BUSINESS IN BRIEF 8/8 Agro-fishery-forestry export to be boosted The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development aims to address difficulties facing agro-fishery-forestry production in a bid to boost export. During a press briefing last week in Hanoi, Deputy Director of the Ministry’s Directorate of Fisheries Pham Anh Tuan said the shrimp output fell in July and attributed the reduction to unfavourable natural conditions, including salt intrusion increases in February, March and April. Shrimp exports are lower than the same period last year due to weak purchasing power, Anh said. From now to the end of this year, the agency aims to promote extensive tiger prawn farming to lower production costs and raise product quality to enhance competitiveness, Anh added. In the long term, the Directorate will promote the prawn-rice and prawn-forest production approaches with application of technology to ensure the sustainable development of the sector. Besides, the export of other products such as coffee, rubber, rice and cassava also faced difficulties. The agro-fishery-forestry sector earned 2.47 billion USD from export in July, a decrease of 11 percent from the previous month, and 9 percent from the same month last year. Vietnam stands to gain from regional trade pact enforcement Vietnam is likely to face both opportunities and challenges when joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) with the scale tipped towards gains rather than losses, economists have said. Negotiations on the RCEP commenced in 2012. The deal aims to reach a comprehensive economic partnership between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and six regional free trade agreement (FTA) partners, namely China, Japan, the Republic of Korea (RoK), Australia, New Zealand and India. The RCEP region has a population of 3.4 billion, a combined GDP of 21 trillion USD, and trade accounting for 29 percent of the global figure. Six rounds of RCEP talks were organised and negotiations are expected to conclude later this year. As the agreement gathers a number of Vietnam’s major economic partners like China, Japan, Australia and ASEAN, it promises strong growth in trade between the country and these key export markets. The pact will also bring about an inflow of foreign direct investment (FDI) which in turn will result in positive impacts such as transfers of technology and business and management skills that Vietnam needs. The implementation of commitments stated in the RCEP will also help Vietnam create a competitive and transparent investment climate and participate in regional value and production chains. Nguyen Anh Duong, Deputy Director of the Macro-economic Policies Department under the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), said the deal will help Vietnam access investment from and markets of ASEAN and partners. He elaborated that once it takes effect, Vietnam will have a chance to import goods at lower prices, especially material for manufacturing such as steel from China and plastics from the RoK and Japan, along with advanced machinery. The pact will also help cut down expenses and create a friendlier business environment thanks to harmonised regulations, he added. CIEM researcher Dinh Thu Hang considered some sectors such as aquatic production, agriculture and construction to be the biggest beneficiaries of the RCEP while the liberalisation of services in the region will beef up trade in services and FDI in Vietnam. Vietnam could export its distribution and hospitality services to RCEP members, especially Japan, ASEAN nations and Australia. Efforts to facilitate trade and development cooperation could also further reduce the expenses of service connectivity and goods trade, she said. In a recent report, ANZ bank said Vietnam and Thailand will profit the most from the RCEP as the former’s GDP growth rate could reach approximately 8 percent and the latter’s figure could hit 13 percent in five years after the deal’s signing. FDI within RCEP members is expected to account for 85 percent of the global figure, critical to the Vietnamese economy. Meanwhile, some challenges Vietnam could face once the deal takes effect include the vulnerability to supply and demand fluctuations as the majority of its trade is focused on only few large partners and several key products, according to Nguyen Anh Duong. Although Vietnam’s trade structure is similar to that of other RCEP members, the quality and amount of added value in its goods are still low, posing a great competition challenge to Vietnamese products. For example, the country will have to compete with China in exporting apparel, footwear and rice to Japan and the RoK. Vietnam will also encounter strong rivals from RCEP countries in terms of banking services which have matured in Singapore, Japan, the RoK and Australia, economists said. Travel firms plan flights between Vietnam and Macau A Macau travel agency is cooperating with two Vietnamese companies to offer charter flights between Ho Chi Minh City and Macau. There will be three return flights each week from September 22, according to representatives of Sun Star from Macau, Viking Travel in Ho Chi Minh City and Indochina Travel Services in Hanoi,  news website Saigon Times Online reported. They said they will maintain the service for a year and will increase the number of flights if the demand is strong. Each flight can carry 180 passengers. Tran Xuan Hung, director of Viking, said it will cooperate with the Macau firm to bring tourists into Vietnam on short trips. It will also bring foreign tourists from Ho Chi Minh City to Macau on the chartered flights. Hung said his company will focus on Indonesian travelers, who can visit Vietnam and Macau without a visa. He said the company has not planned tours for Vietnamese travelers to Macau as visa requirements currently take around three weeks. Vietnamese agribusinesses call for Japanese assistance in consumption, technology transfers Vietnamese firms operating in agriculture need support from Japanese partners in consumption and technology transfers, an official from the Ho Chi Minh City Agricultural Hi-Tech Park said at a recent trade and investment promotion event in Ho Chi Minh City. Technology transfers from Japanese enterprises to their Vietnamese partners will only become successful if the former can guarantee to consume what the latter produce, Dinh Minh Hiep, director of the Agricultural Hi-Tech Park, said at the “Japan-Vietnam Trade and Investment Promotion 2015" forum on July 31. Technology transfers from Japan are good, but it would be better if the Japanese market could use up what is produced with Japanese technology in Vietnam, for it is very hard for the Vietnamese market to consume such high-priced agro-produce, Hiep said, adding that exporting such products to the East Asian country is the best option available to Vietnamese firms. However, Mukuta Satoshi, senior managing director of the Japan Business Federation of Keidanren, said that as the produce of Vietnamese partners is created in accordance with Japanese standards, which are among the world’s strictest, it can be easily sold to other countries. If not sold to Japan, Vietnamese products can be shipped to surrounding countries, where many Japanese expats live, Satoshi added. Speaking at the forum, Nguyen Trung Dung, trade counselor at the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan, said that Vietnamese enterprises should join hands with Japanese companies to solve technological problems instead of importing their equipment and technologies at high prices. Vietnamese firms, particularly small businesses, can contact the Vietnam trade office under the embassy to seek opportunities to cooperate with Japanese enterprises, Dung added. Satoshi, from the Japan Business Federation of Keidanren, which represents 30 major Japanese companies that were exploring investment opportunities in the southern city during the event, said that Japanese businesses consider Vietnam a gateway to the ASEAN market. ASEAN member countries include Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Later this year, after the ASEAN Economic Community is formed, the role of Vietnam will become increasingly important as a business base in the strategic global supply chain, he said. As a result, it is a very good time for Japanese and their Vietnamese partners to boost cooperation to seize the opportunity to serve the 600-million-strong ASEAN market, Satoshi added. Pho Nam Phuong, director of the Investment and Trade Promotion of Ho Chi Minh City, said the city has recently focused on simplifying procedures for foreign investment by applying information technology in the management process. It will take foreign investors less time to carry out many administrative procedures, such as three days for business registration and 15 days for investment registration, Phuong said. Along with this, Ho Chi Minh City leaders regularly organize meetings and dialogues with businesses, including foreign investors, to solve problems promptly and provide timely information about the general economic development of the city, she added. On July 31, Dong Nai Province, which is Ho Chi Minh City’s neighbor, inaugurated a specialized area with prefabricated industrial facilities set aside for small- and medium-sized enterprises from Japan covering 18.2ha in the Nhon Trach 3 Industrial Park. The VND772 billion (US$35.56 million) development is a collaboration between Group Forval (Japan), Tin Nghia Corporation and Dong Nai Container JSC Port. Hideo Okubo, president of Forval Group, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that Japan’s small- and medium-sized enterprises tend to invest abroad, but there is no need to rent vacant land. They want to lease prefabricated factories to save time and costs on initial investment. As a result, the establishment of such an area will be an effective model to attract small- and medium-sized enterprises from Japan, Okubo said. HDBank offers $13m credit package to buy apartments Contract to provide credit package worth VND300 billion (US$13.7 million) for people to buy apartments at Ha Noi's Dong Phat Parkview Tower project Graphic image of Dong Phat Parkview Tower. Photo bdsbinhminh.com Starting in August, the bank will offer preferential loans at 6.8 per cent annual interest in the first six months to customers to buy apartments. The customers then have two other options of taking loans at a fixed annual interest rate of 8.6 per cent in the first 12 months or at 9.9 per cent in the first 25 months. The loans, worth up to 80 per cent of the apartment value, have a tenor of up to 30 years. Customers can use apartments of the project as guaranteed assets. The 30-storey Dong Phat Parkview Tower is located in Hoang Mai District, and has been funded by the Dong Phat Investment Joint Stock Company. The bank also announced a tie-up with Payoo to strengthen its internet banking service. The service, available nation-wide, will enable customers of HD Banks to pay internet and water fees online. Vingroup affiliate to develop city's urban project Xavinco Company will carry out construction work on 40 per cent area of a 110,000 sq.m piece of land in Thanh Xuan District, that Ha Noi authorities had reserved for urban development. According to reports in the local media, the firm, an affiliate of property giant Vingroup, will be responsible for an area of more than 43,000 sq.m, part of the 110,000 sq.m land located at No 233, 233B and 235 Nguyen Trai Street in Thanh Xuan District. The detailed master plan, presented on a 1/500 scale, was adopted by municipal People's Committee Chairman Nguyen The Thao on July 30. In an online report on August 5, the committee said the urban area will consist of offices, trade and dwelling complexes, as well as schools, kindergartens, exercising places and gardens. Office floors will be spread over a total of around 240,000 sq.m, while buildings may have up to 46 storeys, according to news website ndh.vn. When Biz Hub asked a Vingroup's communication official about details related to the project's development via a phone call on August 5, she said no specific information from the company was available at the moment. Vingroup reportedly holds a 96.42 per cent stake in Xavinco, which has a charter capital of VND2 trillion ($91 .74 million), the remaining stake being owned by the Ha Noi Soap Joint Stock Company. The 110,000 sq.m piece of land located opposite the Royal City, an urban complex in which Vingroup had invested and which was inaugurated in the south-west gateway of the capital in 2013. Phu Quoc needs more than just infrastructure upgrades: authorities Phu Quoc Island, a district administered by the southern province of Kien Giang, is now a magnet for realty and tourism investors thanks to recent heavy investment in infrastructure upgrades, but local officials say they need even more. The island needs more entertainment venues, better state management over land issues and a wastewater treatment system, officials said at a meeting in Can Tho City on Monday. Phu Quoc Island, a one-hour flight away from Ho Chi Minh City, has been granted an exclusive mechanism for development, according to Directive No. 80 signed by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in December 2013. The island has since been connected to the national grid, and seen the construction of a north-to-south main road, and the operation of aninternational airport. Tourists and investors have thus flocked to the island to enjoy its world-renowned natural landscapes, and to grab investment opportunities in what is expected to become a special economic zone. The Phu Quoc administration has so far granted investment licenses for 164 projects, 21 of which are foreign-invested, which collectively pledge to pump VND168.93 trillion (US$7.76 billion) into the island, officials said at a meeting meant to review the effectiveness of the island’s special development mechanism. Twenty-three of the licensed projects, with a total investment of VND25.81 trillion ($1.19 billion), have become operational, whereas 14 others, worth VND11.38 trillion ($522.74 million), are under construction. The remaining investors are completing investment procedures. The constantly improved infrastructure on Phu Quoc has enabled the island’s tourist arrival numbers to rise 30 to 40 percent per year since late 2013, Le Van Thi, chairman of the Kien Giang administration, told the meeting. In 2014, around 1,200 new hotels were built on the island, which is expected to add another 2,000 such facilities this year. While Phu Quoc once received around 3,000 visitors on a daily basis, the figure has now doubled, Thi said. Even though there is a sufficient number of hotels and restaurants, there are few entertainment services and activities that can make holidaymakers stay longer, the chairman said. “Visitors normally go swimming, take a tour around the forests, visit the night market, and go out drinking at night to finish their journey,” he elaborated. The Kien Giang administration has thus taken action to resolve the issue, according to the chairman. “We have limited the number of new resort projects with large areas, and increased investment in building recreational venues on the island,” Thi said. The chairman, however, admitted that there are not enough available land plots to meet the demand of an increasing number of investors. “More and more investors are coming to Phu Quoc to seek investment chances, but the land is limited,” he said. “In the meantime, those that have been allocated land plots have failed to get work started.” Local authorities will thus review the operations of sluggish investors and may withdraw the land plots given to them to welcome new investors, the chairman added. “The biggest challenge facing Phu Quoc is that the state management over land issues is not effective enough,” Thi said. The island has recently experienced a “land fever,” with investors rushing to speculate on land plots, causing land prices to skyrocket. “But the situation is now stable and the ‘land fever’ is gone,” Thi told reporters after the Monday meeting. When asked about trash and wastewater treatment on the island, Thi said Phu Quoc is capable of treating garbage on its own. “But we need around VND2 trillion [$91.87 million] to invest in a wastewater treatment system for the entire island, without which Phu Quoc will be polluted in the coming years,” he added. While such a system has yet to be built, Thi said projects operating on the island are required to treat their wastewater before dumping it into the environment. EU FTA to cut 99% of tariff lines After the EU - Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is formally signed 99 per cent of tariff lines will be eliminated according to ten-year schedule for Vietnam and a seven-year schedule for the EU, Head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam Mr. Franz Jessen told a press conference on August 5. Mr. Jessen spoke of the significance and importance of the agreement, which will promote bilateral trade relations to new heights and enhance two-way trade turnover many-fold compared with the $28 billion recorded in 2014. The removal of 99 per cent of tariff lines will create opportunities for access to new markets in services and investment. The agreement is a major step towards a bilateral agreement between the EU and ASEAN, he added, and will be second between the EU and a member of ASEAN, following the FTA signed with Singapore in 2014. He also acknowledged Vietnam’s efforts in negotiating the FTA. In a telephone conversation with Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang, EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom said that the finely balanced agreement will boost trade with one of Asia’s most dynamic economies. “It sets a new, better and modern model for FTAs between the EU and developing countries and establishes a good standard for the trade relationship between the EU and Southeast Asia as a whole,” she said. Once the agreement comes into being, she added, it will bring significant opportunities for businesses on both sides through enhancing market access for goods and services. New road to Vung Ro Oil Refinery The Phu Yen Provincial People’s Committee broke ground on a new road connecting the Vung Ro Oil Refinery with National Highway 1A on the morning of August 4. The eight-kilometer project has a total budget of VND974 billion ($44.65 million) but only VND97 billion ($4.45 million) will be funded by the province’s Department of Transport, with the remaining VND877 billion ($40.2 million) coming from the State budget. The contractors for the project are the Xuan Thanh Group, the Transport Engineering Consultant JSC No. 2, and the Ministry of National Defense’s 319 Corporation. The road will connect National Highway 1A’s Km1348+950 point with National Highway 29’s Km14+100 point, where the refinery and the Hoa Tam Industrial Zone are located. At the breaking ground ceremony Mr. Le Van Truc, Deputy Chairman of the Phu Yen Provincial People’s Committee, underlined the importance of the route for the development of the Hoa Tam Industrial Zone and especially the construction of the Vung Ro Oil Refinery, which has an annual crude oil refining capacity of 8 million tons and total investment of more than $4 billion. Steel production soars in July The Ministry of Industry and Trade recently released a report on industrial and commercial activities in July and the first seven months of the year. Production of natural steel was estimated at 380,300 tons in July, up 13.5 per cent compared to July 2014, while laminated steel output was 360,100 tons, an increase of 22.5 per cent year-on-year. The amount of bar iron and angle iron was estimated at 331,800, an increase of 20.9 per cent. In the first seven months natural steel production reached 2.1 million tons, a 2.4 per cent increase against the first seven months of last year, while laminated steel production was 2.4 million, 19 per cent higher than in 2014. Bar iron and angle iron also recorded a sizeable increase in production, of 11.2 per cent. Steel imports in July saw significant growth of 74.3 per cent in volume and 19.8 per cent in value compared to July 2014. In the first seven months the volume rose 44.8 per cent and the value 15.1 per cent, while the import of steel products rose 45.6 per cent. Vina Koyei Steel expanded its steel mill in July, at a cost of $220 million, to increase its annual capacity by 500,000 tons to 800,000 - 1 million tons. VIB offers new lending promotion Vietnam International Bank (VIB) has been conducting a new promotion program since August 3 with interest rates of 5.99 per cent. Customers can borrow at preferential interest rates for the first six months of loans with terms over 12 months to purchase houses, cars, and consumer goods, to secure additional working capital, or to invest in real estate. From the seventh month the interest rate is calculated by the interest rate on 12-month VND deposits plus 3.49 per cent per annum, which is equal to 9.19 per cent per annum at the moment. VIB said that for each five-year loan the average interest rate would be around 8.93 per cent per annum. The preferential interest rate and lending policy for the promotion program is tailored towards customers being active in managing their loans. VIB is one of the first commercial banks in the country to set a ceiling on loan interest rates, in order to increase transparency. Urban area for Hanoi's Nguyen Trai Street The Hanoi People’s Committee has recently approved the planning on a scale of 1:500 for a functional urban area at land lots 233, 233B and 235 Nguyen Trai Street in the capital’s Thanh Xuan district.                                A Vingroup subsidiary, Xavinco Real Estate JSC, has been assigned to conduct demarcation of the land lots and other tasks. With an area of nearly 110,000 sq m, the land lots, opposite Vingroup’s Royal City, are located in a favorable location and were formerly owned by the LIX Detergent JSC, the Hanoi Soap JSC, and the Thang Long Tobacco Co. (Vinataba Thang Long). According to the approved planning, the urban area will comprise high-rise residential buildings, a green space, kindergartens, and public facilities. It will be a modern urban area with synchronous technical infrastructure and will contribute to the architectural landscape along Nguyen Trai Street. Xavinco is a joint venture between Vingroup and the Hanoi Soap JSC, in which Vingroup owns 75 per cent. Marriott to open shortly on Phu Quoc Island The Marriott resort project on Phu Quoc Island, invested by the Sun Group, will be opened in the near future, according to a representative from the Group. Though not disclosing the exact date of the opening, the representative told VET that the project was being constructed quickly to ensure its opening is on schedule. After completion the Marriott in Phu Quoc Island with have a design far beyond the Sun Group’s impressive InterContinental Da Nang Sun Peninsula Resort. The first Ritz Carlton hotel project in Vietnam is also being invested by the Sun Group on Phu Quoc Island. Sun Group is one of the largest real estate groups in Vietnam and the biggest investor in central Da Nang city, with dozens of projects in hotels, resorts, amusement parks, and urban areas, including the InterContinental Da Nang Sun Peninsula Resort, the Novotel Da Nang Premier Han River, the Premier Village Da Nang resort, and Ba Na Hills Da Nang. The Group will soon launch several projects of large-scale, such as Ha Long Ocean Park, with investment capital of VND6 trillion ($276 million), and a cable car to the top of Mt. Fansipan, at a height of 3,143 meters above sea level, near Sa Pa in northern Lao Cai province. Lotte to place land fee deposit for huge project South Korea’s Lotte Group has agreed to place a deposit totaling around VND2 trillion for a land use fee for six lots in Thu Thiem New Urban Area to develop a huge property project. The deposit will make it highly possible for the Korean company and its Japanese partners to be chosen to develop the Eco Smart City project worth over US$2.1 billion in Thu Thiem. According to the city government, the city would use the deposit to service bank loans totaling VND29 trillion which have been spent on infrastructure development in the Thu Thiem New Urban Area since the daily interest payment is VND2.9 billion at the moment. The Korean firm has expressed interest in investing in Functional Area 2A, the core part of the new urban area in District 2 since 2009. The city has sought the Prime Minister’s approval to select the joint venture involving some of Lotte’s affiliates and Japanese firms to implement the project. The joint venture consists of Lotte Asset Development Co. Ltd., Lotte Shopping Co. Ltd., Hotel Lotte Co. Ltd., Lotte Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd. and Japanese firms Mitsubishi Corporation, Mitsubishi Estate Co. Ltd. and Toshiba Corporation, The city wants the selection process to be completed quickly to help attract more investors to develop a major finance, banking, trade and service center in the core part of the new town in line with a master zoning plan. Functional Area 2A has a total area of about 16.71 hectares, including 12.55 hectares with 12 lots for projects. With an investment of nearly US$2.2 billion, Functional Area 2A will be developed into a complex comprising an international trade-finance-banking center, hotels, serviced apartments, offices, multifunctional condos and educational buildings. Data shows July startups up strongly New data shows double-digit growth in business startups nationwide in July, the first month of the revised enterprise and investment laws with more liberal provisions taking effect. According to national business registration data, 7,662 enterprises with registered capital of VND43.85 trillion (US$2 billion) were approved in July, soaring 66.2% in number and 49.4% in capital year-on-year. Compared to June, the number of startups in July picked up 15.7%, according to an update of the Business Registration Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment. This is in contrast to a report the agency released about a week ago. The agency explained that the old report covered newly established businesses approved as of July 20 and did not fully reflect the actual situation in the first full month of the two new laws coming into force. According to business registration management agencies, investors might have needed some time to get familiar with the new laws on the first 20 days of July, resulting in fewer startups in the earlier report. The July report pointed out the advantages of the new laws, including streamlined procedures for business registration, application screening and less detailed content stated in business registration certificates. However, in the first weeks after the new laws took effect, management agencies had to cope with difficulties in enforcing new regulations and spend much time interpreting and explaining new rules. The Ministry of Planning and Investment said new regulations require both management agencies and businesses to take much time to adapt. Confusion with new regulations provided in the 2014 Enterprise Law in the first weeks was unavoidable as investors had not been prepared for that. In order to effectively enforce the revised Enterprise Law, the ministry said law enforcement agencies should comprehend all the changes in the law and find proper ways to assist enterprises in carrying out the required procedures. The ministry reported the issues that had arisen to the Government last month and requested the Government to quickly issue guidelines for the implementation of the new laws and hold workshops on the new laws. The ministry proposed setting up a working group comprising representatives of the Government Office, the National Assembly’s Economic Committee, the ministries of planning-investment, justice and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry to monitor and assess the implementation of the new laws. One commercial-turned-budget housing project in use Only one out of 19 budget apartment projects in HCMC approved for conversion from commercial housing projects or having their apartment sizes scaled down has been put into use. The city government approved the 19 projects to make adjustments in line with the Ministry of Construction’s Circular 02/2013. Of the projects, seven were transformed into social housing developments and the remainder divided their apartments into smaller units to make them more affordable. These projects were previously designed to have 8,584 units but the current number is 11,359. After inspections into the 19 projects on March 18, the HCMC Department of Construction concluded that only the project at 171A Hoang Hoa Tham Street in Tan Binh District was put into use with nearly 500 units for 1,700 residents. As many as 13 buildings with 9,000 units are under construction for a total of 25,000 residents. Three other projects were put on hold while investors are completing procedures to carry out two other projects. Customers of 584 Lilama apartment building invested by Transport Engineering Construction and Business Investment Company 584 protested against a plan to convert the project into a social housing development. The firm pledged to reach agreement with them but failed to get it done. At the end of 2014, the enterprise sought to withdraw from the project. The HCMC Department of Construction forwarded the proposal to the city government for consideration. Hoang Quan Consulting Trading Service Real Estate Corporation has agreed to conduct the HQC Hoc Mon commercial center-condo project initiated by Hoc Mon Trade Company. In May, the city government approved converting the project into a social housing one. Turkey reviews anti-dumping duties imposed on Vietnamese tyres The General Directorate of Imports under the Turkish Ministry of Economy has reviewed anti-dumping duties imposed on motorbike and bike tyres imported from Vietnam. The Vietnam Competition Authority (VAC) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade said on August 5 that Vietnamese products to Turkey are likely to be imposed the same high anti-dumping duties as decided after the 2010 review of 29-49% on motorbike tyres and 30-44% on bike tyres. Since 2004, Turkey has imposed anti-dumping duties on motorbike and bike tyres imported from Vietnam in response to a complaint lodged by Anatolia Rubber Ind. and Trade Inc. company. Such high import tariffs have constituted a barrier for the export of Vietnamese motorbike and bike tyres to Turkey. However, the plaintiff continued asking for an imposition of anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese products, reasoning that the Turkish domestic industry might suffer significant losses if it is removed. Processing makes big gains The processing industry earned approximately US$71.9 billion from exports in the first 7 months of 2015, up 18.7 per cent from last year and contributing 77.9 per cent of Viet Nam's total export revenue, reported an official from the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT). In a conference on Monday, Head of the MOIT's Planning Department Nguyen Tien Vy said that products with export growth include cattle feed (up 16 per cent), plastic (11.3 per cent), footwear (22.3 per cent), and phones & components (28.2 per cent). Goods seeing dropping export earnings were seafood (down 15 per cent), coffee (33 per cent), rice (8.7 per cent) and iron & steel (15.7 per cent). The ministry's report on trade and export revealed that the country shipped abroad $14.5 billion worth of goods in July, a 1.2 per cent increase from the previous month and 10.8 per cent against the same period last year. The figure has brought export revenue over the past seven months to roughly $92.3 billion, up 9.5 per cent year on year. The trade deficit hit $300 million in July and nearly $3.4 billion in the seven month period, equal to 3.7 per cent of total exports. The devaluation of the euro has fuelled imports of many overseas materials. According to the MOIT, the monthly export revenue amounted to an average of $13.18 billion during the period. For the remaining months, the country needs to boost its monthly export earning to $14.5 billion to meet its target of 10 per cent growth this year. The Index-Industry Products (IIP) of the first seven months rose by 9.9 per cent annually with several key contributors including the processing and manufacturing sector (up 10.1 per cent), mining (9.2 per cent), power production and supply (11.5 per cent), and water supply and waste-wastewater treatment (7.1 per cent). Industries with high growth include mobile phones (up 56.9 per cent), automotives (57.8 per cent) and oil and petroleum (37.9 per cent). Thai firms eye VN opportunities Thai enterprises are eagerly looking to co-operate further with Vietnamese firms in several sectors such as food processing, beverages, automobile manufacturing, garment and textiles, footwear, logistics and support industry. Deputy Director of the Industrial Promotion Department under Thailand's Ministry of Industry, Prasong Nilbanjong, spoke about the situation at a conference on Tuesday in HCM City. He said that more than 60 Thai companies at the forum hoped that closer co-ordination with Vietnamese firms would make them more competitive when the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) takes effect later this year. The Chairman of Thailand-Viet Nam Friendship Association, Prachuab Chaiyasan, agreed, saying the formation of the AEC will open up huge opportunities for enterprises in the bloc, which has a huge market of 600 million people. In order to effectively tap into the lucrative market, firms need to foster co-operation that utilizes their advantages, he said. Deputy President of the HCM City Business Association, Pham Ngoc Hung, also spoke at the event, commenting on how Thai companies have sped up trade promotion in Viet Nam, which they consider a promising market. Bilateral trade between Viet Nam and Thailand reached US$10.6 billion in 2014, surging 12.5 per cent from the previous year, vietnamplus.vn reports. The figure has continued to grow given that trade hit $5.2 billion in the first half of this year, up 8 per cent year-on-year. Thailand is the biggest importer of and second largest exporter to Viet Nam. The two nations aim to raise their bilateral trade value to $20 billion by 2020. Vietnamese firms still fail to leave their mark Vietnamese businesses have yet to pay adequate attention to building trademarks, especially in the context of integration and increasing competition, said Lai Tien Manh from Brand Finance. Manh told the 2015 Viet Nam Trademark Forum as part of the "Proud of Vietnamese trademarks" held in Ha Noi on Tuesday that by last year, the value of Vietnamese brandnames had increased by 30 per cent to US$172 billion. Viet Nam was placed 42nd among 100 countries in the world and 15th in Asia. Within the ASEAN bloc, Viet Nam was ranked sixth in the field, after Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines. He noted that Viet Nam has been in top 10 countries that showed fastest improvement in national trademarks in 2013-14. However, only a few trademarks actually rose to international level, such as Viettel, while most enterprises remained hesitant to make their mark at the global level, he added. He said Viet Nam exported several key items such as agricultural products and seafood, but businesses have failed to build a trademark in exports but do so in case of raw materials. "Investing in building national trademarks is an important factor to increase competitiveness of the Vietnamese enterprises as it could affect the balance of payments by impacting investment, capital attraction and export promotion. That is why companies should invest in building trademarks with a specific target," he said. Meanwhile, the chairman of the Northern Liquefied Trading Company, Tran Trong Huu, underlined the need to support enterprises in developing trademarks in accordance with their respective sectors by forging trade associations in addition to enhancing promotion activities at international trade events. He shared his com-pany's experience in developing trademarks, noting that support in training and consultation is necessary to improve business production and competitiveness. Tran Dinh Thien, the director of Viet Nam Economic Institute, said the country's sector structure has been at low level and tended to exploit available resources instead of enhancing competitiveness. In the context of Viet Nam's deep integration by way of free trade agreements (FTAs), and with limited national ability, Vietnamese businesses would have no competitive advantages when they do business at regional or international arenas. Bui Huy Son, the deputy head of the Viet Nam Trade Promotion Agency (VIETRADE), said despite Vietnamese businesses having raised awareness about building trademarks, there still remained some limitations. Therefore, VIETRADE would need to continue to support Vietnamese businesses' participation in national branding programmes and training courses in this regard. Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VET/VIR