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BUSINESS
IN BRIEF 5/6
Greenback
rises to one-year high
The U.S. dollar
rose to the highest level over the past year versus
Vietcombank in the
afternoon on June 3 quoted the greenback at VND21,220 per dollar, up VND40
against the previous day. The currency increased by VND115 a dollar, or 0.5%,
compared to a month ago.
According to the
website of the central bank, the dong-U.S. dollar exchange rate on the
inter-bank market was VND21,036 per dollar on June 3, still lower than the
ceiling of VND21,246.
Meanwhile, the
dollar was traded for VND21,370 on the unofficial market, which was unchanged
from the previous day, according to the owner of a gold shop in HCMC.
At a meeting with
representatives of banks in HCMC on May 22 after the dollar fluctuated on
both official and black markets, Nguyen Phuoc Thanh, deputy governor of the
central bank, said some banks might have raised dollar prices given concerns
over further price increases.
However, the
central bank will not intervene in the market if dollar prices are still
moving within the allowable trading band of 1%.
Thanh said that
there was no pressure on the forex rate as the nation’s exports in the first
four months this year increased 19% against the same period of last year. In
addition, incoming remittances and foreign reserves remain strong.
Meanwhile, Saigon
Jewelry Company (SJC) quoted gold at VND36.28 million per tael on June 3,
falling by VND40,000 against the previous day. This was the lowest over the
past 10 days. A tael equals to 1.2 troy ounces.
Few
Vietnamese businesses open to outsourcing study
Most Vietnamese
companies are unwilling to use outsourcing despite its benefits like the
reduction in management work and payroll without any impact on output,
according to a report by business consultancy Grant Thornton.
The International
Business Report, based on interviews conducted last November with more than
3,300 CEOs, managing directors, chairpersons, and other senior executives
from all industry, reveals that only 12% of businesses in
The effectiveness
and cost saving of outsourcing are not realised by many Vietnamese companies,
and so the service providers need to increase access to these companies, a
potential market, said Trinh Thi Tuyet Anh, director of outsourcing at Grant
Thornton
In certain cases,
enterprises think they could lose control over critical business processes if
they outsource, she said.
For small- and
medium-sized enterprises in
Globally too the
majority of business leaders have no plans to outsource any business
processes in the near future. While the cost savings and process efficiencies
that outsourcing can provide are widely recognised, many business leaders are
worried about losing control of key processes.
Around 60% of
global businesses have no immediate plans to outsource a business process.
Outsourcing is least prevalent in Southeast Asia (26%),
By contrast, more
than half of businesses in southern Europe (64%) and
Trinh Thi Tuyet
Anh, director of outsourcing at Grant Thornton
Among those
businesses which currently (or plan to) outsource back-office services, 57%
globally cited improving efficiencies — marginally ahead of reducing cost
(55%) — as the key drivers. In
Of those businesses
with no plans to outsource, the requirements to find cost savings (41%) and
process efficiencies (33%) are the main reasons that will encourage them to
consider it.
Anh said the
results clearly show that outsourcing is worthy of serious consideration.
Aside from driving efficiencies and reducing costs, outsourcing can allow
business to tap into skills and expertise offered by their providers that
might not necessarily be as readily available in the local labour market.
More
domestic consumers put purchases on credit
Consumer habits of
Vietnamese are changing, with an increasing number looking to purchase their
desired products through affordable loans.
Igor Prerovsky,
General Director of Home Credit Vietnam, invested by PPF, said at June 3
conference on consumer finance that consumer credit, which helps consumers
buy their desired items and pay later, is expanding in Vietnam.
Statistics released
by Home Credit showed that around 20% of consumers in the country's southern
part make purchases on credit while it accounts for around 10% in the north.
These figures are showing signs of increasing.
Prerovsky pointed
out that consumer finance is another way to contribute to economic
development through boosting purchasing capacity and demand, while enhancing
living standards of consumers.
This also helps
consumers to form a habit of saving, he added.
In addition,
financial companies targeted low-income earners rather than the middle-class,
in comparison with retail banks.
Home Credit, with
more than 5,000 points of sale in all 63 provinces and cities in
Vietnamese,
Bulgarian firms look to the future
Vietnamese
enterprises and their Bulgarian counterparts have inked a number of
partnership deals at a recent business forum in
The deals cover a
broad spectrum of areas, ranging from tobacco, paper export-import, garment
accessories to confectionery.
Deputy Minister of
Industry and Trade Ho Thi Kim Thoa, gave assurances that the ministry will
help bolster ties between the two business communities in every possible way.
In his speech,
Vietnamese Ambassador Le Duc Luu highly recommended the new economic
partnership model reached by both countries’ leaders.
Once active, it
will become an exemplary model for Vietnamese and Bulgarian stakeholders, he
said.
Many Vietnamese
firms in
Two-way trade
between
The event was
co-hosted by the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Bulgarian
Ministry of Economy and Energy.
Korean
Dong-IL Group builds first textile factory in Vietnam
June 3 marked the
start of construction by the
The facility, to be
built on 12ha at a cost of nearly US$52 million, will have an annual capacity
of 9,000 tonnes of products.
Dong –IL leaders
said when the Posco E & C
Phan Thi My Thanh,
Vice Chairwoman of the Dong Nai provincial People’s Committee, said 31 out of
35 industrial zones have been built on nearly 10,000ha in the province. They
attracted more than 1,100 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects with a
combined capitalisation of nearly US$20.6 billion.
The RoK ranks
second among foreign investors in the province with 276 projects capitalized
at more than US$4 billion.
Thanh expressed her
hope that Dong-IL group and other Korean businesses in the province will help
lure more Korean investors to the locality.
20% of
Australian seafood imported from
According to the
Vietnamese Trade Office in
Its demand is set
to increase in the future, creating huge opportunity for Vietnamese seafood
products.
Large volumes of
shrimp are consumed in
Last year,
As
In addition,
Vietnamese suppliers are encouraged to make fact-finding tours of
ASEAN
Customs chiefs meet in Lam Dong
The 23rd Meeting of
the ASEAN Directors-General of Customs opened in Da Lat City, Lam Dong province,
on June 3, bringing together nearly 70 delegates from ASEAN,
Participants
discussed and proposed orientations, action plans and working programmes for
ASEAN customs in the 2016-2020 period.
In recent times,
ASEAN customs has achieved significant progress in building the ASEAN
Economic Community (AEC) in 2015. They have signed an agreement on customs,
created a legal framework for implementing the ASEAN customs transit system
(ACTS), and initially established the single-door customs mechanism in all
ASEAN countries.
2014-2015 is
considered a pivotal time for ASEAN to enter a new period of cooperation,
integration and connectivity towards AEC.
ASEAN Secretary
General Le Luong Minh said the results of the meeting will be an important
step towards forming an ASEAN Community in 2015 as scheduled and beyond.
Customs cooperation must bring out more specific results in the future, he
stressed.
This is the third
time
Vietnam Customs
Director General Nguyen Ngoc Tuc took the occasion condemning
He called on
participating delegates to voice opposition to
Secretary General
of World Customs Organisations (WCO) Kunio Mikuriya said the current
Dubai group
looks to invest in Vietnam
Representatives
from the largest
The commitment was
made at a working session between ICD executives and Quang Ninh leaders
following the latter’ recent visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Quang Ninh leaders
briefed their hosts on the provincial socio-economic development master plan,
including turning its Van Don economic zone into a special economic zone in
the future with preferential policies. It may coincide with Dubai ICD
development of the “Future city” project.
Jawad Khan, Dubai
ICD representative, affirmed that the group will send a delegation to Quang
Ninh late this year to seek investment opportunity there.
Dubai ICD is the
UAE investment fund. It currently manages a huge property portfolio worth
US$120 billion, including Emirates Airlines, Emaar, Emirates National Bank
and many other companies.
East Sea
dispute encourages consumption of Vietnamese goods, deputy minister
The ongoing
Hai said that in
order to narrow the trade deficit with
The growth rate of
Vietnamese goods touched 28.4 percent in the first four months this year,
showing that several domestic products have been able to compete with Chinese
goods, Hai added.
“In addition, the
campaign ‘Vietnamese prioritize consumption of Vietnamese goods’ is launching
to be drastically implemented to take advantage of the 90 million people
market”, he said.
Consumption of
Vietnamese goods is patriotic at this time, Hai concluded.
Customs
work overtime to help foreign firms
The Vietnam Customs
has instructed its agencies to work overtime in weekday, at the weekend and
in holidays to clear customs procedures for foreign companies hit by
anti-China protests.
The instruction
said that customs departments in provinces and cities should arrange a
division to directly receive and solve problems for businesses and provide
them with specific contacts.
They should also
send officials to work with the companies and authorized agencies to assess
losses of businesses. This aims to calculate the exempt or reduced tariff on
damaged commodities and to extend tax payment deadlines for them.
Customs officials
must facilitate customs clearance for export and import consignments of
businesses including those that owe taxes so that they can resume production
and meet their orders.
Binh Dinh
makes ODA call out for project wish-list
Located in the
southern-central coastal region, Binh Dinh is a key gateway to the country’s
highland provinces, southern
The province has
rich maritime and other natural resources, and huge potential for tourism.
However, like many other provinces in
Binh Dinh has
learnt the importance of utilising all available resources to develop. As
investment from the private sector in transportation infrastructure, healthcare,
and education lags behind demand, official development assistance (ODA) from
international donors is vital to the province.
In recent times,
international donors have provided $281.44 million in ODA to 21 projects in
Binh Dinh. To call for more financial support from international donors, the
province has completed a list of projects needing ODA from 2015-2020. The
list comprises 32 projects with a combined investment capital of $361.82
million, with $334.38 million needing to be raised from international donors
and the remainder coming from the provincial budget. All of the projects are
in the fields of healthcare, education, transport infrastructure,
environment, agriculture, irrigation, and water supply.
Specifically, there
are two projects in the healthcare and education sectors, capitalised at
$38.5 million, three infrastructure projects with $92.25 million in total,
and six projects in the environment field with total capital of $41.15
million. The agriculture and irrigation sectors include 14 projects with
$79.82 million in total investment and five projects in water supply with
$73.65 million.
Binh Dinh is doing
its utmost to develop the local economy, but needs the support of the central
government and international donors to make these efforts become a reality.
Viettel’s
switchboard for ethnic customers wins global prize
The Military
Telecom Corporation (Viettel) has won a silver Stevie Awards in the category
of New Consumer Service of the Year for its ethnic minority language mobile
phone services, which made debut in January 2013.
The awards ceremony
to honour the winners was held in
The switchboard,
the first of its kind in
With over 120
telephone operators and an automatically answer calls switchboard providing
inquiry services in 10 ethnic minority languages, the telecom firm has served
as many as 2.5 million customers over the past year, or an average 30,000
calls each day, according to the group.
Viettel has so far
operated customer care switchboards in the northwestern region, the Central
Highlands, northern Thai Nguyen province, and the Mekong Delta localities of
Can Tho and An Giang.
Initiated in 2002,
Stevie Awards is one of the world’s leading prizes to honour active
contributions by individuals and businesses to the development of
community-based interests, including the fields of telecom and information
technology.
Vietnam-Singapore
business forum to bolster trade
More than 100
representatives from governmental agencies, enterprises and organisations
will attend the 2014 Vietnam-Singapore Business Forum (VSBF 2014), which is
expected to promote economic cooperation between the two countries.
Hosted by the
Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in Ho Chi Minh City from June
4-6, the event will provide a business platform for enterprises from both
countries to explore cooperation opportunities, particularly in the context
of a strategic partner agreement adopted by the two countries in September
last year.
It will also be a
good chance for attendees to be updated on trade and investment policies of
the two governments, thus helping them make appropriate business strategies
in the future.
During the event,
participants will focus their discussion on how to foster partnership between
the two sides in the fields of financial services, agriculture and
aquaculture production, tourism and hospitality, real estate and environment
management for sustainable business development.
Two-way trade
between
The
Mongolia-Vietnam Friendship Association and the Vietnam-Mongolia Friendship
Association have jointly organised a seminar for the two countries’
businesses in
Both sides agreed
that the seminar offered a good chance for businesses to exchange experience
and expand connections.
They vowed to
continue helping the two countries’ enterprises strengthen their cooperation
in order to boost bilateral economic and trade ties and enhance mutual trust
and understanding between the two peoples.
During the seminar,
the two associations also issued a joint statement voicing deep concerns over
the current
Besides, Chinese
ships deployed to defend the rig have repeatedly rammed and fired water
cannons into Vietnamese coast guard and fisheries surveillance ships which
are carrying out their law enforcement missions in the country’s waters,
leaving many Vietnamese ships damaged and officers injured.
Participants agreed
that
These acts are also
worrying neighbouring countries of
During its stay in
Mongolia from June 1-6, the Vietnam-Mongolia Friendship Association
delegation led by its President Ho Xuan Hung has visited the Mongolian Union
for Peace and Friendship and the Ho Chi Minh high school in Ulaanbaatar capital
city.-
Vinacomin
sets high June target
The Vietnam
National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) expects to sell around
10 million tonnes of its products in the April-June period and export at
least 1.5 million tonnes.
To realise the goal,
the corporation has taken a number of measures to promote the production of
high-quality coal, satisfying customer demand and ensuring good income for
workers.
In the first five
months of 2014, it sold 16 million tonnes, down nearly 11 percent year-on-year,
and shipped over 3.7 million tonnes abroad, only 62.6 percent of the same
period last year.
Despite an array of
economic difficulties in 2013, the group earned more than 97 trillion VND
(over 4.6 billion USD) from selling 39 million tonnes of products, including
11.6 million tonnes for export.
The Ho Chi Minh
City People’s Committee and the Economy, Trade and Industry Department of
Japan’s Kansai region on June 2 signed a framework agreement on cooperation,
under which they will enhance connections in support industry.
The two sides will
also speed up the establishment of a business environment that can facilitate
Kansai enterprises’ investment in the support industry in
The city has
assigned its management board of industrial and export processing zones to
set up a division in charge of connecting ties with Kansai and providing
consultations for its enterprises.
At a meeting with
the Japanese guests earlier, Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Le
Hoang Quan said that Vietnam in general and Ho Chi Minh City in particular,
commits to creating all favourable conditions for foreign investors,
considering them part of the country’s economy.
Toshinori
Kobayashi, head of the Kansai department, the region’s businesses, especially
those operating in the support industry, are paying much attention to
boosting investment in
New Binh
Dinh fishing port to open in 2016
The World Bank has
financed a 47 billion VND (2.2 million USD) project to upgrade De Gi fishing
port in the central coastal
Tran Van Vinh,
Deputy Director of the management board of the provincial Coastal Resources
for Sustainable Development (CRSD) project, noted the upgrade will allow the
port to handle around 3,000 boat arrivals a year, mainly following fishing
voyages, and improve the quality of seafood processing.
Once finished in
2016, the expanded port, covering 2.4 ha in Phu Cat district, is expected to
generate jobs for up to 600 local labourers.
It will have a
clean water system designed to treat wastewater, along with other facilities.
Vice Chairman of
the Phu Cat People’s Committee Luong Ngoc Anh emphasised the importance of
the port as it will be able to serve as a safe shelter for boats in stormy
weather, while bringing in many economic benefits.
Dong Nai
continues export growth trend
The southern
The state and
domestic private sectors contributed 98 million USD and 13 million USD
respectively, according to Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Industry
and Trade Nguyen Van Quan.
In the first five
months of 2014, Dong Nai recorded around 4.98 billion USD in export earnings,
a yearly surge of 16.1 percent, driven by high-value garments, wooden
products, iron, steel, machinery and coffee.
The high performance
is in part due to a series of trade promotion events that the sector has
hosted in and outside the country since the start of this year.
In the face of
volatile business climate around the world, with the ongoing dispute in the
Throughout the rest
of this year, trade fairs and exhibitions in key economic zones in Binh
Duong,
Bac Lieu
aquatic exports see record high
Aquatic exports of
the Mekong Delta
Prices of aquatic
exports have increased by 2-3 USD/kg on average, benefiting both farmers and
businesses.
In recent years,
local exporters have reportedly paid due attention to protecting their
trademarks and ensuring the quality of products, while authorities have also
facilitated their access to preferential credit sources to renovate
production lines.
In the coming time,
managerial agencies plan to help the Bac Lieu business circle expand its
partnership with foreign enterprises to drive trade.
Businesses will
also receive more assistance to build their own aquatic farms in order to
ensure a stable and quality input.
Currently, Bac Lieu
has more than 100,000 hectares of shrimp farm and 495 fishing vessels.
Great
opportunity for
This is the theme
of the 10th supporting industry forum, titled “How to develop the supporting
industry in
Hirotaka Yasuzumi,
Managing Director of the JETRO office in
A difficulty for
Japanese companies is the shortage of supporting industries in the domestic
market. A 2013 JETRO Survey showed that the proportion of domestic supply for
the Japanese companies was less than 32 percent in
Bui Quang Hai,
representative of the Ho Chi Minh City Association of Mechanical Engineering
(HAME), shared that
In recent years,
Many enterprises
admit that their operations depend on materials sourced from abroad.
“Currently, we are facing opportunities with
More specifically,
Hirotaka Yasuzumi said that this year JETRO plans to cooperate between
private enterprises and the relevant state agencies for the development of
supporting industries. The organisation has promoted technological transfer
to Vietnamese enterprises by encouraging development of human resources and
establishing close ties with Japanese companies.
Duangdej
Yuaikwarmdee, Deputy Executive Director of Reed Tradex Company, which has
co-hosted the supporting industry forum over the past ten years, commented
that
Garment enterprises
tend to be largely dependent on importing raw materials from
Chairman of the
Association of Garment-Textile-Embroidery-Knitting in
“Since enterprises
investing in
According to the
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Saigon Garment Manufacturing Trading
Joint Stock Company (Garmex) Le Quang Hung, the domestic textile sector has
not kept up with the growth of the garment sector in recent times. Domestic
garment enterprises like Garmex have been searching for locally sourced raw
materials to reduce costs, but many kinds of fabrics are not produced
in-country. Meanwhile, most businesses in the sector are not sufficiently
resourced in terms of capital and technology to produce raw materials for the
garment sector, especially the textile and dye sectors. Moreover, many
localities don’t want to grant license to build dye factories due to
environmental impact.
“When negotiating
TPP, we must sacrifice benefits of some sectors to receive the export tax
exemption for the garment and textile sector. If we do not take advantage of
the opportunity, it is insignificant to perform TPP, especially with regard
to regulations on the origin of raw materials. Consequently, it is necessary
to have policies to develop the sector providing the garment and textile materials
clearly published from the Government,” Hung said.
VN's
import, export policies remain unchanged
Most businesses
which suffered damages in southern industrial zones have so far resumed their
productions, according to the Vietnam Economic News on June 2.
The Ministry of
Industry and Trade (MOIT) has provided timely guidance to stabilise
investment and import, export activities, making foreign businesses feel
secure about their operations in
The Formosa Group’s
steel projects are in the process of overcoming the damage and gradually
resuming operations while bauxite projects in Dak Nong and Lam Dong provinces
are operating normally, the online newspaper said.
The Viet Trung
Minerals and Metallurgy Company Limited produced its first batch of 50 tonnes
of cast iron on May 26, 2014. The company said that experts were examining
the quality of cast iron so that it could be refined to produce the first
batch of steel billets. Chinese and Vietnamese experts and workers are
working together in this project.
Foreign invested
projects in the field of energy, including projects with the participation of
Chinese contractors, are going on normally.
So far, however,
according to the Agency of Foreign Trade under the MOIT, the volume of
imports, exports in the southern region has remained equal to that in the
time prior to China’s illegal installation of its Haiyang Shiyou-981 oil rig
in Vietnam's exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in the East Sea.
In the central region and
The Agency of
Foreign Trade has provided guidance for the export-import management
divisions of Dong Nai and Binh Duong province to provide assistance for
businesses which suffered damage. In
At border-crossings
in Lao Cai, Lang Son and Quang Ninh provinces, there has been a slight
slowdown in the circulation of goods due to concerns among some merchants and
shop owners. However, import, export activities have been stabilised since
they found no changes in
Dong Nai
aims for green development
The southern
Under the plan, as
many as 95-100 percent of local enterprises and manufacturers will apply
advanced waste treatment technologies. All waste generated from residential
areas, hospitals and industrial parks must be treated.
To reach the goals,
the province plans to prioritise environmentally friendly investment
projects, said Le Viet Hung, Director of the provincial Department of Natural
Resources and Environment.
Since 2012, the province
has installed automated waste water observing stations in its industrial
parks. This helps prohibit pollutants released by enterprises.
More than 77
billion VND (3.63 million USD) has been poured from the provincial budget
into building 13 stations, while four others were invested by local
businesses, Hung added.
As many as 25 out
of the province’s 28 IPs are effectively running large-scale waste treatment
systems, while in July, the Ong Keo and Thanh Phu IPs expect to put into
operation their own waste treatment systems. The province aims for all of its
IPs to have such systems.
Dong Nai has also
been keen on tackling small-sized enterprises whose production causes serious
harm to the local environment.
In addition to the
existing seven waste treatment areas, the province is set to invest in
building two more ones in the near future, aiming to treat all waste
generated in the locality.
The province is
focusing on tackling and wiping out 25 temporary dumping grounds by the end
of this year, and building a system designed to track the generation of solid
waste and stone exploitation.
It is expected that
a global positioning system (GPS) programme will be put into operation to
check the route of waste transporting vehicles, the official revealed.
He stressed Dong
Nai will publicise strict measures to handle pollution and any information
related to fines imposed on firms whose production activities harm the local
environment.
Boosting
sustainable development in central coastal region
A forum on
sustainable development in the central coastal region was held in Hoi An
ancient town, the central province of Quang
Deputy Prime
Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the World Bank (WB) Country Director for
Discussions at the
forum focused on boosting regional sustainable development, strengthening
connectivity of transport infrastructure for socio-economic development in
the new context and developing water resources in association with mitigating
natural disasters in the central coastal area.
The event also gave
delegates a chance to share experiences in mobilizing human resources,
managing risks of natural calamities and water resources sustainably to
promote economic development and contribute to poverty reduction..
According to the
overall goal, the central coastal region will be developed into a important
hub with dynamic, and sustainable development to enhance international
cooperation, maintain political stability and social order, develop the
marine economy along with ensuring national defence, security and
sovereignty over sea and islands.
Three
solutions to reduce imports from China
Deputy Minister of
Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai made the remark at his ministry’s at a recent
press briefing. At present,
Hai said that two
most direct ways to reduce the trade deficit with
According to the
Ministry of Industry and Trade, in the first four months of the year,
Vietnam’s export turnover to China increased by 28.4%. This is an impressive
figure and the best way to reduce the trade deficit, Hai added.
He also underlined
the needto strengthen domestic production and encouraged Vietnamese people to
use Vietnamese goods. If a population of 90 million priotize using Vietnamese
goods, it will help generate a huge turnover to thus reducing imports from
Garment
exports hit US$7.44 billion
Garment and textile
exports increased 17% to US$7.44 billion in the first five months of this
year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).
MoIT Deputy
Minister Do Thang Hai reported that from January to May 2014, domestic
garment production experienced a decline due to disturbances in industrial
zones in a number of provinces and cities.
He suggested local
firms seize opportunities offered by the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
agreement to take a proactive role in ensuring adequate supply of input
materials and reducing import value.
In the wake of
tensions in the
Garment producers
should keep a close watch on such promising market as
Reducing
China's economic dependence by FTAs
Free Trade
Agreements (FTAs) not only open up opportunities for
Chamber of Commerce
and Industry of Vietnam (VCCI) Chairman Vu Tien Loc told a recent discussion
on socio-economic development in
Many NA deputies
stated that the illegal placement by
VCCI Chairman Loc
said that
"Preparation
for the country to seize opportunities and overcome challenges from FTAs at
this time is more urgent than ever "Loc noted.
According to
More than half of
With its commitment
to remove and at least reduce tariffs and technical barriers to the lowest
levels in FTAs with the world’s leading partners in the future, Vietnam will
have a good chance to import machinery, equipment, input materials,
consumer goods from the US, the EU, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK),
Australia, New Zealand and Russia
"
In terms of
economic output, according to official figures cited by Loc at the NA
session,
So, to invest
enough in the output chain for goods, especially agricultural products in the
demanding global markets, Loc stressed the need to find a way out for the
national economy to avoid the current dependence.
“But the fact is
that we are trading in a global trade and economy, where every business,
every economy are bound and closely linked to each other. This is true for
both
While many people
are concerned about
Trade activities
with
For
Milk prices
lowered in anticipation of price ceiling
Many shops and
agencies have slashed retail milk product prices by 10% to 21% in
anticipation of new regulations taking effect from June 1.
According to the
Ministry of Finance’s regulation, the decrease in the wholesale milk prices
will be applied from June 1, while the retail price cut will be no later than
June 20.
Some anonymous
retailers on
Nguyen Trong Nghia,
Director of the Ministry of Finance’s Department of Legal Affairs, said in
the case milk product companies, they are currently complaining of potential
losses from the new regulation, and the ministry will reconsider and properly
adjust if the situation if this turns out to be true.
The owner of a milk
shop in
There are 25 milk
products which will be affected by the new regulations. In order to prevent
loopholes or deceptive pricing methods by retailer or wholesalers, the
ministry has requested that companies register their prices.
Five days after the
submission of new regulations, the ministry will announce the new price
ceiling.
New gold
jewelry management ruling effective
Although many gold
traders had suggested extending the effective date of a new circular on
jewelry quality management, the Ministry of Science and Technology still
insisted on applying the circular since early this month to protect the
interests of consumers.
Circular
22/2013/TT-BKHCN, which was issued by the ministry last September and took
effect on Sunday, regulates management and measurement policies for the gold
trading business. Under the circular, the standards of quality and
measurement of the gold jewelry items traded on the local market must be
written in a code with the correct gold content.
The circular is
aimed to help reduce substandard gold products on the market and serve as a
more effective legal tool for managing agencies to tackle violations.
However, local
traders claimed that they had been on tenterhooks as the time from the
circular’s date of issuance to the date of coming into force was too short
for them to make necessary preparations and manage their inventory.
Nguyen Hoang Linh,
head of the ministry’s Directorate for Standards, Metrology and Quality, said
Circular 22 did not mention the concept of ‘inventory’ and that all jewelry
items available on the market must meet quality requirements set by the
circular since early this month.
In the past nine
months, gold traders should have finished preparations to meet requirements
of the circular and solved all substandard jewelry items. Consumers had the
right to choose the items with various gold content and prices and to buy
those with the correct gold content announced by producers, Linh said.
In fact, most
jewelry products on the market have been made without codes indicating clear
gold contents. As a result, many people pay for the gold jewelry items they
believe to have sufficient gold content but when they sell the products, they
receive far less money than they expect because gold content is much lower.
For instance, most
18-carat jewelry whose at least 75% of the content should be pure gold but
the real content is only 66% gold on the domestic market.
Therefore, Nguyen
Van Dung, chairman of the Saigon Jewelry Association, said the circular was a
legal foundation to restore order on the gold jewelry and fine arts market
and to protect the interests of customers.
Dong Tam
reports profits after years of losses
Dong Tam Group has
announced its 2013 after-tax profit of VND125.7 billion after two consecutive
years of losses.
At an annual
shareholders meeting last week, shareholders of Dong Tam Group passed this
year’s targets for VND1.8 trillion in revenue, VND135 billion in after-tax
profit and a dividend of 5%.
Last year, Dong Tam
Group obtained good business results with net revenue of over VND1.58
trillion, up 87.7% against 2012. It racked up losses of around VND35 billion
in 2012 and VND191 billion in 2011.
However, experts
attributed losses of Dong Tam Group to the huge loans it took for property
projects, including industrial parks, seaports and residential areas in those
years when the country’s real estate market was stagnant.
Experts said that
the demand for building materials had improved much this year.
Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Năm, 5 tháng 6, 2014
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