National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines continues to increase flight frequency on routes to Europe, Australia, and China, thereby restoring nearly 90% of its pre-pandemic international flight network.

Specifically, from September 23, it will increase the frequency of flights between Hanoi and Beijing (China) from three to four weekly on Tuesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

At present, the airline is still operating one daily flight on the routes from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to China’s Guangzhou and Shanghai.

From October 29, 2023, Vietnam Airlines will increase the frequency simultaneously on many routes to Australia and Europe. The number of flights between Hanoi and Melbourne will increase from two to three weekly on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. At the same time, the airline will launch a new direct flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Perth from December 7, 2023, with 3 round trips per week.

Flights to the UK will increase from five to seven flights per week, including four from Hanoi on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays and three from Ho Chi Minh City on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.

In addition, the route to Germany will have seven flights per week from the current six, with flights departing from Hanoi daily.

Flights between Ho Chi Minh City and France will increase from three to four flights per week on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.

All of the above flights are operated by modern wide-body aircraft Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 with 4-star Skytrax international service quality. Customers can buy tickets at ticket offices, agents, websites, and mobile applications of Vietnam Airlines.

US continues to levy anti-dumping duties on Vietnamese steel coat hangers

Vietnamese steel coat hangers continue to be subject to anti-dumping duties of 220.68% imposed by the United States, according to the Trade Remedies Authority of Vietnam.      

The US Department of Commerce (DOC) recently published the final conclusion of the second sunset review of the anti-dumping tax order on steel coat hangers imported from Vietnam.

The conclusion outlines that as no Vietnamese businesses participated in this review, the DOC has therefore decided to continue imposing anti-dumping tax on steel coat hangers imported from Vietnam with a tax rate of 220.68%, except for three companies that are entitled to a separate tax rate of 157%.

This tax rate has therefore not changed compared to the current tax rate that was applied from February 2013.

New Vietnamese exporters are required to contact the DOC before exporting their products in order to calculate their own tax rates, otherwise they will be subject to an anti-dumping tax of 220.68%, along with an anti-subsidy tax of 31.58%.

Simultaneously, local businesses are able to contact the Trade Remedies Authority of Vietnam to receive timely support.

Earlier in July, the DOC also announced that it had continued to levy anti-subsidy tax of 31.58% on Vietnamese steel coat hangers, with the exception of one company that was subject to a separate tax rate of 90.42%.

The DOC decided to initiate an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation on steel coat hangers imported from Vietnam on January 18, 2012.

Steel coat hangers imported from the country have been subject to US anti-dumping taxes of between 157% and 220.68% and anti-subsidy duties of between 1.58% and 90.42% since 2013.

Da Nang Port receives first container ship to transport cargo to US

Da Nang Port in the central coastal city of Da Nang on September 5 welcomed Singapore’s container ship WanHai 362 as part of the AA3 service line connecting Vietnam directly to the Port of Long Beach in the United States.      

Wan Hai is currently the 11th largest container shipping line in the world that owns 69 mother ships. Among them, this year built WAN HAI 362 is the largest that has a Singaporean nationality.

The 203.5m long and 34.8m wide vessel is capable of carrying 3,013 TEUS. It is also the largest container ship to ever dock at Tien Sa Port so far.

Accordingly, a total of 482 containers of goods were unloaded at Da Nang Port, while 50 TEUS of goods were loaded there en route to port of Long Beach. The main export items were garments, wooden furniture, children's toys, steel rolls, and aircraft equipment.

With a direct journey from Da Nang to Long Beach, the time to transport goods will be cut short to 21 days instead of between 25 days and 28 days as previously, minimising the risk of damaging goods or avoiding risks due to not being able to connect to mother ships at other transshipment hubs.

Fiber enterprises enjoy improved earning results

The earnings results of enterprises in the fibre industry have shown signs of significant improvement in the first half of this year and are expected to grow more positively in the coming months as demand recovers.

In the first half of this year, the business results have shown signs of improvement as the prices of raw materials - cotton - decreased significantly compared to the first half of 2022. Demand from the Chinese market has also rebounded.

Revenue in H1 of Damsan Joint Stock Company (ADS) increased by 14.1 per cent compared to the same period in 2022. In the second quarter of this year alone, revenue and net profit of this business increased 66.7 per cent and 13.4 per cent over the same period in 2022, and up by 129 per cent and 89 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2023, respectively.

Polyester yarn manufacturers have seen gradually recovering demand. In the second quarter of 2023, Century Fibre Joint Stock Company's (STK) revenue increased by 41.5 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2023 and net profit increased 22 times compared to the first quarter.

VNDIRECT Research said that the export value of Việt Nam's textile and garment products had improved over the months since May 2023, an early signal for the recovery of demand for textile products.

Fibre industry enterprises - the upstream segment of the textile and garment industry value chain - were expected to be the first segment to show recovery, said VNDIRECT.

Demand for textile and garment industry products would increase in the last quarter of this year to serve year-end festivals, so export activities of fibre enterprises were expected to be more vibrant from the third quarter of 2023.

In the first half of 2023, Damsan’s yarn and towel export output to the Chinese and Japanese markets reached about 5,600 tonnes, an increase of 2.6 times compared to the second half of 2022.

Damsan Textile said the current order volume was sufficient until the end of Q3 of 2023. Meanwhile, the export revenue of Century Fibre Joint Stock Company (STK) increased by 53 per cent in the first 6 months of this year, compared with a 52-per cent increase in 2022.

VNDIRECT Research said that domestic fibre enterprises were currently waiting for a turning point from the prospect of consumption in China - Việt Nam's largest fibre importer.

Việt Nam's fibre export turnover to China in the first half of this year only reached US$1.04 billion, down 20.7 per cent over the same period in 2022. However, in the second quarter of 2023 alone, export turnover reached $610.7 million, up 42 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2023 and slightly increased compared to the second quarter of 2022.

Retail sales of textiles and footwear as of May in China increased by 2.3 per cent compared to April, and increased by 12.3 per cent compared to May 2022, reaching 107, 6 billion yuan.

The People's Bank of China has continuously cut lending interest rates recently to promote production and consumption activities, as well as reduce savings interest rates to stimulate cash flow into consumption and investment.

Therefore, VNDIRECT Research expects that the demand for fibre products in the Chinese market will show clearer signs of recovery in the fourth quarter of 2023 - first quarter of 2024. Yarn manufacturers with a high proportion of exports to China, such as Damsan Textile, are expected to benefit greatly from this trend.

Regarding the business prospect of Damsan Joint Stock Company, the operation of An Ninh Yarn Factory in the second quarter of 2023 has helped this business enter the top 5 largest yarn and towel manufacturers in the country. The company currently owns three factories with a total designed capacity of 14,000 tonnes per year for CD32 yarn and 3,000 tonnes per year for towels.

Century Fibre Joint Stock Company, Unitex Fibre Factory phase 1 is expected to operate commercially in the first quarter of 2024, helping to increase the total capacity of the company to 96,000 tonnes per year. It is expected that when Unitex Factory is completed in 2025, the company will become the second largest yarn producer in the country. 

Da Nang Port receives first container ship to transport cargo to US

Da Nang Port in the central coastal city of Da Nang on September 5 welcomed Singapore’s container ship WanHai 362 as part of the AA3 service line connecting Vietnam directly to the Port of Long Beach in the United States. 

Wan Hai is currently the 11th largest container shipping line in the world that owns 69 mother ships. Among them, this year built WAN HAI 362 is the largest that has a Singaporean nationality.

The 203.5m long and 34.8m wide vessel is capable of carrying 3,013 TEUS. It is also the largest container ship to ever dock at Tien Sa Port so far.

Accordingly, a total of 482 containers of goods were unloaded at Da Nang Port, while 50 TEUS of goods were loaded there en route to port of Long Beach. The main export items were garments, wooden furniture, children's toys, steel rolls, and aircraft equipment.

With a direct journey from Da Nang to Long Beach, the time to transport goods will be cut short to 21 days instead of between 25 days and 28 days as previously, minimising the risk of damaging goods or avoiding risks due to not being able to connect to mother ships at other transshipment hubs.

Nearly 235 trillion VND raised through G-bond in eight months

The State Treasury and the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) mobilised nearly 235 trillion VND (9.8 billion USD) in the first eight months of this year, the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) has announced.

Of the sum, the State Treasury raised 230.5 billion VND and the VBSP 4.45 trillion VND, reaching 57.63% and 18.27% of their yearly targets, respectively.

In August, the HNX organised 20 G-bond auctions issued by the State Treasury with a total winning value of nearly 21.8 trillion VND, down 34.56% from July.

In August, bonds with 10- and 15-year maturity were traded the most, accounting for 30.02% and 43.61%, respectively. Notably, coupon rates of five-year bonds saw a downward trend over sessions with a decrease of 10 basis points compared to the last session of July.

Meanwhile, those for bonds of 5, 10, 15, and 30 years were 1.7%, 2.36%, 2.59% and 3.05%, respectively.

In the secondary market, the total transaction value in August reached 134 trillion VND, of which, outright value was more than 101 trillion VND while the total volume traded via repos nearly 32.2 trillion VND.

In the month, foreign investors’ purchases totalled 3.86 trillion VND, accounting for 2.87 % of the total transaction value.

AgroViet 2023 to promote Vietnamese, foreign agricultural products

Vietnamese and foreign agricultural products will be introduced at the 23rd Vietnam International Agriculture Trade Fair (AgroViet 2023) which will be held in Hanoi from September 14-17.

There are about 200 booths and nearly 1,000 sq.m for displaying high-quality products from localities across Vietnam and other countries such as China, the Republic of Korea, Australia, Russia, and ASEAN nations.

Speaking at a press briefing to announce the trade fair on September 6, Director of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Centre for Agriculture under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Minh Tien said that with the theme “Connecting value chains, developing ecological, sustainable agriculture”, the fair is expected to boost international cooperation, promote Vietnamese products and brand names.

It will also help enterprises and cooperatives to further exploit domestic and export markets, he said.

The latest technological advances, agricultural equipment and machines will be also introduced at the fair.

Over 300 technological brands introduced at NEPCON Vietnam 2023

The International Electronics Manufacturing Technology Trade Exhibition and Conference (NEPCON Vietnam 2023) kicked off in Hanoi on September 6, featuring nearly 300 brands of technology, machinery and equipment.

Organised by RX Tradex Vietnam - ASEAN's leading exhibition organiser, the three-day event sees the participation of exhibitors from over 10 countries worldwide, including Japan, the US, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Germany, and India.

Several business exchange activities to link domestic and international enterprises will also be held during the event, including a technology symposium and the latest bulletins on emerging markets in the field.

Do Thi Thuy Huong, member of the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Electronic Industries Association, said that the fair will open opportunities to support businesses to exchange, learn from each other towards sustainable development as well as updating trends, advanced technology and smart manufacturing solutions. It is also a chance to enhance capacity to attract foreign investment and improve skills and standards to participate in the global supply chain.

On the occasion, the fair will introduce a special edition of the NEPCO in the southern economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City.

NEPCON stands for an exhibition that showcases machine tools, testing equipment, and electronics manufacturing technologies. It ranks as Vietnam's premier and sole electronics fair.

Founded in 2008, NEPCON has grown into a pivotal gathering for technology aficionados and professionals globally. Every year in September, the fair is hosted in Hanoi. Besides, NEPCON events also span across other leading Asian cities in China, the Republic of Korea, and Japan.

17th International Travel Expo Ho Chi Minh City 2023 kicks off

The 17th International Travel Expo Ho Chi Minh City 2023 (ITE HCMC 2023) themed “Connectivity, Growth, Sustainability” officially opened on September 7 in Ho Chi Minh City.

The expo attracted more than 400 domestic and international tourism brands while selecting 199 international buyers from 42 countries and territories that are Vietnam's key and potential inbound tourism markets, such as Japan, the Republic of Korea, China, Poland, the US, France, Malaysia, and New Zealand.

Upon addressing the opening ceremony, Phan Van Mai, chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, emphasized that Vietnamese tourism in general and Ho Chi Minh City tourism in particular has seen positive signs of tourism recovery and development.

Over the past eight months of the year, the southern city welcomed nearly 25 million visitors, including three million international visitors, reaching 63% compared to the figures from 2019 with tourism revenue reaching more than VND100,000 billion.

These impressive results can be attributed to significant contributions from international co-operation on tourism among countries in the region over recent times.

Furthermore, along with other tourism promotion programmes, ITE HCMC has also contributed to accelerating the growth of foreign arrivals to Vietnam, increasing the flow of visitors among countries, boosting tourism revenue, as well as strengthening trade exchange activities.

The municipal leader suggested that the southern metropolis' tourism industry is required to focus on updating information and market forecasts in order to increase the number of visitors and tourism revenue moving forward.

In particular, the tourism industry must properly assess unpredictable developments occurring in the domestic and foreign markets, as well as devising a timely approach to accelerate the tourism industry, he noted. 

ITE HCMC 2023, which will run until September 9, is projected to attract 25,000 visitors with a diverse array of activities on offer such as conferences, seminars, and trade connections.

Dong Nai province seeks to boost business links with Indian firms

A trade promotion and business matching event between Vietnam’s southern province of Dong Nai and India took place in New Delhi on September 6, attracting a number of enterprises from both countries.

Providing a brief introduction of Dong Nai and its trade relations with India, Vice Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Thi Hoang said Dong Nai has a transport system favourable for economic development and trading with other countries. Considered one of the leading industrial hubs in Vietnam, it has attracted 29.26 billion USD in investment from 43 countries and territories, but there haven’t been any investment projects by Indian firms here.

In 2022, Dong Nai recorded 489 million USD in exports to and 326 million USD in imports from India. Its main exports include plastic raw materials, fabric, fibre, yarn, machinery, equipment, tools, spare parts, and vehicles. Meanwhile, imports from India include metals, animal feed and materials, chemicals, machinery, equipment, tools, spare parts, and plastic raw materials.

Hoang perceived that there remains enormous potential for expanding partnerships between Dong Nai and Indian enterprises. To obtain concrete results, they should learn about each other’s capacity, prestige and products, along with relevant policies of Vietnam and India.

She also pledged the best possible conditions for enterprises to access both countries’ markets to generate win-win benefits.

Vietnamese Ambassador to India Nguyen Thanh Hai said trade turnover between the two countries reached 15 billion USD in 2022, but much room remains for it to increase further as both Vietnam and India are dynamic countries and among the fastest growing economies in the world. The two economies are complementary to each other and well-connected thanks to over 50 direct flights per week that bring about numerous opportunities for bilateral trade, investment, and tourism.

The Vietnamese Embassy in India will create favourable conditions for enterprises of both countries to partner with each other, he affirmed.

Atul Kumar Saxena, President of the Indian Importers Chambers of Commerce and Industries, also shared the view on the huge potential for expanding ties between Dong Nai and Indian enterprises.

At the event, Vietnamese firms and the Indian chambers of commerce and industries signed six memoranda of understanding on trade and investment cooperation.

Global consulting firm Bain & Company opens first office in Vietnam

Boston-based management consulting firm Bain & Company on September 6 announced the opening of its first office in Vietnam, further strengthening its presence in Southeast Asia.

The new office in Ho Chi Minh City marks the establishment of its physical presence by a tenured group of partners and team members. The group has a long track record of serving global and local corporates as well as financial investors in Vietnam over the last 20 years.   

“We are excited to expand our global footprint in Vietnam, one of the most vibrant and fastest growing economies in Southeast Asia,” said Wade Cruse, managing partner for Southeast Asia at Bain & Company.

“This investment underscores Bain’s ongoing efforts to expand its footprint to support clients across the region. We are committed to putting people on the ground and we look forward to creating success stories against the backdrop of a dynamic Vietnamese economy spurred by an exceptional talent pool and innovation ecosystems,” he said.

The new office will facilitate closer collaboration with local businesses and multinational corporations and provide them access to Bain’s extensive global expertise, particularly in the areas of technology, digital innovation and sustainability. 

Bain has signed an agreement with FPT Digital to support Vietnamese enterprises and the Government to accelerate digital transformation.

Several domains represent the majority of the consulting firm work including business transformations to achieve full potential and re-define strategy and operations in times of uncertainty, innovation via technology, sustainability efforts to support the transition to net zero across business sectors, and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) advisory to investors and corporates when making landmark acquisitions in Vietnam.

As one of the world’s leading consulting firms, Bain serves more than 60% of the Fortune 500, operating in 40 countries and 65 cities, with a global team exceeding 18,000 professionals.

IFC prioritises job creation and trade flow in Vietnam

Despite enduring overlapping crises and challenges, several climate projects, smaller businesses, women, and farmers throughout Asia and the Pacific region have benefited from record amounts of funding given by the International Finance Corporation, with Vietnam among the IFC's top five countries for long-term investment in the region for the fiscal year ending June 30.      

The IFC's total commitments in the country have reached close to US$1.9 billion in the current fiscal year, of which US$520 million is in long-term finance.

IFC investment and advisory schemes seek to address core challenges for Vietnam, such as climate change and food security, deal with trade barriers and housing finance, help local companies recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, and navigate challenging internal and external environments.

The majority of long-term funding has increased lending to thousands of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), including women-owned businesses, supported lower and middle-income home buyers, created jobs and boosted economic activity.

IFC's investments in BaF, a leading livestock producer, as well as in the retail operator GS25, along with a commodity-backed warehouse finance facility for TTC AgriS, have helped strengthen agribusiness value chains and improve food security in the country.

IFC also provided over US$1.3 billion in short-term trade and supply chain finance to help local companies in Vietnam, mainly garment and agribusiness suppliers, enabling them to continue importing and exporting goods while retaining about 100,000 jobs. 

In line with the Government's twin goals to become a high-income country by 2045 and achieve net zero by 2050, climate and sustainability have become a major focus for IFC engagements in the country. To date, the IFC has committed over US$900 million in long-term finance aimed at supporting climate-related projects in the country.

"As businesses gradually recover from the pandemic and weather uncertainties of ongoing global crises, it's the right time for the private sector to embark on a greener and more sustainable pathway of development to improve resilience and efficiency,” said Thomas Jacobs, country manager for Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos of the IFC.

“This not only makes a strong business case for companies but will also help unlock the potential of the private sector as a driving engine of the country's transition to a low-carbon economic growth model," the IFC representative added.

IFC's advisory scheme in Vietnam focuses on facilitating climate business markets whilst building the capacity for local businesses in order to grasp opportunities in the climate space. For example, IFC is supporting relevant ministries to enable them to develop policies to incentivise green projects and encourage private sector participation in the voluntary carbon market, among others. IFC is also advising manufacturers in heavy industries, including steel, cement, and plastics to adopt decarbonisation solutions to greener their production.

It also supports the State Securities Commission of Vietnam to promote the adoption of environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards and practices as part of efforts to enforce ESG requirements among market players. This effort will help to leverage the capital market to tackle climate change through green and sustainable finance.

Across the Asia and Pacific region, IFC has committed a record US$11 billion to 108 projects in FY2023, a 10% annual increase. This comprises US$4.7 billion in long-term financing from its own account, US$3.4 billion in mobilisation, and US$2.9 billion in short-term trade and supply chain finance to facilitate trade flows.  

Hanoi to host Vietnam International Agriculture Fair in mid-September

The 23rd Vietnam International Agricultural Trade Fair (AgroViet 2023) is set to run from September 14 to 17 in Hanoi, a press conference heard on September 6.

Themed “Connecting value chains, developing ecological and sustainable agriculture” Agroviet 2023 is an annual trade promotion event that allows firms to access and develop agricultural production 4.0 towards creating added value for agricultural products, said Nguyen Minh Tien, director of the Agricultural Trade Promotion Centre.

It also aims to continue promoting the connection of the value chain of Vietnamese agricultural products and creating favourable conditions for foreign organisations and enterprises to provide machinery and equipment for agricultural, forestry, and fishery production in accordance with Vietnamese requirements.

This year, the fair will cover a total of 1,000 square metres and feature nearly 200 booths of both Vietnamese and foreign enterprises, showcasing a wide variety of agricultural products, agricultural machines, fertilisers, handicrafts, and other equipment.

A number of seminars will also be held within the framework of AgroViet 2023.

Foreign exchange rate forecast not to be under great pressure as in 2022

The foreign exchange rate has significantly fluctuated recently but experts forecast the rate in the remaining months of 2023 will not be under great pressure as in 2022.

The foreign exchange market in September and October 2022 was under huge pressure in the wake of global uncertainties. Under this context, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) had to increase the selling price of the US dollar six times within just two months (from September to November 2022), with a total increase of VNĐ1,720, equivalent to 7.4 per cent.

This year, the dollar has recently also skyrocketed against the Vietnamese đồng to exceed the threshold of VNĐ24,000 per dollar. Vietcombank on Tuesday listed the selling rate at VNĐ24,240 while the rate at BIDV was VNĐ24,230.

According to Trần Ngọc Báu, CEO of financial data provider WiGroup, the recent exchange rate shock is due to the rising dollar need of firms to pay some contracts. It is not because of a capital withdrawal out of Việt Nam.

In addition, psychological factors also contribute to the recent volatility of the exchange rate as people are concerned that the scenario of September and October of 2022 will repeat.

However, Báu said the context in 2022 and this year is quite different.

Báu explained the current context is completely different from the end of 2022 when the dollar was actually withdrawn out of Việt Nam due to fear of a chain breakdown. Currently, the Vietnamese banking system is much more stable and there is no withdrawal of capital.

Moreover, the current account balance is relatively strong, while it is forecast the overall balance this year will also have a slight surplus. Meanwhile, at the end of 2022, the current account was relatively weak as service exports didn’t recover and export surplus was weak, Báu said.

Besides, Báu said, regarding the interest rate difference between Việt Nam and the US, the context is also completely different when last year the Fed raised interest rates strongly while under the current period, the Fed is going to the final stage of the interest rate hike cycle.

Inflation has also shown signs of increasing recently, but according to Báu, there is no basis for the indicator to exceed 3.5 per cent this year. This factor will provide good support for the SBV to continue its policy of supporting the economy.

From the analysis of exchange rates and inflation, Báu believes the SBV will not increase interest rate in the near future, but the interest rate level from now until the end of the year will be flat or slightly decrease, not falling sharply as in recent times.

There is not much room left to reduce interest rates so the SBV can only cut the rate by one or two more times. Instead of using the interest rate tool, the SBV will focus on opening up the money supply and credit, applying many supportive policies for the banking industry, and being soft in regulation to expand money supply and credit, Báu predicted. 

Source: VNA/SGT/VNS/VOV/Dtinews/SGGP/VGP/Hanoitimes