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Vietnam New Year shoppers defying central bank spurs inflation | Look At Vietnam

2012-01-25T18:59:00.000-08:00

Vietnam New Year shoppers defying central bank spurs inflation

January 25, 2012

Consumer demand for holiday goods and transportation will grow 10 percent from last year, according to a government forecast that urged authorities to monitor and stabilize prices.

Asia’s fastest inflation is the last thing on Tran Hang’s mind as she jostles fellow shoppers at a street stall in Hanoi’s Old Quarter to snap up Belgian chocolates and Thai candies for Tet, or lunar New Year.
While Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and the central bank urged consumers to spend less to usher in the Year of the Dragon, the 25-year-old office worker said she plans to spend about $100 more than she did in 2011 for the country’s biggest festival.
“You can’t celebrate Tet by spending less than you did last year,” said Hang, who donned a white polka-dotted raincoat during a light drizzle to shop for presents she would take back to her hometown for the nine-day holiday. “It doesn’t feel right to cut back even if everything is more expensive.”
Consumer prices climbed more than 17 percent in January, the fastest among 17 Asia Pacific economies. A surge in spending on new clothes, preserved fruit and decorations threatens to derail efforts to curb price gains that triggered the dong’s biggest decline since 2008 and helped put an estimated one in 10 companies out of business last year.
Dung urged citizens to celebrate the holiday in a “frugal atmosphere,” according to a Jan. 14 statement on the government’s website. Central Bank Governor Nguyen Van Binh said he hoped modest Tet spending would help rein in inflation.
“We aim to change people’s spending habits,” said Binh at a press briefing Jan. 11. “People shouldn’t spend too lavishly for an extravagant Tet. I want to see people limit their spending as much as they can.”
Sales jump
Retailers and government officials say that’s not happening. In the capital, retail sales during the holiday were forecast to rise as much as 22 percent to almost $1.4 billion, according to Nguyen Van Dong, deputy director of the city’s Industry and Trade Service. That’s equivalent to about 1 percent of estimated gross domestic product last year for the country.
Consumer demand for holiday goods and transportation will grow 10 percent from last year, according to a government forecast that urged authorities to monitor and stabilize prices.
Saigon Beer-Alcohol Beverages Corp., the country’s largest brewer, said it will make 120 million liters of beer this month, 20 percent more than for last year’s holiday season. Kinh Do Corp., (KDC) the biggest bakery, expects demand to be up 15 percent, according to spokeswoman Nguyen Thi Ngoc Lien. The bakery’s holiday cakes and sweets are 10 percent more expensive this year.
“For food and beverage companies, Tet sales are critical,” said Hoang Huong Giang, a Ho Chi Minh City-based consumer analyst at Viet Capital Securities. “Tet contributes 30 to 40 percent of their full-year profit.”
Gold candy
Bibica Corp. (BBC), which sells pound cake and gold nugget-shaped candy, met its 30 percent holiday-sales growth target a week before the festival started, said Phan Van Thien, deputy general director of the Ho Chi Minh City-based company.
“Tet is a period where people feel they almost have to spend,” said Darin Williams, managing director of research company Nielsen Co. (Vietnam) Ltd. “The cultural tradition is so strong. There’s an obligation.”
Like most Vietnamese, taxi driver Tran Dinh Long and his wife have been saving up all year for this celebration, deferring spending to replace an aging air conditioner and stove in order to maintain, or exceed, last year’s holiday spree, he said. Their home is decorated with a new potted kumquat tree and a peach tree with blooming pink blossoms, symbols of wealth and happiness that are as ubiquitous in Vietnamese homes as Christmas trees during the winter holiday in the US.
Sticky cakes
Long said he would buy green tea, preserved kiwi, plums and apricots, along with steamed, sticky rice cakes to offer the numerous guests and family who will visit.
“It’s our long-standing tradition that Tet is a period for consumption,” said Long. “If your neighbors are buying trees and candy and new clothes for their children, you need to do the same.”
The fireworks and feasting are in marked contrast to the economic gloom in the past two years.
After the global financial crisis in 2009, Vietnam pumped fiscal stimulus, subsidized a loan program and lowered interest rates as export markets weakened. While the moves spurred growth, they also fed a credit expansion that resulted in a series of dong devaluations, including a record 7 percent weakening of the currency in February 2011. The currency was the worst performer in Southeast Asia last year, stoking inflation that reached 23 percent in August.
Labor strikes
While the nation isn’t alone in trying to battle price gains — central banks from India to the Philippines raised interest rates last year as global commodity and energy prices jumped — Vietnam has been hardest hit, with wage demands prompting strikes and demonstrations at companies such as Panasonic Corp. and Yamaha Motor Co.
Breaking that rising price-wage spiral may be even harder this year because a dragon year typically brings a spike in births, as many Vietnamese and other Asians believe dragon babies will be graced with intelligence, good looks, wealth and success.
That’s good news for consumer-related companies, according to Viet Capital Securities, which advised the nation’s biggest fuel supplier on selling part of the government’s stake to investors. The company’s 2012 Outlook report says this year will see an “exceptional” baby boom that will benefit producers of infant products. Viet Capital suggests investors consider Vietnam Dairy Products Joint-Stock Co. (VNM), which sells milk and infant powdered milk, and toymaker Duc Thanh Wood Processing. (GDT)
Dining out
Meanwhile, Vietnamese are celebrating, boosting sales at restaurant chains such as Al Fresco’s Group, which has 33 outlets across the country.
“We are not finding that people are spending less,” said Craig Jackson, Ho Chi Minh City-based general manager for Al Fresco’s. “They are spending more.”
For taxi driver Long, inflation is most obvious in the red li xi envelopes of money that Vietnamese hand out to relatives and friends at New Year. Last year he filled them with 20,000 dong ($1) bills. This year, he said, they will have to be replaced with 50,000 dong bills.

Bloomberg

Daily Life Vietnam VI

2012-01-24T22:17:00.000-08:00

Travelmole

2012-01-24T05:28:00.000-08:00

Vietnam Airlines handed control of Jetstar Pacific

Vietnam Airlines has tightened its grip on domestic aviation by taking a majority stake in Qantas-affiliated Jetstar Pacific.

Vietnam's national carrier will be handed the government's stake in the loss-making budget airline.

The 70 percent stake was held by the government's State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) with the remainder owned by Qantas (27 percent) and Saigontourist.

Despite restructuring, Jetstar Pacific has continued to rack up losses.

Vietnam Airlines will appoint its representatives on Jetstar Pacific's board of directors.

Vietnam Airlines already accounts for 80 percent of the local aviation market share, followed by Jetstar Pacific with around 17 percent.

The capital transfer is scheduled for completion before February 15.

Sapa Northern Vietnam

2012-01-19T13:49:00.000-08:00

Views of Ha Long Bay Vietnam

2012-01-15T08:28:00.000-08:00

Rice Fields of Vietnam

2012-01-14T20:52:00.000-08:00

VietNamNet - HCM City plans to offer happy Tet for everyone | HCM City plans to offer happy Tet for everyone

2012-01-06T14:55:00.000-08:00

HCM City plans to offer happy Tet for everyone

VietNamNet Bridge – Local authorities, agencies and organisations in HCM City have been implementing several programmes to ensure that poor and disadvantaged people enjoy the Tet (Lunar New Year) festival.

Customers shop at Tan Thong Hoi Co.opmart in HCM City. The city has been implementing several programmes to ensure that the poor have an enjoyable Tet. (Photo: VNS)

Le Thi Bich Khanh, deputy chairwoman of the Binh Thanh People's Committee, said her district has made plans to organise Tet entertainment activities to ensure that Tet festivities are enjoyed by every family and every individual.
"Binh Thanh will present 200 gifts, each worth VND500,000 (US$24), to disadvantaged households who are beneficiaries of the State's preferential policies, 1,200 gifts for poor children and 120 gifts for poor teachers," she said.
Poor households with an annual average income of below VND12 million ($570) per person will each receive gifts worth VND300,000 and those who have an annual average income below VND8 million ($380) per person will receive gifts worth VND500,000.
Nguyen Thi Nam, who lives in Binh Thanh's Ward 21, said: "My family is listed as one of the district's poor households. Thanks to gifts and the care of local authorities, my family will have an adequate Tet," she said.
This Tet, the city's Fund for the Poor will spend about VND3.6 billion ($171,000) to care for households who are listed for the State's preferential policies, disadvantaged workers and students.
Duong Quang Ha, head of the fund raising board, said the fund has mobilised agencies, enterprises, ethnic and religious groups as well as the general public to donate under the theme: "Do not let any poor household miss out on Tet".
City agencies and organ-isations last week began to visit and present Tet gifts to the needy. The visits will last until January 18. Tet falls on January 23.
Meanwhile, the city's Red Cross chapter will present 25,000 gifts, each worth VND300,000, to disadvantaged households.
Nguyen Thi Hue, chairwoman of the chapter, said these gifts were made possible by donations from the community at large and philanthropists.
The HCM City Export Processing and Industrial Zone Authority (HEPZA) will give 6,000 bus tickets to industrial park workers who have not returned to their homes in the central and northern regions for many years, according to HEPZA Trade Union.
The union will also present thousands of gifts to laid off workers and migrant workers who stay in the city during Tet.
In addition, many companies will support employees with Tet gifts and bus tickets.
The city's Youth Union will give 1,000 gifts and 1,000 bus tickets to young workers.
The HCM City Women's Union also has plans to provide 1,000 gifts to female workers and provide other assistance to them, especially those who are unable to return to their homes to celebrate the Lunar New Year festivals.
The city's Farmers Association will also give 1,000 clean water storage tanks, gifts and health insurance cards for disabled children of farmers. The total value of the assistance provided is estimated at VND5 billion.
VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

VietNamNet - Vietnam’s economy in 2011: the impressive figures | Vietnam’s economy in 2011: the impressive figures

2012-01-06T14:44:00.000-08:00

Vietnam’s economy in 2011: the impressive figures

VietNamNet Bridge – The Vietnam Economic Forum VEF of VietNamNet reviews the 10 most impressive figures associated with the most important events that had big impacts on the national economy in 2011.

1. The record high inflation rate of 18 percent

The consumer price index CPI in 2011 increased by 18.13 percent over 2010’s, which is among the highest inflation rates in the world.

In late 2010, the National Assembly decided that the CPI increase in 2011 must not be higher than 7 percent. The goal was then raised in June 2011 to 17 percent

The government has determined to force the inflation rate to 9 percent in 2012.

2. The record dong devaluation of 9.3 percent

On February 11, 2011, the State Bank of Vietnam raised the interbank exchange rate by 9.3 percent, the highest ever dong devaluation. The move aimed to narrow the gap in the dollar price between the official and the black markets.

The State Bank has been applying drastic measures to put the dollar black market in order. Meanwhile, it has threatened to heavily punish the enterprises which quote prices in dollars.

3. 20 percent – the peak deposit interest rate

Though the State Bank stipulated that commercial banks must not pay more than 14 percent per annum in interest rate for deposits, the banks ignored the regulation. Some banks even paid 20 percent per annum for deposits in order to attract depositors. Meanwhile, the lending interest rate was pushed up to 24 or 25 percent, which caused big difficulties for enterprises.

The State Bank then had to apply the “iron discipline” to put everything in order, threatening to dismiss bank directors, if the banks continued breaking the laws and paying high interest rates, which it believed would distort the monetary market.

4. 49 million dong - the record high in the gold market’s history

The gold price in Vietnam began escalating in early August. At first, the gold price escalated to 42-45 million dong per tael. After that, the gold fever attack boomed on August 23, 2011, when the gold price climbed to its peak of 49 million dong per tael, and people rushed to purchase gold for fear that the price would continue rising.

In order to ease the fever, the State Bank decided to sell gold reserves and granted quotas for importing gold.

5. 1000 tons of gold kept among people

The National Finance Supervision in June 2011 announced a shocking figure: the volume of gold kept among people may reach one thousand tons, which is worth 45 billion dollars, a huge capital.

Experts say that it is a great waste that the volume of gold is still being kept at the coffers, while it has not been put into business to make profits.

6. Tax agencies collect 3 trillion dong in tax arrears from auto companies

Honda, Ford, Toyota and GM Daewoo once faced the risk of paying tax arrears worth of trillions of dong. Under the current regulations, if just a part of the sets of car parts imported to Vietnam for local assembling, cannot meet the requirements on the separation level in accordance with the Decision 05, the importers (here auto manufacturers) have to bear the tax rate applied to the complete built unit (CBU) cars of 72-82 percent.

However, the auto manufacturers luckily got out of danger after they appealed to the Prime Minister.

7. Nearly 50,000 businesses got bankrupted in 2011

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, by September, nearly 50,000 businesses had stopped operation, stopping paying tax, got dissolved or bankrupted.

The figure represents an increase of 11,000 businesses in comparison with the previous year.

8. Public debt climbs to nearly 50 percent of GDP

According to the Ministry of Finance, the public debt has reached 1375 trillion dong, equal to 58.7 percent of the 2011’s GDP. Meanwhile, the proportions were just 33.8 percent in 2007 and 56.6 percent in 2010.

Experts have warned that if the public debt increases to 70 percent, Vietnam may fall into a crisis.

9. EVN reports the record loss of 10,162 billion dong

The figure was released by the Ministry of Industry and Trade on November 19. The State Audit has affirmed that EVN takes profit because of the bad management.

The noteworthy thing that despite the big loss, EVN’s worker still has the high average wage of 7.3 million dong.

10. Three banks merge

Ficombank, Tin Nghia Bank and Saigon Bank have agreed to merge into Saigon Bank which will officially operate from January 1, 2012.

VEF

PICTURE BUGS: 198 Pound Tumor

2012-01-06T11:41:00.000-08:00

198 Pound Tumor

VIETNAMESE MAN'S 198-POUND TUMOR REMOVED

(CNN) -- A Vietnamese man is recovering in the intensive care unit Friday, a day after surgery that completely removed a 198-pound (90-kg) tumor from his right leg, according to the hospital.

The 12-hour procedure, performed at FV Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, had been considered risky with a 50% success rate because of the amount of blood vessels around the tumor.The tumor was first discovered when the patient, Nguyen Duy Hai, 31, of Da Lat City, was four years old, according to FV Hospital. He had undergone a surgery to remove it in 1997, but in 2001, the tumor grew, and no doctors agreed to operate on him, the hospital said.

The growing tumor had rendered Hai virtually immobile until his surgery.

The latest surgery, which required Hai's torso to be elevated, was performed by a team of surgeons from FV Hospital and led by Dr. McKay McKinnon, a specialist in plastic and reconstructive surgery from Chicago.

McKinnon has been credited with removing a 200-pound tumor from a woman in the U.S. state of Michigan in 2000 as well as a 176-pound (80 kilo) tumor from a Romanian woman in 2004.

Doctors expect that Hai's cardiac and pulmonary functions will return to normal over the next 10 days.

The hospital had set up a live video feed of the surgery for other doctors and hospitals to watch.

The cost of the surgery was estimated at $20,000, but the hospital said it will charge 60% of the cost, which will be covered jointly by the Red Cross of Da Lat City and sponsors.

The hospital said it is financing all the traveling costs and accommodation for Dr. McKinnon, who is performing the surgery free of charge. 303-pound tumor removed

Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2012/01/06/health/vietnam-tumor/index.htm

PICTURE BUGS: 198 Pound Tumor

Transsexual Flight Attendants Take Off on Thailand's P.C. Air | NewsFeed | TIME.com

2011-12-20T08:21:00.000-08:00

Ladyboy’ Flight Attendants Begin Their Ascent with Thailand’s P.C. Air

By William Lee Adams | @willyleeadams | December 16, 2011 | 1

REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom

Transgender flight attendants pose for photographers at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International Airport.

At Thailand’s P.C. Air, transsexual flight attendants are taking to the skies—and boosting acceptance of the country’s “third sex” while they’re at it.
Four transsexual flight attendants completed their inaugural flight over Thailand earlier today, serving drinks and snacks en route from Bangkok to Surat Thani province. That comes ten months after the recently-launched P.C. Air announced it would consider applications it had received from more than 100 transvestites and transsexuals. Four made the cut and joined a cabin crew that also includes 19 female and seven male flight attendants.
(MORE: Thailand Elects its First Female Prime Minister)
Peter Chan, the airline’s president, told Reuters that the new recruits faced the same stringent application process as applicants who were born female. Bosses judged them on criteria that included femininity, attractiveness and proficiency with English and Mandarin. They also had to demonstrate feminine posture and vocals. He believes that transgender flight attendants will prove more versatile than the airline’s more traditional recruits. “They might provide better services because they understand both males and females. And they’re well-trained according to the aviation standard,” he said. “I’m a pioneer, and I’m sure there will be [other] organizations following my idea.” (The airline doesn’t draw its name from its politically correct approach to recruitment: P.C. refers to Chan’s initials.)
Known locally as ladyboys or katoeys, Thailand’s transsexuals enjoy greater acceptance and visibility than their counterparts anywhere else in the world. Skilled surgeons have turned Bangkok into a capital for gender reassignment, and relatively low costs make procuring a sex change more realistic than in the United States, where fees can easily run into the six figures. The Miss Tiffany pageant—Thailand’s most prestigious beauty contest for male-to-female transsexuals—is broadcast nationally every year. And millions of tourists flock to transgender musical shows, like the Simon Cabaret in Phuket.
P.C. Air’s newest trolley dollies hope their work will allow other katoeys to explore careers off the stage and away from the beauty counter. “This is the beginning of the acceptance of transsexuals in Thailand, giving the opportunity for us to work in various fields,” 22-year old Tanyarat Jirapatpakorn told Reuters. “Maybe in the future we can get any job that transsexuals never did before, such as police, soldiers or even pilots.”
For now, though, they’re content to scratch flight attendant off the list. Twenty-three-year old Dissanai Chitpraphachin, a former winner of the Miss Tiffany pageant, told the Associated Press her new gig was a dream come true. “When I was young, I couldn’t take my eyes off those nicely dressed ladies in the airline commercials every time they came on the screen,” she said before starting her new career. Now, as you can see in the commercial below, Thailand has its eyes on her.

Transsexual Flight Attendants Take Off on Thailand's P.C. Air | NewsFeed | TIME.com

Fatal morning through Ron Haeberle’s memoirs | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-12-18T18:21:00.000-08:00

Fatal morning through Ron Haeberle’s memoirs

December 18, 2011 about Uncategorized

LookAtVietnam - Returning to Son My this time, at the age of 71, Ron Haeberle tried to please everyone, with his patience and enthusiasm. He seemed to try his best to compensate the pain in Son My.

Haeberle returned to Duc Pho, where his regiment stationed in 1968.

This is the second time Haeberle returned to this land. In 2000, he quietly returned to Son My for the first time, as a tourist. Perhaps he was afraid to face locals and was afraid that they did not forgive an American like him.
Several months after the massacre, Haeberle left the army to live in Ohio. After his photos were published on magazines, Ron was invited to clubs, seminars and universities to talk about the Vietnam War. At the same time, the anti-Vietnam War campaign was launched in the US and quickly spread to the world.
However, if Seymour Hersh became famous for his articles about My Lai, Haeberle lived very quietly.
Many years after the massacre, many correspondents questioned: why Haeberle’s photos only focused on dead or not dead yet people (these photos are often captioned: after this picture was taken, people in the photo was shot to dead)? There is no photo featuring American soldiers shooting or killing Son My people.
Haeberle kept silent.

Haeberle at the site where he took pictures of the massacre. Behind him is the stele
with the name of over 100 villages who were shot to dead right at the place
where Ron is standing and the field around.

Until 40 years later, in November 2009, he admitted that he destroyed many photos which featuring US soldiers killing Vietnamese civilians. “I was there. I was one of them. All of us are guilty,” he said.
He lived for several decades in Ohio as a production manager of the Premier Industrial Corp. He was retired for many years. He is now a member of cycling, skiing and kayak clubs.
In 2000, he pedaled a bicycle from the ancient town of Hoi An to Son My.
On October 25, 2011, Haeberle returned to Duc Pho, where he garrisoned and where US soldiers started the Son My massacre.
This time Haeberle went to Son My with Robert Hoard, a teammate in his cycling club. After the trip to Son My, the two men rode bicycle to Phnom Penh, Cambodia and around Vietnam’s Mekong Delta before returning to the US.
VietNamNet’s Hoang Huong talked with Haeberle two days after he came to Son My.

The photo of the old man and a child killed in the morning of March 16, 1968.

Haeberle’s story about the My Lai massacre has been published on many newspapers but many Vietnamese people, particularly those who were born after the war, still want to hear it directly from a witness like him.
At the time the My Lai massacre occurred, I was about to leave the army and return to the US. From the LZ Dottie base (which is in Quang Ngai province), we flew to My Lai on a helicopter.
The helicopter landed on a field outsider My Lai village. When I arrived there, I heard a lot of shooting. I and other soldiers jumped out of the plane. I thought that I was in a battlefield but very soon I felt something stranger there. It did not seem to be a battle. I saw only American soldiers shooting on mobile targets. There was no shooting from the other side. I asked myself: what was happening?
Another helicopter landed. Two groups of soldiers moved into the village and began shooting villagers. They shot every moving target, including men, women, kids and cattle. But I did not see any signal of Viet Cong.
When I approached nearer to the village, I witnessed a woman who was trying to stand up from a pile of dead bodies. She was injured but she could not stand up. I did not know whether she was a Viet Cong or not but she was a moving target and a soldier killed her by a gunshot to her head.
At the same time, other US troops walked around to seek the traces of Viet Cong or weapons.
After that I saw an old man and two kids approaching. They were the first Vietnamese I saw in a near distance. Immediately, they were shot to dead. I was really shocked because he did not look like a Viet Cong, more like two kids.
Are they in one of your photos?

The tomb of victims who were killed on the village road. Over half
of them were children from 1 to 15 years old.

Yes. There is only one boy in that photo but actually, the second boy lied very near from the first boy.
A stele in My Lai writes: Here American troops arranged machine guns to massacre civilians who were gathered on the front field. So civilians were shot by machine guns and guns of infantrymen?
On the road I walked into the village, I saw American solders shooting and burning houses on the left. I did not see machine guns. Perhaps that’s the way Vietnamese called M16 guns. Actually I heard that that day US soldiers brought machine guns (M30) with them but I did not know whether other groups used them or not.
Shooting, crying and shouting was everywhere. I began taking pictures.
In another photo, entitled “The elder brother shields his sister”, I saw the arm of someone. Is that the arm of a soldier who prevented you from taking photo? Were you hindered from shooting these pictures?
That is exactly the arm of a soldier. You can also see his helmet. He was behind me at that time. I did not know how he reacted. My task was taking photo while his task is shooting. Some soldiers said: be careful, there is one with cameras. Just it.
The My Lai massacre was exposed in 1969 by journalists and your photos. Why did you decide to launch those photos? Did you face any obstacle from the US army?
I was a voluntary soldier. While I was in the army, I could not show those photos. There were many war journalists at that time. If I launched the pictures, they would have been hindered from doing their job.
In an interview, you said that you were most obsessed by seeing American soldiers jumped on the back of buffaloes and stabbed them by bayonets. What happened to these soldiers?

Haeberle and Tran Van Duc’s family burn incense at the tomb.

Yes, this was abnormal act. I could not explain what happened. Previously, some American soldiers were killed near My Lai and perhaps remaining soldiers suffered from great pressure and tenseness. That act was likely the way they relieved their stress.
A local who survived in the massacre said that American soldiers sometimes entered the village. They seemed to be friendly to villagers and even gave candies to kids. Villagers said that if they knew that American soldiers were so brutal like that, they would have hidden themselves. As a veteran, could you tell us what happened among soldiers?
American soldiers used to be friendly with villages but in several consecutive days, some soldiers treaded in mines and mortally wounded so they were angry. They blamed villages to indirectly cause the death of their comrades and they revenged.
The interview switches to a controversial topic: whether Tran Van Duc, a Vietnamese origin in Germany, and his younger sister Tran Thi Ha are characters in the photo entitled “Eldery brother shields his sister by his body” or not.
This content will be introduced in the next article.
Hoang Huong

Jury for Vietnam Film Festival announced | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-12-17T09:50:00.000-08:00

Jury for Vietnam Film Festival announced

December 16, 2011 about Uncategorized

LookAtVietnam - The ongoing 17th Vietnam Film Festival in Tuy Hoa city, Phu Yen province, has revealed the jury for the feature film category.

Director Luu Trong Ninh.

Headed by famous director Luu Trong Ninh, the panel members include renowned actress Tra Giang, director Bui Thac Chuyen, screenwriter Trinh Thanh Nha, and cinematographer Dinh Anh Dung.
Director Ninh is known for war-related movies and recently “Thang Long Aspiration”, a historical drama representing Vietnam which will compete in the Oscar’s Best Foreign Film category.
Chuyen is widely known for “Adrift,” which was well-received at the 2009 Venice Film Festival.
Although the festival looks for the best of various film genres, from documentaries to animated works, its feature film category has traditionally been the center of both public anticipation and media attention.
The judges said they had watched the 17 nominated movies and arrived in Phu Yen on December 14 to start their work.
To Van Dong, a senior official at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the main organizer of the festival, said that besides 17 feature films, it has received 91 other entries, including 62 documentaries, 8 scientific documentaries, and 16 cartoons.
Each category will have its own experienced judging panel, he said, adding that 999 local artists, filmmakers, producers and other professionals would join the event, which opens on December 15 at Sao Mai Theatre.

Director Bui Thac Chuyen.

The Golden Lotus award will be given to the best sound for all categories after a two-year interruption. The Vietnam Cinematography Association will also honor the best young director under the age of 30 for the first time.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the first festival held in Hanoi in 1970. The festival’s opening and closing ceremony will be broadcast live on VTV1 and VTV2, tonight, December 15 and Saturday.
Festival highlights

Senior actress Tra Giang.

December 15: The exhibition Four Decades of Viet Nam Film Festival will take place at Dien Hong Park and April 1st Square; and opening ceremony, Sao Mai Theatre, 8pm.
December 16: Meetings between actors and fan clubs; discussion on cinema development policy at the Cendelux Hotel and outdoor movie screen at April 1st Square.
December 17: Discussion entitled Vietnamese Cinema – Situation and Measure; closing ceremony at Sao Mai Theatre, 8pm, and press conference.

Vietnam’s architecture via lens of photographers | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-12-12T21:05:00.000-08:00

Vietnam’s architecture via lens of photographers

December 12, 2011 about Uncategorized

LookAtVietnam - High-rise buildings, cathedrals, Buddhist temples, etc. look brilliant in 32 photos that entered the finale of the Masterpiece Photo Contest 2011. These works are now on display in HCM City.
The contest closed on November 25, attracting more than 2,800 entries. The best 32 photos are on display until December 17 in HCM City. The award ceremony will be held on December 18.
Below are the top 32 entries:

Semicircle Lake in District 7, HCM City by Huynhdung.

Dak Lak Museum by Bao Hung.

Urban painting by huutienphoto.

Phu My Bridge by Mr_deven.

Thong Nhat Palace 2 by telieuo.

Architectural line by Lehuudung.

Wind and water cafÃ© by khanhpham.

Hanoi in evening sun by naduytuong.

Violet sunset by nhim1958.

Patterns by tranthephong.

Vietnam’s imprints by randoc.

Path to dream by Vohien.

Truc Lam Tay Thien monastery by Tuan Lai.

A corner of Saigon Pearl by khanhphoto1960.

Wind’s words by Tranhungphoto.

The stairs to heaven by Tuandat.

The beauty of contrast by Trinh.

Hoang Sa cathedral by le hai.

Rural life in city by thuongpoly.

Vista building by thang190470.

Starlight bridge by Tranbaohoa.

Can Tho Terminal by Sontran.

Lien Khuong Airport by Nguyen Thanh Liem.

Parallel by daihocsi.

Cathedral by ngoctrung.

My city by cattien.

The past and the present by tranquocviet123.

Bitexco Financial Tower by Quangbui.

Hanoi by anhkhang2011.

White-Black by imsvietnam.

Magnificent by Nguyen Vinh Hien.

Majestic by Longthaibao8011.

VNE

Big network operators prove to be more “indocile” | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-12-12T20:31:00.000-08:00

Big network operators prove to be more “indocile”

December 13, 2011 about Uncategorized

LookAtVietnam - As predicted, after Beeline, a small network operator,
launched the “billionaire service package”–a new war in the mobile call charges
has been kicked off. While Beeline has been told to stop the super-cheap
package, big guys have jumped on the bandwagon.

The state management agency has the right to “blow its whistle” asking network
operators to stop the activities that it believes the signs of unhealthy
competition. However, in some cases, its actions have no effect, if the network
operators are the “big cheeses”.
Meanwhile, small mobile network operators had to stop their sale promotion
campaigns immediately after they were instructed to do that.
“Small telecom companies prove to be more obedient to the instructions of the
Ministry of Information and Communication than the big ones,” an official of the
ministry commented on Thoi bao Kinh te Vietnam.
The words of the official partially can show the current situation of the
telecom market.
Three months ago, Beeline launched the “billionaire service package”, offering
low charges in an effort to attract more users. Under the sale promotion
campaign, when people bought a simcard priced at 20,000 dong, they would have
20,000 dong in their main account. Besides, Beeline would give 270,000 dong more
to the users’ account every day. As such, people need to pay 20,000 dong and
they would have one billion dong in account for use for 10 years. However, the 1
billion dong could be used only to make inner-network calls.
However, the super-cheap package has no more been available on the market, after
the Ministry of Information and Communication instructed Beeline to stop
providing the package. The ministry said that it can see the signs of dumping
the mobile call charges which will influence the market’s operation.
Meanwhile, right after Beeline’s program stopped, some big guys on the telecom
market have also launched attractive service packages with very low charges. As
predicted by experts, the telecom market is now witnessing a new mobile call
charges competition when the big guys jump on the bandwagon.
Viettel, the mobile network with the highest number of subscribers, has launched
Tomato Green package, offering the super-cheap charge of 50 dong per
call-minute. Tomato Green is being applied to new pre-paid subscribers and the
subscribers who are using Tomato, Sumosim packages activated since June 1, 2011.
Tomato Green has been applied since November and will last on January 30, 2012.
With Tomato Green, clients can make 150 free messages and enjoy the low charge
of 50 dong per minute for the inner-network calls from 10 pm to 12 pm and 500
dong per minute for the calls from 0 am to 5 pm every day.
However, Viettel’s Tomato Green proves to make nothing if MobiFone’s Alo 24/7
program applied from November 29 to December 10, 2011. The noteworthy thing is
that the mobile network does not run noisy ad campaigns on mass media, does not
introduce the new package on its official website. It only quietly sends
information to mobile subscribers.
With Alo24/7, MobiFone’s subscribers, when registering the package, can enjoy
free 80 inner-network minute calls, i.e the charges of 7500 dong for 130 minute
calls, 10,000 dong for 180 minutes, 15,000 dong for 300 minutes within the day.
As such, users just have to pay 50-60 dong per minute.
A manager of a telcom has raised a question that if the above said service
packages could be considered as dumping on the market and should the packages be
stopped, like the Beeline’s package.
Big network operators are the ones who hold big market shares with the numbers
of subscribers reaching tens of millions for each. Therefore, once they apply
big sale promotion campaigns, they would destroy the market structure, and the
impacts of their promotion campaigns would be even more serious than the ones of
small network operators.
Source: TBKTVN

MGM Grand HO Tram to open

2011-12-12T20:29:00.000-08:00

S$4.2 billion beach resort to open in 2013

December 13, 2011 about News, Travel

The first phase of the Ho Tram Strip project, to build a top-notch beach resort in southern Ba Ria-Vung Tau province, has been completed and is expected to open the door to tourists in early 2013.
Lloyd Nathan, chief executive officer (CEO) of Asian Coast Development (Canada) Ltd. (ACDL), the project investor, says workers are putting the finishing touches to a five-star hotel with 541 rooms, named MGM Grand Ho Tram, an entertainment centre, restaurants and retail shops.
The Canadian-invested project is the first in Vietnam to build a large-scale resort complex covering 164 ha and stretching along 2.2 km of beautiful beach in Long Dien district. It is divided into five phases with an estimated investment of US$4.2 billion.
The complex includes a 19-storey luxury hotel, a series of international-standard restaurants, a conference hall, art performance areas, swimming pools, a golf course and entertainment centres.
Lloyd Nathan says that his company is upgrading a 125km section of National Highway 52 with four lanes to connect Ho Chi Minh City to Ho Tram Strip.
VOV

Ha Long tour excursion ticket gets more expensive, travel firms get shocked | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-12-07T17:28:00.000-08:00

Ha Long tour excursion ticket gets more expensive, travel firms get shocked

December 8, 2011 about News, Travel

LookAtVietnam - The decision to increase the price of the excursion ticket
to Ha Long Bay, commencing from December 1, just a couple of weeks after Ha Long
Bay was recognized as one of the seven natural wonders, has surprised travelers.

The excursion ticket price has unexpectedly increased by 100 percent since
December 1, 2011. Travel firms have complained that they were not warned about
that before, and they could not prepare for the changes,

The shocking decision

Since December 1, travelers have to pay 80,000 dong for a ticket for the
itinerary of Thien Cung cavern - Dau Go cavern – Cho Da island – Ba Hang fishing
village – Dinh Huong island – Trong Mai island – Hoa Cuong fishing village.
Meanwhile, the ticket is more expensive, at 90,000 dong for the Sung Sot cave –
Titov island – Me Cung cave – Dong Tien Lake, and 130,000 dong for a place for
staying at night.
Especially, if travelers want to visit some points of the fixed itineraries,
they will have to buy tickets for the whole itinerary, while previously, they
only had to pay tickets for the excursion to some certain points. Besides,
travelers also have to pay to charter ships which bring them to the bay.
The higher excursion tickets have in no way influenced the number of travelers
to Ha Long Bay. It was estimated there were 4500 travelers on November 2, the
same as the number of the other days. However, travel firms said that most of
the travelers were foreign ones, who booked tours before the day travel firms
were informed about the higher excursion tickets.
“We ourselves got surprised about the excursion ticket increases. We now have to
renegotiate with travelers. Many of them accept to pay more for tickets, while
those, who do not want to visit Ha Long Bay any more, will get money back. In
case the negotiations fail, we have to use our money to offset the ticket price
increases,” said Nguyen Van Hien, Director of Joy Travel.
Travel firms said that they should have been informed in advance about the
ticket price increases several months in advance, so that they could prepare for
this.
In fact, the Quang Ninh local authorities made the decision to raise the ticket
on November 18, while an official notice was released on November 20. And only
those, who came to the area, could hear about the information.
Tickets get more expensive, what’s next?
A question has been raised that whether the excursion ticket price increase
means the improvement in the service quality.
Travel firms say that in general, all the travelers to Ha Long Bay would spend
money to visit the wonderful landscape. However, travelers still complain about
the poor tourism products and the infrastructure.
The quay at the Titov Island has to be upgraded after it was put into operation
for a short time. Meanwhile, the quay at Thien Cung cave has not been completed
after a long time of implementation. Especially, tourists do not feel safe when
the quay is still under construction, while it is receiving guests at the same
time. In many cases, travelers have to wait on the key to wait for the officers
of the Ha Long bay management board to come to receive them.
Commenting about the decision to raise the excursion ticket price to Ha Long
Bay, Nguyen Quy Phuong, Director of the Travel Department of the Vietnam
National Tourism Administration VNAT has affirmed that he has received a lot of
complaints from travel firms.
The increase of the excursion ticket price after five years of keeping unchanged
price levels would not have been a problem, if the decision had not been made at
this moment, just a few days after Ha Long Bay became one of the seven natural
wonders of the world.
Analysts have also commented that it is now not the right time to make such a
decision. The Quang Ninh People’s Committee should have offered preferential
tickets to be grateful to those who have voted for Ha Long Bay and to attract
more travelers.

Mai Hoa

New Low Cost Airlines joined Vietnam market

2011-12-07T07:16:00.001-08:00

Private low-cost carrier set to take off in Vietnam

December 6, 2011 about Business

The first private airline licensed in Vietnam four years ago officially joined the market Friday, introducing itself as a low-cost carrier.

With itsÂ “Save more, fly more” slogan, VietJetAir aims to make air transport accessible to all Vietnamese and foreign tourists including low-income earners through affordable and flexible prices, the VietJet Aviation Joint Stock Company said in a press release.

Nguyen Duc Tam, the airline’s deputy general director, said the low-cost model is very popular and successful in the world.

Tam said several low-cost flights in Vietnam have been operating with old airplanes,Â so VietJet “will change what Vietnamese people think about low-cost carriers” by using brand-new Airbus A320 aircraft.

The new aircraft will save energy, reduce maintenance costs and avoid technical problems that can cause unexpected flight delays, he said, adding that all 180 seats will be used to maximize the efficiency.

“The operation of new and renowned aircraft will be the key to VietJetAir’s future success,,” the press release quoted Tam as saying.

Initially, VietJetAir will operate four flights per day between Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi starting December 24. The number will be increased to 14 in early 2012, when it will also begin flights between HCMC and central Vietnam’s Da Nang.

The airline also plans to launch flights to other destinations in Vietnam and Southeast Asia in the middle of 2012, the release said.

VietJet had initially planned on an all-Vietnamese crew, but that will not be possible for the inaugural flights.

Tam told the press during the launching ceremony that “it’s impossible to use only Vietnamese people, especially pilots and technical experts.”

But he said the airline will regularly train people and increase the Vietnamese component of its crew.

VietJet, with a registered capital of VND600 billion (US$28.56 million), has delayed its maiden flight several times.

Like other private carriers in Vietnam, the airline has been struggling with certification,Â financial and personnel problems.

Five of them have been licensed in the past four years but only Air Mekong is flying, and not very smoothly.

Earlier this year, Malaysian low-cost airline AirAsia divested its 30 percent stake in VietJet after the companies did not reach an agreement on using the brand name.

They planned to name the joint venture VietJet AirAsia. But the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam has banned local carriers from using brands and logos of foreign airlines.

TamÂ said at the launching ceremony that VietJet was “active” despite AirAsia’s withdrawal.

“We have very good foreign experts who can replace AirAsia in technical support. Without AirAsia, we’re still flying,” he said.

The deputy director said VietJet is prepared financially for five years ofÂ operation and there have been no plans to seek foreign investment in the future.
Â

Thanh Nien News

Doctors give up on 90-kg tumor | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-12-03T18:45:00.000-08:00

Doctors give up on 90-kg tumor

December 3, 2011 about Health

Nguyen Duy Hai will not be able to get rid of his 90-kilogram tumor.

Doctors at Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City Tumor Hospital have decided against removing a local man’s 90-kilogram tumor, saying the procedure would cost the patient his life, VnExpress reported.
They said Nguyen Duy Hai, 31, had pleural effusion, which would cause respiratory failure after such anÂ operation.
Massive blood loss during the procedure could also threaten the patient’s life, doctors said.
“We compared performing a risky surgery with letting the patient live with his non-painful tumor, and we chose the second option,” said Dr Pham Xuan Dung, deputy director of the hospital.
Hai will soon be brought back to his home in Da Lat, a mountain townÂ in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong. Doctors said they would continue to monitor Hai in case they may be able to operate on him in the future.
The HCMC Tumor Hospital said itÂ was willing to provide assistance to any health organization or medical clinicÂ able toÂ perform surgery onÂ Hai.
Hai said he was not “too upset” about the cancelation of the surgery because he has a lot of caring people around him.
Hai has been diagnosed with Neurofibromatosis type I (NF-1), formerly known as von Recklinghausen disease, a human genetic disorder.
Hai was a normal infant, but his right leg grew much bigger than his left leg by the time he turned four years old.

After doctors amputated his right leg 14 years ago, a tumor kept growing and has since swallowed portions of his buttocks and back.
This July, when Hai was admitted to the HCMC Tumor Hospital, the tumor was approximately 1 meter wide and weighed about 80 kilograms (176 pounds).
The tumor now weighs 90 kilograms.

Thanh Nien News

2011-12-02T07:24:00.001-08:00

Vietnam still fumbles in the fight against counterfeit goods

December 2, 2011 about Uncategorized

LookAtVietnam - Nearly all the high quality products which have high
sales have been counterfeited. Businesses have lost billions of dong because of
the counterfeit goods, while state management agencies still fumble in the fight
against counterfeiters.

When counterfeit goods look more beautiful than real goods
Nguyen Huu Vinh, Deputy Personnel and Administration Division of LG Vina, the
owner of cosmetics brands of Essance, Ohui and Whoo, said that counterfeit goods
not only cause reputational damage, but also badly affect the sales of the
enterprise.
He said that the turnover of the company in the last few years just reached
70-75 percent of the expected level, despite thorough market survey and
preparation for sale campaigns, because real goods have to compete with
counterfeit goods in the market.
Also according to Vinh, in the past, the products with Essance brand were most
counterfeited, because the products have reasonable prices. Previously,
counterfeit goods were made in HCM City and neighboring provinces. Nowadays,
they are made in China and then carried illegally to Vietnam.
“The packing of the products looks very good, and in some cases, it looks even
more beautiful than that of real goods,” he said. For example, the packing
sample which LG Vietnam ordered in South Korea contained errors. Meanwhile, the
error cannot be found in the counterfeit goods
Nguyen Ba Cuong Truc from Nghia Pincers Company said that on November 15, the
company, joining hands with the investigation agencies, discovered counterfeit
goods at two shops in Hanoi.
Truc said that though the company regularly examines the doubtful points of sale
and takes drastic measures to request sales agents to comply with the
commitments on refusing counterfeit goods, the company cannot be sure that all
the sales agents follow the promises.
Meanwhile, sales agents well understand that they would pocket huge profit when
selling counterfeit goods, which is double the profit they gain when selling
real goods.
Truc’s principle is that the thing that needs to do to fight against counterfeit
goods not to eliminate sales agents, but to guide consumers how to differentiate
real goods and counterfeit goods.
According to Lawyer Chau Huy Quang from LCT Law Firm, even the anti-counterfeit
stickers (the stamps used to stick on products to certify the real goods) also
can be counterfeited. This has made producers more puzzled in the fight against
counterfeit goods.
Meanwhile, Lawyer Tran Hai Duc said that some enterprises made real products at
first, but then they have products outsourced to Chinese producers. After the
products are made in China, they import the products and then stick their labels
to sell on the market. In this case, enterprises have their products themselves
counterfeited for bigger profits.
Enterprises and management agencies need to join hands
Do Hong Quang, Deputy Head of the Market Management Sub-department, admitted
that despite the great efforts, the sale of counterfeit and imitation goods
still continues.
Nguyen Thanh Nhan, Deputy Head of the Binh Duong provincial market management
sub-department, complained that he has got tired because of the overlapping and
contradictory regulations.
Nhan said that previously, the criminals of industrial property infringement
could face the criminal prosecution. However, other regulations stipulate that
the commercial-scale infringements would not face the criminal prosecution. Due
to the concept “commercial-scale infringement,” the agency could not take a lot
of counterfeit consignments of goods worth billions of dong into legal
proceedings.
Nhan also said that there lacks the cooperation between state management
agencies and enterprises. His sub-department asked gas trading companies to join
forces to clarify a counterfeit goods case, but none of them sent
representatives to the meeting.
Lawyer Chau Huy Quang agrees that the legal framework in fighting against
counterfeit goods is sufficient, but the implementation of the regulations is
not good.
“In the last five years, only 22 cases of intellectual property infringement
were found, which really does not truly reflect the real situation,” Quang said.
Source: TBKTSG

Soc Trang’s woman lives with thousands of pimples | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-11-29T20:07:00.000-08:00

Soc Trang’s woman lives with thousands of pimples

November 30, 2011 about Uncategorized

LookAtVietnam - At birth, Thach Thi Sa Ly had several small spots which looked like moles on her back. One year later, pimples emerged on her entire body. They grew and deformed her body.

At the age of 35, the body of Ms. Ly, in Ngan Ro 1 village, Tran De town, in the southern province of Soc Trang, is covered by thousands of pimples. Many pimples are as big as lemons or oranges.
The woman cannot see clearly because pimples have covered her eyes. She is always in pain and could not walk. Ly’s personal activities depend on her mother, Mrs. Thach Sa Phai, 60.

Mrs. Phai has had to stay at home for years to take care of her daughter. Her husband, Mr. Thach Teo, 63, is now the mainstay of the family. However, he could earn $1-2 a day from catching fish or working as hired worker.
The chief of Ngan Ro 1 hamlet, Dang Van Ep, said that perhaps Sa Ly is infected with Agent Orange. The local government is seeking support for the woman.

VNE

Soc Trang’s woman lives with thousands of pimples | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

Discount airlines change air travel in Asia - USATODAY.com

2011-11-29T05:15:00.000-08:00

HONG KONG – Budget airlines are leading a revolution in air travel in Asia.

AFP/Getty Images
Fliers wait Oct. 30 at Beijing airport during delays due to severe smoggy weather.

Enlarge

AFP/Getty Images

Fliers wait Oct. 30 at Beijing airport during delays due to severe smoggy weather.

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Carriers such as Jetstar, AirAsia and Tiger Airways are driving demand by rolling out flights to underserved Asian cities. They're forcing full-service Asian airlines to lower fares and, in some cases, launch their own discount airlines. U.S. carriers, in an effort not to be left behind, are beefing up their long-haul services to the region and striking alliances with their Asian counterparts.

The moves come as booming economies such as China and India lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. From 1990 to 2008, the middle class more than tripled to 1.89 billion people in developing Asia, which includes China and India. This population, defined by the Asian Development Bank as those spending $2 to $20 a day, is increasingly demanding middle-class trappings: televisions, refrigerators, cars and travel.

MORE: Asian airlines upgrading premium services

At the same time, once tightly regulated air markets in Japan, South Korea and China have begun opening to foreign carriers, which could lead to as many as 300 million more people traveling between these countries each year, estimates the CAPA Centre for Aviation in Sydney. That would be 20 times more than now.

"What is happening is a once-in-history change," says Peter Harbison, executive chairman of CAPA. "The numbers simply defy traditional forecasting."

Already, Asia's appetite for air travel has made the region the largest, most-profitable and among the fastest-growing markets in the world. And demand is only beginning.

Swelling demand

To understand the potential of this market, consider this: While China and India account for a third of the world's population, the average consumer in China takes only one flight every five years, and the average consumer in India takes one flight every 20 years, according to the International Air Transport Association, or IATA. In a developed country such as the U.S., the average is nearly two flights per person per year.

Last year, Beijing Capital International Airport overtook London Heathrow to become the second-busiest airport in the world, behind Atlanta. Nearly 74 million travelers passed through the Beijing airport last year.

As demand for air travel swells in Asia, it'll generate orders for thousands of passenger jets and create thousands of airline and airport jobs.

It'll also be a boon to other industries by increasing revenue for hotels, restaurants and retailers. And it'll boost real estate prices in some cities as airlines launch service to them.

Overall, air travel will grow 1.5 to two times faster in Asia than gross domestic product, predicts Rigan Wong, a transportation analyst at Citigroup in Hong Kong. GDP in developing Asia will expand 8.5% next year, much faster than advanced economies' 2.6% growth and the global economy's 4.5% growth, the International Monetary Fund estimates.

When per-capita GDP rises above $3,000 a year, it usually means "the population is well-off enough to travel by air, and that's when we see acceleration in air travel," Wong says.

China, Malaysia and Thailand have surpassed that threshold, while Indonesia is at the cusp and the Philippines is approaching it, Citigroup's anal- ysis shows.

Rowena "Neneth" de Vera, a rice farmer in the northern Philippines, began flying five years ago when competition between airlines lowered the cost of a ticket from the north to the south to $44 one way.

MORE INFO--->>> Discount airlines change air travel in Asia - USATODAY.com

Israeli President wraps up visit to Vietnam | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-11-28T19:27:00.000-08:00

Israeli President wraps up visit to Vietnam

November 28, 2011 about News, Politics

Israeli President Shimon Peres left Hanoi on November 26, concluding his official visit to Vietnam at the invitation of State President Truong Tan Sang.

During his stay in Vietnam , President Shimon Peres held talks with his Vietnamese counterpart and met with Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung.
The two countries’ leaders expressed their pleasure at the development of the multifaceted cooperation over the past time. They affirmed their resolve to boost and further develop their relations in the coming time, especially in science, technology, agriculture, trade, investment and tourism.
The two sides held that cooperation between Vietnam and Israel is yet to match their potential.
The leaders exchanged their views on regional and international issues and expressed their wish to enhance the exchange of information, actively contributing to joint efforts for peace, stability, cooperation and development.
Vietnam attaches importance to developing cooperation and friendship with Western Asian countries, including Israel , the Vietnamese leaders said, affirming Vietnam ’s support for the acceleration of dialogues and peaceful settlement of disputes, including disputes happening between Israel and Palestine , on the basis of international laws to ensure the legitimate interests of concerned parties.
On the occasion, the two sides inked a cooperation agreement on sea transport and a document on financial cooperation. They agreed to soon establish the joint intergovernmental committee.
President Shimon Peres invited President Sang to pay a visit to Israel . President Sang accepted the invitation with pleasure and the visit will be arranged through diplomatic channels.
The Israeli President laid a wreath at the Monument to Heroes and Martyrs and paid tribute to President Ho Chi Minh. He also attended the Vietnam-Israel business forum and visited Ha Long Bay.
VNA

Israeli President wraps up visit to Vietnam | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

Big automobile manufacturers leaving Vietnam? | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-11-27T21:03:00.000-08:00

Big automobile manufacturers leaving Vietnam?

November 28, 2011 about Uncategorized

LookAtVietnam - If Vietnam cannot develop the automobile industry, it
will have to spend 12 billion dollars a year to import cars by 2025. If so,
Vietnam will have to suffer more serious trade imbalance, while the big
automobile market will fall into the hands of foreigners.

There are now 12 foreign invested automobile assemblers in Vietnam. However, no
one can say for sure how many assemblers will still in Vietnam after 2018.
Tachibana, General Director of Toyota Vietnam, has predicted that only three
foreign invested automobile manufacturers still exist by 2018. Meanwhile, some
experts think that all of the existing manufacturers would leave Vietnam by that
time.
Foreign invested automobile enterprises did not say clearly about their future
in Vietnam when they were asked about the business plan for the future.
Meanwhile some analysts have imagined that once the automobile import tariff
decreases to 0-5 percent, CBU cars (cars under the mode of complete built units)
will flock into the market. By that time, domestically made cars will not be
able to compete with imports, which will force foreign invested enterprises
leave. There will be only the sales agents which distribute import cars and
provide post-sale services for foreign manufacturers.
By 2014, the import tariffs to be applied to the imports from ASEAN countries
will be slashed to 50 percent. Experts believe that with the tariffs,
domestically made products will not be able to compete with imports, let alone
the lower tariff of zero percent to be applied by 2018.
The current Vietnamese automobile industry is described as “underdeveloped” with
80 percent of car parts imported from foreign countries. The domestic automobile
market is small with the consumption level of 150,000 cars per annum. Meanwhile,
Vietnam does not encourage car consumption, while the policies are changeable,
which both have automobile manufacturers feel unsafe with their investments.
The Vietnamese automobile industry is believed not to develop strongly enough to
satisfy the domestic demand in the next six years. Meanwhile, technical barriers
are believed to be unable to prevent imports from flocking to Vietnam, because
Vietnam is lagging behind other countries with backward technologies.
Experts agree that the technical barriers to be set up by Vietnam will not be
able to prevent the products used more advanced technologies.
For example, Vietnam is now applying the Euro 2 emission standard and planning
to apply Euro 4 by 2018. Meanwhile, the standards have been applied in developed
countries for a long time already.
Instead of choosing Vietnam, investors are now heading for Indonesia.
Japanese Toyota Group recently has decided to invest 200 million dollars on a
production line in Indonesia to make Innovas (70,000 cars per annum). To date,
the Japanese automobile manufacturer has 2 production bases in Indonesia already
with the capacity of 300,000 cars per annum in total.
Nissan has also announced the plan to invest 320 million dollars in Indonesia to
raise the capacity of its plan in the west of Java by three times, and to build
an engine assembling plant nearby. Nissan plans to increase the production
capacity of the plan from 50,000 to 180,000 cars per annum.
Investors have predicted that Indonesia would become the biggest automobile
industry center in South East Asia which is even bigger than Thailand. If so,
there will be two big automobile centers in South East Asia which can provide 10
million cars a year to the region with the population of 600 million people.
Meanwhile, over the last 10 years, foreign automobile manufacturers keep
indifferent to making investment in Vietnam. Toyota once planned to develop
Innova in Vietnam. However, the changeable policies here have discouraged them.
More than 10 years ago, Ford also considered Vietnam an attractive destination
for investment. However, it is now focusing its investment in Thailand and the
Philippines instead of Vietnam.
According to Ngo Van Tru, Deputy Director of the Heavy Industries Department of
the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Vietnam would see 166,000-235,000 new cars
to join the market by 2015 and 246,000-347,000 cars by 2020. Of this amount,
buses and trucks only account for 27 percent, while the remaining are private
cars.
Tran Thuy

Big automobile manufacturers leaving Vietnam? | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

VietNamNet - Flood in Thailand raises worries to Vietnamese businesses | Flood in Thailand raises worries to Vietnamese businesses

2011-11-27T14:06:00.000-08:00

Flood in Thailand raises worries to Vietnamese businesses

VietNamNet Bridge – The historic flood in Thailand has caused big worries to Vietnamese businesses. Travel firms and automobile manufacturers have suffered from the flood first.

The headache to travel firms

Travel firms in HCM City have decided to cancel the tours to Thailand indefinitely, saying that the tours will be resumed only when the floods in Bangkok go down, instead of earlier this week as previously planned. This is the longest tour cancellation since the travel firm began providing tours to Thailand.

Vietravel, which is considered as the biggest organizer of the tours to Thailand, decided to cancel the tours to the country from October 26 to November 6. However, the travel firm now still does not know when it can organize the tours to Thailand again.

“Travelers update information about the flood regularly and they will not book tours until they hear that everything goes back to the normal track. Therefore, the tours to Thailand cannot be kicked off,” said Nguyen Minh Man, a senior executive of Vietravel.

In general, Vietravel has 100 clients who book tours to Thailand every day. However, no one has booked the tours over the last two weeks.

Lai Minh Duy, General Director of TST Tourist, said that the firm is awaiting the flight schedule from Vietnam Airlines, and the updated information from the Thai Tourism Administration to decide the time for restarting tours to Thailand.

In previous years, Duy said, the travel firm organized tours to Thailand for three groups of travelers this season. The travelers mostly went on Bangkok-Pattaya route.

Prior to that, Saigontourist announced the decision to suspend the tours to Thailand until November 5. However, until now, it still has not made decision about when the tours can be kicked off again. Some big groups of travelers, who booked tours before, have agreed to delay the departure time to the end of November 2011. Meanwhile, 50 percent of travelers have demanded money back, because they cannot take other tours.

The travel firm said that it serves at least one group of travelers to Thailand (20 people per group) every day.

Travel firms’ representatives all said that the tours to Thailand have never before suffered such big impacts. In the past, despite demonstrations or uprisings, travelers still booked tours to Thailand, or only delayed the tours for a short time.

Meanwhile, this time, the tours have been suspended for two weeks already, and it is still unclear when to resume the tours

Automobile industry also suffers

Thailand is now considered a big automobile production center in the region, which is the car part supply source of many automobile factories. Nearly all the automobile joint ventures in Vietnam have to import car parts from Thailand to make domestic assembling. This explains why Vietnamese automobile factories, which have been heavily relying on the car parts from Thailand, have suffered from the supply interruption.

Akito Tachibana, General Director of Toyota Motor Vietnam TMV, said that 2011 is a very difficult year for TMV. Due to the output cut, TMV may fail to obtain the targeted revenue in 2011.

Due to the floods in Thailand, Honda and Toyota have to halt production for the last many days, because their factories have been attacked by the flood, or because the supply from Ayutthaya and Pathumthani has been interrupted. This has had big impacts on the production bases of the two manufacturers in Vietnam.

Mr Akito Tachibana said TMV now has to reconsider the production due to the delay in car part supply from Thailand. In the immediate time, Innova and Fortuner are the two models which most suffer, because they need a lot of car part imports from Thailand.

TMV has announced that the normal production would be resumed from December 19, but everything still depends on the flood in Thailand.

Akira Makino from Honda Vietnam has also said that the manufacturer has to reconsider the production plan in November.

Source: TBKTSG

VietNamNet - Flood in Thailand raises worries to Vietnamese businesses | Flood in Thailand raises worries to Vietnamese businesses

Parliamentary co-operation with Israel to be enhanced | Look At Vietnam - Vietnam news daily update

2011-11-25T20:42:00.000-08:00

LookAtVietnam - Viet Nam and Israel once again reaffirmed their determination to develop a strong relationship as National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung met with Israeli President Shimon Peres in Ha Noi yesterday, Nov 24.

NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh
Hung receives Israeli President Shimon Peres. (Source: VNA)

Apart from co-operating in fields agreed to on Wednesday, the two sides vowed to enhance ties between their national assemblies.

Hung called for more high-ranking assembly exchanges and for both sides to further support each other at multilateral parliamentary forums.

Earlier yesterday, the Viet Nam-Israel Business Forum took place in the presence of the Israeli President and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai.

In his speech, Hai affirmed that the Vietnamese Government would always encourage and create conditions for Israeli businesses to operate in Viet Nam.

The country was impressed by Israel’s business administration capacity and technology, the deputy PM said, adding that Viet Nam and Israel could further co-operate in these fields.

President Peres said that Viet Nam and Israel could co-operate in many sectors, including agriculture and technology.

The President shared Israel’s experiences in agriculture and high technology, calling for co-operation to create mutually beneficial developmental opportunities.

The two leaders witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Federation of Israeli Economic Organisations, and a co-operative agreement between the VCCI and the Federation of Israel Chamber of Commerce.

Two-way trade between Viet Nam and Israel exceeded US$220 million in 2010, representing a 34 per cent increase over 2008.

Viet Nam exports footwear, clothes and agricultural products to Israel and imports hi-tech equipment, chemicals and fertiliser.

Israel has provided additional credit worth $100 million to Viet Nam this year and is ranked 54th out of 93 countries and territories investing in the country, with nine projects totalling nearly $33.8 million.

Israeli companies are investing in projects in Ha Noi, Khanh Hoa Province and HCM City, with joint agricultural projects using Israeli technology in Ha Noi, Hai Phong City, Nghe An Province, Da Lat and HCM City showing good results.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News

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