Margin interest rates to stay steady

Interest rates on margin trading offered by securities companies are expected to remain stable this year following Circular 36, which took effect early this month.

Margin interest rates at many stock brokerages currently hover around 13-14 per cent per year, a slight decrease from the 14-16 per cent of previous years.

In the context of declining lending rates at commercial banks, it is normal for securities companies to lower their lending charges. However, according to many analysts, margin rates are unlikely to go down given the probable reduction in lending to stock investments from banks after the effect of Circular 36.

This ruling limited how much banks could lend to stock investments to 5 per cent of charter capital and set conditions under which banks could give loans.

In their January report, analysts at Bao Viet Securities Co said this would provide a good chance for brokerage firms with strong financial capacity to raise their market share, as investors would likely leave small brokers who could not meet their demand for margin trading.

Backed by KIS, a leading Korean securities company, KIS Vietnam Securities Corp offers the lowest margin interest rate of 9.9 per cent.

Early this year, the company hiked its charter capital from VND263.6 billion (US$12.3 million) to more than VND1.1 trillion ($52 million).

Only 10 brokerage companies in Viet Nam have charter capital that exceeds VND1 trillion ($46.7 million).

Companies applying lower interest rates on margin lending are often foreign-invested firms or arms of commercial banks like VP Securities with the annual margin interest rate of 11.5 per cent; Vietcombank Securities with 12.6 per cent; and MB Securities and BIDV Securities with 13 per cent.

Trading became more sluggish early this month following the validation of Circular 36. In the first week of February, four brokerage firms announced temporary reductions in margin lending associated with banks: SHB Securities (SHS), MB Securities (MBS), VNDirect Securities (VND) and Maritime Bank Securities (MSBS).

However, other companies in the top 10 like Saigon Securities (SSI), HCM Securities (HCM) and Bao Viet Securities Co (BVS) said their lending remained stable.

KPMG Limited became Mai Linh Group strategic advisor

Mai Linh Group has just appointed KPMG Limited, a global professional services firm, as their strategic advisor on their IT transformation programme as well as system implementer for their Oracle EBS implementation.

The overall project objectives are to improve productivity, competitiveness and efficiency in terms of business operations for the group.

The ultimate goals of this IT transformation project for Mai Linh are to standardise business operation processes, enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of employees, assist management to make timely and appropriate decisions via intelligent management reports, and to develop a comprehensive resource management system in order to improve the group’s competiveness.

Mai Linh has selected KPMG as a strategic partner for this key project, and believes this will be a revolution and turning point in business operation for the organisation.

“Mai Linh has a very strong brand recognition in Vietnam. We look forward to helping them implement an ERP system as part of their IT transformation programme, and are pleased that our approach of identifying solutions through proactive thinking and proven expertise is resonating with the market,” said Warrick Cleine, chairman and CEO of KPMG in Vietnam and Cambodia.

Established in 1993 and after nearly 22 years of development, Mai Linh Group is one of the leading companies in passenger transport, both long haul and short haul.

The group has operations in 53 provinces across the country, with nearly 12,000 taxi fleets and over 26,000 employees.

In the future, the group will continue to focus on developing their core business of taxi operations, both in building capacity of their taxi fleets and improving service quality.

IT solutions will play a central role in achieving the strategic objectives of the group and to better meet customer expectations.

Highway construction to delta region restarted

The building, operation and transfer project of a 51 kilometre modern highway in the Mekong Delta, the first of its kind in the region, was re-started last week after more than five years facing an impasse.

The project developer is no longer state giant Bank for Investment and Development (BIDV) owned the Expressway Development JSC (BEDC), but a consortium of new investors appointed by the Ministry of Transport (MoT).

This consortium includes Tuan Loc Investment Construction JSC, Yen Khanh Manufacturing Trading Service Limited, BMT Construction Investment JSC, Thang Loi Group Limited, and Hoang An JSC.

Within the group, Tuan Loc, Yen Khanh and BMT possess a long history of business success and are considered big players in the construction sector.

According to Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Van The, restarting works on the Trung Luong-My Thuan expressway bears significant importance as it will contribute to gradually perfecting the road network from the southern economic engine Ho Chi Minh City to the Delta region, satisfying growing travel demands and alleviating traffic congestions on national highway 1.

Earlier, the project was assigned to BIDV for implementation. At that time, it was designed as a four-lane modern highway with a total investment capital reaching VND28 trillion ($1.3 billion).

The developer BIDV had returned the project to the MoT two years later due to a failure in mobilising capital, which explains why this arterial route was stuck in a state of stasis for the past five years.

To ensure viability, the project scope was downsized to building just two lanes with a designed maximum velocity of 80kmh and two subordinate lanes with a velocity of 40kmh, as well as several associated roads.

The total investment capital in the first phase is set at VND14.6 trillion ($685 million).

Regarding the project’s financial scheme, the investor will be provided the (exclusive) rights to collect toll on the entirety of the road as well as in the Ho Chi Minh City-Trung Luong section from 2019, upon the finalisation of constructions works and the opening for traffic.

The MoT has signed with the Cuu Long Corporation for Investment Development and Project Management of Infrastructure (Cuu Long CIPM) to oversee the project implementation while Tien Giang Province People’s Committee will be held accountable for site clearance and people’s relocation.

SHTP welcomes new investors

Saigon Hi-Tech Park (SHTP) granted investment certificates to two investors last week with the combined investment capital of nearly $26 million.

The first $24 million project is funded by Nguyen Tat Thanh University to develop a hi-tech training centre with an aim of producing skilled workforce in fields such as information technology, biotechnology, microelectronics and automation, precision engineering, new material technology and nanotechnology.

The other investor is Vietnam’s leading telecommunications group Viettel, which will construct telecommunications and communications infrastructure to support the executive tasks and business performance of SHTP in the second phase. Once completed, it is expected to increase coverage area and promote value-added services with the goal of covering the total area of the park.

TISCO to resume expansion project

Thai Nguyen Iron and Steel Joint Stock Corporation (TISCO) has officially restarted the second phase of its expansion.

Last week, negotiations between TISCO and the contractor, China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC), were brought to a close. The official results have not been announced as of the moment, but the project, which has been suspended since the first quarter of 2013, will continue, according to TISCO.

Tran Van Kham, TISCO’s general director, said the nearly VND1.4 trillion ($62.3 million) loan it received from the Vietnam Development Bank (VDB)'s Bac Kan–Thai Nguyen branch at the end of January was what enabled TISCO to restart negotiations with MCC.

“MCC was financially unable to see to the end of the construction phase of the EPC contract. But they said when they have the capital they will finish the remaining work,” he said.

TISCO is still negotiating a VND1.1 trillion ($52 million) loan with Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (VietinBank). However, the financial shortage, “the main difficulty of the project,” according to Kham, “has been basically solved.” Kham also mentioned TISCO’s VND1 trillion ($47 million) share sale to the State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) in December last year, to further stress the company’s enhanced financial capacities.

VDB and VietinBank have both lent money to the project earlier, but because the project was dragged out longer than expected, stopped disbursing the money. Of the VND1.6 trillion ($75 million) that VDB pledged to lend to TISCO back in May 2006, about a year before the project started, the bank has only disbursed VND1.4 trillion ($66 million).  

For the new loan that TISCO has just received from VDB Bac Kan–Thai Nguyen branch, “the disbursement also depends on how fast TISCO carries out the project,” Tran Duc Thang, director of the branch said.

HCM City commits to facilitating foreign investors

Ho Chi Minh City commits to guaranteeing socio-political stability, strengthening the realization of signed Free Trade Agreements, hastening administrative reform, and creating an open investment environment to attract more foreign investment.

Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Le Hoang Quan made that statement at a Tet meeting with representatives of foreign representative agencies on February 10.

He highlighted the foreign organizations' crucial contributions to the development of the city and their roles as the bridge between the city and the international community.  

By investing in key infrastructure facilities and developing completed infrastructure systems and industrial parks, the city helped foreign investors to launch their projects effectively, said John Mc Anulty Australian Consul General to Viet Nam in Ho Chi Minh City.

In 2014, the city’s GRDP reached 9.6% and the export and import turnover hit US$32 billion and US$30.7 billion, respectively.

As many as 5,331 foreign direct investment projects, worth US$36.6 billion have been carried out in the city, creating more than 550,000 jobs. In 2014 only, the city attracted US$3.2 billion in 595 foreign projects.

PM approves Vietnam’s railway transport development strategy

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Tuesday approved the development strategy for Vietnam’s railway transport until 2020, with a vision to 2050, targeting development of the national railway transport system’s infrastructure and high-level management of transport and services.

Ensuring traffic flow, order, safety, accuracy, convenience and efficiency of railway transport activities is also one of the key targets of the newly-passed strategy.

Under the strategy, the railway sector expects to meet about 1-2% of the passenger transport market share and 1-3% of the goods transport market share by 2020. It also aims to claim 4-5% of the urban passenger transportation market share in big cities such as Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Existing railway routes will be upgraded, with priority given to modernising the north-south route to increase the average speed to 80-90kph for passenger trains and 50-60kph for those transporting goods, and improving transport capacity and quality.

The railway sector will also focus on upgrading key railway stations and those with a vast volume of passengers, step by step removing the at-grade intersections between railways and roadways, and prioritising the construction of traffic intersections at crossings with huge traffic volumes.

The strategy also sets the goals of building a 1.435mm gauge high-speed dual track line on the north-south route and making necessary preparations for priotising the construction of sections with high transport demand, especially those in the regions connecting Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City such as Hanoi-Vinh and Ho Chi Minh City-Nha Trang.

From 2020 to 2030, the strategy targets to meet 3-4% of the passenger transport market share and 4-5% of the goods transport market share, while satisfying about 15-20% of the market share for urban passenger transportation in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Debt collectors in HCM City busy ahead of Tet

Debt collectors and collection companies are doing brisk businesses ahead of the Tet holiday, as creditors try to square their books before the New Year without having to waste time in courts.

Debt collection companies are charging 20-30 percent of outstanding debts to secure their repayment, with bad debts earning up to a 50 percent commission.

A businessman who is chairman of the board of directors of a company in District 1 was shocked when he was visited by debt collectors demanding repayment of VND150m he owed his company's deputy director, who was a close friend.

A woman from Tan Phu District was visited by debt collectors for repayment after she missed a deadline.

Many debt collectors are reportedly turning away new clients because they are already too busy.

“We won't be taking any new contracts until after the Tet holiday as we don’t have enough staff to do the jobs,” said a man named Hung, who works for a debt collection company in District 4.

Lawyer Nguyen Duc Chanh, director of the Duc Chanh Law Firm and a member of the HCM City Association of Lawyers, said most people opted to use the debt collection services because going through the courts was time consuming and slow, and the outcome was not certain.

Major Hoang Tuan Nam, from the municipal police said borrowers were often threatened by debt collectors to pay up, either physically, by harassment on their cell phones by calls or text messages, or having shrimp paste smeared on their front doors.

But while such activity was illegal, relevant authorities have yet to work out how to effectively address it.

HCM City Police fined two of the city's 18 major debt collection agencies a total of VND22m for illegal activities in 2014.

Nam said police were cracking down on illegal debt collection methods. "Anyone threatened or terrorised by debt collectors should make a report to police in their area."

Delta aims for rice and seafood exports of US$10.2 billion

Mekong Delta provinces are looking to obtain a combined US$10.2 billion in rice and seafood exports this year based on positive growth last month and 2014, Vietnam News Agency reports.

Figures of the Can Tho Statistics Office indicated the region obtained total rice and seafood exports of US$850 million in the first month of this year.

Last year, the region earned US$8.9 billion from exporting rice and seafood to Japan, the European Union (EU), the United States, Singapore and Australia, up nearly US$700 million compared to 2013.

To realize the target this year, localities in the rice producing hub of Vietnam have nearly 800,000 hectares of water surface for fish farming and expect to reap combined output of 3.7 million tons. This volume is enough for 198 processing facilities in the region.

Ca Mau Province, which has led in seafood exports in the region over the years, plans 290,000 hectares for shrimp breeding and targets seafood shipments of US$1.4 billion this year, or 19.4% of the region’s total revenue.

The region has 4.2 million hectares for rice production with 80% of the acreage reserved for quality rice for export.

The governments of Mekong Delta provinces and cities have helped enterprises conduct surveys and promote their products in various markets in Asia, Africa, Australia, the EU and North America.

The local governments have requested banks to support enterprises to export rice and develop supply chains for their products. As a result, enterprises have taken out bank loans worth VND56 trillion to expand production and improve technology to turn out more value-added and competitive products.

The region is expected to increase the proportions of quality rice and seafood for export by 20% and 5% this year respectively.

HNX expects busy February for share auctions

The Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) predicted that February would be a busy month for State-owned enterprises (SOEs) to sell shares via initial public offerings (IPO) and pull funds out of non-core businesses.

A source from HNX said the northern bourse plans to arrange eight auctions for enterprises to launch their IPOs and sell shares at businesses in non-core sectors in the first half of this month.

The source credited the bustling share auctions to the Government’s order for quick equitization of SOEs and State divestments from non-core business operations.

Last month, five enterprises launched IPOs on the exchange and four of them sold out their shares, or 80% of the total shares put on sale, Vietnam News Agency reports.

HNX organized seven auctions for the enterprises to launch their IPOs and two firms to divest their capital from non-core businesses.

Hanoi Trading Service Fashion Company (Hafasco), Hanoi Food One Member State Co. Ltd., Haiphong Leather Products and Footwear Co., and Minh Khai Textile Factory under Hanoi 19/5 Textile State-Owned One Member Co. Ltd. sold all shares put up for sale at the IPOs.

The four firms mobilized a combined VND272 billion, VND159 billion higher than the starting prices.

According to HNX, through seven share auctions, 75% of 17.9 million shares of the enterprises were sold to investors, an increase of 23.8% compared to the average number of shares sold monthly last year.

The seven firms mobilized VND372.6 billion (US$17.5 million) from the auctions, VND213.6 billion higher than the starting prices.

Ride-sharing service surges at Tet

The ride-sharing demand of workers and students in HCMC and other cities for returning to their hometowns for family reunion during the Lunar New Year holiday (Tet) is soaring as many passengers have difficulty buying coach and train tickets.

Instead of rushing to buy Tet coach tickets, university students and office workers in big cities can go online to rent cars of 7-16 seats and look for companions for their journeys.  The car rentals may be higher than the coach fares but are reasonable when they are shared by passengers traveling in the same car.

As observed by the Daily, ride-sharing journeys offered on online forums like Dichung.vn, Kpooling.com.vn, Dichungxe.vn, webtretho, lamchame and Facebook mainly depart from Hanoi and HCMC.

Airport Taxi in Hanoi operates ride-sharing journeys at Tet for households with the fares shared equally among passengers. Currently, passengers wanting to share taxi cabs for their trips back home during Tet can register with Airport Taxi.

Di Chung Joint Stock Company, the owner of Dichung.vn, charges VND400,000-700,000 on trips for two adults and two children at a time, and the fares vary depending on distance.

According to carpoolers, ride-sharing can help one save 30-40%. Besides, ride-sharing is more comfortable and safer.

VRG employees’ wages fall

Vietnam Rubber Group (VRG) lowered the average monthly wage for its employees by 10% against 2013 to VND4.9 million last year due to revenue and profit reductions.

According to VRG’s board of directors, the reduction was still within the permitted cut of 15% compared to the average salary in 2013 as regulated by the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs. The corporation was allowed to adjust wages based on labor productivity and profit.

A report of VRG released at a review meeting in HCMC yesterday showed the corporation posted revenue of nearly VND18.7 trillion (US$876.7 million) and pretax profit of VND2.4 trillion. The respective figures were some VND25.8 trillion and VND4.1 trillion in 2013.

The corporation attributed the revenue and profit decreases to falling latex prices. The average price was around VND37.3 million per ton, down 28% against 2013.

VRG forecast latex prices would drop by VND6 million per ton in 2015, thus eating into its revenue and profit this year.

The corporation targets revenue of VND13.1 trillion and profit of VND1.5 trillion this year. This means the salary for its employees is likely to decrease this year when VRG had more than 118,000 staff in end-2014, down 7% year-on-year. Last year, the firm extracted nearly 61,840 tons of latex from more than 405,000 hectares of rubber trees, rising by 13,000 hectares over 2013.

PV Power profit surges

After-tax profit of PetroVietnam Power Corporation (PV Power) in 2014 soared to 353% of the full-year target as it got an operation and maintenance (O&M) payment from Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) for Nhon Trach 1 Power Plant in Dong Nai Province.

PV Power said last year was the fifth consecutive year it had met all the targets set by the parent company Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PVN). In 2014, the corporation also posted record revenue, profit and tax payment for the State budget.

PV Power generated more than 16 billion kWh last year, or 7% higher than the year’s target but down 1% compared to 2013. Its revenue was around VND26 trillion (US$1.2 billion), up 10% year-on-year.

However, PV Power’s pre-tax profit exceeded VND1.9 trillion and after-tax profit was around VND1.8 trillion, meeting 313% and 353% respectively of the year’s targets.

Ho Cong Ky, chairman of PV Power, said the corporation reaped good profit last year as it received the O&M payment for Nhon Trach 1 Power Plant in line with a power purchase agreement (PPA) contract signed with EVN. But he declined to elaborate.

If the O&M revenue was excluded, the corporation’s ratios of pre-tax profit per chartered capital and after-tax profit per capital were 15% and 14% respectively.

Ky told the Daily that PV Power looks to revenue of over VND28 trillion this year, around VND2 trillion higher than last year, and pre-tax profit of VND864 billion, down 55.7% compared to last year as it will not get O&M payment this year.

Sugar prices up ahead of Tet

Sugar prices have edged up around VND100 per kilogram on the domestic market and are forecast to go up further after the Ministry of Public Security busted a big sugar smuggling ring masterminded by Vi Nguon Thanh in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang over the weekend.

The sugar prices hovered in the range of VND11,300-11,850 per kilo on the domestic market in the first week of this month but have risen of late.

Nguyen Hai, general secretary of the Vietnam Sugar and Sugarcane Association (VSSA), said the local sugar prices have inched up after wholesalers in HCMC suspended selling smuggled sugar from Thailand in the past days.

Wholesalers dare not sell smuggled sugar after Thanh was detained, Hai said. He added that consumers cannot distinguish locally-made and smuggled sugar but only distributors and market monitors can.

The director of a sugar plant shared Hai’s comment, saying other ringleaders would have to halt sugar smuggling in the southwest region for a while after Thanh’s arrest. Wholesalers and ringleaders in the south have close ties but they do not dare to make transactions at the moment.

However, the director said it is hard for local sugar factories to expand market shares as they do not have close relations with those wholesalers. Moreover, supermarkets have prepared enough sugar for sale during the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday.

Therefore, the news about the police’s detention of Thanh will not be of great help for sugar firms to increase sales during the biggest festival in Vietnam.    

“To prepare sugar supply for Tet, distributors inked deals with sugar plants at least one or two months prior to the holiday so they will not buy any more,” the director said.

According to VSSA, 400,000-500,000 tons of sugar is illegally brought to Vietnam via the border provinces in the southwest region a year and up to 90% of the sugar sold in the south is smuggled in.

VSSA said as of January 30, sugar inventories at factories and member companies of the association had neared 282,000 tons.

Power plant expanded under Japanese support

Construction to expand part of the Da Nhim hydropower plant began on February 10 in central Ninh Thuan province.

The project is funded through an investment from the Da Nhim-Ham Thuan-Da Mi Hydropower Joint Stock Company of over 1.95 trillion VND (91.5 million USD), 1.65 trillion VND (77.44 million USD) of which was sourced from Japanese government loans.

Chairman and General Director of the Joint Stock Company Nguyen Trong Oanh said the expansion will include the installation of a new group of turbines with a designed capacity of 80 megawatts, raising the plant’s total capacity from 160 megawatts to 240 megawatts.

Once completed, the turbines will connect to the 220 kilovolt network in Nha Trang city of central coastal Khanh Hoa province, Di Linh and Duc Trong districts of Central Highlands Lam Dong province, and Thap Cham district of central Ninh Thuan province.

Scheduled to be fully operational by the first quarter of 2018, the expansion aims to boost the grid’s capacity during peak usage times by adding nearly 100 million kilowatts annually and improve the water supply to Ninh Thuan province during its dry season.

Ministry calls for innovative initiatives for low-income

The Enterprise Development Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment invited organisations and individuals to participate in the Inclusive Innovation Project for Low-Income Individuals at a ceremony on February 10.

Nguyen Hoa Cuong, Deputy Head of the Agency and Director of the project’s management unit, said the project is being implemented from 2013 to 2018 in line with credit agreement No 5249/VN worth 55 million USD and signed on September 6, 2013 between the Vietnamese Government and the World Bank.

The development objective of the project is to help with the development and application of innovative technologies for the benefit of the population at the Base of the Pyramid (BoP).

Research organisations, universities, Vietnamese private enterprises, individuals and groups of innovators are encouraged to register for the project.

Addressing the event, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dang Huy Dong, who is also Deputy Head of the project’s Steering Committee, said he hopes the project will attract numerous initiatives.

Victoria Kwakwa, the World Bank's Country Director for Vietnam, said the project was an important landmark in seeking creative ideas to support low-income populations.

The project will also stimulate the growth of small- and medium-sized enterprises, she said.

Kien Giang invites investors in 58 projects

The Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang published a list of 58 economic, cultural and social projects in need of additional investment between 2015 and 2020 on February 10.

The list includes infrastructure projects for the industrial zones of Thuan Yen, Xeo Ro, Kien Luong, Kien Luong 2 and Tac Cau.

The province said it will give priority to high-tech agriculture, processing industry, support industry and clean industry.

Other priorities include the retail, logistics service at sea ports and maritime transport sectors.

Clever growers switch to bonsai kumquat trees

With Tet just around the corner, Tu Lien village in Tay Ho district, Hanoi, has seen many customers come looking for kumquat trees.

This year, buyers are particularly interested in bonsai kumquats as alternatives to traditional kumquats. While bonsai kumquats yield 50 percent more profits, they require a lot of hard work and meticulous attention to grow.

The Manh, owner of a 3,600sq.m kumquat garden, used to grow traditional kumquat trees. However, he switched to the other variety in 2004 after noticing that customers usually preferred the bonsai types, which are smaller and grown in miniature clay pots.

He didn't succeed with his first try and the majority of his bonsai couldn't survive. After a lot of trial and error, he learned that careful preparation and planning were fundamental in growing bonsai kumquats.

Manh uses a mix of riverside earth, fertiliser and a few other materials that must be rich yet soft enough for the trees to grow. It must be further enriched in a garden for another year before it can be used.

The trees must be fed fertiliser and soybeans every 15-20 days in addition to being watered every day. Weaker trees require even more care, according to Manh.

This year, he successfully grew almost 400.

"Keeping them alive is just the first step. Growing them in the desired shape is the true test of a gardener's skill and patience," said Nguyen Xuan Loc, who has over 700 bonsai kumquats in his field.

Small metal strings are used to shape the trees, but applying too much force can break the trees, while keeping the metal strings on for too long can ruin their shape. This process takes up to a year. Then the trees can be sold.

"It's a delicate balance to maintain but it will come with experience. The worst part is that even if you did everything right, it only counts for 10 percent. The rest is up to the weather," he said, explaining that too much sun or rain could also kill the trees.

When it does pay off, it's good money. The price varies from 700,000 VND (33 USD) to 30 million VND (1,400 USD) but most are sold for about 2 million VND (100 USD). Some rare trees are not available for sale but can be rented for a short while.

Both gardeners said business has been good this year, as they had sold 70-80 percent of their trees.

President of Tu Lien's Farmers Association Ngo Thi Nga said that roughly 400 households in the village are growing kumquat trees but only about 20 knew how to grow the bonsai types.

The association is planning to create a coop group to help disseminate useful information and provide support for gardeners looking to switch to growing bonsai kumquats.

Sudan businesses seek Vietnamese partners

A delegation of Sudan businesses operating in the fields of solar energy, lighting, waste water treatment, and agricultural equipment are exploring the investment climate in Vietnam to seek trade and investment partners.

At a business workshop in Ho Chi Minh City on February 11, the delegation head also invited Vietnamese businesses to the country, saying that Sudan is rich in minerals such as gold, bronze, nickel, and oil.

Vice Director of the HCM City Office of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Nguyen The Hung said bilateral trade was kept at an average 20 million USD each year since 2008 and hit 32 million USD in 2014, a year-on-year rise of 65 percent. Vietnam imports iron and steel from Sudan while exporting garment-textile, rice and seafood.

He suggested Sudan create favourable conditions for Vietnamese businesses such as the National Oil and Gas Group (Petro Vietnam) and the military telecom group Viettel to join investment projects in the host country.

Vietnam and Sudan are implementing effectively a project on rice and other crops production development in Sudan between 2009 and 2015.

The two countries are also working hard to create a direct payment channel between their banks to facilitate bilateral trade activities, and at the same time pushing ahead with negotiations on agreements on double taxation prevention, investment encouragement and protection and visa exemption for diplomatic passport holders.

Binh Duong companies report strong performances

Businesses in the Thuan An and Di An townships of the southern province of Binh Duong reported quick recovery following the incidence in May 2014 during a visit by provincial officials on February 11.

Golf club head maker Vision International Co. Ltd, located in the VSIP 1 Industrial Park in Thuan An, earned 40 million USD in revenue last year, its General Director Sir Jimmy told Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s committee Tran Thanh Liem.

He said thanks to assistance from local authorities, the firm was able to resume and expand its operations after disruptions from worker disturbances protesting China’s placement of an oil rig in Vietnamese waters in mid-May of last year.

The Taiwanese company has raised workers’ wages in line with the State’s policy and granted higher Lunar New Year bonus than last year, the executive said.

Meanwhile, the Dong Hung Industrial Joint Stock Company in the Tan Dong Hiep A Industrial Park was also able to rapidly stabilise its activities following protest disruption, General Director Ha Duy Hung reported.

The firm manufactured 10.73 million pairs of footwear in 2014, a 22.1 percent annual increase, and earned over 1.71 trillion VND (80 million USD) in revenue. The company employed 10,000 workers with an average monthly salary of 7.25 million VND (345 USD), a yearly increase of 12 percent, he noted.

Vice Chairman Liem commended the enterprises’ efforts in developing production and improving employees’ livelihood, which has helped boost Binh Duong’s economic growth.

He assured them that local authorities will work to create favourable conditions for their operations.

Binh Duong, which is located in the southern key economic region, attracted the fourth largest FDI amount in 2014 with 19.98 billion USD, following HCM City, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, and Dong Nai, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Foreign Investment Agency.

Dien Bien, Thai provinces eye tourism link

The northern mountainous province of Dien Bien and the Nan province in northern Thailand will each open representative tour offices as formalised in their memorandum of understanding (MoU).

The two provinces intend to conduct additional tourism surveys as well as cultural and sports exchanges during a meeting in Dien Bien on February 11 between local authorities and delegates from the Thai provinces of Chieng Rai, Pha Dau, Phe and Nan.

At the meeting, they introduced their distinctive cultural traits and goods, such as rice, brocade and handicrafts.

Pham Xuan Koi, Deputy Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, hailed Thailand as one of the most popular tourist attractions in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and one of the top 10 largest tourism markets in Vietnam.

Last year, Dien Bien welcomed 75,000 visitors of 84 different nationalities, 9.5 percent of which were Thai. The province included Thailand as a key market in its tourism master plan through 2020.

The Thai guests praised Dien Bien for its strong tourism potential and suggested building a historical-cultural tour route connecting Dien Bien and four Thai provinces in the Greater Mekong Sub-region.

Earlier, an event to introduce Thailand’s culture and home-grown products was held in the Dien Bien, promoting Thai cuisine, fashion, cosmetics, handicrafts and household utensils.

Additional 600 million USD poured into Dong Nai

Hyosung Corporation, a conglomerate of the Republic of Korea (RoK), will invest an additional 600 million USD to expand their business in southern Dong Nai province this year, says Executive Director of Hyosung Vietnam Ltd Co. Yoo Sun Hyung.

In preparation for the expansion, Hyosung Vietnam has signed a lease with Vietnam Urban and Industrial Zone Development Investment Corporation (IDICO) on an extra 22.6 hectares of land in Nhon Trach 5 Industrial Zone, bringing its total area up to 90.6 hectares.

Hyosung Vietnam Ltd Co. has been operating in Dong Nai for over 7 years with a total registered investment of 995 million USD.

Around 90 percent of its products, mostly fibres of all kinds, are exported worldwide and its tire cord fibres represent 47 percent of the global market share.

In 2014, the company generated over 1 billion USD in revenue.

Paris seminar highlights VN’s reform for sustainable growth

New policies implemented by the Vietnamese Government to manage challenges and ensure sustainable growth were introduced at a seminar in Paris, France on February 10.

The event, co-organised by the Vietnamese Embassy in France and the Centre for Asian Studies under the French Institute of International Relations, aims to update French scholars, economic experts and the business community of Vietnam’s recent economic reforms to maximise its strengths and overcome challenges to sustainable growth.

It also advised participants of the new regulations of the Law on Investment and the Law on Enterprises, as well as information on the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, both of which Vietnam is currently negotiating.

In his presentation at the seminar, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Duc Khuong from the IPAG Business School in Paris noted that Vietnam has carried out reforms in its legal and education systems, business climate, and tax structure to ensure smooth integration in the region and the world.

He also pointed out the current difficulties and challenges facing the country and stressed the need to optimize the effectiveness of strategic partnership agreements signed between Vietnam and 13 of its counterpart nations.

Oliver Massmann, General Director of Duane Morris Vietnam LCC, delivered a speech highlighting Vietnam’s efforts to implement strong development reforms, including an overview of Vietnam’s economy and its remarkable results in 2014.

The event offered a valuable opportunity for French businesses to get an insight into Vietnam, encouraging them to partner with and expand their investment in Vietnam in the future.

Property market recovery sees new investors enter the fray

Thanks to the recovery of the real estate market, investment is pouring into new projects.

New foreign cash has been poured into Khang Dien, enticed by the upswing in sales of its housing projects

Khang Dien House Trading and Investment Joint Stock Company, a real estate developer in Ho Chi Minh City, has received lots of attention from foreign investors.

Foreign fund management companies such as VinaCapital, Dragon Capital, Saigon AM and Mutual Fund Elite have taken the opportunity to buy into Khang Dien.

In a recent private 48.48 million share-issue, the four funds bought 24.48 million shares valued at VND416 billion ($19.8 million). After this distribution, Khang Dien’s legal capital increased up to VND1,260 billion ($60 million), from an initial of VND750 billion ($35.7 million). Foreign investors now own a 49 per cent stake in the company.

According to Ho Thi Minh Thao, deputy general director of the  company, after restructuring its portfolios by selling projects such as ParcSpring and Goldora, the company has escaped heavy debt and taken positive steps forward with the impressive sales of houses at its Mega Residence and Mega Ruby projects.

“Khang Dien’s business results have been remarkable, thanks to the changing from large-scale units ranging from VND4 billion ($190,000) to VND40 billion ($1.9 million) per unit, to smaller scale ranging from VND2 billion ($95,000) to VND2.5 billion ($119,000) per unit,” said Thao.

In the next five years, Khang Dien plans to build a further 3,000 houses.

Another example is the CEO Group which recently saw a successful share issue that doubled its charter capital to VND686 billion ($32.6 million).

This year, CEO plans to invest at least VND1trillion ($47.6 million) for its real estate projects in Hanoi, Ha Nam province and Phu Quoc Island.

Together with the recovery of the real estate market, financial sources from buyers, bankers and investors are streaming into the market. New emerging developers and investors are also joining the market.

A new emerging name is the HBI Joint Stock Company, which recently started construction on its Imperia Garden complex in Hanoi.

Located in Thanh Xuan district, Hanoi, Imperia Garden is a multi-function complex consisting of offices, residences, and a shopping centre.

Located on a 4.2 hectare site, Imperia Garden will squeeze in a population of 5,000 people and be ready for its first tenants in 2017.

According to Nguyen Hong Ngoc, general director of HBI Joint Stock Company, the real estate market, especially in Hanoi, has seen huge improvements.

“This is a good time for real estate developers to commence projects,” Ngoc said. He added that Imperia Garden will be a good start for his company to develop a chain of other real estate projects in Hanoi in the time to come.

Another new face, the GFS Group, has just opened mock apartments for the 1,200 unit Five Star Kim Giang project. Another new investor – TNR Holding, recently launched its Goldmark City Hanoi with 5,000 apartments. Situated at 136 Ho Tung Mau street in the west of Hanoi, Goldmark City covers 12 hectares and good transport links in the future.

VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR