Foreign businesses asks to clarify conditions for opening retail points Foreign business associations have unanimously voiced their opinions about the necessity of loosening and clarifying the conditions foreign investors must satisfy to be able to open new retail points in  According to Hong Sun, Secretary General of the ROK Chamber of Commerce in To date, foreign distributors still cannot penetrate the Vietnamese market deeply because of the barriers installed by the government, including the ENT (economic needs test). Sun believes that ENT is a tool being used by the government of With ENT, Vietnamese management agencies have the right to refuse the foreign retailers’ proposals to open second and subsequent retail points, reasoning that the retail points are not necessary in the localities. In fact, the government of In 2013, the Ministry of Industry and Trade released the Circular No. 08, stipulating that the ENT would not be required in case foreign distributors plan to set up the retail points with the area of less than 500 square meters in the areas programmed for the goods trade development. The regulation is described as “more open” than that committed by Nevertheless, Sun noted that foreign investors still face barriers because they have to ask for the permission to set up new retail points. Meanwhile, the Circular No. 08 does not stipulate the time-limit for management agencies to decide whether to approve the foreign retailers’ proposals on the opening of new retail points. The delays by the concerned agencies in dealing with administrative procedures would affect foreign investors’ business. Sun went on to say that it is the ENT mechanism which has made South Korean investors hesitant to implement their business expansion plan. The investors include Lotte Mart with the plan to open 60 retail points by 2020. Meanwhile, Emart showed its intention to invest in He believes that there is no need to be too cautious in protecting Vietnamese retailers by pursuing the ENT mechanism, which would prevent foreign investors. Csaba Bundik, Managing Director of EuroCham He thinks that the ENT is “vague” which leads to different ways of interpretations. In many cases, local authorities have to consult with the central agencies before making decisions, which would cost foreign investors a lot of time to wait for final decisions. In reply, Dinh Thi My Loan, Chair of the Vietnamese Retailers’ Association, admitted that Vietnamese retailers, which remain weak in financial capability and experiences, need the protection by the government. She also said that the TBKTSG |
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