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BUSINESS IN BRIEF 20/12
The Embassy of Denmark and the Central Institute for Economic
Management (CIEM) signed an agreement to carry out research on the potential
impacts of the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreements (FTA) on policy and
institutional reforms in
“
Recently, analyses on the quantitative impacts of the FTA’s
tariff elimination have been made available. However, these analyses have not
yet fully addressed policy and institutional adjustments needed to comply
with the agreement, as well as assessed the readiness of the government and
business communities once the FTA comes into effect.
“
The report will be finalised September 2015.
Trade surplus fetches nearly US$ 3 bln in Jan-Nov period
In the eleventh month, export turnover valued almost US$ 13.23
billion, representing a month-on-month decline of 6%. However, it reached US$
136.942 billion in the January-November period, up 13.7% against the same
period last year.
Meanwhile, import revenue was US$ 12.792 billion in November
(down 6%) and US$ 134.058 billion in the past eleven months (up 11.8%).
In the January-November period, the largest hard currency
earners included garments and textiles (US$ 18.96 billion); telephones and
spare parts (US$ 21.98 billion); aquatic products (US$ 7.2 billion) and crude
oil (US$ 6.7 billion).
Viet Nam chiefly imported machines, equipment, and spare parts
valuing US$ 20.16 billion; computers and spare parts US$ 10.35 billion and
fiber (US$ 8.6 billion).
Generally, the FDI sector earned US$ 85.712 billion in export
turnover (up 15.6% against the same period last year) occupying 62.6% of the
country’s total figure. The sector’s import turnover was estimated at US$
76.216 billion, up 11.8% against 2013 and made up 56.85% of the total figure.
The sector continued to run a trade surplus of US$ 9.5 billion in the 11-month
period.
The domestic sector enjoyed a trade surplus of US$ 6.6 billion
in the reviewed period./.
Four-star Saigon-Ban Gioc Resort on stream
Saigontourist Holding Company and Saigon-Ban Gioc Co. Ltd. on
December 15 inaugurated the first phase of their four-star Saigon-Ban Gioc
Resort in Trung Khanh District,
The investors started work on the resort covering over 31
hectares near Ban Gioc Waterfalls on the border between
The four-star resort was originally designed to have 60 guest
rooms and 24 bungalows with 29 rooms. Components in the first phase include a
number of rooms, a reception area, a restaurant serving Asian and European
dishes, especially local specialties, and a 200-seat conference hall.
The next stage of the project consists of 80 guest rooms,
sport and entertainment facilities, spa, and areas for camping and other
outdoor activities.
Saigontourist expects the resort to help attract more domestic
and foreign tourists to Ban Gioc Waterfalls,
On this occasion, Saigontourist Travel Service Company has
rolled out its package tours of
These tours will depart from both
Experts tell
Experts have underscored the urgency for
The quality of labor in
Dang Xuan Thuc, head of the bureau of vocational training at
the Directorate of Vocational Training, told a seminar in
According to the WB,
“If the quality of local labor does not improve,
Statistics from the Directorate of Vocational Training showed
the percentage of skilled workers was low, at nearly 35% last year, while
enterprises, especially those with foreign investment, are in dire need of
skilled labor.
The establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in
2015 will pose many challenges for local workers.
Deputy Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Nguyen
Thanh Hoa said local laborers, albeit already trained, do not meet the demand
of employers, especially those in the technology sector. The professional
skills of teachers and management staff remain limited while the facilities
and curriculum are outdated.
Vocational training centers should learn about profession and
qualification regulations in ASEAN to equip trainees with skill sets that
enable them to work in a regional market with 600 million people, including
220 million of working age when the AEC is formed.
Experts at the seminar agreed that vocational training centers
should look into the recruitment requirements of employers to make trainees
fit these criteria.
Dang Xuan Hoan, general secretary of the National Council for
Human Resource Development, said this agency has proposed solutions for
vocational training improvements. Accordingly, vocational training centers
should have market research departments with the participation of businesses
and companies will take part in developing curricula and support training.
Local enterprises are encouraged to ask and help the centers
to train employees for them. The Government has a supporting policy for
businesses to establish their training institutions and employ graduates from
their institutions.
Major human resource development centers will be established
to connect vocational training facilities and businesses, evaluate the needs
for human resources and manage the Government’s loans for apprentices.
The National Assembly recently endorsed a law allowing
businesses to deduct corporate income tax for the amount of money they spend
on training.
Japanese firms sound out
Nearly 20 Japanese enterprises are visiting
Among the firms are Comline and Guyshige Dreram System
operating in the restaurant sector, OA Promotion Center and Cross Dream in
the information technology field, and Hiromekai in the supermarket business.
According to Atsusuke Kawada, chief representative of the
Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) in
Kawada said the number of Japanese service firms active in
A similar business group visited
Gov’t purchasing rice price not benefit farmers
Farmers in the Mekong Delta region have sold rice to traders
at a price which is VND1,000-1,500 lower the price announced by the Vietnam
Food Association (VFA) that will ensure a 30 percent profit margin for them
as per the Government’s policy.
That is one of issues presented by experts at five
agricultural seminars in the Mekong Delta in the first ten days of December.
The Government’s rice stockpiling program has been launched
annually, in which VFA businesses purchase rice from farmers for stockpiling
at a price that will ensure farmers the 30 percent profit margin.
The program aims to prevent farmers without storage facilities
from selling their rice at low prices. The rice prices usually fall down
amidst peak harvest time.
Early this month, VFA announced that dry normal rice prices
swung from VND5,450-5,550 a kilogram in the Mekong Delta. The prices of long
grain variety were from VND5,650-5,750.
In fact, that is the prices which businesses pay traders
because they have purchased rice from traders instead of directly from
farmers. As a result, rice growers have been unable to enjoy the policy of 30
percent profit margin.
Traders have paid farmers VND1,000-1,500 lower than the above
prices. Those in remote areas of the Mekong Delta have sometimes sold the
grain at much lower prices.
New GM dealership launches in Ha Noi
General Motors Vietnam's newest 3S showroom, Chevrolet Ha Noi,
opened in the capital's Ha Dong District at a cost of nearly US$2 million.
The showroom matches Chevrolet's global standards and is GM's
most modern in
A delegation of the Steering Committee for the South-western
Region has invited Malaysian investors to the Mekong Delta, emphasising that
During a working session with the National Chamber of Commerce
and Industry of Malaysia (NCCIM) on December 17, the committee’s deputy head
Nguyen Phong Quang also suggested cooperation in the fields of agriculture,
farm produce processing, industrial zones and transportation, especially in
the Mekong Delta, as well as in tourism and marine economy.
He invited the Malaysian side to attend the Mekong Delta green
tourism week 2015 which the committee and Mekong Delta localities are hosting
next April.
NCCIM Executive Deputy Chairman K.K. Eswaran said he is
pleased to share
Both host and guest agreed that the Vietnamese embassy will
serve as a bridge connecting south-western provinces with Malaysian
enterprises.
Earlier on December 16, the Vietnamese delegation held a
working session with Executive Director of Selangor State Investment Centre
Hasan Azhari Hj Idris.
The host introduced the potential and development experience
of Selangor, one of the most developed states in
The visit of the Steering Committee delegation from December
15-17 was to introduce the Mekong Delta’s potential in agriculture, trade,
tourism, infrastructure, industrial zones and learn about
SBV to persist with exchange rate policy
The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) is expected to continue its
current exchange rate stabilisation policy next year following the hefty
benefits it derived from the strategy this year.
The present exchange rate stabilisation policy has amassed a
considerable surplus of US$8 billion in the general balance. To date, the
detailed policy for next year has yet to be revealed. However, SBV Governor
Nguyen Van Binh has thus far affirmed that the exchange rate of the
Vietnamese dong against the US dollar next year will be managed flexibly to
ensure the value of dong and increase the national foreign currency reserves.
A source from the central bank told the Thoi Bao Kinh Te Viet
The exchange rate policy next year will have insignificant
changes compared with that of the past four years, the source said. The
central bank employee added that the rate will accordingly fluctuate within
2%, which also occurred in 2011-13. The rate has thus far adjusted up by 1%
this year. Moreover, the central bank has pledged to keep the rate unchanged
until the end of this year.
Experts said that maintaining the dong depreciation at no more
than 2% is feasible with the current foreign currency reserves and the high
surplus in the general balance.
The US$8 billion target for the general balance surplus will
be within reach next year. The feasibility of this lies in the fact that the
surplus is estimated to reach more than US$10 billion by the end of November
this year.
The currency's foreign currency collection source is expected
to experience the negative impact of the export revenue of crude oil, which
has fallen by 30% to a four-year low of roughly US$60 per barrel. However,
the central bank remains optimistic about other foreign currency sources.
Moreover, they asserted that the decrease in the income from oil exports
would be offset by the revenue gained from the export of other products.
According to the Ministry of Industry and
After recording a trade turnover of US$150 billion for the
first time in 2014, three times the figure when the country joined the World
Trade Organisation,
Industry insiders also forecast that a rise in foreign direct
investment and foreign portfolio investment next year would lead to an
abundant foreign currency supply. This would help balance supply and demand,
as well as aid the central bank in its foreign exchange stabilisation policy.
Vietnamese goods dominate Christmas market in Hanoi
The Xmas market has been bustling in every corner of the
capital
Up to 80 percent of eye-catching decorations such as pine trees,
bells, wreath garlands, ball and star ornaments, reindeer figures, and Santa
Claus costumes sold in Hang Ma, Hang Ngang and Luong Van Can streets are
produced locally.
New and beautiful designs made prices edge up by 10 to 15
percent over the previous year, according to the buyers.
A shop owner in
The Noel atmosphere is prevailing over supermarkets, hotels
and trade centers like Big C, Vincom, Hilton Hanoi Opera, and Metropole
Hanoi, which launched big promotional campaigns to draw customers.
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus
Christ, observed generally on December 25 as a religious and cultural
celebration among billions of people around the world.
RoK’s telecoms group studies investment climate in Ha Nam
Dae-Ik Yoo, President of the
Ha
On his part, Mai Tien Dung, Secretary of the provincial Party
Committee, emphasised Ha
The province gives priority to small-and medium-size and
environmentally-friendly projects on electronics and telecoms, he said.
Ha
On the same day, KMW representatives visited some provincial
industrial parks.
CBU car imports surge 30%
In October, 7,580 CBU automobiles valued at US$172 million
were imported into
In the first eleven months of this year, the country imported
61,600 CBU automobiles which cost total US$1.34 billion, showing a
year-on-year increase of 95.5% in volume and 108.6% in value.
The
Total auto sales hit 16,000 units in November. The figure is
forecast to reach 150,000 units by the end of this year, up 36% over 2013.
Dong Nai assists local firms accelerate exports
Southern Dong Nai province authorities had a dialogue with
over 100 local enterprises on December 16 to figure out their difficulties
and seek ways to raise their production and expand export markets.
Nguyen Tri Cong, Chairman of the Dong Nai Livestock
Association, proposed local credit organisations allow greater access to
preferential credit packages for farmers and accept livestock products as
security for their loans.
Representatives from local firms suggested that Dong Nai and
credit institutions loosen lending procedures and create preferential loans
to help enterprises, especially small and medium-sized ones, access capital
sources to expand their business.
The authorities pledged to exert every effort to remove
administrative difficulties for enterprises promptly. Meanwhile, the State
Bank of
In 2015, Dong Nai plans to back local firms to explore new
export markets besides traditional ones of Asia, the
According to the provincial Department of Industry and Trade,
the locality earned over US$1.2 billion from exports in November, up 0.3%
over the previous month, pushing the turnover in January-November to US$11.55
billion, a year-on-year rise of 16.8%.
In 2015, Dong Nai targets US$14.4 billion in exports, up 15%
year on year.
Dong Nai, together with Binh Duong, Tay Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau,
Binh Phuoc, Long An and Tien Giang provinces and Ho Chi Minh City, form
Vietnam’s southern key economic region.
The province,
US advanced technology enriches competitiveness
Two decades have passed since
Joint endeavours over the past twenty years have laid a solid
foundation for further expansion of bilateral ties and they have developed
based on the principle of mutual respect, equality and mutually beneficial
cooperation.
Economics and trade is the field that has witnessed the most
rapid and impressive progress in Vietnam-US ties. The coming into force of
the Bilateral Trade Agreement in 2001 opened up a host of opportunities for
businesses in the two countries.
The two-way trade value jumped from nearly US$1.4 billion in
2001 to US$34 billion in 2014, significantly contributing to poverty
reduction in
Most notably, the Vietnam Trade Facilitation Alliance (VTFA)
has positively affected
The alliance aims to provide policy and technical assistance
to the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC) and relevant trade
promotion agencies to advance
Trade facilitation is a powerful tool for integrating small
and medium enterprises (SMEs) into domestic and global value chains, which
makes growth more inclusive, says USAID’s Acting Assistant Administrator for
Asia Anne Aarnes.
The VTFA will be an important voice for these SMEs that often
are not well represented in policymaking process.
A number of USAID programmes, including the Provincial
Competitiveness Index (PCI), highlight the importance of SMEs, including
women-led enterprises, to
The alliance will support implementing the Trade Facilitation
Agreement (TFA) in
USAID is committed to provide US$2.5 million for
The focus on the cooperation is to help
Through its member networks, the VFTA will share information
on trade facilitation including taking part in the annual Traders
Satisfaction Survey conducted by VCCI and the GDVC and sharing data on
customs performance collected from the private sector.
USAID has worked closely with the Vietnamese government and
business associations to develop and implement effective trade facilitation
assistance to enable
USAID support for the VTFA will enable
Experts speak highly of the establishment of the VTFA, saying
that the alliance looks forward to targets for supporting
VTFA assists improving competitiveness of domestic and foreign
businesses in
Despite difficulties ahead, the developments over the past 20
years demonstrate that Vietnam-US relations should be further expanded and
strengthened not only in the interest of the two peoples but also for the
sake of peace, cooperation and development in the region and the world.
More FDI flows to Binh Duong
The southern
Among the FDI projects, 16 new ones worth 115.1 million USD
were registered while 89.12 million USD was added to the 13 existing
projects.
Major new projects included a 28 million USD synthetic plastic
plant of the Japanese-invested Riken Vietnam Co. Ltd, and a 15 million USD
razor factory of the
Meanwhile,
At present, Binh Duong has 2,375 valid FDI projects with a
total investment of 20.38 billion USD, making it among the top five
localities with FDI topping 20 billion USD besides
In 2014 alone, the province attracted 1.655 billion USD,
including 812 million USD from 151 new projects and 843 million USD from 126
existing ones. The total figure is 65 percent higher than its yearly target.
Chairman of the Binh Duong People’s Committee Le Thanh Cung
said the province will continue to upgrade infrastructure and streamline
administrative procedures.
It will also work harder to ensure social security and safety
as well as businesses’ property and operation while always listening to
investors to timely iron out obstacles for them.
Binh Duong, together with the provinces of Dong Nai, Tay Ninh,
Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Binh Phuoc, Long An and Tien Giang, and Ho Chi Minh City,
forms Vietnam’s southern key economic region.
Record remittances bode well for GDP outlook
Every day, Overseas Vietnamese (OVs) wire home money they are able
to save to family members and friends. These remittances play a key role in
the socio-economic development of the beneficiaries and communities where it
is received.
In addition, these monies, termed remittances, stimulate the
gross domestic product (GDP) of the country, contribute to the nation’s
foreign exchange reserves and are far more stable than monetary inflows from
foreign direct investment (FDI).
Dr. Vo Tri Thanh, deputy director of the Central Institute for
Economic Management (CIEM) has revealed that for 2014
The total remittances to the homeland so far this year have
been estimated at US$11-12 billion and will most likely remain unchanged for
the next two years Thanh says, and are the equivalent of 8% of the country’s
GDP.
Citing a recent survey by CIEM, in the period 2010-2012,
around 57% of
The CIEM survey also showed that about 35% of
Thanh made the comments on December 17 at a ceremony in
Khanh Hoa sees sharp rise of RoK visitors
Approximately 60,000 holiday-makers from the
According to travel agencies, RoK visitors stay at three-five
star hotels and resorts, and use high-class services and products such as
playing golf and taking mud-bath.
Cam Ranh International Airport said from November, there are
two direct flights a week from Seoul to Khanh Hoa, bringing about 120-130
visitors each.
This is a good signal for the local tourism sector, especially
in the context that the number of Russian tourists shows a sign of decline.-
Son La calls for investment in Moc Chau tourism zone
Son La province is calling for investment in its Moc Chau
National Tourism Zone, which is expected to become a driving force for the
tourism development of the locality as well as the whole northern midland and
mountainous region.
At a seminar highlighting Moc Chau in
Under the plan, the zone, covering 206,000 hectares in Moc
Chau and Van Ho districts, will feature diversified and unique tourism
products with high competitiveness along with natural landscapes and ethnic
cultural identities.
The zone is expected to welcome 1.2 million holidaymakers by
2020 and 3 million by 2030, generating revenues of 1.5 trillion VND (71.4
million USD) and 6 trillion VND (285.7 million USD) respectively.
It will target visitors from the Red River Delta and the
northern midland and mountainous region as well as those from foreign markets
such as Western Europe, Northern America, Northeast Asia and
The zone will include three key tourism centres, namely the
Moc Chau relaxation centre, the Moc Chau eco-tourism centre and the Moc Chau
recreational centre.
Community-based tourism villages will be formed in Dong Sang,
Muong Sang, Tan Lap communes in Moc Chau district and Chieng Khoa commune in
Van Ho district.
The province also plans to establish a transnational tourist
route connecting Moc Chau and
According to the local Department of Culture, Sports and
Tourism, Moc Chau has enjoyed a continuous increase in the number of
tourists, from 288,000 arrivals in 2010, to 600,000 in 2013 and about 850,000
in 2014, mainly during holidays, winters and springs when plum and peach
flowers blossom, and in Mong ethnics’ New Year festival in September.
CBRE: Office rents remain stable until Q1
CB Richard Ellis Vietnam (CBRE) projected that rents of
offices for lease in HCMC will remain unchanged until the first quarter of
next year.
Greg Ohan, director of office services at CBRE Vietnam, told
at a seminar on the office market in HCMC on Monday that the supply of new
offices for lease in this city has just inched up in 2011-2014 and work on
some new office building projects has stalled. This has resulted in a
reduction in the volume of unoccupied offices in the period.
Figures of CBRE Vietnam indicated 175 small- and medium-scale
buildings are under construction in the city. Of which, only grade-A project
Vietcombank in District 1 is planned to be put into service in the next
quarter, while others will not be completed until 2016 or 2017.
Ohan forecast tenants would find it difficult to look for
large spaces with quality management in downtown area, while those in need of
small- and medium-scale offices will have various choices.
Ohan said enterprises with high demand for offices would be
mainly from banking, finance, insurance, drug and information technology
industries and from such markets as the
Ohan predicted that the demand for new offices with low rent,
which has been a major trend in the past three years, could fade next year as
tenants tended to move to large offices with more advanced facilities.
New PPP decree to come out soon
The Government will issue a new decree on investments in
transport infrastructure projects to be executed in the public-private
partnership (PPP) format, according to Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang.
Thang said the decree will serve as a new legal framework for
implementation of the PPP investment form and clarify incentives for local
and foreign enterprises when they get involved in infrastructure development.
The PPP format is seen as one of the main drivers to boost
investment in transport infrastructure projects in the coming years.
Thang requested relevant agencies to prepare guidelines for
implementation of the decree when it is issued as transport infrastructure
development is the key to solve the bottleneck of the transport sector.
Evaluations of the World Economic Forum pointed out the
usefulness and quality of transport infrastructure in
The Ministry of Transport calculated that official development
assistance (ODA) loans worth US$17.7 billion have been channeled into 132
transport projects across the country, including those in aviation, maritime
and transport sectors. Road projects have attracted US$8 billion from this
source in the past two years.
The transport ministry plans to work with other ministries and
agencies to work out proper investment, credit and fee policies to entice
more investment capital, particularly from the private sector, to spur
infrastructure development.
Individual traders still can buy tax invoices
Worries and confusions among individual and household traders
in HCMC have eased after the General Department of Taxation told local tax
agencies to continue selling tax invoices to them next year.
The department said in its urgent document sent to local tax
agencies on December 16 that individuals and households will be permitted to
use tax invoices for their trading in accordance with existing regulations.
The document came out days after individuals and households
voiced outcry over a new rule that requires them to set up businesses if they
want to buy legal tax invoices from January 1 next year.
Local tax agencies announced that individual traders would not
be eligible to buy tax invoices from local tax agencies as fixed amounts of
tax payment were applied to them next year. So if they do not have private
firms or one member limited liability companies regardless of employee
number, they will not be allowed to buy tax invoices.
Traders said the new regulation would pile great pressure on
them as it takes effect when their trading starts to get bustling ahead of
the Lunar New Year holiday, or Tet. They are afraid of losing customers or
even going bankrupt if they do not issue receipts for their buyers.
More importantly, the establishment of a company will make
traders pay more for management and accounting as required by the new rule.
A tax officer in HCMC told the Daily that the new rule is part
of a draft decree guiding implementation of the amended laws on value-added
tax, personal and corporate income taxes, special consumption tax, resources
and tax management. The rule will take effect on January 1 like the effective
date of the amended laws.
The officer explained local tax agencies have been told to
inform individual traders of the new rule, but acknowledged that it will put
much pressure on them as there are only two weeks left for the rule to come
into force.
Therefore, the HCMC Tax Department and tax agencies in other
localities have asked the General Department of Taxation and the Ministry of
Finance to propose the Government delay the implementation date of the new
rule until June 30, 2015.
Currently, local tax agencies are calculating fixed amounts of
tax payment for individual traders for next year based on their revenues this
year.
VNU-HCMC seeks investors for 20 projects
The Vietnam National University in HCMC (VNU-HCMC) is looking
for local and foreign investors for 20 projects planned in an urban area on
the university’s campus in HCMC’s outlying district of Thu Duc District.
The projects require a total investment of more than VND8.68
trillion and will be implemented in line with the Law on Investment,
according to the VNU-HCMC Service and
The center will provide site clearance support for the
projects whose aims are to support educational development plans of VNU-HCMC
over 30-50 years. The university will also invest in infrastructure
development of the projects.
The projects comprise a VND1.6 trillion hospital on 1.15
hectares, a VND1-trillion community service area on 4.64 hectares, a
VND960-billion central community service building on 3.6 hectares, and the
second phases of technology areas with each in need of VND800 billion.
There will also be a sports center, a cafeteria and an
apartment building for employees of the university in the urban area.
VNU-HCMC plans to organize an investment promotion conference
at its guest house in Thu Duc District on December 17 to introduce the
projects to domestic and foreign investors.
Ministry keeps price controls on milk for children
The Ministry of Finance will cooperate with relevant
ministries and agencies to continue imposing price ceilings on powdered milk
products for children under six years old next year.
In its recent report on price management for 2015, the
ministry said price management agencies have announced the highest and
registered prices for 606 dairy products for children aged under six. Of
which, the prices of 165 products have been publicized by the ministry and
the rest by local finance departments.
Since the price caps were applied last June, the prices of
powdered products for children have fallen by 0.1-34% depending on types.
An official of the ministry said the ministry is reviewing
reports submitted by local agencies on six months of carrying out the
Government’s price stabilization program and guiding price declarations after
the deadline for dairy enterprises to register prices of their new products
at the end of last month.
The ministry will work with the Department of Food Hygiene and
Safety under the Ministry of Health to check the price registrations and
declarations by dairy firms for new products for under-six children. It will
closely follow and check input costs and prices of finished products imported
into
The finance ministry will inspect the import prices of dairy
products for children under six which are registered at higher prices than
products of the same type in exporting countries and markets in the region.
The move is aimed to better manage input costs and prices of dairy products.
The ministry will exchange data about dairy product prices
with the customs in exporting countries to investigate companies suspected of
transfer pricing. It will collaborate with the Ministry of Industry and Trade
to ask local authorities to enhance management on regulations on prices,
especially producers and distributors of dairy products for children of less
than six years old.
NICE Group aids TPBank in credit rating
Credit Plus+ helps TPBank meet global standards and
requirements of the Basel Capital Accord II (Basel II). The system allows the
bank to classify and rate customers based on the analysis and possibility of
bad debt risks and divide customers into different groups for better
evaluation.
Kim Kwang Soo, chairman of NICE Group, hailed TPBank’s
investment in modern technology and management models and the efforts of
local banks to pursue the Basel II criteria in order to integrate into the
regional banking sector.
NICE Group is
NICE is working with the National Credit Information Center of
Vietnam (CIC) to develop a credit rating system for individuals following the
successful deployment of credit ratings for enterprises in
HCM City retailers ready plentiful goods for Tet
Distributors and retailers in HCMC have prepared ample
supplies of goods to meet the rising demand of consumers during the upcoming
Lunar New Year holiday, which is better known as Tet in
Saigon Union of Trading Cooperatives, or Saigon Co.op, has
increased its stockpiles of essential products by two to three times compared
to normal months at its 74 Co.opmart supermarkets, Co.opXtraplus Thu Duc in
Thu Duc District, 86 Co.op Food stores, and nearly 200 Co.op stores.
Saigon Co.op said from the beginning of this year it already
mapped out plans to sell items, mainly domestic foodstuffs, apparel, home
appliances and beverages during the biggest festival of
The company has stocked up on 90,000 tons of goods for three
months to meet Tet demands, up 15% year-on-year, with bigger volumes for soft
drinks, beer and fruit.
Besides the products registered for the city’s price
stabilization program, Saigon Co.op will keep prices of other essential
products at least 5-10% lower than the market levels and days ahead of Tet.
As there will be more days off for the upcoming Tet holiday
and the minimum wage of laborers will be adjusted up from January,
distributors are pinning high hopes that consumption would rise 15% compared
to the last Tet season.
Therefore, Big C supermarket chain said it has plentiful
supplies of various products for customers to buy during the holiday, with
locally-made products making up a majority.
Big C supermarkets will sell more Vietnamese confectionery
produced by Kinh Do, Trung Nguyen, Pham Nguyen, Blue Star, Vinamit, Bibica
and Hai Ha as these enterprises can provide different types of candies and
other sweets with eye-catching designs.
Big C has also prepared up to 420 tons of fresh meat, with
most of it pork and chicken, to address the surging demand for the
forthcoming Tet, and promised to keep prices of non-food products stable.
Most of home appliances and indoor furnishing items at Big C
this year are domestically produced. This store chain will also supply fruit
used for Tet decoration and increase fruit supplies from the Mekong Delta.
Other supermarkets in the city have also finished their goods
storage plans for Tet and are working closely with suppliers to ensure reasonable
prices and stable supplies for consumers.
Earlier, the HCMC Department of Industry and Trade estimated
the total value of
goods that city enterprises prepare to produce, store and sell
at the upcoming Tet at more than VND15.8 trillion, doubling the figure of
last Tet. Of which, the items in the month ahead of Tet are valued some
VND9.26 trillion.
Retailers and distributors have readied to offer discounts and
promotions in the run up to Tet.
Both Co.opmart and Big C will sell more goods of their own brands
which sell well during Tet such as beer, confectionery, cooking oil,
beverages, instant noodles and spices.
Co.opmart plans at least 141 mobile points of sale in rural
areas, industrial parks and export processing zones in the city for
low-income earners and workers, and in the localities where it operates. The
products for sale at those venues are mostly necessities made by domestic
firms and priced at 3-5% lower than the promotion levels at its supermarkets.
Seafood exports estimated at US$8 billion this year
The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers
(VASEP) has estimated seafood exports could reach US$8 billion this year, or
US$1.3 billion higher than last year.
Nguyen Hoai
"So this year's target of US$8 billion is
obtainable,"
Nam gave an example that shrimp exports in January-September
soared 42.3% year-on-year to around US$3 billion, followed by tra fish up
0.2% to US$1.3 billion, mollusk rising 12.3% to US$61 million, and squid and
octopus increasing 13.3% to US$350 million.
Nam said export revenues of shrimp, tra fish, tuna, mollusk
and other products are estimated to amount to nearly US$4 billion, US$1.8
billion, US$480 million, US$480 million and US$1.2 billion this year
respectively.
If the new projections come true, this year's seafood exports
would be US$1 billion higher than the target set earlier this year by VASEP,
accounting for 6-7% of the nation's total exports, followed by electronics,
apparel, crude oil and leather and footwear.
Seafood is one of the major contributors to
Source:
VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR
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Thứ Sáu, 19 tháng 12, 2014
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