Following global increases, local gold price on Monday hit another record high of VND30.07 million per tael but slid down by the end of the day and stayed at VND30.04 million tael, increasing VND140,000 from last Saturday.

The price was quoted by Saigon Jewelry Co. (SJC) which had to change gold prices seven times during the day. Meanwhile, gold shops around Tan Dinh and Ben Thanh Markets quoted gold price around SJC's price with the highest level of VND30.1 million per tael. A tael equals to 1.2 troy ounces.

SJC's sales department said that the company's sales increased as many people believed that gold price would continue rising. The company sold about 2,000 taels on Monday.

Gold price traded on European market by 4:30 p.m. on Monday hit the record high of VND1,283.9 an ounce, increasing US$5.5 from the previous day.

Consumer price index leaps 1.31% in September CHỉ số giá tiêu dùng

Tăng 1.31 % trong tháng 9

HA NOI - The consumer price index in September soared dramatically by 1.31 per cent over last month, a leap that was three times greater than forecasts by the Market Watch Team.

The CPI rise sparked concerns that the year would end with a high annual inflation rate.

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Do Thi Ngoc, an expert from the General Statistics Office, said the high increase in CPI this month was part of a trend in annual cyclical inflation fluctuations in Viet Nam. On aggregate, the CPI rose 8.92 per cent over the last 12 months, and 8.64 per cent in comparison with the first nine months of last year.

Ngoc said two of the reasons for the strong increase in CPI during September were a rise of 2.32 per cent in food prices and a hike of 12.02 per cent in education services, while school fees increased by three to four times in 36 cities and provinces.

Another reason was an increase of 2.1 per cent in the depreciation of the Vietnamese dong compared to the US dollar, which in turn, hit a series of imported products, including construction steel, fuel and gasoline. In addition, outbreaks of blue-ear pig disease also caused food and meat prices to soar

A long National holiday spurred consumption and domestic tourism, a sector that saw price rises of nearly 0.8 per cent in food and restaurant services. .

Gold saw a robust increase of 3.58 per cent in price this month, a rise of 37.39 per cent in comparison with the same period last year. Meanwhile, the US dollar increased 1.61 and 7.08 per cent, respectively. Only post and telecommunications groups saw a decline in prices of 0.07 per cent this month.

Several provinces saw a high CPI, including Khanh Hoa (2.79 per cent); Thua Thien-Hue (1.89 per cent) and Can Tho (2.97 per cent). The GSO's experts also predicted that from now until the end of the year, the CPI will fluctuate due to increases in essential commodities prices, a continuous depreciation of the Vietnamese dong compared to the US dollar and price hikes for input materials for production and import products. Also, consumption will soar next month during celebrations of 1,000 years since the foundation of Ha Noi, along with Christmas and the new year. Therefore, CPI for the year will likely be higher than 8.5 per cent. CPI rises in major cities

The city's CPI in September rose 7.59 per cent compared to the same month last year. Since the beginning of the year, the CPI has increased 5.54 per cent. Từ đầu năm, chỉ số giá tiêu dùng đã tăng 5.54 %

September was also the only month of the year that the prices of all 11 commodity groups in the price basket increased against last month. Of the 11 commodity groups, the education category saw the highest increase of 5.57 per cent as September is the traditional start of the new school year. Most schools have raised tuition fees for the new school year.

The culture-sports-entertainment sector had the second-highest increase with 1.51 per cent, followed by the transport with 1.13 per cent. Meanwhile, the CPI in Ha Noi also increased by 0.96 per cent compared to last month, according to the Ha Noi Statistics Office. Ha Noi's CPI in September increased by 9.05 per cent compared to the same period last year. In September, gold prices were up 3.57 per cent over last month and the US dollar rose by 1.35 per cent against the Vietnamese dong. Dr Tran Hoang Ngan, deputy rector of the University of Economics in HCM City, said that if the trade deficit was not managed more effectively, the time period between the rise of the US dollar against the Vietnamese dong would eventually become shorter, affecting macroeconomic stability, production and trade. - VNS .

Chỉ số giá tiêu dùng tăng đột biến 1.31% trong tháng vừa qua, tăng gấp 3 lần so với dự đoán của nhóm nghiên cứu thị trường. CPI soar dramatically by 1.31% over the last month, increasing 3 times as the expectation of market research group A leap that was three times greater than forecasts by the Market Watch Team

Chỉ số giá tiêu dùng đã khơi gợi mối lo ngại rằng năm nay sẽ kết thúc với tỉ lệ lạm phát cao CPI has sparked concerns that the year would end with high inflation ratio

Theo bà Do Thi Ngoc, một chuyên gia từ tổng cục thống kê, việc tăng chỉ số giá tiêu dùng trong tháng là do xu hướng việc chênh lệc do lạm phát có tính tuần hoàn hàng năm ở việt nam. According to DTN, an expert from Genaral statics office, Cpi increases due to the inflation in Viet nam said the high increase in CPI this month was part of a trend in annual cyclical inflation fluctuations in Viet Nam

Tính tổng cộng, chỉ số giá tiêu dùng tăng 8.92% trong 12 tháng vừa qua và 8.64% so với 9 tháng đầu năm trước On aggregate, CPI increase 8.92% over the last twelve months and 8.64% in comparison with the first 9 months of last year

Theo bà Ngọc, 2 lý do chính dẫn đến sự tnawg trưởng mạnh mẽ Cpi trong tháng 8 là việc tăng 2,32% giá cả lương thực và 12.02 % trong các dịch vụ giáo dục trong khi học phí tăng 3 đến 4 lần trong 36 thành phố và tỉnh thành.

Một lý do nữa là việc tăng 2,1 % do sự sụt giá của đồng việt nam so với đồng USD, điều này đồng thời dẫn đến việc tăng một loạt các sản phẩm nhập khẩu bao gồm thép xây dựng, chất đốt và khí ga

Thêm vào đó, việc bùng nổ dịch lợn tai xanh cũng đồng thời đấy giá thịt và thức ăn lên cao

Dịp nghỉ lễ quốc gia dài đã kích thích tiêu dùng và du lịch trong nước, lĩnh vực làm tăng 0.8% dịch vụ nàh hàng và thực phẩm

Giá vàng cũng tăng mạnh mẽ 3.58% về giá trong tháng này, tăng 37.39% so với cùng kì năm ngoái. Trong khi đó , giá đô la mĩ tăng 1,61 % và 7.08% tương ứng

Chỉ có nhóm ngành bưu chính viễn thôn là giảm giá 0,07% tháng này

Một vài tỉnh có chỉ số giá tiêu dùng cao là Khánh Hòa, Huế và cần thơ

Các chuyên gia từ tổng cụ thống kê cũng dự đoán từ đây cho đến cuối năm chỉ số giá tiêu dùng sẽ dao động do giá các mặt hàng cần thiết tăng, sự sụt giá liên tiếp của đồng Việt nam so với đo la mỹ và việc tăng giá đối với các vật liệu đầu vòa cho sản xuất và các sản phẩm nhập khẩu

Đồng thời, Chỉ số giá tiêu dùng sẽ tăng vào tháng tới trong suốt đại lễ nghìn năm Hà nội cùng với Noel và năm mới. Do vậy chỉ số giá tiêu dùng có khả năng sẽ tăng hơn 8.5 %.

Theo cục thống kê thành phố, Chỉ số giá tiêu dùng tăng 0.97 % so với tháng trước sau 2 tháng sụt giảm liên tiếp

Chỉ số giá tiêu dùng thành phố trong tháng 9 tăng 7.59 % so với tháng 9 năm ngoái Chỉ số giá tiêu dùng ở những thành phố lớn

Tháng 9 cũng đồng thời là tháng duy nhất trong năm mà giá của 11 nhóm hàng tăng so với tháng trước.

Trong số 11 nhóm hàng, nhóm giáo dục có mức tăng cao nhất, 5.57 % vì tháng 9 là thnags bắt đầu năm học mới theo thông lệ

LĨnh vực văn hóa thể thao giải trí có mức tăng cao thứ 2, 1,51% .tiếp đến là giao thông vận tải với 1.13%

Trong khi đó, chỉ số tiêu dùng Hà nội cũng tăng 0.96% so với thnags trước theo cục thống kê hà nội.

CPI HN trong tháng 9 tăng 9.05% so với cũng kì năm ngoái

Trong tháng 9, giá vành tăng 3.57 % so với tháng trước và giá US tăng 1.35% so với Vietnam dong

Theo tiến sĩ Đ hhn, hiệu phó tường đại học kt HCM, nếu thâm hụt thương mại hok đc kiểm soát 1 cách có hiệu quả, thời gian tăng giá usd so với VN đồng sẽ bị rút ngắn ảnh hưởng đến ổn định kt vĩ mô,sản cuất và thương mại

ietNamNet Bridge - Concerns about the high trade deficit have not eased, though the ratio of trade deficit on total export revenue in the first nine months of 2010 was only 16.7.

hi Dang Minh, Deputy Director of the Foreign Exchange Management Department under the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), stated frankly that though the trade deficit in the first nine months was just equal to 16.7 percent of the export revenue, the trade deficit was still very high in absolute value, up 19.8 percent over the same period of 2009.

"The value of the trade deficit has stayed above $10 billion in the last few years, which has put pressure on the balance of payments, exchange rate and inflation as well," Minh explained.

Economists have also pointed out that the current situation is really worrying. After two years of bearing the global economic crisis, Vietnam's foreign currency reserves have decreased. The deficit of the general balance of payments was $8.8 billion last year, when it was expected to be only four billion dollars. The general balance of payments will reach a surplus of $500 million by 2011, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

Sharing the same view, at a recent meeting with enterprises, Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dang Huy Dong admitted that $8.6 billion worth of trade deficit was a relatively high figure.

If not counting gold exports, the trade deficit of Vietnam in the first nine months would be about $11.4 billion, an increase of 15.7 percent over the same period of 2009, and equal to 23.3 percent of the total export revenue.

Commenting on these figures, the General Statistics Office (GSO) noted that in the first nine months, the rapid growth of exports over imports and the policy on tightening imports and encouraging the consumption of domestically-made goods have helped to reduce the trade deficit.

However, GSO warned that the factors that help curb trade deficit are not solid. Additionally, import turnover tends to rise at the end of the year and the weaker dollar may lead to increases in the trade deficit.

While the trade deficit tended to drop over the last few months, analysts have remarked that the downward trend "cannot say anything." They believe that the trade deficit in 2010 would stay high, though it may not exceed the safety line of 20 percent of export revenue.

GSO has forecast that the trade deficit in 2010 would be $12.5-13 billion, or 18-19 percent of total export revenue. Meanwhile, reporting before the National Assembly's Standing Committee several days ago, the Government admitted the trade deficit would be $13.5 billion, or 19.8 percent of total export revenue.

The draft plan on socio-economic development for 2011 by the Ministry of Planning and Investment predicts that the trade deficit will still be high at $14.6 billion, or 19.5 percent of total export revenue.

In the five-year development plan for 2011-2015, the average trade deficit is estimated at $13 billion per annum. However, thanks to the expected sharp export increases, the ratio of trade deficit on export revenue would be only 15 percent. As planned, Vietnam would import $130 billion worth of goods by 2015 and export $120 billion worth of goods, which means the trade deficit of $10 billion, or 8.3 percent of export revenue by that year.

As such, at least for the next five years, Vietnam will still have to "live with" the trade deficit.

Analysts say that it is understandable why trade deficit is always a part of developing economies like Vietnam, however, it is necessary to reconsider the structure of imports.

GSO observed that import revenue from input materials and equipment for production in the first nine months of 2010 accounted for the biggest proportion, at 91 percent. This shows that, to curb its trade deficit, Vietnam needs to develop supporting industries that can make the components and accessories that enterprises now must import.

talian investors keen on Vietnam's infrastructure

Italian enterprises are interested in infrastructure investment in form of public-private partnership (PPP) model in Vietnam , especially in developing highways.

At a workshop on developing infrastructure in Vietnam held on Oct. 4 in Hanoi , Italian Ambassador to Vietnam Andrea Perguni said the PPP model has been successfully applied in his country and the embassy has introduced several projects in Vietnam to Italian enterprises.

According to Counsellor Marco Saladini of the Italian Trade Commission, Italy is experienced in building infrastructure facilities as the country has 5,000 km of highways mostly built in the form of PPP.

Italian investors are interested in building underground car parks, highway and power projects in Vietnam, he said at the workshop, which was jointly organised by the Ministries of Planning and Investment and Transport, and the Italian Trade Commission.

However, he expressed concerns about shortcomings in the current tender process in Vietnam , saying most major Vietnamese enterprises still enjoy State support in infrastructure development.

Statistics released by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) showed that the capital flow into infrastructure development in Vietnam between 2006-2010 was estimated at 140 billion USD, a modest amount compared to the real needs of transport, energy and environment projects. Therefore, there are many investment chances for investors in the PPP form.

The country will need to build 3,000-5,000 km of highways, 300-400 km of metro lines in the next 10 years, requiring hundreds of billions of USD.

However, the State budget, government bonds and ODA will be able to meet only half of the demand, therefore, it is necessary to attract private-sector and FDI capital, according to ADB.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Dang Huy Dong said Vietnam gives top priority to infrastructure investment and is implementing pilot PPP investment to attract capital from the private sector.

A representative from the Transport Ministry said that several transport projects, including the upgrading of National Highway No. 1, Ha Noi-Lao Cai railway and Phnom Penh-Ho Chi Minh City highway are being implemented by using FDI and PPP capital.

Vietnam is calling for PPP and FDI capital in such highway projects as Da Nang-Quang Ngai, My Thuan-Can Tho, Noi Bai-Ha Long, Dau Giay-Da Lat and Ben Luc-Long Thanh, and other transport projects, including Hai Phong international port and HCM City-Can Tho express railway.

Foreign firms look to raise city investment

Small- and medium-sized foreign firms in HCM City are looking to increase their capital because they see potential for expansion and growth.

The Dau Tu (Vietnam Investment Review) newspaper quotes the HCM City Department of Planning and Investment as saying 65 FDI projects operating in the City have raised their investment capital to 168.9 million USD in the first nine months of this year.

These projects are mainly in the manufacturing, industrial, service and retail sectors.

Fastfood chain Lotteria Vietnam Ltd Co has decided to invest an additional 7 million USD to expand its chain, while sporting goods manufacturer Adidas Vietnam has decided to raise its investment by a million dollars to 3.9 million USD.

Retailer Giant South Asia has poured an additional 15 million USD into its distribution network and warehouses, raising its total investment capital to 20 million USD.

Lu Thanh Phong, DPI deputy director, said FDI businesses in the city had, compared to previous years, increased investments in manufacturing, processing and industrial production over the last two years.

Nguyen Tan Phuoc, deputy head of HCM City Export Processing and Industrial Park Authority, said the capital increase showed trust in the market's development potential and stability.

Yuki Vietnam Ltd, a company that produces industrial sewing machinery, has invested an additional 5 million USD this year, bringing its total investment capital to 20 million USD. This is the third time it has increased its capital investment in the city.

Tsunoda Shinji, general director of the company, said the increase in capital aimed to expand its domestic market share, instead of focusing on exports. Currently, the company earns 16 million USD per year from the domestic market, and it aims to increase this to 24-26 million USD a year in the near future.

A representative of Australia 's RMIT University said it had invested more than 15.1 million USD to build a dormitory for its students in Vietnam .

Merilyn Liddell, director of RMIT Vietnam, said the investment aimed to expand the school area by 2013 to meet rising demand for international standard education in Vietnam .

However, many FDI businesses had also complained that they were hampered by the lack of skilled workers, and were having to provide the needed training by themselves, the newspaper reported.

Cement makers hit by coal shortages

Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation (Vicem)'s member companies need more coal to produce cement, officials from the group have said.

Le Van Chung, chairman of the corporation's management board, said cement factories at the corporation's member companies needed 5,000 tonnes of coal a day for production, but the Vietnam Coal and Mineral Industry Group (Vinacomin) provided half of their demand at 2,500-3,000 tonnes per day.

"We had to halt operations temporarily, and if we don't receive an adequate supply of coal in the coming days, many Vicem factories will stop production," Chung said.

Factories in Hoang Thach, But Son, Bim Son, Tam Diep, Hoang Mai, Hai Phong and Ha Tien are experiencing coal shortages.

Hoang Thach Cement Company director Dao Ngoc Binh said his company had three kilns that consume 1,200 tonnes of coal, but the company had to stop using one kiln on September 27 due to a lack of coal.

The company has about 600 tonnes of coal in stock, which is not enough to keep the remaining two kilns operational, Binh said.

Cement producers But Son, Bim Son, Tam Diep and Hoang Mai have between 5,000-10,000 tonnes of coal for production for the next 5-15 days.

The factories acted on their initiative to get more coal for their production, but at the moment, the member companies within Vinacomin did not have enough coal to sell to cement factories, Chung said.

Vicem estimated that the cement industry needed 4 million tonnes of coal to supply the factories for the remainder of the year, he said.

High gold price fails to deter shoppers

Demand for gold jewellery on the domestic market has not significantly changed despite the fact that the cost of gold has climbed to its highest ever level, according to industry experts.

"In recent days, we have had a large number of customers across the country, " said General Director of Bao Tin Minh Chau Joint Stock Company Vu Minh Chau.

Chau added that as the wedding season approached, his company had seen no change in customer volume.

Sai Gon Jewellery Holdings Company (SJC) reported business had remained unchanged.

"The number of people buying wedding jewellery still remains high. However, the number of customers shopping for everyday jewellery is down 20 percent," said Tran Thi Ngoc Suong, head of SJC's Jewellery Department.

To maintain customer volume, gold companies have designed a variety of new products comprising less gold.

"Our company has introduced many new products. We cut down the gold weight so that more customers can afford them," said Chau.

He added that with only about 1 million VND (52 USD), customers could buy a wedding ring.

"We use modern technology, which helps us produce light weight gold jewellery," he added.

The company has also organised a number of discount promotional programmes.

These new methods seem to be working for the gold companies, attracting large numbers of mid-income earners.

"It is a clever choice to buy cheaper wedding jewellery with good design when the gold price is so high," said Van Anh, a customer.

The price of gold on the domestic market has significantly increased. Yesterday afternoon, it climbed to 31.64 million VND (1.600 USD) per tael (1.2 troy ounces).

Free trade advantages for Vietnam, RoK firms

RoK Ambassador in Vietnam Park Suk-hwan has urged businesses of both countries to take advantage of preferences from the ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Agreement (AKFTA).

He stressed the important role of AKFTA in expanding trade and economic cooperation between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea (RoK) at a workshop on improvement of the effective use of the agreement for goods from ASEAN countries and Vietnam in Hanoi on October 4.

Bilateral trade and economic cooperation have grown rapidly and become a fine example for the world, the diplomat said.

Trade between Vietnam and the RoK reached 10 billion USD in 2009, an increase of 20 times against 1992 - when the two countries established diplomatic ties - and is expected to reach 20 billion USD by 2015.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Thanh Bien said that implementation of AKFTA had contributed to increased Vietnam exports.

In 2009, Vietnam earned 1.66 billion USD from export of goods given preferences from the regional agreement, accounting for 80 percent of the country's total exports to the RoK.

In the first six months of this years, thanks to certificates of preferential origin, businesses shipped goods worth 842 million USD, accounting for almost 65 percent of Vietnam 's exports to the RoK.

Deputy Minister Bien said the workshop offered an opportunity for experts and policy makers to present information about preferences and the agreement's implementation to Vietnamese firms.

However, the Ministry warned that businesses needed to actively study and inquire into markets and preferences in order to tap the preferences in the agreement and strengthen ASEAN links.

RoK tops investor list in Vietnam

The Republic of Korea (RoK) is the largest source of foreign investment in Vietnam , with an accumulated capital infusion of 23 billion USD, said the RoK Consul General in HCM City Kim Sang Yoon.

At the Oct. 4 meeting held by the HCM Union of Friendship Organisations to celebrate the founding anniversary of the RoK (Oct. 3), Consul General Kim Sang Yoon said the cooperative relations between Vietnam and the RoK have strongly developed since the two countries established their diplomatic ties 18 years ago, with two-way trade turnover increasing from 500 million USD in 1992 to 9.5 billion USD.

At the meeting, Chairman of the HCM City Vietnam-RoK Friendship Association Vu Van Hoa thanked the RoK for its support to Vietnam - and HCM City in particular - during the national construction and development.

In 2009, Vietnam received 985 million USD in aid from the RoK Economic Development Cooperation Fund or 20 percent of the fund's budget, Hoa said.

The RoK has also provided non-refundable aid to help Vietnam develop infrastructure systems, health care and environmental programs, he said.

In recent years, cooperation in tourism, education, sports and culture has borne fruit.

About 59,000 Vietnamese people are working and studying in the RoK and tens of thousands of Vietnamese brides have married RoK men, while many thousands of RoK families are living in Vietnam , according to the Vietnam-RoK Friendship Association.

Up to July of this year, the RoK provided the second largest number of tourists to Vietnam , with 368,000 arrivals.

The gold price has been increasing continuously over the last many years and prices may reach the 32.3 million dong per tael threshold by the end of 2010. In the last 10 years, the gold price has increased by six-fold. Huynh Trung Khanh, Member of the World's Gold Council and Deputy Chair of Vietnam Gold Business Association, in the recent interview given to Thoi bao Kinh te Saigon, noted that the current gold price has not climbed to its highest peak, and that the price will continue rising towards the end of the year.

Thoi bao Kinh te Saigon: Gold prices have been climbing steadily to new record highs. Could you please explain the price escalation?

Huynh Trung Khanh: Right at the beginning of the year, the world's gold price was forecast to exceed the $1300 per ounce threshold by the end of October. In reality, the record price was broken one month earlier than expected.

The slower-than-expected recovery of the US economy is the main reason behind the continued increases. The US Federal Reserve has been keeping interest rates at low levels for the last two years, while the US government now intends to pump more capital into the economy. If this happens, the US dollar will continue to weaken beside other hard currencies, while investors will keep buying gold as the safest shelter.

There are many other factors that support the gold price increases. Especially, gold demand is increasing in India and China in the festival season.

TBKTSG: How will the gold price perform, then?

Khanh: I think that the gold price will keep rising, and the current price will not be the final record. It may hit the threshold of $1360 per ounce by the end of the year and then climb to $1500 per ounce in 2011.

As such, the domestic gold price may hit 32.5-33 million dong per tael by the end of 2010.

TBKTSG: The domestic price has been increasing more rapidly than the world's prices, which has triggered doubts that the domestic price is controlled by speculators. What do you think about that?

Khanh: It is nearly impossible to control prices in such a big market. The sharp price increases seen in late September should be explained by the fact that the demand for gold, especially from those who stopped losses by selling short before, has climbed sharply. Meanwhile, enterprises cannot meet the huge demand, because people do not sell gold.

However, the big gap between the world's and the domestic prices will be narrowed soon, because contraband imports, encouraged by the high prices in Vietnam, are flowing into the country.

TBKTSG: You have said that the domestic supply, at some certain times, cannot meet demand. Do you think that the State should allow gold imports now to improve the supply?

Khanh: I do not think that the domestic supply is really short, just because people do not want to sell gold. The market is now really quiet. The State Bank should still allow gold imports, just to calm the public, not to balance supply and demand. The market will return to normal if the central bank allows even just five tons of gold to be imported.

Vietnam has exported 60-70 tons of gold so far, therefore, it would be reasonable if to import some more tons now.

TBKTSG: What should Vietnam do in order to stabilize the domestic market?

Khanh: The State Bank should be more flexible in granting quotas to allow enterprises to import and export gold, which will avoid the supply shortage seen recently. The import volume may be not big, but this will be enough to stabilize the market. Meanwhile, the ban on gold imports will prompt gold to be illegally imported, which means the State cannot collect any taxes

Garment exports on target

Last update 14:44, Tuesday, 05/10/2010 (GMT+7)

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VietNamNet Bridge - The textile and garment industry will meet its annual export target of US$10.5 billion by November, said vice chairman and general secretary of the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas) Le Van Dao.

Textile-Garment Industry Expo 2009 kicks off in city

Textile, garment companies brimming with foreign orders

Garment companies speed up investment

Workers make clothes for export at a factory in the northern province of Ninh Binh. The textile and garment industry is on track to reach its annual export target of US$10.5 billion by November. (Photo: VNS)

Dao estimated that the industry would earn more than $1 billion each month in the fourth quarter.

September was the third consecutive month the industry fetched more than $1 billion from exports, bringing the sector's total export value in the first nine months of this year to more than $8 billion, a year-on-year increase of 20.6 per cent, according to the General Statistics Office.

Dao said many garment exporters had orders for the end of this year and even for the beginning of next year.

Over the past nine months, exports to the big markets have recorded high growth. Exports to the US increased 22.1 per cent to $3.94 billion while the rising figures to the EU and Japan were 6.7 per cent and 14.3 per cent to $1.18 billion and $691 million, respectively.

Exports to North Korea surged 64 per cent thanks to the impact of its Free Trade Agreement with ASEAN.

However, Pham Xuan Hong, Vitas deputy chairman, said the garment industry was facing a shortage of labour and an increase in the price of transport and power.

A surge in the price of cotton on the world market also had a negative impact on the industry. A tonne of cotton has risen 45 per cent since the same period last year to $1,900-2,000 while the industry has to import up to 95 per cent of its cotton. The industry imported 260,000 tonnes of cotton in the first nine months of the year and estimates that figure will reach roughly 370,000 tonnes by the end of the year.

Hong said garment exporters were seeking new sources from Japan and ASEAN countries in order to enjoy preferential taxes.

To fulfil the target of $19 billion from exports by 2015 and $25 billion by 2020, the garment sector is actively implementing programmes related to cotton cultivation to increase domestic supplies and develop human resources to meet the increasing demands of the sector.

The sector is also promoting its trademark and setting up distribution networks nationwide to take a firm foothold in the domestic market.

With yen appreciation, Vietnam ODA debts rise

Last update 17:56, Monday, 04/10/2010 (GMT+7)

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VietNamNet Bridge - The rapid appreciation of the yen recently has made Vietnam's actual ODA (official development assistance loans) debt increase by 50 trillion dong, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI).

U.S. dollar strengthens against yen after Japan intervenes

Yen gains value, Vietnam sees opportunity to boost exports to Japan

Jetro says Japan will make more investment in infrastructure in Vietnam

The ministry warned of the increase in its August 2010 report and gave the exact figure in its September report for the Government's regular meeting on September 30.

The too-sharp appreciation of the Japanese yen has raised concerns over Japan's economic growth rate and the negative psychological effect on Japanese businesses.

On September 14, the yen traded at a record 82.88 per dollar, the highest in the last 15 years.

The Japanese government decided to intervene in the foreign exchange market by selling yen and purchasing dollars to curb the yen's appreciation. On September 10, Tokyo approved a new economic stimulus package worth 915 billion yen ($10.9 billion) to deal with the yen's appreciation against the dollar and risk of economic recession.

This was the first time since 2004 that the government made a strong intervention on the foreign exchange market, which led to a decrease of 85.93 per dollar.

According to MPI, the sharp appreciation of the yen has had a big impact on Vietnam. Japan is one of Vietnam's biggest trade partners, which now imports more from Vietnam than it exports. The yen appreciation brings even more advantages for Vietnam exports to Japan, while imports from Japan will become more expensive.

MPI believes that Vietnam needs to take full advantage of yen appreciation to boost exports, while it has also urged reasonable measures to control the trade deficit.

Economists also anticipate that Japanese investors will make outward investments. The expensive yen will allow them to save on expenses. Vietnam sees this as an opportunity, because it will help push up disbursement of foreign direct investment (FDI) capital.

Nevertheless, the yen increase will make Vietnam's debts via ODA loans increase. Japan now leads in providing ODA to Vietnam, so the actual debts of Vietnam will increase considerably. Projects funded by commercial loans from Japan will also be influenced by the yen appreciation.

According to MPI, Japan has given ODA capital worth 1394 billion yen so far, which was equal to $14 billion in the past. Now it has soared to $16.3 billion. Converted to dong, the amount hit 304.5 trillion, up from 251 trillion.

MPI's August report showed that the actual debt of Vietnam to Japan reached $15.7 billion. As such, the value of the debt rose sharply by nearly one billion dollars, or 11,359 billion dong, in just the last month.

Since investors are still worried about huge share supplies in the future while cash flow remains weak, many securities enterprises forecast the market to remain flat with the VN-Index oscillating within 443 and 460 points this week.

The market closed the first week of October with a modest change of the stock index but a strong decline in trading volume. On the southern bourse, the VN-Index gained a slight two points, or 0.44%, against the previous week to close at 451.71.

Liquidity, meanwhile, tumbled as there was an average 37.1 million shares worth VND1 trillion traded daily, dropping by 20.4% and 21.3% against the previous week respectively. With three rising and two falling sessions, the market saw 64 stocks advancing, 174 stocks closing down while 25 others moved sideways at the end of the week.

Last week brought positive information of the macro economy, including strong growth rates of total retail and service revenue and gross domestic product (GDP) in the third quarter and the first nine months of this year. However, local investors were very cautious and decided to stand back to gauge the huge supplies in the last quarter of 2010, according to Vietnam International Securities Co. (VIS).

Foreigners, after a strong purchase on Thursday to beautify the third quarter financial reports, suddenly decreased trading the next day. The investors were still net buyers for around 7.1 million shares worth VND314 billion during the week.

"Foreigners are net buyers for a tune of over VND9.5 trillion this year, suggesting that they have bought a large number of stocks given narrow trading on the local market. They are expecting at a long-term index rally when both domestic and international economies actually recover," VIS said.

Fiachra Mac Cana, managing director of HCMC Securities Corp., said the third quarter earnings season is of course about to begin and with strong credit growth seen this quarter, investors expect on the whole results will be positive. "We note that credit growth is a good leading indicator of corporate activity and even profitability and we suspect most earnings surprises will be positive," he said.

"However, it must be said that equity markets are slipping into inactivity once again characterized by tight trading ranges and low volumes. It was not surprising really with gold markets popping and attracting retail interest while the bond market sprang into life last week and drew attention from banks. We had thought we might see a short term bounce this week but clearly it has not happened. The short-term risk is slightly to the downside. We keep our view that medium to long term investors can continue to pick up stock at these levels," Mac Cana added.

The Hanoi market also witnessed three rising and two falling sessions last week, with the HNX-Index losing 3.82 points, or 2.95%, against the previous week to close at 125.81. The market's liquidity was sharply low with the average daily volume of 28.4 million shares worth VND660 billion, falling by 22% and 26% from the week earlier respectively. VIS said the market would see seesaw trading this week.

CMC - The sixth International Travel Expo closed in HCMC last Saturday with positive feedback from local tourism services providers given a rise in foreign buyers and promising deals at the event.

The organizers of the three-day exhibition at the Saigon Convention and Exhibition Center in District 7 are still taking formal reports from exhibitors but what local exhibitors have said indicates better results than last year's event.

Doan Thi Thanh Tra, marketing manager of Saigontourist Travel Service Co., told the Daily that the tour operators met 55 potential buyers who pledged to cooperate, send tourists and hold more talks.

"We met product managers and people in charge of market development and will have more negotiations later," she said, adding many buyers in previous events came to seek information only.

According to the organizing committee, there were around 170 local exhibitors and about 150 foreign buyers at the event, up by nearly 50 from the last travel expo.

Other local sellers told the Daily that in the previous shows, many foreign people posed themselves as buyers but just visited the events to sell their products and services.

"The event did not attract as many buyers as professional events in foreign countries but we met real buyers there. It's better than the last events," said Nguyen Minh Quyen, deputy director of Ben Thanh Tourist Travel Service Center.

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism and the HCMC Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism joined hands with IIR Exhibitions Pte Ltd and VINEXAD to organize the expo.

CMC - Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on Sunday opened to traffic Thang Long Avenue, the country's longest and most modern, marking a strategically significant development toward Hanoi's western part.

Speaking at the inauguration, the Government leader highlighted the role of this new modern thoroughfare, saying it would make important contributions to the capital city's development, the Vietnam News Agency reports.

He praised the Ministry of Transport, the city authorities and constructors for having completed the road at a time when Hanoi is celebrating its 1,000th birth anniversary.

Thang Long is the first urban expressway that has been designed and built entirely by local experts and contractors. The road, measuring 30 km in length and 140 m in width, cost over VND7.5 trillion.

The avenue connects the heart of Hanoi with satellite urban areas such as Xuan Mai, Mieu Mon and Son Tay, and tourist attractions including Ba Vi, Suoi Hai, and the Vietnam Ethnic Cultural Village.

With one end at Ho Chi Minh National Highway, it also links Hanoi with other provinces.

In particular, Thang Long Avenue is expected to facilitate the development of the Lang-Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park, one of the country's largest scientific and technological centers.

According to the city government, the city had to clear more than 500 hectares of land and relocate over 8,000 families and some state agencies and organizations along the road.

Neighboring Hoa Binh Province has started work on a road connecting to Thang Long Avenue which has 51 overpasses.

Circular 13/2010/TT-NHNN, issued by the State Bank of Vietnam, came into force last Friday affecting different sectors including property. Although little change was made, the circular keeps unchanged the criteria for the property sector as it requires banks to apply a risk coefficient rate of 250% for real estate loans. For many, the move may choke off financing for the property market, which has not fully recovered from the woes since it slid into recession two years ago. Nevertheless, experts think that it is not due to the circular that will prevent credit institutions from channeling funds into the real estate sector but there are different reasons.

"In fact, banks, if any, have already reduced real estate loans for a long time," Dinh The Hien, a financial investment expert, commented on the issue to the Daily last week.

Hien explains that banks offer loans based on mortgaged properties, so only borrowers who have good business performance will be able to access loans. When borrowing, many customers use their property as security for loans in addition to goods and other things. In reality banks normally depend, directly and indirectly, on real estate used to mortgage loans, so there is no point for banks to narrow loans for property investments.

"We should not point to the circular as a reason behind banks' restrictions on property loans," Hien stressed, adding the problem is due to other factors.

The expert attributed the problem to the property market which has been going flat for a long time. Therefore banks have no choice but to secure their lending by limiting loans for the property sector. "If the market is good, they will find all possible ways to offer loans for property investments," Hien said.

The director of a big bank in HCMC told the Daily that his bank has narrowed funds for the property sector over a year due to risks in the sector. "Because the property market has been quiet, we have to limit our lending," the director said, adding the bank still considers extending loans for home buying, not for investment.

Pham Quoc Thanh, deputy director of An Binh Bank, said that as the risk coefficient rate for the property sector is up from 150% to 250% in line with new rules, the bank is considering hiking lending rates in the coming time.

Hien said there are two kinds of homebuyers in the market. For speculators, they only join the market when there are good chances. Experiences in other countries show that interest rates for the property sector are often lowest, he said, because property is the safest mortgage compared to others used for securing loans. Moreover, borrowers prove their repayment capacity by their income from the job.

Hien said buying a house requires a big sum of money and that with a current interest rate, homebuyers who borrow from banks cannot pay the monthly interest. Therefore, those who buy apartments for accommodation will face problems if they do not have a big amount of savings.

"Interest rates for real estate loans should have been lowest in comparison with others," Hien said, adding low interest rates will support homebuyers, project developers and even banks. In contrast, high interest rates will put pressure on borrowers, and once they fail in their payments, banks will face liquidity risks. He suggested interest rates should be 8% to 10% per year to support different sectors including property.

According to the central bank, outstanding loans for the property sector had reached VND218 trillion by late September, up 18% from late last year.

Like other market observers, Hien said abundant supply in the condo market will increase pressure on developers, but the market is expected to fare better from the middle of next year given the economic recovery.

Many people had to leave the long queues without the sought-after Apple iPhone 4 on Thursday as leading carriers Viettel and Vinaphone sold a mere 1,000 units in Hanoi and HCMC.

Vinaphone's retail store at 80 Nguyen Du Street in HCMC's District 1 was overcrowded with Apple iPhone 4 enthusiasts who began queuing at 5:30 a.m., but just some of them succeeded in buying the phone.

Le Huu Minh Nhat from Tan Binh District, the first buyer of the iPhone 4, told the Daily that he had ordered the phone at the Vinaphone website before the network announced the phone price on Wednesday.

The 16GB version of the iPhone 4 costs VND13.4 million and the 32GB version sells for VND15.6 million, including a VND600,000 deposit.

Vinaphone just sold the smartphone to post-paid subscribers who placed online orders at iphone.vinaphone.com.vn.

Pham Ngoc Tu, marketing manager of Vinaphone, told the Daily that the company sold out the iPhone 4 in the first day of going on sale given a limited volume."We imported a small quantity, so post-paid subscribers were given priority. We will continue to import more to meet the demand," Tu said.

Tu said Vinaphone originally planned to sell the iPhone 4 at three locations - 384 Xa Dan, Dong Da District in Hanoi, 4 Nguyen Van Linh Street in Danang and 80 Nguyen Du in HCMC's District 1, HCMC. But due to large crowds at these outlets, Vinaphone added a fourth shop in Hanoi.

In the same situation was Viettel whose 20 retail shops sold out the iPhone 4 on the launch day on Thursday. The company sold a limited number as well.Different from Vinaphone, Viettel sold the smartphone to both pre- and post-paid subscribers and offered a price which was VND100,000 per unit lower than Vinaphone. Viettel customers bought the 32GB version for VND15.5 million only, compared to the VND15.6 million quoted by Vinaphone.

For clients who want to buy the locked version of the iPhone 4 without any binding terms of service, they will place a deposit of VND599,000 at Viettel.

Viettel on Thursday had to hold lucky draws for clients wishing to buy the phone as there were more orders than its available stock. By 9:00 am on Thursday, Viettel announced it had gone out of stock.Viettel, Vinaphone and MobiFone inked deals with Apple to distribute the iPhone in Vietnam early this year. But MobiFone has yet to announce its intention to sell this favorite Apple device.

CPI increases 1.31 % in September

By Ngoc Lan - The Saigon Times Daily

HCMC - Vietnam's gross domestic product growth rate has accelerated to 6.52% year-on-year in the January-September period, and the economy is headed for 6.7% for the whole year, the Ministry of Planning and Investment said on Monday.

In its report released on Monday for a regular meeting, the ministry noted that the economy has gained growth momentum, with the GDP growth rate moving faster one quarter after another, according to local media covering the meeting.

In fact, the economy posted an annualized GDP growth rate of 5.83% in the first quarter, 6.4% in the second quarter, and now 6.52% for the three quarters combined. This rate is higher than the targeted 6.5% growth rate endorsed by the National Assembly early this year.

Construction and manufacturing as a whole posted the strongest growth, at 7.29% year-on-year in the January-September period, followed by the service sector with 7.24%, while agriculture inched up 2.89%. The growth rates of all the three sectors are higher than those in the same period of last year, according to the ministry's report.

While maintaining an upbeat tone about the economy this year, the ministry also highlights challenges to be addressed in the rest of the year. These include the uptrend of prices at home and abroad -- which may stoke up inflation -- the high interest rate charged by commercial banks that makes life harder for enterprises, and high trade deficit.

* September's consumer price index surged 1.31 % against the previous month, attributed mainly to a dramatic increase of education services prices and depreciation of Vietnam Dong against the U.S. dollar, the General Statistics Office reported on Friday.

CPI in August increased by 0.23 % over the previous month, so increases in September were earlier forecast at between 0.8 and 1 %.

CPI in this month rose 6.46% compared to December, 2009. Vietnam targets to curb inflation this year at 7% to 8%, but this target is difficult to reach due to an uptrend in commodities prices in the rest of the year and higher import demands.

Local gold on Wednesday shot up to a record high of over VND31 million per tael as the yellow metal rose to US$1,310 an ounce in the New York market a day earlier.

Gold made by SJC, the country's leading gold trading house, closed up at VND31.16 million for buying and VND31.23 million for selling late on Wednesday afternoon, up VND650,000 from the previous day. The selling price briefly touched an all-time high of VND31.35 million a tael - a measurement unit which is equivalent to 37.5 grams.

Gold trade, however, was almost flat. Nguyen Thi Cuc, deputy general director of Phu Nhuan Jewelry Company (PNJ), said gold demand grew strong in the morning but declined in the afternoon.

PNJ sold 750 taels on Wednesday and bought around 400 taels, Cuc said, adding it seemed that individuals did not rush to sell the metal to take profits as 40% of the bought volume came from corporate clients.

The local gold rally is faster than elsewhere in the world, leading to a differential of VND400,000 per tael with tax and fee excluded or VND150,000 after all tax and fee deductions, she said.

Selling by individual gold owners has remained limited while traders are still banned from importing gold, causing a shrinkage of supply on the market, she said, explaining the rally. Moreover, given the continued volatility on global gold markets, local traders tend to hike prices to mitigate price risk.

Due to reduced supply, SJC traded a combined 1,500 taels on Wednesday, down from 4,500 taels a day earlier, said Nguyen Cong Tuong, deputy sales manager of SJC.

He noted a majority of sellers wanted to offset earlier losses and that there were no signs of people rushing to sell to rack up profits so the volume of gold bought from individuals accounted for around one-tenth of that from companies on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the gold price quotation board at Sacombank Jewelry Company (SBJ) flashed continuously. This firm's buying price was VND31.18 million and its selling price VND31.28 million.

An SBJ sales executive said the difference between selling and buying prices was big due to their strong volatility.

hares bounce back on sluggish trading

HA NOI - Viet Nam's two benchmark stock indices bounced back during the final minutes of today's session on the nation's two stock exchanges.

On the HCM City Stock Exchange, the VN-Index climbed 1.15 per cent to close at 450.96.

The bourse's volume decreased by 34 per cent, while more than 33.2 million shares worth VND839.9 billion (US$43.1 million) traded hands. Advancers outnumbered decliners by 131-72.

A majority of the exchange's blue chips increased in value. Of the 10 largest capitalised shares, Vietinbank (CTG), Eximbank (EIB), Hoang Anh Gia Lai (HAG), Hoa Phat Group (HPG), FPT Corp (FPT), Phu My Fertiliser (DPM), Vincom (VIC) and Bao Viet Holdings (BVH) posted gains, of which the latter rose to its ceiling price.

Only Sacombank (STB) and Masan Group (MSN) closed unchanged.

Ocean Group (OGC) continued to be the most actively traded stock on the southern bourse with 1.6 million shares changing hands. OGC rose by 2.32 per cent to close at VND30,800 ($1.58) per share.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index also advanced by 0.91 per cent to close at 122.02.

Market volume declined by 29 per cent over yesterday's level to 31.33 million shares, while the bourse's trading value dropped by nearly 23 per cent to VND720.3 billion ($36.9 million).

Gainers outnumbered decliners by 171-96.

However, blue chips tumbled with six of the 10 largest capitalised shares declining in value. Asia Commercial Bank (ACB), Kim Long Securities (KLS), SHB Securities (SHS) and Sai Gon-Quy Nhon Mining (SQC) remained unchanged.

PetroVietnam Construction (PVX) continued to be the most active share nationwide with 3.44 million shares changing hands. PVX lost 0.45 per cent to close at an average of VND21,900 ($1.12) per share. - VNS