Vietnamese goods campaign has positive effect in HCMC 

 

The “Be Vietnamese buy Vietnamese-made goods” campaign is having a positive ripple effect socially, as it is getting a very favorable response by local consumers and producers.

 

This fact was acknowledged by participants at a meeting held by the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee on May 18 to gather suggestions for a draft review of one year of the city’s implementation of the Politburo’s policy on prioritizing Vietnamese-made goods and make plans for 2011.

 

According to participants, many creative and practical activities, with assistance from media organizations, have increased local consumer awareness of buying Vietnamese goods.

 

Although a year was not sufficient for implementing such a big campaign it was decisively significant to the survival of Vietnamese goods in the context of post-economic crisis.

 

The campaign has helped to change the attitudes of people who now give priority to Vietnamese brands and have confidence in the production and business capacity of Vietnamese enterprises as well as the quality of Vietnamese goods and services.

 

About 58 percent of consumers have shown an increased interest in Vietnamese goods.

 

The consumption of Vietnamese made products in Saigon Co-op Mart supermarkets, the largest market chain in the country, saw an increase of 58 percent in 2010 as against the same period in 2009, while import products saw a year-on-year rise of only 22 percent.

 

For enterprises, the campaign has opened up an excellent opportunity to develop production, grow businesses and create prestigious product brands.

 

Many enterprises have taken advantage of this opportunity to affirm their role, responsibilities and abilities in the local market.

 

Besides achievements, the participants also pointed out problems of the campaign.

 

They said some relevant agencies were not fully aware of the requirements of the campaign, so they did not concentrate on the implementation of the campaign.

 

Counterfeit and poor quality commodities remain available in the market, lowering the prestige of Vietnamese goods and obstructing production of authentic producers.

 

Some consumers still prefer foreign brands to Vietnamese ones.

 

In addition, high lending interest rates have also reduced competitiveness of Vietnamese goods compared to imports in terms of pricing.

 

Nguyen Thi Hong, vice chairperson of the HCMC People’s Committee, said the campaign would be developed in a depth manner with the participation of both people and enterprises.

 

She said the city would focus on communication activities and hold regular seminars on many topics relating to the campaign.  Cultural and art competitions relating to the topic “Be Vietnamese buy Vietnamese-made goods” will lend higher visibility to the campaign and increase its effectiveness.

 

VN agro exports mostly processed products 

 

As much as 90 percent of Vietnamese agricultural exports are preliminarily processed products and are priced 5-10 percent lower than similar foreign products.

 

Participants at a meeting held on May 18 by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development acknowledged this fact. The meeting discussed a project to increase added value of agricultural products.

 

According to the ministry, there are many shortcomings in producing agricultural products of high added value.

 

The ministry said that product quality standards were still not being properly addressed and the level of advanced standards applied to production remained low while losses after harvest were still high.

 

Agricultural products are still traded under traditional modes. The variety of agricultural products are very limited and unstable and pricing depended on the export market.

 

Under the project, the added value of each agricultural product will increase by 20 percent at the minimum within 10 years.

 

VN sees increase in imported cars 

 

Vietnam's General Department of Customs has reported that 21,406 foreign-made cars worth US$392 million were imported in the country during the first four months of the year, an increase of 63% in volume and 72% in value compared to the same period last year.

 

In April alone, 5,546 cars was imported, worth $113 million, a slight decrease of 2-3% in volume compared to the previous month but an increase of 58% in volume and 85% in value compared to the same period last year.

 

Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Trade issued Circular No.20 to ask Vietnamese businesses to get import licenses to buy small cars, less than nine seaters. They also need to maintain documents to prove they are genuine distributors. The Circular will be in effect from June 26.

 

According to car importers, most car showrooms do not comply with regulations.

 

VN trade with South Asian neighbours soars

 

Bilateral trade between Viet Nam and South Asian countries reached US$1.265 billion in the first three months of the year, a year-on-year increase of 64.7 per cent, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has reported.

 

Viet Nam's export revenue grew a whopping 148.5 per cent to hit $512 million and its imports made a 34 per cent gain to reach $753 million.

 

According to MoIT, Viet Nam's export revenues to India amounted to a majority of $292.5 million or 57.1 per cent of the total export revenue, a year-on-year increase of 88.2 per cent. Bangladesh saw the highest growth of 588.6 per cent with a total export turnover of $174.9 million.

 

The Pakistan and Sri Lanka markets reached $32.5 million and $10.5 million with increases of 92.3 per cent and 32.9 per cent, respectively.

 

The high growth was attributed to the markets' huge demand for agricultural products, food, materials for construction, textile and garments and processing industries. Successful trade promotion in the market was also a significant factor, along with the implementation of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between ASEAN countries and India that became effective in June last year.

 

The increasing prices of products manufactured by foreign invested enterprises investing in Viet Nam also helped boost export turnover. Those products included cellular phones and accessories, plastic material, chemicals, machinery, auto parts and steel.

 

During the first quarter of 2011, several export commodities hit high revenues such as rice, clinker, pharmaceutical goods, motorbike parts and bottled water. Bangladesh has been identified as a potential importer of rice and clinker while India is in need of textile, garment and footwear materials, cinnamon, steel products and motorbike parts.

 

Regarding imports, Viet Nam imported $708 million worth of goods from India amounting to 94 per cent of the total import revenues, followed by Pakistan at $28.6 million and Bangladesh at $11.6 million.

 

Viet Nam imported from India mostly animal food materials, $255 million; corn, $87 million; cotton, $62 million; pharmaceutical products, $57 million; machinery-chemicals-pesticides and other materials for the textile and garment, footwear, plastics and pharmaceutical industries.

 

The majority of imported commodities from South Asian countries was used for production, processing and domestic consumption. The cost and quality of those imported products were very competitive in comparison with other markets, MoIT said.

 

The ministry also said that the faster pace of exports in comparison to imports in the first three months helped lower Viet Nam's trade deficit to $241 million from $356 million in the same period last year.

 

However, the country's effort to balance trade was still challenging, particularly because India also enjoyed tariff cuts under the ASEAN – India FTA, MoIT added.

 

Ha Noi's CPI up 1.76 per cent in May

 

Ha Noi's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 1.76 per cent in May, a 11.6 per cent increase compared to the same period last year, the city's General Statistics Office (GSO) announced.

 

Compared to December 2010, the Index rose by 19.08 per cent.

 

The May CPI was 3.3 per cent lower than in April.

 

The prices of 10 out of 11 commodities, including housing and construction materials which rose by 2.99 per cent, increased during May due to a hike in gas retail prices.

 

The increase in gas retail prices pushed restaurant service prices up by 2.25 per cent, according to the city's GSO.

 

Transport experienced an increase of 2.23 per cent.

 

Beverage, tobacco, textiles, hats, foot-wear and entertainment saw surges of over 1 per cent due to seasonal factors and long national holidays.

 

The gold price rose by 1.62 per cent whilst the US dollar slipped by 0.75 per cent compared to previous months.

 

Telecommunications declined by 1.73 per cent.

 

The low increase in the CPI during May has been attributed to a decrease in spending, the city's GSO added.

 

Financial firms promote installment loans

 

Financial companies are offering more installment loans to buy electronic products and motorbikes as the number of large personal loans for houses or cars has dropped in recent months.

 

Lenders are working with most electronic shops and motorbike showrooms in HCM City to offer installment loans with simple loan procedures. Different interest rates are offered for different groups of borrowers.

 

According to a loan consultant at Societe Generale Viet Finance Company, loans of up to 70 per cent of the product's value are offered to customers for six to 24 months at an electronics shop on Tran Hung Dao Street in District 1.

 

Customers only need to submit a copy of their identification card, family record book and recent electricity or water bill.

 

The company applies an average interest rate of 2.58 per cent per month. However, customers who show work contracts and a recent salary report or bank statement that shows salary pay only 1.86 per cent per month.

 

Y Nhi, an office worker in District 1, said the interest rate of 1.86 per cent per month is acceptable compared to the current interest rate in the market.

 

Other financial companies, including Home Credit Viet Nam and ACS Trading Viet Nam Co Ltd, also offer various programmes to promote consumer loans.

 

Suong, a financial consultant for ACS Trading Viet Nam Co, Ltd for a Yamaha motorbike shop in District 1's Ly Tu Trong Street, said her company can offer a loan of up to 80 per cent of a product's value at 2.5 per cent interest per month.

 

Customers do not need to prove their income if the loan is under VND35 million (US$1,691), she said.

 

Home Credit Viet Nam applies 3.4 per cent and nearly 3 per cent per month on loans for electronic products and motorbikes, respectively.

 

Dinh The Hien, director of the Informatics and Applied Economics Research Institute, cautioned of the potential risks that financial companies may bear when they apply such simple loan procedures.

 

Financial companies should carefully check customers' documents before offering loans, he said.

 

An officer at a financial company said that to avoid risk of offering large personal loans for houses or cars, his company focuses on offering loans to buy electronic products, mostly mobile phones and laptops.

 

Financial companies usually apply a higher interest rate on personal loans than that of commercial banks.

 

For instance, to buy an Exiter motorbike on an installment plan of 24 months, buyers pay in advance VND21 million, and pay VND2.333 million per month for the interest rate and principal.

 

Borrowers must carefully calculate the interest rate and read the terms and conditions of loan contracts to avoid future conflicts, Hien said.

 

New players sprout up in City's fresh-food chain market

 

Fresh-food chains are mushrooming in HCM City, with many new players entering what they think will be a promising industry.

 

The first shop exclusively for fresh foods was set up by Saigon Co.op, the country's largest supermarket chain, in District 5 as recently as in 2008.

 

Since then, the company has opened 17 more around the city.

 

Bui Ngoc Chau Bau, deputy director of the Saigon Co.op Food Company, said the chain was aimed at working women who generally prefer to buy fresh food at clean places that guarantee hygiene, and do so on their way home from work.

 

But Saigon Co.op now has competition from chains opened by companies like Vissan, CP, Phu An Sinh and My Duc-Binh Dien, The Bach Hoa Moi limited liability Company, and trading company Saigon Trading Corporation (Satra), Saigon Economic Times reports.

 

Bach Hoa Moi has set up a chain of fresh food stores called New Cho with two outlets now in Districts 3 and Phu Nhuan.

 

Satra is a late entrant with its SatraFoods but is very hopeful of business growth thanks to the market's huge potential and its existing network of outlets.

 

A Satra executive revealed that the company expected to open at least 10 fresh-food outlets this year.

 

The chains believe the business model has many advantages since the outlets are often located in residential areas and have a large range of essential food items.

 

Saigon Co.op is committed to the expansion of its Co.op Food stores and targets having around 100 outlets within the next five years.

 

Satra said it planned to expand to major cities around the country.

 

Nguyen Trung Thang, chairman of Masso Group, a marketing company, said the model had great potential since Viet Nam was one of the world' most lucrative retail markets.

 

Though the economy was mired in difficulties, the country's retail market grew at above 25 per cent last year, he said, quoting a report by global management consulting firm AT Kearney as saying the market would be worth US$88 billion by next year.

 

Last year alone 85 markets, 86 supermarkets, and 11 shopping malls opened in Viet Nam as consumers began to get familiar with modern shopping trends.

 

A recent survey found that 70 per cent of consumers prefer to shop at supermarkets and 80 per cent prefer to use modern shopping channels.

 

Thang said, however, that to become popular food chains should develop brands and scrupulously fulfil quality commitments to consumers.

 

Ensuring supply of food products is a big challenge for Vietnamese retailers since output of clean agro-products remains small, meaning both output and prices are unstable, he said.

 

To ensure stable supply, food stores themselves would have to get into the supply chains, he pointed out.

 

Increasing costs, demand boosts coffee price

 

The price of coffee has jumped by VND900,000 (US$45) in the past two days to around VND49.4 million ($2,500) per tonne, due to increasing costs and high demand.

 

An influx of supply is expected to bring it back down quickly though, after Columbia announced a yield increase of 16 per cent and Brazil said exports had surged by 14 times in April compared to the same period last year.

 

Mergers and Acquisitions forum to be held in HCM City in June

 

The third Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) Forum will be held in HCM City on June 9, organised by the Vietnam Investment Review and AVM Viet Nam.

 

During the forum, participants will analyse factors affecting the growth of M&A activities in Viet Nam in 2010 as well as M&A trends for the future. An exhibition connecting investments will be also held during the forum to help participants identify areas of potential interest.

 

Nha Be Garment Company to open three new factories

 

Members of the Nha Be Garment Company this year would open three new industrial garment plants in the south central province of Binh Dinh with a total capital of more than VND170 billion (US$8.5 million), said general deputy director Le Danh.

 

The most expensive plant costing nearly VND100 billion ($5 million) will go into operation this month in Tam Quan Industrial Zone. The other two with investment values of VND40 billion and VND32 billion ($1.6 million) will open in June and September respectively. It is hoped the three new plants will create jobs for more than 3,500 local labourers.

 

Hanel becomes authorised distributor for Admiral monitors

 

Hanel Ltd recently became an authorised distributor for Admiral Overseas Corporation LED monitors in Viet Nam.

 

Nguyen Quoc Binh, general director of Hanel, said he believed that, with his company's long experience in trading and distributing electronic and IT products via nation-wide sales agents, cooperation between Hanel and AOC could be little else but successful.

 

Tony Li, regional director of the AOC, said that during 2010, company sales revenues reached a growth rate of 50 per cent (19.6 per cent of the market share), helping the company rank first in the Asia Pacific region.

 

Seagate Technology considers Viet Nam a key market

 

Seagate Technology, a leading manufacturer of hard disk drives and storage solutions, sees Asia and Viet Nam as key to its strategic business development.

 

Seagate Chairman and CEO Stephen Luczo said he was interested in Viet Nam as a potential investment location that would position the company to establish relationships with a variety of original equipment manufacturers and distributors of major retail brands.

 

If Viet Nam continued to offer tax preferences to attract foreign investment and improved foreign language skills for its people, more US investors would choose the south-east Asian country over China and India, he said.

 

Ha Noi in deal with Shenzen bourse

 

Ha Noi Stock Exchange on Wednesday inked an agreement with the Shenzen Stock Exchange, aiming to facilitate communication and foster the maintenance of orderly securities markets in Viet Nam and China.

 

The agreement focuses on sharing data on market performance, listed companies, market regulations and other related information; establishing a mechanism for regular meetings between senior executives of the Exchanges; further co-operation on issues concerning the exchange of staff, and other topics of mutual benefit.

 

The two exchanges wish to enhance their understanding of the development of the other market in order to conduct joint research on exploring potential cross listing and trading, new instruments and system linkage for market data flow.

 

VSE: MCG to turn bonds into shares

 

Viet Nam Mechanisation Electrification&Construction Company (VSE: MCG) announced it would convert 1 million bonds into shares on June 16.

 

Each VND100,000-bond will be converted into 10 MCG shares. Bondholders can register for the conversion up until June 10.

 

The company earned a turnover of VND352.9 billion (US$16.8 million) and a post tax profit of VND19.3 billion ($919,047) in the first quarter of this year. MCG yesterday closed off 4.3 per cent to VND11,000 per share.

 

Hoang Anh Gia Lai to list $90m bonds

 

Property developer Hoang Anh Gia Lai has set in motion plans to list US$90 million worth of international bonds on the Singapore Stock Exchange.

 

The five-year notes were auctioned overseas last Wednesday and are now being sold under Regulation S.

 

The notes are priced with a 9.875 per-cent annual coupon. Credit Suisse acted as sole book runner for the auction while Saigon Securities Inc acted as the domestic financial advisor.

 

The company plans to allocate the net proceeds of the issue in hydropower and rubber projects.

 

Land trading seen more difficult in future

 

Trading of urban land may face a lot of difficulties in the future as the Ministry of Construction is considering banning the division of land into smaller lots for sale, a practice widely seen in residential area development projects.

 

The ministry has passed a proposal to the Government to do away with the sale of land lots in new urban areas, and force housing developers to turn out finished homes for sale to customers.

 

Le Hoang Chau, chairman of the HCMC Real Estate Association (HoREA), has thrown support behind the proposal, saying this was not a new matter as a ban had been in place in HCMC for long.

 

“It’ll be a big waste if the developer of a residential project invests much money in infrastructure such as electricity, water and roads and then lets land with sufficient such infrastructure be deserted,” Chau told the Daily.

 

Chau said there should be an economic measure or a tax policy dealing with the deserted residential areas.

 

“It will be more effective if the Government uses a taxation measure rather than an administrative decision (to solve the problem),” he said, adding homebuilders should be given a certain period of time, say, two years to get their projects done.

 

Tran Minh Hoang, chairman of Vinaland Invest Corporation, shared Chau’s views, saying dividing land into small lots for sale would cause a waste of land resources and investment capital.

 

This is because most lot owners are investors who have no immediate need for a home.

 

Hoang said some new urban areas in HCMC’s neighboring provinces such as Binh Duong and Dong Nai looked more like abandoned land. Some projects in HCMC, such as those in District 2, have been left deserted for years. 

 

However, the Construction Ministry’s proposal is unnecessary since Government Decree 71/2010/ND-CP, which took effect in August last year, mentions this issue.

 

The decree bans investors from transferring their capital contribution contracts for house construction to others before the foundation of the project is completed, and requires developers to finish their housing projects before a sale is launched.

 

Commenting on the proposal, the director of a property company described a ban on land division for sale as necessary, but proposed giving housing developers some time to complete their projects.

 

She said the developer of a big urban project could not afford to build massive numbers of homes before the launch of any sale.

 

Not all land lot buyers are speculators, she noted, adding many might have bought land lots for future housing needs, long-term investment or for their children.

 

She suggested the authorities should gauge housing demand in the area where a housing project is proposed before they decide to license the project.

 

Six major PPP projects in the works

 

The Ministry of Transport has forwarded to the Ministry of Planning and Investment six big-ticket infrastructure projects that will be developed in the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) format.

 

The proposed PPP projects are Ninh Binh-Thanh Hoa expressway (VND33 trillion), Nghi Son-Bai Vot thruway (VND23 trillion), Cam Lo-La Son freeway (VND16 trillion), Dau Giay-Lien Khuong superhighway (VND48.3 trillion), Halong-Mong Cai expressway (VND25 trillion) and Long Thanh International Airport.

 

Nguyen Hoang, head of planning and investment at the ministry, said the country would need hefty amounts of capital between now and 2020 to carry out huge infrastructure projects, especially freeways.

 

Around US$16 billion is needed for infrastructure development in Vietnam each year while local financing sources are enough to cover half that amount. Build-operate-transfer (BOT) and build-transfer (BT) are seen as a way out for the financing issue faced by infrastructure projects but the capital recovery problem that has been dogging the already-implemented BOT projects discourages investors.

 

The transport ministry has also proposed splitting Beltway 3 project into smaller components and assigning them to HCMC, Dong Nai, Binh Duong and Long An which the road passes through. This way can help cope with the financing matter.

 

Around 49 km of the road will be in HCMC, 11.6 km in Dong Nai, 23.4 km in Binh Duong and 5.4 km in Long An.

 

HCMC is calling for investors to get involved in some of its infrastructure projects under the PPP, such as Ben Thanh Central Railway Station, and the city’s first tramway.

 

Meridian launches condo project in Danang

 

Meridian Property Company on Saturday announced to officially launch its condo project underway in the central coast city of Danang after it had finished the construction of the project’s foundation.

 

The company says it will gauge the market demand with 356 apartments and penthouses of The Summit at Son Tra project, which is located on Ngo Quyen Street in Danang City.

 

A representative of the company says some 50% of the apartments from one to three bedrooms have been deposited by buyers since the soft launch last month.

 

Apartments are offered with a starting price from VND18.2 million per square meter.

 

To woo buyer, besides offering a flexible payment, the developer has worked with Techcombank to offer loans with a zero interest rate for 12 months.

 

The 21-storey building, which requires some US$20 million for the development, is scheduled for completion by the third quarter of 2012.

 

Timeshare concept introduced to local developers

 

The property services provider CB Richard Ellis Vietnam (CBRE) has teamed up with Resort Condominium International (RCI) to introduce the timeshare concept in ‘second home’ market to local property developers.

 

The concept is seen as a creative sales solution and business model, allowing holiday-makers, through a network such as RCI, to exchange their holiday trips with other hotelier facilities in different countries without paying any fee for the holidays.

 

Adrian Lee, managing director of RCI Asia, said in a statement that the potential for the vacation home ownership market in Vietnam was promising as the company’s research shows a surprisingly high number of families with income eligible for resort timeshares in the country.

 

“We are committing good resources in the Vietnam market as we see large growth in the future of this country,” Lee said.

 

Commenting on the business model, Mauro Gasparotti, CBRE’s senior manager of hospitality consultancy, said developers were looking at alternative solutions to shorten return periods, sourcing different capital contributions or simply reducing investment risks.

 

Therefore, the introduction of alternative business and financing models has attracted many developers; however they need a clear understanding of the risks and returns associated with the business model.

 

He noted that structural ownership required developers and owners to understand the basic principles, costs and risks. The timeshare legal structure is under development in Vietnam.

 

Gavin Cheong, director business development for RCI Asia, said the use of timesharing structures was relatively well understood and accepted in other counties. However, it is new in Vietnam, thus the company is spending more time in educating and guiding developers in the country.

 

In applying the business model in Vietnam, Rang Dong Group in the south central province of Binh Thuan is one of the first companies to join the room exchange network by issuing vacation ownership three years ago.

 

The company has signed with RCI to get its facilities in Sea Links Golf Resort linked to other resorts around the world for room exchange.

 

According to RCI, there are some three million members and 4,000 resorts around the world joining the system. Among Asian countries, Japan, Malaysia, Korea and India are on the top list applying the vacation ownership.

 

City to continue inviting bidders for prime sites

 

The HCMC government will put forth six plots of land in prime sites - commonly referred to as ‘golden land’ - to bidders for property development, said an official of the city’s Department of Planning and Investment.

 

Nguyen Dac Toan, vice head of the department’s Office of Infrastructure Development, told the Daily on Tuesday that within this week the department would submit to the municipal government a common regulation for inviting bidders for the six prime-site land plots in District 1.

 

Toan said that after the regulation is approved, invitations will be extended to bidders for the six golden land plots from the middle of June.

 

The city’s related agencies have spent nearly two years to complete the common regulation for auctioning the land plots, having learned bitter lessons in the past relating to disputes when winning bidders challenged authorities over irregularities in choosing the winners

 

The six golden land plots include a site covering 9,700 square meters bordered by Nguyen Du, Dong Khoi and Ly Tu Trong streets, Dan Sinh Market covering 11,400 square meters, a plot bordered by Nam Ky Khoi Nghia and Huynh Thuc Khang streets spanning 4,500 square meters, all in District 1. The others include a 426-hectare area in Binh Quoi – Thanh Da in Binh Thanh District.

 

These land plots are attracting the interests of 107 bidders, including 66 showing interest in the first-mentioned land plot alone.

 

Sales of steel, cement recover

 

The country’s consumption of construction steel and cement has recovered substantially in April and May, industry sources said.

 

The monthly consumption of steel in the past two months rose to an average 440,000 tons compared to only 327,000 tons in March, said Nguyen Tien Nghi, vice chairman of Vietnam Steel Association.

 

Nghi told the Daily on Wednesday that the steel consumption in the next two months would remain high thanks to the faster pace of construction projects. Furthermore, Nghi said, prices of the imported input materials such as iron ore, coal and scrap steel would likely be stable, thus contributing to better steel sales

 

At the moment, the factory price of construction steel is fluctuating between VND15.5 million and VND16.1 million per ton in the northern region and from VND15.8 million to VND16.5 million in southern provinces, VAT excluded.

 

The steel association predicted the country will consume nearly seven million tons this year, or an increase of 10% over last year.

 

Meanwhile, the consumption of cement in the first five months of the year was increasing at a year-on-year pace of 8% with total consumption amount of 20 million tons, said Nguyen Van Thien, chairman of Vietnam Cement Association.

 

“The association expects the total cement consumption at some 52 million this year, or an increase of 7% over last year,” he told the Daily on Wednesday.

 

S’pore franchise firms to come knocking

 

Singaporean franchise companies in the food, beverage, lifestyle and education sectors will have a promotion program for franchises in Vietnam at a conference slated for next week in HCMC.

 

The May 26 “Top Franchise Asia 2011 – Vietnam Edition” is a joint effort between Vietcham Expo and Singapore’s Astreem Corporation supported by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Franchising and Licensing Association of Singapore.

 

The Singaporean franchisers in the food and beverage sectors will include Country Chicken, Don’s Pie, Empire State, Popeyes, and Snackz It! In the lifestyle and services sectors, there will be Auito Saver, Kooshi, Mondo, and Pazzion. KinderGolf and FMDS will represent the education sector.

 

This will be the second such event in Vietnam, according to Vietcham Expo. But this will be the first time for those companies to come to Vietnam for franchise expansion. The rapid economic development and the young and dynamic consumers are the main reasons for the Singaporean firms to seek franchises here in the country.

 

The conference will enable the Singaporean franchisers to profile their brands and demonstrate their products and services. Individuals interested in setting up their own business can learn about franchise investment and explore established brands from Singapore.

 

The Vietnamese franchise market is estimated to achieve 30% annual growth.

 

The first conference was held last year attracting 10 Singapore franchising companies, including food and beverage franchisers Pasta Mania, 3 Monkeys Cafe and Worldwide Wings, and lifestyle franchisers Kooshi, Animaland, Be Me Shoes and QQTMassage.

 

EVN secures credit for Lai Chau hydropower plant

 

Electricity of Vietnam Group (EVN) has secured a credit agreement with Vietnam Development Bank for handling the resettlement of local people who gave land to the Lai Chau hydropower plant.

 

The VND4.6 trillion credit, signed in Hanoi on May 19, will also be used for the manufacture of machinery in service of the Lai Chau power plant, which is located in the northern province of the same name.

 

Construction of the Lai Chau hydropower plant, estimated to cost VND37.5 trillion, started in January this year.

 

Once completed in 2017 as planned, it will have three turbines with a total capacity of 1,200 MW.

 

More food store comes to workers

 

Vietnam’s leading retailer Saigon Co.op Thursday opened new convenience food store at Linh Trung II Export Processing, in Ho Chi Minh City’s outlying district of Thu Duc.

 

The 500 squ.m-store stocks a wide range of food items to serve workers in the zone.

This is a part of the retailer’s expansion plan to bring convenience to workers.

 

This is the second Co.op Food store after the first one opened at Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park in Nha Be District last year.

 

Two stores of this kind will also be built to serve students of the universities in Thu Duc District.

 

Vietnam sells more fruits, vegetables abroad

 

Vietnam exported US$205.6 million worth of fruits and vegetables in the first four months of this year, up by 39 percent compared to the same period last year, according to the Vietnamese Customs.

 

Exporters attributed the increase to higher demands from major importers such as China, Japan, Indonesia and the EU.

 

Vietnam also bought less fruits and vegetables from abroad this year, importing just $74 million in the first fourth month, down by 5.7 percent compared to the same period last year.

 

Stock firm fires chairman for defaulting on debt

 

Hanoi-based Ha Thanh Securities Corporation (HASC) has fired its chairman Truong Duy Son for defaulting on over $5 million worth of debt in April.

 

Ha Thanh fired Son after the State Securities Commission of Vietnam discovered that Son had left his house since April without leaving any contact after borrowing VND100 billion

(US$5 million) from several banks and financial institutions.

 

Son, HASC’s biggest stockholder, owns 29.8 percent of its shares, according to HASC’s annual report. Under his reign, HASC suffered a VND82.6 billion ($4.2 million) loss at the end of 2010.

 

HASC replaced Son with Bui Quang Hung, chairman of Khanh Hoa Power Company and EVN Land Nha Trang.

 

Saigon Petro lowers cooking gas price

 

Saigon Petro will reduce the retail price of its cooking gas in Ho Chi Minh City by VND6,000 per 12kg-cylinder to VND376,000 (US$19) per cylinder as of today.

 

Saigon Petro said it made the move to “support customers.”

 

Compared to early May, the price of cooking gas on the international market has also gone down by $80 a ton.

 

After Saigon Petro announced its plan, there has been no reaction from other gas suppliers in HCMC.

 

Seagate eyes Vietnam as key market

 

Seagate Technology, a leading manufacturer of hard disk drives and storage solutions, sees Asia and Vietnam as key to its strategic business development.

 

Seagate Chair and CEO Stephen Luczo revealed this ambition to the Vietnam Investment Review during his recent visit to Vietnam.

 

He said he was interested in Vietnam as a place for making investment today that will position the company to establish relationships with a variety of original equipment manufacturers and distributors of major retail brands.

 

Vietnam has a lot of opportunities, Luczo said, because Vietnam obviously has a large, educated population. Vietnam also has the ability to use tax bonuses to attract capital, which happens all over the world.

 

If Vietnam uses tax preferences to attract foreign investment and improves foreign language skills for its human resources, market composition would improve markedly in comparison to China and India, traditional destinations for US investors, he said.

 

Seagate hard disk drives and storage facilities have become popular in Vietnam and the US-based firm has distribution agents and warranty centres in Vietnam.

 

"Some 90 percent of our employees are located throughout Asia and most importantly, we are here to learn about the market and our customers and where are the places we should be making investment over the next five years, and well position for the company for the next 10-15 years and beyond," Luczo said.

 

State leader kicks off An Dong bridge project 

 

The People’s Committee of the southern Ninh Thuan province and Hyundai Amco Company on May 19 held a groundbreaking ceremony for the An Dong bridge, linking Ninh Phuoc district with Dong Hai precinct of Phan Rang city.

 

Present at the ceremony, State President Nguyen Minh Triet provincial authorities to create favourable conditions for relevant sides to complete the project, bringing economic benefits and ensuring security for locals.  

 

He said he hoped that in the near future, Ninh Thuan would become a developed locality and a centre for nuclear power and scientific technology development for the whole country.

With a total length of 3,526 metres, An Dong bridge will cost over 1.3 trillion VND and is expected to be completed in 36 months.

 

On the occasion, Huyndai Motor Group presented three Huyndai-branded automobiles and one billion VND to the provincial fund to help the needy, poor patients and encourage local students.

 

JICA helps train Vietnamese railway officials

 

The project, worth around US$5.8 million is funded by the Japanese Government.

 

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed an agreement to improve training capacity with the College of Transport in Hanoi on May 20.

 

The three-year project will train students to build the highway networks which are developing strongly in Vietnam.

 

Tsuno Motonori, chief representative of JICA in Vietnam, said JICA experts will work with the College of Transport to compile a teaching curriculum and help teachers improve their teaching skills. Students will be equipped with the essential knowledge and skills to supervise construction projects, especially highways. Graduates will be able to work efficiently without further training.