SonKim Land closes second fundraiser at $46m

Real estate developer SonKim Land Corporation has closed the first round of a follow-up fundraiser at US$46 million, out of an expected $100 million, from Asia-dedicated investment firm EXS Capital Limited.

The company made the announcement on its website on Wednesday.

The first closure of the second round of fundraising is subscribed as redeemable convertible loans into SonKim Land.

This is the second investment by the Asia-dedicated investment fund EXS Capital into SonKim Land after an initial $37 million deal in 2013 made through the Lemongrass Master Fund.

For this round, SonKim Land has also partnered with ACA Investment Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based Japanese fund manager that has invested in other Vietnamese companies as well, including retail chains for mother and baby products Bibo Mart and Cung Mua.

The property company plans to use additional funds to develop projects across Viet Nam, including luxury residential and commercial developments in HCM City.

“This is our fifth investment in Viet Nam. We have explored more than 100 opportunities in this country and found SonKim Land to be one of the few companies with a disciplined and visionary team,” Hiroyuki Ono, Partner at ACA Investments, said in a statement.

“Through our investment, we hope to realise potential demand between Japanese corporate hoping to expand into Viet Nam and SonKim Land partnering with them.”

Since the first round of funding in 2013, SonKim Land has grown rapidly and launched several award-winning luxury properties in HCM City, including Gateway Thao Dien and The Nassim.

The company’s goal is to become the preferred local partner for regional and international firms.

Vietnam Airlines celebrates 10,000th int’l flight to Da Nang

The national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines held a ceremony to commemorate its 10,000th international flight to the central province of Da Nang on May 10.

The special flight, coded VN431, was from Seoul of the Republic of Korea to Da Nang with 155 passengers on board.

The event marked a milestone in Vietnam Airlines’ development of international air routes over the years to Da Nang airport, the largest international gateway in the central region of Vietnam.

The celebrated flight was also one of the first flights of the carrier operating in the new international terminal T2 of the airport, which opened on May 9.

Vietnam Airlines is the carrier with the most air routes to Da Nang, turning the airport into the third largest international airport of the country after Noi Bai in Hanoi in northern Vietnam and Tan Son Nhat in the southern economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City, said Trinh Ngoc Thanh, Deputy General Director of the carrier.

Since 2012, Vietnam Airlines has operated nine domestic and 14 international flights from/to Da Nang airport to bolster trade, cultural and economic links, meeting the increasing demand of local people and tourists.

Paint, printing ink industry to grow 6-8 per cent annually     

Viet Nam’s paint and printing ink industry is expected to grow at 6-8 per cent in 2016-20, according to the industry business association.

Speaking to the media in HCM City on May 10 to introduce three international exhibitions -- Paper Vietnam; Rubber & Tyre Vietnam; and Coatings Expo Vietnam -- Nguyen Thi Lac Huyen, chairwoman of the Viet Nam Paint and Printing Ink Association, said the industry enjoyed 10.8 per cent growth last year.

“Many local firms have invested in building new factories in industrial parks.

“In addition, many foreign investors have shifted their paint and printing ink production facilities from Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia to Viet Nam.”

There are many positive factors to boost the development of the paint and printing ink industry, which is a supporting industry for many other industries, she said.

The development of the construction and property sectors and an increase in infrastructure works would increase demand for paint, she said.

As for the printing ink sector, there are many consumer products and their need to improve packaging would boost the sector, she said.

The paint and printing ink industry, whose output topped US$1.6 billion last year, is expected to grow robustly, she said.

The industry is still young in Viet Nam, and thus enterprises in the industry need an opportunity to promote their products, she said.

The 2017 Coatings Expo Vietnam would be an ideal opportunity for the firms to learn about the latest trends and demand in the market and enhance co-operation with local and foreign counterparts, she said.

Three international exhibitions

Coating Expo Vietnam, Rubber & Tyre Vietnam, and Paper Vietnam to be held together at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre in HCM City from June 13 to 15 has attracted over 200 exhibitors from 15 countries, including Việt Nam, India, Japan, the Netherlands, Malaysia, China, the US, Germany and France.

Monika Yu, general manager of the China National Chemical Information Centre’s exhibition department, said the exhibitions would not only showcase a wide range of machinery, equipment, and products used in the paper and pulp and rubber and tyre industries and for coating, dyeing, and inking, but also provide co-operation opportunities for exhibitors and visitors.

Organised by the Minh Vi Exhibition and Advertisement Services Co., Ltd, CNCIC China and CNCIC India, the exhibitions are expected to welcome 4,500 trade visitors. 

Competition Law needs to be improved: official     

The current Competition Law in Viet Nam has yet to come into practise, and it will need further improvement to reach its full potential, said Trinh Anh Tuan, Deputy Director General of the Viet Nam Competition Authority (VCA) of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).

During his speech at a Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) conference yesterday, Tuan stressed the importance of the national law on competition in pushing economic progress and protecting a fair environment for national competition.

The conference introduced several changes in the Competition Law draft to be submitted, with visions toward building a socialist-oriented market economy with in-depth global integration.

Dau Anh Tuan, Head of the VCCI’s Legal Department, stressed the need for a modified Competition Law, as the current set of laws shows several inadequacies in defining legal breeches in fair entrepreneur competition--including monopolistic behaviours, market domination and market centralisation, while the previous set of conditions for a relevant market is now considered obsolete and unaccommodating in practise.

Furthermore, the law on competition is making it difficult to investigate cases of unfair competition. There has yet to be a definite legal framework for the competition authority to obtain proof of unfair competitive practises done by firms, and to assert the level of damage done by these breeching firms in order to prevent and punish such acts.

As such, the reviewed and renewed Competition Law is built upon the basis of anti-trust practise and ensures fair competitive actions amongst firms. The law aims to increase Viet Nam’s economic efficiency and protect the rights and benefits of Vietnamese businesses and consumers.

Another objective for the new law is to guarantee fairness and transparency for court decisions in cases regarding unfair competition and affirm the central role of the government in protecting a competitive market economy.

Tang Van Nghia, Dean of Postgraduate from Foreign Trade University, also praised the upcoming changes. He advised lawmakers to add an exemption clause in order to grant businesses pricing freedom, as a true market economy gives firms the right to choose their own levels of supply and price.

The draft for a revised law on competition is expected to institutionalise and realise the government’s policy to construct a fair market without monopoly and unfair competition in the near future. 

HCM City expo to showcase new environment, energy technologies     

The three-day 9th Viet Nam Environment and Energy Tech opens in HCM City on May 11.

Some 150 companies from China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Viet Nam will set up 260 booths to display their latest technologies in wastewater treatment, air and soilmanagement, groundwater management, and electricity and gas efficiency.

Entech comes to HCM City for the first time after being organised in Ha Noi since 2009.

It is expected to attract 32,000 visitors and achieve a turnover of US$37 million.

“We started to organise Entech in Viet Nam when we found that many Vietnamese were concerned about environmental and energy technologies when they took part in our exhibition in Busan,” Jaehan Shin, manager of the Busan Exhibition & Convention Centre, the organiser of the event, said.

“This year South Korea has 107 companies with 130 booths at the event, the biggest number ever.”

It will be held at the Sai Gon Exhibition and Convention Centre in District 7.

Can Tho seeks ways to export bananas to Republic of Korea

The Mekong Delta city of Can Tho and a Korean company, which provides fresh fruits and agricultural products for supermarkets and commercial centres, discussed ways to export local bananas to the Republic of Korea (RoK) on May 10.

General Director of the Hand&Hand Limited Company Kim Min said that his company has managed a lot of tropical fruit farms in China, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.

It also opened a representative office in Ho Chi Minh City in 2015 and signed contracts on planting fruit trees for export with most of southeastern provinces, such as Dong Nai, Tay Ninh, Binh Duong and Binh Phuoc.

However, the company has yet to find a suitable partner in the southwestern region which is considered a fruit granary of Vietnam and Southeast Asia, he said, adding that it is paying attention to Can Tho as the city is the region’s economic centre and boasts rich land for agricultural production.

Hand&Hand set a target of developing an at-least-300ha-banana farm in Vietnam by 2022 with a total investment of 6 million USD and with a hope for 10 million USD per year and generating 1,000 jobs, he added.

Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Truong Quang Hoai Nam recommended the Song Hau Farm in Dong Nghiep commune, Thoi Lai district to the RoK company as the more than 6,000 ha farm is currently Can Tho’s main exported rice field and suitable to be expanded to banana cultivation.

Kim Min said that the company plans to sign land rent contracts with farmers and be responsible for all planting and production process.

It will also support farmers in gaining access to advanced planting technologies following GlobalGAP standards.

However, Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment suggested establishing collectives to represent farmers to sign contracts and work with the company.

Vietnam Airlines earns over 560 billion VND in profit in Q1

The Vietnam Airlines Group earned syndicated revenue of 21.2 trillion VND (932.4 million USD) in the first quarter of this year, up 12.5 percent against last year, with pre-tax syndicated profit approximating 854 billion VND (37.5 million USD). 

The national carrier Vietnam Airlines alone made over 16.2 trillion VND (712.5 million USD) in revenue, up 5 percent year on year, earning pre-tax profit of 563 billion VND (24.7 million USD).

In Q1/2017, the airline operated nearly 34,500 flights, 1.3 percent higher than its quarterly plan, of which 91.6 percent were reportedly on time, an increase of 6.2 percentage points over the same period last year.

The volume of passengers and goods rose by 9.3 percent and 23 percent respectively to reach more than five million passengers and 76,000 tonnes of goods.

Fuel price hike in earlier this year, which was 65.19 USD per barrel, resulted in 1 trillion VND added to fuel cost. However, the group remained its growth in quantity, quality and revenue.

During the reviewed time, the Vietnam Airlines Group’s members were awarded numerous prizes voted by prestigious international airlines, including the European Aviation Safety Agency’s EASA-145 maintenance organisation approval certificate handed to Vietnam Airlines Engineering Company.

According to the group leaders, Vietnam Airlines will continue working to ensure security, high productivity and its four-star service quality standard to achieve goals set for 2017.

Indian firms eye strengthened textile and garment links with Vietnam

Textile and garment companies of India are looking to promote trade cooperation with Vietnamese enterprises, said Indian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Smita Pant at a press conference in HCM City on May 10 to introduce the Textiles India 2017, which is slated for the Vietnamese city from June 30-July 2.

According to Smita Pant, textile and garment is one of the leading important industries that the two nations need to foster cooperation through promoting trade, attracting investment and increasing export turnover. 

Ronak Roughani, Vice President of the Synthetic and Rayon Textile Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) of India said apparel occupies a large proportion in India’s exports. 

India’s textile and garment industry has developed a complete product supply chain and the country is also one of suppliers of high-quality materials and fabric with competitive price in the world. 

The country’s export turnover of textile and garment materials to Vietnam in recent years averagely increases about 20 percent a year. 

This is a good time for Vietnamese and Indian textile and garment firms to enhance links in investing, exporting materials and technical assistance for mutual benefit, he said. 

Dang Thi Tuyet Mai, Vice General Secretary of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS), said Vietnam is one of the five largest textile and garment exporters in the world, with its textile and garment export turnover hitting about 28.5 billion USD in 2016. 

However, the country is also one of the world’s leading importers of fabric and materials. The shortage of high-quality materials for production is the biggest barrier to Vietnam’s textile and garment industry, hindering the country from taking advantages of free trade agreements. 

Pham Xuan Hong, Chairman of the HCM City Association of Garment Textile Embroidery and Knitting (AGTEK) said Vietnamese textile and garment firms appreciate the quality and competitive price of materials from India, stressing that cooperating with India businesses is an effective measure to diversify material supply resources for Vietnam. 

Vietnamese firms should intensify trade promotion programmes and participate in exhibitions and trade promotion events, he suggested, saying that these will offer opportunities for them to seek more material suppliers, and learning from effective business and production models. 

The programmes will also help Indian businesses make deeper inroad into Vietnamese market, he said.

Quang Tri speeds up Huong Linh 2 wind power project

The Huong Linh 2 wind power plant, the first of its kind in Quang Tri and in the north central region, will join the national grid on May 15, one year ahead of schedule.

The construction of the plant began in Huong Linh commune, Huong Hoa district, in 2015, at the cost of more than 1.4 trillion VND (61.57 million USD). 

The wind farm comprises 15 turbines, with combined capacity reaching 30MW. 

Five of the turbines are ready to operate, while the rest are being installed for a test run of 72 hours before joining the national grid.

Other completed facilities include an 110kV transformer station and 22kV and 110kV transmission lines.

Nguyen Quan Chinh, Vice Chairman of the Quang Tri People’s Committee, said Huong Linh 2’s early operation will boost not only the national supply of clean energy but also the local economic growth. 

Also under construction in the commune is the 30MW Huong Linh 1 wind power plant, which spans 15 hectares.

Huong Hoa, Gio Linh and Con Co districts have been earmarked for the development of wind-power in Quang Tri toward 2020.

Binh Duong records four-month trade surplus

The southern province of Binh Duong posted a trade surplus of more than 2.26 billion USD in the first four month of 2017.

The outcome was reached thanks to local exporters’ efforts to prepare enough materials for production.

According to the provincial Department of Industry and Trade, between January and April, the province’s export revenue exceeded 8.51 billion USD, up 16.3 percent from the same period last year.

Of the total, 7 billion USD came from the foreign-invested sector, increasing 18.1 percent year on year.

Key exports such as woodwork, garment and footwear grew at a stable rate.

Meanwhile, the province’s imports, mostly production materials and machines, were estimated at 6.25 billion USD, an annual increase of 15.2 percent.

Health industry expo gets underway in Hanoi

The 24th annual exposition for the Vietnam healthcare industry hosted by Ministry of Health in cooperation with the Ministry of Industry & Trade has opened as planned on May 10 in Hanoi.

The event– Vietnam Medi-Pharm 2017 – is held concurrently with four separate exhibitions showcasing the latest in medical tourism; medical and dental equipment; pharmaceutical products and processing; eldercare; and hospital equipment.

The expo, held annually in Hanoi each May, features products and services of 150 health-related organizations in more than 500 exhibition booths from a large number of  countries including Vietnam.

In addition, a series of conferences, symposiums, free medical checks, product introductions, and blood donation drives are also part of the 4-day expo running through May 13 at the Cultural Friendship Palace at 91 Tran Hung Dao Street, Hanoi.

Human resources in digital era to be hot topic of APEC meetings

APEC economies will participate in a high-level policy dialogue on human resources development in the digital era in Hanoi on May 14 and 15, as heard at a press conference by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs on May 10.

The APEC 2017 National Secretariat said the dialogue is considered a highlight of APEC activities this year, as human resources are among key solutions to economic development.

The dialogue will focus on the topics of employment and workforce challenges in the digital era; policies and models for vocational training amid the 4th industrial revolution; and social welfare policies that need amendments.

Through these issues, cooperation frameworks on job creation, vocational training and social welfare will be tabled.

Dao Quang Vinh, Director of the Institute of Labour Science and Social Affairs and deputy head of the APEC 2017 National Secretariat, said Vietnam expects to devise an action plan that could provide the groundwork for APEC economies to enhance engagements in the field.

On the sideline of the dialogue, a number of meetings were scheduled between May 11 and 15. They consist of two separate conferences on labour market information in the digital era and boosting social welfare in APEC region on May 11 and 12; a conference to review preparations for the dialogue on May 13; and a meeting of the APEC Human Resources Development Working Group on May 14.

About 200 APEC activities are set to take place across Vietnam this year.

Starbucks restaurant opens in Hanoi

Starbucks Vietnam has opened its first new style restaurant at 6 Nha Tho Street in the Hoan Kiem District of Hanoi.

Patricia Marques, general manager at Starbucks Vietnam, said the new outlet provides a new experience for Vietnamese coffee drinkers offering Starbucks Reserve Americano, Reserve Latte, Reserve Cappuccino, Reserve Cortado, Reserve Espresso and Reserve Espresso Macchiato.

 Starbucks opened its first outlet in Vietnam in 2013 with a restaurant in HCM City. It now has 28 outlets nationwide.

EVN frets over electricity exhaustion

Although the reserve capacity of the national power system is around 20%, Vietnam will still face electricity shortages if there is no strong investment in the sector in the coming years, said Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN).

Nguyen Tai Anh, deputy general director of EVN, said the total capacity of the national power system currently stands at 45,000 MW with a reserve capacity of about 20%. However, with the annual electricity demand growing 11-12%, or 5,000 MW per year, electricity reserves will be exhausted if there is no timely investment.

“To ensure sufficient power supply, it is estimated that by 2020, Vietnam will need US$7.9 billion in investment capital for power generation projects. EVN can secure 60-65% of this funding requirement while the rest must be mobilized from other sources,” Anh said.

In 2016, the country consumed about 177 billion kWh of electricity, or about 1,700-1,800 kWh per capita. This is lower than the world average of 3,500 kWh, meaning the country must speed up investment in the power sector, especially in the next 5 to 10 years.

According to an energy expert, there is a high possibility that Vietnam will run out of power sources as the country’s hydropower plants are almost fully tapped. Renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power are underinvested while most coal-fired power plants rely heavily on coal imports and pose environmental pollution risks.

The country’s annual electricity demand is forecast to reach 506 billion kWh by 2030 and primary energy sources can only meet half of this. Therefore, it is likely that Vietnam will rely heavily on imported energy.

Cần Thơ: Thoresen plans investment in logistics, ports

Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Limited is planning to invest in logistics services and ports in Cần Thơ City, according to the People’s Committee of the city.

On May 8, vice chairman of the People’s Committee of Cần Thơ City Trương Quang Hoài Nam met Sigmund Stromme, executive vice president for shipping and logistics at Thoresen Thai Agencies Public Limited from Thailand. The Thailand-based company is looking for business opportunities in the local seaport and logistics industry.

Speaking at the meeting, Nam said Hoàng Diệu Port in Bình Thủy District and Cái Cui Port in Cái Răng District are both located in Cần Thơ. "Logistics is a key industry of the city," he said, adding that the Government had approved Cần Thơ City’s proposal to build a logistics hub for the Mekong Delta, which would cover 242ha in Cái Cui Port, Cái Răng District.

The city has proposed to the Government the merger of three ports -- Tân Cảng Cái Cui, Vinaline Cái Cui and Cái Cui – to make it the largest port in the region with wharf length of some 1,200m. Site clearance for the logistics hub is underway and firms have visited the site to learn about investment opportunities.

The city has also suggested merging ports and supporting expansion of business for companies providing logistics services at ports.

Nam said Thoresen could buy stake in Viet Nam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) to join the port-merging project, build a new port at another site along the Hậu River or invest in the existing warehouse and transport system at Cái Cui Port.

For his part, the executive vice president of Thoresen gave Nam an overview of the Thai company, saying the company had been operating in fertiliser production and shipping and logistics in southern Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Province.

Stromme expressed hope the company could partner with Cần Thơ City to improve port management and expand local shipping and logistics services with emphasis on container transit service to Phnom Penh (Cambodia) and Singapore. Its investment in logistics services in this city is expected to promote cooperation in logistics activities with southern Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Province and support the transport of cargo in the Mekong Delta region.

Cần Thơ has a large potential to develop logistics because of its favourable location in terms of water and land transport, besides having many ports and warehouses, he said. After the meeting concluded, the two sides took a field trip to Cái Cui Port.

Workshop promoting e-commerce with EU to be held in Hà Nội

A workshop on promoting trade with EU market via Amazon online shopping channel will be held in Hà Nội on May 10, according to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas).

The workshop will be a venue for businesses and experts to discuss online shopping trend on Amazon, the world’s leading online shopping website.   

It will look into measures to promote advantages of textile of and leather footwear products in export.  

Two German experts in e-commerce and marketing strategy, André M. Aslund and Ryan Ong, will share their experience with and give advice to participating businesses.  

The signed EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) has opened up many opportunities for Vietnamese commodities to enter the EU market, said Trương Văn Cẩm, Vice President of Vitas, adding that the trend of e-commerce towards this huge market has also grown rapidly thanks to the agreement.

HCM City pork origin plan hits snag     

A HCM City programme to trace the origin of pork products that began four months ago has not met the expectations of its managers, according to the Department of Industry and Trade.

Under the project, each pig at breeding farms wear two yellow rings with an electronic stamp that records information about the farm and the animal’s breeding process.

Farmers are responsible for activating the QR code on the stamp to start recording the information.

When the pigs are delivered to slaughterhouses, an orange ring will be attached to their containers, recording information about the traders and containers.

When pork is transported to markets, traders will activate another stamp.

At a meeting held in HCM City last week to review the programme, the department reported that while 1,131 pig breeding establishments in eight cities and provinces in the south have registered to participate, only 123 of them put the rings on 297,300 of their pigs.

Only 10 out of 25 abattoirs in HCM City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, and Long An who registered to join have activated the code on the rings on pigs.

Huynh Tan Phat, deputy director of the city Department of Animal Health, said that, besides, only 45 per cent of pigs that do wear the rings have them activated by the farmers.

His department is unable to resolve the problem, but in the absence of provisions to deal with violations, it cannot penalise violators but only issue a warning, he said.

Hoc Mon and Binh Dien wholesale markets have taken part in the programme since March. But since April, when pig prices started to fall, traders at the Binh Dien, who bought pigs from Long An Province, have stopped attaching the rings on the animals.

At Hoc Mon too, the number of pigs with the rings has fallen by half, he said.

Some delegates told the meeting that the project faces difficulties because traders buy pigs mainly from small household farmers living in remote areas without the internet or 3G, meaning they cannot activate the tools required to upload details about their pigs.

Nguyen Ngoc Hoa, deputy director of the Department of Industry and Trade, said 51 per cent of pigs with the rings are from foreign-invested enterprises while households account for just 7 per cent though the city subsidises the cost of the electronic rings by 50 per cent.

Tran Vinh Tuyen, deputy chairman of the city People’s Committee, said while controlling and tracing the origin of food products is imperative, authorities need to be patient and have comprehensive measures and a specific roadmap and targets for it.

It is not merely a matter of technology but also requires changing the awareness and habits of farmers and traders, he said.

He instructed the Department of Industry and Trade to work with Viettel and VNPT to install wi-fi stations in remote areas to help farmers easily participate in the project.

Forum promotes Vietnam-Indonesia economic cooperation

The Embassy of Vietnam in Indonesia and the Indonesia – Vietnam Friendship Association (IVFA) jointly organised a forum to connect the two nations’ enterprises in Jakarta, Indonesia on May 8.

The event was attended by Indonesian Deputy Foreign Minister Abdurrahman M. Fachir, Vietnamese Ambassador to Indonesia Hoang Anh Tuan, IVFA President Budiarsa Sastrawinata, and representatives from businesses of both countries.

It offered an opportunity for the enterprises to meet and share trade-investment experience and information, thus promoting the bilateral economic cooperation.

Addressing the function, the host Deputy Foreign Minister highlighted the traditional relationship between Vietnam and Indonesia, which was founded by late President Sukarno and late President Ho Chi Minh, has been upgraded to a strategic partnership.

He also expressed his hope that the two nations, with the biggest population in the region, will continue being active members of ASEAN, contributing to realising the bloc’s targets and maintaining the stability and prosperity in the region.

The two governments need to strengthen cooperation, promote trade and people-to-people exchange, as well as tap their strengths to overcome difficulties and raise bilateral relations to a new height.

Le Hong Minh, head of the Vietnam Trade Office in Indonesia updated participants on incentives offered by Vietnamese localities in terms of tax, salary, offices renting.

Indonesian firms have recognised investment potential in the 90-million-people Vietnamese market with a high economic growth rate, Ambassador Hoang Anh Tuan, said, adding that many Indonesian businesses have found business and investment opportunities in Vietnam.

US rescinds review of antidumping duty on Vietnam’s steel wire garment hangers

The US Department of Commerce (DOC) recently published in a Federal Register a notice of rescinding administrative review of the antidumping duty on steel wire garment hangers imported from Vietnam for the period of February 1, 2016 - December 31, 2017, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Competition Authority. 

Earlier on April 10, 2017, based on the request for review by petitioner M&B Metal Products Company, Inc, the DOC announced the initiation of an administrative review of the above products, which covers 66 Vietnamese exporters. 

On April 24, 2017, the petitioner withdrew its request for the review on all 66 companies listed in the Initiation Notice. 

Pursuant to 19 CFR 351.213, the DOC will rescind the review if the relevant party withdraws its request within 90 days of the notice publication.

In this case, the petitioner timely withdrew its request, and no other party requested a review. 

Accordingly, antidumping duties on imported shipments during the above period will equal to the cash deposit of estimated countervailing duties required at the time of entry, or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption. 

According to the Competition Authority, Vietnam’s steel garment hangers have been subject to respective anti-dumping and anti-subsidy taxes of 157 – 220.68 percent and 31.58-90.42 percent imposed by the DOC.

Container control unit launched in Ba Ria-Vung Tau

The Customs Department of southern Ba Ria – Vung Tau province launched a unit for container control on May 8 in an effort to counter trafficking of illicit goods across local ports.

The Container Control Programme is a joint initiative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the World Customs Organisation (WCO) to support the participating governments to establish more effective container controls at ports across the globe and prevent trafficking of drugs, wildlife, weapons and other contraband in sea containers.

Vietnam joined the programme in July 2012 and it has been carried out in northern Hai Phong city since March 2015 and in Ba Ria – Vung Tau since November 2015.

The container control unit at the Ba Ria – Vung Tau port was established on October 19 last year. The 9-member group is headed by Nguyen Thanh Sang, deputy head of the provincial Customs Department.

The UNODC-WCO Container Control Programme has been operating in more than 50 countries all over the world. About 60 Joint Port Control Units were set up as part of the programme across Africa, America, the Middle East and Asia. The units are now present in Southeast Asian countries, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

Mekong Delta rice productivity falls slightly

The Mekong Delta region had completed harvesting the year’s first rice crop (winter-spring crop) by the end of April, recording a slight year-on-year fall of 2.4 percent in productivity to 6.27 tonnes.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the strongest falls were seen in Dong Thap province at16.5 percent, Can Tho city 8.3 percent, Tien Giang 7.1 percent, and Vinh Long 7.6 percent.

As of mid-April, around 676,500 hectares of the second rice crop (summer-autumn crop) in the south have been sowed, making up of 95 percent of the same period last year. Of which, the Mekong Delta region accounted for 660,700 hectares, equal to 97 percent year-on-year.

This year’s second crop is forecast to face many difficulties due to prolonged drought and unpredictable weather patterns. Localities are required to closely manage the sowing schedules. The sowing period can last longer than the previous years.

Meanwhile, the northern provinces have basically completed sowing for the summer-autumn crop on over 1.14 million hectares, nearly half of which was in the Red River Delta.-

Saigon Co.op rolls out new line of organic products

Saigon Co.op unveiled on May 8 it is rolling out a new line of organic products at supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City.

The items include jasmine rice, japonica rice, cucumbers, squash, tomatoes, choy sum, green mustard, spinach, basa fillets and tiger shrimp, which the company claims are certified organic in compliance with VietGap.

The products should soon be hitting the shelves of the following supermarkets in the City: Ly Thuong Kiet, Cong Quynh, Dinh Tien Hoang, Nguyen Kiem, Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Phu My Hung and Co.op Xtra Tan Phong. 

Vietnam back to mulling macadamia nuts as cash crop

The Vietnam Macadamia Association has recommended once again that more farmers cultivate macadamia nuts as an alternative agriculture cash crop due to its relatively low input capital and high earnings potential.

Macadamia production has a relatively low upfront capital outlay, the Association told Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in making the recommendation.

It is also a highly drought resistant crop and perfect for arable land where water is in short supply due to mother nature or lack of irrigation systems due to insufficient finances to fund their construction, said the Association.

Production is ideally suited for five Central Provinces and three northern provinces in Vietnam where the year-round temperatures range between 15-26 degrees Celsius.

The Association noted Macadamia nuts grow on large bushy trees which start producing after four or five years from planting. The trees will be in full production after six years and continue producing indefinitely thereafter.

Macadamias are ideally suited to a mildfrost-free climate where rainfall is distributed evenly throughout the year, said the Association, roughly the same climate suitable for growing coffee. Both species will grow well in many areas of Vietnam and can even be grown in large pots.

However, many farmers in the Central Highlands say this is the same tired recommendation made a few years ago, which hopes faded after the trees they planted failed to bear fruit even after seven years.

At that time, Huynh Ngoc Huy, chair of Lien Viet Post Bank, the founder the Vietnam Macadamia Association, said every hectare of macadamia had the potential to produce roughly three ton of nuts annually, earning farmers after all expenses a disposable income of US$9,000.

He touted a global demand that outstripped production four-fold, saying the time was ripe for Vietnamese farmers to jump headfirst into the market.

However, despite all the hype, farmers say they failed to make a penny, most ended up losing everything but the shirts on their back and in the final analysis wound upcutting down their trees and moving on to other more promising crops.

Huy put the blame for the failure squarely on the back of illiterate farmers failing to follow the cultivation practices promulgated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Among the many shortcomings, he noted that farmers purchased inferior plants and did improper soil analysis.

For those who are not familiar, all macadamia trees grown for commercial purposes are grafted and there are approximately 600 different varieties. Experts advise farmers to always cultivate a mixture of varieties scattered evenly throughout their orchard to ensure adequate pollination after careful selection based on proper soil testing.

There is little doubt that Huy’s criticism has some validity given farmers in the country routinely disregard VietGap good agriculture practicesand the recommendations of the Ministry.

Huy noted that farmers back then chose grafts that cost US$1 when the going rate for high quality plants was US$3.00-US$3.50 each and that was the root cause of why the plants never bore fruit.

Huy also blames the Ministry in part for the past failure of the segment to get off the ground, saying it didn't offer enough support to local farmers. Before the plans fell through, the Ministry had announced plans to increase the cultivation of macadamia to 10,000 hectares by 2020.

Most of the hectarage was planned to be interspersed among other crops such as coffee and tea.

So now the Association has come full circle and is back to peddling the same recommendation it made a few years ago with pretty much the identical storyline.

There’s a gold mine in growing macadamia nuts, says the Association, underscoring that positive net cash flows can be achieved by farmers cultivating macadamia nuts in just six years with low initial start-up costs if they just follow VietGap.

Returns could be upwards of 200%, says the Association, if farmers commercially produce high quality nuts and listen to their advice.

MB signs contract to apply Basel analytics methodology, credit risk modelling solution

On May 9, Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MB) and Experian held a ceremony to sign a contract and kick off a project on credit risk modeling for Basel II.

Under the contract signed, Experian will provide consultancy and knowledge transfer on the most advanced methodologies. This includes developing software to measure credit risk in accordance with Basel II, helping complete the credit risk estimate under the Internal Rating-Based (IRB) method and helping MB put the system into operation in 2019.

“In the development strategy for 2010-2015 as well as 2017-2021, MB has identified the risk management platform as one of two important platforms and has implemented many solutions to continuously improve risk management capacity to meet the business development and compliance requirements of the State Bank of Vietnam,” said Major General Le Cong, vice chairman of MB, at the ceremony.

“The signing ceremony and launch of the project today is an important event to confirm the commitment and effort of MB and Experian to achieve the best goal of the project. MB pledges to create all necessary conditions for effective, quality, safe and timely implementation of the project,” he said.

MB has been chosen by the State Bank of Vietnam as one of the 10 commercial banks to pilot Basel II in the 2014-2017 phase. The bank identified Basel II as well as upgraded standards in banking operations as an indispensable requirement, making banking operations safer and more efficient. MB not only aims to meet the requirements of the SBV but more importantly, enhances internal governance, supports business effectively and sustainably, and brings long-term value for shareholders, partners.

On the project implementation between MB and Experian, Le Trung Kien, deputy director of the Safety Policy Department of the State Bank of Vietnam said, “Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank has been very diligent in carrying out work to implement Basel II in accordance with the roadmap approved by the governor of the SBV. MB implementation of software project credit risk quantification model at this time is perfectly appropriate and this project is an important component in the improvement of risk management capacity, especially credit risk management of the bank.”

“In time, the quantification of credit risk will be required by the SBV in risk management. I believe that the success of this project will bring about breakthroughs in risk management in general and credit risk management in particular,” he said.

“Military Bank is one of the top banks in Vietnam and among the 10 that will be embarking in implementing international best practice standards and Basel II accreditation by 2020. It is an extremely important process to help foster investor confidence and ensure alignment with global standards but it will be a long and demanding journey,” said Nick Boyle, Experian's Southeast Asia executive director at the signing ceremony. Experian is proud to partner with Military Bank in this process, and we will work together to provide a strong and tested risk management methodology in compliance with Basel II accreditation, and which will help drive automated credit behaviour in Vietnam.”

With the determination to successfully launch Basel II, MB has been perfecting the management model by strongly applying international norms and practices to change the business approach towards risk-based business decision making in areas such as operational management, risk management model, risk management policy framework to the measurement tools, and effective risk management.

This credit risk software implementation is one of the most important and strategically important projects for the bank in the period 2017-2021, under the motto “Innovation, Cooperation, Modernisation and Sustainable Development.”

Established in 1994, after nearly 23 years of development and development, MB is one of the leading banks in Vietnam. As of December 31, 2016, MB has a network of over 269 transaction points in key provinces and cities, two foreign branches in Laos and Cambodia, and one representative office in the Russian Federation. MB has affirmed its brand name, prestige in the financial services industry (banking, insurance, securities, fund management, asset management, asset management). It also provides diversified service and product activities on the basis of superior risk management and modern IT infrastructure.

Experian is the world’s leading global information services company.  It has 17,000 people operating across 37 countries and is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and are a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. 

Conference highlights investment opportunities for Belgian firms in Vietnam

Vietnam’s economic and trade development as well as the country’s advantages in attracting investment were introduced to Belgian enterprises at a conference in Belgium’s southern Mons city on May 10.

Participants at the event highlighted positive impacts of the Vietnam-EU free trade agreement (EVFTA) and proposed measures to expand import-export activities between the two sides.

Nguyen Canh Cuong, Vietnamese Trade Counsellor in Belgium noted that Vietnam has maintained stable development with GDP growth of 6-8 percent, while exports and imports rose 20-30 percent each year recently.

He stressed that abundant business opportunities are available in many areas for potential investors, adding that the prospect is bright as the Vietnamese Government is in the process to sign the EVFTA.

Meanwhile, Frauker Sommer who is in charge of EU’s bilateral trade with Vietnam, introduced the EVFTA and gave her assessment on benefits in tariff and import-export brought by the deal as well as comparative advantages of each side and ways for businesses to expand their import-export activities.

She underlined that EVFTA is the best free trade agreement that EU has reached with a developing country.

Speaking to Vietnam News Agency correspondent in Belgium, Hainaut province’s Governor Tommy Leclercq said that the province, the largest locality in Belgium’s Wallonia French-speaking region, hopes to promote economic ties with Vietnam in various areas, especially in import-export.

He said that following the conference, the province will hold a number of business seminars focusing on fields important to Vietnam and attractive to Belgian investors.

The governor also revealed that the province has plans to send a delegation to Vietnam in September or October this year to discuss cooperation possibilities with potential partners.

General Director of Delaunoit group Jaques Delaunoit said that with the support of the European Commission, he has realized feasible investment opportunities in Vietnam.

According to Chairman of the Belgium-Vietnam Chamber of Commerce Huynh Trang Long, many Belgian businesses are keen on seeking partnership with Vietnam for stronger economic ties.

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