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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 11/3
Son La Province invites investment for 21 projects
The Son La Province is seeking investment for 21 key projects,
especially in the sectors of tourism, trade and services,
agro-forestry-fishery, and processing and manufacturing, the Voice of Vietnam
(VOV) reported.
To this end, the northern mountainous province will continue
to speed up administrative reforms, improve infrastructure to draw investors,
VOV quoted the Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Planning and
Investment Tran Thanh Hai as saying.
Last year, Son La had granted licences to 21 projects, lifting
the number of projects in this locality to more than 210, capitalized at
approximately VND28 trillion (US$1.3 billion).
Growth in 2016-2020 unlikely to surpass 6%
The country's average annual economic growth rate for the 2016
to 2020 period is unlikely to exceed 6 per cent due to little improvement in
growth motivation.
This has been forecast by a research group under the Vietnam
Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR).
The group said the high growth rate of 7.5 per cent seen
during the 1990s and in early 2000s will not return going forward.
The institution noted that if there is no new growth
motivation stemming from an improvement in labour productivity, it will make
it difficult for the country's economic growth to avoid a long-term slippage.
It added that a credit growth of 12 to 15 per cent will help
maintain an inflation target of 6 per cent. However, a credit growth of
around 20 per cent will lead to a risk of high inflation (over 10 per cent).
To improve the growth rate and quality of the economy,
research group VEPR stated that it is necessary to boost productivity of the
total economy and restructure it for higher quality.
Innovations in economy and administration are also decisive
actions, the group said.
VEPR also forecast that GDP will increase by about 6.2 per
cent this year. This ratio is 0.2 points more than the estimated growth rate
for 2014.
The inflation rate by the end of 2015 is expected to reach to
4.09 per cent, higher than 1.84 per cent in December 2014.
According to VEPR, the inflation rate has allowed the
Government to adjust the prices of public services, including electricity
prices. The increase in electricity prices will affect manufacturing costs,
but will be limited to consumer prices.
In addition, if crude oil prices continue to decrease sharply,
the balance in the economy will be affected. Therefore, the growth rate will
possibly lose 1 to 1.5 percentage points, while the inflation rate will lose
4 to 6 percentage points, VEPR pointed out.
In the case of an easy monetary policy, combined with the
sensitivity of consumers and investment with low interest, the growth rate
could possibly increases by 0.1 to 0.2 percentage points, while the inflation
rate will remain below the target of 5 per cent.
Financial attacks against Android users triple
The number of financial malware attacks against Android
devices grew by 3.25 times last year, topping 2.3 million, according to a new
report by security software provider Kaspersky Lab.
Kaspersky Lab's Android products last year blocked a total of
2,317,194 financial attacks against 775,887 users around the world.
Most of these (2,217,979 attacks against 750,327 users) used
Trojan-SMS malware, and the rest (99,215 attacks against 59,200 users) used
Trojan-Banker malware.
Although the Trojan-Banker contribution against Android users
was relatively small, it continued to grow, it said.
Kaspersky Lab products detected 20 different malicious
Trojan-Banker programmes, but most attacks by Android banking malware were by
only three malicious families - Faketoken, Svpeng and Marcher.
Vingroup to open VinMart+ convenience stores in HCMC
Vingroup launched the VinMart Dong Khoi supermarket in
On the occasion, the group announced discounts on thousands of
items, as well as other incentives for its customers in the city.
Vinmart Dong Khoi, the second Vinmart in the city, is spread
over two floors with a total area of more than 4,000sqm in
Meanwhile, the convenience stores in District 1, 2 and 4, Phu
Nhuan, Binh Thanh and Tan Binh, as well as Go Vap, Thu Duc and Nha Be will
cover smaller areas, carry the slogan "Nearer and Faster" and
supply essential goods that will be arranged according to customers'
convenience.
They are among 100 VinMart supermarkets and 1,000 VinMart+
convenience stores that Vingroup plans to construct nationwide by 2017.
Around 90 Vietnamese companies will set up 150 booths at the
sixth HCM City Expo to be held in
Organised by the HCM City Investment and Trade Promotion
Centre (ITPC) annually since 2010, it is meant to support the municipal
companies trying to enter or expand their business in
The expo will feature three parts. The first will highlight
the city's cultural and socio-economic achievements and the co-operation
between the two countries. The second will be a place to display agricultural
and industrial products. The last will be for showcasing services.
During the five days of the event,
Binh Duong exports earn $2.94b
The southern
According to the municipal Statistics Department, the
foreign-invested sector contributed $2.38 billion to the sum, a 15.1 per cent
increase over 2014.
Major exports reflecting significant growth include woodwork
products, apparel, footwear, phones and electronic devices.
During the same period, the province imported commodities
valued at $2.52 billion, a 14.7 per cent annual increase. It saw $415 million
in trade surplus.
Also in January and February, Binh Duong attracted nearly $180
million in foreign direct investment (FDI). This year, the province aims for
$1 billion in FDI.
FLC posts 231% profit increase between 2013 and 2014
FLC Group posted an audited aggregrate profit of VND454
billion (US$21.2 million) for the whole of 2014, an increase of 231 per cent
over the previous year and VND22 billion ($1.02 million) higher than the
unaudited financial report.
The group's turnover last year reached VND2.06 trillion ($96.2
million), an 18 per cent year-on-year rise, making its earning per share
VND1,953.
FLC saw a breakthrough development last year because it has
completed a capital-increase target and developed several big property
projects, including FLC Garden City, FLC Complex 36 Pham Hung, FLC Star City
and FLC Complex Thanh Hoa as well as investments in other sectors, such as
industrial zones, build and transfer projects.
It targeted a profit of VND1 trillion ($46.7 million) this
year with the sale of the projects outlined. FLC is expected to ask the
shareholders' meeting to pay a bonus at 20 per cent of charter capital.
HAI Agrochem expects to see $1.5m in profit by June
HAI Agrochem Joint Stock Company is expected to achieve a
profit of VND33 billion (US$1.5 million) in the first half of the year,
double that of the previous financial year.
The company said it would have a turnover of VND700 billion
($32.7 million) in the period. In the first quarter of the year, it had a
profit of VND10 billion ($467,000), which was mainly from restructuring its
financial investment and other assets.
This year, it will focus on overall restructuring by
increasing charter capital to expand operation in high profit sectors and
developing products and services in the agriculture industry. HAI's
management board approved the plan to sell 15 million shares at VND12,500
each.
SASCO plans to list on HCM Stock Exchange in 2015
The Southern Airport services Join Stock Company intends to
list on the HCM Stock Exchange this year.
SASCO, which held an IPO last September at the exchange for an
average price of VND19,330 and has a chartered capital of VND1.315 trillion
($61 million), is now wrapping up procedures for listing on UPCoM in the
second quarter.
The Government owns 51 per cent of the company, leaving the
rest to strategic partners (almost 24 per cent), the public and employees.
The company's interests include duty-free shops, foreign
currency exchange, transportation and others.
This year it expects to earn a profit from operations of
almost VND165 billion, rising to VND176 billion in 2016. Last year's earnings
were VND86 billion.
Ha Noi urged to better socio-economic development
PM Nguyen Tan Dung has urged
The meeting saw the presence of Deputy PMs Nguyen Xuan Phuc,
Hoang Trung Hai, Vu Van Ninh and Vu Duc Dam and leaders from several
ministries and central agencies.
On behalf of the Government, PM Dung praised Ha Noi’s
achievements in socio-economic development and expressed his hope that the
city would promote ít strengths, uphold responsibility and overcome
shorcomings to realize targets set for 2015.
The Government leader also urged Ha Noi to make new
development steps in the five coming years to become a role model for the
whole country.
The Government, ministries and sectors will uphold their
responsibilities in building the capital city while in certain areas
authorized for the city as regulated,
He asked for the meeting’s draft conclusions which will be
discussed at the Government’s next regular meeting.
During the meeting, PM Dung, the Deputy PMs and leaders from
several relevant ministries and agencies responded to ten suggestions of the
capital city about finance, business support, development investment,
planning, urban development and organization.
According to Chairman of the Ha Noi Municipal People’s
Committee NguyenThe Thao, in 2015, Ha Noi will strive for a growth rate of
9-9.5%, a VND75-77 million income per capita, a 11-12% rise in social
investment, an 8-9% increase in export turnover and 55 more communes to be
recognized as new-style rural areas.
Leading Vietnamese realty firm opens more retail outlets in Ho
Chi Minh City
Leading Vietnamese realty firm Vingroup has opened another
Vinmart supermarket in downtown
The listed realty conglomerate put the Vinmart supermarket
into operation yesterday at the shopping mall Vincom Center B at
The supermarket is located on two floors with a total area of
over 4,000m².
It is the second such supermarket Vingroup has opened in
The realty group, coded VIN on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange,
will launch 10 Vinmart+ convenient stores at the same time
tomorrow,Vietnamplus said.
The Vinmart+ chain, including mini-supermarkets and convenient
stores, is located in central business districts, such as District 1 and
District 4, and key residential areas in outlying areas like District 2, Phu
Nhuan, Binh Thanh, Tan Binh, Go Vap, Thu Duc, and Nha Be.
Vingroup has planned to open 368 Vinmart+ stores nationwide in
2015.
The opening of the Vinmart supermarket and Vinmart+ convenient
stores is part of Vingroup’s development strategy to expand in the retail
market in which it set foot in 2013.
In October 2014, Vingroup announced the acquisition of a 70
percent stake in Ocean Retail Co., which was under Ocean Group, getting
involved deeper in the lucrative retail market.
After the acquisition, Ocean Retail Co. was renamed Vinmart
Supermarket and Vingroup introduced two new brands, Vinmart supermarkets and
Vinmart+ convenient stores with plans to build a distribution network of 100
supermarkets and a chain of 1,000 convenience stores across Vietnam in the
next three years.
As of October 2014, Ocean Retail had 13 stores and planned to
add 40 venues across the country.
One month earlier, Vingroup announced the purchase of a 10
percent stake in the state-run Vietnam National Textile And Garment Group
(VINATEX), the owner of the VinatexMart supermarket chain with many outlets
in 26 provinces and cities throughout the country.
Vingroup stepped into the retail market with a string of
shopping centers for children. It has also set up companies specializing in
e-commerce, VinE-Com, and in fashion, the VinFashion firm.
The group has its shopping malls situated at prime locations
in the country’s two biggest cities, namely
HPG enters fodder industry
Steelmaker Hoa Phat Group (HPG) has officially launched a new
subsidiary, which will produce fodder in the
Steelmaker Hoa Phat Group has officially launched a new
subsidiary, which will produce fodder on March 9. Photo
khoahocchonhanong.com.vn
HPG Vice Chairman Nguyen Viet Thang has been appointed as the
Hoa Phat Fodder Production and Trading Ltd. Co.'s director and other
officials of the group have also been selected for key positions in the
company, which will operate with the charter capital of VND300
billion(US$14.08 million).
According to the group's representative, with a design
capacity for 300,000 tonnes of fodder, the company is estimated to report
revenue of VND3 trillion ($140.8 million) during the next three years.
The representative said steel making is the core business of
the group, adding that entering manufacturing in the agriculture industry
will be the long-term strategy of the group's development. Thus, HPG will set
a priority in finance and human resources for the new field.
HPG Chairman Tran Dinh Long said even though the competition
in the agriculture industry is hard, he believed the group will be
successful.
The first batch of fodder is expected to be dispatched to the
local market in June 2015, while the company's fodder factory is set become
operational in 2016.
Last year, HPG reported a net revenue of VND26 trillion ($1.22
billion) and an after-tax profit of VND3.2 trillion ($150.2 million),
reflecting a 62 per cent year-on-year growth.
Vingroup asks to buy
Real estate conglomerate Vingroup, owned by the only
Vietnamese billionaire in Forbes list, has told the Minister of Transport it
wants to buy a stake in each of the country’s largest seaports, local media
reported Friday.
Vingroup seeks to become the strategic investors of the
The ports are under the management of the Vietnam National
Shipping Lines, commonly known as Vinalines.
This is the second time Vingroup made the proposal to the
transport ministry, according to the Hanoi-based newswire.
Vingroup is chaired by Pham Nhat Vuong, the wealthiest
individual in
The company has proposed to acquire an 80 percent stake of
Vingroup also wants to own 80 percent of the Ho Chi Minh
City-based port at a price that is no less than the IPO price, and join in
developing the privatization plan for the port.
“Vingroup is committed to follow all government’s policies and
principles in the planning and management of seaports,” Vingroup general
director Duong Thi Mai Hoa was quoted by the Vietnam News Agency as saying.
Vingroup has said it wants to operates, manages and explores
the ports if the stake acquisition is approved. The company will employ the
modern administrative management models for the ports to increase its
unloading capacity and business effectiveness.
Newswire VnExpress said a high-ranking official from the
transport ministry confirmed Vingroup’s proposal on Thursday.
If approved, it will be the largest-ever deal in regard of
seaports in
Under the plan to privatize the country’s seaports and
airplanes, the minimum stake the government should hold in the facilities is
51 percent.
The proposition to acquire as much as 80 percent of the
Business opportunities in the
According to former Deputy Chairman of the Hanoi Young
Entrepreneur Association (HYEA), Dang Duc Dung, the TPP will assist
Vietnamese businesses in gaining access to a market with over 800 million
people and accounting for 40 percent of the global GDP.
Dung also noted that through the agreement,
Bill Delaney, a lawyer on international commerce, said in
order to invest and run businesses effectively in the
A representative of Harwood law firm added that international
commerce is complicated, presenting sophisticated rules and barriers on loading
and finance.
The lawyers advised businesses to seek assistance from
professionals to cut costs and avoid potential threats.
Power price hike to raise 2015 CPI by 0.23 percent
The 7.5 percent increase in electricity prices from March 16
is forecast to raise this year’s consumer price index (CPI) by 0.23 percent,
said Nguyen Anh Tuan, Director General of the Ministry of Industry and
Trade’s Electricity Regulatory Authority.
The hike will translate into an additional 4,800 VND (0.22
USD) for each household consuming 50 kWh of power a month, while those using
100 kWh a month will pay about 9,800 VND (0.46 USD) more, he said.
Tuan added since the price rise will affect low-income and
disadvantaged families, State financial support for the electricity bills of
these households will be increased by 153 billion VND (7.28 million USD) a
year from the current 1 trillion VND (47.61 million USD).
A survey by Vietnam News Agency reporters shows that the price
augmentation will have its largest impact on big power-consuming industries.
Truong Quoc Huy, General Director of the Vicem But Son Cement
Joint Stock Company, said his firm uses about 100 kWh of electricity to
produce one tonne of cement. Since power prices for manufacturing are higher
than those for households, the power price hike will likely affect production
costs and selling prices.
Electricity expenses account for about 7 percent of steel
billet production costs. Between 400 and 600 kWh of power are needed to
produce one tonne of steel billet, according to Chairman of the Vietnam Steel
Association Ho Nghia Dung.
He estimated the 7.5 percent hike will raise steel production
expenses by 80,000-100,000 VND (3.75-4.68 USD) per tonne, adding that it will
be a burden for steel makers amid an a array of challenges such as decreasing
prices of steel billet from China and Japan.
Vu Ngoc Bao, Vice Chairman and General Secretary of the
Vietnam Pulp and Paper Association, said the power price escalation will
cause a 0.5-0.8 percent rise in the industry’s manufacturing costs.
Huy and Bao suggested businesses minimise other expenses and
consider accepting a profit decline to account for the power price increase.
Vincom tops two
The 36-hectare
Meanwhile, the Vincom Mega Mall Times City, covering 200,000
square meters inside Times City, surpassed other trade centres nationwide
thanks to its outstanding features and leading shopping, entertainment and
food facilities.
Vingroup has been honoured six times by the International
Property Awards in the past three years. In 2012, the firm won “Best Mix-used
Development – Asia Pacific” for its Vinhomes Riverside urban area.
Last year, its Vincom Mega Mall Royal was also honoured with
the “Best Retail Development” award.
The Asia Pacific Property Awards are part of the 20-year-old
International Property Awards, widely considered one of the most prestigious
awards in the world.-
Vietnamese exports to
Major exports included phones and phone components, footwear,
and coffee, growing between 14 and 66 percent from January last year.
Trade between
The figure is expected to reach 5 billion USD in 2016, as the
southern European nation is now an important export market for
Bilateral trade between
Some key export products maintained high growth, for example,
oil and gas amounting 133 million SGD (96.3 million USD) while several faced
a drop, including coffee and tea, down 51.4 percent to 11.2 million SGD (8.1
million USD), and seafood, down 13 percent to 7.2 million SGD (5.2 million
USD).
Meanwhile, Singapore shipped to Vietnam 1.72 billion SGD (1.24
billion USD) worth of commodities with the bulk of its products seeing a jump
during the period, notably beverage, up 192.5 percent to 87.4 million SGD
(63.3 million USD), chemicals, up 182 percent to 31.8 million SGD (23.02
USD), and telephones and components, up 146.3 percent to 680 million SGD
(492.3 million USD).
Of the imports, made-in-Singapore products accounted for 621
million SGD (450 million USD), increased by 5.8 percent).
Can Tho city eyes 1.45 billion USD in exports
The Mekong Delta city of
The eight products in question are rice, aquatic products,
processed agricultural goods, textiles and garments, pharmaceuticals,
leathers, fine arts and handicrafts, with rice, aquatic products, and
textiles and garments as the largest commodities.
To boost rice shipments, Can Tho plans to help businesses
apply modern processing and packaging line technologies to improve rice
quality and gain access to strict markets like the EU,
It will revamp processing firm operations and re-organise the
rice purchasing, processing and preserving system. It will encourage
companies to buy at least 700,000 tonnes of rice produced by local farmers
and source rice from neighbouring provinces with the ultimate aim to export
850,000 tonnes in 2015, the department said.
The city will simultaneously work to tighten control over
aquatic product quality, enhance trademark development, work directly with
foreign partners without intermediaries, and expand production scale to
minimise costs and meet foreign demand.
High-quality product manufacturing will be strengthened with
additional focus on processing shrimp, especially global favourites black
tiger shrimp, frozen fish, and instant packaged mollusc.
Assistance will also be provided for seafood processors in
training personnel, improving communication skills in foreign trade
relations, and expanding partnerships with firms in Denmark, Sweden, the UK,
Belgium, the US, Australia, Singapore, and Indonesia.
The department added that Can Tho is now striving to raise the
localisation rate of its apparel products by 5 percent to 55 percent,
modernise the sector, and develop human resources both quantitatively and
qualitatively, boosting competitiveness and integration capacity.
It will divide its markets into ‘strict’, including the EU and
the
Promotional activities will be stepped up in
In the first two months of 2015, the city earned 147 million
USD in exports, down 5.8 percent annually, with several exports recording
sharp revenue decreases such as handicrafts (down 64.7 percent), rice (13.2
percent), and seafood (11.2 percent).
A draft circular that envisages requiring online retailers to
register with the ministry and pay taxes has drawn mixed reviews.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade circular would require
e-commerce and social media site retailers to register their transactions in
order to facilitate the collection of taxes, starting on January 20, 2015.
The regulation attracted broad public attention in
Many have questioned the extent to which the regulation is
feasible.
Tran Thanh Hai, general director of Vietnam Gold Business,
said it is not easy to tax retailers who use sites like Facebook because the
host server is outside
These individuals can shut down problematic Facebook pages at
any time and the authorities can’t track down their owners or operators, he
said.
Lawyer Nguyen Thanh Ha, chairman and CEO of S&B Law, said
millions of people sell goods online using anonymous accounts, making it very
hard to regulate their activities.
Developed countries with better IT infrastructure are more
capable of monitoring and regulating such activity, he said.
But Nguyen Thi Thanh Nhan, the owner of Nang Ganh (a popular
online restaurant in
“When the sellers register with the trade ministry, they can
be held responsible for their products and services, so customers will be
better protected and served,” she said.
She said that many Vietnamese consumers have recently lost
trust in e-commerce after receiving something that's of lower quality than
what they viewed online.
In order to tax sellers, the trade ministry must gather
information about individuals or organizations who opened accounts to run
online retail businesses from the Ministry of Information and Communications,
a Ministry of Finance official told Thanh Nien.
At the same time, commercial banks must monitor online
shopping revenues and deduct taxes from such transactions, he said.
Le Thi Thu Huong, deputy head of the Ho Chi Minh City Tax
Department, said that in order to make the regulation feasible, the
ministries of trade and information, the banks, and the tax departments must
work together closely.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade said it is still polling
public opinions about the circular before officially issuing it.
Rambutan mango, longan exports surge
Two month- exports of dragon fruits, rambutans, mangoes and
longans to the four demanding markets-the
According to the Plant Protection Department (PPD), dragon
fruits exports, accounted for 80% of total export turnover. The
Local businesses predicted that fruit exports to the lucrative
markets this year will pick up as longans and lychees are shipped to the
Mango exports to the RoK showed positive signals with 46.8
tonnes of mango exported to the market, equal to last year’s figure.
The PPD said this year the country is set to ship more mangoes
and star apples to the
Authorities in
Local media reported on March 5 that it is unclear why the
companies wanted to quit the US$331.3-million-plus project, less than two
years after securing land rights in July 2013 following a competitive bidding
process.
Upon the land assignment, the city's authorities said if the investors
failed to carry out the development without justifications, they would lose
their deposits and would be banned from bidding for other projects within
three years, news website VnExpress said.
They were not allowed to transfer their contracts to another
investor either, it added. In the meantime, authorities said they will to
organize a tender to choose new investors.
The city’s plan was to have a complex including a shopping
mall, a hotel, a financial center and a gallery built on the 9,800-square-meter
land on
It is often dubbed a “golden” lot of land because of its
sought-after location. Under the original plan, a total of over VND7.16
trillion would be invested in the project. Around half of that amount was
believed to be earmarked for land-related costs alone.
Nearly 70 investors expressed their interest when the project
was first announced in 2009.
Coffee hoarding: Vietnamese speculators pressure global
robusta deficit
Vietnamese speculators are stashing away bags and bags of
robusta, a caffeine-rich bean used in instant coffee and blends.
The hoarding, the scale of which traders have never seen
before, has cut exports and threatens to deepen a global deficit.
People in the market say that in recent weeks speculators -
ranging from traders in fertilizer and petrol to government employees with
idle funds - have been stocking up on beans whenever prices dip below
psychologically key levels.
"When prices are below VND40,000 (US$2) per kg, purchases
for speculation happen," said Do Ha
The hoarding may cut
In October-February, exports fell 11% from a year earlier to
8.94 million bags. Even if March exports match February loading, shipments in
October-March would still be around a quarter less than a year prior.
The downtrend in exports could increase a global deficit that
some estimates hold may be the deepest in almost a decade.
Domestic robusta prices climbed to a seven-week high of
VND41,100 per kg on Feb. 24. But speculators did not take the bait, reckoning
the market could rise to VND45,000, following a disappointing 2014/2015 crop
ravaged by dry weather and disease.
Traders say speculators may not release their stocks until
late May or even June, when rains are expected to arrive in the Central
Highlands coffee belt. Rains would bode well for the 2015/2016 crop,
replenishing inventories and lowering prices. Speculators would have less incentive
to hoard.
The smaller 2014/2015 harvest in
That is more than 10% above current prices. But it is
premature to say if a cup of instant coffee would cost more this time next
year.
The hoarding in
It is also too early to assess the size of the next crop due
for harvest in October, traders say. (US$1 = VND21,320)
Banks cut rates on the back of low CPI
Deposit interest rates are set to fall across the board for
the local banking sector, including a prediction that there should be a cut
in a open-market operations interest rates to at least 4.5 % a year by the
end of 2015.
Eximbank, for instance posted a new deposit rate of 7.5 % a
year instead of the previous 7.7% for deposits upward of VND500 million
(US$23, 364). The bank’s 12-month term deposit was recorded at 6.1% per year,
a significant fall of 0.28% a year. Meanwhile, its six to 11-month term
deposit rates also fell 0.1-0.18% a year and one-month term deposit rate
dropped a marginal 0.08 % a year.
Techcombank also cut deposit rates by 0.1-0.3% a year while
the Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) trimmed its deposit rates down 0.1-0.2% a
year and according to a SCB representative, the deposit rates were likely to
fall further in the future.
According to the socio-economic reports for February and the
first two months of 2015 by the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI),
the consumer price index (CPI) in February decreased 0.05% compared to
January and 0.25% compared to last December.
The figure however increased 0.34% in comparison to last
February. On average, the CPI for the first two months crept up just 0.64%
compared to the same period last year.
Declining inflation therefore has provided very favourable
conditions for interest rates cuts while still maintaining rates sufficiently
attractive to maintain deposits.
SCB general director Vo Tan Hoang Van said that given the
current stable macro-economic state, steep declines in input costs and with
bad debts under control, cutting interest rates was totally acceptable.
Meanwhile, HSBC expressed the view that the State Bank’s (SBV)
monetary moves in recent years, particularly its open market operations
(OMO), would determine whether the interest rate was likely to be further
trimmed in the coming months.
HSBC chose the OMO as it carried adequate historical data and
impact with regard to the short-term interest rate in the market. According
to HSBC, the real interest rate had in fact increased in recent months; and
the bank therefore predicted that the SBV would be likely to cut the OMO by
another 0.5% down to 4.5% by the end of the year.
“We expected that the SBV will announce another 0.5% OMO
interest rate cut and it could be as soon as this week”, said HSBC Asia
Economist Trinh Nguyen.
“However, there are uncertainties that the SBV could be
cautious in its operations decisions including the precarious oil and gas
prices, the likelihood of the Federal Reserve increasing interest rates this
year and whether demand becomes more stable.
In addition, in the second half of the year, there should be
unfavourable price conditions awaiting”, added Nguyen.
Market abuse a concern as
Vietnamese experts have begun to voice their concern about
potential market abuse that may arise from the government's plan to open up
the aviation sector.
As the transport ministry is considering selling the rights to
operate major airport terminals, experts say it is vital to have regulations
to protect consumers.
They fear that once a company has been allowed to take over a
certain terminal, it will try to capitalize on its market monopoly.
Earlier this week, Vietnam Airlines offered to buy
The state-own carrier was the second airline to make such an
offer, after low-cost carrier VietJet Air.
Economist Nguyen Van Ngai said privatization does not
necessarily mean giving one investor the license to operate a complete
terminal.
The ministry should consider selling operating rights to
different investors, which is the best way to protect airport terminals from
being monopolized, he suggested.
Bui Trinh, another economist, also said if the ministry allows
a single investor to become the sole manager of a terminal, it will look like
the state allows that investor to have a monopoly.
He and many other economists urged the ministry to introduce
regulations, including those related to service quality, so that investors
are legally bound to operate terminals exactly as they have promised to.
Without clear regulations, the privatization of airports can
lead to bad consequences, particularly risks that an airline with management
rights will "bully" other carriers, economist Le Dang Doanh said.
He said the transport ministry must take national security and
consumer interest into account when creating legal mechanisms for
privatization.
Dinh Xuan Thao, chief of a policy research institute under the
National Assembly, said it is also important to evaluate the terminals and
decide how much they should be sold for, so that the state will not suffer
losses.
The prices must be publicized, he said.
Tran Huu Huynh, chairman of
Under a tentative plan, the transport ministry wanted to
transfer the rights to operate a number of terminals at major airports, including
Noi Bai, Cam Ranh near the central resort town of
It also considered putting the sole airport on the resort
The privatization plan is now being drafted by the Airports
Corporation of
Source : VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Tư, 11 tháng 3, 2015
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