State budget collects VNĐ400 trillion in four months

Nearly VNĐ396.5 trillion (US$17.6 billion) was collected for the State budget in the first four months of this year.

The figure represented a rise of 17.8 per cent over the same period last year, statistics of the Ministry of Finance showed.

Collected budget in the January-April period was equivalent to 32 per cent of the estimate for the full year.

From the beginning of this year, tax and customs agencies hastened collection of tax arrears, enhanced prevention of tax invasions and quickened administrative reforms to create favourable conditions for businesses and taxpayers.

According to statistics, inspection of nearly 13,900 enterprises in the four-month period helped collect an additional amount of more than VNĐ5 trillion.

The customs watchdog was also hastening evaluation of the impact of participation in free trade agreements on budget collection as part of its effort to prepare policies.

Budget spending in the first four months of this year totalled VNĐ393.4 trillion, or 28.3 per cent of the estimated figure for the full year, up 9.8 per cent over the same period last year.

The finance ministry said budget expenditure in the period was in accordance with the estimate as well as the implementation progress of State-capital sourced projects and social and national security.

Vietnam Airlines Corporation earns VNĐ854 billion pre-tax profit

Vietnam Airlines Corporation estimated reaching a syndicated revenue of VNĐ21.2 trillion (US$930.23 million) in Q1 this year, a year-on-year increase of nearly 12.5 per cent, making a pre-tax profit of VNĐ854 billion.

Of this amount, the parent company, Vietnam Airlines, earned over VNĐ16.2 trillion in revenue, 5 per cent higher than the same period last year, and a pre-tax profit of VNĐ563 billion.

According to a press release on Wednesday, Vietnam Airlines said it had still maintained growth speed on output, quality and revenue, even though the aviation market was facing many challenges.

The corporation said the average fuel price during the period rose by $13.64 to $65.19 per barrel. It had to pay more than VNĐ1 trillion extra for fuel compared with the same period last year.

During the period, the corporation carried out nearly 34,500 flights, exceeding the target by 1.3 per cent. In particular, its OTP (on-time performance) index rose by 6.2 points, reaching 91.6 per cent of entire flights.

The corporation still maintained its market share of 61 per cent of the domestic aviation market. In addition, its service quality continued to be recognised with prizes for its subsidiaries, including the best service quality in Southeast Asia in 2016, awarded by Korean Air for Vietnam Airport Ground Services Co Ltd – Tân Sơn Nhất and the best catering service in 2016 by Japan Airlines for Nội Bài Catering Service JSC.

In particular, Vietnam Airlines Engineering Company (VAECO) received the European Aviation Safety Agency’s EASA-145 Maintenance Organisation Approval Certificate. The certificate will allow VAECO to supply its maintenance services to aircraft with registered operations in Europe. 

Having recently received its 11th Boeing 787 aircraft, Vietnam Airlines now boasts the largest fleet of Boeing 787-9s in Southeast Asia.

From now until the end of the year, the carrier will continue focusing on safety, security and quality service, especially during rush hour periods, ensuring optimum working capacity and four-star service quality.     

VN textile sector urged to diversify raw material import sources     

The Vietnamese textile and garment industry needs to diversify its raw material import sources if it wants to develop, a senior industry figure has said.

Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai, deputy general secretary of Viet Nam Textile and Garment (VITAS), said with exports of US$28.5 billion last year, Viet Nam is one of the five biggest exporters in the world.

But to achieve this, the country imports large volumes of feedstock including yarn, fabric and others, she said.

“Depending on one or two sources will limit manufacturers’ production capacity and development. Seeking new sources is necessary for the industry to lessen its dependence on traditional sources in ASEAN and China.”

Members of VITAS and the HCM City Association of Garments, Textiles, Embroidery and Knitting (AGTEK) agreed that India is one of the best alternative choices.

Pham Xuan Hong, chairman of AGTEK, said many Vietnamese garment companies have visited India to explore co-operation opportunities and returned impressed with the country’s garment and textile industry.

Many raw materials available in India fit their needs, he said.

“For a long time, Viet Nam has imported garment and textile raw materials from China. It is now time to upgrade technologies as well as have more raw material sources.”

Mai said establishing co-operation with India is a good idea.

Indian products have good quality and prices thanks to the free trade agreement signed between India and ASEAN, she said. Furthermore, garment and textile is among the products on which India would cut taxes in future, she said.

“This is an opportunity for Vietnamese to find a new raw material source.”

The Indian consulate in HCM City has promised strong support for Vietnamese companies seeking to tie up with their Indian counterparts.

The two governments have put garment and textile in the priority list for further development, it said.

It hoped a large Vietnamese delegation would attend the 2017 Textile India, a garment and textile exhibition in Ahmedabad, India, from June 30 to July 2, saying there they could find all the products they need from yarn and fibre and cotton.

The exhibition would also enable the Vietnamese companies to study the Indian garment and textile industry closely and identify new raw material sources, it added. 

Hi-quality human resource deal for hospitality sector     

The Empire Group and local universities and colleges on Tuesday inked an agreement on manpower training in the hospitalty sector to meet the demand for 10,000 jobs in 2020.

It’s one of the largest co-operation deals on human resources training between a hospitality group and local education centres in the city.

Under the plan, five universities and colleges, including the Economics University, Dong A and Duy Tan colleges, Pegasus College and Viet Nam-Australia College will start practical education programmes on tourism services with support from the Empire Group.

Vice director of the city’s tourism department, Nguyen Xuan Binh, said the city’s hospitality sector would face a deficiency of skilled manpower in 2020 when it would need 27,000 employees at hotels and resorts alone. Binh said number rooms of hotel and resort projects would increase from 26,000 to 62,000 in 2030.

Da Nang City’s hospitality sector currently employs 14,000 people, 40 per cent of them skilled. The 12 colleges and vocational centres in the region can only train around 5,000 students a year.

Deputy General Director of Empire Group, Trinh Viet Hung, said the group committed to employing qualified local labourers from the tourism training centres.

The hospitality group will employ 2,000 workers at the $622million CocoBay project – the first entertainment-hospitality complex in the central region – between July and September this year.

“We plans to employ 10,000 skilled labourers at hotel resort and entertainment centres at the CocoBay complex in 2020,” Hung said, adding that the agreement would help boost high-quality human resource training system in the city.

The Empire Group has also signed a strategy co-operation deal with Dream Hotel Group of the US and Louvre Hotels Group of France for Empire hospitality management in Viet Nam.

The city hosted 5.6 million tourists last year, 1.67 million of them foreigners. Da Nang has so far developed 16 tourist property projects, consisting of 749 villas, of which 609 are for sale and 140 for lease. 

SMEs turn to each other in mobile environment

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) worldwide, including Việt Nam, are turning to each other to learn and share ideas in a mobile economy.

This is according to the latest Future of Business Report, conducted by Facebook, the OECD and the World Bank.

The survey responses indicate insights on Business Confidence, Job Growth, International Trade and Gender Management as of March 2017.

In the latest survey focusing on SMEs and Education, 42 per cent of businesses globally said they learn from each other, following online search (64 per cent), clearly indicating businesses are looking to each other to master the new mobile environment.

In Việt Nam, 53 per cent of SMEs said learning from each other is one of the primary ways to obtain information and get educated on mastering the new mobile environment, behind media (56 per cent) and online search (67 per cent). These businesses are, therefore, more confident.

“Fifty eight per cent of businesses that are confident about the economy are learning from other businesses, whereas over half (56 per cent) of the businesses that are not confident are not,” the report stated.

It also said a supportive community can help businesses scale geographically.

“Businesses that trade internationally learn from more sources and have a higher than the average number of business-related educational interests. They are also three times more likely to cite educational interests for better information on international trade,” the report said.

The report also found that nearly half of Vietnamese businesses that have added jobs in the past six months or plan to in the next six months also learned from other businesses.

Launched in February 2016, the monthly survey provides a timely pulse on the economic environment in which businesses operate and identifies those businesses keen to share ideas, to help in informed decision-making at all levels and deliver insights that can help businesses grow.

To date, nearly 200,000 SMEs, drawn from the 70 million businesses with an active Facebook page, in more than 40 countries have taken the survey.

Industrial revolution 4.0, smart manufacturing on spotlight

A conference took place in HCM City on May 10, centering around the fourth industrial revolution and the application of Internet of Things (IoT) in smart manufacturing.

The event was organised by the Ministry of Science and Technology, National Council for Science and Technology Policy and Advantech Group to provide a general overview of trends and impacts of the industrial revolution 4.0 on Vietnam’s industrial sector, particularly in smart manufacturing.

Addressing the conference, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Van Tung said the wave of new technologies is disrupting existing industry structure and the increased use of automatic technologies allows global manufacturers to relocate factories to their home countries, taking back jobs from low-cost labour nations.

During the event, experts voiced concerns over the fact that the fourth industrial revolution, with the development of virtual reality, robotics and artificial intelligence, is producing sweeping changes to labour market and the ways products are made and consumed.

Technological innovation has made negative impacts on countries like Vietnam who will become less beneficial from low-cost workers.

The 2016 World Economic Forum forecast that Vietnam will lose about 5 million jobs in 2020 as a consequence of low labour quality, only scoring 3.79 out of 10.

Participants to the conference debated solutions for the country to make use of the wave of new technologies in improving local technology and production capacity along with competitiveness. They shared ideas on how to create more opportunities for firms to innovate and invest in digital technology.

Deputy Minister Tung underlined the necessity to implement the national science and technology renovation programme and other projects on technological innovation and hi-tech and national product development.

Nghệ An: FLC to invest in US$220m resort complex

Property developer FLC Group plans to invest in a VNĐ5 trillion (US$220 million) resort and entertainment complex in central Nghệ An Province’s Nghi Lộc District.

The provincial People’s Committee and FLC held a meeting on Monday to discuss the construction of the project.

On February 19, the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on the investment for the project.

Covering an area of 570ha, the complex is expected to have a five-star hotel with 1,000 rooms, a seaside resort, villas and golf courses, as well as a 1,500 seat international convention and entertainment area. The complex is situated in a favourable location in terms of other neighbouring localities, with beautiful beaches and convenient transport.

The complex will promote the district’s tourism in particular and the province in general.

Trịnh Văn Quyết, FLC’s chairman, asked the province to quickly implement land clearance for the group, plan surrounding infrastructure and create favourable conditions for the project.

FLC is committed to starting the complex’s construction as soon as the province completes land clearance, Quyết said.

The province’s leaders have pledged to support and facilitate the investor to complete necessary procedures. According, they will review the entire proposed area for the project.

FLC Nghệ An will be the group’s seventh investment in a complex, following FLC Sầm Sơn, FLC Quy Nhơn, FLC Vĩnh Phúc and FLC Hạ Long, as we well FLC Đồ Sơn and FLC Quảng Bình.

VN firms attend Algeria trade fair     

Four Vietnamese enterprises are participating in the 50th International Trade Fair in Algeria’s Algiers to advertise domestic agricultural products, souvenirs, textiles and garments.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Algeria Pham Quoc Tru on Tuesday cut the ribbon to inaugurate the booths of Vietnamese exhibitors at the fair.

The ambassador highly appreciated the participation of Vietnamese companies at this international event.

Viet Nam’s handicraft products attracted the attention of visitors to the fair thanks to the beautiful designs and variety.

The fair is one of the most prominent events held each year in Algiers, Algeria. Featuring large country-specific pavilions, the trade fair is one of the best opportunities for foreign companies to reach Algerian buyers and consumers.

The fair, scheduled from May 8th to 13th, has drawn the participation of 536 Algerian businesses and 494 foreign enterprises from 34 countries.

VNA, Jetstar Pacific operate from new Da Nang terminal     

All international flights of the national carrier Vietnam Airlines landing in and departing from Da Nang Airport were moved from the old terminal 1 (T1) to new terminal 2 (T2) as of May 9.

According to a press release from Vietnam Airlines, the carrier will open 22 counters on the second floor on the left of T2. More counters will be added to the right of the terminal if required.

The counter’s opening time is still three hours before departure and the closing time is 50 minutes before departure.

Meanwhile, Jetstar Pacific international flights will be served at T2 from May 11.

Jetstar Pacific and Jetstar Group has 24 international flights to and from Da Nang Airport every week, including regular flights between the central city and Taipei, Hong Kong, and Singapore, operated by Jetstar Asia.

The newly-opened T2 is located near T1. It is designed and equipped with modern technologies, covering 82 counters for check-in, check-out, migration and immigration and 10 boarding gates, which all have a capacity to serve six million passengers per year. 

New decree coming to regulate fertiliser market better

The Plant Protection Department is set to issue a new decree on fertiliser management to encourage legitimate producers and eradicate fake products, which are widepsread.

“In the existing decree on fertiliser management, many provisions are outdated and not in line with the practical situation,” Hoàng Trung, the head of the department, admitted at a seminar held last week to solicit ideas for the new decree.

Producers themselves are allowed to verify the quality of their products and announce them without having to go through the authorities, he said.

“This has affected buyers because many enterprises do not appraise their products but still claim high quality.”

La Hoàng Đức, general director of Ngọc Tùng Limited Company, said: “We are looking for a new decree because with the current one we have thought many times about stopping production because many of its provisions make us very unhappy.”

He said he had even planned to close his US$10 million plant in Long An several times.

“Market watch forces do not know how to take samples and give us wrong test results.”

He said in the new decree authorities must define low-quality fertilisers and increase the penalties on such products.

“The old decree carries the same level of fines whether there is a 0.5 per cent shortage of chemical ingredients or 20 per cent. Authorities must have different fines for different levels of shortage.”

But Vũ Tu Nghĩa, director of An Lạc Development and Investment Joint Stock company, said: “We are afraid of regulation changes because we will have to spend time waiting for the new decree to stabilise and it is costly for us.”

He also objected to the requirement that each company must have its own laboratory.

“A laboratory costs VNĐ500 million – VNĐ1.5 billion (US$22,000 – 66,000) besides which we have signed a contract to measure quality with a State quality measurement centre.”

Trung said: “In the new decree we will consider fixing responsibility on users for proper fertiliser use to reduce waste and protect the environment.

“The new decree will stipulate that users should use the right fertilisers for each crop, at the right time and in the right quantity.”

The decree would improve oversight to eradicate fraudulent companies, he said.

“The old decree has failed to manage the fertiliser industry.”

As of the end of last year over 6,000 fertiliser products had been licensed, and in the first quarter of 2017 another 3,000 were added to the list.

“There are 300 applications for building fertiliser plants waiting for approval and they will increase the number of plants to over 500, too many for the country,” Trung added. 

Pre-listing firm investments promise large gains     

Recent returns have shown that investments in pre-listing companies promise big gains for investors who make bets on the firms with impressive business results and clear listing plans.

Speculations in recent listings such as budget airline Vietjet (VJC) and real estate developer Novaland Investment Group (NVL) have brought investors returns of over 40 per cent. Prices of these shares climbed 43-46 per cent in only one to two months of listing.

Investors who bought shares of Viet Nam National Petroleum Group (PLX) when it made the initial public offering earned profits of nearly 230 per cent.

PLX price soared to VND49,000 (US$2.16) on its April 21, 2017 debut, far exceeding its IPO price of over VND15,000 in 2011.

These return rates have outperformed the benchmark VN-Index, which has expanded just around 8 per cent this year.

Similar success is expected in the coming listings of Siam Brothers Viet Nam Joint Stock Company and Kido Frozen Food Joint Stock Company.

Siam Brothers Viet Nam, a Thai manufacturer for rope and net used for fishing, maritime transportation and agricultural sectors, will list 20.54 million shares with the sticker SBV on May 16 on the HCM Stock Exchange at the reference price of VND40,000 a share.

The 60-year-old company holds a 40 per cent market share of the fishing lines. 90 per cent of the Vietnamese offshore fishing fleets are using specialized rope manufactured by Siam Brothers Viet Nam.

The company’s shares are trading around VND45,000-48,000 apiece on the Over-the-Counter (OTC) market, a rise of 36.4 per cent over its IPO price of VND33,000 in September 2016.

With a high dividend rate (mostly over 40 per cent in cash since 2011) and good profit growth (39 per cent in 2016 and 15-23 per cent in the next two years), its share prices are expected to increase when it starts trading this month.

Share prices of Kido Frozen Food (KDF) are also increasing on the OTC market, trading around VND58,000-60,000 a share, up 11.5 per cent over its IPO price in March this year.

Kido Frozen Food is the country’s leading ice-cream market leader with a 35-per-cent market share in 2016. It reported after-tax profits of nearly VND143 billion ($6.2 million) last year, a year-on-year growth of 85 per cent.

The company plans to debut shares on the HCM Stock Exchange in the third quarter of 2017. 

Executives snap up shares after positive information     

Many managing executives have registered to buy large amounts of shares of their firms in recent days following the release of positive business information.

 Dang Huynh Uc My, a member of the managing board of sugar maker Thanh Thanh Cong Tay Ninh JSC (SBT), registered to purchase 3 million SBT shares between May 11 and June 9.

The planned purchase comes after the company announced a merger plan with Bien Hoa Sugar Co (BHS) to create the largest sugar company on Viet Nam’s stock market with value estimated at VND10 trillion (US$438.6 million).

In a filing to the HCM Stock Exchange on Friday, My said the purchase was purely for investment purposes. My holds 1.56 per cent of total outstanding shares and her ownership is expected to rise to 2.74 per cent after the transaction.

The price of SBT shares fell 1.3 per cent in the last four days, trading at VND25,300 a share on Tuesday.

Prior to the company’s dividend payment next month, chairman of Dat Xanh Real Estate Service & Construction Corp (DXG) Luong Tri Thin registered to buy 5 million DXG shares until June 1, seeking to raise his ownership to 8.85 per cent from 6.87 per cent.

Dat Xanh Real Estate will issue nearly 33 million shares to pay for 2016’s dividend with 13 per cent in stocks and 5 per cent in cash, expected in June 29.

Trading of this stock has been active in recent days with average 10-day volume touching nearly 4.3 million shares per session. Its price also expanded more than 13 per cent in the last 10 days.

At VND24,500 a share, Thin will likely spend nearly VND123 billion for the purchase.

Tran Ngoc Dinh, vice chairman of Dream House Investment Corp (DRH), booked a purchase of 3.2 million shares of the company, equivalent to 6.52 per cent of its capital.

At the annual shareholders’ meeting on April 20, the company passed a restructuring plan to get rid of its fertiliser business and focus on real estate.

DRH prices have soared nearly 27 per cent in the past month to about VND31,000  a share with daily trading volume of 1.1 million shares.

Also, managing executives of Simco Song Da (SDA), Viet Nam Construction No 7(VC7), KLF Joint Venture Investment International (KLF) have registered to buy between 150,000 shares to one million shares.

Vietnam attends 50th International Fair of Algiers, Algeria

Four enterprises from Vietnam are attending the 50th International Fair of Algiers at the Palais des Expositions (Exhibition Palace) in Algiers, Algeria from May 8 to 13.

Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal attended the event’s opening ceremony on May 8.

The fair, themed “50 years in the service of the Algerian economy”, features 536 Algerian companies and approximately 500 foreign exhibitors from 34 countries. Vietnamese firms mostly brought farm produce, souvenirs and clothing.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Algeria Pham Quoc Tru cut the ribbon to open the Vietnamese pavilion on May 9.

Automobile sales slump in April

Some 21,942 cars were sold in April this year, a drop of 18 percent over the previous month, according to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.

During the month, sales of commercial vehicles rose 15% to reach 9,562 vehicles, while sales of specialised vehicles fell 6% from March to 1,675 units and tourist vehicle sales plummeted 36% to 10,70 units.

In the first four months of 2017, total automobile sales were 86,671 vehicles, a rise of 1% year-on-year. Sales of tourist vehicles increased 10%, while that of commercial and specialised cars fell 8% and 18%, respectively.

While the domestic assembled cars segment saw a fall of 5% in sales to 62,767 vehicles, imported car sales shot up 24 percent year-on-year to 23,904 units.

According to automobile traders, the slump in sales is understandable as customers are expecting cheaper cars in 2018 when tax for some imported cars falls to zero percent.

Da Nang approves first-ever dairy project     

The central city has approved its first-ever dairy farm on 124ha in Hoa Phong commune in Hoa Vang district.

Vo Ngoc Sinh, Director of Da Nang Diary plant, under the Viet Nam dairy Products Joint-Stock Company (Vinamilk), told Viet Nam News that the project will be built with an investment of VND600 billion (US$26.5 million).

Sinh said the project plans to develop a herd of 4,000 dairy cows in 2017-20 and supply 40 tonnes of fresh cow’s milk for the plant each day.

He said the project would help boost socio-economic development and income for the poor Da Nang suburbs.

It’s the third Vinamilk dairy farm in the central region, after Lam Dong in the Central Highlands and Binh Dinh Province.

Vinamilk also built a milk-processing plant in Hoa Khanh Industrial Zone.

The project will include dairy-farm tours for visitors at the site, a maize and grass fields.

Vinamilk has developed 10 dairy farms with a herd of 15,000 dairy cows in Tuyen Quang, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Binh Dinh and Lam Dong provinces. 

VN eyes fruit, vegetable exports to UAE     

Viet Nam is witnessing the potential for fruit and vegetable exports to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The UAE has banned the import of certain fruits and vegetables from five countries in the Middle East, according to the Department of Africa, West Asia and South Asia Markets under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

According to the ban authorised by the UAE’s Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, imports from Egypt, Oman, Jordan, Lebanon and Yemen will be stopped from May 15 over concerns about the high level of pesticides. 

The list of banned items includes all varieties of pepper from Egypt; peppers, cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, squash, beans and aubergines from Jordan; apples from Lebanon; melons, carrots and watercress from Oman; and all types of fruit from Yemen.

Due to unfavourable natural environment and weather conditions for agricultural production, the UAE has to depend on fruit and vegetable imports to meet its local consumption demand, the department said.

The country imported US$3.2 billion worth of fruits and vegetable in 2014. The figures were $2.6 billion in 2015 and over $2.5 billion in 2016, the department said, quoting statistics from the International Trade Centre.

Meanwhile, a report from the Viet Nam General Department of Customs revealed that Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exports to the UAE reached $14.2 million in 2014, $16.2 million in 2015 and $22.8 million in 2016, accounting for a modest part of the UAE’s annual import turnover of this commodity group.

The department called on Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exporters to improve their understanding of the Middle East country’s rules on food hygiene and safety to effectively tap into the lucrative market. 

Can Tho: Thoresen plans investment in logistics, ports     

Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Limited is planning to invest in logistics services and ports in Can Tho City, according to the People’s Committee of the city.

On May 8, vice chairman of the People’s Committee of Can Tho City Truong Quang Hoai Nam met Sigmund Stromme, executive vice president for shipping and logistics at Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Limited from Thailand. The Thailand-based company is looking for business opportunities in the local seaport and logistics industry.

Speaking at the meeting, Nam said Hoang Dieu Port in Binh Thuy District and Cai Cui Port in Cai Rang District are both located in Can Tho. "Logistics is a key industry of the city," he said, adding that the Government had approved Can Tho City’s proposal to build a logistics hub for the Mekong Delta, which would cover 242ha in Cai Cui Port, Cai Rang District.

The city has proposed to the Government the merger of three ports -- Tan Cang Cai Cui, Vinaline Cai Cui and Cai Cui – to make it the largest port in the region with wharf length of some 1,200m. Site clearance for the logistics hub is underway and firms have visited the site to learn about investment opportunities.

The city has also suggested merging ports and supporting expansion of business for companies providing logistics services at ports.

Nam said Thoresen could buy stake in Viet Nam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) to join the port-merging project, build a new port at another site along the Hau River or invest in the existing warehouse and transport system at Cai Cui Port.

For his part, the executive vice president of Thoresen gave Nam an overview of the Thai company, saying the company had been operating in fertiliser production and shipping and logistics in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province.

Stromme expressed hope the company could partner with Can Tho City to improve port management and expand local shipping and logistics services with emphasis on container transit service to Phnom Penh (Cambodia) and Singapore. 

Its investment in logistics services in this city is expected to promote cooperation in logistics activities with southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province and support the transport of cargo in the Mekong Delta region.

Can Tho has a large potential to develop logistics because of its favourable location in terms of water and land transport, besides having many ports and warehouses, he said. After the meeting concluded, the two sides took a field trip to Cai Cui Port. 

Visa’s financial literacy programme enters sixth instalment

Practical Money Skills, a financial literacy programme for students, is back for its sixth instalment, and is this year asking students to submit photographs that depict their daily struggles in managing their money.

The programme has been run annually since 2012 by Visa and the Central Committee of Vietnam Students’ Association (CCVSA), with support from the State Bank of Vietnam.

The launch of the 2017 programme comes just after the Vietnamese government announced an upcoming major overhaul of the economy: by 2020, the majority of financial transactions in Vietnam are to be completed electronically. However, according to a recent survey conducted by Visa, only half (51 per cent) of Vietnamese respondents gave themselves a pass (6-10 points) on their knowledge of personal financial management.

According to Sean Preston, Visa country manager for Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, this is the issue that the programme is seeking to address.

“Vietnam’s economy has been changing rapidly in recent years, with more people now moving into the country’s middle and upper classes,” Preston said. “As the Vietnamese government seeks to reshape the economy in the next three years, it’s vital that consumers have a solid grasp of how to manage their finances—whether it’s simple things like creating a weekly budget, or more complex issues like taking out a loan for a vehicle or property.”

“By working with students across Vietnam, we are working with the next generation of community leaders, entrepreneurs, and mothers and fathers, to make sure that they have the kinds of skills that are necessary to thriving in the new economy.”

This year’s programme consists of two main phases. The first phase starts on May 9, 2017 and tasks students with telling stories about personal financial management through captioned photos. This could include everything from photos depicting struggles with the weekly shopping list, to not overspending when socialising with friends, to saving money for a holiday.

The best 50 entrants will be selected to participate in the second round of the programme which takes place on September 1. Six exhibitions and financial literacy seminars will be held in six cities with the largest number of participants.

To conclude the programme, the finalists will stand to win a range of exciting prizes worth up to VND15 million ($660) in Visa prepaid cards and a pair of flight tickets to Singapore – the biggest financial centre in Southeast Asia.

Last year, the programme was opened up to students right across the country. In 2017, Visa and the CCVSA have gone even further, drawing on CCVSA’s network to open up the competition to Vietnamese students that are studying overseas.

“As a leading organisation of students, we have partnered with Visa for a number of years to run this programme with the aim of helping young people develop the right mindset for their financial future. With the upcoming government plans to shift the economy, we believe this programme is a necessary investment and essential preparation for the future,” Nguyen Minh Triet, permanent vice chairman of CCVSA said.

A range of programme resources are available on the programme’s Facebook page, Instagram and YouTube to teach students the basic concepts of spending responsibly while learning to save and budget wisely. The official programme website (kynangquanlytaichinh.com.vn) continues to provide useful advice from programme mascot Pocket, together with handy financial formulas and other tools.

Within the 2017 programme, Visa will also give away 5,000 copies of “The Guardians of the Galaxy” financial literacy themed comic book. The comic pairs Marvel’s iconic superheroes with Visa’s financial smarts, which makes learning about finance management fun and entertaining for students. The books will be given to students participating in online and offline activities initiated along the event.

Thanh Hoa calls for investment of USD 5 billion for 50 projects

The north central coastal province of Thanh Hoa is calling for over USD5 billion in FDI and DDI to 50 projects by 2020 according to organiser of the Thanh Hoa Investment Promotion Conference. 

The conference, which is due to be held by the provincial people's committee and the Ministry of Planning and Investment on May 19 in Sam Son City, will be attended by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, high-level government leaders, and representatives of international organisations, local and foreign companies with presence of approximately 1,200 delegates.

The conference will focus on the introduction of the province's master plan, the province’s investment potentials, advantages and opportunities, key projects prioritised for investment attraction and related incentive policies. It will also provide the opportunity for local and international business to link up in the province.

Five key areas will be introduced to call for investment including processing industry, agriculture, tourism, healthcare, and infrastructure and urban development.

The organisers will announce a list of 50 projects in different fields including environment, energy, industry, agriculture and tourism valued at over USD 5 billion by 2020. The smallest project of which needs USD10 million, the organiser said.

Vice people’s committee chairwoman Le Thi Thin, said that they have required directors of all departments to attend the conference to discuss the feasibility of the projects in their fields. 

"I think administrative procedures and site clearance are still among the top concerns for investors," Thin said. "We’re committed to trying to solve these problems so as to provide the best conditions for investors."

Thanh Hoa is the third largest province in Vietnam in terms of population with nearly four million people. 

The province is now home to two cities, Thanh Hoa and Sam Son, one town, and 24 districts. 

Thanh Hoa City is expected to be one of 12 key national tourism cities according to the national tourism development master plan through 2020 and with a vision towards 2030.

Foreign investors, including Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore, have injected USD12.7 billion into 60 local projects on heavy industry, oil refinery, coal power and textiles as of May last year.

Vietnam eTrade Conference slated for May 16 in Hanoi

The Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM), in cooperation with the Vietnam Export Support Alliance (VESA), will organize the Vietnam eTrade Conference (VETC) in Hanoi on May 16 to assist businesses and related organizations to better implement e-commerce in import-export activities.

The conference will discuss three main themes revolving around the three pillars of online imports and exports. The first is online public services for transactions between State management agencies and exporters (G2B), the second is the opportunity to expand exports by joining B2B e-business platforms, and the third is the trends and solutions for direct import and export development towards the end consumer (B2B2C).

This is the first conference held on the topic in Vietnam and is expected attract the participation of delegates from agencies, organizations and enterprises relating to imports and exports. It will provide a venue for enterprises to exchange information on the benefits of e-commerce transactions, trends in online retail with foreign customers, and proposals to government agencies that provide online public services associated with imports and exports.

According to the Vietnam E-commerce Indicators Report 2017, many Vietnamese businesses have applied e-commerce to support imports and exports. In parallel with the increasing access to online public services such as e-customs, electronic certificates of origin, and many other public services relating to imports and exports, enterprises have actively used the internet to exchange business information with foreign partners, find partners, and implement contracts. The number of domestic consumers purchasing products online from foreign retailers has also increased sharply.

The import and export business is a complicated commercial activity, however, involving many agencies, organizations and enterprises. The potential for the application of e-commerce to bolster the field is therefore enormous. E-commerce helps businesses improve efficiency at all stages, from marketing and trade promotion to contracting and implementing contracts, making payments, completing customs formalities, and finalizing procedures with State management agencies.

Speakers will include experts in the field of commerce, e-commerce, logistics, and payments from agencies, organizations, and enterprises such as the Import-Export Department, the E-commerce Department, the Foreign Trade University, Alibaba, OSB, Payoneer, Lazada, Fado, Nguyen Kim, and Giao Hang Nhanh. The Vietnam Export Assistance Alliance will also introduce the potential of direct links between businesses.

Thoresen Thai Agencies plans to invest in Cai Cui Port

Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Company Limited has expressed interest in developing Cai Cui-Can Tho Port in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho by acquiring a majority stake in the port operator.

Sigmund Stromme, managing director of PM Thoresen Asia Holdings Public Company Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Thoresen, said in a working session with the municipal government on May 8 that the company wanted to invest in the port, including the logistics warehouse system, because of its convenient location.

He hoped the company will receive support from local authorities to facilitate the investment process.

If Thoresen has a chance to invest in Cai Cui-Can Tho, it would initially spend at least US$10 million equipping cranes and other facilities to develop logistics facilities at the port.

He said the firm earlier learned about the divestment intention of the Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines), the current operator of Cai Cui-Can Tho. Therefore, it is waiting for public auctions to hold at least a 65% stake in the port.

The move is to become a strategic shareholder so that Thoresen has the right to restructure, operate and manage the port in an effective manner.

Can Tho City’s vice chairman Truong Quang Hoai Nam said the central Government and the Ministry of Industry and Trade has green-lit Can Tho to develop a 240-hectare area adjacent to the Cai Cui-Can Tho port complex into a logistics center of the Mekong Delta.

Nam added the complex includes the Saigon Newport Corporation’s Tan Cang-Cai Cui Port with a 180-meter-long berth, and Vinalines’ Cai Cui-Can Tho berth having 360 meters in length. There is an empty lot of land spanning around 400 meters between the two ports, so Can Tho has proposed the Government merge the three into a larger port.

The vice chairman floated three investment options for Thoresen. First, the company may negotiate with Vinalines to acquire a stake in Cai Cui-Can Tho Port, and then merge with Tan Cang-Cai Cui to form a major port. Second, it may invest in a different location. Third, it may develop a warehouse system at Cai Cui Port.

 New decree gets tough on banned substances in husbandry

Those using banned substances in the production, processing and trading of animal feed shall be fined up to VND100 million, according to a new Government decree.

With effect from May 20, Decree No. 41/2017/ND-CP on administrative penalties for violations in the fields of aquaculture, veterinary, and animal feed slaps a penalty of VND50 million to VND70 million on those using banned substances in animal farming and aquaculture.

Even for antibiotics that are not banned, anyone found to use such substances without declarations or not in line with such declarations is also fined VND20 million to VND30 million.

Violators shall also be subject to a 6-12 month suspension of production, processing and trading, and forced to destroy or change the use of animal feed containing banned substances.

Farms whose animals test positive for banned substances will have to continue raising the animals until the residues of such banned substances are not present. If the violators use the banned substances again, they shall be forced to cull the animals.

Decree 41 also regulates penalties for the import of poor quality feed. Accordingly, importers will be fined from VND70 million to VND100 million for importing animal feed containing banned substances.

A fine from VND40 million to VND50 million will be imposed on imports of feed that are not on the list of animal feed allowed for circulation in Vietnam or without permission by authorities. The remedial measures for this violation such as reprocessing or changing the use of products or even re-exporting or destroying products will be applied.

According to the latest news from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the animal health agencies in 11 provinces took 973 urine samples and 52 meat samples at slaughterhouses for testing to detect Salbutamol, a banned substance popular in breeding in Vietnam in the recent past. No samples were positive for Salbutamol, however.

20% of businesses never use cloud computing

Up to 20% of businesses have never used cloud computing as many enterprises are still worried about security risks when using cloud services, said Vu Anh Tuan, general secretary of the HCMC Computer Association (HCA), at the announcement of Cloud 8 Exhibition in the city last week.

Meanwhile, 38% of businesses show great care to the security and availability of cloud computing and network infrastructure, Tuan told the event, citing a survey conducted by HCA.

Data centralization through cloud computing will help enterprises reduce infrastructure costs. However, some local businesses worry that after using this service, all data might be lost if the system is hacked or breaks down.

Some users do not feel safe when uploading their private data onto the cloud and consider storing data on private computer, laptop or smartphone a safer way.

Giap Hung Cuong, general director of VinaCIS and representative of Cloud 8 organizing committee, said at Cloud 8 Exhibition due to take place later this month, IT enterprises will introduce solutions for transportation, public security and big data calculation using cloud computing. Cloud 8 is geared towards building a cloud ecosystem that helps businesses connect with each other to provide services and share resources.

Cloud 8 Exhibition is expected to attract more than 800 participants this year, including 100 enterprises engaging in cloud computing, 30 startups and 10 investment funds.

According to HCA and a number of cloud service providers, cloud computing will help businesses reduce costs thanks to the principle of saving resources, helping scale the system rapidly at low cost. The development of cloud computing for online applications can be the most efficient use of infrastructure. With low cost service, cloud computing will reach out to a large number of customers, both small and big.

Cloud 8 entitled “Calculation super power in Industry 4.0” will be held on May 26, 2017 in Tan Binh District, HCMC with the participation of more than 30 businesses providing hardware, software, data infrastructure and mobile applications for cloud computing.

Vietnam phone exports bounce back in April after Q1 slip

Exports of phones and phone components increased sharply in April after a strong decline in the first quarter of 2017, according to data of the General Statistics Office.

Exports of phones and phone components in April brought an estimated US$3.6 billion, up 17.4% over the previous month, taking the total in the first four months to US$11.374 billion, up 0.3% year-on-year.

This is considered a positive result as in the first three months, total exports of phones and phone components fell by 10.7 % compared to the same period last year.

As a result, phones and phone components continued to be the leading export earner in January-April, while other commodities such as textiles and garments trailed far behind with US$7.474 billion, up 9.1 % year-on-year, and computers and electronic components with US$7.27 billion, up 44.3% year-on-year.

Analysts forecast Vietnam’s phones and phone components exports will continue to grow in the coming months. The main reason for the growth is that Samsung as the top exporter has introduced two new smartphone models, Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, and received many orders from markets around the world.

Since Vietnam is one of Samsung’s major phone production bases, the country will greatly benefit from the high consumption of Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus smartphones.

According to the General Statistics Office, phones manufactured in Vietnam are shipped worldwide, including the United Arab Emirates, ASEAN and the EU.

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