First tower of Blooming Tower slated for completion in October

The structural construction on the first tower of the Blooming Tower project will officially be completed in October 2015, according to Sin Yong Kyu, General Director of the Korea Investment & Development on August 18.

Sin Young Kyu said the construction on the second tower of the Blooming Tower project will begin later this year, and is expected to be completed by 2017.

“We have completed construction on the 32nd floor of the first tower and pledged to finish the project as scheduled. We hope to receive further support and cooperation from Da Nang authorities to complete the project very soon”, said Mr Young Kyu.

Covering on a total  area of 11,000 square metres, the US$90 million Blooming Tower project includes 37-floor twin tower with 671 apartments, offices, a shopping mall, car parking, and entertainment venues.

Binh Duong moves to facilitate RoK investment

Deputy Chairman of the Binh Duong People's Committee delivers a speech at the meeting with RoK businesses. Photo: VNA

Leaders of the southern province of Binh Duong have addressed concerns raised by representatives from more than 70 businesses from the Republic of Korea (RoK) operating in the locality.

At a meeting on August 18, officials from provincial agencies and the local electricity company answered in details Korean business people’s questions on unscheduled power outages, rising electricity prices, intellectual property rights, procedures to grant work permits to foreign workers and facility leases at industrial parks.

Park Noh Wan, RoK Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, spoke highly of Binh Duong for regularly organising meetings with RoK businesses, which he said has helped promote cooperation and untangle knots.

The Consulate General will partner with the RoK Business Association’s Chapter in Binh Duong to call for more investments from the country.

With 515 projects worth a total of 2 billion USD, the RoK now ranks third among countries and territories investing in Binh Duong. Korean investors have poured 134.2 million USD into 25 new projects and 14 existing projects in the province this year so far.

Can Tho to host Mekong Connect-CEO Forum 2015

A large-scale Mekong Connect-CEO Forum will be held for the first time in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho on September 4, announced the organising board during a press conference on August 18.

The forum, jointly organised by the Association of High-Quality Vietnamese Goods Producers and the four Mekong Delta localities of An Giang, Ben Tre, Can Tho and Dong Thap, is expect to attract 500 entrepreneurs and about 100 leaders of ministries and localities as well as economic experts.

Twenty economists and CEOs from successful businesses nationwide will also share their experiences at the forum.

According to Vu Kim Hanh, Chairwoman of the Association of High-Quality Vietnamese Goods Producers, the event aims to link regional enterprises for common growth.

Despite their scale, the enterprises share a common objective of improving competitiveness and engaging in the regional and global goods value chain as Vietnam moves to join free trade agreements.

Meanwhile, Vice Chairman of the Can Tho People’s Committee Truong Quang Hoai Nam reported that Can Tho is now hosting over 7,000 enterprises with total retail revenue of goods and services reaching over 4 billion USD per year.

He said Can Tho will do everything in its power to contribute to the success of the forum, which is expected to create good conditions for local enterprises to boost growth and enhance competitiveness.

During the forum, participants will also discuss different issues, including start-ups, human resources and selling farm produce.

A Club of Mekong Delta Leading Businesses is also scheduled to debut during a gala dinner within the forum’s framework, said Nam.

Covering 13 localities, the 17-million-strong Mekong Delta region contributes 17.8 percent to Vietnam’s GDP and accounts for 80 percent of the country’s rice exports and nearly 60 percent of its aquatic products exports.-

Philippine enterprises eye cooperation opportunities in Vietnam

A delegation of 15 Philippine businesses operating in food, packing and business franchises attended a trade exchange in Ho Chi Minh City on August 18 with Vietnamese enterprises to seek cooperation opportunities in the country.

Deputy Director of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Trade Promotion Department Bui Thi Thanh An said that trade exchanges between Vietnam and the Philippines have yet to meet their full potential.

Promoting connectivity between businesses will make it easier for them to seek partners, study markets and contribute to enhancing bilateral trade cooperation, especially as the ASEAN Economic Community forms by the end of this year, she added.

According to the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, there were 74 projects worth over 303 million USD invested by Philippine businesses in 16 Vietnamese localities as of June, mainly in processing and manufacturing industries.

Last year, trade reached nearly 3 billion USD, 2.3 billion USD of which came from Vietnam’s exports. Vietnam mainly sends agricultural products, seafood, food, iron and steel and component parts to the Philippines.

Techcombank’s accumulated profit for 1st half of 2015 is vnd 1,032 billion, achieving 51.6% target for 2015

In 2015, Vietnam’s economy maintains its stability and has signs of recovery, yet faces many challenges for the economy and the banking sector.

For the first half of 2015, Techcombank maintained stronger focus on customer services, developing highly competitive products to fulfill the increasing needs of customers, together with initiatives to improve efficiencies and cost control management, contributing to increase the bank’s profits.

Techcombank’s business results in 2nd Quarter of 2015 records positive, contributing to overall good performance for the first half of 2015: the accumulated profit before tax is VND 1,032 billion, up 9% over the same period, achieving 51.6% target profit in 2015. Total assets are VND 172,744 billion, up 1% versus the same period.

Customer deposit stood at VND 129,016 billion while customer lending balance stayed at VND 90,900 billion, increased by 13% against end of 2014. That is quite significant performance thanks to our efforts in cementing strategic partnership with valuable corporate customers, from which to leverage business opportunities for mutual benefits, understanding to customers’ needs, and providing innovative products with outstanding benefits for customers.

Techcombank continues to de-risk its balance sheet, improve efficiencies & asset quality, and control costs. The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) as at the end of same period increased by 22% against last year, up to 16.3 %, well in excess of the regulatory requirement of 9.0% by State bank of Vietnam.

Looking forward, Techcombank will continue to focus on sustainable development, innovative products with superior customer service, and solid growth underpinned by robust risk management practices.

Vinasun launches taxi app

Taxi operator Vinasun Corp has launched a taxi app in the central Da Nang City to compete with expansion of global taxi apps such as Uber.

Vinasun App can be installed in iOS, Android and Windows-based devices.

The application allows users to book cabs, save information about the drivers as well as the fare and travel duration, and to pay both in cash and with cards.

The app is being launched in Da Nang on a trial basis and will be used in HCM City by the end of the year, along with other localities such as Dong Nai, Binh Duong and Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Tran Anh Minh, who manages Vinasun App, said.

In case the passengers call taxi operators instead of using the app, Vinasun's system will send an SMS with similar information to them.

After the trip, passengers can give feedback on the taxi service via the new app.

Vinasun accepts payment via Visa, Master, ATM and Vinasun cards, as well as coupons and cash.

Uber, an American taxi "app" service, offers low-cost rides in expensive unmarked cars. Customers use the "app" to register the route they want to take, and the system connects them to available drivers.

Those using the Uber network pay on average about 20 per cent less than regulated cab fares, but are required to use international currency cards such as MasterCard and Visa.

The Uber network, launched in 2009, operates in 232 cities in 50 countries. It began operating in Viet Nam in July, rapidly expanding in HCM City and Ha Noi by beating established taxi services in both price and availability.

At Vinasun's shareholders' meeting last year, Deputy Director General of Vinasun Tran Anh Minh said Uber's low-cost policy and promotion programmes were among the key reasons that could make the company's 2015 profits fall.

Regarding the launch of the new Vinasun app, Minh said he believed the app would be able to compete with other taxi apps because it targeted all kinds of customers.

The HCM City Department of Science and Technology too launched late last year a taxi booking and management app, called LiveTaxi, which can be downloaded on mobile devices, amid the expansion of taxi apps such as Uber, GrabTaxi and EasyTaxi.

Vinasun earned more than VND3.6 trillion (US$162 million) in revenue in 2014, a 19 per cent year-on-year increase.

The company has set a revenue target of VND3.9 trillion ($176 million) for this year, a three per cent year-on-year increase. However, profit is predicted to fall 15 per cent to touch VND266 billion ($12 million).

It plans to buy some 1,100 new cars to bring the total cars in its service to more than 6,100 by the end of 2015.

Vinhomes Central Park introduced to South Koreans

Last week, Vinhomes 1 Real Estate Trading LLC, in collaboration with CBRE Vietnam, held an event to introduce the Vinhomes Central Park project to South Korean customers.

Along with other foreign customers, many experts have predicted that South Korean customers will increase foreign capital flows to Vietnam’s real estate market.

This is the second time Vinhomes Central Park has been introduced to foreign homebuyers, following on from another successful event that took place in July, and the first time an event has been held specifically aimed at South Korean homebuyers, who were introduced to the project’s Landmark 1, Landmark 2, Landmark 4, Landmark 5, and Landmark 81- the tallest building in Vietnam.

Questions relating to ownership and legal procedures after the amended Law on Housing allowing foreigners to buy homes in Vietnam took effect in July were of most interest to South Korean homebuyers at the event. Such questions have also been of concern to other potential foreign homebuyers that have spoken with CBRE about Vinhomes Central Park after it was first introduced to foreigners in July.

Mr. Han Jee Sook, a South Korea customer, said that not only does it have an impressive design but Vinhomes Central Park also has a prime location in the center of Ho Chi Minh City. “The prestige of the investor is one of the most important factors when buying a house,” he said. “After living in Vietnam for a long time I believe in the projects of Vingroup. I’m interested in Vinhomes Central Park because it is near my workplace and, moreover, it has schools for my children.”

It is clear to see that the amended Law on Housing has created the conditions for not only Mr. Han but also many other South Korean families to own a house and live and work permanently in Vietnam, rather than renting and perhaps having to move many times.

Vinhomes Central Park is the first complex project developed by Vingroup in Ho Chi Minh City this year. The project’s advantages include a prime location and convenient transport. With road and, in the near future, railway transport readily available, together with an international hospital, schools, sport centers, parks and a green riverside park on 14 ha, and modern shopping centers, Vinhomes Central Park is a modern and dynamic “small city”. Its location and facilities meet the increasing requirements of customers from South Korea.

Mr. Marc Townsend, Managing Director of CBRE Vietnam, believes that the demand to buy a house in Vietnam, especially among South Korea customers, is on the increase thanks to the amended Law on Housing and the Law on Real Estate Business. “With just a valid visa, buyers can fully own a pleasant apartment in Vietnam,” he said.

According to the Embassy of South Korea in Vietnam, South Korean residents have lived and worked in the country since 1992, when relations between the two were established. Since then the South Korean community has grown quickly. There are now more than 100,000 South Korean citizens living and working in the country, of which most live in Ho Chi Minh City. Vietnam has the fourth-largest South Korean community in the world, following the US, Japan and China.

It is expected that the real estate demand among South Koreans will rise rapidly in the future. Vinhomes and CBRE believe the project’s products more than meet the requirements of these customers.

Japanese ODA loans sought for transport projects

The Ministry of Transport has worked with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to compile a list of transport projects in which overseas development assistance (ODA) loans will be sought from the Japanese Government for the 2015-2017 fiscal period.

Loans this year are estimated at $812.68 million, to fund four projects: infrastructure at Lach Huyen Port in northern Hai Phong city, the Tan Vu - Lach Huyen Expressway in Hai Phong, the Da Nang - Quang Ngai Highway, and the central Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) for the northern highway network, in Bac Ninh province.

In 2016 loans are estimated at $650.97 million for six projects: additional funding for the Ben Luc - Long Thanh Highway connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai province, construction of a bridge on the Hanoi - Ho Chi Minh City railway, road safety projects on southern national roads, stretches of the North - South Highway, a railway tunnel at Hai Van Pass between Da Nang and Hue, and the My Thuan II Bridge in the Mekong Delta's Tien Giang province.

Loans totaling $803.15 million are being sought for 2017, providing additional funding for the Gia Lam - Giap Bat and Giap Bat - Ngoc Hoi urban railway lines in Hanoi and the railway tunnel at Hai Van Pass. Four new projects seeking loans are the Trang Bom - Hoa Hung railway connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai, the Nha Trang - Phan Thiet Highway (part of the North-South Highway, credit for the transport sector to improve the national road network, and the funding of a feasibility study and engineering design and bidding support during the investment phase of the Long Thanh International Airport in Dong Nai province.

Trade deficit with China widening

In the first seven months of 2015 total imports from China reached nearly $28.4 billion, a 20 per cent increase compared with same period last year, according to Vietnam Customs. Vietnam’s exports to China, meanwhile, increased only $9 billion, or 5 per cent.

The trade deficit with China for the period stood at $19.4 billion; $14.9 billion higher year-on-year and equal to 67 per cent of the trade deficit with the country in 2014.

Rising imports include raw materials for garments and shoes, steel, computers, electronic products, household electrical goods, phones and components, machinery, equipment, tools, and spare parts. Vietnam also imported more than 18,000 motor vehicles from China in the first seven months, mostly trucks, a three-fold increase over the same period last year and costing $696 million.

China remains the major market for Vietnam’s agriculture exports, such as seafood, vegetables, and rice. Total export of these commodities in the first seven months reached nearly $2 billion, more or less the same as last year.

Vietnam’s total exports in the first seven months stood at $91.76 billion, 9 per cent higher year-on-year. Imports were $95.28 billion, an increase of 16 per cent, for an overall trade deficit of $3.52 billion, or 3.8 per cent of total exports, which comes within the government’s goal of less than 5 per cent. The trade deficit with China is 5.5 times higher than the total trade deficit.

Phu Yen meets with fishery processing investor

Last week the Deputy Chairman of the Phu Yen Provincial People’s Committee, Mr. Le Van Truc, held a meeting with a delegation from the Hokugan Co. Ltd from Japan regarding a project on purchasing and processing tuna in the province.

The company considers Phu Yen to be an ideal location for building a seafood processing plant and expressed a desire to build a plant at the Dong Tac Fishing Port in Tuy Hoa city on an area of 16,500 square meters that can process 1,800 tons a month. The company also aims to build an ice manufacturing plant to preserve fishery products, and will invest in equipment and transfer technology to local fishermen.

The Provincial People’s Committee has directed related departments and agencies to retrieve land from the Phu Yen Agriculture and Fishery Industry JSC. The province committed to making an official decision on the project within three months. If Hokugan was interested in building the seafood processing plant at the Hoa Hiep Industrial Zone 1 the province would immediately provide an area of 2 - 5 ha. The province would also require the company coordinate with it and have a specific implementation plan.

Viet Capital Bank to introduce e-taxation service

Viet Capital Bank has introduced a new service allowing customers to make tax payments or other fees via the website of the General Department of Taxation (GDT).

The new service is part of a cooperative arrangement between the bank and the GDT on connecting and sharing data and conducting tax payments.

Enterprises will be able to choose to meet their tax obligations directly with the GDT free of charge.

The service will officially begin on January 14, 2016.

Enterprises will save time and effort by using the service, as they will no longer be required to visit the tax office.

The service falls within the Viet Capital Bank and GDT project to modernize budget collections by facilitating non-cash payments.

SCB keen on branch in Vietnam

Thai newspaper The Nation has reported that the Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), Thailand's third-largest bank by assets, is hoping to generate significant income growth in CLMV countries - Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam - in the years to come by establishing close business relations with partner banks in Myanmar and setting up a branch in Vietnam by the end of this year.

SCB's overseas business is currently quite small and in CLMV countries it is yet to have branches in either Myanmar or Vietnam. The countries as a whole present major potential for growth, but SCB recognizes that having a strong presence may be beyond it for now, so it is considering expanding via providing wholesale banking and transaction banking services, said Deputy Chairman and CEO Mr. Arthid Nanthawithaya.

In Vietnam, SCB has been operating through its joint venture, Vinasiam Bank (VSB), since 1995, where it holds a 33 per cent stake, the Charoen Pokphand Group 33 per cent, and Vietnam’s Agribank the remainder.

Once SCB obtains a license, VSB will be liquidated and all assets and liabilities, totaling around $100 million, will be transferred to the new branch in Ho Chi Minh City. The bank hopes the branch will be able to commence operations at the end of this year.

Under the license SCB can provide both credit and non-credit services, such as transactional banking, including foreign exchange, to wholesale clients.

SCB’s branch in Ho Chi Minh City will have registered capital of $75 million; much higher than the minimum of $15 million stipulated by the State Bank of Vietnam.

Vietnam Rubber Group to finalise equitisation this year

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh has asked the Vietnam Rubber Group (VRG) to develop effective strategies for a stronger rubber industry.

The leader, who is also Head of the Steering Committee for Enterprise Innovation and Development, made the request during a working session with VRG in Ho Chi Minh on August 17 on State-owned enterprise restructuring.

According to the group’s leaders, VRG is hastening procedures for enterprise value announcements of its five rubber companies - Binh Long, Phu Rieng, Loc Ninh, Ba Ria, and Tan Bien - by QIII of 2015 while equitisation is expected to be completed within this year.

By the end the second quarter, the group had collected nearly VND1.2 trillion (US$54 million) from capital withdrawal out of non-core businesses, VND141 billion (US$6.3 million) higher than the book value. However, the group has been encountering difficulties in divesting investments from irrigation, industrial zones and hydroelectricity, totaling about VND700 billion (US$31.5 million).

Deputy PM Ninh urged the group to definitively complete its member companies' value determination and complete the equitisation on schedule, adding that any problems must be reported to the steering committee for solutions.

He also spent time with authorities from relevant of ministries, sectors and the VRG to discuss development direction for the group in the long term.

The deputy PM suggested that the group’s development strategies should aim to safeguard the domestic rubber industry from fluctuations in global prices of rubber and latex which have been witnessing a steep decline since 2012.

The sector must seek a way to reduce dependence on prices, while focusing on enhancing rubber product competitiveness by applying advanced technology in production to improve productivity and efficiency, he added.

VRG’s total revenue this year is expected to reach VND21.5 trillion (US$967.5 million), including VND5 trillion from wood processing and VND1.7 trillion from leasing industrial parks.

More franchises will require more regulations

As the country is anticipating a boom in franchising in the near future, experts say the legal framework governing franchising is in dire need of improvement.

Experts say the current regulations on franchising, which have been in effect for around ten years, have become outdated, especially with the issuance of new laws on investment and enterprise last year.

Tran Thi Thu Phuong from the University of Commerce's Economics Faculty said under the current framework, it was mandatory for foreign firms to register themselves before turning a business into a franchise, but the domestic firms were under no obligation to do so.

As of July 15, there were 137 franchise foreign brand names in Viet Nam with annual turnovers reaching up to a million dollars.

Many domestic firms also operate under a franchise model, or authorisation given by a company to others to use its name and sell its goods, such as Trung Nguyen Coffee, Pho 24, Kinh Do Bakery and The Gioi Di Dong (Mobile World). However, no official statistics were available about the number of domestic firms given such an authorisation contract through a franchise.

In addition, administrative fines for franchise-related disputes were currently too low, ranging between VND1 million ($45.8) and VND5 million ($230), causing difficulties for management, Phuong said.

"Clearer regulations in resolving franchising-related disputes are necessary," Phuong said.

Pham Nguyen Minh, director of Viet Nam Institute for Trade, said the boom in franchising also posed challenges to domestic firms as these remained small scale, lacked capital and management experience.

The wrong choice of partners in franchising could result in a business failure or destroy prestigious franchised brands, he added.

Vo Van Quyen, Director of Domestic Market under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said many regulations about franchising were no longer appropriate in view of the changed ground realities.

He added that amendments would be put up for consideration to ensure development of trade in the country.

"The improvement in legal framework on franchising must be in line with the law on competition," Quyen stressed.

SBV urges more loans for farmers

The State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) has requested commercial banks to strictly implement a Government support credit lending programme which aims to help famers and businesses operating in agriculture minimise their post-harvest losses.

The programme is being carried out under the Prime Minister's Decision 68/2013/QD-TTg dated November 14, 2013 on support policies to reduce post-harvest losses in agriculture.

Accordingly, commercial banks were asked to provide information related to procedures and conditions for borrowers, facilitating their access to loans.

Decision 68 was issued as part of efforts to realise Resolution 48/NQ-CP on mechanisms and policies to reduce post-harvest farm produce and aquatic product losses, contributing to promoting agricultural restructuring.

Thanks to support policies, farmers have purchased machines and equipment serving production, processing and storing of agro-forestry and fishery products.

A report by the SBV showed that by July 30, total lending capital in the programme had reached VND3.47 trillion (US$159 million) with outstanding loans of VND2.44 trillion ($111 million), up 32 per cent from December 31 last year.

MB to meet bad debt requirements

The Military Bank (MB) has announced that it will soon be meeting the central bank's requirement to bring the non-performing loans (NPLs) down to less than 3 per cent.

The central bank has required that all commercial banks must reduce their NPLs to less than three per cent by September 30 this year instead of the earlier deadline of 2015-end.

According to the MB's latest financial report, the bank's NPLs stood at 2.04 per cent by the end of June.

Thanks to the success, MB has planned to ask the central bank to raise its credit growth room this year to 20 per cent from 13 per cent approved earlier this year, the decision coming in the context of rising demands as a result of the economic rebound.

Earlier, State Bank of Viet Nam's Governor Nguyen Van Binh said the central bank's decision to extend the credit room for credit institutions would depend on the way they handle NPLs.

Binh pointed out that if necessary, the central bank could raise the credit growth target for this year to 17 per cent, instead of 13-15 per cent set earlier this year, to boost economic growth.

MB's general director Le Cong said his bank would take measures to control the NPLs to be able to reduce these further by the end of this year.

According to the MB's report, the bank's pre-tax profit in the first half of this year reached VND1.828 trillion (US$84.23 million), meeting 56 per cent of its annual plan.

During the period, the bank also spent VND1.187 trillion ($54.7 million) for making provision.

The central bank recently also approved the MB's plan to increase its charter capital from VND11.59 trillion ($534 million) to VND16 trillion ($737 million). The capital increase plan will be implemented through separate share issuance for existing shareholders, strategic investors and employees.

Transport sector to restructure more enterprises by year's end

The Viet Nam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) and 28 other companies in the transport sector expect to finish their equitisation process by the end of the year, according to the transport ministry.

Nguyen Canh Tinh, Vinalines' deputy general director, said the corporation had completed its plan for equitising the corporation and now awaited the Prime Minister's approval for the same.

Vinalines expects to have its initial public offering (IPO) in the third quarter of this year.

This year, the corporation would equitise its five member companies, namely the ports of Nghe Tinh, Can Tho, Nam Can, Cam Ranh and Sai Gon.

Tinh said Vinalines had formulated equitisation plans for its all 12 member companies in keeping with its restructure plan approved by the Prime Minister. The corporation has withdrawn its capital worth VND1.25 trillion (US$56.5 million) from 11 enterprises in the first half of this year. This year, the corporation has so far withdrawn VND1.8 trillion ($81.4 million) from 32 companies.

However, Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang said at the ministry's meeting on restructure and equipment of transport enterprises on Monday that equitisation at Vinalines had been still slow, especially when it comes to withdrawal of capital at Nha Trang and Son Tra ports.

Thang said this week, the ministry's Enterprise Management Department must explain equitisation activities at Vinalines to report to the Prime Minister.

According to Vinalines, in the first half of this year, its parent corporation made a profit of VND124 billion ($5.6 million) but as a whole Vinalines, including the parent and subsidiaries, still faced a loss of VND197 billion ($8.9 million) in the first half of the year.

Vinalines said it had three transport enterprises that were not in debt. Meanwhile, the remaining transport enterprises hadhad huge losses and therefore, in the first half, they witnessed growth in revenue but had to pay their debt.

Moreover, the local transport market faced a downfall in freight and there was not sign of recovery in the freight.

To solve such difficulties, Vinalines had intensified its search for foreign and local partners to develop its logistics services, it said.

Meanwhile, Thang said Vinalines should further restructure itself, including the equitisation process and withdrawal of capital to make recovery in the coming time.

Vinalines must review production and business activities, increase its capacity and reduce production costs. It must also renew its enterprise management and operation of seaports.

During the meeting on Monday, the ministry's Enterprises Management Department said the ministry had set up a steering committee for equitisation at 28 companies after obtaining approval for the equitisation plans for these companies.

The ministry had approved the timing for evaluating 26 other enterprises and choosing consultants for the purpose, including the Corporation for Investment, Development and Management of Cuu Long Transport Infrastructure Project, 24 subsidiaries of Viet Nam Railway Corporation and Nam Thang Long Hospital.

It had completed IPO of six enterprises and converted 17 enterprises into joint stock companies.

Kinh Do Binh Duong JSC has announced that it has shipped 20 tonnes of moon cakes (around 100,000 pcs) to the US to prepare for the upcoming mid-Autumn festival.

The company planned to make around 3,000 tonnes of nearly 60 different products and flavours with ingredients like lotus seed, green bean, green tea, almond, Macadamia nut, durian and others for domestic consumers during this year’s mid-Autumn festival.

In addition to traditional products, the company also produce cakes with natural vegetative ingredients for vegetarians.

Apple to open subsidiary in Vietnam

Apple Inc. is likely to officially set up its subsidiary in Ho Chi Minh City as the iPhone maker is reportedly scheduled to meet with the municipal administration on the establishment of the Vietnam business.

Tat Thanh Cang, deputy chairman of the Vietnamese metropolis, is slated to be briefed on “the report on the application for founding the Apple Vietnam Co. Ltd.” on August 19, tech website ICTNews reported on Monday, citing the working schedule of the city’s authorities.

The presence of that top official suggests that Apple Vietnam Co. Ltd. is “really a subsidiary of the Cupertino, California-based Apple Inc.,” rather than a certain firm having the same name as the U.S. tech titan, the Hanoi-based newswire said.

Apple is rumored to have its representative in Vietnam and to have worked with local dealerships since the beginning of this year, according to sources.

ICTNews said it had contacted the alleged Apple representative in Vietnam, but the man declined to comment.

“He gave us an email address that includes ‘@apple.com’ at the end, though,” the newswire said.

The owner of a hi-tech device store told ICTNews that the world's most profitable mobile phone maker “has been in Vietnam for nearly a year,” with hundreds of local employees.

“The establishment of a firm like Apple Vietnam Co. Ltd. is thus only a move to regularize their operations in the country,” an anonymous source said.

The Vietnamese employees of Apple are reportedly working in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City, according to the source.

It is unclear whether these 100 people are full-time employees or those who work for Apple via contracts signed between the U.S. firm and a third party.

Yahoo Inc. once applied such an employment model to its operations in Vietnam, according to ICTNews.

“There were many Vietnamese employees working for Yahoo but only a few of them were full-time employees,” the newswire said, citing a local mobile phone chain manager.

Yahoo closed its Vietnamese office in Ho Chi Minh City in late 2014, after shutting down the Vietnamese-language news site Yahoo News.

Apple Inc. already has its Apple Premium Resellers in Vietnam, and is running its business in the country via its Thai unit, according to ICTNews.

The tech giant revealed last year that Vietnam was its hottest market after sales there tripled in the first half of its fiscal 2014.

Around seven million mobile phones were sold in Vietnam in the first quarter of this year, 44.5% of which were smartphones, according to IDC.

Samsung grabbed the largest part of the cake, 35.2%, whereas Apple came fourth with 10.4%.

However, Apple had the second-biggest value of sales, 24.4% compared to 35.6% of leader Samsung.

US tech venture fund 500 Startups enters fast-growing market

With nearly 44% of its population using the Internet, Vietnam has become the latest target market of 500 Startups, a seed fund and accelerator for Internet startups.

In a statement on its website on August 17, the 2010-founded fund, which is better known for its Silicon Valley accelerator program, announced its venture partners in Vietnam.

Binh Tran, a technologist with more than 20 years of experience and who had founded several startups, and Eddie Thai, a Harvard and Yale graduate and who was recently named in the Forbes Vietnam's list of 30 future leaders, will act as its advisors.

500 Startups has more than 1,000 companies around the world in its portfolio.

The company has invested in three Vietnamese startups since last year. It plans to make investment in 20 more companies in the next 12 months in the country, which it deems as "big, fast-growing, and underserved by seed stage venture capital firms."

Vietnam's population exceeds the combined number of California, New York and Florida, and more than 40 million of them use the Internet, it said.

Moreover, the country is also one of the world's fastest growing economies since 1990 and has been Apple's fastest growing market, it added.

"For us, it was never a question of 'is Vietnam ready as a market?', but rather 'are we ready for Vietnam as a market?', and today, we’re making our first of many moves to be ready,” Khailee Ng, Managing Partner of 500.

Startups, was quoted as saying in the statement.

In May, local IT giant FPT launched a venture fund, planning to invest around US$3 million into local technology startups every year.

FPT estimated that around 1,000 technological startups are founded in Vietnam every year.

Vietnam mulls higher taxes on big cars to relieve strained infrastructure

The Ministry of Finance has announced a plan to increase luxury taxes on cars with large engines after the government said big vehicles that take up much space and consume much fuel must be restricted.

According to the ministry's new proposal, the special consumption tax rate for cars with engines of more than three liters, including motor homes, will be raised from the current 60% to 75% from July next year.

Most of these big cars belong to luxury brands manufactured in Japan and Europe.

The luxury tax rate on cars with small engines of 1.5 liters, on the other hand, will be cut from the current 45% to 25-30%.

Other cars in between will subject to taxes of 40-50%.

The proposal is now open to public discussion.

Vietnam’s government in July announced an automobile development strategy which will restrict the use of cars with large engines, saying they consume a lot of fuel and their big size is beyond local infrastructure’s capability.

The trade ministry earlier this year even proposed to raise special consumption tax on cars with engines bigger than six liters to a whopping 195%.

T&T Group exec becomes chairman of Quang Ninh Port JSC

Pham Ngoc Tuan, deputy general director of T&T Group, took over as chairman of the Quang Ninh Port Joint Stock Company on August 18. In April this year his company had bought 98 per cent of the port from the State-owned Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) as part of the continuing restructure of SOEs.

The group began appointing its nominees to the port's management and supervisory boards earlier this year, and now four out of five of the former and all three of the latter are from T&T.

The only outsider is Bui Quang Dao, general director of Quang Ninh Port.

Quang Ninh Port Joint Stock Company manages terminals 1, 5, 6 and 7 of Cai Lan Port with a total warehouse area of 10,000sq.m and freight yard of 142,000sq.m.

Quang Ninh Port Joint Stock Company faces intense competition from another facility nearby, the modern CICT port.

But in the first half the companys revenues surged by 40 per cent year-on-year to VND185 billion ($8.36 million) while profit after tax rose 15.6 times to VND26.6 billion ($1.2 million).

Established in 1977, the port can handle vessels of over 75,000DWT and also has interests in transportation and warehousing in the northern port province of Quang Ninh.

Its shares are not listed and are only traded in the over-the-counter market.

South Korean investment exceeds $2 billion in Binh Duong

South Korea has become the third-largest investor in southern Binh Duong province, with total accumulated investment of over $2 billion in 515 projects.

From January to July this year many South Korean enterprises made new investments in the province, according to Director of the Binh Duong Department of Planning and Investment Phu Huu Minh. In the first seven months there were 25 South Korean projects, with capital of $134 million.

Significantly, investment by South Korean enterprises increased sharply in support industries, which the province has specifically been calling for. Major enterprises in the province include the Castec Binh Duong Vina Co., which manufactures electronic and automobile components with total investment of $14.4 million, the NPC Toda Co., which invested $30 million in producing plastics, and the Remote Solution Co., which invested $10 million in producing remote control devices.

In the first seven months of this year Binh Duong attracted a total of $1.257 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI). Newly-registered capital and additional capital were $772 million and $481 million, respectively.

Binh Duong now has a total of 2,508 FDI projects with total registered capital of $21.662 billion. Of these, 1,473 projects are in industrial zones, with total capital of $13.479 billion.

The Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment said that South Korea now has 4,459 projects in Vietnam with total registered capital of $39.1 billion, making it the largest foreign investor in the country.

Indochina Capital investor of Cau Giay park

The Hanoi People’s Committee has approved planning for a park and lake in the Cau Giay new urban area and assigned Indochina Capital to implement the project, construction of which is expected to commence in the fourth quarter of this year.

The People’s Committee also asked the Hanoi Department of Planning and Investment to coordinate with the Hanoi Department of Construction, investors, and related parties to review the content, composition, and scale of items within the park. It is also necessary to identify which items are to be invested in the form of build-transfer (BT), which are to be invested by the State budget, and which are to be invested by private investment.

Adjustments to the planning criteria for counterpart projects were also accepted, to ensure a balance in funding for the BT project.

The Department of Planning and Investment is requested to complete its planning and report to the People’s Committee before August 20. The Department of Construction will direct investors on technical designs and total estimated cost. Related departments will consider, evaluate, consult, and submit their work in accordance with regulations. Indochina Capital will coordinate with related parties and accelerate investment preparations, complete site clearance, and prepare to begin construction in the fourth quarter.

The project, in the CV1 land area, was agreed to by Hanoi and the government in 2009. Implementation, however, has been slow due to a lack of attention from departments and agencies in the capital.

Indochina Land has been a well-known real estate investor for the last 20 years, with famous projects such as Indochina Plaze Hanoi, The Montgomerie Links Golf Course, The Nam Hai Resort, and Evason Hideaway and Six Senses Spa on Con Dao Island, among others.

Auto firms post strong profit growth as demand soars

Auto assembly and trading firms have reported hefty profit growth owing to soaring domestic demand this year.

Truong Hai Auto Corporation (Thaco) reported its consolidated revenue of VND18.8 trillion in the first half of this year, up 88% against the same period a year earlier, and after-tax profit of VND3.2 trillion.

Thaco credited the surging revenue to nearly 34,600 autos sold in January-June, up a staggering 93% year-on-year.

An expert in the auto sector said profit of auto firms is mainly generated from car sales while revenue of spare parts and repair services only helps maintain operations of showrooms or supply after-sales services. Auto firms normally set a profit margin of no lower than 10% of a car’s price.

Therefore, if there is no income besides car sales, Thaco earned average profit of up to VND92.7 million from a car it sold in the first six months of this year.

TMT Motor Corporation obtained net revenue of VND1.95 trillion in the six-month period, four times higher than last year’s same period and gross profit of over VND270 billion.

According to TMT, despite increasing operating costs in the period, the company still obtained better business results with VND138.52 billion in after-tax profit compared to the whole year’s profit target of VND150 billion.

Earning high revenue in the year’s first half, Truong Long Engineering and Auto Company has announced to pay high dividends for shareholders. In a document presented at the 2015 meeting of shareholders, the company planned a dividend of 100%, with half of it in cash and the remaining half by shares.

Truong Long’s net profit in the January-June period was equivalent to 5.7 times of the amount earned in last year’s same period.

Normally, auto assemblers and importers do not reveal their revenue and profit figures but said the business results were quite good.

Car sales of Ford Vietnam grew by 58% in the past seven months with 10,357 units sold, the highest ever in Vietnam.

Japanese car makers also posted high sales like Isuzu Vietnam with 3,612 units (up 202%), Vinastar (Mitsubishi) nearly 2,000 units (up 56%) and Honda Vietnam over 4,470 units (up 21%).

Toyota Vietnam, which holds the biggest market share of passenger cars, sold more than 27,580 autos in January-July, up 35% year-on-year, and targets to sell 46,000 units this year.

This year, Thaco aims for more than 70,300 autos, including over 34,200 passenger cars and 36,000 commercial vehicles, and consolidated revenue of over VND44.3 trillion.

The Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (VAMA) reported auto sales in the first seven months rose 59% year-on-year to 123,841 units. Of the total volume, passenger cars accounted for nearly 71,780 units (up 45%), commercial cars 45,180 units (up 76%) and special-purpose cars 6,880 units (128%).

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