VN-Russia economic forum held in Moscow

MOSCOW — Almost 400 businesses attended a Viet Nam-Russia economic forum entitled "Strategic partnership – comprehensive co-operation" in Moscow on Wednesday.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation George Petrov said Russia and Viet Nam had combined actions based on a fine traditional friendship, mutual trust and understanding, active political dialogue and co-operation for mutual interest.

Two-way trade value recorded a year-on-year increase of 8.2 per cent to more than US$1.5 billion in 2009 despite the global economic crisis and reached $924 million in the first half of this year, he said.

Viet Nam now had 59 Russian-invested projects totalling more than $576 million, excluding those in the oil and gas industry, he added.

However, Petrov noted, the two countries had yet to bring into play the full potential of the bilateral relationship.

He suggested businesses from the two countries increase contacts, exchange market information and further co-ordinate with each other to gain access to other regional markets.

He expressed his hope that both countries would sign a number of co-operation agreements to further promote the strategic partnership and comprehensive co-operation during Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's upcoming visit to Viet Nam. Petrov also called on Vietnamese businesses to invest in and co-operate with Russia's Far East and Sibir regions.

Vice President of the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Pham Gia Tuc took the opportunity to introduce almost 100 Vietnamese businesses participating in the Viet Nam Days in Russia Expo and the VCCI's business promotion and connectivity activities.

For his part, Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang spoke of the advantages of Viet Nam's business and investment environment, saying that the nation was an active developing market which is safe, stable and deeply integrated in the global economy.

Viet Nam's policy on foreign-invested businesses considered them as one of its own and created favourable conditions for investors, he confirmed.

He called on overseas Vietnamese businesspeople in Russia to invest directly or through joint ventures in their home country.

A seminar on the establishment of representative offices for Vietnamese businesses in Russia and a meeting between businesses from the two countries took place within the framework of the forum. — VNS

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Tra tariff opposed by group

HA NOI — Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers yesterday expressed indignation over the US Department of Commerce's preliminary anti-dumping tariffs on Vietnamese tra frozen fillets.

In the sixth administrative review applied for certain Vietnamese tra frozen fillet exports, the department determined to tax duty rates in excess of 100 per cent, far exceeding any prior results in the case which has lasted more than eight years.

In previous department anti-dumping reviews, most Vietnamese exporters enjoyed the lowest tariff of 0.52 per cent.

The association also opposed the department's "unjustified" change in the surrogate country used to value raw material inputs, suddenly switching from Bangladesh to the Philippines, after consistently rejecting the Philippines in all prior administrative reviews.

The association said using Philippines data as the benchmark was not appropriate because Viet Nam was the biggest tra producer and exporter in the world with 1.2 million tonnes a year, while the Philippines' tra industry was still fledging and small with undeveloped farming and processing which would raise the price.

"This decision will negatively affect the livelihoods of millions of tra farmers in Viet Nam, as well as US consumers and workers related to tra import activities," the association said. It said the determination violated the letter and spirit of free-trade agreements between the US and Viet Nam, and asked the department to review the rates in the final determination which would be released in six months. — VNS

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Industry sector seeks energy-saving solutions

The industry sector is banking on an international exposition opened in Ho Chi Minh City to gain know-how on energy savings strategies from 250 exhibiting companies representing 30 countries and territories.

For example, exhibitor Company 21 Power Corp was committed to providing energy management solutions for stable and sustainable supply of electricity.

Tech United Pte Ltd. offers lighting energy-saving solutions, LED, and quality designs. CE Globaltest Pte Ltd. showcases electric and electronic measuring and testing equipment which is highly efficient and friendly to the environment.

As part of the event, a workshop on “Sustainable and competitive solutions for a developing economy” will be held.

The workshop aims to provide industrial experts and managers with clean and efficient solutions to improve construction quality and energy efficiency. Its contents are expected to update audiences on recent rapid changes in the industry sector and provide a forecast on the development of innovative solutions in the future.

Vice President of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry Hoang Van Dung said the exhibition would provide opportunities for domestic and international enterprises to boost cooperation and business.

Daniel Cheung, Director of the Hong Kong Exhibition Service Company, pointed out a need for Vietnam to develop a sustainable power source and address issues related to an environment appealing to foreign investment in energy projects.

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Banks devise fees to shift ATM costs

Banks are planning to charge customers for account statements to reduce the cost of maintaining ATMs after the central bank rejected their request to charge fees for their use.

Forty banks had also asked the State Bank of Vietnam to increase the fees for customers using other banks' ATMs to VND5,500 from VND3,300 per transaction.

It was for the third time that banks petitioned for ATM charges since 2008.

Trinh Thuong Thuc, head of Vietcombank's card business in HCMC, said banks want the charge because they have failed to break even on cards for many years.

On the other hand, ATM installation and maintenance costs are very high, he said, with their monthly rentals alone ranging from VND3 million to VND10 million ($526).

The annual maintenance cost for a machine is VND500 million ($26,300) in addition to other expenses like telecom line lease and staff wages, he added.

On top of all this, banks with thousands of ATMs have to maintain more than VND500 billion ($26 million) in cash without receiving any interest to ensure each machine has at least VND500 million.

Vietcombank said it plans to collect various fees, including a fee of VND550 per transaction for printing account statements starting from year-end. However, it will not charge customers for balance inquiries.

Agribank began collecting VND550 for printing statements from March 31.

Banks claimed the fees will help them set up ATMs in remote areas and upgrade existing machines.

By the end of June there were 10,516 ATMs in the country, nearly 800 more than at the end of 2009, according to the Vietnam Bank Card Association.

There were more than 23.3 million card users, an increase of more than 3 million.

The association said many banks simply choose to foot the bill for customers using other banks' ATMs instead of paying to install their own ATMs which cost $20,000 on average.

 

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Vietnam, RoK cooperate in industrial design

The Trade Promotion Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) will cooperate with the Republic of Korea (RoK) Institute of Design Promotion (RoK IDP) in the field of industrial design.

Under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in Hanoi this week, the two sides will share experience and the latest information regarding industrial design, cooperate in holding seminars and fairs as well as assist enterprises in human resource training.

Addressing the signing ceremony, Director of the RoK IDP Hyuntae Kim said the MoU is seen as the first step for RoK, a powerhouse in the industrial design, to work out aid programmes for Vietnam .

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Thanh Bien said the cooperation will open up opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises to glean experience from the RoK in order to accelerate the sector in their own country.

According to the MoIT, investment-trade relations between Vietnam and the RoK have developed well. In 2009, two-way trade turnover between the two countries reached US$9 billion despite the impacts of the global economic crisis. The figure is expected to climb to US$20 billion in 2015.

 

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VSIP gets environmental accreditation

Nguyen Phu Thinh (R), general director of VSIP J.V. Co., receives the ISO 14001:2004 certificate from SGS Vietnam - Photo: Quoc Hung

HCMC - The Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) has been awarded the ISO 14001:2004 certificate for taking a proactive approach to managing environmental issues and implementing actions to work towards environmental sustainability.

VSIP is the first industrial park in the southern province of Binh Duong to be certified with the ISO 14001:2004 and also the first industrial park in Vietnam to be awarded the certificate by SGS Vietnam, a unit of the Swiss-based SGS SA, a world leader in inspection, verification, testing and certification.

VSIP has set its own environmental performance criteria across all levels in the organization’s operations to monitor and manage environmental pollution. Processes are in place to systematically separate and treat industrial waste and to ensure regular maintenance of the sewage treatment plant. Staff have also been trained to supervise tenants’ industrial waste treatment and discharge for conformity with the country’s laws and regulations.

To minimize noise and air pollution, VSIP has reviewed its internal traffic system to provide more and clearer road signage for smoother traffic flow to reduce traffic jams. Rain water harvesting will also be improved for use in VSIP’s on-site nursery that goes towards maintaining its landscape.

Separately, VSIP’s efforts have also been endorsed by the Vietnam Association for Conservation of Nature and Environment (VACNE), who awarded the VSIP with its Greentech Certificate.

Launched in 1996, VSIP is a bilateral cooperation project initiated by the governments of Vietnam and Singapore. It is commercially operated and has enjoyed success as a proven investment location for hundreds of multinational companies with about 394 projects to base their manufacturing and technical service operations, for the domestic and export markets.

VSIP has evolved to become an integrated township and industrial park. There are four VSIP projects in Binh Duong (Thuan An and Ben Cat districts), Bac Ninh and Haiphong with 4,845 hectares of industrial, residential and commercial land.

Out of more than 180 industrial parks in Vietnam, VSIP has been named the “Best Industrial Developer 2008” by UK’s Euromoney Liquid Real Estate magazine.

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Lang Son needs trade, economic breakthroughs

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has requested the northern province
of Lang Son consider making breakthroughs in trade and the bordergate
economy, service and tourism as top priorities in economic restructuring
and development.

PM Dung, who is also a
Politburo member, made the request at the 15 th Congress of the Lang
Son Provincial Party Committee on Sept. 16.

Lang Son province should speed up the construction of the Dong Dang-Lang
Son bordergate economic zone and focus on infrastructure and essential
facilities to attract investment and develop fields that are compatible
with its strengths in order to turn the province into a trade, service
and tourism centre of the northern mountainous region and function as a
trade link in the relationship with China and between China and ASEAN,
said Dung.

He also suggested the province create
breakthroughs in rural agriculture development, with priority
investment in the region’s socio-economic infrastructure, including
traffic, irrigation, electricity, schools and health clinics.

On its first working day on Sept. 15, the congress heard a political
report to review the previous congress resolution and discussed reasons
why targets failed to be achieved, including targets set for the gross
domestic product (GDP) of 2006-2010 period, and the collection of and
processing solid waste.

The political report
also pointed to seven basic economic development targets, nine social
targets and four environmental targets which will be discussed by the
congress in a search for feasible solutions.

The
congress elected the executive committee for the 15 th Provincial
Party’s Committee Congress. Phung Thanh Kiem has been re-elected as
Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee for the 15 th tenure
(2010-2015 period).

Addressing the congress, PM
Dung asked the congress to find out the reasons and provide solutions to
overcome existing shortcomings.

Lang Son should
bring into play its potential and advantages for development as it has a
favourable position and the biggest international bordergate on the
route connecting Vietnam and China – a huge developing market which will
become larger once the China-ASEAN free trade area is established, said
the PM.

The province, which boasts big land,
natural resources and human potential and diversified culture, has an
important position in the Nanning-Lang Son-Hanoi-Hai Phong economic
corridor and the Nanning-Singapore economic corridor, he said.

Dung asked the provincial authorities and people to develop the fine
relationship with the Chinese people and to defend border sovereignty
and security.

He also demanded the provincial
party committee build a strong and pure Party organisation that can
bring into play its nucleus role in the socio-political system,
encourage people to follow President Ho Chi Minh’s moral example and
constantly build strong and transparent politics, authority, fatherland
front and mass organisation system from provincial to grass roots level./.

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