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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 16/4
Indian, VN garment firms tie up
The Indian Synthetic and Rayon Textiles Export Promotion
Council (SRTEPC) last week announced a tie-up with lingerie maker Anh Khoa
Production and Trading Company Ltd.
A memorandum of understanding was signed on the occasion of a
visit by Smita Pant, the Indian consul in
Under the deal, Anh Khoa will import materials from SRTEPC
members.
Ngo Ngoc Hoa, CEO of Anh Khoa, said that initially his company
would buy feedstock from
With Indian companies participating for the first time, Sai
Gon
Joint stock firm gets GMP status
Joint-stock drug firm Savipharm yesterday received a
certificate of good manufacturing practice (Japan-GMP) from
The factory employs advanced technology, and Savipharm is
among several drug firms in
The certification will help the company boost exports. Its
products have entered the markets of
"We'll make major investments from this year in building
additional three workshops and a research and development centre in the zone
where our current land has sufficient space for them," said the
chairman.
He also told Viet Nam News that he would look for foreign
capital and that several multinational firms have shown interest in becoming
partners.
He expects to achieve turnover of VND1 trillion (US$45
million) in 2020, which would be an annual increase of 30 per cent compared
to current figures.
Huge ship enters
Maersk Nicolai, with a capacity of 2,274 24-foot containers
(TEU), is the first feeder vessel owned by Maersk Line.
It sailed from Cai Lan port and made its call at Tan Vu port
in Hai Phong last week.
Maersk Nicolai is the biggest ship that has ever stopped at
Hai Phong port. This was the first voyage of Maersk Line's upgraded NV5
service. The ship's capacity of 35,000 tons is a third higher than that of
previous ships used on this service.
The NV5 service is one of Maersk Line's biggest feeder
services in
The ship calls on Hai Phong bi-weekly. The ship's port of
calls are Hai Phong,
Seminar casts light on investment opportunities in Cuba
Vietnam-Cuba bilateral trade jumped more than 45% to US$207.5
million last year, including US$206 million from
The figure was released at a seminar in
In his speech, Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)
Vice President Doan Duy Khuong, said
The two governments have paid special attention to promoting
cooperation in many fields, especially economics, construction,
transportation, bio-technology, agriculture, education, health care, sports
and physical training.
The two countries have signed a series of economic and trade
agreements to support bilateral trade cooperation, such as an investment
encouragement and protection agreement in 1995, a tourism cooperation
agreement in 1999, a plant protection and quarantine agreement, and a double
taxation avoidance agreement in 2002.
President of the Cuban Chamber of Commerce, Orlando Hernandex
Gillen, highlighted the normalization of bilateral relations between
According to the latest statistics from the Ministry of
Planning and Investment, by December 2014,
The Ministry of Economy of the
The event also offered a good opportunity for businesses to
introduce their products, seek out future partners, consolidate existing
alliances and strengthen both trade and investment.
Polish ambassador to
Ambassador Szymanowska expressed hope that this event will add
fresh impetus to the long-term cooperation between both nations.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade’s European Market
Department Deputy Head Duong Hoang Minh, said economic and trade ties between
He emphasized that the EU- Vietnam Free Trade Agreement
(EVFTA) to be signed in the near future will open up more favourable
prospective opportunities for the businesses of both nations.
Minh said in the time ahead, the two governments will set up
the inter-governmental committee to strengthen cooperation in potential
fields and accelerate economic and trade cooperation.
Polish Minister of Economic, Grazyna Henclewska, highlighted
the history of economic and trade corporations of both nations, and expressed
hope to further boost cooperation with Vietnam (in such fields as mining,
food, green technology, hi-tech and chemicals).
Minister Henclewska underscored that the Polish economy ranks
sixth in Europe and takes the lead in all of
Investment opportunities in
Addressing the opening ceremony, VCCI Vice President Doan Duy
Khuong hailed the 55 years of cooperative ties between
The two Governments have fostered comprehensive relations,
especially in economic development, construction, transport, biotechnology,
agriculture and education, he said.
The two nations have a number of long-standing economic-trade
agreements, such as the agreement on trade exchanges and other economic
cooperation in 1996; the agreement on investment encouragement and protection
in 1995; and the agreement on tourism cooperation in 1999, Khuong added.
Meanwhile, President of the Cuba Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (CCCI) Hernandez Guillen said the recent normalisation of bilateral
relations between
He also highlighted opportunities for Vietnamese investors in
tourism, agriculture, telecommunication, footwear and garment-textiles, some
of the major sectors in both nations.
Additionally, the establishment of the Mariel Special
Development Zone (ZEDM) is expected to facilitate Vietnamese investment in
the Caribbean and offer a gate to the
In 2014, trade between
According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment,
Military
bank pledges low-cost loans to SMEs
Small- and medium-sized enterprises will have access to
preferential loans from the Vietnam Military Joint Stock commercial Bank (MB)
with a debt limit up to 20 trillion VND (920 million USD).
The programme will include long-term loans in Vietnamese dong
and USD and medium-term loans serving production and business activities,
agricultural and rural projects and infrastructure development.
The interest rate for loans will fluctuate between 6.9 to 9.5
percent per year.
Recently, the Vietnam Bank for Industry and Trade (VietinBank)
also committed to providing 2 trillion VND (92.6 million USD) in credit to a
number of projects in the northwest, mostly in healthcare, education and
security-defence.
VietinBank General Director Le Duc Tho said the bank has
allocated over 1 trillion VND (46.3 million USD) to the region so far,
contributing remarkably to its socio-economic development. VietinBank is now
one of the ten strongest banks in
Intellectual property law enforces creativity, innovation
Intellectual property law enforcement not only protects enterprises
but also pushes them to create and innovate, Deputy Head of the National
Office of Intellectual Property (NOIP) Le Ngoc Lam said in a Ho Chi Minh
City-based seminar on April 14.
The seminar was organised by the NOIP on the occasion of World
Intellectual Property Day (April 26).
According to Lam, it is vital for Vietnamese businesses to
expand their budget for research and innovation or technological transfer,
facilitating the development of technology nationwide.
The NOIP received over 38,700 applications for trademark
protection registration last year. Over 29,000 patents were granted, nearly
1,270 of which were for inventions, 86 for utility solutions and over 1,630
for industrial designs.
The number of industrial property registration applications
has grown by 10 percent annually, reflecting increasing public awareness of
the significance of intellectual property rights.
However, applications from Vietnamese businesses remains low,
accounting for only 10 percent and only 3 percent received patents, noted
Nguyen Van Bay, Director of the Centre for Research and Training at the NOIP.
Bay said the lack of business acknowledgement of the issue
coupled with poor application quality were the main contributing factors to the
low number of applications.
The number of applications also varied geographically, with
Northern Lai Chau province had the lowest number of
applications with only 2, followed by northern Bac Kan and Dien Bien
provinces with 5 and 9, respectively.
Seminar participants agreed that intellectual property
violations are still rampant.
Sustainable consumption in
A workshop themed “Sustainable consumption in
The event is part of the GetGreen Vietnam project funded by
the European Union and implemented by the Dutch Delft University of
Technology, the Vietnam Cleaner Production Centre and the Asian Institute of
Technology in
According to the Ambassador-Head of the Delegation of the EU
to
GetGreen project helps generate higher demand for sustainable
products thus enhancing small- and medium-sized enterprises’ supply capacity,
said Franz.
Since October 2014, the project has trained over 1,000 people
to call on consumers to change their habits and lead an environmentally
friendly lifestyle.
Dr. Marcel Crul, coordinator of the project, said those
trained have contributed to improving the environment in
A handbook with over 75 instructions was developed to benefit
consumers.
Additionally, as many as 16 co-creative working sessions among
consumption groups and 16 enterprises operating in tourism, food and travel
were organised with the aim to share ideas for sustainable products and
services.
SBIC urged to put equitization on fast track
Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang has called on Shipbuilding
Industry Corporation (SBIC) to speed up the restructuring and equitization of
its member enterprises, according to the ministry’s website.
SBIC general director Vu Anh Tuan told a meeting with the
minister last Friday that the corporation attained revenue of over VND560
billion (US$25.9 million) in the first three months of 2015, down 19%
compared to the same period last year and meeting only 7.9% of this year’s
target.
Tuan said SBIC was grappling with a lot of woes this year as
it has had to concentrate resources on restructuring and equitization.
Ending the first quarter, SBIC had cut staff by over 36,700 to
over 17,000. It had also restructured foreign debt of US$135 million and
domestic debt of more than over VND16 trillion at the first stage.
Currently, SBIC is focusing on the second phase settlement of
domestic debts and international bond debts.
Regarding member enterprises, Tuan said SBIC is able to
complete the restructuring of 122 out of 149 units. For the remaining 27
firms, SBIC will assess and report specific schemes to the ministry.
At the meeting, Minister Thang asked SBIC to put the
equitization process on fast track. He set the second quarter of this year as
the deadline for the corporation to let the insolvent units file for
bankruptcy, and finish corporate evaluation and equitization of Ha Long
shipyard.
The State-owned SBIC was established in 2013 by reorganizing
the parent firm and some units of Vinashin in line with the transport
minister’s decision signed in January of the same year.
Fake goods threaten local producers
The rampant presence of fake goods in
Le The Bao, chairman of the Vietnam Association for
Anti-counterfeiting and Trademark Protection (VATAP), told the forum that
counterfeits are widely seen on the local market and threatening 30 groups of
consumer goods, including cosmetics, beverages, electronic and electrical
products, interior decorations and clothes.
“Fake goods have hurt the economy,” Bao told the forum
organized by the Government’s portal.
Beverages, cosmetics, apparel and fertilizer were among the
popular fake goods detected last year, according to Nguyen Trong Tin, deputy
dead of the Market Management Department at the Ministry of Industry and
Trade.
Tin said market monitors seized 4,000 boxes of fake alcohol
and beer, over 439,000 cosmetics items, 70,000 apparel products, 25,000
kilograms of fertilizer and 30 tons of monosodium glutamate last year.
However, Tin said only 11 out of over 21,000 violation cases
found last year were turned over to investigation agencies and the remainder
were subject to fines only.
Nguyen Van Can, deputy head of the General Department of
Customs, asked why the number of prosecutions was too small although the
Penal Code regulates that traders of fake goods worth VND30 million (some
US$1,400) could be treated as criminal offenders.
Tin said as counterfeit products are made in small quantities
and skillfully, it is difficult for market monitors to detect them.
Can said 26,000 tons of buffalo meat was imported from India
and other countries into Vietnam last year, but few shops sell this red meat.
“Was this meat sold as beef on the local market,” asked Can,
who is also head of the National Steering Committee on Prevention and Control
of Smuggling, Trade Fraud and Fake Commodities (Committee 389).
Currently, customs, border police, police, tax authorities,
maritime police and market management forces are assigned to deal with
smuggling and trade fraud, but the domestic market is still overwhelmed with
counterfeits.
Fake goods accounted for 10% of the trade fraud cases market
monitors unearthed last year, and the problem was attributable to ineffective
co-ordination among Government agencies and law enforcement forces, according
to the forum.
On top of that, fake goods have caused huge injury for local
enterprises, but they are not willing to join forces with law enforcement
agencies to fight it.
Exporter unconcerned about January-March seafood export fall
Minh Phu, the country’s leading seafood exporter, said that
the 23% decline in seafood exports in the first quarter of this year is not a
big worry as the situation can improve in the coming months.
Chu Van An, deputy general director of Minh Phu Seafood
Corporation, said the country’s seafood shipments in Q1 of last year went up
beyond projections due to limited supply in India, Thailand and China.
However, exports of these three Asian seafood exporters shot up in
January-March this year.
An told the Daily that his experience showed demand for
seafood, particularly shrimp, in importing markets is usually weak in the
first three months of year but grows strong in the following months.
“In general, I think seafood exports would not be as tough as
some exporters have bemoaned,” An said.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers
(VASEP) estimated seafood exports in the January-March period at US$1.27
billion, dropping 23% compared to the same period last year.
Despite the sharp fall, seafood revenue was US$121 million
higher than in the same period of 2011 and US$9 million in Q1 of 2013.
Seafood exports in the first quarter of 2014 were higher than
in the same period of previous years, for example US$390 in 2012 and US$381
in 2013.
“I think the breakthrough rise in seafood exports in last
year’s quarter one is an exception… and the fall in the first three months of
this year is in line with the normal market movements,” An said.
Last year, Vietnam obtained over US$7.83 billion from seafood
exports, US$1 billion higher than VASEP’s forecast.
Foreign investors pledge US$300 million for projects in Binh
Duong
Twenty-eight foreign-invested companies last week registered a
combined US$303.8 million in fresh and operational projects in Binh Duong
Province.
There are five apparel, wooden furniture, paint and paper
projects involving Chinese investors with a total of US$17.5 million.
Meanwhile, investors from Hong Kong and South Korea will spend some US$32.5
million on four projects in the southern province.
The South Korean projects include Remote Solution Co. Ltd.’s
US$10-million venture to turn out remote controls and other products at My
Phuoc 3 Industrial Park (IP) and Castec Vina Co. Ltd.’s production of auto
parts and mechanical components with an investment of US$14.5 million at My
Phuoc 3 IP.
Investors from other countries and territories had fewer
projects licensed in Binh Duong but their registered capital is much higher.
For instance, an investor from Samoa will spend US$40 million producing four
million scooters and one million bicycles per year at Song Than 3 IP.
Regarding operational projects, Thailand’s Srithai Vietnam Co.
Ltd. registered to raise its capital by US$30 million to US$70 million to
produce high-quality industrial plastic and other items for both domestic and
global markets.
Sakata Inx Vietnam Co. Ltd. was licensed to increase
investment in its operational facility at Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park
(VSIP) by US$7 million to US$21.5 million to increase its printing ink
capacity from 10,000 tons to 13,000 tons per year.
The Malaysian firm said the favorable investment environment
and stable labor supply are among the main reasons for the company to carry
out its long-term investment in Binh Duong Province.
Tran Van Nam, chairman of Binh Duong Province, said the
province will continue improving the investment environment; focusing more on
transport infrastructure, water supply and drainage improvements; and meeting
investors more frequently to timely solve their problems.
Binh Duong has licensed 85 foreign direct investment (FDI)
projects with total registered capital of US$402 million in the year to date,
making it the country’s second leader after HCMC in terms of FDI approvals.
Many of the projects are in technology and supporting industries.
Binh Duong Province now has 2,440 valid FDI projects worth a
total of US$20.8 billion.
HOSE sees plummeting deal value
The number of securities transactions and the deal value in
the first quarter at the HCM Stock Exchange fell to the lowest levels since
the first quarter of 2014, according to statistics provided by the exchange.
Last year, listed companies (there were 305 companies but
sufficient data was collected from only 254 of them) posted a 15.64 per cent
increase in turnover and a 8.1 per cent growth in net profit. Photo bizLIVE
Almost 5,600 million securities changed hands, compared to
around 8,400 million units in the fourth and third quarters last year. The
figure was more than 6,000 million in the second quarter and 7,700 million in
the first quarter in 2014.
The total value of transactions was VND97.236 trillion (US$452
million) during the first quarter, almost equal to the figure of the second
quarter, but down from more than VND152 trillion in the third and fourth
quarter of last year. The same period in 2014 totalled more than VND131
trillion.
Last year, listed companies (there were 305 companies but
sufficient data was collected from only 254 of them) posted a 15.64 per cent
increase in turnover and a 8.1 per cent growth in net profit.Their average
return on asset (ROA) ratio was 2.27 per cent, down by over 5 per cent from
2013.
Their return on equity (ROE) ratio was 18.85 per cent, up 0.8
per cent from the previous year.
Saigon Securities Inc. (SSI) ranked first among 10 leading
brokerage houses with a market share of 12.24 per cent, followed by HCM City
Securities Company (HSC) with a market share of over 11 per cent. Ban Viet
Securities Company was third with 7.78 per cent.
Vinatex strives to perfect supply chain
The government is stepping up efforts to help the textile and
garment sector effectively seize the golden opportunities brought about by
Vietnam’s future signing of diverse free trade agreements with the
international community.
Earlier this month, Vinatex International Joint Stock Company
(VTJ), a member of state giant Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group
(Vinatex), and its Japanese partner Toms Limited had inked a joint venture
(JV) agreement to build a textile-dyeing-garment complex in the central
region province of Quang Tri’s Hai Lang district.
Accordingly, the JV complex aims to produce elastic T-shirts,
a key item of Toms Limited, at the Dien Sanh industrial cluster. The complex
is planned to operate a complete production model, capable of processing
goods from start to finish.
The project, worth $12 million in total investment capital,
will consist of three plants: a textile dyeing plant with an annual capacity
of 2,500 tonnes of knitted fabrics, a garment plant producing more than 10
million items a year and a waste-water treatment plant with a daily capacity
of 1,200 cubic metres.
According to Vinatex deputy general director and VTJ general
director Dang Vu Hung, once completed, the project will be the most
state-of-the art knitwear manufacturing base in Vietnam’s central region
The whole complex is slated to finalise construction and put
into operation within this year and is expected to generate $8 million in
revenue at first, increasing to $40 million by 2017.
Le Tien Truong, Vinatex’s general director, said the combined
comparative advantages of foreign and domestic partners could help JV
projects of this kind operate more efficiently, through capitalising on the
foreign partners’ stable output market.
VTJ’s foreign partner Toms Limited is a leading garment maker
in Japan, specialising in T-shirts, Polo-shirts, Sweat shirts, blousons and
uniforms.
The company’s trading branches have expanded throughout Japan,
making up a retail system reaching from Hokkaido in the north to Kyushu in
the south.
In Japan, Toms Limited has opened a fully Japanese-owned plant
with a complete production process which achieves a revenue of $200 million
per year.
Prior to the deal with Toms, Vinatex and Japan’s Itochu had
signed a framework agreement to implement a string of new projects on textile
dyeing and material supply in Vietnam which envisages generating $60 million
in revenue during the next five years and creating thousands of jobs in
future project sites.
After the Quang Tri textile-dyeing-garment complex, Vinatex
was reported to set eyes on several northern locations such as Thai Binh and
Nam Dinh to expand the complete production JV model, planning to follow the
working investment procedure of teaming up with foreign partners wishing to
tap Vietnamese market potential.
Strengthening local businesses
Focusing on turning local businesses into strong pillars of
the economy is necessary to reduce the reliance on foreign direct investment
(FDI), an important stimulus for the Vietnamese economy, and encourage
utilising FDI effectively.
Since the Law on Foreign Investment was passed in 1987, the
FDI flow into the country has been stimulated, strongly affecting the
economy. According to Dr. Do Nhat Hoang, Director of the Ministry of Planning
and Investment (MPI)'s Foreign Investment Agency (FIA), FDI contributes
around 22-25% of the total investment and 14% of the State budget. The
segment of FDI in the gross domestic product (GDP) has steadily risen for
years, accounting for around 20% of GDP in 2014. The FDI sector has created
over two million direct jobs and about three to four million indirect jobs,
helping improve the quality of human resources and change the labour
structure. It has also made important contributions to the export revenue
with US$25.1 billion, including the turnover from crude oil export, in the
first quarter of this year, accounting for 70.3% of the total export value.
However with the positive effects on the economy and the
country’s sustainable development, the sector conceals many shortcomings.
Analysis by the MPI’s National Center for Socio-economic Information and
Forecast says that the country’s FDI structure is not balanced with numerous
FDI projects in natural resource extraction, pollution-causing industries and
real estate. It is an unsustainable structure as investment in natural
resource extraction has no spillover effects; pollution-causing industries
leave consequences and remedial costs for the country while FDI businesses
yield profits; and FDI in real estate can result in property bubbles, causing
instability. In addition, many FDI businesses regularly declare losses for
many consecutive years to avoid taxes and engage in transfer pricing.
Notably, many of them have gained monopoly power, disturbed and distorted the
market, decimated competitiveness, and impacted local businesses’
development.
Evaluating FDI’s impact on the economy, Le Quoc Phuong, Vice
Director of the Industry and Trade Information Centre, under the Ministry of
Industry and Trade, said that FDI flow accounts for 25% of total investment,
which is quite high, may entail risks and shows the weakness of local
investment.
The economy depends greatly on FDI. The FDI sector makes up
70% of the total export turnover (including crude oil export) while surplus
or deficit totally depends on the sector as it can cause a deficit for the
economy with its surplus reduction. The sector’s industrial production
accounts for over 60%, even 100% in many industries.
Dr. Vo Tri Thanh, Vice President of the Central Institute of
Economic Research and Management, wondered why the country has few
large-scale businesses after nearly three decades of the renewal process
while FDI businesses’ presence has become produced. He questioned what would
stimulate national economic development when the State-owned sector is
tapered off and the economy is so reliant on FDI.
However, Thanh felt optimistic as the draft political report
to the upcoming 12th Party Congress, set to be publicised, states that the
private sector is an important stimulus for the economy. When being supported
effectively, the private sector can become an important pillar of the economy
and ensure sustainable development, a counterweight to the FDI sector to help
reduce the economy’s current reliance on foreign investment.
Agreeing with Thanh’s viewpoint, Dr. Do Nhat Hoang from the
FIA said that though FDI is very important, local businesses, particularly
medium and small-sized businesses, which form the foundation for the economy,
need support through preferential policies in capital and technology to take
advantage of potentials in the integration process.
Vu Quoc Huy, Vice Director of the MPI’s Department of Economic
Zones Management, suggested that local businesses, which are weak in
capacity, technology, management, promotion and market expansion skills,
should learn from FDI businesses.
As the ties between local and FDI businesses have not been
promoted, the State should better its role in linking them together, sharing
information, supporting and creating close relations between the two sectors
while improving the roles and responsibilities of FDI businesses, especially
large-scale businesses, in connecting and supporting local businesses, Huy
said.
BIDV finances Lao infrastructure development projects
The Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV)
inked two agreements with the Lao Ministry of Finance over the weekend to
lend nearly US$147 million to infrastructure development projects.
The loans will go to a road project worth US$26.84 million and
an infrastructure development project worth US$120 million, raising the total
value of loan pacts signed between BIDV and the Lao government to US$200
million. Both projects will be implemented in Houaphan Province in the neighboring
country.
Besides, the US$30-million loan for an irrigation dam in Luang
Namtha Province is still under negotiation and the two sides look set to
clinch a deal next month.
BIDV will disburse the loans early next month and expects the
Lao government to finish the entire projects in the second quarter of 2017.
Under the cooperation agreements between Vietnam and Laos, the
governments of the two countries have agreed on assigning BIDV to study plans
to provide loans for the projects.
According to BIDV, the loans have an average term of 15 years
and a fixed interest rate of 3% per year.
Loans for the projects, especially the road one, will help
connect border gates of Vietnam’s Nghe An and Thanh Hoa provinces to Laos;
promote economic development, trade, investment and tourism links among
localities of Vietnam and northern localities of Laos.
Over 1,700 American brand names registered in Vietnam
The National Office of Intellectual Property under the
Ministry of Science and Technology received more than 1,700 trademark
registration applications from American businesses in 2014, announced
director of the Research and Education Center of the National Office of
Intellectual Property on April 10.
The department saw 1,300 trademark applications of Japanese
firms; 900 registration applications of Chinese enterprises; and 800 South
Korean applications.
The number of registration of trademarks has increased by 10
percent in recent years, he added.
The National Office of Intellectual Property also received
around 4,400 invention registration applications, including Vietnamese
people’s submissions accounted for 10 percent of the total number.
Only 3 percent of Vietnamese people have been licensed among
the total number of 1,500 Invention Certificates.
Prime Minister urges acceleration of SOE restructuring
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has urged ministries, branches
and localities to direct drastically the implementation of the equitisation
of 289 State-owned enterprises (SOE) in accordance with the plan.
The PM has urged the the equitisation of 289 State-owned
enterprises (SOE) in accordance with the plan.
During the SOE restructuring, relevant agencies must ensure
harmony between interests of the state, workers and other stakeholders as
well as link the equitisation with the securities market.
The PM required the 82 enterprises that have established its
Steering Committee for Equitisation to expeditiously determine their values
by the second quarter of 2015, striving to complete their equitisation by the
fourth quarter.
One hundred and twenty six businesses determining their values
should strive to announce the values by second quarter and complete equity
procedures by the third quarter.
Meanwhile, the other 52 enterprises that have announced their
values are expected to complete the equitisation by second quarter.
The PM also ordered ministries and localities to direct
divestment from non-core businesses strictly and effectively.
Leaders of the enterprises that are not performing or that are
ineffectively restructuring, equitisation and divestment must be punished
strictly, urged PM Nguyen Tan Dung.
Auditor delves into Petrolimex losses
The Viet Nam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) suffered a
loss of nearly VND9.10 billion (US$433,000) last year, an audited financial
report posted on the company's website revealed.
The result, concluded by auditor Deloitte Vietnam, was
different from the VND4.8 billion ($228,000) profit Petrolimex had reported
earlier for 2014.
Petrolimex Deputy General Director Tran Ngoc Nam explained in
an online statement that the difference was because the company had not
established provisional funds for risks posed to inventory price reduction on
December 31 last year.
The Petrolimex directorate assessed that this move was
suitable at the time, when the declining trend in global crude oil prices had
slowed since December.
The directorate also said that the company had accounted for
the results in line with the way the Government operates petrol prices.
As per a November 1, 2014 Decree on regulating petrol trading,
the base price used by domestic fuel dealers to set their retail prices will
be calculated every fortnight.
Meanwhile, Petrolimex was asked to guarantee an adequate
petrol volume reserve for about a month. Thus, its selling prices were
adjusted later than the time prices of imported commodities fluctuated.
This is why the company did not establish provisional funds on
December 31, and recorded business results in practical selling times.
The aforementioned explanations have been identified by
Deloitte.
Domestic petrol prices were increased five times and lowered
12 times last year. During 2014, the retail prices were down 26 per cent for
gasoline and diesel, 22 per cent for diesel, and 28.2 per cent for mazut.
The Viet Nam Petroleum Association told news website Dan tri
that national regulations had not caught up with the practice of petrol price
fluctuations. Policies had often been worked out to cope with fuel price
hikes, and were not adequate for coping with the extraordinary downward
spiral in global oil prices last year.
This had resulted in some disadvantages for petrol dealers in
assuring their reserves, the association said, adding that many businesses
reported inefficient performance in 2014.
The Deloitte report pointed out that the net turnover from
sales of goods and services, which Petrolimex obtained last year was
VND206.78 trillion ($9.85 billion), or VND20 billion ($952,000) lower than
the previously reported figure.
In 2013, the company earned VND1.58 trillion ($75.24 million)
in after-tax profits and VND195.93 trillion ($9.33 billion) in net revenue.
Firms should invest in e-commerce
Vietnamese companies should seek to expand exports through
e-commerce, which is becoming an effective channel for approaching importers.
Experts said that import demand from developed countries was
huge and these were markets where e-commerce was dominant, adding that
e-commerce could help also save costs and result in greater efficiency for
exporters, compared with the traditional trade transaction channels.
However, the gap in the application of e-commerce remains
considerable between developed and developing countries, experts said, urging
Vietnamese firms, especially small and medium-sized companies, to grasp the
chance of exploiting e-commerce to expand markets as e-commerce was growing
rapidly.
According to Tran Dinh Toan, deputy director of OCB Technology
and Investment Company, e-commerce is an effective tool for export firms to
explore new markets and expand into them.
Toan pointed out that many export firms in Viet Nam had
approached importers and signed contracts through the website Alibaba.com.
Dang Quang Vu, a representative from Hapro, which now exports
products to more than 70 countries with an estimated total export turnover of
VND9 trillion (US$422.5 million), said e-commerce had been an effective
channel for Hapro to expand into more export markets.
Products of the Nhan Minh Company were now placed on shelves
of retail channels of more than 10 countries thanks to e-commerce, the
company's representative said.
Goretti Lee, marketing manager of Alibaba.com was quoted by
Thoi Bao Kinh Te Viet Nam (Vietnam Economic Times) as saying that many
importers were showing an interest in Viet Nam, which was evident in the growing
number of inquiries via the website. She said the application of e-commerce
would help Vietnamese firms to seek more trade partners.
Currently, the potential of applying e-commerce for boosting
exports had not been fully exploited by Vietnamese firms due to a lack of
knowledge and human resources, experts said, adding that it was necessary for
firms to invest in e-commerce.
BIDV Securities plans to raise charter capital
The Bank for Investment & Development of Viet Nam's
Securities Company (BSI) plans to hike its charter capital from VND865
billion (US$40.4 million) to VND1 trillion ($46.7 million) this year through
an issue of additional 13.5 million shares.
The share issue is expected to be implemented in the second
quarter of the year.
According to a document sent to shareholders before the annual
shareholders' meeting on April 11, BSI said its current charter capital as
well as long-term capital was quite modest compared with that of the top
three brokerage companies in the market.
The capital hike also aimed to meet the criterion set in a
legislative proposal that charter capital of securities companies must be no
lower than VND1 trillion if they want to offer brokerage service for
derivative products, the company said.
Viet Nam is making plans to develop a derivative market in the
next two years.
BSI was the ninth largest brokerage firms in terms of stocks
and bonds on the HCM Stock Exchange in the first quarter with 4.07 per cent
of market share. Meanwhile, it ranked fifth on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange with
market share of about 5.2 per cent.
The company's executives also believe bank lending to
securities investment would fall in the future after Circular 36 took effect
in February. This requires loans for stock business not to exceed five per
cent of a bank's charter capital.
"The increase in charter capital is to offset the
reduction in short-term loans by commercial banks in 2015," the document
said.
It is planned to sell the shares to financial investors with a
preference for foreign companies. The selling price will not be lower than
VND10,000 (46US cents) a share.
For the longer term, BSI wants to lift its charter capital to
VND1.5 trillion ($70 million) during 2019-20 and up to VND2 trillion ($93.5
million) by the end of 2020 - if market conditions are favourable.
Charter capital of big brokerage companies, including Saigon
Securities Inc (SSI), HCM Securities Corp (HCM), ACB Securities Co and MB
Securities Co, is between VND1.2 trillion ($56.1 million) to VND3.5 trillion
($163.6 million). Other mid-sized companies also have plans of growing their
capital this year.
First quarter results give optimistic indicators
A General Statistics Office survey of over 3,245 local and
foreign processing and manufacturing enterprises nationwide in this year’s first
quarter has revealed promising data.
Generally speaking, 57% of surveyed enterprises said their
first-quarter business was far better than the end of last year. Nearly 88%
forecast that their second quarter business will be far better than the first
quarter, commented GSO head Nguyen Bich Lam.
According to the GSO, the sectors forecasted to grow higher
than the first quarter include medicine (82.1% of respondents), electricity
equipment (69.6%), garments (65.4%), electronics (65.3%), drinks (62.8%) and foodstuff
(60.7%).
Some 62% of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) said their
second-quarter business would be better than in the first quarter while the
rate was 59.6% for foreign enterprises and 52.7% for locally-invested
enterprises.
Some 88.3% of respondents were expecting that their orders
would increase and keep stable in this year’s second quarter. Only 11.7% said
their orders would decrease in the second quarter.
Nearly 61% of SOEs were upbeat about the surge in their second
quarter orders while the rate is 57.3% among foreign enterprises and nearly
49% among locally-invested enterprises.
Stronger rises in orders during the second quarter include for
medicines (80%), power equipment (66.7%) garments (61.7%), chemicals (60.7%),
drinks (58.7%), paper (57.3%) and electronics (57.5%).
Regarding export orders, 75.3% of respondents said their first
quarter export orders had increased. Some 86% forecast that their export
orders would climb higher in the second quarter.
Da Lat Flower Biotechnology Joint Stock Company’s general
director Nguyen Dinh Son said the company had reaped annual revenue of VND6
trillion (US$280.37 million) and currently had 5,000 hectares of greenhouses
used for cultivating flowers.
We intend to expand this to five times its current size. The
local business and investment climate has remarkably improved, Son said.
Anonymous spokesperson from locally-owned fresh milk maker TH
Group told VIR that it was quite optimistic about its business performance.
The firm is planning to implement dairy cow projects in Thanh
Hoa, Lam Dong and Dak Lak provinces. It is also working to implement a large
scale fresh milk project in
Currently, the group is operating a US$1.2 billion hi-tech
dairy and fresh milk producing project in the central
Daniel Bach, chairman of cement producer Holcim
Production is strongly bouncing back and will help the economy
grow 6.2% this year. If we make more efforts, the rate will likely be
6.4-6.5% for 2014, said Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dao Quang
Thu.
Source :
VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Năm, 16 tháng 4, 2015
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