The second wave of COVID-19 has had a serious impact on many Vietnamese enterprises, and timely support from the Government and authorised agencies is now urgently needed.

These are some of the temporary solutions enterprises have adopted to maintain operations.

The second wave of COVID-19 had a major impact on this enterprise, as contracts fell by a third compared to previous years.

For tourism companies, the second wave of the pandemic smashed their hopes that the industry would recover quickly, and many were forced out of the market.

Government support policies during the first wave were rightly praised but many enterprises have said they had problems accessing the package.

Nearly 86 percent of 126,500 surveyed enterprises were hit by the pandemic. Experts said the second wave had a greater negative impact than the first.

Authorised agencies will instruct enterprises to provide information on the survey’s website. The results are expected this month and will help boost the effective implementation of support policies for enterprises./.

NA Standing Committee approves 274 billion VND to supplement rice reserves

The National Assembly Standing Committee on September 15 passed a resolution on allocating 274 billion VND (11.8 million USD) from the central budget’s reserves of 2020 to buy 23,000 tonnes of rice for the national reserves.

The volume of rice will be purchased to supplement the reserves after 23,000 tonnes were taken from the stockpiles during the period from June 1, 2019 to May 31, 2020 to be given to people in localities hit by natural disasters and epidemics, and the poor in between-crops periods. Part of the rice was also sent to Cuba as aid.

The committee also adopted another resolution on adding medical materials and supplies to the list of goods in the national reserves.

Participants proposed that the Government stipulate in detail the types of medical supplies to be included in the national reserves, and the tasks, authority and responsibilities of ministries and agencies in charge of those goods.

Mining industry unable to enjoy tax incentives

The mining industry faced difficulties in the first eight months of this year due to being unable to enjoy tax and land rental incentives, said Nguyen Huu Quang, deputy head of the National Assembly's Committee on Finance and Budget.

The National Assembly and the Government have issued many policies to reduce taxes, fees, charges and land rents and extend payment deadlines to support amid the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the mining industry has not accessed these incentives.

The General Statistics Office (GSO) reported the index of industrial production (IIP) for the first eight months of this year was estimated to surge by 2.2 per cent year-on-year, while the mining industry’s IIP reduced 7 per cent.

According to the amended articles of the Law on Value added Tax (VAT), exported goods, which have the total value of natural resources, mineral resources and energy cost accounting for 51 per cent or more of the product cost, do not enjoy reduced or refunded VAT for input materials. These goods do not also enjoy export tax incentives under the Import - Export Tax Law.

These factors are why the mining industry has had negative growth in the first eight months, according to Quang.

The GSO said Viet Nam’s industrial production faced more difficulties in August when the pandemic resurged in late July.

The national IIP in August increased by about 3.5 per cent over the previous month, but decreased by 0.6 per cent over the same period last year. Of which, IIP decreased by 5.1 per cent for the mining industry, 0.1 per cent for the processing and manufacturing industry, and 0.7 per cent for electricity production and distribution. While, that of water supply, waste and sewage management and treatment increased by 2.2 per cent.

The IIP in the first eight months of this year was estimated to increase by 2.2 per cent year-on-year. However, it was much lower than the growth rate of 9.5 per cent in the first eight months of 2019.

Finnish fund pours capital into Digiworld

Finland-based Evli Emerging Frontier Fund announced on September 15 that it purchased more than 103,850 shares in technology equipment distributor Digiworld (DGW).

After the purchase, the fund has become a major shareholder of DGW, holding 2.2 million shares of the company, equivalent to the holding ratio of 5.14 percent.

The fund is owned by Evli Fund Management Company, a Nordic fund management company founded in 1985. This fund management company is 100 per cent owned by Evli Bank, a Finnish bank which manages assets of 12.2 billion euros.

Evli Emerging Frontier was introduced in October 2013, focusing on investing in fast growing economies. As of the end of August, the fund's portfolio size reached more than 61 million euros.

Vietnam is the third largest market in its portfolio with 18 percent of proportion.

Digiworld six-month revenue reached 4.9 trillion VND and after-tax profit totalled 93 billion VND, up 45 percent and 55 percent respectively over the same period last year. Earnings per share reached 2,166 VND.

In May this year, Digiworld became one of the four official distributors of Apple products in Vietnam, besides Synnex FPT, Petrosetco and Viettel. Main product categories include iPhone, MacBook, iPad, Apple Watch, Beats, Apple TV and other accessories.

DGW shares ended Tuesday at 53,800 VND per share, three times higher than that in April. Temporarily calculating at this price, the number of DGW shares that Evli Emerging Frontier is holding is worth 117 billion VND.

VN to be only country in region to attain positive growth in 2020: report

Viet Nam is expected to be the only Southeast Asian economy to achieve growth this year, with its GDP rising by a likely 2.3 per cent, according to a study by Oxford Economics.

The Global Economic Outlook report said recovery prospects look brightest for Viet Nam, which had contained the Covid-19 outbreak very effectively until recently.

The pandemic has delivered the biggest growth shock to South-East Asia since the Asian financial crisis in 1997, and regional growth is forecast to contract by 4.2 per cent in 2020, according to a new report.

The report, commissioned by chartered accountancy body, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, suggested that while economic activity was picking up again and growth was expected to eventually rebound to 6.4 per cent in 2021, the pace of recovery over the second half of 2020 would vary across the region depending on the easing of lockdown restrictions and improved export demand.

The Covid-19 outbreak had reduced global GDP by around 9 per cent in the first half of 2020, at least three times the size of the decrease during the 2007-09 global financial crisis. Despite a strong rebound in the third quarter of 6.4 per cent, global GDP would contract overall by 4.4 per cent this year.

However, momentum had been building in the second half of 2020, which would drive growth to 5.8 per cent in 2021, and lead the global economy to recover to its pre-crisis peak by the mid-point of next year, a similar time frame as the post-2008 financial crisis recovery.

The strength of the rebound over the coming quarters in South-East Asia remained uncertain, particularly in the fourth quarter of 2020, after the expected initial strong bounce in global trade and domestic activity post-lockdowns faded.

Additionally, varying success rates in containing the Covid-19 outbreak, and differing lockdown exit strategies would widen the disparities in economic growth in the region.

Economies which had convincingly contained the outbreak such as Thailand and Viet Nam would see a stronger recovery than Indonesia and the Philippines, which were battling new waves after restrictions were prematurely relaxed, the report said.

The pace of recovery in the second half 2020 would vary across South East Asia.

Mark Billington, ICAEW Regional Director, Greater China and South-East Asia, said: “The road to recovery for economies in South-East Asia will be a long one, with existing US-China tensions, a long-term slowdown in global trade activity, and a prolonged Covid-19 pandemic weighing on the region’s growth prospects.

“While each region’s economy has suffered due to the crisis, the unique economic structures mean the crisis has played out in different ways.

“Ultimately, countries that can strike a balance between resuming economic activity and keeping the outbreak under control will see their economies bounce back faster than the rest.”

Tra fish exporters struggle with production, exports on pandemic, lack of water

Tra (pangasius) fish farming has been hit by a double whammy of Covid-19 and prolonged saltwater intrusion in rivers in the Cuu Long (Mekong Delta) region, according to the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Many pangasius-farming households and export firms have suffered in recent months as fish prices dropped steeply and export markets were stagnant.

Since the beginning of this year exports of the country’s two main seafood products, tra fish and shrimp, have been down sharply.

Tra exports have been particularly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In the first half of this year they were down 31 per cent to US$612.3 million, according to VASEP. Shipments to all 10 leading markets decreased from the same period last year, by 15.5 per cent in the case of China, 24.4 per cent to the US and 36.6 per cent to the EU.

Declining new orders, high inventories and low export prices have caused profits of businesses and fish-farming households to plummet, with many even suffering losses, VASEP said.

Le Vinh Trong, a tra fish farmer in An Giang Province’s Chau Thanh District, said normally the fish is harvested to sell to export processing plants when it reaches a weight of 0.8-1kg.

However, his fish are now more than 10 months old and weigh 1.8kg but there are no buyers.

He had to run around before finding a plant that agreed to buy the fish for VND17,700-VND18,000 per kilogramme, but on credit, prices at which he lost VND5,000-VND6,500 per kilogramme.

The Dong Thap Province-based Vinh Hoan Company (VHC) announced that second quarter profit had halved year-on-year to VND215 billion ($9.2 million).

The half-yearly profit too halved to less than VND368 billion.

VHC is considering investment strategies to increase profits through value chains. Besides its traditional tra exports, it is also eyeing an increase in sales of fish fat and fish meal by 20 per cent and collagen and gelatin products by 60 per cent this year, thanks to the commissioning of a new factory.

Nam Viet Corporation (ANV) saw second-quarter profit decrease by 79 per cent year-on-year to VND32 billion, its lowest since the beginning of 2017.

In the first half of this year net revenues dropped by 14 per cent while post-tax profits fell a whopping 79 per cent to VND75.5 billion.

The company forecasts full-year profit to fall by 72 per cent to VND200 billion.

Exports fell by 52 per cent to VND399 billion in the second quarter, but, thanks to its focus on the Vietnamese market, domestic sales rose 113 per cent to VND485 billion, surpassing exports for the first time.

ANV is seeking to further exploit domestic demand by tying up with the distribution chain of VinEco belonging to Masan Group.

Diversifying products and export markets is helping create growth momentum and remove difficulties for tra fish exports, VASEP said.

Key economic regions urged to promote innovation for breakthrough development

Key economic regions were urged to maximise their potential and competitive advantages as well as promote innovations to drive regional and national growth, according to the recent Government resolution on solutions to strengthen the development of key economic regions.

The resolution pointed out that key economic regions were facing a number of challenges, including economic slowdown, a lack of efficiency in coordination mechanisms among regions, poor regional linkage of industries, as well as unclear development strategies of localities in the region which caused them to fail to bring into play their available potential and a shortage of human resources.

There were also difficulties in raising resources for infrastructure development, shortages of clean land for industrial park development and attracting large-scale projects as well as pressure from increasing population, traffic congestion, home shortages and environmental pollution.

The COVID-19 pandemic was also significantly impacting the development of key economic regions with major indicators including economic growth, import-export, budget collection and tourism revenue in the first half of this year much lower than the same period in previous years.

To create momentum for economic recovery, the Government asked localities in key economic regions to make best efforts to overcome the difficulties, maximise their potential and promote innovation.

Localities must renovate thinking, encourage innovation and identify factors which would create breakthrough developments to contribute to the country’s development, the resolution said.

Priority must be placed on improving the legal environment and the regional coordination mechanism to enhance regional linkages.

The regional and national planning for 2021-30 would be developed to ensure a long-term vision, promote potential and competitive advantage and enhance regional linkages.

These regions were urged to develop policies to raise resources from the private sector and allocate appropriate sums from the State budget to develop the infrastructure system in 2021-25 period with a focus on transport, regional irrigation system, water storage, salinity control and climate change adaptation.

It was also important to identify industries and fields suitable to the competitive advantages of each region and each locality to attract investment, according to the resolution.

The Government’s statistics showed the key economic regions contributed significantly to national economic growth. The four key economic regions contributed an average of 72.95 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the 2011-19 period.

Every one per cent growth of these four key economic regions would push up GDP by 0.61 per cent.

There are four key economic regions, including the Northern Key Economic Region, the Central Key Economic Region, the Southern Key Economic Region and the Cuu Long (Mekong River) Delta.

VND300 billion tourism stimulus packages pay off in Quang Ninh

The northern border province of Quang Ninh has initiated two tourism stimulus packages worth VND300 billion in total which have proved effective despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Under these packages, Quang Ninh offers 50% discounts on entrance tickets to attractions such as Ha Long Bay, the Quang Ninh Museum, and the Yen Tu relic site.

The past weekend on September 12-13 saw Quang Ninh receive approximately 4,000 arrivals, representing a 10-fold increase compared to the previous period. Ha Long Bay alone welcomed 2,500 arrivals, while the Quang Ninh Museum greeted 1,000 tourists, and the Yen Tu relic site hosted 600 visitors.

This sudden rise can be attributed to the local administration’s recent decision to approve the launch of a VND100 billion tourism stimulus package, in addition to another VND300 billion package launched in May.

The provincial administration anticipates that the tourism stimulus packages will help generate thousands of jobs for local people and spur local economic growth in the remaining months of the year.

Quang Ninh is home to Ha Long Bay, one of the seven world wonders, which has been recognized by the UNESCO as a World Natural Heritage. It houses Dragon Park and Typhoon Water Park, the two largest amusement parks in Southeast Asia.

In recent years the provincial administration has poured large amounts of investment into tourism projects to turn Quang Ninh into an attractive tourist destination in Vietnam.

Vingroup rejects rumour about selling stake in Vinmec and Vinschool

Vingroup rejects rumour about selling its stake in Vinmec and Vinschool, reiterating that these two systems play a crucial role in the group’s ecosystem.

Putting rumours to rest, the representative of Vingroup also affirmed that the group will continue to invest to expand these systems.

“We are still looking for opportunities to co-operate with both local and foreign partners to make Vinmec become an international-level hospital system with branches overseas. Regarding Vinschool, it targets the local market only and as such, it is not looking to cooperate with new partners,” the representative said.

Previously, Reuters quoted a source saying that Vingroup is likely looking for partners to buy its education and hospital systems. According to the source, the group has yet to select a consultant unit for the deals but it has been negotiating with two potential partners.

Vietnam’s major conglomerate Masan on January 1 announced its takeover of 540 million shares or an 83.74% stake in VinCommerce Services and Trading Development, Vingroup’s subsidiary in charge of retail business.

The company now owns VinCommerce’s network of 2,600 supermarkets and convenience stores of VinMart and VinMart+ across 50 cities and provinces in Vietnam, along with a customer base of millions.

Local shrimp quality must improve after enjoying tax incentives from EVFTA

The implementation of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) in early August represents hope that Vietnamese shrimp exports to the EU market will rise during the remaining months of the year.

Although in order to enjoy tax incentives, shrimp exporters must improve product quality.

The EU is the country’s fourth largest shrimp buyer after the United States, Japan, and China, accounting for 13.3% of the nation's total shrimp export value. Despite this, Vietnamese shrimp exports to the EU witnessed a consistent fall between March and June this year, although exports to this market during July and August showed signs of a slight increase from the previous months and over the same period last year.

After suffering a series of drops from March to June, local shrimp exports to the EU in July reached US$54.2 million, an annual rise of 2%. Indeed, the first half of August saw the export of this item to the highly-lucrative EU market hit US$29.4 million, marking a rise of 26% on-year. It is believed that domestic shrimp exports to the EU this August may enjoy a surge of approximately 20% compared to the same period last year.

Furthermore, experts anticipate that Vietnamese shrimp exports to the EU until the end of the year will continue to increase, although the growth rate is limited due to the negative impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

As a result of the tax advantage that Vietnamese shrimp enjoys in comparison to its competitors, EU importers are keenly seeking additional supply sources from the nation, with deeply processed, packaged, and ready-to-eat items for home consumption being the most sought after.

With regard to trends of the European shrimp market moving towards the end of the year, experts state that despite the gradual reopening of food establishments, coupled with the tourism industry restarting, shrimp importers and their suppliers remain under long-term pressure due to the uncertainty of the pandemic. With retail and online sales continuing to increase, demand for shrimp from the retail segment will be even higher once end-of-year holiday approach.

As a means of ensuring their quality and reputation, shrimp farmers must redouble efforts to improve their knowledge and experience in farming due to diseases relating to farmed shrimp being quite serious. In addition, many farms that run clean and intensive farming models tend to yield positive results, although it is difficult to replicate these models due to high requirements in terms of investment capital and knowledge.

Moreover, enterprises must also focus on building their own brands by improving their operational efficiency and competitiveness, along with joining the global value chain in a more extensive manner. The efforts made by each business will therefore contribute to making the domestic shrimp industry develop into a strong economic sector for the nation moving forward.

Vietnam, US explore ways to raise export and import turnover of farm produce

As a means of increasing the trade of agricultural products from Vietnam and the US in the near future, it is necessary to continue solving problems relating to taxation and quarantine processes on imports in order to fulfill commitments between the two sides.

This comes as the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) held a meeting with businesses in Hanoi on September 14 in an effort to boost the import of agricultural products from the US.

Upon assessing the negative impacts caused by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, including breaking the value chain between the two sides, some business representatives outlined that import tax on agricultural products from the US is higher than that of countries who enjoy tax incentives from free trade agreements with Vietnam.

Most notably, a tax reduction on corn, wheat, and grain products will serve to contribute to increasing the volume of imports as a means of improving competitiveness within the domestic market, not only with other ASEAN members, but many countries worldwide, they said.

With the aim of promoting commitments placed on agricultural exports and imports in order to balance trade between both sides, the past eight months has seen the MARD actively co-ordinate moves to overcome obstacles. This has been done to create favourable conditions for firms from the two countries, such as suspending regulations on the certification of free circulation for imported animal feed materials, the postponement of applications of regulations, and some heavy metals in feed ingredients.

Nguyen Do Anh Tuan, head of the MARD’s International Cooperation Department, said with trade and the export of agro-forestry-fishery products from the nation to the United States increasing, there have been times in the year that the US has risen to be the largest export market for local products.

In relation to the Vietnamese side, the import of agricultural products from the US continued to support agricultural production increases, this includes the import of raw materials for animal feed surging by between 10% to 20% in comparison with the same period last year, in addition to milk imports expanding by 55%.

Furthermore, the MARD will continue working with relevant offices from the US on quarantine procedures, Tuan said, adding that both sides will be active in facilitating the trade of items from the US such as nuts, almonds, and citrus paradisi, along with grapefruits from Vietnam.

Moreover, the nation will strive to boost the export of wood and wood products, aquatic products, cashew nuts, coffee, in addition to rubber and vegetables, to the US, while simultaneously importing cattle feed, soybeans, wood and wood products, vegetables, milk and dairy products, wheat, and cotton from the US market.

At present the US is one of the country’s biggest trade partners, with two-way trade of farm produce enjoying an average annual growth rate of roughly 30%. Indeed, the first seven months of the year saw two-way trade turnover between the both sides reach US$47.1 billion, including US$7.53 billion from import-export turnover of agro-forestry-fishery products, representing a rise of 9% on-year.

Vietnamese economy remains resilient despite COVID-19 challenges

The nation’s economy is expected to record growth of 1.8% this year, despite the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, before bouncing back to 6.3% in 2021, according to a new report released on September 15 by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

“Lower domestic consumption and weak global demand caused by COVID-19 have hurt Vietnam’s economy more than expected. But economic growth will be resilient in 2020, in large part due to the Government’s success in controlling the spread of COVID-19,” said Andrew Jeffries, country director for Vietnam of the ADB.

“Economic growth will be supported by the country’s macroeconomic stability, increased public spending, and ongoing reforms to improve the business environment”, noted Jeffries.

According to the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2020 Update, an annual flagship economic publication released by the ADB, the Vietnamese economy will benefit from the continued diversion of production from the People’s Republic of China to the nation, ongoing recovery in the Chinese economy, and the implementation of a free trade agreement with the EU.

The report outlines that slower-than-normal growth would serve to keep inflation subdued at 3.3% this year, before witnessing a slight rise to 3.5% in 2021.

The outlook for the country’s economy over the medium and long term remains positive, largely due to continued Vietnamese participation in a large number of bilateral and multilateral trade agreements which are expected to provide a boost for the nation’s economic during its rebound.

Furthermore, the report adds that it is likely the country will also be a beneficiary from the current shifting of supply chains to low-cost countries.

Through their report the ADB point out some of the potential risks that exist moving forward, with a prolonged global COVID-19 pandemic remaining the biggest danger to the nation’s growth outlook this year and into next year.

Moreover, another threat comes from escalating global trade tensions leading to a rise in trade protection, in addition to financial risks that could be exacerbated by the impact of a prolonged pandemic, the report says.

Dried cassava chips exports enjoy vigorous growth

The export of dried cassava chips since the beginning of 2020 has witnessed robust growth in comparison with the same period last year, and the demand for the chips is anticipated to continue increasing.

The General Department of Vietnam Customs reports between January-July Vietnam raked in US$95.41 million from exporting 418,380 tonnes of dried cassava chips, representing annual increases of 101.1% in volume and 94% in value. Vietnam’s major consumers included China, the Republic of Korea, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

Of the figures, dried chip cassava exports to China accounted for 85.8% of the total export volume with 359,008 tonnes, earning US$79.27 million, up 173.3% in volume and 183.3% in value.

Most notably, the average export price of dried cassava chips to the Chinese market enjoyed a surge of 3.7% to US$220.8 per tonne in comparison with the corresponding period from last year.

According to forecasts by the Thai Tapioca Trade Association, the demand for dried cassava chips is projected to witness an increase in the future due to a general decline in quantity occurring at Chinese inventories.

The export price of cassava chips in the short-term is anticipated to remain high as the products are in short supply and some cassava growing areas are infected with leaf mosaic disease, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Vietnam rises four notches in global import report by Jungle Scout

Vietnam has climbed to second place from its previous sixth position in the rankings of biggest suppliers to the United States, as calculated by Jungle Scout, the leading all-in-one platform for selling on Amazon.

According to Jungle Scout's Global Imports Report 2020, the country’s total exports to the US market are up 72%, while its share of US imports has seen an increase of 65% since 2015.

In comparison to other nations, the majority of top-10 suppliers to the US witnessed a drop in their respective shares, although China, Belgium, and Thailand were exceptions after recording small increases.

The report stated that during the second quarter of the year, Vietnam, along with China and Thailand, recorded a sharp reduction in novel coronavirus (COVID-19) cases and related deaths. Indeed, the three nations were also among the few to enjoy positive year-over-year import numbers.

Most notably, when COVID-19 cases began rising in India in March, their imports from the US also saw a drastic drop, with both trends continuing through June.

In its report, Jungle Scout outlined that countries which enjoyed an early recovery from the year’s economic disruption were more likely to enjoy a “bounce back”, with all recoveries being recorded in Asia.

During the first half of the year, only five out of 20 countries had a net positive growth over the same period from 2019, with all five being from Asia. Vietnam was joined by the likes of China, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.

The report indicated that although the country, along with Malaysia and Singapore, enjoyed annual growth of over 100% in February and March, these increases failed to offset the massive share of imports lost from China during this period.

All of the data collected in the report represents US maritime imports between January 1, 2015, to June 30 of this year, from 237 countries.

In compiling the data into the report, Jungle Scout analysed more than 63 million maritime US import records, including the country of origin, category, along with information on both the shipper and shipment.

Indonesia’s foreign debts reach nearly 410 billion USD

Indonesia’s foreign debts rose to about 409.7 billion USD in July from 408.6 billion USD in June, according to the country’s central bank (BI).

Debts of the public sector and private sector were 201.8 billion USD and 207.9 billion USD respectively.

However, BI spokesperson Onny Widjanarko said that the growth of foreign debts in July 2020 at 4.1 percent year-on-year was still slower than the 5.1 percent in the previous month due to the declining growth of private foreign debt amid the relatively stable growth of the government's foreign debt.

He said that the government debts rose 2.3 percent in July to 199 billion USD.

This condition was due to the withdrawal of commitments from several multilateral institutions and the issuance of Samurai bonds to meet the financing needs including those for the COVID-19 pandemic mitigation and the national economic recovery programme.

However, the structure of Indonesia's foreign debts remained healthy as they were managed prudently with the debt to gross domestic product (GDP) ratio reaching 38.2 percent, Widjanarko said.

The structure of the Indonesian foreign debts remains dominated by long-term debts (89.1 percent of the total foreign debts), he noted.

In efforts to maintain the healthy foreign debt structure, Bank Indonesia and the government continue to enhance coordination in monitoring the debt development which is supported by the prudent debt management./.

Hesitation slows down SOE equitisation

Despite numerous efforts of the Government in speeding up the equitisation of State-owned enterprises, some ministries, sectors, localities and economic groups have showed ineffective performance in the work, thus slowing down the progress of the scheme.

According to the Ministry of Finance’s Department of Corporate Finance, in the first eight months of 2020, the department received the reports approving equitisation plans of six enterprises.

The Committee for Management of State Capital at Enterprises (CMSC) has completed the announcement of corporate value of one corporation – the mother company of Power Generation Corporation 2 (EVNGENCO 2).

From 2016 to August 2020, 177 enterprises had had their equitisation plans approved with total value of over 443.5 trillion VND (19 billion USD), including 207.1 trillion VND of State capital.

In the rest of the year, the number of enterprises subjected to equitisation in line with the plan is 91, including 13 in Hanoi and 38 in Ho Chi Minh City. The CMSC is responsible for the equitisation of six enterprises, the Ministry of Industry and Trade four and the Ministry of Construction two.

Economist held that in order to complete the equitisation of 91 firms between now and the year-end, each month, the country must equitise 22 enterprises, which is infeasible. Meanwhile, equitisation is the only way to enhance the efficiency of State-owned enterprises and optimise resources for the national economy.

Economist Nguyen Tri Hieu said enterprises have given various reasons for the slow implementation of their equitisation plans. Meanwhile, Dang Quyet Tien, head of the Department of Corporate Finance blamed impacts of COVID-19 pandemic for equitisation delays.

Besides, those targetedthis time are major economic groups and corporations with complicated financial situation, making it difficult to evaluate the corporate value, he said, adding that newly-issued regulations related to equitisation and capital divestment with tighter procedures also prolong the time for the work.

Particularly, a recent report of the Department of Corporate Finance showed that some ministries, sectors, localities, Stated-owned economic groups, corporations and companies have yet to work hard in this regard.

Tien said that they have balked at processing the equitisation without daring to take the responsibility, while taking difficulties as reasons to delay the equitisation.

Meanwhile, economist Le Quoc Phuong held that there are still “loopholes” in related regulations, leading to a slow progress of the scheme.

In that context, the Ministry of Finance has asked SOEs subjected toequitisation to speed up the reviewing of their land to facilitate the evaluation of corporate value, thus completing the financial settlement and announcement of corporate value within 2020.

Agencies representing State capital ownership at enterprises should complete divestment within 2020, the ministry requested, asking leaders of ministries, ministry-level agencies, Government agencies and centrally-run localities to drastically direct the SOE equitisation, divestment and restructuring in line with the plan, and be responsible for the work’s results.

Phuong underlined the urgent need to fix the “loopholes” in regulations, making the equitisation process tighter and under stronger control and supervision.

Ca Mau fertiliser plant’s urea output hits 7 million tonnes after ten years

The PetroVietnam Ca Mau Fertiliser Co., Ltd. (PVCFC)’s total urea output reached the milestone 7 millionth tonne on September 13 after almost ten years of operations.

A subsidiary of the Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) and located in the Mekong Delta province of Ca Mau, PVCFC has maintained capacity at 110 percent over recent years to bring high-quality fertiliser to the market and contribute to enhancing national food security.

The factory has produced some 870,000 tonnes of urea each year, meeting more than 40 percent of demand around the country and holding a market share of approximately 60 percent in the Mekong Delta - Vietnam’s rice bowl.

Its products have been exported to a number of foreign countries, including Cambodia.

With its products, farmers can save up to 30 percent on fertiliser costs while increasing yields by 5-10 percent.

Danish catalysis company Haldor Topsoe named PetroVietnam Ca Mau Fertiliser among the factories with the best annual normalised production and in the Top 10 in terms of the lowest annual specific net energy consumption.

The PVCFC generated 34.73 billion VND (nearly 1.5 million USD) in profit in the first two months of this year, equivalent to 69 percent of its yearly plan, despite unfavourable business conditions.

The company’s output surged 17 percent past the January – February target to 157,000 tonnes of urea.

In the first six months of this year, the prices of gas as material for urea production dropped strongly along with oil prices, enabling the factory to earn 200 billion VND (around 8.65 million USD) in profit, far exceeding the initial target of 54 billion VND, despite being challenged by unfavourable business conditions, in particular severe saline intrusion in the Mekong Delta.

Saltwater has hit the Mekong Delta harder and earlier than expected this year, affecting about 300,000 ha and forcing local farmers to cut their rice-growing areas and shift to aquaculture, with demand for fertiliser falling 15 to 20 percent as a result.

The global spread of COVID-19 has also taken a heavy toll on the export of PVCFC’s urea products to major foreign markets, particularly Cambodia.

To resolve the problems, PVCFC has worked hard to boost sales in areas not affected by saline intrusion, and cooperated with agricultural authorities to provide farmers with technical support and new varieties to cushion the blow of drought and saltwater intrusion.

It has partnered with the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang to demonstrate new high-quality paddy varieties and advanced farming practices, and instructed farmers on how to use water and fertiliser effectively and how to test salinity.

The company has signed an agreement with VietFarm to develop bio-fertilisers and organic fertilisers, to diversify its products and stay abreast of higher market demand and modern agricultural trends.

According to the company’s Deputy Director General Nguyen Thi Hien, PVCFC is applying many technological solutions to raise the factory’s capacity by 15 percent, which means total urea output is expected to reach 913,000 tonnes in 2021. As such, the company will have to expand its share in the domestic market while seeking new export markets.

The company raised nearly 1.58 trillion VND (74 million USD) at its initial public offering on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) in 2014.

It successfully sold all 129 million shares offered in the IPO at an average price of 12,251 VND, or 251 VND higher than the initial price. The shares account for 24.36 percent of the company’s capital.

The company made its debut on HoSE on March 31, 2016, with more than 529 million shares offered at a reference price of 14,500 VND./.

Tien Giang takes steps to attract more investment

The Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang is soliciting investment in clean industry projects and high added-value projects that use modern technologies and are less labour-intensive, according to the provincial Department of Planning and Investment.

It is planning to attract investment in agricultural farming and processing projects, and hi-tech agricultural and aquaculture projects in Tan Phuoc, Chau Thanh and Tan Phu Dong districts.

In addition, it also wants to call for investment in an eco-spiritual tourism project in Tan Phuoc district, industrial park infrastructure development in Tan Phuoc and Go Cong Dong districts, and projects in the financial and banking sectors in My Tho city and the logistics sector in Go Cong Dong district.

According to Nguyen Dinh Thong, the department’s acting director, the province has targeted attracting 30 projects with total investment capital of nearly 11.17 trillion VND (493.7 million USD) to its three key economic areas.

In addition, it will help investors to complete a number of key projects and put them into operation this year.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic and saltwater intrusion, the province has achieved positive results in investment attraction.

In the first seven months of the year, it attracted 24 projects, an increase of 11 projects over the same period last year, with total new investment capital of 10.334 trillion VND (447.8 million USD), or 93.6 percent of the same period last year.

About 5,980 businesses were operating in the province by the end of July. Of the number, 454 were newly established this year.

Pham Anh Tuan, Vice Chairman of the provincial People's Committee, said with its motto 'Tien Giang investment opportunities and partner for development', the province had approached businesses in innovative ways, developed policies to support investors, and streamlined administrative procedures.

Provincial leaders also regularly met with investors to promptly solve difficulties faced by them.

Located in the southern key economic region and on the gateway connecting the Mekong Delta with HCM City and the southeastern region, Tien Giang has multiple competitive advantages, especially regional linkages.

It has large fruit cultivation areas and favourable conditions for the development of processed industry, tourism services and other sectors.

Based on such potential, the province has developed priority policies to call for investment, focusing on improving the investment environment and improving provincial competitiveness and boosting administrative reform, according to Thong.

From the investor's perspective, Dinh Cao Khue, Chairman of Dong Giao Food Export JSC (DOVECO), said Tien Giang had concentrated fruit-growing areas and transport convenience, and an abundant labour force. These advantages would help to attract investors when they are considering their investment destinations, he said.

In addition, the provincial leaders pledged to create favourable conditions for enterprises to invest in building fruit and vegetable processing factories, and to ensure sufficient supply of electricity and water, and traffic connections for businesses to operate.

At the same time, the province also pledged to create a zoning plan for material cultivation areas to meet production needs of the processing plants.

In the coming time, the company plans to invest in a factory to process, preserve and pack fresh fruits for export and a vegetable and fruit processing factory in My Phuoc commune in Tan Phuoc district.

It will have an estimated design capacity of about 200,000 tonnes of fresh fruit for export, and 150,000 tonnes of processed products.

Tien Giang has four industrial parks with over 1,101ha located in convenient positions. It also has four operating industrial clusters - An Thanh 1, Trung An, Tan My Chanh, and Song Thuan.

Not all industrial parks are fully occupied, and there is still a significant area of land available to investors./.

Source: VNA/VNN/VNS/VIR/VOV/SGT/NDO/Dtinews