Note verbale

The mango growing area currently stands at some 87,000 ha, 48 percent of which is in the Mekong Delta.

Vietnam shipped over 180 million USD worth of mangoes abroad last year, accounting for only 1.15 percent of the world’s total.

China was the largest market of Vietnam, with nearly 152 million USD, or 83.9 percent of the total, followed by Russia, the U.S., the Republic of Korea, the EU, Australia, and Japan, according to MARD’s Agro Processing and Market Development Authority.

To achieve the export target, Deputy Director of MARD’s Plant Protection Department Nguyen Thi Thu Huong called on the ministry to upgrade her department’s technical centers so as to carry out studies helping to remove technical barriers, seek new markets, and conduct pre-export checks.

She also recommended MARD digitize its databases on farming zones, processing establishments, and packaging facilities.

While localities should enhance connectivity between cultivation areas and increase training for local staff in charge of farming techniques, businesses need to seriously comply with regulations from both importing countries and Vietnam, boost production cooperation, maintain constant monitoring to ensure sufficient supply and quality materials, and remain updated on export information, Huong added.

Deputy Minister Tran Thanh Nam said having 48 percent of the mango growing area concentrated in the Mekong Delta is favorable in improving quality and meeting the requirements of importing markets.

However, as the area meeting VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards makes up just 3.8 percent of the Mekong Delta’s mango growing area, it is necessary to boost the adoption of these standards, he noted.

Nam also urged provinces and cities in the Mekong Delta to work to improve quality in every step, from farming and harvesting to preservation, while strengthening links in mango sales.

In particular, they should identify target markets and work with enterprises and cooperatives to help farmers align cultivation practices with international standards.

Source: VNA

Bamboo Airways is looking to raise $200 million with an IPO in the US. Photo: Duc Thanh

Last week investors were hoping to make a killing after VinFast – the automaker of Vietnamese behemoth Vingroup – was said to be considering an initial public offering (IPO) in the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), which could raise as much as $2 billion.

Despite a number of flops by other Vietnamese peers, media outlets such as Bloomberg and Reuters reported that VinFast could be valued at around $50 billion after a successful listing – seen as surprising given that car giant Ford was valued at $144 billion in 2018, while VinFast is only a few years old. News of the consideration led Vingroup’s ticker to rise significantly in multiple consecutive trading sessions last week.

Meanwhile, Bamboo Airways, a subsidiary of FLC Group, also revealed plans to raise up to $200 million in an overseas IPO in the third quarter of this year, particularly in the United States. The company aims to secure market capitalisation of up to $4 billion.

“The IPO will be part of our efforts to expand our services globally. We will start conducting chartered flights to the US in July and target the launch of non-stop commercial flights between Ho Chi Minh City and San Francisco in September, with an initial frequency of three flights per week,” said company chairman Trinh Van Quyet.

Quyet revealed that the carrier has been working with an international auditing firm for a potential IPO on the NYSE. Previously, Bamboo Airways signalled its intention to file for an IPO in Vietnam itself, but Quyet said that was now “a backup plan, depending on market conditions,” according to Reuters.

Kent Wong, head of Banking and Finance Capital Markets at VCI Legal, noted that Vingroup-affiliated companies have tried their luck in the overseas listing game before. In 2014, the conglomerate failed in listing on the Singaporean Stock Exchange (SGX). Huy Vietnam, owner of the Mon Hue restaurant chain, also tried to list in Hong Kong five years ago.

In fact, a number of major domestic corporations have not stood up to the scrutiny of global public markets.

Previously, VNG Corporation – Vietnam’s first unicorn – signalled its intention to file for an IPO in the tech-heavy NASDAQ. Budget-cost carrier Vietjet also followed suit, saying it would ramp up its effort to list on the NYSE.

In 2008, dairy giant Vinamilk had been approved on the SGX, but its IPO plan was consistently delayed and the group is still nowhere closer to entering the regional bourse.

In 2019, Quyet also announced that his group was ramping up efforts to be listed on the SGX at the bourse’s 20th anniversary event, a move which he said would “bolster its business, hone its image, and replenish overseas capital.”

“The SGX is a top international destination which provides value to businesses that want to extend their overseas ambition. FLC aims to become listed on the SGX next year or in 2021,” he said at the time.

Wong of VCI Legal noted that Vietnamese companies might need 2-3 years to prepare for overseas listing, mainly due to differences between accounting standards and high standards of corporate governance and internal controls in overseas stock exchanges.

“While it is applaudable that VinFast is looking to raise capital through an alternative channel overseas, I would query whether it has objectively considered its readiness,” he told VIR. “Breaking into global markets which are highly competitive will be tough going. The long-term strategy of the company and timing are also key. Given the ‘new normal’, external factors and the strong macroeconomic conditions of Vietnam do not make compelling enough arguments.”

Vietnamese regulators, on the other hand, can develop the legal framework to be more in line with international standards. Recent reforms to the Law on Securities and the Law on Prevention of Money Laundering are positive signs. In addition, cooperation with more overseas exchanges will give potential issuers more chances for dual listings and, as a result, more liquidity.

Michael Kokalari, chief economist at VinaCapital said, “The government should focus on developing Vietnam’s capital markets first, and should especially focus on making it easier for foreign investors to bring money into Vietnam before regulators encourage Vietnamese companies to list their shares on foreign stock markets.”

Wong agreed, adding, “The NASDAQ has been tightening listing standards due to the spate of Chinese companies listing, for example. However, the special purpose acquisition company route looked at by VinFast might be achievable, provided there is a strong sponsor.”

Chau Bui is a famous Vietnamese fashionista. Photo courtesy of Chau Bui.

“Selected from over 2,500 nominations and vetted by our team of reporters and a panel of A-list judges, this year’s list features 300 young entrepreneurs, leaders and change makers across the Asia-Pacific region who are braving the challenging environment brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic and finding new opportunities amidst the new normal,” the Forbes magazine noted.

The list selects 30 honorees for each of the 10 categories.

The criteria for honorees making the list include their “demonstration of leadership, how they embody the entrepreneurial spirit that is synonymous with Forbes , and their potential of success in their industry. Other factors like innovation, disruption – and size and growth of their ventures in some categories – play a role in making the final decision,” the magazine said.

Last year, Vietnam had six representatives in the 30 under 20 list.

LEOPARD is a very rare disease that only a few dozen people have ever had.

An eight-year-old girl in the southern province of Tien Giang has been diagnosed with LEOPARD syndrome, which is the first case in Vietnam, according to Dr. Tran Nguyen Anh Tu, deputy head of the department of skin aesthetics at the Ho Chi Minh City Dermatology Hospital.

LEOPARD is a very rare disease that only a few hundreds of people have ever had, Tu said, adding that since it was first recorded in 1936, there have only been 200 confirmed cases worldwide so far.

The body of the girl diagnosed with LEOPARD syndrome appears with multiple brown skin spots (lentigines). Photo: Ho Chi Minh City Dermatology Hospital

The girl’s family said dark-brown stains (lentigines) began appearing all over the face and body of the little girl since she was four years old.

She was born deaf and unable to speak, with physical and mental disabilities, abnormalities in the jawbone, spine, shoulder, chest, and teeth.

These are all typical signs of LEOPARD syndrome and no one in her family had the same disease.

Because of the disease, the patient is only 105cm tall and weighs 15kg. She has dark brown spots less than 5mm in diameter on the face, chest, arms and legs. The lighter brown spots of 2x3cm are on the back.

Genetic analysis at the Center for Molecular Biology of the Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacy identified that the patient suffered from PTPN11 genetic mutations, which is believed to cause the very rare condition.

“This is consistent with LEOPARD syndrome due to the PTPN11 gene mutation, accounting for 90% of the cases,” Dr. Tu said.

The patients diagnosed with LEOPARD syndrome need to be closely medically monitored and have their heart checked once a year for early diagnosis of abnormalities, Dr. Tu noted, adding that symptoms are treated appropriately.

In the world, the latest case of leopard syndrome was reported in 2017, a 12-year-old boy in Brazil. In 2015, a 22-year-old female patient was recorded in India.

The acronym LEOPARD describes the features of the syndrome: