Investors still cautious, VN stocks mixed

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Vietnamese shares were mixed on Wednesday morning, while trading liquidity remained low due to investors’ caution.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Hồ Chí Minh Stock Exchange fell 0.28 per cent to close at 959.31 points.

The HNX-Index on the Hà Nội Stock Exchange edged up 0.44 per cent to end at 103.92 points.

The VN-Index and HNX-Index lost 0.38 per cent and 0.60 per cent on Tuesday.

More than 80 million shares were traded on the two local exchanges, worth nearly VNĐ1.8 trillion (US$77 million).

The mixed performance was caused by investors’ caution as they were worried about a worldwide economic slowdown.

Local stocks were mixed with the banking, energy and petroleum, real estate, food and beverage and seafood processing sectors declining.

Gainers included insurance, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and plastics and chemicals.

It was obvious market sentiment returned to the negative side despite trade deals being signed to help Vietnamese exports tap EU markets.

Poor confidence pulled down 20 of the 30 largest stocks by market value and trading liquidity in the VN30 basket.

The VN30-Index decreased by 0.45 per cent to close at 868.98 points.

The afternoon trading session starts at 1pm.

Source: Vietnamnews

U.S. government staff told to treat Huawei as blacklisted

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A senior U.S. official told the Commerce Department’s enforcement staff this week that China’s Huawei should still be treated as blacklisted, days after U.S. President Donald Trump sowed confusion with a vow to ease a ban on sales to the firm.

Trump surprised markets on Saturday by promising Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Japan that he would allow U.S. companies to sell products to Huawei Technologies Co Ltd.

In May, the company was added to the so-called Entity List, which bans American firms from selling to it without special permission, as punishment for actions against U.S. national security interests.

Trump’s announcement on Saturday – an olive branch to Beijing to revive stalled trade talks – was cheered by U.S. chipmakers eager to maintain sales to Huawei, the world’s largest telecoms equipment maker and a key U.S. customer.

But Trump’s comments also spawned confusion among industry players and government officials struggling to understand what Huawei policy he had unveiled.

In an email to enforcement staff on Monday that was seen by Reuters, John Sonderman, Deputy Director of the Office of Export Enforcement, in the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), sought to clarify how agents should approach license requests by firms seeking approval to sell to Huawei.

All such applications should be considered on merit and flagged with language noting that “This party is on the Entity List. Evaluate the associated license review policy under part 744,” he wrote, citing regulations that include the Entity List and the “presumption of denial” licensing policy that is applied to blacklisted companies.

He added that any further guidance from BIS should also be taken into account when evaluating Huawei-related license applications.

Huawei told Reuters earlier on Wednesday that founder and CEO Ren Zhengfei had said Trump’s statements over the weekend were “good for American companies”.

“Huawei is also willing to continue to buy products from American companies. But we don’t see much impact on what we are currently doing. We will still focus on doing our own job right,” a Huawei spokesman said in an email.

The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A person familiar with the matter said the letter was the only guidance that enforcement officials had received after Trump’s surprise announcement on Saturday. A presumption of denial implies strict review and most licenses reviewed under it are not approved.

It is unclear when the Commerce Department will provide its enforcement staff with additional guidance, based on Trump’s promises, and how that might alter the likelihood of obtaining licenses.

The internal memo, not previously reported, came as White House advisers also scrambled to shed light on Trump’s announcement.

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro noted on Tuesday that the government would allow “lower tech” chip sales to the company, which don’t impact national security.

The United States has accused Huawei of stealing American intellectual property and violating Iran sanctions.

It has launched a lobbying effort to convince U.S. allies to keep Huawei out of next-generation 5G telecommunications infrastructure, citing concerns the company could spy on customers. Huawei has denied the allegations.

Source: Reuters

Tropical storm Mun to hit northern Vietnam Thursday

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The year’s second storm to hit Vietnam is forecast to make landfall in the north on Thursday morning.
At around 7 a.m. on Wednesday Mun lay centered 220 kilometers from Bach Long Vi Island in the Tonkin Gulf and around 340 kilometers south-southeast of Quang Ninh, home to the world-famous Ha Long Bay, with winds of 75 kph.

The storm will move at a speed of 15 kilometers per hour west-northwest for the next 24 hours, according to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting.

The center predicted its center would be on the coast between Quang Ninh and Ninh Binh Provinces by 7 a.m. Thursday, with wind speeds remaining unchanged.

Weather reports from Hong Kong, mainland China and Japan said the storm would make landfall over the northern coast between Quang Ninh and Hai Phong port city at 4 a.m. on Thursday.

According to U.S.-based weather station AccuWeather, Mun will move on a northwesterly course into northern Vietnam near the border with China after reaching the Gulf of Tonkin, bringing rainfall of 150-300 mm in Vietnam and southern parts of Guangxi Province in China. Rainfall of 180 mm in a day is considered heavy.

Due to the effects of the tropical storm, rough waters are expected in the Gulf of Tonkin, including around tourist islands Bach Long Vi, Co To and Cat Hai, from Wednesday afternoon.

Meteorologists also predicted central provinces Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Thanh Hoa, and Nghe An, which have been recently affected by forest fires, as well as the nearby city Da Nang, would be battered by heavy rains from Wednesday.

Provinces further north such as Hoa Binh and Son La, the northern delta and Hanoi should expect torrential rains on Wednesday and Thursday.

Preparations

In Quang Ninh Province, authorities have banned fishing boats and ships from sailing out to sea from 11 a.m. Wednesday and instructed more than 5,000 boats to seek shelter from the storm.

More than 160 night cruises in Ha Long Bay, one of the country’s top holiday destinations, have been suspended. More than 300 boats carrying tourists around the bay were only allowed to operate until 11 a.m. Wednesday.

Authorities in the island district of Co To, not far from Ha Long, have been instructed to send 1,600 tourists, including foreigners, to the mainland.

Nguyen Xuan Cuong, deputy head of the Central Steering Committee for Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, said Mun is not a strong storm but it’s the first of the season and is threatening an area with vibrant economic activities. “Thus, thorough preparations are necessary.”

Mun claimed its first victim when it was just a tropical depression on Monday afternoon. Waves of over two meters sunk a vessel carrying 50,000 liters of diesel off Binh Thuan Province in the south central coast.

Local officials are scrambling to remove the oil from the ship and preparing to deal with possible spills.

The stormy season is coming a month late this year. The country was struck by nine tropical storms last year. Storm Pabuk, the latest one, hit southern Vietnam in January, causing no casualties.

Natural disasters, mostly floods, storms and landslides, killed 181 people and left 37 others missing last year and caused losses of around VND20 trillion ($858 million).

Source: Vnexpress

Pentagon officials said China is testing missiles in South China Sea

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The tests are expected to ratchet up tension in the contested region, as well as between China and the US.

China has been testing anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBMs) in the South China Sea over the weekend, NBC News reported on Tuesday. The move was in contradiction with a 2015 statement by President Xi Jinping pledging not to militarize the man-made outposts China had built in these waters, said Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Dave Eastburn.

“I’m not going to speak on behalf of all the sovereign nations in the region, but I’m sure they agree that the PRC’s behavior is contrary to its claim to want to bring peace to the region and obviously actions like this are coercive acts meant to intimidate other South China Sea claimants,” said Lt. Col. Eastburn. China’s latest test was part of a naval drill located near the Paracel and Spratly island groups, territories which are contested between China, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Many see the latest test as China’s answer to the US-Japan joint naval exercise on the South China Sea on June 20, which included the USS Ronald Reagan carrier strike group and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s Escort Flotilla 1. China has argued that these exercises constitute aggressive behavior from the US.

There are also concerns that the test signifies an increase in China’s anti-access, area-denial capabilities, which can escalate tension in the area as China’s neighbors react against its expansionism. Vietnam, also a claimant in the South China Sea dispute, has been stepping up its strategic partnership with the US, participating for the first time in the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) military exercise in 2018.

China’s ASBM test came on the heels of a ceasefire in the trade war between the US and China, with President Trump announcing during the weekend G20 summit that future tariffs are on hold while both countries resume trade talks. It is unclear whether continuing Chinese military aggression would present an obstacle in these negotiations.

Bosch R&D Center celebrates fifth anniversary

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Bosch boasts a 20% sales growth in Vietnam in 2018 and promises additional investment of 86 million euros in the next five years.

On Tuesday, July 2, Bosch Automotive Research and Development (R&D) Center celebrated its fifth year anniversary at Deutsches Haus, 33 Le Duan, Ben Nghe, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. Established in 2014 with an accumulated investment of more than USD 20 million (17 million euros), the R&D center today houses more than 70 engineers and is an integral part of Bosch’s operations in Vietnam.

Initially focused on researching automotive technologies as well as on further developing the skills of the company’s workforce in Vietnam, the R&D center has since expanded its scope to lead the product development of electrical components in the application of active safety and engine management systems. Apart from driving technological advancements for two of Bosch’s automotive manufacturing plants in Thailand and Germany, the center has also started development collaborations with other similar Bosch locations in Asia Pacific, Europe, North and South America.

Mr. Guru Mallikarjuna, Managing Director of Bosch Vietnam, spoke at the ceremony about Bosch’s accomplishments in Vietnam, stressing Bosch’s strong growth rate and the large potential for auto sector growth in Vietnam. Mr Guru especially praised the new regional two-wheeler and power sports division, established last year in Ho Chi Minh City, and promised to continue investing in Vietnam, starting with an investment of 86 million euros in the next five years.

“As a key manufacturing and R&D location for Bosch global mobility solutions, strong investments into increasing the capacity and capability of our plants are essential to keeping our competitive edge besides meeting the growing demand for our products and solutions,“ Mr. Guru said at the ceremony.

Vietnam, Japan agreed to tighten up the monitoring of labor conditions

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Japan and Vietnam to bolster monitoring of labor conditions for Vietnamese as Tokyo opens the door to more foreign workers.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Vietnamese counterpart, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, affirmed during a meeting Monday they will maintain close cooperation in tackling problems such as unscrupulous brokers. Japan Times reports.

The government has stepped up efforts to eliminate the involvement of brokers who charge extortionate fees for processing visas and other services to facilitate workers’ entry into Japan.

In other agreements, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and four Japanese private banks will extend joint financing worth $200 million (¥21.68 billion) to promote renewable energy in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese prime minister is visiting Japan as he was invited to the two-day Group of 20 summit through Saturday in Osaka, even though Vietnam is not a G20 member.

Vietnam will have African swine fever vaccine very soon

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(Reuters) Vietnam said on Tuesday it has had initial success in creating a vaccine to fight African swine fever, which has infected farms throughout the Southeast Asian country and prompted the culling of around 10% of its pig herd.

African swine fever – which has spread to Laos and North Korea as well after being detected in China in August 2018 – was first detected in Vietnam in February and has spread to farms in 61 of the country’s 63 provinces.

More than 2.9 million pigs have been culled in Vietnam, Agriculture Minister Nguyen Xuan Cuong said on Tuesday, out of a hog population of about 30 million.

“I think we’re on the right track, and we will soon have a vaccine,” Cuong said, according to the official Vietnam News Agency (VNA).

The vaccine, developed at the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, has been tested in its laboratory and at three farms in northern Vietnam, state broadcaster Vietnam Television (VTV) said in a separate report on Tuesday.

Experts on vaccines and African swine fever, though, were sceptical over the claims of progress and said there needed to be much more research to prove the viability of any vaccine.

“We need different phases of clinical trials, first in an experimental setting with controlled exposure, and then a field trial with natural exposure to the virus, and that cannot be a small trial,” said Dirk Pfeiffer, a professor of veterinary epidemiology at the City University of Hong Kong.

The complex nature of the virus and gaps in knowledge concerning infection and immunity have so far hindered other global efforts to develop a vaccine against the disease, which is harmless to humans but deadly to pigs.

Researchers elsewhere have abandoned attempts to use a killed virus for a vaccine and teams in the United States, Europe and China have been working on live vaccines instead, which carry higher safety risks.

In Vietnam’s initial trials, 31 out of 33 pigs injected with the test vaccine are still healthy after receiving two shots over a period of months, according to the VTV report.

Other pigs at the farms have died from the virus, the report said, without giving specific figures. No further details were given about the vaccine or the trials.

The agricultural university’s director, Nguyen Thi Lan, said the vaccine still needed further research, and required testing on a larger scale.

Lan declined to comment on the report and referred questions from Reuters to the agricultural ministry, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Pork makes up three-quarters of total meat consumption in Vietnam, a country of 95 million people where most of its farm-raised pigs are consumed domestically.

The country’s pork industry is valued at 94 trillion dong (3.21 billion pounds) a year, and accounts for nearly 10% of Vietnam’s agricultural sector.

African swine fever was first detected in Asia last year in China, the world’s largest pork producer. As many as half of China’s breeding pigs have died or been slaughtered because of the disease, twice as many as officially reported.

(Reporting by Khanh Vu and Phuong Nguyen in HANOI; 
Additional reporting by Dominique Patton in BEIJING; Editing by James Pearson and Tom Hogue)

Vietnam Coffee Market Research Report & Market Outlook: Ken Research

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World coffee production in the 2014/2015 season decreased by 2.29% over the 2013/2014 season. This was the first time that coffee consumption decreased after reaching a sharp growth rate since the 2010/2011 season. Coffee production output in the 2017/2018 season was estimated at 159.66 million bags, up 1.2% compared to 2016/2017 season due to the forecast recovery in major producer countries.

The world coffee demand has been increasing, the total output of world coffee in the 2017/2018 season was estimated to be xxx.xx million bags. Global inventories for 2017/2018 season were xx.xx million bags, down 8.61% over 2016/2017 season due to a sharp increase in world coffee exports and consumption, while output increased slowly.

Vietnam currently planted two main types of coffee: Arabica and Robusta. Vietnam coffee market production output in the past years has many fluctuations. In the 2016/17 season, according to USDA, coffee production was estimated to have dropped to xx.x million bags (60kg/bag), the lowest level since the 2012/2013 season. However, in the 2017/18 season, coffee production was expected to recover strongly and reach about xx.x million bags.

Domestic consumption of coffee in the period 2012-2018e with CARG of 7.9%, 2017/2018 estimated consumption volume of about x.xx million bags (60kg/bag), in which consumption of ground roasted coffee accounts for about two-thirds of output, the remaining one third is instant coffee.

In the 2017/18 season, the total quantity of imported coffee was estimated of Vietnam at 1.06 million bags. In the first quarter of 2018, the quantity of exported coffee was estimated at xxx thousand tons, an increase of 17% compared to the same period last year. In general, large enterprises in the industry have gross sales and gross profit rate grown in comparison with 2015, the average revenue growth of the industry in 2016 reached 20%, the average gross profit margin was 12.7%.

Companies Covered In this Report:

  • Intimex Group Joint Stock Company
  • Olam Vietnam Company Limited
  • Nestle Viet Nam Company Limited
  • Phuc Sinh Joint Stock Company
  • 2-9 Dak Lak Import Export One Member Co., Ltd
  • Tin Nghia Corporation
  • Trung Nguyen Group Joint Stock Company
  • Vinh Hiep Co., Ltd
  • Minh Tien Coffee Import Export Co., Ltd

For more information on the research report, refer to Vietnam Coffee Market Research Report

Related Reports:

PMI: New order growth strongest year-to-date

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Vietnam Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index at 52.5 in June.

The Vietnam Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index™ (PMI®) posted 52.5 in June, up from 52.0 in May and in line with the reading from April. The average PMI reading for the second quarter of 2019 was above that seen in the opening three months of the year, albeit remaining short of the 2018 average.

June data completed a solid second quarter of 2019 for the Vietnamese manufacturing sector, with business conditions improving amid ongoing new order growth. There was also a return to job creation in June, after employment had dipped marginally in May. Rising workloads also led manufacturers to increase their purchasing activity, with efforts to build inventories amid confidence around the near-term outlook for new orders also highlighted.

The rate of input cost inflation softened to a three-month low, thereby enabling firms to continue recent discounting of selling prices.

Vietnamese manufacturers continued to record solid growth of new orders in June, with the rate of expansion ticking up to a six-month high. Panelists linked the latest rise to the launch of new products and increased customer numbers. Less positive data was seen with regards to new export orders, which rose at the slowest pace since February. There were some reports that the US-China trade tensions had impacted negatively on export orders.

“The Vietnamese manufacturing sector continues to bob along nicely midway through 2019,” said Mr. Andrew Harker, Associate Director at IHS Markit. “The second quarter of the year saw solid growth that was broadly stable across the period and an improvement on the first quarter. Ongoing strength in demand encouraged firms to fill positions that had been vacated by resigning staff in May, leading to a return to job creation. One concern outlined by some firms was the US-China trade issues, which contributed to a moderation of export growth and weaker business confidence.”

Higher new orders were the key factor leading to a 19th successive monthly rise in manufacturing production. The upturn in output was solid and broadly in line with those seen during the rest of the second quarter.

Continued marked new order growth led to a rise in backlogs of work in June; the first in 2019 so far. Firms responded to higher workloads by taking on extra staff, reversing the decline seen in May.

Alongside job creation, higher workloads also encouraged manufacturers to purchase additional inputs in June. Moreover, the rate of expansion was marked and the fastest in three months. Some panelists reported efforts to build inventory reserves. Higher input buying and shorter delivery times enabled firms to raise stocks of purchases for the third consecutive month.

On the other hand, stocks of finished goods decreased modestly for the second month in a row.

Input prices rose at a relatively modest pace in June and one that was the softest in three months. Where input costs did rise, panelists reported higher market prices for items such as oil and gas. Relatively weak input cost inflation meant that manufacturers were able to lower their output prices again. Charges have now decreased in seven successive months, with the rate of decline broadly stable throughout the second quarter.

Although manufacturers remained optimistic that output will increase over the coming year, the level of confidence dropped sharply in June and was the lowest since February. Some panelists reported concerns regarding the US-China trade situation. Where growth was predicted, respondents linked optimism to planned business investment, new product launches, and entry into new markets.

Source: Vneconomictimes

Vietjet to launch two new direct flights to Japan

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Vietnam’s private budget carrier Vietjet Air will launch two new direct routes connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang with Tokyo this year.
Vietjet expects to begin daily return flights departing from Vietnam’s southern metropolis HCMC to Tokyo from July 12 onwards. The flight will take six hours each way.

The Da Nang-Tokyo flight is scheduled to take off from October 26 onwards. Each flight will take around seven hours.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc attended the launching ceremony in Tokyo on Monday during his official visit to Japan following his participation in the G20 summit in Osaka, which wrapped up last Saturday.

Vietjet currently operates three direct flights between Vietnam and Japan: HCMC-Osaka, Hanoi-Osaka and Hanoi-Tokyo.

Vietnamese carriers have been launching new international flights in recent years as outbound tourism surges while the domestic aviation market shows signs of saturation, industry insiders said.

Thanks to visa exemptions, duty-free promotions and ancient tourist attractions, Japan has been attracting increasing numbers of Vietnamese tourists in recent years. Last year, 34,000 Vietnamese visited Japan, up 36.7 percent from a year ago.

The number of Vietnamese residents working and living in Japan jumped 26.1 percent from a year earlier to 330,835 in 2018, accounting for 8 percent of foreign nationals in the country, the Japan Times reported.

It said this growth had propelled Vietnam to overtake the Philippines as the third largest minority group in Japan, behind China and South Korea.

The growing presence of Japanese companies in Vietnam has also sparked increased interest among younger Vietnamese to study and/or undertake technical training programs in Japan in the hope of landing well-paid jobs, the report said.

Japan is third largest source of market for Vietnamese tourism, after China and South Korea. Last year, Vietnam received more than 820,000 Japanese tourists, up 3.6 percent from a year ago.

According to Mastercard, Vietnam has the second fastest growing outbound market in the Asia Pacific region after Myanmar, with projected annual growth of 9.5 percent between 2016 and 2021.

Mastercard forecast that 7.5 million Vietnamese travelers will travel outside the country in 2021.

Vietnam’s aviation industry has been growing at the third fastest pace in the Asia-Pacific, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). It welcomed 12.5 million air passengers last year, up 14.4 percent from 2017, the General Statistics Office reported.

Source: Vnexpress

Saigon Co.op acquires Auchan Vietnam

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Saigon Co.op has just taken over the whole business operations, staff included, of the 18 Auchan Vietnam branches.

Saigon Co.op and French retailer Auchan have just announced completing the hand-over process of the whole business operations of Auchan in Vietnam. Accordingly, Saigon Co.op will take over 18 stores, 15 of which the French retailer has previously closed and three that have been operating at a profit, along with the e-commerce platform and online application from Auchan Vietnam.

Although the value of the acquisition was not revealed, Saigon Co.op representative said that the two sides have ended the negotiations on price. Saigon Co.op will operate these stores until Lunar New Year 2020 after which the sides will sit down to negotiate further co-operation opportunities, including exporting local products via Auchan’s global retail chain.

The whole business operation, employees, and goods of Auchan Vietnam will be managed by Saigon Co.op. All employees of Auchan will join Saigon Co.op’s staff.

Acquiring Auchan is part of Saigon Co.op’s strategy of expanding scale and market share. Thanks to this deal, Saigon Co.op’s target of 1,000 stores by this year could be reached far easier as the company has 800 stores already.

Do Quoc Huy, marketing manager of Saigon Co.op, said that this company would rename 18 Auchan supermarkets to Co.opmart, Co.optra, and Finelife.

Auchan started developing its first supermarket chain in Vietnam in 2015. As of present, the chain has 18 supermarkets in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Tay Ninh.

One month ago, the French retailer announced pulling out of Vietnam. Earlier on Wednesday, Auchan Retail CEO Edgar Bonte told Les Echos that the group had decided to sell its 18 outlets in Vietnam that currently generate a revenue of €45 million ($50.4 million).

As reported by Reuter, the French retailer had said in March that it was conducting a review of its loss-making markets, such as Italy and Vietnam where it has faced tough market conditions.

Source: VIR

How a non-bank financial credit company changed consumer lending?

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FE Credit’s efforts in providing the best services to its customers by using technology solutions have been recognised once again, this time by Ernst & Young, the world’s leading advisory services provider in assurance, tax, and transactions.

With the rapid growth in the Vietnamese consumer finance industry, the demand for seamless and pleasing customer experience is increasing, hence the need for innovation is felt more than ever.

The consumer lending industry in Vietnam has been seeing remarkable growth. According to a report by the National Financial Supervision Commission, which advises the prime minister on matters related to the financial markets, consumer lending in Vietnam has been growing fast since 2015, with growth rate at 65 per cent in 2017, far faster than the 50.2 per cent in 2016, and with the percentage of consumer lending in total credit rising to 18 per cent in 2017 from 12.3 per cent in 2016.

In this context, various players, both domestic and foreign, are eyeing a slice of the market. Banks and corporations have opened their consumer credit units and many foreign consumer credit companies have come to Vietnam, either setting up greenfield ventures or acquiring existing players. However, even with so many players in the market, the consumer experience still leaves much to be desired.

FE Credit, originally founded as the Consumer Finance Division of Vietnam Prosperity under Vietnam Prosperity Joint-Stock Commercial Bank, was established in 2010 and is one of the early players in the market. As of 2018, FE Credit has served over 10 million Vietnamese customers across 63 provinces and cities nationwide, with a wide range of products consisting of personal loans, consumer durable loans, two-wheeler loans, credit cards, and insurance.

In China and India, many consumer lending companies have launched a digital process of loan application, approval, and disbursement, allowing customers to receive their money in only 10-15 minutes. FE Credit recognised that if it can provide a similar process in Vietnam, the benefits would be two-fold – customers will gladly adopt the FE Credit app, and the cost of operation for FE Credit will be reduced.

The lending platform for the $NAP app was created by integrating through APIs a host of digital technologies and fintech solutions on a flexible workflow solution guided by a versatile rule engine. It combines new technology with traditional lending science without any compromise on KYC, verification, underwriting, compliance, or customer service.

The platform digitises the entire customer journey (or lifecycle) from application through mobile device to receiving disbursal through bank account or retail outlets (in cash) and allowing them to service the loans up to termination through the same device. This eliminates human intervention at all stages of the lifecycle, as opposed to only onboarding. The technologies incorporated on the platform, beyond the ability to support Vietnamese language and script, include features such as facial recognition, AI-based optical character recognition (OCR), voice-based virtual assistant, speech to text, device-based scoring, telco data scoring, eSignature, and more.

Though the EY team had experience in launching a similar digital lending app in India, the challenge in Vietnam was unique as most documents required in the lending process, namely ID, utility bills, and pay slips, are still stored in paper form.

Over the course of four months, the EY team from India advised FE Credit on industry best practices in application design, vendor selection, and prototyping.

$NAP was launched in August 2018, enabling customers to fill out a loan application, receive approval, and disbursement within 24 hours. As of May 2019, the app had over one million downloads. FE Credit is leading the pack in acquiring customers at a speed never imagined before.

By eliminating traditional paper-based application and face-to-face KYC procedures, this platform decreased the risk of losing a lead due to inconvenient and time-consuming procedures, and thus reduced the cost of acquiring and on-boarding customers for FE Credit.

The ASEAN Financial Innovation Network (AFIN) initiative of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) has recognised the platform to be a ready-to-use, highly suitable demand-side use case replicable across markets by partner financial institutions to complement their supply-side platform. In addition, the FE Credit platform can integrate with the AFIN platform when the latter is ready.

Source: VIR

 

 

Forest fires ravage Hà Tĩnh

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Forest fires broke out in several locations in the central province of Hà Tĩnh yesterday, according to local authorities.

Phạm Tiến Hưng, deputy chairman of the Nghi Xuân District People’s Committee, said by 10.30am yesterday, a forest fire in Xuân Hồng Commune was controlled, though officials were continuing to patrol the scene in case the fire re-occurs.

Due to prolonged hot dry weather together with strong winds, forest fire prevention in the province has been a challenge.

Forest fires also struck in Sơn Hàm, Sơn Trung and Sơn Lễ communes of Hương Sơn District on Saturday. The first case appeared in Sơn Hàm Commune, and so far 20 places have experienced fires in the district.

Nguyễn Quang Thọ, chairman of the Hương Sơn District People’s Committee, said two forest fires happened in Sơn Trung and Sơn Lễ communes before dawn yesterday. The fire in Sơn Trung was put out whereas the fire in Sơn Lễ was still serious before dawn yesterday.

The district assigned more than 500 people to extinguish the fire, however, strong winds hamstrung their efforts. The fire spread to houses in Nam Sơn Village, forcing authorities to evacuate residents to safety.

Cẩm Mỹ Commune in Cẩm Xuyên District was also hit by a forest fire on Saturday night. The fire was temporarily controlled as of Saturday afternoon.

PM’s guidance

Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has urged the nation and authorities to strengthen measures to prevent and fight forest fires.

The hot and prolonged dry weather is forecast for the region throughout this week and many forests are at high risk of fires.

The PM asked the leaders of Ninh Bình, Thanh Hóa, Nghệ An, Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị, Thừa Thiên-Huế, Đà Nẵng, Quảng Nam, Quảng Ngãi, Bình Định, Phú Yên and Khánh Hòa provinces to implement urgent measures to prevent and fight forest fires.

He urged for adequate forces, facilities, supplies and funding, while maintaining 24/7 supervision during the dry season to detect fires and mobilise forces to extinguish forest fires quickly before they spread.

The localities were also asked to be ready to evacuate people from dangerous areas when necessary, ensuring the safety of lives and property of the people and the State and strengthening communications to raise public awareness in forest fire prevention.

Other ministries and agencies were also required to work with provinces and cities to strengthen forest fire prevention and fighting.

The Vietnam Electricity Group was told to work with local authorities and related agencies to ensure the absolute safety of the national electricity system and to avoid incidents that affect power supply.

Press agencies were tasked with implementing communications on forest fire prevention and fighting, as well as promptly delivering information on warnings and forecasts of forest fires.

Weather forecast

The National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Weather Forecast warned hot weather would continue this week leaving high risk of forest fire in central Viet Nam, with average temperatures 34-37 degree Celsius.

The north of the country could see heavy rain, especially in mountainous places causing flash floods and landslides.

Source: VNS

Telecom giant Viettel launches ride-hailing service and e-commerce platform

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Vietnam’s military-run Viettel has launched ride-hailing service MyGo and e-commerce site Voso.vn after piloting them for two weeks.
Viettel’s MyGo app, available for iOS and Android devices, offers motorbike, car, truck and delivery services. The app is owned and operated by Viettel Post service, Viettel’s subsidiary and one of the biggest logistics companies in the country with a large number of drivers.

According to Tran Trung Hung, general director of Viettel Post, MyGo now has more than 105,000 vehicles registered, which includes nearly 98,000 motorcycles, approximately 7,300 cars and more than 600 trucks.

Hung said MyGo will charge competitive fares compared to existing players in the market, but did not disclose specific numbers. Moreover, Viettel will offer free 3G and 4G data for both drivers and customers of the ride-hailing app.

The company also has plans to move into the vehicle repair service market, he said.

Viettel’s Voso.vn, an e-commerce website that offers B2C trade, connecting businesses to customers, as well as C2C trade where it connects individual buyers and sellers (similar to the eBay model), primarily in the agricultural sector.

Voso.vn will take advantage of Viettel’s inherent strengths in delivery and payment. For farmers new to this form of business, the company will organize free online training courses on how to use the website as well as how to market their items.

Viettel is a leading tech firm in the country. It has 111 patents and manufactures 78 technology products. Its revenues from technology last year topped $1 billion. The group aims to become a global top 10 telecom company by 2030.

Source: Vnexpress

Fuel supply monopoly jeopardizes Ho Chi Minh City’s eco-friendly buses

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Ho Chi Minh City’s plan to replace diesel-fueled buses with eco-friendly ones that run on compressed natural gas (CNG) is confronted by a huge setback as the sole supplier of the ‘green’ fuel has announced plans to cut 20-30 percent of its supply for buses and reserve the resource for electric generation.

The southern hub has planned on having 75 percent of its projected fleet of 3,100 buses run on CNG by 2020, in an effort to curb pollution.

Less than 18 percent of the city’s 2,457 public buses currently run on the eco-friendly fuel, and officials say meeting the target by 2020 is a far-fetched goal given the monopoly in CNG supply.

CNG combustion produces fewer undesirable gases than gasoline or diesel fuel.

Petro Vietnam Southern Gas JSC (PV Gas South), a subsidiary of state-run Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PVN), is the sole supplier of CNG for buses in Ho Chi Minh City.

In May, PV Gas South announced that it planned to cut 20-30 percent of its CNG supply for buses in the city for the remainder of 2019 to reserve the fuel for electric generation in case there was a request from the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

It said that in such a scenario, two hours’ notice will be given to bus operators so they can adjust their schedules.

The municipal transport department has said a CNG shortage would jeopardize public transport in the city and discourage bus operators from replacing diesel-fueled vehicles with eco-friendly ones.

It has asked PVN to make sure PV Gas South does not curtail its CNG supply for Ho Chi Minh City buses in 2019.

This is not the first time PV Gas South has abused its monopoly as the city’s sole CNG supplier to gain the upper hand in negotiations with buyers.

In November 2011, less than three months after the first CNG buses were launched in Ho Chi Minh City, PV Gas South announced it was raising the fuel’s prices, causing uproar among local bus companies.

Earlier this year, a branch of PV Gas South sent an ‘ultimatum’ to some bus companies in Ho Chi Minh City threatening to terminate its CNG supply if the buyers did not agree to a new, higher price scheme.

A simple solution to this problem would be to erase PV Gas South’s monopoly and allow at least two to three CNG suppliers to compete for the market share, said Cao Thanh Binh, deputy head of the municipal People’s Council Economic and Budget Commission.

Russia-invested PVGazProm Natural Gas For Vehicles LLC has already registered to become a CNG supplier to Ho Chi Minh City buses, with their service expected to become available in 2020.

Source: Tuoitrenews

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