National stocks continue to close in red

Shares extended their losing streak on both national stock exchanges.

The VN-Index on the HCM City Stock Exchange declined another 0.4 per cent to finish this morning's session at 393.05 points.

The value of trades improved, however, with heavy selling to VND444.7 billion (US$21 million).

Bucking the general trend, some blue chips managed to post gains, including insurer Bao Viet Holdings (BVH), HCM City Infrastructure Investment Co (CII), Da Nang Rubber Co (DRC), steelmakers Hoa Phat (HPG) and Hoa Sen (HSG), PetroVietnam Drilling Services Co (PVD), Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Co (REE) and Vinamilk (VNM).

However, they still failed to lift the VN30, which went down nearly 1 per cent to 455.98 points.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the benchmark HNX-Index shed another 1.8 per cent, reaching only 55.48 points. The HNX30, tracking the bourse's 30 leading shares in terms of capitalization and liquidity, also fell 1.4 per cent to 103.37 points.

Market value and volume fetched VND195.24 billion ($9.2 million) and 24.3 million shares, respectively, doubling yesterday morning's level.

Trading will resume at 1 pm and close at 2.15 pm.

VN opens trade office in Tuscany

Viet Nam yesterday opened an economic and commercial representative office in the country's Tuscany region.

Aiming to provide better support to Italian enterprises seeking suitable partners in Viet Nam and vice versa, office head Pham Hoang Hai said he hoped the facility would help foster the relationship between Viet Nam and Italy and further develop co-operation among the two business communities.

Prolonged losses force 15 companies to delist

Fifteen companies have been forced to delist their shares on both national stock exchanges since the beginning of this year due to prolonged losses, while the number of delisted businesses are forecast to continue rising in the coming time.

According to data from both exchanges, six companies were delisted from the HCM City Stock Exchange in the first nine months, three of which were due to incurring losses for three consecutive years, including two seafood processing companies Basa (BAS) and Cadovimex (CAD) and Viky Plastic Co (VKP).

Cavico Viet Nam Mining and Construction Co (MCV) was the only company to leave due to repeated violations on information disclosure. MCV has yet to report its financial statement for the fourth quarter of last year. The company's accumulative losses over three quarters in 2011 was VND3.5 billion (US$167,000).

Two other codes also left the exchange voluntarily, including Mekophar Chemical Pharmaceutical Co (MKP) and Sai Gon Beverage Co (TRI).

Among the nine delisted companies on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, more than half were due to business losses, including Viet Hai Shipping and Real Properties (VSP), An Giang Coffee (AGC), construction Vinaconex No 11 (V11), Vung Tau Petroleum Trading and Service (VMG) and Habubank (HBB).

HBB alone cancelled 405 million listed shares, the biggest volume thus far, in order to merge into Sai Gon-Ha Noi Bank (SHB), while the others voluntarily cancelled their listings in the hopes of merging into other businesses to increase their competitiveness or to facilitate a move to the Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM).

"The reputations of companies that perform well but continually see their stock prices fall will be damaged," said Phan Dung Khanh, head of Kim Eng Viet Nam Securities Co's Analysis and Investment Consulting Division, before suggesting that their removal from the national stock exchanges represented a golden opportunity for rivals to acquire their business. "In this case, voluntary delisting is the best strategy.

The HCM City bourse recently announced the list of shares subject to possible cancellation. esides several companies risking teir listing due to consecutive losses, such as Sacombank Securities Co (SBS) and Sai Gon Cable (CSG), others plan to delist of their own accord.

According to leaders of the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the number of delisted companies is increasing but the number of companies filed to list shares has decreased on both exchanges. As of August this year, only 16 companies have registered to list shares, a fraction of the 54 registered last year and 193 in 2010.

Seafood exporters asked to renew FDA registrations

Vietnamese seafood exporters to the US must renew their registrations with the Food and Drug Administration every two years, the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers has announced.

Enterprises are required to visit the US every two years to register as an exporter.

This year the registration period runs from October 1 to December 31.

The renewal rules, which have been updated according to Section 102 of the FDA Food Safety Modernisation Act (FSMA), apply to seafood enterprises worldwide.

The FSMA, which was signed into law by President Barack Obama on January 4, 2011, aims to ensure the US food supply is safe by shifting the focus of federal regulators from responding to contamination to preventing it.

Section 102 has added more seafood types to its catalogue of fishery and seafood products and now includes various kinds of fish as a unit or fillet, products with shell, instant seafood, processed seafood and others. Enterprises will receive free registration this year.

Banks battle back with incentive scheme

The race for capital among commercial banks has become fierce after the State Bank of Viet Nam issued new regulations on the inter-bank market, which took effect on September 1.

In late August, deposit interest rates at some commercial banks in HCM City increased between 0.5 per cent and 1 per cent per year, compared with rates recorded earlier last month.

As a result, the interest rate on deposits of fewer than 12 months stands at between 11 and 12 per cent, much higher than the central bank's 9 per cent cap.

To dodge the SBV's deposit interest-rate cap, promotion programmes, gifts and cash are offered by banks to encourage people to deposit their savings.

For example, some banks give depositors savings books with an interest rate of 9 per cent per year for deposits with terms of under 12 months, as regulated.

But when the customer makes the deposit, the bank subtracts the difference between the regulated interest rate and the offered bank rate, and gives the customer upfront an amount of cash equivalent to the difference, depending on the length of the deposit term.

As regulated, banks can offer the interest rate of 12 per cent for loans with terms of more than one year.

Some lenders follow this regulation but then break it by allowing depositors to withdraw their money before the maturity date.

There are several causes for these actions, officials have said.

The general director of a bank whose head office is located in District 1 said the sharp increase in the price of gold in recent days had made capital mobilisation more difficult for banks.

In addition, the gold price on the domestic market has risen so investing in gold can bring much more profit than deposits at banks.

Some lenders said that on June 16, the SBV issued Circular No 21/2012/TT-NHNN stipulating terms for lending and borrowing, as well as the time for trading of valuable papers among credit institutions and foreign bank branches.

According to the circular, conditions for participating in the transactions on the inter-bank market include requirements on technical infrastructure, professional staff and internal provisions on operational procedures and risk management.

Also, banks would not be eligible if they were suspended indefinitely or temporarily from lending and borrowing, and had valuable papers repossessed in the inter-bank market.

They also must not have overdue loans of 10 days or more in the inter-bank market at the time of conducting transactions for borrowers. In addition, the period of the transaction must be less than one year.

Because these strict regulations have reduced opportunities for banks to get access to loans on the inter-bank market, they have to attract more capital from people's savings, according to Pham Linh, deputy director of the Orient Joint Stock Commercial Bank (OCB).

Nguyen Huu Dang, general director of HDBank, said the banks were trying to attract more capital to ensure liquidity because capital demand often increased at the end of the year, while people also tended to withdraw their deposits to prepare for the year's biggest holiday (Lunar New Year, or Tet).

A deputy director of a State-run bank, who declined to be named, said that the banks wanted to attract more people's savings in order to invest in government bonds and treasury bonds to ensure liquidity reserve.

The competition among banks on deposit interest rates has affected the central bank's policy of cutting lending interest rate.

A director of a company specialising in the manufacturing of laminate flooring products said that, although the central bank had asked the banks to lower the lending interest rate of enterprises'old loans, the company had not benefited from the policy because of the strict regulations.

The company had borrowed VND15 billion (US$714,000) from the bank at a rate of 19.5 per cent per year. To keep the lending rate on this old loan at 15 per cent, the company was asked to pay at least between 25 and 30 per cent of the loan, she said.

"If we have plentiful capital, we do not need to ask for an interest-rate reduction," she said.

Vu Dinh Phuong, chairman of the Viet Nam Fan Joint-Stock Company, said that the interest rates of his company's old loans were not cut, as regulated by the central bank.

"We have to pay all old loans worth a total of VND15 billion at the rate of 18 per cent per year in order to borrow new capital at other banks at a rate of 15 per cent per year," Phuong said.

HCM City lauds ‘success' of sales promotions

Two weeks since the launch of the sales promotion month in HCM City, participants agree that it has been a effective campaign.

They say that it has helped local companies overcome some of the difficulties caused by current economic recession.

Representatives of supermarkets who joined the promotion month said consumption had surged over the same period last year.

The Tan Quang Minh Company said consumption of its beverage, Bidrico, at supermarkets in the city had increased year-on-year by 15-20 per cent.

More than 10 days into the promotion month, his company's sales had increased by 37 per cent over September 2011, said Tran Huu Duc, director of Nutifood Viet Nam.

A Vinamilk representative told the Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that his company's sales went up by 190 per cent.

Nguyen Phuong Thao, director of Maximark Cong Hoa, a supermarket outlet in Tan Binh District, said sales in the first week of the promotion month was much better than expected.

Compared to the same month last year, her company's revenue had increased by 10-20 per cent, she said.

The Co-opMart achieved even higher growth.

In the second week of the month, the supermarket chain's sales figures surged year-on-year by 45 per cent. Cosmetics, food and foodstuff items were the bestsellers, company representatives said.

In fact, individual retailers have taken advantage of discounts of up to 50 per cent to buy many products that they can sell at their shops.

Dang Van To, the owner of a small retail shop in District 12, said he had bought many products at discounted prices from Co-opMart Thang Loi.

He would stock these at home and sell to local residents later, he said.

To explained that he usually bought a box of chilly sauce at a wholesale price of VND9,000 and sold it for VND9,500. At the supermarket, however, the promotion price was just VND8,300.

So To spent VND5 million (US$238) to stock up on the chilly sauce.

The sales promotion month, launched in HCM City on August 31, has been joined by 750 businesses.

During the campaign, 10 groups of goods and services, including textile and garments, foodstuff and beverages, cosmetics, electronics, tourism and banking services, are being sold at over 2,700 stalls at various venues with discounts ranging from five to 50 per cent.

Beverage plant breaks ground

It was enough to get the juices flowing yesterday as a number of famous faces gathered to see work begin on the highly anticipated Number One beverage factory.

Constructors broke the ground on the 26ha Ha Nam site, set to become the biggest non-alcohol beverage factory in Northern Viet Nam to date, while dignitaries including the Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung looked on.

With a total investment of almost VND2 trillion (US$95.2 million) made by Tan Hiep Phat Group, the state of the art complex features cutting edge European technology, providing an annual output of 600 million litres per year.

According to the investor, the project is divided into two phases, with the first stage of production expected to be operational by the end of next year. When the factory is in full operation by 2020, it will contribute VND800 billion ($38.1 million) to the State Budget and give jobs to 2,000 local workers.

Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai praised efforts of the Ha Nam Province in attracting investments over the past five years and making it a reliable destination for domestic and foreign investors.

Hai highlighted the previous efforts of clearing the land and training workers for the project and urged the province to continue supporting the construction of the project.

The Deputy PM also suggested the investor focuses resources on construction to maintain the working schedule while simultaneously ensuring food and environmental safety.

The factory will sit in the Kien Khe Industrial Complex I in Kien Khe Commune, Thanh Liem District, Ha Nam Province.

Port investor Vinalines sacked

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai has agreed with the Transport Ministry's proposal to halt the construction of Van Phong International Transshipment Port invested by the Viet Nam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) in central Khanh Hoa Province after three years of delay.

He also urged the Viet Nam Marine Administration to seek new investors for the construction project.

Since 2007, the project was listed as one of the key national transport projects that the Vietnamese Government aimed to complete by 2020. Its construction, which included 37 wharves with a length of over 12.5km, was estimated to cost about US$3.6 billion.

The first phase of the project included the construction of two wharves with total length of 690 metres. It began in October 2009 and was expected to be completed last year. However, due to its investor's financial incompetence, the project got progressively more and more behind schedule.

Since the middle of last year, the Government has been asking the investor – Vinalines – to adjust its plan for the first phase. Accordingly, Vinalines recommended expanding the port to be able to handle container ships up to 12,000 TEU [twenty-foot equivalent units] to take advantage of deep Van Phong Bay instead of 9,000 TEU as in the original design.

However, the company failed to finalise these adjustments.

Deputy director of the Van Phong Economic Zone Management Board Hoang Dinh Phi told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that he was not surprised by the halt because since construction started in 2009, little work had been done except driving some stakes into the sea.

Although Van Phong International Port was selected as a key project to drive the growth of the economic zone, its slow progress forced Khanh Hoa province to change the zone development plan, he said.

Phi said that now the province was concentrating on other projects including a thermal power plant, ship building, an oil refinery and a non-tariff area instead of waiting for the completion of the long-delayed port project.

Van Phong International Transshipment Port project is the first of its kind in Viet Nam. At present, Viet Nam has about 260 ports but few can handle large container ships. Last year, Viet Nam's Cai Mep International Port Terminal in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province saw one of the world's largest container ships, the CMA CGM Laperouse, which has a capacity of 13,830 TEU. It's the largest ship that has ever docked in a Vietnamese port.

Japan investment to increase
 
Japanese entrepreneurs were apprised about investment oppor-tunities in Viet Nam, especially in support industries and in industrial zones, at a forum held in Tokyo on Thursday.

Speaking at the forum organised by the Ministry of Investment and Planning and the Vietnamese embassy, Ambassador Doan Xuan Hung pointed out that ties between the two nations were strengthening in many fields like politics, tourism, and economy.

Viet Nam was amending policies to develop support industries and seeking to boost co-operation with Japanese companies, so investment opportunities have been set to increase, he said.

Deputy Minister of the Planning and Investment Nguyen Van Trung said improving investment quality and the socio-economic situation were among the Vietnamese Government's goals.

To achieve them, he said, it would focus on developing key industries including support industries to increase the rate of use of local components in manufacturing and improve the competitiveness of Viet-namese products.

The country had built many economic and industrial zones to attract more foreign investment, he said.

Twenty years after the first one was built, the country now has 280 industrial and processing zones and 15 marine economic zones.

Vietnamese officials said they realise that Japanese companies were moving to Southeast Asia, so Viet Nam was working to improve the investment environment to meet their needs.

Japanese investors heard about investment oppor-tunities in and the advantages offered by places like Hai Phong city and Thua Thien-Hue, Phu Yen, and Ba Ria-Vung Tau Provinces. They also heard about the many programmes for developing support indus-tries.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment said Japan remained one of the top investors in Viet Nam.

As of the end of July, Japanese companies had invested US$28 billion in more than 1,700 projects.

Securities firms suspended for violations

The Viet Nam Securities Depository has decided to suspend the operations of Trang An Securities JSC and Golden Bridge Viet Nam Securities JSC for flouting regulations.

The suspension, effective until month end, follows repeated delays by the companies in meeting their securities payment obligations and failure to repay loans to the Settlement Compensation Fund in time.

The watchdog has ordered the two companies to pay the fund within five working days.

The VSD's fund is used in case of delays in the inter-bank money transfer system.

The depository is a repository for electronic shares and oversees transactions in shares.

Bad debt level for listing eligibility under 3%

Credit institutions with a bad debt ratio of 3 per cent will not be allowed to list shares on the stock market, according to a State Bank circular which will take effect on October 29.

The regulated ratio is supervised during the two quarters prior to the proposal to list shares.

Additional criteria include at least two years of operation, making profits for the two years prior to the proposal and facing no administrative penalties.

Blue-chips to be tracked by foreign index

Seven blue-chips of the Vietnamese stock market were selected to be tracked by an exchange-traded fund (ETF) governed by US investment management company iShares.

They were property developer Vingroup (VIC), food processor Masan (MSN), Sacombank (STB), Phu My Fertiliser (DPM), Vietcombank (VCB), Vietinbank (CTG) and insurer Bao Viet (BVH). The seven stocks accounted for 2.4 per cent of the fund's total value.

iShare previously applied to the US Securities Exchange Commission to establish an ETF called iShares MSCI Viet Nam Investable Market Index Fund. However, there has been no sign that the fund has yet gone into operation.

Government bond sale successful

More than 70 per cent of Government bonds with terms of two, three, five and ten years in an auction this week successfully found buyers.

Specifically, around VND2.5 trillion (US$119 million) worth of bonds was raised out of the total of VND3.5 trillion ($166.6 million). The bonds yield between 9.4-9.79 per cent per year.

According to the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the State Treasury has raised nearly VND145.3 trillion ($6.9 billion) worth of bonds since earlier this year.

MBV introduces lubricant, new SUV

Mercedes-Benz owners nationwide will be able to operate their vehicles with the company's own engine lubricant that reduces friction and fuel consumption, and maintains high performance levels.

The engine lubricant boasts highly effective additives to extend the engine life and reduces pollutant emissions. It is sold at a competitive price at Mercedes-Benz Vietnam (MBV) dealers nationwide.

The company has also launched a new version of the GLK sport-utility-vehicle in the Vietnamese market, following its introduction in Germany and the US. From September 7 – 30, customers will receive a discount of 5 per cent for any sedan purchase.

Ocean Bank turns tide with loan offers

Ocean Bank has launched five new credit products by enabling customers to gain very fast access to loans.

The initiative was implemented within four hours of the launch of the products, which include loans for state employees, students and car and motorbikes buyers. Passbook loans for mortgages will also be available.

The bank has recently conducted other incentive programmes, such as slashing the interest rate to 9 per cent per year for consumption borrowers.

HSBC chases card applicants

HSBC Bank (Viet Nam) has unveiled its latest promotion to attract credit card applicants. Customers will have the chance to win a round-trip ticket to Hong Kong from Viet Nam. Lucky winners will also enjoy discounts at the country's leading shopping outlets. Jet-setting cardholders will also benefit from over 19,000 shopping, dining, travelling and entertainment privileges worldwide.

For every HSBC Credit Card application submitted from September 7 to December 3 (and approved by December 12) there is a prize draw, with 88 return tickets to Hong Kong from Ha Noi or HCM City up for grabs.-

Jackson's dad tells project in VN: beat it

The King of Pop's father, Joseph Walter Jackson has mysteriously pulled the plug on his involvement with southern province Long An's Happyland Project, the largest tourism project in Southeast Asia.

The former manager of the Jackson 5 claimed he had been attached to the US$2bn project in an investment and consultancy role, but an announcement on his family's website said he was cutting his ties to the scheme.

"Mr Jackson has decided not to proceed with any further investment or involvement in Project Happyland Viet Nam," the statement said.

No reason was given for his withdrawal.

However, Nguyen Huu Viet, PR deputy director of project owner Khang Thong Group said Joseph had not invested any money and acted only as a consultant, persuading foreign investors to back the construction of a five-star hotel with 1,000 rooms.

"Joseph signed a Memorandum of Understanding to become our consultant; he is not our investor," said Viet . "Through Joseph's efforts, two American investors have come to Viet Nam to meet us, however we were unable to reach any agreements."

He added that Joseph's decision to quit had no negative repercussions for the large scale project.

"We have attracted over 10 investors so far, some are from Sweden, Japan and South Korea, while others are also showing a keen interest in the project," he added.

The $2 billion 669-ha project will feature a chain of hotels, cinemas and restaurants as well as a boardwalk and water park when it opens in 2014. The project, claimed to be inspired by Michael Jackson's Neverland Valley Ranch, hopes to attract 14 million domestic and foreign visitors annually. The construction started in February last year.

Malaysia makes waves in HCM City

Malaysian businesses have poured US$5.8 billion into 169 investment projects in HCM City.

Malaysia is the largest trader in Viet Nam with bilateral trade between the two countries reaching more than $6.5 billion in 2011.

Frozen-food firms seek time out

Five Vietnamese importers of frozen food have asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade to allow them to temporarily stop re-exporting their products.

The companies making the request are joint stock company 26, Dai Nam single-member Ltd company, Phu Kim Ltd Company, Thai Chi Ltd Company and VPG Joint Stock Company.

The Ministry has required the General Department of Customs to confirm the volume of imported food that has not yet been re-exported from Viet Nam.

Da Nang property swallows FDI

About 70 per cent of foreign direct investment (FDI) in central Da Nang City has been spent on real estate projects, the city's Planning and Investment Department has reported.

The city has attracted 218 FDI projects with a capital of US$3.45 billion. $2.1 billion of this sum was invested in real estate.

Since early this year, 165 of Da Nang's FDI enterprises have created over 38,000 jobs with an average monthly income of VND2.8 million ($133). Da Nang's administration has asked the Ministry of Planning and Investment to call for funding from the Asia Development Bank so that construction may begin on the 1,100km East-West Economic Corridor No 2 that will link Da Nang port with Quang Nam province, Boloven in Laos and Bangkok, Thailand.-

VN promotes nuclear peace

Viet Nam will co-operate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other international oganisations in all nuclear energy related issues for peaceful purposes, said Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Quan yesterday at the 56th annual IAEA General Assembly in Austria.

During his presentation, Quan informed participants that Viet Nam's President had approved the supplementary protocol and necessary documents to join the IAEA's Convention on Physical Protection of Nuclear Material.

Regarding the country's nuclear power issue, the minister said that Viet Nam was exerting every effort to implement its nuclear power projects in accordance with IAEA's regulations on nuclear safety.

Currently, feasibility studies are being conducted for the country's two nuclear power plants with co-operation from Russia and Japan.

The same day, Minister Quan separately held bilateral talks with Japan, France and Russia on nuclear co-operation.

Trans-national cable network launched in Vietnam

The Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) and its Chinese partner, the China Mobile Communications Corporation, have launched a trans-national optical cable network to connect with China.    

The first phase will be operated using Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) technology, with a design speed of 10Gb/s, which will be 40Gb/s at the end of the second phase.

According to Pham Long Tran from VNPT, to become one of the 20 largest telecommunications operators in Asia by 2020, the group is keen to form partnerships with neighbouring companies to expand its business in foreign markets.

First established in early 1990, VNPT is Vietnam’s leading telecoms group providing a range of international telecommunications services including broadband, data and fixed-line services.

Industrial product exports increase sharply

Industrial product exports in the first eight months of this year rose by 30.7 percent compared to the same period in 2011, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.    

Products manufactured by foreign-invested businesses, including cell phones, cameras, computers, and electronics contributed over US$4.5 billion to the export turnover.

Several products from domestic businesses also showed high growth. Plastics rose 67.8 percent, transport vehicles and components 55.9 percent, machinery and equipment 43.5 percent, and iron and steel products 34.9 percent.

The export value of footwear increased 17.4 percent, while garments went up only 8.7 percent.  

East Asia mobile applications lab debuts in HCM City

Saigon Hi-Tech Park (SHTP) inaugurated the mobile applications laboratory (mLab) East Asia on September 17 to promote creativity and help businesses and individuals develop mobile applications.

With a total of US$380,000 in investment capital sourced from the Nokia company and the Dutch government, the project aims to create an open space for hi-tech entrepreneurs to work and develop mobile applications.

It will also give their careers a boost by helping them seek out potential projects, offering professional services and, technical training, and connecting entrepreneurs with markets, various communities and investors.

All mLab facilities will be funded by major telephone companies including Nokia, Blackberry, and HTC. MLab East Asia will also be linked to mLab networks in Kenya, Armenia and South Africa.

At the ceremony, the organizing board presented awards to the winners of the m2Work Hackathon 2012 contest launched by infoDev, an annual World Bank Global Partnership Program. The competition took place on September 15-16 at SHTP, attracting nearly 500 programmers and developing 15 commercialized applications.

Nearly 47,000 newly established enterprises

As many as 6.100 enterprises were established with a total registered capitalization of VND73.6 trillion in August, up 3.3 percent compared to the previous month, according to the Government Office’s report.    

Since early this year, the whole country has seen more than 46,000 newly established, higher than the number of businesses who had to break up or temporarily stop operating.

Industrial production has changed much for the better. The Index of Industrial Products (IIP) in the first eight months rose 4.7 percent over the same period last year, while the volume of goods in stock decreased by 20.8 percent.

HCMC opens export showrooms

Special showrooms that will display various export products of Vietnam have opened in Ho Chi Minh City this September, informed the Investment and Trade Promotion Center (ITPC).

The export showrooms will allow enterprises to present and promote their products, exchange and share information, meet and seek business opportunities with each other in various fields such as garment and textile, shoes, food products, handicraft and gift items.

The showrooms will be officially opened by the end of September on 51 Dinh Tien Hoang and 92-96 Nguyen Hue Streets in District 1 in the City.

Ten Vietnamese businesses among top 500 retailers in Asia-Pacific

Ten Vietnamese enterprises have made it on the list of top 500 most successful retailers in the Asian-Pacific region, informed the organizers Saigon Gemstone and Jewelry Company Limited (SJC), and Euromonitor, the Journal of Asian retail and market research group.

This is the second consecutive year that the Saigon Gemstone and Jewelry Company has been honored with the Gold Award for best retailing company in Vietnam, and listed among the top 500 retailers in the Asia-Pacific region for 2012.

This year, ten Vietnamese retailers have entered the Top 500 list, namely, Saigon Gemstone  and Jewelry Company (SJC); Coop Mart supermarket chain; Phu Nhuan Jewelry Company (PNJ); Big C supermarket chain; Nguyen Kim electronics company; Mobile World;  Telecommunications A ( Vien thong A ) supermarkets; Parkson Trade Center; Fahasa Publishing Corporation; and the TCT Group.

The selection of the top 500 retailers in the Asia-Pacific region is made on the basis of rankings through research and survey results by business enterprises in 14 countries and territories, taking into account criterions such as retail sales, growth of retail business and number of stores.

Based on the above information, the organizers select the best 500 enterprises in the Asia-Pacific region and the top 10 in each country.

Favourable conditions assured for German businesses

Vietnam will always create favourable conditions for businesses from Germany in general and the State of Hesse in particular to invest in Vietnam , Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan has said.

During a reception in Hanoi on September 17 for former Governor of the Hessen state Roland Koch, Nhan also spoke highly of Koch’s contributions to making Germany become Vietnam ’s largest trade partner in the European Union, expressing his hope that the former governor will continue to further boost Vietnam-Germany partnership.

He said he believes that Hessen authorities will continue supporting Vietnam in the fields of education and vocational training.

Koch affirmed that the Hessen authorities always do their best to contribute to developing the two countries’ strategic partnership

Techcombank opens new head quarter

Today, Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Techcombank) officially opened its new head quarter, Techcombank Tower, at 191 Ba Trieu, Hanoi.

The location was formerly known as the office block of Vincom B tower. This is a remarkable event marking the continuous development of Techcombank in its 19 years of history along which the core value of putting “customer first” has always been embraced.

Located at the prestigious downtown of Hanoi, the new head quarter of Techcombank is undoubtedly going to provide customers with a friendly, professional, and classy service environment. Besides, with a capacity of 2000 persons, the new head quarter meets the demands of an ever faster growing Techcombank at the present and in the coming years.

Simon Morris, CEO of Techcombank, said: "A significant investment for a new head quarter in a prime location in order to meet the development needs of Techcombank in this new stage clearly expressed the confidence, support and the commitment for long-term investment of the Board of Directors as well as the bank's shareholders to bring greater success to Techcombank in the future."

Since its establishment on September 27, 1993, Techcombank has experienced the relocation of its head quarter three times, each of which marks a milestone in its growth and development process. Techcombank has become one of the leading commercial joint stock banks in the market with nation-wide network of 314 branches/TSO’s, 1,250 ATMs, and nearly 7,300 strong staff. Currently, the bank is trusted to serves 2.6 million and around 72,000 business clients.

Techcombank has received 19 prestigious awards from international financial – banking magazines in recognition of its sustained efforts, which coincide with the bank’s 19th anniversary at the end of this month.

In the grand opening ceremony, the representatives of Finance Asia and Asian Banking & Finance presented the awards to Techcombank. Given its achievements, Techcombank is the first bank in Vietnam to receive all the three important awards from the two magazines - Best Bank in Vietnam, Best Cash Management Bank in Vietnam and Best Trade Finance Bank in Vietnam.

Idemitsu to oil up lubricant market

Japanese petroleum giant Idemitsu Kosan will expand its footprint in Vietnam.

Idemitsu Kosan will open a lubricant manufacturing and sales company in northern Haiphong port city to tap into growing demand for motorcycle engine oil and will start blending lubricating oil in Vietnam from January 2014.

The newly minted firm will have the total chartered capital of $23.3 million to produce engine oil for motorcycles and automobiles, general industrial lubricants and related products.

Idemitsu officials said the plant was in line with its corporate priority of “enhancing functional materials business.” Entering into overseas lubricant markets has also been identified as one of Idemitsu’s investment priorities over the next three years.

The firm said Vietnam had good growth fundamentals and in 2010 the number of motorcycles sold in Vietnam reached 3.8 million units. Demand for high-performance lubricants including oil for motorcycles is expected to continue to increase at a constant rate in Vietnam.

A representative of the new firm, said its lubricant blending facilities would cover 60,000 square metres with a manufacturing capacity of approximately 35 million litres of lubricants per year in Haiphong’s Dinh Vu-Cat Hai Economic Zone.

“Under the investment certificate, our project operation time is 46 years and construction will start in November 2012 and we launch first commercial products in 2014,” said the representative.

Idemitsu Kosan will target a lubricant sales volume of 20,000 litres per year and an annual turnover of $35 million by 2015.

Tokyo-based Idemitsu Kosan labeled Vietnam as a “core business” interest in its 2011 financial consolidated report, mainly as a result of its significant investment in Nghi Son oil refinery project which fulfills its strategy aimed at “business expansion through entry into growing overseas markets.”

The Nghi Son oil refinery, about 200 kilometres south of Hanoi, is slated to be operational by 2014 and have an oil crude refining capacity of 200,000 barrels per day.

Idemitsu Kosan holds a 35.1 per cent stake in Nghi Son as part of an international consortium tasked with developing the project. Kuwait Petroleum International, a unit of state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp, holds 35.1 per cent, while Vietnam’s state-run PetroVietnam and Japan’s Mitsui Chemicals Inc. own 25.1 and 4.7 per cent, respectively.

Conde Nast Traveller votes the Nam Hai as Best Overseas Spa Hotel

The UK’s leading travel magazine has recognized the Nam Hai Resort in the central province of Quang Nam as the winner of its 2012 Reader’s Travel Award.

Almost 24,000 votes were cast in 23 categories including ‘Best Overseas Spa Hotel,’ which went to The Nam Hai “thanks to remarkably high marks for accommodation, ambience and restaurants,” according to the publication’s editors.

Other contenders for the prestigious prize included last year’s winner, Six Senses Samui in Thailand. The full list of finalists will be revealed in the October issue.

“We’ve always strived to offer the very best quality, service and amenities in order to stand out from other resorts,” said Ed Linsley, general manager of The Nam Hai. “This award proves to us that we’ve been on the right track, and serves as motivation for us to keep moving in that direction.”

Since opening in December 2006 on a beach Forbes once called one of the world’s most luxurious stretches of sand”. The Nam Hai has been recognized by Conde Nast Publications several times.

In 2007, the resort earned a spot on Conde Nast Traveler’s annual Hot List. In 2010 and 2011, it made the magazine’s “Top 20 Resorts in Asia” list./.

Hoang Quan markets Cheery 3 condo project

Hoang Quan Real Estate Co. late last week marketed 304 flats in the first round of sales of the Cheery 3 Apartment project in HCMC’s outlying district of Hoc Mon after three months of construction being started.

Covering a total area of nearly 12,000 square meters, the project in Xuan Thoi Dong Commune has a 17-storey apartment building plus a commercial section with total investment capital of VND650 billion. It is set for completion in the third quarter of 2014 with 721 condos of 50-80 square meters priced from VND625 million a unit.

Target customers of the housing scheme are low- and middle-income people, so the company applies an installment plan. Buyers can take out loans accounting for up to 70% of a flat’s price from BIDV over a period of 15 years.

The Cheery 3 Apartment is developed by Hoc Mon Trade JSC as part of the overall 25-hectare plan “Residential area - Hoc Mon wholesale agro-product and foodstuff market” but Hoang Quan has recently purchased a majority of the project.

Hoang Quan is also the project owner of Cheery 1 in District 2 and Cheery 2 in District 12.

Free color mixer software for MyKolor clients

Consumers owning smartphones or tablet computers running on IOs or Android operating system can choose paint colors and ways to mix colors for their homes thanks to Kolormax 3.0 software which can be freely downloaded from Apple Stores.

With such a unique marketing method, MyKolor brand of the Thai-based paint company 4 Oranges last week attracted the attention of many visitors and local media at the International Exhibition of Construction, Building Materials, Housing and Interior Decor 2012 (Vietbuild 2012) in HCMC’s District 11.

Speaking with the Daily, Pham Hoang Trung, marketing deputy director of 4 Oranges, said the software could be downloaded free of charge from Apple Stores from Sunday. “With an iPhone, a Samsung Galaxy or an iPad, you can take photos of any houses you like and then you can use the software to choose and mix colors for the most favorite for the houses,” Trung explained.

People can also find the nearest MyKolor store via the global positioning system with the software, he added.

The Thai producer now has four brands available in Vietnam, namely MyKolor, Expo, Spec and Boss.  It now has over 1,500 sales agents specialized in automatically blending and mixing colors nationwide, with 500 stores for MyKolor brand.

Investors turn eyes to Myanmar
 
Vietnamese businesses and exporters gathered at a conference held on Thursday in HCM City that discussed current market conditions in Myanmar.

Organised by Irving Seminar&Training, the conference aimed to help Vietnamese businesses better approach the market.

Robert Easson, CEO of Imagino Group, said that Myanmar was the second-largest country in Southeast Asia with rich natural resources such as arable land, forestry, minerals, natural gas, freshwater and marine resources, and a leading source of gems and jade.

"The country is expected to attain GDP growth of 6 per cent this year and to experience sustained exponential growth within a few years. Economists project between 7-10 per cent GDP growth for the next few years," he said.

Myanmar's President Thein Sein wants to triple GDP by 2016.

Easson said that Viet Nam and Myanmar had agreed to boost cooperation in trade and investment, with two-way trade expected to reach $500 million in 2015.

Myanmar has many strengths and opportunities, including a large youth population that provides a low-cost labour force attractive to foreign investmen. It has huge tourism potential as well as a strategic location.

The country borders five countries, China, Thailand, India, Laos, and Bangladesh, all of which account for 40 per cent of the world population, making it a lucrative market for foreign businesses, including Vietnamese.

However, Easson said Myanmar still faced many constraints, including weak macroeconomic management and lack of experience with market mechanisms, underdeveloped financial sectors and inadequate infrastructure, particularly in transport and access to electricity and telecommunications.

Low levels of education and health achievement also hinder the development of the country.

Trading activities are made more difficult as well because of a weak banking system. Myanmar has a total of 19 private and three state-owned banks.

International banking is possible, but international ATM cards are not accepted in the country.

Office and apartment rentals are not plentiful and serviced apartments are rare and expensive because of the level of taxes. Renters are charged 12 months in advance.

Christopher Muessel, partner of VDB| Loi, said that, as of July, the top 10 foreign-investment sectors with the best potential in Mynamar were oil and gas, power, mining, hotel and tourism, manufacturing, real estate, industrial estates, agriculture, transport and communication, and livestock and fisheries.

According to the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration, more than $31 billion has been poured into 10 sectors as of July 2012.

New markets that have a great deal of potential for investors are information and communications technology, Fast-Moving Consumer Goods, pharmaceuticals, insurance and financial services.

Mobile penetration and internet usage, however, still remain low, with 1.5 per cent and 0.2 per cent, respectively.

At the conference, Andrew Langdon, senior vice-president Indochina (Thailand and Viet Nam) for Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels of Myanmar Hotel and Tourism market, said the tourism market was still in its infancy.

The Government is taking steps to foster long-term sustainable growth, including efforts to lower hotel rates for leisure visitors by implementing a rate cap.

Tourism websites have been vastly improved, and the Government is working towards introducing a formal hotel star-rating classification.

Two major events will be held in Myanmar in the next few years.

In 2013, the country will host the World Economic Forum and the Southeast Asian Games with events located in NayPyiTaw, Yangon and Mandalay.

If Yangon City visitors grow at the same CAGR (compound annual growth rate) as that of HCM City, which is 13 per cent per year, Yangon is expected to reach 3.5 million visitors in 14 years.

Speaking at the conference, Edwin Vanderbruggen, partner at VDB| Loi, discussed tax and investment issues as they have been related to investment structuring in Myanmar.

The Corporate Income Tax (CIT) is 25 per cent for Myanmar companies, foreign-owned resident companies, joint-ventures and non-resident foreign companies engaged in special State-sponsored projects.

Thirty-five per cent of CIT is for branch offices, except in cases when they re granted an investment permit by the Myanmar Investment Commission. In those cases, they receive 25 per cent CIT.

Tax exemptions under the Foreign Investment Law exist for three years, and they are expected to be extended to five years under the new Foreign Investment Law.

Malika Bhumivarn, regional director of Bryan Cave International Trade Pte Ltd's Customs&Trade, who also spoke at the conference, discussed export and import matters.

Imports of material, machinery and equipment in Export Processing Zones in Myanmar are exempted from customs duties and other tariffs.

Imports of machinery and motor vehicles to be used in businesses are exempted from customs duties and other tariffs for a five-year period, commencing from the year of operation. They also have 50-per-cent relief of customs duty and other tariffs for a five-year period.