HA NOI - Falling water levels in several rivers and increasing salinity intrusion have authorities in the central region scrambling for solutions, local reports say. A report in the Ha Noi Moi newspaper yesterday said that the central city of It cited the Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting Centre for Central Region as saying water levels had decreased sharply in the Vu Gia River, one of the two biggest rivers that flow through Water flow in the In the lower sections of the rivers in the region, sea water penetration had been stronger and happened earlier than usual, depriving millions of local residents of clean water for daily use and cultivation, the centre said. It added that drought is threatening hundreds of hectares of summer-autumn rice crop in Le Duy Vong, director of the Irrigation, Storm Prevention and Control Division under the Da Nang Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that for the past four years, the city lacked water by the end of the winter-spring crop and the problem had worsened for the summer-autumn crop. He said the main reason for this was falling water levels in the Small reservoirs in the city were likely to run out of water for the summer-autumn crop, Vong said. Nguyen Truong Anh, director of the Da Nang Water Supply Company (DAWCO), said that the Cau Do Water Plant in the southern area of the city, the only supplier for the city, had been dealing with a depleting water sources. To supplement its supply, the city would build a new water plant in Hoa Vang District's Hoa Lien Commune, taking water from the Cu De River, Anh said. Construction of the first phase of the plant, which would have a capacity of 1,200cu.m per day, is expected to cost US$30 million, he added. DAWCO was also pumping more water from the An Trach Pumping Station, which is 8km away from the Cau Do Water Plant, to supply residents, Anh said. Saline intrusion Meanwhile, Duy Xuyen District in the central Van Ba Nam, director of the district's Agriculture and Rural Development Division, said that by the end of the winter-spring crop, water levels in three big reservoirs - Vinh Trinh, Thach Ban and Phu Loc – was between 1-2m lower than in the same period last year. If this situation persists, water pumping stations in nearby rivers would lack water and sea water would penetrate deeply into the mainland at high concentrations, Last month, the district began building a dam across the |
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Art & Entertainment News Headlines 22/4 Haydn masterpiece to be sung in HCM City The oratorio The Creation, written by Joseph Haydn, a prominent Austrian composer of the 18th and early 19th century, will be performed at the HCM City Opera House on May 8 and 9. Considered to be one of the composer's masterpieces, the oratorio tells the story of God's creation of the world in six days as it is related in the Book of Genesis of the Old Testament. The classical orchestral work is structured in three parts and is scored for soprano, tenor and baritone soloists as well as a chorus. The performance, to be directed by well-known Norwegian conductor Lars Notto Birkeland, will feature international opera singers, including soprano Cho Hae Ryong, tenor Erlend Tvinnereim, baritone Halvor F. Melien, and the Birkeland will play the harpsichord during the singers' recitatives. The performance is a part of the Transposition Programme, a diverse and multi-faceted project that involves leading music institutions in French artist keen on Vietnamese culture  Sébastien Laval has traveled the length and breadth of The installation art exhibition, featuring 62 1x1m black-and-white photos, provides viewers a fascinating glimpse into the daily lives and traditional dress of ethnic minorities of “This is the sixth time I have attended the biennial Hue Festival, but I have never seen such wonderful photos before,” said Le Tran Ana, a foreign visitor. “It helped me to get better understanding of Vietnamese ethnic minorities in the central highlands where I have yet been to.” Over the years, the French artist has organised a number of photo exhibitions on the lives and people of “If not for my love of the people and Hungarian folk dances in Hanoi Hanoians were deeply impressed with Hungarian folkloric dances presented by The dancers displayed an absolutely fascinating stylistic spectacle of special and highly individualised improvisation, with dances from the Kalotaszeg, They also performed a number of more contemporary dances, adaptations from the more traditional Hungarian heritage. With an exceptional mix of artists and dancers, the traditional Hungarian dances inspired the audience, making them feel a bit more familiar with Hungarian folklore. Duna art troupe has taken part in the recent Hue Festival. Exhibitions assert sovereignty over Hoang Sa, Truong Sa An exhibition themed “Hoang Sa Archipelago – On display are 70 photos, documents and items with high historical value, helping confirm Among the items are an ancient sovereignty stele made by French people in 1938 and a radio found in the archipelago in 1939. The exhibits, which originate not only from Vietnam but other countries as well, including China, were collected by both Vietnamese and foreign scholars, researchers and agencies. Visitors to the event, which runs until April 26, can see many pieces of evidence proving that Vietnamese people have lived in Hoang Sa for generations. These include a certificate of birth, dated December 7, 1939, belonging to Mai Kim Quy, the daughter of a weatherman in the archipelago. Addressing the opening ceremony, Dang Cong Ngu, Chairman of the People’s Committee of Hoang Sa district, the exhibition helps educate the younger generations about the important national sovereignty over Hoang Sa Archipelago. The event is also considered a chance to pay tribute to soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect On the occasion, representatives from the Danang University of Technology presented VND50 million supporting the “Hoang Sa, Truong Sa Fund.” As part of efforts to raise public awareness of the national sovereignty over Hoang Sa and Truong Sa (Spratly) Archipelagoes, a mobile exhibition themed “Hoang Sa, Truong Sa of Vietnam – Historical Evidence” is underway from April 19-28 in Truong Sa Lon island. The exhibition, which has travelled to eight provinces nationwide, is a joint effort between the Ministry of Information and Communications and other local agencies. More than 120 ancient maps and documents are being made available at the event. Meanwhile, the two first post offices on Truong Sa and Sinh Ton islands will be officially inaugurated, providing post, internet and telecommunication services and free books and newspapers to residents. Hanoi cultural exhibition focuses on General Giap Hundreds of fine art works featuring late General Vo Nguyen Giap will be displayed in an exhibition in downtown It will include photos of the General by journalist Colonel Tran Hong and photographer Nguyen Dinh Toan; paintings by artists Mai Duy Linh, Dang Xuan Hung and Nguyen Van Tuan; and sculptures by artist Tran Van Thuc. A set of six objects, including a gold-plated copper bust of the General; a badge with the General's image; and a cannon bullet shell carved with the image of the Dien Bien Phu battle by major general and writer Nguyen Chu Phac are among the key exhibits. A portrait of General Giap made from 60,000 matches by artist Ngo Thi Thuc will also be on display. On the opening day of the exhibition, the visitors will have a chance to talk with the soldiers who had fought in the battle and the participating artists. The exhibition is also part of a project to introduce Uruguayan guitar duo perform in Hanoi The event, hosted by the Uruguayan Embassy in In his opening remark, Uruguayan Ambassador to Vietnam Carlos Irigaray introduced Vietnamese guests to the land, people and diverse culture and art of his country. He praised the Umbral band, which consists of Ignacio Correa and Sebatian Segarra, for its impressive performances at the freshly-ended Hue Festival 2014. The duo enthralled Vietnamese audiences with famous works such as Mansito, De costa a costa, Papas calientes and Caraguata. “This is the first time we have visited “Surprisingly, we performed at a special stage, watched by wonderful audiences,” he said. During the Hue Festival, the Uruguayan guitarists devoted special and impressive performances to local audiences at the Duyet Thi Duong Theatre and the The biennial festival was a big feast of art and music, with 2,600 artists and performers, including 595 foreign ones. During the April 12-20 event, 66 art troupes from 37 countries staged 170 performances at 15 venues in TV show honours Dien Bien Phu victory The Vietnam Television’s Channel 6 (VTV6) broadcast live a programme on April 21 to highlight the Dien Bien Phu Victory on May 7, 1954, which ended the French colonial rule in The “Dien Bien Phu – symphony of peace” programme featured the Vietnamese people’s aspiration for peace and their determination to fight for independence as well as international friends’ support and assistance for the struggle. The victory also helped fuel the desire for freedom in Indochina, comprising Movies and reportages plus special symphonies about the sound and creative people-based war strategy designed by the Party, President Ho Chi Minh and General Vo Nguyen Giap became the spotlights of the event. Audiences also had a chance to talk with war veterans who shared a lot of stories on the battle that had never been told before. Dien Bien Phu was a complex of strong fortresses with 16,200 French troops, the most seasoned in At 3:00 pm on May 7, 1954, the Vietnamese army launched a massive attack on the headquarters of General Christian De Castries. The French commander at The victory was a vivid manifestation of the gigantic growth of the Vietnamese army. The ten-year-old force, led by General Vo Nguyen Giap, created an everlasting epic of Vietnamese brainpower and stuff. Sixty years have passed but the lessons of the Dien Bien Phu Victory still keep their value, which have been applied to the resistance war against the The movie Song Cung Lich Su (Living with History) was released in Produced by the Vietnam Film Studio, the film depicts a group of young people who travel to Dien Bien after getting a strong impression through documentaries and images about the historical battle of During the journey, the group ends up traveling back in time to become soldiers and civilian workers, getting a firsthand look at the hardships of battle and the determined spirit of the whole nation. "We've tried our best to offer the most truthful angle on the historical battle of Among tens of films made to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the The crew spent two months filming the movie in the northern mountainous provinces of Yen Bai, Hoa Binh, Son La, Dien Bien and Thanh Hoa. They had to cope with many difficulties, such as finding suitable crops. To replicate the battlefield where Vietnamese soldiers exchanged fire with French military forces, Van and his crew needed a tank that could move. "We didn't expect to find a functioning tank, just a movable one. But we didn't have any other option than a tank that was featured in the movie Hoa Ban Do (Red Ban Flower) 20 years ago and in Ky Uc Dien Bien (Dien Bien Memory) 10 years ago," Van said. "Although it can't run, its barrel can still move. To make the tank fire, the props team has their tricks." Nguyen Ba Hung, a Hanoi University of Business and Technology student who attended the debut screening, said he was fascinated by historical movies and this was no exception. "I was impressed by the way the director depicted the historical event through a journey by young people. This may help the movie attract young viewers," Hung said. Nguyen Thi Phuong Anh, a student at the "A young woman who insists on joining the troupe of voluntary civilian workers, expecting to meet her husband on the frontlines, or a young girl willing to cut off her long hair to disguise herself as a man so she can join the military troupe – for me, they are also heroines," she said. The movie will be screened free of charge from April 26 to 30 at the National Cinema Centre. Special events pay tribute to Dien Bien heroes An array of cultural and art events will be held in Hanoi to mark the 60th anniversary of the Dien Bien Phu victory and pay tribute to the Vietnamese heroes who laid down their lives in the battle. The events aim to commemorate the contribution of armed forces and conscripted labourers and people serving the battle, especially General Vo Nguyen Giap, who was Commander of the Dien Bien Phu Campaign. Since April 8, the organizing board has been receiving battlefield remembrances kept by the family and relatives of soldiers who were ever-present in the resistance wars against French and later American forces. The remembrances will be presented to the Vietnam Women’s Museum on May 5. Before that date, photographs of the exhibits will be displayed at a touring exhibition called “Dien Bien Memory”, which will visit the the My Dinh National Convention Centre (NCC) in A special concert celebrating the Dien Bien triumph will take place at the NCC on April 26, featuring veteran revolutionary singers such as Tran Hieu, Trung Kien, Quang Tho and Thu Hien. On the occasion, the organizing board will show documentary clips related to the Israeli band to perform in Ha Noi tonight The Israeli band Tararam will perform tonight in Ha Noi to celebrate the bilateral ties between Tararam will play original Israeli rhythms with a synchronised orchestra of recycled instruments. In its single-show performance at the Au Co Theatre, the Israeli artists will produce extraordinary sounds from everyday objects for the Vietnamese audience. The various percussion instruments that will be used include tin cans, metal and plastic barrels, wooden chairs, spoons and drums, which will enthuse the viewers to respond by tapping their feet and clapping their hands. Tararam has successfully made its way into the heart of Israeli culture by offering audiences an exciting and inspiring theatrical, musical and dance experience. The band has performed in a number of International Music Festivals around the world and also at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games and the 2000 World Expo in Sketches reveal misery of war Veteran artist Huynh Phuong Dong is celebrating his 90th birthday by displaying oil paintings, sketches, posters, and statues he created in the last several decades at an exhibition that opened in Most of works are about the American War, which ended in 1975. From his portrait sketches, he carefully selected 40 he did during the war and 60 he created later. "During the war, doing a painting was difficult, but keeping it was much more challenging," he told people who came to the exhibition. "I buried at least two or three pieces in different places. I love to keep my works in metal boxes and bury them under termite nests so that no one can find them." Despite old age and sickness, Huynh Phuong Dong paints every day. He has converted many of his 20,000 sketches into paintings. "In the past sketches were not considered artworks, and so I had to slog to make them into paintings. "But sketches are invaluable records of the war. "Much material recorded during the war still remains, but I am not healthy enough to complete it all. "I always ponder about the war and the misery of the people. But I could not record all of the misery and heroism of the Vietnamese people and soldiers." Besides, because of his age he regretted that he could not reflect upon all the developments taking place in Nevertheless, the exhibition features paintings reflecting current developments and the Spratly Archipelago. Huynh Phuong Dong, real name Huynh Cong Nhan, was born in Gia Dinh (now He went to the His first work was a portrait of President Ho Chi Minh. Ma Thanh Cao, director of the HCM City Museum of Fine Arts, which is organising the week-long exhibition, said it took the museum and the artist's family three months of preparations. The museum is at Festival dedicated to Bodhisattva opens in Bac Lieu A festival dedicated to Quan Am (Bodhisattva) Nam Hai opened at the Statue of Bodhisattva area in the Mekong Delta As one of the four festivals recognised by the provincial People’s Committee in 2008, the festival annually takes place from the 22nd to 24th day of the third lunar month. This year’s event is drawing a great number of visitors as it coincides with a national festival featuring the UNESCO-recognised performing art of Don ca tai tu (amateur singing). The province has recently completed and put into use a number of works at the Statue of Bodhisattva area to serve Buddhist followers’ practices. Can Tho celebrates Vietnam Book Day Can Tho City Department of Culture, Sport, and Tourism hosted a contest “Book-Trustful Concomitant” at the Can Tho City Library on April 21. The event had 33 speakers and 110 contestants. The speakers expressed the role of books to a community. They encouraged the development of reading as a tool for critical thinking. The event held an exhibition displaying more than 1,200 books. This exhibition celebrates the 39th anniversary of the southern liberation, International Labor Day, the 60th anniversary of Dien Bien Phu Historical Victory, and the 124th birthday of President Ho Chi Minh. Can Tho University of Medicine, Pharmacy, and Can Tho University, and Phuong Nam Cultural Joint Stock Corporation-Can Tho branch will work together to organize a book festival starting from April 21-May 1. Books will be offered at a 10-30 percent discount during the exhibition. The Vietnam Association of Architects held an opening ceremony for the National Architecture Award 2014 in The event titled “Innovation and Development” will introduce new innovations of the year. The board of examiners includes agencies of Ministry of Construction, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the experts and prestigious architect and the Chairman of Vietnam association of architects as chairman of board of examiners, reported by the organizers. On the same day, a photography exhibition highlighting architecture was held in Source: VNA/VOV/VNS/ND/SGGP/SGT |
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Shoddy workmanship 'destroys' national treasure in  The Sung Thien Dien Linh stele at Long Doi Son Pagoda prior to its ‘restoration’ PHOTO COURTESY OF VOV ONLINE Thousand-year old engravings on an ancient stele in Ha Attendees at a ceremony held last Friday at the Long Doi Son Pagoda were greatly dismayed to find it had been severely marred by amateur efforts to restore it. Built in 1121 during the Ly Dynasty (1009-1225), the Sung Thien Dien Linh stele was among the additional 37 artifacts recognized as the national treasures by the nation's Prime Minister late last year. During a ceremony held in Duy Tien District on the morning of April 18, the stele was said to have been badly damaged. “The national treasure has been destroyed,” said researcher Tran Trong Duong at the Hanoi-based Han Nom Institute. According to Duong, local residents reported that a group of workers hired by the district culture department used a grindstone, sandpaper and iron brushes to ‘clean’ moss from the stele's surface. “It was their ignorance that destroyed the treasure,” he said. Many smaller stelae in the area have been damaged by similarly slapdash efforts. Part of the flawed process involved removing a protective fence amid protests from the pagoda's management, VOV Online quoted monk Thich Thanh Vu at Long Doi Son Pagoda as saying. Since the fence's removal, the monk has noted new graffiti carvings on its surface. Invaluable treasure Long Doi Son Pagoda was built in 1054, under the reign of King Ly Thanh Tong, and was expanded in 1121 during the Ly Nhan Tong Dynasty. It measures 2.88m in height and 1.40m in width and is famous for fine carvings of dragons, clouds and water, which were characteristic features of the art of Ly's reign. According to Pham Van Anh, of the Literature Institute, King Ly Nhan Tong visited the site in 1118 and decided to build a large tower there called Sung Thien Dien Linh Bao Thap. After work on the tower finished, the king assigned two high-ranking mandarins, Nguyen Cong Bat and Ly Bao Khung, to carve a stele to place inside the tower. Prior to the shoddy "restoration," the stele’s face featured more than 4,000 carved Chinese symbols describing the life of King Ly Nhan Tong, his propagation of Buddhism and the process of building the Sung Thien Dien Linh Tower. The top features text by Ly Nhan Tong based on phi bach, a type of ancient calligraphy popular among the Ly’s noble class. The stele has proven a crucial resource for scholars of calligraphy. “It is considered the best stele in Vietnamese history. It is a unique historical document from King Ly Nhan Tong, who was also described as the country’s first musical composer, an outstanding calligrapher and the founder of water puppet performance,” researcher Duong said. Duong added that the Sung Thien Dien Linh also features important historical documents, including notes on the construction of Dien Huu, or Mot Cot (One Pillar) Pagoda (now in It also contains notes on the production of warships during the Ly Dynasty, and battles against the northern invaders. The back of the stele contains scripts featuring major political, historical and cultural events during the Ly Dynasty which were engraved under Ly Nhan Tong’s successors. Restore the stele impossible Associate Processor Tong Trung Tin expressed surprise at the methods used to “clean” the Sung Thien Dien Linh stele. “The stele was badly damaged by the use of caustic cleaning objects. If you want to remove moss or preserve the stele, you must consult experts,” said Tin, a member of the Science Council that approved the recognition of Sung Thien Dien Linh as a national treasure. Pham Van Anh at the Literature Institute said soft towels would have gotten the job done. Architect Le Thanh Vinh, head of the Relics Preservation Institute, said the cleaning process should follow a careful and multi-step process.. “We must analyze the types of fungi on each stele so that we can use appropriate fungicide,” Vinh said. Regarding a way to restore the stele, Vinh said: “It’s impossible to restore the stele as its surface was deeply marred.” |
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Violations rampant in state-funded projectsNumerous state-funded project developers have been found to have violated regulations on state capital management.  Cau Gie-Ninh Binh highway The 54km Cau Gie-Ninh Binh highway was one of many such projects listed by the State Audit of Vietnam (SAV) in its announcement at last week’s National Assembly Standing Committee meeting. The project increased its budget 2.4 times against the $177.8 million set out in the initial plan. It is invested in by the Vietnam Expressway Corporation, with $47.6 million and the remainder through a government bond issuance and other state sources. While this project is under-construction, it has seen very slow progress over the last four years. SAV head Nguyen Huu Van said state coffers were feeling the pinch because of serious violations by numerous state projects. “Hundreds of projects have significantly increased their budgets compared to initial estimates, and in most cases the reasons are not made public,” he said. Other cases include the project investment to upgrade national roads (phase 1) was tripled from $109.2 million to $331.47 million, as well as the Ho Chi Minh highway’s Pac Bo-Cao Bang and Chon Thanh-Duc Hoa sections with an increase of $14.43 million. For national road 3’s Bo Dau-Ta Lung border gate section, capital more than doubled from $25.9 million to $61.9 million. The project to connect Vung Ang seaport to the According to the SAV, in 2012, the Vietnamese government was tightening public investment. However, for thousands of recently finished projects it is unclear where they sourced their capital, they are mostly in the provinces of Quang Ngai, Phu Tho, Kien Giang, Thanh Hoa, Thai Binh, Gia Lai, and Haiphong city. Van also stressed that many localities announced new projects at a time when capital is very limited. Quang “Notably, more than 4,000 projects have been delayed and are behind schedule,” Van said. The National Assembly Economic Committee’s Chairman Nguyen Van Giau suggested investors in projects that have revised up their budgets must make public the reason behind this action. “Those found to have violated regulations must be severely punished to ensure budgetary principles,” Giau said. The SAV will conduct 161 audits this year in 35 provinces and cities, 15 ministries, 31 state-funded investment projects and 44 state-owned enterprises, financial organisations and banks. In 2013, some 149 audits were conducted. Enterprises on the audit list include the Ministry of Transport’s Cuu Long Transportation Infrastructure Project Management and Development Investment Corporation, PetroVietnam, Electricity of Vietnam and Vinacomin. By Khoi Nguyen, VIR |
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Theft reported on Representatives of the national carrier According to statistics, 28 cases of theft occurred on Vietnam Airlines flights in 2012 and the figure was 15 cases for 2013. So far this year, nine cases have occurred and the thieves were all passengers. Notably, of the nine cases in which the thieves were caught in the act, five were Chinese. Most recently, on March 31, a Chinese passenger on a flight from On March 1, a Chinese man named Gui Guoliang, 41, was caught red-handed while stealing the purse of an Australian Vietnamese passenger on a flight from On January 19, Vietnam Airlines flight attendant shot a video clip of a theft by two Chinese men on a flight. They were identified as Zhang Jiang and Ren Guanghan, both born in 1973. On January 16, a Vietnam Airlines waitress caught a 41-year-old Chinese man in the act of stealing $700 from an Indonesian passenger, on a flight from Airport employees steal assets of passengers  A suitcase with the broken lock. Passengers are not the only culprits in airline-related thefts. In 2009, a luggage docker at In July 2008, two dockers of NCTS, a private transport company, stole Vinaphone phone cards from two parcels sent by air through the However, the biggest case is the [attempted] theft of nearly $1 million in 2007. On November 12, 2007, at Noi Bai airport, Techcombank sent two parcels of foreign currencies by air from Recently, a passenger on a Vietnam Airlines flight from Yangon ( Earlier, a passenger on a flight from the In May 2009, a passenger on an Indochina Airlines flight from Vu Diep, |
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Singaporean funds pour more money into attractive Vietnamese businesses While the year 2013 witnessed the “landing” of many investors from  FPT, GIC, managing the investment portfolio worth $100 billion, is an institution under the management of the Singaporean government. Meanwhile, Cashew Investments is a branch of Temasek Holdings, an investment corporation of the government. The stake transfer deals, worth of millions of dollars, were only recently revealed to the public, when FPT released its annual report, disclosing its 10 largest shareholders. In March, GIC and The Asian Entrepreneur Legacy (TAEL) Partners spent VND300 billion to buy 10 million shares of PAN, an agriculture and food company. According to PAN’s CEO, Michael Louis Rosen, the Singaporean government has a strong interest in the agriculture and food sector. TAEL, headquartered in TAEL not only poured money into PAN, but also became a big shareholder of Vinasun UOB, a Singaporean bank, got the go-ahead from the State Bank of Under current regulations, foreign strategic shareholders can hold only up to 20 percent of the chartered capital of one Vietnamese bank. However, an exception may be made in the case of GP Bank, pending approval by the Prime Minister. Alan Phan, a prominent analyst, has said that there is currently a significant cash flow from A senior executive of a securities company said Michael Rosen from PAN also said that “ Chair of the Vietnam Securities Commission Vu Bang believes that the foreign investment wave will strengthen this year, as the national economy bounces back after bottoming out. VNE |
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HA NOI (VNS) - Viet Nam was estimated to enjoy a trade surplus of US$700 million in the first four months of this year, according to data from the General Statistics Office (GSO). The country shipped $45.74 billion worth of goods during this period, making a year-on-year increase of 16.9 per cent, while it spent $45.05 billion to import goods and services, posting an increase of 13.7 per cent over the same period last year. The country's key export items in the period included mobile phones and accessories ($7.6 billion); garments and textiles ($5.94 billion); and electronic products, computers and spare-parts ($2.94 billion). Its key imported products in this period were machinery and spare-parts ($6.7 billion); electronic products, computers and spare-parts ($5.8 billion); petroleum ($2.6 billion); and clothes ($2.75 billion). In April alone, the country's export turnover was posted at $12.2 billion. The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) sector continued to top exports last month. The sector's exports were worth $8.02 billion, accounting for 66 per cent of the country's total export values in the month. Meanwhile, First quarter surge Export turnover was $6.15 billion, while import value was $1.61 billion. Textile and garment exports continued to be the highest earner, while phones and component turnover increased sixfold over the same period last year. -VNS |
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Political News Headlines 24/4 President praises Chinese support
Sang was receiving a delegation of the families of former Chinese experts on a visit to Their visit came at a time when the country is gearing up for the 60th anniversary of Sang said he hoped both sides would facilitate the exchange of visits to educate young generations on the friendship between the two countries. Vice Chairman of the China-Viet Nam Friendship Association, Qi Jianguo, thanked the Vietnamese ministries and localities for offering them tours of cultural and historic sites. Qi told his host that the delegation would discuss tourism with Vietnamese agencies concerned. The same day, President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations, Vu Xuan Hong, welcomed the Chinese guests. Qi said both associations should organise more activities to bolster people-to-people friendship, particularly the collection of documents and artifacts related to significant events in Vietnamese and Chinese history. German parliamentarians visit A delegation of the German Bundestag (parliament) Committee on Economic Cooperation and Development led by MP Dagmar Wöhrl began a four-day visit to The main goal of their working trip is to boost future development cooperation between They will inspect a vocational training project funded by a German business in They are scheduled to work with the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Planning and Investment, and the National Assembly Standing Committee. On April 25 they will visit a GIZ-funded project on marine protection in PM Dung demands all means to eliminate measles outbreaks Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has demanded that agencies concerned must ensure enough workforce, medicines and equipment to eliminate the outbreaks of measles as soon as possible. At a working session with relevant ministries, agencies and According to the Health Minister’s report at the session, a total of 3,569 measles cases were recorded as of April 23 in 61 out of 63 cities and provinces, with 37 percent of the cases in Children under 10 accounted for 68.3 percent of measles patients, the report said, adding that a majority of patients (86.4 percent) were not vaccinated against the disease, while 9.9 percent of the patients had acquired just one shot of vaccine while at least two doses are required. The disease has claimed 25 lives so far, but the number of fatalities from measles complications has amounted to 108. Source: VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA |
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Officials go to Kuwait for withdrawal as the host of 18th Asian Games A
Minister Hoang Tuan Anh (left) and OCA Chairman Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah. Photo: TTVN. The delegation consists of officials from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the Foreign Ministry, the People's Committee of Hanoi, the General Department of Sports and Physical Training and the Olympic Committee of Vietnam. At the meeting, Earlier, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung decided to not host the 18th Asian Games, slated to be held in In case of withdrawal, After hearing |
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Ukraine forces kill up to five rebels, Putin warns of consequences Ukrainian forces killed up to five pro-Moscow separatists in the east of the country, the Interior Ministry said on Thursday, as Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of "consequences" if Interior Ministry forces backed by the army removed three checkpoints manned by armed groups in the separatist-controlled town of "During the armed clash up to five terrorists were eliminated," it said, adding that one person had been wounded on the side of government forces. Under an international accord signed in Geneva last week, illegal armed groups, including the rebels occupying about a dozen public buildings in the largely Russian-speaking east, are supposed to disarm and go home. However, the Kremlin, which has deployed tens of thousands of troops on In "It is just a punitive operation and it will of course incur consequences for the people making these decisions, including (an effect) on our interstate relations," Putin said in a televised meeting with regional media. The East and West have put the onus on each other to ensure the accord is implemented on the ground. U.S. President Barack Obama said earlier he was poised to impose new sanctions on Obama said the Russian leadership was not abiding by the spirit or the letter of the "We have prepared for the possibility of applying additional sanctions," he told a news conference on a visit to So far, the In NATO member Earlier on Thursday, The government said the city hall in another eastern town, Mariupol, which had been seized by separatists, was now back under central control. Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said the mayor was back in his office. "In this instance there were no casualties ... The process of getting the situation back to normal in the city will continue," he said in a post on his Facebook page. Days later, Russian troops seized control of The focus has now shifted to eastern With rhetoric building from the "It is obvious that they won't return in the near future if they sever investment agreements with us, I mean there are consequences as well," Natural Resources Minister Sergei Donskoy told reporters. " However, Western oil majors BP and Royal Dutch Shell were sticking with their projects in Supplies of Russian gas to Europe are also, potentially, at risk from the crisis over State-controlled Gazprom sent Ukrainian energy firm Naftogaz an additional bill on Wednesday of $11.4 billion, more than five times its previous claim, a source at the company said. This was in addition to the $2.2 billion that Naftogaz already owes for supplies in 2013 and 2014 so far. If European and Ukrainian officials were to meet in The options include reversing the usual east-west flow of the pipelines to Europe to pump gas back into Unarmed mediators from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe are in eastern Reuters reporters have not been able to establish that any Russian troops or special forces members are in the region, though Putin has described as "nonsense" allegations that Reuters |
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Tourists beef about  Over the past week tourists said they were surprised and disappointed with not only the aggressive guards but also the charge itself given that many people just wanted to walk, shop, or eat in the town. PHOTO: NGUYEN TU A top local official has defended the entry fee imposed on visitors to Hoi An, saying it is needed to raise funds for preservation, but promised to soon improve the way it is collected following protests from tourists. Nguyen Su, the town party committee chief, told Thanh Nien Wednesday he would meet with other authorities to discuss measures to deal with the complaints, and promised to brief the media by weekend on the outcome. He admitted that the unfriendly attitude of some security guards who harassed visitors on the streets needs to be corrected. It is understandable that tourists who have bought the ticket and are staying in Hoi An are annoyed when asked for it each time they return to town, he said. “We told the guards Tuesday to let individual tourists go if they say they have bought the ticket.” In the past week tourists have complained of being harassed or even chased down the streets by guards for the fee. Vo Phung, director of the Hoi An Culture and He added that others with good English have been sent out to explain to visitors. Su pointed out that visitors have been required to buy tickets to enter Hoi An since 1995 and the current rates (VND120,000, or US$6 for foreigners and VND80,000 for Vietnamese) have been in force since 2012. A ticket allows them to see the town itself and entitles a foreigner to visit five tourist spots and locals, three. In the past ticket booths were placed at some spots, but earlier this month they were put up at every entrance to town to prevent tour guides from bringing in their clients without paying the fee. But with new checkpoints and blue-shirted guardians ready to physically bar people, many visitors vented their anger on tourist forums. “It is right to collect the entrance fees as 85 percent of the revenue will be used to restore ancient houses of local residents,” Su said. “These houses form a group of relics. If money is not spent on their restoration, they will collapse.” Hoi An Town in the coastal Explaining the reason of setting up more ticket booths, Su said the first purpose is to ensure a fair competition since some tour companies pay for tickets for their clients while others fail to do so and let them just walk around the streets without discovering the vestiges. The visitors then return home and say Hoi An has nothing to offer, he said. Besides, just around 30 percent of the two million of visitors coming to Hoi An every year buy tickets, depriving the town of revenues worth dozens of billions of dong, he said. ‘Short-sighted’ Some travel companies agreed with the entrance fee, saying it makes sense for historic sites to levy such a charge to help with their upkeep and provide facilities. “The issue is that tourists are being harassed, and in some cases chased down the street, by aggressive, unfriendly staff who want to charge them for simply walking on the streets,” Tim Russell, a Briton who lived and worked in Vietnam for 10 years and is now the director of sales and marketing for the Remote Lands travel agency in Thailand, said. “In many cases the tourists are simply wandering into town for dinner and are being asked to pay VND120,000 each just to get to a restaurant or bar. Even expats who live and work in Hoi An are being targeted,” he said in an email to Thanh Nien News. Mark Bowyer, publisher of the independent online tourism site Rusty Compass, said raising money to preserve and improve Hoi An’s heritage offerings is essential and the charge is reasonable for those visiting the historic houses, assembly halls and museums. "But placing uniformed security at all the town’s entrances will make it feel more like a prison camp than a heritage site. “By all accounts, the heavy handedness of the implementation is as bad as the policy itself. "It’s breathtakingly shortsighted to punish travelers who spend millions each year in the old town's tailors, restaurants and bars with a $6 tax for the right to part with their cash. There will be less cash in all Hoi An's coffers if this rule stays.” Outrage Over the past week tourists said they were surprised and disappointed with not only the aggressive guards but also the charge itself given that many people just wanted to walk, shop, or eat in the town. “It took just a week to disgrace Hoi An worldwide,” Mario Piazza said on Another side of Andy Newton, a New Zealander currently living in “But now something that we used to be able to do for free - simply walking around - we would have to pay for, with no additional services or benefits attached. It's a short sighted money grab. Feel free to waste your own money or let yourself be ripped off,” Local residents said they themselves were sometimes annoyed by the guards. A woman who owns a shop on Hoi An residents do not carry identification cards all the time to prove they are locals. Besides, there are many foreigners living and working in the town, she said. Short-term gains Truong Van Bay, deputy chairman of the Hoi An People’s Committee, said the admission fee had been calculated based on a finance ministry directive capping the entry fee at tourist spots to VND20,000. Thus, a foreigner is allowed to visit six tourist spots with their VND120,000 ($6) ticket while locals can see four with their VND80,000 ticket, he said. But Jim, a tourist from Another tourist, who did not reveal his name, said on the website, “Being regular visitors [to “Why would I pay VND120,000 just to eat mi Quang (Quang noodles) at the market for VND20,000? Makes no sense. There are plenty of alternatives in this wonderful country and we will now be encouraged to find them.” He hoped the Hoi An authorities would be wise enough not to “kill the goose that laid the golden egg.” Russell, the British tourism expert, said Hoi An authorities, if they need some extra money from visitors to help improve conditions and facilities in the old town, can do this in an indirect way by levying hotel or tour operator charges rather than create a bad impression by harassing visitors. “They also need to be transparent about how the money is being spent and account for every dollar to prove that it is being reinvested in maintaining the town. “When will the authorities start to learn from their more successful neighbors like Nguyen Van My, chairman of the HCMC- based Lua Viet Tours, told Thanh Nien News: “I’m really surprised to know that Hoi An, a shining point of Vietnam’s tourism, has a policy [of collecting fees to enter the town] which is against the general trend in other countries. “You can sell tickets for visiting a relic, a sightseeing spot, or other specific places. You shouldn't sell tickets to enter a town.” He said Hoi An authorities seem to care only for short-term gains and forget long-term benefits. Hoi An, which attracted around 1.25 million visitors last year, earned nearly VND80 billion from selling the entrance tickets. |
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Article 12
E-commerce sector rapidly expanding Vietnamese e-commerce sales are expected to hit more than US$4 billion in 2015, thanks to growing internet users, reports the
According to VECITA, which comes under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the value of e-commerce sales in With a population of 93 million, the ratio of Internet access for online shopping at 70 per cent will bring a revenue of approximately $4.3 billion. With a ratio of 65 per cent, it will reach $4.08 billion, and if the ratio is lower than 60 per cent, it will reach $3.7 billion. There are 61 per cent online buyers reported in 2013. Some 51 per cent of group purchasing websites and social networking websites accounted for 45 per cent and 19 per cent customers buy products through e-commerce. In addition, the percentage of online shoppers via applications installed on mobile devices reached 6 per cent. Of the total online shoppers, around 59 per cent are women and 41 per cent are men. In terms of occupation, managers and state employees are regular online buyers, accounting for 41 per cent. According to the report, this group is usually pressed for time, so they usually access the internet for online shopping. It is followed by students with 37 per cent and those directly involved in business and production activities, accounting for 7 per cent. The major products sold online were fashion and beauty related products at 62 per cent, furniture and electronics technology at 35 per cent, home appliances at 32 per cent, and airfares at 25 per cent. In VECITA's report revealed that currently, 10 most popular sites frequented by internet users were Vatgia.com, Alibaba.com, Ecna.vn, 5giay.vn,123mua.vn, Enbac.com, Chodientu.vn, muaban.net, Rongbay.com, and Ebay.vn. However, Nguyen Hoa Binh, the general director of Peacesoft noted that taking into consideration the vast population, Vietnamese e-commerce companies are tapping aggressively into a particular market of buoyant consumers, but he found that many e-commerce businesses have exploited the legal loopholes in e-commerce transactions to swindle customers, thus leading to discontent among online buyers. As a result, many customers decided to return back to the traditional way of shopping. Sharing this opinion, Tran Anh Tu, the manager of HC online electronics market stated that the unprofessional and disreputable behaviour of some e-commerce businesses have badly affected the reputation of authentic companies. Buyers are uncertain whether they will receive their ordered products after transferring money to these companies, Tu added. VNS |
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Article 11
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 25/4 AGPPS sells 1.9 million shares to farmers An Giang Plant Protection Joint Stock Company (AGPPS) has sold nearly 1.9 million shares at a preferential price to farmers nearly half a year after the company commenced its share issuance program. More than 1,700 farmers in the Mekong Delta region bought the shares at VND30,000 per share, equivalent to 50% of the market price as of Tuesday. AGPPS said the program helped it raise over VND56.3 billion. However, the program brought about a lower-than-expected result as the company initially targeted issuing roughly 2.48 million shares to 6,000 farmers in the region. Speaking at a function held in An Giang Province on Tuesday to grant shareholder books to farmers, chairman and general director of AGPPS Huynh Van Thon said this was a preparatory step of the company to equitize its food processing factories in different localities in the Mekong Delta. As AGPPS has given an average annual dividend of 30% to its shareholders over the years, the farmers as holders of the firm’s shares can have similar benefits. AGPPS was founded in 1993 with initial capital of VND750 million and 23 employees and went public in 2004. The company now has chartered capital of VND621 billion and over 3,000 employees. AGPPS has five rice processing factories in Chau Thanh and Thoai Son districts of An Giang Province, Vinh Hung District of Long An Province, Tan Hong District of Dong Thap Province and Hong Dan District of Bac Lieu Province. AGPPS plans to commission seven new rice processing factories with each having an annual capacity of 200,000 tons by 2018. The company’s paddy growing area is expected to reach 316,000 hectares that year. Total bad debt in HCMC has amounted to over VND45.8 trillion, or 4.85% of the banking system’s total outstanding loans, with debt in group 5 (potentially irrecoverable) making up more than 73%. According to a report obtained by the Daily at a meeting on the business performance of State-owned enterprises (SOE) here on April 17, total bad debt in the city has increased by over VND1.1 trillion compared to late last year. However, the ratio of debt in group 5 slightly slid compared to the 75.7% recorded late last year. Banks based in the city had reported total outstanding loans of VND954 trillion as of the end of March, up 8.3% year-on-year. In the first quarter, credit inched up a mere 0.57% against late last year. According to the central bank’s HCMC branch, foreign-currency loans moved up strongly while dong borrowing declined steadily. In end-February, outstanding dong loans reached VND790 trillion, down 1.38% against late 2013, while foreign-currency loans grew 2.96% at over VND155 trillion. Nguyen Hoang Minh, deputy director of the central bank’s HCMC branch, said credit growth had slowed due to low capital demand. Banks have also balked at extending new loans due to bad debt concerns. In the first quarter, the foreign-currency loans contributed hugely to credit growth as many importers took out foreign-currency credit. Enterprises in five priority fields – agriculture, export, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), supporting industries and high-tech firms – borrowed VND133 trillion, up nearly 5.4% from late 2013. Of the figure, SMEs took out over VND81.7 trillion, followed by agricultural firms with VND24.2 trillion, exporters VND19.2 trillion, firms in supporting industries VND7.2 trillion and high-tech firms VND506 billion. The enterprises are subject to a lending rate of no higher than 9% per annum. As of the end of March, the city’s total mobilization had amounted to nearly VND1,200 trillion, rising by 0.36% against late 2013 and 12.3% year-on-year, according to the central bank’s HCMC branch. Many SOEs in State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in HCMC earned total profit of over VND1.5 trillion in the first quarter this year, down a staggering 40% against the same period of 2013, according to a corporate finance agency under the HCMC Department of Finance. The city now has 108 SOEs, with 15 of them undertaking merger, dissolution or bankruptcy procedures. Speaking at a meeting in HCMC on April 17, a representative of the agency said many corporations and holding companies saw revenues tumble by double-digit rates in the Jan-March period. For instance, Saigon Real Estate Corporation reported a 20% drop due to poor sales, Saigon Cultural Products Corporation with a 13.6% decrease due to slow CD and DVD sales, Saigon Trading Corp. with a 20.5% decline, Saigon Jewelry Company with a 51.4% decrease due to no SJC gold bar processing orders from the central bank. Meanwhile, the pace of profit decline outpaced that of revenue fall at many SOEs in the city, with Saigon Real Estate Corporation reporting a 58% profit slump, Saigon Cultural Products Corporation nearly 26% and Saigon Trading Corporation 66%. In addition, many public services firms saw earnings shedding 30 to 80% in the period as public services were reduced, the agency said. In the first quarter of this year, SOEs in the city contributed over VND1.8 trillion to the State budget, a year-on-year decrease of 2%. The agency blamed low consumer demand on falling revenues at SOEs. Meanwhile, the protracted economic slump continued making inroads into the operations of the enterprises. Notably, HCMC Power Corporation incurred a loss of VND212 billion. HCMC chairman Le Hoang Quan said if SOEs kept doing poor business, the role of SOEs would be weakened to the point where they could not compete with private firms and foreign-invested enterprises, he noted. Quan said that local banks were trying to extend loans to enterprises to help them out of the woods. Private firms have made use of bank loans to renovate equipment and production while SOEs have yet to make fresh equipment investments. However, a number of SOES still reported strong revenue growth. For example, Cho Lon Investment & Export-Import Company saw its revenue surge nearly 46% thanks to revenues generated from its distribution of coffee of Trung Nguyen, milk, paper, and energy drinks of a Korean firm since June 2013. Saigon Agriculture Incorporation also posted an 18% rise in revenue. Airports Corporation of SMEs, farmers vulnerable to FTAs Many small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and farmers in Delegates at a seminar on the role of the National Assembly in FTA negotiations and implementation held in HCMC on April 17 delved into a host of possible measures to help SMEs and farmers cope with new difficulties. Tran Huu Huynh, head of the advisory committee for international trade policies under the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said the FTAs that For instance, there will be tough competition on the domestic farm produce market, so SMEs will likely get shocked if they are not well-prepared. In addition, some FTA member countries have set up technical barriers to protect their domestic markets. Vietnamese firms would face more international lawsuits such as anti-dumping ones in FTA markets in the future, Huynh said. Vo Tri Thanh, vice president of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM), said the TPP would bring about long-term benefits to However, husbandry farmers will suffer immediately. For instance, when Australian cow import taxes are slashed to 0%, local beef products may fail to compete. For trade defense, Thanh said this was an essential solution and must be applied at a right time. But, Huynh of the VCCI said that the National Assembly should weigh FTA implementation to see what citizens and enterprises could benefit. Enterprises and citizens should raise their voices during FTA negotiations to ensure their interests are protected. Nguyen Dinh Luong, former head of the Vietnam-U.S. trade agreement negotiation delegation, said the Government can support SMEs by giving them training and consulting. Pharmaceutical violators under fire Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien told the National Assembly Standing Committee that “all drugs failing to meet the standards outlined in their distribution agreements will be revoked and firms will have new registration numbers for their products ended.” “In the coming time, we will continue to boost inspections of pharmaceutical firms. Any violations will face severe punishment. Abuses that have already been uncovered involving the distribution and sale of poor quality pharmaceuticals have been strictly dealt with,” Tien said. The issue of poor quality pharmaceuticals has plagued Several international firms including Hong Kong’s Amoli Enterprises Ltd., and The Ministry of Health (MoH)’s Drug Administration recently announced that the firms had their registration dossiers suspended and also faced a pause in the granting of pharmaceutical distribution registration until January 24, 2016. The administration also stopped receiving registration dossiers for drug products made by XL Laboratories Pvt., Ltd. The administration also announced that this company had violated medicine regulations in Also in December 2013, the administration required the departments of health nationwide, These 37 firms, including XL Laboratories, were at that time found to have marketed bad quality products in Last October, the administration also halted receiving Valeant invests in Quebec-headquartered Valeant has successfully established a foothold in Valeant CEO Mike Pearson on a country briefing visit to He said The joint venture will expand the production facilities to better serve the Vietnamese market. The business aims to export its products to In Currently the joint venture has 480 staff members. The JV’s continual investment will include capital increases, new jobs, staff training, upgrading the IT system, expanding the distribution network and so on. Valeant is also bringing many of its experts from all over the world here to help raise the Vietnam software outsourcing sector grows strongly, in world’s top 10 Vietnamese software outsourcing companies have announced their first-quarter revenues rose by up to 34 percent compared to the same period of last year while an industry body says Only in the first three months, many local software companies received orders for the entire year and their 2014 revenues are expected to soar by up to 25 percent compared to a year earlier, the association said. The Tran Phuc Hong, managing director of TMA Solutions, another HCMC-based software firm, was quoted by newswire Saigon Times Online as saying that this year will be stable for the software outsourcing industry as most of the orders have been placed in the first quarter. TMA Solutions reported a 20 percent year-on-year growth in the January – March period, and has so far signed contracts for the full year of 2014, Hong added. Ngo Van Toan, deputy CEO of Global CyberSoft, also told the economic news website that his company enjoyed quarterly growth of 25 percent in comparison to the same period last year, thanks to orders from “The software outsourcing market remains stable and has the potential to grow further, with Software companies headquartered in These software outsourcers collectively generated VND678.1 billion (US$31.99 million) in revenue, a 34 percent year-on-year increase, the park’s chairman Chu Tien Dung told Saigon Times Online. Park companies are completing orders from 20 countries and their main markets are also Their software exports in the first quarter were worth $16.82 million, up 37.4 percent from a year earlier. Last year the industry’s revenue surpassed the $1 billion mark, 25 percent of which was contributed by exporting and outsourcing. FPT Software is the country’s largest software outsourcing company with 2013 revenues topping $100 million. The company is eying $150 million earnings for 2014. Foreign-invested garment firms show ambitious growth Scores of foreign invested enterprises in the textile and garment sector are looking to expand their presence in In late April or early May, Venture International JSC from the The $10 million factory has a designed production capacity of 150,000-210,000 jackets and two million shirts a year and would provide jobs to about 1,000 workers. Venture dropped anchor in The plant’s production line (protective clothing, fire-proof coats and specialised uniforms) are exported to The company’s director John Somers attributed rising customer demands to Venture’s planned factory in Nghe An. Venture is not the only company with big expansion plans. In The first project is from Worldon Vietnam Limited and is a $140 million garment plant with a planned output of 80 million items a year. The plant’s first phase is slated for completion in June 2015. The other project, invested by Sheico Vietnam Limited, will soon begin. It is a $50 million weaving and garment export project. Its first phase is expected to be completed by November this year. Other potential projects have been reported by Nam Dinh, QuangBinh and Dong Nai provinces. According to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas), now is an opportune time to push up garment and textile export as both the domestic and global markets are rebounding. This was evidenced by numerous garment and textile firms having already scored orders for the third and fourth quarters. Vitas, however, admitted that foreign invested garment and textile firms, though few in number, contribute up to 60 per cent of the sector’s total export value and their continuous expansion shows the widening gap between their development level and that of domestic enterprises. Nguyen Van Thoi, chairman of TNG Investment and Trading JS, forecasted “The sector’s export value could jump to $26 billion this year, up $4 billion against last year. Many enterprises already have full orders for 2014,” Thoi added. Crescent Mall recognised among top five in HCMC Crescent Mall, owned by Phu My Hung Development Corp., has been named one of the top five shopping centres in City authorities selected the top five from 12 shopping centres who registered for the 2013 competition and announced them last week. The other four were Vincom Centre Dong Khoi, TAX, Judgment criteria included size, location, design, customer service, promotion programmes, sales staff, and contributions to the community. Crescent Mall, managed by Savills At the moment Crescent Mall is home to numerous popular brands including Mango, Tommy Hilfiger, Gap and Bonia, as well as international supermarket chain Giant. Aeon to have new mall in Binh Duong Japanese-invested firm Aeon Vietnam has said it will open a new shopping mall in the southern Its operational Aeon Shopping Mall Tan Phu Celadon in Tan Phu District in HCMC needed total capital of US$106 million while the forthcoming facility in neighboring Binh Duong will cost less but have a larger area, Aeon general director Yasuo Nishitohge said. Aeon is working on a third mall plan in the country. The Long Bien shopping mall in Three months after the opening of the mall in Tan Phu District, Nishitohge said it had reported good sales. However, he admitted Aeon is facing an increasingly fierce competition from other store operators. More than one-third of products at the first Aeon mall are made in Those new products from Investments in weaving and dyeing facilities still meager Investments in weaving and dyeing facilities in Speaking to the Daily on the sidelines of a conference on French weaving technology in HCMC last week, Nguyen Van Tuan, vice chairman of the Vietnam Cotton and Spinning Association (VCOSA), said many investors entered in the local market last year but they were mostly involved in spinning and sewing activities. Textile production normally goes through three phases – spinning, weaving and dyeing (or finishing). For investments in the spinning segment, there were an additional one million new spindles last year, taking the total to 6.1 million which can turn out 720,000 tons of short fiber, 150,000 tons of long fiber and 1.4 billion square meters of cloth, according to the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS). Tuan at VCOSA said Last year According to Tuan, the industry is heavily dependent on outsourcing contracts with foreign partners (over 70%), so there is little chance of developing design and fashion segments. The size of In the long term, The world’s cloth output is 170 billion square meters at the moment, and with annual growth of 2%, an additional 3.4 billion square meters will be needed a year. Meanwhile, investors are making little or no investment in weaving and dyeing processes in Tuan said other Asian countries are shifting to fashion and retail, so Vietnam could be chosen as a venue for cloth production and that numerous enterprises in the country would import modern weaving and dyeing equipment to improve quality to export products to major markets. No gov’t role in VND50-trillion realty credit plan – SBV The State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has denied any Government role in a VND50-trillion credit program for the real estate sector recently announced by Vietnam Bank for Construction (VNCB). The central bank last Friday issued a statement asserting this lending program is a commercial one, so it is not associated with any subsidies from the State budget. The program is VNCB’s effort to set up a four-side linkage between investors, contractors, building material manufacturers and banks. Lending under the program depends on how customers can meet credit requirements such as project feasibility, economic efficiency and debt solvency; how banks can raise capital; and on agreements between VNCB and other lenders. Joining this program, banks will be able to keep track of how credit is used and to instill confidence in the construction sector, according to the central bank statement. The SBV stressed VNCB’s lending program is different from a four-side credit program which the central bank is planning to pilot and has no connection with the Government-initiated VND30-trillion preferential home loan program. However, both programs are aimed at reviving the distressed real estate market, reducing construction material stockpiles and settling bad debts in line with the Government’s Resolution 02. The central bank said in the statement that it encourages commercial banks to extend loans through this four-side format, consider new credit programs to help enterprises ride out the current woes, support the property market and reduce bad debts. The central bank said it supported VNCB’s credit program as it helps the housing and building material markets. However, VNCB will have to decide which banks to cooperate with and how much participating lenders can lend. VNCB will lend over VND10 trillion in the VND50-trillion program to 33 projects as earlier registered with the central bank. Ocean Dunes golfers seek compensation Members of Ocean Dunes golf course in The firm has plans to spend VND4 trillion developing the golf course into a residential area. Therefore, it has closed the golf course since April 1. Around 40 Ocean Dunes members gathered in HCMC last week to draft a formal request for compensation and will pass it to the Government Office, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and Among 220 members of Ocean Dunes, around 50 have agreed on their transfers to Sealinks golf course, also developed by Rang Dong, in Mui Ne area. The remaining members insisted the company either maintain Ocean Dunes golf course or make compensation equivalent to the full value of their membership cards. In November 2013, Phan Thiet City-based Rang Dong Company acquired the 62-hectare Ocean Dunes golf course for US$20 million. Last month, it won approval from the provincial government to convert the place into a residential area. On March 1, Rang Dong informed the golfers that the course would be closed as it had run up losses over the past 20 years, so its members would be transferred to Sealinks from early this month. Nguyen Van Dong, chairman of Rang Dong, said in a notice that members should bring the case to court if both sides reached no agreement. Speaking at the meeting last week, member Le Quang Liem, who has been playing golf at Ocean Dunes for six years, said the course is conveniently located and meets international standards. Liem said he would not move to Sealinks and that he wanted compensation for his membership card worth US$25,000 with a validity of 30 years. According to a member, Rang Dong would have to spend over US$4.2 million compensating 170 membership cards worth around US$25,000 each. Nguyen Manh Hung, deputy secretary of Binh Thuan’s provincial Party Committee, told the Daily that the committee had yet to approve the proposal for converting Ocean Dunes into a residential area. The committee is fielding suggestions from experts, former leaders and related agencies before making a decision on the matter, Hung said. Meanwhile, Rang Dong’s chairman Nguyen Van Dong told the Daily that the firm would compensate members who declined to move to Sealinks. However, it will deduct the years they had spent playing at Ocean Dunes. MoIT approves 25 billion VND for promotion programme The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has passed a package of 25.21 billion VND (about 1.2 million USD) for second phase of the national trade promotion programme in 2014, the Government news portal reported. The credit will assist trade promotion activities to develop market, export products and trade information in both domestic and foreign markets, heighten competence for enterprises and bring made-in-Vietnam products to urban, mountainous and border areas. Trade promotion activities will focus on organising expos to advertise promising sectors such as food processing, aquaculture and agricultural products to both traditional and potential markets such as the The programme will prioritise domestic trade promotion activities especially establishing a distribution channel in rural, mountainous, border and disadvantageous areas. Specifically, the programme supports six regional fairs and 128 projects which bring Vietnamese products to remote areas. Earlier, the previous national promotion programme in 2013 attracted over 6,000 enterprises with 572 signed contracts worth over 1.4 billion USD and over 1.8 million of visitors.- Prista Oil to co-operate on oil recycling plant The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at a symposium on exchanging experiences in managing and treating used oil that gathered experts from both nations and on the occasion of a visit paid by Bulgarian Prime Minister Plamen Vasilve Oresharski to The MoU specifically mentions co-operation in lube oil, a management and gathering system, and the technology to recycle the former into high quality products that are environmentally friendly. According to Oresharski, environmental protection is a challenging field that governments have no choice but to address. “ PetroVietnam’s general director Do Van Hau said that nearly every country had strict regulations on the treatment and recycling of used oil. “In the He pointed to the fact that “Improving this will not only work towards a better environment but also improving Vietnam’s image and reputation for high-technologies that help improve environmental production,” Hau said. Nguyen Xuan Son, general director of Petro Vietnam Oil Corporation, said “The country also lacks experience in the management, collection and recycling of used oil,” he added. Prista Oil is a leading oil and gas group in In Garment sector eyes localisation of inputs The domestic garment and textile industry aims to reach a localisation rate of 60 per cent by 2015 to increase profits and competitiveness, and reduce the need for the imports of raw materials, according to the vice president of the Viet Nam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex). Le Trung Hai, who spoke with the media during the recent Hai said this effort was being made to increase the export value of the industry, which depends heavily on imported raw materials and outsourcing for its major foreign clients. The move to increase the localisation rate is especially important because To enjoy low tax from these trade agreements, In addition to increasing the localisation rate, domestic garment and textile companies are also aiming to increase the Free on Board (FOB) rate from the current 38 per cent to more than 50 per cent by 2015. Moreover, the Original Designed Manufacturer (ODM) rate would rise to nearly 10 per cent by 2015 from the current rate, which is now under 5 per cent. To achieve the targets, many projects to develop raw materials are being carried out nationwide. According to Vinatex, many cotton farms with a size of up to 1,500 ha now exist in provinces like Dac Lac and Ninh Thuan. Vinatex worked with the Viet Nam Oil and Gas Group to produce materials to weave fabric, and the industry as a whole has hired and worked with foreign experts to set up projects to develop regions to plant raw materials. In addition, construction of many weaving plants nationwide has taken place. In 2013, export turnover of the industry reached US$20.4 billion, an increase of 18 per cent year-on-year. Procurement law set to lock in domestic bias for drug sales A new regulation on drug purchase priorities in the revised Law on Public Procurement will help protect local drug producers. Adopted by the National Assembly last November and to take effect on July 1, the law stipulates that all locally-made drugs meeting the Ministry of Health’s requirements on treatment, prices and supply can be put out to tender and that equivalent imported drugs will not be allowed to go to tender. Last year “Any bidding dossier that includes imported drugs will be rejected. As we can now produce many types of drugs locally, we will not allow the same products from foreign manufacturers,” said Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Public Procurement Department head Le Van Tang. Under Article 50, drug tenders will receive incentives when they engage in local or international bidding to supply drugs of which domestic production cost is at least 25 per cent of the products’ total cost. Drug producers with at least 25 per cent female or 25 per cent wounded veterans or disabled people as a proportion of their workforce would also be given priority, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises. “The government will describe these priorities in more detail,” Tang said, adding “These regulations will have local drug producers rejoicing, but will enrage drug importers.” “We are happy with this regulation, as it helps protect locally-produced pharmaceuticals, which have faced serious competition from imported products,” said Le Van Truyen, former Deputy Minister of Health and a representative for SAVI Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company. A representative from Lynh Pharma, which imports around 40 types of drugs into “All active elements for drug making in She said According to her, in the coming months local authorities will apply regulations on examining all imported drugs before they receive customs clearance. The new regulations are expected to be a big challenge for importers, as it will take several months for the complete examination of a single drug. “These examinations are going to be a major burden on importers,” the representative said. Under According to London-headquartered proprietary data, analysis and ratings provider Business Monitor International, High-end sales get liquidity boost High-end apartments are still selling despite not being targeted by the government’s real estate stimulus package. According to CBRE Vietnam, high-end apartments worth more than VND30 million ($1,400) per square metre were showing improved liquidity. A CBRE quarterly report claimed the market had shown more activity than normal despite the traditionally post-lunar new year period. Meanwhile Ngo Thi Huong Giang, senior manager of Research and Consultancy at Savills “High-end projects are trying to woo customers. The Ministry of Construction reported that in the first two months of this year, In reality, the improvement of high-end apartment sales began at the end of last year. Good sales have also been seen at At Indochina Plaza Hanoi, 11 units were sold in the first quarter of this year, despite the price tag of VND51 million ($2,400) per square metre. This project attracted customers because of its special buy-to-lease deal with the commitment of a turnover of VND400 million ($18,786) per year per unit, or from 7 to 8 per cent of return on investment annually. Indochina Plaza Hanoi has only 29 unsold units while Thang Long Number One and Mandarin Garden claim only 10 per cent of their units are left for sale and these were units over 100 square metre each. According to CBRE Vietnam’s executive director Richard Leech, good brands and almost finished products were unsurprisingly popular choices. Due to the limitation of high-rise buildings in the centre of the city, during the last year, only D.’ Le Pont D’or - Hoang Cau high-end apartment project began construction. Excluding major projects such as Due to the limited supply, projects owners are maintaining high prices. The According to Pham Thanh Hung, deputy chaiman of Cen Group, the price of high-end apartments had been maintained in city centre locations such as Ba Dinh, Hoan Kiem, Dong Da and Hai Ba Trung districts thanks to many customers wanting to benefit from good infrastructure facilities despite the limited housing stock. This requirement meant that despite the available properties in further flung districts such as Ha Dong, Tu Liem and Hoang Mai, their location would act against them due to poorer quality services and local infrastructure in their localities. In addition, Masterplan backlog plagues capital According to Nguyen Van Thinh, head of the Administration Department of the Hanoi People’s Committe, due to changes to the Hanoi Master Plan some of the projects had been halted to await instructions from the committee. Thinh also said that other projects were idle due to the downturn in the real estate market. “Many developers aren’t pursuing their projects as they are waiting for a more vibrant market,” Thinh added. “The committee has reviewed projects and reminded developers to stay on schedule, but this is very difficult for them right now,” he said. Tran Anh Dung, head of the Inspectorate under the Minaistry of Natural Resources and Environment said many of the delayed projects were located in areas being re-envisioned by city planners. “We will review all delayed projects and those which are suspended for obvious reasons will be allowed to extend their timetables,” he explained. He added that any project that has been idle for a long period would get from three to six months from April 1 to restart. If their work fails to resume, they would face potential shut-down. Several well-known delayed properties include a Financial and Trading complex invested in by TSQ Vietnam in Ha Dong district, and Petrowaco apartment tower on Notable partially-finished suspended projects include Foreign-backed projects face the same issue. Even major projects such as Korean-backed Booyoung Vina in Ha Dong, and the Pacific Land Vietnam’s Habiotech project in Nam Thang Long area and a retail, office, apartment and sports centre backed by Russia’s Togi Vietnam in Me Linh district. According to the latest figures from Savills According to the Ministry of Construction (MoC), there were more than 300 real estate projects nationwide that had been suspended due to lack of finance. The country now has 3,258 active real estate projects. Many of those, the MoC noted, could be restructured as smaller apartments for lower income buyers. The Hanoi People’s Committee recently announced that it would not consider new commercial housing project proposals until the end of this year. The official figures released show that The committee is also allowing developers to convert their commercial housing projects into social housing projects, to resolve current market stagnation. Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR |
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Article 10
Political News Headlines 25/4 PM welcomes Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has reiterated
He issued the statement while receiving new Ambassador of Brunei Pengiran Haji Sahari Bin Pengiran Haji Salleh in Ha Noi yesterday, April 24. The government leader proposed holding the first session of the Highlighting the importance of maintaining peace, stability, freedom, and maritime and aviation security in the East Sea, PM Dung suggested Brunei and the relevant countries to continue asserting ASEAN's stance, mentioned in its Declaration on Six-point Principles on the East Sea. He called for peaceful settlement of disputes, which is in line with the international law, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, while fully realising the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the The ambassador vowed to liaison with Vietnamese and Steering committee for int’l integration set up A National Steering Committee for International Integration will be up and running soon under a decision signed by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on April 23. The PM-led committee will include Deputy PMs Pham Binh Minh, Vu Van Ninh and Vu Duc Dam, who will lead respective commissions for international integration in terms of politics, national defence and security; economics; culture, social affairs, science, technology and education-training. The body will consist of four permanent members: the Head of the Government Office, the Foreign Minister, the Minister of Industry and Trade and the Minister of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs. Eight other members are leaders from the ministries of Public Security, Planning and Investment, Finance, Justice, Science and Technology, Education and Training, and Culture, Sports and Tourism. The committee is tasked with helping the PM devise orientations, strategies and solutions for international integration. It will assist the Government and the PM in directing ministries, government agencies and provincial and municipal People's Committees to effectively realise relevant policies and guidelines. The committee is also required to make periodical reports on its activities to submit to the Politburo, the Secretariat, the Government and the PM. Defence Minister meets Chinese wartime supporters Defence Minister Phung Quang Thanh on April 24 hosted a reception in His guests also included the family of Nguyen Son, the General of both During the reception, Minister Thanh said the Vietnamese Party, State, army and people always remember and thank their Chinese partners, especially advisors and experts, for their great support for He said he hopes that the two countries will exchange visits more frequently, thus further strengthening their friendship. On behalf of the guests, Vice Chairman of the Deputy defence minister bids farewell to Deputy Defence Minister, Sen. Lieut. Gen Nguyen Chi Vinh, has attributed the productive Receiving outgoing Colonel Naing thanked Vietnamese agencies for helping him fulfil assigned tasks, confirming that he will do more for defence ties between the two nations in his next position. Lao PM meets Vietnamese teachers The Lao Party, State and people are extremely grateful to The Lao Prime Minister made the statement during a reception for former Vietnamese teachers, who provided education for many generations of Lao students in the past. The host also recalled the time when he lived and studied in He said that apart from educating a large number of Lao students, At present, Vietnamese guests said they will continue to educate Vietnamese and Lao generations on the traditional friendship and special solidarity between the two countries. Nations discuss parliamentary operations The organisation, operation and functions of a legislative body are being discussed at a two-day international conference, beginning on April 24 in Parliamentarians from Based on international experience shared during the conference, Vietnamese delegates are expected to propose suggestions to perfect regulations in the revised draft Law on the Organisation of the National Assembly (NA), which will be submitted to the 13th NA at its upcoming seventh meeting. The Director of NILS, Dinh Xuan Thao, said that amendments to the draft law will be aligned with the 2013 Constitution. Within the framework of the conference, delegates will visit Hanoi ceremony marks South Africa’s Freedom Day The South African Embassy in South African Ambassador Kgomotso Ruth Magau said the lives of millions of people in the country have changed since 1994, and She affirmed that At the function, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat said He voiced his belief that Their two-way trade hit 920 million USD in 2013 from 722.6 million USD in 2012, according to the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Source: VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA |
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Article 9
Red-headed cranes return to  Thirty red-headed cranes have returned to the Thousands of birds flying in the blue sky over the green forests and rivers is the scene millions of travelers have witnessed when visiting the These are a part of the outcome of the biodiversity conservation project co-implemented by Coca-Cola and WWF (World Wildlife Fund) over the last several years. The water levels in the different areas of the national park have been adjusted in a reasonable way so as to preserve the biodiversity in environments with different conditions. Special attention has been paid to develop co nang (Eleocharis atropurpurea), the main food source of red-headed cranes. The cranes are currently on the brink of extinction, and are listed in the Red Book of Endangered Species by its publisher, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Scientists have warned that the density of red-handed cranes has decreasing significantly due to the narrowed habitat and diminished food supply. Local newspapers some days ago quoted a report of International Crane Foundation (ICF) as saying that most of the members of the red-headed crane flock have left The organization, which conducts regular surveys on red-headed crane communities in the world, has warned about the gradual decline in the number of cranes in Dr Tran Triet, the coordinator of the project, who keeps watch over the crane population, noted that the number of cranes dropped dramatically in this year’s survey, to its 14-year deepest low. The efforts of the project’s implementers have helped increase the number of red-headed cranes. Scientists have noted that 30 cranes retuned to Tram Chim in the months from January to March. Nam Hong, who has spent 20 years of his life in The project has been welcomed by the local residents, because it not only helps conserve the biodiversity, but also improve their living standards. The poor people living in the areas next to the The Dong Thap provincial People’s Committee has opened 900 hectares of land for natural resources exploitation. People are allowed to enter the area for such activities as fishing and picking vegetables. Huynh Van Giup, a farmer in Kim Mai, |
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Article 8
Vietnam plans to develop $16.7mn passenger port on Phu Quoc Island
The Vietnam Maritime Administration is seeking approval from the Ministry of Transport for a multi-million dollar project to set up an international passenger ship port on the southern island of Phu Quoc
The harbor is slated to be located in An Thoi Bay on the island, around 190km west off the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang, the Vietnam Maritime Administration said in a report recently submitted to the transport ministry.
The proposed port will be able to receive 225,282-GRT passenger ships capable of carrying 4,000 to 6,000 passengers, according to the maritime body.
A GRT, or gross register ton, is a ship's total internal volume expressed in "register tons," one of which equals a volume of 100 cubic feet (2.83 m3).
The port will cover an area of 13,743 square meters and is estimated to cost VND353.9 billion (US$16.7 million).
Geographically speaking, Phu Quoc sits on the operation routes of 19 international passenger ship operators when they travel along the Singapore – Thailand – Vietnam
The lack of a port capable of docking large ships may discourage international passengers from exploring the island.
Giant passenger ships currently have to dock offshore and tourists have to travel to the island via canoes, which the maritime administration said is unsafe and inconvenient for them.
It has been predicted that Phu Quoc will welcome from 105,000 to 190,000 visitors a year via passenger ships from now to 2020, and the band could widen to 350,000-550,000 in the following decade.
Tuoitrenews
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Article 7
Inbound tours increase sharply on National Day(VOV) -The number of visitors booking tours for the upcoming five-day holiday is on the rise, despite a hefty increase of 20%-30% in prices. According to travel agents, hotels in key tourist attractions such as Danang, Sapa and Ha Long have been fully booked days before the holiday. “I booked a hotel in Sapa five months ago, but the receptionist said the reservation got lost and they have no more rooms,” said Hong Nhung, a disenchanted traveler living in “Some hotels still have rooms but the price is much too expensive, often a two fold increase compared to other days,” she said. “We have bought train tickets, and have no choice but to pay a much higher price.” For short trips, tourists tend to choose several northwestern localities including Dien Bien, Son La, Moc Chau, and Ha Giang to enjoy the breathtaking scenery in the seasonal change, comfortable weather and distinctive dishes of various ethnic groups. Tour prices fluctuate between around VND1 million-VND4 million.
Tours to Phu Quoc, Nha Trang and Danang always attract a huge number of visitors with the cost of VND 5 million and VND10 million for 5 days. These tour prices have surged by 30%-35% on average due to the increase in transport costs. Inbound up, outbound down Few people have chosen tours overseas on this occasion, and travel firms say many families have still tightened their belt due to economic difficulty. Travel companies are even offering discount packages of up to 50% for overseas tours to attract more visitors. Visitors are keen on 4-5 day tours to Hanoi Tourist reports that discounted tours to VOV |
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Article 6
Gemadept Logistics claims no fears over foreign rivalsAs of January 11,
Pham Hong Hai, director of Gemadept Logistics, explained to VIR what market changes were expected from the move. What is your opinion on competition in Competition will be fiercer as foreign third-party logistics (3PL) providers are now allowed to offer all services. But domestic businesses with good foundations will see new opportunities to co-operate and develop. Do you mean to say that domestic firms will partner up with foreign logistics providers? In fact, foreign logistics firms have been active in With such a long history of co-operation, do you think foreign firms will move into opening their own subsidiaries here? Yes, they have long co-operated, but with the market now totally open, many foreign firms want a majority stake in their joint ventures. Foreign logistics firms are setting up subsidiaries here and I believe they will continue to expand their investments and operations to other areas such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals-cosmetics, fashion, high-technology and auto parts. How many companies in According to the Vietnam Logistics Business Association, What is your assessment of the market’s potential? It has huge potential. When the economy recovers and consumption increases, the demand for transportation and distribution of goods will also increase. Meanwhile, more and more producers want to specialise their operations. They want to focus on production and sales, so they tend to transfer other operations such as distribution and transport to logistics companies. Is Gemadept afraid to compete? Gemadept has carefully prepared its human resources and has the necessary technology and infrastructure to compete with our foreign rivals. We have invested in software to manage our warehouses and transportation and we carefully monitor goods. This year we will expand our operations in the north and central regions. Several major foreign and domestic retailers are our customers, including Logistics and managing seaports are our core areas of business, with the former accounting for 67.4 per cent of the company’s total revenues and 33.3 per cent of total profits, while the latter accounts for the rest. These percentages are changing as our work with seaports has started bringing in bigger revenues and profits. VIR |
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Article 5
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 27/4 Stakeholders in a joint venture to construct a bonded warehouse and oil pipeline running from Quang Binh central province’s Hon La island to The four stakeholders in the venture include Laos Petro Joint Stock Company, Slovakian Energy Commodities, the Association of Vietnamese Investors in Laos (AVIL), and Truong Thinh group. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Lao Finance Minister Liane Thykeo highlighted the significance of the project, saying it will help He pledged to create the best possible conditions to effectively implement the project and said he anticipates it will make a remarkable contribution to poverty reduction and economic growth in the nation. “This is a practical activity nurturing and strengthening the time-honoured friendship, comprehensive cooperation and special solidarity between The Vietnamese Ministry of Finance will work hard to improve the investment environment to raise the efficiency of projects and bring long-term benefits to Japanese investors in Finance Minister Dinh Tien Dung made the commitment at a conference on promoting Japanese investment in Dung said the conference created a chance for Vietnamese agencies and businesses to learn from Japanese recommendations to finalise policies and create a sound, healthy and transparent investment environment. Organising the conference shows With many Vietnamese businesses attending the event, the Vietnamese Ministry of Finance wants to help them to meet potential Japanese investors to support business restructuring, increase capital, and seek strategic investors, he said. Through the conference, he said, Tetsuya Inoue, Head of the Technology and Market Research Department at the Nomura Research Institute, said the recent burgeoning of However, he said Japanese investors are keeping a close watch on these positive signs, as well as the government’s efforts in speeding up the restructuring of State-owned enterprises (SOEs) and making its monetary market healthier. To attract Japanese investors, he suggested To date The national economy has bottomed out since the third quarter of 2013 and is now on track to recovery, according to the National Financial Supervisory Commission (NFSC). A NFSC report shows the economy has kept inflation at a low rate, stabilised the currency market, lowered deposit rates, and brought the dolarisation of the economy under control, thus consolidating investor trust. Industrial production has begun to gain steam as material imports for production rose and inventory decreased. The committee is optimistic about the country’s economic growth in 2014 thanks to improvements in aggregate demand, private investment, and exports. It forecasts the economy will grow by 5.8% and inflation will stay at 5%, without calculating fluctuations in the prices of food, essential products and public services. However, it says the economy still faces a number of challenges, including slow improvements in aggregate demand, difficulties in agricultural production, and heavy reliance on the foreign direct investment (FDI) sector. The NFSC affirms that the restructuring of credit organisations has obtained initial results, helping the banking system perform more stably. In addition, favourable economic policies have helped fuel aggregate demand and credit growth. Vietnam finishes in top four of CFA Research Challenge The CFA Institute of Singapore, an academic leader in financial and investment management, has cited This is the third time the Vietnamese team has participated in the event, but only the first time the team has finished in the top four. The University of the Rounding out the top four were the University of Foreign Trade ( Nguyen Ngoc Trang, a member of Vietnamese team was very pleased that the team clinched such a high finish at the contest thanks to tireless efforts. The contest launched by the CFA Institute has provided students with factual knowledge on financial analysis and experiences from predecessors as well as improving their presentation skills, Trang said. Ly Lam Duy, an expert from the Duy expressed hope that a CFA Vietnam will be established in the future in order to support students nationwide with the opportunity to pursue post –graduate studies. This year, 3,700 students from 825 universities around the world attended the regional competition which was ongoing from March 2013 to April 2014. Ha Long trade and tourism fair opens A trade fair kicked off in Ha Long city in the northern border The week-long event, part of the annual Ha Long Carnival aims to promote the regions tourism appeal, aiming to create opportunities for local businesses to advertise their products, study market trends, seek trade partners and entice investment in the region. This year’s event features a wide array of high-quality Made-in-Vietnam products and services such as garment and textiles, machinery, electronics, farm produce, processed food products, home appliances, interior furniture, handicrafts, and high-tech products. Many tour and travel agencies take advantage of the occasion to introduce a variety of the more popular tourism packages, with a focus on touting the region’s fine resorts, entertainment, shopping, and cuisine. A project converting Hoa Tien commune in the central city of The project has been carried out by the municipal People’s Committee and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) since November 2011. It is funded with some US$500,000 by the India-Brazil-South Africa Dialogue Forum Fund. In three crops, it has tested 10 new rice varieties over nearly nine hectares, before selecting four which will be cultivated on a larger scale. After each crop, the Agricultural Science Institute for the Southern Central Coast of Vietnam and the project managing unit instructed farmers how to grow new varieties, the conference heard. FAO representative Jong Ha Bea said the project aims to raise rice producing and processing capacity in order to increase value. In the next six months, FAO will help Hoa Tien extend the cultivation area so as to soon build a brand name for the rice hailing from the commune, he noted. Meanwhile, in the short term, the project will work with the Department of Crop Cultivation, FAO and other relevant sides to complete a rice laboratory in Hoa Tien. US – major importer of Vietnamese Tra fish The Vietnamese Tra fish exports to the In late March, the US Department of Commerce announced its final determination on the imposition of anti-dumping tariffs on Vietnamese Tra fish imported into the In accordance with the decision, some Vietnamese businesses enjoyed relatively low import duties, meaning Vietnamese Tra fish exports will most likely resume back to normal in the near future. Also in March, the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) along with a representative delegation of seafood processors attended a North America Seafood Fair 2014 in Delegates learned that the The average price of Tra fish exported to the Meanwhile, according to Progressive Grocer Magazine, the Leading US experts and market analysts are optimistic that turnover from the retail seafood sector will keep rising this year. FDI reaches nearly US$5 bln in four months About 530 FDI projects have been licensed in the reviewed period, including 390 new ones capitalized at US$3.22 billion, according to the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment. The manufacturing and processing sector led in attracting foreign investment with 204 new projects at US$3.6 billion, accounting for 74.3% of the total. Real estate ranked second with 7 projects at US$392.3 million, making up 8.1%, followed by construction with US$237 million (making up 4.9%) and health care and social support (US$225.93 million). The At present, Binh Duong topped the localities in FDI attraction, followed by About US$4 billion in FDI has been disbursed in the four month period, a year-on-year increase of 6.7%, said the Foreign Investment Agency. Businesses tipped to penetrate EU market Vietnamese businesses are advised to carefully study the EU’s demand and distribution network to adopt an appropriate access approach, a seminar in The EU has always been an important trade partner of Total two-way turnover reached over US$33.7 billion in 2013, a year-on-year increase of 16%. Of the total, However, Vietnamese goods exported to the EU are overly dependent on foreign businesses operating in The capacity of The business community needs to study and learn the distribution process utilised by the EU in order to effectively compete on an equal footing, delivering higher quality and higher added value products as an alternative strategy to strictly price competition. This will dramatically increase the number of domestic companies actively participating in the export marketplace, bolstering This is particularly important in the context of ongoing negotiations for a bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA) which are expected to conclude later this year, Thuong concluded. At the seminar, delegates delved into effective distribution systems, procedures, EU import regulations, and EU market demand and lively discussions regarding the advantages and disadvantages to Vietnamese business. The event was co-organized by the Department of Europe Market under the Ministry of Industry and Trade and European Trade Policy and Investment Support Project (EU-MUTRAP). EPZs, IPs face labour shortage Labour shortage is one of the headaches faced by companies in industrial parks (IPs) and export-processing zones (EPZs) in Labour demand in the city’s IPs and EPZs rose slightly in the first quarter of this year, especially for unskilled labourers, which is attributable to a number of workers having quit jobs in the year to date and operational enterprises’ strong need for production expansion, said the Saigon Times Daily. The demand at local enterprises in EPZs and IPs was estimated at about 17,130 workers in the first quarter, particularly in textile-garment and footwear-leather industries. Meanwhile, the job placement and corporate assistance centre of Hepza could only introduce 1,480 candidates to these employers but only 450 of them met employers’ recruitment requirements. Despite the rising employment demand, the city has seen a labour undersupply in EPZs and IPs. To deal with the situation, the Hepza centre has worked with the Voice of HCM City (VOH) to air information about recruitments by enterprises at IPs and EPZs in the city in the latter’s radio programmes. Besides, to ensure a sustainable labour supply, the centre has also joined forces with vocational schools and other localities to organise training courses for workers. For instance, the centre and the Military Region 9 Vocational School in the Mekong Delta Also, the centre has counselled job seeking skills or organised job fairs for students from Currently, there are around 1,290 investment projects in local EPZs and IPs with total registered capital of over 8 billion USD. The current number of employees at these IPs and EPZs are roughly 269,800, dropping by more than 4,200 compared to the same period in 2013. Local shipping firms effectively tap domestic routes Local shipping firms have effectively tapped domestic market, the Vietnam Investment Review (VIR) reported on April 16. In an effort to address the redundancy of Vietnamese container ships, in late March 2013 the Ministry of Transport (MoT) released Document 128/TB-BGTVT to stop 20 foreign flag-carrying ships capable of carrying 500,000 dead weight tonnage (DWT) from operating on domestic routes. The policy was very helpful to local shipping firms. They had a good chance to regain market share of shipping lines that have an estimated value of 1 trillion VND (47 million USD) per year. “It’s difficult for foreign ship owners to go against the decision, as it is defended by both the Maritime Law and WTO commitments on safeguarding the transportation rights of member states,” said Bui Thien Thu, Deputy Chairman of the Vietnam Maritime Administration (VMA). Thu said most ship owners were satisfied with the competence and quality of transport services provided by local shipping firms in domestic shipping lanes. The policy came at a critical time as 2,200 labourers from Vinalines – a national shipping leader – sat unemployed for the first six months of last year. “Most of Vinalines’ container ships are now working stably in domestic shipping lanes,” said Bui Viet Hoai, the company’s deputy general director. The VMA was required by the MoT to work with Vinalines, the Vietnam Shipowners’ Association and local ship owners to ensure goods were shipped quickly. The shipping cost for a 20-foot container on According to Le Viet Tien, director of Vinalines’ subsidiary Vietnam Ocean Shipping Joint Stock Company (VOSCO), though the firm was only achieving break-even on its expenses, they accepted this given that their ships and sailors were back to work. Not only Vinalines, but also other shipping firms are running local routes such as This has been a good chance for shipping firms to prove to ship owners that they can effectively operate the domestic [container shipping] market without foreign players,” said Vinalines’ deputy general director Bui Viet Hoai. Thai Nguyen sees strong foreign investment growth The foreign-invested sector has highlighted the northern Thai Nguyen province's upbeat economic picture in the first quarter of 2014, according to the municipal Department of Planning and Investment. As per statistics revealed by the department, the province had attracted US$205.6 million in foreign direct investment (FDI) from 15 newly licensed projects and 4 operating ones, thereby raising their levels of capital investment in the January-March period. This had resulted in the province ranking fifth in the country's leading localities in terms of FDI investment. During the reviewed period, disbursement of FDI had reached over US$174 million, 81 times higher than the figure noted in the same period last year, it claimed. The strong growth in the period's FDI disbursement was attributable to greater efforts by the local authorities in speeding up land clearance and simplifying administrative procedures as a move to create favourable conditions for foreign investors, Dang Xuan Truong, the department director informed Viet Nam Economic News. Truong also forecast that the FDI disbursement will continue to increase and is estimated to top between US$800 million and US$1 billion by the year-end. Last year, Thai Nguyen led localities in FDI investment, raking in about US$3.3 billion and constituting 16.1 per cent of the country's total figure of US$21.6 billion. Apart from successfully attracting the largest FDI investment last year, the province was also an ideal destination for Samsung Group's three investment projects. To succeed in attracting FDI, Thai Nguyen took various steps to improve its investment environment with eight major solutions related to laws and policies, planning, infrastructure, human resources, site clearance, administrative reform, and investment promotion, elaborated the provincial People's Committee Chairman Duong Ngoc Long. Thanks to the implementation of a series of Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) improvement measures, Thai Nguyen has enhanced the investment environment remarkably, climbing up from 57th position among the 63 provinces and cities across the country in PCI terms in 2011 to 44th in 2012 and 17th in 2013. VAMA proposes using int’l fuel consumption results The Vietnam Auto Manufacturers Association (VAMA) has proposed Vietnamese authorities accept the fuel consumption test results that are internationally recognized when vehicles are required to display a fuel consumption label next year. Metelo Jesus Arias, general director of Ford He, however, said there should be a workable road map and guidelines from authorities on how to implement the new requirement, test standards, label templates and a label display location. Besides, procedures for certifying a car’s fuel consumption should be kept simple. According to VAMA, the authorities should recognize internationally approved test results of fuel consumption conducted by automakers and importers. Some countries have fuel consumption labeling rules in place, which are designed to classify vehicles and display information about fuel consumption, emissions, or amounts of money saved in five years. Under the Ministry of Transport’s new circular, with effect from next year, passenger vehicles of less than seven seats, which are domestically manufactured/assembled and imported, will have to display fuel consumption labels. As planned by Vietnam Register, the fuel consumption label would be put on the front windscreen, containing information about automaker, assembler, importer, and fuel consumption. Domestically manufactured/assembled cars certified to meet technical safety and environment requirements by next year will have to display the label as from 2016. Leading European retailer likely to open store at I-Home building C.T Group has said it has worked with a major European retail firm over a plan to open a commercial center on the ground floor of I-Home apartment project under construction in HCMC’s Go Vap District. The foreign retailer has come to the site of the apartment project for inspection and the forthcoming opening of the store would add value to the apartments, according to C.T Group. I-Home is located on Pham Van Chieu Street and consists of three blocks with around 500 units of 47-76 square meters whose prices range from VND630 million to VND1.1 billion. The first block has the first 11 floors complete at the moment while the third floors of the other two blocks have just been finished. Apartment buyers can take delivery by the end of this year. FPT Software seeks 900 more engineers FPT Software HCMC Co. Ltd said it has plans to recruit 900 software engineers this year as part of a strategy for expanding its business operations and boosting its work force to 5,000 people by 2018. FPT Software HCMC posted last year’s revenue of more than US$21 million compared to US$1.4 million 10 years ago when the company was established. In the past decade, it has registered annual revenue growth of around 30%. Nguyen Thanh Lam, general director of FPT Software HCMC, told the Daily that the firm now has more than 100 customers, including Japanese clients who always have high requirements for products. According to the Ministry of Information and Communications, On the local front, FPT Software HCMC has signed cooperation agreements with big enterprises operating in FPT Software HCMC is the biggest Vietnamese investor in the Retailers seek to attract buyers via installment plans Struggling with sluggish sales, retailers are joining hands with producers of home appliances to roll out attractive installment plans with low interest rates to woo customers. FPT Shop, The Gioi Di Dong (Mobile World) and Vien Thong A are among the retailers that are offering installment plans as a measure to improve their sales. FPT Retail said three consumer credit providers ACS, Home Credit and FE Credit of Vietnam Prosperity Bank (VPBank) had joined forces to help customers pay by installment for the products they buy at FPT Shop store chain. The monthly interest rates this month are 1.49%-2.2% at ACS, 0.93%-4.13% at PPF and 1.51%-4.31% at FE Credit. This month, the firm supports part of the interest rates for buyers of tablets, cellphones and laptops so they can enjoy a rate of 1.49% per month. FPT Retail said credit card holders of ANZ and Saigon Thuong Tin Commercial Bank (Sacombank) could benefit from an installment payment program with a zero interest rate at all FPT Shop outlets. The Gioi Di Dong (Mobile World) and other retailers in However, customers are advised to thoroughly examine terms and conditions of those installment plans on offer at retail shops as well as consumer loans as annual interest rates could amount to 51-60% in certain cases. 15 satellite cities to go up in SKEZ Fifteen satellite cities will be developed between now and 2030 in the Southern Key Economic Zone (SKEZ) to create closer links between localities in this region, including HCMC, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh, Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Long An and Tien Giang. The planned satellite cities will be Nhon Trach, Long Thanh, Tam Phuoc, Hiep Phuoc, Cu Chi, Duc Hoa, Trang Bom, An Lac, Nha Be, Can Gio, Di An-Thuan An, Tan An, Go Cong, Ben Luc and Can Giuoc, according to a master zoning plan on HCMC’s socio-economic development until 2020 with a vision towards 2025. Approved by the Prime Minister last December, the plan is associated with another master zoning plan on socio-economic development for the SKEZ by 2020 with an orientation towards 2030 given the Prime Minister’s approval in February this year. Under the master zoning plans, the SKEZ will be developed with different central districts in order to drive development of surrounding areas to ease pressure for the existing business center in HCMC. Besides the 15 future satellite cities, the southern focal economic zone will have around 580 expressway kilometers and 80% of the roads in rural areas will be improved by 2020. At the same time, the north-south railway running to HCMC will be upgraded and connected to major seaports and economic zones. The expressway sections in the southern focal economic zone will be HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay, HCMC-Thu Dau 1-Chon Thanh, HCMC-Trung Luong, Bien Hoa-Vung Tau and Ben Luc-Nhon Trach-Long Thanh. The zone is expected to be home to 21-22 million people with an urbanization rate of 65% by 2020. Its annual GDP growth is projected at 8-8.5% from 2011 to 2015 and some 8.5-9% in 2016-2020. Domestic ships transport more cargo The cargo volume transported by domestic ships has increased by 10-12% versus the period before April 1, 2013, when the Ministry of Transport stopped renewing container transport licenses and awarding new certificates to the ships which are not Vietnamese-flagged. According to the Vietnam Maritime Administration, the domestic fleet operating on local routes had increased from 19 to 26 vessels as of April 1. Furthermore, some new routes had been in place, helping a number of enterprises reduce losses or make gains. Experts, however, said that the performance of ships on domestic routes is still mired in hardship due to cargo imbalances between the north and the south. Last year, the Haiphong-HCMC route saw scarce shipments with demand meeting just 50-60% of ships’ capacity while the ratio of the opposite route exceeded 90%. Therefore, local vessels had to transport empty containers of foreign ships as a way to improve earnings. Relevant agencies said there had not been goods backlogs at seaports since the prohibition took effect. The domestic market had been dominated by foreign shipping firms before April 1, 2013, when the Ministry of Transport prohibited foreign ships from plying on domestic routes to help the Vietnamese fleet cope with difficulties. Cars in Vietnamese consumers have to buy an automobile at a price nearly VND300 million higher than in regional markets, said the Industrial Policy and Strategy Institute under the Ministry of Industry and Trade. In a report announced at a conference on mechanical engineering industry development in The institute blamed higher production costs and special consumption tax on cars under nine seats as the basic cause of the wide price difference. At present, the auto industry is still protected by import tariffs from 15% to 60%. However, domestically assembled cars meet only 60-70% of the market demand with around 100,000 units available for sale a year. The size of the local auto market is still small, only half of the In 2018, If the Government fails to act, Speaking at the conference, a representative of Truong Hai Auto Group said that automotive engineering should be considered a key industry. The Government should complete a master plan on auto sector development from now to 2020 with a vision until 2030. Controversy has arisen over special consumption tax between authorized car importers and producers, with the former agreeing at the tariff calculation method while the latter have bemoaned disadvantages. At least six importers have objected to a suggestion of the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (VAMA) for a change to calculation of the special consumption tax for CBU car imports to protect the local industry. The enterprises in a petition sent to the Ministry of Industry and Trade recently said that the current tax calculation method is fair as it takes into account all relevant costs as a basis for the tariff. Meanwhile, VAMA members, though completely-knocked-down (CKD) assemblers, have imported finished cars for domestic sale. So, they have found that the current tax calculation is unfair to domestic producers. Given the current rule, CKD vehicles are subject to a tax calculation based on a wholesale price with sale cost included. Meanwhile, imported CBUs are subject to the Cost, Insurance and Freight (CIF) rule without sale cost. Therefore, prices of vehicles are always higher than imported cars, the members said. Fee collections for State budget still meager Only a small part of fee collections has gone to State coffers although revenues from these sources remain huge after more than half of the fees have been abolished, the Ministry of Finance reports. In a recent report submitted to the Government, the ministry informed that it and other ministries and localities had already removed over 340 types of fee as they went against the nation’s existing relevant regulations. However, there are still around 301 fees effective, the ministry said. The contribution of fees to the State budget has declined steadily over the years, from around VND42 trillion or 5.8% of the total State budget revenues in 2011 to some VND29.1 trillion, or 3.9%, in 2012 and roughly VND31.3 trillion, or 3.8%, last year. In fact, the contribution of fee collections to the State budget has been much lower than the amount collected in reality. According to the finance ministry, administration agencies are allowed to retain 60% of total fee collections and the remainder goes to State coffers, while other agencies can keep up to 90% and transfer the rest to the State. A number of experts and deputies of the National Assembly (NA) have complained fee collections in A recent report by the International Monetary Fund indicates that the ratio of fees and taxes to GDP in The NA’s Economic Committee confirmed the high fee collection ratio, citing the results of a recent survey that Meanwhile, the respective figures in US purchases 22% of According to the Import and Export Department of the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Seafood exports to the The Though most of the country’s exports have fallen in the initial months of this year, positive signals have still been seen in the The sharp increase in shrimp exports to the Projects behind schedule do not receive capital Capital will be transferred from projects behind schedule to projects on-schedule, according to the Ministry of Construction on April 15. This is part of Minister of Construction Trinh Dinh Dung’s Decision 232 to decrease construction waste. Relevant agencies will closely control budget on construction projects financed by the State Budget. Establishment, appraisals, and approval projects will be conducted in accordance to socioeconomic development and construction. Agencies must have a prepared list of projects in order to receive state funding. Projects finishing before 2015 will receive priority. Projects without approval will not receive permission to commence. Marketing steps up game to encourage use of E5 gasoline Sales manager of Saigon Petro Company Tran Minh Ha believes that marketing needs to be boosted about the E5 gasoline with ethanol to encourage consumption. Price for a liter of the E5 is the same as A92 gasoline, said Ha. Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group (PVN) fears that customers will hesitate to fill gasoline E5 because they do not understand the benefits of it. Relevant agencies should market to consumers about gasoline E5 before it becomes available in Quang Ngai, Ha Noi, Hai Phong, The blend will be used nationwide starting Dec. 1, 2015. The country has seven ethanol production plants generating 535 million liters per year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. This is enough to create blends of E5 and E10 gasoline in 2014. The plants are able to produce 8.35 million tons of gasoline E5 or 4.17 million tons of gasoline E10 at full operation. This is sufficient for nationwide consumption. Additional plants are under construction to produce more ethanol. Petrol Three out of 10 petrol wholesale companies have so far sold the blend at 170 out 12,000 stations in the country. Stations with the blend include PV Oil, Petec, and Saigon Petro. Consumption of the blend is not as popular as expected in 2007 when it was released into the market. State-owned businesses called for forging bond Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Le Hoang Quan has urged enterprises, especially those wholly owned by the State, to strengthen links for mutual development. At an April 17 meeting with representatives from departments, agencies and State-owned businesses in the locality, the mayor suggested enterprises focus on human resources development, particularly high-qualified staff. As banks are reducing lending rates, business players should have specific plans to access loans for investment in equipment and technology, he noted. Local firms were also asked to work together for both extensive and intensive restructuring and stay proactive to cope with more severe competition. According to the municipal Finance Department, In the first quarter of this year, these enterprises raked in 15.6 trillion VND (733 million USD) in total revenue, down 18.73 percent against the same period last year. MASkargo expands cargo network to Hanoi MASkargo, the air cargo division of Malaysia Airlines, marked another historic milestone by launching its first Airbus A330-200 freight flight to MASkargo already operates its successful The A330-200 freighter is scheduled to fly into The twice-weekly flight will operate along a "We want to develop in the Vietnamese market by facilitating cargo links between He said The presence of international manufacturers and the country's air freight potential has spurred demands for fast and reliable air cargo movement. MASkargo's General Sales Agents - Aviation Solutions Services Co. Ltd expects a positive initial response to the dedicated freight carrier, with In addition, MASkargo also operates weekly freight services into The Airbus A330-200 allows the fledging MASkargo freight service to build capacity and expand its network in the Standard Chartered Bank appoints CEO for ASEAN markets Standard Chartered Bank today announced the appointment of Lim Cheng Teck as the chief executive officer (CEO) for its ASEAN markets. The appointment is effective from May 1, 2014. To maximise opportunities in key growth regions, the bank has recently implemented a new structure of eight specific regions: ASEAN, Greater China, North East Asia, MENAP, South Asia, Africa, Europe and the As CEO ASEAN, Cheng Teck will be responsible for delivering the refreshed and sharpened strategy to realise the growth and return aspirations for the bank’s franchise and operations in ASEAN, comprising Cheng Teck is a veteran banker with 26 years of experience in Standard Chartered. Prior to this new role, Cheng Teck was CEO and executive vice chairman of Standard Chartered Bank ( He led the Before Jaspal Bindra, group executive director and CEO Asia, Standard Chartered PLC said: “We are pleased to announce the appointment of Cheng Teck as CEO of ASEAN where we are the only international bank to be present in all ten markets. It is an important region, contributing close to a quarter of the group’s total income in 2013. We are confident of ASEAN’s growth potential and with Cheng Teck’s appointment, our aim is to more effectively contribute to and grow with the region.” “Cheng Teck’s excellent track record as CEO in high growth, high potential markets such as “ASEAN has immense opportunities, with its 600 million strong population and steady economic growth; it has significant potential for the financial services industry. I look forward to leading this exciting franchise and drawing on the expertise of our 30,000 staff to provide innovative client-centric solutions," said Lim Cheng Teck, CEO for Standard Chartered Bank, ASEAN. Cheng Teck was chairman of Standard Chartered ( A master of Business Administration graduate from An arts enthusiast, Cheng Teck also enjoys travelling, music and playing the occasional round of golf. Source: VEF/VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/Dantri/VIR |
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Social News Headlines 27/4 Hydrogen balloon explosion injures 13  Eleven 12-year-old students and two teachers of The victims received burn injuries on their faces and hands. The incident occurred after a ceremony to recognise the school's implementation of the national standards on education ended. The students had then asked the teachers to allow them to take the balloons. Three of the injured students were discharged from the local health centre after being treated for minor burns, while eight students and two teachers were admitted to the The local police are investigating the case. Whirlwind injures 4 in An Giang province A whirlwind sweeping across the Mekong Delta The whirlwind, which battered Hoa Binh and Hoa An communes, also inflicted damage to 172 houses and tens of hectares of crops. Vice Chairman of Hoa Binh Commune's People's Committee Nguyen Xuan Nhiem said local authorities visited the affected areas to assist local people with recovery efforts. Ha Noi authorities seize 1 tonne of pork The capital city's quarantine officers and the traffic police have seized nearly one tonne of pork breasts which were being transported to the southern provinces. The meat was rotten and stinking, according to the officers who seized the cargo today at the crossroads of Phap Van, Hoang Mai and Ha Noi. The meat, of unidentified origins, was being carried in 14 sponge boxes which had Chinese seals. The driver, Chu Van Khiem, 32, told the police that he had collected the meat from unknown sources for sale in the southern region. He had no documents to show for his cargo, which is now set for incineration. The illegal transportation of undocumented animal and poultry products has become more complicated of late with traders finding new ways of smuggling them across the border for the domestic market. The Ha Noi Veterinary Department has registered 400 such cases so far this year, and has incinerated 400 kilograms of meat and 700 kilograms of poultry. A new decree had been issued on December 31, 2013, to increase the fines for food safety violations. The fine is now between 2 to 5 times higher than the previous one, amounting to VND100 million, or nearly US$5,000, for individuals who break the law, and VND200 million, or almost $1,000, for organisations. Vietnamese American gets death sentence for drug trafficking The HCM City People's Court sentenced a Vietnamese American to death yesterday for transporting drugs illegally. Dinh Jason, 41, was found trying to smuggle over one kilogram of heroin from The court said that the police found three plastic bags containing the drugs in Dinh's underwear while he was completing procedures to board a flight to At the investigation agency, Dinh said that he was sent to The man promised Dinh that if the drugs were brought to Chairwoman of the Hanoi People's Council Ngo Thi Doan Thanh held a reception in At the function, Thanh expressed delight with the evolution of Vietnam-Japan relations, noting that the relationship was elevated to a strategic partnership in March, opening the pathway for enhanced relations in the coming time. Roughly 520 Japanese companies are now operating in The Japanese companies have generated 135,000 jobs in Chairwoman Thanh also voiced her desire that relations between the two cities will be further developed by both high-level exchange visits and Japanese investment in such fields as infrastructure development, cultural exchange and tourism. Chairman Tosho Matsuo, in turn hailed the achievements in the cooperative relations between the two nations and the two cities. He extended an invitation to a delegation from Tosho Matsuo said that the environment is an important issue which has directly affected people’s lives in On the occasion, the Quang Ngai reports another case of skin disease A new patient of the skin disease known as foot and palm dermatitis has been admitted to the The 21-year-old patient, a resident of the Ba To Commune in Ba To District, is the first reported case of the disease in the commune. She was admitted with high fever and was found to have several spots on her palms and feet. She has been examined and has undergone tests for further diagnosis. Since the beginning of the year, the The Ministry of Health's Department of Preventive Medicine has started its investigation in the areas where the disease broke out this year to find its origins. Workers Month to kick off in May Trade unions nationwide are organising a variety of activities to mark the annual Workers Month in May. In Ha Noi, the city's Labour Union has provided free health check-ups and medicine as well as legal advice to workers in In Ministry asks health centres to maintain vaccine supplies The Pharmacy Management Department under the Health Ministry has asked all private health centers offering measles and chicken-pox vaccination to implement back-up plans and have enough supplies of vaccines. In a document sent yesterday to the Department of Preventive Medicine, deputy head of the Pharmacy Management Department Nguyen Tat Dat said that according to the Government Ordinance issued in November 2013, these vaccines are allowed to be imported in unlimited supply and do not need to get permission from the Health Ministry. The Pharmacy Management Department only requested that the buying-in price of these vaccines must not exceed the price submitted earlier to the department. According to officials, the number of people going to private health centres for vaccinations against measles has increased by 30 per cent in recent days. Hospitals to use HPV testing for cervical cancer screenings Tu Du Obstetrics and The virus is the second leading cause of cancer among Vietnamese women after breast cancer, with incidence rates of 9.5-13 per 100,000, according to health officials. "HPV16 or HPV18 genotyping are the riskiest types that account for 70 per cent of cervical cancer cases," said Le Quang Thanh, director of the hospital. Besides Papanicolaou screening (Pap screening) and liquid-based cytology, the hospital will use human papillomavirus (HPV) testing for cervical cancer screening this year. "HPV testing is more sensitive and less specific than Pap testing," said Philip E. Castle, executive director of the Global Cancer Initiative and CEO of the Global Coalition Against Cervical Cancer. The Ministry of Health is working with Roche Vietnam Co. Ltd., and three major hospitals, including the "More than 5,100 new cases of cervical cancer are reported nationwide and 2,400 women die from the disease every year," he said at a conference held on Tuesday. This means seven women in A Pap screen is done every year to three years, with the interval between tests depending on the age of the woman. Financial qualifications give edge to female execs Women with certified financial backgrounds should find it easier to win positions on the boards of big corporations, a recent seminar held by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) was told in Ha Noi. According to VietnamPlus e-newpaper, Martin Turner, president of ACCA Global, said finance was a springboard for women. The financial sector has created a clearer path for career advancement for women, especially in companies that provide professional services. Citing the report titled Women in Finance: A Springboard to Corporate Board Positions, he said women seemed to be more successful in corporate executive positions if they had experience in the financial sector. According to the report, 45 per cent of corporate female executives have a functional background in finance and 65 per cent have experience in the financial sector. The comparable rates for male executives are 26 per cent and 44 per cent. The report also shows that finance is the language of the boardroom and the ability to communicate financial information establishes and builds credibility. Turner said that financial skills were not enough. Women needed to stretch their social connections and make themselves known to the places they want to work. The seminar, which was held last week, was told that In the country, about 30 per cent of corporate boardroom members are women, higher than the world average. However, the gender disparity in leadership positions remains quite large. According to the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce's Business Forum magazine, recruiting talented female leaders is becoming more competitive around the world. Speaking at the seminar, Nguyen Vinh Ha, deputy director of Grant Thornton Viet Nevertheless, the rate of female workers is relatively low. Up to 66 per cent of enterprises surveyed said their female employees made up less than 50 per cent of their workforces. Ha said women still faced a lot of barriers to leadership. They still did most of the housework and had little time for career development. This meant they sometimes lacked confidence or clung to outmoded thinking. Moreover, their earlier retirement age also limited the accumulation of experience and skill. Health forum talks non-communicable diseases strategy Senior experts from the Government, public and private hospital administrations, civil society, and academia gathered for a discussion on the state of non-communicable diseases in Moderated by Dr Ha Anh Duc and Dr Vuong Tuan Anh, both senior researchers at the " NCDs account for 60 per cent of global deaths, with 80 per cent of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries, making them a major cause of poverty and an urgent growing issue. In The mortality rate from NCDs is four times higher than from infectious diseases. Cardiovascular diseases are now the leading cause of death in the country, killing three times more people than infectious and parasitic diseases, and accounting for nearly a fifth of the total disease burden. But the risk of many NCDs can be lowered with concerted efforts by all stakeholders to drive behavioral change, the workshop heard. "The ASEAN NCD Network is taking the first big step towards helping the countries in the region to find plausible, long-term solutions," Sanjay Bapna, head of SEA, Philips Healthcare APAC, said. "Some of the ideas and solutions shared through the session in Ha Noi today might be further developed into working policies and initiatives to help with the burden of non-communicable diseases on the local and national healthcare systems." The ASEAN NCD Network has undertaken a bloc-wide study on innovations in NCD Management with a core focus on City hosts fair on education reform Curricula with cutting-edge technology and advanced schooling models are being showcased at the HCM City Education Development Fair that opened yesterday at the city's The three-day event, themed "Renovation- Integration- Development", promotes the implementation of the city's policies on education reform. During the fair, a series of workshops will be held on education investment policies, advanced curricula, consultancy on enrollment, career orientation, and application of modern equipment and devices. Textbook suppliers, colleges, universities, vocational high schools and foreign language centres have set up 150 booths at the fair. In addition, a photo exhibition on the city's education achievements features research work of students, modern schooling models and design examples of buildings. Milk producer confirms compliance FrieslandCampina Viet The Directorate for Standards, Metrology (science of measurement) and Quality has taken samples of milk products for testing after 12 pupils in the The results are expected by next Monday, according to makers. The affected children were among nearly 700 pupils at My Tan primary school in My Loc District who drank the milk during a company promotion programme. French universities eye links with Representatives from French universities gathered for “Vietnam Day” in The event was hosted by the French national agency for the promotion of higher education, international student services, and international mobility, known as Campus Jacque Frere, Attaché of Science and Universities from the French Embassy in He said hundreds of French professors, researchers and lecturers have assisted USTH in teaching and science studies. Deputy Head of the Ministry of Education and Training’s International Cooperation Department, Nguyen Thanh Huyen, said According to the Campus France, over 6,300 Vietnamese students enrolled in French universities in 2012-2013. Meanwhile, HCM City plant trees to mark Dien Bien Phu Victory Sixty bauhinia trees have been planted at a park in The trees were presented by the Vice Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People’s Committee of northern Dien Bien province, Mua A Son, during his working trip to the southern city. Son also joined the planting of the trees on April 24, representing a close relationship between Dien Bien and Earlier on the same day, an exhibition showcasing more than 100 photos, 40 artefacts, 12 battle maps and 82 books on the southern soldiers and people’s assistance during the Dien Bien Phu Campaign opened at the Southeastern Armed Forces Museum in the city. The event will run till May 24. Dien Bien Phu was a complex of strong fortresses with 16,200 French troops, the most seasoned in At 3:00 pm on May 7, 1954, the Vietnamese army launched a massive attack on the headquarters of General Christian De Castries. The French commander at The victory was a vivid manifestation of the quick growth of the Vietnamese army, then only ten years old, under General Vo Nguyen Giap. Remains of fallen Vietnamese war heroes returned home A ceremony was held at a war cemetery in Do Luong district, central Nghe An province on April 25 to rebury the remains of 31 volunteer Vietnamese soldiers and advisors who died on the battlefields of Speaking at the event, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Le Xuan Dai expressed his deep gratitude to the heroes who laid down their lives for the national independence as well as the fraternal solidarity and friendship between the two nations. He thanked the authorities, armed forces and people of Laos ’ Xiengkhouang, Vientiane and Xaysomboun provinces for their whole-hearted support and assistance. Earlier, the authorities and people in the three Lao provinces held a requiem for the fallen Vietnamese before their remains were brought back to their homeland. World Bank offers financial aid for The The construction of the station, with a designed capacity of 3,500 cubic metres per day, will be kick-started this year. The total cost of nearly 90 million VND (4.23 million USD) for the work has mainly been sourced from the 2013-2015 National Rural Water Supply and Sanitation National Target Programme funded by the World Bank(WB). Of the money, approximately 54 billion VND (2.53 million USD) or 60 percent of the total cost is covered by the State budget through the programme and nearly 27 billion VND (1.26 million USD) is from Once finished in 2015, the work will benefit nearly 23,000 local people as well as promote the socio-economic development of the locality. An Giang enhances remains search and repatriation efforts The southern Under the direction of Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, the provincial People’s Committee has set up the Steering Board for the search and repatriation of remains from now and beyond 2020. Accordingly, the board will focus on directing and managing agencies, organisations and localities in collecting information in a bid to locate more remains in the province. It will also be responsible for the search and repatriation of remains of Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and advisors who laid down their lives in The locality plans to find the remains of nearly 500 fallen soldiers in the next six years, including 168 at home and 300 others in His Eminence Drukpa prays for peace in Vietnam His Eminence Drukpa Kyabje Thuksey Rinpoche and a Buddhist delegation from They are touring Requiems for war martyrs and disaster victims will be also held during this time. Thuksey Rinpoche was born in He is the chairman of Thai Nguyen works to improve lives for ethnic people The The Mong community is spread over 47 hamlets in Vo Nhai, Phu Luong, Dinh Hoa and Dong Hy districts. Nine of these contain over 70 percent of poor households, while 20 others are home to 40 percent of families living under the poverty line. The statistics were revealed at a conference on April 23, where participants discussed the problem and its solutions. They said the low economic starting point, out-of-date manufacturing techniques and geographical distance from trade centres were to blame for the high ratio of people suffering from poverty. The ethnic group has yet to receive much assistance from businesses and organisations in and out of the locality, they added. It was suggested that training courses should be opened for the Mong people to be updated on science-technology and cultivation techniques, while traditional cultural values of ethnic minority groups should be promoted through festivals. On the occasion of the conference, local authorities presented 17 gifts for Mong ethnic people who made great contributions to local poverty reduction efforts. Thai Nguyen is home to seven ethnic minority groups residing in 1,985 hamlets with over 660,000 people, making up nearly 60 percent of the total provincial population. Officials share joy over Buddha’s birthday A delegation from the Central Highlands Steering Committee on April 23 visited the Buddhist Sanghas of Gia Lai and Kon Tum provinces on the occasion of the Lord Buddha’s 2558th birthday. Lu Ngoc Cu from the committee confirms that the Party and Government always take care of and carry out policies promoting religious freedom. He hailed the great contributions by Buddhist monks, nuns and followers to the cause of national construction and defence, adding that he hopes they will continue to advance with the nation on the road to build a wealthy and happy country. Most Venerable Thich Tam Tuong, President of the Gia Lai Buddhist Sangha’s Executive Council, said local Buddhist clergy and followers raise an average of 2 billion VND each year for charity activities to support poor people. In Kon Tum, Most Venerable Thich Quang Hanh, head of the Dharma committee of the provincial Buddhist Sangha said the province has granted 20ha of land to build a pagoda in Mang Den, Kon Plong district. The province is now home to 25 pagoda worshipping Buddha. Buddhism has accompanied Businesses in According to the city's Centre for Human Resource Forecasts and Labour Information, industries with high recruitment needs require specialists in marketing, services, information technology, accounting, real estate and garment-footwear production. Next month, the demand for jobs is expected to increase by 30 percent from this month, as a number of probationary students and new graduates will enter the job market. The city has recorded double-digit economic growth for nearly 20 years now. Its annual income per capita has reached 5,000 USD. More schools benefit from Samsung computer project The Samsung Life Insurance Co. Ltd. (SLI) on April 22 handed over classrooms equipped with computing devices to two secondary schools in Each of the two classrooms consists of 30 sets of computers with sufficient support devices. The total facilities are worth more than 500 million VND (23,800 USD). The activity was part of a project providing schools with computing facilities, agreed by the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations, SLI and the Global Civic Sharing organisation (GCS) from the Bui Thi Hoa, Director of the GCS’ Vietnam-Korea Cooperation Centre, said the project, funded with 1.44 million USD by SLI, aims to improve disadvantaged children’s access to better learning conditions. In 2013, it presented such classrooms to 11 schools in Russian experts visit Hoa Binh province A delegation of Russian experts visited the At the working session with local authorities, the Russian guests showed interests in education-training issues and partnerships in culture and socio-economic development with the province in particular and Standing Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Bui Van Cuu held out hopes that the experts will help boost the two sides’ exclusive, wide-ranging partnership, as will further cement the two countries’ bilateral ties. Following the meeting, the delegation had a fact-finding tour of the locality’s tourism potential visiting caves in Cao Phong district. They had a working session with the Hoa Binh city vocational training centre for disabled people. Forum talks non-communicable diseases strategy Senior experts from the Government, public and private hospital administrations, civil society, and academia have gathered in Moderated by Ha Anh Duc and Vuong Tuan Anh, both senior researchers at the " NCDs account for 60 percent of global deaths, with 80 percent of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries, making them a major cause of poverty and an urgent growing issue. In The mortality rate from NCDs is four times higher than from infectious diseases. Cardiovascular diseases are now the leading cause of death in the country, killing three times more people than infectious and parasitic diseases, and accounting for nearly a fifth of the total disease burden. But the risk of many NCDs can be lowered with concerted efforts by all stakeholders to drive behavioral change, the workshop heard. "The ASEAN NCD Network is taking the first big step towards helping the countries in the region to find plausible, long-term solutions," Sanjay Bapna, head of SEA, Philips Healthcare APAC, said. "Some of the ideas and solutions shared through the session in The ASEAN NCD Network has undertaken a bloc-wide study on innovations in NCD Management with a core focus on Project reduces cement sector’s greenhouse gas emissions The Ministry of Construction and the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) on April 24 launched a project aiming to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in Minister of Construction Nguyen Tran The industry released about 57 million tonnes of CO2 into the environment in 2013. Meanwhile, its design capacity is expected to top 100 million tonnes of cement in the 2016-2020 period, he noted. The NDF-funded project will be carried out in two years starting from February 2014. It will assess the potential amount of GHG released by cement factories, and build a standard emission level, a measurement system and a nationally appropriate mitigation action for this industry. National forum examines community forestry A national forum on community forestry was opened in the The two-day event, the first of its kind so far, drew nearly 100 Vietnamese and foreign experts in the field. The Vietnam Administration of Forestry (VAF) said many community forests have been piloted across More than 5,000 households of 10 provinces joined a national project in the first phase from 2006-2009, bringing some 16,800 hectares of forests under their supervision. At present, nearly 4 million hectares of forests are being managed by local communities in At the forum, participants discussed the legal framework on community forestry, benefits that this practice brings about, sustainable forest management, and wood processing. They said that the implementation of the model helps improve local people’s awareness of the importance of forest protection and development and brings about profits to those who join it. The forum is held by the VAF, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, the Center for People and Forests, and the Thai Nguyen University of Agriculture and Forestry. Attempts made to conserve Bach Ma Park’s biodiversity Managers of Bach Ma National Park in the central Established in 1991, Bach Ma Park has a core zone covering 37,487 hectares in Phu Loc and Nam Dong districts. It boasts 2,373 mushroom and flora species. Among them, 73 plants are listed in the Vietnam Red Data Book of endangered species, while more than 500 others are rare herb plants. The park also harbours 1,715 fauna species, including 363 types of bird - one third of the number of bird species in Sixty-nine animals named in the Red Data Book and 15 indigenous species have also been recorded here. Despite such biodiversity, the number of fauna and flora species in the park has fallen significantly, with some even becoming extinct. This has been attributed to illegal activities by people residing in Bach Ma’s buffer zone. Many live impoverished lives, and they cut wood and poach wild animals to satisfy the growing demand and high prices for rare species in big cities. To cope with the problem, the park’s managing board and local authorities are increasing education to raise people’s awareness of protecting forests and encouraging the development of eco-tourism. They also plan to give intensive training to conservation staff, help local households grow plants that have high economic value and build infrastructure facilities serving the conservation. More attention will also be given to maintaining the protective function of deltas surrounding the Truoi, Ta Trach, Cu De and Con rivers so as to provide a stable environment for agricultural and industrial activities in the region. Children most vulnerable to climate change Children are the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change so they must have a voice in limiting the risks, attendees declared at a conference in Natural disasters, droughts and rising sea levels have exposed children to water-borne diseases caused by viruses and bacteria, said Jamin Burgess, a United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) expert on climate change. Vu Thuy Linh, Vice Manager of the municipal bureau for climate change, also spoke about environmentally-friendly projects across the city, such as a recycling festival, forestry projects and a master plan on water resource management. Participants called for the public involvement in the endeavour. They suggested the effective use of renewable energies, forestation and higher standard of hygiene in crowded residential areas. The event was co-hosted by the Children’s Friend project management board and UNICEF. Wildlife farming comes under scrutiny A forum centred on the conservation and sustainable use of wildlife resources was held in At the function, participants discussed conservation models suitable for They warned that breeding wild animals for profit is increasingly common in Some attendees suggested banning farming of endangered animals and strict punishment for violators of wildlife protection laws. According to a recent survey of 78 farms in Source: VNN/VNA/VOV/VNS |
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