Vietnam, RoK cooperate in property development; Trade between Vietnam and Japan surges; Binh Duong posts nearly 4 billion USD in export turnover; Hanoi to host int’l energy fair amid world crisis
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Thanh Bien told Vietnamese commercial counsellors in the Asia-Pacific region that their key tasks are to improve the efficiency of commercial activities.
Deputy Minister Bien emphasised the importance of trade promotion activities, while pledging more efforts to renew the national trade promotion mechanism and build up norms for evaluation of trade promotion projects.
At a meeting with Vietnamese cousellors in Tokyo on Aug. 28, Bien affirmed their important role in developing trade promotion programmes in each market, improving the National Trade Promotion Council’s activities and suggesting projects for the country’s trade promotion programmes.
Commercial counsellors also help bring more foreign business delegations to Vietnam – an effective and economic form of trade promotion, he said.
To create more goods for export, deputy minister Bien said that the Ministry of Industry and Trade should renew the cooperation mechanism by combining industry and trade, production and marketing, and speed up economic restructuring, attract investment and create high quality and competitive staples.
On market information, deputy minister Bien said that his ministry will launch an e-information gate in Hanoi on September 9 and in Ho Chi Minh City on Sept. 12, which are expected to be a turning point in the supply of information on overseas markets.
Basic interest rate to stay at 14 percent
The Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) on August 29 decided to continue keeping the basic interest rate on Vietnam dong at 14 percent per annum.
The basic rates on Vietnam dong will be announced every month by the central bank to serve as a foundation for commercial banks to set their trading interest rates.
The same day, the SBV governor also made public a decision to triple the interest rate for compulsory reserve in dong for credit institutions to 3.6 percent per annum.
The act aims to encourage credit institutions to reduce their lending interest rates to help boost businesses and borrowers’ investment in production.
Both decisions will take effects as from September 1.
Hanoi to host int’l energy fair amid world crisis
An international fair-workshop-exposition on energy is scheduled to take place in Hanoi from October 29-November 1, expectedly to draw over 100 domestic and foreign companies.
The Organising Board said on August 29 that there will be over 200 pavilions to showcase high-quality energy products and services as well as advanced technology at the VE Expo 2008.
Forms and procedures of investment in energy projects in Vietnam , including direct investment and joint-ventures, will also be introduced at the fair.
The President of the Vietnam Energy Investment and Construction Association, Tran Viet Ngai, unveiled a plan to make public a series of projects available for investments. They largely range from legal and project consultation to construction and assembly work, the supply of equipment, material and financing. They will include brokerage services for investment projects and investment partners, thus helping connect businesses in the field.
VE Expo 2008 will hold a ceremony to award friendship order and medal on foreign ambassadors who have contributed considerably to energy development in Vietnam .
There will also be an awards ceremony for recognised high-quality products and services on display at the event.
An international workshop on Vietnam energy will be held from October 30-31 with a large range of topics, ranging from prospect and challenges to the national energy, the role played by atomic energy and renewed energy strategies in the interest of sustainable development.
Conveyor belts made for Australia
The Lilama 69-3 Joint Stock Company, an arm of the Vietnam Machinery Installation Coporation (LILAMA), is to ship a 200- tonne batch of conveyor belts to Australia .
It is the first batch of a 5 million USD contract signed between the Lilama 69-3 company with Denmark ’s FSL Smidth Group to manufacture 5.5km of pipe conveyor belts with a total weight of over 2,000 tonnes.
The products were made in accordance with Germany ’s DIN standards.
The company’s export to Australia was its new way to head to overseas market.
Binh Duong posts nearly 4 billion USD in export turnover
Southern Binh Duong province’s export turnover is estimated to reach nearly 4 billion USD in the first eight months of the year, representing a year-on-year increase of 24.1 percent.
The foreign-invested sector recorded an export turnover of close to 2.9 billion USD, up 25.2 percent over the same period last year, while State-owned enterprises reported respective figures of over 1 billion USD and 21.2 percent.
Among the province’s 15 major export staples, cashew nuts enjoyed the highest growth rate of 42.5 percent, followed by plastic products, 36.5 percent; electric wires and cables, 34.1 percent and pepper, 31.2 percent.
However, several key products saw growth rates slower than expected, including garment, 7.4 percent; footwear, 18.4 percent and handicrafts, 9.7 percent.
Especially, the export turnover of woodwork and electronic products reduced 1.3 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively, against last year.
To attain a 30 percent increase in export turnover in 2008, Binh Duong province in the last four months will create favourable conditions for local businesses’ production, complete the administrative reform for export activities and strictly implement inflation control measures.
After five upward sessions, VN-Index dips
The VN-Index ended a run of five consecutive upward sessions on August 28 by falling 14.16 points to close at 547.69 points. A record volume of more than 36.7 million shares changed hands worth more than 1.6 trillion VND ( 97 million USD).
Of the listed shares and fund certificates on the HCM Stock Exchange, these were 38 gainers, 117 losers – five remained unchanged.
Strong increases were seen in Song Da Urban&Industrial Zone Investment and Development Joint Stock Company (SJS). Shares rose by 6,000 VND to stand at 129,000 VND.
This was followed by shares in the corporation for Financing and Promoting Technology (FPT), which rose 5,000 VND to close at 121,000 VND, and shares in Sai Gon Securities Ins (SSI) were up 3,000 VND to end at 64,000 VND.
Decreases were also recorded for TCT, BMC, SGH and VSC.
Blue chip stocks mostly went down, including Sacombank (STB), Phu My Fertiliser (DPM), Hoa Phat Group(HPG), Tan Tao Industrial Corporation (ITA), Pha Lai Thermal Power Plant (PPC) and Petro Drilling (PVD).
Heavily-traded stocks included STB with 4.72 million shares, SAM (2.99 million) and SSI (2.19 million shares).
In Hanoi , the HASTC-Index was also down 4.91 points to end the day at 185.15 points. A high volume of 19.9 million shares changed hands.
Kim Long Securities was the most active with 3.25 million shares changing hands. It was followed by Bim Son Cement (BCC) with 2.02 million shares, Song Da 7 with 1.09 million shares and ACB with 1.086 million shares.
Trade between Vietnam and Japan surges
Trade between Vietnam and Japan could reach 16.2 billion USD this year, exceeding the 2010 target of 15 billion USD, according to the Japanese customs agency.
Vietnam ’s exports will be worth 8.2 billion USD, an increase of 21.1 percent over last year.
It the first half of the year, trade was worth more than 8.1 billion USD, up 45.5 percent year-on-year.
Vietnam exported goods worth 4.1 billion USD, up 41.7 percent, while its imports were up 49.8 percent.
According to Vietnam’s overseas trade office in Japan, exports soared in the last few months because crude oil prices ruled high and Vietnam shipped more oil to Japan,
Other key exports like coal, coffee, small motors, electrical and other cables also did well in the first half.
To further increase exports to Japan , the trade office said, Vietnam needs to strengthen quality and distribution networks.
Vietnam seeks to export more products to Japan , including sausages, soybeans, fertilizers, electronics, household electrical lamps, frozen vegetables, and animal feed.
Vietnam also plans to carefully study and set up a distribution network in Japan for garment, textile and coffee products.
Industrial boom in Binh Duong keeps growing
The southern province of Binh Duong posted the August industrial growth rate of 27 percent over the same period last year, recording a turnover of over 7.2 trillion VND.
As a result, the province’s industrial turnovers reached almost 50.9 trillion VND in the first eight months of the year, or 23.9 percent year on year increase.
Leading in the term is the State economic sector with a growth rate of 35 percent and followed by the foreign direct investment economic sector, which accounts for 69.5 percent of the provincial industrial output, with a growth rate of 19.6 percent.
The success was partially attributable to provincial efforts to hold regular meetings between local authorities, industrial executives and business circles from Taiwan, the Republic of Korea and Japan to address difficulties faced by enterprises, especially in labour-intensive garment making and leather shoes sectors.
Vietnam-RoK transportation joint venture set up
A transportation joint venture company between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea was inaugurated in Hanoi on August 28 to provde transportation services in the northern region.
The Kumho Viet Thanh express transportation Co. Ltd, a joint venture between Viet Thanh – a leading transportation company in Vietnam ’s northern region – and Kumho Express Company of the RoK’s Kumho Asiana Group, has a charter capital of 4 million USD, in which the Vietnamese side contributed 51 percent.
Kumho Viet Thanh Director Mun Jin Sik said that with 200 high-quality imported buses, the company will provide bus service for passengers from Hanoi to Ha Long, Hai Phong, Thanh Hoa and Lang Son in the first phase of is development plan.
Buses for the Hanoi-Ha Long route are ready for service while the service for remaining routes will be launched later this year, Mun Jin Sik said.
He said in the 2 nd phase the company would open bus routes from Hanoi to central Da Nang city, Vientiane in Laos , and Kunming and Nanning in China .
Earlier in November 2007, Kumho Express and the Saigon Transportation Mechanical Corporation (Samco) also jointly set up a limited liability company, namely Kumho Samco Express, to transport passengers from Ho Chi Minh City to Nha Trang, Da Lat and Phan Thiet.
UK’s big projects to be invested in Vietnam
A number of big projects from the United Kingdom (UK) will be invested in Vietnam from now to the end of this year, UK Ambassador to Vietnam, Mark Kent, has said.
The projects will focus on the fields of finance-banking, energy, telecommunication, mining and car production, Mark Kent told a press conference in Hanoi on August 28, which aims to introduce the UK Embassy’s activities to celebrate the 35 th anniversary of the establishment ò diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the UK.
Finance-banking sector, one of the UK’s strengths, has an important influence on attracting foreign direct investment (FDI), the Ambassador said, adding that once the sector develops, FDI sources including those from the UK poured into Vietnam, will increase more strongly.
Recently, two UK leading banks operating in Vietnam, namely the Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) and the Standard Chartered, have been licensed to open branches in the country with their own capital. According to Ambassador Kent, the move will make customers feel more clearly about the presence of UK banks in Vietnam.
The UK now ranks third among largest European Union (EU) investors in Vietnam. UK businesses have invested in 105 projects worth 1.9 billion USD in the country. Once the above-said projects are signed, Ambassador Kent stressed, the UK’s rank will be much improved.
The ambassador also announced that several high-ranking officials from the UK, including Prince Andrew, the UK’s Special Representative for International Trade and Investment, will visit Vietnam in September to strengthen relationship between the two countries.
Vietnam, RoK cooperate in property development
Minister of Construction Nguyen Hong Quan and Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Chung Jong Hwan of the Republic of Korea (RoK) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in Hanoi on August 28.
The MoU, signed during the RoK minister’s visit to Vietnam , aimed to strengthen bilateral relations by sharing information, technology and experiences in urban construction and real estate market.
Earlier, the two ministers held talks, during which Minister Quan expressed his hope to share experience with RoK in the field.
He also asked the RoK side to take more Vietnamese guest labourers to work at their civil engineering projects in the RoK and third countries as well as help Vietnam’s construction materials, such as sanitation china, glass, ceramic and granite bricks enter markets where RoK investors are carrying out their projects.
The RoK minister agreed to receive Vietnam’s workers to work in Dubai , where they have many construction projects underway.
He also asked the Vietnamese side to help speed up the pace of a new urban area located to the west of Hanoi’s West lake as well as allow RoK investors to take part in the Hanoi expansion project.
RoK is among Vietnam’s most potential construction partners, said Minister Quan, and also the country’s second largest ODA donor after Japan. Receiving an ODA capital averaging 250 million USD per year, Vietnam is the largest ODA recipient of the RoK in the 2008-2011 period.
(Source: VNA)
