BUSINESS NEWS IN BRIEF 1/3 Turkey urged to ease trade defence against Vietnamese goods   At a consultation session on the free trade agreement with Turkey from February 20-25, 2017, the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) asked the Turkish side to consider and recognise Vietnam’s market economy and minimise the application of trade defence measures against Vietnamese goods. The MOIT expressed concern that Turkey’s increasing application of trade defence measures against Vietnam’s export items in recent times has been adversely affecting trade exchange between the two countries. The Vietnam Competition Authority on February 28 revealed that Turkey has initiated anti-tax avoidance and anti-dumping investigations over partially oriented yarn (POY) imported from a number of countries, including Vietnam. Accordingly, POY items imported from China, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Chinese Taipei and Vietnam in the period of January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2016 will be put under investigation. POY is mainly used in texturizing to make textured yarn, also known as Polyester Drawn Textured Yarn (DTY) coded HS 5402.33. Earlier, Turkey decided to impose anti-dumping duty of between 34.81%-72.56% on Vietnam’s polyester yarn coded HS 5402.33. Turkey is one of Vietnam’s largest trade partners in West Asia. Two-way trade reached US$1.5 billion in 2016, with Vietnam exporting over US$1.33 billion worth of goods and importing approximately US$170 million worth of commodities. By the end of 2016, Turkey was the 27th largest foreign investor of 116 countries and territories investing in Vietnam, with total registered capital of US$704.3 million. Many Turkish businesses are currently interested in the Vietnamese market and are actively exploring and expanding cooperation with Vietnamese partners. Vietlott reports huge revenue Vietlott has earned VND12.8bn (USD562,000) a day in the first two months of 2017, an increase of 34% on last year, according to its report released on February 28. Vietlott reported positive growth compared to last year. In the first two months, the revenue of the company reached VND756bn (USD33m). The average monthly income is VND378bn, increased by 42% on last year. Its revenue from July to December 2016 was nearly VND1.6trn. Currently, Vietlott tickets are being sold at 12 provinces and cities including HCM City, Can Tho, An Giang, Dinh Duong, Danang, Hai Phong and Hanoi. HCM City is still Vietlott's biggest market. As of February 6, 85.71% of the Jackpot winning tickets are sold in HCM City and most of the winners are also living in HCM City. The Jackpot prize money can be as high as VND159.2bn (USD7m). The biggest prize paid out so far was over VND92bn. According to statistics, 53.85% of the winning prizes were won on the Sunday draw and the rest were drawn from Wednesday to Friday.   HCMC Customs Department implements online public service The Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department officially implemented level 3 online public service for its 41 administrative formalities from March 1. The administrative formalities include extension for tax or deferred payment and fines, recognition procedures for business priorities, obligation and exemption confirmation for tax, gift, sample etc etc…  Applicants can fill in public service registration and submit the form online to relevant agencies and organizations.  Results will be directly delivered to applicants and service fees will be paid online. European F&B businesses seek opportunities in Vietnam The European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development led a high-level trade mission comprising 29 business representatives to Vietnam on February 28 to explore market opportunities. The EU-Vietnam Business Network (EVBN) will implement a trade promotion program for food and beverage in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi on February 28- March 3 to help European businesses access the potential market and seek partners. Executives of 29 food and beverage businesses from 14 EU countries will attend seminars and workshops to study investment environment and quality food concepts in the country. According to EVBN, EU businesses want to access Vietnam market in different fields, especially food and beverage, to prepare for the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) which comes into effect in 2018. In late last year, a business delegation of 40 EU firms arrived in Vietnam to meet Vietnamese retailers and businesses. The Vietnam Foodexpo 2016 in HCM City in November attracted many producers from Italy, Poland, Germany, the Republic of Korea and Thailand to take part in. Many foreign businesses have invested in Vietnam food and beverage market through M&A activities to own shares at a series of renowned beverage businesses. More than 50% of beverage market shares now are owned by foreign businesses. Retail sales, service revenue increase over 7% Hanoi’s retail and service revenue in the first two months of 2017 amounted to VND365 trillion (US$16.4 billion), an increase of 7.1% from the same period last year, according to the Hanoi Statistics Office. In February alone, the figure was VND179 trillion (US$7.78 billion), down 3.9% from January. According to the department, Hanoi’s consumer price index in February increased slightly against the previous month, citing that prices this year changed little due to the early opening of supermarkets and commercial centres, which stopped the typical post-Tet scarcity of goods. The department said that more and more Vietnamese goods are on sale in supermarkets and commercial centres. In terms of exports, Hanoi’s export value in the first two months of 2017 was US$1.6 billion, up 13.1%. The industrial production index for the two months posted a year-on-year increase of 5.1%, the department added. Banks’ appetite for real estate lending drives up interest rates Banks’ favour for lending to real estate is the reason for high lending interest rates. Interbank rate and interest rate increased sharply this week. While before the Tet holiday, interbank offered rate was approximately 4 per cent per year, now it increased to 5-5.1 per cent. Per annum deposit interest rate and lending rate also increased by 0.1- 0.3 percentage point and by 1 percentage point, respectively. The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) confirmed that the upward trend of interest rate only occurred at some small banks and does not show a general trend in the banking system. The SBV also said it would guide these banks to stabilize lending rates in order to help enterprises. However, a large number of securities companies projected that interest rate would increase slightly compared to last year. According to Bao Viet Securities Company, per annum deposit and lending rates will increase by 0.5-1 percentage point in 2017, while Saigon Securities Inc. expected that interest rates will be difficult to decrease this year. Some experts explained that the lending interest rate rose because deposit interest rose, which was in turn caused by inflation. However, Dr Dinh The Hien, a financial specialist, believed that this is not the real reason. He said deposit rates increased because of the lack of cash in banks. There are a few reasons for this. First, banks have been recently concentrating on medium and long-term loans so the cash has not come back yet. Second, some enterprises failed to pay their loans on time. Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group is a telling example. The third and underlying reason is that recently, lending is focused on real estate with terms from 5 to 15 years, whereas the proportion of lending to the manufacturing sector (medium and small enterprises, agriculture sector) is lagging. As a result, the growth of loans is much higher than that of the GDP. “In conclusion, the increase in the lending rate is predictable as the government makes ineffective investments and banks love to lend to the property sector. Credit for real estate increased significantly in the period from 2014 to 2016,” Dr Hien said. In the past two years, SBV has continuously reminded banks to channel their credit flows into the real estate market and transport infrastructure. Nearly 400 million new shares listed The stock market received nearly 400 million new shares on February 28, including those of Vietjet Air (stock code VJC), Sabeco Quang Ngai (BSQ), and EVN International (EIC). The 300 million VJC shares listed on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock exchange (HoSE) are the most anticipated by investors and had a reference price of VND90,000 ($3.95). The 45 million BSQ shares had a reference price of VND 22,600 ($0.99) and were listed on the UPCoM market. Sabeco holds 66.56 per cent of its subsidiary’s charter capital. Sabeco Quang Ngai was established in 2005 to carry out a Saigon beer brewery project at the Quang Phu Industrial Park in central Quang Ngai province. Total investment capital was VND1.58 trillion ($69.36 million), with a capacity of 100 million liters per year. The company has added a tank fermentation system to improve its quality and energy-efficient systems to raise capacity to 130 million liters per year. The 36.67 million EVN International shares also went public on the UPCoM market with a reference price of VND10,500 ($0.46) per share. It adjusted its charter capital to VND366.77 billion ($16.1 million) in April 2016. The main activities of EVN International is investing in generating and supplying electricity to Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.   There were also 3.4 million shares of the Tipharco Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company (Tipharco - stock code DTG) listed on UPCoM. Investors have paid attention to the share as Tipharco recorded positive business result in 2016. Its reference price is VND20,600 ($0.9) per share. However, 1.073 million DTG shares are under restricted transfer provisions, which were issued individually to strategic shareholders, and ESOP shares issued to employees. 6.8 million shares of the Quang Ngai Urban Environment JSC (stock code QNU) also went public on UPCoM with a reference price of VND10,100 ($0.44) per share. Ministry response to cutting toll collection time of many BOT projects The Ministry of Transport yesterday officially expressed opinions about the recent state audit inspection concluding that many traffic projects developed under BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) form must reduce toll collection time by years.  The ministry said that total investment did not show the practical spending on the construction site so in BOT contracts, the ministry and a joint working group from the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Finance and relevant authorities decided to use definitive evaluation suitable with inspection and audit conclusions approved by authorized agencies as the final value to determine payback for a project.  The use of provisional fund must be approved by the Ministry of Transport. These clauses aim to tightly manage investment costs and determine payback.  According to the ministry, all BOT contracts stipulate that initial toll collection time is just expected and official time must be recalculated according to definitive evaluation and regularly updated in line with interest fluctuation and vehicle flow in practice.  Therefore, the payback does not affect the toll level which citizens must pay but depends on the definite evaluation and vehicle volume. If projection is suitable, macroeconomic factors are stable and investment management is well implemented, the reduction of the toll collection time is unavoidable and anticipated in BOT contracts.  In fact, the Ministry of Transport have based on estimate value to negotiate toll collection time cut for some projects not inspected by the state audit agency. For instance Highway 10’s stretch La Uyen-Tan De has reduced toll collection time from 22 years and 19 months to 10 years and three months; Rach Mieu bridge in Highway 60, Ben Tre province has dropped from 22 years and ten months to 13 years and five months. Vinalines signs $565 million insurance contract      Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) reached a framework agreement with a joint venture of insurance companies to insure its off-shore fishing vessel hulls this year in Ha Noi on Tuesday. Under the US$565 million insurance contract, the hulls of 76 Vinalines ships will be insured by insurers such as PVI Holdings, Bao Viet Holdings, Bao Minh Insurance Corporation and PTI Insurance. Vinalines has managed and exploited a fleet of various ships, including container shipping, bulk cargo and oil carriers. The fleet annually transports 60 per cent of import and export goods in Viet Nam.  Orientations to bond market development till 2020 The Finance Ministry will refine policies, ensure supply-demand and develop intermediary institution this year to develop a stable bond market, head of the ministry’s Finance-Banking Department Phan Thi Thu Hien told a press conference in Hanoi on February 28.  The ministry plans to submit a roadmap on the development of the bond market for 2017-2020 with a vision to 2030 to the Prime Minister this year, and a decree replacing another one on corporate bond issuance to the Government.  It is also due to issue a Circular on purchasing government bonds to contribute to the restructuring of government debts portfolio.  The government bond market, set to be a model in the financial market, will offer bonds with 10-year, 15-year, 20-year and 30-year maturity, and those at floating interest rates.  The Vietnam Social Insurance’s investment mechanism in the bond market will be renewed in line with the government’s Decree 30/2016/ND-CP while insurance firms, especially life insurance ones, and foreign investors are encouraged to join the market.  More credit rating organisations are expected to be born to improve the openness and transparency of the process of raising bond capital. Meanwhile, the State management agencies will strengthen liaison with the Vietnam Bond Market Association along the process.  In order to develop the domestic bond market in line with international practices, further attention will be paid to international cooperation.  According to the ministry, as many as 281.75 trillion VND (12.25 billion USD) worth of government bonds were issued last year, or 98.3 percent of the yearly target, 91 percent of them offered the maturity of at least five years. Notably, 30-year government bonds had been issued to foreign investors for the first time.  Thanks to restructuring, the government debt portfolio attracted capital accounting for 27.3 percent of the gross domestic product, compared to 16.2 percent in 2015. Peppercorn export drops in two months Peppercorn export has experienced a decline in both value and volume in the first two months of 2017, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. During the period, Vietnam shipped overseas 16,000 tonnes of peppercorns for 112 million USD, down 19.8 percent in volume and 36.3 percent in value compared to last year. Business insiders attributed the reduction to a global oversupply trend.   Vietnam has seen a surge in the number of the pepper growers following increasing peppercorns prices in recent years.  The country accounts for 50 percent of the global peppercorns for trade, thus its growing yield is likely to diminish prices on the global market. Currently, domestic peppercorn prices are under 120,000 VND (5.27 USD) per kg, about 35,000 VND (1.5 USD) less than that of the same period last year.  Do Ha Nam, head of the Vietnam Pepper Association (VPA), said the prices still bring profit for growers, and are higher than that of other industrial plants, such as coffee and rubber trees.  He pointed to accelerating quality management as a way to avoid external pressures to reduce price on the global market. Prime Minister stresses tourism-driven economy in Khanh Hoa Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc asked the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa to develop tourism an economic driving force given its blessed natural conditions during a working session with local authorities on February 28.  Describing tourism together with industry, agriculture and rural areas as the three economic spearheads, the PM expected Khanh Hoa will serve at least 10 million visitors, including 3 million foreigners, and contributing 15-20 percent to the provincial gross domestic product by 2020.  He requested the province manage natural resources in tandem with environment protection during the process of developing tourism while making Nha Trang a sightseeing city to improve local lives.  On planning management, he hailed Khanh Hoa for relocating its administrative area to give land to production-trading and tourism development.  Regarding agricultural restructuring, the leader suggested building high-tech agriculture zones in service of tourism as well as acquiring the Central Highlands city of Da Lat’s experience in building organic farming areas.  As the province lies in a position strategic to national defence-security, he stressed the need to develop national defence logistic services in combination with safeguarding sea and island sovereignty.  The PM asked for continuing start-up and business facilitation to have 25,000 – 30,000 enterprises by 2020 and bring more firms to rural areas to stimulate growth.  Khanh Hoa must become a model administration that stands side by side with businesses and the people and one of the localities topping the provincial public administrative reform index, he said, noting that it needs to pool more public resources for development while closely controlling the economic and effective use of socio-economic infrastructure.  On the occasion, he also gave feedback on the province’s proposals regarding socio-economic infrastructure and tourism development. Last year, the province earned 12,998 billion VND (565.1 million USD) from tourism, up 16.43 percent year-on-year, adding 18,096 billion VND (786.7 million USD) to the provincial State budget.  Tourism and services make up more than 90 percent of the local economic structure thanks to special natural conditions, history and culture possessed by the locality.  With a long coast and some 200 islands, islets and bays, Nha Trang is considered one of the top 10 tourism-services centres in the country. In May 2013, Nha Trang bay became an official member of the Club of the Most Beautiful Bays of the World.  The province has also thoroughly dealt with all polluting facilities. Up to 90 percent of manufacturing and trading facilities met environment hygiene requirements and 90 percent of urban solid wastes were collected. Consumer price index rises slightly in February The country’s consumer price index (CPI) in February inched up 0.23 percent from last month and 5.02 percent year-on-year, the General Statistics Office (GSO) announced on February 28. Out of the 11 main goods and service groups, seven experienced price hikes during the month, including housing and construction material (0.77 percent), transportation (0.56 percent), medicines and healthcare services (0.22 percent), culture, entertainment and tourism (0.15 percent), other commodities and services (0.14 percent), restaurants and food services (0.11 percent) and household appliances (0.05 percent). Meanwhile, slight falls were seen in telecommunication (0.07 percent), garment, hats and footwear (0.05 percent) and beverage and tobacco (0.01 percent). Education group remained unchanged. Do Thi Ngoc, Deputy Head of the GSO’s CPI Department said that the rise in February’s CPI was due to high demand for certain commodities for traditional rituals in the first lunar month and spring festivals, such as flowers, food and restaurant services. Growing demand for travel and higher fuel prices contributed to the increase in transport service costs, Ngoc stated. However, there were some elements keeping CPI down like reduction in pork price due to low demands and limited export to China, abundant supply of fresh vegetables and weak demand for clothes after the festive season. In the month, gold price continued to rise in line with the global trend despite rumor that the US Federal Reserve is going to lift interest rate. The price of gold in the domestic market fluctuated at around 36.9 million VND (1,621 USD) per tael. Meanwhile, US dollar exchange rates remained stable at around 22,800 VND per US dollar thanks to profuse supply and low demand from enterprises. According to the GSO, February core inflation (excluding food and fresh foodstuff, energy products and State-controlled commodities such as healthcare and education services) increased a marginal 0.2 percent from the previous month and 1.51 percent against the same period last year.  Core inflation rate was under 2 percent, reflecting a stable monetary policy, it said. The GSO forecasted that CPI in March will be higher than February due to surges in world prices of fuel and possible adjustments in healthcare services in 10 cities and provinces in line with the roadmap specified in Circular 37. VN brewing better tea quality Việt Nam’s tea sector plans to produce 25,000 tonnes of tea using techniques to increase the quality and productivity of tea plants while protecting the health of farmers and land for future generations, the chairman of the Việt Nam Tea Association Nguyễn Hữu Tài said yesterday. Speaking at a conference on sustainable tea development, Tài said this was the target of the project to increase the number of tea farming households participating in the sustainable and high-quality tea supply chain from last July to this December. Under the project, more than 15 enterprises and 16,500 tea farming households will co-operate to produce 25,000 tonnes of tea, of which about 15,000 tonnes would be certified Rainforest Alliance – the seal awarded to farms, forests and businesses that meet environmental and social standards. Tea enterprises and farming households will be given training on sustainable agriculture, such as effective and proper use and control of agricultural chemicals, improving the productivity of tea plants, building the position of Vietnamese tea products on the world market and improving the competitive capacity of Vietnamese enterprises. The project will help set up agri-teams to provide knowledge on types of agricultural chemicals, usage methods and proper amounts in order tocurb pesticide residue in tea plants. Currently, eight enterprises have joined the project. The project was organised by the Netherlands’ IDH (Sustainable Trade Initiative), Unilever, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Between November 2013 and December 2015 the project was implemented in the four northern provinces of Yên Bái, Phú Thọ, Tuyên Quang and Lai Châu. More than 2,280 farming households were given technical support on sustainable tea development. Lê Quang Chuyền, deputy general directof of Mỹ Lâm Tea JSC in Tuyên Quang Province, said that the model helped improve farmers’ awareness in producing higher-quality tea, meeting EU’safety food criteria while ensuring the health of farmers and surrounding environment. Trần Vũ Hoài, vice chairman of Việt Nam Unilever, said tea productivity has greatly increased after several years of implementing the model. Previously, the corporation only purchased about 4,500 tonnes of tea in Việt Nam, but now has increased its purchases to 11,000 tonnes. It hopes to increase the amount to 20,000 tonnes in the coming few years. Figures from the Việt Nam Tea Association show that there were about 133,400 hectares of tea cultivation areas in the country with a productivity of 1,025 tonnes. Last year, the country exported 134,000 tonnes, earning US$223 million. The main export markets for Vietnamese tea are Pakistan, India, China, Indonesia and Malaysia. Rules on PPPs relax, helping infrastructure The Ministry of Planning and Investment is expecting a wave of private investment into the infrastructure sector as it collects comments on the revision of legal documents pertaining to public-private partnership projects and selection criteria with the aim of attracting more investors. Vu Quynh Le, deputy head of the Public Procurement Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), said the movement aims to settle a number of issues that remain uncertain after two years since the introduction of Decree No.15/2015/ND-CP, which details investment in the form of public-private partnerships (PPPs), and Decree No.30/2015/ND-CP, which guides the implementation of a number of articles on investor selection of the Law on Bidding. Nguyen Tuan Anh, a representative of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s General Directorate of Energy, which manages  build-operate-transfer (BOT) power projects, claimed that a major concern with regard to power projects is the overlap of existing legal documents. He explained that Decree 15 allows the contracting parties to agree to the application of foreign laws to regulate the project contracts in which one party is a foreign investor, and the contracts are guaranteed by the government for performance obligation. This is a major change which allows international financial consultants to become more deeply involved in projects. There are still some uncertainties for investors, though, as the Land Law 2016 stipulates that land use rights and assets attached to land must apply to domestic laws. Regarding Decree 30, Anh suggested that regulations need to be more relaxed. “It should focus on qualified investors for capital instead of experience,” he said. Vu Tuan Anh, deputy director of the Ministry of Transport’s PPP Management Department, admitted that, due to a lack of capital, the Vietnamese government should accept revenue guarantees to attract foreign investors and to mobilise foreign loans at reasonable rates. Experts noted that Decree 15 regulates state capital in the project implementation process, stating that it should be primarily used to support the construction of auxiliary facilities, and cover compensation, site clearance and resettlement. However, the decree does not specify if the value of land use rights have been included in the total investment cost or not. MPI estimated that until 2020, Vietnam would need around $170 billion to develop its infrastructure, including transportation, bridges, power plants, water supply networks, waste treatment plants, and ports. However, traditional, public sources of capital, including the state budget, government bonds, and official development assistance would struggle meet more than half of this sum. Ergo, PPPs could prove to be a timely opportunity for both the government and the economy of Vietnam. Vietnam has been implementing PPP models for years through BOT and build-transfer (BT) investments, and the government managed these kinds of investment through Decision No.71/2010/QD-TTg – which guides the implementation of pilot PPP projects – and Decree No.108/2006/ND-CP – which guides the implementation of infrastructure projects under BOT, build-transfer-operate (BTO), and BT contracts. Decree 15 expands on the number of PPP forms available, laying the legal foundation for contracts of BOT;  BTO; BT; build-operate-own (BOO); build-transfer-lease (BTL); build-lease-transfer (BLT); and operate-manage (O&M) models. Banks’ appetite for real estate lending drives up interest rates Banks’ favour for lending to real estate is the reason for high lending interest rates. Interbank rate and interest rate increased sharply this week. While before the Tet holiday, interbank offered rate was approximately 4 per cent per year, now it increased to 5-5.1 per cent. Per annum deposit interest rate and lending rate also increased by 0.1- 0.3 percentage point and by 1 percentage point, respectively. The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) confirmed that the upward trend of interest rate only occurred at some small banks and does not show a general trend in the banking system. The SBV also said it would guide these banks to stabilize lending rates in order to help enterprises. However, a large number of securities companies projected that interest rate would increase slightly compared to last year. According to Bao Viet Securities Company, per annum deposit and lending rates will increase by 0.5-1 percentage point in 2017, while Saigon Securities Inc. expected that interest rates will be difficult to decrease this year. Some experts explained that the lending interest rate rose because deposit interest rose, which was in turn caused by inflation. However, Dr Dinh The Hien, a financial specialist, believed that this is not the real reason. He said deposit rates increased because of the lack of cash in banks. There are a few reasons for this. First, banks have been recently concentrating on medium and long-term loans so the cash has not come back yet. Second, some enterprises failed to pay their loans on time. Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group is a telling example. The third and underlying reason is that recently, lending is focused on real estate with terms from 5 to 15 years, whereas the proportion of lending to the manufacturing sector (medium and small enterprises, agriculture sector) is lagging. As a result, the growth of loans is much higher than that of the GDP. “In conclusion, the increase in the lending rate is predictable as the government makes ineffective investments and banks love to lend to the property sector. Credit for real estate increased significantly in the period from 2014 to 2016,” Dr Hien said. In the past two years, SBV has continuously reminded banks to channel their credit flows into the real estate market and transport infrastructure. Nam Cuong Corporation and IFC to promote green building together The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is going to provide Nam Cuong Corporation with technical support in order to accelerate the developer’s green construction agenda and promote green building in Vietnam. On February 23, 2017, Nam Cuong Corporation and IFC signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to the effect of which all of Nam Cuong Corporation’s existing properties will be assessed under EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies) standards developed by the IFC. The IFC will also provide training to Nam Cuong Corporation’s staff on the principles and applications of EDGE software as well as its standard and certification system. In addition, the two sides will collaborate to promote green building practices in Vietnam and identify opportunities for joint communication to enhance the implementation of green building and EDGE by other developers and the awareness of such by end-users. IFC appreciated the efforts of Nam Cuong Corporation to stimulate the trend of green building in Vietnam. “Your vision will have an impact on other developers,” said Jane Henley, IFC’s EAP EDGE Programme manager. Tran Thi Quynh Ngoc, deputy chairman of Nam Cuong Corporation, said that even though being green increases costs, the company wants to help save natural resources. Also, being a green developer means taking on corporate social responsibility, that is, to raise community awareness of environmental issues. “Nam Cuong Corporation has been here for a long time, we aim not only to build houses but also to build lifestyle. We strongly believe in sustainable development that can positively impact many generations of our customers and society in the long run,” she said. Developer Nam Cuong Corporation, established in 1984, is well known in Hanoi and neighbouring cities and is active not only in residential development but also hospitality. In the next period of development, the company focuses on “eco,” “green,” and “sustainability.” Anland Complex, the high-rise apartment buildings in Duong Noi Township, is on the path of getting the “Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiency” certification issued by IFC. Nam Cuong Corporation sets a goal to make EDGE as the standard for all properties in the future. The company envisions Duong Noi Township as a zero-energy township, with almost no energy consumption. This is the first time a Vietnamese developer set such a goal. The announcement of partnership between Nam Cuong Corporation and IFC in pursuit of their shared aspirations to help the Vietnamese construction industry align on a lower carbon, more resource-efficient path, is intended to be accomplished through sharing expertise and technical solutions to promote green building using the EDGE software and certification system. An innovation of IFC, EDGE is a software application, a universal standard, and a green building certification system promoting resource-efficient buildings in emerging markets. Launched in 2015, the new system is created for developing countries which have seen booming development in construction, such as China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and South Africa. IFC’s work to promote green building in Vietnam is delivered in partnership with Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). Vingroup to open 5,000 new hotel rooms Vingroup will launch seven high-class hotels in Danang, Ha Tinh and Hoi An at the end of April to double its capacity to 10,000 rooms. Le Khac Hiep, vice chairman of Vingroup, said the group currently has eight complexes of five or more-star hotels. Together with the imminent opening of the new hotels, the group has plans to build some hotels citywide similar to the five-star Vinpearl Can Tho Hotel which was inaugurated late last year. “Along with plans to develop new hotels, we will introduce new utility services at resorts, and change sales strategies,” Hiep said at the signing of a cooperation deal with Vietnamese tour operator Vietravel on February 27. Accordingly, Vingroup will limit the number of agents and cooperate with its key strategic agencies like Vietravel to expand the market. He did not reveal the number of strategic agencies, but said every agency has their own customers such as domestic and international tourists, or conference guests. Tran Doan The Duy, deputy general director of Vietravel, said his customers will be given priority when booking rooms at Vingroup’s hotels and resorts, in addition to reasonable prices. “We have booked a large number of rooms to ensure stability for the whole year and actively offering packages with fair prices for our customers without worrying about a lack of rooms in peak travel seasons,” he said. On the occasion of signing the deal with Vingroup, the tour operator will offer special promotions. In particular, the first 100 customers booking rooms for two nights or more from February 27 to end-March will get vouchers worth VND2 million for stays until end-June. The company will also launch more tours to Vingroup’s resorts, and offer some package tours at prices VND1-2.5 million lower than normal. Vietravel is a major tourism firm in Vietnam. Last year, it served around 647,000 travelers and earned total revenue of VND5.16 trillion. Banyan Tree and Angsana Lang Co among Top 40 resorts in Asia Banyan Tree Lang Co and Angsana Lang Co have been chosen among the Top 40 Best Resorts in Asia by the Condé Nast Traveler – Readers’ Choice Awards, released in February 2017, becoming the first ever integrated resort in Vietnam to enter the list. Located in central Vietnam, Banyan Tree Lang Co is nestled in a crescent bay framed by a three kilometer beach on the central coast of Vietnam, an area renowned for its pristine coastline, tropical jungles and rugged mountain peaks. The all-pool-villa resort including 62 rooms makes a dip part of the destination. Each villa is furnished with Vietnamese details like pitched roofs and lacquered wooden furniture. Meanwhile, Angsana Lang Co is set in the midst of not one but three UNESCO World Heritage Sites in central Vietnam – the ancient town of Hoi An, the Imperial City of Hue, and My Son Sanctuary. All 222 rooms have a contemporary and stylish design with a Vietnamese twist, and views of either the surrounding Truong Son mountains or ocean. Banyan Tree Lang Co and Angsana Lang Co are located in Cu Du Village, Loc Vinh Commune, Phu Loc District, Thua Thien-Hue Province. Automated toll collection at 28 stations to start from June 30 The Ministry of Transport has urged investors of Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) road projects and service providers to finalize contracts for installing automated toll stations on Highway 1A and the Central Highlands section of Ho Chi Minh Road so that automated toll collection can start on all 28 such stations from June 30. As of February 22, auto toll systems have been installed at eight stations along these two axis routes, mainly in central Vietnam and the Central Highlands, and five such toll stations have applied non-stop toll collection and automatic weight control, the ministry said. These eight toll stations fitted with automated systems include Quang Dong (Quang Binh), Toan My (Dak Nong), Tu Nghia (Quang Ngai), Tam Ky (Quang Nam) and Hoa Phuoc (Quang Nam), among others. The initial operating cost of the auto toll system is the same as the manual one, as calculated by the automated collection project owner VETC Joint Stock Company, but this cost will gradually fall in the long run. According to VETC, difficulties in the negotiation process between this service provider and BOT investors have resulted in the project’s delays. Meanwhile, BOT investors are concerned about the fees charged by the service provider, and they want to have more service providers so that road builders can choose one suitable to them. To speed up the construction progress, Minister of Transport Truong Quang Nghia asked the non-stop auto toll service provider to propose reasonable prices to conclude contracts with the BOT investors. The launch of non-stop auto toll collection not only saves time for drivers but also helps BOT investors to save costs in ticketing, lowers road maintenance costs at toll stops, and helps State agencies monitor collections. Six old condo buildings in HCMC to be reconstructed Reconstruction will begin this year on six old condo buildings that have been torn down, providing 1,785 condo units with more than 142,000 square meters of floor space, the HCMC Department of Construction said. Those projects include Pavilion Square apartment and shopping center on the ground of Block D of Co Giang apartment building by Viet Land Development Corporation, 148 Nguyen Dinh Chieu  apartment building in District 3 by Khang Thanh Phu Corporation, Tan Phuoc apartment building on the premises of Block A of  Ly Thuong Kiet apartment building in District 11 by Tan Phuoc Real Estate Joint Stock Company, and an apartment building at 350 Hoang Van Thu by Duc Khai Tan Binh Corporation and Block G of Ngo Gia Tu apartment building in District 10. Besides, HCMC authorities will continue to renovate 10 other condo buildings with 1,761 units covering over 116,000 square meters and pay site clearance compensation for 580 households of five apartment buildings covering nearly 28,000 square meters. They will also dismantle five deteriorating apartment buildings with total floor space of 82,000 square meters. HCMC authorities target to relocate and dismantle 50% of 474 old residential buildings in the city by 2020. The renovation of old condos has faced numerous obstacles in compensation, site clearance and resettlement for the residents. Besides, there is no favorable policy for this sector to lure investors. Affordable homes in HCMC should come with different prices The HCMC government should develop affordable commercial homes costing from VND300 million to less than VND1 billion to satisfy various demands of laborers, rather than seeking to build condos worth some VND100 million each as in the neighboring province of Binh Duong, said a municipal construction official. Tran Trong Tuan, director of the HCMC Department of Construction, told a press conference last week that although it is possible for the city to develop budget condos at the price of around VND100 million each, it is not the right solution. Developers could build condos at VND100 million each only if they are allocated land at no charge, and costs of infrastructure development are excluded. If such conditions are met, developers could build apartments measuring around 25 square meters at a cost of less than VND4 million per square meter, or VND100 million a unit. Such apartments are only suitable for workers at industrial parks and export processing zones in the city as Binh Duong Province has done, Tuan said. “Many 30-square-meter cheap houses have been constructed at industrial areas in Binh Duong Province. The provincial authorities said they could still develop them, but the demand is falling short. Workers with higher incomes or living with large families are in need of spacious apartments,” he said. Reality shows that people can afford high-priced condos, so the city should develop affordable social and commercial homes, with flexible areas and prices ranging from VND300 million to less than VND1 billion to meet various needs of low-income earners. “The investor of a budget home project in District 12 with 1,000 units has offered a price of VND10 million per square meter, and the number of people putting their names down to buy such homes has amounted to over 7,000,” Tuan said, indicating there is strong demand for homes whose prices range from VND300 million to VND500 or VND600 million, or even VND800 million. He added the department has plans to organize a social housing design competition to provide potential investors with suitable housing models. There were 14 social housing projects with 5,146 units completed in the 2006-2016 period. The city aims to have 39,000 units by 2020, with 20% of them for rent. This year alone, around 1,650 units will be completed, and 23 projects with 19,000 units will get off the ground, according to the department’s statistics. VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VET/VIR