Feb. 9 – According to the Authority for Hanoi Industrial and Export Processing Zones, the city has so far attracted US$4.14 billion worth of projects in its industrial parks.
Of the total 508 licensed projects, 240 are domestic projects worth US$3.533 billion while the rest is composed of 268 foreign-invested projects. In 2009, the IPs were able to sign in US$130.79 million of projects, including US$91.4 million of foreign direct investment. Continue reading
Jan. 25 – Vietnam will impose a new special consumption tax of 45 percent on beer and other alcoholic drinks until 2012.
The General Department of Taxation announced that beer and spirits higher than 40 proof will slapped a 45 percent tax and 50 percent afterward. Alcohol with less than 40 proof will be meted a lower tax of 25 percent.
Previously, wine labeled less than 40 proof was charged a 20 percent tax and stronger drinks were charged a 30 percent to 65 percent tax. Vietnam has been imposing high tax rates on alcohol in the past years. For 2006-2007, beer was taxed 30 percent and 40 percent to 75 percent for 2008-2009.
Jan. 6 – Vietnam’s economy grew by 5.32 percent in 2009, making it one of the top expanding economies in the region despite the global financial crisis.
General Statistics Office said the economy recorded a double achievement of gaining economic growth and reining in inflation. While growth in 2009 was lower compared to the previous year’s 6.18 percent it was still able to top the government’s 5 percent target. Continue reading
Dec. 18 – Cambodia and Vietnam have agreed to a treaty that will open Mekong waterways to increases trade and tourism.
The Treaty on Waterway Transportation legally binds Cambodia and Vietnam to reducing the official restrictions that have existed for cross-border navigation, according to the the Mekong River Commission. Continue reading
Dec. 17- Vietnam will implement a tax on gains in securities investments beginning January 1, 2010.
Stock investors can choose to either pay the flat 0.1 percent duty fee on the value of each transaction, or a 20 percent levy on trading profits reports Thanh Nien News. Implementation of the tax was temporarily suspended because of the global financial crisis this year. The law was passed by the National Assembly in November 2007.
Dec. 16 – Foreign tourism companies with representative offices in Ho Chi Minh City have closed down in the past year due to declining tourist arrivals.
The number of representative offices were estimated at 16 last month from 24 in September last year reports Thanh Nien News with most of the foreign tourist companies coming from South Korea, the United States, Japan, France, Australia and Taiwan. Continue reading
Nov. 23 – Ho Chi Minh City authorities have cut electricity to 51 businesses last week as punishment for their environmental violations reports Thanh Nien News.
The city gave an ultimatum that blacklisted business will not be reconnected again unless they clean up and stop damaging the environment. The 51 firms were found to be in gross violation of environmental protection practices when inspectors from the Department of Natural Resources and Environment examined 345 firms in the city. Continue reading
Nov. 11 – Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment, the U.K. Department for International Development (DFID) and the Asian Development Bank have launched a new fund that will help support projects directly beneficial to the poor.
The Vietnam Challenge Fund is backed by a US$3 million budget that can support grants worth US$30,000 to US$250,000. The fund may shoulder as much as 49 percent of a project’s total investment cost. Continue reading
Nov. 5 – The government has opted to temporarily suspend issuing business licenses to congested areas in Ho Chi Minh City as a way to alleviate worsening traffic.
Businesses that attract crowds like supermarkets and foreign language centers will be restricted as well as possibly wedding service providers. In addition, parking in traffic prone areas will also be prohibited.Thanh Nien News reports that authorities have already instructed agencies to list areas that are prone to traffic jams as a guide for the city’s Department of Planning and Investment when granting licenses. Continue reading
Oct. 30 – South Korea’s Samsung Electronics has recently opened a US$700 million plant in Yen Phong Industrial Park located in the northern province of Bac Ninh, making it the first cellphone plant in the country and Samsung’s seventh in the world.
The new plant will manufacture 1.5 million mobile handsets monthly to be sold locally and overseas. Annual output is expected to reach 100 million by 2012 while employing 8,000 people more from its current staff of 2,000. Continue reading
Dezan Shira & Associates provide a range of services for companies looking to undertake foreign direct investment into Asia, These include corporate establishment, accounting, tax, payroll, audit and due diligence. To learn more about the firm, please contact one of our specialists at vietnam@dezshira.com, download our corporate brochure or visit at us www.dezshira.com
