Cities

Vietnam Opens Its First Commodity Exchange

Jan. 14 – Licensed last year by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), Vietnam’s first commodity exchange became operational on January 11 in Ho Chi Minh City.

The Vietnam Commodity Exchange (VNX), with a registered capital of US$7.5 million, is allowed to exchange all types of commodities under MoIT regulations. According to its general director Nguyen Duy Phuong, the VNX will initially trade coffee and rubber. Steel will become another commodity on the trading list in the second quarter of 2011. All three commodities are Vietnam’s major exports. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Economy and Politics, Ho Chi Minh City, Markets | Leave a comment

Hanoi to Boast 11 New Industrial and High Tech Zones in Next Five Years

Nov. 19 – Plans have been laid to create 11 new industrial zones and high tech parks in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi over the next five years in a bid to attract further domestic and foreign investment, Nguyen Xuan Chinh, head of the Hanoi Industrial and Export Processing Zone Management Board, said on Thursday.

The new investment areas will be fully equipped with transport facilities, training centers, schools, service areas, gas stations and post offices as well as roads and other such infrastructure. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Economy and Politics, FDI and Foreign Trade, Hanoi | Leave a comment

New Minimum Capital Requirement May Soon Be Instituted for Companies Looking to List in Vietnam

Nov. 18 – Vietnam’s State Securities Commission is looking to increase the minimum capital requirement for companies wanting to list on the nations bourses.

In a new draft currently being prepared by the stock regulator, any company that wishes to be listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange will need to have a minimum registered capital of US$6.16 million or significantly less, US$1.54 million, if they wish to list on the Hanoi Stock Exchange. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Economy and Politics, Finance, Tax and Accounting, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City | Leave a comment

Gov’t Approves Plans for Two New International Airports

Nov. 17 – The Vietnamese government approved and outlined plans for two new international airports in a meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai on Monday – one in the southern province of Dong Nai and one in the northern port city of Haiphong.

Construction on Dong Nai’s Long Thanh International Airport has been structured into two phases with the first phase scheduled to be completed by 2020 and the second phase to be finished by 2035. The airport is projected to handle 3 million tons of cargo and between 80 million to 100 million passengers annually. Continue reading →

Posted in Aviation, Business, Economy and Politics, Haiphong | Leave a comment

Vietnam’s Exports to Hit US$70 Billion By Year End

HANOI, Oct. 27 – Vietnam generated US$57.8 billion in export revenues over the first 10 months of the year, a 23.3 percent year-on-year increase, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Thanh Bien said at a meeting in Hanoi on Tuesday.

Bien announced at the meeting that this is likely to continue, resulting in total annual export revenues hitting the US$70 billion mark by the end of the year. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, FDI and Foreign Trade, Hanoi | Leave a comment

Japan and Vietnam to Jointly Develop Rare Earth Deposits

Oct. 22 – Japan and Vietnam plan to co-develop rare earth deposits in the Southeast Asian nation as China, the world’s leading supplier of such minerals, continues to cut its supply.

A joint development agreement is expected to be signed on October 31, when Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan is scheduled to travel to the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi for a meeting with his counterpart Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung. Continue reading →

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Vietnam Takes First Step into Wind Turbine Industry

Oct. 18 – Vietnam’s first wind power turbine production factory, a US$61 million dollar project, was inaugurated at the Nomura Industrial Zone in the port city of Haiphong on October 15.

Invested in by General Electric, the factory is the first step of a larger initiative to address growing global demand for clean energy sources. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Economy and Politics, FDI and Foreign Trade, Haiphong | Leave a comment

Lam Dong Province Seeking FDI for Tourism Complex

Sept. 30 – Lam Dong Province in central Vietnam is seeking local and foreign investors to support a 1,000 hectare tourism complex.

Local authorities are offering 24 projects for investment amounting to a total of US$1.87 billion. The majority of those projects will involve huge investments in the trade and tourism sectors. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Economy and Politics, FDI and Foreign Trade, Ho Chi Minh City | Leave a comment

Authorities Promise to Lower Port Fees

Sept. 23 – Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance has promised to lower port fees in response to letters received from the European Chamber of Commerce in Ho Chi Minh City in April and August.

The EuroCham letters pointed out that fees for the Cai Mep–Thi Vai port are as much as two to four times more expensive compared to other ports in the region, particularly Singapore and Malaysia. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Economy and Politics, FDI and Foreign Trade, Ho Chi Minh City, Legal and Regulatory, Shipping & Logistics | Leave a comment

Vietnam Airlines Drops Fares in Celebration of Hanoi’s Millenial Anniversary

Sept. 21 – National air carrier Vietnam Airlines has announced that it would slash international airfare tickets from Vietnam by as much as 85 percent in celebration of Hanoi’s 1,000th year anniversary.

Flight bookings must be made starting September 30 to October 10 applicable for trips taken from October 15 to December 21, 2010 and April 1 to May 31, 2011. Continue reading →