Zimbabwe, Vietnam and Iran News Posted by Harambe at TNT 9-13-2023
TNT:
Harambe: Zimbabwe … Debt clearance drive to dominate Professor Mthuli Ncube’s agenda | Chronicle (9/13/23)
Zimbabwe’s debt clearance drive and continuation of the economic policies aimed at the attainment of Vision 2030 are items likely to feature more prominently on the Finance and Investment Promotion Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube’s agenda, an economic commentator has said.
On Monday, President Mnangagwa retained Professor Ncube in the modified Finance and Investment Promotion ministry which was previously Finance and Economic Development.
Economic commentators said the development is meant to ensure smooth continuity in the finance ministry
National University of Science and Technology (Nust) Department of Banking and Investment Promotion, Mr Stevenson Dlamini said: “The re-appointment of the Honorable Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube to the position of Minister of Finance and Investment Promotion came as no surprise to me.
“His appointment is meant to ensure the continuation of the economic policies aimed at the attainment of Vision 2030.
“We expect that the tight monetary policy stance will continue for the duration of National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1).”
Mr Dlamini added that Prof Ncube will also place more focus on debt clearance strategy.
“He is likely to prioritize the debt clearance and Industrial Development Policies which will be supported by a high drive to build forex and gold reserves,” said Mr Dlamini.
Recently, officials said the country is making remarkable progress on its Arrears Clearance and Debt Resolution mission with trust and goodwill growing among partners as international funders are warming up to the process with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreeing to start the process of engagement on some programmes.
The IMF is due to start the Staff Monitored Programme during the fourth quarter of 2023 or the first quarter of 2024.
In December 2022, the Government established a structured dialogue platform with all creditors and development partners, to institutionalise structured dialogue on economic and governance reforms to underpin the arrears clearance and debt resolution process.
Zimbabwe’s debt clearance process is being championed by African Development Bank president Dr Akinumwi Adesina and former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano, who has been designated as High-Level Facilitator.
President Mnangagwa appointed Dr Adesina as a champion in July 2022.
Zimbabwe is in arrears for servicing its debt, with arrears to multilateral development banks, including the African Development Bank, the World Bank and the European Investment Bank.
https://www.chronicle.co.zw/debt-clearance-drive-to-dominate-professor-mthuli-ncubes-agenda/
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Vietnam eyes golden opportunity from improved relations with US - VnExpress International (9/13/23)
Improved relations with the U.S. are giving Vietnam the chance to transform its economy and participate deeply in the global advanced technology supply chain, experts say.
In his meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said to consider the economy, trading and investment as the "perpetual drivers" of a bilateral agreement.
Vietnam and the U.S.’ establishment of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, according to Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh, "elevates the trust and understanding between the nations, which will surely become a motivator for long-term economic cooperation."
In the face of a disrupted supply chain, numerous shifts and competition between major nations, he said the U.S. would need locations where it could trust the production process.
As observed by experts, the significance of elevated Vietnam- U.S. ties resides in the ability to establish strategic trust, which is the basis for businesses to invest long-term.
Dr. Nguyen Khac Giang, Visiting Fellow of Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, said the Biden administration was emphasizing strategies – de-risking, shifting the supply chain to mutual partners, and friend-shoring – that were now improved after Vietnam and the U.S. upgraded their relations.
"The conditions are satisfied for both sides to form a political bond and safeguards for businesses to operate and develop," said Nguyen Quang Dong, the director of the Institute for Policy Studies and Media Development.
The premise is the advantageous and mutually beneficial relationship between Vietnamese and U.S. businesses in past decades.
The U.S. notified Vietnam of its friend-shoring strategy in July when Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen visited the country.
She said the U.S. wanted to expand its business relations and diversify the supply chain between trusted partners such as Vietnam.
The purpose is to reduce global uncertainties and geopolitical risks. Since 2021, the U.S. has promoted efforts to restructure the global supply chain, especially that of semiconductors which contain many essential technologies.
Vietnam’s first opportunity is to shift its economy toward modernization and to join the advanced technology supply chain.
In a shared statement, the U.S. committed to supporting Vietnam in training and growing an advanced technology labor force, as well as promoting the rapid growth of the country’s semiconductor ecosystem.
Many U.S. semiconductor firms have emphasized their investments in Vietnam.
Amkor Technology (based in Arizona) is looking at a September completion window for its US$1.6 billion semiconductor factory in Bac Ninh, with test production at the end of October.
Amkor said the factory was their largest one in the world. In mid-May, Marvell Technology, Inc. announced its world-class semiconductor design center in Ho Chi Minh City, which is at the same level as its facilities in the U.S., India and Israel.
Expectations are placed on Vietnam to make great commercial advances, especially when slower growth in the global economy reducing exports.
A shared statement between General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong and President Biden said both Vietnam and the U.S. would create beneficial conditions, expand access for respective countries’ goods and services, support trading and economic policies, and overcome hurdles relating to accessing markets via the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement.
"Exported goods that are traditional and have the upper hand such as textiles, furniture, footwear and electronics will recover with a positive growth rate," said the Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien.
Vietnamese agricultural goods will also see increased access in U.S. markets. In August, husked coconut is the eighth fruit product to be exported via an official quota to the U.S.
As official statistics show, trading between Vietnam and the U.S. scored US$124 billion last year, a 275-fold increase in 27 years.
To Vietnam, the U.S. is the largest export market and the second-largest trading partner. Conversely, to the U.S., Vietnam is the seventh-largest trading partner globally and largest in the ASEAN bloc.
That being said, according to experts, Vietnam still has much work to do.
Specifically, by participating in the advanced technology supply chain, Nguyen Quang Dong said, it was necessary to reflect on the failings of the supporting industries in the past decades.
The ecosystem for supporting industries remains low in number and strength, which is prompting Vietnamese firms to only be manufacturers, the lowest tier.
The advanced technology supply chain will have stricter demands and requests.
"We need to carefully analyze where in this new supply chain we can insert ourselves, and from there make investments for local businesses in a methodical, strategic manner. We must refrain from thinking that we can participate immediately," Dong said.
This is to avoid a repeat of the supply chain for FDI businesses’ failure in the past.
"Vietnam has to heighten its efforts to absorb new opportunities," added Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh.
He said the Government and the U.S. needed to come together to develop major decisions focusing on policy frameworks, infrastructure and human resources.
Minister Nguyen Hong Dien noted the U.S. was a hyper-large and super-competitive import market with a scale of $US 3.277 trillion, a detail that compels businesses to adapt quickly.
Businesses must clearly establish their product strategy, partners and distribution channels; gain clarity regarding export requirements and potential relevance to trade remedies; guarantee input materials have clear origins; and research ways to upgrade production facilities based on "eco-friendly production standards."
They also need to apply strategies to diversify their customer base and to reach niche markets to lower risks.
Dr. Nguyen Khac Giang also said, at this point, the most important thing is to create conditions for local businesses to utilize this opportunity and become an essential component in the global flow of goods and services.
"When the ‘favorable window’ has passed, Vietnam’s economy must have enough strength to stand on its own at a higher rank internationally," he said.
Harambe: Iran, Iraq reach favorable agreements over gas export - Mehr News Agency | (9/13/23)
The oil minister also on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning said that the negotiations are underway regarding the issue of the Arash field.
Iranian authorities have expressed dissatisfaction over a contract signed between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia last year that enables them to develop the field and share its resources without Iran’s involvement
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/206026/Iran-Iraq-reach-favorable-agreements-over-gas-export
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Harambe: President Raisi Says Iran Has Authority On Released Assets | Iran Front Page (9/13/23)
Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi has stressed Tehran’s full authority on its recently-unblocked funds, saying it is the Islamic Republic that decides how to spend the funds and that the money will be spent "wherever we need it."
Raisi made the remarks in an exclusive interview with the American broadcast television network NBC in the capital Tehran on Tuesday.
He pointed to last month’s deal between Iran and the United States to exchange prisoners and to secure the release of $6 billion of Iranian funds that had remained blocked in two South Korean banks since 2018 because of US pressure on Seoul.
The administration of US President Joe Biden claimed at the time that the funds and the proceeds of Iranian oil sales to South Korea could only be spent on “humanitarian” purposes.
Raisi stated during the interview that Iran would have “authority” over how the funds would be spent, stressing, “This money belongs to the Iranian people, the Iranian government, so the Islamic Republic of Iran will decide what to do with this money.”
Asked whether the released funds would be used for other purposes rather than humanitarian needs, the Iranian president said, “Humanitarian means whatever the Iranian people need, so this money will be budgeted for those needs, and the needs of the Iranian people will be decided and determined by the Iranian government.”
The president also added the American detainees in Iran were “very healthy,” and would be coming home soon as the US-Iran prisoner exchange deal would be completed in “due time.”
The Biden administration announced on Monday that it had taken concrete steps to clear the way for the prisoner exchange, issuing a waiver that allows international banks to transfer the $6 billion to Qatar without the threat of US sanctions.
The waiver means that European, Middle Eastern and Asian banks will not be in violation of US sanctions in converting Iran’s money, which was frozen in South Korea, and transferring it to Qatar’s central bank, where it will be held for Tehran to be used for the purchase of non-sanctioned goods.
The Biden administration also agreed to release five Iranian citizens held in the United States.
The five Iranian detainees were identified as Mehrdad Moein Ansari, Kambiz Attar Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour Kofrani, Amin Hassanzadeh, and Kaveh Lotfollah Afrasiabi.
Top Iranian officials have emphasized that there is no connection between the prisoner exchange agreement reached with the United States and the release of Iran’s frozen assets.
Earlier in August, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said, “The exchange of prisoners is a completely humanitarian issue and has nothing to do with unblocking our funds in foreign banks.”
https://ifpnews.com/president-raisi-iran-authority-released-assets/