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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 13/5
Tra fish decree to be amended
The Government has ordered relevant agencies to review and
propose amendments to the regulations on the moisture content of export tra
fish (Pangasius) fillets and the ice-to-fish ratio in Decree 36/2014/ND-CP in
July.
The order came after enterprises and experts had complained
about the hard-to-apply regulations in the Government’s decree on tra fish
farming, processing and export. This is confirmed by Pham Anh Tuan, deputy
head of the General Directorate of Fisheries under the Ministry of
Agriculture and Rural Development.
Tuan told the Daily that before the decree is amended, the
agencies will look into the moisture content and ice-to-fish ratio of
unprocessed tra fish and tra fish fillets at local seafood enterprises.
“Ministries and agencies will revise the regulations based on
surveys of the moisture content and ice-to-fish ratio,” Tuan said.
He added that competent agencies will also look into the
requirements of importers and the markets for Vietnamese tra fish.
Decree 36, which is widely known as ‘tra fish decree’, requires
seafood processors to ensure the moisture content of 83% and a 10% ratio of
ice to fish.
“Importers have hailed
Decree 36 took effect on June 20 last year but the Government
approved the regulations on the moisture content of 83% and ice-to-fish ratio
of 10% to be enforced on December 31 to give firms more time to prepare for
the changes.
Again, the Government gave the nod to the agriculture ministry
to delay the deadline to December 31 this year after many exporters argued
that not many importers set such moisture content and ice-to-fish ratio
requirements.
Therefore, the Government told relevant agencies to consider
amending the regulations to respond to the reality.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers
(VASEP),
Up to 75.9% of
Ministries race to step up SOE equitization
A number of ministries are racing against time to carry out
plans to let State-owned enterprises under their umbrella go public so as to
meet the Government’s target of equitizing and divesting State capital from
289 enterprises this year.
The Ministry of Transport reported to the Government late last
month that it approved equitization plans and establishment of steering
committees for equitization for 28 enterprises and two holding companies in
the first four months of this year. The number included 24 subsidiaries of
Vietnam Railway Corporation.
The ministry has completed State capital divestments at Civil
Engineering Construction Corporation No. 1 (Cienco 1), Cienco 4 and Quang
Ninh Port Joint Stock Co. It has sold a 20% State holding at Transportation
Design Consultancy Corporation (TEDI) and is proceeding with plans to sell
State stakes at Doan Xa Port Joint Stock Co.,
The ministry has asked the Prime Minister for approval to sell
all State stakes at Cienco 5, Cienco 6 and Vietnam Motors Industry
Corporation (Vinamotor) to investors through direct negotiations as well as
reduce State ownership at the enterprises under Vietnam National Shipping
Lines (Vinalines) and Vietnam Railway Corporation.
In the first quarter of this year, the ministry passed
equitization plans and sought the Prime Minister’s nod for 29 enterprises
with a total face value of VND4.3 trillion (less than US$199 million).
Last year, the number of equitized enterprises under the
ministry accounted for 53.4% of 143 SOEs going public nationwide.
The Ministry of Construction has put the equitization of
enterprises under its management on fast track. It also plans to have no more
100% State-owned businesses at its helm by the end of this year.
In 2015, the ministry plans to have some 170 enterprises
equitized with a total value of less than VND5.26 trillion (around US$243
million).
As of last year, 57 enterprises under the construction
ministry had sold shares worth a total of VND2.52 trillion. The total value
in the first quarter of this year was VND102 billion, or VND81.6 billion
lower than book value.
Equitization is also underway at Song Da Corporation, Vietnam
Machinery Installation Corporation (Lilama), Hancorp, Idico, Coma, Bach Dang
Corporation and Fico.
However, equitization has been moving at a snail’s pace at
SOEs managed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Last year,
the ministry equitized only nine entities in sugar production, veterinary and
seafood sectors.
The agriculture ministry sent the Prime Minister plans to
equitize tea, fruit and vegetable, and farm produce corporations in the first
three months of this year.
The ministry looks set to complete schemes to restructure
Vietnam National Coffee Corporation and Vietnam Rubber Group by June this
year. Next year, the ministry will report to the Prime Minister a scheme to
restructure Vietnam Northern Food Corporation (Vinafood 1) and its holding
firm and two subsidiaries.
Long Thanh airport area to be halved
The planned area of the Long Thanh international airport in
The province said at a meeting on site clearance, compensation
and resettlement for the project last Friday that Airports Corporation of
Vietnam (ACV) has informed of the Ministry of Transport’s plan to adjust down
the project’s area from 5,000 hectares to 2,750 hectares.
The 2,750 hectares will be for key components of the project
while those for defense purposes and the civil aviation industry will not be
taken in account in the project’s total area when funding is projected given
concerns about the country’s rising public debt, according to ACV.
With the area adjustment,
Under the first plan, the project would require US$18.7
billion for the development of three phases in an area of 5,000 hectares, and
site clearance and resettlement would cost over VND13 trillion.
With the second plan for 2,750 hectares, the investment of the
airport project is lowered to about US$15.8 billion and the province will
need around VND8.56 trillion for site clearance and resettlement.
Loc An-Binh Son resettlement area alone will meet the
resettlement demand in accordance with the second plan. The resettlement area
would cost about VND2.7 trillion, also sourced from the State budget.
The province will arrange jobs at industrial parks for those
people whose land is taken back to make room for the airport project.
Dong Nai will have 35 industrial parks covering a total area
of 12,012 hectares in line with the master zoning plan for industrial parks
until 2015 and a vision towards 2020 approved by the Government. Of the total
number, 31 have been developed in the province.
The province estimated around 61,530 jobs would be created
when infrastructure development of the four remaining industrial parks is
finished.
Besides, implementation of the Long Thanh airport project
would need 20,000 laborers, with unskilled accounting for around 75%.
Therefore, the province expected sufficient jobs would be provided for the
families whose land is cleared for the airport.
Tran Van Vinh, vice chairman of
The drafting of policies related to site clearance,
resettlement, vocational training and job creation for locals will be
completed next month for submission to the Government for consideration and
approval.
As envisaged, the international airport would have one runway
and one terminal able to handle 25 million passengers per year in the first
phase. The airport is designed for 100 million passengers annually.
TPC:
The HCMC Investment and Trade Promotion Center (ITPC) has
called for Vietnamese enterprises to prepare plans to tap into the potential
of
ITPC deputy director Ho Xuan Lam told the seminar that two-way
trade between
Nguyen Anh Ngoc, vice chairman of the Vietnam-Indonesia
Friendship Association in HCMC, said bilateral trade in the first two months
of this year picked up 66.16% year-on-year to over US$900 milllion with
Phones and phone parts, and steel products were
Meanwhile,
Ngoc said Vietnamese enterprises should manage to speed up
shipments of rice, crude oil and vegetables, seafood and other products for
which
“
He noted
As
According to Halal Vietnam Export and Import Co. Ltd.,
Indonesian people are mainly Muslims and thus Halal certification will be a
pass for Vietnamese enterprises and their products to enter the market.
Central bank: Tackling debts of agricultural firms hard
The central bank has found it hard to draft new regulations on
handling debts of agricultural and forestry enterprises to support the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s plan to restructure
enterprises under its umbrella.
At a review meeting on restructuring State-owned enterprises
(SOEs) in the first quarter of this year, the Government urged the State Bank
of
The plan aims to restructure State-owned agricultural and
forestry enterprises under localities and the ministry and transform them
into joint stock companies to improve their operations.
The central bank was told to draft a guidance circular for
settling the debts of agricultural and forestry enterprises in accordance
with the Government’s Decree 118/2014 on restructuring and development of
enterprises in these sectors.
The central bank said in a report late last month that it is
improving the draft circular but stressed that problems have arisen as there
have been regulations on settling debts of SOEs including agricultural and
forestry enterprises. New rules will overlap the existing ones.
The central bank also said that it proposed not adding its
duty to tackle the debts of agricultural and forestry enterprises at the time
the decree was being drafted as these were regulated in many legal documents.
Importantly, it is the lenders who decide to reschedule,
reduce and write off old loans and interest for agricultural and forestry
enterprises. Selling debts or turning them into capital contributions are
regulated in the existing rules.
If enterprises change forms of ownership, the successors have
to pay debts for lenders.
The Prime Minister will consider settling debts for
agricultural and forestry enterprises in case they go bust and do not have
assets for debt settlement.
HCMC will continue to streamline administrative procedures in
a fresh bid to help local and foreign investors save time and money.
The HCMC government has told the HCMC Department of Planning
and Investment and relevant agencies to do reviews and abolish unnecessary
procedures in the approval process.
The department and relevant agencies will not have to ask for
comments of district-level authorities when processing applications and
granting investment certificates for training facilities, dental services and
health facilities.
Besides, the agencies do not need to consult other departments
for the investment applications in the fields they manage.
Regarding investment certificate adjustments, the department
is not required to seek comments of the city’s tax and customs authorities on
tax liabilities and other issues. It will forward to the city government
investors’ applications for extending the operation lifespan of projects.
The city will soon launch an information technology system to
manage foreign investments.
From this month, competent agencies will have to update the
progress of handling applications for foreign investments on their websites
as well as the number of applications on time and behind schedules and
reasons for lateness.
Notably, the city will send applicants letters of apology for
the late processing of their dossiers.
At dialogues between leaders of HCMC and representatives of
foreign-invested enterprises earlier, the city’s vice chairman Le Manh Ha
said it still took much time to process investment applications.
Ha attributed the time consuming process to the fact that the
city had to wait long for feedback from ministries and agencies, and some
cases took more than a month. The limited application of information
technology in processing administrative procedures is to blame for the delay
of application processing for investors.
Long Thanh airport gets green light from Party
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong said the Party
Central Committee had underscored the need to develop a new international
airport in Long Thanh,
Trong said at the closing of the 11th plenary session of the
11th Party Central Committee in
He said the Party Central Committee examined all the issues in
a report submitted by the Party Committee of the Government on the Long Thanh
airport project.
However, the Party chief said the Party Central Committee
required preparation improvements for the project with a focus on clarifying
conditions for Long Thanh to become an international hub given rising
competition from other airport hubs in Southeast Asia, investment efficiency
in line with the development of
He told the opening of the four-day plenum on Monday that the
Party Central Committee would weigh the need and viability of the project and
related issues like land allocation, site clearance, resettlement and jobs
for affected families, selection of technology and operation models,
socio-economic efficiency, and a special mechanism for the project.
The Party Central Committee would highlight orientations for
the Long Thanh airport project for the National Assembly to consider and give
approval in principle to it.
According to the Ministry of Transport, the airport project
would need a total investment of around US$15.8 billion, with the first phase
costing around US$5.2 billion. ODA loans are expected to account for VND29.18
trillion, the State budget for VND12.15 trillion, and other sources for
VND68.64 trillion.
The first-phase airport would have one runway and one terminal
able to handle 25 million passengers per year. The second runway and terminal
would be built in phase two to increase the capacity of the airport to 50
million passengers a year before its annual handling capacity rises to 100
million passengers.
At the closing session, the Party chief emphasized that a
personnel plan for the 12th Party Central Committee was discussed thoroughly.
He said the Party Central Committee will do its utmost to
select qualified candidates for the next term and eliminate those candidates
showing signs of having connections with interest groups or being involved in
corruption cases, being greedy for power and conservative, and owning many
properties without clear origins.
Lam Dong looks to 1.5 million tourists from delta
The Central Highlands
Vietnam Air Services Company (Vasco) operated its maiden
flight on the route on May 7, carrying 67 passengers on an ATR-72 aircraft
from the Mekong Delta city to Dalat.
“Our ambition is to raise the number of tourists from the
Mekong Delta by 1.5 times,” said Nguyen Thi Bich Ngoc, deputy director of
Last year, Lam Dong attracted 4.8 million visitors, including
one million from the Mekong Delta region.
According to surveys of the tourism department of
Vasco aircraft conducts Can Tho-Dalat flights on Thursdays and
Sundays in the initial time. One-way tickets start from VND999,000.
Vasco and partners will consider more flights between Can Tho
and Dalat cities and more routes if the number of passengers increase in the
next three months, Le Tuan Huy, director of Vasco in Can Tho City, told the
Daily.
Vietravel and other travel agencies launched tours taking in
Can Tho, Dalat, Nha Trang and Madagui Forest Resort with prices starting from
less than VND3.2 million.
Last month, Vasco signed a partnership agreement with local
tour operator Vietravel in Can Tho City for the air service launch with
support of the governments of the two cities.
Nguyen Quoc Ky, general director of Vietravel, told a news
briefing on April 23 that Vietravel would partner with other localities in
the Mekong Delta region to promote new tours to further tap into tourism
potential in the region.
Dao Anh Dung, vice chairman of Can Tho City, said the number
of passengers going through Can Tho Airport had increased significantly. The
airport handled 305,500 passengers last year, up 28% year-on-year, and
105,279 passengers in the first quarter of this year, rising by 18% against
the same period last year.
Can Tho Airport was put into use in 2009. It now handles
flights from and to
UBS:
Vietnam is potentially one of the most exciting markets in
Asia, UBS Bank in a recent report said and suggested the nation address
issues such as share supply and foreign ownership limit to attract more
foreign investors.
In the report, UBS’s global research team gave a number of advantages
for
Competitive wages are attracting significant new foreign
direct investment (FDI), notably in electronics. Internet penetration of 40%
should support growth in ‘disruptive’ companies, which can boost
productivity.
Macroeconomic stability was restored in 2012 and interest
rates have fallen proportionately. While restructuring of the banking sector
and State-owned enterprises remains a work in progress, banks are lending
again and GDP growth in the first quarter of 2015 was above expectations, at
6%.
Looking ahead, UBS said
However, it said risks of Vietnamese equities include rising
public debt, a repeat of high inflation and a political transition in the
next 12 months.
“The biggest deterrent for foreign investors is not value, but
supply, in our view. There are almost 700 listed companies in
Beyond the foreign ownership limit, a number of companies have
small free floats. In the case of PetroVietnam Gas Corp., the largest
publicly-traded company in
In addition, the foreign ownership limit on Vietnamese
companies is 49%, and for many popular companies the limit is already full.
The absence of a foreign board where companies can trade at a premium the
local shares makes finding stocks difficult.
“A proposal by the stock exchanges to raise the foreign
ownership limit to 60% was blocked in early 2014. However, a number of
investors and securities companies we spoke with believe it is possible
“If it were to do so, it could unlock potentially significant
additional foreign demand, and lead to a re-rating of Vietnamese equities.
However, there is no indication of when, or if,
Secondly,
As a percentage of GDP, the total market cap of Vietnamese
equities is currently 30%. By comparison,
In February, Vu Bang, chairman of the State Securities
Commission (SSC), said that SSC was revising Decree 58 guiding the
implementation of the Securities Law. Foreign holding increase is the most
important issue of the decree.
SSC expected to issue the decree in the second quarter of this
year to better foreign capital attraction, Bang said.
The General Directorate of Imports under the Turkish Ministry
of Economy has recently filed an anti-dumping investigation into spun
polyester yarns imported from some countries including
The agency announced it has received a petition from domestic
fibre manufacturers, claiming that some products have been imported into
It found in the petition sufficient proof to launch an
anti-dumping investigation into spun polyester yarns imported from some
nations including
According to the Vietnam Competition Authority (VCA),
Vietnam’s spun polyester yarns exported to Turkey over the past three years
has been relatively large, valuing at some US$120 million per year and
accounting for 20% of total yarn imports into the Turkish market, only after
China and India.
Currently,
The VCA said this is the third time
Earlier,
FLC to start building resort in Binh Dinh
The FLC Group will start the construction of Nhon Ly resort,
villas and a high-end entertainment complex in the southern Binh Dinh
province's
The VND3.5-trillion (US$162 million) project will have golf
courses, six-star villas, hotels, five-star restaurants, as well as an
international convention centre and a high-class entertainment area on around
300ha.
The complex is scheduled to become operational during the
first quarter of 2016.
Viet Capital Bank offers online bill payments
Viet Capital Bank has launched online bill payment services,
enabling customers to pay their electricity, water, Internet, cable TV,
mobile phone, and landline bills on the internet.
To use the service, customers need to open a dong current
account and register for its Internet Banking or Mobile Banking service.
According to banks, more and more customers are opting for
online bill payment services due to their convenience and speed.
Work starts on five-star hotel in Hai Phong
The BRG Group broke ground on the first five-star hotel in Hai
Phong, the port city recently.
Spread across 8,300sq.m. in Hong Bang district, the project
has a total investment capital of VND2.2 trillion (US$102 million). The
22-storey hotel, which will be operated by the Hilton chain, will have 240
guest rooms, 34 apartments, gym and spa facilities, and two large conference
halls.
Apart from the hotel, the project also includes the
construction of a mall with 205 high-segment apartments and a convergence of
boutiques and retailers of several leading brands. The mall will have food
and beverage outlets as well as recreational areas.
The project is expected to be completed in 2018. Meanwhile,
the BRG Group is also developing Do Son Seaside Golf Resort in the city.
Porcelain maker signs deal with tourist firm
The Binh Duong-headquartered porcelain Chinaware manufacturer
Minh Long 1 Co. signed last week a cooperation deal with
Under the agreement, Minh Long 1 will be the main supplier of
dinnerware under the Ly's Horeca brand and porcelain souvenirs to
Saigontourist's hotels and restaurants across the country.
The deal is expected to have long-term benefits for the two
big groups.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Vuong Anh Tuan, deputy
general director of Saigontourist Group, said: "We wanted to standardise
our products on our networks across
Fisheries revenue and profit down in first quarter
The nation's fisheries have announced that revenues and
profits were lower in the first quarter of 2015 than in the same period last
year.
The Investment Commerce Fisheries Corporation (ICF) reported
that revenues in the first quarter of this year were halved to VND25.8
billion (US$1.2 million).
Further, after deducting expenses, its net profit decreased by
97 per cent to VND40.35 million ($1,800), only equal to its earnings per
share (EPS) of VND3.
Other fisheries companies also reported lower business results
in the first quarter of this year, compared to last year's numbers.
Additionally, Ngo Quyen Processing Export JSC (NGC) reported
that its net profit dropped one quarter to VND359 million, compared to last
year's first quarter.
Meanwhile, Aquatex Ben Tre (ABT) said its revenues increased
by one-fifth in the first quarter of this year, reaching VND112 billion ($5.2
million), however, its net profit decreased by 9.3 per cent to VND20.4
billion ($944,000), equal to VND1,776 in EPS.
An Giang Import-Export Fisheries (AGF) reported that both
revenue and net profits dropped significantly compared to last year, falling
by one-third to VND497.23 billion ($23 million), while net profits halved to
only VND2.7 billion ($125,000).
The company said that its revenues and net profit were down
because the company's sales in the first quarter were lower against last
year. The company also did not export its products to the American market,
which halved its export revenues to VND302 billion ($14 million).
Cuu Long An Giang Fish Company (ACL) recorded a slight
decrease in revenues to VND222.6 billion ($10.3 million) and a 25-per-cent
loss in net profit, falling to VND1.34 billion ($62,000) in the first quarter
of this year.
Mekong Fisheries Joint Stock Company (AAM) also announced its
revenue and net profit in the first quarter decreased against last year. The
revenues were down 38.3 per cent to VND70.5 billion ($3.2 million), while net
profits dropped two-thirds to VND657 million ($30,400) in the first quarter.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development, during the first three months of 2015 the country's fisheries
export turnover was down by 23 per cent to $1.27 billion against last year.
This was also the largest drop in fisheries exports during the last five
years.
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers
(VASEP) said the main challenge for Vietnamese seafood companies was the
anti-dumping policy in the
VASEP also said that export values decreased in other markets,
such as
Call for strict control of property brokers
The management of the operation of property trading floors and
brokers must be tightened to prevent any speculation and boost the
transparency of the currently upbeat realty market.
According to the Ministry of Construction, the development of
property trading floors in recent years failed to meet market expectations
and the percentage of property transactions conducted through trading floors
was estimated at a modest rate of 15 per cent, affecting transparency and
leaving buyers hungry for information about housing projects.
Now, many buyers must shell out extra money, which sometimes
goes up to hundreds of millions of dong, to buy apartments offered by various
project developers.
Recently, the Ministry of Construction asked to tighten checks
on property developers and trading floors to ensure that they comply with
regulations, especially in Ha Noi and
Experts said it is crucial to bring the property trading floor
system under a strict management to boost the transparency of the real estate
market.
The ministry's Department of Housing and Real Estate Market
Management's statistics suggest that as of the end of last year, there were
more than 1,000 property trading floors, mainly in Ha Noi and HCM City,
handled by close to 35,000 qualified brokers.
A source from a property firm noted that he thought only half
of those trading floors were under real operation and only a few had adequate
capacities and operated efficiently.
From the beginning of this year, the market has witnessed a
boom in the number of property start-ups, with realty consultant companies
and many property firms planning to hire thousands of brokers this year.
Nguyen Manh Ha, the department's Director, previously said
that in the absence of comprehensive standards for brokers and trading
floors, the existing laws failed to cover all property brokerage operations.
Experts remarked that management policies, together with
policies to enhance the quality of real estate brokers, are needed to prevent
unhealthy competition among property brokering firms.
The existing regulation that property transactions must be
conducted through trading floors has proved inefficient and the Law on Real
Estate Business 2014, which will come into effect on July 1, removes the
compulsion of this regulation.
Many experts said that a new regulation will allow home buyers
to have more options and enhance transactions through trading floors, which
might help eliminate trading floors that are not efficient, and improve the
quality of realty brokering.
Le Hoang Chau, president of HCM City Real Estate Association,
expects that property brokers will become more professional from July 1.
"Only trading floors offering quality products and professional
operations can maintain trusts in investors and buyers and can develop,"
he said.
Chau added that healthy property trading floors will
contribute to push the property market to its real value and prevent
speculation.
The Ministry of Construction has drafted a circular regulating
the foundation of property trading floors and certification of property
brokers. The draft has been released for receiving comments.
Ministry to boost sale of lychees
Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)'s Domestic Market
Department is working with relevant agencies to boost lychee sales for this
year's crop.
In the two largest lychee-growing provinces of Bac Giang and
Hai Duong, the total harvested output is estimated to be 200,000 tonnes of
fresh lychees in the 2015 crop.
Early lychees are harvested from May 15 to June 5 and late
lychees from June 1 to July 20.
MoIT said about 60 per cent of lychees (120,000 tonnes of
fresh lychees) will be consumed domestically, while the remaining 80,000
tonnes (including 85 per cent of fresh fruits and 15 per cent of dried and
frozen fruits) are for exports.
The ministry will promote lychee consumption in the domestic
market, especially for the Southern market which accounts for 43 per cent of
total lychee output for local consumption.
For export markets, apart from China, the Ministry targets to
export to Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Singapore, the US, Australia, Japan,
Korea and Europe.
The lychee price is expected to be the same as the price in
2014.
Quang Nam garners textile investments
The central province of Quang Nam is welcoming an inflow of
investment capital into the garment and textile sector.
Seven out of 12 newly licensed projects are from the sector,
Cong Thuong (Industry and Trade) newspaper reported.
The most prominent project was a fiber-weaving-dying and
garment complex worth VND1.2 trillion (US$55.5 million). The complex is being
developed by the Viet Nam National Textile and Garment Group in Que Son
District. It is slated for completion within two years and expected to earn
VND2 trillion ($92.59 million) annually.
Other projects include a $30-million textile-garment-dyeing
factory financed by the South-Korea-invested Panko Tam Thang Co; Korea's
Onewoo garment manufacturing plant capitalized at $6 million; and a Taiwanese
apparel factory valued at $4 million in Thuan Yen Industrial Zone.
Vo Van Hung, head of the Investment Promotion and Enterprises
Support Agency of Quang Nam Province, said many domestic enterprise
delegations and foreign firms coming from South Korea, China and Taiwan have
visited the province to seek investment opportunities in the textile and
garment industry.
A dozen investment agreements on developing textile and garment
projects were inked between the agency and these foreign investors, Hung
said.
According to analysts, the new investment inflow into the
garment and textile industry is predictable, as both domestic and
international firms seek to take advantage of the benefits Viet Nam will
potentially derive when the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement is signed.
Several companies from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, the US
and South Korea have made large investments in the sector, according to Thoi
Bao Tai Chinh (Finance Times) newspaper.
The textile and garment industry in TPP member countries is
expected to benefit the most from the trade deal. For instance, products made
from domestically sourced materials or imported from other TPP member
countries will not face tariffs when exported to signatory countries.
Le Tien Truong, vice chairman of the Viet Nam Textile and
Apparel Association, said up to 60 per cent of the country's textile and
garment exports go to member countries.
Analysts estimate that once Viet Nam becomes a TPP member the
average tax on Vietnamese garments will fall from the current 17 or 18 per
cent to zero.
Trade fair to promote Vietnamese exports to RoK
A trade fair to select outstanding Vietnamese products
destined for the Republic of Korea (RoK) will take place in Ho Chi Minh City
on June 24-28.
The event is also to promote trade activities between the two
countries, according to the municipal Centre of Promoting Trade and
Investment and the Industry and Trade newspaper under the Ministry of
Industry and Trade on May 11.
Pham Le Cuong, Director of the HCM City Centre for Supporting
and Developing Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises, said the programme helps
businesses update information on the market’s import-export regulations.
He added that the signed free trade agreement (FTA) between
the two countries has opened opportunities for Vietnam to boost farm produce
exports to the market, such as garlic, ginger and sweet potato.
Tran Thi Nghia, a representative from the RoK’s Lotte Mart,
said the company will open three additional supermarkets in Vietnam in 2015
and support capable small- and medium-sized enterprises in farm produce,
seafood and forestry products to enter foreign markets.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the RoK
liberalised 97.2% of import values, accounting for 95.4 percent of all tariff
lines on many of Vietnam’s key agricultural commodities and aquatic products
such as shrimp, crab, fish, tropical fruits and industrial goods like
garment-textiles, timber and engineering products.
Canada drops probe against Vietnam oil pipe makers
Canada has announced it is dropping an anti-dumping
investigation of oil pipe and tube products used in the petroleum industry –
such as drill pipe, pipe casings and oil pipes – imported from Vietnam.
In July, 2014, the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA)
started an investigation into several Vietnam steel businesses, claiming they
were selling products at substantially reduced prices.
The unreasonably low prices were hurting the interests of
local companies such as Tenaris Canada of Calgary, Alberta and Evraz North
America Inc of Regina, Saskatchewan the CBSA alleged.
This was the first and only anti-dumping investigation to date
by Canadian authorities of products from Vietnam.
Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) officials said the
decision to drop the investigation ensures Vietnamese manufacturers will be
able to maintain newfound access to the booming Canadian oil market.
However, despite the CBSA no longer pursuing the probe, the
decision has been appealed and remains a big issue.
Accordingly, the MoIT will continue to monitor the case, a
representative said.
Vietnam raises duty on cassava exports
The Ministry of Finance (MOF) has raised the export duty on
cassava chips to 5% in an effort to dampen foreign demand and keep the cost
of petrol from escalating.
The decision was made at the request of the Prime Minister at
a recent meeting in Hanoi discussing the pricing mechanism for E5 petrol—
fuel that contains five per cent bioethanol.
Since late last year, E5 petrol has been the principal fuel
sold in Hanoi, HCM City, Haiphong, Danang, Can Tho, Quang Ngai and Ba
Ria-Vung Tau in accordance with a decision by the Prime Minister.
Cassava chips are the principal raw material for domestic
ethanol production at the nation’s seven big ethanol plant and production
facilities, which use an estimated 500 million litres of ethanol annually.
Currently the price of domestic chips has been soaring at
record high levels of US$227.5 per tonne fuelled by increased demand from
China and exacerbated by inadequate supply.
China has on average historically purchased roughly 90% of the
cassava exported from Vietnam and other growers in the region such as Laos,
the Philippines and Nigeria, which it uses principally for ethanol and animal
feed production.
Soil used for cassava cultivation becomes exhausted after two
or three years and crops must be rotated to replenish it with vital
nutrients.
Due to high levels of production over recent years and
inadequate attention to sustainability the current supply of cassava chips is
lower than anticipated and at a level barely sufficient to meet domestic
demand.
Accordingly, to alleviate the situation, the MoF has levied a
5% and 3% duty on the now tax free cassava and ethanol exports respectively
in an effort to thwart foreign demand and inflationary pressure.
Another important task is the re-zoning of cultivation areas
and to devise sustainable intensive farming methods and boost production.
Vietnam now has 450,000 hectares of cultivation areas,
yielding around 9.5 million tonnes of fresh cassava (equal to 3 million tonne
dried cuts or powder).
The central highlands region is the key cultivation zone which
accounts for 27.7% of total areas and 26.2% of the country’s total output.
However, Central highlanders have not paid due attention to
growing cassava intensively, just having focused on expanding cultivation
areas, instead of increasing output.
Thus, the central highland steering board has urged provinces
to implement technical solutions to grow cassava sustainably, ranging from
choosing variety, expanding connectivity between farmers, businesses and
processing factories.
Vietnam's cassava chip exports for the three months leading up
to April surged 24% on-year on the back of the increased demand from China,
according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).
For the January-March period, Vietnam exporters shipped
137,000 tonnes of chips valued at US$420 million to all foreign markets, up
24% in volume and 22.7% in value against last year’s corresponding period.
Vingroup to inaugurate HCM City’s tallest building
Vingroup has announced that on May 16 it will officially
launch the – Landmark 81 – an 81floor luxury 350 metre high rise complex
located on the banks of the Saigon River in the heart of HCM City.
Sprawling over an area of 141,000 square metres the complex
will house hotels, serviced apartments, commercial apartments, shopping
malls, restaurants and an observatory.
The complex boasts a five-star Vinpearl Hotel with 450 rooms
and a luxury 1,000 square-metre Presidential Suite offering full panoramic
views of the city with a world class restaurant and bar on the 66th and 67th
floors.
Deposit on import scraps aggravates financial burden on
businesses
A Government’s new decree that will take effect from mid June
regulates that businesses must deposit 10-20 percent value of a consignment
when importing scraps as production materials, which might pollute the
environment.
This regulation has raised objections from businesses saying
it will freeze their capital source for production and further complicate
customs procedures.
According to the decree, organizations and individuals must
put down a 10 percent deposit to import 500 tons of steel and iron scraps or
lower. The deposit rate is 20 percent for 500-1000 ton consignments.
The rate is 10-15 percent for less than 100 tons of paper and
plastic scraps, 18 percent for 100-500 tons and 20 percent for more.
The Vietnam Environmental Protection Fund or commercial banks
where businesses open their accounts are responsible for receiving and
besiege the deposits.
Secretary General of HCMC Plastics Association Tran Hoang
Nguyen said that many businesses have disagreed with the regulations saying
it would freeze their capital, which mainly come from bank loans with an
average interest rate of 7 percent.
Mr. Pham Thanh Tuy, project manager at Newtoyo Aluminum Paper
Packaging Company, said that 70 percent of the company’s materials for
production come from other countries. With an average import price of US$100
million per ton, they must leave as much as US$20 million as deposit.
Mr. Tran Minh Chi, former head of the Vietnam Institute for
Tropical Technology and Environmental Protection, said that the regulation
aimed to make importers responsible for handling risks and environmental
pollution dangers from the import of the wasted materials.
The decree will help reduce the volume of polluting wastes
congested at ports, whose treatment has been unknown. However it should not
adequate well operating firms with bad ones by forcing all to pay the deposit
of 10-20 percent.
Export import procedures have been complicated enough to add
the deposit regulation.
Besides, making a deposit is easy but taking it back is
improbably easy like that because of related procedures. Importers must
present a proposal in writing together with a certified copy of customs declaration
affixed with customs agencies’ seal on it to get the deposit back. This would
slow down the capital rotation of businesses, he said.
Authorized agencies are in charge of handling scrap importers
for breaking environmental regulations. The congestion of
environmentally-polluting scrap products at ports is partly caused by their
weak management ability.
They should focus on reforming administrative procedures and
intensifying sanctions on the violators instead of issuing the complicating
decree.
Source : VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Tư, 13 tháng 5, 2015
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