|
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 28/7
New
roads being built to Cat Lai port
Roads
connecting
The
dearth of a good road system was the main cause of frequent traffic jams at
the port, the city Department of Transport said in a recent report.
Speaking
at a meeting with city leaders on Wednesday, a spokesman for the Cat Lai Port
Authority said the increase in cargo handled made
As of
July 20, the port had handled 45 million tonnes of goods this year as against
46.6 million tonnes planned for the whole year. On average, it receives
14,000 trucks and other vehicles every day. The huge increase in cargo means
container trucks have to queue up to load and unload, causing congestion on
The
increasing traffic on
The
Cat Lai Port Authority has asked the city to build a road running from the
port to nearby
Addressing
the meeting, Le Hoang Quan, the Chairman of the city People's Committee, said
since it is difficult to raise funds for infrastructure, the authority has to
build the link road itself.
The
city would sell 20ha of land in
He
instructed relevant departments and agencies to speed up works required for
developing Cat Lai into a modern port complex and District 2 and 9
authorities to co-operate with property investors along new roads to improve
infrastructure in the area.
According
to Sai Gon New Port Corporation, the operator of
Cat
Lai led the country in terms of cargo volumes handled.
It was
ranked among the 34 largest and most modern container ports anywhere in the
world.
In
2015 the port is expected to handle 4.45 million twenty-foot equivalent units
of cargo, including 4.1 million TEUs of container cargo.
Apple
Music breathes new life into online service
Apple
Music has officially entered the Vietnamese market following its global debut
in late June.
Although
free download sites have become a dominant force for online music fans here,
Apple Music has won over a number of customers.
The
service is offering a free three-month trial to users before officially starting
to charge them US$9.99 per month for access to over 30 million songs in the
Apple Music library. However, it is offering a lower fee for users in
With
an eye-catching, simple and easy to use platform, Apple Music also offers
users a variety of choices, from streaming music to listening to its 24/7
Beats 1 radio, or connecting with artists who join the Apple social network.
Moreover, Apple also supports searching in Vietnamese.
Listing
regulations spur trading on the UPCoM
New
data showed that regulations on the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM)
have been stimulating trades in Ha Noi.
Decree
51, which went into effect in 2014, forces State-owned enterprises to list
shares in an official stock exchange or on UPCoM 90 days after making an
initial public offering (IPO). This and the recent expansion in daily trading
from 10 per cent to 15 per cent in the UPCoM helped increase trades.
According
to the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the UPCoM organiser and operator, more than 200
companies have listed shares here with total market capitalisation of more
than VND38 trillion (US$1.74 billion).
The
daily trading value reached nearly VND70 billion ($3.2 million) this week.
Wednesday saw the highest value, nearly VND150 billion ($6.9 million). This
nearly doubled the average per-session value of the past six months, VND40
billion ($1.8 million).
However,
trade is mixed, as a small number of stocks have high liquidity while most
others have seen sluggish trading.
Only
six codes often have trades of more than 100,000 shares per day. Twenty-one
stocks have daily trading volumes of between 10,000 and 100,000 shares.
Meanwhile, more than 60 per cent of of stocks have traded less than 1,000
shares per session.
Despite
posting heavy losses, beverage company AnViFish (AVF) is among the most
active stocks in the UPCoM with daily trade ranging from 200,000 to 500,000
shares.
The
company was forced to move from the Ha Noi Stock Exchange to the UPCoM on
June 18 after it recorded a loss of VND893 billion ($41 million) in 2014,
making its equity charter to negative VND370 billion ($17 million).
Other
speculative stocks include Petroleum Dong Do (PFL), metal producer Huu Lien
Asia Corp (HLA) and Viet Hai Shipping & Real Properties Corp (VSP) with
trades of 50,000 to 300,000 shares per session.
Newly
listed shares like chemical company DAP-Vinachem (DDV) and Tri Viet
Securities Co (TVB) also attracted investors' interest.
DDV's
average trading volume reached nearly 360,000 shares per day after just over
one month of being listed, just behind AVF and Sacombank Securities Co (SBS).
However, the company posted a poor performance with a loss of VND38.4 billion
($1.8 million) in the second quarter of 2014.
TVB's
result was better with a profit of VND8.3 billion ($381,000) in 2014, a
tenfold increase over 2013.
Asia-Pacific
firms slow to provide mobiles for work
Only
38 per cent of the workers in small- and medium-sized businesses in 10
Asia-Pacific countries are assigned mobile devices for work, a recent study
has found.
The
mean score for the Asia-Pacific countries and territories was 40 out of 100.
The
survey found that 59 per cent of the respondents were not given enough
devices to work efficiently in a modern working environment. At the same
time, 99 per cent of them said they were required to be on call outside
working hours (after 5pm) in order to do their work effectively.
Sixty-six
per cent of the respondents said they needed to be present in their office to
have access to important equipment or tools, while 36 per cent had to be in
the office to access important information. Only 34 per cent of the
respondents believed they were productive outside the office, such as at
home, at customer sites or in public places.
In
Microsoft
"We
conducted the survey to better understand changes in the way of living and
working of employees in the Asia-Pacific region. Technology innovation is
essential to help them increase their effectiveness at work. The companies
still need a corporate culture, policies, infrastructure and the ability to
cooperate to remove obstacles to initiatives in order to boost their
competitiveness," he said.
In the
second half of 2015 the HCM City office market is expected to add more than
100,000sq.m of office space from one grade A and three grade B projects,
according to the latest report from Cushman and Wakefield on the city real estate
market.Competitive deals remain available for the best and largest tenants as
new supply gets delivered with Vietcombank, Lim Tower 2, and Pearl Plaza
being the most prominent. A lack of quality Grade A leasable space may mean
rents will stabilise in the fourth quarter of 2015.
In the
second quarter occupancy rates for both grades continued to increase, grade A
by 1 per cent on both a quarterly and yearly basis to 92 per cent, and grade
B, whose average occupancy has trended upwards during the last eight
quarters, by some 2 per cent year-on-year to 94 per cent.
Grade
B buildings in the central business district (CBD) achieved a high average
occupancy of 94per cent.
Approximately
35 per cent of grade B buildings in this area saw occupancy increase. On the
other hand, over the last four quarters average occupancy remained slightly
lower in the CBD then elsewhere at 95 per cent, showing that tenants remained
attracted due to the area's affordability.
In
terms of rents, the average rents of both grades remained stable on both a
quarterly and yearly basis at around VND1 million (US$46.60) per square metre
per month for grade A and VND595,000 ($27.30) for grade B.
Affordable
apartments of small sizes will continue to be the most sought-after. Notably,
there is no future supply located in the city centre due to limited supply of
development sites while permission to build housing is also difficult to
obtain.
Therefore,
future supply will be in non-CDB areas but which offer easy access to the
city centre – such as Districts 7, 2, 4, and Binh Thanh.
Especially
projects located along the first metro line will attract more buyers and
investors.
Some
suburban districts like 8, 9,12, and Binh Tan with an abundant stock of
affordable apartments, sufficient land for projects and improving
infrastructure are also attracting developers and low income earners.
The
amendments to the Housing Law, which took effect on July 1 and allow
foreigners to own commercial properties in
In
addition, the new guarantees required by developers from banks for new
developments will add more confidence to the market. However, the cost of
these guarantees is expected to be passed on to the consumer.
The
residential market in
Bac
Ninh's FDI climbs to $7.83b
The
cumulative foreign investment in the
In an
online report on Thursday, it said Bac Ninh ranked third out of 11 localities
in the Red River Delta.
The
manufacturing and processing sector accounted for $7.12 billion or 91 per
cent of the FDI, with the property sector ranking second with around $332
million.
Almost
all the FDI projects are wholly foreign-invested, with the rest being joint
ventures, joint stock companies or business co-operation contracts.
Singapore-registered
Samsung Electronics' $2.5 billion project is the largest foreign-invested
one.
The
second largest investment is $1 billion by
HCM
City reviews bank-business links
Speaking
at a meeting to review the programme over the last three years, To Duy Lam,
director of the State Bank of Viet Nam's HCM City office, said around 80 meetings
had been organised since July 2012 to bring banks and companies together.
The
programme had surpassed its targets every year in the three years when banks
agreed at these meetings to provide loans worth VND145.1 trillion ($6.66
billion) to 6,298 businesses, he said.
In the
first half of this year alone they had provided credit worth VND77.6 trillion
($3.56 billion), he said.
Under
the programme borrowers enjoyed preferential interest rates of 6-7 per cent
for short-term loans and 9 per cent for medium- and long-term loans, he said.
Nguyen
Thi Hong, deputy chairwoman of the HCM City People's Committee, said the
programme had significantly helped businesses, thus contributing to the
city's economic growth.
The
cheap loans helped enterprises reduce costs and invest in technologies to
boost their competitiveness, she said.
Tran
Tu, chairman and general director of Savi Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company,
said like many others his company too had cash flow problems in 2010-12, but
the programme helped it borrow from VietinBank and sustain growth.
The
company now enjoyed an annual growth rate of 20 per cent as it exported to
demanding markets like
Nguyen
Hoang Minh, deputy director of the SBV's
In the
second half of the year, the city would continue to study businesses' demand
for credit and organise meetings in all the city's districts, he said.
The
city as well as the SBV would also keep a close eye on the disbursement of
the loans, he said.
Central
Highlands targets economic development connectivity
Connectivity
for Central Highlands economic development, especially in terms of
infrastructure, tourism and value chains of several farm produces, was the
dominant topic of a workshop held in Buon Ma Thuot city in the Central
Highlands
Participants
proposed mechanisms rallying resources for transport and irrigation
infrastructure, including stepping up the progress of road projects
connecting the Central Highlands with the south central and southeast
regions,
According
to them, a regional transport infrastructure foundation should be
established.
Several
raised an idea to set up a regional tourism coordinating board to link the
Central Highlands with other localities and seek support from ministries and
agencies.
Another
board is also expected to assist with the development of value chains of key
farm produce and extend the commercial reach of coffee, pepper and rubber.
They
also agreed to establish a regional foundation that will foster connectivity
models in coffee production, processing, preservation and consumption up to
Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) standards.
The
event was co-hosted by the Steering Committee for the Central Highlands, the
Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission and the Vietnam Economic
Times.-
Domestic
product consumption surges
Some
63 percent of Vietnamese people are choosing domestic products, doubling the
rate from before the campaign “Vietnamese people use Vietnamese products” was
launched six years ago, a senior official said, quoting the 2014 survey.
During
a conference on July 24 to review the implementation of the campaign in the
first half of this year, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Ho Thi Kim
Thoa said 92 percent of the interviewees said they were aware of the drive,
54 percent of which personally involved in the campaign.
She
urged the sector to focus on developing the domestic market in tandem with
campaign implementation in order to enhance the competitiveness of domestic
enterprises and the consumption of domestic products.
The
Deputy Minister said the campaign has yielded positive changes, particularly
in domestic product quality and design.
Le
Viet Nga, Deputy Director of the Ministry’s Domestic Market Department,
highlighted the major market share made-in-Vietnam products account for among
products sold by domestic and international distributors.
As
many as 50 promotion events, including trade fairs, have been organised to
introduce domestic products to residents in rural, remote and mountainous
areas across the country.
This
year, the Ministry has invested in developing infrastructure facilities and
enhancing technology application in enterprises under its management to
improve their product quality and competitiveness.
Looking
forward, it aims to boost the consumption of domestic industrial products by
strengthening the connections among businesses in the northern and southern
regions.
It
also calls for government investment in promoting the campaign while
mobilising social resources for the drive.
Prime
Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved a project worth 228.93 billion VND
(10.75 million USD) on increasing the consumption of domestic goods in close
link with the ongoing campaign.
The
two initiatives aim to increase the market share of domestic products in
Agricultural
administrative reform to focus on serving people, businesses
Administrative
reform in agriculture should focus more on people and enterprises by issuing
practical documents facilitating agricultural production and serving the
integration process, stated Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao
Duc Phat.
In
order to enhance reform efficiency, leaders of the ministry and its agencies
should acknowledge shortcomings while building legal documents in the field
and raise the sense of responsibility in proposing the omission of
unnecessary procedures, he said at a conference on July 24 to review five
years of administrative reform in the sector and map out orientations for
2016-2020.
From
2016-2020, the ministry will continue completing mechanisms and policy systems
focusing on management in the value chain from input to processing and
marketing.
The
ministry will also review the efficiency of administrative procedure in all
areas, especially those related to people and businesses, stated the
minister.
He
noted that from 2011-2015, the ministry issued and proposed 323 documents,
including three laws, 21 decrees and 281 circulars, helping promote the role
and strengths of the sector amid tough economic situations.
During
the conference, participants also pointed out that many legal documents
issued by the ministry remain inefficient and are unfeasible.
According
to Head of the ministry’s Legal Department Nguyen Thi Kim Anh, together with
overlapping and unsystematic documents, there is a lack of regulations on the
circulation, processing and producing of farm produce as well as the
development of a rural economy and management of rural trade.
She
also pointed to the slow reforms of the legal document system and the
ineffective supervision of law enforcement in the sector.
The
credit package is part of the “Connecting banks and businesses” programme,
which was launched in 2012.
To Duy
Lam, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Branch of the State Bank of
Meanwhile,
Nguyen Thi Hong, Vice Chairwoman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee,
held that the programme has contributed to maintaining and recovering
production and business activities in the locality while supporting the
market and promoting the city’s economic growth.
It has
also helped settle businesses’ difficulties related to capital, credit and
interest, supporting them in improving their financial capacity and
competitiveness, she added.
In the
second half of this year, the programme will focus on monitoring and
inspecting credit package disbursement and ensuring commercial banks’ smooth
disbursement of registered credits.
From
2016-2020, a number of activities will be organised to support enterprises
and remove obstacles through improved policies and a more favourable
competition environment.
Fruit
and vegetable exports record rapid growth
With
this result, fruit and vegetable export turnover is likely to reach 2 billion
USD as a number of demanding markets are opening their doors to Vietnamese
agricultural products, such as
Vietnamese
fruits and vegetables have been shipped to more than 40 countries and
territories, with the key markets consisting of
Japanese
authorities recently gave the “go ahead” to importing Vietnamese mangos
cultivated in Xuan Loc district in the southern
The
export of these agricultural products, which are considered fresh and
competitively priced, to new markets such as
According
to the American Market Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade,
in order to capitalise on the
However,
Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exports still face a number of challenges,
such as limitations on cultivation areas that apply Vietgap and Globalgap,
and inadequate investment in processing and preserving technologies.
According
to experts, in addition to quality improvement, trade promotion and marketing
mechanisms need to be adapted in order to stabilise the fruit and vegetable
export growth.
Meanwhile,
Huynh Quang Dau, Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Fruit Association (Vinafruit),
recommended that fruit businesses develop their facilities in line with
international standards and help famers improve irrigation systems and seed
varieties.
New
generation of FTAs: Opportunities and challenges
Free
Trade Agreements (FTAs) have increased in recent years, posing numerous
opportunities and challenges for Vietnamese enterprises since tariffs are no
longer a barrier. However, the liberalisation of services and investment is much
harder to achieve.
After
a decade of being a member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) - a
milestone that marks the first investment wave in Vietnam - the country is
now negotiating a range of new free trade agreements (new generation FTAs),
such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and the
Vietnam-European Free Trade Agreement (Vietnam-EU FTA), which are expected to
bring the second wave of investments.
According
to statistics published by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI),
However,
VCCI Chairman Vu Tien Loc said the promising figures can only be achieved in
an “ideal” situation - if
New
generation FTAs create great opportunities for
On the
other hand, tariff preferences also pose a number of challenges as tariff
exemptions are applied only to export products that have a clear origin. In
Meanwhile,
since FTAs are reciprocal agreements,
Furthermore,
free trade is not based on utility, but on the legal framework. New laws and
policies for production will have to be devised, especially for agricultural
production.
When
tariff barriers are removed, relative advantages and the distribution of
labour between economies become clearer.
In
terms of the business climate and corresponding policies, the new generation
FTAs could initiate a wave of institutional and administrative reforms,
making Vietnam a more effective and market-oriented economy.-
Crab
exports to
Vietnam
exporters shipments of crab to Australia during the five months leading up to
June enjoyed a robust year-on-year rise of nearly 185% to hit a record
setting US$889.000, according to the Vietnam Trade Office in Australia.
The
Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) in turn
unveiled that the dramatic rise in crab exports lead to an overall jump of 2%
in aquatic exports to the land down under for the five month period.
The
average price for Vietnamese imported crab during the January-May period
hovered around US$8.50 per kilo.
A
spokesperson for the Trade Office said
Ho Chi
Minh City's monorail line No 2 linking District 8 with the Thanh Da - Binh
Quoi Urban Area in Binh Thanh district will cost over VND15 trillion (nearly
US$690 million).
According
to the HCM City Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR), the 27.2km
route will start from the Nguyen Van Linh Avenue- National Highway No 1 A –
National Highway No 50 intersection (in District 8) and run through densely
populated residential areas in districts Binh Chanh, 2, 7 and Binh Thanh.
An 8ha
maintenance depot will be built in Phong Phu commune in Binh Chanh.
Tuoi
Tre (Youth) newspaper quoted the authority as saying the BOT (Build – Operate
- Transfer), BT (Build – Transfer) or PPP (Public – Private Partnership) mode
of investment would be adopted.
According
to the adjusted master plan for transportation for the period through 2020
approved by the Government,
The
16.5km monorail line No 3 will run from the Phan Van Tri - Nguyen Oanh
crossroad (in Go Vap district) through
The
monorail lines, which can carry 90 to 125 passengers and travel at 80-90 km
per hour, are aimed at easing traffic congestion, MAUR said.
A 13km
tramway No 1 line will run from Ba Son Shipyard through Ton Duc Thang street,
Me Linh Square, Vo Van Kiet street, and Ly Chieu Hoang street to the Western
Bus Station in (Binh Tan district), and Thanh Da Urban Area in Binh Thanh
district.
The
nation’s trade deficit grew by more than US$3.07 billion in the six months
leading up to July 2015— a further vindication of the nation’s improving
economy, reports the General Department of Vietnam Customs.
The
growth indicates higher economic activity and an increase in the capacity of
the economy to produce goods and services according to economists from
Vietnam Customs, who compiled and released the figures.
Foreign
direct investment (FDI) disbursements throughout the nation continue to
increase – principally in the manufacturing sector – and as that happens then
imports of machinery, equipment and construction related materials are
inevitably bound to rise and add to the trade deficit.
While
the increased deficit has led some leading experts to warn that the chronic
gap between imports and exports remains an open wound in the nation’s
generally improving economy, Vietnam Customs brushed those concerns aside.
“As a
nation we import basically everything,” said Vietnam Customs in its latest
report.
“When
you see an increase in the deficit, that definitely indicates something is
happening in the economy,” the report said, pointing to increases in
construction material imports and machinery and equipment showing more
building activity in the country.
The
Vietnam Customs report shows that during the period from January-June the
nation’s total goods and service trade jumped 13% on-year to US$158.61
billion with exports tallying in at US77.77 billion (up 9.3%) and imports at
US$80.84 billion (up 16.7%).
Most
significantly the report shows that 63.5% of the nation’s total trade of
US$158.61 billion (or US$100.71 billion) was directly attributable to FDI
invested companies, which represents a 22% hike compared to the first six
months of 2014.
In its
report,Vietnam Customs said this deficit really shouldn’t be surprising as
it’s connected with the patent need by FDI companies to import materials and
equipment to construct manufacturing facilities and build-up inventories in
“It
has also been long forecasted,” the report added.
Vietnam
Customs has forecast large deficits throughout 2015 and 2016 saying they are
inevitable and nothing to worry about so long as overseas orders of products
start picking up steam by late 2015.
The
nation’s total domestic goods and services trade during the six month period
tabulated to just US$57.90 billion and that definitely shows weakness and
lack of competitiveness by domestic businesses.
In
addition, all of the recent business surveys reveal that approximately 90.3%
of all businesses currently operating in
FDI
invested companies are the most sanguine as a hefty 51.3% of them predict the
number of overseas orders will fly sky high by the end of the year with only
8.6% forecasting the figure will decline.
The
Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) is also upbeat on the good news and
forecast export revenues will hit a record setting US$165 billion by the end
of this year, noting that exports have already reached US$77.77 billion,
equivalent to 47% of the year’s target.
A
Vietnamese company, Tocontap Saigon JSC, recently collaborated with seven
Japanese businesses to sponsor a seminar introducing nutritional supplements
from
During
the seminar, the seven Japanese companies introduced their products namely
Nananomi Collagen Ace, Two Top Q10 Drink RJ Coenzyme Q10, Vitamin B1, B2, B6,
B12, Rehone Pro and an anticancer treatment named Happoutake.
Tocontap
Saigon JSC has partnered with a number of Japanese businesses to introduce
products to the
The
company specializes in exporting and importing essential goods such as
household utensils, leather and footwear, rubber, and clothes.
New
cooperative models boost agricultural development
As
By
2014,
Since
Cooperatives
need to strengthen their interconnection to satisfy mass production
requirements for registered brands, marks of origin, and certificates of
quality. These are the basic conditions for joining the international trade
deals
Ma
Quang Trung, head of the Department of Economic Cooperation and Rural
Development of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said,
"The role of cooperatives in agricultural production is of great
importance because the production of an individual farmer has little
competitiveness in the market as
In the
past, cooperatives provided services to farmers with little connection to
outside markets. As
Many
cooperatives produce the same product, leading to lower prices after bumper
harvests. In a new roadmap establishing a new model for cooperatives in the
2015-2020 period the Vietnamese government emphasizes the importance of
recognizing the role and influence of cooperatives in a market-oriented
economy.
Vuong
Dinh Hue, head of the Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission, told
VOV, "The first and foremost task is to raise awareness. We need to
raise public awareness of the role, influence, and economic potential of the
collective economy, and the difference between the old and new model of
cooperatives. It’s also of great importance to raise the awareness of
authorities at all levels on publicizing and implementing the Law on
Cooperatives, and putting current policies on cooperatives into practice."
The
new model cooperatives are expected to give a strong boost to
Under
this new model, farmers will be given timely support from the government and
cooperatives to increase their competitiveness and tighten their cooperation
with businesses.
FPT
IS inaugurates IT system for Cambodia
FPT
Information System (FPT IS) launched the financial management information
system (FMIS) for the National Treasury of the Royal Government of Cambodia
early this week.
This
is the first information technology system to be deployed on a nationwide
scale in
The
project is expected to become operational in eight subsidiaries of
Thailand
seeks closer IT, telecom ties with Vietnam
Thares
Punsri, chairman of
It has
signed an MOU with
Thang
expressed his support for the initiative, and instructed the ministry's
Department of International Cooperation to liaise with
Punsri
said
Thang
said ASEAN countries needed to co-operate with each other to have a common
voice to boost the development of telecoms and IT. He hoped
Agricultural
administrative reform to focus on serving people, businesses
Administrative
reform in agriculture should focus more on people and enterprises by issuing
practical documents facilitating agricultural production and serving the
integration process, stated Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao
Duc Phat.
In
order to enhance reform efficiency, leaders of the ministry and its agencies
should acknowledge shortcomings while building legal documents in the field
and raise the sense of responsibility in proposing the omission of
unnecessary procedures, he said at a conference on July 24 to review five
years of administrative reform in the sector and map out orientations for
2016-2020.
From
2016-2020, the ministry will continue completing mechanisms and policy
systems focusing on management in the value chain from input to processing
and marketing.
The
ministry will also review the efficiency of administrative procedure in all
areas, especially those related to people and businesses, stated the
minister.
He
noted that from 2011-2015, the ministry issued and proposed 323 documents,
including three laws, 21 decrees and 281 circulars, helping promote the role
and strengths of the sector amid tough economic situations.
During
the conference, participants also pointed out that many legal documents
issued by the ministry remain inefficient and are unfeasible.
According
to Head of the ministry’s Legal Department Nguyen Thi Kim Anh, together with
overlapping and unsystematic documents, there is a lack of regulations on the
circulation, processing and producing of farm produce as well as the
development of a rural economy and management of rural trade.
She
also pointed to the slow reforms of the legal document system and the ineffective
supervision of law enforcement in the sector.
Lam
Dong a hotbed for Agricultural Innovation
When
it comes to high-tech agricultural innovation, the smart money is on the
Central Highland
In the
first six months of 2015 farmers in the province imported 30 million seeds
and seedlings belonging to 41 species from 26 countries around the globe as
part of an effort to jump start high-technology agriculture in the region.
Along
with flower, fruit and vegetable seeds the imports included more than 29.9
million trees and flower bulbs from as far away as the Netherlands, US,
France, Chile, Australia and Japan.
Lam
Dong province is a pioneer in
Jan-July
FDI disbursement increases
Some
$7.4 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) was disbursed from January to
July, equal to 109.6 per cent of the figure for the same period last year,
according to the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and
Investment. $1.1 billion was disbursed in July.
Newly-registered
capital in July was $3.3 billion, a slight rise compared to June. The total
of newly-registered and additional capital from January to July was $8.8
billion, equal to 92.4 per cent of last year’s figure. Newly-registered
capital was $6.9 billion in the seven months, an increase of $100 million
compared to same period last year. Additional capital was only $1.8 billion,
equal to 70 per cent of the figure last year. $1.3 billion belonged to 245
projects in manufacturing and processing.
In
July the three sectors attracting most FDI were manufacturing and processing,
with $1.95 billion, real estate with $1.23 billion, and wholesale, retailing
and repair with $18 million.
The
FDI sector continued to record a trade surplus in the first seven months,
with $65.69 billion in export turnover (including crude oil) and $56.6
billion in import turnover.
MoIT
seeks export opportunities
The
Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) plans to promote the export of
Vietnamese products through foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) operating in
MoIT
has worked with major retailers such as Metro, Big C, AEON, and Lotte in
Some
200 types of Vietnamese consumer products will be widely sold in
MoIT
is also conducting promotion activities with major distributors such as
Walmart from the
Regarding
the domestic market, the proportion of Vietnamese products in distribution
channels nationwide is quite high, at up to 90 per cent.
The
campaign has been implemented for six years and gained positive results in
changing Vietnamese consumers’ behavior, with more beginning to choose Made
in Vietnam goods and having a greater belief in their quality of local
products.
FPT
Software to boost staff numbers
FPT
Software currently has the highest number of staff among the subsidiaries FPT
Telecom, with 8,000, and plans to have 10,000 by the end of the year.
From
2012 to 2015 FPT Software created over 4,000 new jobs in
FPT
Software said it needs to recruit about 4,500 to 10,000 staff a year to
achieve its ambition of earning $1 billion in revenue and employing 30,000
staff by 2020. To have sufficient human resources it plans to recruit both
domestically and overseas. In its long-term strategy, ASEAN is considered a
center of human resources, new technology, and research and development.
The
company is also focusing on investing and developing new IT services and
solutions, providing expert solutions to automobile manufacturing, banking
and finance, insurance, television entertainment, aviation, and electricity.
In
May, FPT Software established a subsidiary in Cebu, the Philippines, which is
expected to be a service development center with IT ability and staff numbers
as large as its other centers in Vietnam, with 150 staff this year and 1,500
by 2020.
Farming
friend
LienVietPostBank
was unscathed by the problems experienced by other banks some years ago and
continues to be a major player in the sector, with a particular focus on
agriculture.
More
than seven years ago, when it first joined the market, LienVietBank
identified its priority business strategy in its so-called “Agricultural
Triad” (agriculture, rural areas, and farmers). It was obviously one step
ahead in having credit policies towards these sectors. Moving even closer to
its target, LienVietBank made a wise move in merging with VNPost (the Vietnam
Post Corporation) and LienVietPostBank (the Lien Viet Post Joint Stock
Commercial Bank) was established in 2008 with charter capital of VND3.3
trillion (some $150 million at the current exchange rate but much more at the
time).
According
to the bank’s reports its basic financial indicators have maintained very
high growth since 2008. Its charter capital increased from the original
VND3.3 trillion to VND3.65 trillion ($170 million) in 2009 and 2010, then
VND6.01 trillion ($275 million) in 2011 and VND6.46 trillion (nearly $300
million) in 2012 to 2014.
Regarding
mobilized capital, one of the basic elements measuring liquidity,
LienVietPostBank has created a solid foundation, with VND3.801 trillion ($174
million) in 2008, VND13.399 trillion ($614 million) in 2009, VND30.421
trillion ($1.39 billion) in 2010, VND48.148 trillion ($2.2 billion) in 2011,
VND57.628 trillion ($2.64 billion) in 2012, VND71.139 trillion ($3.26
billion) in 2013, and VND91.759 trillion ($4.2 billion) in 2014.
Unlike
many other banks, LienVietPostBank doesn’t focus solely on profit indicators
but attaches great importance to financial security so it may create a safe
cushion in the course of its operations. According to Mr. Nguyen Duc Huong,
Vice Chairman of LienVietPostBank, it is among a small number of banks that
have not sought refinancing from the SBV for liquidity support since 2008.
2008
to 2010 was a golden period for
Being
consistent with its aims in the “Agricultural Triad”, a sector considered to
pose many risks by its competitors, the bank even set aside 40 per cent of
its funds for loans to the sector. LienVietPostBank was one of the pioneers
in deploying a new strategy of “the left hand gives, the right hand receives”
in providing loans to agricultural enterprises and farmers in the
Mekong Delta.
Specifically,
the bank lends to enterprises who are centralized agricultural product
purchasers for export. They use the funds to finance the supply of seeds,
chemicals, and fertilizers to farmers. When the harvest arrives, farmers sell
their products to these centralized purchasers, with the earnings for farmers
being equal to total revenue minus inputs provided. The difference in this
business model is that LienVietPostBank required the enterprises open
accounts at the bank. From here, money flows directly to farmers and then
flows automatically back to the bank from farmers when the harvest is
completed, meaning the bank always has strict control over the money flow and
enterprises are prevented from using the loans for other purposes.
The
“once in a lifetime” M&A deal with VNPost gave LienVietPostBank access to
an extremely large distribution network of more than 10,000 post offices
around the country, even in remote rural areas.
The
channel not only provided for sizeable capital mobilization but was also
safe, as large customers tend to come and go and leave banks in a state of
liquidity flux if they withdraw substantial sums, for instance, while the
small amounts of capital mobilized on a regular basis from farmers presents
no such risk. “From this year onwards, one of the priorities of the bank is
to fully exploit postal savings points at post offices to lend and collect
from farmers in all parts of the country,” said Mr. Pham Doan Son, CEO of LienVietPostBank.
“This is a unique advantage of LienVietPostBank that no other bank has, not
even Agribank.”
SHB
to increase charter capital
The
Saigon - Hanoi Commercial Bank (SHB) has gained approval from the State Bank
of Vietnam (SBV) to increase its charter capital from VND8.86 trillion
($406.14 million) to VND9.48 trillion ($434.56 million).
The
approval was given in Document No. 5420/NHNN-TTGSNH.
The
increase will be done via issuing additional shares, which will also fund
paying a dividend for 2014, under a plan approved by shareholders at the
annual general meeting (AGM).
At the
AGM the bank set targets for 2015 of reaching VND200 trillion ($9.16 billion)
in total assets and increasing its charter capital by VND1.62 trillion
($74.26 million) to VND10.48 trillion ($480.40 million), an 18 per cent
increase.
Profit
after tax is targeted at VND1.12 trillion ($51.34 million), an increase of
10.6 per cent against 2014.
Non-performing
loans are to be managed at less than 3 per cent.
Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VET/VIR
|
Thứ Ba, 28 tháng 7, 2015
Đăng ký:
Đăng Nhận xét (Atom)
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét