Ministry launches pilot power competitive market  

The Ministry of Industry and Trade launched a pilot competitive market for electricity generation, ‘the Vietnam Competitive Generation Market’ (VCGM), in Hanoi yesterday.  

Accordingly, from July 1 electricity plants can offer power prices at different rates, which will give power trading companies a chance to choose a suitable or lower price.

Payments will be made in two parts. First, the cost of 95 percent of the electricity output will be set annually as part of the contract between the plants and the companies. The remaining five percent will be paid at an hourly market rate.

On the same day, Vietnam Electricity (EVN), the country’s largest power company, said in the first six months of the year, total power output produced and imported was 54.2 billion kWh, an increase of 10.42 percent over the same period last year.

The hydrographic condition was better than expected as the total water level in reservoirs was nearly 13 billion cubic meters higher than expected. New power plants were also operating on schedule.

The power supply in the last six months of the year will continue to improve and forecasts say it will meet the consumption demand all over the country.

Economic woe casts shadow on electrical appliance retailers  

Sales of many electrical appliance stores in town have dramatically plummeted since consumers cut spending during economic turmoil.  

“The consumption of hi-tech products has started to slow down since April this year,” said Ho Minh Tri of the electrical appliance trader Petrosetco Distributions.

Vo Hoang Quan, director of Hanoi-based FPT Trading, aligned with Tri and warned that “the slowdown will be worse this month”. However, she expects the sales will rally in August.

Nguyen Canh Hien of the electrical appliance retailer Back Khoa Computer said declining sales combined with high interest rate this year made his firm hesitate to stock  products.

“We switched to restock weekly, instead of monthly,” Hien said.

Many retailers predict that consumption of computers will remain significantly weak until September, while electrical appliance demand is expected to make u-turn in November.

Electrical appliance stores in many districts in Ho Chi Minh City, including Go Vap and Tan Binh, have suffered quiet trading even at weekend for months.

Local electronics retailer WonderBuy has declared bankruptcy after only one year of operations, citing a loss of VND52 billion (US$2.6 million) as the primary reason, according to Thanh Nien Newspaper.
 
The retailer filed for bankruptcy on May 24, the first major electronics store in HCMC to do so.

The store, located in District 1, opened in June last month, selling more than 70,000 products.

Figures from the General Statistics Office show the import turnover of electrical appliance increased 23.2 percent year-on-year to $2.7 billion in the first six months of the year.

Vietnam’s retail sales grew at their slowest pace in May as consumers cut back on spending amid rising inflation.

Retail sales only reached VND156 trillion in May, up 0.68 percent from April, which was the smallest monthly increase in 2011, official statistics showed.

Vietnam’s exports to EU surge

Vietnam earned nearly 7.4 billion USD from exports to the EU in the first half of the year, a 49 percent increase over the same period last year, making up 17.5 percent of the country’s total export value.

According to the Industry and Trade Ministry, the EU had been a major market for many products of Vietnam , including rubber, handbags, coffee, seafood, garment and textiles and footwear.

Of these, footwear brought home 940 million USD from export to this market in the first five months of the year, a year-on-year increase of 16.6 percent, or 40 percent of the country’s total export turnover from this product category.

Vietnamese seafood also found a firm niche in the EU market, raking in 156 million USD in five months, a year-on-year increase of 21.7 percent.

With those optimistic signs, the country was expected to have an export value of 12.3 billion USD from the EU by the end of this year.

In 2010, EU was the second-largest market for Vietnam ’s exports and the fifth for imports.

Audits find half of foreign firms make profits

Over half of the foreign-invested firms in Ho Chi Minh City that claimed losses in 2010 do make a profit this year, according to an audit aimed at detecting whether or not they engaged in transfer pricing, an illegal technique to evade taxes.

According to the auditing result announced by the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Bureau on Tuesday, 1,342 foreign-invested firms in HCMC have reported profits, which is 55.14 percent of the inspected firms.

The remaining 44.86 percent still reported negative taxable incomes and were yet to make a profit, informed Nguyen Trong Hanh, deputy head of the tax bureau.

Earlier, the HCMC Tax Bureau had closely monitored over 2,400 foreign-invested firms in the city as they were suspected of transfer pricing, a fraudulent technique whereby companies spread profits and losses in a certain way so as to enjoy minimal taxes.

Hanh said most of these enterprises were asked to submit their financial reports as they had reported loss in so many consecutive years.

He said their awareness have improved after the tax authorities encouraged them not to engage in transfer pricing.

The tax bureau would continue strict measures to prevent transfer pricing activities in both foreign and domestic companies, he promised.

Recently, many foreign-invested firms were found to have engaged in transfer pricing, causing great losses to the state budget and putting pressure on those that strictly follow tax rules.

It also resulted in many recent strikes as the foreign enterprises usually reported high salaries compared to total revenues while the actual wages are even lower than those at domestic firms, he added.

Rice exports to reach 7 mln tons this year

Vietnam will export 7 million tons of rice this year, up 200,000 tons compared to 2010 amid the current unstable political situation in the world market, said the Vietnam Food Association (VFA).

In particular, the higher price imposed by Thailand’s new government at US$490 to US$650 will benefit Vietnamese exporters who offer a lower rate and have a more stable supply source.

So far, rice exporters have received orders of a total 5.3 million tons mainly from the Philippines, China, Bangladesh and other African countries.

In the first two quarters, firms have shipped abroad around 3.9 million tons worth US$1.847 billion, up 18 percent and 25 percent in volume and value compared to the same period last year.

VFA has raised the export goal for the whole year from 6.5 million tons to 7 million tons.

In 2010, Vietnam exported 6.8 million tons of rice, raking in a revenue of US$3.2 billion, up 20.6 percent compared to the previous year.

Temasek invests more in Hoang Anh Gia Lai

Singapore-based Temasek Group has spent VND1.13 trillion ($5.39 million) more on corporate bonds from Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAG) after increasing its investment in the latter to $110 million in May.

The two companies have also agreed to change the term of the $5.39 million convertible bonds issued last August from one to three years.

Under the agreement, Temasek can convert these bonds into shares of a rubber firm under Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group in the future.

With the additional amount of 1.13 trillion gained from selling these convertible bonds to Temasek, HAGL’s cash balance has been raised to VND4.5 trillion.

In June, HAGL raised $90 million from successful bond issuance in the Singaporean market for its new hydropower and rubber plantation projects in Vietnam and Laos.

The 5-year bonds, which were issued in US dollar in the Singaporean market, will have a coupon rate of 9.875 percent per annum and the yield will be paid semi-annual starting from November 20, 2011 and ending on May 20, 2016.

Hai Phong okays Japan’s printer factory project

The People’s Committee of the northern Hai Phong city on July 5 granted an investment certificate to Japan’s Kyocera Mita Vietnam Technology company to build a factory producing printers and multifunctional photocopiers in the locality.

Construction of the factory is scheduled to start in October this year on an area of 20 hectares in the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP Hai Phong) with a total investment of over 200 million USD.

Once operational in October, 2012, the factory will have an annual capacity of 150,000 units which will increase to 450,000 in 2016 and generate jobs for 5,000 local workers.

Kyocera Mita is the one of the world’s major manufacturers of computer-connected peripheral devices, including multifunctional printers and photocopiers, said Katsumi Komaguchi, General Director of Kyocera Mita.

VSIP Hai Phong sits on a site of 1,600 hectares in the Dinh Vu-Cat Hai Economic Zone. Over the past six months, Hai Phong city has attracted 11 newly licensed foreign direct investment (FDI) projects worth 39.6 million USD. The province now has 304 valid FDI projects with a total capital of over 4.6 billion USD.

Vietnam, US make progress in APEC integration

A US diplomat expressed hope that Vietnam and the US would together make important progress in regional economic integration, record stronger growth, create more jobs and increase income for people in the two economies.

Meeting with the Vietnamese business community in Hanoi on July 4 as part of his Vietnam visit, US Ambassador Kurt Tong, Senior Official for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), Kurt Tong said that as host country of the APEC Conference 2011, the US was implementing numerous activities to boost regional cooperation.

While introducing US objectives and policies towards APEC regional economic integration, Kurt Tong stressed that the APEC economy was always highly placed among US interests as APEC members accounted for over 50 percent of the global economic output, 50 percent of global trade value and 40 percent of the world’s population.

APEC was home to nine out of Vietnam ’s top ten trade partners and six out of the ten leading trade partners of the US , he added.

On the occasion, the US Ambassador exchanged views on the APEC cooperation programme, US viewpoints on an Asia-Pacific free trade area, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as well as APEC trade and investment liberalisation and facilitation.

At the meeting, Vice President of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Hoang Van Dung said that since it joined APEC in 1998, Vietnam had always made efforts to boost trade and investment liberalisation and facilitation, as well as signed free trade agreements with many APEC members.

Domestic firms under radar for transfer pricing

 As many foreign-invested businesses were recently discovered to engage in transfer pricing to evade taxes, tax officials are now looking closer at domestic ones.

In an interview with Tuoi Tre, Le Thi Thu Huong, head of the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Bureau, said 15 out of 197 domestic firms that reported losses in 2010 are suspected of engaging in transfer pricing after inspection.

She said 4 of these 15 suspect firms would be followed closely. “The practice of transfer pricing has been spreading widely,” Huong said, adding that domestic firms have different ways to cheat tax authorities.

One way is to establish two or three different subsidiaries at the same time to spread profits and losses among them to minimize taxable profits, Huong said.

Other companies opt to open many subsidiaries to fake a successful business result in order to lure investments.

For instance, after one subsidiary is listed on the stock market, the other subsidiaries will transfer their profits to the listed subsidiary to increase its stock values to attract investors, Huong said.

Huong said another trick is for a parent company to give all of its revenues to a newly-established subsidiary to take advantage of the tax reductions available to the latter.

Vu Thi Mai, Deputy Minister of Finance, said in the next 5 years, tax authorities would inspect domestic firms suspected of transfer pricing. Foreign-invested businesses that have reported losses for years but continued to expand will also be inspected, she said.

Cavico to be removed from NASDAQ

Vietnamese construction firm Cavico Corp will be removed from the US NASDAQ stock market tomorrow after being late in filing its financial reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Cavico has failed to file its financial reports for the fiscal year ending on December 31, 2010. After a recent meeting, Cavico’s board of directors decided not to appeal.

After being removed from NASDAQ, Cavico is eligible to be listed on Grey Market but not on Over-The-Counter Bulletin Board (OTCBB).

Cavico runs large infrastructure projects, including construction of hydropower facilities, dams, bridges, tunnels, roads, mines and urban buildings. It is also investing in hydropower facilities, cement production plants, mineral exploration and urban development projects in Vietnam.

The company employs more than 3,000 employees and has offices throughout Vietnam and one satellite office in Australia.

Construction of high-tech building starts after long delay

Construction of the Brilliant Chip Internet Space building in Ho Chi Minh City’s High-Tech Park started this Monday after nearly 4 years of delay because of financial problems.

The project has a total investment of more than US$11 million from SACOM Investment and Development Corporation and Brilliant Chip Joint Stock Company.

The nine-storage building will provide working space for 2,000 high-tech employees as well as food, medical and banking services.

The building is scheduled to be completed and begin operation next January.

Promoting opportunities for Vietnam’s agricultural investment in UK

A delegation from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development led by Deputy Minister Diep Kinh Tan visited the UK from July 2-6 to seek opportunities for Vietnam’s agricultural investment promotion.

At the July 5 meeting with more than 20 representatives from UK trade and investment organizations and businesses, the delegation introduced Vietnam’s agricultural potential and discussed investment opportunities in this field.

Last year’s agricultural export earnings reached US$19.5 billion, accounting for 27 percent of the country’s total export value. However, the value added proportion of Vietnamese export products is still low.

To boost agricultural exports, Vietnam needs advanced technologies from the UK as well as other European nations to apply them in the farm produce processing sector, Mr Tan said.

On the occasion, the Vietnam Rubber Group discussed with the UK-based COBA International Ltd about the early signing of a rubber contract.

C. Pollard, a representative from MRAG, a London-based consulting firm involved in promoting sustainable utilization of natural resources, said his company wants to expand its business operations in Vietnam and is seeking partners in Can Tho city and Mekong Delta provinces.

The UK considers Vietnam as one of the 17 potential markets likely to achieve high growth rates in the future.

An Giang province develops rice farm in Laos

The Mekong Delta province of An Giang is working on a project to build a productive farm in its Lao twin province of Champassak.

Vice Chairman of the An Giang People’s Committee Ho Viet Hiep announced the project while meeting with Lao Deputy Prime Minister Somsavath Lengsavath in Vientiane on July 4 during his working visit to Laos between June 29 and July 8.

The project combines the production of high-quality rice, fish breeding and planting of fast-growing industrial trees, bringing high economic efficiency, Hiep said.

He expressed his wish to receive support from local authorities to make the project operational as soon as possible.

The Lao Deputy PM pledged to create conditions for An Giang province to carry out the project on a 5,300 ha rice in Suphuma district, Champassak province.

Applauding An Giang province’s investment in Laos , he also urged the two sides’ authorities to carefully discuss the implementation of the project, ensuring there were no impacts on local people’s interests or on the ecological environment.

The Champassak leaders expressed hope that once completed, the project would help local people escape from poverty and help foster the friendship between the two countries.

Consumer goods smuggling rises in HCM City

The market management bureau in HCM City has reported that the illegal trading, transportation and storage of smuggled goods had increased in the first six months of this year compared to the same period last year.

Smuggled goods accounted for the majority of market violations found over the past six months, officials said, adding that other illegal acts included trade in forbidden and fake goods, the use of fake invoices and accounting irregularities.

Smuggled items, mostly consumer goods, were being brought into the country through northern, central and southwestern border provinces, the officials said. Other forms of smuggling included making false declarations about the quantity and quality of imported commodities, they added.

Motorbikes and coaches were used to transport smuggled cigarettes on National Highways 1 and 22, and along provincial roads from southwestern border provinces to outlets and warehouses in HCM City .

In the first six months of the year, the bureau discovered 186 cases of trafficking and trading foreign smuggled cigarettes. They confiscated 104,000 cigarette packets, half of which were of Jet and Hero brands. During this period, the bureau also recorded 142 cases of illegal transportation, trading and storage of foreign liquor.

Officials of the bureau also said that fake products were being widely bought and sold at many of the city's market stalls, trade centres, and on the streets.

Most of these items are imitations of famous foreign brands of watches, sunglasses, handbags, cell phones, footwear, clothing and cosmetics that are sold at low prices.

In the first half of the year, officials discovered 321 cases of trading in fake products.

They confiscated 127,231 items and handed over to investigating agencies 13.8 tonnes of fake fertiliser.

Scores of cases involving fake crash helmets and fake LPG (cooking gas) cylinders were also found.

Retail outlets placed the fake cylinders amidst genuine ones, making it difficult to detect them.

Meanwhile, in a highly risky venture, LPG was being illegally extracted and refilled in cylinders in neighbouring provinces and brought to HCM City by trucks, officials said at the meeting.

Italian businesses keen on investing in Vietnam

11 Italian businesses are participating in the 8th Vietnam International Precision Engineering, Machine Tools and Metalworking Exhibition and Conference (MTA 2011) in Ho Chi Minh City from July 5-8 to seek investment opportunities in the country.  

Marco Saladini, Head of the Italian Trade Commission in Ho Chi Minh City, forecast that bilateral commercial transactions and investment would achieve positive results in the next 12-28 months and many businesses consider Vietnam a potential market for investment in the supporting industry.

By late March this year, Italia had invested in 39 projects in Vietnam with a total registered capital of more than US$187 million.

Seafood exports increase sharply in first six months

Seafood exports surged by 28 percent to US$2.58 billion in the first quarter of the year compared to last year’s period, despite difficulties caused by bad weather and the increasing cost of input materials, said experts.

Exports to most markets such as the EU, the US, the Republic of Korea, ASEAN, Mexico, and Canda experienced sharp rise of 23-68 percent. Shrimp exports topped the list with an increase of 17.5 percent in volume and 36 percent in value, followed by tra fish and tuna.

Although it is forecast that the global economy will still face difficulties, 2011 seafood exports are likely to reach US$5 billion.

In order to increase export revenues in the second half of the year, the seafood sector will invest more in producing key products such as shrimp, tra fish, tuna, and mollusc.

It will also continue to promote trade, advertise Vietnamese seafood abroad, and strengthen product quality and food safety inspections.

The Directorate of Fisheries will also propose that related ministries and agencies and the government increase investment to develop the sector.

Robusta export market frozen

The price of Robusta coffee beans fell to VND50,600 per kilo in the Central Highlands of Vietnam, VND600 under its quotation on July 1.

Coffee price edges up as supply falls

The fall came in line with the lower price at the close of London's Robusta futures market on the last trading day last week.

London's futures market for robusta coffee rose sharply early last week following rumours about frost in the southern part of Brazil, the biggest coffee producer in the world.

The forecasts later downgraded the intensity of the chilly weather there and led coffee prices to lose US$26 on futures markets of London for robusta on July 1, but up US$153 per tonne for the week.

The FOB (free on board) price of Vietnamese robusta coffee Grade 2, with 5 percent black and broken, was quoted at minus US$40 per tonne, discounted to the level of the trading month of the futures market, or about US$2,420 per tonne compared with the closing price of London's terminal market.

Vietnam, the world's second largest coffee producer and exporter behind Brazil, produces mainly robusta coffee, which is often used for blending.

During the first six months of this year, the country exported 913,000 tonnes of coffee beans, earning US$2 billion in turnover, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Tra fish exports jump 40 times in 10 years

Vietnam’s tra fish export turnover soared by 40 times from US$40 million in 2001 to over US$1.4 billion in 2010.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the country’s annual tra fish output has remarkably increased over the past ten years, from 37,500 tonnes in 2001 to 1.35 million tonnes in 2010.

At present, Vietnam’s tra fish is exported to 140 countries and territories worldwide.

However, the Vietnamese seafood products are facing fierce competitions from those of other exporters and even importers, the ministry said.

To further develop the markets, the seafood sector plans to diversify the markets and value added products, develop national trademarks and meet strict breeding requirements and sustainable breeding standards.

By this time, 40 percent of Vietnam’s tra fish breeding acreage is certificated to meet different sustainable standards.

Two thermal power projects licensed

The Prime Minister has approved Mong Duong 2 and Hai Duong thermal power projects, announced the Governmental Office on July 4.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment was asked to license the two building-operating-transferring (BOT) projects in accordance to current regulations.

The Hai Duong thermal power BOT plant will be built at an estimated cost of US$2 billion, with a design capacity of 1,200 MW. The project enjoys a preferential tax rate of 10 percent in a 12-year term.

The Mong Duong 2 thermal power plant with a design capacity of 1,200 MW will be built in the northern border province of Quang Ninh.

These two projects are part of Vietnam’s sixth zoning plan for electricity development.

VinaCapital leases Danang space to retailer Parkson

VinaCapital has signed an agreement with Parkson Vietnam, leasing four floors of the World Trade Center Danang to the latter to open a shopping mall under development in the central coast city of Danang.

VinaCapital, which is also the owner of the building project, said on Monday that the shopping mall would cover 20,000 square meters and would open for business after the building is completed in 2013.

Facing the Han River, the mixed-used World Trade Center Danang project covers nine hectares along Ngo Quyen Street in downtown Danang City. It is designed with facilities such as a commercial center, a hotel, offices and high-end apartments, an international school and townhouses.

VinaCapital said the deal with Parkson was an important landmark in the development of the property complex.

“We are very happy to sign with Parkson… as it represents a crucial milestone in the development of the World Trade Center Danang as a whole,” David Henry, VinaCapital managing director of real estate, said in a statement.

Adjoining the Parkson department store will be a three-level shopping mall with 30,000 square meters, VinaCapital said.

Henry described the development costing US$325 million as the largest modern retail facility in central Vietnam, combining a traditional shopping mall with a multi-floor department store. Concept planning has started with a delivery date planned for the second quarter of 2013.

Henry revealed that the company was also finalizing negotiations with a major international hyper-mart operator that will occupy the first floor of the shopping mall next to the Parkson center, as well as cinema and entertainment operators. This will create one of the lifestyle and destination shopping spots in the country.

The mixed-used development also includes Azura, a 32-storey luxury apartment building with 213 units of one- to four-bedroom condominiums and 12 penthouses.

The developer said over 30% of the apartment project has been sold since its sales were launched in early 2010.
 
Inflation proves to be stubborn adversary

The government late last week revised up its inflation target, its second adjustment in a month, as price spiralling pressures continue to squeeze the economy.
 
The inflation cap for this year has been adjusted to 17 per cent from the 15 per cent target announced in early June.

Inflation climbed to 13.29 per cent in June against last December, or a 22.6 per cent rise year-on-year, making the previously set 15 per cent goal virtually unrealistic.

“There are many factors that could blow inflation up in the upcoming months. It is not easy to curb it in a short time,” said Do Thuc, general director of the General Statistics Office (GSO), referring to increased prices of global input materials, food and fuel, and natural disasters.

Thuc said even if measures provided in the governmental Resolution 11/NQ-CP on stabilising the macro-economy and curbing inflation were seriously implemented, inflation would be 16 per cent at a minimum.

The government last week reaffirmed to pursue tightened monetary and fiscal policies, including a limitation of annual credit growth at 20 per cent while money supply growth was capped at 16 per cent.

“We have not yet thought about easing monetary policies,” said Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Minister and Chairman of Government Office.

However, director of the GSO’s Price Statistics Department Nguyen Duc Thang said if credit grew 20 per cent, it would blow inflation out of control.

Some international financial institutions have even forecast Vietnam’s inflation could be higher than the adjusted cap of 17 per cent.

In a report released two weeks ago, Barclays Capital expected Vietnam’s inflation would peak at 22-23 per cent by July or August, driven by commodity prices, before heading lower in September on slower credit and money growth and end with a 18 per cent rate for the whole 2011.

Tai Hui, a Singapore-based economist at Standard Chartered Bank, said the consumer basket was a reason for rising inflation rate in Vietnam.

Hepza targets US$4 billion into EPZs, IZs in 2011-15

The HCMC export processing and industrial zones authority (Hepza) targets attracting US$4 billion of investment capital in the 2011-15 period, mainly environmentally-friendly and high-tech projects, said the authority’s leader.

Vu Van Hoa, director of Hepza, announced the plan at a meeting on Friday to review achievements of the city’s industrial and export processing zones over the past 20 years and map out development strategy.

Between now and 2015, Hoa said, the city’s industrial and export processing zones will prioritize investment projects in four key areas, namely mechanical engineering, electronics and ICT, chemical-medicine, and food processing. Hepza will also seek to attract projects into supporting industries and services for above industries, Hoa said.

He said that Hepza would prepare 1,000 hectares of land at seven new industrial parks that have just been approved in principle by the Government.

“We will help developers of newly-established industrial parks to quickly complete procedures,” Hoa said, naming the new IPs as Bau Dung, Phuoc Hiep, Xuan Thoi Thuong, Vinh Loc 3, Le Minh Xuan 2, Le Minh Xuan 3 and Phu Huu.

Besides, Hepza will also cooperate with relevant departments of the city, especially commercial banks, to support the existing labor-intensive and low-tech projects to boost in-depth investment and apply new technologies.

At the meeting, Le Thanh Hai, secretary of the municipal Party Committee, suggested the city government to issue preferential policies to attract more foreign investors from high-tech sectors. He said that although EPZs and IPs have played an important role in attracting investment, most investors are small-and medium-sized businesses in labor-intensive industries with products of low added values.

“EPZs and IZs should give priority to companies that are environmentally friendly, use high technology, offer high value-added products and services, and are not labor-intensive,” Hai said.

Statistics released at the meeting showed that by the end of March, such industrial estates in the city had attracted US$7.7 billion of total pledged capital, including some US$6.68 billion in valid projects.

The number of FDI projects with average investment capital of under US$5 million accounted for 73% of the total number, according to Hepza. Enterprises in labor-intensive industries of garments and textiles, footwear and electronics employ nearly 70% of the total workforce in EPZs and IPs, the report showed.

The city’s Party chief urged authorities to improve the livelihood of workers in such zones.

“Social infrastructure for workers in EPZs and IPs, including apartments, medical clinics, cultural and sports centers, kindergartens and supermarkets, must be developed to improve living conditions of workers,” Hai said.

EPZs and IPs should strengthen environmental protection and ensure regular operation of waste water treatment facilities. Hai also stressed the essential role of administrative reform to simplify business procedures for investors.

The city has 15 EPZs and IPs covering a total area of 3,500 hectares, with 14 of them having been put into operation with 1,185 hectares occupied, or 67% of the rentable area, said Vu Van Hoa.

Accumulated export turnover from the EPZs and IPs has amounted to US$23.2 billion, accounting for 12.5% of the city’s total export turnover and 40% of the city’s industrial export turnover.

Hepza targeted to reach US$6 billion of export earnings per year by 2015 with an annual export turnover growth of 15%.