Jewelry rule backs PNJ market share expansion

A leader of Phu Nhuan Jewelry Company (PNJ) told shareholders at a general meeting in HCMC on Wednesday that a circular of the Ministry of Science and Technology has made it possible to expand the firm’s market share in the past years.

Nguyen Thi Cuc, deputy general director of PNJ, credited the company’s market share expansion to Circular 22/2013/TT-BKHCN issued by the ministry in September 2013 to govern the quality of jewelry gold.

Cuc said thanks to the circular, PNJ and other jewelry enterprises with large-scale production and wide distribution networks have grown well in recent years.     

PNJ saw its jewelry market share rising to 21% last year from 14% in the previous year. With an additional 18 retail stores opened in 2014, the company had had a total of 169 jewelry shops as of the end of last year, and plans 35 new stores this year.

PNJ’s profit rose strongly owing to good jewelry gold sales last year though the World Gold Council (WGC) said the demand for gold on the Vietnamese market dropped 8%.   

According to its audited report, PNJ obtained consolidated revenue of nearly VND7.3 trillion last year, falling 4% year-on-year and 20% lower than the year’s target. However, its jewelry sales surpassed VND5.27 trillion, up 23% against 2013 or 1% higher than the target.

Its after-tax profit amounted to VND255.8 billion, rising 51% over 2013.

Retail sales of jewelry gold totaled VND2.28 trillion last year, up 42% year-on-year and accounting for 31% of total revenue and 74% of total gross profit of PNJ Corporation, which consists of PNJ and other subsidiaries.

However, both turnover and profit from gold bar sales plunged last year against the previous year, making up just 28% of total revenue and 2% of total profit. This was the result of PNJ’s long-term business strategy adjustment to focus more on jewelry trading. Fewer local buyers wanted gold bars as the global price has been moving sideways in recent times.

PNJ chairwoman Cao Thi Ngoc Dung said the enterprise targeted revenue of some VND8.23 trillion and consolidated profit of VND976 billion this year, 13% and 24% higher than last year, and paid a 2015 dividend for shareholders at 20%.

PNJ has spent VND45 billion importing equipment from Europe to produce items of Italian quality to lower the volume of jewelry imported from the country towards the year-end.   

PNJ Corporation, whose subsidiaries include CAO Fine Jewelry and PNJL Assessment Limited Company, divested VND37 billion from Saigon Fuel Joint Stock Company last year.

Farmers benefit little from rice storage program

Local enterprises have virtually bought one million tons of rice of the 2014-2015 winter-spring crop for temporary stockpiling as approved by the Government but experts said that farmers have earned little from the program.

The Vietnam Food Association (VFA) said 128 selected enterprises and cooperatives had fulfilled their targets for the rice storage program, which lasted from March 1 to April 15. The program aimed to stop rice price drops during the peak harvest time and ensure high profit for farmers.

However, Le Minh Duc, former director of Long An Province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the annual program has not brought about as many benefits to farmers as expected. This year, rice and paddy prices in the Mekong Delta inched up by around VND100-200 per kilo during the first days of the program but then declined gradually.

Many agricultural experts has raised concern over the problem for years. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development also organized a number of meetings to better the program but failed to reach a solution.

At a conference in March, leaders of the agriculture ministry admitted that the program was just a measure to intervene in the rice market rather than providing direct support for farmers.

However, Vo Thanh Do, deputy head of the Agro-Forestry and Fisheries Processing and Salt Industry Department, said the program was a situational measure but would remain a suitable solution in the next five years as the Government has not found a better measure.

This year, the Government has spent around VND200 billion subsidizing part of the bank loan interest for enterprises participating in the program.

Rice prices have moved in different directions in parts of the region in recent days.

Ngo Ngoc Yen, director of the HCMC-based rice company Yen Ngoc, said the rice price in Tien Giang Province has inched up by VND50-100 a kilo against last week. Rice exporters currently buy IR 50404 material rice at VND6,250-6,300 per kilo.

Meanwhile, rice prices in Dong Thap Province have edged down VND50-100 to around VND6,200-6,250 per kilo.

Rice exporters have offered 5% broken rice at US$360-370 per ton and 25% broken rice at US$340-350 per ton. Fragrance rice has been sold at US$475-485 per ton, up US$5 versus a week ago.

As of April 10, VFA member enterprises had shipped over one million tons of rice with the combined free-on-board (FOB) value of around US$446 million.

Few cooperatives consume farm produce

A small number of agricultural cooperatives in the Mekong Delta region have been able to buy produce from farmers, heard a seminar on a new cooperative model in Can Tho City on Wednesday.

The Mekong Delta had had 1,928 active farming cooperatives as of the end of last year but a mere 8% of them could purchase products of their member farmers and only 18% could supply agricultural materials for them.  

Nguyen Thien Nhan, president of the Central Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee, said limited supply of farming inputs like fertilizer and plant protection drugs and low consumption have made it hard for farmers to earn higher incomes.

According to Nhan, individual farmers are unable to negotiate to buy agricultural materials at competitive prices and find it hard to sell their products to modern sales channels such as supermarkets.

“A single household cannot do this but a cooperative can,” Nhan said.

Agricultural cooperatives in other countries have done a much better job than their counterparts in Vietnam.

For instance, cooperatives in Japan consume up to 90% of rice, and 50% of vegetables, fresh milk and beef for farmers. They supply 95.4% of fertilizers, 70% of agrochemicals, 81.9% of packaging and 35.5% of animal feed for farmers.

Huynh Van Thon, chairman of An Giang Plant Protection Company (AGPPS), said cooperatives need to join value chains with support of enterprises to get easier access to agricultural materials at reasonable prices and bank loans.

Meanwhile, Nhan said farmers should be supported to send their products to supermarkets and other modern distribution channels.

Therefore, the goal of establishing a new cooperative model is to restructure ineffective cooperatives and have five new cooperatives in every locality in the region from now until 2016. The region is expected to have 30 new well-performing cooperatives in the 2017-2020 period.

Fuel import tax range removed

The Ministry of Finance has abolished the fuel import tax range for fuels based on crude oil prices.

Late last year, the ministry issued Decision 17728/BTC-CST on the preferential tariff range for fuels to impose higher import tariffs on finished fuel products if the crude oil price falls. Accordingly, when the price of WTI oil is below US$60 per barrel, gasoline, kerosene, diesel and heavy fuel oil would be subject to a maximum tariff of 40%.

With the current crude oil price of US$53.29 per barrel, the import duty on fuels should be 40%. If the crude oil price ranges between US$60 and US$75 per barrel, the import tariffs on kerosene-gasoline and diesel-heavy fuel oil would be 35% and 30% respectively.

The respective import tariffs will drop to 25% and 20% if a barrel of crude oil is quoted at US$75-95. In case the crude oil price exceeding US$95 per barrel, the highest rates will be 20% and 15% respectively.

The abolition of the import tax bracket is in line with Circular 48/2015/TT-BTC on adjusting the fuel import duties that the ministry issued on Monday. The ministry lowered the import tax rates from 35% to 20% for gasoline and kerosene, from 30% to 20% for diesel, from 35% to 25% for heavy fuel oil and from 25% to 10% for jet fuel.

The ministry said in a statement yesterday that it decided to reduce the import tariffs on fuels after weighing many factors and to benefit consumers.

The environmental protection fees on fuels except kerosene will triple from May 1 this year. With the fuel price adjustment cycle of every 15 days and fuel trading firms required to stock up on fuels in 30 days, the import tax cuts from Tuesday will help prevent a possible fuel retail price spike after May 1.  

The tax reduction was made in accordance with Vietnam’s free trade agreements with other ASEAN countries and trade pacts between ASEAN and South Korea and China.

ACCA Vietnam admits 138 new members

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) in Vietnam has granted membership certificates to 138 new qualified candidates currently working in HCMC and in Hanoi.

Most of the new members are employees of foreign-invested enterprises. Of them, some 90% of the members in HCMC work for multinationals, including auditing and accounting firms Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

A few of the new members are employees of Vietnamese enterprises like Vietnam Dairy Products Company (Vinamilk) and An Giang Plant Protection Company (AGPPS).

In all, ACCA Vietnam has a total of 800 members, much lower than around 11,000 members in Malaysia.

Le Thi Hong Len, chief representative of ACCA Vietnam, explained that almost all the attendees of ACCA’s courses are staff of major corporations and are supported by their employers to get further training.

To get ACCA’s certificates, learners must complete 14 basic and advanced subjects and an online course on professional ethics, and have three years’ working experiences.

HAGL targets 300,000 cows next year

Hoang Anh Gia Lai Joint Stock Company (HAGL) has set an ambitious target for 300,000 cows next year in a new strategy to accelerate its foray into cow farming.

HAGL chairman Doan Nguyen Duc unveiled the strategy at a general meeting in HCMC on Wednesday.

At the annual meeting, HAGL general director Vo Truong Son said the company targets its net revenue this year would grow 75% year-on-year to over VND5.34 trillion, and cow farming will contribute 46% of it, or over VND2.47 trillion.

Last year, HAGL posted net revenue of VND3.054 trillion, or 9% lower than the target of over VND3.37 trillion.

Towards the year-end, the Gia Lai Province-headquartered enterprise will strive to increase its dairy cow herd to 13,000 and sell 60,000 cows. Its total herd is expected to rise to 100,000 cows at the end of the year.

As for rubber and sugarcane planting, the enterprise will retain the farming area at 42,500 hectares and 6,000 hectares respectively.

But the enterprise will grow an additional 13,000 hectares of palm this year and finish the building of a palm oil processing plant in Cambodia. Besides, it will grow 3,000 hectares of corn in Laos and Cambodia this year, mainly to provide feed for cows, according to Son.

This year, it will also focus more on resources on projects in Myanmar, including commercial, office space and hotel facilities.

HAGL hoped real estate and construction would contribute VND769 billion (14%) and VND785 billion (15%) to its net revenue in 2015.

Son said HAGL aims for pre-tax profit of VND2.1 trillion this year, a year-on-year increase of 18%.

At the meeting, HAGL proposed a 2014 dividend of 10% but many shareholders wanted 15% provided that its profit last year jumped 70% to VND1.773 trillion from VND999 billion in the previous year.

However, Son feared that a higher dividend would affect the price of HAGL shares.

Duc said this year HAGL would invest more in cow farming and if this new sector bears fruit the enterprise will pay a high dividend in cash.

Nevertheless, with the hand vote, the number of shareholders opting for a 2014 dividend at 15% outnumbered those agreeing on 10%.

HAGL International Agriculture Joint Stock Company, formerly known as HAGL Rubber Joint Stock Company, will be listed on the southern bourse in the middle of this year.

Expert warns of substandard macadamia saplings

A former leader of the agriculture ministry’s Cultivation Department has sounded alarm bells over the poor quality of macadamia saplings on the domestic market, saying growers could be affected in the long run.

Nguyen Tri Ngoc told a recent seminar in Hanoi that more than half of the macadamia saplings available on the market are of substandard quality.

Ngoc called for agriculture agencies to intensify their management of macadamia saplings to ensure good yields and avoid causing losses for farmers in the future.

Bui Huu Hoa, an experienced macadamia grower, pointed out that many farmers have bought substandard and even fake macadamia saplings due to little or no knowledge of this plant.

“Many farmers have grown macadamia for 5-7 years but have reported no yields while they are in debt. They have lost a lot and we have to warn them of the reality,” Hoa said.

Hoa said a substandard macadamia sapling is sold at some VND30,000 while the price of a quality one is VND70,000.  

Hoa said he is lucky as his macadamia farm in Lam Ha District in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong has produced fruit with revenue reaching VND295 million last year.

Quach Dai Ninh, deputy head of the forestry development division at the General Forestry Department, said State agencies should inspect macadamia sapling farms and only license suppliers of quality young trees. Low-quality saplings should be discarded.

It is a huge problem if more than 50% of the macadamia saplings available on the market are of substandard quality, Ninh said amidst concerns that more farmers in different parts of the country have rushed to grow the plant, particularly in the Central Highlands, and that the unchecked growing of the plant could end up losing like other certain crops.

Earlier this month, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development proposed the Government approve a plan to grow only 10,000 hectares of the subtropical plant by 2020 in regions where weather conditions are appropriate for it due to a lack of sufficient scientific data.

The planned area is much lower than the 200,000 hectares forecast by scientists and enterprises for the next five years.

The ministry made the proposal years after macadamia was planted on a trial basis in 16 provinces in Vietnam. Initial results showed a ten-year-old tree can bring in the highest yield of 17.5-21.5 kilograms, or 3.9-4.7 tons per hectare per year, and the lowest of 1.9-2.5 tons per hectare per year.

The ministry warned that large-scale farming of macadamia can be implemented if there are processing facilities and stable outlets for its fruit.

HCM City ready to start work on major transport projects

The government of HCMC will break ground for a number of key transport projects to ease chronic traffic congestion at road bottlenecks in the city.

The projects include an overpass at Go Vap Roundabout in the district of the same name, upgrade of Luong Dinh Cua Street in District 2 and construction of D3 Road in the outlying district of Nha Be.

A steel overpass will be built to connect Nguyen Oanh, Nguyen Kiem and Pham Ngu Lao streets. The project requires an investment of VND406 billion and will be opened to traffic after seven months of construction.

Luong Dinh Cua and Tran Nao streets will be upgraded this month to build better connections between the downtown area of HCMC and Thu Thiem New Urban Area.

Luong Dinh Cua Street links the downtown area and East-West Highway and the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway. Traffic congestion is frequently seen on the street during peak hours as it is just 6-7 meters wide now.

The first phase of D3 Road project in Nha Be District has capital of VND293 billion and will be implemented within one year. This four-lane road stretches 2.3 kilometers.

The Saigon-Hiep Phuoc Port in Nha Be District has been put into service with an aim to facilitate the relocation of Saigon Port in District 4, but all goods at the former are now transported by water as there has not been any road leading to it. Therefore, D3 Road will be built to connect the port and nearby streets.

The city also plans to build an overpass or a tunnel at My Thuy Roundabout in District 2, which is also plagued by traffic jams. Thai Son Investment Development Joint Stock Company under the Defense Ministry and Tuan Loc Construction and Investment Company have suggested the HCMC government allow them to advance over VND2.8 trillion to implement the project, and the city can return the sum to Thai Son later or let them use some land in the city.

Gov’t wants BOT power projects on fast track

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang trung Hai has told the Ministry of Industry and Trade to accelerate implementation of power plant projects under the build-operate-transfer (BOT) format.

The BOT power projects are important as they will help meet increasing local demand for electricity consumption and fuel the country’s socio-economic development, heard a recent meeting between the Deputy PM and representatives of relevant ministries and agencies in Hanoi.

Around 20 major BOT power projects have been approved with a combined generation capacity of 24,000 megawatts (MW). Of which, Phu My 2.2 and Phu My 3 have been put into operation and the first generator of Mong Duong 2 has been commissioned

The remaining projects are currently at different stages of preparations. Relevant agencies are looking for funding for Hai Duong and Vinh Tan 1 while tenders seeking contractors for Nghi Son 2 have been organized, according to the Government’s portal chinhphu.vn.

At the meeting chaired by the Deputy PM, agencies bemoaned a host of challenges related to prolonged negotiations, Government guarantees for foreign currency conversion, common rules for disputes and payment when calling for private investments in the BOT power projects.

However, Hai emphasized the importance of private investments in infrastructure development, especially the energy sector. The Deputy PM ordered the industry ministry to review preparations for the power projects and find proper solutions to the problems with them so that work on these projects can start soon.

He urged the industry ministry to collaborate with agencies to quicken negotiations over and implementation of the BOT power projects under preparation this year, particularly Nghi Son 2, Nam Dinh, Hai Duong and Vinh Tan 1.

The Deputy PM told relevant agencies to improve legal documents to attract more investors and facilitate the implementation process of BOT power projects.

A number of big-ticket power projects nationwide have been making progress  in recent times. For example, Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PVN) last week clinched a contract to select Vietnam Machinery Installation Corporation (Lilama) as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for Song Hau 1 thermal power plant project in Chau Thanh District in Hau Giang Province.

The project has two generators of 1,200 MW and requires total capital of more than VND43 trillion (around US$1.99 billion). Lilama plans to transfer the plant to the investor PVN in 2019 after commissioning the generators.

The first 540MW generator of Mong Duong 1 thermal power plant came online earlier this year. The VND33.62-trillion facility in Quang Ninh Province is designed to supply about 5.8 billion kWh of electricity a year for the Northern Key Economic Zone when the second generator is commissioned later this year.

According to Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN), local power consumption grew 12.3% last year to 128 billion kWh and is projected to rise by 10.4% this year to 142 billion kWh.

Long-term growth of Vietnamese peppercorn faces challenges

Despite the remarkable growth recorded in the peppercorn sector in the last three years, local farmers are enduring damage fuelled by unsustainable development.

Rapid plantation expansion, intensive farming and increasingly destructive insects lie at the root of the issue.

Vietnam peppercorn is sold to over 90 countries and territories, accounting for 30 percent and 50 percent of the total global production and exports respectively. Currently, the Vietnamese peppercorn sector produces 2.16 tonnes of dried berries per hectare and it is listed as one of the world’s highest yields. However, the country has no official document guiding the farming process.

Do Ha Nam, Chairman of the Vietnam Pepper Association, said in a recent conference that high prices have persuaded farmers to expand cultivation without any planning. They end up planting the crop on unsuitable land and overusing fertilisers, causing the plants to degenerate quickly and fall victim to diseases, he added.

It is the right time for the Vietnamese pepper sector to focus on improving processing technology to increase the quality of pepper and meet global food safety standards, Nam declared.

According to Dr Le Ngoc Bau, head of the Central Highlands Agriculture and Forestry Science Institute, the organisation of the current pepper production model requires a shakeup in a bid to group scattered small-scale family-run farms.

Working together will make it easier for those households to access bank loans, technological advances and related service providers, he explained.

Dong Nai speeds up SoE equitisation

The southern province of Dong Nai plans to equitise five State-owned enterprises (SoEs) and divest non-core business projects in 11 joint stock companies and three banks in 2015, said an official.

Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Finance Huynh Van Hue underlined the need to build specific restructuring plans while outlining measures to improve production and business performance.

To facilitate the reshuffle, he asked for intensifying inspection in order to promptly deal with arising problems during the process.

State conglomerates should renew their corporate governance while applying standard finance-accounting practices, he said.

Dong Nai aims to equitise about 50 SoEs from 2014-2020.

During 2012-2014, Dong Nai recorded one equitised firm, 10 merger and four divestment deals.

As of December 31, 2014, it had 11 State-owned enterprises.

In 2014, the equitised firms enjoyed stable production, earning a total revenue of 28.1 trillion VND (nearly 1.3 billion USD), up 1.7 percent against 2013.

Local SOEs have worked to accelerate their restructuring and better define targeted investment fields.

Equitisation is a process in which private investors can buy stocks in formerly State-owned businesses. It helps make enterprises more effective, profitable and stable.

Vietnam joins regional economic forum

A delegation led by Minister of Agricultural and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat attended the Asian Development Forum that opened on April 19 in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The event is part of the framework for the World Economic Forum (WEF) on East Asia, which is taking place from April 19-21 in Indonesia.

Addressing the event, the minister highlighted the achievements Vietnam has attained from the “new vision in agriculture” initiative that was initiated at the Ho Chi Minh City-based WEF in 2010.

They include the successful implementation of sustainable and skillful agricultural production through cooperation between some 10,000 farmers and international groups, including Unilever, Nestle, Metro Cash and Carry, and Pepsico.

The approach has proven effective, with a great number of Vietnamese agricultural products having penetrated international markets, Phat said.

Vietnam’s agricultural sector accounts for 20 percent of nation’s gross domestic product (GDP), with the annual export value exceeding 31 billion USD. It also creates jobs for half of the nation’s labour force, according to Phat.

In another meeting the same day, the minister told participants about Vietnam’s experience in applying the private-public partnership model when developing agriculture.

He said that through creative and long-term thinking, the sector aims to increase productivity and profit, while minimising water use and greenhouse gas emissions.-

2015 Vietnam trademark forum looks at connectivity

The 2015 Vietnam Trademark Forum opened in Ho Chi Minh City on April 17, focusing on the theme of connecting national brands for improved competitiveness.

Participants called on the National Branding Programme to help in enhancing enterprise capacity of building, marketing and protecting their brand names via practical actions.

Several opinions proposed that domestic firms should deliver post-sale services to every outlet and consumer rather than relying on publicity campaigns.

Nguyen Hoang Ngan, General Director of Binh Minh Plastics Jsc, urged Vietnamese companies to fix weaknesses in resources to sustain their brands, especially in the adoption of technological advances to catch up with the ongoing international economic integration trend.

Last year, as many as 63 firms were honoured with the National Value Awards for strong brands, an increase from 30 in 2008, deputy head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Trade Promotion Agency Do Kim Lang said while presenting achievements of the National Branding Programmes for the 2003-2014 period.

He also pledged branding support for firms via training and counseling while developing brands characteristic of each locality and region between now and 2020.

Vietnam works towards new development stage: Deputy PM

Vietnam is working towards a new stage of economic development by accelerating its economic restructuring, and new growth model shifting and improving its market economy.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc made the statement while addressing the World Economic Forum on East Asia 2015, which opened its plenary session in Jakarta, Indonesia on April 20.

The Deputy PM added that Vietnam has also been making responsible contributions to the formation of the ASEAN Economic Community and cooperation mechanisms in the region while remaining actively involved in negotiating many major free trade agreements.

According to the Deputy PM, East Asia has a number of opportunities for cooperation, but stability and development in the region face challenges caused by climate change, strategic competition, territorial disputes and security and safety of navigation and aviation.

He highlighted that sea disputes must be solved by peaceful measures based on international law, including t he United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea .

He continued affirming that Vietnam works with other countries and partners on the principles of cooperation, honesty and mutual trust in order to build a peaceful and stable environment in the region.

Addressing the event, Indonesian President Joko Widodo underscored the importance of cooperation among East Asian countries for prosperity in the region.

The forum is an annual event held with the goal to increase and expand economic cooperation among countries in the region and between East Asian countries with other regions in the world.

Italian businesses boost investment in Binh Duong

Carlotta Colli, Italian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, and Binh Duong authorities had a working session on April 20 to discuss measures to boost cooperation between the European country and the southern province.

Apart from business and production projects, Italy want to bolster investment in culture and education, Colli told Tran Van Nam, Chairman of the Binh Duong People’s Committee.

She said she believes that the visit by provincial leaders to Italy in May will attract investment and enhance cooperation between two sides.

For his part, Nam highlighted that the province is currently focusing on selective projects with modern technology and high competitiveness.

He concurred with the Consul General’s proposals to strengthening collaboration in cultural exchange, education and tourism.

He expressed his hope that the Consul General will do her utmost to link Italian businesses with Binh Duong through introducing information and provincial regulations on attracting investment.

Foreign companies seek investment opportunities in Long An

A number of foreign companies had a meeting with the Mekong Delta province of Long An’s People’s Committee on April 20 to seek investment opportunities.

Companies from Taiwan (China), Japan, mainland China and Singapore were introduced to Long An’s investment environment and commitments to create favourable conditions for investors.

Long An currently has 28 industrial zones with a combined area of 10,000 hectares; 16 of the zones are operational with occupancy rates of 50 percent.

The province has attracted 600 projects from 34 countries and territories with a total registered capital of 3.6 billion USD to date.-

RoK company produces antennas in Ha Nam

A factory producing wireless antennas and filters used for smartphones will be built in the northern province of Ha Nam, according to M.H. Kim, Project Management Director of the Republic of Korea’s ACE Technology Corporation.

The factory will have an initial investment of 70 million USD and use 3,000 employees, ultimately increasing to 100 million USD and 5,000 workers.

Construction of the factory will commence in July across 12.5 hectares at the Dong Van 2 industrial zone in Duy Tien district.

Agro-fishery firms explore Finnish, North European markets

Vietnamese firms were instructed to export agro-fishery products to Finnish and North European markets during a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on April 20.

According to Tran Viet Cuong, Deputy Head of the Vietnam Sanitary and Phytosanitary Notification Authority under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the agro-fishery sector’s export value depends more on volume than price.

The majority of Vietnamese agricultural enterprises are small, with under-10-employee firms mounting to 44 percent and over-300-employee businesses accounting for only 3.47 percent, he noted, adding that 82 percent of companies have less than 20 billion VND (926,000 USD) in capital.

Cuong held that the project to support the export of Vietnamese agro-fishery products to Finland and Northern Europe, funded by the Fund for Local Cooperation through the Finnish Embassy in Vietnam, plays an important role in helping the sector expand its market.

The project is expected to give technical assistance and market information to Vietnamese enterprises, enabling them to reach their partners more easily, he said.

Agro-fishery exporters across the nation will benefit from the project, especially those in Hanoi , Ho Chi Minh City and Mekong Delta localities, asserted Cuong.

During the conference, Vietnamese and foreign experts also provided businesses with basic information and practical guidelines in export activities for aquatic products and fruit to the targeted markets.

They also introduced activities to support Vietnamese firms, including seeking Finnish partners through the Finnartnership business connectivity programme, sponsoring them to expand investment and operation as well as develop their capacity to meet international commercial practice requirements.

By the end of 2014, trade between Vietnam and Finland was over 260 million USD, a 15 percent rise from the previous year, with Vietnamese exports worth more than 100 million USD.

Major Vietnam earners included garments and textiles, computers, electronic products and spare parts, machineries, plastic products, and footwear materials and leather. The country imported electronic products and spare parts, machineries, equipment, paper, chemicals and steel from Finland .

By the end of March this year, Finland had 10 projects in Vietnam with total investment of 235 million USD, making it the 29 th largest investor in Vietnam.

Viglacera to issue additional shares

The Vietnam Glass and Ceramics for construction Corporation Viglacera plans to shoot up its capital to nearly 3.1 trillion VND (142.8 million USD) by issuing additional shares, as heard at the 2015 annual shareholders congress in Hanoi on April 20.

According to the plan, the corporation will taper state ownership from 91.48 percent to 75 percent by listing shares in the stock market once approved by the Ministry of Construction.

In 2015, it targets a minimum growth of 6 percent for each key production business. It also plans to implement a stable and sustainable development strategy while fostering investment in building and real estate.

Viglacera will focus on highly-competitive, hi-tech and “green” products such as energy-saving glass. The company will also pay attention to increasing the quality of its current products such as Autoclaved Aerated Concrete and clinker bricks, and using environmentally friendly production materials.

In the real estate sector, Viglacera will invest and exploit technical facilities and services in 997 hectares of current industrial zones and closely watch progress on new construction.

The company will also invest in a number of industrial parks and develop social housing and luxury apartment projects.

Duyen Hai Thermal Power Company established

A ceremony was held on April 20 in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh to establish the Duyen Hai Thermal Power Company under the Vietnam Electricity’s Power Generation Corporation 1 (EVNGENCO 1).

The company, located in Dan Thanh village of Duyen Hai district, will be responsible for a number of activities, including electricity production and trading, managing, operating and maintaining the Duyen Hai thermal power plants and the Duyen Hai Power Centre seaport.

The Duyen Hai Power Centre, covering nearly 880 hectares in Dan Thanh commune, Duyen Hai district has a capacity of roughly 4,308 megawatts.

The project, at a cost of more than five billion USD invested by EVNGENCO 1, includes four units using coal fired traditional condensed steam turbine technology and the largest coal port in the Mekong Delta.

Construction of the 622.5-megawatt-capacity turbine No. 1 has been completed and it is connected to the national power grid on a trial basis.

The turbine will officially be linked with the national grid on July 25.

Dong Nai attracts over 925 mln USD from FDI projects

The southern province of Dong Nai attracted over 925 million USD in foreign direct investment (FDI) capital from January 1, 2015 to April 15, 2015.

The figure generated during the three and a half months surpassed the annual target by 25 million USD, said the provincial Department of Planning and Investment.

Of the amount, 791 million USD was poured into 28 new projects and 134.77 million USD went into 22 existing projects.

According to the industrial park (IP) Management Board, the Republic of Korea’s (RoK) Hyosung Dong Nai Limited Company posted the largest investment capital with over 600 million USD.

Investors have primarily employed green and environmentally-friendly technologies in accordance with the province’s long-term plans.

To date, the province has licensed 1,479 FDI projects with total investment capital of 27.03 billion USD, 1,127 of which are operating with total capital of 22.54 billion USD.

Director of the provincial Department of Planning and Investment Bo Ngoc Thu said the substantial amount of FDI during the first half of 2015 is attributable to an improved investment climate and reformed administrative procedures, facilitating operations and attracting investors.

With this positive outcomes, Dong Nai expects to attract over one billion USD in FDI capital in 2015.

Telephone, parts top export list in Q1

Phones and phone parts posted 6.7 billion USD worth of export value in the first quarter of this year, topping the export list, according to the General Department of Customs.

Coming second was textile and garment with 4.9 billion USD, followed by computers and electronic products and parts with 3.6 billion USD and footwear with 2.6 billion USD.

The export of industrial commodities was on the rise with higher growth rates than national averages.

However, key agricultural and seafood exports tumbled, including seafood, coffee, rubber and rice (with decreases of over 30 percent), costing the country 500 million USD during the period.

Total export turnover for Q1 stood at 36.3 billion USD, up 2.93 billion USD from the previous year. The foreign-invested sector accounted for 67.5 percent of the national export value.

Meanwhile, the imports were valued at more than 38.7 billion USD, up 20.1 percent compared to the same period of 2014.

The country’s leading imports were machinery, equipment, computers, phones and spare parts.

The statistics showed a trade surplus of 873 million USD in the FDI sector, down 57.3 percent. Meanwhile domestics businesses suffered a trade deficit of 3.27 billion USD, up about four-fold compared to last year.

In the reviewed period, imports from China, mainly machinery and equipment, computer and parts, and steel, reached 11.47 billion USD, bringing the trade deficit with the country to nearly 8 billion USD.

EU agreements a chance to eradicate illegal timber trade

Final negotiations to complete a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) and Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) between the European Union (EU) and Vietnam is expected to be completed by late 2015.

Enactment of the agreements is expected to offer additional opportunities for Vietnam timber exports, while stopping the sale of illegal timber.

The agreements aim to ensure the legality of timber and timber products entering 28 countries in the EU market, while helping to maintain and expand the export of timber and timber products from Vietnamese enterprises, which is subject to changing EU market requirements as of March 2013.

Nguyen Tuong Van, director of the steering committee of VPA/FLEGT, said that following negotiations, she expected that timber exports to the  

EU market would considerably increase, reported Thoi Bao Tai Chinh online.

Van added that the great challenges in the negotiations included following the TLAS - Timber Legality Assurance System to ensure Vietnamese timber products meet international standards on the origin of timber.

She said that apart from efforts made by authorized bodies, timber processors and exporters needed to join this "play-ground" by focusing on their product quality and conducting business in compliance with the law.

They also needed to have certain knowledge about VPA and to consider it to be a "visa" for Vietnamese timber products to enter the EU market, while understanding that this is an opportunity to eliminate illegal timber trading and unregulated timber companies from doing business in Vietnam.

According to a report on the negotiations between Vietnam and the EU of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam now has more than 3,500 companies in the timber business. Of note, timber volume and exporting of timber products to the EU accounted for 20% of the total volume of all exports from Vietnam.

Last year, the country earned US$6.2 billion from the export of wood and wood products, a year-on-year increase of 11.5% compared with US$5.4 billion in 2013, and ranked second among countries exporting furniture in Asia. According to the forecast, this year wood and timber product exports are to grow by 15%, reaching at least US$7.2 billion.

Over the years, the export of timber has seen significant improvements in its quality, especially as domestic enterprises have increased their market share to match those of FDI enterprises, according to the vice chairman of the Handicrafts and Wood Industry Association of HCM City (Hawa), Huynh Van Hanh.

He noted that wood and timber exporters still faced difficult times, especially due to "barriers" from strict requirements in major markets, including the EU.

Van said under the State's regulation on forest management, in compliance with FLEGT, it is required that any timber products exported to the EU must receive chain of custody certification. Further, no illegal timber products or unverified products are allowed to be added to exported timber products.

As the fact that local raw materials can now meet about 40 to 50% of input materials for export processing, while the remainder still relies on imported raw materials. Therefore, local processors have difficulties in determining whether imported timber is reliable, she said.

According to Van, most of the wood processing enterprises in Vietnam are small and medium-sized enterprises. No record of wood procurement is kept by processors, as they just hand over hand written notes to verify their purchases. This has been recognized as a major problem that must be quickly solved.

Nguyen Ton Quyen, General Secretary of the Vietnam Timber and Forest Products Association (Vietfores), has said that the General  

Administration of Customs statistics showed that, last year, Vietnam imported raw wood materials valued at US$1.639 billion.

Clearly, as the importation of raw materials and shipping costs were increasing, Vietnamese wood processing companies will find it difficult to compete with companies, such as those in China or Malaysia.

Q1 textile, garment exports fail to meet high expectations

Though exports for textile and garments in the first quarter (Q1) reached US$4.75 billion, industry insiders said the figure was worse than forecast, the Hai quan (Customs) newspaper said.

Late last year, the textile and garment industry expected to raise its textile and garment production by 20% in order to boost the sector's export value by US$4 billion to US$28.3 billion this year.

The Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Garment Association Pham Xuan Hong said exports to the industry were often optimistic during the first and last months of the year. However, exports in the first quarter of this year were slow.

Many domestic exporters also said their export contracts, especially for small and medium-sized firms, had declined sharply in Q1 this year.  

Some even reported a drop of up to 20%.

Phi Ngoc Trinh, deputy general director of the Ho Guom Garment Joint Stock Co, said the drop was the steepest seen in the past 15 years.

Hong attributed the decline to the devaluation of the Euro against the dollar.

He said more than 20% of Vietnamese textile and garment producers had currently shipped their products to European markets. The devaluation of the Euro against the greenback had led to Vietnamese exports becoming costlier and less competitive.

Similarly, Vietnamese exports to Japanese and Russian markets were also negatively impacted due to the volatility of the countries' currencies, Hong said.

Besides, domestic exports had faced other difficulties related to input costs and raw material sources.

Admitting these difficulties, the General Secretary of the HCM City Association of Garment Textile Embroidery and Knitting, Bui Trong Nguyen, said he expected the situation to improve during the next quarter when European customers signed more export contracts.

Besides exports, Vu Quang Tung from the Song Hong Garment Co., said his company had also stepped up sales in the domestic market to offset the loss.

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