Vietnam to cut sugar tax to 15 pct

Tariffs on imported crude and refined sugar will be slashed to 15 percent as from April 15, the Ministry says in its recently issued circular.

Tax on crude sugar imports will accordingly be cut to 15 percent from a previous 25 percent level while that on refined sugar will go down to the same rate from a much higher 40 percent duty.

The tax cuts are meant to lower domestic sugar prices that have stayed at VND22,500-24,000 (US$1.09-1.16) per kilogram since Tet holiday whereas sugar with government subsidies has been traded at a mere VND18,000 ($0.87) per kilo, the Ministry said.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade earlier introduced a quota of 250,000 tons on sugar import in order to help stabilize sugar prices, especially towards the end of the year.

Vietnam on February 22 cut tax on oil and petrol imports for the fifth time since late last year to zero percent from the previous 2-5 percent to ease pressure on domestic prices.

It has been using its price stabilization fund as a tool to keep down prices and contain inflation which, together with a stable macro-economy, is a top priority on its economic agenda this year.

The country has set its inflation target this year at 7 percent or less after last year’s 11.75 percent rate, way above the initially proposed 8 percent one.

Japan-styled Zen resort makes debut

The Thang Long Xanh Investment Company, an affiliate of Archi Group launched Zen Resort project, a Japan-styled resort complex in Hanoi Saturday.

Le Tuan Anh, director of the company said that the VND220 billion (US$10.6 million) project covers an area of over 50 hectares in Yen Bai commune, the outlying district of Ba Vi.

Zen resort will include a quiet Zen garden that surrounded by green trees from Japan, a swimming pool, a tennis court, spa and entertainment areas.

Adjacent to Zen resort will be about 90 villas that sit on the hillside.

The project is expected to go into operation in the third quarter of 2013.

Cargo carrier to connect Hanoi, Amsterdam

The services from Hanoi to Amsterdam will include stopovers in India and Dubai, Jade Cargo has announced.

There will be two Boeing 747ERF flights from Shanghai to Hanoi every Sunday and Thursday, it said.

Jade Cargo has selected Global Air Cargo Vietnam, a joint company between Vector Aviation Vietnam and European Cargo Service, as its agency in Vietnam and the Red River area including Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Yunnan (China).

Jade Cargo, which serves 25 destinations worldwide from its hubs in China, started its services in Hanoi last month.

Binh Thuan to pull the plug on delayed resorts

Authorities in the southern province of Binh Thuan will continue to scrap delayed and tardy resort projects this year after having withdrawn 21 licenses for the same reason in 2010.

Le Thi Thanh Lien, deputy director of Binh Thuan Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism, said 280 projects have currently been licensed.

However, only 30 percent of them are exactly on schedule while the rest have been delayed to various degrees, with investors failing to keep their commitment due to financial problems.

The province will closely scrutinize all projects and consider revocation of some licenses, Lien said.

All resort builders will be ordered to cap construction at 30 percent of land area to keep them green, he added.

The costal province has 124 operational resorts now.

Mekong Capital invests in chemical distributor

Fund manager Mekong Capital announced last Thursday that its Mekong Enterprise Fund II paid US$3.4 million to pick up an unspecified stake in Asia Chemical Corporation, a leading Vietnamese chemical distributor.

ACC is one of the biggest distributors of ingredients, chemicals, and other materials for industries like cooking and beverage, pharmaceuticals, feed, confectionary, veterinary, personal care, and cosmetics.

The HCMC-based firm imports chemicals from 300 suppliers around the world and distributes to more than 1300 customers nationwide.

The US$50 million Mekong Enterprise Fund II has made ten investments and divested stakes in two of them since its founding in 2006. It focuses on unlisted companies in Vietnam, particularly fast-growing companies in the fast moving consumer goods category.

Thermal power plant breaks ground in Thanh Hoa

The ground breaking ceremony of the private thermal power plant Cong Thanh was hosted in the northern central province of Thanh Hoa on March 5, with the attendance of Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai.

The Cong Thanh Cement Joint Stock Company has invested a total capital of VND13 trillion (US$619 million) in the plant, comprising of two engine units at a total capacity of 300 MW each.

The plant’s ffirst engine unit is expected to begin operation in 2014, followed by the second unit the following year.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai said that it was most encouraging to see a private company building a thermal power plant which would greatly contribute to ensure the nation’s power security. The plant would play an important role in dealing with the power shortage in the northern central region.

100 businesswomen honored with Golden Rose Award

Golden Rose cups have been given to 100 businesswomen nationwide to honor their achievements in business and their contributions to the country’s development.

They received their honors at the Golden Rose Award 2011 ceremony at the Ho Chi Minh City Opera House yesterday.

They are general directors, directors, and board chairwomen of companies in various fields.

They have been selected according to many criteria, including maintaining growth for their companies in three consecutive years, investing in technological renovation, carrying out social responsibilities, creating harmonious labor relations, and contributing to the community’s development.

The Golden Rose Award, only intended for businesswomen, is an annual award granted by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Vietnam Women’s Union.

Every winner of the Golden Rose cup will be recognized as “Exemplary Businesswoman” and this title will be valid for three years.

Twenty percent of the total number of businesses in Vietnam are now owned or operated by women as chief executive officers, VCCI chairman Vu Tien Loc said, adding that it is a rather high rate in the world.

In general, Vietnamese businesswomen have overcome difficulties and challenges, including social prejudices, to achieve success, become rich and contribute to the country’s social and economic development, he commented.

Several ODA projects behind schedule

According to the Ministry of Transport many ODA traffic projects are running behind schedule due to delays in site clearance.

Amongst the pending big projects are the Nhat Tan Bridge, the Nhat Tan – Noi Bai Road, the second phase of Hanoi Belt Road No.3, broadening of the Cai Mep – Thi Vai Port and the upgrading of 44 railway bridges on the HCMC - Hanoi route.

According to the ministry, the ODA capital for traffic projects in 2011 is stable. Within the first three months of the year, Japan has funded six projects, four of which are related to the transport industry, with JPY120 billion (US$1.5 billion).

Because of delays in some basic construction projects, the ministry has instructed investors and contractors to take advantage of the ODA source.

During the first quarter of the year, authorities are hastening the release of capital for projects to build the Hanoi – Thai Nguyen Highway, the Phu Dong and Vinh Thinh Bridge and upgrade the general road system.

Vietnam to pilot insurance covering calamities

A pilot agricultural insurance program will be carried out in 21 provinces and cities in 2011-2013 to help farmers survive natural disasters and epidemics, according to a prime ministerial decision.

Under Decision No. 315/QĐ-TTg, the insurance will cover three subject matters: paddy rice, livestock and poultry, and aquaculture.

Accordingly, paddy rice insurance will be carried out in six provinces: Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Binh Thuan, An Giang and Dong Thap.

Livestock and poultry insurance will be available in nine localities: Ha Noi, Bac Ninh, Nghe An, Vinh Phuc, Hai Phong, Thanh Hoa, Binh Dinh, Dong Nai, and Binh Duong.

Meanwhile, insurance for aquaculture, involving tra fish, basa fish, shrimp and white-legged shrimp, will be intended for six provinces: Ben Tre, Soc Trang, Tra Vinh, Bac Lieu and Ca Mau.

Insurance risks comprises natural disasters including storms, floods, drought, deep cold, damaging cold, and frost; and pandemics including blue-ear pig disease, foot and mouth disease, etc.

The State will pay 100% of insurance premium for poor and farming households or individuals engaging in the program.

As for close-to-poor farming households or individuals joining the program, the State will pay 80% of insurance premium for them.

In addition, an exemption of 60% and 20% from premium will be given to other farming individuals or households, and agricultural organizations respectively.

Agricultural organizations, households and individuals taking part in the program have to meet four conditions: operating in the fields belonging to the above-mentioned subject-matters insured; having rights to be insured; joining this program and paying insurance premium; conducting agricultural activities in compliance with relevant regulations by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Insurance companies for the program will be selected by the Finance Ministry according to four criteria: providing non-life insurance products; ensuring payment ability under the Law on Insurance Business; having offices at localities involved in the program; and having staff members specialized in agricultural insurance.

This Decision, valid this month, will be applied from July 1, 2011 to the end of 2013.

Wood product exports soar in month

Wood products exports in February totalled US$200 million, bringing the exports value in the first two months of the year to $548 million – a surge of 17.6 per cent over the same period last year – the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development announced.

Exports to key markets in the US, Japan, mainland China and South Korea, which together account for 63.7 per cent of wood products export value, increased significantly, with exports to South Korea nearly tripling.

The US remained the leading market for Vietnamese wood products, buying up $118 million worth, followed by the EU ($90.2 million), Japan ($49.1 million) and China ($32 million).

Exports of wood products could rise by another 30 per cent and exceed $4 billion this year thanks to rising global demand, said Viet Nam Wood and Forest Products Association vice chairman Nguyen Ton Quyen.

However, the association was advising exporters to increase their focus on the domestic market to lower the risk of rising raw material prices.

Viet Nam ranked fourth among Southeast Asian wood products exporters, but only 20 per cent of wood products consumed in the country werre produced by domestic enterprises, with the remaining 80 per cent imported from mainland China, Hong Kong, Thailand and Taiwan, according to the Handicraft and Wood Products Association of HCM City.

“Vietnamese enterprises should be more familiar with domestic consumer tastes,” said association chairman Nguyen Chien Thang. “If there were a focus on high- to average-income segments, they could definitely dominate the domestic market, instead of wrestling over foreign markets.”

Tea export value has growth spurt

Tea exports registered a year-on-year increase of 34.3 per cent in value in the first two months of this year to US$32 million, said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

During the first two months, exports surged by 27.4 per cent to 22,000 tonnes and the price of tea also rose 6.5 per cent to $1,465 per tonne against the same period of last year, said Nguyen Viet Chien, head of the ministry’s Centre of Information and Statistics. In February, exports reached 11,000 tonnes, earning $16 million.

The three largest export markets of Vietnamese tea products included Pakistan, Russia and Taiwan, he said.

The Viet Nam Tea Association predicted Viet Nam to gain a year-on-year increase of 10 per cent in value to $200 million for this year while export volume is expected to remain unchanged against last year, said Nguyen Van Thu, deputy chairman of the association.

Export prices for Vietnamese tea products currently stand at 60-70 per cent of the world average prices, higher than the rate of 50 per cent in previous years, Thu said.

The tea industry has improved the quality of products and ensured food safety and hygiene, he said. The industry has also trained farmers to grow tea using high technology to ensure higher quality products.

Viet Nam is the world’s fifth leading tea exporter, shipping tea products to 110 nations and territories worldwide. It’s “Che Viet” trademark is registered and protected in 70 markets. About 6 million people in Viet Nam work in the tea industry.

Understanding reached with S Korea on customs links

Viet Nam and South Korea will assist with administrative requirements and co-operate closely in granting and examining the origin of goods, helping to ease difficulties for businesses and promote bilateral trade.

A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed in Ha Noi last Friday by Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Thanh Bien and the Republic of Korea Customs Service Commissioner Yoon Young-sun.

Under the memorandum – part of the ASEAN-RoK Trade in Goods Agreement – the two sides will co-operate in granting and examining certificates of origin, and exchange information and data, particularly in cases of doubtful or fraudulent certification.

The understanding serves as a basis for the two countries to provide technical assistance in building a future electronic certification system to cut complexity in procedures for export firms, Deputy Minister Bien said.

Turnover soars for Vincom after opening City centre

Vincom Joint Stock Co’s net profit jumped 121 per cent to VND2.43 trillion (US$116.5 million) last year, the company said in a statement last Friday.

Revenue had soared 96 per cent from the previous year to VND3.87 trillion ($180 million), boosted by income from the recently completed Vincom Centre, a retail, office and apartment complex in central HCM City, the company said.

Total assets of the firm hit VND11.83 trillion ($550.2 million) last year, up 83 per cent from 2009, it said.

In December, the Ha Noi-based firm said it planned to raise up to $450 million by listing shares on the Singapore stock exchange in the first half of this year. Vincom said last Friday it had selected advisers for the listing but gave no details on timing.

Vietnamese investors get licences for Laos projects

Five Vietnamese projects in Laos worth a total US$4.328 million received licences in the first two months of this year, the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment said.

This brought the total number of Vietnamese invested projects in Laos to 197 with total registered capital of more than $3.3 billion. With this figure, Laos continued to be a leading investment destination of choice by Vietnamese businesses.

Projects in Laos helped to generate jobs for 10,000 Vietnamese and local workers, contributing to the socio-economic development of Laos in general and host localities in particular.

Foreign Investment Agency head Do Nhat Hoang said Laos, along with Cambodia, had strategic importance to Viet Nam in both economic and national defence terms.

Fund invests in Asia Chemicals Corporation

Mekong Enterprise Fund II (MEF II), managed by Mekong Capital, has invested US$3.4 million in Asia Chemical Corporation, a specialty chemicals distribution company in Viet Nam.

This is the 10th investment of MEF II since its launch in June 2006.

Nguyen Thien Truc, ACC’s CEO and founder, said: “Demand in Viet Nam for ingredients and specialty chemicals is rising rapidly on the back of explosive consumption growth. In order for us to reach the next level of expansion, we were looking for a long-term investor with a true understanding of and commitment to ACC’s vision.”

ACC specialises in providing products and services to various industries, including food and beverage, dairy, seafood, instant noodle, pharmaceutical, feed, veterinary, bakery, confectionery, and other applications including personal care, cosmetics, paint and coatings.

The company is currently sourcing products from some 300 suppliers worldwide, storing them in its own facilities and selling them nationwide to some 1,300 customers, including some of the leading enterprises in Viet Nam.

Beginning last year, ACC has manufactured select specialty chemical products such as non-dairy creamer and silica gel for export.

The $50 million Mekong Enterprise Fund II is a private equity fund focusing on equity investments in unlisted companies in this country, aiming its investments in well-managed, fast-growing companies, particularly in consumer-driven industries. It has sold two of its 10 investments.

Ha Noi moves against inflation

Ha Noi should focus on tightening expenditures, reducing spending and stabilising the four key areas of commodities, prices, interest rates and exchange rates in order to join with localities nationwide to curb inflation, said Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Sinh Hung.

The city should take harmonious measures to curb inflation while managing prices in order to create conditions for investors while also creating more effective production, he said at a meeting held by Ha Noi authorities on Saturday to implement the Government Resolution on taking measures to curb inflation, stabilise the macro-economy and ensure social security.

The city needed to take more drastic measures in its monetary policy and credit growth management and control, particularly by paying more attention to exports to reduce the trade gap, Hung said.

It was essential to mobilise involvement of the whole society to curb inflation by creating changes in awareness and daily consumption habits of people in all walks of life, he added.

Success in curbing inflation in Ha Noi and other cities would lead to the success of the whole country, he stressed.

Municipal People’s Committee Chairman Nguyen The Thao said the city would focus on taking a number of key measures, including seriously implementing tight monetary policy and managing credit growth to keep it under 20 per cent in 2011.

Particularly, the city would focus on inspecting gold and foreign currency trading and strictly punishing those involved in speculation and illegal gold and foreign currency trade, he said.

The city would also increase management to prevent budget loss and make the maximum possible cost reductions for organising conferences and meetings, as well as domestic and foreign business trips, Thao said.

Implementation of delayed and ineffective projects with State budget investment would be cancelled or postponed, while investment would be poured into social infrastructure projects, and rural and agriculture projects, Thao said.

Regarding measures to ensure social security, the municipal Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs will actively work with districts in the city to implement the city’s job creation programme during the 2011-15 period with a target of generating jobs for 137,000 workers.

Credit priority would be given to poor households and those near the poverty line to help them with production development and labour export, Thao said.

The city would continue to provide an allowance for around 2,000 poor households and people who rendered great services to the country.

Other provinces and cities nationwide are also carrying out the Government’s measures on inflation control in an effort to maintain economic stability and ensure social welfare.

Phu Yen Province, for example, will review regular State budget expenditures and create measures to save 10 per cent of its expenses for the rest of the year.

The province will also monitor credit at banks and credit institutions to keep the growth rate under 20 per cent.

Similarly, Quang Tri Province will work to cut 10 per cent of public expenditures and reduce energy spending.

Other provinces, including Lai Chau, Ha Tinh, Hoa Binh and Ha Nam, have also mapped out measures to control inflation.

The north-central province of Ha Tinh, for example, has asked commercial banks to give priority to capital for the production and trading sectors, and stop lending to non-manufacturing, real estate companies and the stock market.

The province has also ordered agencies to speed up construction on the province’s key projects such as Vung Ang 1 Thermal Power Plant and Sai Gon-Ha Tinh Beer brewery.

Lai Chau Province targets saving 10 per cent of annual State budget spending of more than VND26 billion ($1.3 million).

It has called on agencies, organisations and institutions to increase savings in electricity, water, telephone, office supplies and petrol.

Ha Nam Province People’s Committee plans to review the performance of enterprises in the province to solve any difficulties, and impose strict penalties to those who violate laws and regulations.

The authorities have also ordered the provincial Bank for Social Policy to offer loans to poor households, disadvantaged students and beneficiaries of social welfare, who need capital to start businesses or to study or work abroad.