Vietnam Insider - Page 1323 of 1522

Vietnam poses a mounting threat to elephants

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The Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) has released a report Exposing the Hydra: The growing role of Vietnamese syndicates in ivory trafficking documenting the findings of a two-year undercover investigation.

Investigators successfully infiltrated several ivory trafficking syndicates operating in Mozambique, South Africa, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, building a detailed picture of how these criminal organizations are structured, how they cooperate with one another and how they also traffic other endangered species such as rhinos and pangolins.

In contrast to China, which closed its domestic legal ivory market in January and stepped up enforcement against ivory trafficking, the Government of Vietnam has not demonstrated serious commitment to tackling wildlife crime, says the organization. Instead, the past decade has seen Vietnam serve as a prominent transit route for large ivory shipments to China as well as overseeing a growing carving industry and one of the world’s biggest markets for ivory sales.

The report states that since 2009, 56 tons of ivory have been seized in Vietnam and a further 20 tons linked to Vietnam seized in other countries. This is equivalent to ivory sourced from approximately 11,414 elephants.

EIA estimates that since 2015 the ivory traffickers identified during the course of their investigation have been linked to seizures totaling 6.3 tons of ivory and 299 kilograms of rhino horn, including the recent record seizure of 50 rhino horns in Malaysia in August 2018. Between January 2016 and November 2017 there were at least 22 successful shipments of ivory from Africa, with an estimated weight of 19 tons and potential revenue of $14 million.

The report cites some maritime examples of the trade including:

Danang, Vietnam 2015

In August 2015, officers at Tien Sa port made three separate seizures of ivory tusks. The first case involved 700 kilograms of ivory and rhino horn in two containers shipped from Mozambique and discovered hidden inside blocks of fake stone. A few days later, another 2.2 tons of ivory was detected concealed inside containers of timber sent from Nigeria. Both shipments were intended for the same Vietnamese company. This was followed by the seizure of another ton of ivory and four tons of pangolin scales concealed in a shipment of beans loaded at Port Klang, Malaysia.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia 2016

In December 2016, Cambodian customs officials at the inland cargo terminal in Phnom Penh discovered 1.3 tons of ivory and other illegal wildlife products concealed within hollowed-out square logs and sealed with wax. The shipment had originated in Mozambique. Documents revealed that the recipient was a company owned by Vietnamese national. Media reports linked the company to a previous ivory seizure which had occurred at the main port in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Later that month, Kenyan officials at the port of Mombasa seized almost two tons of ivory from a container which had been recalled to the port after leaving for Cambodia. The ivory tusks were once again found concealed inside hollowed-out logs. In December 2017, at the Cambodian port of Sihanoukville, police seized almost a ton of ivory tusks hidden inside logs in three shipping containers. The consignment had arrived from Mozambique a year earlier but had not been claimed.

The syndicates conceal ivory with legal goods such as timber, agricultural products or plastics to avoid detection. The following table provides more information about these concealment tactics.

The EIA has identified a number of major routes in use by the Vietnamese syndicates to traffic ivory from African countries through Malaysia and Laos before reaching Vietnam for sale in-country or for onward transportation into China. These make use of sea, air and land transport.

Mozambique is a major source of ivory, states the report. Other possible source countries include South Africa, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Angola, Malawi and Nigeria. Ivory is shipped out of Africa to Vietnam via Mozambican ports, with Pemba, Nacala and Beira as prominent ports of export. Although traders consider the direct route from Mozambique to Vietnam as difficult and risky, some traders do attempt this, in particular to Hai Phong port and smaller ports in the north of Vietnam.

Most syndicates, however, avoid the direct route and use transhipment locations to obscure the origin of the shipments. Malaysia is one such key transhipment country. Ivory destined for Vietnam is routinely cleared through Johor Port and is transferred to Kuala Lumpur International Airport after being repackaged, states the report. The ivory is then transported to Laos’ Wattay International Airport by air cargo before being transferred overland into Vietnam.

According to a report on Maritime executive

Coffee prices in Vietnam edge higher on scarce supplies, further gains seen limited

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Coffee prices in Vietnam edged up this week on scarce supplies, but traders said they would not climb further ahead of the new harvest next month.

Farmers in the Central Highlands, the country’s largest coffee growing area, offered coffee in a range of 33,000 dong -33,500 dong ($1.42-$1.44) per kg, compared with 32,500 dong-33,300 dong a week earlier.

“Prices have risen slightly because inventory has run almost empty, while several exporters still need beans to fulfil their signed contracts,” a trader based in the province of Dak Lak said.

However, domestic prices are not likely to rise further as the 2018-19 harvest season will begin soon.

“We expect to see a bumper harvest,” the trader said. “But the harvest won’t peak until early December.”

Exporters offered Vietnam’s 5-percent black and broken grade 2 robusta at around $50 discount to London’s November contract, compared with $40-$70 a week ago, according to traders.

Meanwhile, in Indonesia, trading volumes declined sharply as stocks began to dry up with the harvest there approaching its end.

Premiums for the grade 4 defect 80 robusta in the province of Lampung were at $80 to the November contract , narrowing from $90 a week earlier, a local trader said.

“This margin is expected to remain stable until mid-October,” the trader said.

Another trader said premium stayed flat from last week at $130-$140 to the November contract and that traded volumes declined by a half from a week earlier.

According to a report on Reuters

Top 10 Must Try Vegan Street Food Stalls in Hanoi

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Hanoi is heaven for street food enthusiasts. Every alley has a stall that serves some kind of food, whether it be snacks, a full meal, drinks or dessert. Finding vegan food may be a little tough though, so we’ve explored a few of the many alleyways of Hanoi and come up with this list for you to enjoy. Here are some suggestions from Piumi Rajapaksha (The Culture Trip‘s contributor)

BANH RAN MAT HANG CHIEU

Banh rat mat is the Vietnamese version of a doughnut, but without the hole in the middle. The cake is made from sticky rice flour, stuffed with steamed mung beans. There is one stall located on Hang Chieu street in the Old Quarter known to sell the best and most authentic version of this cake. You can choose to eat it covered with sugar syrup or honey on top, or even plain if you do not have a sweet tooth – and all of these just for VND$5,000 (USD$0.30)!

XOI CHE BA THIN

Xoi che is a combination of two of Vietnam’s favorite desserts. Xoi is sticky rice, and che is sweet soup. For a small cost of about VND$15,000 (USD$0.80), you will be able to have a magical combination of both at Xoi che Ba Thin. The rice is cooked to perfection and can be mixed with either che ba cot or che hoa cau. Che ba cot is a sweet mixture of sticky rice, brown sugar and ginger. The che hoa cau needs a few more additional ingredients to make: coconut water, mung beans, vanilla extract and pomelo oil. It’s a roller coaster of flavors. For those who prefer less sweetness, go for the che hoa cau. To serve their huge fan base, these guys are open from early morning to late at night.

CHUOI NEP NUONG HANG DUONG

If you haven’t tried Vietnamese grilled banana, then you haven’t had banana at its best. A favorite Vietnamese snack is covering banana with sticky rice and then grilling over charcoal. That’s not all – thick sweet coconut milk is draped all over it. While the dish originated in the south, there is a food stall on Hang Duong street that makes this dish even more delicious than what is found in Ho Chi Minh City by adding coconut meat and peanuts into the mix.

CHE GO TRAN PHU

Vietnamese sweet soups really are a genius invention. At Che Go Tran Phu, you can get your hands on three different kinds: Gang jelly sweet soup, Khuc bach sweet soup, and Aloe vera sweet soup. Grab a tiny stool by the sidewalk and let the sweet soup help you cool off a little.

BANH MI CHAY TRAN HUNG DAO

The food stall at 66B Tran Hung Dao has been selling an all-vegan/vegetarian take on banh mi for a while — stuffed with plenty of healthy greens. Mushrooms, tomatoes, pickles, cucumber, daikon, cilantro, you name it.

TAO PHO NGHIA TAN

Located behind Nghia Tan Secondary School, this stall has been operational for years, constantly attracting a steady crowd of students. While they serve meaty dishes here, the star is their young tofu — a vegan dish. First, sugar and ginger are boiled in water to make the sweet soup. Slices of young tofu are placed in a bowl with the sweet soup added on top along with dried coconut, shredded coconut and peanuts. Other toppings are available such as red beans and mung beans. Avoid the caramel one as it is made from eggs.

BANH TROI TAU PHAM BANG

After taking a five-year hiatus, this stall just opened again recently, and loyal customers have started flocking back for their daily dose of banh troi. There are three dishes served here: banh troi tau (glutinous rice ball soup), chi ma phu (black sesame sweet soup), and luc tao xa (mung bean sweet soup). These are Chinese-influenced dishes that have been loved by the Vietnamese for hundreds of years. The stall is named after the owner, Pham Bang, who unfortunately passed away. The son has now taken over his father’s business.

XOAI, COC, OI DAM

Fruit in Vietnam is to die for! Fresh and juicy, you will find plenty of stalls selling fresh fruit cut up into slices with a dipping sauce. What makes one stall stand out from the other? The quality of the dipping sauce! While the typical mixture only involves salt and chili, variations can be made with fish sauce, shrimp sauce, sugar and other ingredients. At this place, guava, sour mango or ambarella fruit is mixed with salt and chili and another secret ingredient.

KHOAI TAY LOC XOAY TA HIEN

Ta Hien is the infamous backpacker street of Hanoi, akin to Bui Vien in Ho Chi Minh City or Khao San Road in Bangkok. You will find many different choices of food here in the form of street stalls, mom-and-pop stores, and more upscale restaurants.Headover to the entrance of this street and keep jumping from stall to stall until you end up at the one that looks like it’s selling a tornado on a stick. That’s potato. We can’t go into detail about how it’s made because well, we have no idea. But it really does make for a curious and delicious evening snack. They have three different kinds of dipping sauces, mayonnaise, cheese and chili, and obviously you’ll want to go for the latter. A stick will only cost you VND$15,000 (USD$0.80).

XOI XEO CHI MAY

Every morning, if you walk by the T-junction of Hang Bai street and Vong Duc street, you will see a long queue of people waiting for their breakfast order from Xoi xeo chi May. The sticky rice served here is made from three mung bean types prepared in different ways, sticky rice and fried onions. Xoi is a Hanoi favorite breakfast staple and you can find this anywhere, but if anything the queue will indicate that this is the best.

Banks’ liquidity unexpectedly getting tight

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Since the beginning of August, the interbank interest rates have stayed at high levels of 4.5-4.6 percent per annum for overnight, 1-week, 2-week and 1-month term loans, the highest rates since late 2016, Vietnamnet reported.

Interest rate rising sharply

The General Statistics Office’s (GSO) report shows that the total money supply (M2) in the first six months of 2018 increased more rapidly than credit growth.

By June 20, 2018, the credit growth rate of the entire banking system had reached 6.35 percent compared with the end of 2017, or VND413 trillion.

Meanwhile, the M2 had reached 7.96 percent, or VND652 trillion. The figures showed that banks had abundant cash.

However, a lot of ‘strange’ things have happened recently in tier-2 market, where transactions among commercial banks, and between commercial banks and the State Bank occur.

Over the last six weeks, the interbank interest rate has been fluctuating. Since the beginning of August, the interbank interest rate has been hovering around the high level of 4.5 percent per annum.

The fact that the interbank interest rate has remained high over many consecutive weeks reflects the tight liquidity of the banking system, according to Bao Viet Securities (BVSC).

BVSC’s research team affirmed that tension in the interbank market has begun influencing the tier-1 market. The deposit interest rates applied by commercial banks are rising, especially for 6-12 month term deposits. Ban Viet, SHB, Techcombank and Vietbank, for example, have raised interest rates by 0.1-0.3 percent.

Money being withdrawn

What has caused the tight liquidity of the banking system in the last two months, which was quite contrary to the abundance in the first six months of the year?

The State Bank does not update data about the credit and M2 growth rates monthly. However, BVSC noted that the M2 growth has slowed down in the last two months.

The M2 increased sharply in the first six months of the year as a result of the State Bank’s purchase of foreign currencies.

The forex reserves by early May 2018 had reached $63 billion, increasing by $11 billion over the end of 2017. As such, in the first five months of the year, the central bank pumped a large amount of money, estimated at VND250 trillion, to buy $11 billion.

Also according to BVSC, from July 30 to August 28, 2018, the State Bank withdrew VND23.687 trillion through OMO and bonds.

Meanwhile, the dong has not been pumped into circulation to buy foreign currencies since the beginning of Q3. The State Bank even had to sell $2 billion to ease the dong/dollar exchange rate tense, which means that VND46 trillion was withdrawn from circulation.

Analysts commented that SBV’s policy has two purposes – curbing inflation and easing pressure on the exchange rate.

Bamboo Airways – the 3rd budget airline launch in Vietnam

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Government concern over capital and capabilities keeps Bamboo Airways grounded.

Uncertainty surrounds the debut of Vietnam’s third low-cost carrier as authorities continue to mull approval of the airline just a month before its inaugural flight.

Bamboo Airways, part of real estate developer FLC Group, is awaiting its operating license ahead of flights scheduled for October.

Authorities are believed to have doubts about the carrier’s financial fitness and operational capabilities. Still, FLC remains optimistic and plans to begin ticket sales later this month.

At a prelaunch event for the airline in late August, FLC founder and Chairman Trinh Van Quyet said Bamboo Airways is ready to take off after four years of preparation. He said the airline shares similarities with full-service carriers, providing a number of high-quality amenities at low prices.

The carrier is eyeing 24 domestic and 16 international routes by the end of 2023, mainly to destinations where FLC has resorts, including central Vietnam’s Binh Dinh Province and the northern city of Thanh Hoa.

It has already signed a memorandum of understanding for the purchase of 24 Airbus A321 jets, and is expected to buy large aircraft from Boeing, including 787 Dreamliners.

Bamboo Airways was officially established in July. If the operating license is granted, the carrier’s maiden flight will be between Hanoi and Quy Nhon, the capital of Bunh Dinh Province, on Oct. 10.

A website appeared online in August with ticket and promotional information, making it appear that the carrier had already obtained its license. The Ministry of Transport ordered the site taken down, and Bamboo Airways denied involvement.

Observers believe one reason authorities are dragging their feet is the weak creditworthiness of emerging real estate developers like FLC. The company, established in 2008, experienced rapid growth driven by its resort developments. Revenue reached 11.64 trillion dong ($500 million) in 2017, almost a sevenfold increase from 2013.

FLC’s financial base is seen as weak compared to Vingroup — Vietnam’s largest real estate company — which is expanding into automobile manufacturing. FLC is also considered weaker than Vietjet Aviation, which includes a bank among its group members.

In July, Bamboo Airways increased its stated capital to 1.3 trillion dong, nearly double the initially planned 700 billion dong, as if to quell government concerns.

Concern over too much competition in Vietnam’s LCC market is also holding up the license. The country’s airline market, formerly dominated by state-run Vietnam Airlines, underwent a drastic change after Vietjet Aviation debuted in late 2011. By the first half of 2017, the newcomer held 43% of market share, up from just 8% in 2012 and eclipsing Vietnam Airlines’ 42% share.

LCCs have generally been improving their positions. Jetstar Pacific Airlines, the budget carrier of Vietnam Airlines, claims over 10% of market share.

In July 2017, Vietjet tied up with Japan Airlines to operate flights between Hanoi and Japan’s Narita Airport starting in January 2019. The Vietnamese carrier is looking to tap into an expected increase in Japan-bound passengers as Tokyo ramps up efforts to attract foreign workers.

Foreign airlines, like Malaysia’s AirAsia and some Chinese LCCs, are targeting Vietnam, where the airline market has grown more than 20% annually on the back of the country’s growing middle class.

If successful, Bamboo Airways will increase pressure on Vietnam Airlines, heating up competition in the domestic airline market.

According to a report on Nikkei

Viet Film Festival marks decade as largest for Vietnamese filmmakers outside of Vietnam

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A popular local film festival that went on hiatus last year is coming back next month with renewed energy and purpose.

The 10th Viet Film Fest, organized by the Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Assoc., will run Oct. 12-14 at AMC Orange 30 at the Outlets at Orange.

The festival will screen 30 films from around the world — 13 features and 17 shorts. The fest will also present panels, Q&A sessions, opening and closing receptions, an awards ceremony and a free “Youth in Motion” program.

“We want to be a platform to encourage immersion filmmakers,” said festival director Thuy-Van Nguyen. “At the same time, filmmaking is an art in which our voice is heard. When I watch certain movies and see a familiar face, a Vietnamese face, an Asian face, I feel like I can relate to that person. That’s my voice being heard.”

The Viet Film Fest has also become an important platform — the largest outside of Vietnam — for Vietnamese filmmakers to showcase their work, Nguyen said.

“I believe it is an important part of the culture here in Orange County,” Nguyen said.

Organizers, filmmakers and about 240 community members attended a red carpet launch party Sept. 9 at AMC Orange 30. The program included performances by pop singer Diem Lien, keyboardist Uyen Phuong, singer and DJ Kim Thanh and Melione, a Vietnamese American hip hop artist.

“I’m very grateful they asked me to come back,” said Melione, a Garden Grove native who performed for the fest’s last launch party in 2016. “In general, Vietnamese people need more opportunities and more outlets, especially in the entertainment industry. I don’t think we’re represented often or represented well.”

After red carpet arrivals and some opening comments and performances, the festival presented a video introducing the 2018 lineup to the audience, which was comprised mostly of Vietnamese Americans. Opening the festival on Oct. 12 will be “Summer in Closed Eyes,” directed by Cao Thuy Nhi, a cross-cultural love story set in Hokkaido, Japan.

Tuan Andrew Nguyen’s “The Island,” screening Oct. 13, was shot entirely in Pulau Bidong, the largest and longest-running refugee camp after the Vietnam War.

“Actress Wanted,” directed by Minh Duc Nguyen, was filmed completely in Orange County. It’s a domestic thriller that will make its world premiere Oct. 13 during the festival.

Other highlights include a retrospective presentation of “The Purple Horizon,” originally released in 1971; screenings of the Vietnamese box-office hits “The Girl From Yesterday,” “100 Days of Sunshine” and “Go Go Sisters”; “Farewell Halong,” the fest’s sole documentary feature, a German production spotlighting the displacement of Ha Long Bay villagers by the Vietnamese government; and “The Way Station,” directed by popular Vietnamese actress Pham Thi Hong Anh. She will be present at the Oct. 14 screening.

“Hanh, Solo” on Oct. 13 will showcase the Vietnamese American millennial voice. Star, producer and co-writer Hanh Nguyen will attend the comedy screening.

On Oct. 14, the fest will present “Kiss and Spell,” a film and program honoring the late Stephane Gauger, an Orange County filmmaker and graduate of Cal State Fullerton who died in January after suffering a stroke at 48. “Kiss and Spell” was his final feature.

Closing the festival at 7 p.m. Oct. 14 will be “Murder in the Lens,” in the rare-for-Vietnam genre of crime-thriller and film noir.

This year, more than 50% of the films at the Viet Film Fest were either directed or produced by women. Organizers say this reflects the ongoing momentum of the #MeToo, #OscarsSoWhite and Time’s Up movements.

The festival started in 2003 as the biennial Vietnamese International Film Festival. In 2013, the event switched to an annual format, presenting works by Vietnamese filmmakers every April. After skipping 2017 to regroup and re-organize, the Viet Film Fest was moved to October.

“We were competing with too many other events in April,” said Ysa Le, executive director of VAALA. “It was also hard to schedule events for students during spring break.”

Tickets for the film fest are $13 for general admission, $11 for students and seniors, and $15 for opening or closing nights. Admission to the opening or closing parties is $50. An all-access badge is $250.

According to a report on LAtimes

Grab and Go-Jek begin race for regional dominance in Vietnam

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Rivals up their games as ride-hailing and related services grow in Southeast Asia.

The fierce competition between Southeast Asia’s leading ride-hailing service Grab and its Indonesian rival Go-Jek is set to explode across borders as the latter rolls into Vietnam with plans for further regional expansion.

Go-Jek, whose services were until recently confined to Indonesia, on Wednesday announced its full launch in Vietnam. It now offers motorbike ride-hailing and courier services in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the country’s two largest metropolitan areas.

Operating through its local partner Go-Viet, the Indonesian company is challenging Singapore-based Grab’s dominance in Southeast Asia’s fastest growing economy, which is already home to more than a dozen small local ride-hailing players.

While Grab operates under one brand in eight Southeast Asian nations, Go-Jek chose to go local, using the Go-Viet brand for its Vietnamese operations — a decision made after “massive debate” conducted within the company, according to Go-Jek founder and CEO Nadiem Makarim.

The name Go-Jek derives from the Indonesian word for the country’s ubiquitous motorbike taxis, “ojek.” While that has made for a “powerful and sticky” brand in Indonesia, Makarim thought it would not resonate in the Vietnamese market. Hence, Go-Viet was chosen, along with a red jacket emblazoned with a star for drivers’ uniforms — a look that mirrors the national flag.

“Our principle is consumer first,” Makarim said in an interview with the Nikkei Asian Review on Wednesday. “And if consumers will embrace a brand that they think as their own, and it’s special and it’s part of their identity like Go-Viet, then that’s even better.”

Go-Jek has chosen to brand its services as Get in Thailand, a market it will soon enter. “Let’s give each country the ability to not only determine their own destiny, but also determine their own identity,” the CEO said.

Makarim claims that the brand is already working, saying that Go-Viet has grabbed 35% of the market for two-wheeled ride hailing in Ho Chi Minh City — the country’s business and financial hub — following its soft launch there less than two months ago. The app has been downloaded 1.5 million times.

But Makarim admitted that interoperability is not yet available for Go-Jek and Go-Viet users, who must download two different apps to use the services in Indonesia and Vietnam. This puts it at a disadvantage to Grab’s single app, which can be used across borders.

Nevertheless, partnering with Go-Viet — established in March — is expected to give Go-Jek more freedom to expand in the country. Go-Viet co-founder and CEO Nguyen Vu Duc said the company is planning to offer additional services that are currently available only to Indonesian users, with car hailing, food delivery and mobile wallet Go-Pay at the top of the list.

“We also will provide Go-shopping, on-site cleaners and beauticians in your home,” Nguyen said. “All of these will be rolled out in Vietnam based on market demand.”

Meanwhile Grab, currently available in 36 Vietnamese cities, has been facing regulatory hurdles to further expansion after assuming the operations of rival Uber, which exited Southeast Asia in April.

Uber’s legacy in Vietnam still lingers, however, with some former Uber executives having joined Go-Viet, including Nguyen. Go-Viet is also attractting former Uber drivers and customers.

Thanh Hung, once an Uber driver in Ho Chi Minh City, said he originally tried to work with Grab following Uber’s departure, but was turned off by the working style. “After Go-Viet launched in Vietnam, I registered to work with them,” he said. “I’m happy, and many other ex-Uber drivers are also working for Go-Viet thanks to the company’s good driver policies,” saying that these include a better commission.

Former Uber customer Lan Huong said she loved the Uber app. “After Go-Viet launched, I tried [their app] and saw the company as a good alternative, as their fares are still cheap,” she explained. “But more importantly, some Go-Viet [drivers] told me that a lot of ex-Uber drivers are now with Go-Viet, so they are supposed to provide the same services.”

Go-Jek’s arrival appears to be pushing Grab to improve its Vietnamese operations. The company is reportedly offering drivers better incentives and launched food delivery in May — the same month that Go-Jek announced its $500 million expansion plans to Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines.

Moreover, on Tuesday, just a day before Go-Viet’s official full launch, Grab announced a “strategic partnership” with Hanoi-based digital payment service provider Moca “to expand mobile payments more rapidly across the country.”

Makarim, who was friends with Grab co-founder and CEO Anthony Tan while both were at Harvard University in the U.S., said that while the “fierce” competition makes it hard to turn a profit in ride-hailing, it has a good side: spurring innovation.

“If it wasn’t for our competition, Go-Jek would not be as motivated to innovate and get this big,” Makarim said. “So really, we’re growing markets together,” explaining that the market is huge and that “the most important thing is actually converting people to the new way of doing things.”

Go-Jek is reportedly making profits from its other services, but not ride-hailing.

Prior to the announcement of the Go-Viet partnership, Go-Jek claimed 105 million downloads of its app in Indonesia and had 1 million drivers operating in 144 cities and districts.

Grab claims 8 million drivers and agents in 234 cities across Southeast Asia and 109 million app downloads.

In response to the new competition, a Grab spokesperson said: “We have not seen our market share fall in Ho Chi Minh City since the start of August. In Vietnam, our business continues to grow tremendously. Transport is displaying strong month-on-month growth while our new verticals, such as food and parcel delivery, are growing robustly.”

“We welcome competition in the market … When done right, competition betters the market,” the spokesperson added.

According to a report on Nikkei

The new iPhone XR six available colors, which one should you buy

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Apple just unveiled three new iPhones, including a 6.1-inch iPhone called the iPhone XR.

While the other two new phones, the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, will be available this month starting September 21, the iPhone Xr won’t be available for awhile – it starts shipping October 26, with preorders going live a week before that.

Among the many other standout features in the iPhone XR, most notable are its colors. It’s reminiscent of the iPhone 5C, the ceramic candy-colored phone that was a more affordable version of the iPhone 5S when it went on sale back in 2013.

The iPhone XR will be available in six colors when it becomes available. And since all opinions should be taken as facts, here’s our definitive ranking of the six new colors, from worst to best:

6. Blue

5. Yellow

4. Red

3. Black

2. White

1. Coral

According to a report on Businessinsider

Will China use Vietnamese origin to export woodwork to US?

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The massive arrival of Chinese enterprises to Vietnam to set up woodwork processing workshops has raised concern that China may exploit Vietnamese origin to export products to the US and avoid high taxes.

Thanh Nien quoted Tran Viet Tien, director of Lavanto Home Décor, as saying that if China counterfeits Vietnamese origin to export products to the US, this will badly affect Vietnam’s exports to the US and the Vietnam brand. The US is a big export market for Vietnam.

China is a big woodwork supplier to the US market. The US decision to raise tax on woodwork imports from China will lead to higher prices of woodwork products and lower purchasing demand.

The high growth rate in woodwork exports from Vietnam to the US will bring adverse effects in the long term because the US may set up technical and tariff barriers to restrict imports.

The US is a big export market for Vietnam and any changes will be ‘dangerous’ for Vietnam.

An analyst said if China wants to counterfeit Vietnamese origin, it may set up processing workshops in northern provinces in Vietnam to take full advantage of the cheap labor force here.

Meanwhile, Nguyen Chien Thang, chair of Scansia Pacific in Dong Nai province, thinks that it would be more difficult to counterfeit the Vietnamese origin for woodwork, because the products are cumbersome and require high transportation fees.

However, he said small Chinese enterprises may come to Vietnam and open workshops under Vietnamese names. If so, the domestic woodwork industry will be affected.

In principle, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the US imposition of high taxes on Chinese woodwork products will bring great opportunities to Vietnam.

Thang said the number of US clients showing interest in Vietnam’s woodwork products has begun to increase. It is understandable: they want to find alternative suppliers.

However, Thang doesn’t think it will be easy for Vietnamese manufacturers to exploit the US market, because the number of US companies investing in Vietnam is relatively high.

In order to increase exports to the US, analysts said, Vietnam need control material imports. Vietnam has to import 20-30 percent of materials it needs in 2018 and following years.

In 2017, Vietnam imported $363 million worth of materials from China, an increase of 27 percent over the year before. The use of Chinese materials means that Vietnam’s products will bear high tax.

Meanwhile, the other big material suppliers for Vietnam tend to tighten their wood exports.

Steel manufacturers have also voiced concern about the possibility of Chinese enterprises counterfeiting Vietnamese origin to export products to the US.

Thanh Lich report on VNN

H&M, Zara earn big money in Vietnam

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H&M has been open in Vietnam for one year, while Zara celebrated its two-year presence in Vietnam recently. Both fashion brands have prospered here thanks to the number of Vietnamese fashion fans.

H&M collects VND1.8 billion a day

H&M’s 2017 finance report showed that its newly opened markets, including Vietnam, brought good profits. In the last three months of 2017, the fashion brand earned VND179 billion in Vietnam.

The business has been gong smoothly this year with revenue of VND176 billion in the first quarter and VND148 billion in the second quarter, or VND1.8 billion a day.

Most recently, H&M announced the opening of two new shops, slated for September 8. The shops will be located at Vincom Nguyen Chi Thanh in Hanoi and Crescent Mall in HCMC.

If counting the two new shops, H&M has six shops in Vietnam with three each in large cities of Hanoi and HCMC. Vietnam is witnessing the most rapid network expansion among H&M markets.

One year ago, when the Swedish brand opened the first shop in HCMC, thousands of young people were seen queuing at the shops.

Fredrik Famm, CEO of H&M Southeast Asia, commented that being a young and developing market, Vietnam has made a great contribution to H&M growth in the region.

Zara earns VND5.3 billion a day

Having fewer shops in Vietnam, Zara earns three times more than H&M, about VND5.3 billion a day.

Zara’s shops in Vietnam are under the management of Inditex’s partner in Indonesia – Mitra Adiperkasa (MAP).

MAP set up Mitra Adiperkasa Vietnam to run Zara and three other legal entities to sell products at Pull & Bear, Stradivarius and Massimo Dutti in Vietnam.

In 2017, according to MAP, with the opening of new Pull & Bear, Stradivarius and Massimo Dutti in September and Zara in Hanoi in November, the total revenue of the entire Mitra Adiperkasa in Vietnam soared to VND1.1 trillion.

In the first half of 2018, MAP Vietnam’s revenue continued to increase by 133 percent compared with the same period last year to VND950 billion.

MAP does not report the revenue for every brand, but analysts believe that most revenue is from Zara.

Having fewer shops than H&M, every Zara shop seems to have better business results than H&M. The Spanish brand has not made any announcement about its expansion plan in Vietnam.

Kim Chi report on VNN

Americans lead visits to world’s largest cave in Vietnam

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Americans have comprised the largest continent of visitors to the Son Doong Cave in 2018.
Of 873 visitors who have joined the restricted tours to explore Son Doong, the world’s largest natural cave, in the first eight months of the year, 290 were Americans.

Vietnamese were next with 154, followed by Australians with 76, according to Oxalis, the travel agency that has exclusive rights to host the tour.

Oxalis said the Son Doong cave will be closed to tourists from September until the year-end to allow for restoration of cave ecosystem.

The four-month closure of the cave aims to minimize impacts on the cave’s ecosystem including its flora and fauna. It also aims to minimize water pollution inside the cave.

Tours to the largest cave in the world has reduced its original duration of six days and five nights to four days and three nights, and the number of tourists allowed to take them has been doubled.

Son Doong, part of the Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park in central Vietnam, has hogged the international spotlight since its opened to tourists in 2013.

The New York Times has named it among the world’s top eight travel destinations, while the National Geographic has it a “natural wonder” in Asia.

The cave opened to tourists in 2013, four years after members of the British Cave Research Association finished their exploration and declared it the world’s largest.

Local resident Ho Khanh first discovered the cave in 1991, and rediscovered it almost 20 years later, opening it up for exploration.

Oxalis is now the only company licensed to bring tourists through Son Doong. A four-day expedition costs $3,000, and there are bus routes running from Hanoi to Dong Hoi, the capital town of Quang Binh, and then to the park.

Quang Binh Province government recently has raised the limit for number of tourists allowed to visit the cave from 640 to 900.

The province has over the past years proposed several developments, including a cable car system to boost tourism in the area, but these have met with strong opposition from environmentalists and the public.

Nguyen Quy report on Vnexpress

Updated Apple system takes on smartphone addiction

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Apple’s polished iPhone line-up comes with tools to help users dial back their smartphone obsessions, amid growing concerns over “addiction” and harmful effects on children.

An iOS 12 mobile operating system that will power new iPhones unveiled on Wednesday (Sep 12), and be pushed out as an update to prior models, has new features to reduce how much they distract people from the real world.

Apple senior vice president of software engineering Craig Federighi said of iOS 12 at a developers conference earlier this year the new system offers “detailed information and tools” to help users and parents keep tabs on device use.

A new “Screen Time” tool generates activity reports showing how often people pick up their iPhones or iPads, how long they spend in apps or at websites, and numbers of notifications received.

Users will be able to set limits on time spent in apps. Parents will be able to get activity reports from their children’s iPhones or iPads, and impose time limits on apps from games and news to social media and messaging.

The operating system will also allow people to designate “down time” when iPhones or iPads can’t be used – perhaps a child’s bedtime or a grown-up’s meditation hour.

Activist investor Jana Partners and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), which both have stakes in Apple, early this year called on the company to give parents more tools to ensure children are using its devices in ways that aren’t hurting them.

The investors reasoned that doing so would pose no threat to Apple, because the company makes the bulk of its money selling devices, not from how much people use them.

Apple has been working to ramp up revenue from services and digital content such as music and movies, but most of the cash it takes in comes from iPhone sales.

The letter cited a growing body of evidence that excessive smartphone use may be having negative consequences on young people.

A study of teachers found the vast majority felt smartphones were a growing distraction at schools, eroding the ability of students to focus in class and a seeming cause of social and emotional difficulties.

Source: AFP

Dog meat trading to be banned in central Hanoi by 2021

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Dog meat selling will be banned in the inner districts of Hanoi from 2021 according to the local Department of Animal Health.

Speaking with the Lao Dong Newspaper on Wednesday, director of the Department of Animal Health, Nguyen Ngoc Son, said that the city now has 1,013 restaurants selling dog and cat meat and 15 shops selling the animals as domesticated pets.

“Following a direction from the city’s People’s Committee to call on residents to ease off eating dog meat, we are building a plan to gradually phase out the slaughtering and trading of dog meat,” Son said. “By 2021 there will be no dog meat restaurants in the city centre.”

The Hanoi People’s Committee on Tuesday issued a statement urging local districts authorities to widely send warnings to residents about the risks of spreading diseases including rabies, cholera and spirillosis caused by eating dog and cat meat.

The committee also said that the trading and slaughtering of dogs and cats have badly affected the image of Hanoi.

Therefore the city officials hope that the popularity of eating dogs and cats would decline.
The call has attracted lots of attention from the public many of whom support the city government.

“That’s a good thing that integration brings to us,” a reader commented on an article about the news on Dantri Newspaper. “We see how animals, especially pet dogs and cats are treated by our foreign friends and we’ve realised that they deserve better treatment.”

However, many dog and cat meat lovers have considered the call ridiculous. They said that dogs and cats are just like pigs and cows, and that dog meat is a traditional dish and there was no point in giving it up.

Roasted, boiled or steamed, dog meat is regularly served in Hanoi.

According to the committee, there are now about 493,000 dogs and cats in the city, the vast majority of which are kept as domesticated pets.

Three people have died from rabies in Hanoi since the beginning of this year, and two others were confirmed infected with the disease, according to official figures.

Source: Dtrinews

Vntrip travel app merges with cheap ticketing platform Atadi.vn

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Vietnamese online travel agency Vntrip.vn has announced that it has completed the merger of Atadi.vn, one of the leading providers of cheap airfares in the country, according to an official release.

The move comes shortly after the online travel app raised its third round of funding from Switzerland’s IHAG Holding which saw its valuation go up to $45 million in August.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed but Vntrip CEO Le Dac Lam told DEALSTREETASIA in an interaction that the value of the deal is in the seven-digit-dollar range.

“Our goal is acquiring the best local players to create a domestic travel giant that can dominate the Online Travel Agent (OTA) sector,” he said.

Atadi.vn, one of the first low-cost ticket hunting website in Vietnam, is known as “cheap ticket supermarket” that allows users to search, compare and book tickets from multiple airlines on the same interface. The company targets a gross merchandise value of VND500 billion ($21 million) this year.

Vntrip.vn, which launched in late 2014 and was operational in early 2016, is one of the largest website booking system for hotels in Vietnam. It has a network of more than 8,000 hotels in Vietnam and over 1 million hotels in 200 other countries.

To date, Vntrip.vn has built itself a network of over 11,000 hotels across the country.

Vntrip raised $3 million in a series A funding from a small consortium of overseas investors led by former Alibaba veteran John Wu in 2016. The online travel agency also secured an undisclosed investment from Hendale Capital, a Hong Kong-based late-stage investment firm in 2017.

Prior to Vntrip.vn, several booking and tourism startups from Vietnam have raised venture capital funding in the past year. Vietnam’s Triip in April announced that it raised an undisclosed sum of funding from Japanese strategic investor Gaiax and individual investor Nguyen Duy.

According to a report on Dealstreetasia