Con gai 9x

Minh 0983344426 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:22:00.003-07:00

Minh 0983344426 Ha Noi

Vietnam string artists to play in China

The Hanoi Conservatory of Music’s string orchestra will make a performance tour of Kunming, the capital of China’s Yunnan province, from March 6 to 16.

The 22-strong troupe includes the conservatory’s director, Artist of Merit Ngo Van Thanh, and renowned artists like Bui Cong Duy and Ngo Hoang Linh.

The visitors will perform masterpieces by Mozart, Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky, and some modern works by Vietnamese composer Nguyen Van Thuong and Chinese composer Liu Tie Shan.

During the trip, which comes at the invitation of the Yunnan Economics and Finance Institute, the orchestra will also perform at the Yunnan Art Institute and sign a number of agreements on training and performance.

Source: Nhan Dan – Translated by Thu Thuy

Mai Hoa 0917824732 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:22:00.001-07:00

Mai Hoa 0917824732 Ha Noi

Singapore, Vietnam firms to distribute new online game

The Vietnam Datacommunications Company, the country’s biggest Internet provider, and Singapore’s Netgame Asia have signed an agreement to distribute online games here.

Under the deal signed in Ho Chi Minh City last week, the Singapore firm will soon deliver a new, localized high-quality game called Super Dancer Online (SDO). VDC will provide infrastructure and network support.

They did not divulge financial details of the deal.

Super Dancer Online involves a virtual reality world where the player takes on an avatar, interacts with friends through a 3D Instant Messenger, blogs, shares photos and videos, and takes part in forums.

The two companies will also form a strategic partnership to develop and promote games in future.

Source: VNA

Loan 0915177771

2007-03-11T07:21:00.001-07:00

Loan 0915177771

Producers promise Vietnamese films coming into their own

Homegrown film makers are promising an action-packed year with more films shot using state-of-the-art equipment, featuring great performances and cinematography.

Luu Phuoc Sang, head of Phuoc Sang Film Production Company – the most successful producer last year said his company was going ahead with its US$4 million horror film Muoi – a cooperative product with its Korean partner Bily Pictures.

Phuoc Sang’s Ao Lua Ha Dong (The White Silk Dress), a US$2 million, five-year production – the most expensive film ever for Vietnam that utilized the ‘flying-cam’ technique won the audience voted prize at the Busan International Film Festival 2006.

Phuoc Sang said he had invited Vietnamese overseas director Luu Huynh for another movie named Yeu (Love), with shooting to start this summer.

Sang added that his company was making three features – Bo lac sieu nhi (The super-tiny tribe), 9 nut (Nine points) , Chuot (Mouse) for the next Tet Lunar New Year holiday.

Phuoc Sang’s counterpart, Sena Film, is busy choosing actors and actress and shooting sites for the new film – Nhung chiec la thoi gian (The leaves of time).

Vimax Films, owned by Ngo Quang Hai – director of Vietnamese best film 2006 Chuyen cua Pao (Pao’s story) – is targeting his new production Mua he lanh leo (Cold summer) – the most anticipated film this year.

Head of state-owned Giai Phong Film Production Company – Le Duc Tien expressed his eagerness for the new film year.

“We will make several films for summer and next Tet holiday” while fulfilling last year’s projects – Gia mua mot thuong de (The cost of buying a God) , Trang noi day gieng (Moon in the bottom of the well),” Tien said.

During the Tet holiday last month, the latest offering from Phuoc Sang – Vo Lam Truyen Ky (Swordsman) – bagged some VND18 billion ($1.12 million) in ticket sales.

Reported by Tram Anh – Compiled by Luu Thi Hong

Lan 0916391852

2007-03-11T07:20:00.001-07:00

Lan 0916391852

US actor extends hands to street kids in wartime Vietnam


Dick Hughes (C)

Amid the escalating Vietnam War where everyone saw evil, Vietnamese street kids saw something else. During the 8 years Dick Hughes was in Vietnam, the US actor had offered sanctuary to them, in the thousands.

Dick visited Vietnam after graduating from a Master’s degree in drama and was going to start on his promising career when news of the war shelved his acting plans.

He said he wanted to do something to help Vietnam. So, in April, two months after the 1968 Tet Offensive, he set foot on Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City as a correspondent from the Carnegie Mellon University, where he graduated.

With two sets of clothes and around US$1,500, Dick called a cab to a press center but the driver instead took him to the US General Consulate.

While standing in front of the imposing building and rearranging papers, a dirty Vietnamese kid with a baggy pullover apparently suffering from scabies asked him in a pidgin English if he was civilian or military.

Seeing his pitiable state, Dick decided to help them.

Dick was only 24 years old.

Charity houses

After the first month living in a hotel, he left and rented a small house on Pham Ngu Lao Street in district 1 where he had numerous occasions to meet homeless kids. The street today is famous as the backpackers’ quarter.

Everyday, he approached street kids including shoeshine boys and newspapers vendors and invited them to his rented house to eat, take baths and sleep.

He recalled the job was not easy because the children could not believe their ears. But after trying different techniques, 11 came and slept. The next day, they started out to work and came back for the night.

To finance the project, Dick visited many agencies to brazenly ask for blankets, soaps and food.

A little while later, he moved out, rented another house near there, and had a volunteer teach them reading, writing and the such.

In 1970, his compatriots in the US knew of Dick’s charity actions and helped him form the Shoeshine Boy Foundation in New York.

The foundation received contributions from thousands, which were sent to Vietnam. This enabled Dick to rent five more houses in Saigon to accommodate more children.

During the years he was in Vietnam, his program has helped 2,000 street kids and around 300 always lived in those houses. Over 18,000 people all over the world have contributed to the program.

Kiet, now an owner of a bookstore on Pham Ngu Lao Street, recalled his poverty years with Dick. “He used to walk in and out of police stations because of us”.

Police at that time would take Kiet and other kids to workhouses if they were caught shoeshining. It is Dick who bailed them out.

“Without him, we would not be what we are today”, Tam Lan, a guard in district 1, said.

In 1976 after the war was over, Dick returned to his home country to his acting career, and transferred all his charity houses in Ho Chi Minh City and Danang City to the new regime.

He later told the New York Times and Life that he learnt a lot from those kids, especially about their optimism in a situation where only darkness and hopelessness reigned.

He said those kids had every reason to resort to crimes but they did not and strived to make their lives better.

Late January this year, Dick returned to Vietnam, to the warm welcome from all those who he once helped.

Some are now successful and they live all over the country but on hearing Dick’s return, they all flocked to Ho Chi Minh City to be reunited with their patron.

He is now living in New York and is a theatrical actor. He has not rested but still campaigning for funds to help Agent Orange victims in Vietnam.

Source: Tuoi Tre - Translated by A.N.O.N

Huyền 0915.557980

2007-03-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

Huyền 0915.557980

Illegal cigarettes up in smoke under tough new campaign

Law enforcement agencies in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho Friday destroyed more than 200,000 packs of smuggled and counterfeit cigarettes in the battle against the illicit tobacco trade in Vietnam.

The burnt cigarettes, worth over VND1 billion (US$62,309) and bearing the Jet and Hero brand names, came under the radar to be confiscated since last October.

The two brands make up some 91 percent of the illegal cigarettes discovered in Vietnam in recent times.

The move is part of the ongoing campaign approved by the Government to destroy smuggled cigarettes of all kinds and to establish the Industry Alliance Reserve to support the fight against illicit cigarettes, said the tobacco association.

"The policy of destroying illicit cigarettes and establishing the Industry Alliance Reserve has been a breakthrough, enabling businesses to join hands with the Government to clear the local market of illegal cigarettes," said Pham Kien Nghiep, secretary general of the Vietnam Tobacco Association.

Since early this year, cities and provinces have destroyed illicit cigarettes in large quantities, including Hanoi with nearly 38,000 packs, Quang Tri with 72,000, An Giang with 73,000 and Quang Ngai with 107,000 packs.

Over the past two months, the illicit trade showed little sign of abating along the border line in Long An, An Giang and Quang Tri provinces.

In response, local authorities said that next month, task forces in Can Tho and An Giang would inspect local cigarette retailers and act accordingly against those selling cigarettes without legitimate stamps and seals.

The budget for supporting the fight against illicit cigarettes in 2007 is VND35 billion (US$2.19 million), contributed by members of the Vietnam Tobacco Association.

Source: Tuoi Tre, Nguoi Lao Dong, SGT – Compiled by Thu Thuy

Đào 0912319382 HN

2007-03-11T07:18:00.000-07:00

Đào 0912319382

Goldman Sachs denies Hanoi firm’s tie-up claim


Nguyen Trung Ha, president of the recently-listed Thien Viet Securities Company

Two Goldman Sachs executives rejected Tuesday claims made by a Hanoi firm of a partnership with the US-based financial firm.

Nguyen Trung Ha, president of the recently-listed Thien Viet Securities Company (TVS), told a Vietnamese newswire last month that “Goldman Sachs trusted TVS and has chosen it to be its partner in Vietnam”.

News of the ‘partnership’ with the global investment banking and securities biggie – ranked 41st in the Fortune 500 last year – caused a sensation and saw TVS’s stock skyrocket.

Last Monday Ha showed a bundle of fax messages at a press conference and claimed it was evidence of a “local partnership”.

But John G.Andrews, Goldman Sachs’ managing director in charge of investors’ relations, has put to rest all speculation. He told Thanh Nien by email: “I can confirm that we have no formal association with TVS.”

Edward Naylor, Goldman Sachs’ managing director in charge of corporate communications based in Hong Kong, said: “We enjoy a positive and ongoing dialogue of an exploratory and non-exclusive nature [with TVS], as we do with other local securities firms.”

“We often sign standard agreements with individual securities firms when we are exploring opportunities with them.

“These agreements relate to specific individual potential projects and in no way refer to, or should be misconstrued as, wide ranging partnerships,” he wrote.

TVS reaction

Ha, contacted by Thanh Nien after the denials by the two executives, neither denied nor confirmed the partnership, saying Goldman Sachs had referred to TVS in a document as a “local partner” and that he had not exaggerated.

But he added that TVS was “fundamentally a service provider to Goldman Sachs in Vietnam”.

Asked why he had not called TVS a “service provider” but, instead, used the term “local partner”, which could be misunderstood as Goldman Sachs investing in TVS, Ha insisted he had used the “right word”.

He denied attempting to mislead investors to buoy up his stocks, saying “as a manager, rising stocks can only put more pressure on me. Because I don’t sell stocks, I never intended to boost them”.

It turns out that Ha owned 70 percent of the company’s stocks before they were listed.

Asked why a major shareholder like him did not want to see his stocks appreciate, Ha said: “I don’t know how to explain it; that is my nature.”

“I have never done anything wrong – ask those who work with me and you will know that.”

Le Huy Hoang, TVS’s founder and now head of its supervision committee, had earlier publicly disagreed with Ha, insisting there was no formal partnership with the US firm. The two companies had informally agreed to cooperate in a “strategic partnership”, he said.

Huy Nam, a securities expert, said shareholders who invested in a company’s stocks after being made to believe it had tied up with prominent partners, and lost as a result, had the right to sue the firm if the claims turned out to be false.

Reported by Trung Binh, Hoang Ly - Translated by A.N.O.N

Hương 0915842075 ban anh Dũng trống bỏi Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:17:00.000-07:00

Hương 0915842075 ban anh Dũng trống bỏi Ha Noi

Russia assures Vietnamese student murderers be punished

The Russian ambassador to Vietnam said Wednesday his authorities would continue investigating into the murder of a Vietnamese student in Russia in 2004 allegedly by xenophobic skinheads and punish the culprits.

Vu Anh Tuan, then 20, was a student of the St. Petersburg Polytechnic College before being killed with 37 stab wounds. 17 suspects were arrested, tried on charges of “racially motivated gang” slaying and found not guilty last November.

Russian prosecutors appealed and early this month, the Russian Supreme Court upheld the acquittal, sparking angry protests.

Ambassador Vadim V. Serafimov told Vietnamese foreign deputy minister Nguyen Phu Binh that Russian leaders including state president Vladimir Putin are concerned about the case and having measures in place to ensure security for foreigners in general and Vietnamese nationals in particular living in Russia.

Russia has experienced a wave of attacks on non-white foreigners last year, especially in St. Petersburg, where an Indian student was stabbed to death and a Sudanese national attacked in September.

Source: TTXVN - Translated by A.N.O.N

Trinh 0904799766 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:16:00.002-07:00

Trinh 0904799766 Ha Noi

Vietnam carriers to compensate passengers for flight delays

The Vietnamese government has announced that airlines will henceforth compensate passengers for flight delays and cancellations.

A decision signed by Transport Minister Ho Nghia Dung says such refunds will range from US$6.25 to18.75 for domestic flights and $25-150 for international flights, depending on the destination.

However, there will be no reimbursement for delays or cancellations caused by breaches of security, technical problems, or acts of passengers.

Hà 0904538344 Bạn Anh Thắng cận Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:16:00.001-07:00

Hà 0904538344 Bạn Anh Thắng cận Ha Noi

Vietnam recalls US peanut butter suspected of causing typhoid

Vietnam authorities are set to recall peanut butter brands imported from the US Monday after cases of infection with bacterium salmonella – linked as a causative agent for typhoid – were reported in the US.

Authorities are to withdraw from circulation 24 jars of peanut butter bearing the brand names “Peter Pan” and “Great Value” distributed to the Vietnamese market by Hanoi-based Bao Quang Company.

The firm has imported a total of 720 jars, and the remaining products are still in stock.

Salmonella can also cause food poisoning and intestinal inflammation.

The decision to recall the products were prompted by a recent announcement by the US Embassy in Hanoi that the butter has caused 290 people in the US to be infected with salmonella, with 46 hospitalized.

So far, no cases of typhoid infection from the sandwich and toast spread have been reported in Vietnam.

Reported by Nam Son - Translated by A.N.O.N

Ngọc minh 0936008318 - ID: emyeuanh8347tm Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:15:00.001-07:00

Ngọc minh 0936008318 - ID: emyeuanh8347tm Ha Noi

Chickenpox rages in Vietnam

The incidence of chickenpox has spurted recently, hospitals in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and the Mekong Delta region report, mainly among children.

Doctor Bui Vu Huy from the Central Pediatrics Hospital in Hanoi said the worst-hit areas in the north were the capital city and provinces like Ha Tay, Bac Giang, and Hung Yen.

In Saint Paul, another Hanoi hospital, children with chickenpox made up 10 percent of all child patients last week.

Huy said most of the patients in hospitals had serious symptoms like dense, itching blisters and skin infections since parents did not know how to care for their infected children.

Nguyen Thanh Hung, deputy head of the Ho Chi Minh City Pediatrics Hospital No. 1, said the number of infections had increased by 20 percent in February.

Over 200 cases had come for treatment in the last two weeks, he said.

The Pediatrics Hospital No. 2 said around 100 children had been hospitalized in the last fortnight.

In the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang too the disease is spreading with dozens of people infected in the last 10 days.

The local health department said with the weather turning warmer a chickenpox epidemic was imminent.

Residents are being asked to take a vaccine shot but since it costs VND300,000 (US$19) few people, especially in rural areas, can afford it.

Doctors forecast incidence to double in March, the peak season for the disease in Vietnam.

Chickenpox is a highly contagious disease characterized by a rash of small itching blisters on the skin and mild fever.

It spreads by direct contact with a patient or through the air from an infected person.

Source: Nguoi Lao Dong – Translated by Tuong Nhi

Linh 0912269606 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:14:00.001-07:00

Linh 0912269606 Ha Noi

Festival showcases Mekong region traditional artisans

Traditional bamboo-weaving practiced by different ethnic groups living along the Mekong River will be on show at a bamboo festival that kicks off Saturday at Hanoi’s Vietnam Ethnology Museum.

The two-day festival will feature 14 artisans including eight from China, Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia, besides six from Vietnam.

Visitors will have the opportunity to discover the similarities and specific features of the weaving traditions in the Mekong region.

On show will be tools to net fish made by the Lao people from Thailand, Kho Mu from Laos, Khmer from Cambodia and Vietnam, and other ethnic groups from Vietnam's southern Dong Thap province, baskets woven by Vietnamese people in Can Tho, and other bamboo products made by the Thai people living in Yunnan, China.

Children can also try their hand at several activities designed exclusively for them at this outdoor festival.

The event, organized jointly by the Culture Heritage Department and the Vietnam Ethnology Museum, will get technical support from the Center of Folk Life and Cultural Heritage of the US’s Smithsonian Institute, and financial support from the US’s Rockefeller Fund through the Thailand Royal Center of Human Studies.

It is a prelude to participation by Vietnamese artists in the 41st annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington D.C, the US, in June this year.

The Smithsonian Folklife Festival program, themed Mekong river: Connecting Cultures, will give an insight into the complex connections among ethnic groups, languages, and traditions of peoples living along the mighty river.

Source: TTXVN, Tuoi Tre, Lao Dong – Compiled by Thu Thuy

Hải Anh 0984950988 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:12:00.002-07:00

Hải Anh 0984950988 Ha Noi

ASEAN forms council to analyze cancer-causing lipsticks

The ASEAN Cosmetics Committee has formed a council to study the dangers of using lipsticks containing the carcinogenic dye sudan, after the products were found on sale in Vietnam.

The Ministry of Health in Vietnam made the announcement, saying earlier it would launch a nationwide inspection to confiscate and destroy all products containing sudan.

Sudan may also damage human DNA.

The EU has banned the use of sudan in cosmetics, except hair care products.

The toxic substance has also been found in eggs on sale in Vietnam, added to give fuller color to the yolk.

Early this month, Hanoi authorities seized Chinese-made lipsticks for sale at US$1 – 1.6 per tube, suspected to contain sudan.

Last month, Chinese authorities confiscated large quantities of similar lipsticks from two local producers and suspended their operation.

Reported by L.C - Translated by A.N.O.N

Linh 0912269804 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:12:00.001-07:00

Linh 0912269804 Ha Noi

Foot-and-mouth disease ravages thirteen cities, provinces

Foot-and-mouth disease has reared its head in several sites of central Thua Thien-Hue and northern Lai Chau provinces, making up a total of 13 cities and provinces stricken by the disease so far.

The Veterinary Department said Saturday that 45 animals had been found infected in Phong Dien District and Hue city of Thua Thien-Hue province, while, another 400 buffalos and cows contracted the disease in Phong Tho district of Lai Chau province.

So far, besides Can Tho city and Ho Chi Minh City, there have been 11 provinces – Thai Nguyen, Kon Tum, Phu Yen, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Khanh Hoa, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Daklak, Thua Thien-Hue, and Lai Chau that have reported incidences of the disease.

Foot-and-mouth is a highly contagious viral disease affecting animals with divided hooves, especially cattle, sheep, and pigs, in which the animal develops ulcers in the mouth and near the hooves.

Reported by Quang Duan – Translated by Luu Thi Hong

Hương 0904474161 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:11:00.001-07:00

Hương 0904474161 Ha Noi

GSK’s bird flu vaccine shows wider protection: study

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) PLC's pre-pandemic flu vaccine provides 'substantial' cross-protection against similar strains of the bird flu virus, according to new studies published by the drug maker.

The H5N1 flu strain, which is sweeping through bird populations in Europe and Asia, is thought by experts to be the most likely candidate to mutate and trigger the next global pandemic.

The challenge for drug makers is to have sufficient quantities of a vaccine ready early enough to allow large populations to be inoculated. Waiting for a pandemic to break out to find out the exact strain would delay the first vaccine batches for four to six months, given the illness time to become widespread.

While the virus has not yet mutated into a form that can be transmitted from human to human, drug makers are working on vaccines based on known strains in the hope that they will be similar enough to prime immune systems to fight the pandemic bug.

In one study, GSK's pre-pandemic vaccine containing the Vietnam H5N1 antigen was found to elicit a strong cross-immune response in humans infected with the Indonesian strain of the virus.

The response was seen at low doses, which Glaxo believes was due to the adjuvant used in the vaccine. An adjuvant is a substance added to a drug to enhance its effect.

Glaxo said that could mean by adding its proprietary adjuvant, manufacturing capacity – another big challenge in the face of a mass global outbreak – could be increased.

A second animal study showed that Glaxo's vaccine could protect against two diverse H5N1 flu strains, again at very low levels. The vaccine containing the Vietnam strain protected against the vaccine virus and provided 96 pct cross-protection against a lethal challenge with the mutated, or 'drifted' Indonesia strain.

Rip Ballou, GSK's Vice President of clinical research and development, said the results give a boost to hopes that pre-pandemic vaccination is a viable strategy.

'The generic difference between these two viruses is quite substantial, so I think it certainly bodes well for its ability to broadly cross-protect,' he said. 'And we think this cross immunity is certainly been driven by the adjuvant which is unique to GSK.'

Ballou said GSK is already talking to governments who might purchase the vaccine prior to it gaining marketing approval.

The shot is currently under review by European medicine regulators.

Source: AFX

Ngọc 0906155476 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:10:00.000-07:00

Ngọc 0906155476 Ha Noi

Vietnam eyes closer Saudi Arabia trade ties

A Vietnamese trade ministry delegation will visit Saudi Arabia in May to promote economic and commercial ties.

The 10-day visit will include seminars and business forums in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital and largest city, and in Jeddah, the second largest city.

The delegation will then travel to Dubai to meet with local businesses.

The ministry’s plans for the year include arranging a visit to Saudi Arabia by businesses to study the market and promote trade under a key trade promotion program.

Source: VNA

Lan 0916063477 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:09:00.000-07:00

Lan 0916063477 Ha Noi

UN pledges further aid to Vietnam’s HIV/AIDS prevention

The United Nations will continue working closely with Vietnamese authorities to help the country better control the spread of HIV/AIDS, said a senior UN official.

Michel Sidibe, Head of the Country and Regional Support Department of the Joint UN Program on HIV/AIDS, made the pledge at a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Truong Vinh Trong in Hanoi on Friday.

He emphasized the need for each and every country the world over to change public attitude towards victims of the disease, now a major challenge in the world.

His view was shared by the Vietnamese Deputy PM, who pointed out the need to base the HIV/AIDS program at the community level as well as to increase coordination and exchange of experiences between nations and international bodies.

Trong said the Vietnamese Government has been campaigning strongly for support from mass organizations, communities and individual families in an effort to mitigate the spread of the epidemic.

The campaigns, together with the Government's action plan would enable Vietnam to effectively control the pandemic and eliminate prejudice against those infected with HIV/AIDS, he concluded.

More funding

Vietnam will earmark VND150 billion (nearly US$9.4 million) for preventing and fighting against HIV/AIDS this year, compared with VND82 billion ($5.1 million) last year, said Duong Quoc Trong, head of the country's AIDS Prevention Department.

The country would also use an additional VND290 billion ($18.1 million) mobilized from international donors for its anti-HIV/AIDS activities in 2007.

Under this year’s program, 10,000-120,000 Vietnamese AIDS patients are expected to have access to anti-retroviral medicines, all children having HIV will undergo treatment, and 75 HIV testing centers nationwide will be upgraded.

As of December 2006, Vietnam had recorded 116,565 HIV cases, 20,195 AIDS cases and 11,802 AIDS-related deaths, according to the Department of AIDS Prevention.

Source: VNA

Tuyết 0985991640 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:08:00.002-07:00

Tuyết 0985991640 Ha Noi

Undecided on dividend tax, says Vietnam government

The Vietnamese government has yet to decide on taxing securities investments, Deputy Minister of Finance Truong Chi Trung said amid warnings that taxes would come as a blow to the nascent stock market.

Investors said the government should not make haste on a planned tax on dividends. Nguyen Hong Nam, head of securities firm Saigon Securities Incorporation (SSI), said the government should tax capital gains instead of dividends.

Another investor called on the government to shelve the dividend tax until 2010 instead of the scheduled 2009 giving the fledgling securities markets time to attract more foreign investors.

A related proposal, this one to tax bonus shares, from the Ho Chi Minh City Tax Bureau, has also come in for fierce criticism.

Nguyen Hoang Hai, secretary general of the Vietnam Association of Financial Investors, said there were no grounds to collect personal income tax on bonus shares while even a law on taxing dividends was yet to be passed.

Ly Xuan Hai, CEO of Asia Commercial Bank, warned that any move to tax bonus shares without making sufficient studies could extract a heavy toll on the securities market.

Source: Thanh Nien, VnExpress – Compiled by An Dien

Phương 0912462344 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:08:00.001-07:00

Phương 0912462344 Ha Noi

Vietnam pepper output to decline: experts

Vietnam’s next pepper harvest is likely to see a drop of 10-20 percent due to droughts and pests, experts warned.

President of the Vietnam Pepper Association, Do Ha Nam, listed El Nino, improper farming techniques, and overuse of fertilizers as factors set to take a toll on the output of the world's leading pepper supplier.

Executive director of the International Pepper Community, Anandan Abdullah, warned about a decline in output if the crop was grown on unsuitable land.

Scientists, growers, and processors should join hands to address this problem.

Last year Vietnam exported more than 118,000 tons to 80 countries and territories for US$195 million, accounting for nearly 60 percent of the world's pepper shipments.

Source: VNA

Khanh 0904775128 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:07:00.001-07:00

Khanh 0904775128 Ha Noi

Vietnam rural bank becomes urban

A rural bank based in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta has converted into an urban commercial bank and assumed a new name.

Following its makeover as Petrolimex Group Commercial Joint Stock Bank (PG Bank), the former Dong Thap Muoi Rural Commercial Bank can now expand its network nationwide and offer all banking services including international payment and foreign exchange.

The Vietnam Petroleum Corp (Petrolimex) holds 40 percent of the bank’s chartered capital of VND200 billion (US$12.5 million). Smaller stakes are held by securities firm Saigon Securities Incorporation and individuals.

Earlier this year Petrolimex announced it had acquired the Dong Thap Muoi Rural Commercial Bank after spending an undisclosed sum to revive the bank.

A PG Bank spokesman said the bank would initially open branches in both large and small cities and in other densely populated areas, before expanding further.

PG Bank would have access to Petrolimex’s resources.

The bank was established in 1993 with a chartered capital of VND700 million and headquarters in Cao Lanh township in Dong Thap Province.

At the end of last year it had total assets of VND1.2 trillion ($75 million) and outstanding loans of VND801 billion, and a turnover for the year of VND69 billion ($4.3 million) and pre-tax profit of VND17.49 billion.

The bank plans to increase its capital to at least VND1 trillion by next year, and VND3 trillion by 2010.

Two other rural banks converted into urban banks – Hai Hung Bank and Mien Tay Bank –last year, taking the total number of such conversions to eight out of 11 rural banks.

Acquisitions gain ground

The banking industry has recently witnessed acquisitions because of optimistic forecasts for the sector post-WTO.

Last month the Ho Chi Minh City-based Saigon Trading Group paid VND80 billion ($5 million) to acquire 1 million shares of the unlisted Southern Commercial Bank.

The country’s largest confectioner, Kinh Do Corp, bought a 6.42 percent stake in the Vietnam Export-Import Bank (Eximbank) for $90 million.

Reported by M.Q. – Compiled by Dong Ha

Nhật 0914401609 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:06:00.002-07:00

Nhật 0914401609 Ha Noi

Soco fails to strike oil, to abandon Vietnam well

British oil company Soco International PLC said it is preparing to plug and abandon an exploration well in Vietnam after failing to find hydrocarbons.

It said the Ca Ong Doi 2X (COD-2X) well on Block 9-2 encountered lower Miocene – a geological era 24-5 million years ago – sands but were not charged with hydrocarbons.

It was now preparing to move back to Block 16-1, saying it would focus its near term exploration program on the 'proven play fairway' on Block 16-1 where it expected to drill up to eight exploration wells this year.

Source: AFX News

Linh 0904195434 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:06:00.001-07:00

Vietnam seafood exports up 42 pct

Vietnam’s seafood exports fetched US$450 million in the first two months of the year, a year-on-year increase of nearly 42 percent, the fisheries ministry said.

To further increase exports, the ministry has instructed authorized agencies to keep a closer eye on quality, safety, and hygiene, particularly of products destined for major markets like Australia, Japan, and Russia.

It also called for measures to eliminate chemical and antibiotic residues in exports.

Source: VNA

Trang 0904729478 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:05:00.001-07:00

Trang 0904729478 Ha Noi

Vietnam apparel exports to jump 25 pct

Vietnam’s apparel exports are set to grow by 25 percent this year to US$7.5 billion, the industry association has forecast.

The Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) said following Vietnam’s recent WTO entry its exporters no longer had to contend with restrictive conditions in some giant markets like the US, and had the opportunity to expand exports.

Export tariffs on Vietnamese apparel would be cut sharply.

Exports to the US would double from last year’s $2 billion since the US’s quota scheme had ended with WTO membership.

However, the US was working out a supervisory scheme on Vietnam’s five top apparel items – shirts, trousers, underwear, sweaters, and swimwear.

If Vietnam was discovered violating WTO rules or subsidizing garment manufacture, heavy anti-dumping duties could be slapped or quotas re-imposed.

VITAS suggested that exporters should avoid excessive dependence on the US because of the high risk of law suits and explore untapped markets like Japan and South Africa.

Source: Thanh Nien – Compiled by Dong Ha

Tuyết 0913307345 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:04:00.002-07:00

Tuyết 0913307345 Ha Noi

Australian coffee chain opens second Vietnam outlet

Australian Gloria Jean's Coffees opened its second franchise in Vietnam Thursday with an upmarket coffee shop in Hanoi.

The world's second most popular coffee chain had come to Vietnam in January with a shop in Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam was the 25th market for the Australian firm, said Nguyen Phi Van, managing director of Viet Lifestyle, the master franchisee in Hanoi for the Australian firm. It would have 3,000 franchises worldwide by end-2007.

Viet Lifestyle aimed to open five more outlets in Vietnam this year, one in the capital and four in HCMC.

Danang and Haiphong were also promising that Gloria Jean's had an eye on, she said.

Source: VOV, SGT

Thùy Linh 0912805950 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:04:00.001-07:00

Thùy Linh 0912805950 Ha Noi

Businesses in Italy’s Torino seek opportunities in Vietnam

Vietnam's accession to the WTO coupled with its dynamic growth provides many opportunities for Italian businesses, delegates agreed a recent seminar held in Italy.

Mirella Calvaro, an official from the Internationalization Department of the Piedmont region where the seminar titled Vietnam: Fresh Opportunities for Businesses in the Piedmont Region was held Thursday, said the region’s authorities had promised support for local entrepreneurs doing business in Vietnam.

The Piedmont region also planned to host an exhibition on industrial design in Vietnam next month.

It would provide scholarships for Vietnamese students and postgraduates who wanted to study in Torino.

Source: VNA

Lan 0988832341 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:02:00.000-07:00

Lan 0988832341 Ha Noi
CV center 0987558069

PM warns stock market could go bust without transparency

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has called for measures including transparency to ensure the stability of the country’s fledgling but overheated stock market.

During a visit Saturday to the office of the State Securities Commission (SSC), the securities watchdog, he underlined the need to cool down the skyrocketing market to prevent losses for investors and an adverse impact on the economy.

He told the SSC to adopt management systems and market rules from neighboring countries to minimize risks.

The Vietnamese stock market gained 144 percent last year and 50 percent so far this year. It is capitalized at over VND371 trillion (US$23.1 billion) and there are 193 listed firms as against 41 at the end of 2005.

SCC director Vu Bang also warned about a potential “bubble” in the market which could collapse.

Source: VNA, Thanh Nien

Thu 0915675288 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T07:01:00.000-07:00

Thu 0915675288 Ha Noi
CV center 0987558069

China lawmaker wants Forbidden City free of Starbucks


A visitor drinks coffee at a Starbucks outlet inside the Forbidden City in Beijing. (Photo: Reuters)

A member of China's parliament has demanded the immediate closure of a Starbucks coffee shop set up inside Beijing's Forbidden City, the Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.

Two months after a television host launched an online campaign to evict Starbucks Corp. from the former home of Chinese emperors, the seven-year-old store has had its logo removed but otherwise it's business as usual, the agency said.

"Starbucks must move out of the imperial palace immediately, and it can no longer be allowed to taint China's national culture," said Jiang Hongbin, who represents the north-eastern province of Heilongjiang at the National People's Congress (NPC), a rubber-stamp legislature that meets once a year.

"As long as it stays in the imperial palace, it poses a challenge to our traditional culture," said Jiang, who is president of Heilongjiang Chia Tai Co., a unit of Thai agricultural conglomerate CP Group.

In response to the online boycott, the Palace Museum management had promised to seek a solution with Starbucks by the end of June, Xinhua said. The rent paid by Starbucks is used for maintenance of the palace, it added, citing museum managers.

NPC delegates may suggest motions or proposals for legislation and government action, but these are rarely acted upon but can occasionally be incorporated into legislation.

Other suggestions this year have included protecting under-sea archaeological finds, banning claims of state sponsorship in advertising, and making entrance to the Great Hall of the People free.

Source: Reuters

Lan 0904375921 Ha Noi

2007-03-11T06:59:00.000-07:00

Japan pledges aid for Hanoi subway


Hanoi needs further investment to improve traffic (Photo: VnExpress)

The Japan Bank for International Co-operation signed a memorandum of understanding Friday to assist Hanoi in building a US$1.4 billion, 15.2 km metro, to be completed in 2013.

The subway will link South Thang Long in the suburban district of Tu Liem with Thuong Dinh in Thanh Xuan district, with 85% of the construction cost expected to come from Japanese Official Development Assistance through the bank.

The network will be part of a 42 km railway route running from Noi Bai International Airport to Ha Dong Town in neighboring Ha Tay province, to be built by 2020.

Source: VNA

MF wary of Vietnamese stock market boom

2007-03-02T05:04:00.001-08:00

MF wary of Vietnamese stock market boom

The International Monetary Fund has urged Vietnamese authorities to keep a tighter grip on the stock exchange to curb its recent volatility.

In recommendations sent to the State Securities Commission, it has called for increased measures to limit risks in the securities market, particularly in relation to commercial banks that accept stock as collateral for loans.

In principle, only banks with sound risk management regimes and qualified staff should be licensed to accept securities.

The State Bank of Vietnam should squeeze monetary policy and cap banks’ lending.

The central bank should also be more flexible in managing the dong, allowing its value to fall if needed.

The government should try to improve transparency to ensure the reliability of the stock market, and strictly enforce regulations on public disclosure of information.

Insider trading should be harshly punished.

The government’s efforts in the past to manage the overheated market were appropriate. These included capping lending against stocks by commercial banks and keeping a close eye on foreign funds.

The P/E ratio (price-to-earnings) of the Vietnamese stock market is very high compared to the global average.

For the 20 largest firms on the Ho Chi Minh stock exchange (accounting for 99 percent of the market capitalization) it is 73 in January against a world average of a mere 16.4.

The rapid growth of the market has been prompted by optimistic forecasts about the Vietnamese economy and the country’s recent WTO membership.

This has also led to growing foreign portfolio investment since November but many shares are overvalued.

The indirect investment has also created a current account surplus, which could easily become a deficit when demand for imports increase due to WTO-fuelled tariff cuts.

Market view

Vietnamese stocks lost steam Thursday with the index falling by 1.29 percent after several days of gains.

The VN-Index fell by 14.62 points to 1123.07 with analysts attributing it to the IMF’s warnings to the government.

Volumes too were down as 41 stocks gained, 46 lost, and 22 remained unchanged.

Sacombank led in terms of both volume and value while IT company FPT was the top loser, shedding VND17,000 to close at VND615,000.

Foreign investors bought into some big companies like Pha Lai Power Joint Stock Co. and petroleum industry services supplier, PVD, and sold heavyweights like dairy firm Vinamilk and Vinh Son – Song Hinh Hydropower Plant.

They were net sellers to the tune of VND99 billion (US$6.2 million).

The Hanoi market too lost, with the index falling by 5.66 points to 424.68.

Reported by Hoang Ly – Compiled by Dong Ha

Largest-ever Chinese Festival enlivens southern metro

2007-03-02T04:57:00.002-08:00

Largest-ever Chinese Festival enlivens southern metro

The Chinese-Vietnamese Lunar New Year Cultural Festival, the largest event of its kind in Vietnam opened Wednesday in Ho Chi Minh City, with performances captivating thousands in the audience.

Over 2,000 performing artists from 22 Vietnamese performance troupes and their counterparts from Hong Kong joined in the festival, organized at the city’s April 30 Park by the Ministry of Culture and Information and the HCMC People’s Committee.

The event’s opening ceremony yesterday saw the attendance of a number of Vietnamese high-ranked officials including Minister of Culture and Information Le Doan Hop, Minister - Head of Ethnic Committee Ksor Phuoc, Deputy Head of Vietnamese Fatherland Front Cu Hoa Van, Chairman of HCMC People’s Committee Le Hoang Quan, among others.

Addressing the inauguration, Deputy Minister of Culture and Information Dinh Quang Ngu emphasized the importance of the event, saying that Vietnam respects and cares for the preservation and improvement of ethnic culture in general, and that of Chinese community in particular.

“The cheerful festival and motivated atmosphere will elevate the people’s determination for a new year full of achievements,” said Ngu.

On the occasion, Chairman of HCM People’s Committee, Le Hoang Quan highly valued the contributions of the Chinese-Vietnamese people to the development of the city.

Quan said the Chinese community has actively joined in the municipal variety of social and charity works such as offering houses to the poor, looking after the Vietnamese heroic mothers, assisting needy patients, students, and victims of natural disasters.

In the coming days, the celebration would incorporate musical performances, traditional fashion shows, dragon dances, folk games, calligraphic art exhibitions, Chinese food and more.

Chinese-Vietnamese historical, revolutionary and cultural sites would be open to the public and a seminar on “Building cultural life for the Chinese community in Vietnam in the new era” was scheduled to be held.

The Chinese-Vietnamese community’s key festivals, such as the Mid-autumn festival, the Lunar New Year and the Mid-winter festival would be dramatized in short plays during the event.

Running until March 4, the event’s closing ceremony will be broadcast on HCMC Television (HTV), and aims to promote the unique cultural traditions of the city’s 600,000 residents of Chinese origin, Vietnam’s largest ethnic minority community.

Source: Thanh Nien, Nguoi Lao Dong, Tuoi Tre – Compiled by Luu Thi Hong

HSBC announces Vietnam young entrepreneurs contest

2007-03-02T04:57:00.001-08:00

HSBC announces Vietnam young entrepreneurs contest

Banking group HSBC has instituted an award for young entrepreneurs in Vietnam to identify business acumen among youths.

Teams of not more than three full-time students aged 25 or below from universities and vocational institutions are eligible to enter the competition for the HSBC Young Entrepreneur Awards.

The contest will comprise three rounds in which participating teams must submit their business plans to develop a product, service, or something else to fill a market need, create value or income, increase sales, or reduce costs.

In May, the ten finalists will make presentations in English to a jury.

The jury for the first two rounds will comprise of HSBC executives and senior executives from the bank’s business partners.

In the final round, the panel will consist of representatives from the Young Entrepreneur Association and Thanh Nien newspaper.

The winning team will get a self-development fund of VND30 million (US$1,880) and compete with other gold medal winners in a regional finals in Hong Kong in June. The winner stands to win HK$100,000 ($12,800)

The contest has been organized in Hong Kong and other Asian countries since 2000.

Announcing all these details at a press conference Tuesday, Alain Cany, general director of HSBC Vietnam, said the contest would cultivate youths’ interest in entrepreneurship, especially in the context of the emerging opportunities in the wake of Vietnam’s recent WTO entry.

Reported by My Quyen – Translated by Tuong Nhi