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BUSINESS
IN BRIEF 13/7
The Vietnam Fund
Management Company (VFM) has launched an exchange-traded fund (ETF) which
tracks the VN30 index of the southern bourse.
The ETF VFMVN30,
the first of its kind in
The IPO of the fund
will be made between July 21 and August 14 and it will then be listed on the
Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE).
The ETF VFMVN30
will follow developments of the VN30 index consisting of 30 stocks with the
highest market capitalisation and liquidity on HOSE, which account for more
than 60 percent of the market’s capitalisation value.
The fund will lay a
foundation for the development of open funds in the time to come, thus
increasing liquidity in the domestic stock market, said SSC Vice Chairman
Nguyen Thanh Long.
An exchange-traded
fund is an investment fund traded on stock exchanges, much like stocks. ETFs
experience price changes throughout the day as they are bought and sold. Most
ETFs track an index, such as stock index or bond index.-
VNPT speeds
up restructuring process
The Vietnam National
Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) will propose a plan to the
government to set up three corporations in the third quarter of the year, one
official said.
VNPT’s general
director, Tran Manh Hung, said that before sending the plan to the government,
the group would submit it to the Ministry of Information and Communication
for appraisal within this month.
Three planned
one-member limited corporations would be established, called VNPT-Net,
VNPT-Media and VNPT-VinaPhone, which would be under the direct management of
VNPT.
The move is part of
the effort to realise the group’s restructuring plan for the 2014-2015
period, which was approved by the Prime Minister on June 10.
VNPT-Net would be
responsible for managing VNT and VTI infrastructure, VinaPhone and VDC’s core
network as well as telecom infrastructure in localities nationwide.
VNPT-VinaPhone will
be in charge of operating the businesses of VNPT, VDC, VTN and VTI, while
VNPT-Media would ensure the supply of content and communication services via
VASC, VDC, and VNPT’s Information and Public Relations Centre (IPC).
In addition, VNPT
must compile a regulation on an operational charter, under which its new
registered capital would be VND72 trillion (USD3.38 billion). The charter is
expected to be issued in August this year.
At a recent meeting
on separating MobiFone from VNPT to fall under the management of the
ministry, Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Bac Son requested
that VNPT enhance the capacity of these three corporations in order to have a
standard operational system, as does Viettel, as well as improve their
competitiveness.
VietGAP
project bears fruit
Cau Duc pineapples,
a brand name protected by the National Office of Intellectual Property, have
been cultivated under the Vietnamese Good Agriculture Practice (VietGap)
standards in
Hau Giang is one of
the largest pineapple-producing areas in the Cuu Long (
In 2011, the
province's Department of Science and Technology implemented the VietGap
programme and expanded it to 50ha in Vi Thanh City and Long My districts.
As part of the
project, the department teaches farmers how to plant disease-free pineapple
seedlings and also helps them find outlets for their products.
The VND4.5 billion
(US$214,000) programme is funded by the central and local budget as well as
participating farmers.
Farmer Vu Sui,
chairman of the Thanh Thang Co-operative in Vi Thanh's Hoa Tien Commune, said
the new method had produced high yields with larger fruit.
The head of the
project, Nguyen Thi Kieu, said the department had provided farmers with
seedlings, organic fertilisers and advanced technologies.
It had also paid
for the fees required to apply for VietGap certification.
Kieu said that
farmers had used integrated crop and pest management, and applied both
organic and chemical fertilisers.
Pineapples
cultivated under VietGap standards have yielded about 30 tonnes per ha, three
times higher than normal cultivation.
With an average
price of VND4,000 a kilo, farmers can earn about VND240 million ($11,400) per
hectare, she said.
Hau Giang plans to
expand the Queen pineapple cultivation area to 2,000ha by 2020. The province
now has 1,546ha of pineapple with an average yield of 10 tonnes per hectare.
In recent years,
local authorities have carried out many measures to improve the quality of
Cau Duc pineapple seedlings and have encouraged farmers to use VietGap
standards.
The Queen pineapple
variety, which has been cultivated in Hau Giang for more than 50 years, has a
beautiful shape and is larger and less sweet than other varieties.
The trademark
"Cau Duc Pineapples of Hau Giang" is registered and protected under
the National Office of Intellectual Property.
Customs tax
collection reviewed
Viet Nam Customs
tax collections have reached VND117.5 trillion (US$5.57 billion) in the first
six months of this year, a 24.4 per cent year-on-year increase.
These figures were
reported by deputy general director of Viet Nam Customs Nguyen Thai Duong
during a conference to review its performance in the first 6 months and
implement tasks for the remainder of this year. The conference was held on
Saturday in Ha Noi.
He also told those
at the conference that import taxes stood at VND38.1 trillion ($1.8 billion),
special consumption taxes were VND6.921 trillion ($329 million), value added
taxes collected reached VND72.2 trillion ($3.4 billion) and taxes on
environmental protection were VND94 billion ($4.4 million).
Duong attributed
the increase in collected taxes in the first six months to high revenue
exports and high export taxes, over the same period in 2013. For instance,
petrol tariffs rose VND6.65 trillion ($316 million), completed knockdown unit
(CBU) automobiles up VND3.3 trillion ($157 million), automobile spare-parts
increased VND1.1 trillion ($52.3 million) and other equipment was up VND2.44
trillion ($116 million).
Facing many
difficulties in production, business performance has not yet significantly
bounced back from past highs. However, the Viet Nam General Department of
Customs has enacted a variety of solutions to complete set targets for tax
collections this year.
Apart from tax
collections, Viet Nam Customs has focused on enhancing other activities by
strengthening anti-smuggling enforcement to prevent losses of revenues for
the state coffer, as well as prosecuting anti-trade fraud and ensuring
national security and community safety.
As of June 15,
2015, 8,915 smuggling cases, valued at VND168.9 billion ($8 million), were
uncovered, a reduction of 19.9 per cent compared to 2013. Also, the
Anti-smuggling and Investigation Agency prevented 43 smuggling cases valued
at VND92 billion.
In terms of
administrative reforms and customs modernisation, Viet Nam Customs had
implemented e-customs procedures, known as the automated customs clearance,
named VNACCS/VCIS, at 34 provincial and city departments of customs. The
number of enterprises taking part in implementing e-customs procedures
reached 49,900 units, increasing 16.6 per cent in comparison with the
previous year, and accounted for 96 per cent of all enterprises involved in
customs procedures.
Speaking at the
conference, Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung called upon Viet Nam Customs
agencies to act to prevent the flood of poor-quality consumer goods being
imported into the country, having a negative impact on the daily lives of the
public.
According to the
Viet Nam Customs General Department, the high tensions in the
In June alone,
Nghe An
works to lure investors
So far this year,
the central
However, the
provincial People's Committee held that the attraction failed to meet
expectation as the land clearance is still slow, the implementation of the
projects stagnant, and the completion of dossiers cumbersome.
In order to improve
the efficiency and attractiveness, Nghe An is taking bold measures to promote
investment and help investors iron out difficulties. Relevant authorities
have been maintaining cooperation with representative offices of
HCM City
provides loans to SMEs
The southern
economic hub is helping enterprises, especially small-and-medium sized ones
(SMEs), gain access to loans worth VND20 trillion (US$952 million) to
implement modern technology that can improve business performance.
Business owners
have received VND12 trillion ($571 million) in loans so far this year,
chairman of the municipal People's Committee Le Hoang Quan said at a
municipal Party Committee executive board meeting on Friday.
Quan predicted that
capital flow this year would be primarily directed to hi-tech parks and the
support industry, adding that although the agriculture sector recorded slower
growth than last year, it was actively embracing technological advances and
bio-technology.
PM approves
Prime Minister
Nguyen Tan Dung signed off last week on a decision to create the HCM City
Region by 2030 with a vision to 2050.
The master plan
will connect the country's largest city with key economic regions in the
The planning area
includes Ho Chi Minh City and the regional provinces of Binh Duong, Binh
Phuoc, Tay Ninh, Long An, Ba Ria -Vung Tau and Tien Giang, a total area of
30, 404 sq km that had a population of just over 18 million in 2013.
The plan will also
develop rural areas that suit traditional culture and production conditions
and establish hi-tech agriculture zones, urban agriculture zones and
specialized agriculture zones.
In order to
preserve natural landscapes and ecological features, the plan suggests the
establishment of national- and international-level tourism centres.
SCVivoCity, a
shopping mall that will open in the first half of next year in
Vietsin Commercial
Complex Development JSC (VCCD), set up by the Saigon Co.op Investment JSC and
the Singaporean real estate developer Mapletree to build SCVivoCity, on
Thursday signed MoUs with 13 retailers for almost 21,300sq.m.
Saigon Co.op and
The Bank for
Investment and Development of Vietnam has signed a contract to lend US$40
million for the development of the mall.
Privatisation
process of SOEs starts to speed up
So far this year,
38 companies have been equitised. That is already twice the number of
companies that went private in 2013, the Ministry of Finance reported.
Another 200 SOEs are slated to go public by the end of the year.
According to the
ministry, this is a significant improvement compared to a total of 99
companies equitised between 2011 and 2013.
The Government has
restructured a total of 58 businesses this year, including 15 that were
merged, and five that have been dissolved or recommended for bankruptcy.
Prime Minister
Nguyen Tan Dung has also approved equitisation plans of 12 State-owned groups
and corporations, including the proposal of the Vie t Nam National Textile
and Garment Group (Vinatex).
Several SOEs have
recorded better performance under the new arrangement, especially those under
the transport ministry such as the Viet Nam National Shipping Lines company
and the Vietnam Railway Corporation.
Meanwhile, the
Finance Ministry urged Ha Noi,
It pointed out that
135 of 432 SOEs that must be equitised by the end of 2015 have yet to
establish steering committees that will guide the privatization process.
Land plots
dominate Nha Trang market
Nha Trang's
residential market has more than 6,900 dwellings from 37 land plot, villa,
townhouse and apartment projects, Savills Viet
Land plots dominate
the city's residential market at 51 per cent market share, followed by
apartments with 44 per cent and villas and townhouses with five per cent.
To benefit from the
ocean aspect and proximity to tourism infrastructure, most projects are located
in wards along the coast, just 1km and 2km from the beach, with many on
seaside
According to
Savills Viet
The villa and
townhouse segment has only two active projects, Bac Vinh Hai Residence and
Ocean Front. Ocean Front is a holiday home project with prices from VND9.5
billion ($452,380) to VND17 billion ($80,952).
Bac Vinh Hai has
bare shell townhouses with prices ranging from VND1.8 billion ($85,714) to
VND3 billion ($142,857).
There are four
active apartment projects on Tran Phu street offering a wide range in prices
from VND32,800,000 ($1,562) to VND70,700,000 ($3,366) per sq.m.
With the exception
of Vinh Diem Trung Residence and Bac Vinh Hai Residence, most residential
projects are developed with a second home concept that targets buyers from
other provinces, particularly from Ha Noi and
The report also
figured out that there are 33 future residential projects with a total area
of more than 860 ha. The majority are landed properties.
Nha Trang will face
fierce competition with Cam Ranh and Bai Dai, where many future projects will
be four to five-star resort villas and hotels. However, their construction
progress is slow. There are currently 14 clearly marked sites and six are
vacant; the others are under construction.
Office
space grows across major cities
The office market
sector was more competitive in the second quarter, with the entry of new
supply in Ha Noi and
In Ha Noi, the
total grade B office space for the second quarter reached 729,000 sq.m, while
grade A buildings stayed the same at 330,000 sq.m.
In addition,
about16,000 sq.m of grade B office space was added to the
During the same
period, total office building space in
As for average
office rental costs, Ha Noi saw a slight drop of 0.7 per cent for grade A
buildings, and a drop of 0.12 per cent for grade B space quarter-on-quarter,
while HCM City showed improvements after consecutive periods of decline.
Grade A office rent
in
As for occupancy
rate, while Ha Noi's grade A saw a climb of 1.33 percentage points
quarter-on-quarter to 78.2 per cent, grade B continued its downward trend
with a 4.4 percentage point decrease over the quarter to reach roughly 72 per
cent.
In
A significant grade
A project in Ha Noi's midtown, called
Alex Crane,
national head of commercial agents at Cushman & Wakefield in
Sabeco
seeks to lower State stake
The Sai Gon
Beer-Alcohol-Beverage Joint Stock Corporation (Sabeco) would continue to cut
the State holding from 89.59 per cent to 40 per cent of its charter capital.
The Dau Tu
(Investment) newspaper quoted sources as saying this. The Ministry of
Industry and Trade has sent a proposal to the Government about implementing
the sale of stakes in two phases. The State holding would be cut to 65 per
cent in the first phase and to 40 per cent in the second phase, sources said.
It is highly
probable that the proposal would be approved as the Government has previously
said that the beer industry was among the sectors where the State did not
want to hold controlling stakes of 51 per cent and above.
Being a giant in
the beverage industry, with a 45 per cent market share, Sabeco had attracted
the attention of investors amid the hastened privatisation of State-owned
enterprises. It missed the deadline for getting listed since 2008 when the
initial public offering was implemented.
Sabeco was being
traded on the over-the-counter market at about VND65,000 or US$3 per share.
It plans to seek
strategic partners to sell 20 per cent of its stakes in the first phase as a
step towards being listed on exchanges, the company's shareholders were told
in a meeting held in May.
The company had
attracted the attention of several foreign rivals such as Heineken and Asahi.
In its IPO in 2008,
Sabeco's shares were sold at VND70,003 or $3.3 per share.
With a production
capacity of 1.8 billion litres of beer per year, Sabeco sold 1.33 billion
litres of beer last year, up 10.3 per cent over the previous year.
Over half
the securities companies suffer from losses
Fifty-five out of
90 existing securities companies suffered aggregated losses at the end of this
year's first quarter, according to the year's first half's report of the
State Securities Commission.
Three securities
companies were found not complying with regulations about separating
investors' deposits from companies' accounts.
The State Securities
Commission (SSC) will maintain a close watch on securities companies during
the rest of the year to ensure the restructuring was on track.
Sai Gon
Securities leads by brokerage market share
Sai Gon Securities
(SSI) continued to lead the southern bourse by brokerage market share in the
second quarter of 2014, up 1.43 per cent in comparison with the previous
quarter.
With 13.22 per cent
of the total trading value, SSI was closely followed by HCM City Securities
with 13.13 per cent.
Other securities
companies in the top 10 included ABC Securities, VNDirect Securities, Ban
Viet Securities and FPT Securities. The top ten companies accounted for 63.33
per cent of the brokerage market.
HNX raises
VND20 trillion in Government bonds
The Ha Noi Stock
Exchange held 14 auctions and raised VND20 trillion (US$952.3 million) in
Government bonds in June, increasing by 27.3 per cent over the previous
month.
The yield of
two-year bonds was between 5.64 and 5.75 per cent per year, of three-year
bonds between 6.1 and 6.25 per cent and of five-year bonds between 7.15 and
7.23 per cent. The yields of ten-year and 15-year bonds were respectively at
8.7 per cent and 8.88 per cent a year.
In the secondary
market, the total trading volume of Government bonds under outright transactions
reached 561 million bonds worth VND54.8 trillion ($2.57 billion) in June.
More than 213 bonds worth VND22 trillion ($1.04 billion) were traded under
the repurchase agreement.
Vingroup to
open five-star resort in Phu Quoc
Vingroup plans to
launch its Vinpearl Resort Phu Quoc in
This would be the
second five-star hotel on the island, after the Salinda Premium Resort and
Spa opens in mid-August.
The resort, which
is now under construction, is spread over 300 ha and will include a five-star
hotel, villas, an entertainment centre and a 27-hole golf course.
According to
Vingroup, two blocks of the seven-storey buildings are designed in the shape
of an arc that will surround a big swimming pool and 30 villas. Once
completed, Vinpearl Phu Quoc will become the largest 5-star hotel on the
island, with 750 rooms that can accommodate a maximum of 2,000 people.
The resort also
includes a modern conference room with an area of more than 1,500 sq. metres
that will be fully equipped with facilities of international standards.
Syrena to
invest in Ninh Thuan resort
The Investment and
Development Syrena Viet Nam Company has proposed to build a five-to-six star
tourism resort in central
According to the
proposal, the company would invest US$60million to $80 million on an area of
66.8 hectares.
The project is
expected to become operational in the next three years after receiving the
investment licence. The company said it would ensure the project's progress
if its proposal is approved.
Over 4,000
housing projects issued licences
More than 4,000
housing projects with a total area of more than 100,000 hectares were granted
licences for construction in
He added that the
number of projects which had been granted licences in the construction sector
was far higher than the real domestic demand. The country would need 15 to 20
years to complete all the projects.
He added that the
construction of projects which were far from the central areas and with low
sales would not be continued.
He asked localities
to review property projects and decide which projects should be cancelled to
meet the market demand as well as ensure sustainable development.
MHB
earmarks $18m fund for power transmission line
The Mekong Housing
Bank (MHB) has agreed to provide a VND376 billion (US$18 million) loan to
build a new 220kV power transmission line from the Thuong Kon Tum-Quang Ngai
plant.
The 76.5km long
line project, with total fund of VND471 billion ($22.4 million), managed by
the Management Board of Power Projects in the central region, will supply
electricity from the Thuong Kon Tum hydropower plant to the national grid,
Quang Ngai Province and the northern part of Binh Dinh Province. It will also
set up a power transmission system in the central
The project was
approved by the Government as part of the strategic plan proposed by the Electricity
Group of
HDBank to
open
The HCM City
Development Bank, or HDBank, was given approval by the State Bank of Viet
Nam, on Wednesday, to open a representative office in Yangon City, Myanmar.
The office is to be
opened within two years, and its tenure of operation in the country will be
30 years. It will be subjected to
HDBank also got the
nod to open a northern office in Ha Noi's Hoan Kiem District within a year.—
Hoa Phat
Group exports steel to Australia
Steel coils of Hoa
Phat Group were exported to the Australian market for the first time on June
26 with, the second delivery being made three days later.
Pham Thi Bich Ngoc,
Director of Hoa Phat Commerce Joint Stock Company, said that although the
batches had not brought much profit, this was the group's first success in
expanding its exports, not only in steel mills but also in steel for
construction material.
Hoa Phat signed a
contract to provide steel to
CIENCO 4
wins European business awards
The Civil
Engineering Construction Corporation No 4 (CIENCO 4), was awarded two prizes
by the European Business Assembly (EBA), on July 2 in Stresa city,
CIENCO4 won the
award for "Best Enterprise" while its Director General Le Ngoc Hoa
also got the "Best Manager of the Year" award in a ceremony which
was held at EBA's Summit of Leaders.
According to the
Viet Nam News Agency correspondent in
The correspondent
also said there were 46 international enterprises and individuals operating
in social, cultural, health-care, trade, construction and educational fields
who received EBA prizes on this occasion.
Nation
pushed to achieve higher growth
Speaking at Forbes
Viet Nam's first Annual Business Forum, he said Viet Nam can only keep up
with other countries in the region if it achieves such growth rates, which
are much higher than during the previous five years when average growth was
only 5 – 6 percent.
"
The Government is
implementing drastic measures to restructure the economy, focusing on
restructuring public investment, the banking system, and state-run
corporations, he said.
The plan also aims
to create a socialist-oriented market economy, improve infrastructure, and
develop high-quality human resources, he said.
It would also address
social and environmental concerns and improve healthcare, education,
agriculture, rural development, and, especially, defence, he said
"Since
In the context of
He pledged that
administrative procedures would be simplified and favourable conditions
created for foreign investors to improve the business climate.
Rich Karlgaard, the
publisher of Forbes, spoke about the important role creativity plays in
helping companies beat their rivals. The Annual Business Forum, the largest
business event in the country this year, brought together top Vietnamese and
foreign business leaders and entrepreneurs for discussions on important
economic and business issues and investment opportunities as Viet Nam begins
a new chapter, Nguyen Bao Hoang, chairman of Interactive Media, said.
"The event is
an opportunity for business leaders to discuss and explore investment
opportunities and share business development experiences."
The 400-odd
delegates included CEOs of international and local companies.
More than 20 leading
speakers from the Government, World Bank, Fulbright Economist School, and
major companies like REE, IDG Ventures Viet Nam, Minh Long I, Phu My Hung,
ICP, Intel FPT, VNG, Jobstreet, and Thai Binh Shoes participated in the
forum.
They spoke about
how their companies became more successful and raising funds for expansion
and innovation.
TPP
agreement good for footwear industry
Viet Nam footwear
exporters are racing against time to complete the large number of orders they
have received from traditional importers.
The growing orders
have shown that the Viet Nam footwear industry has already started enjoying
the numerous benefits that could accrue after the signing of the
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement.
However, the Viet
Nam Leather and Footwear Association (Lefaso) has warned that if footwear
exporters want to take full advantage of this opportunity they need to state
what are the advantages in terms of the market and products. Not many local
footwear makers can provide high-quality products with good designs as per
the demands of TPP signatory nations.
Nguyen Quoc Tuan,
General Director of HCM City-based Vinh Thong Footwear Company, said his
company had received orders until October this year and had been running at
full throttle to complete the orders on time.
This year, his
company has set a target of manufacturing three million pairs of shoes and
sandals to export to Europe. The company has now reached 90 per cent of its
yearly plan.
Truong Thuy Lien,
Director of Lien Phat footwear company told Dau Tu newspaper that her company
had got orders till the year-end. Orders for this winter, from April to
August alone, reached 800,000 pair of shoes.
She attributed the
growing orders to the active impact of the impending TPP agreement, Viet Nam
– EU Free Trade Agreement, Viet Nam and the Customs Union of Belarus,
Kazakhstan and Russia.
According to Lien
in the future the Vietnamese footwear industry will enjoy numerous benefits
from neighbouring countries. It has already led to global producers shifting
their production units to Viet Nam from China.
Actually, importers
from the EU, Japan and the United States (US) have started moving their
orders to Viet Nam and looking for eligible footwear makers who meet with
their requirements. When these agreements are officially signed, importers
will quickly increase their orders.
Phan Chi Dung,
Director of Light Industry Department of Ministry of Industry and Trade, said
that Taiwanese and mainland Chinese businesses had poured their capital into
Viet Nam to invest in developing raw material production locally. "If
domestic producers do not take full advantage of this they will lose the
opportunity," he said.
Since Viet Nam is a
member of the WTO, every policy for export will be strictly monitored by
importers, according to Dung.
The State can
assist them in training human resources, doing Research&Development,
technology referral and addressing environment pollution in industrial zones.
Lefaso Deputy
Chairman Diep Thanh Kiet said that to make good use of this opportunity,
local exporters must be completely aware of the characteristics of each
importer.
For instance,
according to Kiet, local exporters have to focus on production capacity of
more than 150 million pairs of shoes per year if they want to export to the
US. In the EU market exporters have to pay more attention to differences in
design between various regions of Europe. Meanwhile, the Japanese require
very high-quality products. —
Apartment
sector recovery continues
The condominium
markets in Ha Noi and HCM City continue to record positive signals on issues
ranging from liquidation to selling prices in the second quarter (Q2).
Executive Director
of CBRE (Viet Nam) Co., Ltd Richard Leech said that according to the company's
report on Ha Noi's property market in Q2 this year, the macro economy
continued to recover even though the conflicts on the East Sea between Viet
Nam and China partly affected the local security, tourism, hotel, trading and
investment markets.
In Q2 this year,
developers continued to clear their unsold stock with active launches and
marketing activities, he said. Ten out of sixteen projects with launches in
the quarter promoted their stocks that had been released before, he said. In
terms of sales performance, transactions increased steadily with an estimated
2,500 units sold in the quarter, an increase of 60 per cent from Q1.
While the majority
of the transactions occurred across the mid- and low-end segments, the
high-end segment saw a significant improvement in sales compared to Q1's
performance, as developers launched aggressive promotion campaigns and market
sentiment improved among buyers.
A factor for the
improving sales performance this quarter was the fact that banks were more
bullish in lending. Banks actively cooperated with developers to offer
interest subsidy programmes with preferential interest rates being fixed for
up to one year for buyers taking mortgages. Higher loan-to-value ratio and
longer loan tenures were also offered to attract customers.
With credit being
more accessible to buyers, the demand for purchase of homes will continue to
pick up in the second half of the year.
Improving sales and
the passage of clearer regulations have encouraged developers to continue
launching projects of condominium for sale, CBRE said in a report on HCM City
property market.
Under the report,
the second quarter saw 10 projects launched across all three segments –
high-end, mid-end, and affordable – with 2,792 units, representing an
increase of 135.8 per cent year-on-year.
In a change with
past practice, developers, especially those without a proven track record,
now launch projects only after a few floors are completed as opposed to the
foundation stage earlier, a practice that assures potential buyers.
Prices too are much
more reasonable than they were a year ago, with affordable projects selling
at below $700 or VND15 million per square metre, the threshold to qualify for
loans from the $1.4 billion (VND30 trillion) credit package.
This partly explains
why primary prices in this segment have fallen to $663, representing a
decrease of 2.8 per cent quarter-on-quarter and 3.6 per cent year-on-year in
the second quarter.
Not only were
prices more reasonable but unit sizes were also more affordable.
"The most
popular size for a two-bedroom unit in the high-end segment was 100-120sq.m
at projects launched before 2012 while now it is only 80-87sq.m," Duong
Thuy Dung, associate director and head of research and consulting services at
CBRE Viet Nam's HCM City branch, noted.
Thanks to
sophisticated designs and reasonable prices combined with promotions, sales
has consistently improved over the last three quarters.
Preliminary figures
show that transactions increased by 9.3 per cent q-o-q and 93.9 per cent y-o-y
in the second quarter.
Mekong
Delta key economic zone sees strong industrial growth
The Mekong Delta
Key Economic Zone saw its combined industrial production value of the
January-June period grow by 10.2 percent year on year to 101 trillion VND
(4.8 billion USD), according to the Central Steering Committee for the
Southwestern Region.
The zone
encompasses Can Tho City and three provinces of An Giang, Kien Giang and Ca
Mau.
The steering
committee attributed the high growth to the localities’ right policy to focus
resources on their competitive industries, which are farm and aquatic produce
processing, garment, leather and footwear, electronics, pharmaceuticals,
mechanical devices, and consumer goods.
In particular, the
region has rearranged state enterprises operating in aquatic processing, the
region’s top strength, to enhance their operation efficiency, while building
more factories of high capacity in major aquaculture areas in Ca Mau and Kien
Giang
At the same time,
the region has invested in expanding sectors of great potential, such as oil
and gas, mechanical manufacturing, chemicals, fertilizer and construction
materials.
The building of
three major electric power complexes – O Mon, Ca Mau and Kien Luong – with
capacities ranging from 9,000-9,400MW has ensured power supply for industrial
production in the region.
According to the
Government’s plan to 2020, the Mekong Delta Key Economic Zone will serve as
an industrial-trade-service hub of the Mekong Delta region as well as a major
power centre of the entire country. It will also be a major tourism centre.
The Mekong Delta
comprises 12 provinces and one centrally-run city with a total area of 40,000
square kilometres and a population of 18 million.
Brand
building strategy plays vital role in real estate business
Vietnamese
developers still remain unfamiliar with that concept of a brand personality
at a time that creating and strenghthening real estate and retail brands is
more important than ever, the Vietnam Investment Review (VIR) quoted managing
director of Red Brand Builders, Chris Elkin, as saying.
At the ‘Power Brand
Building with Impact’ seminar held in Hanoi last week, which was co-organised
by CBRE Vietnam and Red Brand Builders, experts discussed in-depth and
focused measures to provide investors, developers and real estate marketers
with a realistic assessment of the situation in the real estate market today
Brand personality,
Elkin said, requires a clear message about what developers stand for, and
they must have the focus and consistency to see the process through.
He added that
building a brand needs consistency from the beginning to the end of a project
cycle to showcase a developer’s experience and reputation to ensure the
success of a project.
Elkin outlined ways
to create, re-position, and add impact to brands for greater success in the
marketplace. He also pointed out ways to create and document a distinctive
brand personality to build long-term trust and an emotional connection with
target customers, and how to consistently communicate brand personality to
appeal to target customers at ‘touch points’ that drive sales or leasing.
Brand building is
becoming essential to real estate developers in Vietnam. Small and
medium-sized firms are trying to launch and cement their brands to expand
their presence in the market, while multi-nationals are using targeted
approaches to reach specific market segments.
Building brands,
according to Elkin, was not just spending money on advertising.
“It’s really
fundamental that local and national developers in Vietnam are beginning to
see brand building as a strategic priority. This is not something that should
be done a few months before you launch, but should start from the very
beginning and last to the very end of a project,” he explained.
In the retail
segment, brand building has been most notably used in prominent shopping
centres such as Hanoi’s Vincom Megamall Royal City, Lotte Hanoi Centre and Ho
Chi Minh City’s Crescent Mall and SC Vivo City.
All of these
projects, in their own ways, have made their presence known through a
consistent, quality brand building strategy.
According to
William Badger, associate director of the office service division of CBRE
Vietnam, firms must adapt to a changing marketplace and fast evolving
customer needs, desires and behaviours to succeed as the market improves.
To be successful in
their business, developers must be more flexible and have a serious brand
building strategy.
Apart from
traditional real estate advertising such as print, show homes, banners and
events, Badger said developers must pay more attention to more modern
channels such as digital and social media.
Elkin said
retailers cannot survive just by being “pass through” sellers. “They have to
give consumers clear reasons, an experience to choose their stores over other
competitors”.-
Pepper
development plan approved
Under a newly
appoved plan to 2020 with a vision toward 2030, Vietnam’s pepper plantation
area will be maintained at 50,000 hectares with an output of 140,000 tonnes
in total, the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Online Newspaper reported.
Under the plan,
high-quality pepper products will reach 90 percent. For product structure,
black pepper will make up 70 percent while the rest will go for white pepper.
The plan aims to earn 1.2-1.3 billion USD from pepper exports by 2020.
Major pepper
cultivation will include 10,000 hectares in Binh Phuoc, 7,000 hectares in
Dong Nai, 7,000 hectares in Ba Ria – Vung Tau, 7,000 hectares in Dak Nong,
5,500 hectares in Gia Lai and 5,000 hectares in Dak Lak. The remaining of
8,500 hectares will be covered in other localities across the country.
Minister of
Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat urged department of
agriculture and rural development in all provinces to map out their pepper
development plan in conformity with his newly appoved plan.
Phat also said
local authorities need to help their farmers with advanced farm technologies
to make their peppers meeting VietGap and Global GAP standards.
Pepper has
maintained a high export value for eight consecutive years, especially over
the past three years. Accounting for 30 percent in volume and over 50 percent
of the global market share, Vietnamese pepper has gained prestigious status
around the world, as a matter of fact, many other countries have started looking
to Vietnam’s pepper selling price as a reference point.
Vietnam shipped
abroad 92,000 tonnes of pepper in the first five months of this year, earning
645 million USD in export revenue. The sector has obtained a fantastic upward
growth of 33.6 percent in volume and 42.3 percent in value.
According to the
Vietnam Pepper Association (VPA), if these figures remain steady for the rest
of the year, Vietnam’s pepper exports in 2014 are likely to reach about
125,000–130,000 tonnes and bring in record revenue of 1 billion USD.
State budget collection up 14.5 percent in H1
State budget
collection in the first half of this year was estimated at over 335 trillion
VND (15.7 billion USD), up14.5 percent over the same period last year.
The sum represents
53.7 percent of the whole year’s estimate, according to the Ministry of
Finance’s General Department of Tax.
The achievement was
attributed to the sector’s efforts to facilitate tax declaration by firms.
The department has
worked with the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) piloted
an e-tax collection system in Hanoi, and Vinh Phuc and Bac Ninh provinces in
a bid to reduce tax filling duration.
Over 200 businesses
have to date contributed 115 billion VND to the State coffer via the system.
Online tax
declaration has been boosted in all 63 provinces and cities with the
involvement of over 366,900 firms.
In addition, more
than 90 trillion VND of tax has been collected through 20 commercial banks
across the country.-
Labour
exports to Japan, RoK up 180 percent
More than 55,000
Vietnamese workers sent abroad in the first half of 2014, accounting for 63.5
percent of the plan set for the whole year, the Government news portal
reported.
According to the
Overseas Workers Management Department under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids
and Social Affairs (MOLISA), the labour exports to
However, the total
labourers sent to work in
Over the first half
of the year, 16 businesses have been licensed to operate in labour exports,
raising the total number of businesses in this field to 196 nationwide.
Last year,
The MOLISA said
earlier this year that it will accelerate the sending of skilled workers
abroad while consolidating such traditional markets as Ta iwan and
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Thứ Bảy, 12 tháng 7, 2014
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