Category: Business

Vietnamese and Danish officials, experts and enterprises in the agriculture and food sector shared experience and had dialogue on the application of technology and solutions in green agriculture and food production at a seminar held in Ho Chi Minh City on November 22.

The seminar ‘Farming for the Future: A Danish – Vietnamese Dialogue on Green and Efficient Food and Agriculture’ was co-organised by the Danish Embassy in Vietnam, the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, and the Danish Agriculture and Food Council.

At the event, participants discussed green solutions that not only improve efficiency but also enhance sustainability as well as new innovative methods and technologies in agricultural and food production.

The seminar also provided an opportunity to help Danish and Vietnamese agricultural and food companies identify potential areas of cooperation, laying the foundation for win-win cooperation in the future.

Mette Ekeroth, Deputy Head of Mission of Denmark in Vietnam, said that green transf
ormation in agricultural and food production has always been a central topic of cooperation between the two countries.

The working trip of the Danish sustainable agriculture and food delegation is expected to help Danish and Vietnamese agencies, organisations, and businesses in the industry to meet and share knowledge and experience, and promote cooperation, thus helping to lay the foundation for the future of the agriculture and food sector in both countries, Ekeroth emphasised.

The seminar was part of the long-term Strategic Sector Cooperation (SSC) programme between Denmark and Vietnam, which aims to support Vietnam in the process of transforming agricultural and food production towards green and sustainability.

During the cooperation process, organisations and businesses of the two countries can find new ways to cooperate and exchange ideas to promote a stronger green transition in the future./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Sugar could become more expensive in the remaining months of 2023, according to the Vietnam Sugarcane and Sugar Association (VSSA).

Data from the Vietnam Commodity Exchange (MXV) showed global sugar prices had reached 161 USD per tonne in early November, a 150% increase compared to the beginning of the year, marking the highest price in the last 12 years.

Industry experts said a decrease in supply as India and Thailand, two of the largest producers, lowered their output was the main factor behind recent price hikes.

Thanh Thanh Cong-Bien Hoa JSC, a major sugar producer in Vietnam with a 46% market share, said the company’s revenue increased to 5.9 trillion VND (245.8 million USD) in the first three quarters of 2023, a nearly 20% increase compared to the same period in the previous year, fetching 663 billion VND in pre-tax profit.

After-tax profit, however, plummeted by 17% as the company struggled with high interest rates, paying out over 444 billion VND on interest payments, almost double the amount rec
orded in 2022.

Lam Son Sugar reported its highest growth, 471 billion VND in revenue and 17 billion VND in profit, a 55% and 113% increase, respectively compared to the same period in 2022. In an earlier development, Lam Son Sugar announced a plan to import 40,000 tonnes of raw sugar this year, as part of an effort to meet their annual target.

Son La Sugar also reported strong growth with a revenue of 431 billion VND and profit of 119 billion VND, an increase of 26% and 47% respectively, compared to the period last year. An effort to reduce financial costs by Son La Sugar has yielded stronger profits and was on its way to meeting this year’s fiscal target.

Quang Ngai Sugar reported an after-tax profit of 506 billion VND for the third quarter of 2023, a 60% increase compared to the same period last year but slightly lower than their performance during the first and second quarters of 2023.

In total, Quang Ngai Sugar reported a total revenue of 7.74 trillion VND in the first nine months of the year, an incr
ease of 23% compared to the same period last year, with sugar being the strongest growth driver for the company, fetching 3.12 trillion VND in revenue and 1.26 trillion VND in gross profit.

With just a few months left before the end of 2023, the price of sugar will likely increase due to higher demand, typically seen towards the Tet (Lunar New Year) Holiday. Meanwhile, inventory has been running low for some time, prompting experts to anticipate difficulties on the supplier’s side in the domestic market.

They advised sugar producers to capitalise on high prices to strengthen domestic sugarcane production and rely less on imports./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnam Foodexpo 2023 opened at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Centre (SECC) in Ho Chi Minh City on November 22.

The four-day event features more than 500 booths of nearly 400 domestic and international enterprises, including businesses from 30 Vietnamese cities and provinces and more than 20 countries and territories such as the US, Russia, Australia, China, the Republic of Korea, Japan.

On display are a wide range of agricultural products, aquatic products, processed foodstuff and beverages, as well as food processing, preservation and packaging technologies and equipment, among others.

Organic food production and processing are an inevitable trend of the Vietnamese food industry, therefore the event has gathered many local and foreign organic brands with high quality products, meeting the needs and trends of healthy living in the country.

The event is also an opportunity to connect Vietnamese enterprises with partners, boost trade and investment promotion, and develop the food industry.

A highl
ight of the event is the presence of booths from the Biotrade project with the theme ” Biodiversity: Where flavors harmonise”. More than 20 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia have introduced more than 200 items such as spices, seeds (peanuts, beans, sesame), rice, coconut, palmyra, tea, coffee which are cultivated and produced according to international standards./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The southernmost province of Ca Mau will organise the first-ever shrimp festival and One Commune, One Product (OCOP) connection forum from December 10-13, said Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Phan Hoang Vu.

At a press conference on November 21, he highlighted that an array of activities will be held to promote the images and brands of local shrimp and OCOP products.

The opening ceremony will take place on December 10, with a stellar art programme that spotlights the beauty of Ca Mau and its and people.

Besides, the festival will feature around 400 booths showcasing shrimp and OCOP products.

Other events held within the framework of the festival include a trade, investment and tourism promotion forum, a conference to promote the trade of OCOP products in the Mekong Delta, and a workshop to seek measures for sustainable shrimp development.

Ca Mau is now home to 280,000 hectares of shrimp breeding, accounting for 40% of the country’s shrimp farming area. The shrim
p output reaches more than 220,000 tonnes per year, equivalent to 22% of the country’s total.

The shrimp industry provides livelihoods for more than 600,000 people, or half the province’s population./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

As foreign direct investment (FDI) has an important role to play in the economic development of the southern province of Ba Ria – Vung Tau, the locality has paid due regard to attracting high-quality projects to create breakthrough for the local industry which is developing towards modernisation and sustainability.

According to the provincial Department of Planning and Investment, foreign investors have registered more than 31.4 billion USD into 457 FDI projects in the province so far. From the outset of this year, Ba Ria – Vung Tau has secured over 751 million USD in 20 newly-registered projects, up 2.78 folds in value year-on-year, and 503 million USD added to existing 25 projects, increasing 15.3% from the same time last year.

To date, more than 30 countries and territories have landed investment in the province, including the US, Canada, Thailand, the Republic of Korea, the UK, and France.

Particularly, the province has lured several large-scale projects with investment capital of more than 1 billion
USD such as the 5-billion USD Long Son Petrochemical Complex invested by Thailand’s Siam Cement Group, and a Polypropylene (PP) plant and a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage cavern worth 1.3 billion USD invested by Hyosung Group from the RoK.

According to Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Van Tho, the province will sharpen focus on calling for large-scale non-labour intensive projects with advanced technologies and high value-added products in the coming time.

Besides, it has encouraged FDI firms to renew their production line and technologies to improve productivity and product quality while saving energy, he said.

Tho said he has ordered competent departments and sectors to provide investors in prioritised fields with support in industrial infrastructure, and help other enterprises remove financial bottlenecks so that they are able to expand business and production.

As the province is striving to attract at least 15 billion USD in FDI capital by 2025, it has invested in a modern t
ransport system besides developing the industrial infrastructure./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Garment and textile firms are urged to flexibly implement measures to bring into full play market opportunities and promote growth, so as to fulfil the set goal of over 40 billion USD in export revenue this year.

In the first 10 months of this year, total value of garment and textile exports reached more than 33 billion USD, down 12.45% year-on-year. In October, the sector saw a sign of recovery when earning 3.2 billion USD from exports, up 5.28% month-on-month, and 2.96% year-on-year.

The US is currently Vietnam’s biggest apparel importer, accounting for over 40% of the market share, followed by Japan, the EU, the Republic of Korea, and China.

According to insiders, in the gloomy picture of the market over the past 10 months, the only silver lining is high growth from countries participating in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) such as Japan, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

In addition, the country has gained access to several new markets in Africa and
the Middle East, which is expected to help keep the industry’s export turnover from decreasing deeply in the context of sharp reductions in global market demand.

General Director of Vietnam Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex) Cao Huu Hieu said that in the fourth quarter, market signs become more positive when the frequency of customers coming to learn about the source of goods and production capacity is the driving force for garment firms to introduce their products and offer suitable prices to win orders for the coming period.

Regarding tasks for the last month of 2023, experts advised businesses to re-organise production to increase labour productivity, meet small orders, and arrange appropriate human resources to optimise labour costs.

Chairman of Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas) Vu Duc Giang emphasised that businesses must quickly change themselves and adapt to market fluctuations.

He stressed the need to organise vocational skills classes and human resources training for green and digi
tal transformation, in order to improve labour productivity and competitiveness.

In addition, it is necessary to retain customers by accepting small orders, while promoting the exploitation of new markets and reducing costs to step up production and business activities, and boost growth, added Giang./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency