Day: January 17, 2023

Vietnam has increasingly become a burgeoning industrial hub, especially for tech and apparel, wrote an article published by India’s stattimes.com on January 14.

The article said while parts of Asia are still recovering from the global pandemic, Vietnam’s economy has boomed, reaching an impressive 8.02% increase in GDP by the last quarter of 2022 – that’s faster than other major regional economies in Asia. Its export revenue hit 372 billion USD, up 10% year-on-year.

Explaining the boom of Vietnam’s industry, it said part of the reason is the disruption to supply chains on the Chinese mainland, Asia’s largest manufacturing hub, as factories were subject to shutdowns during COVID-19. Companies turned to alternative locations to continue and diversify their production streams.

Moreover, Vietnam has a competitive labour force and low manufacturing costs. It has a young and growing population of 97 million, 70% of whom are under 35 – that’s a considerable labour force for the manufacturing industry.

The article also noted that Vietnam is strategically located along a strip of 3,200km coastline which makes the country, particularly the north, an effective location for shipping cargo in and out. The government has been investing in development projects to improve the country’s infrastructure, particularly in the northeastern cities, to create a more attractive travel destination, and ultimately a more connected port and industrial hub, it said.

Another reason is that more companies are moving in Vietnam which is the world’s second-largest manufacturer of tech and apparel, with big brands like Nike, Adidas and Samsung operating across the country. Google’s newest Pixel phone, too, will be made in Vietnam, while Microsoft started shipping Xbox game consoles from Ho Chi Minh City in 2022.

Reports have also emerged that Apple supplier Foxconn is investing 300 million USD to expand their factories in the north of the country, and Dell, HP, Nintendo and Lenovo are all planning on setting up plants in the country as well.

Additionally, the Vietnamese government has been making strong efforts to make trade easier between Vietnam and the rest of the world. The nation has signed several free trade agreements with the EU, UK and nations across the Asia-Pacific, opening up the country to more trade opportunities, especially to the west.

Another strong driver of trade is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership deal to which Vietnam is a member, the article said

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Statistics Indonesia (BPS) on January 16 reported that the country’s trade balance in 2022 sees a surplus of 54.46 billion USD while its trade surplus in 2021 was just 35.33 billion USD.

According to the BPS, Indonesia’s total export value reached 291.98 billion USD in 2022 while the total import value stood at only 237.52 billion USD. Its exports of non-oil reached 275.96 billion USD, a year-on-year increase of 25.8%.

By location, West Java province topped the country in terms of export turnover in 2022 with 38.59 billion USD, up 13.22% year-on-year. It was followed by East Kalimantan with 36.46 billion USD, up 12.49% year-on-year, and East Java with 24.75 billion USF, up 8.48%.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s non-oil importers in 2022 include China with 67.16 billion USD (up 34.07%), Japan with 17.08 billion USD (up 8.66%), and Thailand with 10.85 billion USD (up 5.5%).

Indonesia’s non-oil imports from ASEAN and EU countries reached 32.85 billion USD (up 16.67%) and 11.63 billion USD (up 5.9%)

Source: Vietnam News Agency

– Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has appealed to all ministerial ranks to channel the 2023 state budget into productive activities, especially pertaining to job creation.

The head of state noted during a plenary cabinet meeting on January 16 that the 2023 state budget must be focused on productive activities, especially in the context of job creation and poverty alleviation.

The president remarked apart from productive programmes, the 2023 state budget is also focused on completing national priority programmes, such as reducing stunting rates, lowering extreme poverty, and the agenda ahead of the 2024 election with focuses on national priority programmes such as the people’s economy, exports and investment.

He also said that the use of the regional budget must be in line with the state budget that focuses on national priority programs, such as the people’s economy, exports, and investment.

According to him, the government managed to achieve positive results amid external pressure in the turbulent year of 2022, such as economic growth that was projected to lie in the range of around 5.2% to 5.3%, to inflation that can still be controlled at the level of 5.5%.

He viewed that 2023 will not be an easy year since several major countries, such as the European Union, China, and the US, are experiencing economic downturns due to increasing geopolitical pressure

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Malaysia’s national debt including liabilities has reached 1.5 trillion RM (346 billion USD), equivalent to over 80% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), according to Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

Addressing at a dialogue session on budget on January 17 morning, Anwar said the figure suggests that Malaysia’s budget deficit will widen further than the earlier estimate of 5.8% of the GDP for 2022.

The issue should be addressed urgently, he stressed.

Economic uncertainties are still not easing, he said, noting that the economy is still considered dim and this was also contributed by external factors including the Ukraine-Russia conflict as well as global recovery post-COVID-19.

The new 2023 Budget is expected to be tabled in the Parliament on February 24 on the basis of the draft law introduced by the previous government.

Previously, on October 7, 2022, former Finance Minister Zafrul Aziz proposed the 2023 Budget with a record total of 373.3 billion RM

Source: Vietnam News Agency

As soon as China reopened its border on January 8, business of Vietnam and China turned busy again after a nearly three-year disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Deputy head of the border station based at the Kim Thanh International Bordergate in the northern province of Lao Cai Senior Lieutenant Hoang Minh Du said that from January 8, the volume of goods traded via the border gate increased daily.

Particularly, on January 11, the border gate saw 71 trucks carrying goods for export and 158 trucks carrying imports goods.

Before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, about 200 trucks travelled through the border gate daily.

However, at the border gate, China still mainains the delivery of import and export goods by specialised drivers who can drive trucks through the border gate from China to Vietnam and vice versa but the drivers are not required to wear protective clothes anymore, according to Du.

The goods-checking stage is also removed so the delivery of import and export goods between enterprises of the two countries is convenient and fast, he said.

In the border province of Lang Son, parking areas at the Tan Thanh Border Gate and the Huu Nghi International Border Gate are filled with trucks that carry products for export.

The truck drivers are no longer required to wear protective clothing and they can talk to each other when queuing for check-in procedures.

Nguyen Thi Ngoc Nhung, a representative of the Hoa Cuong Fruit Import-Export Co., Ltd from the southern province of Long An, said that her company exports five to six containers of jackfruit and dragon fruit to China every day through border gates in Lang Son.

Previously, once reaching the border gate, her trucks had to wait for at least a half day and drivers must open containers for authorities to check goods and take samples for COVID-19 testing.

Thus, her company had to spend an additional 2 – 4 million VND (85-170 USD) for each truck at that time.

From January 8 to now, businesses have saved tens of millions of dong every day when they no longer have to pay for disease prevention and control, Nhung told Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper.

Huynh Tan Dat, Deputy Director of the Plant Protection Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that China is the most important export market of Vietnam’s agricultural sector, including the fruit and vegetable industry.

Dat said that if Vietnam’s agricultural products and fruits meet requirements on food safety, quality, and product design, the country has a great opportunity to export to China.

As Vietnam and China share a long border with numerous border gates, Vietnam has a competitive advantage in terms of price and transportation costs, Dat said, adding that the export of Vietnamese agricultural products to China, particularly durian, banana, and sweet potato will grow strongly this year.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien, Vietnam’s exports of agricultural goods and products to China account for about 19.2% of the market share of goods and agricultural products imported to the country.

China’s border reopening is a great opportunity for Vietnamese goods and agricultural products to penetrate deeply into that market, Tien said

Source: Vietnam News Agency

An oil tanker explosion in central Thailand’s Samut Songkhram province on January 17 injured dozens of people.

According to the Thai national daily Matichon, the explosion occurred at around 9:15 am local time when the tanker docked at a shipyard on Mae Klong River in Muang district exploded and caused a fire.

Several workers are reportedly missing and houses were damaged after the explosion.

Rescuers are trying to control the fire and evacuate the injured

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Chinese Ambassador to Malaysia Ouyang Yujing has said the two countries have been enjoying strong economic ties, adding that the trade volume in 2022 reached a historical height of 203.6 billion USD, increasing 15.6% year-on-year.

Speaking at the 2023 Chinese New Year reception hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Malaysia on January 16, the ambassador stressed that 2022 was the first time the volume had surpassed 200 billion USD. The two countries will mark the 10th anniversary of the elevation of bilateral relations to the comprehensive strategic partnership, hence Malaysia and China are standing at a new historical point, and both parties are ready to build a China-Malaysia community with a shared future.

In return, Malaysia Foreign Minister Zambry Abd Kadir said the relations between Malaysia and China have grown strength to strength underpinned by the strong government-to-government commitment and active private sector engagements

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which came into effect a year ago, has brought about great business chances for enterprises in the region, according to experts.

Right after the deal took effect, trade among regional countries has been increasing. Data from China’s General Administration of Customs showed that in the first 11 months of 2022, import-export revenue between the country and RCEP members rose 7.9% year on year to 11.8 trillion CNY (1.74 trillion USD), accounting for 30% of the country’s total.

Of the total, trade between China and ASEAN countries reached nearly 5.9 trillion CNY (872.65 billion USD), up 15.5% year on year.

According to experts, the greatest benefit from the deal is preferential tax rates, with zero tariff being applied on more than 90% of goods traded by its members.

A recent survey from HSBC showed that more than 93% of surveyed companies from RCEP members said that they plan to increase transactions with China, and more than 30% said they expects at least 30% growth in business in China this year.

In 2023, RCEP member countries are predicted to recover faster, especially in tourism and real estate. Thanks to the RCEP, member will have more chances to boost tourism cooperation, thus promoting the growth of other sectors.

At the same time, the deal is expected to create development opportunities for emerging economies in the region, including those in the ASEAN.

Members’ cooperation with the thirds has also contributed to the growth of multilateralism, globalisation and regional collaboration, and creating a firm foundation for the speeding up of negotiations of a free trade agreement between China, Japan and the Republic of Korea.

RCEP has helped switch the economic and trade cooperation focus from China to the ASEAN, and move China’s economic-trade partnership concentration to the ASEAN, according to experts.

The RCEP was signed in 2020 between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and five partners, namely Australia, New Zealand, China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. Taking effect on January 1, 2022, it is the largest FTA at present, covering 30% of the global GDP.

Under this agreement, about 90% of the tariff lines will be eliminated within 20 years since it came into force

Source: Vietnam News Agency