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BUSINESS
IN BRIEF 4/4
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countries recognise
This reflects the
international community’s acknowledgement of
In the time ahead,
the Vietnamese Government will continue providing explanations of its market
economy for several partners, including the
Under the
commitments to the World Trade Organisation,
After striving for
months to prepare the ground for an ambitious trade and investment deal,
Vietnamese Minister
of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang and Eurasian Economic Commission Trade
Minister Andrey A. Slepnev will attend a ceremony marking the end of
negotiations on the free trade agreement (FTA) in Allmaty city,
This round is of
great significance as it finalizes the legal foundation for the agreement and
has broken through the key technical barriers for which the parties were at
an impasse, officials said.
In this latest
round, the parties focused their discussions on hammering out the key trade
issues including rules of origin, customs-related issues, sanitary and phytosanitary
measures, investment, government procurement, institutional legacy, and
dispute resolution procedures.
In earlier rounds,
negotiators convened in
In addition to
reducing the imposition of taxes on imports and exports between the parties,
the agreement is expected to specifically offer more favourable conditions
for cooperation in the banking and transportation sectors, delivering more
jobs and economic growth for all sides.
Vietnam still has a
few lingering concerns over problems arising from its seafood exports to the
Russian market that still need to be resolved, officials cautioned.
Dang Hoang Hai,
head of Vietnam’s technical negotiation delegation, and Eurasian Economic
Commission representative Andrey Totrin said they greatly valued the
persistent efforts by Vietnam and the Customs Union, expressing hope that
differences between the two sides will be addressed so that the FTA will be
signed early next year.
Economists forecast
that the FTA will help
Credit
growth reaches 11.59 percent in Q1
The central bank
further said that there is a high possibility that the banking system will be
able to fulfil this year’s target of 12-14 percent credit growth.
The credit growth
in March stood at 1.35 percent, compared with a decrease of 0.55 percent in
January and 0.65 percent in February.
The credit system
is witnessing positive signs as it is transitioning towards the Government’s
prioritised sectors. By the end of January, credit for exports had risen 1.28
percent year-on-year, while those for support industries and high technology
application businesses stayed at 1.73 and 0.41 percent, respectively.
The central bank
explained that the credit increase remained slow due to the low loan demand
of local businesses in the first months of the year, the weak capital
absorption capacity of the economy, state budget insolvency and the
ineligibility of several enterprises to access loans.
Deputy PM
urges seafood policy review
Deputy Prime Minister
Vu Van Ninh on April 2 called for a review of the nation's policies on
aquaculture, seafood processing and support for offshore fishing.
Chairing a meeting
on fisheries development in
He also asked them
to improve logistics for the fisheries industry, reorganise funding to make
it more efficient, and initiate easier access to preferential credit of
offshore fishermen.
A modern centre
with shipbuilding and ship repair services should also be considered, Ninh
said.
Over the last two
decades, seafood production has emerged as one of
The industry has
helped create jobs for four million workers and helped improve the lives of
people while contributing to the national security of islands and sea
territories, the meeting heard.
Speakers at the
meeting said that
Sugar
association asks for export relief
The Viet Nam Sugar
and Sugarcane Association has requested regulatory agencies to apply a
flexible system to sugar exports, especially at
The request was
made in the hopes that a more relaxed system of regulations would better
facilitate domestic businesses.
Under current
regulations, businesses must comply with Circular 06/2012/TT-BTC, which
requires firms to present sales contracts as well as bank payment slips for
exports. These requirements, however, made both domestic and foreign
businesses hesitate to export or import sugar, the association said.
Imports of
completely built units hit local car sales
This estimate was
furnished by the General Statistics Office (GSO).
Most of the car
imports were luxury sedans and sport utility vehicles, according to the
Custom Office.
The increasing
number of car imports in the recent months has impacted the market of the
locally assembled cars, which has been showing a downward trend.
According to the
Viet Nam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA), local car makers sold
4,509 units in February, down 46 per cent over the corresponding period last
year.
Industry insiders
claim that the struggling
Moreover, in 2013,
there was a marked increase in the imports of CBUs. As many as 34,500 CBUs,
valued at $709 million, were imported, marking an increase of 25.9 per cent
in volume and 15.2 per cent in value, year-on-year.
When the presently
applicable high taxes drop to zero in 2018, cars from ASEAN countries are
expected to flood the Vietnamese market.
Imports of vehicles
are expected to increase in 2014 after a 50 per cent reduction in the import
tax on cars from ASEAN countries, effective from January 1, this year.
The tax cut is in
compliance with
Statistics by the
Customs Office revealed that 8,826 cars, valued at nearly $150 million, were
imported from
Ministry to
crack down on mineral exports
Minister of
Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang has said he will work closely with local administrations
to stop illegal exports of minerals by 2015.
Replying to
questions at a National Assembly session on Tuesday, he said illegal mining
and exports of ores persist in some provinces and cities, causing substantial
losses to the Government as well as affecting the environment.
Deputy Ma Dien Cu
from the central
Hoang said minerals
are valuable resources and should be used optimally and exported only in
processed form.
The Government's
Resolution No. 2 requires mining firms to process minerals and prohibits
exports of ores.
Hoang said many
firms were licensed in 2012 to mine ores and their stockpiles have been
building up, forcing officials in provinces to obtain Government permission
to export inventory they had mined before the resolution took effect.
But some businesses
have taken advantage of this to illegally export minerals.
Hoang said his
ministry would work with the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources
and local authorities to crack down on illegal exports by 2015.
Stable
price programme opens
Authorities in
Under the
programme, essential goods – food and foodstuff, milk, medicine and school
supplies – are offered by participating companies at lower than market
prices.
This year, the
programme includes 76 enterprises, an increase of 12 firms over last year,
according to the city's Department of Industry and Trade.
Banks that take
part in the programme offer lower interest rates on loans for participating
companies.
As of today, banks
have signed agreements to provide total loans of VND8.3 trillion (US$392.99
million) to businesses in the programme, a figure four times higher than last
year, said Le Ngoc Dao, the department's deputy director.
The annual interest
rates are 5.5-6 per cent for short-term loans and 7-10 per cent for medium-
and long-term loans.
Of the figure,
VND3.35 trillion ($158.6 million) will be allocated for loans with a 7-8 per
cent interest rate to producers, especially food and foodstuff production co-operatives
that supply goods to firms participating in the programme.
Participating
companies were asked to prepare sources of goods that will be 30-35 per cent
higher than what was registered last year, and that meet 25-40 per cent of
market demand.
Like previous
years, the programme this year would see participating businesses sell at
5-10 per cent lower than market prices, she said.
Companies can hike
prices if their costs increase by 5-10 per cent, but they would have to get
approval from the city's Department of Finance.
Nguyen Thanh Nhan,
deputy general director of Saigon Co.op, which has taken part in the price
stabilisation programme for nearly 10 years, said the programme had brought
practical benefits to consumers, especially low- and middle-income earners.
The company will
focus more on developing its distribution network to enable more consumers to
access stabilised goods, he said.
Meanwhile, Van Duc
Muoi, general director of Vissan, said businesses had felt more secure about
accessing capital, and the lower interest rate had also helped them reduce
production costs and become more competitive.
Like last year, and
in line with the campaign slogan, "Vietnamese people give priority to
using Vietnamese goods", price-stabilised goods made in the country will
be prioritised over imported products and products must be of good quality,
said Nguyen Thi Hong, deputy chairwoman of HCM City's People's Committee.
The city has also
launched a logo to label stabilised goods this year to help customers
recognise price-stabilised goods more easily, which will help extend the
programme's benefits to more residents, she said.
Conference
discusses ways to step up SOE restructuring
Domestic managers
and business executives discussed ways to restructure centrally-run State-owned
enterprises (SOEs) at a conference in
Reports at the
conference said among the 32 economic groups, corporations and banks under
the direct management of the central government, 28 are required to build
their restructuring plans during the 2011-2015 period. By now the plans of 24
groups, corporations and banks have been approved, under which all of them
will be re-organised in the form of holding companies. The four remaining
enterprises have also submitted their plans and are awaiting approval.
Of the 24 groups
and corporations, the State will hold 100 percent of charter capital of 15,
while nine others are to be equitised.
Equitisation
process has been completed at the Bao Viet Group, the Vietnam National
Petroleum Corporation and the Vietnam Steel Corporation, the conference
heard.
The Vietnam
National Textile and Garment Group and Vietnam Airlines will be equitised
this year, while four others are scheduled for 2015.
In 2013, centrally
run SOEs contributed 297 trillion VND (13.95 billion USD) or 36.6 percent of
the year’s national budget collection, delegates noted.
At the conference,
the bloc put forth measures to accelerate the restructuring of its businesses
and banks between 2014 and 2015, focusing on completing equitization,
withdraw investment from non-core business operations and sell unnecessary
State-owned stakes.
Addressing the
event, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh reiterated the importance of the
State economic sector, especially State-owned enterprises (SOEs), to stabilising
the macroeconomic situation and promoting national socio-economic
development.
To this effect, he
required that SOEs rearrange themselves to raise the effectiveness of their
operation in order to compete on a fair playground with other economic
sectors in the market mechanism.
More than 600 local
and foreign businesses from 23 nations and territories around the globe have
registered to attend the 24th Vietnam International Trade Fair (Vietnam Expo
2014) scheduled for
At a press
conference in Hanoi on April 2, Regional Director of the Associated Chamber
of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), D.S. Ragia said that this is
the fourth time the Indian business community is participating in the event.
He expressed his
hope that the Indian business community and
This year’s event
themed “Cooperation towards ASEAN Economic Community” aims to serve as a
bridge to bolster cooperation and trade among the ASEAN, including
Investment
into HCM City rockets by 90 pct in Q1
Hepza office
manager Ho Xuan Lam said many of the large projects are funded by domestic
investors, for example an 11.2 million USD pharmaceutical project and another
producing calcium carbonate worth 4.8 million USD.
Meanwhile, some
notable foreign investments include a 4 million USD plant making electronic
components and a 2.3 million USD factory producing electric motorcycles.
Lam said Hepza
always encourages the business circle to invest in high-tech projects and
support industries that the city is prioritising.
In Q2, Hepza plans
to assist the
Int’l
investment in
HCM City officials
has announced that total investment from international sources in its 15
industrial and processing zones surged to US$244 million during the first
quarter of 2014.
Speakers at an
April 2 conference on industrial and processing zones’ operations, reported
that currently the industrial and processing zones are 64% occupied and have
roughly valid 1,300 projects with a total pledged investment in excess of
US$8 billion.
The projects
grossed a record setting export turnover of US$955 million during the first
quarter.
Speaking at the
event, Ho Xuan Lam, chief of HCM City Export Processing and Industrial Zones
Authority (Hepza) management board office, underscored that the top priority
for future projects will be given to infrastructure development.
Vietinbank
expands to Laos
The Viet Nam
Joint-Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (VietinBank) has opened a
transaction office in Pakse town in the southern
The move is
designed to boost the bank's long-term investment and operations in the
country.
During the opening
ceremony late last week, Chairman of Vietinbank Board of Directors Pham Huy
Hung said his bank opened the first branch in
Admin
reforms aim to secure links with Japanese investors
The capital city
will hasten reforms in paperwork and create favourable conditions to boost
the confidence of Japanese investors and attract further investment.
Mayor of Ha Noi
People's Committee Nguyen The Thao on Thursday delivered this message in a
meeting with 120 Japanese investors who have run 520 projects worth US$4.6
billion in registered capital.
To this end, the
city has set up the Japan Information Desk, which, starting next month, will
serve as a common hub between municipal authorities and Japanese investors to
promptly solve investment problems.
The decision
followed a survey by the Ha Noi Statistics Office that showed the negative
sentiment of Japanese investors towards administrative procedures in the
city.
About 10 per cent
of the 200 Japanese companies that participated in the survey said the
process of granting investment or enterprise establishment certificates was
troublesome in practice. In addition, 13 per cent pointed to difficulties in
approaching land sources, and 18 per cent were not satisfied with current
taxation, fees and price administration.
Foreign direct
investment (FDI) from
Ha Noi plans to
primarily attract more investment from
Hideo Okubo,
Chairman of Forval Corp, told the meeting that many Japanese small- and
medium-sized enterprises in auxiliary industries were heading to
He said that a
supportive infrastructure, favourable administrative procedures and a skilled
labour force would be necessary to attract investment.
In fact, low-cost
labour is one of the advantages, with each worker receiving on average $3,000
per year in 2013, one eighth of what Japanese companies pay their employees
in Singapore and half what they pay in Thailand. However, it is still a
matter of concern that investors find administrative procedures in the city
burdensome.
A recent survey
conducted by the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) revealed that up
to 70 per cent of Japanese businesses plan to expand their operations in the
Southeast Asian country.
Japanese businesses
currently focus their investment on processing and production on a small and
medium scale, but they also have their eye on the high-tech sector.
In
With the amount of
added capital climbing from $1.2 billion in 2012 to $4.5 billion in 2013,
Global
excess hits rubber exports
For the third
consecutive year, local rubber enterprises have suffered losses because of
limited exported markets and abundant supply on the market.
According to the
Viet Nam Rubber Association (VRA), by the end of February,
This year,
The current price
for rubber exports is about $2,000 per tonne, a fall of $300 in comparison
with 2012 and a drop of $800 compared to 2011.
Last year, over 1.1
million tonnes were exported at a cost of over $2.5 billion, an increase of 5
per cent in quantity but under 12 per cent in value.
VRA had expected
the price of rubber to go up in 2014 to $2,500 per tonne.
Meanwhile, the
global market will have over 353,000 tonnes of surplus, according to the RCMA
Commodities Asia Pte.
This is the third
consecutive year that the global rubber market has faced and oversupply of
rubber, with an increase of more 16 per cent, up to 2.5 million tonnes,
compared to the same period last year.
In addition, the
Viet Nam Rubber Group (VRG) said that most rubber companies in the Central
Highlands provinces depended on the Chinese or local market.
A huge quantity of
rubber has been exported through border gates in Lao Cai or Ha Giang
provinces between
"When there is
less rubber crossing border gates, Chinese traders often offer a high price
but when it increases, they will pay a lower price, causing high risk for
companies," a staff member of VFG said.
To reduce risks,
the general director of VRG Tran Ngoc Thuan has asked all Central Highland
and
"Increasing
the quality of product is the only way to allow rubber companies survive because
only a good brandname company will be able to sign contracts," Vo Sy
Luc, chairman of VRG management board, was quoted as saying in the Sai Gon
Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) newspaper.
Each company should
have short-term product and market strategy and prepare for a long-term one,
he added.
VRA also predicts
that in the next few years, supply will increase; therefore, the quality of
product and a diversified market will be vital factors.
Finished
homes lure consumer interest
Every time he
thinks of the apartment that he bought four years ago, Nguyen Hoang Dat feels
disappointed and regretful.
Dat of HCM City's
Tan Binh District paid for an apartment that was under construction in Nha Be
District, dreaming of moving in in 2012. But now, two years past the
scheduled completion date, he still has to get his apartment. Many arguments
later, "they are still completing it," he said.
If he could start
afresh, he would choose a completed project because he is now very
"tired," he said.
Dat is just one of
many people who are disappointed and tired by property projects that have
become overdue or are of low quality.
As a result, many
buyers now prefer houses and apartments in finished projects, sparking a new
trend in the property market, a trend predicted to only grow with the entry
of deep-pocketed developers, who can afford to wait until construction is
finished to sell.
Speaking to Viet
Nam News, a spokesperson for Khang Dien House Investing and Trading Company
Ltd, which has been in the market for more than 10 years, said most of her
company's finished projects sold well.
She cited the
examples of a 160-house project in District 9 in which over 30 per cent was
sold soon after it hit the market at the beginning of this month and a
project with 29 houses which sold out in just a month last year.
Other developers'
projects like Green Life in Binh Chanh District, South Sai Gon Riverside, and
Ehome 4 Sai Gon in neighbouring Binh Duong Provinvce have been ready for
investors.
Buying a finished
house or apartment comes with the obvious advantage of allowing buyers to
examine the quality before buying.
Seeing the
preference for ready-to-occupy housing, many companies said they would adopt
a similar strategy.
The Khang Dien
spokesperson said her company planned to build more houses and would sell
them in the next two or three years.
Discussing the
trend, the general director of La Ban Real Estate Company, Ngo Huu Truong,
told Sai Gon Times newspaper that it was unavoidable if buyers' faith was to
be restored, especially since the market remained in a slump.
Buyers were now
very careful and did not trust what they see in advertisements, he said,
adding that with completed projects, they could check the quality and other
services offered before parting with their money.
Hoang Anh Tuan,
general director of Tac Dat Tac Vang Company, said most people looking to buy
now were doing so for their own use and so were very concerned about quality.
Work starts
on e-business centre
The Ministry of
Industry and Trade has begun construction of an Electronic Business Promotion
Centre in the central city of
This will be one of
three such centres that will be set up to boost e-business among enterprises
in the central region.
The centre in Da
Nang, which includes a 5-storey and a 25-storey building constructed at a
cost of VND390 billion (US$18 million), will help support and train personnel
in e-business as well as designing websites and setting up databases for the
region. The centre will open in the first quarter of 2015.
Commercial housing
goes social
The Construction
Ministry's latest report revealed that 57 commercial housing projects have
requested a change of status as a social housing project, potentially adding
34,837 apartments to the market.
Of these, 21 social
housing projects, with 11,408 apartments, are in Ha Noi, while the
registration of another 62 projects will increase the number of apartments
from 31,999 to 40,500.
The capital city
accessed 40 projects, with 10,587 apartments. It has also started the
construction of 15 additional social housing projects.
Ha Noi
skyscraper to open doors
The second tallest
building in the capital, Lotte Centre, is set to be officially inaugurated on
September 2.
Built in a
strategic location in Ba Dinh District, the 65-storey complex comprises a
premium department store, a 320-room hotel, 258 luxury serviced residences, a
hypermarket and an observatory deck.
During its 17 years
in
The construction
has finished six months ahead of schedule and meets high-quality
requirements. The houses are ready to be handed over to customers from April
2014.
364 units of
Semi-Detached and Terraced Houses of Gamuda Gardens Township, Phase I have
been 100% completed.— VNS Photos
"This event
marks a significant milestone in the development of
Vinamotor
raises only US$7.4m through IPO
Viet Nam Motors
Industry Corporation (Vinamotor) managed to raise only VND15.7 billion
(US$747,000) through its initial public offering (IPO) at the price of
VND10,000 ($0.47) per share.
More than 1.571
million shares were sold at an auction, constituting only 3.1 per cent of the
total shares put on sales.
Through its IPO,
Vinamotor offered 51 million shares at the initial price of VND10,000
($0.47).
Vinamotor, with an
estimated charter capital of VND1 trillion ($47.6 million), reported a
turnover of about VND5.6 trillion (US$266.7 million) in 2013. The company
produces motor vehicles and motor parts.
Stocks
generate profits for investors in Q1
The stock market
witnessed a strong surge in both benchmark indices and transaction volume and
value in the first quarter of this year, generating profits for investors.
According to
statistics revealed by online news portal Vietstock.vn, most stocks on both
the bourses added value in the 53 trading sessions since the start of January
to March 25.
Of them, 40 codes
soared more than 100 per cent and more than 200 others witnessed an increase
of more than 50 per cent.
Most of the stocks
that saw good growth in the first quarter were traded below their face
values.
Tuna
fishermen haul in profits
Fishermen in
With a tuna price
of VND135,000 (US$6.4) a kilogramme, Ky earned a profit of VND50 million
($2,400).
Ky said each
fisherman on his fishing boat had received VND5-6 million after the trip.
"This is my
first successful fishing trip this year," Ky said.
Ky said he had
suffered losses on several previous fishing trips last year because of poor
catches.
Recently, many
fishing boats full of tuna have returned to the Ward 6's fishing port, with
boats averaging 1.5 tonnes of tuna each trip, according to local fishermen.
Fisherman Huynh Du
in Ward 6, who earned a profit of VND200 million for his last tuna fishing
trip, said good weather conditions for fishing tuna had occurred this year.
Phan Thuan,
chairman of the Ward 6' Fishing
The remaining boats
had stayed on shore because of losses on previous fishing trips last year, he
said.
The price of tuna
has increased to VND130-140,000 a kilogramme this year compared to
VND100,000-110,000 last year.
Phu Yen began tuna
fishing 20 years ago, the first province in the country to do so.
The central
province has about 1,000 tuna fishing boats.
Last year, more
than 80 per cent of the province's tuna fishing boats suffered losses because
of low tuna prices.
The country's tuna
is exported to 87 countries and territories.
Measures
for central coastal seafood growth
A conference was
held on March 29 in the central coastal
With nine provinces
and cities, the region is endowed with a coastline of 1,400 km –making up
43.8 percent of the nation’s total shoreline, and extensive fishing grounds,
particularly Hoang Sa and Truong Sa.
Figures from 2012
show the region is home to 46,201 fishing boats and over 200,000 fishermen.
The area for aquatic cultivation was estimated at 33,778 ha, producing over
180,000 tonnes of produce worth 27 trillion VND (1.3 billion USD).
Attendees put forth
a number of solutions to develop the industry in a sustainable manner, such
as restructuring the sector by increasing added value, promoting the links
between fishermen and businesses, perfecting the fisheries infrastructure
system, and enhancing the quality of human resources.
The application of
new cutting-edge technology and bettering policies in the field are two of
the measures needed to realise the target, participants said.
Many scientists
have also proposed the Government enforces incentives linking high-class
tourism and aquatic development with protecting the national sovereignty over
seas and islands.
The conference is
part of the 2014 Seafood Festival which is underway in Phu Yen province
(March 27 - April 2).
Retail,
service group records leading growth rate in Q1
The figure made the
retail and services group among those sectors with highest growth rates in
the Q1, according to the General Statistics Office.
Up to 607.9
trillion VND (28.9 billion USD), equivalent to 86.7 percent, was contributed
by the non-State sector.
Meanwhile, 68
trillion VND (3.2 billion USD), or 9.7 percent, came from the State-owned
sector. The remaining 25.5 trillion VND (1.2 billion USD) was from the
foreign invested sector.
In March alone,
retail sales and service revenue stood at 233.1 trillion VND (11.1 billion
USD), representing respective monthly and yearly rises of 2 percent and 10.1
percent.-
Farmers in Tan Quy
Tay commune in Ho Chi Minh City's Binh Chanh district are becoming prosperous
thanks to farming safe vegetables, the Saigon Giai phong daily said.
Farmer Le Ngoc Loi
in Village No.4 was sweating heavily after transporting a large amount of
vegetables to Phuoc An Cooperative in the sun. He smiled thinking about his
family’s future.
His family used to
plant rice. Despite hard work in the farm, he could not make ends meet,
therefore he left to work in a factory.
In 2006, he became
one of the first four participants in Phuoc An Cooperative’s safe vegetable
growers with the hope of escaping poverty.
He was supplied a
net house, seedlings and fertiliser to grow safe vegetables following the
Good Agricultural Practices (VietGAP) standards for the cooperative.
With the 10,000
square metres of vegetable crops, he supplies 250-300 kilograms of various
vegetables to the cooperative. As a result, he is able to repay all of his
debts and buy motorbikes and mechanical plows for his family.
Growing safe
vegetables has changed lives of farmers. Roads have been improved to
facilitate vegetable transportation.
Many people had
unstable income before joining Phuoc An Cooperative, said Doan Van Chanh,
chairman of the Farmer Association in Tan Quy Tay commune.
An Giang Plant
Protection, the market leader in
The cooperative now
has 45 members with 20 hectares of farmland. Each farmer makes 30-40 million
VND (1,423-1,897 USD) per year with 1,000 square meters of land.
Seeing that Phuoc
An Cooperative is successful in safe vegetables model, Tan Quy Tay
administrations developed one more to supply two tonnes of vegetables and
create additional employment for local residents.-
Vietinbank
expands branch network in Laos
The Vietnam
Joint-Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (VietinBank) has opened
one transaction office in Pakse town in the southern Lao
The move is designed
to boost long-term investment and operations in the country.
At the March 29
opening ceremony, Chairman of Vietinbank Board of Directors Pham Huy Hung
said his bank opened the first branch in
Hung later asserted
the office offers convenient and fast banking-finance services to local
people and both Vietnamese and Lao business communities, contributing to
further promoting trade and investment between the two countries.
Vietinbank pledges
to abide by Lao laws and the regulations set by its central bank, as well as
further improve the quality and effectiveness of services and enhance
transparency. Its aim, it says, is to develop into a large commercial bank
for the country.
Champasak
province’s Party Secretary and Governor Sonsay Siphandone and Somphao
Phaysith, Governor of the Lao central bank, highly praised Vietinbank’s
decision to open the office in the province, a key strategic position
connecting Laos with Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.
They added the
local authorities will create favourable conditions for the office to operate
efficiently and raise Vietinbank’s position in
Industrial
production up 4.7 percent in March
According to the
General Statistics Office, in the first three months of 2014, the IIP has
recorded a year-on-year rise of 5.2 percent, higher than the rate of 5
percent in the corresponding period of 2013.
Several industries
have seen high growth in the reviewed period, such as textile (20.2 percent),
leather and leather products (19.4 percent) and ready-made clothes (14
percent).
The northern port
city of
They are followed
by Quang
Meanwhile, decline
in industrial production has been seen in Quang Ninh province (3.5 percent)
and Ba Ria-Vung Tau province (1.7 percent).
Carrying
gold bullion, materials in, out of
Vietnamese and
foreign individuals are banned from carrying gold bullion or gold materials
when leaving or entering
Under Circular No.
11/2014/TT-NHNN, individuals on exit or entry are permitted to carry only
jewellery gold and fine-art gold articles.
If the gold totals
300 grams or more, they must declare as such to customs officials.
The circular
replaces Decision No. 1165/2001/QD-NHNN on the carrying of gold across
borders. It will take effect from May 15, 2014.-
Giant
apparel firm earmarks 190 mln USD for projects in 2014
The Vietnam
National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex) will pour over 4 trillion VND
(190 million USD) into numerous projects including yarn, textile, garment,
and cotton farms this year, CEO Tran Quang Nghi told Tuoi Tre (Youth)
newspaper in a recent interview.
Prioritised
projects include two plants that can dye 12-40 million metres of cloth per
year, Nghi said.
Vinatex will also
invest 2.2 trillion VND (105 million USD) in a complex which comprises a yarn
– textile – garment mill, a water supply facility, a wastewater treatment
plant, and accommodations for workers, he elaborated.
The group,
Vietnam’s largest of its kind, has planned to set up an investment fund,
called "TexFunds", with an initial capital of around 300-500
billion VND (14-24 million USD) in order to attract investments in
infrastructure for the textile industry, which is quite costly at the
beginning, Nghi added.
Early this year,
the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), signed an
agreement to lend Vinatex 600 million USD in the period from 2014 to 2016.
The loan package
will be used by the textile firm to improve the efficiency of its production,
invest in more projects, and upgrade their manufacturing technology.
The state-owned
group logged a trade surplus of over 1.7 billion USD in 2013, Le Tien Truong,
deputy director of Vinatex, reportedly said, adding that it also aims to
increase export value by 12 percent this year.
“
Vinatex will build
a 1,500-hectare textile industrial park by the end of 2014 in cooperation
with two Chinese companies, according to the portal of the Ministry of
Planning and Investment.
The 400 million USD
project, which is located in the
Doan Hong Phong,
vice chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, said the province will
hand over clean land to the investors by the last quarter of this year,
adding that Nam Dinh will create a good working environment for them.
Once fully
operational, the industrial park will create an industrial production value
of 3-4 billion USD each year, paying 300-400 million USD to the state budget,
and generating160,000 jobs.-
Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Năm, 3 tháng 4, 2014
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