Bankruptcies and slowdown hang over chinas electric car market

Under the MoU signed Wednesday, the two parties will set up a joint venture to manufacture solid-state batteries for electric cars. The joint venture will be licensed to use ProLogium’s patented solid-state battery pack assembly technology.

This is a strategic step for VinFast in mastering battery technology for electric vehicles, laying a foundation for its research and development of smart and advanced electric vehicles in the future.

Founded in 2006, ProLogium is the world’s leading solid-state battery maker. In 2017, ProLogium became the first company in the world to have a test line for solid-state battery technology for automotive applications.

Its solid-state batteries have passed safety tests in Europe and China, which are the world’s largest electric vehicle markets.

It is also cooperating with large electric cars manufacturers to test a new battery technology and expects to deploy it for mass-production in 2023-2024.

By using solid-state batteries, VinFast electric cars will be able to go longer distances, reduce charging time, and increase the total number of times they can be charged.

VinFast’s partnership with ProLogium is a part of its plan to become a global smart electric car brand.

In January, VinFast introduced three new electric self-driving car models. It is also setting up electric charging stations nationwide , aiming at 40,000 charging ports for electric bikes and cars by the end of 2021.

VinFast sold 31,500 cars in Vietnam last year. Since entering the auto industry three years ago the company now has a plant in the northern province of Hai Phong and R&D centers in Australia, Germany and the U.S.

“Vietnam is rapidly emerging as one of the world’s new manufacturing hubs as multinationals are diversifying their production to build greater resilience in their supply chains following severe production disruptions during the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Rajiv Biswas, Asia-Pacific chief economist at IHS Markit, a world’s leading company providing analytics for major industries and markets.

In a note titled “Economic Preview- November 2020,” he said after a decline in the first nine months of last year, Vietnam’s exports of phones and components rebounded to achieve growth in the final quarter.

Phones and components fetched the biggest value among Vietnam’s exports last year, at $50.9 billion, or 18.1 percent of the country’s export turnover, according to the General Statistics Office.

Biswas said exports of computers and related products rose by an estimated 20 percent in the third quarter as a global shift to remote working boosted demand.

Vietnam significantly increased its share of global exports of computers in the past five years, and is now competing with China in terms of total exports.

An Intel’s facility in Saigon Hi-Tech Park, HCMC. Photo by Intel Corporation.

According to Biswas, a key factor driving supply chain diversification is the massive disruption to industrial production in China during the Covid lockdown in early 2020.

This created supply chain vulnerabilities for many multinationals due to excessive reliance on manufacturing in China.

Other factors to seek diversification include the U.S.-China trade war. With the U.S. imposing punitive tariffs on imports from China, multinationals are looking for alternative manufacturing locations for exports to the U.S.

Vishrut Rana, an economist at S&P Global Ratings focusing on the Asia-Pacific region, said in 2020 Vietnam became a key part of the electronic supply chain in this part of the world.

It means there is continued interest from companies across Asia in particular to move to Vietnam or expand existing operations in the country after it had a strong 2020 in terms of FDI, he said.

He explained that though last year was poor for the global economy, it was good for electronics, helped by work from home measures and people buying new accessories.

Competitive advantages

Biswas said Vietnam has been one of the biggest beneficiaries so far of the supply chain diversification thanks to its relatively low manufacturing wages compared to China, a skilled and well educated workforce and good infrastructure following massive investment over the past decade.

Another important competitive advantage for Vietnam is its plethora of bilateral and regional free trade agreements.

The new EU-Vietnam FTA has for instance provided a big fillip to Vietnam’s competitive advantage as a global manufacturing hub.

Vietnam is also a member of ASEAN and a part of two major regional free trade agreements, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Rana said, “Vietnam is in a good position as it has been open for FDI, and FDI regulations have been favorable.”

Dr Seckin Ozkul, director of the supply chain innovation lab at the University of South Florida in the U.S., said Vietnam has around 10 deepwater ports and a well-trained labor force in the textile and many other industries.

Vietnam has proved that it could produce goods and ship and deliver them, he said.

Rana said the country plays an increasingly important role in global supply chains, particularly in technology, but could easily expand into other areas of manufacturing.

Many major global firms already have operations in Vietnam or are actively considering investing in the country, he said, citing the examples of Samsung 10 years ago and firms from Japan and Taiwan more recently.

This provides confidence to firms considering moving to the country and serves as reference points for them, he said.

As more and more firms move to or expand in Vietnam, the local supply chain grows and firms get access to shared labor markets and better procurement options and suppliers, he said.

In short, as more and more firms build up their capacity in Vietnam, people get this critical mass that attracts even more investment, he said.

“So it’s like a virtuous cycle which is quite helpful.”

Vietnam could compete with China as a key supplier of some niche technology products because the electronic supply chain is very fragmented with a lot of small products requiring specific expertise, he said.

For example, Singapore has very specific memory microchips, while Vietnam has a big advantage in phone components in which Samsung invested several years ago, he pointed out.

Vietnam and other emerging technology players can aspire for a larger slice of the overall technology manufacturing pie. For instance, South Korea and Japan began automobile production on a small scale but managed to grow into dominant players.

From 2020 experience, the U.S. and China have emerged as big buyers for technology and related products. Europe is another critical market for Vietnam. Rana said these markets will remain Vietnam’s buyers this year.

Southeast Asia too offers good opportunities for Vietnam to widen market size since intra-ASEAN trade is becoming increasingly freer.

Electronics and infrastructure networks in ASEAN are very strong, with Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand key technology manufacturers in the supply chain, so Vietnam can leverage that to develop its market.

Ozkul said many companies are still thinking about how to diversify their supply chains after getting hit by Covid-19 and potential uncertainty in the U.S. and China relationship. There have been some tensions between the two powers and they may impact companies planning to go to Asia. They may consider going to Vietnam rather than to China because they don’t know how things are going to play out between the new administration of Biden and China’s.

In the U.S., things are improving with the Covid-19 vaccine being rolled out. Companies can escape lockdowns and actually plan ahead and look to make investments.

“I see that Vietnam’s prospects in the next couple of years are pretty good.”

Singapore is a major hub and many things flow through that country, but if Vietnam could cut Singapore out of the picture by directly shipping things to different locations, it could become the center of logistics, he said.

But he admitted there are some questions about deepwater ports in Vietnam like if they could berth new giant ships of 18,000-20,000 TEU and if goods from California in the U.S could be shipped to Vietnam without going through other places.

Ozkul said reliability is also crucial for Vietnam in attracting foreign investors as a new supply chain hub, and the country’s success in controlling the pandemic bodes well in this regard.

The speed at which companies move to Vietnam future depends on several things, he said.

Firstly they would check infrastructure such as the road network, ports and intermodal rail yards and talk to authorities in various places to see what incentives they offer, he said.

The government has a role to play in attracting them by offering incentives.

As for sectors in the supply chain, he noted that electronics companies prefer clusters. For instance, a phone company needs various parts from other suppliers such as microchips, motherboards and screens, and would come to Vietnam if these are available locally to minimize the cost of shipping them from elsewhere, he pointed out.

He recommended that Vietnam should have a deep discussion with foreign investors about the ready workforce in different sectors to attract them.

For instance, if Tesla, the U.S. electric car company, is looking to invest in Vietnam, it would consider if the workforce has basic knowledge it could develop or it has to begin from bottom up, he said.

Vietnam should invest in developing human resources for the logistics industry and supply chain management enabling locals to work such as operations and procurement managers, he said.

“On top of all this, Vietnam could highlight its success in controlling Covid-19 to show there is no disruption for investors.”

The country’s trade turnover during January-February topped some 95.81 billion USD, a year-on-year surge of 25.4 percent.

Vietnam’s trade balance posted positive, 1.29 billion USD, in the first two months of the year, the General Department of Customs said on December 28.

The country’s trade turnover during January-February topped some 95.81 billion USD, a year-on-year surge of 25.4 percent. Of the total, exports amounted to 48.55 billion USD, a yearly hike of 23.2 percent, while imports were estimated at 47.26 billion USD, or 25.9 percent higher than the same time last year.

Foreign-invested companies accounted for 76.4 percent, or 37.07 billion USD, of Vietnam’s total export turnover. Meanwhile, the domestic sector shipped abroad 11.48 billion USD worth of products.

There were nine commodities joining the billion-USD export club, including telephones and parts (9.3 billion USD, up 22.8 percent year-on-year); electronics, computers and parts (6.9 billion USD, up 27.3 percent); equipment, machines and parts (5.5 billion USD, up 72.6 percent); footwear (3.2 billion USD, up 15.4 percent); and wood and wooden products (2.4 billion USD, up 51 percent). They made up 73 percent of the country’s export turnover.

The US was Vietnam’s biggest importer as it splashed out 14.2 billion USD on Vietnamese products, or 38.2 percent higher than the amount it spent the same time last year. China came second with 8.5 billion USD, followed by the EU with 6.3 billion USD, ASEAN 4.2 billion USD, the Republic of Korea 3.4 billion USD, and Japan 3.2 billion USD.

Meanwhile, the country spent big (47.26 billion USD) on imports, with foreign-invested sector purchasing 31.64 billion USD worth of products from abroad for production, up 31.4 percent, while that of the domestic sector surged 16 percent to 15.62 billion USD.

In the two-month period, China was the largest exporter of Vietnam, with revenue estimated at 17.3 billion USD, up 85.7 percent year-on-year, followed by the Republic of Korea with 8.4 billion USD, ASEAN 5.6 billion USD, Japan 3.1 billion USD, EU 2.3 billion USD, and the US 2.1 billion USD.

In a bid to support local firms in promoting production and exports, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that it will work to capitalise on opportunities from the signed free trade agreements to seek measures for market development. Additionally, it will keep close watch on the global market to identify key export products, while paying due heed to penning measures for market development./.

Switzerland-Vietnam business group debuts

The Vietnamese Embassy in Switzerland has recently held a ceremony to launch the non-profit Switzerland-Vietnam business group (SVBG), which aims at promoting exchanges and investment and trade cooperation between enterprises of the two nations.

Based in Lausanne, the SVBG, the first of its kind founded by Vietnamese expatriates in Switzerland, has been set to focus on offering trade information via workshops, forums, and internal bulletins; providing legal consultations and guidance; developing links for technological transfers and improvement; and introducing quality human resources. It will also make recommendations for more favourable business climate to competent agencies of both nations, while organising socio-cultural activities serving its goals.

Speaking at the debut ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador Le Linh Lan stressed the group came into being at a special time as Vietnam has placed the COVID-19 pandemic under control and prepared best conditions possible to welcome Swiss investors.

In 2020, Vietnam’s economy grew 2.91 percent, making it one of the few countries that have maintained positive GDP growth while many others in the world fell into severe recession. Also in August last year, the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement took effect, opening up huge trade and investment opportunities for both sides. In last November, as the Chair of the ASEAN, Vietnam successfully pushed the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), establishing the biggest free trade area worldwide.

According to the diplomat, Switzerland is the 6th largest European investor in Vietnam, with its investment totaling 2 billion USD, mostly in manufacturing – processing and electricity. Currently, close to 100 Swiss firms are operating in Vietnam.

Meanwhile, Vietnam is the four biggest trade partner of Switzerland in ASEAN, with bilateral trade exceeding 3.6 billion USD in 2019. Since 2012, Vietnam and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) – the intergovernmental organisation of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland – began negotiations for a FTA, which is expected to be signed this year.

As scheduled, the SVBG will make debut to its Swiss partners at the Webinar Market Focus Vietnam that the group co-hosts with the embassy and the Geneva Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Services./.

Shopping online, a new trend amid COVID-19 pandemic

Online shopping has been increasingly welcomed by Vietnamese consumers since the outbreak of COVID-19. Even though the pandemic has now been largely brought under control, many have continued with this way of shopping due to its convenience.

Many online shopping apps were introduced during the COVID-19 outbreak, creating fierce competition between e-commerce platforms despite the market being relatively new.

Online shopping platforms are forecast to redefine Vietnamese people’s shopping habits even after the pandemic. Experts, however, have recommended that people follow prestigious brands to avoid counterfeit goods./.

Kien Giang keen to become sea-based economic powerhouse by 2025

Boasting 200 km of coastline and 143 islands, the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang is striving to branch out its maritime sector and become a sea-based economic powerhouse by 2025.

The move aims to contribute to realising the “Strategy for Sustainable Development of Vietnam’s Marine Economy by 2030 with a Vision to 2045”.

According to Standing Deputy Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Mai Van Huynh, the province is prioritising building its maritime sector to boost economic development while protecting the environment and strengthening national defence at sea and on islands.

Major investments have been made in several spearhead industries, such as seafood, tourism-marine services, energy, and maritime industry, among others, helping the province rank second among the 13 Mekong Delta localities in terms of maritime economic development in 2020.

The sea-based economy accounted for 79.75 percent of the local gross regional domestic product (GRDP) during the year, he added.

High-capacity fishing vessels have been built to bolster off-shore fishing, contributing to sustainable fisheries and the protection of the nation’s sovereignty over sea and islands.

With vast fishing grounds and a strong fleet, the province’s annual seafood output tops 500,000 tonnes and its aquaculture yield was estimated at more than 264,100 tonnes in 2020.

Kien Giang is working to secure a total seafood catch and aquaculture output of 800,000 tonnes by 2025.

According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, farming areas in Phu Quoc city, Kien Hai island district, the island commune of Tien Hai in Ha Tien city, and Son Hai and Hon Nghe in Kien Luong district will focus on farming groupers, cobias, yellow-fin pompanos, and seabass, as well as blue lobster, mantis shrimp, crab, and oysters for pearl farming.

Meanwhile, coastal areas in Ha Tien city and the districts of Kien Luong, Hon Dat, An Minh, and An Bien will develop zones for farming molluscs such as blood cockles, saltwater mussels, green mussels, and oysters.

Furthermore, due attention will be paid to high-tech aquaculture, the development of quality staples with high economic value, and measures to prevent illegal fishing.

Local maritime tourism has become a locomotive for growth of the tourism sector, with renowned destinations like Phu Quoc Island. A huge amount of capital has been injected into Phu Quoc city for years, most of which comes from strategic investors like Vingroup, Sun Group, BIM Group, and CEO Group.

According to the provincial Department of Tourism, the province welcomed over 5.2 million visitors in 2020, accounting for 55.8 percent of the plan but down 40.7 percent year-on-year. Revenue from tourism services was put at more than 7.8 trillion VND (339.8 million USD), or 39.3 percent of the target, and down 57.7 percent compared to 2019.

Local tourism is seeing a sound recovery thanks to supportive stimulus measures.

The province will sharpen its focus on tourism infrastructure at key attractions, including Phu Quoc Island, which is to become a world-class marine eco-tourism services hub.

Vice Director of the Department of Tourism Bui Quoc Thai said the province encourages all economic sectors to build and diversify local tourism products, as well as join in efforts to form a major tourism centre.

Regarding energy development, the province prioritises investment in wind power, electrification, solar power, and many other sources of renewable energy.

In the meantime, it has plans to build coastal roads and improve logistics services, while working to preserve ocean biodiversity and restore ocean ecosystems, in particular protecting mangrove forest in tandem with the effective and sustainable exploitation of marine resources./.

Cargo throughput at sea ports posts positive growth in January

More than 62 million tonnes of goods were handled at Vietnam’s sea ports in the first month of 2021, up 17 percent on year despite COVID-19.

Of the total figure, container throughput exceeded 2.2 million TEU, an annual increase of 27 percent.

The Cai Mep – Thi Vai port in Ba Ria – Vung Tau province recorded the highest growth in cargo throughput, at 29 percent, followed by the Hai Phong and Ho Chi Minh City ports, at 26 and 27 percent, respectively.

According to a representative from the Vietnam Logistics Business Association, the volume of goods shipped by sea was affected by not only the pandemic, but also the shortage of ship space and empty containers, and a slowdown in the Vietnamese export market and the global supply chains./.

High-tech farming needs investment and proper policies

Vietnam’s agriculture sector is aiming to be among the 15 most developed countries in the world, in which the agricultural processing sector ranks among the top 10 countries by 2030.

To realise the goal, the Government issued a resolution in 2019 on measures to encourage businesses to invest in effective, safe and sustainable agriculture as part of efforts to help the sector integrate globally.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) recently submitted to the Government a project of export promotion of agro-fishery products by 2030.

The export turnover is expected to reach 50-51 billion USD by 2025 and 60-62 billion USD in 2030.

To implement the target, the MARD will review and propose policies for investment attraction from private and foreign investors into the agro-fishery product processing industry.

For the last five years, there has been a wave of investment into agricultural production with 52,000 businesses, of which the firms directly participating in production hit 13,300, triple the figure of 2015.

The businesses’ participation not only contributed improve the value of agricultural products but also helped farmers access international standards.

In 2020 alone, 18 new factories for agro-product processing opened, a positive signal in improving Vietnam’s agricultural sector.

However, according to experts, although investment in agriculture has flourished in recent years with the participation of many new tycoons, it has not become a strong wave.

Notably, the majority of agricultural enterprises are still small, of which 90 percent are small and super small with capital of less than 10 billion VND (430,000 USD) while the number of enterprises investing in high-tech agriculture is even more modest.

Tran Van Tan, Chairman of Safe and Organic Businesses’ Association of Thanh Hoá Province in central Vietnam, said: “Agricultural businesses had many difficulties in accessing preferential policies leading to difficulties in seeking assistance.”

“Capital was also a big problem. To have the capital to buy agricultural land from farmers was a difficult problem,” said Tan.

“Access to capital from banks was not easy due to many procedures that agricultural enterprises struggled to meet,” he said.

“The accumulation of land to invest in setting up high-tech agricultural zones was also difficult so it required the help from local governments,” he added.

Similarly, Nguyen Thi Diem Hang, Director of the Vietnam Organic Farm Company, said initial expenses for high-tech farming were always higher than traditional farming while high-tech production did not bring immediate economic benefits.

Access to capital and land were also tough problems for agricultural enterprises, Hang said.

“It is necessary to increase the number of businesses taking part in the processing industry to become a kernel for 8.6 million farmers nationwide,” the director said.

“On the other hand, promoting science and technology to produce hi-tech agro-product is an inevitable trend,” she said.

Meanwhile, Ha Van Thang, Chairman of the Vietnam Agriculture Businesses’ Association, said the thing most businesses needed was a legal framework for high-tech farming development.

There was a need for incentive policies such as simplifying loan procedures and completing criteria of high-tech agricultural enterprises to easily access bank loans.

Policies on land accumulation and granting land use right certificates, houses and properties attached with land ownership must be improved, according to Thang.

According to experts, to attract investment in agriculture it was necessary to cut 40-50 per cent of current administrative procedures, improve the business environment and develop businesses substantially.

At the same time, reviews are needed to avoid overlaps in management and inspection and not let one product be subject to the management of too many units. Management methods should change to post-check from pre-check.

Besides, there must be clear planning of material zones connecting with businesses as well as support for the training of human resources for high-tech farming./.

Viet Nam aviation is among fastest growing markets

Southeast Asia will need 4,400 new airplanes valued at US$700 billion to support expanding demand for air travel over the next 20 years, said Darren Hulst, Boeing vice president of Commercial Marketing.

In an online conference yesterday, Hulst quoted Boeing’s 2020 Commercial Market Outlook (CMO), saying: “The intra-Southeast Asian market will become the fifth largest in the world by 2039, and the vast domestic and regional air-travel network across the region positions it well for a post-pandemic recovery.”

With low-cost carriers providing affordable service and added capacity, CMO estimated traffic growth in Southeast Asia to grow by 5.7 per cent annually in the next 20 years, making the region the second largest aviation market in the Asia-Pacific region after China.

Boeing, at the same time, projected the region’s commercial airplane fleet to grow 5.3 per cent annually during the period while the demand for aftermarket commercial services could reach US$790 billion.

Hulst said: “Southeast Asia’s fundamental growth drivers remain robust. With an expanding middle-class and growth in private consumption, the region’s economy has grown by nearly 70 per cent over the last decade, which increases propensity to travel,” adding: “Governments in the region continue to recognise the travel and tourism sectors as important drivers of economic growth.”

Boeing’s vice president said: “Indonesia, Thailand, Viet Nam, Malaysia and the Philippines are the markets that most contribute to the growth in the global aviation market. They are also places with more room for expansion because of the emerging middle class, which could be 60 million new passengers in the next 15 years.”

Hulst also considered Viet Nam as the fastest growing market in terms of growth of air travel in the region with the advantage of a strong domestic market and the recent control of the pandemic.

Mentioning the demand for airplanes in the region, he said though the near-term airplane deliveries were impacted as a result of the pandemic, Boeing estimated operators would need more than 3,500 new single-aisle airplanes in the region by 2039 as the low-cost-carriers have the highest market penetration globally.

The airplane maker said twin-aisle airplanes such as the 777X and 787 Dreamliner still remain foundational to Southeast Asia’s air travel industry, adding one in four twin-aisle airplanes delivered to the broader Asia-Pacific region would go to a carrier operating in Southeast Asia. It forecast the region would need 760 new widebodies by 2039.

As the region’s commercial aviation services growth remained promising in the long term, said the CMO, Southeast Asia commercial services were valued at $790 billion over the next 20 years, a slight increase from last year’s projection, driven largely by growth in freighter conversions and digital solutions and analytics. With such estimation, Southeast Asia expected to require 183,000 more commercial pilots, cabin crew members and aviation technicians.

Globally, Boeing forecast the demand for 43,110 new commercial airplanes and the demand for aftermarket services to be equivalent to US$9 trillion over the next two decades when world air cargo traffic was projected to grow 4 per cent annually due to solid industrial production and world trade. The CMO said freighters would remain the backbone of the cargo industry with the need for 930 new and 1,500 converted freighters during the same span.

High-tech farming needs investment and proper policies

Viet Nam’s agriculture sector is aiming to be among the 15 most developed countries in the world, in which the agricultural processing sector ranks among the top 10 countries by 2030.

To realise the goal, the Government issued a resolution in 2019 on measures to encourage businesses to invest in effective, safe and sustainable agriculture as part of efforts to help the sector integrate globally.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) recently submitted to the Government a project of export promotion of agro-fishery products by 2030.

The export turnover is expected to reach US$50-51 billion by 2025 and $60-62 billion in 2030.

To implement the target, the MARD will review and propose policies for investment attraction from private and foreign investors into the agro-fishery product processing industry.

For the last five years, there has been a wave of investment into agricultural production with 52,000 businesses, of which the firms directly participating in production hit 13,300, triple the figure of 2015.

The businesses’ participation not only contributed improve the value of agricultural products but also helped farmers access international standards.

In 2020 alone, 18 new factories for agro-product processing opened, a positive signal in improving Viet Nam’s agricultural sector.

However, according to experts, although investment in agriculture has flourished in recent years with the participation of many new tycoons, it has not become a strong wave.

Notably, the majority of agricultural enterprises are still small, of which 90 per cent are small and super small with capital of less than VND10 billion (US$430,000) while the number of enterprises investing in high-tech agriculture is even more modest.

Tran Van Tan, chairman of Safe and Organic Businesses’ Association of Thanh Hoa Province in central Viet Nam, said: “Agricultural businesses had many difficulties in accessing preferential policies leading to difficulties in seeking assistance.”

“Capital was also a big problem. To have the capital to buy agricultural land from farmers was a difficult problem,” said Tan.

“Access to capital from banks was not easy due to many procedures that agricultural enterprises struggled to meet,” he said.

“The accumulation of land to invest in setting up high-tech agricultural zones was also difficult so it required the help from local governments,” he added.

Similarly, Nguyen Thi Diem Hang, director of the Viet Nam Organic Farm Company, said initial expenses for high-tech farming were always higher than traditional farming while high-tech production did not bring immediate economic benefits.

Access to capital and land were also tough problems for agricultural enterprises, Hang said.

“It is necessary to increase the number of businesses taking part in the processing industry to become a kernel for 8.6 million farmers nationwide,” the director said.

“On the other hand, promoting science and technology to produce hi-tech agro-product is an inevitable trend,” she said.

Meanwhile, Ha Van Thang, chairman of the Viet Nam Agriculture Businesses’ Association, said the thing most businesses needed was a legal framework for high-tech farming development.

There was a need for incentive policies such as simplifying loan procedures and completing criteria of high-tech agricultural enterprises to easily access bank loans.

Policies on land accumulation and granting land use right certificates, houses and properties attached with land ownership must be improved, according to Thang.

According to experts, to attract investment in agriculture it was necessary to cut 40-50 per cent of current administrative procedures, improve the business environment and develop businesses substantially.

At the same time, reviews are needed to avoid overlaps in management and inspection and not let one product be subject to the management of too many units. Management methods should change to post-check from pre-check.

Besides, there must be clear planning of material zones connecting with businesses as well as support for the training of human resources for high-tech farming.

Thai conglomerate SCG now dominates Viet Nam’s plastic production industry

Under the contract signed on February 9 via a virtual conference, Duy Tan will sell 70 per cent of its shares in five of total twenty-two subsidiary companies, including Duy Tan Plastic Manufacturing Corporation and Duy Tan Long An Corporation, to SCG’s SCG Packaging, Duy Tan said.

Duy Tan Plastic is a leading company in the plastic goods market in Viet Nam with revenue of VND4.7 trillion in 2020. It has nearly 1,000 commodities units and 16,000 distribution agents across the country. The company’s annual capacity reaches 116,000 tonnes of hard plastic packaging and plastic goods.

SCG, Thailand’s largest cement producer, will buy the stakes over three years, starting from 2021. The deal takes a long time as it is based on business results, Duy Tan Plastic said.

Through the deal, SCG and Duy Tan Plastic want to create a solid foundation for a completed supply chain.

Duy Tan Plastic aims at developing hard plastic packaging products, plastic goods and expanding export markets, while the investments help SCG Packaging broaden its hard plastic packaging businesses in ASEAN, especially strengthen capacity to serve FMCG producers and consumers in Viet Nam.

The deal is a part of SCG’s investment plan worth 10 billion baht (US$334 million) to extend its businesses in Viet Nam that has big and growing demands in plastic packaging products.

Wichan Jitpukdee, CEO of SCG Packaging, said that the company will keep investing in Viet Nam, resulting in revenue growth of over 10 per cent each year.

Dominating Viet Nam’s plastic production industry

The plastic production industry in Viet Nam has around 3,300 enterprises with total value of approximately US$18 billion.

The upstream sector of this industry includes petrochemical refineries and chemical enterprises whose main activities are to convert fossil materials into raw plastic beads.

Meanwhile the downstream sector is turning raw plastic beads into plastic products. The downstream can be divided into four main segments, including plastic packaging products, plastic building materials, plastic goods and engineering plastics.

With the deal for Duy Tan Plastic’s shares, SCG is dominating Viet Nam’s plastic industry, especially in plastic packaging products and plastic building materials. These two segments account around 61 per cent of the total market value.

In 2019, SCG Packaging founded Vina Kraft Paper in Binh Duong Province to produce paper packaging products with total capacity of 500,000 tonnes/year.

The company continued to invest in Tin Thanh Packing JSC (BATICO) in 2015. And recently SGC bought 94 per cent of Bien Hoa Packaging JSC’s stakes, with the deal worth of VND2.07 billion (US$89 million).

SCG also owns stakes in many plastic companies including Binh Minh Plastics JSC, Vietnam Construction Materials JSC, Prime Group, Viet Thai Plastchem Joint Venture Company Ltd, TPC Vina Plastic and Chemical Corporation Ltd, Viet Nam Chemtech Company Ltd and Minh Thai Plastic Material Company Ltd.

In 2018 June, SCG signed a contract to buy 29 per cent of Viet Nam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam)’s shares in Long Son Petrochemical Complex Project, raising its equity from 71 per cent to 100 per cent with total investment value of 8.5 billion baht per year.

HCM City to ensure transparent, fair and competitive environment for property market

The chairman of the HCM City People Committee has pledged to review all housing projects in the city and work out solutions to create a “more transparent, fair and competitive business environment”.

Speaking at an annual meeting with the HCM City Real Estate Association (HoREA) last weekend (Feb 27), Nguyen Thanh Phong said the city would work with agencies to address delays in “the issuance of investment policy approval for developers and ownership certificates for homebuyers”.

Le Hoang Chau, chairman of HoREA, said over the past years, the association has submitted numerous petitions and proposals to the Government and local authorities to resolve problems related to investment and construction.

Businesses have frquently petitioned the People’s Committee to speed up procedures for investment approval for commercial housing projects, he added.

In 2020 alone, 61 commercial housing projects were delayed because the land they were allotted was a mix of plots with various purposes and uses, he said.

“A number of projects being built on public lands were halted and are being reviewed for compliance,” Chau added.

According to a report from the Department of Construction, procedures for investment approval of commercial housing projects take up to 247 working days, or 50 weeks, excluding 14 public holidays, which is too long.

The association has also urged city authorities to speed up the issuance of home ownership certificates for more than 30,402 housing units in 163 projects in the city.

“The Department of Natural Resources and Environment needs to work with the Department of Finance, the City Land Price Appraisal Council and other agencies to determine land-use fees for the housing projects to speed up the process,” he noted.

“Priority should be given to home-ownership certificates for homebuyers who have fulfilled their obligations under the housing purchase contract,” he added.

A number of apartment buildings have been built in violation of approved plans and designs in the city, delaying the issuance of land-use and home ownership certificates, according to the Department of Construction.

Many developers have even mortgaged their buildings to get loans for other projects, meaning buyers have been unable to get ownership certificates, it said.

New guidelines

Recently, city authorities issued guidelines to speed up the issuance of land-use and home ownership certificates to buyers to prevent disputes with housing developers.

They divided apartment projects into two categories related to collection of land-use fees and issuance of ownership certificates.

For apartments within a compound, the entire project area is identified as “residential land” and is subject to fees for issuance of certificates for land-use rights, house ownership and other land-related assets.

For those without compounds that come with public areas such as parks, schools, hospitals, and main roads connecting to public roads outside the apartment building, only the area of ​​land used for apartment construction is considered “residential land”.

For the public areas, the city will organise bids to select investors.

The construction of technical works such as electricity and water supply, drainage, lighting, and telecommunications systems must be done by the developer and handed over to the city. No land-use fees will be collected.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environment has been assigned to work with the departments of planning and architecture, construction, and other agencies to classify land areas in each project (both already completed and upcoming) subject to fees for issuance of ownership certificates.

The Department of Construction will be responsible for monitoring compliance with construction norms and penalising violators.

The city has ordered agencies to carefully review investors’ financial capacity before licensing projects. Investors found to have committed violations must be severely sanctioned.

There are 15,000 real estate firms operating in the city.

Experts attributed the challenges facing businesses to inconsistent regulations on housing and land investment. Hundreds of housing projects are under inspection for legal procedures, delaying their progress.

Modern trade channels, e-commerce to be further thrive: experts

Modern and online shopping channels recorded strong growth last year and will continue to thrive this year, according to experts.

Nielsen Vietnam’s retail chain consulting said the COVID-19 pandemic has boosted online shopping and more consumers would choose to shop online even after the pandemic ends.

As of December there were around 8,500 stores nation-wide, including 453 supermarkets and 5,566 minimarts with the rest being convenience, health and beauty, drug, and cash & carry stores.

There is a fierce competition in the retail market, and so each chain has to identify its strengths to retain competitiveness.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, average retail sales and consumer services revenue per capita increased from 19.3 million VND in 2010 to 51.2 million VND in 2019, accounting for 8 percent of GDP.

E-commerce, supported by electronic payment, has grown especially strongly in recent years, averaging over 27 percent growth, it said./.

Cargo throughput at sea ports posts positive growth in January

More than 62 million tonnes of goods were handled at Vietnam’s sea ports in the first month of 2021, up 17 percent on year despite COVID-19.

Of the total figure, container throughput exceeded 2.2 million TEU, an annual increase of 27 percent.

The Cai Mep – Thi Vai port in Ba Ria – Vung Tau province recorded the highest growth in cargo throughput, at 29 percent, followed by the Hai Phong and Ho Chi Minh City ports, at 26 and 27 percent, respectively.

According to a representative from the Vietnam Logistics Business Association, the volume of goods shipped by sea was affected by not only the pandemic, but also the shortage of ship space and empty containers, and a slowdown in the Vietnamese export market and the global supply chains./.

HCM City’s CPI inches up 1.19 percent in February

The consumer price index (CPI) in the southern largest economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City increased 1.19 percent in February from the previous month, according to the city’s Statistics Office.

Among 11 groups of products and services in the CPI basket, the group of housing, electricity, water and construction materials had the highest price increase of 2.06 percent. This included a 13 percent hike in power price, 2.65 percent rise in water price, and 0.14 percent fall in housing rent due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The prices of restaurant and catering services showed a big jump of 1.35 percent, with those of foodstuff growing 1.79 percent from January. The strongest surges in this group were seen in the prices of pork (5.28 percent), beef (2.36 percent), poultry (3.99 percent) and aquatic products (3.12 percent) due to high demand during the traditional Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday – the biggest traditional festival of Vietnamese people.

Moving in the same trend were groups of beverage and tobacco (0.41 percent), and garment, hats and footwear (0.35 percent).

Affected by the petrol price hikes on January 26 and February 25, transportation fees increased by 1.68 percent.

In contrast, the prices of medicine and medical services dropped by 0.05 percent, and those of the education group decreased by 0.01 percent.

The Statistics Office also said that the gold price went up by 1.1 percent while the price of US dollar expanded 0.02 percent as compared to January./.

Over 18,000 new firms set up in first two months

More than 18,000 new businesses were established in the first two months of 2021, a year-on-year decline of 4 percent, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

The number of employees registered by the newly-established enterprises rose 9.7 percent to 173,000.

The months saw an addition of over 720.4 trillion VND (32.24 billion USD), in total registered capital, up 12.4 percent. Average level in registered capital per enterprise surged 46.4 percent to reach 18.5 billion VND in the period.

About 11,030 enterprises resumed operations in the first two months, down 7.6 percent while 33,611 others were dissolved, an increase of 18.6 percent.

In February alone, as many as 8,038 new businesses were set up with a combined registered capital of nearly 179.74 trillion VND.

The number of new firms represented a year-on-year drop of 12.3 percent while the amount of capital surged 85.6 percent.

The number of workers registered by these businesses reached almost 57,000, down 22.1 percent./.

Udmurtia keen on boosting bilateral trade with Vietnam

First Deputy Prime Minister of the Udmurt Republic of the Russian Federation Konstantin Suntsov has expressed his belief that its bilateral relations and trade with Vietnam will be enhanced in the coming time.

Talking with a Moscow-based Vietnam News Agency reporter, Suntsov said that two-way trade hit 165 million USD in 2019, which was estimated at 200 million USD last year despite impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.

He noted that Udmurtia is running a trade surplus with Vietnam, with its exports accounting for up to 70 percent of the total value, mostly metal and forestry products, cellulose and papers. Meanwhile, Vietnam has mainly shipped consumer goods to Udmurtia.

While expressing his interest in Vietnamese coffee, Suntsov said Udmurtia’s Tasty Coffee company accounts for about one-third of Russia’s coffee market share.

According to the official, Udmurtia already exported military technical products, metal and wooden products and medical equipment to Vietnam, and plans to ship more farm produce, light chemical industry products and IT services.

At an online trade promotion forum held in late 2020, Udmurtia introduced unmanned aerial vehicles, medical equipment, food colouring products, bleaches used in agriculture and farm produce to Vietnamese partners.

Mentioning important points in the Russia-Vietnam comprehensive strategic partnership, he said the two nations already signed a free trade agreement, thereby raising two-way trade to 6 billion USD in 2018.

He also praised Vietnam for its natural, art and cultural beauty which he felt during his visits to Hanoi, Sa Pa and Ha Long Bay in 2015.

On its capacity as rotating ASEAN Chair in 2020, Vietnam well performed its role in assisting other regional member states in coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, Suntsov said.

In his opinion, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, signed in 2020, will become a bridge between Russia and Southeast Asia.

As Vietnam is really a bridge between Russia and ASEAN, Udmurtia will also take advantage of that, he said.

Udmurtia is a federal subject of the Russian Federation within the Volga Federal District. Industry now accounts for over 45 percent of Udmurtia’s economic structure. Its enterprises also manufacture equipment for nuclear power plants, medical and oil-gas equipment, metal and plastic products. Agriculture is also an important priority of its development./.

Vietnamese and Japanese firms receive support to expand operations

The Japan Trade Promotion Organisation (JETRO) will host an online scheme on March 3 in Hanoi aimed at connecting Japanese businesses in the field of manufacturing and production, known as Monozukuri in Japanese to facilitate co-operation amid the negative impacts caused the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a representative from the JETRO, the business matching programme will see the participation of 40 Japanese companies for the purpose of accelerating the development of the country’s supporting industry.

At present, the scheme has received registration for 50 negotiations from enterprises from Japan, Vietnam, and Taiwan (China), whilst it is still receiving registration from businesses wishing to purchase and seek Japanese suppliers in the Monozukuri field until March 1.

A recent survey conducted by the JETRO unveiled that Japanese businesses remain keen on the Vietnamese market as the country is viewed as an alternative investment destinations for Japanese enterprises looking to move away from China due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The survey indicates that approximately half of Japanese enterprises in the nation plan to expand their production activities, while roughly 70% of them seek opportunities to increase revenue in the local market.

Most notably, 46.8% of Japanese enterprises unveiled that they have initiated plans to expand their business in the nation over the course of the next two years, with the expansion rate ranking fourth, the highest in the Asia-Pacific region.

Japanese enterprises have therefore attributed their expansion to an increase in revenue in the domestic market and high growth potential.

Furthermore, Japanese firms are also considering re-establishing some supply chains which have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with Vietnam able to capture the attention of suppliers and buyers of materials globally.

Air service on HCMC-Van Don route set to resume

Vietnam Airlines will resume flight operations on the HCMC-Van Don route starting from March 3, as the Covid-19 outbreak in Quang Ninh Province, where the Van Don International Airport is located, has been brought under control.

This is the first local carrier to announce its plan to resume flights to Van Don since the outbreak hit Quang Ninh, reported Nguoi Lao Dong Online.

The national flag carrier will operate one weekly flight on the route on Wednesdays between March 3 and 17 and plans to increase it to three flights per week on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from March 18 to December 31 this year.

The flights will depart from HCMC at 1 p.m. and from Van Don at 3:45 p.m.

The carrier is offering special ticket prices starting from VND33,000 per leg (equivalent to VND507,000 per leg including taxes and fees) for the first three flights on the route between March 3 and 17.

From the fourth flight onward, which will be operated from March 18 to the end of the year, the airfare will start from VND109,000 (or VND590,000 including taxes and fees) for trips taken from March 18 to June 30.

Earlier, the Ministry of Transport decided to shut down the Van Don airport in 15 days from January 29 to February 13 to combat Covid-19, as an airport security staff member tested positive for the coronavirus.

The ministry later extended the airport’s closure to February 21 and then to March 3.

During the recent Lunar New Year holiday, the Vietnam Airlines Group operated 6,050 flights carrying nearly 800,000 passengers, while all of the local airlines operated a total number of 14,400 flights with over 1.7 million passengers.

Construction of US$115 million high-tech dairy farm starts in An Giang

Construction of a large-scale project of high-tech dairy cow farming and milk processing has been kicked off in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang.

Speaking at the kick-start ceremony, Permanent Deputy Prime Minister, Truong Hoa Binh highly appreciated the provincial government that has created advantages for the implementation of the project, towards the sustainable development associated with benefits of business and the community.

He hoped the project will become a typical dairy farm in the region and asked ministries and State units to support An Giang and the investor, TH Group to complete the project on time.

The project costing VND2,655 billion (US$115 million) will have a herd of around 10,000 cows that are expected to produce 135 tons of milk per day.

Besides, the investor plans to build an eco-accommodation site and focus on organic farming and growing to provide agricultural products meeting Global GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) standards.

Gas price increases for the third time in 2021

A statement of the Ho Chi Minh City One-Member Limited Liability Oil & Gas Company (Saigon Petro) said that gas price has edged up VND417 per kilogram, equaling to VND5,000 a 12-kilogram cylinder as from March 1.

With the price spike, a 12-kilogram cylinder costs VND400,500 (US$17.31). The gas prics of Pacific Petro, City Petro, ESGas also surge VND5,000 a 12-kilogram cylinder.

According local gas companies, on March 1, the world gas price is estimated at US$610 per ton, an increase of US$15 per ton in comparison with February. As this reason, they adjusted the domestic gas price.

This has been the third hike of domestic gas price in 2021.

Indonesian Consulate General works to promote investment in Dong Nai

The Indonesian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City said it will work as a bridge helping Indonesian firms to invest in the southern province of Dong Nai.

Hanif Salim, Indonesian Consul General, on March 1 visited Dong Nai to explore investment projects in the locality.

Speaking at a working session with local leaders, Hanif Salim said Indonesia’s investment in the province remains limited and is yet to match potential of both sides.

Located in the southern key economic region, Dong Nai has posted high, stable economic growth over the past year.

The province has established 32 industrial parks, of which 31 are operational, attracting 1,533 FDI projects from 45 countries and territories, with total registered capital amounting to 31.8 billion USD.

Indonesia contributes two projects worth 12 million USD./.

Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VIR/SGT/Nhan Dan/Hanoitimes

The Ho Chi Minh City tourism sector this year plans to focus on digitalisation of the industry and promotion of domestic tourism amid a downturn in tourism because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The sector will continue its efforts to boost domestic tourism as the main factor driving the recovery of the tourism industry.

The tourism communication and stimulus campaign, ‘Hello Ho Chi Minh City,’ has been implemented to promote the city as a safe, vibrant and friendly destination.

Tourism cooperation and linkages between HCM City and the Northeast, Northwest and the Central regions will also serve to boost domestic travel.

The city aims to receive 33.5 million domestic visitors this year if COVID-19 remains under control in the country./.

Tet sales increase sharply on low prices

With a week to go for Tet (the Lunar New Year) sales of goods bought to celebrate the Lunar New Year have increased by 30-40 percent from normal times, according to market observers.

They attribute it to prices remaining steady and people’s increasing income at the end of the year.

Saigon Co.op’s supermarket chains have managed to meet market demand thanks to early preparation of goods, accurate forecast of demand and discounts, Nguyen Anh Duc, its permanent deputy general director, said.

In January sales increased by 37 percent compared to the same period in the previous month, with growth of fresh and processed foods, cosmetics, kitchen appliances, and garments being high, he said.

There have been no shortages of goods, especially pork, and no price hikes, he said.

Dinh Quang Khoi, head of marketing and customer care at MM Mega Market Vietnam, said customers have bought Tet goods earlier than usual, and retail sales increased by more than 10 percent compare with same periods of last year, while the increase is 5 -6 percent if the wholesale segment is included.

Shopping malls in Ho Chi Minh City like Vincom Central Dong Khoi, Takashimaya and Aeon Celadon Tan Phu are crowded, especially at weekends.

Sales of processed foods are expected to go up by more than 20 percent.

People are switching more and more to poultry meat and eggs instead of pork because the pork price is rising to the delight of companies like San Ha, Ba Huan and Vinh Thanh Dat.

According to experts, the prices of many items have never been so stable as this year as the Covid-19 pandemic caused global demand to shrink.

Many products could not be exported, and so producers and distributors switched their focus to the domestic market, increasing supply.

To sustain demand in this scenario enterprises have had to improve quality and keep prices competitive./.

HCM City in top six most preferred markets for investment: CBRE

There was an increase in interest in Ho Chi Minh City which ranked sixth among Asia Pacific investors’ most preferred property markets for investors, according to a survey by market research firm CBRE polling more than 490 Asia Pacific-based investors in November and December 2020.

With the diversification of supply chains encouraging more manufacturing investment in the city, industrial and logistics assets are keenly sought after, said the CBRE’s 2021 Asia Pacific Investor Intentions Survey.

“HCM City has already been on the radar of investors in recent years, especially those who are looking to invest in Southeast Asia, as the city is viewed as having the potential for greater appreciation in property values and higher yields,” said Dang Phuong Hang, CBRE Vietnam Managing Director.

The survey outlines top 10 Preferred cities for cross-border investment, with Tokyo (Japan) in the first place, followed by Singapore, Seoul (the Republic of Korea), Shanghai and Beijing (China), HCM City, Shenzhen (China), Sydney (Australia), Osaka (Japan) and Melbourne (Australia).

Investors who expressed interest in investing in Southeast Asia indicated that they are willing to pay more for real estate purchase. 39.4 percent of these investors are comfortable to pay more than 10 percent higher this year than what they are willing to pay in 2020, while 19.7 percent are willing to paying up to 10 percent higher.

In the search for returns, investors looking at Southeast Asia are turning to value-added and core assets, even though there are some who are starting to look at distressed assets. Industrial/logistics and office remain their preferred sectors, while the hospitality sector is gaining favour.

Henry Chin, CBRE’s Global Head of Investor Thought Leadership and Head of Research, Asia Pacific, said: “stronger interest in core investment reflects investors’ greater emphasis on tenant credit and stable cash flows.”

“Assets with a solid rent roll of three years or longer typically attract far more bidders than those lacking this type of security,” he added.

Logistics was the most popular sector for investment as the pandemic-driven acceleration of e-commerce consumption boosted demand for this asset class. While interest in the office sector weakened, investors retain an optimistic view towards this sector, expecting a contraction in office purchasing activity of no more than 10 percent over the next three years./.

January sees largest capital injection into stock market since early 2020: SSI

January saw the largest amount of investment capital poured into Vietnam’s stock market since the beginning of 2020 on the back of strong exchange traded fund (ETF) inflows, according to a report by SSI Securities Corporation.

Vietnam is Asia’s only stock market with non-stop capital injection over the last four week as it attracted more than 100 million USD last month thanks to massive ETF inflows, outweighing the net capital withdrawal of around 23.5 million USD, said SSI’s February strategic stock market report entitled “Co hoi trong bien dong” (Opportunity in volatility).

ETFs have also raked in about 129 million USD, or two third of the total inflows in 2020, mostly into VFM Diamond ETF (1.31 trillion VND or 57.15 million USD) and VFM VN30 ETF (860 billion VND).

The market also experienced strong foreign buying in the last three days of the month, raising foreign players’ net purchases of shares in January to about 127 billion VND.

SSI stated that Vietnam has become a quite attractive market largely owing to the country’s successful containment of COVID-19, positive economic growth and the fact that it remains a destination of the ongoing global production shift.

Though the pandemic has been a key contributor to the market volatility during this period of time, capital injection from ETFs into Vietnam remains a positive driver of the stock market, SSI said, adding that this also means increasing level of volatility.

According to the report, more than 81 billion USD was poured into stocks in both developed and emerging markets across the worrld last month, also with the domination of the ETFs./.

Vietnam increases pork imports to cool off rising domestic prices

Vietnam imported more than 141,000 tonnes of pork worth 334.4 million USD in 2020, representing a rise of 382 percent and 500 percent over the previous year, respectively, customs statistics showed.

The increase in imports was to make up for the shortage in pork supply caused by African swine fever which pushed up domestic prices in the first months of 2020.

The pork was mainly imported from Brazil, Russia, Poland, the US and Canada. Brazil was the largest exporter of pork to Vietnam last year, accounting for 24.5 percent of the import volume.

The average pork import price was 2.2 USD per kilo.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam approved 25 countries to export livestock and poultry meat to Vietnam, including more than 800 enterprises from 19 countries allowed to export pork to Vietnam.

Vietnam imported more than 43,300 pigs for breeding, mainly from Thailand, Canada, the US, Denmark and Taiwan (China).

Live hog prices tended to increase in many provinces across the country from early January due to increases in consumption demand ahead of Tet (Lunar New Year) to around 80,000 – 84,000 VND (4 USD) per kilo, around 5,000 VND higher than the end of December.

However, in recent days, pork prices decreased by around 1,000-5,000 VND per kilo.

Nguyen Van Trong, Deputy Director of the ministry’s Department of Livestock Production, said pork prices dropped in recent days because processing companies reduced their purchases as they had enough goods for consumption during Tet.

The enhanced prevention against smuggling of pork to China together with the increase in supply also helped lower pork prices.

Now Vietnam had 27.3 million pigs, an increase of 21 percent over a year ago and equivalent to 88.7 percent of the time before the disease occurred.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade said that early preparations were made to ensure enough supply of pork for Tet with many enterprises launching price stabilisation programmes./.

Australian expert highlights Southeast Asia’s trade prospects

Richard Maude, Senior Fellow at Australia’s Asia Society Policy Institute, has spoken highly of trade prospects of Southeast Asian nations against the backdrop of COVID-19.

In an article, he said that global trends in trade, foreign investment and production offer a mix of peril and opportunity for the Southeast Asian governments as they try to steer their damaged economies towards recovery.

“Beset by lockdowns, disrupted supply chains and travel restrictions, world trade volumes fell by historically steep levels in the first half of 2020. Southeast Asia was no exception – the region’s economies rely heavily on external demand and many play increasingly significant roles in East Asian supply chains,” he continued.

In the second quarter of 2020, for example, the value of goods exported from the ten members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) fell by 15 percent on a year-on-year basis and imports fell by 27 percent.

Foreign direct investment flows to Southeast Asia also declined sharply early in 2020.

The vertiginous plunge in world goods trade, at least, may now be bottoming out, but the International Monetary Fund (IMF) remains decidedly gloomy about prospects for a trade-led recovery in Asia.

Even so, amid all the uncertainty and downside risk, Southeast Asia may yet find itself better placed than other regions to trade itself out of trouble, the expert said, citing that East Asian economic regionalism will strengthen as one of the reasons.

Most major East Asian economies – China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan – have managed to re-open their economies. China’s giant economy in particular is once again growing and helping keep Southeast Asian trade afloat.

Domestic consumption in Southeast Asia could double to 4 trillion USD over the next ten years.

Within the region, there are also signs the deep economic slump of the first half of 2020 is easing, at least in those parts of the region where the pandemic has been tamed. The decline in ASEAN global goods exports and imports, for example, slowed in the third quarter of 2020 on a quarter-on-quarter basis.

Vietnam, one of the best performing ASEAN economies, managed to eke out a small increase in economic growth in 2020, he cited.

Once it enters into force, the newly signed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade deal will give intra-Asian trading another boost. It is an incentive for large corporations to locate as much of their supply chains as possible within the bloc.

“ASEAN is also well placed to benefit from supply chain diversification within East Asia. Some manufacturing was already shifting to Southeast Asia before the pandemic.”

The pandemic has now reinforced interest from companies from around the world in regionalisation and supply chain diversification. Some governments, Japan, for example, is offering financial incentives to some of its companies to build production sites in Southeast Asia.

Like the rest of the world, the region faces headwinds and uncertainties, Maude noted, putting forth some suggestions for regional countries to use trade to help drive economic recovery./.

Tet sales increase sharply on low prices

With a week to go for Tet (the Lunar New Year) sales of goods bought to celebrate the Lunar New Year have increased by 30-40 per from normal times, according to market observers.

They attribute it to prices remaining steady and people’s increasing income at the end of the year.

Saigon Co.op’s supermarket chains have managed to meet market demand thanks to early preparation of goods, accurate forecast of demand and discounts, Nguyen Anh Duc, its permanent deputy general director, said.

In January sales increased by 37 per cent compared to the same period in the previous month, with growth of fresh and processed foods, cosmetics, kitchen appliances, and garments being high, he said.

There has been no shortages of goods, especially pork, and no price hikes, he said.

Dinh Quang Khoi, head of marketing and customer care at MM Mega Market Viet Nam, said customers have bought Tet goods earlier than usual, and retail sales increased by more than 10 per cent compare with same periods of last year, while the increase is 5 -6 per cent if the wholesale segment is included.

Shopping malls in HCM City like Vincom Central Dong Khoi, Takashimaya and Aeon Celadon Tan Phu are crowded, especially at weekends.

Sales of processed foods are expected to go up by more than 20 per cent.

People are switching more and more to poultry meat and eggs instead of pork because the pork price is rising to the delight of companies like San Ha, Ba Huan and Vinh Thanh Dat.

According to experts, the prices of many items have never been so stable as this year as the Covid-19 pandemic caused global demand to shrink.

Many products could not be exported, and so producers and distributors switched their focus to the domestic market, increasing supply.

To sustain demand in this scenario enterprises have had to improve quality and keep prices competitive.

One Commune One Product attracts Tet shoppers

Many products made under a programme called ‘One Commune One Product’ have become a big hit with consumers seeking to buy gift hampers for Tet (Lunar New Year).

Sticky rice grown by the Khau Nua Lech Thuong Quan Rice Cooperative in Bac Kan Province’s Ngan Son District is one such.

The co-operative has had to mobilise a lot of manpower to fulfil the mountain of orders it got.

Its rice is renowned for its plasticity and aroma, and is well known to consumers across the country.

According to a co-operative spokesperson, 100 additional workers were hired for packaging and delivery but demand still not be met.

In the last month or so it supplied more than 10 tonnes of rice to markets such as HCM City and Ha Noi.

Phan Thanh Hieu, director of the Phuong Nam Food Joint Stock Company, said this year, due to the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, businesses had prepared for low demand, but two high-end products, organic ST 25 and ST 25 rice varieties, grown together with shrimp in Soc Trang Province, are out of stock.

“We have had to turn down many orders or deliver less than the ordered quantity though the rice prices are four to five times higher than that of other rice. ST 25 grown together with shrimp has a price of VND285,000(US$12.4) for 5kg, VND15,000 higher than ST 25.”

Le Kieu Phuong, director of Phuc Thinh Production and Commerce Co. Ltd, said her company recently got a One Commune One Product (OCOP) certificate for its three prawn cracker production lines in Ca Mau Province.

It is now working on selling the products to major supermarket chains before Lunar New Year with the aid of the certificate, she said.

In Dong Nai Province, where more and more people are becoming interested in regional specialties, seven OCOP producers have signed contracts with Central Retail Viet Nam to sell 21 items.

Nguyen Thi Bich Van, media director of Central, said the two supermarkets would design their display shelves to ensure OCOP products easily catch the eye of shoppers as part of a commitment to support them.

MM Mega Market is also selling 56 OCOP confectionery and jam products for Tet at discounts of up to 50 per cent to introduce them to customers.

Do Quoc Huy, marketing director of Saigon Co.op, said the company is helping develop OCOP goods, but their limited production means they could only be sold locally and not across its retail chains.

The two-year-old OCOP programme has helped a number of localities develop a wide variety of agricultural and non-agricultural products, providing steady incomes to many locals.

COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage travel industry

A resurgence of Covid-19 just before the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday has hugely impacted travelling, again demonstrating its impact on the tourism industry.

“There has been an immediate impact on the hospitality business with several cancellations across the country, not only in the affected destinations but anywhere with access via an airport,” Mauro Gasparotti, director of Savills Hotels Asia Pacific, said.

“Prior to these local transmissions, the industry was anticipating increased travel demand during and after the Tet holiday, which would have been a good start to the year,” Gasparotti said.

Travel interest is diminishing amid a mist of uncertainty with air travel demand dropping 15 per cent immediately after the news release.

Online flight search demand to Da Nang and HCM City during this peak period of the year dropped 35 per cent and 34 per cent week-on-week respectively, according to OTA Insight.

Some companies immediately enforced travel restrictions, with requests to limit attending events and large gatherings.

This has directly affected MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) business in city hotels, where several conferences have been put on hold or delayed.

Drive-to destinations have also been affected by weekend cancellations.

Last year international arrivals to the country numbered just 3.8 million, a 78 per cent decline from 2019.

Domestic traveller numbers fell 34 per cent to 56 million.

Hotels and resorts suffered badly, with many being forced into temporary closure.

Last year occupancy and average daily rates (ADR) both dropped, while revenues fell 70 per cent.

In Ha Noi, the average occupancy was 32 per cent compared to 80 per cent in 2019 while it dropped to 23 percent in HCM City from 72 per cent.

The national average of 62 per cent in 2019 plummeted to just 24 per cent last year.

January started on a positive note, with hotels in key destinations seeing increased MICE and event bookings while at some resorts corporate bookings started to return, Gasparotti said.

“The market in 2021 is expected to be broadly similar to most of 2020, at least until borders reopen to leisure and business trade. Hotels have adapted by considerably reducing operating costs to establish lower breakeven points.

“The good news is that several destinations are still performing at acceptable levels.”

The performance in December and January was positive for destinations like Phu Quoc and Vung Tau, which appeal to both local leisure travellers and year-end company trips.

Some hotels have used promotions, such as ‘staycation’ packages and F&B deals to nurture local demand, which have propped up their numbers.

Fruit and vegetable exports decline by 7.6% in January

Vietnamese fruit and vegetable exports in January endured a drop of 7.6% to US$260 million compared to the same period from last year, largely due to unpredictable developments relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

The MARD’s Agro-Processing and Market Development Authority stated that China was the leading importer of local fruit and vegetables last year, making up 56.3% of the total market share, although fruit and vegetable exports to this market fell by 25.7% to US$1.84 billion compared to 2019.

Elsewhere, the United States market ranked second with US$168.8 million, followed by Thailand with US$157.2 million, the Republic of Korea with US$143 million, and Japan with US$127.7 million.

Furthermore, January saw the country’s import value of fruit and vegetables enjoy an annual increase of 22.3% to US$140 million, with China, the US, and Australia representing the three largest suppliers to the Vietnamese market.

Moreover, the import value of fruit and vegetables from China in 2020 decreased by 21% compared to 2019’s figures, while imports from the US and Australia witnessed respective increases of 2.3% and 1%.

Due to complicated developments relating to COVID-19, the nation’s fruit and vegetable export activities have been significantly impacted as consumers have changed their shopping habits with several countries also moving to tighten import procedures as a way of securing their borders.

Experts have therefore advised local firms to strive to strengthen their supervision over product quality to avoid violating quarantine regulations, and ensure that food and safety rules are followed as a means of facilitating relevant customs clearance processes.

Acceleration opportunity for Vietnamese AI startups

The AI Accelerator Challenge 2021, organised by VSV Foundation under the auspices of the Ministry of Science and Technology and funded by the Australian Embassy, is officially open for registration.

The AI Accelerator Challenge 2021(AAC 2021) is an acceleration programme specifically designed for Vietnamese AI startups with innovative ideas and products that address the practical needs of the market.

AAC 2021, themed “AI in pandemic – Adapting to the new normal”, has been organised with the goal of identifying, incubating, promoting, and developing potential AI-powered applications in numerous fields such as finance, commerce, electronics, telecommunications, manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare, education, transportation, and smart city development. Participants will have the opportunity to undertake a 4-week online training course, after which the top five teams will be awarded prizes including a service support package worth VND500 million($21,740), a business promotion and mentoring course worth VND200 million ($8,700) and up to VND200 million in seed investment with no equity required.

The programme will assist Vietnam’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as help to foster the development of a vibrant AI startup environment. “Vietnam should be very proud of its successes in tackling COVID-19,” said Andrew Barnes, Australian Chargé d’Affaires to Vietnam. “Through sponsoring programmes to promote innovative applications using AI, Australia is demonstrating its strong commitment to assisting Vietnam in overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic, supporting economic recovery, and strengthening its innovation system.”

“The government is trying to implement many activities to cope with disruptions caused by COVID-19, in which innovation and the application of advanced science and technology have been defined as the key to increase the resilience of businesses and the recovery of the economy. AI is one of the core technologies that promise to revolutionise many of Vietnam’s key socioeconomic sectors such as health, education, business, commerce, finance, and agriculture,” Deputy Minister Bui The Duy from the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) added.

“We are proud to be a part of this programme,” said Thach Le Anh, founder of VSV Foundation. “AAC 2021 will not only allow Vietnamese AI startups to receive mentoring from top AI technology experts but also support them with business development and fund-raising, including by raising capital from angel investors and leading domestic and foreign venture capital funds. The startups will be able to raise up to VND2 billion ($86,960) after the programme ends.”

This programme is funded by Australia’s flagship Aus4Innovation programme which will disburse AUD11 million ($8.44 million) over four years (2018-2022) to strengthen the Vietnamese innovation system and prepare for Vietnam’s economic and digital future. It is funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and managed by the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation in strategic collaboration with the MoST.

Investors give EVN Genco 2 cold shoulder at IPO

Despite Power Generation Corporation 2 (EVN Genco 2) owning substantial interests in several thermal and hydropower plants, 99.97 per cent of the stake it offered at its initial public offering (IPO) was unmarketable.

The Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HSX) has published the results of the auction registration for the stake of EVN Genco 2.

The company offered 580 million shares or 48.9 per cent of its charter capital to investors with the initial price of VND24,520 ($1.06) per share and expected to acquire VND14.225 trillion ($618.5 million) from the sale.

However, only 14 investors registered to join the auction, registering 262,500 shares, including 200,000 shares from a single foreign investor, 10,500 shares by five Vietnamese people, and 52,000 shares by eight domestic investors.

At present, EVN Genco 2 owns a 100 per cent stake in Trung Son Hydropower One Member LLC, which operates Trung Son hydropower plant with the designed capacity of 1 billion kWh per year.

It also owns a series of thermal power companies including Pha Lai, Haiphong, and Thac Mo, among others.

According to its financial statement, the company generated 17.8 million kWh, equaling 97 per cent of its plan for the whole year and 7 per cent of the power coursing through the whole national power grid.

The unmarketable IPOs of EVN Genco had precedent because they own too many member companies and subsidiaries. Buying stakes in the plants one by one will help investors limit risks.

Previously, EVN Genco 3 failed in its IPO in February 2018 when only 2.8 per cent of the offered shares was sold.

Vietnam targets 60 – 62 bln USD from agro-forestry-fisheries export by 2030

Vietnam has set a goal of earning around 60-62 billion USD from agro-forestry-fisheries export by 2030 under a project recently approved by the Prime Minister.

The project looks to fully and sustainably join the global supply chain of agro-forestry-fisheries, improve the quality and value of their export to meet regulations of importers, and develop their trademarks in international markets.

Of the figure, 25 billion USD will be from major farm produce, 16-17 billion USD from forestry products, 15 billion USD from aquatic products, 3-4 billion USD from animal husbandry products, and nearly 2 billion USD from others.

Agro-forestry-fisheries export is expected to grow by some 6-8 percent annually. About 40 percent of export will be national brands, 70 percent have their origins traced, and around 60 percent of exports are processed and deeply processed ones.

To such end, the project targets fine-tuning mechanisms and policies to ensure food safety and develop support industry, assisting firms in protecting intellectual property right in export markets, popularising trademarks on domestic and foreign media./.

Central localities seek new development routes amid COVID-19

Central provinces must adjust their socio-economic development goals and strategies to minimise the adverse effects brought by the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters in 2020, officials have said.

Nguyen Tan Tuan, Chairman of the People Committee of Khanh Hoa province, said while the province’s tourism industry was hit especially hard, growth in the industrial sector managed to stay positive.

“Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have made it our highest priority to keep the virus in check. Our effort has allowed us to attract a number of foreign investors as they moved from regions hard-hit by COVID-19,” Tuan said.

He said the province has been making use of the downtime to upgrade and invest in its tourism infrastructure, waiting for international tourists to return. In the meantime, Khanh Hoa has started several promotion campaigns to attract domestic travellers.

Meanwhile, Quang Nam made significant gains in developing modern agriculture in 2020 despite being one of the central provinces severely hit by natural disasters last year.

“Agriculture has always been a key priority in our province’s development scheme. During the pandemic, it has become Quang Nam’s economic driver,” said Le Van Dung, Deputy Secretary of the provincial Party Committee.

Dung said with tourism and commerce disrupted because of the pandemic and natural disasters Quang Nam chose to make large investments in industrial projects to mitigate the economic damage to the province in the long run.

Quang Ngai, a traditionally strong economic performer in the region thanks to being home to the country’s largest oil complex the Dung Quat Refinery, has been looking for ways to become less reliant on the oil industry.

Dang Van Minh, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, said the province has been working with its partners to set up numerous large-scale industrial parks.

“We want to become one of the country’s best destinations for investments and industrial development. The province aims to build a transparent and healthy business environment to win over potential investors,” said Minh.

Meanwhile, Da Nang, the central region’s main economic hub and the city most affected by the pandemic with nearly 200,000 jobs lost during 2020, said it has set a new course to push for greater digitalisation of commerce, smart city technologies and star ups culture.

“The city aims to diversify its economy. While we still identify tourism and services as major industries we want to see strong development on the fronts of information technology and digitalisation in the near future,” said Nguyen Dinh Vinh, head of the municiapal Party Committee’s Board for Information and Education./.

Cambodia to resume farmed fish import from Vietnam

The Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries on February 8 issued a press release on the resumption of the import of aquatic products, including farmed fish, from neighbouring countries, including Vietnam.

The import suspension was announced by the Cambodian side one month ago.

On January 19, Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh sent a letter to Cambodian Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak, saying Vietnam’s shipments of farmed fish failed to pass through customs and were returned.

The import ban showed signs of running counter to the trade liberalisation spirit of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and the ASEAN Economic Community, of which both countries are members, he said.

In the press release, the Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said it will continue to collect feedback from the Cambodian Aquaculture Association, importers and exporters, and concerned agencies that are Cambodia’s trade partners to build and recognise technical standards.

Le Bien Cuong, head of the Vietnamese trade affairs office in Cambodia, told the Vietnam News Agency on February 8 that the Cambodian side has shown its goodwill and active response.

Cambodia would consider imposing additional non-tariff technical measures in farmed fish import, including certificates of product origin and quality, he said.

According to the Vietnamese ministry, in recent years, Vietnam has exported about 60 million USD worth of aquatic products to Cambodia annually. Although Cambodia is not a major market of Vietnamese aquatic products, its stable import demand has contributed significantly to cross-border trade development, as well as job creation and income generation for local residents./.

VinFast acquires licence to test self-driving electric vehicles in California

VinFast has just become the 57th automaker to receive a licence to test self-driving electric vehicles in California, the US.

The company said its three SUV models VF31, VF32 and VF33 met the highest global safety standards including five-star ratings from the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the European New Car Assessment Programme.

VinFast has just become the 57th automaker to receive a licence to test self-driving electric vehicles in California, the US.

Automakers, including big names such as Apple, Tesla, BMW, and Volkswagen according to California’s Department of Motor Vehicles website, have also secured their licences to test run their vehicles in the Golden State, the world’s largest technology and innovation hub.

All three of the company’s models are to be equipped with level 2-3 autonomous features, which include 30 smart features divided into seven groups: intelligent steering assist system, lane control system, active journey control system, multi-point collision warning system, comprehensive collision mitigation system, intelligent automated parking system and driver monitoring system.

Models VF32 and VF33 will be sold in the US, Canada and Europe markets from 2022. The launch of high-tech electric vehicles, including electric scooters, electric buses and personal electric cars, is part of VinFast’s pre-defined roadmap since entering the automotive market three years ago.

Customers can start ordering the cars in May this year in Vietnam and in November in the US, Canada and the EU.

In Vietnam, Vietnamese automakers also started to install electric vehicle charging stations at commercial centres at Vinhomes Ocean Park, Vincom Long Bien in Hanoi to serve the first electric cars produced, expected to be available this year.

VinFast sold 31,500 cars in Vietnam last year, with its VinFast sedan and SUV models among the bestsellers in their respective segments./.

Agricultural, forestry, fisheries exports up sharply in January

Vietnam’s exports of agricultural, forestry, and fisheries products grew 27.1 percent year-on-year to 3.49 billion USD in January.

Rubber was the best performer in the opening month of the year, following on from its uptrend last year and totalling 200,000 tonnes worth 321 million USD, increases of 2.2-fold and 2.4-fold, respectively, year-on-year.

Shipments of key forestry products totalled 1.33 billion USD, up 47.8 percent year-on-year. Exports of wood and timber products alone reached 1.25 billion USD, up 48.4 percent.

Fisheries exports rose 19.6 percent to about 600 million USD, following repeated declines last year, especially after the outset of COVID-19.

Prawn exports experienced the highest growth last year among all fisheries items, up 11 percent to 3.7 billion USD.

Several major export earners, meanwhile, declined in January, including rice, fruit and vegetables, coffee, and pepper.

The country exported around 280,000 tonnes of rice for 154 million USD in the month, down 29.5 percent and 20.2 percent, respectively, from a year earlier.

A similar trend was seen in fruit and vegetables, with shipments reaching just 260 million USD, a year-on-year decline of 7.6 percent./.

Da Nang developing supporting industries

The central city of Da Nang has set a goal of developing supporting industries in tandem with high-tech industry to create products with high added value for export.

Under action programme No 01-Ctr/TU issued by the municipal Party Committee on December 10, 2020, the industry-construction sector is to grow by 11-11.5 percent annually between 2020 and 2025.

The municipal Department of Industry and Trade has reported that several large-scale projects in supporting industries have gradually joined the global supply chain.

Since 2016, Da Nang has attracted 24 new supporting industry projects worth over 9 trillion VND, two of which are foreign-invested, with 240 million USD, specialising in manufacturing aviation and automobile spare parts.

Da Nang is now home to around 110 supporting industry firms, accounting for 6.3 percent of all industrial enterprises in the city.

However, the number of domestic companies in the field remains limited, and most are of small scale with average technological capabilities. Meanwhile, foreign firms mostly process and assemble imported materials because the rate of domestically-made items remains low. Links between foreign and domestic businesses, meanwhile, are still less than needed.

General Director of the Long Hau Company, Tran Hong Son, said a number of local companies have yet to meet requirements for being recognised as supporting industry enterprises or manufacturers under Vietnam’s regulations.

He suggested quickly completing planning for an area devoted to supporting industry enterprises inside the Da Nang Hi-tech Park (DHTP) and putting it into operation to attract capable investors.

Head of the management board of the DHTP and industrial parks in Da Nang, Pham Truong Son, said the municipal People’s Committee has completed the planning for a supporting industrial park in the DHTP, which has been submitted to the Prime Minister for approval.

Once approved, Da Nang will outline a list of sectors in need of investment and then set up the park, the first of its kind in supporting industries in the city. Investors in the park would work with those at DHTP to create an industrial ecosystem.

If Da Nang develops supporting industries, investment will also pour into nearby localities, he said.

Under Politburo Resolution No 43/NQ-TW, Da Nang is to be a nucleus of the central key economic region and will develop hi-tech industries and information technology. To this end, Son suggested making the best use of its geographical location, infrastructure, human resources, and supporting industry.

Under the pending plan, the supporting industrial park is to cover an area of over 102 ha in Hoa Vang district, adjacent to the DHTP and the city’s information technology park.

In line with Resolution No 01-NQ/TU from the standing board of the municipal Party Committee, supporting industry enterprises will increase in number by 2030 and be capable of producing highly-competitive products, focusing on spare parts, software, and key services in support of priority industries. The city will also attract multi-national groups to guide and facilitate technology transfer.

By 2025, the city expects to have over 150 supporting enterprises, with at least 10 percent of domestic supporting enterprises being able to supply products to manufacturers. The value of the supporting industry will make up around 30 percent of added valued in the manufacturing and processing sector. At least one multi-national group or company is to invest in manufacturing end products.

Of the more than 300 supporting enterprises to be in business by 2030, at least 15 percent are to be able to directly supply products to manufacturers and assemblers. The value of the supporting industry will account for nearly 40 percent of added value in the manufacturing and processing sector and at least one multi-national group or company will invest in manufacturing end products./.

Source: VNA/VNN/VNS/SGGP/VOV/NDO/Dtinews/SGT/VIR

State budget collection from import-export activities reached 54.76 trillion VND (2.37 billion USD) in the first two months, or 17.38 percent of the estimate and a year-on-year rise of 7.53 percent, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

In February alone, the collection was 23.66 trillion VND. As Tet (Lunar New Year) holidays fell in the month, the customs department worked together with relevant agencies to combat smuggling and trade frauds while increasing inspections.

The customs force detected 967 cases in total from January 16 to February 15, seizing goods of 258.67 billion VND and contributing 8.6 billion VND to the State budget.

State budget collection was estimated at 220.5 trillion VND in total in the first two months of 2021, equivalent to 16.4 percent of the year’s estimate./.

Risky to invest in forex trading plaforms: Deputy Governor

Forex trading via investment platforms had not been licensed in Viet Nam, posing significant risks to investors, Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Viet Nam Dao Minh Tu warned.

Tu said at the Government’s meeting on Tuesday in Ha Noi that the operation of forex trading platforms was currently illegal, adding that the trading of foreign currencies and derivatives must be provided by credit institutions and commercial banks licensed by the State Bank of Viet Nam.

Until now, no forex trading platforms had been licensed for trading, he stressed, warning about risks when investing via these platforms.

Recently, some organisations like Lion Group called for investments in forex through Fx Trading Markets with attractive interest rates of up to 300 per cent per year and commissions. Lion Group attracted around 40,000 investors nationwide.

Tu urged people to be cautious with these appealing calls, adding that there were signs of in-transparencies and frauds.

“The skyrocketing profits in the current situation are impossible and investors must be cautious before deciding to pour money in forex trading platforms,” Tu said.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade also said that the business model of Lion Group or other forex trading platform was not compliant with the established regulations about multi-level marketing businesses.

Relevant management agencies must introduce regulations for the operation of these models.

Regarding payments, Tu said that there were more and more oganisations providing payment services along with the development of technologies, adding that the central bank always focused on ensuring safety and convenience in payment.

He urged attention to be paid to protecting personal data to ensure security in conducting payment transactions.

Tu stressed that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies were not legal means of payment in Viet Nam. The trading and use of cryptocurrencies were illegal.

Cryptocurrencies were not electronic currencies, Tu said, adding that the State Bank of Viet Nam, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice were studying the legal framework to manage cryptocurrencies and other virtual assets.

Market edges higher, fertiliser stocks surge

Viet Nam’s stock market ended higher on Wednesday as the VN-Index bounced back in the afternoon session.  The VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) reversed course to edge higher in Wednesday’s trade after dropping 0.38 per cent in the morning session. The index rose slightly 0.03 per cent to 1,186.95 points.

The market breadth turned positive at the end of the session with 270 stock rising, while 168 stocks decreased. And 64 stocks stayed unchanged.

While a total of over 628.77 million shared were traded today on the southern market, worth VND15.15 trillion, an overload occurred again on HoSE in the afternoon session.

In a daily report, Bao Viet Securities Co. said that the index might face corrections earlier in the sessions before recovering at the end of the session. And the market needs more time to accumulate to break over 1,200 points level in the near future.

The market received support from the containment of COVID-19 outbreaks and the upward trends of global markets, the company added.

However, strong selling pressure still weighed on the market, with many big stocks falling.

The VN30-Index, tracking the 30 biggest stocks on HoSE, gained 0.07 per cent to finish at 1,195.6 points. The index lost 0.37 per cent in the morning session. Eleven of the 30 large-cap stocks in the VN30 basket rose, while 15 stocks dropped.

Stocks from real estate and banking sectors still influenced the market’s trend.

Top five stocks contributing to the gain of the market were Investment And Industrial Development Corporation (BCM) up 5.35 per cent, Vietinbank (CTG) up 1.58 per cent, VPBank (VPB) up 2.09 per cent, No Va Land Investment Group Corporation (NVL) up 2.65 per cent and Vincom Retail JSC (VRE) up 2.31 per cent.

Fertiliser stocks also recorded big gains today with DAP – VINACHEM JSC (DDV) up 14.75 per cent, Lam Thao Fertilizers And Chemicals JSC (LAS) up 10 per cent, Petro Viet Nam Ca Mau Fertilizer JSC (DCM) up 6.69 per cent and Duc Giang Chemicals Group JSC (DGC) up 6.98 per cent.

Meanwhile, Vingroup JSC (VIC), Vinhomes JSC (VHM) and Vietcombank (VCB) extended their losses and limited the index’s gain.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index posted an increase of 2.48 per cent to end the trading day at 254.1 points. The HNX30-Index recovered from earlier losses, up 0.56 per cent to 375.61 points.

Domestic investors poured nearly VND2 trillion into the northern bourse on Wednesday, equivalent to over 131.1 million shares.

In general, the market’s liquidity was high with a total 821.9 million shared traded, including trading volume on UPCOM, worth nearly VND18.2 trillion.

Meanwhile, foreign investors were still net sellers on HoSE and HNX, with a net value of VND471.95 billion on the southern bourse and a net sell value of VND7.6 billion on the northern market.

HCM City: Two-month foreign investment stands at 337.8 million USD

Ho Chi Minh City recorded 337.8 million USD of foreign investment registered during the first two months of 2021, equivalent to 70.3 percent of the figure in the same period last year.

Real estate attracted most of the sum, 145.1 million USD or 43 percent of the total. It was followed by science – technology (57.5 million USD, 17 percent) and processing – manufacturing industry (41 million USD, 12.1 percent), the municipal Department of Planning and Investment said.

The southern economic hub lured only three new foreign investment projects worth 115 million USD in January and February, it said, citing complex developments of the COVID-19 pandemic around the world as the reason.

Up to 99.7 percent of the new capital was channeled into real estate, with 29.6 percent from Singapore and 70.1 percent from the Netherlands.

From the year’s beginning to February 20, HCM City saw 22 existing projects have 53.3 million USD added to their registered capital.

Foreign investors also spent 169.5 million USD on capital contributions to or share purchase in local firms during the time, data showed./.

Can Tho waste-to-power plant adds 113 million kWh to national grid

The Can Tho waste-to-power plant in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho has treated over 400,000 tonnes of household waste and contributed more than 113 million kWh to the national grid since its operation in December 2018.

Can Tho is now home to four solid waste treatment sites in suburban Co Do and Thoi Lai districts, and urban O Mon and Thot Not districts.

About 70 percent of the city’s daily household waste, or nearly 350 tonnes, are burned using international-standard technology by China Everbright Group.

The plant is operated by Can Tho EB Environmental Energy Co. Ltd, a subsidiary of the investor – the China Everbright Group.

General Director of the Can Tho EB Environmental Energy Co. Ltd Chen Wei said the project is the first in Vietnam invested by the China Everbright Group to receive an environment protection certificate.

The municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment reported that as of late 2020, 98 percent of household waste in urban areas were collected, 75 percent of them were classified in households.

Deputy Director of the department Nguyen Chi Kien said the department will continue working with the Can Tho EB Environmental Energy, and the districts of Co Do, Thoi Lai, O Mon and Thot Not to collect, transport and treat wastes. It will also periodically review and update the master plan on household solid waste transportation in the city till 2025 with a vision to 2050.

At a conference to launch the department’s tasks in 2021, Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Thuc Hien asked the department to continue inspecting waste treatment plants to raise their sense of responsibility and deal with problems at the O Mon and Co Do landfills./.

Binh Duong secures 301.5 million USD in FDI in two months

Foreign direct investment (FDI) flows to the southern province of Binh Duong during January-February topped 301.5 million USD, a year-on-year increase of 63 percent, the provincial People’s Committee said on March 2.

Thirteen projects were granted investment registration certificates in the period, with total registered capital of 254 million USD. Meanwhile, two projects registered to add 3.5 million USD to their existing operation.

As much as 44 million USD was injected to 21 projects in the locality through capital contribution.

To date, the southern industrial hub has housed 3,948 FDI projects with total capital of 35.8 billion USD.

It is not only one of leading localities in FDI attraction but also an attractive destination for domestic investments. The province lured more than 8.65 trillion VND (377.5 million USD) from domestic investors in the first two months of the year./.

Vietnam’s tourism sales plunge over 40% in February

The latest Covid-19 resurgence put a dampener on the seven-day Tet holiday, which was expected to boost the country’s tourism sales, as it prompted tourists to cancel booked tours, leaving Vietnam’s tourism revenue last month down a whopping 40.8% month-on-month to VND915 billion and 60.8% against 2020, according to the General Statistics Office.

Local residents, too, refrained from travelling and participating in entertainment activities with mass gatherings.

Aside from the fall in tourism revenue, the country’s lodging and catering services last month saw revenue drop by 11.5% month-on-month to VND41.5 trillion and 0.1% compared to last year’s figure.

During the first two months of the year, the sales of lodging and catering services stood at VND88.4 trillion, dipping over 4% versus the same period last year, while that of tourism services contracted over 62% against last year’s figure to VND2.5 trillion.

Localities such as Hai Duong, Thua Thien-Hue, HCMC, Danang and Hanoi recorded a sharp decline in tourism sales. Of them, Hai Duong, which is one of the two provinces that reported the first Covid-19 community case during the latest coronavirus wave and is now the country’s biggest coronavirus hotbed, saw its revenue declining more than 89%. The central province of Thua Thien-Hue also recorded a 73.3% decrease.

Data from HCMC, the largest tourism hub in Vietnam, showed that eateries, hotels and travel businesses continued to be hit hard by the virus.

The southern city earned some VND6 trillion in the sales of catering and lodging services in February, declining over 27% against that of the previous month, and a mere VND501 billion in tourism sales, down nearly 30% month-on-month and over 67% versus the 2020 figure.

Loship secures investment from Skype co-founder

Loship, Vietnam’s fast-growing one-hour-delivery e-commerce startup, has announced its latest investment from Skype co-founder Jaan Tallinn.

Tallinn participated in Loship’s Series C funding through his investment vehicle MetaPlanet Holdings.

This capital injection marks Loship as the first portfolio company of MetaPlanet in Vietnam and Southeast Asia. The investment comes four months after the startup secured capital in a bridge round led by Vulpes Investment Management.

According to Loship CEO Nguyen Hoang Trung, the fresh capital will be spent on expanding the firm’s delivery network, human resources, technology and market.

“A huge portion of the funding will be poured into upgrading our app and developing technologies in Loship,” Trung said, adding that they will also ramp up their marketing strategies to cement Loship’s presence in the domestic market.

“It didn’t take me very long to realize Loship was on to something,” Loship quoted Tallinn as saying in its announcement.

“MetaPlanet is planning to pay more attention to the rapidly growing economies in Southeast Asia. So I’m delighted to be off to a strong start in Vietnam by adding Loship as our first portfolio company there.”

Founded in 2017, Loship traces its roots back to Lozi, a review app allowing users to find food, beverage, and coffee shops, before transitioning into a one-hour-delivery services platform.

Loship has closed its series A and B rounds from investors such as the Republic of Korea’s Smilegate Investment, Hana Financial Group, DTNI, and Golden Gate Ventures./.

Vinh Long presses ahead with sustainable production, consumption

The Vinh Long Provincial People’s Committee in the Mekong Delta has issued a plan to implement the national action programme on sustainable production and consumption for 2021-2030.

By 2030, 90 percent of industrial parks in the province are set to apply clean and environmentally-friendly technologies.

All supermarkets and shopping centres are to use eco-packaging instead of single-use plastics, and the use of slowly-degrading packaging at wet markets will be cut by 80 percent.

The province also hopes to have 100 percent of its enterprises joining production and distribution chains for safe farm produce and it also targets the widespread use of QR codes for product origin tracing.

Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Van Liet said local authorities will assist businesses in boosting their production capacity and product quality, and in reducing costs to engage in a network of sustainable production and consumption.

The provincial Department of Science and Technology has been tasked with planning and launching programmes assisting companies and localities in the innovation process.

Vietnam making every effort to fight IUU fishing

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has urged localities to adopt drastic measures to fight irregular, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

All Vietnamese fishermen, businesses, and local authorities must consider this an important and urgent task to affirm the prestige of Vietnam’s fisheries sector in the world and among countries it shares territorial waters with, and be resolved to meet the standards set by the European Commission (EC).

Since the EC gave a “yellow card” warning to Vietnam’s fisheries and seafood in the European market in October 2017, the entire sector has suffered marked losses.

Tran Dinh Luan, head of the ministry’s Directorate of Fisheries, said it is necessary to prevent, deter, and eliminate IUU fishing in order to remove the “yellow card” warning, develop fisheries responsibly, and integrate into the world.

This is also the guideline of the Party and State, as reflected through the Law on Fisheries.

Since the imposition of the EC warning, Vietnam’s fishery export value to Europe has fallen by between 6 and 10 percent annually.

From being the second-largest importer of Vietnam’s seafood, with value representing 17-20 percent of Vietnam’s total export revenue, the EU now ranks fifth, after Japan, the US, the Republic of Korea (RoK), and ASEAN.

The Government and the National Steering Committee on IUU Fishing Prevention have issued a range of documents instructing ministries, agencies, and People’s Committees in 28 coastal cities and provinces to drastically take preventive measures. The MARD has conducted regular inspections in localities.

The EC has highly valued Vietnam’s political determination to implement its recommendations in this regard.

Vietnam has openly and transparently announced the results of inspections of seafood exports to the EU and has completed a legal framework that serves as a foundation to materialise relevant tasks, including the enforcement of the Law on Fisheries, two decrees adopted by the Government, a decision by the Prime Minister, and a circular from the MARD.

The country has joined and realised the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)’s Agreement on Port State Measures, whose main objective is to prevent, deter, and eliminate IUU fishing, and also the UN Fish Stocks Agreement.

The EC has lauded Vietnam’s efforts in installing fishing vessel monitoring equipment and enhancing the management of seafood exploitation.

One of 28 coastal localities in Vietnam, the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang has posted significant achievements in fighting IUU fishing.

With 366 fishing vessels of 15 metres in length or more operating at sea, the province has stepped up communications work so that captains, sailors, and ship-owners seriously observe relevant regulations.

According to Duong Tan Truong, head of the provincial Department of Fisheries, Soc Trang has developed a plan to conduct tasks in fighting IUU fishing and established a working group to lead the fight.

It carried out 10 patrols at sea last year and inspected 146 fishing vessels inside and outside of the province.

Soc Trang also granted 381 seafood certificates to 11 processing and export firms in the locality during 2020, with more than 6,000 tonnes of seafood, according to Truong.

Southernmost Ca Mau province, meanwhile, has also made substantial efforts in disseminating relevant legal documents to raise public awareness about IUU fishing, and enhancing coordination between relevant agencies.

The province will work harder in the time ahead to prevent fishing vessels that deliberately operate in foreign waters./.

Ministry helps businesses tackle trade remedies

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) will continue to support domestic enterprises, especially small and medium-sized firms, to improve their awareness of trade remedies.

It will provide practical lessons on handling trade defence lawsuits for local enterprises.

The ministry will also focus on training State officials, commodity associations and industries on trade remedies, especially for commodities that are regularly investigated by foreign countries such as steel, fisheries, wood and chemicals.

According to the ministry’s Trade Remedies Authority of Viet Nam (TRAV), local export products have faced more anti-dumping investigations and tax evasion cases in foreign countries in recent years. Vietnamese businesses have become aware of trade remedies.

Many Vietnamese enterprises have been adapting to trade defence cases. Some have legal departments that specialise in dealing with trade remedies at foreign markets, especially in sectors producing key export products such as steel, seafood and garments.

However, according to the authority, there are still some firms, especially smaller companies, that are unaware of the importance of trade remedies and how they would affect their production and business activities.

It said in the results of trade lawsuits, local enterprises that work with foreign investigative authorities by providing information enjoy low tax rates. If local enterprises do not co-operate, they will face a high tax rate due to foreign investigative authorities using available data only, creating a disadvantage for them.

Therefore, the level of co-operation can be considered a prerequisite for achieving a positive result in trade remedies cases, according to the TRAV.

In the case of the antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations of imports of utility-scale wind towers from Canada, Indonesia, South Korea (AD only), and Viet Nam to the US, Viet Nam received countervailable subsidies at a rate of 2.84 per cent while Indonesia received a rate of 5.9 per cent.

Meanwhile, in the case of the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation into corrosion-resistant steel sheets imported from several countries, including Viet Nam, Canada concluded Viet Nam does not subsidise enterprises producing and exporting the steel, based on information provided by the Government of Viet Nam.

According to the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP)’s announcement on February 11, 2021, there is a lack of evidence to conclude Minh Phu Corporation has illegally evaded anti-dumping duties levied on Indian shrimps.

Therefore, CBP will consider the conclusion issued on October 13, 2020, to not apply anti-dumping tax on exported shrimp of Minh Phu Seafood.

The MoIT also said that the US’s conclusion on dumping and subsidies for car tyres from Viet Nam and some other economies, which was released on December 30, declared tyre exporters of Viet Nam free from anti-dumping measures.

Other countries and territories were alleged to have dumped in the market and face tariffs of 14.24 per cent to 38.07 per cent for South Korea, 52.42 per cent to 98.44 per cent for Taiwan (China) and from 13.25 per cent to 22.21 per cent for Thailand.

It is a very positive result for Viet Nam’s tyre manufacturing and exporting enterprises, said TRAV director Le Trieu Dung. However, this is only a preliminary result, the ministry and the Vietnamese manufacturing and export enterprises will continue to work with the US towards a positive final conclusion.

Processing and manufacturing industry needs better way to develop: experts

Viet Nam’s capacity for the processing and manufacturing industry remains limited and heavily relies on foreign supply chains for imported components and accessories, leading to difficulties for local businesses, particularly amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Trinh Thi Thanh Thuy, Deputy Director of the Institute of Industry and Trade Policy and Strategy under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said last year countries with leading manufacturing and processing industries faced many difficulties, while Viet Nam was a bright spot with positive economic growth.

“The country’s positive growth is based on key manufacturing sectors, particularly those with high technology content and value such as electronics, electronic components, computers, and components for the automobile industry. Furthermore, agricultural processing and garment sectors have also obtained remarkable results,” Thuy said.

Pham Tuan Anh, Deputy Director of the Industry Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said in 2016-19 domestic industries made a contribution of 30 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), the largest contribution to State coffers.

Notably, the proportion of processing and manufacturing industries had increased rapidly without relying much on the mining industry.

In recent years, many industries have seen rapid development, such as electronics, textiles, and footwear with high export value.

Tuan Anh said the processing and manufacturing industry contributed the highest to GDP in terms of added value, creating a foundation for industrial development and modernisation of the country. The growth rate of the industry’s added value was much higher than the GDP growth in the last five years.

Policies needed

Despite some success, experts have said that the Vietnamese processing and manufacturing industry has failed to meet its potential.

Thuy said the most difficult problem was the lack of raw materials. Domestic manufacturers still rely greatly on foreign markets, particularly raw materials imported from China and South Korea. Thuy noted that business process outsourcing has been common in Viet Nam depending much on foreign direct investment (FDI) enterprises.

Tuan Anh said the problem was the development of strategies and policy planning were not suitable for economic development. Credit policies for businesses failed to meet their needs.

He noted that FDI enterprises in Viet Nam had been offered much preferential treatment from foreign credit institutions and parent companies with low interest rates. Meanwhile, loan interest rates offered by local banks were high, putting local firms at a disadvantage.

In addition, Viet Nam faces a lack of large-scale conglomerates to push the country’s economic development.

Tuan Anh added that the industrial sector needed a large amount of capital and a long period for investment capital retrieval. Therefore, it was urgent to call on domestic businesses to participate in the industrial sector.

To promote processing and manufacturing businesses to participate in the global supply chain, the department had worked with corporations such as Samsung and Toyota to create opportunities for local companies to work with foreign companies, said Tuan Anh.

ETFs net attracts $130 million so far this year

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on Viet Nam’s stock market have attracted a net total of US$130 million so far this year.

Capital inflows into ETFs from the beginning of the year have made an important contribution to help offset the net selling from foreign investors, valued at more than VND2.7 trillion ($117.1 million).

Among the ETFs, VFMVN Diamond ETF attracted the largest capital since the beginning of the year with $113.7 million. With a current portfolio size of nearly VND9 trillion, VFMVN Diamond ETF has surpassed VFMVN30 ETF to become the largest domestic fund in the market.

Besides VFMVN Diamond ETF, the pair of foreign ETF funds VNM ETF and FTSE Vietnam ETF also attracted a total net value of about $30 million.

On the other side, KIM Kindex VN30 ETF saw a strong net recession of nearly $52 million, equivalent to VND1.2 trillion and was the only ETF witnessing net withdrawal in the first two months of the year.

In the last trading week of February, ETFs on Viet Nam’s stock market saw strong net withdrawal.

VFMVN30 ETF was the fund seeing the strongest withdrawal, with VND345 billion.

Another ETF that also saw withdrawal was KIM Kindex VN30 ETF, with a value of $4.53 million in the past week.

In the opposite direction, VFMVN Diamond ETF net attracted VND112 billion in the past week. Besides, SSIAM VNFinLead ETF also net attracted VND7.6 billion, S&P Select Frontier ETF net attracted nearly $1 million.

Digital strategies to the fore as e-commerce assumes increasing importance: experts

Companies are expected to implement digital strategies to continue to reach customers, experts said while alluding to trends in the e-commerce market this year.

Shopee, a leading e-commerce player in the country, in a note predicting trends this year, said: “The pandemic pushed businesses, from premium brands to micro-entrepreneurs, to quickly adopt digital strategies if they sought to reach customers amidst the lockdowns.”

As online selling becomes a growing revenue channel for brands and sellers, e-commerce platforms need to work with them to help engage their customers in a differentiated manner and grow their online presence, it said.

It cited its own example of working with POND’s to integrate its AI-powered beauty tech solution, Skin Advisor Live into the online shopping experience, offering shoppers free personalised skincare analysis online to help them make a more informed buying decision.

POND’s was also able to tap into Shopee’s engagement tools such as livestreaming to interact with its target audience.

There are more than 20,000 global and local brands on Shopee Mall, offering a wide selection of products ranging from everyday to premium items.

The company works closely with these brands to create new and unique shopping experiences.

The e-commerce market is expected to see more changes this year as the COVID-19 pandemic has brought about a broad, deep and irreversible shift to online for businesses and consumers.

Tran Tuan Anh, managing director, Shopee Vietnam, said: “2020 was an especially transformative year for e-commerce. As consumers adhered to social distancing measures and stayed home, they turned to online platforms not just for their daily needs but also for entertainment and interaction.

“This led to online shopping evolving from a purely transactional experience to a more social experience, with e-commerce platforms integrating more interactive elements such as games and livestreaming to engage users. With advancements in technology, increasing internet penetration and a fast-growing population of young, tech-savvy youths and middle-income families, we expect e-commerce to play an integral role in the way we live, connect and do business.”

This year adoption of digital payments is expected to increase.

Digital payment is the preferred mode online, and as more people become accustomed to e-commerce, it will also drive the offline cashless movement.

While local governments’ have been moving towards a cashless society, the pandemic has greatly accelerated this need in a region where the majority of consumer transactions are made in cash. In line with movement restrictions and continued social distancing efforts, consumers and businesses have increasingly embraced digital payments for greater convenience and security.

For example, in addition to greater usage of AirPay in-app, the number of offline merchants in Viet Nam using AirPay also doubled in 2020, including like 7-Eleven, MyKingdom and Guardian.

The logistics sector is also expected to see changes.

Shopee predicted logistics would become even more important as consumers increasingly rely on e-commerce and have greater expectation of efficient delivery.

The increase in demand is particularly significant in the case of daily necessities and household essentials.

In Viet Nam, Shopee, which operates in several countries, saw a two-fold increase in food, health and home-related items shipped from the warehouse.

Brands and sellers need to make use of technology to ensure that parcels are delivered in a timely and cost-effective manner, and one way to achieve this could be to tap into the extensive and integrated networks of e-commerce platforms.

Shopee said it saw more brands tapping its logistics infrastructure with the result that the branded items shipped from its warehouses tripled last year.

Export prices of Vietnamese bananas to EU market sees upturn

The export prices of Vietnamese bananas to the EU market last year witnessed a sharp increase in comparison to those from other supply sources, according to data compiled by the European Statistical Office (Eurostat).

According to Eurostat’s figures, the EU’s imports of bananas during the opening 11 months of last year reached 7.7 million tonnes with a value of EUR5.26 billion, representing an increase of 3% in volume and 1.3% in value compared to the same period from 2019. However, the EU’s average import price saw an annual fall of 1.6% to EUR683 per tonne.

Despite making up a modest share in the export proportion of bananas in the EU market, the export price of Vietnamese bananas skyrocketed throughout the reviewed period at an average of EUR3,192.9 per tonne, representing a rise of 16.4% against the same period from 2019, far higher than other importers such as Ecuador, Colombia, and Costa Rica.

Although export prices have witnessed an upturn, the export volume of Vietnamese bananas to the EU market suffered a decline of 26.7% to only 14 tonnes compared to the same period from the year before.

By recording such a small export volume, the country ranked only 55th among dominant suppliers of fresh bananas to the EU.

Experts believe that there remains plenty of room for the export of Vietnamese bananas to the EU to grow in the time ahead due to the items being a popular fruit among EU consumers and typically imported into the market at a huge volume each year.

In addition, the enforcement of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) in August 2020 is poised to offer a wealth of opportunities for Vietnamese businesses to increase the export of their fruits, including banana, to the EU market.

Local supermarket chain Big C changes name to Tops Market

First three Big C supermarkets in Vietnam officially changed their names to Tops Market on March 1 as part of Central Retail Group’s efforts to popularize its new brand in the country.

All four Big C supermarkets in Hanoi are anticipated to convert and upgrade to Tops Market during the course of the third quarter of the year, the group’s representative stated.

Tops Market is also a major retail brand that falls under the Central Retail Group and has dozens of supermarket branches throughout Thailand.

In relation to the Vietnamese market, a fan page on Facebook called Tops Market has officially been launched to run alongside Big C’s Vietnamese fan page.

Alongside the Tops Market brand, Big C supermarkets located in shopping malls in Nha Trang, Di An, Can Tho, Ha Long, and Vinh Phuc cities were all renamed GO! supermarkets between the end of December 2020, and early January of this year.

Last year witnessed Central Retail, a sub-unit of Thailand-based conglomerate Central Group, also built new GO! supermarkets at shopping centres in the cities of My Tho, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Buon Ma Thuot, and Quang Ngai.

A number of other Big C hypermarkets are poised to be renamed GO! supermarkets this year, a representative of Central Retail Vietnam revealed.

Central Group originally purchased Big C from France’s Casino Group in 2016 at a cost of US$1.05 billion. In addition, it also owns a large stake in electronics retail chain Nguyen Kim.

VinFast plans to build electric car factory in US

Vietnamese electric-vehicle startup VinFast has initiated plans to open a factory in the United States after setting up a 50-member San Francisco research office in preparation for putting its vehicles on sale in the California market ahead in 2022, according to the US newswire Bloomberg.

The company therefore plans to establish an automobile factory in the US, according to Thai Thanh Hai, chief executive officer of VinFast, declining to provide additional details regarding timing or possible factory locations.

Hai went on to reveal that the company is also planning sales in both Canada and Europe next year, adding that VinFast’s vision is to become a global smart electric car company, with the US market set to be the firm’s first international market. Indeed, priority will be given to developing high-end models for use in the US during the initial stage.

VinFast sold approximately 30,000 vehicles throughout last year, with the company forecasting sales of more than 45,000 units in the year ahead. In line with its own schedule, it will begin delivery of electric vehicle (EVs) produced at its factory in the northern port city of Hai Phong to domestic customers by December.

Hai noted that VinFast believes that it can win over the US and other overseas customers who are cautious about buying an automobile from a Vietnamese company they know little or nothing about by offering top-quality vehicles featuring high-safety standards and advanced technology.

VinFast, which also produces electric motorbikes and electric buses, has started plans to open 35 California showrooms and service centres this year, Hai said.

California regulators have granted VinFast a license in order to test autonomous vehicles on public streets, with the local company aiming to deliver its first electric vehicles to US customers next year.

At present, Hai is unsure over how much money the company will invest in the US market. VinFast still expects to be profitable after five years of operation, though the global pandemic has “made things more difficult,” she added.

Rising demand of international market sends new manufacturing orders up

A report released by IHS Markit on March 1 indicated that Vietnam’s Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 51.6 in February from 51.3 in January, indicating an improvement in business conditions. The health of the manufacturing sector has been strong for three straight months.

The number of new orders has risen for the sixth consecutive month as a result of the expansion and improvement in the export business, according to the report.

Due to higher new orders and output requirements, manufacturers have increased their staffing levels and the rate of job creation rose for the second time in three months.

Purchasing activity continued rising in February, while backlogs of inputs reduced as they were used for production. Difficulties in purchasing material such as the lack of containers and supply capacity also contributed to the reduction in backlogs.

The imbalance sent the cost of inputs up in February, forcing manufacturers to revise up the prices of products. However, this was a mild increase in prices.

The report also showed that the business confidence continued to decrease to the lowest level since August last year due to fears over the impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Andrew Harker, economics director at IHS Markit, said that if Vietnam successfully brings the coronavirus outbreak of this wave under control, the country’s manufacturing sector will grow.

IHS Markit also forecasts that Vietnam’s industrial production will rise 6.8% this year.

Domestic plastics sector set to capitalise on opportunities from EVFTA

The EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) has created a wealth of opportunities that the local plastics industry can make use of to expand export markets and attract additional foreign investment, according to insiders.

Statistics compiled by the General Department of Vietnam Customs indicate that plastic export turnover has consistently recorded increases in recent years, with the average growth rate reaching between 14% and 15% annually. Indeed, the EU market accounts for approximately 18.2% of the nation’s overall plastic export turnover.

Vietnamese plastic products also have a presence in over 150 markets globally. According to the International Trade Center, the country’s plastic packaging products in the EU market now enjoy a competitive advantage compared to that of regional peers such as Thailand and China due to not being subject to anti-dumping duties of between 4% and 30%.

According to the European-American Market Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the majority of plastic products that have been subject to a basic tax rate of 6.5% have been slashed to 0% immediately after the EVFTA came into effect, with no quotas being applied.

Experts therefore believe that the EVFTA has implemented flexible regulations regarding the rule of origin for plastic products. This will serve to create competitive advantages for Vietnamese enterprises as they are largely dependent on imports of raw material sources.

As a means of meeting the demand for both domestic and export markets, the nation’s plastic industry is forced to import millions of tonnes of raw materials each year, with domestic capacity only meeting between 15% and 35% of the demand for raw materials.

Furthermore, experts also note that the trend of switching to use eco-friendly and self-destructing plastic packaging made from polyethylene terephthalate (P.E.T) has become increasingly popular within the EU. This therefore poses challenges to the local plastics industry due to traditional packaging products still making up a large proportion.

Economists have stated that a number of firms have actively turned to producing P.E.T materials and exporting to several major markets around the world, including the EU.

Moving forward, there will be bright prospects for the plastics sector providing that Vietnamese enterprises meet the high technical standards set by the fastidious market.

Upbeat export prospects for 2021

Vietnam has posted impressive export-import performance despite the health crisis, with Ho Chi Minh City, the northern province of Thai Nguyen, and the southern province of Binh Duong heralded as the top performers thanks to the inputs of both local and foreign businesses.

Mobile phones and spare parts held the first position ($7.84 billion) in the group of key export items of Vietnam, followed by computers, other electronic products, and components ($5.5 billion), and machinery and equipment ($4.4 billion). The export turnover of industrial products is mainly brought by well-known groups such as Samsung, Panasonic, and Formosa.

Ho Chi Minh City still claimed the top position of the list of the 10 localities with the highest export and import values. Meanwhile, thanks to the heavy investment of Samsung, Thai Nguyen province ranked the second, followed by Binh Duong and Dong Nai provinces, an industrial hub in southern Vietnam as the third and fourth position.

All well-performing provinces reported that although the COVID-19 pandemic has affected a number of industries, the industrial production value in February was still high compared to the same period last year. Some main industrial products have seen high output over the same period such as computers, electronic products, and components, packaging, clinker consumption, animal feed, apparel, and frozen seafood

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), Vietnam has risen to become one of the leading countries with high global competitiveness. The country has formed a number of key industries for the economy in the form of oil and gas exploitation and processing; electronics, telecommunications, and IT; metallurgy, iron and steel; and textiles, garments, and footwear, which have created an important foundation for long-term growth, as well as promote the modernisation and industrialisation of the country.

Meanwhile, the country’s export of agro-forestry-fishery products has also encouraged bright spots despite the pandemic.

Tran Thanh Hai, deputy director of the MoIT’s Agency of Foreign Trade, said that achieving good export results in the context of COVID-19 has been possible partly because of free trade agreements (FTAs) and businesses making good use of them.

For instance, in 2020, the number of preferential C/O sets granted saw an increase of 9 per cent on-year, showing that enterprises and exported goods from Vietnam are gradually improving the rate of using preferential tariffs in markets with FTAs.

According to Hai, Vietnamese exports to some traditional markets have faced inevitable difficulties, but exports still maintain positive growth due to enterprises have taken advantage of the opportunity to boost exports to alternative markets.

The key solution deployed to promote import and export in 2021 typically gives priority to export promotion activities and export markets that are recovering as well as expanding export markets, according to Hai. Other strategies include making the most of the FTAs, and grasping market information and early warning signs of arising problems affecting Vietnam’s exports such as changes in policies of importing countries, technical barriers, and payment risks.

Source: VNA/VNS/VOV/VIR/SGT/Nhan Dan/Hanoitimes