Vietnam Morning News For August 24

VN Index rises slightly on investor bottom fishing
The benchmark VN Index rose slightly on Wednesday morning, lifted by investors’ interest in buying stocks that have declined to relatively attractive levels.
— Bizhub

Q2 consumer confidence at five-year high
Consumer confidence in Vietnam continued to see significant improvements in the second quarter that helped the country become the fifth most optimistic globally, with an index score of 117, 5 points higher than in the fourth quarter of 2016 and the highest for the last five years, according to the latest Nielsen’s Consumer Confidence Index released on August 23.
— Vietnam Economic Times

406 SOEs approved for divestment in 2017-2020
The divestment list, proposed by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, aims to raise funds for the nation’s public investment plan for the 2016-20 period, and advance the SOE restructuring process.
— VietnamNet Bridge

Spending on fruit, veg imports rises
Even as local farmers contend with falling prices and struggle to sell their produce, the country is spending millions of dollars buying imported agricultural products.
— Viet Nam News

Superblock enters Vietnam
Superblock Plc has sealed a deal with a Vietnamese partner to develop 700 megawatts of wind farm projects in the southern region of Vietnam in hope of capitalising on rising demand in tandem with a vibrant…
— Bangkok Post

Automation Techmart 2017 opens in Hà Nội
A mart on automation equipment and technology (Automation Techmart 2017) opened today at the National Agency for Science and Technology Information in Hà Nội.
— Viet Nam News

Indonesia Eyes Rp131.5tn Worth of Trade with Vietnam
Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita said that Indonesia is aiming at boosting the value of its trade with Vietnam. The government has set a target to achieve US$10 billion worth of trade with Vietnam.
— Tempo (EN)

Turkey and Vietnam look to double trade, deepen defense ties
Turkey’s prime minister said on Aug. 23 he wants to double trade volume with Vietnam to $4 billion in the next three years as his country seeks to boost cooperation with the Southeast Asian country.
— Hurriyet Daily News

SEAF to fund female-led SMEs in VN
Small Enterprise Assistance Funds (SEAF), the Washington-headquartered investment management group, has announced the launch of a fund to invest in women-led firms in Việt Nam, the Philippines and Indonesia.
— Viet Nam News

Unpaid workers go on strike at ministry-run transport firm in Vietnam
Nearly 20 workers at a company run by Vietnam’s Ministry of Transport have gone on strike in the central province of Ha Tinh after not receiving their salaries for months.
— VnExpress

VJCC discusses cooperation prospect with Next Energy & Resources (Japan)
Vice President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO), Vice President of the Vietnam – Japan Friendship Association (VJFA), Director of the Vietnam – Japan Cooperation Center (VJCC) Bui Khac Son on August 21 chaired a working meeting with representatives from Next Energy and Resources Co.,Ltd (Japan).
— Vietnam Times

Build, operate and transfer transport projects criticised for lack of tendering
Build, operate and transfer (BOT) projects have made headlines due to continual problems. Cai Lay BOT project has faced strong opposition from drivers due to its high fees. To oppose the fees, drivers used small notes, costing more time for the station officers for the fee collection.
— VietnamNet Bridge

RoK exports to Vietnam surge 50 percent in seven months
The Republic of Korea (RoK)’s exports to Vietnam enjoyed a year-on-year surge of nearly 50 percent in the first seven months of 2017, making the Southeast Asian country the third biggest importer of RoK goods.
— VietnamPlus

Rapid credit growth possible, but risky: experts
In a meeting with top Government top officials last weekend, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc urged the State Bank of Vietnam to work out measures to boost credit growth to 21% this year, higher than the initial target of 18%.
— VietnamNet Bridge

Raising Vietnamese export brands in global market
Accelerating exports to the markets that Vietnam has signed free trade agreements (FTAs) with, improving product quality and making a difference for products are the main ways of helping Vietnamese enterprises increase their exports in the current climate.
— Vietnam Times

Toong & International Enterprise Singapore sign partnership
Vietnamese co-working space operator Toong and International Enterprise Singapore (IE Singapore), the government agency that promotes international trade and partners Singaporean companies in going global, recently announced a new strategic partnership assisting Singaporean companies to enter Vietnam market through its network of co-working spaces and supporting eco-systems.
— Vietnam Economic Times

Vietnamese M&A property activities – “Clear” land shortage
For M&A, foreign investors often search for “clean” land: compensation completion, site clearance, land use fees have been paid, land use right is in place, and good planning. However, those assets are rare as the Vietnamese realty market is still immature. Due to the strong focus on Vietnam from regional investors, expect M&A activities to reach record levels in 2017 and 2018.
— Hanoi Times

US, EU investors still hesitant: experts
According to the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), as of July 2017, US companies had invested US$9.3 billion in Vietnam and the major EU nations of France and Germany registering US$2.8 billion and US$1.6 billion, respectively.
— VietnamNet Bridge

Biggest-ever book collection on Vietnamese history launched
Titled Lich Su Viet Nam (Vietnamese history), the 15-episode collection was printed for the first time by the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences in 2015 with a limited number of 500 copies. The book was awarded Best Book in 2015 by the IRED Institute of Education and Phan Chau Trinh Foundation.
— Vietnam Times

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