Vietnam Industrial Parks InfoGate ! Industrial Zones ! Export Processing Zones ! Business in brief 02 April 2013

Norway always supports Vietnam’s negotiations on the signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) with the EFTA bloc, said Norwegian Minister of Trade and Industry Trond Giske. Minister Trond Giske said that the bilateral FTA will create new cooperation opportunities for both countries thanks to tariff reduction and removal of trade barriers. According to the General Department of Vietnam Customs’ statistics, the two-way trade turnover between Vietnam and Norway in 2012 reached US$257 million, up 0.5 percent compared to the previous year. Vietnam’s export earnings from the Norwegian market in 2012 were estimated at US$125 million, a year-on-year increase of 40 percent. The EFTA, being comprised of Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, has recognized Vietnam’s market economy status and is in the process of FTA negotiations. The fourth round of negotiations between Vietnam and EFTA will be held in Oslo, Norway, in June, in the hope of creating a legal framework for both sides to increase business cooperation and investment.

Seafood export earnings in the first quarter of this year are estimated at US$1.2 billion, a drop of 7.5-8% compared to the same period last year. According to VASEP, seafood exports in March reached US$447-450 million, down 17-18% against March 2012. Domestic shrimp producers are facing difficulties due to decreasing demand and Japan’s strict technical barrier related to ethoxiquyn levels in the products. VASEP estimated that shrimp exports fell by 10% to US$160 million in March and 7.9-8% percent to US$400 million in the first three months of the year. The export of tra fish saw a year-on-year decrease of 13% to US$140 million in March, driving down total tra fish export earnings in the first quarter to US$393 million, a fall of 7.6% from a year ago. Tuna exports rose to US$145 million in March, up 12% compared to last year’s figure but down 16% for the first quarter. Other sea fish exports reached over US$60 million in March, which is 28% lower than last year. Octopus saw a sharp decrease of 34% and 22% in March and the first quarter, respectively. (VOV)

The Vietnam Cashew Association proposed raising the price for cashew nuts for export by 15-20 per cent. In the first two months of 2013 the volume of cashew nuts for export reached 34,327 tons, resulting in export turnover of over US$200 million - a 66.8 per cent decrease in volume and 37.71 per cent increase in value. But Vietnamese exporters still faced many risks in importing raw cashews, according to Vinacas, especially in terms of quality. Importing unprocessed cashews results in a profit of about $180 per ton for Vietnamese businesses. (VNS)

As many as 41 enterprises have been presented with the Corporate Social Responsibility Awards 2012 (CSR Awards 2012) for their contributions to the fields of labor and environment. The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) held a ceremony in Hanoi on March 30 to grant the awards to the winners. According to the VCCI’s Director of the Business Office for Sustainable Development Nguyen Quang Vinh, this was the fifth time the awards was presented to those meeting criteria on improving working conditions and protecting laborers and the environment through the application of advanced energy-saving and environmentally-friendly technologies. The awards also help raise businesses’ awareness of ensuring sustainable social development goals, he added. VCCI Chairman Vu Tien Loc stressed that his chamber will continue to support businesses in carrying out their social duties through various activities, including information dissemination and human resources training. (VNA)

The demand for natural rubber is expected to rebound from now to 2020, Tran Thi Thuy Hoa, General-Secretary of the Vietnam Rubber Association (VRA) has said at a recent conference held in southern Binh Phuoc province. The conference, themed “Sustainable Rubber Development”, drew the participation of more than 550 delegates from ministries, departments, institutions, groups and associations in the field of agriculture. According to Hoa, the rubber area has increased quickly thanks to high rubber prices on foreign markets. To meet the high demand of natural rubber in the coming time, the industry needs to further expand the acreage under rubber and ensure the quality of rubber products, she noted. According to the VRA, Vietnam has become the third largest exporter of natural rubber in the world after Thailand and Indonesia, with its output bouncing up to 1.01 million tons last year, representing a volume increase of 23.8 percent from 2011. (VNA)

As per latest release from the Viet Nam Food Association (VFA), Vietnamese enterprises shipped over 1.45 million tons of rice abroad, earning around US$641.4 million in free-on-board (FOB) value and US$665 million in cost, insurance and freight (CIF) value as on 31st March 2013. The Association has reported that the program in which banks provided companies with interest-free credits to buy 1 million tons of rice for national reserves ended. (Commodity Insights)

The consumption of building materials in the first quarter of this year decreased by 20-30 percent over the same period last year. Cement sales during the three-month period was 10.94 million tons, only 19.54 percent of the annual plan. Many cement producers adjusted their operations to keep inventory rates at 5.5 percent in March, lower than the normal rate of 10 percent. Building glass sales also fell 40 percent compared to the same period last year, according to the vice chairman of the Vietnam Association of Building Materials, Nguyen Quang Cung. The use of other building materials dropped between 60-75 percent, Cung said. (VNS)

Ha Noi saw a year-on-year increase of 11.6 per cent in sales of goods and services during the first quarter this year, in which retail sales went up 11.5 per cent. The purchasing power during the first three months was still weak due to the prolonged economic downturn, which forced many enterprises to stop operations, resulting in fewer jobs created and workers’ incomes reduced. (VNS)

Vietcombank, the Joint-Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam, launched a new logo to mark the 50^th anniversary of its founding and received the nation’s Independence Order. The bank’s new logo is primarily green and made up of inter-connected letters, highlighting its commitment to bring trust and success to all of its customers. (VNS)

Binh Duong attracted some $579 million in foreign investment in the first quarter of this year, announced the provincial Department of Planning and Investment. The Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park alone received 11 FDI projects with total capital of $368 million. Specifically, three newly licensed projects have combined capital of $258 million and eight operational projects raise capital by over $110 million. Binh Duong plans to entice over $1 billion in foreign investment this year, mainly in industries with high added values such as electricity, electronics, pharmaceutical, and exact mechanic. Binh Duong lured nearly $3 billion in foreign investment in 2012, up 253pct against 2011, accounting for 17.1pct of Vietnam’s total attracted FDI last year. Specifically, it had 123 new projects with total registered capital of nearly $1.7 billion and 130 operational projects increasing their capital by over $1.1 billion. (VGP)

The Nghi Son deep-water port in the central province of Thanh Hoa has recently welcomed a Panamanian vessel of 45,000 DWT. It was the second largest ship of its kind ever docked in the port. The well-equipped port received the vessel named Qi Yuan without resort to transshipment, which helped save cost and time of cargo handling. Earlier in February, the port hailed Mega Grace ship from the Republic of Korea. The ship weighed over 47,000 DWT and also made no use of transshipment. The event was expected to help the port popularize its advantages to foreign investors, especially at a time when construction of the Nghi Son oil refinery nears. Nghi Son port strives to welcome one ship of up to 40,000 DWT and two ships of between 20,000 and 40,000 DWT a month. This will help it achieve the target of handling 2 million tons of cargo this year. (VNA)

Forever Green Resort, the first tourism complex in the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre, has become operational recently as part of efforts of the provincial tourism sector to bring visitors back to nature. Covering an area of 21 hectares in Phu Tuc commune, Chau Thanh district, the resort was invested by the Aloe Trading Company LTD with a total capital of $50 million. It is considered the biggest invested project in the province’s tourism sector. In the first phase of the project, 60 starred mini villa rooms and a complex of restaurants, ecological gardens, and entertainment areas of spa, karaoke rooms and bars began servicing customers. A five-star hotel with 120 rooms, a swimming pool, and a conference room which can accommodate 1,000-1,500 people, 120 bungalows and a golf court will be built in the second phase, scheduled to be completed by 2018.