Vietnam targets US$200 bn garment, textile exports by 2035 With import tax cuts presented by free trade agreements (FTAs) to which, Vietnam is a member, increasing automation in production and quite favourable factors in the world market, the country’s garment and textile exports are forecast to hit US$200 billion by 2035. Vu Duc Giang, president of Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS), says the US remains Vietnam’s largest garment importer, trailed by the EU and member countries of the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Giang optimistically told the Japanese and Vietnamese media that the garment sector is likely to earn US$34.5 billion from exports this year. It is expected that after the CPTPP comes into effect in August 2018 and export taxes drop to zero, the country’s garment exports will surge by 3% compared to the estimated figure because Canada, Australia, Mexico, and New Zealand, major importers, currently import about … [Read more...] about BUSINESS IN BRIEF 16/6
Kinh te viet nam
Hanoi’s craft villages lack skilled labourers
Children visit a pottery workshop (Photo: tripi.vn) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) – Traditional craft villages of Hanoi are facing a shortage of labourers, especially skilled workers, reported Kinh te Viet Nam & The Gioi (Vietnam and World Economy) Magazine. Right now, the city has more than 1,350 traditional craft villages, 45 per cent of total villages nation-wide. The villages in Hanoi are staffed by 176,000 households creating stable jobs for 740,000 workers. However, there is a shortage of skilled workers. According to Nguyen Nhu Dien, owner of Son Linh Leather Footwear Workshop in Phu Xuyen district, he has a lack of workers. This, he says, is because many rural labourers have quit their jobs to work in industrial zones where they could earn more money and enjoy better social benefits. The shortage of skilled labourers is one of the main reasons the villages’ products are not selling well, due to low quality and poor designs. Phu Vinh Rattan and Bamboo Weaving … [Read more...] about Hanoi’s craft villages lack skilled labourers
Viet Nam spends $194 million on pesticides
Viet Nam spent US$194 million to import pesticides and raw materials in the first three months of this year. — Photo laodong.vn Viet Nam spent US$58 million to import pesticides and raw materials in March, lifting total imports of the commodities in the first three months of this year to $194 million. The imports mainly came from China, accounting for 54.2 per cent of the total value, Thoi bao Kinh te Viet Nam (Viet Nam Economic Times) reported. Imports of pesticides from the UK, Malaysia and India also increased sharply in the first months of the year, rising 80 per cent, 51.5 per cent and 26.3 per cent, respectively, from the same period last year. According to statistics from the Department of Plant Protection, Viet Nam currently has about 1,700 pesticide active ingredients with 4,080 goods. However, there are only about 2,000 products in the market, of which 20 per cent are bio and herbal remedies. The rest are still in the list but have little or no foothold in the market. … [Read more...] about Viet Nam spends $194 million on pesticides
Telecom revenues down in first quarter
MobiFone Corporation reported a year-on-year increase of 6.3 per cent in revenue in the first quarter of the year.— Photo MobiFone The revenue of Vietnamese network operators has suffered an uncharacteristic low in the first quarter of this year due to new legislation reducing top-up promotions for pre-paid subscribers from 50 per cent to 20 per cent. The reduction of the promotion was put into force last month. The country’s three biggest network operators reported their business results for the first quarter at a meeting held by the Ministry of Information and Communications on Wednesday. The Viet Nam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) said that its business plan for the first three months of the year has many changes from previous years. The group has altered promotions for its mobile services. Whereas before subscribers could claim back 50 per cent of their top up in the first three months of the year, that number is now just 20 per cent. As a result subscribers … [Read more...] about Telecom revenues down in first quarter
Viet Nam start-up investment rises 42%
Source: Topica Founder Institute Up to US$291 million was poured into Vietnamese start-ups last year, a year-on-year increase of 42 per cent, according to a recent report by Topica Founder Institute (TFI). Ninety-two start-ups received investment last year, almost a double from 2016. Domestic investors accounted for 64 deals, while foreign investors made 28. For the first time, local venture capitalists and angels bypassed foreigners in deal count. However, foreign investors still generated higher deal value. The amount domestic investors poured into Vietnamese start-ups in the past year was only $46 million, relatively modest compared with the $245 million from foreign investors. Among investors, 500 Startups led in successful investment deals, with 11 acquisitions, followed by ESP Capital, a new homegrown venture capital firm. With $20 million in establishing funds, ESP Capital is focused on technology start-up companies in their beginning stages (pre-seed and seed funding stages), … [Read more...] about Viet Nam start-up investment rises 42%
Vietnam’s tourism needs urgent reform to take off
Viet Nam’s tourism industry is booming and is fast becoming the driving force behind economic growth – but it also faces calls for reform to keep up with high standards. Customers at Noi Bai’s international airport in Ha Noi. Airports in major cities such as HCM City, Hue and Da Nang, are facing the overload trouble. The “smoke-free” industry has witnessed spectacular success in the past few years with higher growth rate every year. Last year, nearly 13 million foreign visitors came to our shores, earning the country more than VND500 trillion (US$22 billion). That’s up 30 per cent and 20 per cent year-on-year, respectively. Over the decade, the number of international visitors to Viet Nam has tripled while revenue has increased by nine times. Viet Nam’s tourism ranked sixth in the top 10 fastest growing tourism destinations globally and was crowned the best performer in Asia in 2017. The industry last year contributed 7.5 per cent to … [Read more...] about Vietnam’s tourism needs urgent reform to take off
Growth boosts demand for industrial land
Demand for industrial land around the country is expected to increase thanks to significant growth in terms of both industrial production and FDI. Last year the city’s index of industrial production grew by 7.9 per cent while Ha Noi’s expanded by 7.1 per cent. FDI flows into HCM City topped $6.3 billion while for Ha Noi they were worth $2.4 billion, a national year-on-year increase of 22.5 per cent, and most foreign and domestic investors are seeking to expand production. At HCM City IPs, according to real estate service consultant Colliers International, at the end of 2017 the average annual rent was $142.2 per square metre, an increase of 0.9 per cent from the previous year. HCM City now has 20 operating IPs with a total area of 3,025 hectares. Cu Chi District has the largest number of industrial parks totally measuring 863 hectares, but the price is lowest there at $80 -90 per square metre. By 2025 it is expected that more 2,300ha in eight new industrial parks will come … [Read more...] about Growth boosts demand for industrial land
Viet Nam fruit exports skyrocket
Exports of vegetables and fruits in January this year soared 63.3 per cent year-on-year in turnover to reach US$383.7 million, statistics from the General Department of Customs showed. — Photo sggp.org.vn Exports of vegetables and fruits in January this year soared 63.3 per cent year-on-year in turnover to reach US$383.7 million, statistics from the General Department of Customs showed. Of these, export turnover of vegetables and fruits to the Chinese market hit $296.3 million, up 68.6 per cent compared to the same period last year, accounting for 77 per cent of the total export revenue of Viet Nam. Exports to the Hong Kong market increased 105 per cent, hitting $1.85 million. Exports to Japan reached $10.6 million, soaring 77.5 per cent compared to the same period last year. Despite the high growth rate of vegetables and fruit exports to the Japanese market, export turnover is still low compared to the current consumption demand in Japan. According to experts, to boost exports … [Read more...] about Viet Nam fruit exports skyrocket
Vietnam
French Ambassador to Vietnam Bertrand Lortholary made the remark in a recent interview granted to Thoi bao Kinh te Viet Nam (Vietnam Economic Times) on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of Vietnam-France diplomatic ties (1973-2018). He said the development of the start-up community in HCM City is just a start, and in the coming time, the city as well as Vietnam would become a must-go destination for startup businesses, especially in the field of technology, he said. The Ambassador added that French businesses are making more investment in this field in Vietnam and consider it as an attractive market. French tech firms operating in the Southeast Asian country have set up a network called “French Tech Vietnam” to serve as a bridge for startups between the two countries, he unveiled. This network has been recognised by France as a new technological centre in Vietnam, the first of its kind in Southeast Asia, he noted. According to the Ambassador, the first things he could … [Read more...] about Vietnam
Distinctive timber houses draw card in Bac Can Province
Visitors walking to Yen Lac Town in the northern province of Bac Can's Na Ri District will discover scores of unusual old houses made of timber from the nghien (burretiodendron hsienmu) tree, an endangered native of Viet Nam and China.Residents say that most of the people who live in the quarter are Chinese-Vietnamese which could explain why the houses are different from native structures. When they were built more than a half-century ago, these tubular houses were placed very close to one another. At first, only a few people in the district built houses in this style but then they gained popularity and others began to copy the architectural style.An ethnic Nung woman named Luong Thi Phung, 80, who was born and raised in the quarter, says: "My house, made of nghien wood, was built 60 years ago. Even now, termites and worms stay away from this wood. At that time, it took four people one week to manoeuvre one nghien wood log to use for construction. It took us years to build our house. … [Read more...] about Distinctive timber houses draw card in Bac Can Province