finance & business news 29 March 2021

FINANCE ...... 2 Programme supporting enterprises in optimising Reference exchange rate up 1 VND 2 opportunities from EVFTA debuts 33 bond market maintains growth momentum Multinational partnership provides leg-up to women tech amid COVID-19 2 start-up entrepreneurs 34 Consumer lending to grow again in 2021 2 Experienced tourism companies offer advice to tourism startups 34 Negative mobilisation growth recorded in late February, Fifty five firms to be honoured with Vietnam National early March 3 Quality Awards 2020 35 For profit or for human life? 5 Need for digital transformation personnel sees sharp rise: report 35 Mobile money attempts to topple classic banking 6 City sets up teams to help foreign firms amid pandemic 36 Banks thirst for foreign capital 7 Nha Trang hotels sold in droves after Covid-19 blow 37 MIC focusing on popularising Mobile Money 8 Nearly 40,000 ha of fruit trees possibly face water SBV provides refinancing loans worth VND4 trillion shortage in Delta 37 for Vietnam Airlines lenders 9 Rice production efficiency of eight provinces in Thai tourists can scan QR codes for payment in Vietnam 9 improved 38 Vietnam, UK exchange official notes of UKVFTA 10 Sao Vang-Dai Nguyet port offshore Vietnam's economy is set to grow 6.6pct in 2021: WB 10 Ba Ria-Vung Tau opens 39 UOB predicts 7.1pct GDP growth for Vietnam in 2021 11 Hau Giang Port aims at handling 1 million tonnes of goods 39 Three-month FDI rises impressively by 18.5pct: Binh Son refinery company surpasses production and Investment Agency 11 financial targets in Q1 39 Government succeeds in reducing public debt to safety level.. 12 Kaspersky launches new cyber-security solution for small Petrol prices rise slightly in latest adjustment 13 and medium-sized businesses 40 High demands push Vietnamese rice's prices up: VinFast VF e34 much sought after in Vietnam following its debut 40 Business Recorder 13 IDICO attracts 10 investors to its IPs since year's beginning 41 Vietnam looks to address bottlenecks in logistics infrastructure 14 Nghi Son 2 Thermal Power Plant connected with Need for high-speed rail arguments continue unabated 14 national electricty grid 41 Dong Nai works to drive economic development 15 Rising costs might force EVN to increase retail Bridging the tech-led links in investment 16 electricity prices: SSI 41 EVFTA opens up opportunities for SMEs to grow 18 Authorities find over 2,000 fake Samsung chargers in shop 42 SOEs need to enhance autonomy in operation: report 19 AEON Vietnam to build new shopping mall in Bac Ninh province 42 Billion-dollar SOEs to be made leading companies 20 $650 million TTI project six months behind schedule 43 Small private sector firms need crucial breakthrough 21 Be to expand ride-hailing taxi services to 20 more markets 44 Foreign capital injected in wood industry down 36pct in 2020 22 Vinamilk imports over 2,100 dairy cows from the US 44 Land speculation continues, realtors incur big losses 22 Hoa Phat's dizzy growth seems set to continue 44 Hanoi property prices surge due to Red River urban IHG Hotels & Resorts reveals guests' growing passion planning reports 23 to travel better 45 BIZ NEWS ...... 24 MWG's profit up 18 per cent 45 Shares narrow losses thanks to a surge in large-caps 24 City sets up teams to help foreign firms amid pandemic 46 Big caps save VN Index from steep fall 25 Amway Vietnam staffs donate blood 46 Vietnam has highest rate of new digital service consumers Diamond Lotus Riverside voted as one of top 5 green in SEA 26 projects 2020 47 Vietnam-EU to debut e-commerce site for businesses 27 Launch of Wink Hotel Saigon Centre brings fresh Night-time industries provide leverage for green economy: Expert 28 breeze to hospitality market 47 Vietnamese tourism considers trial reopening to Ixora Ho Tram by Fusion and its exceptional advantage international travellers 28 coming from prime location 48 Taiwan relaxes travel restrictions for Vietnamese businesspeople 29 VSIP accelerates development of amenities for Government gives nod to Lien Chieu port project 30 Sun Casa and Sun Casa Central 49 PM okays VND1.55 trillion Dien Bien Phu airport expansion plan 30 Hanoi workshop examines EVFTA opportunities, Vietnam Airlines resumes international flights 31 challenges for SMEs 50 Vietnam Airlines to provide 12,000 seats per day on KBIZ Day 2021 promotes Vietnam-Korea business cooperation 51 Hanoi-HCM City route 31 Vietnam saves 353,000 kWh of electricity in one light-off hour 31 Ministry aiming to collect taxes from e-commerce sellers 32

Intellasia Tel: +844 2213 2244 No. 21, lane 173/63/17, Ngoc Ha Ward, Ba Dinh Dist, Hanoi Fax: +844 3759 2034 © All Rights Reserved Email: [email protected] Websites: www.Intellasia.Net www.TriTueAChau.com Vietnam finance & business 29 March 2021 FINANCE FINANCE Reference exchange 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA rate up 1 VND The State Bank of Vietnam set the daily reference exchange rate at 23,231 VND/USD on March 29, up 1 VND from the last working day of the previous week (March 26). With the current trading band of +/-3 percent, the ceiling rate applied to commercial banks during the day is 23,927 VND/USD and the floor rate 22,536 VND/USD. The rates at commercial banks fluctuate slightly. At 8:25 am, Vietcombank listed the buying rate at 22,960 VND/USD and the selling rate at 23,170 VND/USD, both down 5 VND from the same time on March 26. BIDV also cut both rates by 5 VND, with the buying rate listed at 22,980 VND/USD and the selling rate at 23,180 VND/USD. Vietinbank raised both rates by 2 VND to 22,930 VND/USD (buying) and 23,180 VND/ USD (selling)./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/reference-exchange-rate-up-1-vnd/198226.vnp

Vietnam bond market 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| NHANDAN maintains growth Vietnam's local currency bond market grew 8.1 percent from the previous quarter to momentum amid $71 billion at the end of December 2020, according to the latest issue of the Asia Bond

FINANCE COVID-19 Monitor, as issued by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Steady expansion in both the government and corporate bond segments supported the growth, according to the report, issued today. Specifically, Vietnam's government bonds grew 7.1 percent from the previous quarter to $58.8 billion at the end of December, accounting for 82.8 percent of the country's to- tal bond stock. Meanwhile, corporate bonds also sustained their growth momentum, increasing 13.6 percent from the previous quarter and 169.5 percent from a year earlier to $12.2 billion. On the regional level, an improving global economic outlook and progress on COVID- 19 vaccination have pushed up bond yields in the emerging East Asia region, compris- ing China, (China), Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, the Phil- ippines, Singapore, and Vietnam. Local currency bond markets in the region expanded to $20.1 trillion by the end of 2020, 3.1 percent higher than the preceding quarter and 18.1 percent higher than a year earlier. The size of the bond market grew to the equivalent of 97.7 percent of the region's gross domestic product at the end of the fourth quarter of 2020. Local currency bond issu- ance stood at $2 trillion. Government bonds dominated the region's bond stock at $12.4 trillion as of the end of December, while corporate bonds amounted to $7.7 trillion. Vaccine rollouts have started in most countries in the region, boosting confidence, ac- cording to the report. Meanwhile, investor sentiment and financial conditions have also improved, helping boost most equity markets and regional currencies. Capital flows into the region's equity and bond markets also recovered in the last quar- ter of 2020. government bond yields in most advanced economies as well as emerging East Asian markets increased between December 31, 2020 and February 15, 2021. ADB Chief Economist Yasuyuki Sawada added that bond markets in emerging East Asia continued to grow, mobilising funding for the region's sustainable recovery from the pandemic. Successful vaccination campaigns, accommodative monetary policy stances and easing of restrictions are spurring economic activity and shifting the recov- ery into a higher gear, he added. https://en.nhandan.com.vn/business/item/9706702-vietnam-bond-market-maintains- growth-momentum-amid-covid-19.html

Consumer lending to 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNS grow again in 2021 The consumer finance market will have the chance to grow again in 2021 thanks to the country's economic recovery, experts forecast. Vo Dai Luoc, former director of the Institute of World Economics and Politics, said the consumer finance market would resume rising this year as economic growth is expect- ed at 6 per cent against 2.91 per cent last year. In 2020, income of consumers was adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, causing a decreasing demand for consumer loans.

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According to Luoc, last year, the agriculture, forestry and fishery sector increased by 2.68 per cent, contributing 13.5 per cent to the growth rate of the whole economy. The figures for the industry-construction and services sectors were 3.98 per cent and 2.34 per cent, contributing 53 per cent and 33.5 per cent, respectively. Besides the processing and manufacturing industries, the services sector, including wholesale and retail, financial activities, banking and insurance, would be continually one main driver of economic growth this year. Thus, the consumer finance market and consumer services would certainly play an important role in the economy, Luoc said. According to economist Vu Dinh Anh, in the context of declining income due to the pandemic, consumer lending is an important factor to stimulate the increase in domes- tic aggregate demand through a rise in goods retail and consumption. Despite higher risks than bank loans, the consumer lending market is still attractive to investors thanks to its profitability. According to the State Bank of Vietnam's statistics, finance companies have the highest profitability among credit institutions in Vietnam. The latest updates available in Oc- FINANCE tober showed return on asset (ROA) and return on revenue (ROE) of finance compa- nies were respectively 2.19 per cent and 10.55 per cent, highest among credit institutions. The ROA of finance companies was even 2.8 times higher than commer- cial banks. Sixteen finance companies are licensed to provide consumer lending with their total charter capital worth more than VND22 trillion (US$948 million) as of the end of 2020. Those with the largest charter capital include FE Credit (VND7.328 trillion), SBIC Fi- nance (VND2.532 trillion), EVN FC (VND2.5 trillion), Home Credit (VND2.05 trillion) and HD Saison (VND1.4 trillion). A number of banks have launched finance companies, such as VP Bank with FE Credit, HDBank with HD Saison, SHB with SHB Finance and MBBank with Mcredit. Banking expert Can Van Luc said Vietnam's consumer credit market had significant potential for development. Consumer loans are estimated to account for around 18-20 per cent of the total outstanding loans in the economy. http://bizhub.vn/banking/consumer-lending-to-grow-again-in-2021_323218.html

Negative mobilisation 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| DAU TU CHUNG KHOAN growth recorded in Statistics of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) showed that as of February 23rd 2021, the late February, early mobilisation of the banking system declined by 0.48%. On March 5th, the outstanding March mobilisation nationwide reached 10,338 trillion dong, down by 0.2%. On March 9th, this number was more than 10,345 trillion dong, down by 0.13 percent compared to late 2020. However, the reduction has not stopped. According to data updated to March 16th 2021, the national capital mobilisation reached 10,410 trillion dong (of which 9,453 tril- lion dong were in dong), up by 0.5 percent compared to the end of 2020. Contrary to the decrease in mobilisation, the credit to the economy has steadily in- creased. Specifically, as of February 23rd 2021, the national credit growth was 0.26%. The outstanding credit was more than 9,251 trillion don on March 5th, up by 0.64%; and 9,253 trillion dong on March 9th, up by 0.66 percent compared to the end of 2020. The latest data as of March 16th 2021 of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) pointed out that the credit reached more than 9,287 trillion dong (including 8,779 trillion dong in dong), up by 1.03 percent over the end of 2020. The opposite movement between mobilisation and credit is considered the reason why some banks have slightly raised their savings interest rates to attract deposits. Specif- ically, by the end of February, some banks such as Vietnam Technological and Com- mercial Joint Stock Bank (Techcombank), Vietnam Prosperity Commercial Joint Stock Bank (VPBank), Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank (ACB) increased their savings in- terest rates by 20 50 percentage points, applicable to individual customers. Trinh Thi Thanh, director of Financial Management and Treasury Division of Saigon Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SCB), said that "liquidity has started to slow down but this is not a big problem".

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According to Thanh, considering the whole system, there are still factors supporting the liquidity, they are the good growth of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the abun- dant remittance flows, and particularly the high disbursement of public investment. This capital will be transferred to the banking system in the form of payment deposits and foreign currency sales. In the first two months of 2021, commercial banks sold nearly seven billion US dollars on six-month term at the rate of 23,125 dong per US dollar to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), equivalent to about 157 trillion dong to be pumped into the market in July and August 2021 (if these contracts are not cancelled and there is no neutralisation action by the regulators such as using bills to withdraw money. This is considered as a factor supporting the system's liquidity and helping maintain interest rates on the interbank market at a low level. Increasing foreign reserves is not a monetary intervention. With the positive foreign exchange flows thanks to the trade surplus, the disbursement of FDI, and the good remittance flows, the foreign currency purchase of the SBV is a FINANCE normal activity and this agency affirmed that it is not a currently manipulation to "cre- ate an unfair competitive advantage in international trade". The SBV itself has also changed the way of buying foreign currency from the beginning of this year when it stopped buying spot foreign currency purchase and switched to buying foreign currency forward. The efforts of the government and the SBV have brought positive results in the assessment from the US. Vietnam was considered a currency manipulator under the administration of the former US President Donald Trump in December last year. Questions are raised about the prospects for the dong when the US has a new President Joe Biden, who is in office from January 20th 2021. There was a positive development in mid-January that could bring positive signals, that is the conclusion of the US Trade Representative Robert Lighthiser that there will be no specific sanctions against Vietnam. HSBC Asia economist Yun Liu said that "There will be a healthy scenario for Vietnam that both the US and Vietnam will come to an agreement or even a landmark involving the gradual reform of the dong exchange rate regime". Leader of a private joint stock bank said that the retention or cancellation of the cur- rency manipulation label will depend on the next decision of the new US Treasury Sec- retary Janet Yellen. "It is not clear what measures Janet Yellen will enact, so it does not mean that there is no tariff. Therefore, the government and the SBV will surely be very cautious in buying foreign currencies to increase the national foreign exchange reserves. Accordingly, in the case when the demand for liquidity in the system gradually grows, the support will be mainly through the open market operation and it will be difficult to keep inter- est rates as low as at present," said the bank leader. Where is money "going"? The foreign currency inflows partly support the system liquidity, and is a cause for the interest rates to decline. However, it is clear that the low savings interest rates have made many people to withdraw their idle money to invest in other channels such as the stock market, real estate, corporate bonds, or even high risk channels such as forex, virtual money, etc. While bond was the story of last year and the stock market has not attracted large amount of money as expected, due to the HoSE's congestion, land fever has become a big issue in the first two weeks of March when there was news about land price in- creases as well as the warning of risks from urban authorities. There is no specific statistics on the amount of money that has flown into real estate, because this investment activity is personal, and investments and transactions of land purchase and sale (mainly land plots) are actually hand-to-hand, or by bank transfers but in the form of personal money transfers without the real purpose. However, as analysed by an economic expert, when any commodity increases in price, the cause is either from the supply or the demand side: supply is lower price increases

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and more demand (more money inflows) price increases, or both causes at the same time. "The price increase of securities and real estate in many places is a sign of the cash flows being directed to these areas," said the above expert. Although the cash flows seem to be deviated when shifting to other investment channels, the increase in credit is a positive sign at this stage as the first quarter is an off-peak time for credit growth. With this momentum, the situation will improve at the end of March and particularly from the beginning of April 2021 when cyclical capital borrowing activities will in- crease strongly, capital flows will be better directed into production business activities and social consumption. At that time, savings interest rates perhaps will inch up and the cheap money situation will decrease.

For profit or for 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES human life? On March 9, 2021, the prime minister officially issued a decision approving the pilot

FINANCE operation for payment for small-value goods and services with the telecom account, or the mobile money service. To residents in big cities, this information seems uninterest- ing as they have more convenient solutions. However, to people in remote and out-of- the-way areas, especially the poor, this service may help change significantly their life. The primary goal of mobile money is to provide essential financial services, such as payment, money transfer/reception, savings and insurance, for people unable to access them because they live in remote, out-of-the-way and rural areas. The typical examples for the development of this service are African countries, especially those in sub-Saha- ran Africa, and India. In 2014, the Indian government was determined to develop mobile money to cover es- sential financial services along with the telephone coverage. However, the country's unbanked population still stands at 200 million people. To service providers, mainly mobile service operators, the mobile money is a very large market but the profit per customer is very low. According to a report released by the Global System for Mobile Communications in March 2020, only 60 percent of mo- bile money service providers had EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, deprecia- tion and amortisation) above zero. Those businesses did not incur losses, but it's highly likely that they had a very small profit. Paytm, a big name in the mobile money service in India established in 2010, only reached the break-even point and had profit in 2019. A mobile money business usually undergoes the startup phase in the first one or two years, grows in the fourth or fifth year and gains stability afterwards. The cost struc- ture of mobile money is different from those of traditional services like calling, mes- saging, data and value added services. The mobile money is an OPEX (operating expense) segment, with the expenses mainly for paying commissions for agents which are transaction outlets, and marketing and human resources costs. The largest expense is the commission for cash-in and cash-out, which, according to statistics, sometimes account for 40-80 percent of the revenue. Mobile money brings many benefits for people out of access to financial services and supports effectively micro-finance and micro-insurance programmes, which are major issues of financial inclusion and one of the targets for sustainable development. It also enhances the efficiency of access to essential services like power and water for people in rural areas, increases convenience and reduces payment management cost for busi- nesses. Another significant benefit of mobile money is cash support in case recipients do not have bank accounts. Many destitute people in remote and out-of-the-way areas need emergency aid but do not have the means to get it. With mobile money, the recipient only needs to have a mobile phone number, be it for the 2G service, and he or she can get the aid more easily. It is also a solution for paperless immigrants and refugees in need of assistance. Small and micro businesses can diversify their payment acceptance through mobile money. Imagine tourists or visitors to a remote area who want to buy some goods or service but do not bring along cash and the areas have no ATMs, mobile money would

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then be a satisfactory service for both sellers and buyers. Mobile money development is needed in not only poor countries and remote rural ar- eas. In many cities in some developed countries, residents or tourists can buy bus and metro tickets and pay parking fees though messages, and the amount will be deducted (for pre-paid subscribers) or added to the bill (for post-paid subscribers). Though there are many payment apps on smartphones, payment through messaging has a superior advantage owing to its convenience. The above analysis shows that the mobile money operation is really unattractive if businesses do not have superior advantages or an eco system which uses leverages among different services. Nevertheless, the benefits which mobile money gives to poor people and those in remote and out-of-the-way areas with no access to essential finan- cial services are undeniable. This group of vulnerable people will be left out should the market principle reign. Therefore, the development of mobile money needs joint sup- ports from governments and charity funds or investment funds like the case of the Bill & Melinda Gates and Flourish funds. Profit should not be the foremost criterion for a FINANCE programme aimed for the benefit of society or human life. https://english.thesaigontimes.vn/81153/for-profit-or-for-human-life.html

Mobile money 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VIR attempts to topple The newly-launched mobile money pilot programme is expected to heat up competi- classic banking tion for domestic players but also open collaboration opportunities to cash in on the niche market. Since mobile money is still in its concept stage, Vietnamese telecom behemoths Viettel, VinaPhone, and MobiFone are quickly preparing the necessary infrastructure to roll out services once being greenlit by the authorities. The companies are making efforts to break into the new segment as the traditional market has been saturated and their entrance is expected to create fierce competition while also placing pressure on banks that utilise more established payment methods. Vietnam has witnessed a booming e-wallet business in the past few years. According to the latest research by Cimigo, MoMo, Moca, and ZaloPay are the top three most popular e-wallets in the two main cities in Vietnam, accounting for more than 90 per cent of the e-wallet market. In the beginning of 2021, MoMo raised at least $100 million from six global investors. Meanwhile, VNPay has become the second unicorn startup in Vietnam and one of 12 companies in with a valuation of $1 billion. Other apps have also re- corded impressive growth. Marcin Miller, associate partner of McKinsey Vietnam, told VIR that mobile money's could impact the payment market on several levels first is smartphone penetration, and second is the banking distribution network. That said, there are other methods of cashless payments that are widely available in Vietnam. The pilot will nevertheless help to confirm whether this form of payments resonates with groups that do not have bank accounts or are not already using e-wal- lets or other cashless payment methods. Truong Cam Thanh, director of ZaloPay, said it is inevitable for the competition be- tween mobile money service providers and e-wallets to grab a share of consumer wal- lets. However, each player has their strategy, market, and consumer target. "Mobile money can grow well in remote and rural areas while e-wallet apps will be more popular in urban cities," he said. Meanwhile, Ngo Trung Linh, general director of VietUnion the development unit of e-wallet Payoo said the firm is partnering with other telecom providers to provide mo- bile top-up services. Transforming the market Some experts also argue that the pilot programme likely puts pressure on traditional banks so they need to step up their game to maintain their market share. As telecom providers are likely to re-establish competitive fees leading to more people opening

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mobile accounts for payments, the earnings of banks can shrink significantly. However, McKinsey's Miller stated that traditional banks still have ample room to play and innovate, as the mobile money programme offers new complementary assets that traditional banks can leverage. Through partnerships with telco players, banks can introduce new products such as a top-up services for mobile money wallets and target new user groups, enabling them to transition mobile money users to fully banked clients. "Mobile money cannot re- place a full banking offer. Instead it can be an attractive payment method for specific groups of clients," Miller said. According to Riddhi Dutta, regional director for Asean and South Asia at Netherlands- based digital-first banking provider Backbase, Vietnam has a high growth potential and the country remains in the early stages of development for a fintech framework. "It is imperative that local firms work with foreign investors and enterprises to access the technology, experience, and capital they need," Dutta said. With core banking and payment system modernisation being the top priorities among FINANCE banks, fintechs can take this opportunity to enter the market and partner local banks and enterprises to help scale their innovations. The partnerships will also allow financial enterprises and banks to embrace the new technology offerings through their new fintech partners to achieve value-creating col- laboration, according to Dutta. Cracking the market Besides the vast opportunities, there are a number of potential issues for the fledging services. According to a report by the BIDV Training and Research Institute, disposa- ble SIM cards are the most difficult problems for customer identification. With mobile money, each customer is only allowed to open one primary SIM payment account at one carrier. However, disposable SIM cards are still available in many trans- action points despite the effort to curb this problem. Thus, if the management of disposable SIM cards along with anonymous transactions are not strictly implemented, mobile money could become a channel for laundering and fraud. There are also other risks like infringement of customer data, security risks, gambling, and others. For service providers entering the mobile money pilot programme, the Backbase representative suggested businesses should provide greater levels of con- venience, overcome financial literacy challenges, and improve accessibility to meet the needs of the unbanked and underbanked population. "It is crucial for them to adopt a customer-first mindset and approach to ensure a suc- cessful adoption of their digital platforms," Dutta explained. "Choosing the right fintech partner is also essential to ensure these digital banking platforms are resilient and survive the test of time over the next 15 years. These part- nerships will only be beneficial when working with the same vision, commitment, and appropriate technology to address the needs of customers," he said. https://www.vir.com.vn/mobile-money-attempts-to-topple-classic-banking- 83294.html

Banks thirst for 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| DIEN DAN DOANH NGHIEP foreign capital Increasing capital from the equity source of credit institutions (CIs) will still be limited. Therefore, many banks will target foreign capital. Nguyen Thi Phuong Thao, general director of Vietjet Air cum vice Chairwoman of the Board of directors (BOD) of HCM City Development Commercial Joint Stock Bank (HDBank), once said that the difficulties of the pandemic and the very cheap interna- tional capital are the great opportunities. Say and do, HDBank issued convertible bonds and signed a strategic cooperation with DEG a development financial institution under the KFW of Germany. DEG invested in buying HDB shares at a higher price than the market price of HDB shares at that time, and contributed 160 million dong to HDBank. Then, in early 2020, HDBank has a deal to mo- bilise syndicated loan from Taiwan-s MEGA bank and Indian banks, adding 71 million US

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dollars to increase capital. Jochen Steinbuch, director of DEG Asia Pacific, looked at Vietnam as a whole with the view that Vietnam is considered a bright spot for foreign investors when the economy is said to be slightly affected by the Covid-19. "Thanks to a young population with an expanding middle class, the demand for banking and financial services in Vietnam is high," Jochen Steinbuch emphasized. Not only HDBank, many banks are in need of mobilising capital. Commercial Joint Stock Bank for Industry and Trade of Vietnam (VietinBank) and Commercial Joint Stock Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), despite having for- eign partners, these banks still need to raise more capital in order to have their expect- ed credit growth limits loosened and compete with rivals as expected. Many banks of Vietnam, after the wave of foreign divestments in the past, have opened up room for foreign strategic partnership. For example, Southeast Asia Com- mercial Joint Stock (SeABank) was listed on the HCM City Stock Exchange (HoSE) with almost empty room for foreign ownership. Numerous banks listed on the HoSE, FINANCE Unlisted Public Company Market (UPCoM) such as Bao Viet Commercial Joint Stock Bank (BaoVietBank), Viet A Commercial Joint Stock Bank (VietABank), Nam A Com- mercial Joint Stock Bank (NamABank), Bac A Commercial Joint Stock Bank (BacABank), etc. are also in the same situation. Or Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB), despite having a Japanese partner, still has open room for a new release to find a new foreign partner.

MIC focusing on 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA popularising Mobile The successful implementation of Mobile Money, a pilot project that will pave the way Money for payments of limited value to be conducted using telecommunications accounts, is one of the major targets of the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC). The scheme, approved by the prime minister, enables money transfers and payments for legal products and services in Vietnam only, using dong. Cross-border transactions are not allowed. The pilot project will be carried out over two years from when the first business in the field receives permission to launch the service. The credit limit will be 10 million VND (434 USD) per month for all transactions on each account. Approval of the project aims to bolster cashless payments via mobile devices as well as access to and use of financial services, particularly in rural and remote areas, to cap- italise on the country's telecommunications infrastructure and network. Project outcomes will act as a foundation for the building of regulations stipulating the operation of Mobile Money services in the country. According to minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung, this is a major solution to promote cashless payments, creating breakthrough growth in na- tional digital transformation. Many analysts have said that Vietnam can learn from other countries around the world in the implementation of Mobile Money, thus optimising the advantages and minimising the limitations. However, they also asserted that it will pose challenges to telecommunications firms, especially in ensuring information safety for users. Many consumers have found Mobile Money to be convenient and have changed from only using cash, especially young people, who are often stuck to their mobile phones. They also pay great attention to safety and information security, as well as the level of readiness among telecommunications service providers. Vietnam has around 129.5 million mobile phone subscriptions, around half of which use 3G and 4G, and 43.7 million people, or 45 percent of the population, using smart- phones. Pham Trung Kien, deputy general director of Viettel Digital, said that as one of the leading telecommunications firms to research and invest in activities related to Mobile Money, Viettel is ready to pilot the service and has met all requirements set by the

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prime minister. He added that the piloting of the scheme has opened up new and broader payment activities. Kien said that Viettel will prioritise customers in rural, remote, and mountainous are- as, where the finance-banking system has yet to be developed and residents have low access to the banking system. In order to prepare for the scheme, it has piloted it on 40,000 of its 70,000 subscribers, using high security protection technology. In the time to come, telecommunications service providers will bring more Mobile Money services to more customers. Figures from the State Bank of Vietnam show that the country has 89 million private payment accounts, which means 70 percent of adults have bank accounts./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/mic-focusing-on-popularising-mobile-money/198178.vnp

SBV provides 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES

FINANCE refinancing loans The prime minister has signed a decision allowing the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) to worth VND4 trillion provide refinancing loans worth VND4 trillion to credit institutions that are lenders of for Vietnam Airlines the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines. lenders The decision is in line with a resolution which the National Assembly adopted last year to authorise SBV, the nation's central bank, to help Vietnam Airlines deal with losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Interest rates for refinancing loans are set at 0 percent per year, which is also applicable for any extension for such loans. The refinancing period follows the request from cred- it institutions but will not exceed 364 days. SBV will complete disbursement no later than December 31, 2021. The credit institutions will be responsible for their loan agreements with Vietnam Air- lines. The agreements must be weighed carefully based on the credit institutions' ca- pacity and Vietnam Airlines' financial conditions. The total value of the loans for Vietnam Airlines must not exceed VND4 trillion. In 2020, Vietnam Airlines suffered a loss of VND14.4 trillion due to the negative impact of Covid-19. The airline operated 96,500 flights, carrying 14.23 million passengers and nearly 195,000 tonnes of cargo last year, down 48%, 51 percent and 47 percent year-on- year, respectively. In the 2021-2025 period, Vietnam Airlines will focus on its recovery, while continuing to push for the restructuring process. The Vietnam Aviation Business Association forecast that revenue of Vietnamese air carriers would continue plunging this year, with airlines expected to suffer losses of over VND15 trillion from air transport activities. https://english.thesaigontimes.vn/81165/sbv-provides-refinancing-loans-worth-vnd4 trillion-for-vietnam-airlines-lenders.html

Thai tourists can scan 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES QR codes for payment The National Payment Corporation of Vietnam and the National Interbank Transac- in Vietnam tion Management and Exchange (NITMX) in Thailand on March 26 announced that they had completed the connection for QR Code-using retail payment between Viet- nam and Thailand. The project was conducted in line with the directives of the State Bank of Vietnam and the Central Bank of Thailand to carry out the agreements on financial reforms which were signed in 2019. The move is expected to help boost bilateral trade, investment and tourism activities, as well as enhance the use of domestic currencies for payment between Vietnam and Thailand. In the first phase of the project, Thai tourists can use the mobile app of the Central Bank of Thailand to scan VietQR for payment at TPBank's and BIDV's payment sites in Vi- etnam. Meanwhile, Vietnamese visitors can also use the mobile apps of TPBank and Sacom- bank to scan ThaiQR for payment in Thailand.

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The payment will be made via the exchange between Thai baht and dong with prefer- ential rates, without the need of any intermediary foreign currency such as the US dol- lar or euro. Besides, payments using smart phones are made faster than payments in cash. Deputy governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Nguyen Kim Anh said that the connec- tion was an important achievement in the cooperation between the two central banks of the two countries. This is a milestone for the partnership between central banks of the Asean countries, deepening the regional economic integration and accelerating the digitalisation proc- ess in the two countries. https://english.thesaigontimes.vn/81168/thai-tourists-can-scan-qr-codes-for-payment- in-vietnam.html

Vietnam, UK 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA

FINANCE exchange official Deputy minister of Foreign Affairs To Anh Dung on March 26 chaired a ceremony to notes of UKVFTA exchange official notes between Vietnam and the UK confirming the effective date of the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA). The UKVFTA was officially signed in London, the UK on December 29, 2020 and was applied temporarily from January 1, 2021. This is the 3rd "new generation" FTA that Vietnam has signed with its foreign partners, helping maintain and further strengthen the economictrade cooperation with the UK, which is one of the major and important partners of Vietnam. Speaking at the ceremony, deputy FM Dung and UK Ambassador to Vietnam Gareth Ward acknowledged and appreciated the efforts of the two nations' agencies, minis- tries and sectors in accelerating the early completion of relevant procedures for ratifi- cation of the trade pact. This agreement will help Vietnam maintain preferential trade conditions and econom- ic benefits through market-opening commitments already included in the EU-Vietnam FTA (EVFTA). Accordingly, the UKVFTA makes it easier for the two countries to further promote their cooperation in financialbanking services and e-commerce. In addition, it also pro- motes the protection of intellectual property, geographical indication, clean growth, and sustainable development. In January 2021, the export turnover between Vietnam and the UK totalled over 657.3 million USD, up 78.57 percent year-on-year. According to the agreement's Article 9, the deal shall enter into force on the first day of the second month after the date of receipt of the Parties' final notice on the comple- tion of internal legal procedures. With the exchange of official notes confirming the completion of internal procedures of both sides, the UKVFTA will officially take effect from May 1, 2021./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnam-uk-exchange-official-notes-of-ukvfta/198164.vnp

Vietnam's economy is 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA set to grow 6.6pct in The World Bank (WB)'s latest update on East Asia and Pacific economies has high- 2021: WB lighted the uneven recovery in the regional economies' growth, as countries are recov- ering from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the report, the regional economies began to bounce back in the second half of 2020. However, only Vietnam and China have followed a V-shape recovery path with output surpassing pre-COVID-19 levels. Vietnam and China are expected to enjoy strong growth in 2021, whereas other econ- omies in the region will grow more gradually, the bank said. Specifically, China and Vietnam's economies are expected to grow by 8.1 percent and 6.6 percent this year, respectively, while the rest of the region is forecast to grow by only 4.4 percent. Most of the other countries have not seen a full-fledged recovery in terms of either out- put or growth momentum. Economic performance across countries continues to de-

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pend on the efficiency with which the COVID-19 pandemic is contained, the ability to take advantage of the revival in international goods trade, and the capacity of govern- ments to provide fiscal and monetary support. Many economies, especially in the Pacific islands are not expected to reach pre-COV- ID-19 levels of output until 2022 or later, the bank said. Countries that cannot fully restore their export sectors, or that rely too heavily on tour- ism, are going through a tough time to achieve modest growth by 2021, the bank said. In Thailand and in the Philippines, output is projected to remain below pre-pandemic levels until 2022. Among smaller countries, the recovery is expected to be particularly protracted in tourism dependent Island economies, with growth expected to be nega- tive in about half of the countries. The report noted that public debt in the region increased on average by more than 7 percent of GDP, as governments committed to fiscal support equal to nearly 10 percent of GDP in 2020. Growing public debt and widening fiscal deficits will constrain further government FINANCE spending in the near term. While rising public debt and fiscal deficits are likely to limit government spending in the near future, the WB said fiscal policy should play three roles at the same time, in- cluding economic relief, recovery assurance and growth promotion. The WB also stressed that the global tourism industry is not projected to return to pre- pandemic levels until 2023, thereby delaying economic recovery in economies heavily depending on the industry./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnams-economy-is-set-to-grow-66-percent-in-2021-wb/ 198161.vnp

UOB predicts 7.1pct 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VOV GDP growth for Vietnamese GDP growth is anticipated to expand 7.1 percent this year, to be driven by Vietnam in 2021 strong exports and foreign investment attraction, according to the Quarterly Global Outlook 2021 recently released by the United Oversea Bank (UOB). The report states that Vietnamese exports during the opening two months of the year increased by over 20 percent compared to last year. Major export items were mobile phones, computer components, and machinery and equipment. Most notably, foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows have been encouraging, with the country attracting approximately $5.5billion of registered FDI capital during January and February. This marks an annual decline of only 15.6 percent despite border clo- sures and travel restrictions, in comparison to the unprecedented 25 percent fall in 2020. Japan made up the largest source of registered capital during the first two months, pouring in roughly $1.5billion, followed by Singapore with $861.1 million and China with $374.9 million. According to industry experts, while the upward trend of economic activities remains on track, it is highly dependent on the containment of infections and vaccination globally. For the year ahead, Vietnamese GDP growth is forecast to grow at 7.1%, a rate which is higher than the 6 percent target set by the National Assembly. https://vov.vn/en/economy/uob-predicts-71-gdp-growth-for-vietnam-in-2021-846235.vov

Three-month FDI rises 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VOV impressively by As of March 20, Vietnam has attracted $10.13 billion worth of foreign direct investment 18.5pct: Investment capital, an increase of 18.5 percent compared to the same period of 2020, according to For- Agency eign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment. Of the total, $7.2 billion came from 234 newly licensed projects, up 30.6 percent in terms of the value but down 69.1 percent in the number of projects. About 161 operational projects registered to increase their capital by an additional $2.1 bil- lion, down 31.8 percent in project numbers but up 97.4 percent in capital value. About $4.1 billion worth of FDI capital has been disbursed, up 6.5 percent from a year ear- lier.

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The FIA reported that investors poured their investment into 17 areas, of which the manufacturing and processing industries took the lead, attracting nearly $5 billion. The reviewed period saw 56 countries and territories funnel investment into Vietnam. Singapore was the biggest foreign investor with nearly $4.6 billion, followed by Japan with $2.1 billion, and the Republic of Korea with $1.2 billion. The FDI business sector has continued to enjoy impressive export growth in the first three months of the year, raking in $58.59 billion (including crude oil), representing an increase of 27.5 percent year-on-year and accounting for 76.4 percent of the country's total export value. https://vov.vn/en/economy/three-month-fdi-rises-impressively-by-185-investment- agency-846444.vov

Government succeeds 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VIETNAMNET in reducing public "As taut as a violin string" was the phrase used to describe the state of the budget and

FINANCE debt to safety level.. public debt. After five years of applying flexible solutions, the situation has now be- come different. The government has submitted to the National Assembly a report on state budget in- come and expenditures in 2020 and the deployment of the 2021 state budget estimates. In the 2016-2020 period, the total receipts of the state budget were VND6,890 trillion, while the total expenditures were VND7,660 trillion. The average state budget expenditure was 28.8 percent of GDP (it was 29.5 percent in 2011-2015). There were changes in the expenditure structure with spending on invest- ment and development accounting for 30 percent (higher than the targeted proportion of 25-26 percent), and regular expenses accounting for 63 percent of total expenditures (the target was below 64 percent). The state budget overexpenditures in the last five years represented 3.45 percent of GDP, lower than the target of 3.9 percent of GDP as stipulated in the National Assem- bly's Resolution 25/2016. Commenting about the public debt, the government said there are more bright signs. By the end of December 31, 2020, the public debt was equal to 55.3 percent of GDP, government debt was 49.1 percent of GDP, and the country's foreign debt to GDP was 47.3 percent. These levels were lower than the ceiling of 65 percent, 54 percent and 50 percent of GDP, respectively, stipulated in the National Assembly's Resolution 25 on the national finance plan for 2016-2020. Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung, reviewing the last five years of state budget man- agement, said he now can "sigh with relief". The continued fairly high budget collections amid Covid-19 shows the resilience of the economy and enterprises, and affirms the effectiveness of the government's solutions that aim to fight the pandemic but also maintain socio-economic activities. However, the government warned that if the pandemic cannot be controlled soon, state budget collections will be affected in coming months. Support for people, businesses In 2020, the State adopted a series of financial policies to help businesses and people overcome difficulties caused by Covid-19, worth VND128.33 trillion. Of this, exemption and reduction of tax, fees and charges, and payment deadline ex- tensions totalled VND111.5 trillion. Meanwhile, VND16.83 trillion was spent to pre- vent and fight the pandemic, and to support the public. The government said pandemic control depends on the effects and usage of vaccines. Some experts believe that the pandemic will only be contained in 2022. Other countries are continuing to launch big bailouts to support their economy. In Vietnam, natural calamities, epidemics, , drought and saline intru- sion remain problems affecting production and people's lives. The third Covid-19 outbreak showed that there are risks for community transmission. Moreover, it is still difficult to access Covid-19 vaccine supply sources globally and de- velop the vaccine in Vietnam.

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Vaccinations are being implemented in accordance with the priority order and actual conditions. In such a situation, the government believes that continuing to carry out monetary and fiscal policies to support enterprises and people is a necessity. The government has proposed continued extension of tax and land rent payment deadlines in 2021 for those affected by Covid-19. For enterprises, the payment deadline for VAT will be extended for five months, and three months for Q1 and Q2 corporate income tax. For business households and individuals, it plans to extend the deadline for payment of VAT and personal income tax in 2021; and extend the deadline for the first-period land rental payment for businesses, organisations, business households and individu- als. In addition, the government will continue to reduce different kinds of fees and charges to help reduce input costs for enterprises and business households. https://vietnamnet.vn/en/feature/government-succeeds-in-reducing-public-debt-to- FINANCE safety-level-722716.html

Petrol prices rise 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA slightly in latest Retail petrol prices rose from 3pm on March 27 following the latest review by the Min- adjustment istry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Finance. The retail price of E5RON92 bio-fuel rose 129 VND to 17,851 VND (0.78 USD) per litre at a maximum, and that of RON95 increased 165 VND to 19,046 VND per litre. Diesel 0.05S and kerosene, meanwhile, are now no more than 14,243 VND and 13,004 VND per litre, down by 158 VND and 169 VND, respectively. Meanwhile, the price of Fuel oil (FO) 180CST was capped at 13,757 VND per kilo- gramme, down 12 VND. According to the two ministries, the prices of petrol and oil in the global market have been rising for 15 days, hence the upward adjustment. They review fuel prices every 15 days to keep the domestic prices up to date with the global market./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/petrol-prices-rise-slightly-in-latest-adjustment/198198.vnp

High demands push 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA Vietnamese rice's Vietnam's rice export prices hit a more than nine-year high this week as fresh orders prices up: Business trickled in, while rates for the Indian variety held near a one-month peak on healthy Recorder demand from buyers in other Asian countries and Africa, according to an article pub- lished on Pakistan's news website Business Recorder. The article noted that Vietnam's 5 percent broken rice prices rose to 515-520 USD per tonne on March 25, their highest since December 2011, from 510-515 USD in the previ- ous week. "Demand is picking up and we're seeing more ships docking at HCM City port for rice loading," a trader was quoted as saying, adding that: "Prices are expected to stay high as global demand for the grain is still strong amid the coronavirus pandemic." Traders said on March 24 that the Vietnam Southern Food Corp had won a contract to export 50,000 tonnes of 5 percent broken rice to Bangladesh, which is traditionally the world's third-biggest rice producer but has turned to imports after repeated floods. A food ministry official in Bangladesh said the country had approved the purchase of 100,000 tonnes of rice, 50,000 tonnes each from India and Vietnam. In India, the top rice exporter, prices for the 5 percent broken parboiled variety were unchanged at their highest since mid-February, at 398-403 USD per tone, it said. Thailand's benchmark 5 percent broken rice was offered at 500-518 USD a tonne, ver- sus 505-513 USD last week. Some traders attributed the price change to a fluctuation in the exchange rate. The baht has dipped 2.9 percent versus the US dollar since the start of the month./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/high-demands-push-vietnamese-rices-prices-up-business- recorder/198156.vnp

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Vietnam looks to 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA address bottlenecks in Removing bottlenecks in transport infrastructure and policy mechanisms is consid- logistics infrastructure ered an important solution to help cut logistics costs and improve the competitiveness of Vietnamese businesses and goods in the time to come. Figures show that Vietnam boasts 630,546 km of roads, including less than 2,000 km of expressways. It also lacks infrastructure connecting roads with seaports, resulting in logistics costs being insufficiently competitive. According to Tran Thanh Hai, vice director of the Department of Export and Import under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam has been building more express- ways and national highways and has large seaports that play a role as international transit gateways. Vietnam has also upgraded existing airports and developed new ones, he added. However, railway infrastructure remains underdeveloped and has not yet promoted

FINANCE the role of transport in development, he noted. Vietnam has regularly posted annual GDP growth of 6-8 percent over the last decade. The rapid growth of goods production and trade has caused a sharp increase in de- mand for logistics infrastructure and services. But Vietnam's logistics infrastructure and services are yet to meet demand, resulting in high costs. To improve the situation, it is necessary to adopt comprehensive measures, Hai said. The government needs to issue specific policies and build appropriate orientations on logistics development, including those related to the development of localities, accord- ing to Hai. He also underlined the necessity of promoting administrative reform and the digitali- sation of administrative procedures, increasing links between logistics infrastructure networks, and paying due regard to training and improving the quality of human re- sources in the industry./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnam-looks-to-address-bottlenecks-in-logistics-infra- structure/198173.vnp

Need for high-speed 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNEXPRESS rail arguments More than 10 years after they were first proposed, high-speed railroad plans remain continue unabated mired in concerns and disagreement over speeds and cost. Three high-speed routes are currently under study or have been proposed: north- south, HCM City-Can Tho and Hanoi-Lang Son. A final report by consultancy consortium CCTDI-TRICC-TEDI, comprising three Viet- namese construction firms, on the master plan for railroad development for 2021-30 sets out two options. The more ambitious one envisages the completion of phased investment for two north- south high-speed railways, Hanoi-Vinh and HCM City-Nha Trang by 2030. The two railways have a total length of 651 km and might cost VND561 trillion ($24.18 billion) to be built. The other is to complete them by 2032 at a cost of VND375 trillion. The consultants forecast a maximum of 14 million passengers using the high-speed trains annually at that time. They expect an average of 44.7 million passengers using north-south railroads annual- ly by 2050. An expert who asked not to named said however that these options are "overly opti- mistic," if not downright unfeasible. He said 10 years would not be enough to complete these projects, considering the ap- provals that need to obtained at various levels, the money that needs to be raised and carrying out the work. There is also a continuing debate on whether the trains should run at 200 kph as pro- posed by the Ministry of Planning and Investment and some experts or 350 kph as sug- gested by the Ministry of Transport and the consultants. That may prolong the time required for getting National Assembly approval.

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Dang Huy Dong, director of the Planning and Development Institute, said building in- frastructure for trains running at 350kph would be prohibitively expensive, and the re- sultant high fares would also make the entire thing unviable. It is economically efficient to have passenger trains running at a speed of 150kph and freight trains at 100kph, he told local media. The State Appraisal Council is in the process of identifying an agency that would as- sess the feasibility of the various options for the north-south routes. Recently the Lang Son Province people's committee proposed building the Hanoi- Dong Dang high-speed rail starting in 2030, saying is necessary to enhance rail trans- port between Asean countries and China. The proposed route will go on up to Nan- ning in Guangxi, China. Earlier this year the Ministry of Transport ordered the Railway Project Management Board to complete a pre-feasibility study on the HCM City-Can Tho link by 2022. The South Construction Technology Science Institute wants high-speed trains on the route with a 1.43-metre double track serving both passenger and freight trains travel- FINANCE ling at 200 kph and 100 kph. It expected it to cost around $10 billion. A Ministry of Transport official said the route might be necessary, but many issues need to be sorted out first. For instance, the 150-km distance might not be ideal for a high-speed train, he said. Vu Anh Minh, chair of Vietnam Railways, said flying from Hanoi to HCM City takes around five hours in all while a high-speed train travelling at 300 kph would take six hours. "Considering the nature and geography of Vietnam, the development of a high-speed network is imperative, and we are losing socioeconomic development opportunities every day without it." https://e.vnexpress.net/news/business/economy/need-for-high-speed-rail-arguments- continue-unabated-4254576.html

Dong Nai works to 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA drive economic Improving the business climate is part of the southern province of Dong Nai's efforts development to boost its economic growth during 2021-2025, Chair of the provincial People's Com- mittee Cao Tien Dung said at a recent conference. The province will create favourable conditions for local businesses and people to carry out administrative procedures, particularly in the prioritised fields of agriculture, ru- ral development, exports, investment attraction, and startups. Focus will be sharpened on mobilising resources and securing effective investment in technical infrastructure, improving public services, and investing in key projects and high-quality human resources training. In particular, the province sees transport infrastructure development as a means of cre- ating a breakthrough in the local economy. More than 35.1 trillion VND (1.52 billion USD) in public investment will be allocated in 2021, including nearly 22.86 trillion VND for Long Thanh International Airport. In the next five years, the province will speed up planning work and procedures to ex- pand and open additional industrial parks to lure more domestic and FDI projects. According to the provincial People's Committee, its gross regional domestic product (GRDP) grew 4.44 percent in 2020, or 1.53 percent higher than the national level. Despite the formidable challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Dong Nai prov- ince introduced economic recovery measures in a timely manner, creating a premise for economic development in 2021. Its industrial production value surged 6.2 percent last year, while the agro-forestry-fishery sector saw growth of 3.17 percent, higher than national rates of 3.35 percent and 2.82 per- cent, respectively. Local State budget collection topped 54.2 trillion VND, or 2 percent higher than the estimate. Dong Nai attracted 29 trillion VND in domestic investment, or 290 percent of the annual plan, while attracting 1.3 billion USD in FDI, or 30 percent higher than the annual plan.

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There have been many silver linings during the pandemic, with the province register- ing more than 4,000 enterprises in 2020, up 6 percent year-on-year, director of the pro- vincial Department of Planning and Investment Ho Van Ha said, adding that the number of businesses in the province now totals over 41,000. Ha stressed that Dong Nai has been a leading locality in terms of industrial develop- ment, with 31 operational industrial parks with occupancy rates of over 82 percent. It jumped three spots in 2020 compared to 2018 in the Provincial Competitiveness In- dex (PCI), to 23rd out of Vietnam's 63 cities and provinces, posting 65.82 points on a 100-point scale, he said, adding that this is a vivid illustration of the improvement in the local administrative apparatus./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/dong-nai-works-to-drive-economic-development/ 197923.vnp

Bridging the tech-led 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VIR

FINANCE links in investment Although Vietnam has been improving its business and investment environment sig- nificantly throughout the last four decades, the cooperation between domestic and for- eign-invested companies could be much improved. Currently, a good 50 Vietnamese enterprises have become top suppliers for Samsung Vietnam. The South Korean conglomerate has given the necessary support to help these companies improve their manufacturing processes and better meet global sup- ply chain standards but becoming one of its regular suppliers is no mean feat. Hoang Minh Tri, general director of 4P the first domestic company to supply electron- ic circuit boards to LG Electronics Vietnam said that supplying Samsung with these products is especially difficult as the company has strict standards for quality, exper- tise, technical precision, and high professionalism. 4P was thus forced to reform its business according to Samsung's requirements, ac- cepting technical standards and working conditions in the company, even for employ- ees on how to use sterilised rooms and equipment properly. According to Samsung, these practices relate to the scientific stages in the production process and, if carried out correctly, can prevent risks as well as quality issues. Vietnamese businesses must thus meet these criteria set by Samsung to become one of its suppliers. Kim Kyung Tae, senior expert at Samsung Vietnam, noticed that per- formance and management are the limitations of these companies. Passing all those evaluation criteria, Kim said, is "a real challenge". Vietnamese busi- nesses must prepare thoroughly in order to meet these criteria. And yet, Samsung also has other evaluation indicators related to the environment, the vendor's financial po- tential, and its documentation practices. Samsung is close to its goal of increasing its localisation rate to 57 per cent, as well as fulfilling its commitment to the government to promote the development of support- ing industries. But the addition of Vietnamese enterprises in the supply chain also helps Samsung reduce the cost of importing components, improve competitiveness, and increase profitability. Samsung remains the largest foreign investor in Vietnam with the registered invest- ment capital of $17.5 billion. In 2020, the total export turnover of Samsung Vietnam reached about $57 billion, a relatively positive result in the context of the complicated pandemic and its negative impacts on the global economy. According to a VIR source, in Samsung's list of vendors, about 80 per cent are large- scale foreign-invested enterprises (FIE) from South Korea, China, and Japan. Among them are Samsung Electro-Mechanics, Samsung SDI Vietnam, and MCNEX Vina, which produces camera modules. Other suppliers include Power Logics Vina which delivers battery protection boards, CammSys Vietnam which provides camera mod- ules, Goertek Vina that delivers headsets and mics, and more and none of them are Vietnamese companies. Weak links Data from the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) shows that after nearly 35 years of national renovation, Vietnam's private economy has continuously maintained

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a fairly good growth rate, accounting for 43 per cent of GDP and attracting about 85 per cent of the workforce. However, the development of the private economy's quality is an issue that minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung described as concerning at a meeting on March 12. Minister Dung said that the links between Vietnamese businesses remain lax and do not focus on mutual development. As such, domestic enterprises have not been focus- ing on improving links and competitiveness to participate in the regional and global value chains. "Currently, only about 21 per cent of small- and medium-sized enterprises participate in parts of the global value chain, and 14 per cent are successful in associating with for- eign partners, while the number of FIEs in Vietnam is very high," the minister said. According to him, the productivity and growth rate of the private sector is low and limited. Statistics show that the average labour productivity of private companies makes up only about 34 per cent of the labour productivity of state-owned enterprises and about 69 per cent of foreign-invested enterprises. This low productivity is related FINANCE to the fact that most enterprises are micro- or small-sized ones, accounting for about 98 per cent of all enterprises. Capacities in science and technology also remain limited, with some being outright backward, the MPI minister pointed out. "Enterprises have not invested in the appli- cation and development of science and technology, especially core and pioneering technologies," minister Dung said. Currently, only 10 per cent of businesses have registered patents within three consec- utive years. Meanwhile, enterprises' investment in technology and innovation only ac- counts for about 0.3 per cent of their revenue, much lower than in countries like India (5 per cent) and South Korea (10 per cent). The shortcomings of private companies, according to minister Dung, are partly due to the state management of the economy. The system of mechanisms and policies on pri- vate economic development still has many shortcomings and lacks synchronisation. Although the investment environment has been improved, it remains still limited, with access to opportunities and development resources not being equal, which incurs many intermediate and informal costs. Weak links have been prevalent in the economy for many years. The provincial com- petitiveness index of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) showed that the proportion of domestic private enterprises participating in the supply of goods and services in the production chains of FIEs has been limited for many con- secutive years. By 2017, only about 10 per cent of domestic businesses provide input goods to FIEs operating in Vietnam. Links are also very weak from the perspective of FIEs. According to the VCCI's data, only about 27 per cent of their input value is purchased in Vietnam, but a significant proportion is supplied by other FIEs. Especially, those operating in high-tech manu- facturing tend to import goods from their own countries and use fewer local suppliers. Establishing connections Vietnam is changing its strategy of attracting foreign direct investment (FDI), focusing on quality projects coming from former and current big investors, emerging and growth-leading economies an opportunity to promote links between FIEs and domes- tic enterprises, following the Politburo's Resolution No.50-NQ/TW on the orientation to perfect institutions and policies to improve the quality and efficiency of foreign in- vestment cooperation by 2030. The increased realised capital in the first two months of 2021 was a positive sign and was estimated at $2.5 billion, up 2 per cent over the same period in 2020. Many major FIEs are expanding investment in Vietnam this year. For example, LG Display increased its capital by $750 million, adjusting the total sum for the fourth time since beginning to invest in Vietnam. Up to now, the total invest- ment capital of LG Display poured into the northern city of Hai Phong has reached $3.25 billion. As planned, after receiving its investment registration certificate, the company is now quickly building and installing necessary facility extensions that are

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expected to start production by May. Meanwhile, after its previous investment project to manufacture tablets and laptops in the northern province of Bac Giang, Foxconn has just had a business trip in the north- central province of Thanh Hoa to explore new opportunities in the production of elec- tronics. Such endeavours are currently increasing and contributing to the connection between FIEs and domestic firms, while the government is working on improving the legal framework. Analysts said in addition to improving quality of labour and narrowing the gap in the technology levels of FIEs and domestic ones, it is also necessary to pay attention to geographical factors. The establishment of separate industrial and export processing zones can help im- prove the efficiency of operations and exports but has also limited positive spill-over effects on domestic private companies. Vietnam has partaken in negotiating and signing 17 free trade agreements, 14 of which have been signed and put into effect. Kyle F. Kelhofer, senior country director for Vi- FINANCE etnam, , and at the International Finance Corporation, said that an ad- justment to investment attraction is necessary for Vietnam, and that this should focus more on strengthening the links between Vietnamese firms and FIEs to create shared interests, which will contribute to Vietnam's overall goal of deeply international inte- gration. https://vietnamnet.vn/en/business/bridging-the-tech-led-links-in-investment- 722697.html

EVFTA opens up 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| HANOI TIMES opportunities for SMEs are having huge opportunities for development with the presence of free trade SMEs to grow agreements, the Industry 4.0 and new business models. The EU Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) would lay the ground for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to grow, as such, they should take this opportunity with both hands. Ambassador and Head of the EU delegation to Vietnam Pier Giorgio Aliberti gave the remarks at a conference discussing the benefits of the trade deal for SMEs on March 26. Aliberti, however, urged the Vietnamese government to provide better mechanism and solutions to aid the development of SMEs, while expressing his belief that the EU has made the right decision in investing in developing countries such as Vietnam. The EU's Ambassador expected the deal to continue improving Vietnam's business en- vironment, in turn making it easier for both Vietnamese and European companies op- erating in the country. Meanwhile, vice minister of Planning and Investment Tran Duy Dong said poor com- petitiveness is restricting local enterprises from joining the regional and global value chains. According to Dong, given the fact that the majority of Vietnamese firms is of small size, they are hesitating in allocating funds for R&D as well as expanding international co- operation. "Local enterprises should draft a long-term vision and improve linkages with other partners to further enhance their competitiveness," Dong said, noting one of the gov- ernment's priorities is to promote stronger linkage between the private and foreign in- vested sectors. Head of the Department of Business Environment and Competitiveness Research un- der the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) Nguyen Minh Thao said SMEs currently account for 98 percent of total operational enterprises in Vietnam and 40 percent of the GDP. "Given its prominent role in the economy, SMEs are having huge opportunities for de- velopment with the presence of free trade agreements, the Industry 4.0 and new busi- ness models," Thao said. "However, small scale of operation could hinder enterprises from improving their pro- ductivity and business efficiency," she added.

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The EVFTA is the second trade agreement the EU has concluded with an Asean mem- ber state, following the recent agreement with Singapore. It represents an important milestone in the EU's engagement with Asia, along with existing agreements with Ja- pan and South Korea. A pre-Covid-19 study from Vietnam's Ministry of Planning and Investment showed that the EVFTA and EVIPA would help Vietnam's GDP grow an additional 4.6 percent and boost the country's exports to the EU by 42.7 percent by 2025. Meanwhile, the European Commission estimated the bloc's GDP would be added $29.5 billion by 2035, along with additional growth of 29 percent in exports to Vietnam. http://hanoitimes.vn/evfta-opens-up-opportunities-for-smes-to-grow-316805.html

SOEs need to enhance 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNS autonomy in State-owned enterprises (SOEs) need to enhance their autonomy and responsibility operation: report under market mechanisms to contribute to the growth of the economy, according to a

FINANCE report by the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM). Vietnam has improved the legal framework to ensure the rights of autonomy and self- responsibility of SOEs closely following international practices, but the legal frame- work is still missing many components, according to a recent report on the autonomy and self-responsibility under the market mechanism of SOEs conducted by CIEM with support from the Australia-Vietnam Economic Reform (Aus4reform) Programme. The State still intervenes deeply in the operation of wholly State-owned enterprises, leading to overworked agencies that manage State capital at enterprises, while the en- terprises face many difficulties. To enhance the autonomy and self-responsibility of State-owned enterprises, the CIEM research team said improving transparency is key. SOEs should publish public reports on both financial and non-financial information according to international standards. Strengthening financial discipline for State- owned enterprises is another important recommendation. In addition, the transformation of an SOE into a joint-stock company is the most im- portant measure to improve enterprise autonomy. Phan Duc Hieu, CIEM deputy director, said the "fair treatment" of State enterprises is a requirement in a market economy, along with the implementation of commitments on international economic integration. During 35 years of reform, Vietnamese laws have been amended so that State enter- prises are increasingly empowered with more autonomy and responsibility. According to Pham Duc Trung, Head of the CIEM's Department of Enterprise Reform and Development Research, the Enterprise Law stipulates that a State-owned enter- prise has the same rights and obligations as an enterprise of all economic sectors, in- cluding business autonomy, contract, and possession, use and disposition of property. However, institutions and management mechanisms have failed to create full autono- my and self-responsibility for State enterprises. State management agencies decide many issues in the corporate administration of SOEs. That can weaken the motivation of enterprises' leaders to act in the best interests of the enterprise and its shareholders. Besides that, many SOEs have fallen into dissolution or bankruptcy, but are still kept alive via State support. Le Duy Binh, CEO of Economica Vietnam, said SOEs wanted to be like private enter- prises with full autonomy, but the operation of SOEs was often dependent on the State management agency that represents the owner. Le Tien Truong, Chair of the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex), said SOEs must comply with the Law on management and use of State capital to invest in production and business. Before approving decisions within the authority of a board of directors, the represent- ative of State capital in the enterprise must consult the State agency that manages State capital at SOEs, then convene a meeting of the board of directors to approve those de- cisions for them to be executed. It can take one or two months for the State agency to respond.

Intellasia 29 March 2021 19 / 51 Vietnam finance & business 29 March 2021

When Vinatex was a wholly State-owned enterprise, it had to wait for a governing body to give it directions. The situation has continued even though Vinatex became a joint-stock company with 48 per cent of the charter capital belonging to non-State shareholders in 2015, so this process will make it difficult for the group (Vinatex), ac- cording to Truong. "For a private company, a shareholder only votes on the company's strategic issues. Meanwhile, at an SOE, the shareholder must also vote on other normal issues. Thus, it has broken corporate governance practices," Binh said. Nguyen Dinh Cung, former CIEM director, was quoted by the Vietnam News Agency as saying: "The State needs to create a business environment to promote and ensure State-owned enterprises operate and compete fairly according to market principles." He said legal provisions should be revised to ensure full autonomy for State enterpris- es in investment and business. In addition, there should be a legal system to improve business autonomy by funda- mentally revising the Law on Management and Use of State capital to invest in pro- FINANCE duction and business in enterprises. Along with that, State agencies should not have the right to give decisions, but only give opinions and approve investment policies. In other words, the State should not decide on issues of corporate governance. Experts have also recommended that, according to international practice on SOE gov- ernance, especially the OECD's guidance, to ensure the autonomy and self-responsi- bility of SOEs under market principles, the Stateas the ownerneeds to clearly define the reason or goal of maintaining ownership in the enterprise. The State should create con- ditions for the management board at the enterprises to operate autonomously and re- sponsibly. That means the thinking about SOEs and State management for these enterprises must change fundamentally. When operating under market principles, SOEs will play the right role in the economic recovery and growth, according to experts. http://bizhub.vn/news/soes-need-to-enhance-autonomy-in-operation- report_323212.html

Billion-dollar SOEs to 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA be made leading The Ministry of Planning and Investment has proposed engaging a selection of seven companies billion-dollar State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in a project that will turn them into the leading players in their field. The seven SOEs will come from the four sectors of hi-tech, renewable energy, seaports and logistics, and finance and banking. The project will focus on two goals, according to Le Manh Hung, general director of the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Agency for Enterprise Development. First- ly, it aims to reinforce and develop large-scale SOEs on the basis of forming supply chains and value chains, and promote innovation with orientations of bringing their untapped resources into full play and attracting private investments, Hung said. Secondly, it will formulate mechanisms and policies to smooth the way for the State/ SOEs to participate in new and untapped sectors in order to realise the goals of the country's socio-economic development strategy. Eligible SOEs must have total assets of more than 20 trillion VND, hold a market share of 30 percent and more, and apply the OECD Principles of Corporate Governance. Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung said the selected SOEs must play a leadership role in their sector and become a centre of innovation. He stressed the need for these SOEs to support and interact with other players, particularly those from the private sector./. https://en.vietnamplus.vn/billiondollar-soes-to-be-made-leading-companies/ 198127.vnp

Intellasia 29 March 2021 20 / 51 Vietnam finance & business 29 March 2021

Small private sector 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| SGGP NEWS firms need crucial Large private sector corporations could possibly provide the right nexus to play a lead breakthrough role in rejuvenating the value chain once again, and give the necessary push for a breakthrough for crucial small private sector development in the post Covid-19 phase. Few businesses of stature Currently, it is estimated that 758,610 enterprises are operating across the country, of which 97.2 percent are micro, small or medium enterprises (MSMEs). Among these, 93.7 percent are small and micro enterprises, of which 62.6 percent are all micro enter- prises. There are about 17,000 large scale enterprises, accounting for 2.8 percent of total number of operating enterprises. The number of active enterprises with average busi- ness results in the 2016 to 2018 period in the whole country were around 558,703, of which 540,548 were private enterprises, accounting for 96.8%; and 15,686 of these were FDI enterprises, accounting for 2.8%; while 2,469 were SOEs, accounting for 0.4 per- cent of the total number of operating enterprises.

FINANCE For the last few years there has been an absence of medium scale and large scale pri- vate firms, and therefore the private sector has been operating in moderation for a very long time. The speed at which small businesses are upgrading to medium enterprises is very slow, with also dwindling in numbers. In recent years, there has been a pattern where hundreds of private firms take about ten to twenty years to develop and up- grade to medium scale enterprises. However, when they are relatively successful, they decide to withdraw from the market, and either sell out completely or merge with an- other enterprise, which is quite often an FDI enterprise. This is a major bottleneck which is in the path towards the development of private enterprises in particular and private sector in general. The private run MSMEs cannot break out by themselves and develop without the help and support of large private firms. Independently they cannot create a value chain. SMEs are an important factor of the private sector, but to create the necessary push for the private sector to develop, it is necessary to have the support of larger enterprises. In this respect, the South Korean chaebol development model can serve as an example for policy change in building private sector corporations in Vietnam. Hong Sun, vice President and general Secretary of the South Korean Business Associ- ation in Vietnam (Korcham), shared that South Korea's experience with chaebol shows that we cannot build a modern industrial economy by relying on SMEs, because it is just large enterprises that have the ability to access capital and technology to partici- pate in producing goods for export. Hong Sun believes that the government must sup- port private firms, starting with the smaller ones in real estate, in industrial zones, infrastructure and the domestic market, that are showing rapid increasing incomes. According to Hong Sun, the 1980s was a difficult and challenging period for South Ko- rean private enterprises, but it was also a period that played a decisive role for private corporations to become a strong force, and for strong technology development, which then created a value chain for the private sector. During the 1990s, the five biggest chaebols, namely, Samsung, Hyundai, LG, Daewoo and SK, generated upto 50 percent of South Korea's total GDP. Division of market According to Asso.ProfDr Tran Dinh Thien, a member of the government Advisory Group, one of the points to note when focusing on large scale enterprises is a clear di- vision of the market and the investment sector, so that private enterprises do not step over each other, but actually support each other in the process of development. Dr Thien stressed that large scale enterprises have their own strengths and their own investment sources. For example, private firms specialising in technology should focus on technology, businesses specialising in traffic should focus on traffic, or businesses specialising in real estate should strengthen on real estate. This means that private firms specialising in a field that needs both technology and capital in that field, should avoid spreading investment to ultimately bring desired results. Realistically speaking if private firms spread out too thin then their core business suf- fers. Therefore, it is necessary to have a goal focus as well as policy support from the

Intellasia 29 March 2021 21 / 51 Vietnam finance & business 29 March 2021

State. For example, in South Korea in the 1950s and early 60s, domestic companies mainly produced textiles. However, by the 70s, the government decided to rapidly de- velop heavy industries such as steel, petrochemical, automobiles, machine building, shipbuilding and electronics. The government selected the chaebol with the most po- tential units and motivated them to carry out this scheme with huge concessional loans. By the late 80s, some chaebol had become large conglomerates on an interna- tional scale. On an average, each chaebol has dozens of subsidiaries specialising in var- ied industries. According to Dr Vu Tien Loc, Chair of Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), after building value chains, the large private cooperations shared resources with smaller and medium private firms for mutual development, as broad vision, core values, and strategic goals, are beyond the purview of small private enterprises. This is evident in the case of large Japanese corporations who often do not develop support industries, but work with other enterprises, of which most are SMEs. This helps to im- prove supply, as well as support the growth and development of several small and FINANCE medium private enterprises, along with maintaining a sustainable product value chain. https://sggpnews.org.vn/business/small-private-sector-firms-need-crucial-break- through-91391.html

Foreign capital 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNA injected in wood Vietnam's wood industry secured 63 new foreign direct investment (FDI) projects industry down 36pct worth 372.68 million USD in 2020, down 36 percent and 49 percent on-year, respective- in 2020 ly. According to a research by a number of organisations, including the non-profit organ- isation Forest Trends and the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association (VI- FOREST), these foreign projects came from 14 countries and territories such as China and the Republic of Korea. Wood processing drew most of the foreign investments, with 274.81 million USD in 41 projects. Meanwhile, a total of 193.64 million USD were added to existing foreign-funded projects, decreasing 3 percent on-year. Regarding export, FDI enterprises continued to show their superiority compared to domestic ones, with 653 firms or 18 percent of the industry's total exporters. They post- ed a turnover of 6 billion USD, accounting for 51 percent of the industry's total. Mean- while, 2,676 domestic companies recorded just 5.9 billion USD in export value. According to To Xuan Phuc from the Forest Trends, the superiority can be the results of differences in production and capital scale, as well as technology and management./ . https://en.vietnamplus.vn/foreign-capital-injected-in-wood-industry-down-36-per- cent-in-2020/198125.vnp

Land speculation 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VIETNAMNET continues, realtors A leading Vietnamese real estate developer has reported an additional loss of tens of incur big losses billions of dong, raising its total loss in 2020 to VND500 billion, though land prices are escalating all over the country. Dat Xanh Group (DXG) has released its 2020 audited financial report which shows a post-tax loss of VND496 billion, or VND64 billion higher than the loss shown in the company's unaudited financial statement. The real estate developer attributed the gap between unaudited and audited reports to higher provisions against accounts receivable from some units in the same network. The gap also existed in the reports released in mid-2020. The audited report showed the company incurred a loss of VND488 billion instead of making a profit as DXG transferred all its shares in LDG and had to make a provision of VND526 billion. Under the board of management's resolution, the enterprise decided to sell nearly 63 million shares, or 26.27 percent of LDG's capital. At the same time, Ha Thuan Hung

Intellasia 29 March 2021 22 / 51 Vietnam finance & business 29 March 2021

Construction-Trade-Service Company, a subsidiary of DXG, also registered to sell all its 25 million LDG shares, or 10.45 percent of LDG shares. As such, the enterprises belonging to Dat Xanh registered to sell 88 million LDG, or 36.72 percent of LDG's charter capital, at no less than VND6,000 per share. Selling shares at this price would collect VND540 billion and incur a loss of VND500 billion. The move was a surprise to investors as the investment in LDG is considered Dat Xanh's strategic investment. LDG also develops real estate like DXG and is believed to have bright prospects as it owns many large projects. The 2020 audited report showed that revenue from real estate services dropped 32 per- cent compared with 2019, while revenue from construction contracts dropped 40 per- cent to VND530 billion. The sharpest decrease was seen in apartments, houses and land, a fall of 80 percent. Once the No 1 real estate broker in HCM City, DXG shares are no longer considered the safe choice for investment portfolios as real estate market prices have fluctuated FINANCE heavily. In 2020, real estate shares were affected by tighter credit policy of the State Bank of Vi- etnam, which strengthened control over real estate lending to avoid artificial 'bubbles'. The enterprise of Luong Tri Thin was also affected by information related to the scan- dal related to the public land transfer deal at Vnsteel HCM City Metal Corporation. Many other enterprises also faced difficulties because of Covid-19. An Truong An (ATG) and Cotec Land (CLG) could not be traded at HOSE and had no revenue and no profit. ATG was forced to delist after three years of taking a loss. https://vietnamnet.vn/en/business/land-speculation-continues-realtors-incur-big- losses-722718.html

Hanoi property prices 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| VNS surge due to Red River Property prices in some areas of Hanoi have surged strongly after reports on draft urban planning planning for the Red River urban area were released in June. reports The Red River urban planning project aims to develop an area of about 11,000 hectares in 13 districts including Dan Phuong, North Tu Liem, Tay Ho, Ba Dinh, Hoan Kiem, Hai Ba Trung, Hoang Mai, Thanh Tri, Thuong Tin, Me Linh, Dong Anh, Long Bien and Gia Lam. Per the project, there will be dozens of bridges built across the Red River and many parks, and cultural, tourist, service and entertainment works, modern ecological urban areas will also be built on both sides of the Red River. The plans have led to expectations that property prices in this area will increase strong- ly, especially after the planning is approved. The trading of property in Cu Khoi Ward in Long Bien District has increased strongly, reported the Vietnam News Agency. According to Nguyen Quang Huya real estate brokerthe current price is VND68-70 million per sq.m for a house with one frontage and VND70-72 million per sq.m for a house with two fronts, higher than the previous price of VND40-50 million. If this urban project is approved, the land price would increase further, even up to VND80-90 million, Huy said. Le Thi Minh, from Cu Khoi Ward, said in the last two weeks, many people had come to ask about land in this area, causing land prices to rise. The price had increased by VND5-10 million per sq.m to VND37-40 million for a plot of land in Cu Khoi Street. In some areas in Dong Anh District, land prices have also surged by about VND10-12 million per sq.m, especially in the area of Tam Xa and Xuan Canh communes overlook- ing the Red River urban area, to VND28-30 million against prices from a month ago. Land near the Red River dike is also offered a price of up to VND50-55 million sq.m, nearly double from before due to the Red River urban area planning, a broker said. Land price prices have also increased in Hoai Duc District, including Vuon Cam urban area, near Van Canh University, Lideco North 32, Kim Chung-Di Trach, Ha Do Charm Villas and An Lac Symphony.

Intellasia 29 March 2021 23 / 51 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam large-caps thanks to asurge in Shares narrowlosses BUSINESS Intellasia BIZ NEWS Department under theMinistry Department the Ho director of Hung, deputy Ha Quang those areas. (VND76.6 billion), Military Bank (MBB) Bank Military billion), (VND76.6 Foreign investors net sold VND283.66 bill said BIDVSecurities Co. next week," thecorrection able tomaintain still is theVNIndex points, kept 1,160 has "Foreign investors turnedtobenet sellers ket breadth negatively reflected short-term profit-taking. flow wasalmostfrom unchanged theprevious session. Liquidity fell slightly andmar- trad reflects rate ofrecovery "Such afast in theafternoon session," saidBIDVSecurities Co. inthe rected stronglyto1,137 mo points "VN Index has kept the threshold of 1,160 points in today's session. The market cor- ket. to some670.5 million), equivalent (US675.3 trillion VND15.6 ofmore than value trading a with high still was liquidity Market The market's breadth wasnegative as33 The indexhadrisen0.11 per cent clos to cent per 0.08 On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), thebenchmarkVN Index edged down pressure. tostrong selling due shaking still the market was Shares narrowed losses on Friday asasurg 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| ning-reports_323217.html http://bizhub.vn/property/ha-noiproperty manipulation. reduce price The ministry wouldalso propos a mechanismtominimise the imbalance in To stabilise thereal estatemarket, theMini and investmentpolicie urban planning ofrealestate inform takingadvantage ulators The strong increase ofrealestate pricesin and LongBien. Lam the districts ofDongAnh,Gia in on-year in in someplaces 2019 compared to per cent In theareaalongRedRiver, land brok investment. planning and Experts believe the risingpropertyprices price inthefuture. or higher banks of the Red River, including swing tr estate experts, there toreal According ar View, Ha Phong, Hoang VanandMelinh Vista City projects. since the beginning of2021inmany projec In the MeLinhDistrict,thepropertyprice million due to goodinfrastructure. jumped to VND40-70 million at present. This where theprice onlyabout VND20-35 was Of which,the strongest increase in land If thelandprice istoohigh, per cent isreasonable. Ifthere inprin is planning infrastructure. prices us in land increase the Association, According toNguyen VanDinh,deputygene upwards. pricesto push take thisadvantage to may continue and brokersowners to pushthe 2-3 If times. property price up e at 1,162.21 points. e at1,162.21 it will hinder the development ofConstruction, said land prices had increased by50 e solutions tostrengthen supervisionofthe marketto to end Thursday 1,163.10 points. 1,163.10 endThursday to s formajorinfrastructure projects. price is Kim Chung-Di TrachUrbanArea, (VND81.6 billion), and Vingroup (VIC) (VIC) billion), and Vingroup (VND81.6 rning but quickly recovered back to 1,162.21 recovered to1,162.21 rning but quickly back ers' bottom-fishing acti ers' bottom-fishing e twotrendsforproperty investmenton the 9 stocks declined while 122 increased. some areas some of Hanoi wasmainlydue to spec- ers havebeen accused on bothHoSEand HNX. Althoughtheindex ciple ciple or drawings, an increase ofabout3-5 has increased to VND15-30 million persq.m ually depends on the level of investment in investment of the level on depends ually are due to information about are toinformationabout infrastructure due the planning project isapproved,bothland- ion on HOSE, including Vietinbank(CTG) -prices-surgedue-to-red-riverurban-plan- compensation buying oflandfor ading and e fromlarge-capstocksboosted indices but ts, including Cienco5, AIC, DiamondPark ts, includingCienco5,AIC, using and Real Estate Market Management Management Market Estate using andReal the productstructure ofthemarket. stry of Constructionstrythis year of wouldbuild million shares tradedon the southern mar- million persq.m andhas in mid-2020 Hoai Duc District and 20-30 per cent year- per cent 20-30 and District Duc Hoai ation to create price fluctuations, such as such pricefluctuations, tocreate ation priceisexpected tosurge to VND55-95 ral secretary of the Vietnam Real Estate RealEstate Vietnam ral secretaryofthe of thereal estate marketin vity. Investmentcash of price manipulation 29 March 2021 24 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam Index from steep fall from Index caps saveVN Big Intellasia https://english.thesaigontim compared to Thur Hanoi market,soaringupto Notably, over 224 million shar million over224 Notably, th sion atitsintradayhighof270.96, with hi to end course reverse to dex botto the northern bourse, On dex sheddingover25pointsto illegal en to linked cases fresh Covid-19 about 5.7 percent to VND11,050, wi percent to VND11,050, 5.7 Among speculative stocks,property developer gest loser, lost 1.98%. big- VRE, the Retailer stocks justdroppedaroundpoor-performingMeanwhile, 1%. phone retailer MWGrose around 1-2%. carrier VJ ACB, low-cost Similarly, lender growthratethisyear. percent business highpercent31 its announcement following toitsintraday 2.67 a soared toeye HPG Realty firmVIC improved percentwith 1.81 deals. traded inblock trillion, shares andmore VND15 includ than bourse contracted 3percent in volume and winners with122 1,162.21, at session earlier Closing the day,thebenchmark index edged a little impactonthe index, butthe riseof bigcaps narrowed the index's morning loss. system error fr Entering theafternoonphase,a ticipation ofbottomfishersthendrov se phase, In thesecond half of the morning March 26. expanded significantly today, Index oftheHCMCitymarket avoid falling performanceGood some largecap of stocks 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES caps_323202.html http://bizhub.vn/markets/shares-narro lion. million than224.4 shares More were traded It hadlost0.56per cent toendThursday 267.19 points. at points. 270.96 On the Hanoi StockExchange (HNX), the HN (CTG). Vinamilk (VNM), Gas JSC (GAS otherpillar stockssuffered Some co from (BCM). and Becamex Vietjet (VJC) Group (HPG), In the VN-30 basket, notable gainers were points. Nineteen to 1,167.19 ofthe VN30 the 30biggeststocks tracking The VN30-Index, po the in stocks points," it said. of 1,150-1,155 existing to priority give and "Investors withacash-rich recoverymarket. phasesofthethe "Investors withhigh stock ex cent. per 50 According toBao Viet SecuritiesCo,Invest lion. sellers net were They billion). (VND61.6 sday's session. position should consider disb position should 95 percent in volume and awh percent involume 95 th a matching volume e th amatching es.vn/81150/-big-caps-save-vn-index-from-steep-fall.html m fishing activities remainedm active, enabling theHNX-In- posure can consider lowering the proportion of stocks in the proportionofstocks posure canconsiderlowering gher by3.77points, es worth morethanVND3.4 es worth stay below the 1,140-pointleve staybelow e the main index up above 1,150 points. main indexupabove1,150 e the w-losses-thanks-to-a-surge-in-large- e numbers of winners and losers tied at 102. losers tied of winnersand e numbers on the HNX with the valueofVND2.59 bil- lling pressure became lling pressure mo basket rose, while 11 stocks decreased. stocks 11 while rose, basket rrecting pressurerrecting suchasVinhomes(VHM), C, industrialpark developer BCM, mobile Vingroup (VIC), steel Phat steel maker Hoa Vingroup(VIC), such as VIC, HPG, and ACB helped the VN the helped ACB and VIC,HPG, as such deeply, while on the Hanoi market, turnover onthe northern bourse, worthVND3.5tril- ors should maintain stock exposure at35- rtfolio if the index falls to the support zone theindex if tothesupport falls rtfolio 10.4 percent in value at over 670 million 670 over at invalue percent 10.4 and 339 losers. Turnover on the southern on the and339losers.Turnover try was released, leav released, try was 2.9 million shares transacted. Steelmaker Steelmaker sharestransacted. 2.9 million ing some VND1.4 trillion worth of shares shares of worth trillion someVND1.4 ing down 0.89point,or0.08percentoverthe FLC again stole the limelight as it gained the limelight as again stole FLC X-Index rose1.41per cent toclose at equently facing the southernbourseleft facing equently in market value, increased 0.22per cent ), Vincom Retail (VRE) andVietinbank ), Retail(VRE) Vincom or 1.41percent agains xceeding 52.5millionshares. ursing witha low proportion trillion were transactedonthe trillion were opping 120percentinvalue l. However, theactivepar- l. ing the benchmark in- thebenchmark ing re intense after news news after re intense 29 March 2021 25 /51 29 March2021 29 t the previousses- BUSINESS SEA service consumers in new digital rate of Vietnamhighest has finance& business Vietnam Intellasia pace with the world and be proactive in de ofInformatio context, theMinistry that In countries by2030andhigh-inc come throughs of the next 10 year next throughs ofthe Science, technology,in ital skills. transformation, telecommunications, digital nomic development plan for the 2021-2025 pe for 2021-2025 nomic developmentplan the The socio-economicdevelopmen by 2025. national GD to the that thecontributionof5G A study bytheNationalInstit ment ofthecountry. Mobile andfixed broadbandinfrastructure mental infrastructureforthe digital econom The deputy minister saidtelecommunications of connectionallthings, he added. Data wouldbecome animportantresource foreachcountryandstrongdevelopment tion ofallsocio-economicactiviti world thetransforma- and virtual world fromthereal to the ing that was it a transition The world would continue towitness greatchanges innext the 10years, hesaid, add- enteri were we that said munications, at Speaking the opening session, PhanTam, this year. an scale onalarge willtest5G The country deployed 5Gandachieved results. very positive chair of the Radio andElectronicsAssociation of Vietnam'ste the development Assessing ment and exploitation activities inViet project by2030and further promote the contributeorderHowever, to in totherealis of last month, reported theVi total number ofmobile broadband subscrib The total number offixedbroadband subscrib within togrow ic sectors infrastructu ofbroadband The development frastructure. the telecommunications infrastructure, includingboth mobile andfixed broadbandin- The Vietnamese governmenthasdefined one billi reached$337.5 billion. Singapore Asian countrieswithpositive growth with Statistics from the General Statistical Offi ice consumersintheregion. per cent. Thisturned Vietnam into a country Out of the total number of digital service of higher thanthat $2 billion last year, that Vietna Company, showed The report "e-Conomy SEA 2020", whichisconducted by Google, Temasek and Bain & in Vietnam. oping 5Gand broadbandinfrastructure to services market. of intheVietnamese the development Thethemeof thisyear is devel- This is animportant forum for telecommuni noi onThursday. year,regionWorld the last Mobile Broadban digita rate ofnew had thehighest Vietnam 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| novation and digital transformation novation and the past two tothreeyears. the s to help Vietnam develop and be among the top middle-in- top the among be and develop Vietnam help to s etnam Telecommunications Authority. etnam Telecommunications ute ofInformationand Comm m's digital economy reached atotal value of$14 billion t strategyforth es into adigitalenvironment.es ome industrial countriesin2045. ome on and billion. reached $336.3. Malaysia ng a digital age ng adigital an thesame periodofthe previous year. nam, it stillneeds a lotof innovation. n and Communications is n andCommunications digital economy,telecommunicationinvest- ploying commercialisation ploying ce said that Vietnam was one of the three one ofthe was Vietnam ce saidthat users in Vietnam, new users inVietnam, d evenwithMake- in-Vietnamdevices from enhance the digital transformation process enhance thedigitaltransformation l service consumers in the Southeast Asia Asia intheSoutheast consumers l service lecommunications market,TranDucLai, the size of the economy is more than$343 size oftheeconomyis the ation of the national digital transformation transformation digital national the of ation ers reached nearly 69.5million theend by deputy minister of Information and Com- deputy ministerofInformationand would contribute greatly to the develop- re has paved the way for all other econom- for allother the way has paved re y, digitalsociety an cations managers and expertstopromote technology, digitalgovernment, and dig- P growth is forecast forecast is growth P d & ICT 2021 conferencewas inHa- d &ICT2021 told with the highest rate of new digital serv- the rateofnewdigital with highest ers in Vietnam exceededers 17.2 inVietnam million,the of Vietnam, said this year, operators had year, operatorsVietnam, saidthis of infrastructure was the becoming infrastructure funda- riod haverepeatedly of the pillarsofdigitaleconomy as e 2021-2030periodandthesocio-eco- are some of the strategic break- strategic ofthe some are d digital society. unications Strategy said said Strategy unications d digitalgovernment. users account for 41 to to reach 7.34percent determined mentioned digital digital mentioned of 5G in Vietnam. 29 March 2021 26 /51 29 March2021 29 tokeep BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam green economy: Expert for leverage provide Night-time industries businesses site e-commerce for Vietnam-EU to debut Intellasia ed at more than$2.2billion, ed at more wasestimat- theEU imports to Its 2020. period of same the percent against 33.5 EU, up opment in Vietnam, Huyen said, and thecentral said,opment inVietnam, Huyen Focus on thenight-timeeconomy isnowagl Hanoi-based National Economics University. to develop itsgreen economy, according to Pham ThiThanhHuyen, alecturer atthe 316806.html http://hanoitimes.vn/vietnam-eu-to-d equipment, aircraft, and machinery electrical including tech products, arehigh theEU from imports key Its textiles and clothing, coffee Vietnam's mainexports tothe EU are tele In the first twomonthsof Vietnam ex 2021, information about theoriginofVietname database a national tobuild aims The site signature)," Nguyen Kim Hung, director oftheVIDEMsaid. and dotransactions on asingle ecosystem throughdigitalsolutions digital "The implementation ofthee-commerce site trade activities. international to lated informationaswellinternational sential th provide to hoped is site e-commerce The markets." toaccess international increase opportunities and and medium enterprises and business house is expectedtobethe operation programme Hanoi, deputy minister of Industryand Tr March 26in ceremonycooperation programmeon oftheat thelaunching Speaking my Agency (IDEA)under theMinistry of and Management Science (VIDEM) and th e-commerce platform jointly launched by This is a cooperation programmeto suppor Trade Agreement (EVFTA)took effect. ter exploit opportunities of export toeach other's market after theEU-Vietnam Free An site e-commerce will debutmake soon for businesses ofVietnam and the EUtobet- etnam andthe EU. progra national is akey The e-commercesite 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| HANOI TIMES in-sea_323199.html http://bizhub.vn/tech/viet-nam-has-highe year. tion could help Vietnameseoperators save with a netw estimate, toHuawei's According stations, reducing air-cond that deviceslutions. Thesewere solutionforVietnamesenetworkThe optimal Jiang. electricityrental costs, costsforthestati That raises many costs, suchas construc indoor networks. the currentof The were usingmost Vietnamesenetworkoperators ar mobile networkhad 5th generation ar countries in 61 carriers 140 more than Jiang, attheevent,Michael Also speaking Developing night-time indust Developing night-time 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| vehicles, and pharmaceutical products. and pharmaceutical vehicles, itioning costs,he added. , rice, seafood, and furniture. up 2.3 percent compared to th compared to percent 2.3 up ries would provide thenecessary leverage forVietnam platform (digital payment, logistics, e-invoice, digital digital e-invoice, logistics, payment, (digital platform are hung directly on poles so directly onpoles are hung ebut-e-commerce-site-for-businesses- ound 260 million usersworldwide. on's cooling and air conditioning system, said tion, procurementofhome equipment, site ound the world deploying 5Gnetworks. The on capacityprofiles,andprovidetransparent se enterprises' products and services. and products enterprises' se Industry and Trade and Industry Kim NamGroup. st-rate-of-new-digital-service-consumers- phone sets, electronicfootwear, phone products, HuaweiVietnam CTO,saidtherehadbeen the Vietnam Institute of DigitalEconomy Institute the Vietnam e Vietnam e-Commerce andDigitalEcono- ade CaoQuoc Hungemphasized: "The co- e Vietnamese business e Vietnamese t businessesthrough an exploitingEVFTA partnersre- aboutagreementspolicies and ported $13.8billionwo operating operating costs per of upto$133 million first step intheroadmaptosupportsmall step first to help businesses conveniently connect mme to boost trade activities between Vi- between activities to boosttrade mme obal trend andadirection towards devel- holds, helping them improve capacity will contribute tobuilding a complete will contribute ork of 30,000 stations, the outdoor solu- outdoor the ork of30,000stations, operators was toswitch outdoorso- operators city of Da Nang is the best place in the the in place best the is Nang Da of city e same period oflast year. there is no need to build community withes- rth of goods to the to ofgoods rth 29 March 2021 27 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam travellers international reopening to considers trial Vietnamese tourism Intellasia step behindin countries neighbouring During a dialogue event, tourism businesses forappraisal. sector inthe experts tourism and al Administration of Tourism, The draft reopeningplanfor international tourists,formulated bythe Vietnam Nation- The right location zens. with low population density to ensure safety for tourists aswell as Vietnamese citi- thatthelocations fo essential is it ID-19, Considering the currentsuccess that Vietnam quarantine. cinated tourists are allowed to enter the country without having to spend 14 days in arepetition heavyweights tourism Vietnam's neighbouring have countriesAs many set ou 29/MAR/2021TUOITRE INTELLASIA| NEWS my-expert/198129.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/nighttime-indus cal associationsand travel the developmentprogramme andstrategy of for economies,examples ofnight-time sheur Citing HCMCity'sBui Vien and PhamNg destination. ofeach characteristics ances, shopping, sightseeing, an tooffer night-time important itis She said effectivel but alsoby development pr new tourism inventwith notonly itself COVID-19 pandemic, shewent on, and torevi Vietnam's economy,especiallyitstourism se regard. inthis business ofdoing ways new tolaunch country flight protocol iscrucialinensu To Viet Thang, deputy CEOofdomestic budg Lam said. "We look forward to welcoming backtourists pricing. with more competitive This requires prioritisation of promotion, ou tinations. needs tofindtourists with However, in order for 'vaccinepassports' to passports.' 'vaccine informally ment, whichinexorablyneed a to led tion, pointed out that vaccine isthe only ra Associa-Nguyen TheLam,president ofPhuQuocInvestmentTourismDevelopment economy, aninitiativecurrentlypromoted ofanight-time the development the perfectproves locationtoboost also Quoc Phu mi reputation quality, and anestablished adequate isolationfromthemainland,tion, Phu QuocIslandoff southern Kien Giang Province, with lowpopulation concentra- other in process similar a inform will which locations, certain in reopening limited with phase trial a suggested also Son "What we need isaroad map to safe reopening tobringback international tourists." from thegovernment," Son said. "The tourismsector is already inaslough, tobe demand included. and aplanforstimulating cr with early, finalised be should reopening generalHuynh VanSon, director Sea Star of agencies intheeffort./. demand and free time, connecting them with suitable des- connectingtime,and free withsuitable them demand hasrecently been presented tobusiness representatives ring safety in the reopening plan. d entertainment, whichare inlinewiththe distinctive locales during the next phases. locales duringthenext y boosting night- for COVID-19vaccination certificates, or bringing back inte r the proposed reopening be isolated places places be isolated reopening proposed r the ght tickallthe boxes, Son proposed. ged DaNang todevelop a comprehensive oducts and more openpoliciesontourism u LaoStreets and Hanoi but wearenotasking services, such ascatering, artistic perform- tries-provide-leverage-for-green-econo- y of hope forglobal connection at the mo- iteria for selecting locations, capable capable firms, locations, for iteria selecting by the Vietnamese government,by the headded. sufficient infrastructure, hotel and service infrastructure, sufficient yield effectiveness, the tourist industry t toreopenborders toinboundtravellers, treach activities, as well as longer tours tours longer as well as activities, treach pointed out that Vietnam is already one is already out thatVietnam pointed ctor, hasbeen heavily affected by the Co. Ltd, said that the road maptosuch ing for anelaborate protocol where vac- without having towaitforquarantine," has achievedagainst et carrierVietjet Air, ve itslocal economy, DaNangmustre- its night-time economy, engaging lo- engaging economy, itsnight-time time industries. time rnational visitors. for bailout packages packages for bailout the spread ofCOV- the spread stated that a safe 's Old Quarter as 29 March 2021 28 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam businesspeople Vietnamese restrictions for Taiwan relaxes travel Intellasia The third requirement is that Taiwan. Besides,theirshou stay have tomeet fourrequirements, including shortened quarantine To beeligiblefora Chen. positive, said ed ones, while otherlocally-transmitted ca Over the past twoweeks, most Covid-19 case inquarantine for seven days. to remain will bequarantined foronly Since March 1, entrepreneurs entering Taiwanfromlow-risk countries or territories risk countries for twoconsecutiveweeks. had Taiwan's Vietnam andSingapore met requir at Speaking a press briefingonMarch 24, tering Taiwan, LaoDong Online reported. Vietnamese entrepreneurs willbequarantine are atalowriskofCovid-19infection. for entrep restrictions laxation oftravel CentralTaiwan's Epidemic Commandcentre 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES https://tuoitrenews.vn/new nue forVietnamesetourismthatyear. domestic visitors in the same year, international tourists generated 56 percent of reve- Despite only adding upto 18millionvisits well a International visitorsproved fending off COVID-19. pointing to Taiwan asaprospective market since the island did exceptionally well in munication campaignsso that foreign touris astandardis is formulating Vietnam "While in quarantine. plane, that personshould be allowedinto boarding thethem conductedbefore of turns intwonegativetests, one If avisitor for tourists berolled out if vacci Tran Thi Nguyen, arepresentativeof Sun Gr given upallhope. not have However, businesses guidesthe leaving sector, while hotels see has Over pastyear, the sector the tourism Yen ing totheircountries," said. "Tourists will not well, Yen added. The COVID-19protocols of visitors' homeco itors. devise high-qualityproducts Considering this, the tourismsector needsto outsafepick locationsfor reopeningand travel agencySaigontourist. little progress in ensuring herd immunity to pinpointa reopening date atthe moment able hardly being despite immediately, onthereopening action totake needs Vietnam Optimising profit clared. routes, we are readytorelaunch all intern aircraft,anestablished operating "With 80 uct rating websiteAirlineRating. compliance,awardedCOVID-19 safety by the In thisregard, Vietjethas recently acquired reopening-to-international-travellers/60019.html travel if we open but they are stil are they but open we if travel s/business/20210328/vietname five days,while others from and services to activate the services toactivate and they must be guaranteed byaTaiwanesefirm to travel nation passports aredeemed improper. ld be fewer thanthree months. spring forVietnam' reneurs from VietnamandSingapore, which period in Taiwan, Vietnamese entrepreneursin Taiwan,Vietnamese period the country without having to spend14days to having the countrywithout , according toNguyen Huu Y Yen, CEO of Head ofCECCChen Shih-chungsaidthat ational flights once allowedto," de- Thang a declarationfromCECCthat theycanenter shambled by all counts, with 25,000 tour tour 25,000 with all counts, by shambled room occupancy drop toall-timelows. to Vietnam in 2019, compared to 85 million comparedto85 in2019, Vietnam to reputation, and capability on international oninternational andcapability reputation, ses had been quarantined before testing aseven-star rating, thehighest mark for ed protocolfor reopening, we needcom- oup, suggested that a quick testonarrival due to a slow vaccine to aslow due ts don't forgetus," Nguyen said, also d for only five days instead of14after d for en- only fivedaysinstead untries should be taken into account intoaccount as taken be should untries s reported in haveVietnam beenimport- (CECC) on March 24 announced there- world's famous airline safety andprod- ements and criteriatobe listed as low- l subject to quarantine whenreturn- quarantine to subject l s budding tourism. medium-risk countrieshave demand ofinternational vis- se-tourism-considers-trial- rollout thatproves rollout 29 March 2021 29 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam flights resumes international Vietnam Airlines airport expansion plan trillion DienBien Phu PM okays VND1.55 project nod toLienChieuport Government gives Intellasia sion-plan-846448.vov https://vov.vn/en/economy/ north-western region of Vietnam. known asMuong Thanh airport, Located just four km away from Dien Bien calities toDienBien, is expectedtoopennew opportunities forai onlyCurrently, operateHanoiDi airlines isscheduledtobe grade by 2024. completed theup- when passengers a million half of capacity serving design its raise to It aims present. andthoseof & A321s such as A320s Airbus Under the Under proposal, the67-year-old wi airport with atotal investment capitaltrillion.VND1.547of The PMassigned the Aviation Corporation uponcompletion. A320/321s north-westernBien Phuairportinthe region The prime hasrecentlyminister approved 29/MAR/2021VOV INTELLASIA| port-project.html https://english.thesaigont work developmentplan. investment andconstruction of the portis for th paperwork the review andcomplete to The MinistryofTransportwas tasked with sibilityreport. study and Sa Tien the at assigned theDananggovernmentThe governmentof tobeincharge theproject'sfea- overload reduce to the socioeconomic development of Danang City and thecentral region. developed be will wharfs Son Trawharfs, ease traffic congestion, e some phase, next the In tonnes of cargo ayear, Lao DongOnline reported. State budget. Inthe first phase oftheproject, trillion, cost over VND3.4 The project will TEUs. date large vessels weighing upto100,000 passages and auxiliary infrastructure other The project comprises some main components suchas breakwaters, bulwarks, water economy. Danang Cityforinvestment in in project Deputy primeministerTri 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES namese-businesspeople.html https://english.thesaigontim healthcare facilities. etnamese businesspeople havetopresent ne In addition to Covid-19 tests that need to betaken three days before boarding, the Vi- toTaiwan. ing medium risks of Covid-19 and depa only the country.Lastly,theyshould to tional flights after along to thecountry from back namese citizens National flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES using modern aircraft. suspension due to Covid-19. to due suspension imes.vn/81135/gov%e2%80%99 nh DinhDung on March 25 appr pm-okays-vnd155 trillion-dien pm-okays-vnd155 es.vn/81127/taiwan-relaxes-t should not have visited any country 14 days before fly- country 14daysbefore have visitedany should not is the largest and the only commercial airport in the in airport commercial theonly and largest the is nhance regional connection and contribute to the 2021-2025 period to 2021-2025 the Taiwan, signaling the resumption of interna- of theresumption signaling Taiwan, en Bien route, using ATR72s. Theexpansion Bien route,en using tonnes andcontainer ships of up to 8,000 suitable to Vietnam's general seaport net- generalseaport toVietnam's suitable with over VND2.9trillion sourced fromthe just conductedaflighttransporting Viet- an investment proposal toexpand Dien working with the municipal government government municipal the with working of Vietnam(ACV)toundertaketheproject city centre, Dien Bien Phu airport,also Bien city centre,Dien facilities, enabling the porttoaccommo- equivalent rank, as toATR72s opposed at rlines tolaunch newroutesfromotherlo- the port isdesigned to handlefive million gative Covid-19test rt from a country or territory with low to with a countryorterritory rt from e Lienproject Chieue port andensurethe of Vietnam, enabling it to accommodate enablingittoaccommodate of Vietnam, ll be upgraded tore ravel-restrict t-gives-nod-to-lien-chieu- -bien-phu-airport-expan- oved theLien Chieu Port results endorsed by boost the sea city's ceive large aircraft 29 March 2021 30 /51 29 March2021 29 ions-for-viet- BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam one light-off hour one light-off of electricityin kWh Vietnam saves 353,000 HCM City route per day on Hanoi- provide 12,000 seats Vietnam Airlinesto Intellasia noihcm-city-route/198140.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vietnam-airlin public ofKorea./. on Saturday, manySaturday,on other power-saving activi Together with thesymbolic acti country. Ministry of Industry andTrade, received The event, launched by the World Wide Fu Hour. unnece off customers toswitch offices and Vietnam Electricityand its member compan sponse events with many participants like the years before. worldwide, and othercountries Earth Hour evolut complicated the amid place Taking Centre. Power cording Dispatch to theNational for one hour from8.30pm to 9.30pm on March 27 inresponse toEarthHour 2021, ac- of 353,000kWh el Vietnam saved 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| HANOI TIMES intermsofseat route busiest second world's According to the Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation (CAPA), the Hanoi-HCM City is the ature, andproviding them with hand sanitiser. to as askingpassengers such Vietnam Airlines has seriously observed evening. late or morning The airline will use thenarrow-body Airbus aircraft onthe route. carrier isalsotheone havi airlinesaid. The Boeing and A350 Airbus aircraft wide-body All flights on the route connecting the coun etnamese airlines. Cityairroute,equivalenttoover noi-HCM National flag carrier Vietnam 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| flights.html https://english.thesaigont US Vietnamdirect servicesbetween andthe launch said ithasworked with releva will self-isolateathomefor14 days. Those w the sixthdayfromtheir of arrival. Ifth hotel at werequarantined time first the for Upon arriving inVietnam, they were retest each other. masks andusing a hand sanitiser during the thr for Covid-19 theytestednegative that posses such as trol measures All thepassengershadtostrictlycomply passengers. port on 25, morethan200 March carrying an flightdeparted Taipei The VN5571 from off unnecessary el people from63prov hour, manyone During Vietnam Airlines said itwill standards. international following fected The flight crew willalsobequarantined af centers or hospitals forquarantine andtreatment. ectrical devices. imes.vn/81136/vietnam-airl operate direct flights to theUn flights operate direct sing a certificatesing local fromthe health authorities proving make medical declarations, make on ofturning offunnecessary electrical devices for an hour Airlines will operate up to Airlines willoperate nt agencies in theUSandthis nt agencies ectricity, equivalent to VND658million (US$28,631), (US$28,631), to VND658million equivalent ectricity, COVID-19 prevention and control COVID-19 prevention measures, withCovid-19infection prevention and con- es-to-provide-12000-se awarm response frompeopleacrossthe ee days before the departurethe ee daysbefore day,wearing ion oftheCovid-19pandemicinVietnam 12,000 seats, the highest number among Vi- among number the highest seats, 12,000 ed forCovid-19.Thosewho tested negative ter the flight, while the plane will bedisin- will ter theplane while flight, the ssary electrical devices during the Earth ssary electricalthe devicesduring s againon and willbe forCovid-19 tested ng the mostfrequentuseofthe twin-aisle ey test negative for the second time, they nd for Nature (WWF) in Vietnam and the and in Vietnam (WWF) Nature nd for d landedatthe Danang International Air- ties were launched by businesses, house- bybusinesses, launched were ties try's two leading economichubswilluse ies nationwideencouraged organisations, 787 since March 28, a representative of the of the a representative 28, since March 787 2021 organisedonlineinsteadofre- 2021 was A321 airplaneonly A321 fo ho testpositive will be capacity,justafter incescities and Vietnam across switched flight and restrictingclose contact with ines-resumes-i 34 flights per day on theHa- day 34 flightsper checking theirbodytemper- ited StatesThe airline soon. is theappropriatetime to ats-per-day-on-ha- Seoul-Jeju intheRe- r flights in early early in r flights sent to quarantine senttoquarantine nternational- 29 March 2021 31 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam commerce sellers commerce collect taxes from e- Ministry aimingto Intellasia Tax authoritieshave repeatedly they can be taxed. information aboute-commercese provide to nies compa- service delivery and businesses digital-based has asked ofFinance Ministry The 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| 316814.html http://hanoitimes.vn/vietnam million toVND812.9 tricity, (US$35,371). equivalent Vietnam firstjoinedthe drive in2009. Last been observed in7,000 cities and town th is oftheWWF, aninitiative Hour, Earth sions and contributetoglob resources,reducenatural the environmentdeedsgreenhouse and toprotect gasemis- people throughoutthecountry to actively jo The MinistryofIndustry and Trade called 28 toApril4. mitments tosave electricity webs on the WWF The mainactivitiesincluded environment. tecting the holds andschools during March to raise public sellers_323172.html http://bizhub.vn/news/ministry-aiming-to-collect-taxes-from-e-commerce- collection management. toprov banks require also will authorities Tax nationwide. households million business acco households business large-scale Currently, their accountingbooks. draft circularwi However, the In the past, all househol large-scale business businesses. The draftcircular Cucsaid. business, ital-based was unfair. The new circular would ensure equality between traditional business and dig- with higher profit businesses digital-based TaxNguyen ThiCuc,Chairwoman Consul ofthe tax thesellers. info collect will tax authorities in involved For anyindividual not giveanycomment on it yet. we thatthey said have businesses E-commerce tohelptaxauthoritie expected The moveis ties. Thisdraft circular does companies arere service delivery and Sendo or Lazada Shopee, asTiki, such websites E-commerce sellers. their mu businesses e-commerce circular, the Under payments via online transactions. of flow cash their and supervise businesses e-commerce from them about information lect hous every workingwith ofdirectly Instead House- and Medium businesses. individual and household of management the change would authorities Small, for Administration Tax of hold Business under the general Department of director deputy Lan, Phuong Thi Ta ma tion whichwasrecently draft circularto compilinga The ministryis forms. tax registrations, declarations also stipulates the new tax collection method for large-scale household household for large-scale method tax collection new the stipulates also sponsible for providing informatio for providing sponsible de public for comments. de publicfor not apply to foreign suppliers. a social media campaignfrom a socialmedia al climate changeadaptation. al climate and payments of sellers via payments ofsellers and rmation from their pages toid pages their from rmation doing business on social media sites such as Facebook, local suchas Facebook, on sites media social business doing ll require themtopay taxes vi -saves-353000-kWh-of-electri asked e-commerce businesses to businesses askede-commerce s across172 countries and territories. s and lower costs than traditional businesses businesses thantraditional costs andlower s s to determine the real s todeterminethe year, the country saved 436,000kWh of 436,000kWh elec- the saved year, country ds were subject tolump-sumtaxpayments. ds were will col- taxauthorities ehold and individual, on offices, organisa provide detailed instructions for thisregula- for instructions detailed provide e largest social event intheworld and has ite and reviewing the the reviewing ite and in the Earth Hour ca ide account holders' information to aid tax toaid information ide accountholders' awarenessaboutsaving re currently studying studying re currently st make information declarations about declarations st makeinformation Taxation said under th unt for about 6-7 percentofthe total of 2 llers using theirplatfo llers ting Association,tax said avoidance form e-commerce and digitalplat- e-commerce March12to28callingforcom- n about sellers for taxauthori- n aboutsellers entify who they are and then a self-declaration based on city-in-one-light-off-hour- takeresponsibilityforthe tions, businessesand revenues ofsellers. campaign from March campaign from mpaign via practical mpaign via the circular, socould the rms and rms and services so electricity and pro- and electricity 29 March 2021 32 /51 e circular, taxation 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS EVFTA debuts opportunities from in optimising enterprises supporting Programme finance& business Vietnam start-up entrepreneurs leg-up towomen tech partnership provides Multinational Intellasia connecting relevant digitalso Hai addingthattheVietnam-EU e-commerce fl etnam tohelpthemgraspchancesfrom thedeal, he said. cooperatedThe Department withagenci has uptransition. for Vietnam inspeeding tunities-from-evfta-debuts/198166.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/ etnamese exports./. way reaching56.45billionUSD in trade 2019, Statistics showed that theEUis one of th officially operational. and protectthemfrom risks and tegration seek so the VIDEMEnterprises, proposedthat from th Nguyen VanThan,arepresentative trade. in economyand especially and theEU, Vietnam expectedto contrialso The trading flooris countries ontradedeals and policies. relevant information toth providing products, and fa database anational tobuild helping inces, c floor is that the Hung said international part namese firmswith aims tocreateaB2BMarketplace, while VIDEM director Nguyen Kim Hungsaidthat businesses tomake trading acti Economy saidthatalongwithdifficulties, CO For hispart, DangHoangHai,director of ternational markets, thusoptimising SMEs andbusinesshou of designing fundamental technology-cored solutions to assist enterprises, especially The officialaffirmedth accesstoforeign nesses in such getting as the markets EU. is necessary toseek solutions tocreate which seemed to be impossibleinthe past. helped micro-sized enterprises and busine plat deputy ministersaide-commerce The everything online. Vietnam grew18percent to over 11 billion that lastyear, underHung noted impact andthedevelopmentofinfras petitiveness the Indu that amid fourth He underlined the EVFTA. from opportunities firms grasp to Vietnamese helping thus possible, as forts ofallparties inputtingthe Vietnam- Addressing the signing ceremony, MoIT depu dium-Sized Enterprises, andthe Kim NamGroup. Management Science and Digital Economy(VID Management Scienceand Free TradeAgreement(EVFTA) throug etnam A cooperation programme tohelpbusinesses 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| Zone Startups Vietnam in 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| partment of E-Commerce andDigital Econom The programme was signed amongthe Minist made debutinHanoion March 26. gramme, anaccelerator designed to supp ernment-funded Entrepreneurship Prog at the programme is expected to be the first step in the roadmap roadmap the in step first the be to expected is programme the at seholds in improving capacity and opportunitiestoreach in- partnership with Sunwah I with partnership programme-supporting-enterp onnected with the existingtradingfloors of cities and prov- lutions to build a complete digitalecosystem,helping a lutions tobuild vities on asingleplatform. opportunities offered by the EVFTA. ners, especially those fromEurope. breakthroughs inassistingVietnamesebusi- e leadingtrade partners ofVietnam withtwo- ramme has launched the EMpower Pro- s oftheCOVID-19pandemic, e-commerce in building an"expressway" connecting Viet- strial Revolution, theimprovementofcom- the Department ofE-Commerce and Digital ort early-stage tech start-ups women. by techstart-ups ort early-stage EU e-commerce floor intooperation assoon e business community ofVietnam and other challenges while the trading floor becomes becomes floor trading the while challenges bute tobolstering the partnership between forms such as Alibaba and Amazon have forms and such asAlibaba Amazon ss households toexport their products, tructure system maycreate breakthroughs. e Association of Small- andMedium-Sized ofSmall- e Association USD, enabling peopletoshopforalmost He held that with technologyadvances, it es representing theSME communityof Vi- cilitating the transparencyinoriginof cilitating VID-19 has alsobrouVID-19 to advantagesfromtheEU-Vi- optimise including41.5billion worthofVi- USD lutions to facilitate Vietnamese firms' in- firms' Vietnamese tofacilitate lutions h the Vietnam-EU e- h the the floor isanational-scaleproject that y, the VietnamInst ty minister Cao Quoc Hung hailed ef- hailed ty ministerCaoQuocHung ry ofIndustry and oor isexpected torealise the goal of EM), theAssociati nnovations and the Swissgov- rises-in-optimising-oppor- itute ofBusiness Trade (MoIT)'s De- Trade (MoIT)'s ght in opportunities ght in commerce platform on ofSmall and Me- 29 March 2021 33 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam startups advice totourism offer companies Experienced tourism Intellasia Nam. oftourists kind such toattract Nam Quang Community diversity, heritage Therefore, adventureand nature tial areas. be domestic must in2021 oftourism the trend adap to near future ages inthe markets and and Hoi An City of Qu said that tourists Association, Phan of the QuangNamTourism "Innovativetourismstartu During hisspeech, farmstay. of acommunity-based stay is developed nationwide, Quang Nam Pr At the seminar, architect Pham ThanhTung er, nightcamping onthe Vu GiaRiver, ri Snorkelingan budgets. and payforState Do fromstartups. needs courageandcreativity it However, for tourism. greatpotential Province hold Nam riversin Quang said He based on therivers ofQuang Nam. Meanwhile, Phan Xuan Anh, director of Viet selling price, high profit, big market, co tups," Thuysaid."Theadvantagesofthiski and eco-tourismcombinedwithdigita "Green ronmental protection,artistic Nam Tourism Association,via ence. Thatcanbe, according to is Thuywho change due toCovid-19,doingbusiness in th However, in the currentcontextwhen the food. at beautifuland impressivesites, and touristhotelsor tasteislike tasting delicious ists inrecent years with thefive senses of Nguyen SonThuy, director of IndochinaUn Quang Nam. those who wanttostartabusinessin theto At aseminarheldonMarch23,experienced businesspeopleshared their opinions with 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES http://bizhub.vn/corporate-news/multinat necting withpeople. whendoingbusiness advantages Trinh, CEOofTalentnet,aVietna Tieu Yen that inspires new ideas andresources tosupportthem. coun the in key player a become to ter aims Jesse Choi,director ofSunwahVietnam an leaders, shesaid. They then couldbecome programme ambassadors toempower thenextgeneration of from thementors, Quynh Vo,director work ofpeer sharing and a comfort zone EMpower provides the women and their empl resourcesfaster.up scale tohelpthem The start-ups can access inspirational wome one mentorship, withentrepreneurs an focuses onsupporting15Vietnamesetech It tions, leadership, andfundraising. developm product including areas, ness The four-week programme, which began on Thursday, coversanumber ofcore busi- en-tech-start-up-ent repreneurs_323211.html creation or digitalisation. the humanity, servicethe socialsharing,envi- philosophy, values,richnature and culture are advantages for tourism will emerge popular. like a natural skill in en in skill anatural like ofZoneStartups Vietnam, said. d experts from Vietnam and Singapore. and d expertsfromVietnam mpetitiveness and sust ent, marketingand communications, opera- ang Nam Provincewillang Nam change interms of d seasonalmowingtoursontheThuBonriv- verside marketplace,etc. areexamples. a human. For example, sight is like looking looking like is sight example, For human. a to receive professional and mentalsupport , a suggestion for tourism startups in Quang in Quang tourism startups for suggestion , a ional-partnershippro mese HR consulting firm, said women have HR consultingfirm,said mese tourism industry is going through through a major is going industry tourism try's start-up eco-system,place providing a d CEO of Sunwah Innovations, saidthe lat- nd oftourismarelowinvestment rate,high urism industry in the central province of inthecentral industry urism alsothegeneralsecretary ofthe Quang entrepreneurs, includingthroughone-on- t to the new context. According to Thanh, Excursions, suggested Excursions, suggested thatwhen themodel of afarm- n entrepreneurs, seed funding and other ique Tourist ique Tourist Co., compared servingtour- e industry mustbe done with adiffer- travel in small groups, farfromresiden- groups, in small travel XuanThanh, a tourism businessperson, p on the basis of native values" as Chairnative values" basis of p onthe lisation will be a choice fortourismstar- be a lisation will ovince can develop this in the direction direction in can this the ovince develop oyees with training ing this well will create jobs for locals locals create jobs for will well this ing gaging people,focusandcon- ainable development." vides-leg-up-to-wom- , aprofessionalnet- starting abusiness 29 March 2021 34 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam rise: report rise: personnel seessharp transformation Need fordigital Quality Awards 2020 Vietnam National honoured with tobe fivefirms Fifty Intellasia tial impacts. More companie tial impacts.More in theworld. Productionand exportation sect the highest which isamong rate, countrygrowth The continuedtoachieve apositive it underlined.on theglobal economicmap, spot the successfulHowever, virus cont to thanks industries aviation and tourism tr outbreakinterrupted my. TheCOVID-19 According to Adecco Vietnam, 2020 wasa 2021. years2020 and marketinthefiscal movement inthefinancial The emerging demand for those vacancies on the list. pan, the Republic ofKorea (RoK), the US, group chief financialofficer (CFO) forcomp Merger andAcquisition (M&A) director, group chief executive officer (CEO), and research forFDIsecurities firms. equitieslisted investment director,director In the financial sector, the toppositionsar tech), logistics, agriculture, and retail. Other sectors that willseek which isupto80million", thereport continued. high professionalsarevelopment ed to improve employee effici training, re-evaluation, andre-assign are strength been focusingon "Businesses have recruitment and headhunting agency AdeccoVietnam. significantly, rising also is (CTO), officer (IT)-relatedroles,engineer, namelydata As firmsareacceleratingdigitaltransfor 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| quality-awards-2020/198199.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/ Metrology and Quality under theMinistry of Science and Technology./. The awards,firstpresented werein in 1996, and services inthedomesticproducts and foreign markets. and helpin services, thus activities business organisations andenterprises with remarkab arethe Awards Quality National The Vietnam nine service companies. enterprises,award winners27 production includethe remaining36 Meanwhile,and operate inservices. and four es, Among the 19 businesses honouredwith the go by prime ministerNguyenXuan Phuc. 2020, including19winningthegoldenprize, Fifty five businesses will 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| vice-to-tourism-startups.html https://english.thesaigontim range of activities GD. by the government of Quang NamProvincean With theme, "QuangNamanopenlandforcrea kickedoff 23 in on March Province. Quang Nam Nam 2021officially Quang seminarThis ispart ofthesecondQuangNam CreativeStart-up FestivalTechFest Besides, destinat Vietnam isanattractive their factories in other countries are closing. be presentedwith theViet fifty-five-firms-t more talents are manufacturing, financial technology (fin- es.vn/81163/experienced-to s are reallocating theirprod s arereallocating ency. As a result,salesAsency. force are among the hardesthit. among are lysought afterwith arela according to the 2021 Salary Guide of payroll, ofpayroll, Guide Salary tothe2021 according mation, the needforinformationmation, technology infrastructure engineer, or chief technology ion for foreign investors, including theUS, the most common practices that wereadopt- that the mostcommonpractices Europe, Hong Kong, and Singapore are also SingaporeEurope, HongKong, and e investmentdirector for privateequities; challenging yearfor the Vietnamese econo- o-be-honoured-with-vietnam-national- can be considered asignificant labour of investment bankin ofinvestment ade and manufacturingactivities and the ening theirexistingworkforce. Internal g topromotethe standing ofVietnamese itiated thedirect by anies funded by assetmanagers from Ja- according to a Decision issued recently to aDecisionissued according ainment, Vietnam is considered abright le quality achievements inproduction, ors are stronglyrecovering fromthe ini- prime minister's annualrecognitionprime of lden prize, 15 are production enterpris-lden prize, 15areproduction d will last for three days with a wide a wide with forthreedays last will d tive startups", the festival is organised is the festival startups", tive nam NationalQualityAwards urism-companies-offer-ad- uction chainstoVietnam as tively high monthlysalary, effectiveness and talent de- orate for Standards, forStandards, orate g and head of equity g andhead 29 March 2021 35 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam 19 blow in drovesafterCovid- Trang Nha sold hotels amid pandemic help foreignfirms City setsupteams to Intellasia pandemic_323208.html http://bizhub.vn/news/city-sets-up the cent over per up 30.3 months of2021, The city's exports toSouthKorea were wort "The potential for cooperation between thetwosidesis great," said Phong. talexports 9.5and the per cent country's of total exports toSouthKorea. worth$1.8billion last year, ket with exports a Despite theimpactofpandemic, SouthKo billionlast year. of$66 way turnover trade It ranksthirdamong110countries andterrit companies investing anddoing business in the country. South Koreaisone ofVietnam'smajoreconomic projects remained complicatedand should al legal entities, entity conversion permits, administrative that said He intheyear, quarters previous sales of the orontheactual year previous tax in the total oftaxbebasedon the calculation that HeungSoo, chairoftheKoreanKim Busi istration procedures for new business, reso to wanted they said firms Korean Most Phong. to ward toagencies,according and concerned agencies, receivingcomments The Department of Foreign Affairswill be lems facingtheminati increaseexchange will groups "The working facing foreignprom investors and eign investmentand international cooperat two "interdisciplinary up The cityhasset Korea." special incentives and policies toattract fo Thanh Phongsaid: "Thecity lead city at aconferencewith Speaking ments. climate for foreign investors bysetting uptwo working teams toassist in their invest- the HCMCityPeople'sCommi chairof The 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| report/198146.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/ne 2019./. latest list of theworld's 100 mostvaluable Viet Singapore, theRoK,China,andJapan. With absorption rate lower than10percent for several months, he is selling the prop- outbreak happened. the bank to put the hotel inoperation inth in thecoas Tien, whoownsa21-floorhotel year.since theCovid-19pandemic brokelast out hisselling hotel forVND90billion($3.9million) The owner ofahotelinpopular touristarea rooms. 50 lessthan with entries related toNhaTrang sales, 400 hotel list estate real on popular search quick A devastation wreaked on tourism Hundreds of hotels are being sold forcheap intourismhotspotNhaTrangafter the 29/MAR/2021VNEXPRESS INTELLASIA| mely manner," Phong said. mely manner," Phong proceduresthe establishmentofaddition- forFDIprojects, is committed tois committed abetterbusi ed-for-digital-transformati by theCovid-19pandemic. oting international cooperation. -teams-to-helpforeignfirms-amid- and renewal oflicencesinVietnam. ers and Korean firmson Nguyen Thursday, ness Association(K ing website Batdongsan.com.vn showsover working groups" in charge of incharge for- promoting groups" working instead ofrelying on taxagencypredictions. same period last year, accordingtoPhong. reign investors, South those from including nation brands,movedupnine placesfrom and land transfer procedures forforeign tal city, had borrowed VND50 billion fromborrowed VND50 tal city,had e third quarter, whenthesecond e thirdquarter, Covid-19 the focal point between Korean businesses Korean businesses between point the focal be further simplified or eliminated. or simplified further be nam's national brand isranked 33rd in the lve problemsrelatedtocreditsupport,reg- ion with the aimofremoving challenges ttee has pledged to improve thebusiness many of them two- or three-star hotels h more than $366 million h morethan$366 in the first two s with Korean businesses to removeprob- Koreanbusinesses with s , whoaskednotbeidentified, saidhewas ories investing withatwo- in HCM City ccounting for 4.5per ccounting cent ofthecity'sto- rea was the city's 5th largest exportmar- largest the city's5th was rea and inquiries from Korean firms firms fromKorean to for- inquiries and partners withmorethan5,600 Korean as it has been closedmostofthetime has asit on-personnel-sees-sharp-rise- ness climatebyissuingmore OCHAM), recommended 29 March 2021 36 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam Mekong Delta face watershortagein fruit treespossibly haof 40,000 Nearly Intellasia ter-covid-19-blow-4252724.html https://e.vnexpress.net/news he said. th of restructuring a to lead to likely is It due tothe shortage tourists. anddomestic of foreign kers, saidthat the sellingspree wasinevitab Specifically, farmers in Ben farmers Specifically, serve freshwater to water theircrops. been affected sometimes. However, farmer occurring fromthe beginning Accordingthe DepartmentProd ofCropto hectares of rice inTraVinh Province. 5,000 and around Trang, in Soc hectares Long, 3,400 hectares inVinh Ben Tre, 1,800 in trees,including19,000 offruit hectares 40,000 toprevent essential it is year, this April warned withthelevelof It also intrusion saltwater forecasted as that and in March possibly at55-60 kilometers inland, kilometersthat deeperthan inFebruary. In theCai LonRiverarea,saline intrusion will For the VamCoRiver, salinityintrusionis grams per litre will follow high tides to intrude 45-55 kilometers inland. of4 fromnow March 31. The salinity to gradually increase will intrusion saltwater According tothe directorateofWater Resource of hectares 40,000 ofabout shortage intrusion in MarchandApril this year, it is essential to prevent the possibility ofwater th of WaterResourcesThe directorate warned 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| SGGP NEWS ofthe deputy secretary Phan Hoang, Viet tourism market willimprove. sellers saytheyMost areunabletobearthelossesanymorenotdo andwhen know the No buyer has showninterest inthe20-fl suffered. losses upfor one to make and selling is Nha Trang Another seller who asked notbe identified media. thereDue toCovid-19impacts, are nowmore sellers of hotels than buyers, he toldlocal inprices. to asurge when happened developers rushed in 2016-2018 that Trang, said Phu, ahotelbrokerinNha tourisming tothe department. provincial accommodation ha 1,100 Around facilities. 100 th that Authorities havesaid year. last over percentto1.25million 80 locate is Nha Trang Khanh Hoa Province, where Prices havedropped byaround20-30 perc ular price being billion. range VND10-30 hotels sellingspreeinNha say the Brokers 30percent over by price fall erty to stemthe losses. The hotel, just100 shortage-in-mekong-delta-91413.html https://sggpnews.org.vn/busi saltwater intrusion hasnot caused reservoir. Farmers haveproact reservoirs, which, thereare109water with a have prepared1,200 water-st capacity of500 cubic meters Tre Province have dug nearly dug have Tre Province to around VND85 billion now. billion to around VND85 of water per reservoir.In Tien Giang Province, farmers /business/industries/nha-tra e pandemic has caused majore pandemic has orage-containers toaccumula ness/nearly-40000-ha-of-fruit-t of this year, the water intake of irrigation works had works irrigation of intake the water year, this of ively stored freshwater fori damages to agricultural production. fruit treesintheMekongDelta. fruit 6-11km deeper than the previousmonth.deeper than 6-11km the possibility of water shortage for about forabout shortage of the water possibility e hospitality real estate market in Nha Trang, inNha market real estate hospitality e oor hotel 10 days after it was listed. daysafterit 10 hotel oor meters away from the beach, has seen its seen meters the awayfrom beach, has Khanh Hoa Association Khanh Hoa the situation was in total contrast with what what contrastwith wasintotal the situation possibly at 95-100 kilometers inland, 23-25 23-25 inland, kilometers 95-100 at possibly ent frombefore the pandemic,theyadd. Trang began in January with the most pop- the with began most in January Trang said that his company has two hotels in has twohotels his company that said s inmany provinces haveproactively re- le withhotel owners suffering majorlosses uction, during the saline intrusion waves capacity of 2000 cubic meters of water per meters ofwater cubic 2000 capacity of hectares in Tien Giang, 15,000 hectares Giang, 15,000 Tien in hectares at with the forecasted level of saltwaterthe forecastedlevelat with of ve suspended operations so far, accord- operationsso suspended ve s, attheestuaries of to find land to build hotels, leading hotels, to build find land to d, saw thenumber tourists fall by of ng-hotels-sold 500water reservoirs with a rrigation. Therefore, sofar, te water for irrigation. Of difficulties for than more rees-possibly-face-water- the MekongRiver, of Real EstateBro- of 29 March 2021 37 /51 29 March2021 29 -in-droves-af- BUSINESS Delta improved provinces in Mekong of efficiency eight Rice production finance& business Vietnam Intellasia mekong-delta-improved-91379.html https://sggpnews.org.vn/business/rice-produ use, theremainingthree sub-projectshave VND581 billion.Ofthesub-projects ation of capita with atotal groups, cooperative and invest has supported project Up tonow,the general change in rice production areas supported by the project. improving reducing inputcosts,atives, an high-quality using by practices farming ing farming practicesofhouseholds According tothe report, in 2020, theproj management capacity, and operat the processofconstruction,province During al that so effectively, files categories,or try completeall to approve, project, the MARD willsupport them toimpl these pr to integrate try should Localities time, theyshouldcontinue to develop towa This is abright spot for more efficient an prov the comingtime,hesuggested that In protection. to environmental tributing clear benefits. Moreover, pesticidesandpl quality, at the sametime reducing costs He said that he was very happy that in industry. restructuring market difficulties andthe pandemic. Howeve the rece ficulties, especially in industrythe ricement, inrecentyears, According to Le Quoc Doanh, deputy mi committed out thecontents carry projectin the tofo districts it requires irrigation, and upgrade eight ring dikes to ment law.Itwilldeploy 11 sub-projects, bu Province will continue toinvestincooperat resolished cooperativesarestillweakin smal to are stillused However, farmers change. climate to adapt clearly shown, many cooperatives have b plementing the project, thematter ofimprov amount of cooperativeswith atotal ed 11 nine rural roads, 11 pumpstations, and 16 hectares with area ofmore an 6,000 than ha It hectares. than 8,000 holds withmore province has conducted technology transfer of improvingproduction efficiency for 20,000 that the provincehas carried outthisproject of theDepartment ofAgriculture and Rura theDelta toimprove efficiencyofrice prod Mekongthe eightin provincesAccordingly,has beendeployedin project theVnSat cultural Transforma 2021, and discuss solutions tospeed up th aconfer held Province, Giang The MinistryofAgricultur 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| SGGP NEWS tion project (VnSat). l biddingpackages end inJune, then start the construction. e and Rural Development (MARD), on March 25 in Tien nt three years ofsaltwater intrusion and drought, besides ence to summarise the year 2020, carry out plan the carryout the ence tosummarise for year 2020, , basically completing the project objectives ofchang- to theproject, Thien said. ion, Le QuocDoanh noted. cus on encouragingfarmersandcontinuing to l-scale production, and newly many estab- the productivityand process ofimproving economicefficiency, contributing tothe ogrammes into the medium-terminto the phaseofthe ogrammes to meet competitive needs, farmers enjoyed the Mekong Delta has encounteredmanydif- . The province has builtthree warehouses, urces and management experience. Long An ect had positive impacts on the sustainable on the positive impacts ect had d sustainable rice production. Atthe same een invested inproduction efficiency to about VND87billion. After four years of im- s also trained more than 10,000 households, 10,000 morethan also trained s nister ofAgriculture and Rural Develop- ganise biddingonline, and by capacity pro- transformer substations. Ithasalso support- e progress of the Vietnam Sustainable Agri- Sustainable e progressVietnam ofthe ant protection drugs were barelyused, con- not been completed in Kien Giang Province. not beencompletedinKien uction. NguyenChiThien, deputy director ensure floodprevention. At thesametime, l of the International Development Associ- inces should continue to replicate models. to models. continue replicate inces should l Development ofLongAnProvince said rds improving quality and reducing costs. costs. reducing and quality improving rds ild four pump stations to be in proactive stations pump four ild ives inaccordancewith the public invest- , 88 have been completed and are put into into havebeencompleted andareput , 88 in five districtsin fiveand towns, target withthe ment in91sub-projects forcooperatives ementation. Inaddition, and trainingformore than 13,000 house- s should pay specialattention to quality, ing the efficiency of rice cultivation is is ofrice cultivation efficiency ing the ction-efficiency-of- hectares of rice. During that process, theDuring thatprocess, rice. hectares of d certified rice varieties inmost cooper- r, the results are respectful.the Thisresults is r, the eight-provinces-in- 29 March 2021 38 /51 29 March2021 29 localities should should localities BUSINESS Tau opens Tau offshore Ba Ria-Vung petroleum port Sao Vang-DaiNguyet finance& business Vietnam financial targets in Q1 financial targetsin production and surpasses company Binh Son refinery goods tonnes of at handling 1million Giang Portaims Hau Intellasia ty and security as well as well as security ty and The MinistryofTransporthas asked theinvest with aradius of1nautical mile. Vietnam's largest refiningandpetrochemi 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| of-goods-91380.html https://sggpnews.org.vn/business/hau-gian River. the Hau Hau GiangPort is one of the major wharves in the Mekong Delta region, located along and unloading goods in2021, VoThanhPhongsaid. achievis to Giang Hau The goalofVinalines tonnes, five times higher compared tothat in 2019. kong Delta into operation, capacity of45tonnes,lifting th maximum He also shared that last year, the port put the Macgregor multi-function crane, with a increased by15percentyear-on-year. been loaded andunloadedthrough Hau Gi 26, saidthat in the first quarter ofthis VoThanh Phong, general directorofVina higher compared tothatin 2019. operation, bringingitsloadingandunloadin ing capacity of 45 tonnes,the largest and theMacgregor GiangPortput Hau In 2020, 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| SGGP NEWS tau-opens/198189.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/sao-vangdai-ng the operations ofthe port, while collec weather In normal conditions, the portwill having capacityofupto150,000 DTW. The port is designed to handle tankers and petroleum service ships anddrilling rigs petroleum port offshore thesouthern provin The Ministry ofTransport has issuedade 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| nancial-targets-in-q1/198207.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/binh-son-refine toabout percent, equivalent 152, based on thescenario oftheDung Quat Refi Plans on crude oil supply and distribution in improve business efficiency andensure inventories, Tien said. a close eye on the so market as todevise ap To betterprepareforproductionactivitiesin packageport inresponseto COVID-19 is also animportantfactor. Dung Quat Refinery, whichis under BSR' In addition, increasing oil prices inrecent control.been broughtunder The achievementwasattributable totheim VND. The firm contributed 2.24 tril Its revenue neared 21 trillion VND (913.76 mi 1.56 million tonnesofproducts BSR director generalBui Minh Tien saidthat of thisyear. ical JSC(BSR),exceeded both ofitsproduc apply measures to prevent en apply measuresto bringing its loading andunlo intotal, surpassing the qu 440 barrels ofcrude oil per day./. lion VND to the State budget in Q1. year, more than275,000 tonnes of goods had ting fees in line with regulations./. most modern one most in the Mekong Delta into months have facilita e largestand most modern one in the Me- s management, and the government'sand the s management, sup- cision on putting the Sa putting the cision on tion and financial targets in the first quarter quarter targets thefirst in andfinancial tion ry-company-surpasses-production-and-fi- cal firm, BinhSonRefi uyet-petroleum-port-offshore-ba-riavung- proved domesticdemandasCOVID-19has lines HauGiang,onthemorningofMarch multi-function crane, with a maximum lift- amaximum crane,with multi-function propriate and timely solutions inabidto and timely propriate g-port-aims-at-handling-1 million-tonnes- g-port-aims-at-handling-1 ang Port. The import and exportvolume ang Port.Theimport have its pilotage area have its e anoutputof1 million tonnesofloading nery surpassing its design capacity by3 capacity design its nery surpassing the upcoming quarter, the BSR will keep keep will BSR the quarter, upcoming the ce ofBaRia-VungTauintooperation. g capacityto845,000 tonnes,five times in the reviewed period, BSR sold about sold reviewed period,BSR inthe llion USD)and profit hitover 1.8 trillion the latter half been latter of 2021 have built the or of the project to ensure maritime safe- maritime or ofthe toensure project vironmental pollution during ading capacity to 845,000 845,000 capacity to ading arter's plan by 2.9percent. ted operation ofthe ning andPetrochem- s spanning acircles o Vang-Dai Nguyet o Vang-Dai 29 March 2021 39 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS businesses medium-sized for smalland solution new cyber-security Kaspersky launches finance& business Vietnam debut Vietnamits following sought afterin VinFast much e34 VF Intellasia not fullyequipped with knowledge of cybers ...and sector vulnerable a also is This theirpotential. utilised notfully have and tions with other countries regionally and globally Vo Vuong TuDiem,territory managerat are workingfromhome. employees isation's fr computers isolating running, is computer the as software onthecomputerisshutdownormalwarehasstartedassoonvirus as preventing thefilefrombeing executed, the hacker's controof the IP tion including deta a conducts it malware, detects it When for-small-and-medium-siz http://bizhub.vn/corporate-news/kaspers the feature to use itimmediately wit Customers using Kaspersky Endpoint Security its-debut-845975.vov Kaspersky isoffering promotions future." in and the theirpotentials development can SMBs maximise that as well as structure, impr saving time and in protec proactive power SMBstobemore "Therefore, Kaspersky launches KEDRO solution with the desire tosupportandem- when incidentshappen. with security threats by https://vov.vn/en/economy/vi features are superior to gasoline cars, she said. of cost equal tothebe considered exactly Most notably, customersdonot have to pay of anelectric car incomparis Thai ThiThanhHai,CEO of travel average monthlyminimum tion million monthfor fee ofVND1.450 per a cost ofpurchasinggasoline. have topay to cost,buyersonly In relation tomers are alsoable toexchangeused batteries for newer models. to clientsasVinFastbears al thereforehelpedThe movehas to reducepr battery. a regular acarfeaturing toselling posed Due tothisfactor the company immediately cles, withthemajoritycari extremely researchedVinFast hascarefully thepsychol customers willnotlosetheirdepositin tion, Inaddi- million. VND10 only at low relatively is model this for amount thedeposit as thousands ofpeoplebelieve thatha Experts lion, in addition toaone year free-of-charg Customers who order before June 30willbe in the local automobile industry, said a VinFast representative. decision toreceiverepr deposit,nounced its VinFast has received atotalof3,692 orde March 24. shortly smart electricvehicle the after envi VinFast Local automaker says a 29/MAR/2021VOV INTELLASIA| inform and It helps enhance customers' ITteam market. the hit has cybercrimes against themselves protect businesses medium-sized Endpoint DetectionandResp The Kaspersky 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| performing necessary operat ed-businesses_323197.html l risks relating to battery qu tobattery l risksrelating Indeed, VF e34 users will pay a monthly battery subscrip- battery a monthly VF pay e34 Indeed, users will Vinfast, said the company wants users to get advantages advantages toget users wants saidthecompany Vinfast, on with agasoline-fuelled care. nfast-vf-e34-much-sought-a record high number of orders have been placed for its recordnumber ofordershavebeenplaced high distance ofanormalcar. on the new product until June 30. June new product until on the hout installing an ng about theelectriccar'sbattery. rs within 12 hourssincethe company an- ky-launches-new-cyber-security-solution- gasoline consumption, while their price and while theirpricegasoline consumption, Kaspersky Vietnam, said: "In comparison oving oving the capacityofinternal teams so IT the monthly battery rentalequivalentthe monthly tothe ronmentally friendly carmade its debut on l serverand offersresponse scenarios such e battery lease, said the representative. the said lease, battery e iled investigation and analysis of theinfec- of analysis and investigation iled for batteriesfor andoperatingcosts whichcan ting theorganisation's cybersecurity infra- which is especially useful when the anti- especially usefulwhen which is om thenetworkremotelywhenorgan- the oduct costs whilst bringing peaceofmind whilst oduct costs ve madebookingsforthe VinFast VF e34 theeventthattheydonotreceive thecar. offered an attractive price of VND590 mil- price ofVND590 an attractive offered esenting a record high numberoforders , Vietnam's small firms still have limita- onse Optimumsolutiontohelp smalland ogyregardingcustomers of electric vehi- launched a battery launched abattery model,asop- rental maximum travel distance of 1,400kmthe distanceof1,400kmthe travel maximum ecurity aswell as onlyneed tobuya license andactivate capacity toanalyse ions quickly and simply. additional server. ality and life expectancy. Cus- ality andlifeexpectancy. fter-in-vietnam-following- tools and solutions root causes to deal 29 March 2021 40 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS since year's beginning investors to its IPs 10 IDICO attracts finance& business Vietnam SSI retail electricityprices: force EVN to increase Rising costsmight electricty grid with national Power Plantconnected Nghi Son2Thermal Intellasia lectricity, gas-fired power and th lectricity, gas-firedpower According to SSI, average sales price of traditional power sources, including hydroe- said. Comparing the average sales price (ASP) and f 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| electricty-grid/198155.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/nghi-son-2-ther the entire project inMay./. site surrounding issues tosettle provinces ad local with closely working is The CPMB ingeneral. national grid and operational the stability strengthening from theNghiSon2BOT Thermal Power Plan Approved by the primeminister in March positions. consists oftwo500k It central provinces ofThanhHoaandNghe An. the onApril9, andspans Board (CPMB),theproject Management was launched 2018 of theVietnam Electricity (EVN)Group), an Transm the NationalPower Invested inby Power Plant with the national electricity line The firstphaseofa500kVtransmission 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| ning/198213.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/idico-attracts-1 other sectors./. construction and al It south. mainly inthe ha, 3,270 of area vesting inresearchdevelo and undertheMini 1994 in established IDICO was High Central and Delta Mekong and conne HCM City southern economichubof economicVietnam's driver of gion, aprimary is Thanh IP the Huu 524.14ha, Spanning COVID-19 remains rampant in many countries. The cooperation showed the company'sabil na). (IP)with park the Thanhindustrial Huu signed amemorand note, IDICOrecently Of impactsofCOVID-19. negative despite start of2021, CO) has leasednearly50haoflandunder and IndustrialDe Vietnam Urban Zone The 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| input costs, although input EVN has notmade an is"It likely that EVNwillhave toraise retail electricity prices topartially offset rising control production costs," thereport wrote. of renewable energy, plusthe syst forthe costs power ininput "The increase gas prices. Thermal power alsoadversely affected was by creases inoutputofhydroe of powerplants decr thermal tracted output indu electricity the recent reportabout In a prices butnoofficialdecisions Rising productioncosts forcetheVietnamight V dual-circuit power power at lines, a V dual-circuit lectricity and solar power. pmentindustrial of10 park had been made for this year, according to SSI Research. SSI to year,according made forthis been had increases in gas prices, whic prices, ingas increases lands, alongwithCambodia. ermal power was 1,169 VND per kWh. so operates inpower supply, transportation, grid was put into operation on March 26. Ideal Model Group Limited of Taiwan(Chi- located in the Southern Key Economic Re- KeyEconomic intheSouthern located 0-investors-to-its-ips-since-years-begin- clearancecompensation,and will complete ission Corporation (EVN mal-power-plant-connected-with-national- its management to10investorssince the project connecting the Nghi Son 2 Thermal projectNghi Son2 connecting the stry, SSI Research pointed out that the con- 2016, the project aims theprojectaims power to transmit 2016, ministrations in Thanh Hoa and Nghe An Hoa andNghe ministrations inThanh safety of the northern power grid and the northern powergrid safety ofthe y official decision fo d managed bythe Central Power Projects velopment Investment (IDI- Corporation ity in investment attractionalthough ity ininvestment eased significantly mainly due tothein- due mainly significantly eased um of understanding on land leasing at on land um ofunderstanding em is mainly dueto the high selling price m Electricity (EVN) toraise retail power (EVN) m Electricity eed-in-tariff (FIT), SSI Research pointed Research pointed SSI (FIT), eed-in-tariff stry of Construction and is currently in- ofConstructionandiscurrently stry development development strategy. Itisclose to the rising input costs, including and t tothenational electricitygrid, thus cts localities inthesouthern region, length of 39.6km, length of39.6km, with 219 post projects nationwide withan h is forcing EVN to try to to try forcing EVN h is r 2021," SSI Research SSI r 2021," NPT), a subsidiary asubsidiary NPT), 29 March 2021 41 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam province mall in BacNinh build new shopping AEON Vietnam to shop in chargers Hanoi 2,000 fakeSamsung Authorities find over Intellasia province/198153.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/aeon-vietnam- demands./. residents' toimprovements the contribute in tion and prices-ssi/198154.vnp https://en.vietnamplus.vn/rising-costs-might ofthepowersystem./. output the total kW billion 10.6 totalled power output Solar ofthepowersystem. output of thetotal put ofrenewable energy sources wasexpected However, thepercentagepowergenerationof sources changedsignificantly.out- The billion against at261.45 2020's kWh. plan much AEON Vietnam general AEON Vietnam in ment attraction and trade services, he said. force be will investment a driving AEON's authorities. fromlocal support Vuong QuocTuan highlighted the importan at Speaking the signing ceremony, viceCh and traditional products onshelves. create to expected is it Once inoperation, perwork forthe ofthe establishment new mall. Bac Ninh willfacilitate AEON in conducting 26. signed between onMarch the companyand local authorities northernon cooperationlion USDinthe an MoU perof BacNinhnextyear, province Vietnam will kickoff construction AEON 29/MAR/2021VNA INTELLASIA| samsung-chargers-in-hanoi-shop-4254474.html https://e.vnexpress.net/news or of dubious qualitycould re Market authorities warned thatusing batt trademark. had notbeen thorough they did notcarry that the powerbankpackages Dai Hoang Market Nghia, head oftheHanoi the rest hadno indication of origin. They allhad '20+ Samsung' printed on the su onFriday. in ThanhTriDistrict market authoritiesfoundmorethan Hanoi 29/MAR/2021VNEXPRESS INTELLASIA| and imported)wasestimatedataround262.4 po total the in2021, operation power system According tothe Ministry ofIndustry an end wouldbe of to2022, there new wi 2021 to energyplants for renewable be difficult With a seven per cent growthinpower cons power). 7.8 trillion would increase by around costs In thesecond scenario, if the FITwasloweredto7centsper kWhasbeingdrafted, the included.power was 12.7 trillionVNDtoswitchus around of If the FITwas kept thesame at 8.38cents out twoscenarios. director NakagawaTetsuyuki might nothavenoticed the /business/industries/authorit sult infiresand explosions. per kWh, EVNmustspendanadditionalsum d Trade'splanofpowersupplyandnational about 3,000 jobs and put local farm produce produce localfarm jobsandput 3,000 about to-build-new-shopping-mall-in-bac-ninh- of a new shopping mall worth some 190 mil- 190 some worth mall shopping new of a eries and power bankswithout clearorigins ing solar energy or 17.7trillion VNDif wind air oftheprovincial run at full capacity. Inaddition, from the VND or10.7trillion 2,000 fake Samsung power banks in a store store powerbanksina fakeSamsung 2,000 umption nationwide, SSI said that it would said thatit umption nationwide,SSI the Samsung name, and so if theinspectors and so the Samsungname, for Bac Ninh provinceto boost itsinvest- nd power projects becomingoperational. nd powerprojects H H last year, for4.3percent of accounting quality ofthelocal urban area and meet wer output (both domestically produced (bothdomestically wer output ce of the project and pledgedmaximum ce oftheproject research and will prepare the related pa- -force-evn-to-increase-retail-electricity- rface, and 836 said made rface, and said in 836 China while Surveillance Department's Team1, said Surveillance Department's billion kWh this ye this kWh billion to total23.4 billionkWh, or 8.9 percent vowed tosoonbegin construc- illegal use of the Samsung ies-find-over-2-000-fake- People's Committee VND (including wind ar, notincreasing 29 March 2021 42 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS behind schedule project sixmonths $650 millionTTI finance& business Vietnam 20 more markets20 more hailing taxiservicesto Be to expandride- Intellasia project hasnotstarted construction. Compared City High-Tech Park (SHTP)confirmedth Talking with VIR, Le Bich Loan, deputy director of theManagement Board of HCM 19. construction as foreign experts are restricted company Techtronic Industries Co., Ltd(TTI by The $650 million project invested global 29/MAR/2021VIR INTELLASIA| on tourismdestinations, takingth planstoenter Ride-hailing companyBeGroup 29/MAR/2021VNEXPRESS INTELLASIA| Although theproject has noto halfayear. about Vietnam's transport andfood Internet market ment. Grabin 45localities. is yet offeringtaxis, Grab an not Gojek With atthe and pore's Grab top Indonesia's Gojek in third place. the only Vietnamese companyamong is the It City. City and HCM It hadover 4,000taxis last year in its seven markets, which include Hanoi, Da Nang find taxisusing theBe app. The group's beTaxiservice wi isapartnership They includeHue, CanTho and PhuQuoc Con Daoislands. 83368.html https://www.vir.com.vn/650 million-tt future. the in cent per 80 nam andreach theannualrevenu set upanetworkofaround200 to plans TTI inVietnam. pliers In 2020, workshop also TTI held asupplier create alocalsupplychain. to manufacturers anR&D would centre project with coll and three majorfactorsforattractingforeigninve high appreciation an TTI's factoryreceived quarter of 2022. the first expectedto Theproject was quarter of 2020. committed TTI certificate, the investment In opment (R&D) centre inthe global networkofTTI. tobe wasreported the TTI's facility local applications. cordless dustry-disrupting batteries,Lithium-Ion digitally controlled cordless power toolsandoutdoor power equipment whilebeing at the forefront of Covering anarea of13.5 hectares, the many times," saidLoan. nam tocarryout the work.However, due vestor announcedthat therewas adelegation requires carefuwhich is abigproject "This posal for aconstruction licence. ba report, the impact environment taxation, According toLoan,sofar, TTIhasbeenimpl April. sa mediarepresentative the tions, company In th project.the progress ofthe ask about has contactedboth repr March,VIR TTI In investors are working closely with fficially started construction yet, Loan said the foreign e target of$2.5 billion wi e numberofitsmarketsto27. SHTPthroughonline meetings. plant willfocuson manufacturing hand-held i-project-six-months-behind-schedule- second-largest plant and second-largest plant research and devel- d Be are the competitors inthisseg-main e latest email fromTTI at uptonow,TTIGroup's$650million motors, digitallyconnectedtools,and in- to COVID-19,these planswerechanged esentatives inHong l preparation to start construction. Thein- construction. tostart l preparation d expectationfromVietnam as it meets aborate with Vietnameseenterprises and cordlesspowerequipmentand floor care to advance its presence andfind localsup- id that VIR's queries would be met by queries would VIR's id that sic design appraisal, and submitteda pro- ementing procedures suchaslandleasing from enteringthe duetoCOVID- country to begin the construction within the third to begintheconstructionwithin finish construction start operationin finish construction and enterprises to supplyit ) is six monthsbehind schedule tostart stment into Vietnam. This is a high-tech high-tech a is This Vietnam. into stment th localth taxi companies that helps people grew by 50 percent to $1.6 billion last last billion $1.6 to percent 50 by grew top three ride-hailing firms, with Singa- with firms, three ride-hailing top of experts from the US coming toViet- US of expertsfromthe 20 new localities this year,withafocus this 20 newlocalities to the original plan to theoriginal th a localisation rateof60- th alocalisation Kong and Vietnam to 's Hong Kongopera- 's 29 March 2021 43 /51 this is adelay of s factories in Viet- in factories s 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS the US cows from dairy 2,100 Vinamilkover imports finance& business Vietnam travel better growing passion to reveals guests' IHG Hotels & Resorts continue growth seemssetto Hoa Phat's dizzy Intellasia 846080.vov https://vov.vn/en/economy/vinamilk-imp number ofherds for farms in Moc This yearVinamilk plansimport to 3,000 morehigh-yielding dairy cows toincreasethe annually. ofmilk litres million 20 Ngai Quang Farm to4,000 cows the Vinamilk in size herd the increase to help also will cows purebred HF additional of import The disease preventionandsanitary conditio capable is that breed The arrival of the dairy cowstothefarm healthy a is this US, the in age milk yield11,000 of over based partners of comfortably adapting to Vinamilk's to According Friesianstein (HF)are registered and The herd consists ofover 2,100 cows, all of which arepurebreddairy cows from Hol- whichspans Ngai. the high-techfarm a total inQuang area of100ha has madeconsumers moremindfulcommu- aboutpreservingand connecting withthe or more locally travelling world the With with 51 per centhappy to fork out more than 20 per centextra a night. an average of 31 per centmore on accommo spendresearch foundthatconsumerswill too. The it for to pay them, theywilling are It appears travellers not only intend to do set-to-continue-4254260.html https://e.vnexpress.net/news/business/ plant trillion, To cost VND85 the of with acapacity 2 DungQuat Phat build theHoa plans to It owned and in cash at a rate of VND500 ($0.02) per share. The companyplanstopaydividendsfor 2020 in trillion. to VND13.5 Last yearrevenuesVN 41 percentto roseby the highest ever since itbeganoperation in1992. eyes revenuesofVND120tr It this year, and has announced planstobuildanew plant. Leading HoaPhatGrouptargets re steelmaker 29/MAR/2021VNEXPRESS INTELLASIA| Vietnam's largestdairyproduc 29/MAR/2021VOV INTELLASIA| services-to-20-more- https://e.vnexpress.net/news &Company. Bain and Temasek byGoogle, astudy to according year, 24) compared to just 48 compared tojust48 per cent of 24) conscious on their travels. Thisis led by 69 the UAE and Australia said that they want adultssurveyed 9,000 of the Sixty percent and help shape thefutureofresponsible travel. comprising aseries of far-reaching new co The research is partof IHG's launchof 19 pandemic, reveals a new global People are more mindfulthan ever about 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| Vinamilk splashedoutapproxim province ofQuangNgai. cows fromtheUnit purebred (HF) Friesian 5.6million tonnes of steel a year. markets-4254282.html the climateconditionsinVietnamandproducing an aver- /business/companies/be-to-expand-ride-hailing-taxi- litres per head each litres perheadeach year. illion ($5.2 billion) and post-t ($5.2 billion)and illion er, Vinamilk,has recently im ately VND700billion,equiva willtake threeyears tobuild. Chau (northernVietnam)andLaos. survey by IHG Hotels &Resorts. 55s and over, according to the survey. according tothe 55s andover, with the American Dairy Association. companies/hoa-phat-s-dizzy-growth-seems- 'Journey toTomorrow', a 10-year action plan ns for animal quarantine facilities. quarantine ns foranimal more forthe planet and around communities must comply setfor withtherequirements travelling responsibly following the COVID- travelling responsiblyfollowingthe orts-over-2100-dairy-cows-from-the-us- across the US, UK, Germany, Greater China, not atallright now,itseemsthe pandemic plant in the central province of Quang Ngai provinceofQuang central inthe plant mmitments to make a positive tomakeapositive mmitments difference D91 trillion, andprofits were up78percent ed Statesfor its new farm in the central per cent of younger travellers (aged to 18 (aged travellers per centofyounger socially and be more environmentally to dation they know operates responsibly , that are expected to provide a total of expectedtoprovideatotal , that are venue and profit growth of 33 percentgrowth of33 and profit venue sharesataratioofthree forevery10 ax profits of ported over 2,100 Holstein Holstein ported over2,100 lent to $30.1 million, on 29 March 2021 44 /51 29 March2021 29 VND18 trillion, trillion, VND18 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam amid pandemic help foreignfirms City setsupteams to per cent profit up18 MWG's Intellasia In the firsttwomonthsof2 In ing to an increase of 73per cent in profit after tax to VND505 billion. thesamepe net revenuerose34percentfrom A monthly report publishedonMWG'swebs also up 18 per cent despite disruptions due tonew COVID-19 cases. creased 6percentyear-on-year to more than As ofFebruary, MobileWorld Investme 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| to-travel-better_323213.html http://bizhub.vn/corporate-news/ihg-hotel inVietnam. 13 including countries, hotelbrandsan Resorts has16 & Hotels IHG Keith Barr, CEO, IHG Hotels & Resorts. clusion andhumanrights, and to makemore itive social and economicchange,to stand up what's just needed, andwe what's right,not ney toTomorrow embodies IHG's strengthened commitment to makesure we do about cari us allmoreconsciousthanever achieved whenwecome together andwork towards thegreater good. This hasmade "As welook resp tothe theglobal future, top different itemstakingthe with them when they travel, with using thecorrect waste and recycling disposal for around theworld said to they arecommitted The appetite for better, greener travel is ri local environmentand communities likely tobe mindful about avoidingtourist ac Infact elling nowthantheydid10yearsago. trav- while planet andthe communities local for bit doing their they caredmoreabout half ofresp nities aroundMore than them. The city has set up two "interdisciplinary up The cityhasset Korea." special incentives and policies toattract fo Thanh Phongsaid: "Thecity lead city at aconference with Speaking ments. climate for foreign investors bysetting uptwo working teams toassist in their invest- the HCMCityPeople'sCommi chairof The 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| appliances, Sales ofhousehold about 8pe for lion, accounting Revenue fromonline transactions rose 34per New Year)holiday. precisely describethe company'sbu precisely data theaccumulated said In thereport,MWG year. that oflast than cent higher billion, 18per trillioninnetrevenue.Profit VND21.7 than http://bizhub.vn/markets/mwgs- percent. 0.93 up VND130,000, (HoSE) Minh StockExchangethe Ho Chi On ed from the end ofJanuary toFebruary 10,the company statedinthe report. period duetothe outbreak ofnewCOVID-19 Many MWGstores hadtoclose or limitthenu Sales ofelectronicfell products phones of mobile while sales 021, MWG posted a climb of6pe MWG posted 021, is committed tois committed abetterbusi and refrigeratorwere to last year. unchangedcompared spot as the number one habit. r cent ofitstotalrevenue. r laptops, and watches posted growth duringtheperiod, due toweaker demand during Tet. profit-up-18-per-cent_323230.html sincethe global pandemic. ers and Korean firms on Nguyen Thursday, nt Corporation (MWG)'s net revenue in- onse to Covid-19 reminded us whatcanbe onse toCovid-19reminded working groups" in charge of incharge for- promoting groups" working ng for people, communities and planet.Jour- ng forpeople,communities and pe. An incrediblepe. An cent82 per ofadults reign investors, South those from including s-resorts-reveals-guests-growing-passion- ondents acrossthe globe (57per cent) said are determined to contribute towardspos- determinedtocontribute are after tax in the same period was VND999 period wasVND999 same in the aftertax ttee has pledged to improve thebusiness d nearly 6,000properties in morethan 100 responsible environmentalchoices,"said tivities thathavea on negative tivities impact the VND21.7 trillion, with its profit after after tax its with profit trillion, VND21.7 , 46percentofpeople saidtheyare more , MWG shares finished last Friday at sharesfinishedlast , MWG taking theireveryday cent year-on-year tonearly VND1.64 bil- cases inthepeakshoppingseasonstart- ite showed in February, thecompany's for key issuessuchas diversity andin- riod last year to VND10.67 riod lastyearto trillion, VND10.67 lead- siness activities duetothe Tet activities (Lunar siness mber of customers instoresduringmber ofcustomers this of the first two months of 2021 doesn't doesn't of2021 ofthefirsttwo months ness climatebyissuingmore r cent year-on-year tomore sustainable habits 29 March 2021 45 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam 2020 projects top 5green of Riverside voted as one Diamond Lotus staffs donate blood Amway Vietnam Intellasia sense of responsibility and love to the commu the and loveto sense ofresponsibility to inspire every people, especially young pe those who aregoingthroughdifficult times "We understand that every dr handle bloodshortages. collec to Vietnam and Amway Hospital 175 The event wasorganised byTienPhong(Van the 13thChunhatdo(Red at units blood than500 distributo employees More and 29/MAR/2021VNS INTELLASIA| pandemic_323208.html http://bizhub.vn/news/city-sets-up the cent over per up 30.3 months of2021, The city's exports toSouthKorea were wort "The potential for cooperation between thetwosidesis great," said Phong. talexports 9.5and the per cent country's of total exports toSouthKorea. worth$1.8billion last year, ket with exports a Despite theimpactofpandemic, SouthKo billionlast year. of$66 way turnover trade It ranksthirdamong110countries andterrit companies investing anddoing business in the country. South Koreaisone ofVietnam'smajoreconomic projects remained complicatedand should al legal entities, entity conversion permits, administrative that said He intheyear, quarters previous sales of the orontheactual year previous tax in the total oftaxbebasedon the calculation that HeungSoo, chairoftheKoreanKim Busi istration procedures for new business, reso to wanted they said firms Korean Most Phong. to ward toagencies,according and concerned agencies, receivingcomments The Department of Foreign Affairswill be lems facingtheminati increaseexchange will groups "The working facing foreignprom investors and eign investmentand international cooperat At the Leading Real EstateBrandHonorin At theLeadingReal 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES http://bizhub.vn/corporate-news/amway- beauty andconsumer goods. Amway is aUS-based multi-level business model to sell products related to health, 2021. toMarch 2020 43 provinces80 blooddonationfestivalsin The since 2009. sions (NIHBT) tee on Traffic Safety andthe National In Tien P by Red Sundayisaninitiative the nationalbloodbank. st Vietnam Amway Sunday 2020, During Red of ExternalRelations The ceremony was held under the sponsorship held underthe was The ceremony green projects in2020. side project developed byPhuc KhangCorpor Estate Conference takingplaceonMarch 26 ofAmwayVietnam. mely manner," Phong said. mely manner," Phong proceduresthe establishmentofaddition- forFDIprojects, op ofbloodcanbring confidence, hope andenergy to organisers expectedtocollect50,000 blood units from oting international cooperation. -teams-to-helpforeignfirms-amid- hong newspaper, the National Steeringnewspaper, Commit- theNational hong and renewal oflicencesinVietnam. stitute of Haematology and Blood Transfu- ness Association(K Sunday) blood donation festival on March 26. Sunday) blooddonationfestivalon rs of Amway Vietnam donated nearly 400 nearly donated Vietnam rs ofAmway instead ofrelying on taxagencypredictions. vietnam-staffs-donate-blood_323229.html same period last year, accordingtoPhong. g Ceremony 2020-2021an g Ceremony and land transfer procedures forforeign the focal point between Korean businesses Korean businesses between point the focal be further simplified or eliminated. or simplified further be t blood for emergencies and treatment and treatment blood foremergenciesand t lve problemsrelatedtocreditsupport,reg- and citiesnationwidefromlateDecember ion with the aimofremoving challenges , 2021inHanoi,theDiamondLotusRiver- in life. Through thisprogramme, we want h more than $366 million h morethan$366 in the first two s with Korean businesses to removeprob- Koreanbusinesses with s ople, to build a healthy life, spread the life, spread ahealthy to build ople, ories investing withatwo- in HCM City aff donated more than 500 blood units to blood units 500 donatedmorethan aff nity," said Nguyen Ph nity," saidNguyen guard) newspaper incollaboration with ccounting for 4.5per ccounting cent ofthecity'sto- rea was the city's 5th largest exportmar- largest the city's5th was rea and inquiries from Korean firms firms fromKorean to for- inquiries and of the Vietnam Real Vietnam the of ation was voted asone ofthefive best partners withmorethan5,600 Korean OCHAM), recommended Estate Estate Association uong Son, director 29 March 2021 46 /51 d theSpringReal 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam hospitality market to fresh breeze Saigon Centre brings Launch ofWink Hotel Intellasia top-5-green-projects-2020.html https://english.thesaigont standards. (Vietnam) scape. Diamond Lotus Riverside isdeve many luxurious facilitiesan bein project highlight oftheparticular, the Saigon. Theproject hasadensityoftreesand uptomorevegetation than 8,000m2, in the sunshine, natural wind and with a view to cal and authentic. and cal explorers, and theyoung-at-heartwillall appr upwardly-mobil that added Piro Meanwhile, Ryder. said Vietnam," essentially something so dazzling, something new, ed something "Here we are today, launching this amazing brand and beautiful hotel.Wehavecreat- made inVietnam and for Vietnam. Vanguard, PeterRyder, Indochina Capital's owner,operator,and the Indochinathe developerand Indochina Kajima of On behalf everyone is welcome andconnected," sa the startof marks It landscape. pitality Saigon Centre"The openingofWink is Hotel chic andcreative design, deep functiona pe roomsthat space-efficient 237 features Centrally located inHCMCity's enterprising mindset. and lifestyle paced fordable luxury for the dynamic Indochine As Vietnam's first City. in HCM from JapanofficiallyopenedonMarch 24on The firsthoteloftheWinkHotels chain 29/MAR/2021VIR INTELLASIA| onlymond LotusRiversideisthe project up from theCBD. Withthe advantage of having Le on located is Riverside Lotus Diamond try. landmark of humanity green "The giant wa dubbed is Riverside tus furthers itsefforts towards Best GreenProjects5 Honoredthe Top in ment projects amongothers. transaction offices,Top 10 cates tothe and Top 5best buildings office In addition to the Top5Best Green Projects 2020, theceremony also awarded certifi- experts whoare leading in economics, architecture, construction and real estate. coun nationwide.Thejudging audiences 500,000 prestigious projectsnationwide. The awar real honor reputable to Itaimed (VIRES). tute magazine and online Realtimes the (VNREA), side building. Because of the ofthe Because building. side are thenature closerto bringing people the greenhouse effect, using waterand fuel ef the US that ispopular in many countries stri the most following built The projectis Khang Phuc that Vietnam more sustainable creating of the goal realises project also with an aim tohelp customershaveaso homegrown hospitalitygroup, Wink and river" in the heart of themo the heartof and river"in imes.vn/81176/diam most livable urban areas, and Top 10 best urbanareas,andTop 10best high-end apart- most livable building projectswinningin d cool waterfrontparkswith marinas and unique land- superiority in each of its se vibrantDaKaoward within a new lifestylemovement,a a communitywhere a green,for agreener humanecommunity and highlights of the green Diamond Lotus River-greenof the DiamondLotus highlights developed by Indochina andKajima Capital loped according to LEED (USA) and LOTUS id MichaelPiro, CEO ofWinkHotels. ul-physical balance in life. Moreover, the lity, andtraditionalVietnamesevalues. ngent LEED standardsa green standard from around theworld. Saving energy, reducing rsonify the brand's contemporary ethosof brand's rsonify the 2020, 2020, Diamond Lotus Quang Kim Street, onlyQuang KimY-shaped the bridge g the Sky Park connecting three blocks with three g theSkyParkconnecting d organising boardselectedvotes from mething fun, something colourful, and and colourful, something fun, mething shopping centers,Top 10 bestrealestate 2.0 generation,appealingto their fast- Corporation has pursued for many years. for many Corporation haspursued to now owning allapar to now CEO, stated that WinkHotels is abrand ll in downtown Saigon", a rare "green a significant milestone inVietnam's hos- estate developers as well as high quality quality high as well as developers estate two facades adjacent to the river, Dia- two facadesadjacenttothe e Vietnamese entrepreneurs, creatives, Nguyen Binh KhiemStreet ofDistrict1 District District 1 andthe of southwestern bank ficiently, increasing thegreen area, and ond-lotus-riverside eciate this brand that is distinctively lo- the Vietnam Real the Real Insti- Estate Research Vietnam cil consists of 150 journalists and 30 cil consistsof 30 journalists 150 and parate functions, Diamond Lo- st prosperous city in the coun- prosperous cityin st Hotels is created to deliver af- to deliver created is Hotels ternational green standards ternational green District 1, the property Riverside once again -voted-as-one-of- tments filled with 29 March 2021 47 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam location coming fromprime exceptional advantage Fusion and its Ixora HoTramby Intellasia that anchorsthisdestination, renowned world-classintegratedthe resort of its breathtaking 360-degree r views overVietna captivating geared for family fun.Guests can enjoy thei The upcomingresort inthe complex is th stores and is home toVietnam's fi clubs.Theresort includes outdoor pools for resortwithan integrated Tram isaluxury upco in guests open to to is set and out Grand HoTram,the Holiday Inn ResortTramHo HoTramis se Grand The theexisting While Greg Norman designedlinks-style championship golf course. resort and upcoming Holiday Inn ResortHoTr Tram Strip development includes InterConti marked asone oftheflagship developments travellersby its pristine andserene beauty regi comparable toother one tobeatwhile mecca inthemaking,Ho The newtourism customers, it is just like your paradise within afew steps. on the beach where travellerscanfind it al the in be ranked ever to Vietnam course in Alsothe HoTram situatedon and comfort. keys instyle 1,000 more than wa ment areas asourcinema, foodcourtand ment in the future with a series of infrastructure projects that have been and are about about are and been have that projects infrastructure of series a with future the in ment It alsocatches the attention of savvy invest Chau. Phuoc BuuBinh allyear round, climate covered by the imme Beyond that,whatmakesIxoraHoTramby gree and also apleasant Fusion, travellersimme will nature reserv Chau Phuoc BuuBinh patch ofthe Tram beachand backcoveredbythe the and Ho tranquil thefronttoward beautiful ket with is its location the outstanding Ixora that uniqueadvantage The veryfirst tional location istruly distinct and has on itspresentation tosavvyinvestors. Amon nent project of the 164-hectare HoTramSt destinationfor secondmind Ix homemarket, Standing out among many investment opport 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES hospitality-market-83316.html https://www.vir.com.vn/launch-of-wink-hot time. check-in oneer theSTAY24programme, whichguarantees Forthe first time inVietnam'shospitality industry, Wink Hotel Saigon Centre willpi- Guides wi local Wink from ourteam of ices "From today, every travellercanenjoyluxu on an area of 164 hectares, this hectares, an area of164 on hot Including condotels, villas, larger scale. the component projects are completed,HoTramStrip is truly the one tobeaton the Also, theexcitement hascontinuedwithits Best New GolfCourse. course ofinternational the gold standard nery atmosphere offered by the untouched forest. rse themselves notonlyinto ooftop bar. hotelconnects The differentiating the area from th differentiating theareafrom Strip is the renowned golf course, The Bluffs, the first Bluffs, therenowned golfcourse,The the is Strip m's stunning East Sea and pristine natural forests from pristine naturalforestsEast Sea and stunning m's integrated resort has been integrated resort has rst international standardcasino. ming months. The InterContinental Grand Ho Grand InterContinental ming months.The driven developmenttothenewheight. driven the ratings and in 2015 was theWorld's in2015 named ratings and more than 10,000-hectare immense green more than10,000-hectare e Holiday Inn Resort,Holiday featuringe facilities array of restaurants, bars, lounges, and of the long coastlines riphas made a very favourable impression made averyfavourable riphas ons. Thisdestination l here. To allofIxoraHoTrambyFusion Ho TrambyFusionhason offertothemar- Top 100global golf cour ors with the potential forafiercedevelop- with the ors upcoming exclusivewaterpark. Once allof TramXuyen Moc, BaRia Vung TramXuyen Tau is the els, golfcourses, entertainment amenities Fusion trulyoutstanding serv- intuitive and experiences sleep rious thout the 5-star hotelpricetag," Piro said. r time at swimming in its pools andenjoy nse green patches of the untouchedforest both adultsandkids,gym,spa,retail both t tobe rebranded asthe Intercontinental ter park. Thetworesorts combinetooffer nental Grand Ho Tram,a5-starhoteland GrandHo nental oftheregion. first The phase ofthe Ho el-saigon-centre-bri g its strategic key advantages, the excep- ora Ho TrambyFusionthelatestcompo- ora unities in Ho Tram thetop-of- region, Tram inHo unities Ho TramStrip.theisIt HoTram Strip am Beach. It also features The Bluffs, a Bluffs, The features also Beach. It am e. Therefore, here atIxora Ho Tram by a 24-hour guest stay regardless of a24-hourguest Beach is in the final stages ofitsfit- the final is in Beach the freshseaside breeze but creating adistinct paradise directly tosuchentertain- e rest of the country. It is e restofthecountry. with a warm, pleasant with a amazingly captivates ngs-fresh-breeze-to- ses byGolf Digest 29 March 2021 48 /51 29 March2021 29 is its being apart BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam Central and SunCasa Casa amenities forSun development of VSIP accelerates Intellasia shophouses. Each house features two to thre featuresshophouses. twoto Eachhouse coversproject phase ofthe426 townhousesand an area first comprising of9ha,The Casa city. Sun in Hoa Phuward,ThuDau Mot heart ofVSIPII, VinhTancommune, TanUyen es, shophouses,single villas, andsemi-det Covering an area of 30ha, Sun CasaCentra hospitals. Casa Central suchfor Sun CasaandSun ties that large land funds areea stated VSIP visitors a day. serve 2,000-3,000 music performancesevery Meanwhile, night. Night Marketoffersnumerousactivities from service area nextto Sun Casawas be offici C Sun the the end of December2020, At Casa Central that willbe able beds.Th boasts morethan150 clinic inthesecond of2021. With quarter Sun CasaCentral residents, VS Specifically, inorder to increase convenienc pharmacy store, and other retail outlets. including operation into beput will phase booths under construction. Bythefourth quar shoppingcentrewill mixed-use Mall The Sun and high-qualitylandscaping. of 2021, including water fountains with laser Park Sun completed bythe The4ha end of2021. of20 quarter thefourth in to becompleted advantage-coming-fro pool, gym, amulti-purpose mini ClubhouseThe willstretch across 2hectareslandincluding of standardx 50m a15 cu committed toour construction as "We haveplanned outeachstageofthe Market). Sun Containers Night (The (Sun Park),ashopping centre (TheSunMa complex(Clubhouse sports aserviceand ing thefi ofVSI{, toarepresentative According Casa andSun CasaCentral residents to crea Indust Vietnam-Singapore 29/MAR/2021VIR INTELLASIA| https://english.thesaigontim developments in different shapesandsizes. hotter thanever, continuously general and Ixora HoTramby Fusion in pa self-driving, ensuring more safety, cost-saving and less time-consuming, HoTramin isnot transportation been setwherepublic tures, the currentCovid-19pandemicsituat key economicsectorof a to become aiming Given the increasing direct contribution ofto Tram. Ho pecially, the renowned LongThanhInternati Vung Tau Expressway, the 42m-expansionVu infrastructuresother upcoming suchas the averageincomeper millionpeopleand 16 the economiccentre ofthecountrywith bustling city, the regiontoHCMCitya necting HCM soon, fromthe deployed very to be m-prime-location.html rial Park (VSIP) is building a a building is (VSIP) Park rial es.vn/81124/ixora-ho-tram-by- toaccommodate400 children. ere will also be the 3,000sq.m kindergarten next to Sun to kindergartenthe 3,000sq.m next ere willalsobe attracting investmentcash IP and its partners will buil will partners its and IP football field, andrestaura stomers," the representative noted. rmarked for rmarked the developmentofother ameni- ontainers Night Market entertainment and Night Market entertainment ontainers Ben LucLongThanhExpressway, Bien Hoa- amenity development toensure successful an metres, an area of5,000square the clinic CityLong ThanhDau GiayExpressway, con- ally put intooperation. The Sun Containers 21. The two on-site parks are expected to be 21. Thetwoon-siteparksareexpected l comprises of879 products like townhous- restaurant, coffee shop,conveniencestore, ached villas.project The located is inthe favourable anylonger and replaced bythe ll), and an entertainment and service zone rm is developing on-site amenities includ- rticular obviously has been getting even the country. Along withthese factualfea- ion in which a new trendoftravellinga has ionin which e andmeettheneeds of as markets, shoppingmalls, schools, and te anidealspaceto work, live, and play. e storeys with a construction floor area of with storeys e onal Airport, just a 50-minute drive from drive Airport, justa50-minute onal ), twoon-site parksand acentral park gradually is industry this toGDP, urism effects, ajoggingtrack, acentralsquare, capita reaching 7,500 USD in 2020, to the tothe in2020, USD reaching7,500 capita shopping todiningas well as art and the mini football fiel the mini have an area of 3ha with over 100 retail retail 100 withover areaof3ha an have ter of 2021, 12 retail inthefirst booths ter of2021, 12 retail ng TauXuyenng Moccoastalroades- and town, Binh Duong.Itisonly 2kmfrom will be completed the quarter be completed in fourth will full range ofamenities forSun flows pouring inwithmany flows d an international-standard d aninternational-standard fusion-and-its-exceptional- nt. The Clubhouse isslated d at the areawill d at the social security for 29 March 2021 49 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS Vietnam finance& business Vietnam challenges for challenges SMEs opportunities, examines EVFTA Hanoi workshop Intellasia (COVID-19) period, particular ese integration into the global valuechai discussedthe event,delegates other During labour contracts, limits, pointed out major obstacles faced by worker of their terms for SMEsin challenges ahead manager of the International LabourOrgani regardtothe With sustainable developm develop freshbusiness models. and Industry 4.0 have served tocreateawealth of opportunities for domestic SMEs to number ofbusinesses and contribute 40 pe Competitiveness, saidSMEs currentlya Nguyen Minh Thao,head of the Research al linkages. resource of human themobilisation capacity, pating intheregionalandglobaltax system noted that Vietnamese enterprises haveenco hisFordeputy minister part,Vietnamese of forbothEU possible tions lieves willserve toimprovethe local busi He therefore advised SMEsto Vietnam. such as incountries investment and support theEU's lighted portance ofnumerousmechanisms which ca In his speech, AmbassadoroftheEUtoVi in SMEs a sustainable manner. as SMEs, well as the contri relating toth issues Delegates touchedupon development. contribution toSME businesses, relevant stakeholders, andpolicy makers regarding the EVFTA and its The roundtable discussions were aimed in Vietnam. ernment agencies, EU member states, busine over of theparticipation attracted the event Agreement"Free Trade the EU-Vietnam Medium Enterprisesand Themed "Smalland EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). to discussder futureopportunitiesand chal Medium Enterprisesand co-hosting (VINASME) The European Union delegation toVietnam 29/MAR/2021VOV INTELLASIA| and-sun-casa-central-83376.html https://www.vir.com.vn/vsip-accelerates- [email protected] tives. Formoreinformation,pleasecontac now preparing tolaunchthe second phasein the After round ofthefirst successful opening 2020. DotProperty Plan Designat the Awards was Central Casa Sun Thus, residents. eign The projects boastawiderange of on-site Sun Casa and SunCasaCentral are designed areas. of 40 cent, per creating avi of100- andaveragelivingspace 130-150sq.m https://vov.vn/en/economy/ namese economy. es-for-smes-846070.vov andsocialsecurity. brant livingspace in harmony and Vietnamese businesses. butions of the trade pact and waysinwhichtopromote trade pact the of butions hanoi-workshop-examines-evft ly with the ongoing take full advantage of the take fulladvantage ccount forapproximately98percent of the at enhancing understanding amonglocal n movinginto the post-novel coronavirus ent of SMEs, Stephan Ulrich,ent ofSMEs,programme ness climate and create the optimal condi- the optimal create ness climateand development-of-amenities-for-sun-casa- t the 0931.993899 hotline or email: sales-sun- or email: hotline 0931.993899 the t amenities serving the needs of local and for- and oflocal the needs serving amenities Departmentof Business Environment and etnam Giorgio Aliberti underlined theim- 100delegates fromvarious ministries, gov- rcent of the country'sGDP. Indeed,of FTAs rcent compliance with labour standards, He also standards,He with labour compliance granted an award Master for BestHousing lenges for local SMEs brought about by the the by about brought SMEs local for lenges Planning and Investment TranDuyDong Investment Planningand issues relating to the EVFTA and Vietnam- the EVFTA issues relatingto e growth, opportunities, andchallengesof s, includingoccupational safety, overtime 120sq.m. projecthasagreen The coverage as aresult of inadequacies in competitive sation (ILO), briefed participants on the s, short-term visions, and a lack of region-s, short-termand alackof visions, joined the Vietnam AssociationofSmall ss associations, alongwith ss associations, over50SMEs n helpSMEsbecome stronger, and high- untered numerous difficulties inpartici- numerous difficulties untered by a consultancy firm from Singapore. from by aconsultancyfirm early April with many attractive incen- many attractive with April early of sales in late December 2020, VSIP is roundtable talks on March 26 in or- digital transformation of the Viet- with the surrounding natural with thesurrounding natural EVFTA while he said he be- he said while EVFTA a-opportunities-challeng- 29 March 2021 50 /51 29 March2021 29 BUSINESS cooperation Korea business promotes Vietnam- KBIZ Day2021 finance& business Vietnam Intellasia End business-cooperation.html https://english.thesaigontimes.vn/8115 nam. activitieswell asremoving as the obstac a representativeofficein HC portunities for South Korean small and medium businesses. InVietnam, KBIZset up KBIZ wasestablishedin19 for distributors in the localmarket. th areashowcasing an setup the organiser from organisingonlinemeetingsfor Aside noi. and distributors inVietnam includingVi tries such as Chungsungah, event toconnectmorethan50SouthKorean quarantine requirements, KBIZ requirements, quarantine Due tothe impact of the Covid-19 pandemic businesses. and household appliances topromotetrade Hanoi, aimed at supporting South Korean companies specialising in cosmetics, food (B2B) ganised anonlinebusiness-to-business The KoreaFederation of andMedium Business (KBIZ) on Small 25and26or- March 29/MAR/2021 INTELLASIA| THE SAIGON TIMES 62 to improve the economic status and support equalop- the economicstatus improve to 62 Tir Tir, Misko, Lam cook and Dazzl with major retailers with major Dazzl cookand Misko, Lam Tir Tir, M City in 2016 aimed at promoting investmentand trade aimedatpromoting Cityin M 2016 decidedtoarrangeover200 8/kbiz-day-2021-promotes-vietnam-skorea- les hindering itsmembersoperatinginViet- les ncommerce, BRG-Hapro, Big C and AeonHa- BRG-Hapro, BigC ncommerce, e products of South Korean firms looking firms products ofSouthKorean e Vietnamese andSouthKoreanbusinesses, and the consequent travel restrictions and firms that are top operators intheirtop operators indus- are firms that cooperation activities matching event called KBIZ Day 2021 in 2021 eventcalledKBIZDay matching online B2B meetingsatthe online B2B with Vietnamese 29 March 2021 51 /51 29 March2021 29