The Hanoitimes - Many foreign companies are planning to pour more investments for expansion in Vietnam in the long run after gaining good business performance in the fruitful market. AEON Group’s pre-tax profit surged sharply to US$9.96 million last year Thailand’s Siam Cement Public Company Limited (SCG) has recently shown its ambition plans to increase investments in the Vietnamese market, acquiring a stake in Long Son Petrochemical Co Ltd from Vietnam National Oil and Gas Group. Under the deal, SCG has acquired a 29 percent stake of the Long Son project for more than VND2.05 trillion (US$90 million). Upon completion of the deal, SCG’s indirect stake in Long Son has increased from 71 percent to 100 percent, of which Vina SCG Chemicals holds 82 percent and Thai Plastic and Chemicals Public Co. Ltd holds 18 percent. Starting business in Vietnam since 1992, SCG currently has more than 20 companies operating in Vietnam in construction materials, cement, chemicals … [Read more...] about High profits boost foreign firms’ long-term investments in Vietnam
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Japan, Singapore funds invest in Vietnamese healthcare startup
A Vietnamese startup that provides users with a directory of healthcare facilities and doctors in Vietnam has received capital funding from Japanese fund CyberAgent Ventures and Singapore-based Pix Vine Capital. Launched in January, ‘ViCare’ is a web database aimed at assisting users in locating medical and healthcare facilities in the quickest and most convenient manner. After six months of operation, the site has put together a database of over 19,000 facilities and 20,000 doctors across Vietnam, which users can access. The startup has just finished its second round of seed funding, having inked investment deals with CyberAgent Ventures and Pix Vine Capital, the value of which has not been disclosed. CyberAgent Ventures is a venture capital firm headquartered in Tokyo and present in a number of East and Southeast Asian countries. It specializes in Internet businesses and provides support for start-up companies with the potential to have a substantial impact on the … [Read more...] about Japan, Singapore funds invest in Vietnamese healthcare startup
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 10/1
Vietnam becomes world’s No1 pepper exporter Vietnam shipped more than 134,000 tonnes of pepper for US$899 million abroad last year, making it the world’s biggest pepper exporter. The Vietnam Pepper Association reports the 2013 figures represented a year-on-year increase of 15% in volume and over 13% in value. Approximately 95% of Vietnam’s pepper output is exported to more than 80 countries and territories around the world. About 15 Vietnamese businesses are taking the lead in pepper exports in the world, accounting for more than 50% of the total market share. Key export markets include the US, Germany and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Economists suggest local pepper exporters focus on ensuring product quality, studying market trends and overcoming trade barriers in overseas markets to maintain the country’s No1 position globally. Vietnam toasts trade surplus with Japan Vietnam saw a trade surplus of nearly US$1.8 billion from exports to Japan last year, … [Read more...] about BUSINESS IN BRIEF 10/1
BUSINESS IN BRIEF 9/10
EU warns Vietnam fruit and vegetable growers The European Commission's Directorate-General for Health and Consumers (DG SANCO) has issued a warning to Vietnam fruit and vegetable growers, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s European Market Department announced on Oct. 6. The Department reported that since Feb. 2, 2014, the DG SANCO has on three occasions, received information from EU member countries warning about batches of imported basil and bitter gourd from Vietnam, which tested positive for harmful organisms in the wood packaging boxes. Earlier, DG SANCO officially announced the EU would ban the import of Vietnamese fruit and vegetable if it finds more Vietnamese batches not in compliance with phytosanitary regulations during the period from Feb. 1, 2014 to Feb. 1, 2015. According to the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), wood packing material should be dried at high temperature to kill harmful organisms and contain a safety inspection stamp. The … [Read more...] about BUSINESS IN BRIEF 9/10
Fire consumes Japanese plant in southern Vietnam
A fire broke out in the Vietnam Singapore Industrial Park 1 in the southern province of Binh Duong on Thursday and ravaged a plant run by a Japanese-invested printing ink manufacturer for almost nine hours. By the time firefighters managed to put out the blaze at 1:30 am Friday, it already engulfed the Sakata plant. Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper (tuoitre.vn) quoted Robert Ng, a Sakata representative, as saying that the blaze may have been caused by chemicals-containing barrels stored at the materials warehouse of the plant. Those barrels were put in places facing the sunlight while they should have been stored at low-temperature locations. High temperatures may have caused the barrels to burst into flames, Ng told Tuoi Tre. News website VnExpress (vnexpress.net) quoted workers at the scene as saying that they heard several blasts from the materials warehouse at around 4 pm Thursday. The fire spread so fast that the workers had no choice but to flee the scene, they said. Fortunately, … [Read more...] about Fire consumes Japanese plant in southern Vietnam