Vietnam, China boost trade cooperation

Industry and Trade Minister Vu Huy Hoang held talks with his Chinese
counterpart Chen Deming in Hanoi on August 23 on bilateral
cooperation in economics and trade, as well as at regional and
multilateral forums.

The two ministers reviewed recent trade
developments as trade turnover between the two countries exceeded 20
billion USD in 2009. By July this year the figure had hit over 13
billion USD and it is expected to reach the target of 25 billion USD by
the end of the year.

They agreed to encourage localities along
the common border to continue to boost exchanges and cooperate in the
fight against smuggling and trade fraud to ensure a healthy and stable
trading environment.

Both parties plan to speed up the completion
of a feasibility study on cross-border economic cooperation zones,
especially the Dong Dang-Pingxiang zone.

Minister Hoang asked the
Chinese delegation to encourage their enterprises to import goods from
Vietnam and to create the best possible conditions for Vietnamese
exporters.

The two countries agreed to boost trade promotions,
jointly organise a range of activities to celebrate the “Vietnam-China
Friendship Year 2010” and support each other at multilateral forums.

The
Chinese side said China supports Vietnam in its role as Chair of
the ASEAN Economic Ministers’ meetings in 2010 and at the G20 Forum as
ASEAN Chair.

In term of industrial cooperation, Vietnam has asked China to encourage major enterprises to invest in Vietnam .

The
Chinese delegation revealed that they will soon approve a preferential
loan to Vietnam for the building of several major industrial
projects, including the Vinh Tan Thermal Power Plant 2./.

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Canada explores business opportunities in VN

A delegation of Canadian Parliamentarians and entrepreneurs headed by
Jim Abbott, secretary of state of the Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA), is currently on a visit to Vietnam from August
22-28.

At an August 23 meeting with Vu Xuan Hong,
the chairman of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations, Jim
Abbott said that the visit is to boost mutual understanding and
cooperation between the two countries in education while helping
Canadian businesses seek out investment and business opportunities in
Vietnam.

Chairman Hong informed his guests of the
current situation in Vietnam and activities being carried out by his
union and the Vietnam-Canada Friendship Association to enhance the
friendship between the peoples of both countries.

He said that he hoped the Canadian MPs and businesses would contribute
further to developing friendship and cooperation between the two
governments and peoples.

During its stay in
Vietnam , the Canadian delegation will make fact finding tours of
several Vietnamese businesses and universities in Hanoi , the central
city of Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City./.

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HSBC in talks to buy majority stake in Nedbank

Asia-focused banking giant HSBC announced on Monday that it is in "exclusive" talks with insurer Old Mutual over the potential purchase of a controlling stake in South Africa's Nedbank

LONDON – Asia-focused banking giant HSBC announced on Monday that it is in "exclusive" talks with insurer Old Mutual over the potential purchase of a controlling stake in South Africa's Nedbank.

"HSBC Holdings plc has entered into exclusive discussions with Old Mutual plc about the possible acquisition of a majority stake in Nedbank Group Limited, South Africa's fourth largest banking group by total assets," HSBC said in a brief statement to the London Stock Exchange.

"The discussions are ongoing and if successfully concluded would be conditional on, among other matters, obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals."

In a separate statement, Old Mutual revealed that it has received a proposal from HSBC to buy up to 70 percent of Nedbank shares, but did not reveal the price.

Old Mutual added that the proposed deal would be a "major step" in its strategy to reduce the group's complexity, adding that the proceeds would be reinvested and used to cut debt.

Meanwhile, the Financial Times newspaper reported on Monday that HSBC had fended off competition for Nedbank from British-based emerging markets lender Standard Chartered.

The daily business newspaper, which cited people familiar with the talks, added that HSBC's proposed Nedbank deal could lead to a full takeover offer.

HSBC, which is seeking expansion in emerging markets, agreed last month to buy the Indian commercial and retail banking assets of Britain's state-controlled Royal Bank of Scotland.

 

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Asian stocks steady as Southeast Asia outperforms

Photo: Reuters

HONG KONG - Asian stocks steadied on Monday, underpinned by a rally in Southeast Asian stocks that drove Jarkata to a record peak as foreign investors keep chasing its surprisingly strong growth momentum.

Major European shares opened 0.4 percent higher and futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq were up 0.1 to 0.2 percent, pointing to a slightly firmer start for US trade.

Inconclusive weekend elections in Australia briefly pulled its dollar down to a one-month trough although shares in miners rose as investors bet a proposed new tax on coal and iron ore profits may never be introduced.

A wave of mergers in Asia is also boosting values as acquirers leverage on relatively lower valuations and cheap funding costs to buy companies. An estimated $58 billion worth of mergers involving Asian companies were playing out during the day.

"We are seeing this as an extremely stocks selective market. In Asia the markets that are holding up better are the Southeast Asian markets as investors have been very specific about picking markets where companies have sustainable earnings," said Linda Csellak, head of Asia-Pacific equities at MFC Global Investment Management.

The MSCI index of Asia Pacific ex-Japan stocks was flat with the resources sector outperforming the rest of the market.

In Japan, where the yen currency has rattled investors in recent weeks, shares extended losses amid worries a strong yen would derail the fragile economic recovery.

The Nikkei average inched to a nine-month closing low, shedding 0.7 percent and holding just above a critical technical support at around 9,100.

The decline follows Friday's 2 percent fall as corporate performance jitters grew in the wake of the yen's strength against the dollar.

"Governments around the world are allowing their currencies to weaken, and if Japan doesn't do anything about the strength in the yen it could appreciate further and that would put pressure on Japanese stocks," said Masahiko Sato, an executive director at Nomura Securities' equity marketing department.

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa discussed the yen and agreed to work closely in a phone conversation on Monday, but Kan did not ask the central bank to ease monetary policy further.

The dollar fell 0.3 percent to 85.35 yen, within striking distance of 84.72 yen hit earlier this month, its lowest since July 1995.

Indonesia, Asia's second-best performing stock market this year, rose to an all-time high and Malaysia's index struck its highest in 2- years, outpacing regional giants Australia and Japan, both of which ended the day with losses.

Oil rebounded to above $74 a barrel but stayed close to six week lows amid concerns about a global economic recovery.

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Chinese buyers spend record $7 billion in Taiwan

Photo: Tuoi Tre

TAIPEI – A Chinese delegation wrapped up a week-long shopping spree to Taiwan Sunday after securing a record US$7 billion worth of deals for local products, according to media reports.

Contracts were agreed for Taiwanese products ranging from electronics and textiles to food and fruits, Huang Huahua, governor of Guangdong province and the head of the delegation, was quoted as saying by the state-funded Central News Agency.

It was the largest amount spent in one vist by Chinese buyers.

On his arrival at Taoyuan airport, Huang was greeted by a small group of protesters from the Falungong spiritual movement -- which is banned on the mainland -- who unveiled banners. No clashes were reported.

China still regards Taiwan part of its territory awaiting to be reunified by force if necessary, even though the island has ruled itself since 1949.

Yet ties between Taipei and Beijing have improved markedly since 2008 after Ma Ying-jeou of the Beijing-friendly Kuomintang came to power, pledging to beef up trade and allowing in more Chinese tourists.

In recent months, China has sent a number of purchasing missions to Taiwan as a high-profile way of helping the island's economy by boosting exports.

China had said its trade delegations to Taiwan last year spent 14 billion dollars, shielding the island from the full impact of the financial crisis.

 

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Smartphones to make up over half of Asian sales by 2015

Photo: AFP

SINGAPORE - Smartphones will make up over half of Asian mobile phone sales by 2015, with 477 million units likely to be sold, an industry report said Monday.

Consultancy Frost and Sullivan said smartphones would account for 54 percent of the Asia-Pacific mobile market in five years, up sharply from five percent in 2009.

The sharp take-up rate for smartphones will be a huge revenue boost for telecom operators as it means a surge in demand for data services, the consultancy said.

The consultancy said data usage from smartphones would generate over US$38 billion for the region's telecom operators by 2015, from slightly over $1.3 billion last year.

Smartphones are high-end mobile devices providing faster access to data connections such as e-mail and Internet browsing than so-called feature phones, which have less computing ability.

Subscribers usually pay more for mobile data services, translating into higher average revenue per user (ARPU) for operators keen to make up for flat or declining earnings growth from feature phones.

"Smartphones are critical to every operators mobile broadband business case, as a smartphone users ARPU typically increased by 25 to 100 percent after adoption depending on the market," said Marc Einstein, the consultancy's industry manager.

"The Asia-Pacific market is particularly interesting for smartphones as there has been significant uptake in emerging markets like China, India and Indonesia, even among prepaid users," he said in the report.

Apple's phenomenally popular iPhone and Research in Motion's BlackBerry, a favorite with corporate users, are largely credited with sparking consumer interest in smartphones in the last few years.

Despite the upbeat assessment, telecom operators still need to overcome a few hurdles, Frost and Sullivan said.

"Eighty percent of Asian mobile users use prepaid cards, and in fact in many markets are as high as 97 percent, making smartphone subsidies impossible for most users," said Einstein.

"Furthermore, there is a lack of public Wi-Fi, particularly in emerging markets, which has been a smartphone savior in the US and other developed markets."

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Vietnamese prefer cash to plastic, banks discover

Many banks in Vietnam have tied up with electronics stores, supermarkets, restaurants, spas, and others to offer discounts to card users

Credit and other cards may have come a long way from the high transaction and other fees of the past, with banks now even offering discounts and freebies to attract customers, but they still face hurdles in popularizing the cards.

Many banks have tied up with electronics stores, supermarkets, restaurants, spas, and others to offer discounts to card users.

Sacombank clients, for instance, get 5-30 percent discounts at 200 restaurants, coffee shops, and malls in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. These promotions have helped the bank to increase transactions by 30 percent since the end of last year.

Trinh Thuong Thuc, director of card services at Vietcombank in HCMC, said from September holders of American Express card will get reward points based on their transactions at more than 200 Amex points of sale. In the beginning, the reward will be 0.1 percent of transaction value and can be obtained in cash or kind.

Le Tri Thong, vice president of East Asia Bank, said increasing card transactions will decrease the use of cash, enabling banks to cut ATM and other costs.

But many banks have failed to advertise these promotions. VD, a card holder, said his bank did not inform him even about its largest ever promotion recently. Many card holders learn about promotions at restaurants and shops, and are often caught without their cards when they learn about them.

Banks claim their advertising is limited by budget constraints.

Another factor that limits the effectiveness of promotions is that only international cards like Visa and Mastercard come with the freebies while 90 percent of all cards issued in Vietnam are domestic ATM and debit cards.

A director of a card services company explained that this is because banks receive funding for promotions from international card companies, and if they want to expand the discounts to their own ATM and debit cards, they have to pay themselves.

Le Thi Thong of East Asia Bank said increasing domestic card transactions can actually be more beneficial since merchants have to pay 3 to 3.5 percent of a transaction to banks compared to just 1 percent or less in case of domestic cards.

The banks also have to spend money on installing card readers at merchants’ establishments and other infrastructure though a large chunk of the transaction fees, known as interchange fees, they collect goes to international card companies.

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