BUSINESS IN BRIEF 13/9 Warning status on EIB shares extended Shares of the Vietnam Commercial Export and Import Bank (Eximbank) will continue to bear a warning status after the bank reported retained losses of VND756.8 billion ($33.9 million) as at June 30. The share was first given a warning status by the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HoSE) on April 8 because of its retained losses, which it has failed to address. HoSE will now consider the next step in reviewing Eximbank’s status based on the bank’s audited consolidated financial statements for 2016. Eximbank’s after-tax profit for the first six months of this year reached VND60.7 billion ($2.7 million), with retained losses of VND756.8 billion ($33.9 million). As at June 30 the bank’s lending balance stood at VND80.8 trillion ($3.6 billion), down 4.62 per cent compared to the end of 2015. Its credit balance was VND100.7 trillion ($4.5 billion), up 2.33 per cent compared to the end of 2015, with total assets at VND121.7 trillion ($5.4 billion), down 3.3 per cent. Net operating profit in the second quarter was VND372 billion ($16.7 million), up 90 per cent year-on-year. Credit risk provisions, however, doubled, to VND324 billion ($14.5 million) as at June 30. After deducting costs and credit risk provisions, Eximbank’s pre-tax profit for the second quarter stood at VND49 billion ($2.2 million), a 69 per cent increase year-on-year. Despite the fine result its pre-tax profit for the first half reached just VND79 billion ($3.5 million), a fall of 88 per cent year-on-year. Bad debts stood at VND4.3 trillion ($192.8 million) as at June 30, equal to 5.3 per cent of the total and up significantly from the 2 per cent recorded at the end of last year. As at June 30, sub-prime debts were VND2.4 billion ($107.6 million), accounting for more than half of all bad debts and 13-times higher than at the end of 2015. Doubtful debts stood at VND797 billion ($35.7 million), up 34.8 per cent compared to the end of last year while potentially irrecoverable debts were reported at VND1.07 trillion ($48 million). On July 18 the bank announced adjustments to its 2016’s financial targets. Pre-tax profit was adjusted to VND400 billion ($18 million), down 44 per cent from the initial target of VND720 billion ($32.3 million). The target for total assets for the year was adjusted to VND134 trillion ($6 billion), down 6 per cent from the initial VND142.5 trillion ($6.4 billion). The credit balance target was adjusted to VND108 trillion ($4.8 billion), down from the original VND113.5 trillion ($5.1 billion), while the lending balance target was adjusted to VND100 trillion ($4.5 billion), down from VND105.8 trillion ($4.7 billion).  The adjustments were to be announced to shareholders at an extraordinary shareholders meeting on August 2. However, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) on July 29 requested Eximbank check information regarding shareholder group rights to nominate candidates to its board. Eximbank was therefore forced to postpone the meeting to a date to be decided, according to a document signed by CEO and Board Member Mr. Le Van Quyet and posted on the State Securities Commission and HoSE websites. HCM City approves draft for smart city project HCM City’s steering committee for the smart city project hosted a meeting on Friday to approve a draft plan of the project, which aims to develop the southern metropolis into a smart city. Speaking at the meeting, Nguyễn Thành Phong, chairman of the People’s Committee and head of the project’s steering committee, said the city would collect the opinions of city authorities, experts, and its residents to issue a completed plan by the end of this year. Under the plan, the project is expected to be carried out from 2017 to 2020. It focuses on e-government, traffic, health, welfare, public security, water supply and drainage, environment, education, economy, agriculture and communications. In addition, the city will launch minor projects such as a traffic control centre, electronic medical records system, smart electricity metres, and a security and traffic camera system. According to Trần Vĩnh Tuyến, deputy chairman of the People’s Committee, building a smart city is necessary for the city’s development and potential. The targets are to develop a sustainable city as well as improving the quality of life of its residents. Nguyễn Việt Dũng, director of Department of Science and Technology, said local authorities should provide information and knowledge about the smart city for residents. The work would help people understand what a smart city is, and encourage them to give their best ideas for the project. According to Phong, the city has implemented seven “breakthrough missions,” including smart city development, to realise the resolutions of the 12th Party Congress and the 10th City Party Committee Congress.   He emphasized that the city’s leaders should be united and determined to start the project. Banks’ risk management a cause for concern Poor management of risks and weak supervision of banks were the roots of the largest problems that Vietnam’s banking system is facing, experts said during a workshop. The conference was held late last week, and sponsored by the National Economics University’s School of Banking and Finance. Speaking at the workshop, entitled "Improving institutions for the sustainable development of Vietnam’s banking system in the period 2016-2020", Do Thi Kim Hao, deputy director of the Banking Academy, said that recent incidents related to banks were mostly due to poorly-performing supervisory and auditing systems. Customers are served at Shinhan Bank in Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. Experts discussed ways to improve risk management and supervision in the local banking system This reality indicated that bank restructuring in the 2011-2015 period did not achieve the expected results, she said. Banking activities were potentially risky because of the lack of reliable information between banks and customers or between bankers and other shareholders, Hảo said. Hảo noted the shortcomings of the existing three banking supervisory layers. The first layer is the internal surveillance within banks. Currently, banks set high targets of growth, therefore employees are forced to find ways to meet these goals. The second layer of monitoring is the management and supervision of State agencies. However, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has not put in place a risk management framework sufficient to quantify all risks. "Therefore, the SBV should instruct banks to not conduct business beyond their capabilities," she said The third layer is surveillance from customers. Currently, customers can only oversee banks’ profits and operations through information being made public from banks. However, most banks’ risk reports are incomplete. In principle, this report will be some 100-pages in length, clearly indicating what the risks are, why a solution is chosen to reduce risks, and how to deal with the consequences if problems arise. Through her analysis, Hao found that the supervisory system of Vietnam’s banks had failed to properly monitor banks. "This is also the reason leading to disclosing information unprofessionally, incompletely, and with a lack of compliance monitoring," she added. Agreeing with Hao, Dr Luong Thai Bao from the School of Banking and Finance said the Vietnamese banking system was currently displaying many weaknesses and causing significant concerns. According to Bao, weaknesses in banks include governance and bank information. "Actually, in the banking market, investors are missing information. There is incomplete information that exists in the bank. So we need a monitoring mechanism specific to this industry," Bao said. However, watchdog agencies were described as less effective and lack the resources to monitor the activities of the nation’s banks, he said. Based upon the fierce competition, banks pay more attention to growth and expansion, rather than governance, so in a short time bad debt has become one of the largest problems for Vietnamese banks. Therefore, the banking system must be restructured in a healthy manner to provide greater transparency of information and improve the capacity of governance and risk management, Bao said. Bao added, “Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of banks is a correct step to reduce the number of ailing banks, as well as promote order and discipline within the system." HCM City to host Viet Nam Foodexpo The Viet Nam International Food Industry Exhibition (Viet Nam Foodexpo 2016) will take place in HCM City on November 16-19. More than 300 businesses from 30 Vietnamese localities and 15 countries and territories are expected to participate in the forthcoming event, selling various products at about 500 booths, including dried fruits, seafood, beverages, and food products. The event allows enterprises to promote their products and services and to gain access to domestic and foreign markets, said Director of the Trade Promotion Agency Bui Huy Son. Participants can also connect with wholesale and retail distributors and potential food importers and investors at the exhibition. Information on the latest technologies for processing high-quality food products will also be available. This year, Italy was selected as the Country of Honour at the expo. An Italian delegation will bring modern technology and unique Italian products to the event. Some Italian importers also plan to attend the Viet Nam Foodexpo to look for Vietnamese business partners. The third international Food Viet Nam will also feature discussions of national branding strategies and producing safe and high-quality food. HDBank signs mobile banking deal HCM Development Commercial Joint Stock Bank (HDBank) has signed an agreement with US company Meed to launch new mobile banking products in Viet Nam in November. Under the agreement, Meed's mobile application will enable HDBank to provide its customers affordable banking services on both desktops and mobile devices. According to Meed, the new suite of products includes a demand deposit account, a security savings account, a secured line of credit and domestic and international transfers between Meed users. The partnership will also enable HDBank to strengthen its relations with financial organisations affiliated to Meed. Meed was established to provide a global platform for a community of networked member banks, corporate members and individual users. The network provides users access to the member banks for their financial services needs and a solution for financial exclusion and immobility. Japanese scholars explain management style A symposium on Japanese management practices was recently held at Viet Nam National University's University of Economics and Business, in cooperation with Yokohama National University. Entitled, "Japanese management in Asia: Building Business Partnerships in Viet Nam," the conference was held in Ha Noi on Saturday. The symposium sought to increase mutual understanding between the two countries, share Japanese knowledge and business management experiences with Vietnamese experts, as well as hear from scholars, managers and students. Also, experts from Japan shared many case studies about Japanese management in Asia. Further, at the conference, representatives from Japanese companies talked about opportunities and challenges in investing in Viet Nam. A representative from Mitsubishi Corporation Viet Nam said that their corporation chose to operate in Viet Nam because of low labour costs, but he also said there were difficulties due to having not understood the demands of Vietnamese customers. He also said that the importance of the relationship between enterprises and government was important, and expressed the hope of receiving increased support from the Vietnamese Government. The representative from Mitsubishi also said that enhancing foreign languages for Vietnamese IT staffs was important, however, he noted that to be successful in investment in Viet Nam, it was even more important to understand Vietnamese history, culture and thinking. Meanwhile, Sei Kudo, general director of Fujitsu Vietnam Limited, said Viet Nam was an important offshore market for Japan. He also expressed hope that the Vietnamese government would have polices to increase the country's information and technology (IT) human resources, both in quality and quantity.  Foreign travel firms explore Binh Thuan A group of travel and hospitality services companies and reporters from various countries, including Russia, the UK, India and the Republic of Korea, have made a fam trip to the south central province of Binh Thuan to explore tourism products in the locality. The group’s member visited and experienced famous destinations and services of Binh Thuan, including Mui Ne flying sand dunes, Tra Cu tourist site, Po Shanu Cham tower, Sealink City ’s wine castle and golf course. They also study luxurious accommodations and resorts in Ham Tien-Mui Ne, which is also known as the “capital of resorts.” The farm trip is a chance for Binh Thuan to promote its image of a friendly and safe destination, as well as an opportunity for local firms to seek partners. With nearly 200km coastline, Binh Thuan owns abundant sea tourism resources with untouched beaches and diverse maritime ecosystem. High-end resorts along the beach has become attractive destinations in the locality, which are popular for foreign tourists. During 20 years of development, Binh Thuan has built its Mui Ne-Phan Thiet maritime tourism trademark, while fostering links with south central, southeastern and Central Highlands provinces as well as Laos and Cambodia for tourism development. Along with efforts to preserve cultural heritage, Binh Thuan has also promoted unique traditional festivals such as Kate and Nghinh Ong festivals. In the first eight months of this year, Binh Thuan welcomed about 2.8 million tourists, a 6.7 percent rise over the same period last year, including 320,000 foreigners, up 11 percent. 105 winners of The Guide Awards Vietnam Economic Times held the 17th The Guide Awards on September 11 at the JW Marriott Hotel Hanoi with the theme “Joining Hands to Develop Sustainable Tourism and Protect the Environment”. Awards were presented to 105 resorts, apartments, restaurants, healthcare providers, travel agencies, transport companies, galleries and other service providers nationwide with the best tourism practices. Mr. Nguyen Phu Binh, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Vietnam Economic Times, told the ceremony that The Guide Awards present opportunities for tourism enterprises to meet, exchange and connect. “The Awards also provide timely recognition and honor the remarkable achievements of organizations and enterprises that have made positive contributions to the development of Vietnam’s tourism industry,” he added. The Guide Awards also raise awareness among individuals, organizations, enterprises, and tourists about environmental protection and promote sustainable tourism development. “The message The Guide wishes to send to all of you present here today as well as to businesses operating in the tourism sector is let’s work together and do everything possible to protect our precious environment,” Mr. Binh said.  A discussion was held as part of the Awards ceremony regarding the limitations and inadequacies of Vietnam’s tourism sector. Some concern has been expressed since Deputy Prime Minister Mr. Vuong Dinh Hue told the National Meeting for Tourism Development in Hoi An in early August that for every ten international tourists that come to Vietnam, seven do not want to return. Historian Mr. Duong Trung Quoc, though, believes there should be no great concern and “we should focus on the number of tourists returning rather than those who do not come back,” he said. Award recipients included famous hotels such as the JW Marriott Hotel Hanoi, the Apricot Hotel, the Sheraton Hotel, and the Melia Hanoi, attractive resorts including Mercure Bana Hills French Village, Banyan Tree Lang Co Resort, and Flamingo Dai Lai Resort, and major travel agents such as Oriental Paradise Cruises, Sanest Tourist and South Pacific Travel. Ms. Nguyen Thi Huyen, Senior Marketing Communications Manager at the Sheraton Hanoi Hotel, which was a winner, told VET that this is the second time the Sheraton has picked an Award, following its first in 2014. “This time around there has been a change in the Awards, as not only business figures are taken into account but also corporate social responsibility activities,” she said. The Guide Awards were first organized in 1999 by The Guide magazine, the English-language tourism and leisure publication of Vietnam Economic Times, with enterprises honored for their contribution to and development of Vietnam’s tourism sector. The number of international tourists arriving in Vietnam in August reached 899,738, an increase of 6.3 per cent against July and up 34.4 per cent year-on-year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO). Total international arrivals in the first eight months reached 6.4 million, 25.4 per cent higher year-on-year, while domestic tourists numbered 43.1 million. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc told the National Meeting for Tourism Development that tourism must become a sustainably developing economic sector and contribute to socioeconomic development. The target of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) for Vietnam to welcome 8.5 million international tourists this year is well within reach as in the first eight months the figure was three-quarters of the target. Vietnam first records US$2 billion trade surplus with G20 Vietnam enjoyed a trade surplus of US$2.02 billion with the Group of Twenty (G20), accounting for 2.7% of total export revenue to these markets during the seven-moth period of this year, according to the latest statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs. Vietnam’s exports to the group in the reviewed period increased 9.4% to US$75.22 billion, making up 77.78% of the country’s total export turnover. The increase was attributable to the growing export revenues of key products like telephones and components at US$2.32 billion, computers and components at US$1.04 billion and seafood at US$715 million. Meanwhile, imports from G20 reached US$73.2 billion, down 1.7% or 77.3% of the country’s total import revenue. Five key import products constituting 53% of the country’s total import revenue included machinery and equipment, computers, electronics and components telephones and components, cotton and steel. China remained the largest trade partner of Vietnam with trade exchange recording US$38.18 billion (up 2.4%), trailed by the US (25.72 billion, up 10.6%) and the EU (US$24.87 billion, up 6.1%). Mekong Delta farming cooperatives link up Four provinces in the Mekong Delta sub-region, located between the Tien and Hau rivers, plan to establish linkages to increase production of green-peel and pink-flesh grapefruit as well as coconuts, key fruits grown in the area. The four provinces, Ben Tre, Tien Giang, Vinh Long and Tra Vinh, have about 110,000 ha of coconut trees with annual output of more than 1 million coconuts. They produce 15,000ha of green-peel and pink-flesh grapefruit with annual output of 156,000 tonnes a year.  The cultivation areas of coconuts and grapefruit in the delta are scattered and on a small scale, which has caused problems in producing a large quantity of high-quality fruits for export.  Speaking at a seminar held in Ben Tre on August 31, Cao Van Trong, Chairman of Ben Tre Province People’s Committee, said the committee would work with authorities of the other three provinces to set up a linkage plan from now to the end of next year. Ben Tre would also improve connections between farmers and processors to establish specialised cultivation areas and brand names for the two fruits. Connections would also be established in trade and investment promotion, research, market development and consumption. Phan Hoai Phong, a representative of the Ben Tre-based Huong Mien Tay Private Enterprise, which specialises in trading green-peel and pink-flesh grapefruit, said that grapefruit had been exported to many markets, including the EU, China and Canada. Potential markets exist in the Middle East, Russia and France, but Huong Mien Tay has decided not to sign export contracts because of a supply shortage. Huong Mien Tay has signed contracts with 27 co-operative teams in Ben Tre that cultivate a total of 110,000 ha of green-peel and pink-flesh grapefruit, with an annual output of 200 tonnes a year. The quantity of green-peel and pink-flesh grapefruit that meet criteria for export accounts for only 13-15 percent of total output, according to Phong. The enterprise does not have enough standard grapefruit for export orders, so most green-peel and pink-flesh grapefruits purchased by Huong Mien Tay are sold in the domestic market. Phong said the connections among farmers, companies, scientists and local governments, especially linkages among grapefruit-cultivating provinces, were needed for better grapefruit cultivation. Le Van Nghi, Deputy Chairman of the Vietnam Co-operatives Alliance, said that provinces should set up co-operatives to establish linkages in the sub-region. Co-operatives in each province which operate effectively can set up a co-operative alliance, which would then be part of the sub-region’s co-operative alliance for production linkages. Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Tran Thanh Nam said the sub-region provinces should draft regulations on linkages soon. He said the sub-region should re-organise production of fruit under a co-operation model composed of companies, co-operatives and farmers. It should also undertake research to establish wholesale markets for the fruits. Project behind schedule, Quảng Ngãi revokes 337ha Quảng Ngãi Province’s People’s Committee has decided to revoke 337ha of land, part of a project to build the Guang Lian Dung Quất Steel Factory, located in Bình Thuận Commune. The land was being withdrawn because the project was behind schedule by several years, the Tuổi trẻ (Youth) newspaper reported. Lê Văn Dũng, the deputy director of the Dung Quất Economic Zone Management Board, said the revoked land would be handed over to the board to manage in accordance with the current regulations. The committee assigned the provincial Natural Resources and Environment Department to directly withdraw the land and amend the certificate of land-use rights, Dũng said. The project to build the Guang Lian Dung Quất Steel Factory was given the green light in 2006, with an initial investment of over US$1 billion by the Tycoons Group (Taiwan). At the time, E-United Group (Taiwan) collaborated with Tycoons and raised the capital to $3 billion. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in October 2007, however, till today, construction has still not begun. Early in 2012, JFE -- the second-largest steel producer in Japan - partnered with E-United Group and contributed capital to the now $4.5 billion project in the Dung Quất Economic Zone. In 2014, however, JFE decided to withdraw from the project. In March, 2016, following the committee’s inspection of the project, the project’s investor again submitted a proposal with an investment of $2.2 billion. However, the committee decided to withdraw the land since the investor had violated Land Law 2013. Sai Gon-Hanoi Bank launches subsidiary in Cambodia The Sai Gon-Ha Noi Bank (SHB) opened its wholly-owned subsidiary in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, on September 9.  The SHB Cambodia Bank has a charter capital of US$50 million and is the second subsidiary of SHB in Indochina. The first one is located in Laos.  The bank was named the best foreign bank in Cambodia in 2016 by the International Data Group and the National Bank of Cambodia.  Addressing the inauguration ceremony in Phnom Penh on September 9, Governor of the National Bank of Cambodia Chea Chanto acknowledged the contributions that Cambodia-based Vietnamese enterprises, including SHB, have made to the country.  On the occasion, the SHB's management presented $20,000 to the Cambodia Fund for the Poor.  Japanese discount retail brand opens first stores in Vietnam Cheap homeware, bags and electrical goods will be available in 12 stores by the end of the year. Japanese lifestyle and fashion brand Miniso opened its first three outlets in Hanoi on September 10, VietnamPlus reported on September 11. Its entry into Vietnam is part of a franchise deal inked with Vietnam's Le Bao Minh Group in April this year. The company plans to open 12 stores by the end of this year, the news site said. Miniso was co-founded in 2013 by Japanese designer Miyake Jyunya and Chinese businessman Ye Guofu. The brand has 1,600 stores in 22 countries and territories, having started with just four stores in Tokyo. It plans to raise the total number of outlets to 6,000 by 2020, said Ye Guofu, global co-founder of Miniso and vice chairman of Miniso Asia-Pacific.  Le Bao Minh Group is best known as the exclusive distributor of Japan's Canon, having more than 230 stores across Vietnam with average annual sales of more than VND3 trillion (US$134 million). Vietnam’s retail market has grown at roughly 10 percent per year in recent years, and sales are likely to reach US$109 billion in 2017, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit. The Southeast Asian nation has also climbed to 11th place on the A.T. kearny 2016 Global Retail Developement Index, which indentifies the world’s top 30 retail markets with the most potential for investment opportunities. VinPro+ changes business model Vingroup's Vincommerce has sent a document to partners on changing the business strategy for its Vinpro+ chain, with all outlets changing to VinPro stores located at Vincom trade centers. The plan, according to Vincommerce, is to meet demands in the market and serve customers better. The change in business model will not affect the business activities of its partners or the operations between Vincommerce and its partners. “Vincommerce will set up all advertising billboards and equipment invested in by its partners at Vincom trade centers,” the document stated. If partners wish to recall their equipment they must advise Vincommerce before September 12, and the recall will be conducted from September 13 to 17. The ICT and consumer electronics model, called VinPro, includes two business models: VinPro and VinPro+. VinPro consumer electronics chains are located in Vincom trade centers and VinPro+ chains are located in cities and provinces. In late 2015, Vingroup announced it has 110 VinPro and VinPro+ outlets. Established in March 2015, VinPro+ had 98 retail outlets as at March this year. In early September, VinPro launched a new consumer electronics centre on 5,000 sq m at Royal City Hanoi. In late September it plans to open the VinPro Xuan Khanh outlet in the Mekong Delta’s Can Tho city. Vincommerce had earlier planned to open 1,000 VinPro+ shops by 2019. Toyota sales up in August August sales by Toyota Motor Vietnam (TMV) reached 3,907 units (excluding Lexus), an increase of 14 units compared to August last year. Sales in the north stood at 1,529 units (39 per cent), the central region 361 units (9 per cent), and the south 2,017 units (52 per cent). In the first eight months of the year sales totaled 33,931 units, up 8 per cent (2,456 units) compared with the same period of 2015. As the seventh lunar month, August can be a difficult month for sales of passenger cars as many Vietnamese prefer not to make major purchases during the month. Sales in the passenger car segment in August reached 1,675 units, down against July and also August 2015. Leading the segment was Vios, with sales of 864 units, followed by Corolla Altis with 403 units and Camry with 260 units. August sales in the commercial vehicle segment, however, reached 2,232 units, an increase of 20 per cent compared to July and up 33 per cent year-on-year. A major contribution to sales in the commercial vehicle segment was made by Innova, with 1,035 units, up 27 per cent year-on-year, of which 935 new Innova 2016 were sold during the month after being introduced on July 18. With the slogan “Luxury - Rigidity”, the new Innova 2016 has a more sophisticated design that enhances comfort and safety features. With a sharp and sophisticated exterior silhouette, a subtle, comfortable and spacious interior, and strong and smooth performance, the Innova 2016 is ideal not only for business use but also for family use. Following Innova, Fortuner recorded sales of 931 units in August, an increase of 33 per cent compared to August 2015. Among completely-built-unit (CBU) vehicles imported and distributed by TMV, Hilux retained its leading position with sales of 152 units, 120 per cent higher year-on-year. Sales of Yaris reached 148 units, Hiace 36 units, Land Prado 60 units, and Land Cruiser 18 units. Despite changes in tax policies on luxury motor cars with big engines taking effect from July 1, sales of Lexus reached 55 units, an increase of 12 per cent compared to July. Lexus sales in the first eight months increased 73 per cent year-on-year, reaching 1,250 units. Lexus Vietnam is now distributing seven products with nine grades, including LS460L, GS350, ES350, ES250, LX570, GX460, RX350, RX200t and NX200t, through two official dealers: Lexus Centre Sai Gon (Ho Chi Minh City) and Lexus Thang Long (Hanoi). Construction suspended at Muong Thanh Khanh Hoa Construction of the Muong Thanh Khanh Hoa high-end hotel and apartment complex in Nha Trang has been suspended by the Khanh Hoa Department of Construction as it has exceeded the permitted number of storeys. Muong Thanh Khanh Hoa is being invested by the Dien Bien Construction 1 Private Enterprise, owned by Mr. Le Thanh Than. Permission was given to build 40 storeys, but when the provincial management authority conducted an inspection the 43rd storey was being built.   Authorities also asked that construction permits be revoked. If a business does not return its license within ten days of such a decision the provincial construction department will issue a decision canceling the permit. The decision also asked that the Khanh Hoa Water Supply Company cease supplying water to the project, and all vehicles and workers are prohibited from entering the site. Dien Bien Construction 1 Private Enterprise specializes in construction and real estate investment. In Hanoi Mr. Than is known for his affordable apartments. Many of his other projects have also exceed the permitted number of storeys and had construction suspended. In 1993, when Dien Bien province had no hotels at all, Mr. Than decided to build the first. In 1994, on the 40th anniversary of the victory over the French at Dien Bien Phu, the hotel was full to the brim with guests and tourists visiting the city. Realizing the potential, Mr. Than found that the hotel industry holds a great deal of promise. The Muong Thanh Hotel Group has invested in 45 hotels to date. Its most significant milestone was investing in the Muong Thanh Hanoi Hotel, which opened in September 2009. It was the first international standard four-star hotel of the group, marking a shift in investment strategy towards hotels and resorts of four- to five-stars. Muong Thanh currently has 3,000 employees and a total of more than 5,000 rooms; the most in Vietnam’s tourism industry. Muong Thanh’s aim is that “the Group continues to expand not only within Vietnam but also into other countries and become a network of Vietnamese hotels of premium standard.” After previously building and launching thousands of cheap apartments, the experienced investor realized that this sector is not sustainable. The hotel industry, meanwhile, can bring long-term profits. The plan to invest abroad began with the opening of a Muong Thanh hotel in Laos, after purchasing an outstanding location in the capital of Vientiane. With 35 floors, Muong Thanh Vientiane will be the highest among the Group’s overseas investments. Rice exports face narrowing door this year Vietnam’s rice exports have faced difficulties since 2013 with output dropping from nearly 8 million tons in 2012 to 6.5 million tons three years later and possibly to below 6 million tons this year. Rice export value has also fallen since 2010. It decreased to US$2.6 billion in 2015 from $3.5 billion in previous years. By the end of August this year, Vietnam shipped only 3.3 million tons worth $1.5 billion, down 16.6 percent in volume and 13.1 percent in value. Traditional markets of the country saw a strong reduction, for instance the Philippines decreased 66.4 percent, Malaysia 54.5 percent and Singapore 36.3 percent. This year, only the first quarter saw an increase thanks to contracts signed last year. Afterwards, the situation has become such difficult that the country has adjusted rice export target to below 6 million tons in 2016. Besides a bid, which Vietnam Food Corporation (Vinafood), won in August to export 150,000 tons to the Philippines at the price of $424.85 a ton, businesses said that it is possible that the Philippines will offer other bid packages but the volume will be smaller. Government-Government contracts will no longer be easy as the above nations have showed their determination to develop production to meet domestic demand. The Philippine Government has revealed that it would give farmers financial assistance covering input costs from seed, fertilizer and irrigation to obtain the target as soon as possible. After buying about 70,000 tons of rice early this year, Malaysia has showed no signs of more import demand. For the last many years, China has been the largest market of Vietnamese farm produce including rice. However this market has no longer been smooth for businesses after the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development signed a protocol with China by the end of May. According to the protocol, rice and bran must be quarantined and sterilized before being sold to the country. China required the ministry to send a list of 30 businesses in the need of rice and bran export to the country as well as the name of a firm entitled to conduct the decontamination for consideration.  However, China has yet to recognize Vietnamese assessment and sterilization firms to control rice quality sold to the market. In addition, it has tightened trade across borders. These have sent Chinese traders to buy rice from Pakistan or Myanmar instead of Vietnam as they used to. As a result, rice export to China experienced a year on year reduction of 21 percent in volume and 11.9 percent in value in the first seven months. Although domestic rice supply was limited this year because of long-lasting drought, experts have still warned of a redundancy when the autumn winter crop enters harvest time in the upcoming months. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has formerly called on the Mekong Delta to expand production in the autumn winter crop to make up damage in the previous crops. It will be the process of overcoming difficulties from now until the end of this year, according to director of the Southern Food Corporation Huynh The Nang. HCM City Party leader receives Association of Koreans Loving Vietnam Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Dinh La Thang and a city’s delegation yesterday received the Association of Koreans Loving Vietnam (Vesamo) in Busan city. Stating at the reception, the secretary said that the friendly cooperation relationship between HCMC and Busan is considered to be an outstanding highlight with many achievements for the last two decades. Vesamo’s support and efforts are indispensable in these successes, he affirmed. The association has made practical contributions in deepening Vietnam-South Korea relations through diversified and practical activities such as informal meetings marking Vietnam’s Reunification Day on April 30, seminars on the East Sea, visits and presents to Vietnamese Agent Orange victims. Secretary Dinh La Thang hoped that Vesamo will have more forms of operation and initiatives to boost the cooperation and friendly exchanges between the two nations and the two cities. Honorary chairman of the association Park Kwang Joo affirmed that it will attempt to contribute in diversifying the friendly cooperation relationship between the two countries. Vesamo is a non-profit organization founded in 2002, operating under the management by the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The association has over 100 members who are mainly intellectuals, artists, journalists, lawyers and entrepreneurs from the south of the country comprising Busan, Ulsan and Kyeongnam province. Many of them are fluent in Vietnamese. Vesamo has conducted many significantly social activities contributing in developing the two nations’ friendship. Prospects for Vietnam’s export of frozen raw shrimps to Australia Vietnam is looking to export frozen raw shrimps to Australia as the country has a great demand of this kind of product, said Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam.  In his interview granted to Vietnam News Agency correspondents in Sydney on the occasion of his working visit to Australia from September 8-10, Tam said that the issue was discussed during his meeting with officials from the Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources.  Vietnam has so far shipped only processed shrimps to Australia, but not frozen raw ones. The country has been the largest supplier of processed shrimp products to Australia over the past five years.  According to the Deputy Minister, the Australian side showed interest in importing Vietnamese frozen raw shrimps.  In the fourth quarter of 2016, a delegation of Australian experts will make a fact-finding tour to Vietnam to inspect whether Vietnam meets requirements in production in order to export raw shrimps to their country or not.  Deputy Minister Tam said he believes that Vietnam can meet all requirements of Australia as over the past time, the country has focused on investing in shrimp farming technologies, and paid attention to controlling diseases and improving the quality of young shrimps.  According to the Vietnamese Trade Office in Australia, Australia has a great demand of seafood, with the import turnover increasing from 868 million USD in 2011 to 1.6 billion USD in 2015.  Vietnam is the fourth biggest seafood provider for Australia, but accounting for only 11.2 percent of the market share.  In the past five years, Vietnam remains the largest supplier of processed shrimps to Australia. However, its export turnover in the market decreased by 25.6 percent last year, and by 16 percent in the first seven months of this year.  The meeting also looked at measures to remove hindrances to trading of agricultural products between the two countries, including Australian fruits and cattle. VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VET/VIR