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Business in brief in 23 April

Date: 4/24/2012 1:09:21 PM

(Sourced from various news agencies)

Business in brief in 23 April

The Ho Chi Minh City Expo 2012 trade and services exhibition will be held at the Tatmadaw Hall in Yangon, Myanmar, from June 15-19. The event, organized by the Ho Chi Minh City Investment & Trade Promotion Centre (ITPC), aims to create opportunities for Vietnamese businesses to advertise their products and seek distributors and partners in Myanmar. The expo will have 160 stalls to showcase high quality Vietnamese goods and services. The ITPC will also conduct a market survey and trade exchanges in Yangon and Mandalay for Vietnamese businesses, with the aim of establishing a Vietnam trade center in the country.

Vietnam’s exports of plastic products to Cambodia hit US$8 million in March, bringing the total plastics export value in the first three months to more than US$20 million. According to the Vietnam Plastics Association (VPA), Cambodia is the fifth largest importer of Vietnamese plastic products, after Japan, the US, Germany, and Thailand. Plastic bags alone generated US$2.9 million in export value, accounting for 40.2 percent of the total. VPA said as Cambodia is not a highly demanding market, businesses do not find it too difficult to promote exports to this country. Particularly, consumption demand and the construction market in Cambodia are rebounding, thus the use of plastic utensils, tubes and components are forecast to grow significantly in 2012.

A delegation of 40 Chinese businesses is expected to visit Vietnam in May to seek investment opportunities. Most of them operate in the field of manufacturing, construction materials, electricity, mining equipment, energy and environmental protection. As scheduled, they will have working sessions with Vietnamese partners in Hanoi on May 4. The business exchange, to be jointly held by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the China Corporate Citizenship Committee (CCCC), aims to promote economic and commercial ties between Vietnam and China and provide the two countries’ businesses with an opportunity to exchange information and expand operations.

As of June 1, foreign travelers will receive VAT refunds for the goods they have purchased in Vietnam when leaving the country via Hanoi’s Noi Bai or Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Son Nhat airports. Under this pilot scheme launched by the Prime Minister, any foreigner leaving Vietnam with an invoice worth at least VND2 million ($95.2) can claim VAT refunds at the two major terminals, says the Ministry of Finance in its newly-issued circular for implementation of the scheme. Foreign tourists are entitled to receive 85 per cent of the total VAT in Vietnamese dong, while the remaining 15 per cent will be given to selected commercial banks as VAT refund fees for their handling of the tax repayments.

Vietnam spent a total of $3.7 billion to import 8.9 million tons of materials for animal feed production in 2011, accounting for 62% of the total materials used in the country’s animal feed production sector. The figures were provided by Le Ba Lich, chairman of the Vietnam Animal Feeds Association. In details, the country imported 4.8 million tons of protein-rich materials like soy-beans and processed animal protein powder and other 3.8 million tons of materials which can be produced or replaced by domestic products including 870,000 tons of corn; 570,000 tons of rice bran and 2.3 million tons of wheat , Lich said. “This has been the weakness of the sector over the past years and made the domestic livestock husbandry less effective,” he said.

Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan are entering into negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) with Vietnam, according to Viktor Khristenko, head of the Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC). Khristenko made the announcement during a meeting with outgoing Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Moscow on April 20, Vietnam News Agency reported. The EAEC prioritizes FTA negotiations with a number of countries, including Vietnam, Khristenko told Putin. He explained that Vietnam, a dynamic economy in Southeast Asia, will serve as a gateway for the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan to reach out to the region. He also added that the Customs Union aims to sign an FTA first with Ukraine, a major trade partner within the Commonwealth Independent States.

The Vietnam Software Association (VINASA) on April 22 conferred Sao Khue awards on 50 outstanding software products and 15 IT services. They were selected from 90 nominations, meeting the appraisal council’s five criteria such as the applicability of products and services and its efficiency, technology and quality of products and services, breakthrough innovations, market and support services, the quality of documents and legal assurance. Pham Tan Cong, VINASA Vice Chairman and Secretary General, said that this year’s products and services are highly practical as they help address pressing socio-economic issues, including management of hospitals, land and kindergartens.

Vietnam helped Cambodia connect to the world through a new high-speed transmission cable capable of transferring signals at 10 gigabytes per second. The 260km cable, linking Phnom Penh and Ho Chi Minh City, enables Cambodia to expand its international gateways to Asia, Europe, and North America via marine cables and to Laos and China through terrestrial lines. The new cable was inaugurated by Vietnam Telecom International (VTI) and Telecom Cambodia (TC) in Phnom Penh on April 20 in the presence of Cambodian Minister of Post and Telecommunication Sokhun, Vietnamese Minister Counselor of Trade in Cambodia Vu Thinh Cuong, and leaders of telecommunication enterprises operating in the country.

The Vietnam Plastic Association (VPA) has forecast that most plastic enterprises would perform well this summer due to a trend in orders transferring from China to Vietnam. Chinese and Vietnamese plastic were priced the same because of high production costs, but importers appreciated the quality of Vietnamese plastic, causing a surge in orders, the VPA added.

The Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) revealed that VNPost plans to separate from the VNPT Group on Jan 1, 2013. VNPost will operate independently as a company under the name Vietnam Post Office. The company will be run by the Chairman and General Directors Board with the MIC as its direct owner.

Only 298 Vietnamese from outside the country and one or two foreigners had bought – or had registered to buy – a house in Vietnam up to April 10, with only three additional purchases since late last year. Most of the Vietnamese owners held foreign citizenships; foreign ownership was rare, Land Registration and Statistics Department figures showed. Of the list, 252 owned houses in HCM City, 12 in Can Tho City and four in Ha Noi. Of the latter, three were Vietnamese, the other Czech.

Pilot projects to consolidate the registration of land-use rights to one office in each province have been given the thumbs up. Previously registrations were handled in myriad offices at the commune level. One office in each province, and major city outside the provinces, will have branches in their local areas with full functions to issue registrations, land-use rights certificates and displacement registrations. The pilots will be carried out in Hai Phong and Da Nang cities and Dong Nai and Ha Nam provinces till the end of December next year.

Hung Nghiep Formosa Ha Tinh Steel Co., briefing the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA) on the progress of its major steel complex in Ha Tinh Province, said it had raised the project’s capital to US$22 billion, according to VSA. Nguyen Tien Nghi, vice chairman of VSA, told the Daily that the original cost projection of the project was around US$15 billion for two phases, but now it had been revised up to US$22 billion. The project’s first blast furnace which can produce around four million tons per year will be constructed early next year, and the plant will be operational in 2014, Nghi said. This project is expected to create some 10,000 jobs for local people in the first phase and the figure will grow to 30,000 after the second phase is completed.

Lee Wan Keung, CEO of Lee & Man Paper Manufacturer Ltd, promised to continue constructing its pulp and paper mill in southern Hau Giang Province, which has been delayed since 2007, on Thursday in a meeting with the provincial People’s Committee. The mill would become operational next June, after difficulties resulting from the global financial crisis were solved, and would have a capacity of 400,000 tons of paper per year, Lee added.

Logistics firm Vinafco (VFC) has decided to delist from the HCM City Stock Exchange on the proposal of leading VFC shareholder Golden Age Investment Co. Golden Age, which holds a 25.25-per-cent stake in VFC, had said that the listing had failed to benefit shareholders, with shares no longer truly reflecting corporate value.

Viet A Bank has become a major shareholder in property developer Dat Xanh Group (DXG) after purchasing 3.5 million shares, or an 11-per-cent stake of the company. The transaction was carried out on Monday. DXG closed yesterday’s session up 4.2 per cent to VND12,500 per share.

Financial conglomerate Ocean Group (OGC) will increase its charter capital to VND5 trillion (US$238 million) by offering bonus shares to existing shareholders at a 3-1 ration and at par value, as well as another 100 million shares to strategic partners. The group targets earning of VND4 trillion ($190.4 million) and a profit this year of VND800 billion ($30 million), increases of 136 and 230 per cent over last year, respectively. It has also projected payment of a dividend of 12 per cent.

Taxi operator Mai Linh Northern Central (MNC) has decided to suspend the listing of its shares on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange due to unfavorable conditions on the market. MNC has fallen from VND16,000 per share to just VND4,200 after one year of listing, causing losses for shareholders, the company said during its recent shareholders meeting.

Japanese company Nichirei Foods has become a strategic shareholder in the HCM Stock Exchange listed firm Cholimex (CLC) after paying US$6.25 million for a 19-per-cent stake in the company, which mostly makes sauces and spices. The VND80 billion (US$3.8 million) company last year earned a net profit of almost VND35 billion ($1.6 million), surpassing its annual target by 21 per cent. Shareholders will receive a 20 per cent cash dividend for 2011. At the company’s annual meeting on April 20, shareholders approved a target of VND47 billion ($2.24 million) in pre-tax profits this year.

Russia’s third-largest oil producer TNK-BP said on Thursday it has successfully drilled two wells on the Lan Do field in offshore Vietnam as a part of its international expansion. The field is located 28 kilometers east of Lan Tay Platform in Block 06.1, where natural gas and condensate are produced for power generation in Vietnam. Gas production from Lan Do, which is scheduled to come on stream in the fourth quarter of this year, is expected to bring 2 billion cubic meters of gas annually to sustain Block 06.1’s current production of 4.7 billion cubic meters, the company said. TNK-BP, half owned by BP, acquired a 35 percent stake from BP and has become the operator of the block last year.

The Vietnamese province of Vinh Long and its Cambodian counterpart Banteay Meanchey have signed a cooperation agreement on socio-economic development over five years (2012-2016). The agreement was reached during an April 22-23 visit to Vinh Long province by a delegation from Banteay Meanchay province. Accordingly, both localities will encourage their businesses to maintain exchanges, increase trade, especially in farm produce, and develop tourism services. Vinh Long will help introduce the Cambodian province’s potential, creating favorable conditions for its businesses to seek cooperation opportunities and establish partnerships with their Cambodian counterparts in the areas of tourism and farm produce processing. In turn, Banteay Meanchay will offers incentives in legal assistance, land rental and administrative procedures to Vinh Long businesses to invest in the province.

Coastal Fisheries Development Corp. (Cofidec) and U&I Agriculture Corp. (Unifarm) have signed a cooperative agreement on cultivating and purchasing agricultural products for export to Japan. Under the agreement, Unifarm will cultivate agricultural products such as aubergine, okra and papaya on its 50-hectare farming area in the southern province of Binh Duong. Meanwhile, Cofidec will provide farming equipment, watering systems, and cultivating and harvesting techniques, as well as purchasing all output for export to Japan. The project has an estimated investment of VND3.5 billion, and is expected to generate some 3,000 tons of farm produce annually. The two firms plan to expand the cultivation area in the coming years after they have regular orders from Japan.

The Hanoi Stock Exchange will hold auctions to sell a combined 9 trillion dong ($432 million) worth of bonds for the State Treasury and the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies this week, the exchange said. The treasury will sell 1 trillion dong worth of two-year bonds and offer 3 trillion dong each of three-year and five-year debt on Thursday, the exchange said in two separate statements seen by Reuters on Monday. The Vietnam Bank for Social Policies, one of Vietnam’s two state policy lenders, will sell government-guaranteed three-year and five-year bonds on Friday, each to raise 1 trillion dong.

Vietnam’s inflation rate slowed in April, according to data released by the General Statistics Office today. Consumer prices climbed 10.54 percent from a year earlier, according to the GSO. March inflation was 14.15 percent.

(Source:Agencies)

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