时间：2022-09-12 11:11:09
By Olivia Chung
Capital flows to where the profits are. Astaxation and production costs increase onmainland China, more Hong Kong enterprisesare eyeing Vietnam for investmentopportunities following the Southeast Asiancountry's accession to the World TradeOrganization (WTO) in January
In order to capture the fresh businessopportunities, Peter Woo Kwong -ching,chairman of the government -affiliated HongKong.
Trade Development Council (TDC)led a17-member Hong Kong business delegation toVietnam on June 18-21. The TDC delegation.with representatives from Hong Kong'sclothing, jewelry,
financial,
logistics andelectric appliance sectors, visited Hanoi beforegoing to Ho Chi Minh City.
In Hanoi, the delegation met with VietnamPrime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, who saidoverseas investment was an integralcomponent of Vietnam' s
economicdevelopment and his government wouldprovide favorable conditions for Hong Konginvestors, particularly in the financial, banking,insurance, securities, shipping andmanufacturing sectors.
Earlier, the delegation was briefed byVietnamese Minister of Trade Truong DinhTuyen and Vice -minister of Planning andInvestment Nguyen Bich Dat on the latestdevelopments in Vietnam, including lawsrecently introduced to create a more effectivebusiness environment in the country.
Woo said Vietnam's competitive laborforce and its competitiveness as amanufacturing base, particularly for garmentsand electronics, have drawn attention fromHong Kong businessmen.
Trade between Vietnam and Hong Kong inJanuary-September, 2006, grew 19.5% to US￥2.1 billion. Inthe same period, Vietnam absorbed more than US ￥600million foreign direct investment (FDI) from Hong Kong,which was the largest among all foreign investments in thecountry.
Light-industry manufacturing and real estate, such ashotels and commercial and residential buildings, seem to beHong Kong investors' favorites, jointly accounting for over75% of Hong Kong FDI between 1998 and 2005, accordingto a TDC study on Vietnam.
The study said that Hong Kong companies shouldconsider investing there due to its growing access to theWord's top trading nations, especially the US, Foreigninvestment in Vietnam continues to grow unabated. Lastyear, the country attracted a record US￥10.2 billion. In thefirst five months of this year. the country attracted US~4.28billion. 18.7% up from the same period last year. Itsgovernment expected up to US￥20 billion to come in thisyear.
In March, Vietnam's government said that the country'seconomy had expanded 7.7% in the first quarter, up 7.2%from the same period last year, Overall,the country'seconomy grew 8.2% last year, and its government istargeting growth this year of 8.5%
Vietnam's deputy prime minister Nguyen Sinh Hung toldthe World Economic Forum on East Asia on June 24 that the country looks set to sustain economic growth of between 8%and 10% yearly till at least 2020.
Hung said the country's economy is expected to doubteby 2010 from 441.6 trillion dong in 2000, and that willincrease twofold by 2020.
Dao Quoc Khanh, commercial consul of the VietnamTrade Office in Hong Kong, said Vietnam's economic growthis sustainable as the communist country attracts more foreigninvestment with plans to cut taxes and amend laws such asenterprise law and investment law.
He said the country has a cost competitive labor force:the monthly salary of low-skilled labor is at least US￥100.higher than the minimum salary level of US￥70.
"Of a total population of 86 million in Vietnam, 75% areyoungsters who have received a better education, particularlythose with a university degree can speak English, which canhelp solve the communication problem where foreigners areconcerned, " he said.
Hong Kong-listed automobile equipment manufacturerZhongda International Holdings is setting up its first overseasplant for the production of truck chassis and special purposevehicles in a US￥60 million joint venture with the stateowned vehicle manufacturer, Vietnam Motors Industry.
"The Vietnamese government invites us to manufacturevehicles after knowing that we can make good value for-money ones, which also can meet the standard requirementfor vehicles in Vietnam," said Allan Kwok. executive directorof Zhongda, which has been selling car maintenanceequipment in Vietnam for more than five years. The annualproduction capacity of the joint venture is 5,000 buses,20,000 framed chassis with engine and 10,000 bare chassis.
The Vietnamese government intends to turn automanufacturing into a pillar industry, and Kwok said thepotential market for the automotive and pads industry isgreat. In Vietnam, vehicles including passenger cars aremostly second hand or assembled there with imported pads.But the prices are not cheap and supplies aren't stable dueto the necessity of importing pad.
"The market is huge for the first vehicle manufacturingcompany in Vietnam, Kwok said. Part of the reason isbecause transport companies seldom switch to other vehiclemanufacturers once they make the first orders, he added.
Zhongda is still talking with a provincial Vietnamesegovernment about further tax cuts, such as tax holidays. Theplant will be set up in the special economic zone (SEZ)covering China's Guangxi province and part of Vietnam. Atpresent, taxes for vehicle assembling companies andvehicles manufacturers in Vietnam are 18% and 10%resepectively.
One prime concern for Zhongda is the poor Vietnameseroad system, but he said the government has promised toimprove the national infrastructure. "A "highway" in Vietnamcan be a single-lane road for two-way traffic ... but thegovernment has pledged to make improvements, for example build an expressway in the SEZ. We hope it canstart soon,"he said.
Another Hong Kong company, listed construction giantChun Wo Holdings, is also in Vietnam, working on a multi-purpose property development project in Ho Chi Minh City.Eddie Yeung, director of Chun Wo, said the companyinvests in Vietnam due to the company's desire to diversify,the close proximity to China and the positive economicoutlook.
"The local partner we have been working with is great, "Yeung said. "They have given us very useful advice ondesigning residential flats and consumer tastes in Vietnam.Our presate flats have attracted an enthusiastic marketresponse," he said.
"Its not easy to find a good localpartner, so we are thinking of working with them again onany new projects. " said Yeung, who described a good localpartner as "a walking stick" for his company in exploring thenew market. The demand for property development inVietnam is strong, Yeung said. He and Kowk said thecountry is much like China in the late 70s and early "80s,with many opportunities, including a large, competitivelower-paid labor force, for investors to get the first slice of apotentially huge market.
( Edited by Yao Juan 姚 娟)