Vietnamese Business Forum in Europe opens

The fifth Vietnamese Business Forum in Europe opened in Moscow on Saturday, drawing representatives of 500 enterprises from over 10 European countries and Vietnam.

Addressing the two-day forum, Industry and Trade Minister Vu Huy Hoang said the forum was an opportunity for Vietnamese enterprises in Europe to meet, exchange experiences, seek cooperation opportunities and discuss measures to boost investment at those countries and to Vietnam.

The minister further said that the forum will help enterprises update themselves on the latest policies back home through direct dialogue with representatives from Vietnamese ministries, sectors and agencies.

Deputy Foreign Minister, Chairman of the State Committee on Overseas Vietnamese Nguyen Thanh Son spoke about Vietnamese Party and State policies, which aim to encourage Overseas Vietnamese and the Vietnamese business community abroad to contribute to economic development in Vietnam and promote the image and products of the country to the world.

He stated that Vietnamese enterprises abroad are bridges to link Vietnam with other countries and countries with Vietnam.

Meanwhile, Tran Dang Chung, President of the Vietnamese Business Association in Russia, said that enterprises, particularly Vietnamese enterprises the Europe need to boost solidarity and exchange information and experiences to overcome difficulties, especially impacts of the global economic and financial crisis.

Participants to the forum will focus their discussions on four issues: debt crisis in Europe and challenges to Vietnamese enterprises; linkage and sharing as the basis for successes of the Vietnamese business community in Europe; Vietnam’s policies to support exports to Europe; and investment into Vietnam, responsibility of Vietnamese business community toward home country.

Within the framework of the forum, the Ministry of Industry and Trade held a ceremony to honor outstanding Vietnamese entrepreneurs in Europe.

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Crisis impacts on two-thirds of local SMEs

Two-thirds of the small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in Vietnam were affected by the global financial crisis but most of them said these challenges were temporary.

This is the result of a survey conducted at SMEs in 10 cities and provinces nationwide, which was announced at a seminar held in Hanoi Friday by the Central Institute of Economic Management (CIEM) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

Prof. Finn Tarp, coordinator and supervisor of the survey, said the business environment of SMEs in Vietnam seemed to worsen between 2007 and 2009, when SMEs faced more barriers, including the falls in both demands for products and supply of credits.

The rate of SMEs that annually survived the crisis dropped, while a large number of other SMEs were forced to halt operations, said the professor.

However, Tarp said super-small companies suffered fewer impacts from the crisis than bigger enterprises, as the crisis helped improve their business conditions, make competition less tough and push the government to offer them better assistance programmes.

According to the survey, SMEs in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh city and the central province of Nghe An were hardest hit by the crisis, while those in the provinces of Phu Tho, Khanh Hoa and Lam Dong and Hai Phong city suffered fewer negative influences.

Almost 40 percent of the SMEs facing credit-related difficulties were in rural areas and household businesses in cities.

The survey, the sixth of its kind, was jointly carried out by CIEM, the Institute of Labour Science and Social Affairs under the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs, and the Faculty of Economics at Copenhagen University.

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Vietnam, Russia plan to hold FTA negotiations

Vietnam and Russia agreed to soon begin negotiations on a bilateral Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the participation of the nations in the Customs Union ( Russia , Belarus and Kazakhstan).

The first meeting of the joint working group for the Vietnam-Russia FTA will be held in Hanoi next month to embark on steps needed for the negotiations.

The consensus on this issue was reached at the 14th meeting of the Vietnam-Russian Inter-government Committee for Economic, Commercial, Scientific and Technological Cooperation, which closed in Moscow Friday.

Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang, and his Russian counterpart, Viktor Khrristenko, co-chaired the meeting.

The two sides focused discussions on ways to step up cooperation in the fields of economy, commerce, science and technology, and raise two-way trade.

Both sides noted with pleasure that economic and trade relations have seen progress since the 12 th meeting. Bilateral trade reached a decade-high record of almost US$1.83 billion in 2009, including $414.89 million from Vietnamese exports.

However, the officials said economic and trade ties remain modest, failing to reach their full potential, and match with the excellent political relations, traditional friendship and strategic partnership between the two countries.

Vietnam affirmed its desire to cooperate closely and effectively with Russia in energy, with top priority given to oil and gas, and construction of power plants and coal mining.

Other fields that need to receive a boost include mechanical engineering, automobile assembly, trade, finance, banking, education, training, agriculture, science, technology, telecoms, aviation, sports, culture, tourism and space research.

Both Hoang and Khrristenko affirmed the two governments’ support for companies to explore business and investment opportunities in each other’s markets.

The two sides agreed to hold the next meeting in Vietnam in 2011.

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Vietnamese Business Forum in Europe opens

The fifth Vietnamese Business Forum in Europe opened in Moscow on
Sept. 18, drawing representatives of 500 enterprises from over 10
European countries and Vietnam .

Addressing the two-day forum, Industry and Trade Minister Vu Huy Hoang
said the forum was an opportunity for Vietnamese enterprises in Europe
to meet, exchange experiences, seek cooperation opportunities and
discuss measures to boost investment at those countries and to Vietnam.

The
minister further said that the forum will help enterprises update
themselves on the latest policies back home through direct dialogue with
representatives from Vietnamese ministries, sectors and agencies.

Deputy
Foreign Minister, Chairman of the State Committee on Overseas
Vietnamese Nguyen Thanh Son spoke about Vietnamese Party and State
policies, which aim to encourage Overseas Vietnamese and the Vietnamese
business community abroad to contribute to economic development in
Vietnam and promote the image and products of the country to the
world.

He stated that Vietnamese enterprises abroad are bridges to link Vietnam with other countries and countries with Vietnam .

Meanwhile,
Tran Dang Chung, President of the Vietnamese Business Association in
Russia , said that enterprises, particularly Vietnamese enterprises the
Europe need to boost solidarity and exchange information and
experiences to overcome difficulties, especially impacts of the global
economic and financial crisis.

Participants to the forum will
focus their discussions on four issues: debt crisis in Europe and
challenges to Vietnamese enterprises; linkage and sharing as the basis
for successes of the Vietnamese business community in Europe; Vietnam
’s policies to support exports to Europe; and investment into Vietnam
, responsibility of Vietnamese business community toward home country.

Within
the framework of the forum, the Ministry of Industry and Trade held a
ceremony to honour outstanding Vietnamese entrepreneurs in Europe./.

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Japan ready to weaken yen again despite criticism

Foreign exchange broker stand in front of a television screen showing Japan's Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda speaking to the media in Tokyo September 15, 2010.

Photo: Reuters

TOKYO - Japan's finance minister on Friday repeated his threat to intervene in currency markets if necessary to weaken the yen, illustrating government resolve in the face of overseas criticism.

"As we have been saying, our basic stance is that we will take decisive steps, including intervention, if necessary, and I'd like to maintain this stance," Yoshihiko Noda said at a news conference after a cabinet meeting.

Noda was retained in Prime Minister Naoto Kan's cabinet reshuffle Friday, following the premier's victory in a bruising leadership challenge this week from Ichiro Ozawa, his pro-intervention rival.

Kan likewise suggested Japan would take further action if necessary, saying at a press conference: "We cannot take our guard down when it comes to the economy."

"So far, the interventions have worked to a certain degree," he added.

Japan on Wednesday carried out its first global currency market intervention since 2004 in an estimated two trillion yen (US$23 billion) move to help safeguard an export-driven recovery.

The decision surprised markets as Kan sought to silence those accusing him of inaction and win over supporters of Ozawa.

A strong yen puts Japanese exporters at a disadvantage because it erodes their repatriated earnings and competitiveness, in turn threatening the nation's fragile growth.

However, any repeat foray into the markets if the yen resumes upward moves may provoke ire from Japan's Group of Seven partners, after its intervention Wednesday was rounded on in Washington and Brussels.

Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker on Thursday hit out at such action on currency markets, saying his eurozone partners "don't like unilateral intervention".

Juncker, who heads the Eurogroup of finance ministers who manage the shared currency, spoke out as US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner bluntly warned China it had to let the yuan rise against the dollar to end trade distortions.

Earlier, US Democratic Representative Sander Levin, who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee which has power over taxes and trade policy, called Japan's policy "predatory" and "deeply disturbing".

With a large trade and current account surplus, Japan has a relatively weak case to lower its currency to boost exports, some analysts argue.

And while the yen recently hit 15-year highs on nominal terms, it is still below its 1995 peak when adjusted for price changes and compared with a basket of currencies used by Japan's largest trading partners, say analysts.

Noda said he is "checking" the overseas response to the intervention, adding, "I understand there are various opinions."

The yen was at 85.72 Friday, nearly three yen off a 15-year high of 82.86 reached before the intervention.

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IMF raises $8 bln for loans to poor countries

Photo: Reuters

WASHINGTON - The International Monetary Fund said on Friday it had raised US$8 billion in new resources for poor countries from four donors, including China which has a growing presence in Africa.

The IMF said in a statement it had signed financing agreements with Britain, Japan, China and France as part of fund-raising efforts that would allow it to offer low-cost loans to the world's poorest countries.

In July last year the IMF unveiled a plan to help developing nations hard hit by the global financial crisis and recession by boosting lending by up to $17 billion through 2014. It also suspended interest payments on loan payments through the end of 2011 to temporarily free up resources for governments.

Funds for the effort have already been received from Norway, the Netherlands ($767 million) and Canada. The IMF is also raising money for poor countries by selling 403.3 tons of its gold holdings.

IMF lending to poor countries rose sharply to $3.8 billion in 2009 from $1.2 billion in 2008, and just 0.2 billion in 2007.

So far in 2010 commitments of $1.7 billion have been made to developing countries under the low-cost lending program.

The announcement on funds for poor countries comes days before a meeting of 140 world leaders at the United Nations to assess goals launched in 2000 to cut global poverty by 2015.

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Samsung takes aim at Apple's iPad, iTunes

Samsung's latest tablet device the Galaxy Tab is on display at the 50th edition of the IFA on September 2 in Berlin.

Photo: AFP

WASHINGTON - South Korea's Samsung took aim at Apple's iPad and iTunes on Friday with the US launch of its new Galaxy tablet computer and an online entertainment hub for movies and television shows.

Samsung said US wireless carriers AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon will sell the Galaxy Tab, which was unveiled at the IFA electronics trade fair in Berlin, Germany, in early September.

Samsung said the Galaxy Tab would be available in the US in the "coming months" but did not provide pricing details of the touchscreen device seen as its answer to the iPad.

The South Korean electronics giant said the Galaxy Tab will offer access to "Media Hub," a new content service at Samsung.com.

MTV Networks, NBC Universal and Paramount are among the partners in Media Hub, which Samsung said will offer a "robust library" of movies, including new release films, next day television episodes and full TV show seasons.

Movies and TV shows can be rented or purchased and shared with up to five devices including Galaxy S smartphones, Samsung said.

"The new site further shifts the company from a product and technology provider to providing an overall digital experience," Samsung said in a statement.

Releasing the Galaxy Tab in the US, Samsung sought to emphasize its differences with the iPad, which has been a hot seller for Apple since it hit stores in April.

Samsung noted that the Galaxy Tab has front- and rear-facing video cameras, allowing for video chat, and runs the popular Flash video software from Adobe.

The iPad does not have a camera and Apple has banned Flash from the device.

"With support for Flash Player 10.1, the Galaxy Tab delivers an enhanced content experience when compared to other tablets currently available in the US," Samsung said.

The Galaxy has a seven-inch (17.8-centimeter) touchscreen, smaller than the iPad's 9.7 inches, weighs 0.8 pounds (380 grams), almost half the iPad's 1.5 pounds, and is powered by Google's Android operating system.

"The Samsung Galaxy Tab is designed for people who want a premium mobile entertainment experience on the go, but don't want to be weighed down by a bulky device," Samsung said.

The Galaxy Tab provides access to the more than 80,000 applications available on the Android Market, Samsung said.

The Galaxy Tab is one of a number of tablet computers slated for release in a bid to challenge the iPad.

US computer maker Dell offers the "Dell Streak," an Android-powered device with a five-inch screen, and Japan's Toshiba unveiled its "Folio 100" at the IFA in Berlin.

US handset maker Motorola said this week it hopes to release a tablet computer powered by Android early next year and South Korea's LG Electronics has promised to release an Android-based tablet computer before December.

US computer giant Hewlett-Packard is pinning its hopes on its Slate.

Glenn Lurie, president of AT&T's emerging devices, welcomed the arrival of the Galaxy Tab.

"We're looking forward to expanding our computing device portfolio and giving our AT&T customers more great choices with this innovative device," Lurie said.

AT&T is the exclusive provider of 3G cellular service in the US for Apple's iPhone and iPad.

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