Viettel launches plant to make handsets, computers

Viettel has officially launched a production line of electronics and telecommunications worth over VND200 billion  ($9.5 million).

The line is designed to develop 5 million 3G USB, 3 million mobiles and 900,000 computers per year to sate Viettel’s domestic and international market demand.

This will be the first modern production line in Vietnam to produce mobile phones, tablet computers and networking infrastructure.

Economic restructuring discussed in Hanoi

Restructuring investment mechanisms is a key to restructuring the economy, according to a seminar in Hanoi on October 18.

Addressing the seminar on the global economy and Vietnam’s economic policies, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh said that global economic recession has left a strong impact on Vietnam since 2008.

Although measures and policies have been carried out, Vietnam still faces a high inflation as well as high interest rates.

He emphasised the necessity to restructure the economy in combination with the renewal of growth models focusing on the restructuring of investment mechanisms, equitisation of businesses and financial market restructuring.

Participants pointed out an imbalance in the current investment mechanisms and the “illogical” structure of economic sectors.

They said that restructuring investment mechanisms must include the elimination of ineffective projects and reorganisation of unsuitable projects.

The seminar mentioned the issuance of the law on public investment under which public investment should be focused on national and inter-regional projects.

According to the Central Institute for Economics Management (CIEM), the state economic sector received 60 per cent of the total investment in the 1995-2010 period, much higher than its proportion in the national GDP. Meanwhile, the non-state sector received only between one-fifth to one-third of the investment flow.

Firms help employees deal with inflation

Many businesses in Vietnam have increased wages and allowances to ease difficulties for their employees in the context of escalating prices and inflation.

A 2011 Vietnam remuneration survey by the US-based Mercer Company through its representative in Vietnam, TalentNet, shows that inflation has affected salary policies of 75 per cent of 329 domestic and foreign enterprises interviewed in the survey.

This year’s average pay increase in multinational groups and wholly foreign invested companies is 13.3 per cent, compared with 12.5 per cent last year, while Vietnamese companies saw a 19 per cent rise.

Several years ago, to attract qualified human resources, foreign businesses increased salaries in line with the inflation rate. However, this year’s average pay increase is 6.7 per cent lower than the expected inflation rate, since businesses are directly suffering from difficulties in both domestic and world economies.

In addition to pay increases, enterprises have also provided their employees with some allowances such as expenses for lunch, travel and work clothing.

The survey also says that the pharmaceutical sector saw the highest pay increase of 14.1 per cent this year. It was followed by the banking, oil and gas and high-tech sectors, with rises ranging from 12.5 per cent to 14 per cent.

Unskilled workers, who are the most vulnerable to inflation, enjoyed the highest pay rise of 14.1 per cent.

Mercer is a major provider of consulting, outsourcing and investment services.

Cement producers feel a weighty burden

Local cement producers are being hard hit by a heavy-footed economy.

Cement continues to be one of the local products with mounting stockpiles in the year to September, according to a Ministry of Industry and Trade report, which saw stockpiles at state-owned cement conglomerate Vicem’s member firms reaching 2.34 million tonnes in the first nine months of 2011.

Vicem Hoang Mai Cement witnessed a plunge in its sales volume on the back of stagnant real estate market and unpredictable weather. Its current cement inventory was reportedly worth VND350 billion ($16.9 million).

According to company’s deputy director Hoang Xuan Vinh, Vicem Hoang Mai faced serious capital pressures, particularly arranging loan repayments for a production line.

As of August 31, 2011, the firm’s borrowing costs came to VND627.8 billion ($30.3 million), tantamount to 59.8 per cent of its total assets.

Many popular cement brands like Ha Tien and Fico are in a similar position.

Nghi Son Cement’s deputy director Nguyen Ba Hung said the firm’s sales volume plummeted when a number of property projects incurred delays on the back of extensive cuts in public spending and credit squeezes.

Quang Son Cement had only 50 per cent of its products bought. A company representative said if the situation continues on the company would achieve 70-80 per cent of its full-year plan.

Quang Son Cement reported an annual production of 1.5 million tonnes.

Early in the year the Ministry of Construction forecast the country would need around 54.5-56 million tonnes in 2011, 10 per cent on-year hike. However, industry insiders assumed sales for this year would be even worsen than last year’s sales of 50 million tonnes.

Latest statistics show that around 35 million tonnes of cement were consumed as of September 30, 2011.

Cement-makers hope the sales volume would augment in later months of 2011 as demand often picked up during that period.

In fact, scores of cement firms are retrenching production to reduce stockpiles and focusing on boosting sales.

2030 Club eyes Laos market

The 2030 Businessmen Club under the Saigon Times Club is planning to open a representative office in Laos’ capital of Vientiane late this year, helping the club members promote products in this market.

Nguyen Thanh Phong, head of the club, told the Daily on Monday that the office would display garment, packaging, printing, decorating, and building products of its members.

Phong said business opportunities in Laos are ample for Vietnam’s small and medium enterprises due to the strong favor for Vietnamese products there.

Club members have been encouraged to use products of each other since early this year to overcome the tough times when the buying power declines.

In related news, the club is preparing to build a small bridge 2.5 meters wide and 50 meters long across Ba Trieu Canal in Hau Giang Province’s Phung Hiep District. The bridge funded by the club members is expected for completion late this year to help improve livelihood of locals in the poverty-stricken area.

Public investments surge despite inflation fight

The nation still has seen the number of state-funded projects expanding this year, ignoring the Government’s drive to cut public spending in a bid to fight high inflation in Vietnam.

According to a report of the Ministry of Investment and Planning, there were over 6,700 projects using at least 30% State capital kicking off in the first six months of the year, rising by over 1,000 projects compared to the same period last year. Nearly 4,700 projects were completed and put into operation.

The data was collected from 105 out of 124 local agencies, and State-owned economic groups and corporations.

The ministry in the report expressed concern over the modest rise in the number of completed projects while that of new projects shot up strongly. Meanwhile, the Government in Resolution 11 rejected commencement of new projects using State capital or proceeds from government bond sales, except projects for coping with natural disasters and those of national importance.

Some localities have high ratios of new projects underway such as Dong Thap with 45%, Danang 41.3%, Vinh Phuc 56%, An Giang 55.8% and Yen Bai 42.3%.

Meanwhile, foot-dragging projects remain a big problem. In the first half of the year, there were over 2,800 projects, or over 11%, falling behind schedule while the ratio was 9.7% in 2010. This triggers high investment costs, makes the projects ineffective and causes adverse impacts on the economy.
 
Old pipelines cause water leak of up to 40%

Many residential areas still have out-of-date water pipeline systems, resulting in the clean water loss ratio of above 40% in HCMC, said Saigon Water Supply Company (Sawaco).

The pipeline systems have not been upgraded in many areas, especially in Binh Thanh and Thu Duc districts, causing a big waste of tap water.

According to the water supplier, urgent methods and investment capital are in need for water leak prevention. Some 700km of the total 3,350km of water pipelines is old and needs upgrade.

To Trung Dung, administration manager of Sawaco, told the Daily that water leak only decreases in some newly developed residential areas in Go Vap, Nha Be, and District 7.

The total amount of clean water supplied for the city is about 1.7 million cubic meters a day. Sawaco has set a goal to pull down the water loss ratio to 29% in 2025, or 1-2 percentage points every year from now.

To achieve this goal, Sawaco is using preferential capital borrowed from the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on some water leak prevention projects in several districts.

Investment pledged for north-central region

Many local and foreign investors pledged to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in the north-central provinces of Vietnam at a promotion conference held in Nghe An on Monday.

The conference was organized by the Ministry of Planning and Investment in cooperation with six provinces in the region, namely Nghe An, Thanh Hoa, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue. The event also had the participation of Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, 20 embassies and over 100 local and foreign enterprises.

The conference witnessed investment certificates handed over to nine project owners with total investment capital of VND17,144 billion and US$45.8 million. Also, four projects invested in Nghe An Province with VND18,500 billion in total capital were signed.

Two of these projects belong to the Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation (Vicem). The corporation will construct Hoang Mai II Cement Factory with annual capacity of 4.5 million tons and develop Dong Hoi Port in the province.

EuroWindow Vietnam will invest VND2 trillion in an urban area and service complex, comprising offices for lease, apartments and commercial centers, located in Cua Lo Town. The remainder is Bac A Bank’s project to invest in a resort area with US$160 million capital.   

When these projects are rolled out, the advantages and potentials of the north-central region will be promoted. Then, the region will become an attractive and secure destination for investors.

This is the biggest ever promotion conference to be held in north-central Vietnam in order to project the image of the region to investors.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Danh Huy Dong stated the region had difficulties in investment orientation due to its lack of skilled labor force and supporting areas for big foreign direct investment (FDI) projects.

Meanwhile, a representative of the Ministry of Transport said the region must have its transport system improved. The region is lacking synchronous development and many national highways are deteriorating.

As of now, the north-central region has had 243 FDI projects so far with registered capital of US$19.9 billion which accounts for 10% of the country’s total FDI capital.

Despite its poor performance in attracting investment, the north-central area has an advantage in the marine economy and coastal tourism with many airports and seaports.

The six provinces are calling for 342 investment projects in a number of fields, such as real estate, industry, agriculture, education and entertainment.

September’s trade gap bigger than estimate: Customs

The General Customs Department of Vietnam has revised the country’s trade balance for September to a deficit of $1.57 billion, up $570 million from previous estimate.

The General Statistical Office (GSO) late last month estimated the country’s trade deficit at $1 billion.

Actual exports and imports in September hit $7.94 billion and $9.44 billion, down some $360 million and $140 million from GSO’s data, said the department.

As a result, the country had a trade deficit of $7.59 billion in the first nine months of this year, accounting for 10.9 percent of the country's total export turnover.

The newly release figure, a year-on-year decrease of 14 percent, was much higher than $6.84 billion previously announced by GSO, which accounted for 9.77 percent of the total export turnover in January-September.

Vietnam's trade gap was $600 million the second half of September, while total export turnover in the same period reached $4.32 billion, up 25.6 percent from the first half of September, said the department.

Some items posted high export turnover such as telephones and accessories, rubber, rice, apparel products, computers, electronic products and components.

Vietnam's import spending in the same period was $4.92 billion, up 8.8 percent from the first half of September.

Some commodities with high import values in H2 included petrol (up $208 million), gemstone and precious metal and its products (up $93 million), computer, electronic products and spare parts (up $88.6 million).

Exports and imports rose 34.9 percent and 27.7 percent year on year to $69.73 billion and $77.32 billion respectively in January-September.

Mekong Delta economic cooperation forum opens

The Mekong Delta Economic Cooperation (MDEC) Forum opened in Ca Mau province on Oct. 19, drawing the participation of 500 domestic and foreign managers, businesspeople, economists and scientists.

The three-day event, themed “the Mekong Delta – connectivity for sustainable development”, will include a workshop on mechanisms for the regional linkage, a conference on trade promotion and a business forum.

The Mekong Delta International Economic Cooperation Conference and the 2011 Mekong Delta - Ca Mau Economic Cooperation Conference will also be held.

Established in 2007, the MEDC forum aims to promote economic cooperation and links between Mekong Delta provinces and Ho Chi Minh City . The annual forum is hosted in rotation among the Delta provinces.

Southern province to launch promotion program in Japan

A delegation of officials from the southern coastal Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province will launch an investment promotion program in three Japanese cities next week.

The event will be organized in Tokyo, Kawasaki and Osaka.

There will also be two seminars in Kawasaki and Osaka for Japanese investors in industrial development, port, logistics and supporting industries.

Ba Ria - Vung Tau is trying to attract investments in the sector of components, accessories and advanced logistics associated with deep-water ports, which are its national competitive advantages.

UK envoy says investment in Vietnam to top $3 bln

Investments by British businesses in Vietnam would top US$3 billion by the end of next year, Tim Brownbill, director of the UK Trade & Investment in Vietnam, told the media yesterday.

It is currently around $2 billion, Brownbill, also the British consul in Ho Chi Minh City, said.

He said the UK-based Premier Oil was implementing a $1-billion project in Vietnam, while the country’s power, oil, and gas sectors were attracting investment from SOCO International PLC.

British businesses were also keen on investing in infrastructure, education, finance, and banking, he said.

British companies were working with the Vietnamese Ministry of Transport and aviation agencies for opportunities to invest in the Long Thanh International Airport project in Dong Nai Province near HCMC.

“British investors are also interested in traffic, power, clean water, and flood prevention projects under a public-private partnership model,” he said.

The retail sector was also appealing to them, he added.

Speaking at the conference, Kate Harrison, British deputy ambassador in Vietnam, said the UK sought to strengthen trade ties with Vietnam.

She said the UK was Vietnam's largest trading partner in the European Union.

“We will organize more events … to promote trade and economic cooperation between the two countries,” she said.

Vietnam to restructure banking system

The State Bank of Vietnam said it would restructure the banking system in the next five years via mergers and acquisitions and vowed to ensure liquidity for lenders.

"Mergers and acquisitions are an indispensable trend to raise competitiveness", the central bank said in a statement on Tuesday, though it said it would deals to be conducted voluntarily.

After years of high credit growth, bad debts in Vietnam's banking system reached 3.04 percent of all loans at the end of July from 2.16 percent at the end of 2010, according to government statistics.

Smaller banks have been facing a funding squeeze after the central bank took strict measures to maintain a deposit ceiling at 14 percent, driving depositors to withdraw cash to deposit in large lenders.

Overnight lending rates have soared to between 17 and 19 percent in the past few days and the one-month rate jumped to 30 percent on Monday, the state-run news website VnExpress (vnexpress.net) said.

The central bank will ensure liquidity for every lender and the safety of the banking system, it said in a separate statement.

"The State Bank of Vietnam has taken ... measures to support lenders to deal with temporary liquidity shortages, ensuring the liquidity safety of the system", it said in a statement.

Vietnam has more than 40 partly private banks, led by VietinBank and Vietcombank , as well as four fully state-owned banks.

Last month, Vietcombank said a unit of Mizuho Financial Group agreed to buy a 15 percent stake in it for 11.8 trillion dong ($567.3 million), in what could be the largest acquisition in the country's banking sector to date.

Korean businesses seek investment opportunities in Vietnam

Twenty-seven companies from the Vietnam-Republic of Korea (RoK) Trade Promotion Committee attended a Korea-Vietnam trade seminar in Hanoi on October 19 to seek goods suppliers, as well as look into business opportunities in Vietnam.

These companies said they are interested in Vietnam’s crude materials, industrial crops, garments and textiles, footwear, seafood, handicrafts and fine arts and processed agricultural products.

According to the Korean Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), energy, natural resources and food are the areas of greatest concern in Korea and this will provide good opportunities for Vietnamese businesses to penetrate the Korean market.

Over the past eight months of this year, Vietnam’s fruit and vegetable export turnover to the RoK reached US$15.1 million, up 98 percent over the same period last year.

Since diplomatic ties were established in 1992, Vietnam and RoK have developed cooperation in various fields including trade and education.

Two-way trade has sharply increased in recent years, from US$500 million in 1992 to US$13 billion in 2010.

RoK is considered Vietnam’s biggest foreign investor with 2,500 projects with a total registered capital of nearly US$23 billion.

In the first half of this year, two-way trade turnover reached US$8.8 billion, 49 percent more than the same period last year, and the figure is expected to hit US$16 billion this year.

The two governments have set a US$20 billion target for two-way trade turnover by 2015.

Vietnam mainly exports to Korea, crude oil, processed seafood, coffee, rubber, garment and textile products, electronic components, footwear, and iron and steel, while importing garment materials, machinery, equipment, automobiles, petrol and other commodities.

Foreign investors seek new opportunities in Vietnam

The second annual Vietnam Investment Summit opened in Ho Chi Minh City on October 19, drawing over 100 representatives of investment funds and businesses across the country and other parts of the world.

The two-day forum discusses the macroeconomic environment in Vietnam and looks for new investment and development opportunities in the country.

Addressing the conference, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dang Huy Dong presented a strategy that clarifies the Government’s foreign investment attraction policies and priorities and solutions to manage the monetary market and curb inflation.  

Meanwhile, the CEO of Standard Chartered Bank for Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, Louis Taylor, voiced stock market investors’ expectations, saying Vietnam has potential for good development.

The Vietnamese government needs to win the trust of investors in its macroeconomic policy and measures to control inflation.

The Country Representative of the Asia Development Bank in Vietnam, Tomyoyuki Kimura, introduced projects in need of investment capital and put forward measures to attract investment in sustainable projects.

Vietnam-RoK technological transfer centre opens

A technological transfer centre between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea (RoK) opened in Hanoi on October 19.

As a joint project between the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology (KIAT) and Vietnam ’s National Agency for Science and Technology Information (NASATI), the centre aims to facilitate the exchange of information on science and technology, especially new technologies, thus promoting cooperation activities between the two sides in this field.

The main tasks of the centre are to connect the two countries’ businesses, organise seminars and conferences on science and technology and human resource training programme, as well as boost technological transfer through exhibitions.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, KIAT president Yong-Geun Kim affirmed the RoK side’s commitment to funding the centre’s activities in order to boost the scientific and technological development of the two nations.

Also at the ceremony, NASATI and KIAT signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in scientific and technological transfer.

Vietnamese researcher wins nuclear tech prize

Vietnamese researcher Dr. Tran Chi Thanh has won Sweden ’s Sigvard Eklund Prize 2011 for his best PhD dissertation on nuclear technology among other rivals from Swedish universities, according to the Swedish Centre for Nuclear Technology.

The prize honoured his dissertation entitled “Effective Convectivity Model for Simulation and Analysis of Melt Pool Heat Transfer in a Light Water Reactor Pressure Vessel Lower Head”.

“This highly relevant dissertation is the result of an in-depth study into the heat transfer mechanism of a melt pool in the lower head of a boiling water reactor. The nuclear accident in Fukushima has shown how important and relevant the topic is”, said a representative of the judging council.

Dr. Thanh is now working for the Institute of Energy under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

‘VN has bright future': HSBC

HSBC's quarterly global forecast Trade Connections released yesterday predicts Viet Nam's trade to grow 144 per cent by 2025 to US$282.5 billion.

The study, done between July and September, says Viet Nam, along with Egypt, India, Indonesia, and mainland China, will be an international powerhouse that will drive world trade growth through 2025.

Its top five trading partners are China, the US, Japan, Singapore, and Korea. Trade with all of them will grow in volume terms in the next 15 years.

China will remain the largest partner by value in 2025, increasing from the current $17.9 billion to $53.3 billion.

Trade is emerging with Switzerland, Egypt, South Africa, and Saudi Arabia that reflect the importance of commodities to Viet Nam's trade base – especially in iron and steel with Switzerland and petrol and oil with Saudi Arabia.

"Viet Nam is a major commodities exporter, especially in crude oil, but has a strongly developing manufacturing and digital sector opening up with countries like India and the Philippines (outside the big five partners)," said Huynh Buu Quang, head of commercial banking at HSBC Bank Viet Nam.

Meanwhile Asian trade is envisaged to grow 96 per cent to nearly $14 trillion by 2025 and will be the key driver of world trade which is predicted to increase by 73 per cent in the same period.

The Viet Nam confidence index remains positive, at 115 compared to 116 in first half, ranking seventh in the global confidence index and third in Asia.

The Index ranges from 0 to 200, with 200 representing the highest confidence, 100 being neutral, and 0 the lowest.

Asian traders report a dip of three index points in line with the views reported by global traders (-2 index points) from the first half, indicating that despite indications of long-term growth, traders are expecting global economic headwinds to impact global trade over the next six months.

The HSBC Trade Confidence Index reveals that 41 per cent of respondents in Asia expect the global economy to decline within six months, but the vast majority (83 per cent) anticipate either an increase in international trade volumes or consistent levels of international business activity.

Indonesia is the most confident market globally, at 144, up 21 from the first half, while businesses in Singapore (-16), mainland China (-14), and India (-11) show the largest drops in confidence, revealing a pessimistic six-month outlook among importers and exporters.

Exchange rate volatility is the top concern for Viet Nam's traders (63 per cent) in the next six months.

The cost of essential services such as shipping, logistics, and storage ranks second with 41 per cent.

Transport sector must restructure
 
Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh has asked the Ministry of Transport (MoT) to speed up the restructuring of its economic corporations and groups.

Ninh was speaking at a meeting to review 10 years of implementing the plan to restructure, renovate, develop and improve the performance of State-owned enterprises (SOEs) affiliated to the transport ministry in the capital city yesterday.

He urged the ministry to develop a master plan to restructure the transport sector, in which priority should be given to the restructuring, renovation and equitisation of SOEs.

In addition, Ninh told the ministry to come up with a road map and plan to overhaul its financial institutions and pay more attention to training and improving the quality of human resources.

Over the last 10 years, the ministry has achieved a certain amount of success in equitising a number of its SOEs and turning them into single member limited companies.

"State capital following the revaluation increased by 20 per cent; the revenue and benefits by 10 per cent on average while salaries also increased by 10 per cent," the report said.

Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang said in the next four years, 70 enterprises would be equitised and enterprises operating in the same trade would be clustered.

"The ministry plans to establish new economic groups and corporations specialising in transport construction, investment in infrastructure construction, building expressways and developing airports," said Thang.

Trimming the trade deficit

The national trade deficit in the first 10 months of this year was kept at nearly US$8.4 billion, compared to US$9.5 billion in the same period last year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

The GSO report said during this period, the country earned US$78.03 billion from exports, an increase of 34.6 percent from a year earlier and three times higher than the annual growth target set by the Government.

The office’s Trade Department Head Le Minh Thuy attributed the increasing export value to the prices of some products which were higher than last year such as pepper, rubber and cassava.

Garment products topped the list of 27 main exports, with a turnover of US$11.7 billion, a year-on-year increase of 29.4 percent.

However, pepper, cassava and cassava-based exports gained the highest growth. In detail, pepper products increased by 93.9 percent to earn US$700 million. Meanwhile, cassava and cassava-based exports fetched US$823 million, up 93.4 percent.

The US remains Vietnam’s biggest partner, followed by the EU, Southeast Asia, China and Japan.

In terms of imports, the country spent US$86.4 billion, a year-on-year increase of 27 percent. Goods serving production such as petrol, chemicals and steel accounted for a large portion of that.

Thuy explained that soaring prices had in part, pushed up the import turnover in the first 10 months.

Petrol imports were estimated at US$8.6 billion, steel and iron imports at US$5.7 billion and fertilizer imports at US$1.4 billion.

Thuy predicted that the trade deficit would continue to increase in the last two months of this year.

In October alone, the national trade deficit dropped by nearly 50 percent month on month, hitting just US$800 million. This month, the country earned US$8.3 billion from exports, an increase of 4.5 percent over September.

Meanwhile, it spent US$9.1 billion on imports, down 3.7 percent.

Korean businesses seek opportunities in Vietnam

A Korean business delegation led by Hong Mi-Young Bupyeong, mayor of Incheon City in the Republic of Korea (RoK), visited Ho Chi Minh City on October 25.  

Eighteen Korean businesses specilizing in steel, consumer goods, electronics, equipment, technology and energy aim to seek market information and expand trade relationships with Vietnamese partners.  

During their stay in the city, the delegation attended the Vietnam-RoK trade exchange organised by the Investment and Trade Promotion Centre of Ho Chi Minh City (ITPC) and worked with businesses from District 5.

Nguyen Anh Ngoc, ITPC deputy director, said HCM City is an attractive destination for trade and investment cooperation and cultural exchanges with many countries. The ITPC is committed to supporting and creating the best conditions for Korean businesses to operate in Vietnam.

On the same day, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the trade office of the Korean consulate general in Ho Chi Minh City held an exhibition and trade exchange.

Forty businesses from Chungnam province showcased their products including cosmetics, food, healthcare and medical equipment, construction materials, machinery, and industrial equipment.

Chungnam’s Mayor, Ahn Hee Jung, said Korean businesses wanted to seek business opportunities and gather customer opinions from Southeast Asia and Oceania, especially Vietnam.

Korean consul general in HCM City, Oh Jae Hack, said Vietnam and the Rok are strengthening cooperation in politics, economics, culture, education and international relations. The RoK is now one of Vietnam’s biggest trade partners. By July 2011, the country’s FDI in Vietnam reached US$23.4 billion and two-way trade turnover between the two countries hit US$12 billion in 2010.

During their stay, the RoK delegation also visited families in Tay Ninh province whose daughters were married to Korean men.

IT & electronic equipment to be showcased in Hanoi

The second Vietnam Consumer IT Electronics & Telecom World Expo 2011 (VCE 2011) will be held in Hanoi on October 27-30 by International Data Group (IDG) Vietnam and the CEO&CIO Club.

During the four-day event, domestic and international businesses will showcase their latest equipment, technological services and solutions at more than 100 stands.

It is a good opportunity for technology lovers to see the latest technological trends, products and systems for digital, communications, and information and image technology.

The first VCE, held in 2008, attracted more than 150,000 visitors.

PV