Vietnamese, Cambodian Provinces Boost Trade Exchanges
KIEN GIANG, Oct 17 Asia Pulse - Trading activities between Vietnam's southern province of Kien Giang and Cambodia's Kampot province have enjoyed a boom since their border gate was upgraded to international status just over a year ago.
The two sides expect to record bilateral trade turnover totaling US$45 million by the end of 2008 and US$100 million by 2010.
According to the management board of the Ha Tien border gate economic zone, the nine-month export value through the border gate was US$33.3 million, 2.5 times more than the same period last year.
The Vietnamese exported farm produce and seafood, processed food, household utensils and washing products, while importing woodworks, shrimpfood and production and construction materials.
The two sides plan to create more trade policies and sign a series of cooperation pacts to boost the border economy for the two provinces.
They have plans in place to accelerate the construction of a border market, a duty-free supermarket and a bonded warehouse in the border area.
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Vietnamese Catfish Exports Fetch Over US$1 Billion
HANOI, Oct 17 Asia Pulse - Vietnam's catfish exports in the first nine months of 2008 increased by 77 per cent in quantity and 52 per cent in value, earning over US$1 billion, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).
The sharp rise in catfish exports is likely to continue as new markets, notably Russia, the Middle East and some Asian countries, which are witnessing growing demand for the commodity, MARD experts said.
Russia is now the biggest market of Vietnamese catfish as it spent US$155.6 million on the staple in the first nine months of 2008, a 188 per cent rise over the same period last year.
Ukraine ranks second with US$104.7 million and a 255 per cent increase.
To push up exports, local businesses need to agree upon a floor price to avoid unfair competition, while attaching great importance to hygiene, said Luong Le Phuong, MARD's deputy minister.
At an average revenue of US$150 million per month, Vietnam's catfish exports are expected to fetch US$1.5 billion in 2008.
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Specialty retailing, the new trend in Vietnam

VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnam has seen the appearance of more and more specialty supermarts, considered the new trend in the modern age. Home appliance, laptop, digital product and mobile phone supermarts have burst onto the scene.

Consumers have become more and more demanding when selecting products to purchase. Therefore, specialty supermarts have emerged to satisfy consumers’ strict requirements.

Specialty supermarts springing up

According to Dao Xuan Khuong, General Director of Melinh Plaza, specialising in home products, in other countries like the US, Germany, France and Japan, specialty supermarts have been existing for years. Pharmacy supermarts, giant nurseries, wooden furniture, cement, and paint supermarts are all present.

The idea has only recently reached Vietnam: Home appliance and mobile phone supermarts have appeared on the scene aiming to satisfy the demands of the young.

Prof Masayoshi Maruyama from Japan's Kobe University said that in Japan, specialty supermarts have gradually replaced general supermarts, and the trend will also happen in Vietnam. He said there would be separate supermarts for fresh food and dried food.

As for fresh food, Prof Maruyama said that the traditional market system in Vietnam proves to be very competitive in price, freshness and convenience. Meanwhile, modern supermarts in Vietnam are not really attractive to housewives as they doubt the methods of food storage.

Nguyen Thanh Luu, General Director of 24h Supermart Joint-stock Company, said that in the future, "hypermarts" that sell articles of daily necessity will not exist. “Consumers will be able to purchase these products at nearby convenience stores or call and place orders, instead of travelling a long distance to get the products,” Luu said.

However, Nguyen Thai Dung, Deputy General Director of Bourbon Trade International Company Ltd, which is running Big C supermart chains, said that the model of specialty supermarts will only be suitable in some fields, such as construction materials, while general supermarts will still have their positions in the market.

Different models of retail exist concurrently in the world, each of which has its own advantages. For example, hypermarts can meet the diversified demands of people, while small supermarts or convenience stores can provide necessities quickly.

Where the consumers have a lot of choices

According to Maruyama, the most important thing to consumers is big selection. That explains why people prefer buying products at mobile phone supermarts, though mobile phones can also be purchased at many other shops.

Khuong firmly believes that general supermarts cannot satisfy the wide range of demands of consumers, while specialty supermarts can. For example, at specialty supemarts, if consumers need to buy cups, they have more than 10 choices from over 10 suppliers. Meanwhile, at general supermarts, they have only a few choices.

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Exports forecast to fetch nearly $16bil in Q4

VietNamNet Bridge – Export turnover in the last quarter is expected to reach roughly US$15.7 billion, helping the country to meet its annual $64 billion target despite difficulties from the global financial crisis.
In the first nine months of the year, the country’s exports reached $48.6 billion, up 39 per cent over the same period last year, the General Statistics Office reported.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) forecast that the country would earn about $5 billion for each remaining month of the year, much lower than the monthly average figure of $6 billion in the third quarter.
Prices in the global market of Viet Nam’s key export commodities including crude oil, footwear, rice, and garment and textiles were dropping, helping to contribute to the expected fourth quarter decrease, said MoIT.
MoIT anticipates the price of crude oil will fluctuate between $80-95 per barrel in the end of the year, with the global financial crisis likely keeping fuel prices from sharply rising.
Lower demand for garments and textiles from the US market, which accounts for up to 55 per cent of Viet Nam’s total clothing exports, will greatly curtail exports in the industry.
Footwear exports are also on the decline, with the EU’s decision to maintain anti-dumping duties on Viet Nam’s leather capped shoes for at least one and a half more years.
The price of rice is also decreasing. A tonne of 5 per cent broken rice now sells for about $500-540, much lower than the average rate of $620 in recent months. The ministry anticipated rice prices would not be lower than $500-600 for the remaining months.
To boost exports for the rest of the year, MoIT deputy minister Nguyen Thanh Bien said the ministry would implement measures to help businesses overcome difficulties, which include ensuring export producers have an adequate supply of electricity.
MoIT was also working with financial organisations and banks to offer loans to businesses, adding that some banks have lowered their lending interest rates to help producers and exporters.
Regular working sessions are being held by MoIT with associations to discuss measures to boost exports. The ministry has also worked with the Ministry of Finance’s Corporate Financial Department to reduce corporate income tax for businesses.
Bien recommended domestic exporters begin finding markets other than the US for their products, because it would be difficult to boost exports to the US at this time.
The chairman of the Viet Nam Pepper Association, Do Ha Nam, asked authorities to better collect and analyse both domestic and global market information in a move to help farmers and exporters avoid risks.

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