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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 22/12
5-star tourism complex for
Hoa Binh Real Estate Company started construction of Star Bay
Tourism Complex in
The complex is to have a 250-room hotel and 50 bungalows,
built at a five-star standard. This is the first project in which the company
took charge of both design and building construction. This arrangement is
expected to bring convenience to investors and contractors.
The company also started construction of JW Marriott on the
island earlier this month. This project has a total investment worth VND72
billion.
FLC Group acquires The Lavender project
FLC Group has acquired The Lavender project at a favourable
location in the capital Ha Dong District centre, and renamed it
Le Thanh Vinh, a member of FLC's management board, said that
the details of the acquisition have not been revealed. However, the group
will buy projects with attractive market and development costs. In addition,
the project is expected to be a hit in the property market.
The Lavender has 41 floors with four underground levels,
including offices, trade centres and apartments.
The FLC Group has bought two projects, Alaska Garden City and
36 Pham Hung.
Nakheel to re-invest in Ha Long Star project
The United Arab Emirates-based real estate developer Nakheel
will re-invest in January 2015 in the Ha Long Star urban and tourism project
in the northern Quang Ninh province.
The Dau Tu (Investment) newspaper reported that the commitment
was made during a recent official visit to theUAE by
The 125ha, US$550-million project aims to build a
five-starhotel with 250 rooms, a luxury hotel with 100 rooms and 226 villas,
as well as 114 apartments and a commercial centre.
Though its groundbreaking ceremony was held in 2007, the
project has been delayed due to the corporation's financial difficulties.
Course improves skills to promote trade in EU
A training course to develop strategies and improve skills to
promote trade in the EU market was opened yesterday in the southern
The two-day event is jointly held by the Export
PromotionCentre (PROMOCEN) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade's Trade
Promotion Department, the Tourism,Commerce and Investment Promotion Centre of
KienGiang province (KITRA), and the European Trade Policy and Investment
Support Project (EU-MUTRAP).
According to KITRA Deputy Director Nguyen Giai Phong,the EU is
a potential market posing both opportunities and challenges to Vietnamese
businesses. The course is expected to help organisations and enterprises to
increase their ability to access this market. More than 50 participants were
offered new trade promotion knowledge and skills, as well as methods of
building strategies for small and medium-sized enterprises to enter the EU
market.
After the course, the trainees will be able to evaluate the
effectiveness of each form of trade promotion and select suitable promotions
for their businesses. They will also learn how to build, develop services and
protect product trademarks.
VN exports to
Among
Despite this encouraging growth,
To increase exports to such a lucrative market, Cuong
suggested domestic enterprises improve the quality of their products and
offer better product designs. The firms should also take the initiative to
seek new customers by participating in trade fairs held annually in
Short-term foreign lending extended
The State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) will extend short-term
foreign currency lending to exporters and petrol importers by one year, in a
move to support these businesses, said SBV Governor Nguyen Thi Hong.
Under the SBV's Circular No 29/2013/TT-NHNN on lending in
foreign currencies, issued in 2013, lending would expire on December 31 this
year. Beginning January 1, 2015, only a limited number of borrowers,
exclusive exporters and petrol importers were to receive foreign currency
loans.
Hong said that after scrutinising past lending, as well as
targeting to meet the country's 6.2 per cent GDP growth rate next year, as
approved by the National Assembly, the central bank decided not to call in
loans by the end of this year, as planned, but to extend payments until the
end of 2015.
Both businesses and bankers want the central bank to extend
the deadline for lending in foreign currencies, because they have
significantly benefited from this lending.
Economists have also advised the central bank to extend loan
payments, saying that any signs of credit growth, no matter whether it is the
Vietnamese dong or foreign currency credit growth, should be seen as good
news in the current circumstances.
Circular No 29, released in 2013 but taking effect in early
2014, was aimed to ease more businesses in accessing dollar loans, as it
expands the list of subjects that can receive dollar loans from banks, within
the context of the country's economic difficulty and low credit growth.
The regulation, plus a stable dong/dollar exchange rate and a
lower interest rate of dollar than dong loans, has prompted businesses to
rush to borrow dollars, which had contributed significantly to pushing up the
country's recent credit growth.
According to the central bank's statistics, foreign currency
outstanding loans within the banking system increased 20.77 per cent as of
the end of September, which was five times higher than dong outstanding
loans.
Of the total foreign currency outstanding loans, exports and
petrol imports accounted for roughly 30 per cent. Further, lending on export
businesses made up 24 per cent and the remaining 6 per cent of loans had been
to petrol importers.
In the fourth quarter the
The Government's success in reducing inflation (and lending
rates), cutting back spending, attracting foreign direct investment and
achieving reasonable GDP growth of 5.6 per cent have improved market
conditions, which in turn have improved the confidence and outlook of both
established businesses and new investors.
This demand in the market combined with limited supply has
helped to stabilise rents and reduce vacancy rates. In the fourth quarter
rents for both grades A and B have been quite stable (0.1 percentage points
down from the previous quarter).
In terms of vacancy rates, grade B performed slightly better
than grade A as they declined by 3 and 1.8 percentage points from a year
earlier.
Net absorption in the quarter improved significantly for both
grades A and B – by 59.8 pps and 31.7 pps – which the latter continuing to
perform better than the former.
The five most active sectors were banking, finance, insurance,
drugs, manufacturing and IT/technology even as relocation for cost reasons
ceased to be a major driver.
Expansion and new leasing are expected to drive the office
market next year given the economy is improving and
For small- to average-sized occupiers, the market does still
provide some viable options, but for occupiers seeking quality, international
standard, and managed buildings in the central business districts, limited
new supply will come from large scale, mixed-use projects and from those
developed partly for owner occupation.
The notable projects coming online in 2015 include Vietcombank,
Viettel, and SSG .
So while construction can be seen across the central business
district, the reality is that for large tenants planning an occupancy
solution, the market will remain tight until the end of 2014.
As a result rent levels will remain stable at least until Q1
2015 when the next wave of supply comes online.
Demand high for cheap homes
The northern
However, the supply of social housing projects remained
modest, according to Department of Construction Deputy Director Nguyen Manh
Tuan.
No commercial housing projects were converted into social
housing projects in the province thus far. Meanwhile, there were only few
low-priced commercial housing projects.
Currently, only two projects at Ha Long Marina Urban Area
invested by Syrena Viet
However, experts disclosed that the disbursement of the $1.4
billion support package remained slow due to the scarce low-priced housing
supply and complicated procedures for loan acquisitions from the package.
Do Van Khanh, a representative from the provincial Labour
Federation, said that the demand of accommodation for workers and low-income
earners is very large in the province, which has 11 industrial zones and many
industrial clusters.
However, incomes of local labourers remained low, which only
amount to an average of roughly VND3.5 million–4.5 million ($165–212) per
month. These salaries are not enough for residents to set aside money to
purchase houses – even low-priced apartments, he added.
Do Thi Loan, deputy director of Vietcombank Quang Ninh,
pointed out that complicated procedures for preferential loans from the
support package has been one of the major problems.
Statistics from the State of Viet Nam's branch in Quang Ninh
Province showed that 56 individuals have been provided loans from the
package, with a total outstanding loan of VND33.5 billion ($1.58 million), as
of the end of October.
Syrena Viet Nam Sales Manager Pham Van Nam noted that property
investors would cooperate with banks to support home-buyers in completing the
loan procedures.
Low inflation leaves room for interest rate cuts
Inflation is expected to dip lower next year, which could give
the central bank room to cutback loan interest rates, according to the
Ministry of Planning and Investment.
Initially, the inflation rate was projected to be four per
cent next year, as revealed in a meeting on Wednesday, Vneconomy reported.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment said any price
adjustments, whether in case of products or services in domains such as
healthcare, education, power and petrol, must be carefully considered to
prevent any significant impact. Similarly, any decision to adjust the price
of oil should be critically deliberated upon, as well.
This followed the Electricity of Viet Nam's proposal to raise
power tariffs by an average of 9.5 per cent, beginning this month.
According to the ministry, the input-output analysis (I/O)
revealed that a 9.5 per cent increase in power price would raise the
production cost by 0.55 per cent. It would also cause the end-consumption of
households to decline by 0.58 per cent and the gross domestic product (GDP)
growth rate to decrease by 0.45 per cent.
In addition, cutting the loan interest rate by one per cent
would increase the GDP growth rate by 0.45 per cent and cause the inflation
rate to decline by 0.76 per cent.
An expert said that the loan interest rates of
The government of
Last month, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung had said
SSC advises against making hasty invesments amidst market
turmoil
The State Securities Commission (SSC) has reassured investors
and asked them to not make hasty investments amidst the stock market turmoil
of the past month.
The SSC said in a press release, issued late Thursday
following another steep plunge in the market, that the macroeconomic condition
had improved substantially this year. In addition, the business performance
of the listed companies reflected positive changes. Therefore, both domestic
and foreign institutions should maintain optimistic views about the country's
economic recovery.
The watchdog pointed out that interest rates and prices of raw
input materials on the world market would continue to decline in the long
term, which would help cut back on production costs and improve business
efficiency and profitability.
Liquidity has increased despite the declines in stock indices
due to the active purchasing activities of securities companies and
investment funds.
According to analysts, recent steep slumps in the market may
have been the result of the massive selling of mortgaged shares by securities
companies. It may also be partly due to the predatory short sells of several
"shark" investors as part of efforts to further depress the stock
prices.
The SSC said that it was closely monitoring movements in the market.
It would also promptly handle any violations it discovers to ensure the sound
development of the market.
The Ministry of Finance has affirmed that the declines in oil
prices had negatively affected the state's budget. However, the whole economy
is benefiting from this trend due to the higher value of gasoline imports
compared with the export value of crude oil.
The ministry's data show that total imports of gasoline in the
first 10 months reached US$7.2 billion, while exports of crude oil earned the
country $6.3 billion.
The impact of Circular 36, which restricted lending to stock
investments to only five per cent of the banks' charter capital, remains
unclear due to inadequate stock lending information in the market. However,
the market watchdog said that it would observe the market's development to
make recommendations following the circular's enactment.
The stock market has more than 700 companies and 80 securities
companies listed. The business performance of most companies have
substantially improved compared with the past year. Data show that the
nine-month profitability of these companies rose to over 10 per cent
year-on-year.
Many large companies, such as PV Gas (GAS), PetroVietnam
Drilling and Wells Service Corp (PVD), Hoa Phat Group (HPG) and Hoa Sen Group
(HSG), have even completed and surpassed their profit targets for this year.
Japan jumping into
Japanese real estate investors are diving into the
The trend of market expansion in Asia is
Some major Japanese companies have even decided to relocate
their offices to
A Japanese company is preparing to close on one of
He added that the revised Housing Law approved recently that
allows foreigners to buy and own houses in
The Mekong Delta region’s unhusked rice output is likely to
reach 25.2 million tonnes this year, according to the Cultivation Department
under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The figure represents an increase of 708,000 tonnes compared
with the harvest last year and 56 percent of the country’s total output.
The three provinces of Kien Giang, An Giang and Dong Thap
together produce 11.7 million tonnes.
That impressive output must be attributed to the fact that
provinces in the region increased the area of rice cultivaton to nearly 4.4
million hectares, according to Nguyen Phong Quang, deputy head of the
Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region.
The use of new high-yield and disease-resistant rice varieties
also helped increase the output as well as the quality of husked rice, Phong
added.
The Mekong Delta is likely to export 5.85 million tonnes of
rice in 2014 worth 2.9 billion USD, equal to the last year’s value, according
to the Steering Committee for the Southwestern Region.
The region shipped abroad 5.6 million tonnes of rice as of
December 15, and is going to export an additional 250,000 tonnes in the
remaining days of the year.
Forum gathers 500 outstanding young entrepreneurs
As many as 500 young successful entrepreneurs from across
The Vietnam Young Leaders Forum 2014, held by the Business
Startup Support Centre under the Vietnam Youth Federation’s
Organisers said the event was aimed to encourage young
businesspersons’ determination of doing business and sense of responsibility
towards the community.
It was also meant to connect young entrepreneurs nationwide to
form a community that will together improve their knowledge and innovative
spirit, thus contributing to national development.
During the forum, exemplars from various sectors shared their
stories and discussed with their peers issues such as breakthrough vision,
challenges of integration, personnel trademark, and responsibility to the
society.
FTA to create more rooms for Vietnam-Customs Union cooperation
The signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) between
Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang and Trade Minister
of the Eurasian Economic Commission Andrei A.Slepnhev signed a joint
statement on the conclusion of the Vietnam-Custom Union Free Trade Agreement
(VCUFTA) on December 15 in the southern
Witnessing the event, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said the
signing and implementation of the agreement will be an important progress to
enhance bilateral relations in economy, education-training,
science-technology, and culture. He urged the two sides to finalise all
necessary procedures to put final touches on the agreement in early 2015.
The contents cover trade in goods and services, investment,
rules of origin, trade remedy, customs facilitation, technical barriers to
trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures and legal and institutional
issues.
Andrei A.Slepnhev, head of the union’s negotiation delegation,
said the signing of the pact will boost two-way trade vigorously and promote
investment ties among economic members.
From 2015, the Customs Union will be changed into the Eurasian
Economic Union with the admission of
Minister Vu Huy Hoang described the union as a promising
market. With the VCUFTA, local exports to
The union provides
Meanwhile,
Sharp declines in the value of the rouble were posing a
serious risk to companies in
Le Dang Doanh, former head of Central Institute for Economic
Management (CIEM), told reporters the rouble had dropped by more than 50 percent
in value in US dollar terms and warned of serious consequences for Vietnamese
companies doing business with
“I am concerned about the ability of Russian importers to pay
their bills," he said.
Bilateral trade was reported at USD1.83bn in 2010, USD2.76bn
in 2013 and is expected to be worth USD4bn in 2014, with growth forecast to
reach USD10-12 billion in five years.
The collapsing rouble may slow the Russian economy, with
adverse consequences for
The collapse of the rouble was also having an impact on trade
with the former Soviet republics of
Doanh warned that Vietnamese companies should be careful in
transactions with Russian partners.
“It is important to regulate clearly whether the deal is in US
dollars or roubles," Doanh said.
Thanh Thuy-Tianbao checkpoint elevated to international border
gate
The announcement was made on December 19 by the Ha Giang
People’s Committee and the People’s Government of Yunnan.
The Thanh Thuy-Tianbao is the first Vietnam-China checkpoint
to become an international border gate since the two countries completed land
border demarcation.
Deputy Minister Khoi asked the Ha Giang authorities to
co-ordinate with the
Vice Governor of the Yunnan People’s Government Gao Shuxun said
the upgrade of the Thanh Thuy-Tianbao checkpoint will open new opportunities
for co-operation between border provinces of the two countries and help build
a border of peace, stability and development.
The Thanh Thuy-Tianbao border gate officially opened in June
1993.
The Cultivation Department under the Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Development (MARD) must review cocoa development plans and draw
specific measures to encourage farmers to grow this industrial tree.
At a recent conference in
He said his ministry has deployed a number of agricultural
promotion programmes to make cocoa the country’s major produce.
The ministry has planned about 50,000 ha for cocoa cultivation
by 2020 but only 16,000 ha has been put into use to date, he said, adding
that unclear development orientations have made the crop less attractive to
farmers.
Phan Van Don, Vice Director of southern Binh Phuoc province’s
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, attributed insufficient
investment and poor farmers’ knowledge to the unsuccessful development of the
cocoa industry.
He suggested good credit sources to encourage farmers to grow
cocoa as well as the involvement of businesses in building a value chain for
the crop.
Participants at the conference agreed that in order to boost
the cocoa development, the Government and relevant agencies should equip
farmers with farming techniques as well as help them better access
consumption markets.
According to the Cultivation Department,
More Japanese businesses invest in service in HCM City
There is a growing tendency of seek investment opportunities
in the field of service among Japanese companies, heard a workshop in
The workshop, held by the Japanese External Trade Organisation
(JETRO), saw about 60 Vietnamese businesses and 17 Japanese enterprises,
including renowned trademarks such as Comline, Musashi, Doutor Coffee, in
attendance.
According to the organising board, the Japanese businesses are
interested in estate-related information and seeking spaces for restaurant
and beauty care services in major commercial centres and shopping malls in
They also seek partners in a bid to expand
Ho Xuan Lam, Vice Director of the Investment and Trade Promotion
Centre, said that
Since 2013, Japanese businesses have injected their money in
more than 100 projects in the field of service in southern
Additional US$54.8 mln injected in Can Tho industrial parks
The Mekong Delta city of Can Tho attracted US$54.8 million in
investment in this year, US$7 million higher than 2013, bringing the total
capital in the locality’s industrial parks to US$1.91 billion.
The new investments came from five new projects and 14
expanded others, Vo Thanh Hung, head of the Management Board of Can Tho
Industrial Parks, told a meeting to review this year’s investment attraction
in Can Tho city on December 18.
Can Tho is home to 214 valid projects, including 23
foreign-invested ones. Of the total, 192 projects are operational while 22
others are under construction. They generated stable jobs for 32,000 workers.
Despite difficulties in production and business, enterprises
at industrial parks raked in US$1.4 billion in revenues, equal to that of
last year. Of the figure, industrial production value reached US$1 billion
and trade service, US$391 million.
Over the year, the industrial parks’ export was US$582
million, up 8% from a year ago and accounting for 43% of the city’s total
goods value.
Of the city’s all eight industrial parks, Tra Noc I and Tra
Noc II have the highest proportion of land hired by businesses with 100% and
91%, respectively, Hung said.
In a bid to attract more investors, Can Tho has pumped VND213
billion (US$10.1 million) in building waste water treatment plants with a
total capacity of 12,000 cubic metres per day in the two industrial parks.
The plants are expected to be operational in the beginning of next year.
Credit organisations continue to offer foreign currency loans
The State Bank of
SBV Vice Governor Nguyen Thi Hong told the media on December
18 that short-term loans in hard currency will help businesses save borrowing
cost in comparison with loans in Vietnamese dong while credit institutions
will find it easier to fulfill their credit growth target since hard currency
credit is one of the key drivers of the growth.
Currently, foreign currency loans of exporters and petroleum
dealers account for a meager 6 percent of the total outstanding debt so that
the foreign exchange market is less prone to volatility, Hong added.
Outstanding debt held by the export and oil & gas sectors
makes up about 30 percent of the banking system’s total foreign currency
debt. As of the late September, the outstanding foreign currency debt
expanded over 20.77 percent, five times higher than that in Vietnamese dong.
In previously banks were allowed to consider lending foreign
currency to those in need of short-term, mid-term and long-term loans for
payment for foreign partners, including fuel traders, and overseas direct
investment.
Coffee exports end 2014 on high note
For the year, the country exported more than 1.7 million tons
of coffee, an increase of 33% in volume, with an average price of
US$2,086/tonne per ton, 2.46% lower than 2013.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
(MARD), the
Markets posting a high growth rate included
Currently,
According to the (Vicofa),
Another disadvantage is that
Fourteen out of the 30 export businesses with the largest
turnover have been foreign invested ones. These businesses have faced fierce
competition from FDI businesses in order to become the main supplier for
international coffee roasters and grinders.
Le Tien Hung, general director of the Daklak September 2nd
Import-Export Company Limited (Simexco Daklak) says major exporters
have long been in need of high quality coffee to sell at high prices without
selling directly to foreign roasters and grinders.
Moreover, foreign grinders do not want to purchase all of
their coffee from one nation like
Consequently, Vietnamese businesses would have to export
through brokerage channels and have to suffer a loss.
Vicofa predicts that in the new crop, Vietnam’s coffee output
would decrease 20-25% compared to the 2013-2014 period as Arabia coffee drops
30% and Robusta coffee in the Central Highlands has been hit by severe
drought.
The nation aims to export 1.4 million tonnes of coffee next
year, grossing over US$3 billion, down 200,000 tonnes compared to the
previous crop.
The
However, foreign news agencies namely Group Sopex and
Bloomberg analyzed
Vietnamese market analyst Nguyen Quang Binh appeared
pessimistic about the export growth next year due to inventories. He
expressed belief that the coffee prices would not increase sharply as there
are huge coffee stockpiles in the country.
Luong Van Tu, Vicofa President said Vietnamese coffee would
face challenges due to the signing of free trade agreements (FTA) and the
establishment of ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in the coming time.
Local businesses would have to face tough competition from
regional nations in terms of price and volume.Vicofa would co-ordinate with
the Ministry of Health's Food Safety Department to build a set of standards
for Vietnamese coffee in 2015 with a focus on helping farmers re-cultivate
coffee and call on businesses to become involved in the processing field.
G2G rice export contracts hard to win
Global markets still have high demand for rice through
government-to-government (G2G) contracts next year but insiders said it will
be difficult for
Huynh The Nang, general director of Vietnam Southern Food
Corporation (Vinafood 2), told the Daily that there remains high demand of
major markets for rice import next year, especially via G2G contracts.
The Philippines is expected to import around 600,000 tons of
rice and organize a tender in January next year although its National Food
Authority (NFA) previously rejected the information about the country’s need
to buy more rice due to the impact of Typhoon Hagupit.
However, domestic rice exporters have yet to sign any G2G
contracts to ship large volumes of rice next year. To win such deals,
Vietnamese enterprises will have to beat competitors from other major rice
exporting countries, Nang said.
A rice export analyst said domestic rice exporters will see more
pressure from
“We can’t make any predictions about the Chinese market,” the
analyst said. “It will be hard for us to compete in exporting normal rice in
the short and medium terms.”
The Vietnam Food Association (VFA) and rice traders said
Although Africa needs some 14 million tons of normal rice a
year, Vietnamese exporters have not won any contracts from importers in East
Africa while they have been able to ship small volumes of rice to
VFA said its member enterprises had contracted to export some
seven million tons of rice as of November 20 this year. If they can ship 6.2
million tons of rice this year as targeted, they will carry forward the
remaining 800,000 tons for export to next year.
The ANZ-Roy Morgan Vietnam Consumer Confidence has fallen by
5.3 points to 135.6 points in December as found in a recent survey conducted
in seven provinces and cities in the country.
The decrease is primarily attributable to a drop in confidence
in economic conditions in
Results showed respondents have significantly reduced their
confidence in the local economy. Only 50% of participants, down 13 percentage
points, said the economy will have ‘good times’ financially during the next
12 months. Meanwhile, 15% of the total figure, up 10 percentage points,
project ‘bad times’ financially, the highest on record for this indicator
since June.
Of the total respondents, 59%, down nine percentage points,
expect
In terms of personal finances, 34% of Vietnamese, up five
percentage points, said their families are ‘better off’ financially than a
year ago compared to 22%, down one percentage point, who said their families
are ‘worse off’ financially.
Some 58% of respondents, up 10 percentage points, expect their
families will be ‘better off’ financially this time next year, the highest on
record for this indicator since early this year, compared to just 5%
(unchanged) who expect to be ‘worse off’ financially.
“The Vietnamese economy, and the consumer in particular,
continues to slowly but surely transition back to normal after a difficult
few years after the credit crunch,” said Glenn Maguire, ANZ Chief Economist
for South Asia, ASEAN & Pacific.
“The resilience in family financial assessment stands in
contrast with the economic assessment for the next year, with 50% of
respondents (down an unusually large 13 percentage points) saying
The drivers of Vietnamese consumer confidence appear to be
decoupling from the overall drivers of the economy, and equity and gold
prices, and the aligned wealth effects from both of those, are likely to play
a key role.
According to Maguire, if gold prices were to stabilize or
rise, in the U.S. dollar terms, then with a gentle depreciation of
Samsung mulls many major projects in Vietnam
Samsung is expected to increase its registered capital in
The report, which the ministry submitted to the Government,
said Samsung has registered an additional investment of US$5.4 billion this
year, accounting for 31% of total foreign direct investment (FDI) approvals
as of last month.
With the fresh investment pledge, Samsung is now the biggest
foreign investor in
Samsung is currently working on a number of major
infrastructure projects in the country.
Samsung C&T has signed a memorandum of understanding with
the Ministry of Industry and Trade to develop Vung Ang 3 thermal power plant
in Ha Tinh Province under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) format. The
investor plans to submit the feasibility study for the 1,200-MW power project
worth US$2.45 billion early next year.
Samsung is also seeking to participate in the Long Thanh
airport project in the southern
The company is also considering investing in a shipbuilding
complex covering 300 hectares in Cam Ranh,
Besides, Samsung has agreed on the location for a research and
development center at The Manor Central Park in
Electronics is still the strength of Samsung in
Samsung Electronics has been licensed to develop the Samsung
CE Complex at Saigon Hi-Tech Park in HCMC’s District 9 to produce electronic
items. The project will get off the ground early next year and be
commissioned in the second quarter of 2016.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment has proposed the
Government tell relevant agencies and localities to review and facilitate the
projects planned by Samsung as they match
Survey: Businesses upbeat about economic recovery
Vietnamese enterprises are optimistic about the current
business environment and the country’s economic recovery from a slowdown in
the past years, according to a recent survey by Vietnam Report.
Respondents of the annual study titled Policy Debate No. 8
released by Vietnam Report on Wednesday said they believed in strong growth
of the local economy from 2015 to 2020.
The study was conducted among 5,000 companies in
The macro-economic picture has improved basically. This year,
there have been positive signs such as better macro stability and economic
growth. Exports have increased while inflation is low.
Many experts expected that the economy would perform better
next year and the nation would become an attractive destination for
investors.
Most large enterprises said that their revenues have increased
or stabilized compared to the previous year. The ratio of enterprises
downbeat about the business situation has dropped steadily in recent years,
from 21.9% in 2012 to 9.1% in 2014.
Big companies have been more confident thanks to their better
operations. According to the VNR500 List, the total revenue of the top 10
firms has reached an estimated VND2.4 trillion, up 14.8% from the previous
year.
Besides, they said interest rate cuts for loans is the top
priority in the current context as it will help reduce loan pressure on
companies and speed up credit growth.
Having suffered adverse impacts from the economic recession,
enterprises have reported higher credit demand to expand business and
production. However, some firms, especially small and medium ones, still find
it hard to access bank loans.
Regarding obstacles to business operations, 44.4% expressed
concerns over prolix administrative procedures, followed by infrastructure bottlenecks
(37.4%), input material prices (31.3%) and trade promotion and market
expansion (31.3%).
Japanese restaurant firms eye Vietnam
Many Japanese operators of restaurant chains are visiting
They are among the 17 service companies of
At a business matching meeting held by the Japan External
Trade Organization (JETRO) in HCMC on December 18, Toma Koji from Gyushige
Dream System Co. Ltd. said the company wants to open barbecue eateries in
Gyushige Dream System expected to cooperate with restaurant
businesses in
Like Gyushige Dream System, other Japanese restaurant
enterprises such as Comline Co. Ltd., Musashi Co. Ltd., Bigchoice Co. Ltd.
and Y.S.Food Co. Ltd. also want to invest or franchise in
According to Kameda Michihiko from Y.S.Food, the company
opened a restaurant in HCMC last August and plans to expand its presence in
Yasuzumi Hirotaka, managing director of JETRO in HCMC, told
reporters on the sidelines of the meeting that restaurant business takes up a
large proportion of Japanese investments in the service sector in
Hirotaka said as many Japanese service enterprises have
invested in
Fuel enterprises make big bucks
Fuel wholesalers are earning profits of as high as VND1,300
and VND1,000 for each liter of petrol and oil sold respectively until the
planned next fuel price adjustment tomorrow under the prevailing regulations
on fuel trading.
Joint Circular 39/2014/TTLT-BCT-BTC issued by the ministries
of finance and industry-trade regulates that fuel price management agencies
announce the base fuel prices every 15 days for wholesale firms to adjust
their retail prices.
Therefore, the next adjustment will come on December 20
because the latest revision of fuel prices was made on December 6.
A source from a fuel trading firm in southern
Since Decree 83/2014/ND-CP on fuel trading came into force on
November 1, fuel wholesalers have waited for the two ministries’ instructions
over retail price revisions.
On December 5, the Ministry of Finance increased import
tariffs on petrol, diesel and kerosene to 27%, 23% and 26% respectively. This
move led to a lower-than-expected reduction in fuel retail prices despite
tumbling oil prices on global markets.
According to the ministry, the allowable maximum import tax
rate of fuel is up to 40% if world oil prices fall to below US$60 per barrel.
The global fuel prices have fallen sharply compared to the
period before retail prices were reduced on the domestic market on December
6.
According to data on the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s
website, RON92 petrol cost US$64.77 per barrel on global markets on Tuesday
while the respective prices of diesel 0.05S, kerosene and heavy fuel oil
stood at US$73.4 per barrel, US$74.5 per barrel, and US$312.6 per ton.
Local wholesalers are offering discounts of a hefty VND850-900
per liter of fuel for dealers, according to the owner of a gas station
selling products of PetroVietnam Oil Corporation (PV Oil) in the
north-central
The existing regulations set the standard fuel trading cost at
VND1,050 per liter of petrol, VND950 per liter of kerosene and diesel, and
VND600 per kilo of heavy fuel oil.
Source:
VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Chủ Nhật, 21 tháng 12, 2014
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