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BUSINESS
IN BRIEF 23/4
US$5.6 bln
for Long Thanh airport, phase 1
The Ministry of
Transport (MoT) has submitted to the Prime Minister a construction plan for
Dong Nai-based
The MoT proposed
building a terminal capable of serving 25 million passengers a year and two
parallel runways in the first phase. Together with compensation for
approximately 5,000ha land clearance, total budget for the first phase was
estimated at US$7.8 billion.
The ministry
insisted it is difficult to mobilise such a huge amount of capital in the
current context of domestic and global economic slowdown.
It later decided to
divide phase 1 into phase 1A and 1B. Accordingly, more than 2,500ha of land
will be acquired for a runway and a terminal capable of receiving 17 million
passengers a year in Phase 1A, costing US$5.6 billion.
An additional
US$2.2 billion will be mobilized for the acquisition of the remaining 2,400ha
of land to build the second runway in phase 1B.
In phase 1A,
approximately US$2.7 billion will be sourced from the State budget,
government bond sales, and official development assistance (ODA). The
remaining US$2.9 billion will be mobilised from businesses and through joint
venture and public-private partnership (PPP) models.
MoT Dinh La Thang
has revealed a number of foreign investors from
Phase 1A is
scheduled to get off the ground in 2017 and complete by 2023.
April’s Consumer
Price Index (CPI) in
The capital city
experienced a slight improvement in its price index after a 0.15% fall in
March, signaling the purchasing power has already bounced back.
Garments, hats and
footwear saw the highest price growth, at 0,44%, followed by food and
restaurant services, at 0.32%.
However, housing,
electricity, water, fuel and construction materials prices decreased for the
third consecutive month.
Domestic gold
prices fell 0.87% over the previous month, while the VND/USD rate dropped
0.01% from the previous month.
Japanese
businesses eye agriculture partnership in Mekong Delta
As many as 40
Japanese businesses operating in seafood industry, farming, trade, and also
financial services attended a seminar on investment environment and
cooperation potential in agriculture between
Kohei Watanabe,
Head of the Japan-Mekong Business Cooperation Committee under the Japan
Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the attendance is part of a trip
organised by the Chamber to explore investment environment in the Mekong
Delta – the region that is hoped to produce grains for
He stressed that
farming cooperation and the transfer of seafood processing technologies, quality
management and know-how about the formation of a value chain will shape up a
win-win partnership between Japanese businesses and the region.
The Japanese
participants were introduced to 122 projects that the Mekong Delta region is
calling for investment.
According to Deputy
Head of the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region Nguyen Phong
Quang, as
The region is
inviting investment in transport and irrigational infrastructure, including
roads, seaports and airports in order to better serve development demand and
goods transportation, stated Quang.
On the occasion,
the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region and the Japan-Mekong
Business Cooperation Committee signed a memorandum of understanding on
economic cooperation.
Following the
seminar, the Japanese businesspeople will continue their fact-finding tours
of other localities in the region.
A golden
chance for market stimulation
A large number of
retailers in
Supermarkets in
Saigon Co.op Mart
is offering huge discounts of up to 49% on 3,000 items, gift vouchers worth
VND30,000-VND50,000 and other attractive deals to mark its 18th anniversary
and national days.
It is also doubling
the bonus point for Co-op Mart card and VIP card holders on Thursdays and
Fridays.
Nguyen Thanh Nhan,
Director of Co.op Mart supermarket chain, said Co-op Mart has prepared large
amounts of fresh foodstuff, processed food, vegetables, meat, poultry,
sausages, instant noodles, beverages, and fashionable clothing for those who
want to go for a picnic or hold party at home.
The long holiday
season is also an excellent chance to travel operators to market discounted
tours to attract visitors.
TransViet Travel
has introduced attractive deals for travelers, including a VND 2 million
discount on a tour for all groups of more than 2 people. It plans to launch a
promotional programme in the summer with competitive prices on tours of
Singapore- Malaysia,
The company has
worked with airlines, hotels and service providers on plans to ensure
customers receive quality services at highly competitive prices.
“We do hope the
number of visitors booking via TransViet Travel will increase fourfold this
time,” said Doan Van Truong, sales manager of TransViet Travel.
Electronic and
entertainment centres do not miss this golden chance, offering massive
discounts. Tran Anh electronics and computer supermarket,
Doosan Vina
ships desalination evaporator to Saudi Arabia
Doosan Vina’s Water
Shop announced on April 21 that they has tightened down the final bolts on a
4,500 ton plug-n-play multistage flash desalination evaporator and shipped it
to
Because of its
mammoth size and weight, movement of the desalination plant to Doosan Vina’s
dedicated and purpose built port facility had to be calculated down to the
centimeter. The intense planning and precision assure that personnel
will be safe and the integrity of the equipment won’t be compromised.
A Doosan Vina press
release says the transfer, loading and lockdown on the gigantic Dong Bang 3
took more than four hours to complete. After leaving the Doosan Vina’s
port the evaporator will be at sea for 25 days to reach its final destination
in
This is the fifth
desalination plant that Water Shop has completed since starting production in
2009. Three other evaporators in the Yanbu 3 project are currently being
assembled and the second is expected to ship on June 21, 2014.
They will produce
enough water to meet the daily needs of more than a million people in the
The Yanbu Phase 3
contract was signed in March 2013 for four of the massive desalination units
to be made in
At the ceremony,
Ryu Hang Ha, Doosan Vina’s Senior Vice President made a brief to honor the
233 men and women of Doosan Vina’s Water Shop and celebrate the completion of
the first of four desalination plants being built by the company for the
Yanbu Phase 3,
Seafood
exports to
The Vietnam
Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) has forecast
Vietnamese bivalve mollusk exports to
Three year ago,
squid and octopus exports to
Vietnamese
businesses have outdone their opponents from
However,
In 2013,
Healthy
jump in exports to
Vietnamese
statistics show exports to
Despite significant
progress in bilateral trade during the period 2009 to 2012, two-way trade
volume in 2013 tapered off sharply by 24% compared to 2012 on the back of
political unrest that erupted in
However, with this
latest good news, leading government economists and market analysts are now
optimistically forecasting that Vietnamese exports to
The Ministry of
Industry and Trade reports Vietnamese export earnings from Egypt were
US$221.61 million, US$297.14 million and US$256.09 million in 2013, 2012 and
2011, respectively.
On the flip side,
In the first four
months of 2014, seafood and agricultural products topped the list of
Vietnamese exports to
Textile, fibre and
garment exports surged 27 folds against the comparable period in 2013 to
US$11.46 million. Other products also experiencing high growth included steel
(up 184% to US$1.58 million), means of transport (up 59% to US$4.67 million)
and machines, equipment and tools (up 10.2% to US$4.26 million).
In the first
quarter of this year, Egyptian exports to Vietnam hit around US$2.1 million,
substantially unchanged from the same period last year, primarily consisting
of garment, leather and footwear accessories, ore and minerals,
pharmaceuticals, milk and dairy products, fibre, and petroleum products.
In late October
2013, the Egyptian Government approved an economic stimulus package worth
US$3.2 billion, aimed at helping its economy rebound. It is hoped that this
legislation will spillover and materialize in a substantial bump in bilateral
trade between
According to the
Vietnamese Trade Office in
Although
Development
Triangle Area receives a boost
Leaders of
Vietnamese Minister
of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh said CLV cooperation will help
speed up the implementation of prioritised projects and programmes in the
region.
At the 7th
Development Triangle Area Summit in Vientiane, Laos, in March 2013, CLV
leaders agreed to popularise the area’s development potential and
opportunity, mobilise official development assistance (ODA) for prioritised
projects, and boost domestic and foreign investment in the region.
leaders of
Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam and development partners evaluated opportunities
and challenges for the Development Triangle Area in Dak Lak on April 21
(Photo:VGP)
The fact is that
people, development partners and private businesses know little about CLV
cooperation compared with other cooperation initiatives such as ASEAN or the
Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS), said Vinh, adding it is essential to
raise public awareness of the region’s potential, opportunities and
challenges.
In addition, he
said it is necessary to consider institutional and policy making reforms to
facilitate ODA and private investments in the three countries.
Tomoyuki Kimura,
Asian Development Bank (ADB) Country Director for
He said obstacles
as well as priority areas should be clarified to support the drawing up of
practical development plans.
He asked
stakeholders to formulate an implementation roadmap and a consistent
investment framework, identify priority areas, use resources effectively, and
diversify investment sources.
Vietnamese Deputy
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc highlighted the region’s underdevelopment,
poor infrastructure, low living standards, and limited resources as the major
obstacles to its development.
He said the
implementation of the master plan on socio-economic development and
preferential policies for the Development Triangle Area, has yet to meet the
countries’ expectations.
Phuc stressed the
need to improve the region’s poor transport infrastructure which is currently
a huge hindrance to progress.
Priority should be
given to building and upgrading infrastructure at border economic zones and
border markets to facilitate the efficient transportation of goods, he said.
The Deputy PM
reminded the CLV localities to pay more attention to agricultural
development, poverty reduction and human resource training, while maintaining
rapid and sustainable development in association with environmental
protection and climate change adaptation.
Each locality needs
to improve its competitiveness, investment attraction and administrative
reform capacity, and to intensify border security measures to stabilise
border areas and support development, he concluded.
PGBank,
Vietinbank may not merge
Vietinbank was not
mentioned in the new merger proposal submitted by the Management Board of
Petrolimex's PGBank at PGBank's shareholder meeting held yesterday.
The document only
mentioned the merger with another bank as part of its restructuring process,
with no reference to Vietinbank or any other banks, although the previous
proposal said that 99 per cent of PGBank's stake would be sold to Vietinbank,
to become a banking unit under the nation's second largest bank by assets.
If the merger of
PGBank with another bank is passed, the ownership of Petrolimex, the national
petroleum group at PGBank, would be reduced to 20 per cent, from its current
40 per cent.
According to
PGBank, the merger and acquisition was PGBank's effort to restructure, in a
bid to create a healthy banking system. A merger with Vietinbank was just one
choice, among many options.
At its shareholder
meeting yesterday, with the participation of 38 stakeholders who represented
the ownership of 93.24 per cent of the voting shares, PGBank also sought to
achieve a pre-tax profit of VND250 billion (US$11.9 million) this year, four
times higher than last year, through resolving bad debts.
With a high bad
debt ratio, at 2.98 per cent as of the end of last year, resolving bad debt
is seen as a real challenge to the management board.
A large level of
bad debt, coupled with the Government's interest rate cuts, had impacted the
bank's profits last year, according to chairman of the Management Board, Bui
Ngoc Bao. PGBank reported pre-tax profits of nearly VND52 billion ($2.4
million) last year, while only meeting 13 per cent of its goal and being 9
per cent lower than in 2012.
The bank also
planned to pay dividends at a ratio of 1 per cent of its charter capital.
A proposal to offer
PGBank's shares to be traded on exchanges also passed at the shareholder
meeting yesterday.
Vingroup
prepares to issue additional shares
Property developer
Vingroup Joint Stock Company (VIC) will issue 120 million additional shares
between the second quarter of 2014 and first quarter of 2015.
This information
was released by the company during a shareholders' meeting held in Ha Noi
yesterday. This latest development was reported by the news website ttvn.vn,
which reported that the additional shares will be listed on the Singapore
Exchange or another foreign bourse.
The company
currently caps the maximum foreign investor holding ratio at 27 per cent of
its total shares.
According to the
Vingroup management board, the company's turnover and profits reached its
highest levels last year, despite global economic slowdown.
In 2013, the net
turnover from business activities reached about VND18.38 trillion, or
US$875.24 million, up 132 per cent over the previous year. The after-tax
profits attained were VND7.15 trillion, or $340.48 million, a year-on-year
increase of 287 per cent.
These results were
attributed to timely completion, delivery, and operation of major projects,
including
Last year, the
company successfully raised $200 million from international bond issuances,
mobilised $200 million from global private equity investor, Warburg Pincus,
and borrowed and disbursed $150 million worth of other international
finances.
Vingroup leaders
noted that the company was already planning to stabilise investment capital
sources for its projects within the next two years. Business revenues alone
were expected to reach about VND25 trillion, or $1.19 billion, this year.
In 2014, the
company will boost growth from shopping centres, hotels, entertainment,
healthcare and education projects, including
It will develop new
projects in Ha Noi,
VIC shares
yesterday closed down 1.5 points at VND65,000, or $3.1 per share on the HCM
City Stock Exchange.
MDB
shareholders approve merger
The Mekong
Development Bank (MDB)'s shareholders' meeting on Tuesday adopted a plan for it
to merge with a credit institution.
This was reported
by Dau tu (Vietnam Investment Review) online, citing bank sources, which
stated that the shareholders authorized the bank's management board to
finalise the merger plan, but did not divulge further details on the name of
the institution with which it is planning a merger. Some media reports had
previously claimed that the bank will possibly merge with Maritime Bank,
which holds 10.16 per cent of its total equity.
On Tuesday,
Maritime Bank Securities Co. Chairman Le Dinh Ngoc and Viet Nam Investment
Development Group Capital Manager Chu Duc Tuan were voted as the new members
of the MDB's management board. The group is believed to have a close
relationship with Maritime Bank. According to a representative from the
Maritime Bank, a merger will be among the key issues to be discussed at its
shareholders' meeting this weekend.
According to Dau
tu, MDB has a charter capital of VND3.75 trillion (US$178.57 million). In
this case, strategic foreign partner Fullerton Financial Holdings holds a
stake of 20 per cent, Securities Investment Fund Manager An Phuc holds 13.34
per cent, Phuc Tien Investment holds 10 per cent, and Maritime Bank
Securities represents 7.39 per cent.
MDB estimates its
total assets to be around VND9.8 trillion ($466.67 million), pre-tax profits
of VND222 billion ($10.57 million), and a dividend rate of 3.5 per cent for
this year. Maritime Bank has VND8 trillion ($380.95 million) in equity,
achieving VND107 trillion ($5.09 billion) in total assets.
FPT offers
new telecom solutions
The US Vidyo Inc.
and FPT Telecom of the FPT giant software are offering Vidyo services and
solutions aimed at mass deployment, including in Vietnamese businesses and
government agencies.
Pham Duy Phuc, the
CEO of FPT Telecom International noted that using Vidyo's solution, FPT
Telecom customers can reduce business travel, save on transportation costs,
and enhance productivity in the workplace.
Ofer Shapiro, the
co-founder and CEO of Vidyo, emphasised that in order to meet the growing
market demands, it is critical for businesses and government agencies to
choose affordable desktop and mobile video conferencing solutions that are
software-based and are scalable for mass deployment. Vidyo's solutions
offered by FPT Telecom International can immediately be availed by the
public.
Experts
suggest ministries employ external IT experts
Many experts have
stressed that ministries and local government offices need to hire IT service
providers to manage their computer systems, rather than attempting to build
and maintain their own – a practice that is currently widespread.
They made the call
at a meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, who is also Vice
Chairman of the recently-established National Committee on IT Application, in
Ha Noi on Tuesday.
Chairman of the FPT
Group Truong Gia Binh said employing external IT experts is a growing trend
among top businesses around the world. He claimed that if encouraged in
Participants hailed
the establishment of the committee led by the Prime Minister, which they said
would create breakthroughs to turn
Others said that it
is advisable to address constraints in putting IT projects in place. They
recommended subtracting part of earnings from public services to pay for IT
services.
Global
supply rise to hit VN cashew exports
"Global output
is forecast to increase by 10-15 per cent this year to around three million
tonnes of raw nut thanks to favourable weather conditions," Nguyen Minh
Hoa, director of BIMICO, a processor based in
In
According to the
Ministry of Industry and Trade, exporters shipped 51,000 tonnes of processed
cashew for US$319 million in the first quarter, a year-on-year increase of
19.1 per cent in volume and 21.6 per cent in value.
But exports would
begin to slow down until June, Hoa said.
The US and EU,
major markets both, have not imported much this year and so for at least two
more months, they would have high demand, he said.
Ta Quang Nguyen,
director of Hoang Son 1 Co, Ltd in
The cashew harvest
season has ended in the south-eastern region, and the association urged its
members to buy out the raw nuts from farmers by the end of this month.
As for import of
raw cashew for processing for export, Nguyen Duc Thanh, Vinacas chairman,
said firms should carefully consider prices and timing to avoid risks since
processed-cashew prices are lower than last year.
The association
unveiled a Viet Nam cashew value programme that targets raising the value of
exports, promoting consumption both in the domestic and foreign markets, and
build brands for the country's cashew products.
For the programme,
to be implemented from this year through 2020, the association will
co-operate with the HCM City Nutrition Centre to research and assess the
nutritional benefits of cashew, Dang Hoang Giang, Vinacas deputy chairman,
said.
It will collaborate
with the Global Cashew Council and its nutritional research programme to
promote the nutritional aspects of Vietnamese cashew globally.
The VND20 billion
($947,000) programme will build national cashew brands, register trademark to
protect Vietnamese cashew products in key markets like the US, China, and EU,
and develop new products suitable for local tastes, Giang said.
Despite being the
world's largest cashew exporter and having quality products, Viet Nam is
unable to get higher export prices than for lower-quality products due to
lack of marketing and brands, he said.
The programme is
expected to improve the situation and enable stable development of the local
industry, he added.
Domestic
retailers go in search of rural prospects
Rural areas are a
promising market for domestic retailers as they face intense competition from
foreign businesses, especially given the full opening of the retail market
from next year.
Mai Thi Tuyet Hoa,
director of Niesel Viet
Hoa said that
several domestic retail companies wanted to expand their market share in
rural areas. The expansion to rural market was considered as one of the best solutions,
although urban areas were the main focus of their development strategy.
"I think the
impact of retailers in rural markets will be larger than in urban markets.
Several big retailers, for example, Unilever P&G, as well as small firms
have asked us to provide information about the characteristics of rural areas
and the strategies that should be employed in these markets," Hoa said.
According to a
survey conducted by Nieisel, customers in rural areas were strongly affected
by advertisements and introductions from retailers. In addition, 90 per cent
of the retailers in the area tended to introduce products and advice buyers.
The survey also
revealed that with 477,000 big and small shops in the country's rural areas,
if on an average 64 customers visited a shop in a day, there will be about
2.75 million buyers who will buy products after retailers' introduced them.
"The data
surprised many retailers and led them to rethink their development strategies
in the rural market," she added.
Dinh Thi My Loan,
chairwoman of the Viet Nam Retailers Association (VRA), said these areas were
promising markets because of the young population, integration trends and a
modern retail system that was in its infancy.
"However,
domestic retailers should not only expand their markets, but also ensure
quality and gain customers' trust to compete with foreign firms," Loan
said.
She added that
customers' trust had gone down because of problems relating to products'
quality.
The problems were
unavoidable because of the sheer number of items in the market. However, it
was important for the retailers to learn from the problems and make efforts
to gain the trust of customers, she added.
Under the World
Trade Organisation's commitment,
Experts said
foreign retailers with their financial might, trademarks and market
experience will prevail in the market.
Several big
retailers from
In addition, the
country already has two big foreign retailers, Big C and Metro
Cash&Carry. Big C had expanded its chain. It now has 24 supermarkets
nationwide.
It was forecast
that the modern retail channel will account for 45 per cent of the market in
The country's
growth rate in the retail market was 23 per cent, indicating its large
potential.
Agriculture
now main business for HAGL
Five years after
beginning to invest in agriculture, Hoang Anh Gia Lai Joint Stock Company
last Friday said the sector is now its major source of revenue and profit.
At its annual
shareholders' meeting in
The company's
profit was VND999 billion (US$47.5 million) on revenues of nearly VND2.8
trillion ($118 million).
Profits from rubber
and sugarcane were VND165 billion and VND537 billion ($25.6 million) on
revenues of VND241 billion and VND838 billion.
Real estate, which
used to be its mainstay, contributed to only 3.2 per cent of its profit;
others such as hydroelectricity, services, construction, and mining accounted
for 0.9-20 per cent.
HAGL's turnover
last year was almost 25 per cent below the target, and its chairman Doan
Nguyen Duc, rated the second richest man on the Vietnamese stock exchange,
attributed it to the company's restructuring.
He said it had sold
six hydroelectricity plants in
At the meeting,
Nguyen Van Su, a director, created a stir by promising to resign if the
company did not achieve a growth of 50 per cent in after-tax profit this
year.
Duc said the
company plans to raise cows and grow corn, rubber, oil palm, and sugarcane in
Duc backed Su,
saying he too was confident because crops like corn, oil palm, and sugarcane
in
Agriculture
firm offers farmers shareholder status
Truong Van Bon, a
farmer in An Giang Province who bought 1,500 shares of the An Giang Plant
Protection Joint Stock Company (AGPPS), cannot believe that a farmer like him
is an owner of a large company.
He spent many
nights thinking about it before deciding to invest VND45 million (US$2,130)
to buy "a paper," as he called the preference shares, because he
did not know anything about stocks.
The unlisted
company, which pioneered the large-scale rice production model in the Cuu
Long (
Bon said:
"However, I trust in AGPPS since its linking model in rice production
has brought results to farmers. Therefore farmers desired to have a long-term
attachment with the company."
Le Van Nhut,
another rice farmer in An Giang, said the company's production model promises
sustainable development.
It has solved for
farmers the problems of what kind of rice variety to plant and where to sell,
enabling them to feel more secure, he said.
For instance, rice
prices dropped in many places after the recent winter-spring crop harvest,
but farmers participating in the company's programme still enjoyed a profit
of at least VND30-35 million ($1,420-$1,657) per hectare, he said.
"Therefore,
when AGPPS sold preferential shares to farmers, my family bravely spent
VND300 million ($12,200) to buy 10,000 shares," he said.
Bon and Nhut are
among thousands of farmers in the delta who had for the first time an
opportunity to become shareholders of the country's leading agricultural
company.
AGPPS said this
time it plans to sell 1.8 million shares to 1,724 farmers in the delta again
at VND30,000.
For several years
now it has been providing technology and inputs to farmers and buying their
produce.
Huynh Van Thon, the
company's chairman and general director, told Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated
Sai Gon) newspaper: "From now on, farmers have the right to determine
the price of their produce, a thing that has never happened before."
Dr Vo Tong Xuan, an
agricultural expert, hailed the company's programme, saying that after
harvests farmers would now sell their paddy to the company and not
intermediaries, and would no longer face price pressures.
Vo Van Dung,
secretary of the Bac Lieu Province Party Committee, said AGPPS's rice
production model has seen "high acceptance in many quarters."
It is an advanced
model, resolving difficulties faced by farmers and the agricultural sector
and ushering in modern rice production, he said.
Experts said if
more rice production models like this are developed, strict oversight is
possible, leading to improved rice yields and quality and lower production
costs. More rice of the same varieties can be grown, making it easy for the
industry to build brands and increase the value of Vietnamese rice.
New ASEAN
community offers export opportunities
The ASEAN Economic
Community (AEC) would bring challenges, as well as improved export
opportunities for Viet Nam when the AEC is formed in 2015, according to
experts.
The AEC marks the
commitment of ASEAN leaders to building and promoting a single market and
production base, a highly competitive economic region tempered with equitable
development, and a region fully integrated into the global economy.
ASEAN includes the
Association of South East Asian Nations consisting of Brunei, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and
Viet Nam.
Experts said the
AEC would also create greater opportunities for exporting goods and services
to the ASEAN market, though local enterprises have faced many difficulties in
production and business.
Deputy Minister of
Industry and Trade (MIT) Do Thang Hai said the trade turnover between Viet
Nam and ASEAN has quadrupled over the past decade, climbing to nearly US$40
billion in 2013 from $9 billion in 2003. Last year, Viet Nam took in $18.47
billion from its exports to the bloc, the country's third largest importer
only after the US and the EU, which was an increase of 4.4 per cent from the
previous year, added Hai.
Meanwhile, export
turnover was estimated at $4.7 billion in the first quarter of this year, a
year-on-year increase of 6.4 per cent. However, the figure has tended to
remain steady, and even slowed on occasion, as domestic enterprises have not
yet taken full advantage of the close geographical distance and incentives
offered by the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA).
Hai said ASEAN is one
of Viet Nam's leading trade partners, accounting for 15 per cent of the
country's total trade. The regional grouping made up 22.4 per cent of total
foreign direct investment (FDI) capital in 2013 with Singapore, Malaysia and
Thailand being key investors.
AEC and free trade
agreements (FTAs) have helped promote Viet Nam's exports to ASEAN, Hai
stressed.
Thanh also forecast
that exports to these markets wouldcontinue to grow steadily as more than 99
per cent of tax rates of six ASEAN countries – Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia,
the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand – will be slashed to zero in 2015
under the ATIGA signed in Thailand in 2009.
This would provide
plenty of opportunity for Viet Nam to balance its trade, Thanh added.
Hai said Viet Nam
would have a significant opportunity for major export products, such as
textile, garments, rice, seafood and electronic components.
When the AEC is
formed, Viet Nam could sell goods to ASEAN market in ways that are similar to
selling in home markets, because of simplified trade procedures and new
procedures for certifying the origins of products.
However, Chu Duc
Khai, general secretary of the Viet Nam Steel Association, said most local
steel enterprises have had a lack of information about conducting business in
the ASEAN market, the AEC and the benefits, as well as challenges, of doing
business in the regional market.
They have not had
the chance to study the ASEAN market, and steel companies have only exported
small amounts to ASEAN countries, including the Philippines, Cambodia and
Indonesia, with a total volume of 1.7 million tonnes and a value of $1.4
billion, Khai said.
Meanwhile, Tran
Thanh Hai, Deputy head of the Import-Export Department under the Ministry of
Industry and Trade (MoIT), was concerned because 80 per cent of local
enterprises that were surveyed about the AEC have little information about
interests and challenges available for them in the ASEAN market, reported
Thoi bao Kinh doanh newspaper.
This lack of
knowledge would also be a great challenge for local production and business
enterprises when the AEC is formed in 2015, Hai said.
Additionally, local
products would face competition with products made in other ASEAN countries
and China.
Moreover, Vietnamese
export products would compete with other countries in the ASEAN market to
export raw products, because the country had mainly exported raw products and
components, including farming, seafood and mineral products, as well as
electric and electronic components, said Pham Thi Hong Thanh, deputy head of
Asia Pacific Department under the MoIT.
Thanh pointed out
challenges for Vietnamese products in the context of fierce competition,
especially when barriers to protect domestic products no longer exist.
She suggested
domestic businesses should accelerate exports of key products to ASEAN in the
short term, such as mobile phone handsets and components, computers,
electronics and components, the means of transport, tools, machinery,
equipment, and steel and rice. They should also devise long-term business
strategies to take full advantage of incentives post-2015.
Tran Thanh Hai,
Deputy Director of the MoIT Import-Export Department, said local firms needed
to raise the competitiveness of their exports through quality improvement,
especially by following regulations related to originating certification (OC)
of products, if they want to fully utilise the opportunities the AEC will
provide. He also proposed that domestic businesses should set up their
development strategies to enlarge the production scale to meet larger orders
in the near future. Meanwhile, the Government had corrected policies to
become more suitable with the process of integrating into the AEC.
Bui Huy Son, head
of the Trade Promotion Agency, said to support local enterprises in entering
further into the ASEAN market, the agency had conducted market studies and
compiled market information, as well as sponsored seminars and training
courses to improve exports and the competitive abilities of businesses, and
organised exhibitions and trade fairs to create business bridges for local
firms with ASEAN partners.
So far this year,
the agency had submitted to the MoIT to receive approval for 183 projects
under the national trade promotion programme, including projects on
supporting local firms in trade promotion activities in ASEAN countries, Son
said.They also needed to specify the contents of their strategies and
measures to further boost exports to the ASEAN market, participants
suggested.
Japan Desk launched
to help investors in Ha Noi
The Investment
Promotion Centre under Ha Noi's Department of Planning and Investment and
Forval Vietnam jointly launched the Japan Desk last week to assist Japanese
investors in the city.
The desk will focus
on eight main activities, such as providing information on the investment
environment in Ha Noi, introducing partners for investment and solving the
difficulties faced by Japanese firms in the city.
Talking with Dien
Dan Doanh Nghiep (Enterprise Forum) newspaper, Masahiro Ariga, chairman of
Forval Vietnam, said that small and medium sized enterprises in Japan are
tending to make investments abroad, including Viet Nam.
"Only
Vietnamese agencies such as the Ha Noi Department of Planning and Investment
can provide useful information on Viet Nam and the contact points for
Japanese firms.
I think this is
very necessary for the investors in Viet Nam. Therefore, I do not think that
the Japan Desk has come into operation late. I think it is essential to
assist Japanese enterprises for a long time," he said.
Japan is the
biggest of 101 countries and territories that have invested in Viet Nam as of
last month with cumulative investment of US$35.4 billion in more than 2,237
projects, according to the Foreign Investment Agency.
The average capital
of Japanese projects is also the highest at $15.8 million.
While Japanese
investors have a presence in most sectors, manufacturing and processing
account for a lion's share of their investments at nearly $30 billion. It is
followed by property at $1.4 billion and construction at $1.05 billion.
Thanh Hoa Province
topped investment destinations with total capital of $9.67 billion, followed
by Binh Duong with $4.18 billion, and Ha Noi with $3.86 billion.
March jump
in car sales mark 12 months' growth
The Vietnamese
automobile market saw impressive sales of cars with 10 seats and below,
trucks and commercial vehicles in March.
According to the
Viet Nam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA), more than 11,600 cars
were sold last month, an increase of 59 per cent over February. These
comprised 7,179 cars with ten seats and below, and 4,477 trucks and
commercial vehicles.
The March sales
grew 39 per cent year over year, and it was also the 12th consecutive month
of sales being higher year over year.
The volume of sales
of locally assembled cars reached 8,275 units, rising by 58 per cent over the
previous month. Meanwhile, nearly 3,400 imported completely built units (CBU)
have been sold, marking a growth of 62 per cent.
The increase in
sales figures has led VAMA to adjust its estimation of car sales to 125,000
units this year, 5,000 higher than the previous estimate and 13 per cent
higher than 2013.
VAMA also reported
that its members have sold 24,168 units in the first quarter of this year, an
increase of 29 per cent year over year. These comprised 8,465 passenger cars,
8,811 trucks and commercial vehicles and 2,694 multi-purpose vehicles.
The Custom Office
reported on April 17 that Viet Nam imported nearly 4,400 CBU cars in March, a
rise of 47.4 per cent compared with February. With this the CBU import figure
for the first quarter this year rose to 10,420 units, 49.2 per cent higher
year over year. These comprised 5,290 imported cars with nine seats and
below, 4,410 trucks and 719 other vehicles.
South Korea
retained its lead in exporting CBUs to Viet Nam with nearly 3,700 cars, an
increase of 5.5 per cent. It's followed by Thailand, India and China with
nearly 1,750 cars, more than 1,700 cars and 1,260 units, respectively, all
higher than the previous months.
GE, Saudi
Aramco hold global challenge
GE ecomagination
and Aramco Entrepreneurship have launched an open global technology challenge
to accelerate the development of solutions focused on improving the energy
efficiency of seawater desalination.
GE is seeking
entries from Viet Nam for the US$200,000 challenge to accelerate the
development of innovative solutions to increase energy efficiency of seawater
desalination.
The goal of this
challenge is to identify novel ways to lower these costs around the world,
either through technology advances, process improvements, or both.
Can Tho
City backs e-commerce
Can Tho City
assisted local businesses in boosting e-commerce via Internet, websites, and
online transactions, stated Duong Nghia Hiep, the deputy director of Can Tho
Department of Industry Trade.
The city has also
encouraged local businesses to train staff to specialise in e-commerce,
improve websites, and enhance the quality of online customer services.
By 2015, Can Tho
will make an effort to have 80 per cent of 10,800 businesses to start using
email in trading activities, 35 per cent of businesses using websites to
promote products, 10 per cent of businesses performing online transactions,
and 20 per cent of the enterprises applying software in business performance
and management.
Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Ba, 22 tháng 4, 2014
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