Vietnam Institute of Directors makes debut

The Council of the Vietnam Corporate Governance Initiative (VCGI) launched the Vietnam Institute of Directors (VIOD) in ​Ho Chi Minh City on April 5.

The institute is seen as an important market foundation for Vietnam to push market reform and intensify the implementation of commitments to good corporate governance and responsible business activities. 

Established as a social enterprise, VIOD aims to advance board professionalism, promote business ethics and transparency, build a network to connect corporate leaders and stakeholders, and help companies inspire investor confidence. 

Vu Quang Thinh, Chairman of VIOD, said the institute’s objective is to equip company directors with the right knowledge and tools to serve more effectively on boards and improve the competitiveness of Vietnamese firms. 

The institute’s board of directors comprises a diverse group of business leaders and advocates of good corporate governance, including senior executives from investment funds, international legal and accounting firms, and independence board members in prominent companies. 

It is governed by a board of directors comprising of private sector representatives supported by the State Securities Commission (SSC) and the Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh stock exchanges. 

VIOD will hold workshops and board events on governance related topics. Its first training event will take place at the end of May. 

The VCGI was made public in December 2016 by the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE), the Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), with the support of the SSC and the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).

It helps enhance cooperation of stakeholders in the market to promote the implementation of good corporate governance practices of Vietnamese businesses. 

The VCGI Council was established in April 2017 with 18 members who are experts in corporate governance and representatives of management agencies, organisations and businesses from the private economic sector. 

Swiss Ambassador to Vietnam Beatrice Maser Mallor, who is also the SECO representative, said Vietnam is one of the priorities in Switzerland’s economic cooperation. 

SECO commits to encouraging the application of good corporate governance practices within the Vietnamese business circle, while helping local firms improve competitiveness and develop sustainably, she said.

Binh Phuoc enjoys impressive growth in FDI attraction

The southern province of Binh Phuoc has attracted 11 investment projects totalling 100 million USD in the first quarter of 2018, approximately equal to this year’s target.

The figures represented year-on-year rises of 175 percent in the number of projects and 912 percent in capital.

Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Nguyen Van Loi on April 5 attributed the positive results to effective investment promotion measures.

The province plans to organise a large-scale investment promotion programme in May to attract more domestic and foreign investors.

Since the beginning of this year, there were 221 newly-established enterprises with a registered capital of 3.5 trillion VND (153.3 million USD).

Although it saw a breakthrough in investment attraction, the province was ranked 62nd out of the 63 localities in terms of provincial competition index.

Loi asked for drastic measures to improve the position in the time ahead.

Credit institutions hope for good business in Q2, 2018

Up to 75 percent of credit institutions expected better results in the second quarter of this year, while 84 percent hoped their business performance throughout 2018 to improve further compared to 2017, of this, 28 percent anticipated “significant improvement”.

They expressed their hope after making improvements in the first quarter, according to a March survey released by the State Bank of Vietnam on April 4.

The survey covered domestic and foreign commercial banks in the country.

Up to 72.4 percent of the respondents predicted their pre-tax profit in 2018 to rise compared to 2017, helping the average growth rate of the entire banking system to reach 18.2 percent, lower than the 19.3 percent forecast in the previous survey conducted in the first quarter of this year.

The survey also showed that 64 percent and 69 percent of the respondents expected customer demands for banking services, especially lending, in the second quarter and the entire year, respectively, to increase compared to 2017.

Banks expected the banking system’s credit growth to reach 4.85 percent in the second quarter and 16.3 percent in the entire year.

The respondents also anticipated capital mobilisation of the entire banking system this year to reach 16.65 percent, of which the increase in second quarter was anticipated at 4.71 percent.

Banks also said the liquidity of the banking system in both Vietnamese Dong and foreign currencies was currently “good” and that the positive status would continue for the rest of the year.

VPBank to lift chartered capital to 1.22 billion USD

The Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank (VPBank) plans to increase its current chartered capital from 15.7 trillion VND (around 691.6 million USD) to 27.8 trillion VND (1.22 billion USD) in 2018, the bank announced at its shareholders’ recent meeting.

The plan for raising charter capital includes the following mechanisms: issuance of shares for dividend payments instead of cash, issuance of shares using reserves to supplement charter capital, issuance of shares to VPBank staff under the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) programme, private shares placement for local and foreign investors and the distribution of surplus capital.

The bank plans to make dividend payments in the form of common shares by utilising retained profits after allocating profit in 2017 and issuing common shares to raise capital from owner’s equity.

In the second quarter of 2018, VPBank also plans to issue shares worth nearly 337 billion VND - equivalent to about 1.7 percent of the bank’s charter capital at the time of issuance - to its staff under the ESOP programme.

In third quarter of 2018, the bank will buy over 73 million dividend preferred shares, with capital sourced from the firm’s capital surplus (1.3 trillion VND) and development investment fund (1.2 trillion VND).

VPBank will conduct private placement for local and foreign investors to raise charter capital. The maximum offer is about 15 percent of total common shares at the time of issuance.

The last mechanism to raise charter capital will be implemented in the fourth quarter by distributing bonus shares from capital surplus gains after the 2017 private placement. The total surplus distributed to common shareholders is expected to be more than 4.6 trillion VND. After surplus distribution, the charter capital will be raised to 27.8 trillion VND.

With the tentative 12 trillion VND capital surplus as results of the abovementioned actions, VPBank plans to use 8.500 billion VND to raise mid- to long-term capital to serve credit growth.

At this meeting, VPBank’s shareholders also approved the bank’s business plan for 2018. Main targets include reaching total assets of 359.4 trillion VND, customer deposits and valuable papers of 241.7 trillion VND, a non-performing loan ratio below 3 per cent and profits before tax reaching 10.8 trillion VND.

By the end of fiscal year 2017, VPBank was named one of Vietnam’s top five joint-stock commercial banks and one of the country’s top three retail joint-stock commercial banks.

Measures sought for fisheries sector’s sustainable development

Representatives from 28 coastal localities nationwide gathered at a conference in the south central coastal province of Khanh Hoa on April 5 to seek measures for sustainable exploitation, preservation, processing and consumption of aquatic products.

Participants heard reports on forecast of fishing grounds and resources, as well as made recommendations on fishing, processing and domestic consumption of seafood catches, and food safety.

Nguyen Hoai Nam, Vice Secretary of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), proposed measures to boost seafood export while calling on agencies at all levels to help address issues facing enterprises.

Participants also discussed food safety observance on fishing vessels and at ports, logistic services, upgrades to ports and administrative procedures for certification of seafood meeting quality requirements of the EU.

Concluding the event, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong urged the fisheries sector to restructure towards sustainable, responsible development, effective exploration, and climate change adaption.

The ministry needs to review drastically and provide information timely for people and enterprises while developing a close chain of seafood processing to improve product quality, he said.

He also urged the aquaculture sector to make planning with application of advanced technology and find consumption markets.

Reports show that in 2017, the nation’s aquatic output reached over 3.42 million tonnes, exceeding the yearly target by 3.7 percent, and up 5.7 percent from 2016. In which, the seafood catches made up of over 3.22 billion tonnes. The rest was inland aquatic output.

Lotte considers opening more stores in Vietnam

Korean retail giant Lotte is considering whether to open more stores in major Vietnamese cities, including the capital city of Hanoi and the southern largest economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City.

Hotel Lotte Co., a hotel and duty-free operator of Lotte, said the operating profit of its duty-free unit plummeted to a record low in 2017 amid a diplomatic row between the Republic of Korea (RoK) and China over a US missile defence system.

Lotte Duty Free's operating income was 2.5 billion won (2.4 million USD) in 2017, with sales reaching 5.45 trillion won. 

The weak bottom line was widely forecast as the retailer has been suffering from China's apparent retaliation over the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) battery here.

The company said its profitability is expected to improve as it moves to stabilise its businesses at home and abroad, adding that it will focus on strengthening the competitiveness of its duty-free stores in Seoul after it recently began the process to end its concession deal at Incheon International Airport – a main gateway to the RoK. 

The retailer aims to expand its global reaches and diversify its customer portfolio, which had been heavily reliant on Chinese tourists.

Sales from its overseas outlets came to 140 billion won in 2017, up 45 percent annually.

Northern power firm produces 13.8 billion kWh of electricity in Q1

The Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) Group’s Northern Power Corporation (EVNNPC) has reported that its commercial power output in the first quarter of 2018 picked up 14.06 percent year-on-year to more than 13.8 billion kWh.

Of the total amount, 65.06 percent was supplied for the construction industry, up 15.81 percent against the same time last year while 29.08 percent was provided for daily use, rising 9.7 percent.

During the January-March period, the corporation’s member companies began construction of ten projects and put into operation 17 power supply works and transmission lines, adding 657 MVA to the national grid.

Furthermore, the corporation completed all 14 customer service criteria, with average electricity access of 5.02 days per week. As of March 31, it informed power charges via SMS to 7.26 million out of 9.77 million customers, an increase of 1.08 million customers as compared to 2017.

The EVNNPC worked to ensure sufficient power supplies for production, daily life and socio-political activities during New Year and Tet (lunar New Year) holidays. In addition, it also paid due attention to communication campaigns to raise public awareness of power saving and response to the Earth Hour 2018.

In the second quarter, the firm will further its efforts to ensure stable power supply during hot weather as well as deploy drastic measures to reduce power consumption.

Mining Vietnam 2018 exhibition to be held in Hanoi

The fourth International Mining and Minerals Recovery Exhibition for Vietnam (Mining Vietnam 2018) will be held at the International Centre for Exhibition in Hanoi on April 18-20, gathering over 170 enterprises from 22 countries and territories.

The event will have nine group pavilions specifically designed for international exhibitors from various countries including the UK, Germany, Russia, Singapore, China and Australia.

Covering up to 4,000 square metres, the exhibition will highlight the latest mining equipment, technologies and services.

The exhibition attracts world leading manufacturers and suppliers, including Fong Chuan Machinery, Germanbelt, Hamakyu, Nippon Eirich, Sealtech Vietnam, and especially the country’s largest state-owned mining group - Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (VINACOMIN).

BT Tee, General Manager of the UBM VES Exhibition Services, the organizer of Mining Vietnam 2018 said that although the past few years have proved to be another difficult period for the global mining market, Mining Vietnam has continued to maintain its scope and reputation, attracting a large number of local and international firms. 

This shows the industry’s high potential thanks to the Government’s policy to encourage exports and rising local consumption of mineral resources, he held. 

Mining Vietnam will continue to serve as an effective technology marketplace for mining technology and services in Vietnam and the whole Indochina as well, he added.

Mining Vietnam was first launched in 2012. The third edition of the exhibition was held in 2016 with the attendance of 171 companies from 22 different countries and territories.

Newly-formed firms set a record high in 7 years

Vietnam Expo offers business opportunities for Vietnam, RoK firms

The 28th Vietnam International Trade Fair (VIETNAM EXPO) in Hanoi from April 11-14 will mark the two decades that the Republic of Korea has ran a national pavilion at the event, one of the biggest trade fairs in Vietnam.

The pavilion named “Vietnam – Korea Design Sharing” is a joint effort of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (VIETRADE) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Korea Institute of Design Promotion (KIDP) under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The pavilion will feature products from seven selected Vietnamese and RoK companies.

Korean trade promotion organisations such as Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), Gyeonggido Business & Science Accelerator (GBSA), SeongNam Industry Promotion Agency (SNIP), Gyeongbuk Economic Promotion Agency (GEPA) and Korea Design Centre have long been reliable partners of VIETNAM EXPO.

According to the Vietnam National Trade Fair & Advertising Company (VINEXAD), there has been a wave of Korean investment in Vietnam in the support industry, automobiles, electricity, electronics, garment-textiles and footwear.

Popular Korean brands such as GS25, K-mart, K-market, Lotte, Circle K, Emart, and FamilyMart have also become popular in Vietnam.

Vietnamese consumers are attracted by made-in-Korea products due to their quality, safety, environmental friendliness, eye-catching designs and reasonable prices.

The VIETNAM EXPO will create a chance for businesses to seek partners and introduce their products to customers.

Trade experts said the Vietnam-Korea Free Trade Agreement (VKFTA) will allow Vietnamese businesses to make use of tariff cuts while exporting agro-fishery products.

Businesses from 21 cities and provinces across Vietnam as well as 12 trade and investment promotion centres from Hanoi, Hai Phong, Quang Nam, Bac Giang, Nam Dinh, Ninh Binh, Yen Bai, Lao Cai, Binh Thuan, Thanh Hoa, Dong Thap and Dak Nong are expected to partake in the event.

A series of trade, investment promotion and exchange activities will be held as part of the expo, which will contribute to win-win economic cooperation between Vietnam and the RoK.

Two-way trade between Vietnam and the RoK hit 61.5 billion USD in 2017, a year-on-year increase of 41.3 percent. 

The two countries are working to raise the turnover to 100 billion USD by 2020.

Vinamilk to build four hi-tech dairy farms in Thanh Hoa

Vietnam Dairy Products JSC (Vinamilk) will invest in four high-tech dairy farms in the north central province of Thanh Hoa until 2020, said Vinamilk General Director Mai Kieu Lien.

The four farms, including an organic one, will be built in Vinamilk Thanh Hoa’s high-tech dairy farm complex. As many as 20,000 dairy cows will be raised on the farms, producing 110 million litres of milk per year.

With its current development plans, Vinamilk owns more than 120,000 dairy cows, supplying about 750 tonnes of milk a day.

The company is expected to have 200,000 dairy cows and raw milk output will double by 2020, meeting 50 percent of material demand for production and ensuring supply for Vietnamese consumers.

Vinamilk has recently inaugurated a high-tech dairy farm in Thanh Hoa. Covering a total area of 40 hectares in Thong Nhat town, Yen Dinh district, the facility was built with an investment of 700 billion VND (30.5 million USD).

The farm, designed to raise 4,000 milk cows, is granted the global GAP (Good Agricultural Practice) certification in recognition of its farm management, raw milk quality, and application of state-of-the-art technology.

Vinamilk is aiming for revenue of 55.5 trillion VND (2.46 billion USD) and post-tax profit of 10.75 trillion VND (477 million USD) this year, up 8.5 percent and 4.6 percent, respectively. 

Local filter equipment sent to Chile     

Doosan Heavy Industries Viet Nam Co. (Doosan Vina) has shipped reverse osmosis (RO) expansion racks and high pressure piping systems – equipment essential to desalination filter systems – to the Escondida Water Supply plant in Chile.

Doosan Vina said the 379-tonne shipment, which was loaded onto a ship at Dung Quat Port in Quang Ngai Province, will be installed at the Chilean water plant which supplies 220 million litres of water to over half a million people every day.

The equipment, produced at Doosan’s Quang Ngai based water plant is being exported following the Escondida Water Supply project agreement signed in 2017.

Doosan Vina is the first producer of RO desalination filter systems in Viet Nam. The company also produces and exports boilers for use in power plants, desalination plants and cranes, as well as chemical processing equipment for both local and foreign markets.

The company employs 2,500 local workers and finished 2017 with an export turnover of US$200 million. 

Vissan to increase beef, pork supply in 2018     

The Vissan Joint Stock Company plans to increase revenue by 18 per cent, reaching VND4.6 trillion (US$204.5 million) this year compared with that of last year.

The company also expect to increase the profit before tax by 8 per cent year-on-year to reach VND179 billion.

Vissan expects to increase the food supply to the market this year from 15 per cent to 20 per cent to boost sales and profits.

The company plans to supply 28,000 tonnes of pork, up 20 per cent, 1,700 tonnes of beef and 21,000 tonnes of processed food, up 15 per cent from 2017.

Last year, Vissan did not complete the business plan. The pork output reached 23,492 tonnes, completing 84 per cent of the year’s plan; beef production has just completed 70 per cent, earning VND1.51 trillion; and the amount of processed food sold has reached 19,009 tonnes, fulfilling 96 per cent of the target.

The total revenue for the whole year was nearly VND3.9 trillion, fulfilling 86 per cent of the year’s target. However, profit before tax reached VND165.75 billion, exceeding 6 per cent of the profit target. 

Cashew exports rise strongly in first quarter     

Viet Nam exported 74,580 tonnes of cashew worth US$758 million in the first quarter, according to the Viet Nam Cashew Association (Vinacas).

This represented increases of 33.8 per cent in volume and 46.6 per cent in value year-on-year, with the US, China and the Netherlands being the biggest buyers.

Exports to all markets except Australia increased.

The average export price was 10.2 per cent higher from a year earlier thanks to an increase in shipments of processed items.

Speaking at a meeting to review first quarter exports, Dang Hoang Giang, Vinacas’s vice chairman, said the result reflected the association’s direction that the sector would reduce export volumes and focus on processed products.

Highly processed items fetched 20-30 per cent more than semi-processed ones, while organic cashew was $2 per pound higher than semi-processed nuts, he said.

Exports of highly processed products accounted for 5 per cent of the total, while organic cashew shipments were modest, he said.

“The prospects for cashew exports in the remaining months of the year are very positive.

“As usual, global cashew trade will become busy from the second quarter.”

This year, the sector targets exports of 300,000 tonnes, a 17.28 per cent decline from last year, but hopes to achieve last year’s turnover of $3.6 billion by increasing the ratio of processed and high value-added products and by-products, he said.

Delegates at the meeting said domestic cashew output has fallen sharply this year due to unfavourable weather and diseases since last year.

Pham Van Nguyen, a cashew expert, said: “A few weeks ago, we had forecast that cashew output will reach 400,000 tonnes this year, but after conducting fact finding trips to cashew cultivation areas, we think the output will be around 300,000 tonnes.”

Some cashew farms in Binh Phuoc Province have just yielded 300kg per hectare compared to more than one tonne previously.

Le Quang Luyen, the association’s director of finance and president of Phuc An Processing and Trading Company, said the yield per kernel too is lower this year.

Last year, the industry had imported 1.5 million tonnes of cashew for processing for export, and this year it expects to import one million tonnes, he said.

Import prices are rather high, so cashew processors must be careful to avoid losses, he warned.

There is greater demand for organic cashew for hygiene and food safety reasons, Luyen said.

“I have worked with some co-operatives to produce organic cashew, hoping that from the next crop, my company can start exports of organic nuts.”

The organic method offers very low yields of 600-700kg against a normal output of two tonnes, he said.

“So businesses must have ways to ensure profits for farmers to encourage them to switch to organic farming.” 

Viet Capital targets profit up 26 per cent     

Viet Capital Securities JSC (VCSC) plans to earn more than VND1 trillion (US44 million) in 2018 in pre-tax profit, an increase of almost 26 cent compared to last year, the company has announced.

It also plans to obtain revenue of VND1.7 trillion, up 11.6 per cent year on year. Operating expenses is expected to reach VND704 billion, down four per cent year-on-year. Shares offered for dividend payment is expected to worth VND1,500 per share.

Investment banking continues to be VCI’s core business and the company aims to secure the leading position in this segment.

Currently, VCI is executing many large business contracts with transactions worth more than VND40 trillion in banking, consumer goods, seafood, construction materials and real estate.

At the same time, VCI is currently also one of the top 10 brokerage firms with the highest market share.

According to VCI, in 2018 Vietnamese stock market will see the VN Index, Viet Nam’s benchmark stock index reaching 1,250 points, thanks to strong profit growth of listed companies, stable real estate market, strong exports and increased investment in energy and infrastructure projects. Besides high investor expectations for State divestment plans among many large State corporations in 2018 also creates the premise for growth of the VN-Index.

VCI expects the Government will continue to keep sticking with the divestment plan, which plays an important role in attracting capital and increasing the liquidity of Viet Nam’s stock market.

In 2017, VCI achieved VND1.4 trillion in revenue, up 77 per cent from 2016 and the highest revenue VCI had ever gained since its inception. In particular, the investment banking segment made a big contribution, up 280 per cent year-on-year thanks to large value transactions of its contracts, some of which were signed with large corporations like budget carrier Vietjet, Viet Nam Prosperity Bank and jewelry retailer Phu Nhuan Jewelry Joint Stock Company.

VCI earned after-tax profit of VND655 billion, the after-tax profit margin on equity reached 42.64 per cent. 

Saigon Co.op eyes 10% sales growth     

The country’s leading retailer, Saigon Co.op, hopes to increase sales by 10 per cent this year.

Despite intense competition, the co-operative achieved all its targets last year, with revenues reaching nearly VND30 trillion (US$1.31 billion) and exports via its Co.opXtra hypermarket, a joint venture with Singapore, growing by 30 per cent.

It opened 130 new Co.opmart supermarkets, Co.op Food stores and Sense City and Co.opSmile convenience stores last year.

In 2018, to cope with the fierce competition in the market and retain its position as the leading consumer retailer in Viet Nam, Saigon Co.op will focus on developing distribution networks and logistics services.

This year, it plans to open 19 Co.opmart, two Co.opXtra, 170 Co.op Food, 150 Co.opSmile and 50 Cheers outlets.

It will also open an outlet of Co.opmart Finelife, its new business targeting wealthy customers, and develop omni-channel retailing.

Saigon Co.op is also focusing on creating a friendly supermarket environment, green brands, organic products, greater use of information technology in management, strengthening its supply chain, human resources, and logistics.

Speaking at a Saigon Co.op review meeting on April 5, Nguyen Quynh Trang, deputy director of the HCM City Department of Industry and Trade, hailed the co-operative’s achievements, saying it had contributed greatly to the city’s economic development.

She called on the company to focus on both expanding at home and strengthening co-operation with foreign partners to sell Vietnamese goods abroad. 

VNPT provides IT solutions for Hoa Lam Group     

The Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group on Thursday agreed to co-operate with the Hoa Lam Group in information technology and communications, aiming to make use of each other’s strength.

Under the agreement signed between the two sides, VNPT will help its partner in developing IT infrastructure in facilities invested by the Hoa Lam Group, provide corporate management software such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), data analysis; as well as security solutions.

The two groups will also join hands in supplying healthcare services, share human resources and IT infrastructure at two hospitals, namely the International Hospital and the Post Hospital.

In addition, Hoa Lam Group’s Vietbank will co-operate with VNPT’s Vinaphone company in five years from 2018 to 2023 to promote digitalised banking services based on VNPT’s internet and mobile services.

Hoa Lam Group was established in 1990 with business focusing on finance and healthcare. 

New air routes promise cheap flights in summer 2018

New international air routes from Vietnam have been launched from March to fly directly to Chiang Mai, Bangkok and Seoul.

Low-cost airline AirAsia plans to open a direct flight from Hanoi to Penang, Malaysia from July 1, 2018. This is the exclusive route operated by Air Asia with a frequency of four flights per week on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Previously, passengers travelling from Hanoi to Penang have to transit in Kuala Lumpur airport.

On the occasion, AirAsia offers discounts for one-way tickets from Hanoi to Penang at prices from over VND1 million (including tax and fees).

In June, travel and transportation services company WorldTrans also plans to kick off direct charter flights between Can Tho and Bangkok and operate eight flights between the two destinations, using the 180-seater Airbus 320 aircraft from Thai VietJet. The flying time will be 1:25. A round-trip ticket costs VND4.6 million (including tax and airport fees).

Earlier on March 25, the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines opened a new air route from Nha Trang to Seoul with four flights per week. Flight duration will be five hours.

The first direct air route from Hanoi to Chiang Mai, Thailand has been operated by Bangkok Airways from March 25. One-way and round-trip tickets are sold at US$108.6 and US$192.4 respectively.

Last month, Vietjet Air also announced the opening of a direct air route from HCM City to New Delhi as of July with four flights per week.

Vietnamese seafood shipments found with metal residues on the rise

The number of Vietnamese seafood batches exported to foreign countries found with metal residues has tended to sharply rise, according to an official from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

In a meeting co-organised by the MARD and the People's Committee of Khanh Hoa Province in Nha Trang City on Thursday, Ngo Hong Phong, deputy head of MARD’s Agro-Forestry-Fisheries Quality Assurance Department, said up to 50 seafood shipments faced food safety warnings from abroad. Among those, 35 shipments were issued warnings from the EU, double 2016 and six times against 2015.

Most of the batches were found to have contained metals such as mercury and cadmium over the maximum permissible limits. Meanwhile, the rest failed due to incorrect labelling.

On October 23 last year, the European Commission issued a yellow card warning to Vietnam after the country failed to demonstrate sufficient progress in the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing worldwide.

Nguyen Hoang Nam, deputy general secretary of Vietnam Association for Seafood Exporters and Producers (Vasep), the yellow card has affected Vietnam’s seafood exports to EU markets. If a red card is issued, Vietnam will face a trade ban on fishery products to the EU.

Meanwhile, Vietnam’s seafood exports to the US have become more difficult as the US has put the Seafood Import Monitoring Programme into operation since January 1 this year.

The programme aims to prevent illegal, unreported, and unregulated catches and mislabelled seafood from entering the US, resulting in much stricter controls on the origins of seafood exports to the country.

NBB plans to double net profit after Carina Plaza fire

At the annual general shareholders’ meeting expected to take place on April 24, 577 Investment Coporation (NBB), some buildings of which have been partnered by Japanese Creed Group, will submit the target of VND170 billion ($7.5 million) in net profit, doubling 2017 performance.

The corporation plans to gain VND850 billion ($37.44 million) in revenue this year, 24 per cent less than the VND1.117 trillion ($49.2 million) in 2017.

However, NBB plans to sharply increase pre-tax profit from VND75.6 billion ($3.33 million) to VND215 billion ($9.5 million). After-tax profit is also planned to increase to VND170 billion ($7.5 million), while it was approximately VND73 billion ($3.2 million) last year.

On the other hand, NBB intends to propose the general shareholders’ meeting to raise CII’s ownership to 49 per cent without a public offering. Ho Chi Minh City Infrastructure Investment JSC (CII) is currently holding 34.12 per cent of NBB’s capital, equivalent to 33.2 million shares.

After the Carina Plaza fire, NBB’s stock dropped like a stone for eight consecutive sessions, despite the corporation trying to clarify that it is not the developer of Carina Plaza, despite its 95 per cent ownership in Hung Thanh. After the apology and promises of compensation, the stock of the parent company has lightly increased to VND18,000.

MPIC acquires 49 per cent stake in Tuan Loc Corp.

Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC), the owner of 44.94 per cent of Ho Chi Minh City Infrastructure Investment JSC's (CII) subsidiary, will buy a 49 per cent stake in Tuan Loc Construction Investment Corporation to expand its operations in Vietnam.   

Accordingly, MPIC, through its subsidiary MetroPac Water Investments Corporation (MPW), signed the purchase agreement to buy 49 per cent stake in Tuan Loc, one of the largest water supply systems builders in the country. The deal is valued at $38 million.

The deal is subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. The transaction is expected to be completed on June 30.

Established in 2005, Tuan Loc specialises in infrastructure construction, including bridges, roads, and seaports. It joined in numerous projects, including the Trung Luong-My Thuan highway, Pleiku water plant, Tuan Loc Industrial Park, as well as the Cao Lanh and Co Chien bridges.

It has been installing water supply systems in numerous large-scale projects across the nation. It currently has a charter capital of VND1.6 trillion ($70.24 million).

Recently, Tuan Loc, in collaboration with two other domestic investors, was assigned to develop Thu Thiem 3 Bridge, located in District 4, under the build-transfer (BT) format.

The biggest project of Tuan Loc is Song Lam Raw Water Treatment Plant, a 50-year build-own-operate project (2015-2064) with an installed capacity of 200 million litres per day (MLD) expandable to 300 MLD. This plant supplies raw water to Nghe An Water Supply JSC and surrounding industrial parks.

In the Philippines, where it operates four subsidiaries, MPW is the leading investor for all water and wastewater infrastructure projects.

Pou Chen and Far Eastern projects at the starting line

Taiwan’s Pou Chen Group is fulfilling all procedures to be certified and kick off the construction of its footwear R&D centre in the next months.

Tan Tao Investment and Industry Corporation's (ITA) representative said that the footwear research and development centre will be deployed in Tan Tao Industrial Zone (Binh Tan district, Ho Chi Minh City).

“The developer of this project has fulfilled all the procedures to be certified and start in the next months,” he said.

Last year, IDEA Limited Company signed a contract to rent about 20 hectares of land in Tan Tao IZ with an estimated leasing fee of VND500 billion ($20 million) for this centre. The project may be divided into several phases, but in the first phase, IDEA will lease 6.5ha only. The project was received the investment certificate with total investment of $80 million at the end of 2017.

Tsai Pei-Chun, chairwoman and CEO of Pou Chen Group, said the group is present in six Vietnamese localities with over ten factories and 160,000 workers.

These include PouYuen Vietnam Enterprise Ltd. located in Binh Tan district, Ho Chi Minh City, as the group’s first manufacturing arm in Vietnam, which was built and put into operation in 1994. It has more than four plants and 90,000 workers, manufacturing 72 million shoes and producing $1.2 billion of revenue a year.

Tsai Pei-Chun said that she wants to invest and do business for a long time in Vietnam. The group is developing a closed manufacturing chain, including research, design, and manufacturing.

Pou Chen is one of the leading footwear manufacturers of the world for top brands like Nike, Adidas, and Asics. The group has manufactured 325 million shoes in 2017, gained $6.3 billion in revenue, and seized 20 per cent of the global footwear market.

In addition to Pou Chen, Taiwanese apparel giant Far Eastern has also strengthened investment and completed its manufacturing chain in Vietnam.

Binh Duong province has just issued the investment certificate for the apparel factory of Far Eastern Apparel Vietnam Co., Ltd. in VSIP II-A with the total investment of $25 million. This expansion aims to complete the group’s manufacturing chain. Far Eastern has become the biggest foreign-invested apparel enterprise in Binh Duong.

In June 2015, Far Eastern's textile project was granted an investment certificate with the total investment of $274 million in Bau Bang Industrial Park (IP). In the early of 2017, this project was risen investment capital by $485.8 million to $760 million and expanded the area to 120ha.

Up to date, the first phase of Bau Bang IP has filled 1,000ha with over 90 foreign and domestic investors and $1.2 billion of the total registered capital.

The director general of the Binh Duong Department of Planning and Investment said that two more foreign-invested apparel projects received investment certificates earlier this year. Apparel and footwear are one of the major advantages of Vietnam after joining the new-generation free trade agreements.

Since the beginning of the year, the largest newly-established foreign-invested projects are in the apparel and footwear industry. They include the footwear manufacturing project of British Virgin Islands' August Sport Co., Ltd. in Tam Phuoc IP with the total registered capital of $15 million, and the apparel plant of Singapore's Great Kingdom Nhon Trach 2 Co., Ltd. in Nhon Trach IP with the total registered capital of $10 million.

Vung Tau Paradise Resort lowers criteria for new investors

A number of domestic and foreign investors, including Geleximco, Vingroup, and Sebrina Holdings Pte., Ltd., among others, expressed interest in developing the unfinished Vung Tau Paradise Resort after the Ba Ria-Vung Tau People’s Committee lowered the criteria to select new investors to replace Vung Tau Paradise Company, according to newswire Phapluat.

Notably, after failing to call for investors to Vung Tau Paradise Resort with overly strict criteria, the Ba Ria-Vung Tau People’s Committee has decided to lower expectations to find new investors to complete the unfinished segments of the project.

Accordingly, instead of asking the investors to pour at least $2 billion into the project (at least 25 per cent of which would need to be equity), investors are now required to invest at least $1 billion into the project, excluding expenses for site clearance and land rental, with at least 15 per cent of these funds coming from the investors’ equity. Furthermore, investors have to commit to paying land rental fees at once.

Besides, investors are permitted to propose the duration for developing the projects instead of the three years that was previously set.

According to the local authorities’ requirements, the new investors will have to turn Vung Tau Paradise into a high-end amusement, tourism, and resort complex, including a 27-hole golf course meeting international standards, a shopping centre, a conference centre, a five-star hotel, spa, and the highlight amusement park.

In 1991 Vung Tau Paradise Company, a joint venture between Vietnamese Vung Tau Intourco Resort JSC and Taiwanese Paradise Development and Investment, was granted the investment certificate to develop the project with the total estimated investment capital of $97.2 million.

However, since coming into operation in 1995 with poor infrastructure featuring a 27-hole golf course and a housing area with only 54 units, the resort has not only not made any profit but went straight into the red.

The firm also failed to make good on its commitments to construct several of the designed components, including a 500-room hotel, a theatre, and an entertainment playground.

At the end of April 2015, the investment certificate of the investor expired, thus, the local authorities decided to call for new investors.

Hanwha Life Vietnam teams up with Movin to start telemarketing

On April 3, Hanwha Life Vietnam Co., Ltd. announced a strategic alliance with Movin Co., Ltd. to market life insurance products through telemarketing channels.

Back Jong Kook ( second from right), CEO cum chairman of the member council of Hanwha Life Vietnam, shook hands with the representatives of Movin Company Limited

Specifically, Movin would deliver Hanwha Life Vietnam’s insurance products to its clients through its professional telemarketing distribution routes in Vietnam as a new business partner of the Korea-invested company.

Addressing the signing ceremony, Back Jong Kook, CEO and chairman of the member council of Hanwha Life Vietnam, stated: “The strategic partnership between Hanwha Life Vietnam and Movin will help unlock the full potential and the strengths of the two parties, thus enhancing the competitive edge of us both."

Additionally, the strategic partnership was expected to set up a comprehensive and inclusive distribution channel for financial services as well as assist Hanwha Life Vietnam in diversifying and expanding its distribution base in addition to existing channels, such as bancassurance and traditional financial consulting agents.

“The purpose of the strategic alliance is to deliver insurance products to consumers in the most convenient and professional way,” Back added.

He also addressed the group’s mission in Vietnam: “Network expansion and distribution channel diversification remain key objectives at Hanwha Life and the Vietnam-based arm.”

At the end of 2017, Hanwha Life Vietnam recorded a gross premium revenue of VND1.534 trillion ($67.18 million), resulting in the year-on-year growth rate of 44 per cent, including VND660 billion ($28.90 million) from insurance policies, rising by 34 per cent over 2016. Over the span of 2017, the Korean-owned insurance company was known to intensely invest in IT infrastructure, customer service, network expansion, and distribution channel diversification.

Hanwha Life Vietnam, an affiliate of one of Korea’s top 10 business groups, was reported to possess a total charter capital worth nearly $103 million. The group’s Vietnam-based subsidiary is currently one of the leading life insurance firms in terms of distribution channel diversification and network expansion.

Movin, a subsidiary of Korean DTA, made its debut in Vietnam in 2017. It currently specialises in the distribution of life insurance products.