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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 9/1
Government requests flexible monetary policy
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has to work with ministries
and localities in regulating the monetary policy in a proactive, flexible
manner in close association with the fiscal policy, so as to have active
control of inflation, keep macro-economic stability, boost economic growth,
and support the development of the financial and securities markets.
The Government made the request in its Resolution 01/NQ-CP
issued recently, during which it assigned the bank to manage interest and
exchange rates in line with developments of the macro-economy, inflation, and
the monetary market.
At the same time, the SBV should control and enhance credit
quality, while applying measures to effectively manage the foreign currency
and gold markets, continue measures against the dolarisation and
goldenisation of the economy, and increase the national foreign reserves,
said the resolution.
The bank is requested to design measures to mobilise gold
stocks in society for the country’s socio-economic development.
It is also asked to coordinate closely with ministries and
agencies to design proper solutions to accelerate non-cash payment, tighten
the supervision and monitoring of operations of credit institutions,
absolutely ensuring the safety for the system, and strictly handle violations
in accordance with the law.
Meanwhile, the Finance Ministry is required to collaborate
with ministries and localities to closely manage State budget expenses in
conformity with the estimate.
The ministry is requested not to issue new policies and regulations
that lead to a rise in State budget spending when a guarantee source is
absent.
The Government demanded to minimize State budget spending for
conferences, seminars, festivals, ground-breaking and inaugural ceremonies,
and overseas business trips by ministries, State offices, and localities as
well as the purchase of public cars. State budget advances are also not
allowed, except for cases involving natural calamities, disease epidemics and
defence and security tasks.
The Ministry of Planning and Investment is to focus investment
on important and urgent projects that are supposed to complete in 2015, while
removing administrative obstacles to step up the disbursement of development
investment, and ensuring corresponding capital for ODA projects.
Nghe An, Tra Vinh aim to increase FDI inflow
The authorities in Nghe An and Tra Vinh are determined to
improve investment climate in the two provinces by attracting more foreign
direct investment (FDI) in 2015 and going forward.
Following the formulation of a plan, aimed at attracting
investment to the central
To this end, the province will implement consistent measures
to lure investment projects, considering it a key task to accelerate local
socio-economic development, the plan stated.
It will also better facilitate investors by establishing land
funds, award incentives and support them in recruiting workers and accessing
raw material.
According to the plan, Nghe An will also aim to top the list
of 30 provinces and cities nationwide on the provincial competitiveness index
(PCI).
Currently, the province is seeking investment for areas, such
as agro-forestry, fishery and industry, where it holds an advantage.
Last year, Nghe An authorities licensed 105 new projects with
a combined investment capital of more than VND18.52 trillion ($861.4
million), representing an annual increase of 46 per cent in the number of
projects and a 44 per cent rise in capital.
Large-scale projects in the province include the Lan Chau-Song
Ngu tourism complex, worth VND1.96 trillion ($91.6 million), the Masan Food
project, valued at VND1.2 trillion ($55.8 million) and the Ha Noi-Kim Lien
urban and hotel complex, pegged at VND720 billion ($33.5 million).
Meanwhile, the southern
These incentives include financial assistance for land
clearance compensation and infrastructure development for projects in the
province-based economic and industrial zones.
Reduction in land rental fees and trade promotion expenses, as
well as support for trademark registration and labour training will also be
extended, the committee noted.
Last year, the province attracted five new projects, bringing
the total number of on-going projects in the area to 92, which are valued at
$3.47 billion. Of these projects, 30 have foreign investment and specialise
in fields, such as garments, footwear, seafood and agriculture processing, as
well as automobiles.
Big C pledges to keep prices stable for Tet
The Big C supermarket chain has pledged not to change quoted
prices on more than 90 per cent of its goods during the peak shopping season
from December 12 to February 20.
Prices of fast-moving consumer goods (excluding fruits and
vegetables, fresh and frozen food, beer and wine, milk and milk based
products), clothes, electronic products and household utensils will remain
unchanged during the period.
Goods prices usually fluctuate strongly ahead of Tet (Lunar
New Year) as demand increases strongly.
Seafood export target challenged with many difficulties
The seafood industry faces many difficulties to maintain
export momentum last year and obtain the turnover target of US$8-8.5 billion
this year, said experts.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has targeted
at US$8.5 billion export turnover this year while the Vietnam Association of
Seafood Exporters and Producers (Vasep) has set it at US$8 billion.
The export achievement has taken
Of the export turnover last year, shrimps accounted for 53
percent with US$4 billion in value. Despite of suffering consequences from
out of control development, tra fish export turnover remained unchanged at
US$1.7 billion.
Besides
According to Dr. Dung the high export turnover has not
appropriately profited farmers and businesses. 2014 was a successful export
year but also a hard year for them who have faced with diseases and material
shortage. Shrimp breeders have worried about stunted growth.
Tra fish businesses have struggled to change their processing
process to meet with new quality standards in a Government’s new tra fish
decree whose implementation has been postponed a year until the end of this
year.
Shrimp farming industry has yet to have a suitable farming
process to prevent diseases and ensure the quality of breeding shrimp,
putting both breeders and processing plants in the risk of losses due to
antibiotic residue.
Deputy Chairman of My Thanh Shrimp Farming Association in Soc
Trang province Vo Quang Huy said that the shrimp farming process has not been
improved to help increase output and quality.
Director of Minh Phu Seafood Company from Ca Mau province
Nguyen Van Quang said that because authorized agencies have not provided
breeders with a suitable farming process, diseases are unavoidable.
Farmers have been forced to use antibiotic to save their sick
shrimp ponds which are their entire fortune, causing risks for businesses
that will be held responsible if their export consignments contain antibiotic
residue higher permitted levels set by import countries, he said.
In early 2014, Nguyen Thi Thanh Hoa borrowed VND1 billion
(US$47,068) in bank loans to invest in a 20-cow farm in the Central Highlands
province of Lam Dong, and now does not know what to do with the 150kg of milk
they produce every day.
Milking only results in losses, but otherwise the dairy cattle
will die, “so I have to save the cows,” the farmer, based in Tu Tra Commune
of Don Duong District, lamented.
Tu Tra is a key dairy cattle raising area of Lam Dong, with a
herd totaling more than 2,600 cows. However, half of these are raised by
farmers who have not contracted any dairy firms to be the permanent buyers of
their products.
Nguyen Dinh Tai, another dairy cattle keeper, had to seek
buyers for his milk in other districts on his motorbike on a daily basis.
“But each customer only bought a few liters, so sometimes I
had to dump the milk,” Tai said.
Some 4.5 tonnes of milk produced daily here are either unable
to find buyers, or sold at a dirt cheap price of VND7,000 ($0.33) a kg,
according to the Lam Dong agriculture department.
A profitable price for breeders is VND14,000 ($0.66) a kg, if
they sell to dairy producers such as Vinamilk, Dalat Milk or FrieslandCampina
But the companies say breeders should have discussed their
plans with them before buying the cattle. “Farmers cannot just pass
responsibility to us when they cannot find an outlet for their milk,” the
dairy firms said.
Elsewhere, in the southern
There are now around 5,800 dairy cows in Duc Hoa, far exceeding
the buying plan of local dairy firms, so farmers have faced challenges in
distributing their milk, the official added.
In the meantime, the total dairy cattle herd in Lam Dong has
amounted to 14,000 cows.
“In 2014 the number of cows rose 72 percent from a year
earlier,” said Nguyen Van Son, deputy director of the provincial agriculture
department.
Farmers jumped in to raise cows in the hope of selling milk to
major firms, but they “took a reverse approach,” Son said.
“While they were supposed to sign contracts with dairy firms
before raising the cows, they did the last thing first,” he elaborated.
Dairy producers also blamed the breeders for their ill-planned
business.
“Milk supply currently exceeds the storage capacity of our
tanks so we have to prioritize buying from contracted farmers,” said Luu Van
Tan, director of the milk development program with FrieslandCampina
Tan added that it takes up to six months for the company to
add new milk tanks.
“During this time, we will sign no new contracts with dairy
farmers,” he said.
Vuong Ngoc Long, technical director with Vietnam Dairy Cow
Co., a Vinamilk subsidiary, said farmers should have contacted the company in
advance if they wanted to sign a contract so “we could have time to check
their farms for hygiene and quality standards.”
On the other hand, an expert with knowledge of the milk
industry said dairy firms are reducing purchases of fresh milk from local
farmers as the products, selling at VND13,000-14,000, are up to 50 percent
costlier than imported raw material milk.
“Firms will mostly import the material to cut production
costs,” he said.
Prior to the plan taking effect, the city’s Department of
Planning and Investment announced that the city would be Vietnam’s first
locality to reduce the time it takes to complete procedures for establishing
an enterprise from the existing five days to only three days.
All procedures will be conducted at the department’s one-stop
door.
Actually, under the new Law on
“But the city has taken the initiative in implementing this
regulation now. This will help attract more investors as they will find it
more convenient to establish enterprises,” said Deputy Minister of Planning
and Investment Dang Huy Dong.
“I am sure that the city’s index for competitiveness will
remarkably improve thanks to this move. Enterprises are the economy’s
backbone and they have the right to enjoy the best business conditions,” he
said.
“We highly value the city’s new move which will greatly
benefit enterprises, especially amid their increasing difficulties,” said
Trinh Thi Ngan, head of the Hanoi Small and Medium-sized Enterprises
Association’s Consultancy Board.
“However, the department will need to further clarify
procedures and business incentives so that enterprises can more easily
complete the procedures,” she suggested.
In 2014 in
The number of enterprises that went bankrupt in the city was
735, up 1.5 per cent against 2013. More than 2,400 enterprises registered to
suspend operations, down 11.5 per cent against 2013. The number of
enterprises changing their business type was nearly 32,300, up 28 per cent
on-year. Two enterprises had their business licences revoked as they had
submitted fake business registration dossiers to the department.
In 2014, the city attracted 418 new foreign invested projects
with the total registered investment capital of nearly $1.4 billion, up
26 per cent on-year and 7.4 per cent compared to the earlier set target of
$1.3 billion.
SBV allows foreign currency lending to continue through 2015
The State Bank of
Accordingly, credit institutions including foreign bank
branches, can continue providing short-term foreign currency loans to
petroleum-importing enterprises and export companies in need of capital for
their manufacturing and trading of exported commodities through December 31,
2015. This circular has replaced another issued last year that was void on
December 31.
In particular, forex-licensed banks can grant foreign currency
loans to borrowers with capital needs. Petroleum businesses that require
foreign currencies to pay for their imported petroleum or companies that need
foreign currencies for the manufacture and trade of commodities used for
export can take out short-term loans.
Prior to this circular being issued, some experts stressed
that there was no need to restrict or stop foreign currency loans since
businesses that meet the terms and conditions for these loans generally make
sales in foreign currencies and therefore use this financing to balance their
flow of capital and save on costs.
According to SBV’s Deputy Governor Nguyen Thi Hong, to achieve
6.2 per cent GDP growth in 2015 the SBV needs to support the corporate sector
by providing plausible solutions. Therefore the SBV has ensured that credit
institutions can continue offering short-term foreign currency loans through
the end of this year.
The extension will help businesses minimise their borrowing
costs since the forex market is considered stable and the foreign currency
lending rate is lower than the VND lending rate. Also, it is expected to help
banks expand their credit growth in accordance with the SBV’s target.
Outstanding foreign currency loans for the permitted
enterprises currently account for nearly 30 per cent of total outstanding
foreign currency loans in the banking system. Petroleum enterprises amount to
6 per cent while export businesses make up the other 24 per cent.
As well as these businesses, the new circular also allows
borrowing by import firms and businesses that have licensed overseas
investment projects.
The circular took effect on January 1 and replaces Circular
29.
E-invoices piloted at 200 businesses
The General Department of Taxation under the Ministry of
Finance said it has officially launched a pilot project permitting 200
companies to use electronic invoices in
The pilot project will be reviewed by the end of this year
before being widely implemented at all businesses.
Businesses are permitted to issue invoices through an ‘online
anti-fake invoice system’ of tax agencies and use digital signatures.
The system will attach a string of numbers to each invoice to
prevent it from being counterfeited. Businesses will send invoices to their
customers online.
E-invoices with high security level help businesses reduce
invoice print and storage costs, and tax agencies manage businesses’ revenues
and the tax amount that they have to pay a single day.
Small banknotes come with exorbitant fees
The rising demand for small changes to donate to temples or
give out as lucky money during Tet has created a boost in unregulated
currency exchange services.
The providers often operate near temples or relic sites.
Currency exchange services can be found anywhere along the way
from the parking lot to Ba Chua Kho Temple in
Money exchange services can also be found on internet with
attractive advertisements. The providers even offer free delivery for their
customers.
In order to change VND50,000 into VND10,000 notes, customers
have to pay VND5,000 in fee. The service fees get higher with smaller value notes.
Many providers offer to get 80% of total money worth in exchanging for VND500
banknotes.
"VND200 and VND500 notes are harder to come by because
the government has already set a limit for printing new small banknotes. The
fees for exchanging these notes will be higher than previous years,"
said a provider.
Small banknotes are often donated to temples during worship
with hope that they will bring luck to benefactors. At Ba Chua Kho Temple,
small banknotes can also be used to make flower or tower offerings to the
goddess.
In December 2013, the governor of State Bank of
The HCMC Steering Committee for Enterprise Reform and
Development on January 5 struck a memorandum of understanding with the
Hochiminh Stock Exchange (HOSE) to help the southern bourse attract more
enterprises to be equitized in the coming time.
HOSE is targeting equitized State-owned enterprises (SOEs)
this year, the final year of equitizing SOEs in the 2014-2015 period in line
with a road map approved by the Government.
Last year, the number of firms listed and launching their
initial public offerings on HOSE picked up strongly, including large
corporations such as Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex).
The VN-Index last year hit a record high since the global
financial crisis in 2008 with liquidity almost doubling 2013 and average
trading value exceeding VND2.1 billion (US$98.2 million) per session.
The debut of the first exchange-traded fund (ETF) on the
Vietnamese enterprises have spent at last US$3 billion
importing animal feed and materials in the January-November period of last
year, up 5.86% compared to the same period last year.
The latest figures of the General Department of Customs showed
that animal feed and material imports in November alone soared nearly 28%
year-on-year to US$243 million.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development,
The Ministry of Industry and Trade said local farmers have to
buy animal feed products at higher prices than other countries, as materials
are mainly imported and subject to some additional costs as a result of
strict controls by the customs, veterinary and plant protection agencies.
Animal feed cost accounts for 70% of total value of the local
husbandry market (some US$6.96 billion in 2012 and US$7.643 billion in 2013).
Despite stable material prices, improved output and a 5% VAT exemption for
animal feed, animal feed prices have remained high, making life tough for
farmers.
Vietnamese animal feed products cannot compete with those in
other regional countries as their prices are always 15-20% higher. Therefore,
the industry ministry has called for the Government to take measures to break
the monopoly of certain foreign-invested firms which dominate the local
husbandry market.
According to the Vietnam Feed Association, there are 239
animal feed factories nationwide, with 59 owned by joint-venture and
foreign-invested enterprises and the remainder by local companies.
C.P. Vietnam Corporation currently holds 19.42% animal feed
market share, followed by Cargill
According to the General Statistics Office (GSO),
New Year sales at supermarkets fare well
Supermarkets in HCMC have reported strong sales during the New
Year holiday when the nation had a four-day holiday.
The rises were credited to stable prices and promotions during
the holiday, which ended on Sunday.
Lotte Mart reported a sales increase of 5-15% at its
supermarkets on the New Year Day compared to normal days, and welcomed more
than 78,000 customers on the first day of the new year, soaring by 35% over
the last two days of last year.
Particularly, sales of essential food such as vegetables, meat
and fish jumped 15%, dry food 28%, and household items 70% at Lotte Mart
stores. Confectionery, beverages, dairy and frozen products, cosmetics and
fashion products attracted more buyers.
Ho Quoc Nguyen, public relations director of Big C, said sales
at this supermarket chain on the New Year Day doubled normal days and even
tripled at its supermarkets in the central and northern regions as large
numbers of people returned home for family reunion.
Sales revenues of Maximark stores surged during the four-day
holiday. Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, director of Maximark Cong Hoa Supermarket,
said sales doubled last Thursday, especially foods.
Despite increasing demand, supermarkets in HCMC kept their
prices unchanged during the holiday and even offered discounts on many
products.
The Co.opmart supermarket chain cut prices of thousands of
products to attract customers. For example, prices of essential food went
down 15%, confectionery and cosmetics 10%, fashion products 25%, and
electronic devices and kitchenware around 50%.
Besides gifts, Big C halved prices of more than 1,000 products
including foods, household appliances and cosmetics.
Nguyen Thanh Ha, deputy director of Thu Duc Wholesale Market,
said the volume of goods transported to the market increased to 3,000-4,000
tons per night on the final days of last year.
Vendors at traditional wet markets in the city reported strong
sales, particularly of clothes and fruit.
A vendor identified as Mai at a market in Go Vap District said
prices of fruit did not go up though demand rose 20-50% during the holiday.
However, prices of vegetables grown in
A vegetable seller at Pham Van Hai Market in Tan Binh District
explained that heavy frost had affected vegetable farming in the
Skilled Vietnamese can settle in Canada
The Consulate General of Canada in HCMC said Canadian Minister
of Citizenship and Immigration Chris Alexander had announced a new
immigration system that offers express entry to qualified immigrants,
including from
This program provides swifter entry into
The system will then match the skills of the prospective
immigrants with the requirements of the provinces, the territories and
employers. The immigration authorities will offer Express Entry to a
prospective immigrant applying via the Federal Skilled Workers Program,
Federal Skilled Trades Program, and Canadian Experience Class Program.
Prospective immigrants with the highest scores will be invited
to apply for permanent settlement. Such applications will be processed over
six months or less from the date of submission.
Minister Alexander was cited in the statement issued by the
consulate as saying that the Express Entry program allows
Those chosen under the Express Entry program can immediately
start working in
Hai Au flies to Phan Thiet
Hai Au Aviation Joint Stock Company has commenced its seaplane
service connecting HCMC and
Luong Hoai
Hai Au plans an official launch of the HCMC-Phan Thiet service
this Saturday and fares for this service will be made available soon after
the company completes administrative procedures, he said.
Hai Au is also working on plans to launch HCMC-Can Tho and
HCMC-Nha Trang flights later this month.
The company has conducted three daily flights to shuttle
tourists between
A seaplane can carry a dozen of passengers at a time and has
large windows for passengers on board to view tourist attractions, including
the UNESCO-listed World Heritage site of
Hai Au is the first carrier in
Structural weaknesses still cause for concern
Policymakers and economic experts are still concerned about
structural weaknesses faced by the country although major indicators of the
economy have improved.
Vuong Dinh Hue, head of the Party Central Committee’s Economic
Commission, told the Daily that many local and international assessments of
The financial market fared better with savings and lending
rates falling, the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and Vietnam dong
fairly stable, foreign reserves rising, and the local stock market becoming
one of the world’s top five fast-growing markets.
The efficiency of public investments improved. The Incremental
Capital Output Ratio (ICOR) of the economy is forecast to drop from 6.96 in
2006-2010 to 6.5 in 2011-2015. Meanwhile, ICOR in the State corporate sector
declined to 7.5 in 2011-2013 from 9.6 in 2006-2010.
However,
“Though the economic situation is more stable, some
macro-economic indicators are not sustainable, especially the State budget,”
According to
High public debt and pressure on budget collections were also
big problems.
Minister of Planning and Investment Bui Quang Vinh said
“If we had been aware of the impact of bad debt, the
consequence would have been less severe,” Vinh told the Daily.
Though gross domestic product growth was higher than targeted
last year, some economic experts were concerned about some factors that might
affect growth.
Le Dinh An, former head of the National Center for
Socioeconomic Information and Forecast Center of the Ministry of Planning and
Investment, pointed out higher-than-targeted GDP growth last year was mainly
supported by the additional sales of one million tons of crude oil and around
500,000 tons of coal.
An said the country’s economy performed better last year
mostly owing to a rescheduling of tax payments, tax reductions and supporting
policies for enterprises and the agriculture sector, and foreign direct
investments injected by a number of multinationals assembling and outsourcing
products in this market.
Rising exports were mainly fueled by outsourced and assembled
items and low-cost labor. While labor productivity was lower than other
countries in the region and tended to drop, the application of technological
and scientific advances to back economic growth was in decline.
“These fundamental problems remain to be solved,” An said.
Nguyen Dinh Cung, director of the Central Institute for
Economic Management (CIEM), said the main drivers for economic growth last
year were expanding exports and trade surplus, but contributions of the
dometic corporate sector to these growth factors remained insignificant.
Cung said domestic enterprises had not got out of difficulties
due to limited access to credit, slow settlement of bad debt and banks’
reluctant cuts of loan interest rates.
CIEM warned boosting growth by increasing public investments
and loosening credit might cause the same macro-economic troubles as seen in
the past.
Backing business and production expansions need to be carried
out in line with the restructuring process. Cung predicted 2015 would be a
real test for
Flamboyant apparel sector looks to higher export revenue
The apparel sector, buoyed by its strong export performance
last year and the country’s upcoming signing of free trade agreements with
other countries, has set an ambitious target of obtaining US$28-28.5 billion
in outbound sales this year.
The sector’s 2014 exports amounted to nearly US$24.5 billion,
a year-on-year improvement of 16%. Its major markets were the
The
According to the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group
(Vinatex), the industry will continue stepping up shipments to those key
markets this year, with exports to the
Last year,
For the European market, when a free trade agreement (FTA)
between
Nguyen Dinh Truong, vice chairman of the Vietnam Textile and
Apparel Association (VITAS), said at a recent textile and apparel industry
exhibition in HCMC that Vietnam’s signing of FTAs with South Korea, the EU,
and Eurasian Customs Union, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
agreement, probably early this year, could result in the sector doubling its
production in the next 10 years.
However, those deals will require local firms to quickly
integrate and make good preparations such as improving product quality;
otherwise, they may be left behind, he said, suggesting the industry should
increase output, product quality, production and price competitiveness.
Foreign investors have been scaling up investments in the
domestic textile and apparel sector since early last year in anticipation of
grasping the business opportunities which the FTAs will certainly bring. Most
of them are from
Unlisted SOEs must trade on UPCoM
State-owned enterprises (SOEs) must trade in the unlisted
public companies market (UPCoM) within 90 days of an initial public offering
(IPO) and before official listing, the Ministry of Finance said.
The Ministry of Finance's Circular 01/2015 / TT-BTC issued on
January 5 has laid down regulations for unlisted securities operating in the
local stock market.
The circular, which will become effective on March 1, 2015,
replaces the ministry's earlier decision No 108 in 2008.
In this circular, the Ministry has specified that before
listing on the two bourses of HCM and the Ha Noi stock exchange, SOEs, who
have issued an IPO before November 1, 2014, must trade in the UPCoM within a
year, while SOEs with IPOs issued after that date can make transactions in
UPCoM within 90 days after getting the enterprise licences.
The circular added that other public companies, which had
issued an IPO before July 1, 2011, but have not yet listed on the local
bourses, must also trade in the UPCoM within a year.
Also, delisted companies must trade in the UPCoM within 30
days before relisting.
According to vov.vn, the Government of Viet Nam plans to
equitize 532 SOEs during 2014 to 2015.
By the end of 2014, two giant SOEs—the Vietnam National
Textile and Garment Group and Vietnam Airlines had issued their IPOs.
Tien Giang targets $1.6b in export turnover
The Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta
The province is also aiming for an average annual export
growth of 23 per cent for the 2011 to 2015 period, surpassing the already set
target by 5 to 7 per cent.
To realise this goal, Tien Giang will continue luring
investment to industrial parks and clusters, as well as help investors
address difficulties and complete procedures for the scheduled implementation
of their projects.
It also plans to encourage businesses to diversify their
exports and adopt measures to improve product quality and competitiveness,
while providing them with updated information on export markets.
Last year, the province's export value hit a record $1.48
billion, exceeding the set target by 26.5 per cent and recording a 23.8 per
cent jump against 2013. Major exports were for garments, processed seafood
and plastic products.
SBV to get rid of old banknotes
To improve the quality of banknotes and reduce pressure on
storage vaults, the State Bank of
The Deputy Governor of the central bank, Dao Minh Tu, said
during a meeting on Tuesday that the volume of banknotes due to be destroyed
in 2015 for not meeting standards for circulation will be 2.5 times higher
than that of last year.
This reflects the central bank's efforts to enhance the
quality of banknotes in circulation in response to complaints about the
quality of polymer banknotes.
Tu said the supervision for destroying poor-quality banknotes
needs to be tightened to meet the goal.
The central bank had earlier reported that the goal for last
year had been fulfilled and the safety of the State property ensured.
According to Circular 02/2014/TT-NHNN, which regulates the
destruction of damaged banknotes, the process must ensure the absolute safety
of the State property. After destruction, damaged banknotes must be turned
into waste that cannot be recovered.
The damaged banknotes must be counted carefully before they
are destroyed.
Garment makers import more materials
Data from the Ministry of Industry and Trade showed that the
imported materials include cotton, fibre and fabrics. Of these, cotton
imports were pegged at 743,000 tonnes, increasing 28 per cent over 2013, with
a total value of $1.4 billion. Imported cotton prices last year were $1.95
per kilogram, 3 per cent lower in comparison with the previous year.
The imports of fibre amounted to $1.6 billion for 745,000
tonnes, representing 7 per cent and 3 per cent year-on-year increases in
terms of quantity and value for 2014 and 2013, respectively.
The country also spent $9.5 billion on fabrics, while the
imports of other materials touched $4.7 billion, increasing 25 per cent over
2013.
However, the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS)
said the import growth rate was lower than export growth despite the high
import value.
Last year, the country earned $24.5 billion from exports of
garments and textiles to foreign markets, posting a 19 per cent year-on-year
rise.
Of these, garment and textile exports to the
VITAS said
The industry this year has targeted an export turnover of $28
billion to $28.5 billion, increasing $4 billion to $4.5 billion over the last
year. The
The Viet Nam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex)
claimed it expects to produce 55 per cent of the material for garments and
textile products by 2017.
Vinatex has invested VND9 trillion (US$.... ) in fabric
production in several industrial parks with high productivity.
This is considered one of the strengths of the sector that
will help it tap into opportunities from upcoming FTAs as the pacts pay much
attention to the origin of fibre and fabrics.
In addition, the increasing localisation rate will also follow
the strategy of improving the value and position of the domestic sector in
the global supply chain.
ODA programme fosters creative innovation
The second phase of the Finland-Vietnam Innovation Partnership
Programme (IPP) was introduced to interested Vietnamese organisations,
individuals and teams at a workshop in Ha Noi yesterday.
IPP, which is an official development assistance (ODA)
programme financed jointly by governments of
Speaking at the workshop, IPP project director Tran Quoc Thang
said
"Technological innovation is crucial for development.
IPP also assists projects for new innovative growth at
companies targeting international markets and at consortia that develop the
local innovation system.
Riku Makela, IPP's senior innovation advisor, said
organisations hoping to receive funds from IPP must have a clear plan about
what they will do with the support and the activities for which the funds
will be used.
"Innovations supported by IPP must meet the following
criteria: They have to be novel and innovative. The innovations must be
scalable solutions with long-term operations," he said, adding that
their products should target international markets.
Makela also expressed his strong belief that some companies
participating in the program can conquer international markets, become
billion-dollar firms and support others.
He took the achievement of Finnish company Rovio, famous for
its Angry Birds game, as an example. He said Rovio had followed a certain
process to achieve success, which consisted of defining the needs of
customers and stakeholders, finding solutions, imparting benefits, and having
direct/indirect competition, as well as possessing adequate human and
financial resources.
Rovio created the game in 2009 when it realised that there were
no games available for families to play on mobile phones. During 2009 to
2010, it decided to become a global brand after achieving a million downloads
of its game on mobile phones. The company has awarded licences for various
companies to use the Angry Birds image and has earned considerable profits
from it.
Similar workshops will be organised in
The funding calls will open in spring 2015, and the first
funding decision will be made by the summer. The winners will be carefully
selected from proposals, based on a market need assessment and the firm's
capacity to implement the new innovation.
Source :
VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Năm, 8 tháng 1, 2015
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