Busy with American partners

13:31' 06/07/2007 (GMT+7)

President Nguyen Minh Triet and US Ambassador to Vietnam Michael Marine at the signing ceremony between a Vietnamese and a US company. VietNamNet Bridge – More than 20 contracts, memorandums of understanding, and economic cooperation agreements worth more than US$11.5 billion were signed between Vietnamese and American businesses during the recent visit by Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet to the US. Though having only just recently returned to Vietnam, many Vietnamese firms are already busy with new business opportunities with US partners. Do it immediately! During the visit, Ms. Cao Thi Ngoc Dung, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Phu Nhuan Jewelry JS Company (PNJ), signed two business cooperation contracts with two US jewelry companies, Zalemark and DC&D. Ms. Dung said that those contracts would be implemented this month. Under the contract with Zalemark, PNJ will be the representative of “Demeter” jewelry brand and some other lines of products such as “I forever do” and “Seventeen” of Zalemark in Vietnam. “To perform this cooperation, Zalemark will assist PNJ in installing equipment, machinery and send experts to Vietnam to directly instruct PNJ’s workers to produce complicated jewelry products under Zalemark’s standards, which the Vietnamese jewelry industry can’t do now,” Ms. Dung said. Zalemark will also give PNJ its latest designs and most popular collections to produce and sell in Vietnam. Those products will be sold in PNJ’s “Cao-Fine Jewelry” shop system. After PNJ successfully produces designs under technical requirements of Zalemark, the US partner will place orders with PNJ for exports to the US. “We put high hopes on this partner because this is a firm foundation and bridge for PNJ to infiltrate the US market,” Ms. Dung said. This trip also helped improve cooperation between PNJ and DC&D, which has existed for the past three years. Previously, PNJ processed high-class jewelry products, particularly diamond jewelry for DC&D to sell in the US market. With the new contract, PNJ expects to see a great jump in its export revenue to the US, from US$5.3 million to $20 million in the near future. Big projects The Phong Phu Textile-Garment Corporation also signed some important agreements with its strategic American partners. According to Phong Phu’s leader Tran Quang Nghi, the most notable contract is the one between Phong Phu and the ITG Group on expanding their joint venture project on producing some kinds of cloth with total investment capital of around US$100 million. This agreement is very important because in June 2006, the Phong Phu-ITG joint venture implemented an $80 million project at the Hoa Khanh Industrial Zone in the central city of Da Nang. ITG will seek export markets for more than 90% of the output of this factory. In the field of real estate, Phong Phu signed with WL Ross a $100 million contract. In the long term, Phong Phu sees WL Ross as a strategic investor. Phong Phu is preparing to equitise next year. Dang Thanh Tam, Chairman and General Director of the Tan Tao Industrial Zone JS Company, said that during this visit he signed a contract to build a sea port and thermo power plant with a capacity of 3,600 MW; and a financial lending and equipment supply contract, in the first phase totalling nearly US$4 billion, between the Saigon Invest Group, where he is the Chairman, and a big group in the US. This was one of the two largest contracts signed between Vietnamese and US businesses during this visit. Industrial zone up to US standards According to Mr. Dang Thanh Tam, during the visit he met with several American investors who said that they were ready to cooperate with his company to build industrial zones in Vietnam, on several thousands of hectares. “It is necessary to prepare well for this and we have prepared land in the north, the south and the central region,” Mr. Tam revealed. Those industrial zones could potentially be built in the southern provinces of Long An, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, the central provinces of Quang Nam and Binh Dinh, and in the northern provinces of Ha Tay, Bac Ninh, Bac Giang and Vinh Phuc, Mr Tam said. According to Tan Tao’s cooperation plans with US partners, the US side will send experts to Vietnam to design those industrial zones under American standards and call for investment in heavy industry, hi-tech, high value added and clean-technology industries in those industrial zones. Mai Linh Group also signed memorandums of understanding in the areas of information technology and health with US partners. Ho Huy, Chairman of the Board of Directors and General Director of Mai Linh Group, said that a $5 million memorandum of understanding was signed with SAP to build a management system up to international standard for Mai Linh. Mai Linh also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Texas Medical Institute to build an international obstetrics hospital worth $100 million in Vietnam. Big contracts signed during the visit: 1/ The Electricity of Vietnam group (EVN) and the Vietnam Oil and Gas Corporation (PetroVietnam) signed an agreement with Chevron on a project to develop gas in the southwest territorial waters of Vietnam, worth $4 billion. 2/ The Vietnam Shipping Lines Corporation (Vinalines) signed a project with SSA Marine to build wharfs and provide transport services worth around $500 million. 3/ Microsoft recognised FPT Group and CMC as its Authorized Large Account Reseller in Vietnam. FPT and CMC are authorised to draw up contracts on the use of authentic Microsoft Office software for the whole system of computers of Government agencies at central and local levels in Vietnam. 4/ The Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam (Agribank) and Microsoft signed a contract, under which Agribank forever owns the right to use 12,000 licences to use Microsoft Office Standard 2007 and any version of this software that Microsoft will introduce in the next three years. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

New Vietnam fund debuts on London Stock Exchange

09:58' 06/07/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge - The Vietnam Infrastructure Investment Fund (VNI) on July 5 made its debut at the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) on the London Stock Exchange (LSE). The listing marks the first time that a Vietnamese infrastructure fund will see transactions on the AIM and will focus on the areas of energy, transportation, water and telecommunications. Market experts have predicted that from now until 2020, Vietnam will require close to 140 billion USD for the development of needed infrastructure projects. The VNI will focus on strategic projects in Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City and key economic zones nationwide, including highways, ports, airports, and power plants. At the AIM, the VNI did earn 402,1 million USD through the issue of 402,1 million one-dollar shares. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

Author presents culture in French

12:58' 06/07/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge – Huu Ngoc's book Wandering Through Vietnamese Culture, which won the Viet Nam Year Book 2006 Gold Award, has just been published in French under the title A la Decouverte de la Culture Vietnamiene (Discovering Vietnamese Culture). The French text was actually written by Ngoc, who is a columnist for Viet Nam News. When first published, American writer Lady Borton described the book as simple to follow but as beguiling as a flower and as informative as an encyclopaedia. The book also made a deep impression with French scientist and writer Pierre Darriulat. "History-past and recent-myths and traditions line the lanes of the book. The author tells them with thin strokes, always smiling, sometimes joking, always in a spirit of tolerance and leniency," wrote Darriulat. "No thesis, no synthesis, no arid analysis, no a priori truth and moral lessons. Only suggestions inviting us to think and to see the many facets that make the beauty of things. The book will provide us with more knowledge on Vietnam and the Vietnamese than stern works by historians, ethnologists and sociologists." The 1,212-page book is published in French by The Gioi (the World) Publishers. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

A restaurant of Vietnam’s country life

13:41' 06/07/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge – On the way from Nha Trang to HCMC, travelers can easily find a small signboard at Km5 telling the way via a small street to Thon Viet Restaurant. Literally, the meaning of the restaurant’s name is simply Vietnamese Village, implying a place that promises guests the quiet and peaceful atmosphere of the country life of Vietnam. A dish served in a basket in Thon Viet Restaurant. Without the signboard, guests could hardly find the way to the restaurant nestled under the lines of betel trees, the green fields and trees. Passing a garden, guests will see the restaurant that was opened only a couple of months ago with waitresses in ao ba ba, the traditional dress of southern women in the village. Construction of the village-style restaurant was closely supervised to every decoration detail by the owner, farm engineer Nguyen Trung Binh. Either side of the pathway in the restaurant is decorated with flowers and grass. Here and there in the restaurant are the water wells, small bridges across small canals, the Lunar New Year Poles and long-handle buckets. Typical images of the Vietnamese village seem to be well depicted in Thon Viet Restaurant where guests could find a flock of chicken walking around the area to look for rice, the banana and bamboo trees, the eartherned jars to hold water with the dippers made of coconut shell. Diners can choose many outdoor corners in the restaurant to have their meal such as behind the banana trees, by the bamboo bridge or the small pond, feeling like they are dining in a village. Thon Viet serves many kinds of traditional rural dishes, each of them being displayed in baskets or panniers or wrapped in banana leaves and guests will be served with fresh vegetables, which are grown around the restaurant, according to Binh. Diners will find it enjoyable tasting the fresh, piping hot dishes such as fresh grilled anabas and amaranth soup and rice in clay pot in the natural setting of the Vietnamese village, which could bring guests an authentic Vietnamese dinning experience. Thon Viet Restaurant is located at Km5 on 23-10 Road, Vinh Diem Thuong, Vinh Hiep Commmune, Nha Trang City, tel: (058) 892 340, fax: (058) 871 185. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

Asian Cup: foreign visitors flock into Vietnam

Asian Cup: foreign visitors flock into Vietnam

12:21' 05/07/2007 (GMT+7)

Japanese fans at the World Cup 2006. VietNamNet Bridge – Tens of thousands of football fans of three teams, Japan, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Qatar, are expected to come to Vietnam to stimulate their teams at Asian Cup 2007. However, as tickets were issued so late, some travel firms have lost opportunities to bring foreign visitors to Vietnam on the occasion of Asian Cup 2007. According to international airways which have direct air routes to Vietnam, the number of tickets booked from the three above countries to Hanoi and HCM City has increased remarkably. Only Qatar Airways currently provides direct flights from the Middle East to Vietnam. This firm revealed that many fans of the Qatar national team have come to Vietnam to support their players at Asian Cup 2007. A staff of Qatar Airways told Tuoi Tre that the as the Asian Cup 2007 is approaching, the number of seats booked by passengers is increasing. The flights to Vietnam for some days have been fully booked. Meanwhile, Japan Airlines (JAL) said that many Japanese football fans use their services since they have air routes from Osaka and Tokyo to Hanoi. Its flights to Vietnam of JAL in the coming days have been fully booked. Some other airways revealed that months before the event, many travel firms had booked seats for their customers to Vietnam. Travel companies are complaining about not being able to buy tickets for Asian Cup while their Japanese customers only buy tours and book air tickets if they have football tickets. A representative of T&T travel company said: “At first we met difficulties in booking air tickets and hotels but when those things were solved, we can’t buy tickets for football matches of the Japanese team. As the organising board distributes football tickets too late, when we get football tickets, we can’t book hotels and air tickets”. As football tickets are distributed late, Apex travel company has to bring 300 tickets to Japan for sale. “We initially planned to register 600 football tickets but when we made a deposit, we knew that the tickets would be issued late. So we decided to book only 300 tickets. But till now we have to bring the tickets to Japan to sell,” the representative said. Another travel firm, OSC Hanoi, after getting football tickets, has immediately updated knowledge on football for its staff and informed its Japanese partners about the tour in Vietnam. The company’s director, Truong Nam Thang, said that his company is trying its best to satisfy Japanese fans. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

Korean actors to meet Vietnamese fans

17:04' 05/07/2007 (GMT+7)

Nam Sang Mi VietNamNet Bridge – On July 7, well-known Korean actress Nam Sang Mi and veteran Jang Hang Seon will visit HCM City on the occasion of the screening of their 2005 movie, Never to Lose. The 2 stars will meet Vietnamese fans at Diamond, Dong Da and Galaxy theatres. Born in 1984, Nam Sang Mi is currently a rising star in the Korean entertainment industry and well known for her beauty. She started her acting career with a 2-minute appearance in Love Letter. She later starred in She’s on Duty, Spy girl and Dead Friend. Nam Sang Mi is known to Vietnamese viewers through a TV series titled Sweet Spy. At 60 years of age, Jang Hang Seon is well loved in Korea for his outstanding performances in Ghost House, Mr. Gam’s Victory, The King and the Clown, and Tell Me Something. In Never to Lose, Nam Sang Mi plays the role of a traffic police woman who dreams of becoming a detective, and Jang Hang Seon, a difficult but kind and talented officer. The 2 actors’ visit is one of many on-going trips to Vietnam by Korean artists these past months. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

Marching towards Vietnam-Japan FTA

16:32' 05/07/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge – Minister of Trade Truong Dinh Tuyen talks about the possible impact of the Vietnam-Japan Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Vietnam is conducting comprehensive economic partnership negotiations in the period of deep integration with Japan. Please tell us, how far have the negotiations gone? Minister of Trade Truong Dinh Tuyen On June 26, I had a meeting with Akira Amari, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry. Now Vietnam is negotiating with Japan in order to sign the FTA between Vietnam and Japan. The two sides are trying to wrap up negotiations before November 2008. Personally I think that only as of 2003 did Japan begin advocating the FTA with Vietnam. Japan has signed FTAs with many countries, especially ASEAN nations. If Vietnam cannot reach the agreement with Japan, its exports would face discriminatory treatment in Japan’s market. In trade with Japan, Vietnam’s exports to the market are $300mil higher than imports. If the Vietnam-Japan FTA is signed, the trade balance will be improved. How will the FTA influence Vietnam? There will be breakthroughs in exporting goods to Japan. As for Vietnam’s exports, Japan wants to lower taxes to 2.8% on average by 2018 from the MFN tax rate of 5.05% as currently applied. In return, Vietnam will have to cut taxes to 7% by 2018 from the current MFN tax rate of more than 14%. It is obvious that the tax reductions for Vietnam will be sharper and faster than Japan, though the final tax rates Japan would apply would be lower than Vietnam’s. Japan commits to lower 92% of categories of tax, of which, several thousand categories of tax would be cut to 0% immediately. The tax reductions would create good conditions for Vietnam’s exports to enter Japan’s market. However, if Vietnamese companies are not good in trade promotion, they would not be able to access the market and boost exports to Japan. Meanwhile, Vietnam will also have to open its market to very dynamic Japanese enterprises. Currently, the import tax rates Japan is applying are relatively low already, and the tax rate will be lowered from over 5% to 0%, while Vietnam will have to cut from 14% to 0%. Japanese enterprises prove to be capable of easily accessing Vietnam’s market, while Vietnamese enterprises are still weak in trade promotion, which should be seen as a big problem. What would you recommend to enterprises and state management authorities? We are trying to join the global market. With the agreements on bilateral and multilateral market opening, Vietnam’s partner countries will open their markets for Vietnam’s goods, while Vietnam will also have to open its market for foreign companies. As such, the door to the world’s market would be opened, but whether Vietnam’s goods could penetrate the market would still depend on many factors, especially the quality and price of goods. Even when we have good quality products and competitive prices, we need still push up trade promotion in order to bring Vietnam’s goods to foreign customers. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

PM arrives in India, beginning state visit

10:07' 05/07/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung arrived at Kolkata airport in India's West Bengal on July 4, beginning his landmark to visit to the country. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. After his arrival in the world's second most populated country, PM Dung, his wife and the high-level delegation accompanying them symbolically paid a floral tribute to a monument dedicated to Vietnam's President Ho Chi Minh that is located in the city. Later that day, the Vietnamese Government leader met with West Bengal Governor Budhatdev Bhattcharya and a delegation of the India-Viet Nam Friendship Association. Bhattcharya said as a state rife with massive agriculture potential, West Bengal is eager to invest in aquaculture and milk processing projects in Vietnam. He then invited Vietnamese business executives who accompanied PM Dung to link up with the West Bengal Chamber of Commerce in sponsoring an annual trade fair in his state. The Vietnamese leader went on to reiterate Vietnam’s policy to open its market for Indian businesses interested in investing in information technology and steel production. During his meeting with a delegation of the India-Viet Nam Friendship Association led by its chairman Geetesh Sharma, the Prime Minister expressed “A sense of deep gratitude from the Vietnamese Government and people for India’s valuable support during their struggle for national independence.” “Vietnam will do its utmost to bring traditional relations between the two countries to new heights for the vested interest of the two nations as well as for peace and prosperity in the region,” said the PM. Following the meeting, the PM attended a joint business forum that drew the participation of close to 300 Indian businesses in addition to the travelling 100 Vietnamese partners from his accompanying delegation. At the discussion, he extended an invitation to India’s industrial giants to invest in areas that directly relate to their strengths and experiences such as information technology, electricity, petroleum, metallurgy, coal mining, transport, agriculture, fisheries, food processing and medicine. PM Dung later witnessed a signing ceremony for a cooperation agreement between the Viet nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). Capping off a busy day, PM Dung then visited the Headquarters of the Tata Steel Group. He told the company's executive board that he was eager to see a home grown entity such as Tata operating in Vietnam after the giant rolls out a steel complex in the central province of Ha Tinh. (Source: Viet Nam Net)

Imported brand new cars to be new favorite choice in Vietnam

12:56' 05/07/2007 (GMT+7)

VietNamNet Bridge – Though distributors now still find it hard to sell imported brand new cars, experts still believe that imports would be the favorite choice for Vietnamese customers in the near future. After Porsche announced its official distributor, the market has become more bustling with the appearance of seven big trademarks in Vietnam, such as Nissan, Hyundai, Kia, Land Rover, Peugeot and BMW. With the presence of imported models, Vietnamese customers would have more choices, including the foreign made and locally assembled products. However, not every manufacturer can succeed in Vietnam. Japanese Nissan, the pioneer on the market, has not made any breakthroughs over the last year, since it set foot in the market. Only 100 units have been sold in the last year by Nissan’s three agents, mostly the X-Trail. Soon after launching, the five-door hatchback Tiida disappeared from the market, and currently, every Nissan’s sales agent could sell only one or two units a month. Analysts said that the problem of Tiida was that it appeared on the market at the time when the segment of five-seat cars began sliding down. Besides, the price of $40,000 proved to be not a good decision, as customers would favour Honda Civics or Toyota Altis, or the imported Toyota Yaris, which has the same price level. Though Tiida remains unmarketable, Motorcare, the distributor of Nissan’s products in Vietnam, still decided to import Sunny to sell domestically. However, the mid-size sedan model had the same miserable fate as Tiida. Meanwhile, the Murano crossover, which has been favoured by Vietnamese customers, cannot be found in any Nissan stores. Motorcare’s representative said that Nissan did not bring Murano to Vietnam for fear that the overly high price (approximately $100,000) would keep customers away. However, the reality showed that the thought was not true. An automobile salon in HCM City said that all Muranos were sold soon after they arrived. Like Nissan, Land Rover has just ‘disposed’ of some units which were imported in last October. In fact, New City, the distributor, could not sell more than it did, as Land Rover is not a well known trademark in Vietnam, while the products are very expensive, ranging between $140,000 to $200,000. Mr Thanh, a staff of New City, said that it is now the experimental period, and whether Land Rover would develop further still depends on the market demand. Peugeot cars are also rarely seen rolling on roads. Its distributor Thuan Lan could sell 15 units only which were imported in the first consignment. Nguyen Chi Can, Director of Thuan Lan, said that the selling price was higher than expected since customs agencies defined high taxable value of the cars. The importer plans to import small-size models in September in an effort to maintain its operation. If it is not lucky, it is very likely that Peugeot will have to go away as it once had to do 30 years ago. While several big names have not succeeded in Vietnam, others seem to be satisfied with their business in Vietnam. Hyundai’s products, distributed by Hyundai Vietnam, for example, are selling well. Making debut in October 2006, some several tens of Santa Fes are being sold every month. Besides Santa Fe, the small-size Getz is also favoured by Vietnamese people, thought it is sold at $20,000. HMV has been wise enough to ignore five-seat models to focus on crossover and small-size ones, which are the tastes of Vietnamese customers. HMV’s representative said that it has stopped importing Santa Fes and Getz to focus on 3.5L Veracruz crossover, a luxury model of Hyundai, which has the design not much different from Lexus RX350. Hyundai has been successful with its sale of imported models as its turnover is always at a high level, while Peugeot is in the danger of having to withdraw from Vietnam as it had to 30 years ago. The coming months will be the time for Porsche and BMW, the two giants that have announced their plans to conquer Vietnam’s market, to show their ability. (Source: Viet Nam Net)