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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 1/1
Government’s SCIC continues flight from cement firms
The State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) is selling its
entire stake in Saigon Cement Joint Stock Company (SCJ).
The SCIC has announced that it will sell all of its 16.44 per
cent holding in the company, or 3.2 million shares, on December 31 for an
initial price of VND14,300 (70 US cents) per share, 54 per cent higher than
the market price of VND9.300 (43 US cents). The purpose of the sale,
according to the SCIC, is to divest from sectors and firms in which the state
does not need to hold shares.
The SCIC is currently the biggest shareholder in SCJ, followed
by Nguyen Van Bong, SCJ’s general director, with 15.37 per cent. The
remaining 68 per cent is held by other shareholders. SCJ has a chartered
capital of VND195.1 billion ($9.16 million).
As of June 30, 2014 SCJ’s assets were valued at VND526 billion
($24.7 million), while its total debts amounted to 50.5 per cent of its total
assets.
In 2012, due to high financial costs, SCJ reported losses of
VND11.9 billion ($560,000). However, in 2013 SCJ achieved profitability
again. In the first three quarters of this year the company reported net
profit of VND15.4 billion ($723,000).
On September 23 the SCIC finished selling its entire 40 per
cent stake in Yen Bai Cement and Minerals Joint Stock Company (YBC), a small
cement producer that has been reporting losses for three years and was
resultantly delisted.
Masan Group Corporation, one of
The move is part of Masan Group’s efforts to continue building
and investing in
Masan Group also announced that together with the new
initiatives, Masan Consumer Holdings (MCH) shall have experienced a
transformational year where it has emerged as the group’s primary platform to
invest further in
The initiatives that have occurred or are expected to be
completed in 2014 include becoming sole owner of Masan Group’s interest in
Masan Consumer, completing a landmark bond issuance and Entering the beer
market.
Accordingly, Masan Group has restructured by consolidating its
direct and indirect interests in Masan Consumer into MCH. By the end of 2014,
MCH is expected to have further increased its ownership percentage in Masan
Consumer.
In early December, MCH completed a landmark 10-year bond
issuance, which raised VND2,100 billion at an 8 per cent fixed coupon rate.
The bonds are the longest tenure and lowest cost issuance by a private sector
company in
Meanwhile, MCH will become the sole and direct owner of Masan
Brewery, which currently produces the Su Tu Trang beer brand. Previously,
Masan Brewery was held directly by the Group. As a result, MCH will have
another major vertical for growth as beer is a $4 billion consumer category
in
In addition, other initiatives that have been announced and/or
expected to be completed within 2014 at MCH’s subsidiary, Masan Consumer,
include establishing Masan Beverage, Cholimex tender offer and sale of
non-strategic assets. Following these initiatives, Masan Consumer has
established a new subsidiary to consolidate its non-alcoholic beverage
businesses and to better position it to win in the bottled beverage sector;
is on track to become a major shareholder in Cholimex, a well-known sauces
and condiments company in Vietnam, with brands that have been in the market
place for nearly 30 years; and aims to improve its operational focus by
divesting a non-strategic subsidiary, Minh Viet Packaging, which produces
some of the Group’s packaging materials.
The initiatives outlined for Masan Consumer do not include
ongoing M&A discussions. With its best-in-class operating platform, Masan
Consumer is a strong position to advance the development of acquired
businesses, which it has been able to achieve at Vinacafe and Vinh Hao.
To further sharpen the Group’s focus and demonstrate the role
of MCH as a key strategic driver of future growth, Masan Group is in the
process of strengthening its cash position by the sale of Masan Agri. The
cash is expected to provide the Group with more resources and flexibility to
support MCH’s growth and invest in transformational opportunities.
Given the strong rebound of the economy and growth of investee
companies, Vietnam-focused funds management firm Mekong Capital ended a
successful year for 2014.
“2014 is the best year for the performance of our investee
companies in our 13 year history. All of the consumer-driven businesses
performed well,” said Chris Freund, partner at Mekong Capital.
“In general, consumer markets are growing at attractive rates
in
MobileWorld can be said to be the most successful investee
company of Mekong Capital in 2014. The electronics retailer’s net profit was
up 183 per cent in the first eleven months of the year, according to Mekong
Capital.
With the opening of 124 new MobileWorld stores and eight
Dienmay.com stores nationwide over the course of a year, the company’s
market-share in retail of smart phones and tablets currently stands at around
27 per cent of the
In the year of 2014, Mekong Capital also got positive news
from An Giang Plant Protection, one of
Mekong Capital announced that the Vietnam Azalea Fund has been
cooperating closely with SCPE and other shareholders to add value, and
empower the company’s transformation from a distributor of crop protection
chemicals into a total solutions provider to farmers, and a
vertically-integrated rice producer.
Meanwhile, Traphaco has implemented a major transformation in
its sales network, by which it now sells 80 per cent of its pharmaceutical
products directly to a network of 20,000 pharmacies rather than selling via
wholesales or sub-distributors.
“This will lead to significant revenue and profit growth in
2015,” said Freund.
Freund believed Mekong Capital’s framework for adding value
called Vision Driven Investing to investee companies was implemental in
helping the companies to grow in 2014. Some of the key components of the
Vision Driven Investing include aligning with the companies around a clear
long-term goal and then partnering together to achieve that goal. Often this
involves active use of the third party experts to help introduce best
practices.
Although Mekong Capital doesn’t get involved in the management
of its investee companies, Freund said the fund management firm “spend a lot
of time meeting with our investee companies.”
Based on the positive signals of the economy, including credit
growth and low inflation, Freund believed Mekong Capital would continue an
excellent year in 2015.
“And if TPP is approved, that will be an additional catalyst
for
Government to invest $47 million in debt-laden steel firm
Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel JSC (TIS) plans to sell 100 million
shares at VND10,000 ($0.47) per unit to the State Capital Investment
Corporation (SCIC) in the fourth quarter of 2014 and first quarter of 2015.
Tisco products are used in many important national projects.
The corporation is expected to receive $47.6 million from the State Capital
Investment Corporation to improve production. - Photo tisco.com.vn
If successful, the issuance would bring TIS’ charter capital
up to VND2.840 trillion ($133.3 million), 35.2 per cent of which will be
contributed by the SCIC and 42.1 per cent by Vietnam Steel Corporation
(VNSteel).
Transfer of these shares will be restricted till a year after
the issue is concluded and all proceeds will be used for phase 2 of a project
to expand TIS’ production.
TIS reported consolidated losses of VND109 million ($5,166) in
the first half of 2014, compared to a loss of VND844 million ($40,000) over
the same period last year. As of June 30, TIS, with equity of VND1.71
trillion ($81 million), had liabilities of VND7.541 trillion ($357.4
million), of which VND2.2 trillion ($104.2 million) was short-term debts.
The project to expand TIS started in 2007 but has been
suspended twice due to capital shortages and unfavourable market
developments. The cost for phase two has risen from the initial VND3.843
trillion ($182.1 million) to VND8.104 trillion ($384 million). The value of
the partly finished phase two is currently at VND4.330 trillion ($205.2
million), according to the company’s first half financial statement.
Proconco inaugurates latest animal feed plant
Vietnamese-French joint venture Proconco, one of the biggest
providers of animal feed in
The new facility is the company’s seventh in
Nguyen Thi Le Hong, chairwoman of Proconco said the factory
would cover five hectares and produce 150,000 tonnes of product per year.
Hong added that in the second phase, the company would invest $18.7 million
into doubling its capacity. According to Hong, the new facility will meet the
increasing demand for animal feed in central and Central Highlands provinces.
Animal feed companies in
According to the Vietnam Animal Feed Association, this year
the total capacity of animal feed is set to increase 10 per cent compared to
the same period last year.
The compound feed industry in
Last year,
In the first ten months of this year, Vietnam spent $2.79
billion importing animal feed and supplemental foods, up 6.3 per cent
on-year, mainly from Argentina (38.4 per cent), the US (12.2 per cent) and
China (9 per cent).
Can Tho refinery gets new deadline
The final deadline for the long-delayed Can Tho oil refinery
was released last week by the local authorities.
In its latest announcement to Can Tho Oil Refinery Limited,
the Can Tho City People’s Committee said that the firm would have its
investment certificate revoked if work did not start on the $350 million oil
refinery by January 15.
According to Le Manh Tung, deputy director of the Can Tho
Municipal Planning and Investment Department, the investor must finish all
procedures, such as changing partners, paying a deposit, proving its
financial capacity, and negotiating with the contractors prior to this
deadline. This is not the first time that the investor in the Can Tho
refinery has been threatened with having its investment certificate revoked.
The project was originally licensed in May 2008 and
intended to be developed by the local firm Vien Dong Company in conjunction
with the
With the additional investment capital of $1.8 billion, the
Dung Quat oil refinery will be upgraded to the annual refining capacity of
8.5 million tonnes, from the current 6.5 million tonnes of crude oil.
Invested in by the state-run PetroVietnam, the refinery began
operating in 2009. Currently, the refinery’s output has helped meet 30 per
cent of the domestic demand for a range of petroleum-based products. The
refinery is likely to post profits of VND4 trillion ($190 million) this year.
The Vietnamese government has permitted PetroVietnam to either
totally invest in the expanded refinery itself, or find a foreign partner to
jointly expand the refinery.
PetroVietnam is negotiating with Russian gas and oil giant
Gazprom Neft, which has expressed an interest in acquiring a 49 per cent
stake in the Dung Quat, but so far no final deal has been reached.
Waste power plant nears go-ahead in Thanh Hoa
According to the Thanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee,
executives from Naanovo Energy visited the province in mid-December and
discussed the investment with the local authorities.
Under Naanovo Energy’s plan, the company will invest $101
million to build a waste-to-energy plant on a 25-hectare site. The plant will
be able to treat 191,700 tonnes of waste a year.
Nguyen Ngoc Hoi, Vice Chairman of the Thanh Hoa Provincial
People’s Committee, said the local authorities had already prepared site
clearance, water supply and transportation infrastructure for the project.
But he noted Naanovo Energy needed to complete the usual administrative
procedures and environmental impact assessment to gain an investment
certificate.
Established in 2001 in
If the project in Thanh Hoa is approved, this could be the
second waste-to-energy plant in the
The construction of the first waste-to-energy plant in
Several private investors have proposed building renewable
energy projects generated from solid waste in the country in recent years,
but most of them have not been realised due to the lack of policies that
would help guarantee the projects. Those include Australia-based Trisun
International Development’s $400 million project and Vietnam Waste Solutions’
$400 million project in
To encourage private investors to develop waste-to-energy
plants in the country, the Vietnamese government this year also issued a
decision providing a ground-breaking feed-in tariff for power suppliers of up
to 10.05 US cents per kilowatt hour. This is more than 25 per cent higher
than the 7.8 cent applicable to wind power projects.
Hoa Binh Co bubbles over with V Cola fizzy drink plan
Domestic real estate developer Hoa Binh has ambitious plans to
produce a carbonated soft drink to compete with Coca-Cola and Suntory
PepsiCo.
The firm will soon put into operation a $39.7 million beer and
beverage factory in the
The V Cola brand will be the first domestically-produced
carbonated drink, Nguyen Huu Duong, general director of Hoa Binh told VIR.
Duong said that the new facility would operate the most modern
product lines imported from
Domestic companies such as Tribeco did previously attempt to
produce carbonated drinks, but failed to compete with the international
heavyweights. However, Duong said that if domestic beverage companies had a
proper business strategy, they could successfully develop a foothold in the
carbonated drink market.
Hoa Binh, a property developer most well-known for its
The latest report by London-based Business Monitor
International, a leading independent provider of proprietary data, analysis,
rankings and forecasting revealed
According to the MoIT, the beverage industry has significantly
contributed to
In August this year, Tan Hiep Phat (THP), one of Vietnam’s
leading beverage groups, officially put into operation a $85 million beverage
plant in the northern province of Ha Nam’s Kien Khe Industrial Park with
the designed capacity of 300 million litres per year in the first
phase, which will expand to 600 million litres per year in the second phase
during 2018-2022. The group will continue focusing on its strength in tea
with products such as Dr Thanh and Number 1. The group is investing in other
plants in Binh Duong, Quang
Phuong said that since it was near to impossible to compete
with foreign giants such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo in the carbonated drinks
market, domestic beverage companies have chosen to focus on non-carbonated
alternatives.
Coca-Cola also plans to invest additional $300 million in the
Vietnamese soft drink market by 2015. Meanwhile, PepsiCo
The Vietnamese stock market stood in 32nd place among the
world’s 51 best-performing stock markets in 2014, according to a list of 74
stock markets compiled and published by US-based Bespoke Investment Group.
In particular, as of December 23, 2014, the
Among 74 global stock markets in 2014, 51 rallied, while 23
were bearish.
In addition, some Southeast Asian countries ranked high in the
list of the world’s best-performing stock markets. Specifically,
The
Meanwhile,
Also according to
This is perhaps surprising news for investors, because the
stock market of the South American country began to fall very sharply from
June when it was forced to repay debts to international bondholders, leading
to its second insolvency within 13 years.
However, despite the economic plunge, the stock market
continues to boom.
Following
Meanwhile, the United States ranked 17th with an increase of
12.73 percent.
In contrast to
The plunge in oil prices, the ruble’s value and penalties by
the West are said to have had a negative impact on the Russian economy and
pushed it to a temporary standstill.
Consumer lending may salvage credit growth target
After seeing very sluggish growth of 4.5 per cent in the first
eight months of this year, credit grew by 10.22 per cent as of November 30
from the end of 2013, reported the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), making the
whole-year target of 12-14 per cent now more feasible.
The rise, according to banks, is thanks to consumer lending.
“This growth is mostly due to individual customers, who account for more than
50 per cent of banks’ total lending,” said a representative from Sacombank,
which saw its total lending rise by 15 per cent in the first 11 months of
this year.
According to the source from Sacombank, businesses are still
not seeking much capital, despite the fact that this time of the year is
generally the hottest time for them to take out loans to fuel their
production in preparation for Tet. Meanwhile, as interest rates on home loans
continue to go down, alongside falling real estate prices, demand is on the
rise. Homebuyers account for 15 per cent of Sacombank’s total retail lending.
“The most common interest rate on loans for homebuyers is
currently between 8 and 10 per cent per year, very reasonable compared to two
years ago,” said Sacombank deputy general director Nguyen Minh Tam.
At VPBank, consumer lending through its subsidiary financial
company FE Credit contributed the majority to the bank’s 34.8 per cent credit
growth in the first nine months of 2014, reported the bank’s website. “FE
Credit expects an increase of 140-150 per cent in the number of loans by this
year-end,” said FE Credit’s acting CEO Kalidas Ghose.
At Techcombank, retail banking accounted for 40 per cent of
the bank’s total lending this year, reported acting CEO Do Tuan Anh. Anh said
the bank’s solid performance was thanks to its focus on increasing the
quality of services and tailoring its products to meet customer demands,
particularly those of individual customers. He said that in the near future
the bank would continue to boost lending to this segment.
According to banking experts, lending small sums to several
customers is safer than lending big sums to a few customers. Also, when money
is distributed over several loans, there is more control over the interest
margin.
Given this breakthrough in credit growth statistics, the 12-14
per cent credit growth target for this year may well be in sight. However,
“credit quality is more important than quantity,” noted banking expert Nguyen
Tri Hieu. He added that the government should be realistic in its lending
goals and not make credit growth its only focus.
“It’s more important that credit goes into the five
prioritised sectors, agriculture and rural areas, exports, supporting
industries, small and medium enterprises, and high technology.”
SSI holds over 20 per cent stake in PDN
Saigon Securities Inc (SSI) bought 111,730 shares, with an
option to purchase another 615,180 shares, in Dong Nai Port Joint Stock
Company (PDN) on December 25 and 26.
Dong Nai Port Joint Stock Company works mostly in
transportation and warehousing in the southern
At the same time, SSI sold 15,000 PDN shares.
Following the transaction, SSI now owns more than 2.47 million
shares, or 20.1 per cent of the stake in PDN, which specialises in
transportation and warehousing in the southern
With the stock purchase, PDN and SSI became associate
companies.
The largest shareholder in PDN is Sonadezi Corporation, with a
51per cent stake.
Previously, SSI has been associated with other eight
companies, including Pan Pacific Corporation, Binh Thanh Import - Export
Production and Trade JSC, Southern Seed Corporation , Long An Food Processing
Export Joint Stock Company, Electronics Communications Technology Investment
Development Corporation, Transimex-Saigon Corporation, Bibica Corporation and
Viet Nam Fumigation Joint Stock Company.
On December 29, PDN shares closed at VND35,200(US$1.65), while
SSI shares ended at VND25.9 ($1.21) on the HCM City Stock Exchange.
Better quality, prices to turn local products into consumers’
first choice
Domestic businesses need to focus on applying cutting-edge
technologies to improve their product quality and cut down prices so that
made-in-Vietnam products can truly become the first choice of Vietnamese
consumers.
So said participants at a workshop held by the
Duong Duy Hung, Deputy Director General of the Ministry of
Industry and Trade (MOIT)’s Domestic Market Department, pointed out to
numerous weaknesses of domestic production such as the monotony of product
design and diversity, uncompetitive prices, businesses’ neglect of goods
promotion and consumer services, the lax connection between manufacturers and
sellers, and the slack market watch.
Raising competitiveness must be conducted regularly,
continuously and on the long-term base, said VPBA Vice Chairman Ngo Van Diem,
adding that
He suggested the country help enterprises increase their
competitiveness while companies also need to partner with one another,
abolish the mindset of hunting for short-term profits, and invest more in
personnel training.
According to a recent survey on outcomes of the five-year
implementation of the campaign “Vietnamese people prioritise the use of
Vietnamese goods”, 92 percent of questioned consumers were interested in the
drive, 57 percent of them recognised the campaign’s communication efforts,
and 63 percent prioritised using domestic products. This survey was carried
out by the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Communication and
Education.
The amount of textile and garment materials imported from
There is also an increasing trend, especially in cities, that
local consumers buy domestically made apparel although smuggled products are
dwarfing local ones.
While some foreign brands are dominating the market of formula
milk, most of other products such as yogurt and condensed and fresh milk on
sale are made by Vietnamese companies like Vinamilk and TH True Milk, the
report shows.-
SOE restructuring needs to be hastened in 2015: Deputy PM
Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh has asked ministries,
localities, and businesses to accelerate the restructuring of State-owned
enterprises (SOEs) so as to fulfil the plan for the two years of 2014 and
2015.
Ninh, who is also the head of the Steering Committee for
Business Renovation and Development, chaired a meeting on SOE restructuring
in
A report at the event read that the SOE restructuring with a
focus on economic groups and corporations was speeded up and made
considerable progress in 2014.
Among 479 SOEs subject to the restructuring in 2014 and 2015,
143 had been equitised by December 25, while 14 others were merged, three
dissolved, three sold, and three filed for bankruptcy.
More than 6.07 trillion VND (about 289.05 million USD) of
investment were divested from 233 firms, six times higher from a year
earlier, which generated over 8 trillion VND (380.95 million USD) in payment,
1.3 times the face value.
However, the number of equitised businesses and the divested
sum were still lower than expected while some policies and mechanisms were
not timely issued or amended, the meeting heard.
Officials said in 2015, relevant agencies need to overhaul
restructuring measures, complete policies guiding the implementation of the
Law on Management and Use of State Capital in Production and Business and the
revised Law on Enterprises.
Ministries, localities, and State-owned groups and
corporations also need to push qualified enterprises to conduct initial
public offering (IPO). Meanwhile, the others will be turn into joint stock
companies with shareholders being the State, the State Capital Investment Corporation,
trade unions, and employees, among others.
SOE restructuring is part of economic restructuring stated in
the National Assembly’s Resolution No.10/2011/QH13 on the socio-economic
development plan for 2011 to 2015. Public investment and the banking system
are also being restructured.
Jetstar Pacific to launch five more domestic routes
The low-cost carrier Jetstar Pacific will launch five more
domestic routes early next year to meet the increasing travel demand and
economic exchange between the areas.
On February 1, 2015, the Ho Chi Minh City-Dong Hoi and HCM
City-Quy Nhon services will begin with one flight a day and three fights a
week, respectively.
On February 2, flights between the central highland city of
The Ho Chi Minh City-Tuy Hoa route will be launched later, on
March 30, with three flights a week.
The carrier will use Airbus A320 aircraft for all the five
routes.
Beside the domestic routes, the airline also plans to
introduce a new daily service between
This is the second route linking
Firms learn promotion regulations
The HCM City Department of Industry and Trade last Friday held
a conference to familiarise local companies with the Commercial Law's
provisions governing sales promotion and several other aspects of business.
According to a department official, there were 25,000
promotions and sales programmes registered in the city this year, but without
supervision to ensure their integrity and transparency.
He spelled out the regulations for promotions.
Those offering freebies, coupons, discounts, and frequent
shopper programmes have to send in written applications to provincial or city
Trade Services sub-department at least seven working days in advance.
The maximum value of freebies or the maximum discount on goods
and services must not exceed 50 per cent of the original.
Discount programmes must not exceed 45 days at a time and 90
days in a year.
Those offering promotions featuring games of chance and lucky
draws have to inform the competent government agency in writing about the
results within 45 days, and deposit 50 per cent of the value of the prizes
that were not won by anyone.
They will also have to publish the results on at least one
media outlet and at the business venue.
Violations of any of the rules can attract a penalty of
VND25-80 million (US$1,200-3,800) and result in seizure of exhibits.
At the conference held in co-operation with Singaporean
business consultant Singapore Standard, officials also held forth on how to
avoid unhealthy competition and safeguarding customers' rights.
Tax department collects higher amount than projected in 2014
Tax from crude oil has surpassed its annual target by 18 per
cent, amounting to VND101 trillion (US$4.7 billion), as revealed at a
conference last Friday.
The General Department of Taxation disclosed that the total
tax collection is estimated at VND681 trillion ($32 billion), which is
equivalent to 109.1 per cent of the projection. Domestic tax accounts for
VND580.1 trillion ($27.3 billion), or 107.1 per cent of the estimated figure.
Tax agencies conducted inspections on more than 67,800
enterprises, collecting VND12.2 trillion ($573 million) to be added to the
state's budget in 2014.
The tax sector collected 50 per cent of the tax debt from
December 31, 2013. The total tax debt by December 31, 2014, is VND70.2
trillion ($3.3 billion), which indicates an increase of 14.9 per cent
compared with last year.
The General Department of Taxation shared that eight provinces
increased their tax debt compared with last year (over 30 per cent).
Moreover, eight provinces incurred tax debt from 20 to 30 per
cent. Meanwhile, 23 provinces decreased their tax debt compared with last
year. Only seven provinces managed to achieve this decline in 2013.
Addressing the conference to review the sector's operations in
2014, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh spoke highly of the achievements the
sector had attained despite the many difficulties still being faced by the
country.
However, he asked that tax inspection be conducted on at least
20 per cent of the 490,000 operating businesses.
In response to the Deputy PM's request, Finance Minister Dinh
Tien Dung proposed the rates of 16 per cent, 18 per cent and 20 per cent
within three years.
The sector also intensified the reform of administrative
procedures and the application of modern technology throughout the year.
Nearly 95 per cent of the businesses performed e-tax declarations.
Meanwhile, the time spent on tax procedures fell from 537
hours to 167 hours per year. The sector is striving to reduce it by an
additional 45.5 hours.
Mobile World targets $1b revenue in 2015
National mobile phone retail giant The Gioi Di Dong (Mobile
World) will introduce hitherto unseen services and products as it strives to
reach next year's turnover target of US$1 billion, its chairman Nguyen Duc
Tai said yesterday.
The biggest mobile phone retailer in the country also aims at
post-tax profits of VND886 billion ($42 million) the next year, Tai told
He said that the company had obtained good results in 2014
with estimated revenues of VND15.8 trillion ($752 million) and after-tax
profits of VND670 billion ($32 million). These figures mark year-on-year
increases of 66 per cent and 159 per cent respectively.
The company also opened 350 new thegioididong.com and
dienmay.com outlets this year.
Tai declined to disclose details, but said the company will
further improve its service to better tap the high market potential.
"We may introduce services and products that none of the
retailers have done before," he said.
An additional 123 outlets will be opened in 2015, helping the
company obtain 40 per cent of the market share, he added.
Thai Nguyen achieves record economic growth
The
The province also exceeded targets for industrial production
and export value, according to the provincial People's Committee. Industrial
output was estimated at VND160 trillion (US$7.27 billion), more than triple
the yearly goal, while exports earned $8.1 billion, seven times the target.
People's Committee Chairman Duong Ngoc Long attributed the
results to the province's work to improve the investment climate and reform
administrative procedures,
The acceleration of infrastructure projects for transport,
electricity and water supply created favourable conditions for manufacturers
based in Thai Nguyen to establish trade and production links with partners in
northern economic hubs like Ha Noi, Quang Ninh and Hai Phong, he added.
There were also several major investment projects in the
support, mineral processing and technology industries, including the new
Samsung hi-tech complex.
High-output industrial products included mobile phones – which
accounted for 71 percent of export turnover – as well as garments and
textiles, coal, iron and steel products and cement.
In 2015, Thai Nguyen aims to maintain economic growth of 15
per cent and an industrial production value of VND260 trillion ($123
billion).
Local authorities will continue to build infrastructure at
industrial parks for support industry projects to serve the Samsung hi-tech
complex, in addition to enhancing the province's competitive capacity.
VN sees trade surplus for third year
This is the third consecutive year that the country saw a
surplus, after recording surpluses of $280 million in 2012 and more than $860
million in 2013.
This year, overall export revenues hit $150.42 billion, up
13.6 per cent over last year, while total import values reached $148.58
billion, a year-on-year increase of 12.1 per cent.
According to the GSO, foreign direct investment (FDI)
enterprises contributed to the majority of revenues of
They also represented 89.7 per cent of machinery and equipment
exports, which totaled $7.26 billion, and 98.8 per cent of computer and
electronic exports, which amounted to $11.66 billion.
In 2014, the structure of exports saw significant changes that
benefited the country's goods. The exports of light industrial goods
increased 15.9 per cent to nearly $60 billion, farming and forestry products
rose by 11.4 per cent to 17.80 billion, while aquatic products were up 17.6
per cent to nearly $8 billion.
Materials for production made up 91.2 per cent of total import
values, reaching $135 billion, or a year-on-year increase of 12.5 per cent.
Of these, the values of machinery and equipment were $55.60 billion (up 10.1
per cent), petroleum products were $7.62 billion (up 9.3 per cent), and
chemical substances were $3.22 billion (up 14.6 per cent).
Further, material imports served production for exports by the
FDI sector more than that of domestic enterprises. These imports amounted to
$84.57 billion for foreign companies, compared with $63.49 billion for local
firms.
The GSO noted that
The GSO noted that as the contents of domestically made
materials and components in export goods remained low, the three-year high
trade surplus of $2 billion resulted in insignificant benefits to the
Vietnamese economy.
Quang Ninh signs off on Rent-A-Port IP-port Project
The $128 million
This is the third industrial park project that these companies
have developed, and it follows in the footsteps of their successful Dinh Vu
Industrial Park and
The new project wants to capitalise on growing Japanese, South
Korean, and European inward investment.
Rent-A-Port and its partners undertook a feasibility study of
the project in 2013, and in April Rent-A-Port and consultancy and engineering
firm Ecorem submitted their proposal for a site covering 3,710 hectares.
Accordingly, the first phase will be carried out from 2016 to 2020, with a
total investment cost of $412 million.
Although Rent-A-Port intended to develop the first phase of
the industrial land and logistic complex across 1,000 hectares, Quang Ninh
was only prepared to offer 500 hectares in the Mac Dynasty Lagoon.
Rent-A-Port and InfraAsia – in association with Belgim
International Port Engineering & Management – started investing in Dinh
Vu industrial park in 1997. The first phase of this project is entirely
occupied and the developer is developing phase 2 on a 377-hectare site.
According to Rent-A-Port, nearly 50 per cent of phase 2 is
already occupied. So far, the industrial zone has attracted 53 projects with
a total investment of approximately $3 billion. Foreign investors in the zone
include Bridgestone, Shin-etsu, Chevron, Toyota Tsusho, JX Nippon and
Indemisu.
Positioned on the border of southern
Financial commission believes 6.2% GDP growth feasible next
year
The National Financial Supervisory Commission said that the
target of 6.2 percent Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate next year is
feasible in a socioeconomic report announced yesterday.
According to the report, GDP growth will be advantageous in
2015. Aggregate demand will recover and purchasing power will improve thanks
to low inflation rate in 2014.
Private investment will look up because of better
macroeconomic environment together with institution reforms.
Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) attraction will further
increase with prospects from the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement that
will be signed in 2015.
Aggregate supply will be better thanks to economic
restructuring. The world’s commodity price reduction will create conditions
for businesses to cut down production costs and increase domestic supply
sources.
The commission predicts that domestic cost price will drop 3
percent after calculating the ratio of petrol product value per total
industrial value. The prediction is also based on a 33 percent drop forecast
in the world crude oil price. Domestic petrol price is supposed to reduce the
same rate.
According to the commission, inflation will not fluctuate much
because the aggregate demand is expected to improve at a reasonable level and
not cause pressure on inflation. Core inflation will swing around 3 percent.
HCM City tries to keep goods prices unchanged in coming Tet
Goods supply for the price subsidization program is abundant
at markets in HCMC (Photo: SGGP)
Deputy Director of the Industry and Trade Department Le Ngoc
Dao said that the subsidization program covers nine necessary items. HCMC
will focus on the supply of pork, poultry, chicken and vegetables to ensure
their prices will not change as goods demand surges during Tet holidays.
The total value of goods that businesses have prepared for two
months before and after the Tet holidays is VND15,849 billion (US$741
million), an increase of 109 percent over the same period last year. Of
these, VND8,304 billion has been spent on subsidized goods’ stockpiling, up
69.4 percent over last year.
Authorized agencies forecast that purchasing power in the coming
Tet holidays will increase from 10-20 percent against the same period last
year. HCMC and provinces have signed an agreement to connect goods supply and
demand to stabilize the market in the holidays and 2015 also.
At the meeting most businesses said goods preparation
advantageous thanks to fine weather conditions and the down-trend of input
material prices.
Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Năm, 1 tháng 1, 2015
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