion (US$4.7 million) limited liability company
to manage the rubber project. Previously in 2011, the company invested 65 per
cent in a VND100 billion partnership in the D'Evelyn Beach Quang
Of the above
projects, the most expensive was D'evelyn Tower Da Nang, which was expected
to cost the company VND850 billion ($40.4 million). It was kicked off in 2010
and VHG has poured in VND108 billion ($5.1 million) so far.
Prior to the annual
shareholder meeting, the company had said it hoped the transfer of its
projects and assets would account for 50 per cent of this year's revenue.
VHG has targeted a
revenue of just VND200 billion ($9.5 million) for 2013. It also expects
losses would narrow to VND20 billion ($952,300) compared to VND36 billion
($1.7 million) last year. VHG shares closed yesterday at the ceiling price of
VND4,000 ($0.19).
US steel
producers make dumping claim
After welded steel
pipes and steel wire garment hangers, now welded stainless pressure pipe from
The Viet Nam
Competition Authority under the Ministry of Industry and Trade on Monday said
three US stainless pipe producers - Bristol Metals LP, Felker Brothers Corp
and Outokumpu Stainless Pipe Inc- have filed a trade petition with the US
International Trade Commission (USITC) and the US Commerce Department (DOC)
seeking to impose anti-dumping duties against welded stainless pressure pipe
from Malaysia, Thailand and Viet Nam.
Last year, imports
of steel pipe from
The petition
alleges dumping margins of 15 to 17 per cent for
The ITC will hold a
hearing on June 6 and make a preliminary determination by July 1, Bristol
Metals said.
The action marks
the third steel-related trade case against Vietnamese steel products filed in
the
In the past two
years, the domestic steel industry faced five anti-dumping lawsuits and two
anti-subsidy ones from the
However, US ITC
announced late last year that after investigation, it found welded
carbon-quality steel pipes imported from
According to Tran
Tuan Nghiep, director of Huu Lien Asia Corporation, a defendant in last
year's lawsuit against Viet Nam welded carbon-quality steel pipes, price
competition in the steel market is fierce and if Vietnamese steel is subject
to more and more anti-dumping and anti-subsidy tariffs, it could lose an
important market.
Bio-fuel
system installation to be sped up
Deputy minister of
Industry and Trade Le Duong Quang has asked petrol producers and agencies to
speed up the distribution of E5 bio-fuel to meet a deadline set by the Prime
Minister.
According to the PM
Decision 53/2012/QD-TTg, the E5 bio-fuel (traditional petrol mixed with 5 per
cent ethanol) will be rolled out on national scale by the end of 2015.
Seven cities and
provinces including Ha Noi, central
Deputy director of
the ministry's Science and Technology Department Nguyen Phu Cuong said that
except for PetroVietnam Corporation (PVN) and Sai Gon Petro, most petrol and
oil enterprises had not actively developed distribution.
Deputy general
director Nguyen Sinh Khang from PVN said the Government had only issued
preferential policies to encourage bio-fuel production but had not supported
a distribution system.
In fact, only 175
out of 12,000 petrol stations nationwide sell E5 bio-fuel. These are owned by
PVN and Sai Gon Petro. Meanwhile, Petrolimex, a petrol supplier accounting
for 50 per cent of the domestic market share, has made no investment.
Explaining the
tardiness, a representative from Petrolimex said the corporation was studying
investment plans to choose the most efficient because investment in bio-fuel
distribution required a huge amount of money.
Despite the
tardiness by petrol producers, deputy minister Quang told producers and
relevant agencies to enhance co-operation and jointly tackle difficulties.
He said the
deadline should not be extended because national energy security and the
livelihoods of cassava growers all depended on popularising bio fuel.
He ordered
companies to detail their investment plans and submit them to the ministry
before June 5.
The deputy minister
also asked the Domestic Market Department to study petrol trading management
to create favourable conditions for bio-fuel production and distribution.
PVN representative
also asked the Government and Ministry of Finance to exempt import taxes
imposed on equipment for fuel storage, transportation and mixture.
It also asked the
Government to reduce or exempt bio fuel from environment taxes because it was
an environmentally friendly product.
To promote the
consumption of E5 bio-fuel, local producers suggested that people's awareness
of benefits of the product should be raised through a national programme.
Power plant
contract to be completed
Once the BOT is
signed, an investment licence should be approved in the second quarter of
2014, with construction work scheduled to start in August 2015 and the
plant's opening set for October 2019.
The project was
initially proposed in 2006 and has a planned capacity of 2,640MW. The plant
will be located in the Van Phong Economic Zone in central coastal
Covering an area of
more than 350 ha, the project would cost more than US$2 billion.
Nguyen Chien Thang,
chairman of the provincial People's Committee told the Vietnam Investment
Review that work was delayed due to issues related to the land hire contract
with the province and negotiations for an agreement on how much Electricity
of Viet Nam (EVN) will pay for the power supplies.
Thang said the
province committed to ensuring a favourable land hire contract for the
project's investors. However, the Japanese group was asked to provide a
specific timetable on the completion of the project to help avoiding delays.
The province has
spent about VND150 billion ($7.2 million) on land compensation and site
clearance for the project since 2010.
The plant would
supply power to EVN, using coal imported from
The BOT power plant
would comprise two 660 MW boiler turbine generator units.
Once licensed, the
plant would be the second Sumitomo-invested power project in
It's cool
to be green: consumers
Green activities
are all the rage in
The growing public
awareness about green issues, however, has not occurred without support from
the city government.
In fact, the city
authority has been a leader in launching green consumption campaigns, with
the first organised in 2010.
The annual event,
which attracts nearly 2,000 volunteers, is only one of many green activities
that the city has been promoting in recent years.
Nguyen Thi Hong,
vice chairwoman of the city's People's Committee, said the city had urged
consumers to buy products from companies that follow environmental
regulations and produce safe, healthy products.
To improve their
ecological footprint, many companies have begun to use renewable energy and
power-saving devices, and to produce more organic and natural products.
Ho Quynh Hung,
chairman of Dien Quang Lamp Joint Stock Company, said that local consumers
would boycott companies that did not make environmentally friendly products.
To meet demand,
Dien Quang has updated its technology and products as well as its production
methods, he said.
The effort has
extended beyond the business sector, with several campaigns directed at
youth.
Bayer
The book notes that
"superheroes are not necessarily powerful people, but those people who
do small things to make great things every day".
In the industrial
sector, the city is taking steps to classify solid waste at the source,
according to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment.
A number of local
supermarkets, trade centres and several residential areas are required to
separate solid waste so that more of it could be recycled.
Recycling also was
part of a roofing project for the Ho Phuong Kindergarten in Binh Chanh
District.
The organiser of
Earth Hour 2013, in collaboration with Tetra Pak Viet
EuroCham
kicks off Green Biz activities
This year's Green
Biz activities organised by EuroCham include field trips for students to
learn about sustainable business practices and the shift from a "brown
to green economy", the business chamber has announced.
Green-Biz
activities, which will take place from May to September, will focus on real,
practical challenges and outcomes, according to Preben Hjortland, EuroCham's
chairman.
The main activities
and conference for Green Biz 2013 will be held in Ha Noi from September
19-20. It will bring together stakeholders who will give presentations and
take part in debates and network-sharing events.
Woodwork
processors cut imports
Many companies in
the local woodwork industry have halved the volumes of imported timber to
minimise their inventories and ease pressure for bank loans.
Due to economic
woes, woodwork processors were now importing input materials every quarter or
small batches in line with each order instead of importing enough for a whole
year's production.
This was stated by
Huynh Quang Thanh, chairman of the Binh Duong Wood Processing Association and
director of Hiep Long Woodwork Company, while speaking with the Saigon Times
Online.
The gloomy
situation in the first four months of the year is largely responsible for
slowing down the imports.
Many enterprises
failed to get bank loans while others who did were charged with high lending
rates. This means members in the industry have had to scale down imports of
input materials to avoid paying huge interest sums in the current tough
business conditions, added Thanh.
He noticed numerous
members had slashed material imports by over 50 per cent against the same
period last year.
According to the
director of a woodwork exporting company in
In fact, owing to
difficult business, input material imports of the whole industry have slumped
in recent years as processors seek to buy more materials locally, the Viet
Nam Timber and Forest Product Association (Vietforest) reports.
For instance,
imported processed materials for the woodwork industry from 2005 to 2010
accounted for up to 80-90 per cent of the total. However, this fell to only
66 per cent in 2012.
Latest data from
the Ministry of Industry and Trade in the first three months of the year
shows that
In March alone, the
import value of this kind of product reached $113.2 million, tumbling 14.43
per cent from the same period last year.
Real estate
body tips revival
The Viet Nam Real
Estate Association (VNREA) will continue to help its members overcome
difficulties, advise and seek policy support from the Government, and promote
market transparency, officials said yesterday.
Speaking on the
sidelines of an exhibition on "Housing for True Demand," which is
part of a series of events celebrating the association's 10th anniversary,
property developers said that in the near future, businesses are likely to
focus on developing social and low-income housing, taking advantage of
preferential policies in place for this segment.
The three-day
exhibition is being attended by many big property firms including Hoang Quan,
Thu Duc House, Thanh Binh and the Housing and Urban Development Corporation.
Association
officials said the event would help property developers nationwide popularise
their projects and attract domestic as well as foreign investment.
It would also give
property firms an opportunity to promote their brand and prospective
customers to make choices based on quality information.
Meanwhile,
developers can speed up sales and mobilise capital for ongoing or new
projects, the officials said.
The exhibition also
offers the possibility of linking enterprises with banks in order to improve
credit access for both enterprises and prospective home buyers, helping the
stagnant property market move ahead, they added.
A grand ceremony
with the attendance of Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai and other
dignitaries including the Governor of the State Bank of Viet Nam Nguyen Van
Binh and senior officials of the Ministry of Construction and the
Later in the day,
officials of the Construction Ministry, the central bank, relevant agencies,
industry insiders and experts will gather at a seminar that will seek
solutions for solving the problem of unsold property inventory under the
Government's Resolution 02/NQ-CP.
The seminar will
also focus on ongoing challenges as well as opportunities.
VNREA deputy
chairman Truong Anh Tuan, who is also chairman of the Hoang Quan Real Estate
Corporation, said yesterday that many businesses will now focus on developing
social and low cost housing to take full advantage of preferential policies
for this segment, including reductions in VAT and corporate income tax,
preferential interest rates and other measures.
Following the
Government resolution, his company will convert four commercial housing
projects in
VNREA officials
said that at the end of the seminar, several agreements will be signed among
leading credit institutions like Agribank, Trustbank, and BIDV to implement
the resolution that seeks to revive the property market.
Total housing space
in
S Korean
Aerospace officials arrive
Representatives
from Korean Aerospace Industries in
According to local
newspaper Dau tu (Investment), the board of the
The size of the
factory and investment has not been revealed.
If realised, this
will be the second factory to manufacture spare parts for airplanes in the
country after MHI Aerospace Viet Nam Ltd Co invested by Japan's Mitsubishi
group.-
Government
bond rates continue to fall
The yield on
Government two-year bonds declined 33 points to reach a record low of 6.8 per
cent on Tuesday, Ha Noi Stock Exchange announced. Yields on other bonds also
had significant falls.
Specifically,
three-year and five-year bond yields reduced by 27 and 21 points to 7.23 per
cent and 8.23 per cent.
Bonds worth a total
of VND5 trillion (US$238 million) found buyers on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the
yield on 28-day term treasury bills (T-bills) on Tuesday continued to
decrease 20 points to 2.5 per cent a year. This follows a fall of 2.7 per
cent a day earlier.
The State Bank of
It was the first
issuance of 28-day T-bills after two months of interruption. On Monday, the
coupon rate of 52-week T-bills dropped 47 basis points to 6.03 per cent.
A banking official
told website ttvn.vn that interest rates remained on a downward trend due to
the central bank's recent operational policies.
In addition,
another two major factors affected rates. First, the volume of bonds and
T-bills maturing in the last two weeks of this month amounted to more than
VND38 trillion ($1.8 billion), creating a cash surplus, which forced credit
institutions to reinvest.
Second, Vietinbank
(CTG) has collected nearly $750 million from the sale of its shares (more
than 644 million units) to the Japanese Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd.
Property
investor seeks partners
Pacific Property
and Infrastructure Development Joint Stock Company (PPI) is calling for
investment into its two property projects in
The projects are
the riverside complex
Pham Duc Tan,
chairman of PPI, said land had been cleared for the projects and investment
procedures finished, but due to difficulties in the property market and
difficulty in assessing capital sources, the firm was incapable of carrying
out those projects on its own.
Therefore, PPI had
called for investors who had financial capabilities and wanted to co-operate
with PPI to develop them. Partners can choose suitable cooperation models,
but the prior solution is to set up a joint venture, Tan said.-
Work begins
on tourism complex
Delta-Valley Binh
Thuan Co Ltd has started work on the US$400 million Thung Lung Dai Duong (
The project covers
a total area of about 985ha in Tien Thanh commune and will provide
entertainment spaces, parks, golf courses, restaurants, hotels, villas and
trade complexes. It is expected to create 3,000 jobs when open.
Suppliers
attend food safety course
Thousands of
customers and food suppliers are learning about food safety at a mobile
demonstration facility set up at Metro Cash&Carry Viet Nam stores in
The demo facility
will stay for two weeks at each of Metro's stores and then will tour around
the country. It is expected that 30,000 customers, employees, suppliers and
students will take part in the training from now until 2014.
Launched last year,
the training sessions are organised by the German Investment and Development
Agency, Metro Cash&Carry Viet Nam, and Assist, a non-profit
organisation.-
Malaysia Airlines
is offering package tours for three days and two nights to travellers from
Each tour covers a
two-way economy class flights, airport tax and transfer and accommodation at
Equatorial Hotel and daily breakfast. The airline operates three flights a
day to
Economy class and
business class tickets for its flights from
Iron ore
needed for local production
The Viet Nam Steel
Association (VSA) recently proposed that the export of iron ore be halted in
order to ensure the adequacy of raw materials available for domestic
production.
The association
said that several furnaces had been forced to stop due to a shortage of ore.
There are 14
furnaces in the country, with a total production capacity of 3.8 million
tonnes of cast iron per year. However, output last year reached only 500,000
tonnes.
Next year the
demand for iron ore from the Viet Nam Steel Corporation alone is estimated at
2.2 million tonnes, about 820,000 tonnes of which will need to be bought from
outside sources.
In response to the
VSA's proposal, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that the export of
iron ore was aimed at clearing high inventories and tackling difficulties
facing enterprises, according the Viet Nam Economic Times newspaper.
Due to the country's
current economic difficulties, the Government deemed the policy of allowing
the export of iron ore to be appropriate.
The ministry said
that many furnace building projects in the country have fallen behind
schedule, resulting in an imbalance between mining output and consumption
capacity in the domestic market.
They added that if
domestic steel producers committed to collecting all inventories of iron ore
in the country, then the exporting would be stopped.
Currently, iron ore
from mines in over ten provinces are already reserved for domestic
production.
To limit the export
of iron ore, the export tax has been increased to 40 per cent.
HCM City
sees drastic drop in FDI
According to the Ho
Chi Minh City Statistics Department, there were 130 foreign direct investment
projects licensed until May 15 in the City with a total registered capital of
US$158 million, of which chartered capital was at $105.1 million.
The figures also
showed that 40 projects increased an additional investment of $204.1 million.
Thus, the total newly registered and additional investment capital touched
$362.1 million, much lower than that of $698.2 million in the same period
last year.
Property
price drops heavily
A report on
property price index by Savills
Average house price
in
Meanwhile,
Doubts on
joint-ventures with FDI companies
A shortage of
capital, poor technology, unprofessional administration, along with market
difficulties have urged local firms to establish joint ventures with foreign
companies to resolve these problem, however, most firms mainly focus on how
to escape difficulties without calculating on keeping ownership.
According to income
statement of 2012 of Ninh Van Bay Travel Real Estate Joint Stock Company,
although the company revenues nearly hit VND205.96 billion, up 117 percent
compared to the previous year, its margin was minus, as the economic slump
has put some projects of the company behind schedule. This is the second
consecutive year this company has reported a loss.
Recently, Hoang Anh
Dung, CEO of Ninh Van Bay, cheerfully shared that his company had found a
lifebuoy in Recapital Investment Pte.Ltd. The Singapore partner bought 35.87
percent stake in Ninh Van Bay for VND225 billion for the latter to pay for
bank interest; return its loan of US$2 million to foreign partners; spend
VND10 billion for Six Saigon River projects; VND32 billion for Emeralda Hoi
An project; and VND140 billion for Emeralda Ninh Binh to finish construction
for this resort to officially open in May.
Cooperating with
foreign companies is currently a common trend for many Vietnamese companies
amid this present financial crunch, poor technology, and poor resistance
against economic recession.
Firms said that
even when restructuring, their operations hardly improved but by associating
with foreign companies, their problems will be resolved immediately. However,
in these business deals, instead of caring about limiting ownership ratio of
foreign companies to keep decision-making powers for themselves, firms were
optimistic of the handshake that will help them not to face with difficulties
but increase potential to expand market share to their partners’ markets.
Therefore, in past
few years, there were many market-shaking business deals, such as the largest
cement cooperation in South East Asia, Semen Gresik, of Indonesia bought 70
percent stake of Thang Long Cement Joint Stock Company; Thailand’s Siam
Cement Group purchased 85 percent stake of tile producer Prime Group at a
cost of nearly VND5 trillion; India’s Fortis Healthcare International bought
65 percent stake of Hoan My Medical Group; Korea’s Lotte Group bought all
stake of Minh Van Company and Unicharm Co., Ltd, and owned upto 95 percent of
chartered capital of Diana Vietnam Joint Stock Company.
With support from
foreign partners, local firms have been over joyous because they can increase
the company’s chartered capital and solve imminent problems. Nevertheless,
experts and associations concerned that foreign companies will take over
market share in manufacturing industry, causing bad effect to the country’s
socioeconomic development.
According to
Vietnam Association for Building Materials, amid the context that the scheme
for cement industry has been broken and has redundant production, instead of
restructuring cement companies to form bigger cement complexes to increase
competitiveness and gain foothold in local market, some firms sold almost of
their stakes to foreign businesses.
At this moment,
firms only see imminent benefits. However, in the long term, when foreign
companies take over local ones, it will cause serious effects to both
environment and border security as each cement plant connects closely with
national security. Moreover, many projects were built on rare limestone area,
and if sold to foreign companies, national resources will be lost.
Meanwhile, Truong
Phu Chien, CEO of Bibica Joint Stock Company, frankly admitted his company’s
mistake in cooperating with Lotte for five years as the latter has been
showing intentions to turn Bibica into its subsidiary. According to Mr.
Chien, when establishing joint-venture with foreign companies, local
companies should not sell more than 34 percent stake to prevent their
companies from foreignization.
Earlier, when
asking Lotte to become its partner, Bibica longed for comprehensive
cooperation on management, technology, technique, and import and export.
However, after coordinating for five years, Lotte started to demand Bibica
add its name before the latter’s name.
Experts said that,
buying Bibica’s stake was the shortest way for Lotte to enter Vietnamese
confectionery market without spending money to build plants. Lotte will
simply produce at Bibica Mien Dong factory and exploit distribution network
of more than 20,000 stores built by Bibica. However, as Lotte’s stake in
Bibica merely touched 38 percent, Bibica still holds decision-making powers.
The latter is planning not to continue to cooperate with Lotte when the
contract ends this year.
As for companies
who sold more than 40 percent stake to foreign companies, the exit narrowed.
In future, there will be more Vietnamese companies who lose ownership and
become just hired employees in their own companies.
State Audit
reveals wrongdoings in the banking system
A report from the
State Audit of Vietnam has disclosed various wrongdoings of the banking
system last year, including interest rates in the interbank market that were
higher than those of the black market.
Despite the efforts
of the State Bank of
Several credit
institutions have violated regulations on refinancing services but have not
been dealt with. For example, North Asia Bank and Great Trust Bank were found
to have committed violations in the first nine months 2011, but the SBV only
established a supervisor team in late November 2011.
SBV also showed lax
management over the interbank market which resulted in ludicrously high
interest rates.
Though the
regulated annual rate was 14%, several transactions in October 2011 were
recorded as having annual interest rates of up to 30%, while some
transactions in November saw rates as high as 37.5%.
The report also
pointed out that some banks have not followed proper procedures when giving
loans, including the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV)
and Mekong Housing Bank (MHB). These two banks still incur high rate of bad
debt; 2.96% at BIDV and 2.49% at MHB.
Vietnam Banks for
Social Policies (VBSP) also did not follow proper lending procedures for
disadvantaged people, and gave away benefits to the wrong customers.
The VBSP's capital
for preferential lending activities requested by the state has also been
widely criticised for its activities.
NA deputies
propose removal of spending cap on advertising
Many National
Assembly (NA) deputies proposed removing the cap on corporate advertising
funding instead of increasing it to 15% of corporate expenses from current 10%.
The NA has recently
held a working session to discuss the draft amended Law on Corporate Income
Tax which suggests an increase in the cap to 15%. However, a number of NA
deputies disagreed for various reasons.
Deputy Truong Trong
Nghia, from HCM City, said lawmakers should remove the cap because, while 10%
or 15% may be a reasonable amount for larger companies, smaller ones may have
to spend from 20%-40% of their budgets on advertising.
Deputy Nguyen Ngoc
Hoa, also from
Some deputies
suggested calculating the cap based on the revenues of enterprises instead of
on their total expenses as is done currently in order to ensure transparency.
“Corporate
advertising and promotion programmes have fostered the development of the
advertising industry which has contributed to the state budget as it is
subject to several types of taxes, including corporate income taxe,” Hoa
commented.
Sharing the same
view, deputy Nguyen Thi Nguyet Huong, from
“We do suggest
removing the cap. If we have no better choices and are compelled to continue
to apply a cap, the regulation should be amended in accordance with
international norms,” said deputy Pham Huy Hung from
Deputy Tran Quang
Chieu, from Nam Dinh Province, said the proposed cap at 15% is unreasonable,
as it may be sustainable for foreign companies but several small domestic
firms may not be able to spend that much.
Meanwhile, Deputy
Prime Minister, Vu Van Ninh, said the removal of the cap has the potential to
create favourable conditions for foreign companies to take advantage and
increase the prices of their goods and services.
A recent survey by
the NA’s Committee for Finance and Budget showed that the majority of members
of the committee supported the increase in the cap to 15%. They also proposed
supplementing the draft law with a roadmap towards the eventual removal of
the cap in accordance with international regulations so as to attract
investment.
Foreigners
may have more options for owning property in Vietnam
Foreign individuals
and organisations may be allowed to buy villas and detached houses in
This is among the
revisions of the Law on Housing proposed by the Ministry of Construction. The
ministry plans to submit the revisions to the National Assembly for approval.
Under the
ministry’s recommendations, Vietnamese people who live in foreign countries
will be granted with land ownership right to build houses, just as those
living in the country. Meanwhile, foreign-invested enterprises will be
allowed to re-lease property. They would also be able to buy and own working
offices in
According to Deputy
Minister of Construction, Nguyen Tran
The Ministry of
Construction has also asked provincial People’s Committee to outline a
housing development plan for one year, five years and a long-term plan to
prepare necessary resources while avoiding massive investment.
In 2008, the National
Assembly issued Resolution 19, which allowed foreign individuals to buy
accommodation in
Under the
resolution, foreigners who directly invest in the country or were employed by
Vietnamese firms as managers were allowed to buy apartments.
The Mekong Delta’s
total rice output is expected to reach 9.3 million tonnes in the 2013
summer-autumn crop, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
(MARD) at a conference in Can Tho city on May 23.
The region also
targets more than 4.6 million tonnes of husked rice, including 3.1 million
tonnes for trade, it said.
According to the
ministry, the country’s rice bowl has more than 1.8 hectares for the ongoing
summer-autumn rice crop, representing a decrease of over 6,400 hectares. By
May 8, more than 1.1 million hectares have been filled, accounting for over
62 percent of the plan.
In an effort to
stabilise rice price and ensure minimum profits for farmers, the MARD has
mapped out a plan on 2013 summer-autumn crop rice reserves to be submitted to
the Prime Minister.
Under the plan, the
ministry proposed purchasing 1 million tonnes of rice for reserves, or 30
percent of total output reaped in the 2013 summer-autumn crop, within two
months, beginning from June 15.
According to the
Vietnam Food Association, by May 16,
The country signed
contracts to export 4.42 million tonnes of rice, of which nearly 2.4 million
tonnes have been handed over to customers.
Meanwhile, the rice
volume for domestic consumption is expected to hit 8 million tonnes in 2013,
excluding an inventory of 787,000 tonnes from the previous year.
The MARD said that
Vietnamese rice will continue facing difficulties in 2013 as import demands
of several Asian countries are forecast to sharply fall and increasing
competitions among exporters, with newly emerging rivals such as
Huge
benefits from licenced software usage
A new Software
Alliance BSA and the business school INSEAD study has found that increasing
use of properly licenced software delivers huge economic benefits.
The study confirms
that increasing use of licenced software corresponds to substantial positive
gains in gross domestic product (GDP), and that the economic stimulus effect
of properly licensed software is significantly greater than that of pirated
software.
Accordingly,
properly licenced software would deliver $50 million in additional economic
value as a 1 per cent increase in use of licensed software would generate an
estimated $87 million in national production, compared to $37 million from a
similar increase in pirated software.
“This study
confirms that licensed software is not just good for firms — it is an
important driver of national economic growth. Government, law enforcement,
and industry in
The study also
finds that each additional dollar invested in properly licensed software has
an estimated return on investment (ROI) of $94 compared to a $9 return from
each additional dollar worth of pirated software put into use.
Another finding was
that increasing licenced software use globally by 1 per cent would inject an
estimated $73 billion into the world economy, compared to $20 billion from
pirated software — a difference of $53 billion.
Besides, on a
dollar-for-dollar basis, the return on investment from using properly
licensed software is greatest in developing economies — $437 in extra GDP, on
average.
“Previous studies
have shown that value-added services delivered with properly licensed
software help firms reduce costs and increase their productivity. This report
goes one step further to ascertain the impact of software use on national
production,” said Eduardo Rodriguez-Montemayor, a senior research fellow at
INSEAD eLab
The study also
highlights the need for governments and enterprises to take actions if they
want to embrace the economic opportunities presented by licensed software
use.
The study entitled
Competitive Advantage: The Economic Impact of Properly Licensed Software is a
groundbreaking analysis that draws on data from 95 economies – of which 15
are from the Asia-Pacific – to demonstrate the benefits to national economies
of using fully licenced software.
500
businesses take part in
The businesses
operate in the fields of food, beverage, essential goods, fashion, garments
and textiles, footwear, household devices, interior decoration, arts and
handicrafts, automobile, motorbike, hotel and restaurant service.
The capital city
plans to spend 3 billion VND, including about 1.2 billion VND from the city
budget, on the promotional activities.
Participating
businesses will sell goods at golden places around
As a preparation
for the promotion month, a programme to learn about the
Phu Quoc Economic Zone established
The Phu Quoc
Economic Zone was officially established in southern Kien Giang province on
May 22, according to the Prime Minister’s Decision No.31/2013/QĐ-TTg.
The Decision will
take effect on July 10, 2013, turning Phu Quoc into a 59,000 hectare coastal
economic zone (EZ).
The EZ will include
Phu Quoc island district; Duong Dong and An Thoi towns; and the eight
communes of Cua Can, Ganh Dau, Bai Thom, Ham Ninh, Cua Duong, Duong To, Tho
Chau and Hon Thom.
It will also
comprise a tarriff zone and a non-tariff zone that includes An Thoi port and
Phu Quoc airport.
Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Chủ Nhật, 26 tháng 5, 2013
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