KTFA Members "Iraq News" Monday 1-16-2023

KTFA:

Clare:  The Central Bank determines the valid and rejected Iraqi banknotes for circulation

2023-01-16 

The Central Bank of Iraq determined, on Monday, the valid and non-negotiable banknotes of the local currency

The bank said, in a statement received by Shafaq News agency, that it is "responsible for defining the categories of Iraqi coins, their standards, printing, and minting coins, and is responsible for destroying and replacing them and identifying defective ones," noting that "discriminating between their categories by imposing a specific category on the public or refusing to receive A certain category is unacceptable and against the law.”

And he explained that "the banknotes issued by him remain valid for negotiation in the event that they were exposed to any tear of more than 3 cm, and it was repaired with transparent adhesive tape on one or both sides and did not affect its features."

He added that "the banknotes also remain valid if they were cut in one of their corners within 2 cm and did not affect their features, and also if traces of circulation and use appeared on them and were not harmed or damaged affecting their shape, color and size."

He pointed out that "the banknotes are considered unfit for negotiation if the banknote is worn out or damaged even though it was not torn or parts of it were lost, and if it was damaged as a result of exposure to water or various liquids, and it is also considered unfit for negotiation if it consists of two parts with different numbers." Its area was close to that of the original banknote.

And he indicated that “the banknote is also considered invalid if the banknote is fixed with a transparent tape or more on its width or length, in addition to pieces of it more than one angle or loaned, or if it is defective in terms of design and size and if it loses 50% of its area.” It is also considered unfit for circulation if foreign materials stick to it and affect its features, such as inks and dyes, or if they are perforated.”   LINK

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Clare: Parliamentary recommendation to go to the electronic system in regulating the movement of funds

Today, Monday, the Parliamentary Finance Committee confirmed that one of the reasons for the fluctuation of the dollar exchange rate is the lack of an electronic system, while indicating that this aims to regulate the movement of funds.

A member of the Finance Committee, Jamal Cougar, told the official agency, “The financial electronic system project was proposed years ago in the Finance Committee and other committees, as well as by some ministers and economists, but the issue did not find the required response.”

He explained, "One of the reasons for the conflict between the dollar and the Iraqi dinar is the lack of an electronic system, and therefore the movement of funds is not clear," stressing "the importance of the country's approach in this direction, as it regulates the movement of funds."

For his part, the economic expert, Amer Al-Jawahiry, stated that “strong decisions must be issued capable of transforming the financial system into an electronic one and taking all measures,” stressing the need for “the presence of a specialized team that lays the basis for work on the matter.”

He continued, "We must keep pace with change and keep pace with the development taking place in the world in terms of the electronic system and other developments."  LINK

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Henig:  An American delegation arrives in Baghdad within hours before an expected visit by Al-Sudani to Washington

Baghdad today - Baghdad 
 
Informed sources said, on Monday, that an American delegation will arrive in Baghdad within hours, while indicating that there is an expected visit by Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani to Washington to meet with President Joe Biden.

The sources told (Baghdad Today) that "an American delegation will arrive in Baghdad within a few hours to discuss the file of scheduling and deployment of American forces in Iraq."

The sources added, "Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein will soon go to Washington to arrange procedures for Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia'a al-Sudani's visit to the United States and to meet with US President Joe Biden."   LINK

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Henig:  Agence France-Presse: Al-Sudani is preparing to meet with Biden and shows friendliness to America, which is tightening its policies against Iran

January 16, 2023

Baghdad / Obelisk: Agence France-Presse considered that an interview published by the Wall Street Journal, on Sunday, with Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani, showed Sudani's keenness to please the United States, which continues to intensify its tone against Iran.

Al-Sudani told the newspaper that he wants to send a high-level delegation to Washington soon, perhaps as a prelude to a meeting between him and President Joe Biden.

Al-Sudani considered that his country is still at the present time “in need of foreign forces” present in it, most of which are American, according to what came in an interview published Sunday by the Wall Street Journal.

"We believe we need foreign forces," said Al-Sudani, who has held the post since the end of October, adding, "Eliminating ISIS will take some time."

"We do not need forces fighting inside Iraqi territory," he said, explaining that "the threat to Iraq stems from the infiltration of (extremist organization) cells from Syria."

The United States has about two thousand military personnel in Iraq to carry out training and advisory missions.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is also carrying out a non-combat mission in Iraq, in which, according to its website, “hundreds” of personnel from several member states or NATO partners (Australia, Finland and Sweden) participate.

According to the French Agency, the Sudanese government, which gained confidence after a year of bloody clashes, sometimes relies on the support of parties allied to Iran that dominate parliament. Iraq also relies heavily on gas and electricity from its eastern neighbor.

The Iraqi government faces enormous expectations from Iraqis who are exhausted by a serious economic and social crisis.

At the end of November, the Iraqi Prime Minister visited Tehran, which saw promises of strengthening cooperation on the security and economic levels.

In a related context, there are talks about a dispute between the Sudanese government and the Shiite parties that support it over the position on the American presence in Iraq.

Ali al-Ghanmi, a member of the political bureau in the Euphrates Movement, led by Prime Minister Muhammad al-Sudani, said about the differences within the coordination framework or the state administration coalition over the relationship with the United States, according to his statements published in local media.

Al-Ghanimi, a former deputy, explained that some political parties - he did not name them - have reservations about the relationship with Washington because of the airport incident.

It is hoped that Al-Sudani's protocol visit to Washington will discuss the joint security file between Baghdad and Washington, especially with the presence of an escalation by the armed factions against the American presence.

The leader of the Sayyid al-Shuhada Brigades, Abbas al-Zaidi, revealed to Al-Masalla the resistance's dissatisfaction with the actions of the government of Muhammad Shia' al-Sudani.

Al-Sudani had stressed the importance of continuing joint work, especially in the field of advising and training the Iraqi forces, which are fighting the confrontation against terrorism effectively and professionally.

Al-Zaidi told Al-Masalla: We reject the intervention of the US embassy in the Iraqi issue, warning against complete submission to the occupation, as there is no specific ceiling for the goals and projects of the aggressive occupation in Iraq or the region across Iraq.

A member of the House of Representatives, Jassim Al-Moussawi, directed a request to Parliament regarding the presence of foreign forces on Iraqi soil, and while he confirmed that the US forces had caused major violations to the country, he considered Washington's allegations of providing aid to Iraq as "false."

Maqarat expects that the current government is aware of the impact of the escalation on the internal political and economic situation, and that it does not want the relationship with Washington to deteriorate.

And the leader in the framework, Mahmoud Al-Hayani, considered the talk about the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq unreal, and just a media talk.

In light of the security calm during the Sudanese era until now, it is not known whether it was a temporary truce decision, or a framework government decision to coexist permanently with the American presence in Iraq.     LINK

Henig:  Iraq begins to develop its air defense in a plan to dispense with external support

Mohamed Ali  January 15, 2023

Today, Sunday, a senior Iraqi military official in the Ministry of Defense in the capital , Baghdad , revealed a joint strategy for the Air Force and Air Defense Commands , which includes a comprehensive development of the Iraqi Air Force and military bases, in various cities of the country, in addition to strengthening monitoring and control networks during the year 2023.

The official explained that this plan guarantees the control of the Iraqi forces over the entire airspace of the country, through the purchase of various combat and unmanned aircraft, as well as various radars and missile interception systems from various sources.

This comes with the anticipation that the government of Prime Minister Muhammad Shia'a al-Sudani will send the draft financial budget for the year 2023 to parliament in the coming days, with a view to approving it. Informed sources confirm to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the government will raise the
financial budget of the Ministry of Defense to strengthen various military sectors.

According to a prominent Iraqi general in the Iraqi Ministry of Defense in Baghdad, "the military leaders in the country have reached a complete strategy to develop the Air Force and the Air Defense Command, in a way that guarantees that Iraq can dispense with any non-Iraqi air or information support."

The official, who asked not to be named, added that the military development plan includes developing the Iraqi Air Force's arsenal with combat and bomber drones or for airspace control purposes. It also includes rehabilitating air military bases and subjecting their personnel to advanced training courses.

He continued, in his interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that, "according to the plan, the Iraqi Air Defense Command will obtain new and advanced radars from various European countries, as well as missile deterrent systems to prevent any violation of Iraqi airspace."

The official revealed that there is broad political support from various parliamentary forces and blocs to enhance Iraq's military capabilities during the current year 2023, in a way that enables the Iraqi army to carry out its tasks without the need for external assistance.

Last week, the commander of the Iraqi Air Force, Lieutenant General Shihab Jahid, said that the plan for the current year 2023 is to develop the capabilities of the Iraqi Air Force.

Jahed said, to the Iraqi News Agency (INA), that "the plan for this year will focus on restoring the basic infrastructure of the Air Force, as the recruitment and purchase of aircraft must be preceded by a process of preparing the air bases, in order to ensure that the aircraft operate with bases with infrastructure and combat readiness during which they can from completing its tasks.”

The programs of the Iraqi government headed by Muhammad Shia al-Sudani, whom parliament voted for at the end of November of last year, included the development and support of the military establishment in the country, without explaining the details of that, but he indicated in a statement on the occasion of the founding anniversary of the army, which fell on the sixth of this month. That his government will continue "within its programme, to work to strengthen the role of our armed forces in all its forms, led by our heroic Iraqi army, and to work on the technological and field development of its combat weapons, and to raise the capabilities of movement, deployment, holding the ground and repelling aggression."

An expert on Iraqi security affairs and a member of the Warriors Association in Baghdad, Saad Al-Hadithi, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that, “The plan to develop the Iraqi army was among the previous recommendations of the Joint Operations Command, during rounds of joint dialogue with Washington in 2021 during the government of Mustafa Al-Kazemi, where he showed The committee assessed Iraq's continued need for air support from the international coalition, especially with regard to information and airspace monitoring in the border areas with Syria.

Al-Hadithi added, "The previous development plan focused on the Iraqi ground forces, given that the greatest burden of direct military confrontations against terrorism was on the ground forces, but the development of air defense today has become necessary."

The spokesman considered that Iraq's continued reliance on the American squadron of "F-16" fighters, as the backbone of the Air Force, is incorrect, and Iraqi leaders noticed it during the administration of President Donald Trump, whose administration blackmailed Baghdad with aircraft ammunition, especially during the period of tension that followed the assassination of Soleimani. Therefore, diversification is very important, and an excellent step for the Sudanese government.   LINK

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Henig:  Integrity reveals the issuance of two arrest warrants for the former Director General of the Dhi Qar Investment Authority

Today, Sunday, the Investigation Department of the Federal Integrity Commission announced the issuance of two arrest warrants against the former Director General of the Dhi Qar Investment Commission.

The department confirmed in a press statement that “the Nasiriyah Investigation Court, which specializes in integrity issues, issued an arrest warrant against the former Director General of the Dhi Qar Investment Authority, in the matter of violations that occurred in the referral of a real estate as an investment opportunity; Which led to deliberate damage to the funds and interests of the entity in which he works.”

She added, "The aforementioned court issued a second arrest warrant against the former Director General of the Dhi Qar Investment Authority, in the case of violations committed in one of the real estate that was offered for investment."

The circuit indicated that the Nasiriyah Investigation Court, which is specialized in integrity issues, issued two arrest warrants. Based on the provisions of Articles (340 and 331) of the Iraqi Penal Code No. (111 of 1969).

It is noteworthy that the competent court had previously issued two summons orders against the former Director General of the Dhi Qar Investment Commission in the two cases, pointing out that one of the two summons orders included three other defendants.   LINK

KTFA Members "Sunday Iraq News" 1-15-2023

KTFA:

Clare:  Instructions and standards for handling and exchanging banknotes, as well as counting and sorting mechanisms

January 15, 2023

Regarding the standardization and updating of controls and instructions related to the standards for trading banknotes and their replacement, we enclose below an updated copy of the standards and instructions that will be approved in the counting, sorting and delivery of banknotes as of 15/1/2023

» To view the controls and instructions , click here

https://cbi.iq/news/view/2205

Clare:  The Central Bank: There is nothing left in the banking sector except for banks that are able to perform their functions

January 15, 2023 Economy News - Baghdad

On Sunday, the Central Bank of Iraq clarified its procedures for monitoring the performance of private banks and improving their work, while noting that only banks that are able to perform their functions remain in the banking sector.

The bank's advisor, Ihsan al-Yasiri, said, "The Central Bank of Iraq began three years ago with procedures to complete reform procedures in the banking sector," pointing out that "the private banking sector is one of the promising sectors in Iraq, as the central bank attaches great importance to it, similar to the government banking sector." .

Al-Yasiri added, "The central bank does not distinguish between the private and public sectors, but the private banking sector is one of the engines of development in Iraq, in addition to the government sector," noting that "the private banking sector has a role in spreading the funds of the Central Bank of Iraq's initiative in lending to different sectors." (residential, agricultural, industrial, and commercial), as his effort was evident in this field.” 

He pointed out that "some banks suffer from a group of problems, and the Central Bank, in turn, is currently taking several measures for the purpose of enabling them to stabilize and reassure the public of their performance," stressing that "there are other banks that are doing well and playing excellent roles."

He pointed out that "the Central Bank, due to its confidence in some private banks, has initiated measures to encourage foreign banks and foreign central banks for the purpose of opening financial corridors for them, to enable them to practice money transfers for foreign trade purposes."

He stressed that "the central bank usually supports every bank that tries to improve performance and services provided to the public, as a result, the private banking sector is an important part of the Iraqi banking sector, and the central bank attaches great importance to it and encourages it to improve performance."

And that "public confidence in the private banking sector and the banking sector in general is increasing gradually with the strength of the Central Bank's procedures and oversight," according to the official news agency.

He continued, "The private banking sector and initiative funds are currently financing the development of projects, the establishment of new projects, and the employment of the unemployed," stressing that "some banks are trying to reach satisfactory levels."

He noted that "the Central Bank is currently monitoring the performance of some banks and supervising their performance, and there is nothing left in the banking sector except for good banks that are able to perform their functions."   LINK

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Clare:  The profits of “Pepsi Baghdad” during 2022 exceed 60 billion dinars

Economy News - Baghdad

01/15/2023 

The Baghdad Soft Drinks Company, "Pepsi Baghdad", achieved a profit of more than 60.68 billion dinars during the year 2022. 

According to the company's budget, revenues amounted to more than 680 billion dinars, up by 27.8% over the year 2021, which amounted to 532.5 billion dinars. 

The company's assets amounted to 559.5 billion dinars.  LINK

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Clare:  Sudanese advisor: The total public debt is estimated at $70 billion 

Economy News – Baghdad  01/15/2023

The financial advisor to the Prime Minister, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, confirmed, on Sunday, that the foreign reserves in Iraq are very high, while specifying the total public debt. 

In an interview with the official news agency, Salih said, "The country's internal public debt is currently estimated at about $50 billion, which is entirely owned by the government banking system (that is, debt within the government apparatus and not outside it)."

He added that "63% of the internal public debt is held by the Central Bank of Iraq and represents local assets in the structure of the central bank's balance sheet," noting that "the remainder of the internal debt is held by the three main government banks, with an annual interest of between 2-3%."

He pointed out that "the effective external debt that must be paid during the period from 2023 does not exceed 20 billion dollars, which means that the total public debt is estimated at about 70 billion dollars currently and constitutes only a percentage of 30% to 35% of the country's gross domestic product, which is a safe percentage." Very compared to the standard or international standard of 60%. 

He continued, "The efficiency of the country's foreign reserves is very high and covers external debt liabilities by 5 times, which is a high and reassuring standard ratio and reflects the strength of Iraq's financial situation," noting that "the mechanism for repaying internal and external debts takes place through annual allocations approved in the federal budget." 

And he continued, "Fiscal policy in Iraq tends to adopt the principle of financial discipline, which is based on gradually reducing the total accumulated public debt, offset by narrowing the annual deficit in the federal general budget and making the debt created when necessary within the standard ratios, not exceeding the created public debt of 3% annually."  LINK

Clare:  Iraq chairs the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union

Baghdad - 01/15/2023

The House of Representatives announced, today, Sunday, that Baghdad will host the thirty-fourth conference of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union and the accompanying committees, from February 23 to February 26.

The media office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives stated in a statement received by the Iraqi News Agency (INA): "Iraq headed the Arab Parliamentary Union, as the presidency of the Union moved to Iraq, and Parliament Speaker Muhammad al-Halbousi was assigned as head of the Union, starting from the ninth of January."

He added, "Baghdad will host, from February 23 to February 26, the work of the thirty-fourth conference of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union and the accompanying committees, with the participation of the heads of the councils and parliaments of the Arab member states of the Union, in addition to many parliamentary organizations and institutions that have observer status in the Union." LINK

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Clare:  Central Bank Governor: The rise in the exchange rate of the dollar is a temporary problem and it will be overcome

Economy News - Baghdad
 
01/15/2023

Parliament Speaker Muhammad al-Halbousi received, on Sunday, the Governor of the Central Bank, Mustafa Ghaleb Makhaif, in the presence of the heads and deputy heads of the Parliamentary Finance and Economic Committees.

Al-Halbousi listened, according to a statement by his office, to a "detailed explanation of the measures taken by the Central Bank in regulating the economic sector related to foreign currency trading, whether cash sales or financing foreign trade. The governor also explained the steps taken by the Central Bank and what it will take to overcome this problem. Stressing that it is temporary and will be overcome once the foundations that were built to address it are established.

Al-Halbousi stressed that "the council supports the Central Bank of Iraq in its steps to address the high exchange rate of the dollar, with an emphasis on the need to develop regulatory solutions that address unregulated phenomena in economic activity in general," calling for "understanding the challenges facing the monetary authority and the need to assign its procedures from the authorities." concerned in the state.   LINK

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Clare:  What is the secret of the decline of the Iraqi dinar despite the increase in dollar reserves?

Economy News-Baghdad   01/15/2023

The exchange rate of the Iraqi dinar has been witnessing fluctuations against the dollar for about two months, despite the large jump in foreign exchange reserves, which is currently close to $100 billion, thanks to the rise in oil prices

. While parties in the country hold Washington responsible for this decline,

and while the official fixed exchange rate is 1470 dinars against one dollar, the price of the dinar in the market has declined since mid-November to 1600 dinars at the beginning of the week, before settling at about 1570, according to the official news agency, i.e. The Iraqi currency has lost about 10 percent of its value

, and this decline is not considered huge, but it has begun to cause concern among Iraqis about the high prices of imported materials, such as gas and wheat, for example.

Adviser to the Prime Minister for Financial Affairs Mazhar Salih says, in a report to Agence France-Presse, that "the fundamental and fundamental reason" for this decline "is an external constraint,"

but some Iraqi politicians consider that the United States is behind this fluctuation

. Contrary to rumors and misinformation, there is no evidence of American pressure on Iraq.” The important economic and commercial partner of neighboring Iran,

in fact, the fluctuation of the dinar is linked to the start of Iraq’s compliance with some standards of the international transfer system (Swift), which Iraqi banks must apply since mid-November to access To Iraq's reserves of dollars in the United States

In order for Iraq to be able to access those reserves, which amount to $100 billion, it must now comply with systems that “require compliance with the provisions of global anti-money laundering, provisions for combating the financing of terrorism, and those related to sanctions, such as those applied to Iran and Russia,” according to Tabakishli,

adding that the matter is related to entering Iraq is “within a global financial transfer system that requires a high degree of transparency,” but this “caused a shock” to many Iraqi banks “because they are not used to this system.”

Mazhar Salih explained that Iraqi banks should now register their “transfers (in dollars) on an electronic platform.” The requests are scrutinized...the US Federal Reserve checks them and if they have doubts they stop the transfer."

Since the implementation of the restrictions began, the Federal Reserve has refused "80 percent of requests" for remittances to Iraqi banks, according to Salih, due to doubts about the final destination of those amounts being transferred. He said this refusal affected the dollar supply in the Iraqi market. On the other hand, the demand accumulated, but the supply was not consistent with it, and thus the exchange rate declined with the decline in bank transfers in dollars

In the meantime, the Iraqi authorities have taken measures, including facilitating the financing of private sector trade in dollars through Iraqi banks, and opening outlets for selling foreign currency in government banks to the public for travel purposes.

The Council of Ministers also decided to "commit all government agencies to sell all goods and services inside Iraq in dinars and at the rate of the central bank, which amounts to (1470) dinars per dollar.

" Despite the

dinar's decline, the inflation rate is still small, reaching 5.3 at an annual rate in October 2022, according to the Ministry of Planning. However, actual concerns are related to the purchasing power of the population.n   LINK

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Henig:  The dollar will reach 170,000.. A warning of the "extreme" anger of the Iraqi street

SUNDAY, 01-15-2023, PM 4:53   KARRAR AL-ASADI

Today, Sunday, the expert in economic affairs, Raad Al-Masoudi, confirmed that the dollar is facing two strong pressures in the Iraqi markets, warning of the overwhelming anger of the street.

Al-Masoudi said, "The rise in the exchange rate of the dollar in recent weeks has prompted an estimated increase of 7-10% in prices on average in the Iraqi markets," adding, "But its frequencies will be greater due to the high import costs, with the presence of speculation, monopoly, and weakness in the control tools." This means that the citizen's attrition will be at the highest levels."

He added, "The smuggling of the dollar out of the country and the pressure of the US Treasury on the central bank are two strong pressures on the exchange rate, pointing out that its rise to 170 is very likely," noting that "the danger of the high price of the dollar and its impact on the markets will create a suffocating economic crisis that may lead to a wave Massive demonstrations, especially since the poverty rate in the country exceeds 30%, meaning that the situation will be very complicated if there are no logical solutions to the current crisis, according to the "Baghdad Today" website.

And yesterday, a member of the House of Representatives, Raed al-Maliki, announced the collection of parliamentary signatures to discuss the policies and procedures of the Central Bank regarding the rise in dollar exchange rates and the decline in currency exchange, in the presence of the Governor of the Central Bank.

According to documents issued on the 10th of this month, "the signatures of more than thirty deputies have been collected demanding a discussion of the Central Bank of Iraq's actions regarding the rise in dollar exchange rates and its instability in the local markets."  LINK

"Vietnam News" Posted by Henig at KTFA Sunday 1-15-2023

KTFA:  Vietnam

Henig:  VIB's new card gives big push to online shopping

January, 14/2023 - 10:12

LazCard is expected to provide customers with a convenient shopping experience from opening cards to paying quickly, safely and seamlessly

HÀ NỘI — With the privilege of up to 50 per cent cashback on the Lazada Vietnam e-commerce platform and technologies first deployed by VIB, the LazCard credit card is expected to bring a great shopping experience to users during the year-end shopping season.

Innovative and pioneering card trend in VN

Việt Nam is an extremely promising market for the retail banking industry thanks to the characteristics of population growth, GDP per capita and fast economic development. Grasping that trend, many banks have been promoting retail lending activities to diversify credit portfolios and optimise profits.

VIB is one of the banks which has seen its outstanding retail loan accounting for over 90 per cent of the total loan portfolio - the highest level in the banking industry and the highest growth rate of the retail segment in the market.

This impressive figure is attributable to the bank's hard work in developing products with high technology content and automation. That has helped customers save time and make financial transactions safely and securely anytime, anywhere.

In particular, VIB has led the card trend thanks to the debuts of unique credit card lines that have brought outstanding benefits for all customers' spending, leading modern card technologies in Việt Nam and the region besides impressive and creative marketing activities. As a result, VIB has been continuously ranked at the top in terms of the growth in the number of credit cards and average spending on cards.

VIB's statistics showed that the bank has to date issued about 1.6 million cards, including credit and debit cards. Currently, VIB accounts for more than 35 per cent of Mastercard's total spending in Việt Nam. VIB also leads in the growth rate of Mastercard credit cards, five or six times the average of the whole market in quantity and quality. 

VIB is also the bank that experiences the highest Mastercard spending revenue overseas with a growth rate of nearly 200 per cent per year.

VIB joined the local credit card market in 2019. The bank now ranks eighth among banks in Việt Nam in terms of the number of issued cards. It also places 4th in total card spending, according to data released by the Vietnam Card Association in June 2022. Total spending via VIB credit cards has increased 8.6 times, from VNĐ8.4 trillion (US$360 million) in 2018, to VNĐ72 trillion (over $3 billion) in 2022.

Thanks to VIB's achievements, the International Finance Magazine recently granted the bank two awards - "The Best New Card Offering - VIB Family Link” and "Most Innovative New Credit Card Service - Vietnam 2022". The two awards have recognised the endless effort of VIB in innovating and pioneering in terms of card trends in Việt Nam. This is the second consecutive year the bank has received this recognition from international media.

Strong push for cashless payment, online shopping

Following these achievements, VIB has debuted LazCard on the Lazada Vietnam e-commerce platform with technologies first deployed by VIB in Việt Nam. LazCard is expected to provide customers with a convenient shopping experience from opening cards to paying quickly, safely and seamlessly. This is a co-branded credit card that VIB has launched in cooperation with global payment technology company Visa and e-commerce platform Lazada.

With up to 50 per cent cashback for online shopping, LazCard is now the leading Ecom card line. This rate includes 20 per cent points accumulation for cashback on spending and 30 per cent from online shopping vouchers via Lazada every Friday and special days exclusively for LazCard cardholders.

With a 30 per cent discount on shopping vouchers, LazCard cardholders using vouchers will receive an immediate discount of VNĐ150,000 for orders worth VNĐ450,000 or more every Friday, and VNĐ1 million for orders worth from VNĐ3 million on special days such as Lazada's birthday.

Once customers successfully open a LazCard, their card information and their spending from VNĐ1 million on Lazada within 30 days from the date of card issuance are saved, they will immediately receive a Lazada e-voucher of VNĐ500,000.

VIB also said that it will offer Lazada e-voucher valued at VNĐ100,000 on customers' birthdays. Free shipping e-vouchers will be provided for LazCard cardholders by the bank every month. LazCard cardholders also enjoy a series of attractive offers from VIB partners nationwide.

“As an office worker, I often shop for essentials on e-commerce platforms which a lot of sellers participated in. Thus it is easy for me to compare prices, consult previous buyers' reviews to come to a decision whether to buy or not," Hồng who is living in Hà Nội's Thanh Xuân District, said. 

"With a 50 per cent cashback of LazCard on Lazada, I not only enjoy the promotions of suppliers and trading floors, but also benefit greatly from the bank, especially on occasions like Tết holiday when I will shop a lot,” she said. 

According to the "Consumer trends during Tết holiday in 2022" report released by market research company Kantar, the shopping behaviour of Vietnamese consumers during the Tết holiday saw many changes. Local customers were more familiar with small supermarkets and online shopping to avoid crowds.

Along with attractive incentives, the launch of the new LazCard card line promises to bring a smooth and convenient shopping experience to customers during the year-end shopping period. It is also expected to give a big hit to cashless payments and online shopping in the near future. 

— VNS   LINK

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Henig:  FTAs (Free Trade Agreements) a silver lining for economic growth

January, 15/2023

The country's trade surpassed the milestone of $700 billion in value to hit $73.5 billion in 2022, a rise of 9.5 per cent against the same period of the previous year, according to the updates of the General Statistics Office.

New-generation free trade agreements (FTAs) continue to be a silver lining in Việt Nam's trade growth targeting US$1 trillion in import-export revenue by 2025.

The country's trade surpassed the milestone of $700 billion in value to hit $73.5 billion in 2022, a rise of 9.5 per cent against the same period of the previous year, according to the updates of the General Statistics Office. Of the figure, exports rose by 10.6 per cent, while imports by 8.4 per cent.

With a trade surplus of nearly $11 billion this year, Việt Nam registered a trade surplus for seven years in a row which contributed significantly to the balance of payments, improving foreign exchange reserves, stabilising exchange rates and other macroeconomic indicators, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Trần Quốc Khánh said.

Thirty-nine products joined the club of over a billion US dollars in export revenue, nine of which had export value from $10 billion.

Although Việt Nam is an economy with high openness (the ratio of goods imported and exported to GDP was 200 per cent) and easily affected by external factors, trade with impressive results became a highlight of the economy in the context of growing global uncertainties, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and rising inflation worldwide.

According to Trần Thanh Hải, deputy director of the ministry’s Import-Export Department, to achieve high export turnover and added value, it was necessary to mention the efforts of enterprises in exploiting traditional markets and searching and expanding into new markets.

The implementation of new-generation FTAs such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), EU-Việt Nam FTA (EVFTA) and UK-Việt Nam FTA (UKVFTA), and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership also helped promote exports to these markets with an average growth rate of around 20 per cent, Hải said.

By the end of 2022, 15 FTAs with Việt Nam were in effect, and two others under negotiation.

Hải said that implementing FTAs, especially new-generation FTAs, contributed significantly to promoting exports, especially to markets where we had never had an FTA like Canada, Peru and Mexico.

The growth in trade in 2022 also came from the effort to stabilise and resume production and business from the fourth quarter of 2021 after the pandemic, which created a great motivation for the production of goods and trade activities. He said that the effort to facilitate trade and accelerate administrative reforms also played an important role in trade growth.

According to the General Department of Customs, during the past three decades, the Vietnamese economy witnessed a strong transformation process. It gradually implemented multilateral and diversified foreign policies, taking advantage of trade and investment cooperation, integration and technology transfer to promote economic development.

The year 1995 was marked by a series of memorable events, which set the stage for Việt Nam’s process of opening up and integrating into the global economy, including the accession to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the ASEAN Free Trade Area, the application to join the World Trade Organisation and the normalisation of Việt Nam-US relations.

The customs authority said that Việt Nam’s imports and exports saw strong growth and constantly set new records.

Việt Nam reached the milestone of $100 billion in trade for the first time in 2007 and $200 billion after just four years. The milestone of $300 billion was hit in 2015, $400 billion in 2017, $500 billion in 2019, and $600 billion in 2021.

The customs authority said that Việt Nam was continuously in the top 30 countries and territories with the largest import-export value globally in the ranking of the WTO. Notably, while the rankings of ASEAN countries did not see significant improvements in recent years, Việt Nam saw remarkable growth.

In 2021, Việt Nam ranked 23rd in export value and 20th in import value worldwide.

Bright prospects

Despite two-digit growth in 2022, exports were anticipated to face several difficulties and challenges, both from within the economy and external influences.

To achieve the goal of export growth at 6 per cent this year, coupled with maintaining a trade surplus, more support must be given to enterprises, especially in capital access and market expansion.

The first challenge was the decline in orders when many cut, postponed or cancelled. Many enterprises could not sign new ones due to the rising inflationary pressure from many countries, including Việt Nam’s major trade partners.

Hoàng Hồng Thuỷ from the Chiến Thắng Garment Joint Stock Company said that orders were around 30 per cent lower due to the impact of global issues, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The second challenge was the financial pressure on export enterprises, with most facing capital shortages, difficulty accessing capital due to high-interest rates, fluctuating foreign exchange rates, and rising input material prices after more than two years of struggling with the pandemic.

In addition, the requirements for the quality of goods were increasingly demanding. It was a must to improve the product quality to take advantage of tariff preferences provided by new-generation FTAs, such as EVFTA and CPTPP.

According to Nguyễn Cẩm Trang, deputy director of the Import–Export Department, the story was not only about origins but also about how to meet requirements on food hygiene and safety as well as labour standards.

Another problem was that FDI companies were dominant in the export revenue of Việt Nam. In 2022, the exports of FDI companies accounted for 74 per cent of the country’s total export revenue.

Đậu Anh Tuấn, deputy general secretary of the Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the growth of domestic private enterprises was lower than that of FDI enterprises. This highlighted several points.

The first was that the domestic private sector was not as good as FDI enterprises in taking the advantages of FTAs Việt Nam signed. The second was domestic enterprises were slower than FDI in moving up the supply chain ladder.

Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Hồng Diên said that while the manufacturing and processing industry accounted for 89 per cent of exports in 2022, the participation of domestic enterprises remained modest.

Participation of domestic enterprises in the global supply chains was also limited, and the country’s export was still heavily dependent on the FDI sector, Diên added.

Nguyễn Thị Thu Trang, director of VCCI’s WTO and Integration Centre, said FTAs would continue to be a silver lining for enterprises to create competitive advantage and maintain and expand market shares.

To maintain growth engines for export, Trang said that Việt Nam should strengthen the negotiation of new FTAs (bilateral, multilateral and regional) and, at the same time, have an annual programme to evaluate the efficiency of the implementation of FTAs, thereby identifying and promptly handling issues that affected the use of such trade agreements

Nguyễn Thị Hương, GSO’s general director, said that Việt Nam needed to promote exports while strengthening the management of imports appropriately, ensure a sustainable trade balance and increase official exports in association with restructuring industries and building brands.

Diên said the ministry would review and advise authorities to negotiate and sign new bilateral and multilateral trade agreements.

In addition, measures would be raised to efficiently take advantage of existing FTAs to promote trade while priority would be given to developing e-commerce and building domestic and foreign supply chains.

Support would be provided to localities and enterprises to shift to official exports, build product brands and remove technical barriers so that enterprises could penetrate new markets.

Stressing the important role of FTAs in diversifying markets and promoting trade growth, Diên said the ministry would advise the Government to build a new strategy on international economic integration in the context that the global economy was forecast to struggle in 2023.

It was essential to take advantage of FTAs to develop fundamental and breakthrough industries, Diên said. Analysis and forecasts must also be enhanced to keep up with global and regional market developments.

He said that trade remedies would also be enhanced to protect the legitimate interests of domestic enterprises and maintain a fair, competitive environment in international trade.

He also urged enterprises to pay attention to renovating technologies to enhance competitiveness, improve product quality and build brands while speeding up digitalisation, greening production and transforming business models based on the application of digital technology and promoting cross-border trade via e-commerce.

Trang said that with timely and substantive support and every enterprise's effort, the country could be confident and have motivation for further development in 2023 and beyond.

— VNS   LINK

Henig:  Hanoi facilitates specialty product development

06:00 | 15/01/2023

(VEN) - Nguyen The Hiep, Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Industry and Trade, said 426 Hanoi-based enterprises, cooperatives and production households have so far created 1,649 certified OCOP (One Commune One Product) products of high quality and reasonable price, 65 percent of which are food products.  

Hanoi has opened more than 60 points of sale of OCOP products in 26 districts and towns to introduce and sell not only certified OCOP products of Hanoi but also certified goods from 25 other provinces and cities, including fresh fruits and vegetables, and foodstuffs.

At the launch ceremony of the OCOP product point of sale in the capital’s urban district of Ba Dinh, Co Nhu Dung, Vice Chair of the district people's committee, said Ba Dinh has acknowledged the OCOP program’s importance, and the district works with the city’s authorities to develop, promote and sell OCOP products.

In 2021 and 2022, the district people's committee launched seven points of sale of almost 70 OCOP products by 19 enterprises, cooperatives and household businesses.

Hanoi will help producers diversify products, and strictly manage and further improve the quality and strengthen trade promotion of OCOP products.

One Commune One Product (OCOP) is a national program designed to promote the development of regional agricultural specialties and rural tourism.

Lan Phuong    LINK

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Henig:  Weak finance-backed companies possess large land funds

January, 14/2023 - 10:57

There are now many enterprises on UPCOM with small charter capital but a great amount of land funds.

HÀ NỘI — There are now many enterprises on UPCOM with small charter capital but a great amount of land funds.

With low business performance and low stock market price, the businesses can become the targets of other big companies.

With a charter capital of only VNĐ145 billion (US$6.18 million), Hà Nội Food Joint Stock Company (HAF) holds many real estate assets located in the capital’s central areas, including 11 commercial centres, supermarkets and convenience stores; as well as eight hotels, restaurants, and food service establishments.

Some prominent land areas include 736sq.m at 51 Lê Đại Hành Street; 164.5sq.m at 46 Lương Ngọc Quyến; 347.6sq.m at 7 Đinh Liệt; and 200sq.m at 30 Hàng Đào.

HAF also has other real estate facilities owned by two subsidiaries – Bắc Qua Trading and Service Joint Stock Company – in which HAF holds 54 per cent of the capital, and Lãng Yên Trading Joint Stock Company in which HAF holds 51 per cent of capital.

A project of Bắc Qua Joint Stock Company is located on an area of 2,296sq.m at the intersection of Hàng Khoai – Nguyễn Thiện Thuật and the project of Lãng Yên Company is located at 21 Trần Khánh Dư.

Despite owning many desirable pieces of land in the capital, HAF's business activities are inefficient. In the 2016-19 period, the profit of the business declined from VNĐ11.4 billion to VNĐ3.1 billion. Since 2020, HAF has suffered continuous losses.

The financial report of the third quarter of 2022 shows that, in the first nine months of the year, the company's revenue from sales and service provision reached VNĐ81.29 billion, down 27 per cent compared to the same period in 2021; and after-tax loss was VNĐ6.3 billion, a sharp increase compared to the loss of VNĐ3.5 billion in the same period in 2021.

HAF operates in retail, wholesale and management and operation of a network of locations. The COVID-19 pandemic has severely damaged the wholesale business and exploitation of the network of locations for rental. Some clients closed, returned premises, and liquidated contracts ahead of due time. Accordingly, the company's commercial revenue went down and losses increased in 2022.

CHS: Business goes down after equitisation

Hồ Chí Minh City Public Lighting Joint Stock Company (SAPULICO or CHS), has a charter capital of VNĐ284 billion, of which Hồ Chí Minh City State Financial Investment Company (HFIC) holds 51 per cent, and Long Hậu Joint Stock Company holds 34 per cent.

Sapulico was equitised in 2015, operating in the field of management and maintenance of public lighting systems, traffic lights, construction of public works, and other construction systems.

At the time of the IPO, the company managed and used many land lots in HCM City and other provinces. Particularly in HCM City, Sapulico has 386sq.m at 121 Châu Văn Liêm, 2,372.5sq.m at 167 Lưu Hữu Phước, 318sq.m at 436 An Dương Vương, 218sq.m at 55 Nguyễn Thi; 680.9sq.m at No. 3 TL14, 2500sq.m in Tân Thạnh Commune, Củ Chi District.

Before equitisation, in the 2012-14 period, CHS had profit after tax ranging from VNĐ80.3 billion to VNĐ102.3 billion per year. When equitised in 2015, the company's profit after tax in the first nine months reached VNĐ51.5 billion.

However, after equitisation, Sapulico's business results dropped sharply. In 2017, CHS achieved revenue of VNĐ383 billion and profit after tax of VNĐ25.3 billion; in 2018, revenue was VNĐ375 billion and profit after tax was VNĐ23.9 billion; in 2019, revenue reached VNĐ404 billion and profit after tax was VNĐ31.5 billion.

PCM: profit only reaches 5 per cent of the set plan

Post and Telecommunications Construction Material JSC (PCM) has a charter capital of VNĐ40 billion, the state capital accounts for 49 per cent, and is managed by the Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group.

The company manages and uses many large land lots such as 9,419.2sq.m at 64 Cầu Diễn Street in Hà Nội; 11,547.2sq.m in Lộc Hà in Đông Anh, 29,218sq.m in Nam Sơn Ward, in Ninh Bình Province; 63.3sq.m in 57/20 Bầu Cát in HCM City; and 5,330.3sq.m in Tam Điệp Commune, Ninh Bình Province.

In recent years, the company's business performance has been relatively poor, with dividends all below 2.5 per cent per year. In 2021, it was only 0.19 per cent.

In 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic strongly affected the company's business activities. The company also faced problems such as limited human resources and low efficiency. PCM achieved revenue of VNĐ51.2 billion, profit after tax was only VNĐ75 million in the year. This profit reached only 5 per cent of the plan approved by the annual general meeting of shareholders.

In the first six months of 2022, the company achieved revenue of VNĐ30.37 billion, an increase of 59.8 per cent over the same period in 2021; profit after tax reached VNĐ225.4 million.

— VNS   LINK

"Vietnam News" Posted by Henig at KTFA Saturday 1-14-2023

KTFA:  Vietnam:

Henig:  Gov’t asks for focus on digital finance, digital economy this year

January, 14/2023 

Non-cash payments for social allowance, pension and social insurance allowance would be promoted while the national population database would be improved and used to identify customers and authenticate bank accounts.

HÀ NỘI — The Vietnamese Government has asked ministries and localities to focus on promoting the development of digital finance and digital economy in 2023.

Accordingly, the institutions, mechanisms, policies and legal framework would be improved to accelerate the national digital transformation with a focus on developing human resources and ensuring information security.

The digital platforms and national databases would be integrated to improve the efficiency in management and handling of administrative procedures.

Non-cash payments for social allowance, pension and social insurance allowance would be promoted while the national population database would be improved and used to identify customers and authenticate bank accounts.

Digital transformation must also be strengthened at corporations and small and medium-sized enterprises.

In the context that global growth momentum losing steam, the Government is looking for new growth drivers, one of which is developing the digital economy.

Recently, the Government has raised drastic measures to promote the development of the digital economy.

The Government issued a strategy for developing e-Government toward digital Government, the national strategy about developing digital economy and society, and the programme about national digital transformation to 2025 with a vision to 2030.

The latest edition of the e-Conomy SEA report by Google, Temasek Holdings Pte and Bain & Co published in late December highlighted that Việt Nam had the fastest growing digital economy in Southeast Asia with a year-on-year increase of 28 per cent in gross merchandise value (GMV).

The report pointed out that the driving force for Việt Nam’s digital growth was the growing penetration of new forms of commerce across urban and rural regions for businesses. Logistical infrastructure also improved to facilitate nationwide e-commerce transactions and there was a noticeable high-quality homegrown tech workforce that had been driving innovation in Việt Nam.

Trần Minh Tuấn, director of the Department of Digital Economy and Society under the Ministry of Information and Communications, said that based on the survey of Financial Times and Omdia, Việt Nam was the second fastest growing digital economy in the world, expanding at the rate of 12.3 per cent in 2022, after India. In 2023, Việt Nam might fall behind Mexico and India but could take the lead in the world in digital economy growth in the 2022-26 period.

Tuấn pointed out that the scale of Việt Nam’s digital economy remained modest, leaving significant room for future development, especially in connectivity, digital payment and digital entertainment.

Digital finance was expected to see breakthrough development with a compound annual growth rate of 114 per cent in 2021-22 and at 56 per cent in 2022-25.

The department said that the digital economy contributed 14.26 per cent of GDP in the third quarter of 2022. Việt Nam targets to increase the contribution of the digital economy to GDP to 20 per cent by 2025.

— VNS   LINK

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Henig:  Việt Nam remains largest trade partner of China's Guangxi for 23 years

January, 13/2023 - 13:33

Việt Nam has maintained its position as the largest trade partner of China's Guangxi province for 23 consecutive years, with import and export trade turnover of the two sides so far reaching US$200 billion.

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam has maintained its position as the largest trade partner of China's Guangxi province for 23 consecutive years, with import and export trade turnover of the two sides so far reaching 200 billion Chinese yuan.

The information was released at a seminar held Thursday by the Guangxi Department of Commerce in collaboration with the Asia-Africa Market Department, under Việt Nam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and Vinexad Company.

Guangxi now has 181 enterprises investing in Việt Nam, under non-financial type, with total amount of investment committed by China is US$1.26 billion, and the actual total investment capital of $140 million.

Việt Nam has established a total of 57 enterprises in Guangxi, with a total contracted investment capital of $184 million.

Speaking at the conference, Tô Ngọc Sơn - Deputy Director General of the Asia-Africa Market Department under Việt Nam's Ministry of Industry and Trade expressed his pleasure to hear that China has removed all PCR tests and concentrated isolation after January 8, 2023. This is a good premise for agencies and businesses of the two sides to have the opportunity to restore exchange and cooperation activities, contributing to bringing more benefits to businesses and people of the two countries.

According to Sơn, for many years Guangxi has played a very important role as a bridge in promoting bilateral trade between Việt Nam and China.

Import and export between Guangxi and Việt Nam turnover in 11 months of 2022 reached 172.65 billion Chinese yuan, equivalent to $25.5 billion and accounting for 29.3 per cent of total import and export turnover of Guangxi and the world.

However, the exchange of goods between the two countries also faces many difficulties. Import and export turnover through border gates has decreased continuously.

In the first 11 months of 2022, import and export turnover with China through the border gates in Việt Nam’s Lạng Sơn province decreased by 39.4 per cent over the same period in 2021; while import and export turnover through border gates in Quảng Ninh province decreased by 68.7 per cent year-on-year.

To overcome the above difficulties, Sơn recommended the Guangxi Department of Commerce coordinate with relevant agencies of Guangxi to soon complete the process and regulations for import and export of goods, creating the most favourable conditions for customs clearance activities.

Businesses need to manage product quality, increase understanding of information and regulations of the Chinese side with imported products, ensuring goods are cleared smoothly, saving time and costs.

For his part, Diao Weihong, deputy director of the Department of Commerce, said that Guangxi is willing to work with Việt Nam to promote cooperation between the two sides; wishing that trade exchanges will take place wider and deeper, bringing richer results.

Currently, the economic and trade cooperation between Guangxi and Việt Nam has entered an important stage of upgrading, he said.

VNS   LINK

Henig:  Agriculture an important pillar of the economy: PM

January, 14/2023

Agriculture is an important pillar in building Việt Nam's independent and self-reliant economy associated with extensive and effective international integration, according to Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính.

HÀ NỘI — Agriculture is an important pillar in building Việt Nam's independent and self-reliant economy associated with extensive and effective international integration, according to Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính.

The Government leader made the remarks while addressing the agricultural sector's conference on reviewing tasks in 2022 and setting goals for 2023, held by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in Hà Nội on January 13.

The PM said that in 2022, the agriculture and rural development sector has changed its mindset from "agricultural production" to developing an "agricultural economy". This is an important factor to contribute to growth and the comprehensive and sustainable development of agriculture.

Production has been linked to the market with increased added value. The agricultural sector has nearly 9,000 products recognised as speciality in the One Commune One Product programme, an increase of nearly 3,000 products compared to 2021.

“The Government looks forward to seeing the agricultural sector to be stronger and develop more sustainably in 2023,” PM Chính said.

Minister Lê Minh Hoan reported that the sector has shown strong determination, made great efforts, carried out flexible and creative solutions, and reformed its mindset to overcome difficulties and challenges to achieve targets.

In 2022, the sector’s total value grew 3.36 per cent, the highest in many years. In particular, agriculture expanded 2.88 per cent, fisheries 4.43 per cent, and forestry 6.13 per cent. The forest coverage stood at over 42 per cent while the rate of new-style rural areas was more than 73 per cent.

Agro-forestry-fishery exports reached US$53.22 billion, up 9.3 per cent from a year earlier. That resulted in a trade surplus of over $8.5 billion, accounting for more than 75 per cent of Việt Nam’s total trade surplus.

For 2023, the sector targets GDP growth of 3 per cent, agro-forestry-fishery export revenues of $54 billion, the rate of new-style rural areas at 78 per cent, and forest coverage stable at 42 per cent, Hoan said.

At the conference, the PM pointed out that apart from advantages, the country will continue facing numerous difficulties and challenges in 2023. The sector should strive for a growth rate of 3.5 per cent and exports of $55 billion, higher than last year’s figures.

He emphasised the task of developing ecological agriculture, modern rural areas, and civilised farmers while considering farmers as the centre, agriculture as the impetus, and rural areas as the foundation for the sector’s development.

Agriculture and rural development need to focus on promoting brand building; boosting digital transformation, and green transition and circular economy. It also should connect with cultural and tourism development; diversify products, markets, and supply chains; and improve product quality.

PM Chính also underlined the importance of coordinating with other ministries, sectors and localities to link producers with consumers; optimise free trade agreements, especially the EU-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP); continue removing barriers to enter new markets; and pay due attention to the domestic market.

In addition, it is also necessary to step up sustainable ocean farming and exploitation, strongly carry out recommendations to persuade the European Commission to lift the “yellow card” warning against IUU fishing.

It needs to increase forest production and development, effectively implement the national target programme on new-style countryside building, and foster agricultural cooperation with international partners.

He believes that with the ministry and localities’ determination and efforts, as well as farmers' and businesses’ support, the sector will make stronger progress and gain more achievements in 2023.

At the conference, deputy minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Sinh Nhật Tân proposed to promote cooperation between the two ministries in many fields, including restructuring of the agricultural industry for raising the value of Vietnamese agricultural products. 

They will formulate policies to promote border trade, and accelerate negotiations with other countries to increase the number of agro-forestry-fishery products that are officially exported to foreign markets, especially China.

They will also increase focus on trade promotion programmes, especially on digital platforms, e-commerce, information technology application to promote exports and consumption of agricultural products. They will effectively implement trade remedies, handle disputes and lawsuits in international trade, and create favourable conditions for enterprises exporting agricultural products.

— VNS   LINK

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Henig:  Ministry of Industry and Trade sets ceiling prices for solar and wind projects

January, 14/2023 - 08:21

MOIT has set the ceiling prices at 5.05 cents per kWh for ground-mounted solar projects, 6.43 cents for floating solar projects, 6.77 cents for onshore wind projects, and 7.75 cents for offshore wind projects.

HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Industry and Trade has recently introduced new ceiling prices for solar and wind energy in Việt Nam.

On October 3, 2022, the ministry released Circular 15, which sets out a framework for the Việt Nam Electricity (EVN) to enter into tariff negotiations with developers of transitional solar and wind energy projects by reference to some specific ceiling prices.

On January 7, 2023, the ministry set the ceiling prices at VNĐ1,184.90 (5.05 cents) per kWh for ground-mounted solar projects, VNĐ1,508.27 (6.43 cents) for floating solar projects, VNĐ1,587.12 (6.77 cents) for onshore wind projects, and VNĐ1,815.95 (7.75 cents) for offshore wind projects.

EVN will now use these ceiling prices to negotiate tariffs with transitional projects, which are not subject to any tariff so far.

At a seminar earlier this week, Deputy Chairman of the Việt Nam Energy Association Nguyễn Văn Vy remarked that renewable energy in Việt Nam was facing various obstacles.

Under Circular 32 on power purchase agreement, avoidable cost is defined as the highest cost of producing one kWh of electricity by national generating stations, and the cost would be avoided if EVN purchases the electricity from alternative small hydropower plants.

He revealed that the current avoidable cost was set at VNĐ1,100 (4.68 cents) per kWh, so low that it disincentivises investments in new hydropower plants. He thus called for an adjustment to the cost, estimating that a rate of between VNĐ3,500 to VNĐ4,000 per kWh would be more practical.

Regarding biomass power plants, he said that the plants are fueled by bagasse residue of sugar refining during the sugarcane season and other types of biomass during the rest of the year.

Under his estimation, the plants need to make at least 7.03 cents for each kWh generated by the bagasse and 8.47 cents for other types of biomass to break even. Unfortunately, their electricity is purchased at a price as high as the former, leading to the plants staying idle for eight months every year.

He called for a revision to Decision 08, which set the purchasing price of biomass-derived electricity at over 8.47 cents per kWh during the period out of sugarcane season to encourage the use of other types of biomass in electricity generation.

He was also concerned that the policy mechanism to support solar and wind energy had expired and a new mechanism had not been introduced, leading to a situation that newly built solar and wind farms were put on hold due to the absence of an official feed-in tariff (FIT).

He suggested a temporary FIT, in the meantime, to keep the farms operational until an official FIT would come into force under a new mechanism, which would be applied retroactively to the farms.

"An official FIT was absent when Bình Thuận Wind Power Plant No 1 began operation years ago. At that time, I suggested a temporary FIT of 6.00 cents per kWh and the Prime Minister approved my suggestion," said Vy.

— VNS    LINK

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Henig:  So Village’s vermicelli goes global

06:00 | 14/01/2023 

(VEN) - Son Lo Village (also known as So Village) in Cong Hoa Commune of the capital’s suburban district of Quoc Oai, about 20 kilometers from downtown Hanoi, has become a major vermicelli center. The village’s safe, clean vermicelli products have been exported to Malaysia, Japan, and Germany.

Duong Dinh Khoi describes safe, clean vermicelli production

Entrepreneur Duong Dinh Khoi, one of the first safe, clean vermicelli producers and exporters in Son Lo Village said villagers use organic arrowroot planted on the Moc Chau Plateau in the northern mountainous province of Son La to make vermicelli, following a strictly controlled production process without coloring, chemicals and preservatives.

Khoi said his Duong Kien Trading, Production and Import Export Company Limited has technicians to strictly control raw materials and ensure they meet food hygiene and safety standards of both domestic and foreign markets. Almost all vermicelli production stages, except vermicelli drying, has been mechanized, he said. Vermicelli needs to be dried with wind and sunlight to ensure its quality and good taste, he added.

In 2020, the company procured a vermicelli production line worth almost VND650 million, VND300 million of which was funded by the Hanoi Department of Industry and Trade’s industry promotion program. The production line is energy and raw material efficient, and has helped the company reduce product cost, control environmental pollution and create one of the capital’s most notable products, introduced at numerous trade fairs and exhibition inside and outside Vietnam.

Son Lo Village (also known as So Village) in Cong Hoa Commune of the capital’s suburban district of Quoc Oai, about 20 kilometers from downtown Hanoi, has become a major vermicelli center. The village’s safe, clean vermicelli products have been exported to Malaysia, Japan, and Germany.

Thu Huong   LINK

Some "Vietnam News" Posted by Henig at KTFA 1-13-2023

KTFA:

Henig:  Trade with UK: Record growth, untapped potential

06:00 | 13/01/2023

(VEN) - The UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) officially came into force on May 1, 2021. The two countries have seen bilateral trade growth despite the COVID-19 pandemic, and the UK is forecast to remain a promising export market for Vietnamese goods.

Increased presence in UK

Trade between Vietnam and the UK reached more than US$6.6 billion in 2021, up 17 percent compared with 2020. The sum included nearly US$5.8 billion worth of Vietnamese exports to the UK, up 16.4 percent, and US$849 million worth of UK exports to Vietnam, up 23.6 percent. In the first 11 months of 2022, Vietnam’s exports to the UK reached nearly US$5.63 billion, up 7.4 percent year-on-year. Meanwhile, imports from the UK reached US$700 million, down 10 percent.

Eleven-month bilateral trade reached US$6.33 billion, up 5.2 percent year-on-year, yielding a trade surplus of nearly US$4.93 billion for Vietnam.

Vietnamese Trade Counselor in the UK Nguyen Canh Cuong said British people had never been interested in Vietnamese brands and products as much as today. “In the past, British people and businesses rarely heard about Vietnam or Vietnamese products. Nowadays, when I attend events as Vietnamese Counselor in the UK, I receive many questions from British companies about business opportunities in Vietnam. They want to import Vietnamese goods for distribution in the UK market,” Cuong said.

Significant growth has been recorded for the majority of Vietnam’s key exports to the UK such as coffee, pepper, rubber, vegetables, textiles and footwear, in some cases even doubling in value. The increase in fabric import turnover from the UK shows that some Vietnamese enterprises have used imported fabric to produce items meeting rules of origin.

The UK is a discerning market with strict regulations and high standards. The Ministry of Industry and Trade has guided the Vietnamese Trade Office in the UK to provide domestic companies with consultancy on technical requirements for export to this market. The Europe-American Market Department, the Multilateral Trade Policy Department, and the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency have disseminated the UKVFTA among businesses and advised them on taking advantage of the trade deal.

The Vietnamese Trade Office in the UK has also provided consultancy on UKCA (UK Conformity Assessed) marking requirements for industrial exports to the UK, as well as other regulations applied to farm produce, wood product and garment exports to this market. In 2022, with support of the office, Vietnamese companies participated in the White Label World Expo in London in March, the Birmingham Furniture Show in April and in VegfestUK in November. The office also organized Vietnamese Goods Festival events in London in June and in Nottingham in July.

New expectations

However, Vietnamese exports still account for less than one percent of the more than US$600 billion worth of the UK’s annual imports. Nguyen Canh Cuong said that during the past two years, COVID-19 prevented direct business meetings. Moreover, the UK has put in place new regulations on technical standards and post-Brexit customs procedures, generating concerns on the part of Vietnamese exporters.

Vietnamese exporters have also been discouraged by the surging maritime transport costs to the UK. Major fluctuations in the exchange rate of the pound sterling (GBP) in the third and fourth quarters of 2022 also hindered Vietnamese exports to the UK.

Despite these challenges, Cuong believes the UKVFTA will create new competitive advantages for Vietnamese exports, especially essential consumer goods such as farm produce, seafood, processed food, footwear, clothing, and furniture.

Cuong said that to access the UK market, domestic companies should participate in major international trade fairs and exhibitions to introduce sample products and talk directly to potential partners.

Cuong believes the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and localities should financially support business participation in the UK fairs. In his opinion, localities also need to increase investment in human resource training according to European standards to help domestic companies win the trust of UK importers and consumers.

Nguyen Canh Cuong, Vietnamese Trade Counselor in the UK:

In 2023, the Vietnamese Trade Office in the UK will prioritize support for domestic companies to participate in international fairs in order to facilitate their access to this potential market.

Hoa Quynh   LINK

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Henig:  Hà Nội focuses on industrial, commercial development in 2023

January, 13/2023 - 08:52

The Hà Nội Department of Industry and Trade will focus on reviewing and completing industrial, trade and logistics development plans to integrate into the Hà Nội Capital master plan.

HÀ NỘI — The Hà Nội Department of Industry and Trade will focus on reviewing and completing industrial, trade and logistics development plans to integrate into the Hà Nội Capital master plan.

Nguyễn Mạnh Quyền, vice chairman of Hà Nội People's Committee, made the statement at a conference on implementing tasks of Hà Nội's industry and trade sector in 2023 held this week.

Accordingly, the department needs to have specific solutions to develop the industrial sector, including key industries and supporting industries. 

At the same time, the department needs to solve difficulties and obstacles, and support enterprises in restoring production and business and attracting investment to have large industrial projects playing an important role in increasing production capacity.

In addition, the department needs to speed up investment in the infrastructure of industrial clusters, effectively implement the industrial promotion programmes, and strengthen measures on ensuring electricity supply for production, business and people's daily life.

The department also should have a specific roadmap to start the construction of 34 new industrial clusters and improve the operational efficiency of 70 existing industrial clusters.

Quyền also said the department must promote international economic integration, and take advantage of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). It will also renovate trade promotion activities, and implement market expansion solutions for high value-added products or product groups with a high export turnover.

In 2023, it will continue to support enterprises to bring goods to foreign distribution channels, and promote the development of the domestic market in association with the "Vietnamese people give priority to using Vietnamese goods" campaign.

This department will carry out market stabilisation measures, and propose solutions to increase retail sales of consumer goods and services in the city. 

It will strengthen management for the quality and price of essential commodities to control inflation, especially before and during the Lunar New Year.

It also promote the development and management of e-commerce activities.

In 2022, the Hà Nội Department of Industry and Trade implemented tasks and solutions to restore and promote industrial and commercial development in the city, including the organisation of 45 domestic consumption stimulus events, and the development of more than 20 points of selling products under the One Commune One Product (OCOP) products.

Therefore, they promoted positive recovery of industrial production, domestic commercial activities, import and export in 2022, contributing to the city's GRDP growth of 8.89 per cent.

Notably, the industrial production value increased by about 8 per cent, higher than this year's target of 7.3-7.8 per cent and the figure of 5.37 per cent in 2021.

The municipal total retail sales of consumer goods and services in 2022 was estimated at VNĐ697.7 trillion, up 25.2 per cent compared to 2021 and higher than the target of 9-10 per cent.

VNS   LINK

Henig:  Two economic growth scenarios for 2023

January, 13/2023 - 08:00

The CIEM’s report "Việt Nam’s economy in 2022 and prospects for 2023" offers two scenarios for Vietnamese economic growth this year.

HÀ NỘI — The Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) and the Ministry of Planning and Investment, in collaboration with the the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) held a seminar on Việt Nam’s economy in 2022 and prospects for 2023.

CIEM’s report "Việt Nam’s economy in 2022 and prospects for 2023" offers two scenarios for Vietnamese economic growth this year.

Accordingly, in the first, GDP of Việt Nam increases by 6.47 per cent with average inflation at 4.08 per cent, export growth hits 7.21 per cent and the trade balance reaches $5.64 billion.

The second is more positive when labour productivity grows, GDP growth reaches 6.83 per cent; inflation 3.69 per cent; export growth 8.43 per cent and trade balance $8.15 billion.

Speaking at the conference, Trần Thị Hồng Minh, Director of CIEM, said last year was considered to be an extremely difficult and challenging year for the Vietnamese economy and the global economy in general.

In addition to the increase in the prices of commodities such as energy and food, leading to an increase in inflation in many countries, the pandemic developments, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, along with embargo measures of the many economies heavily affected the recovery of the supply chain.

The difficult context requires Việt Nam to constantly monitor and update assessments and recommendations in order to maintain macroeconomic stability, control inflation, and create a favourable environment for socio-economic reform, recovery and development.

With those efforts, Việt Nam's economic picture achieved positive results last year, GDP growth reached 8.02 per cent, the highest in the period from 2011 to 2022, far exceeding the target of 6.5 per cent proposed by the National Assembly.

Inflation control reached 3.15 per cent, reaching the target below 4 per cent, and the macro economy was maintained, said Minh.

Nguyễn Anh Dương, Head of the General Research Department, CIEM, said that Việt Nam's economic growth reached impressive results last year. Besides GDP growth of 8.02 per cent, foreign investment attraction and import-export activities were also evaluated positively.

However, the growth rate was showing signs of slowing down from the fourth quarter of last year, he said.

The problem of lack of orders, leading to underemployment, occurred at many enterprises.

This impact might not only stop at the fourth quarter but could also last until the first months of 2023, he said.

The assessment of the CIEM research team in the report also shows that, compared to previous years, Việt Nam's economic outlook this year might be influenced by more factors than last year.

In particular, these include the ability to control the spread of virus variants and new diseases, thereby facilitating economic activity; and the degree of monetary tightening in key economies to handle inflationary pressures.

Key economies will increase geopolitical competition, the Russia-Ukraine conflict may linger, but "like-minded" economic groups may increase cooperation in many areas.

Along with that, these factors also include the progress of implementing the programme of socio-economic recovery and development.

If macroeconomic stability is maintained, Việt Nam can continue to reform and promote fiscal and monetary measures to help restore economic growth.

Finally, economic growth will depend significantly on the ability to diversify export markets, take advantage of opportunities from free trade agreements (FTAs) and handle risks associated with trade–technology confrontation among superpowers, the downtrend of regional currencies against the US dollars.

The report by CIEM also re-emphasises the message that policy priorities need to continue to focus on improving the microeconomic foundation and reforming the economic institutional system in a direction that is more friendly to innovation and the environment, associated with effectively handling risks in the volatile international economic environment.

— VNS   LINK

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Henig:  Việt Nam's coffee exports exceed the plan

January, 13/2023 - 08:43

Coffee exports have also increased by an impressive 13.8 per cent in volume and 32 per cent in turnover compared to the whole year of 2021.

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam exported 1.77 million tonnes of coffee of all kinds with a total turnover of over US$4 billion last year, exceeding the set target.

Coffee exports have also increased by an impressive 13.8 per cent in volume and 32 per cent in turnover compared to the whole of 2021.

The General Department of Việt Nam Customs reported that the country exported more than 197,000 tonnes of coffee, worth $425.1 million in December, increasing strongly by 53.5 per cent in volume and 39.7 per cent in value compared to November 2022.

This is the highest export volume of the coffee industry in the past four years and the highest-ever turnover value.

Over the past year, coffee exports have grown strongly thanks to a rebound in demand after the COVID-19 pandemic and high coffee prices in the context of tight global supply due to crop failures and supply chain bottlenecks in large producing countries such as Brazil and Colombia.

On the other hand, the increase in exports was also supported by an improved supply of containers and ships.

Regarding export markets, the amount of coffee exported to some main markets tends to increase last year compared to 2021, such as Russia up by 26.5 per cent, the UK by nearly 40 per cent, and especially India by 123.5 per cent.

However, a decline was recorded in markets such as the US, Japan, and China.

Meanwhile, the European Union (EU) continues to be Việt Nam's largest coffee consumption market with a market share of about 39 per cent of export volume.

Việt Nam's coffee exports to this market reached 689,049 tonnes last year, worth nearly $1.5 billion, up 25.8 per cent in volume and 45.4 per cent in value year-on-year.

Besides, the tariff advantage from the EVFTA also brings great motivation for coffee exporters to this market.

However, the biggest challenge for businesses exporting to the EU is the increasing requirements for quality and sustainability for products.

Most recently, the European Commission (EC) said that the EU had reached an agreement to ban the import of a number of products considered a key factor in promoting deforestation, including coffee, on December 6.

Along with the EU market, China's opening of its border and isolation lifting after lowering the level of COVID-19 control from January 8 is also an opportunity for Việt Nam's coffee exports to regain momentum growth in this market in the near future.

Exports at the beginning of the 2022-2023 crop year are still quite favourable, but some forecasts suggest that coffee exports may decrease this year because the supply is not as abundant as the previous year, while the price of coffee tends to decline due to the coffee supply–demand shifts from shortage to surplus.

Last year’s coffee export price recorded the highest level in many years with an average of $2,282 per tonne, a year-on-year growth of 16 per cent. 

— VNS   LINK

"Vietnam News" Posted by Henig at KTFA Thursday 1-12-2023

KTFA:

Vietnam News:

Henig:  Top 10 ICT developments in 2022

06:00 | 11/01/2023

(VEN) - Vietnam's information and communications technology (ICT) industry entered a post-COVID development phase in 2022, with the Party and government adopting policies to promote the development of the technology sector and businesses. Following are 10 outstanding ICT developments of 2022 as voted by the journalists of the ICT Press Club.

1. National strategy adopted on digital economy and digital society

On March 31, 2022, the prime minister promulgated a national strategy for digital economy and digital society development to 2025, with a vision to 2030. This strategy foresees the centrality of digital development in achieving rapid, sustainable, inclusive development, adaptive and resilient to challenges in a world of unpredictable changes. The vision sets a target for the digital economy to account for 20 and 30 percent of Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025 and 2030, respectively.

2. Prime ministerial instruction on e-government development

On April 26, 2022, the prime minister issued an instruction on e-government development to promote national digitalization. Accordingly, the prime minister instructed ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government agencies, and local people's committees to carry out their mandatory assignments. Concurrently, the government also requested agencies and units to coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Government Office, and the Ministry of Information and Communications on infrastructure for linking national databases. Priority is to be given to the databases on business, taxation, customs, banking, driver's licenses, health insurance, education and social security.

3. Amendment of the Law on Radio Frequency voted by the National Assembly for ratification

On November 9, 2022, the National Assembly ratified the amended and revised articles of the Law on Radio Frequency in order to manage and rationally and effectively allocate the right to use radio frequencies, create a healthy telecommunications competition environment, promote the development of the telecommunications infrastructure, contribute to national digital transformation and to the formation of a digital economy and digital society.

4. Declaration of National Digital Transformation Day

On April 22, 2022, the prime minister issued a decision designating October 10 as National Digital Transformation Day to be marked annually in order to raise public awareness of the role, meaning and benefits of digital transformation and promote the participation of the entire political system and the population in the country's digital transformation.

5. VinFuture Award honors global network scientists, inventors

Five scientists were awarded the VinFuture Grand Prize, worth US$3 million for their breakthrough inventions in global internet connection technology. They are Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee (UK), Dr. Vinton Gray Cerf (US), Dr. Emmanuel Desurvire (France), Dr. Robert Elliot Kahn (US), and Prof. Sir David Neil Payne (UK).

Global network technology is the result of numerous inventions serving mankind, creating a firm foundation for the knowledge-based economy and a launch pad for further breakthrough technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Cloud Computing, and Big Data.

6. Vietnam becomes microchip supplier

On September 28, 2022, FPT Semiconductor, a unit of Vietnam's leading tech company FPT, launched its first line of semiconductor chips used in medical devices as part of its efforts to enter the competitive global industry.

The company said in a statement it aims to supply 25 million chips globally by 2023 and is eyeing Japan, Chinese Taipei, China and the US as key markets for the chips that are used in everything from consumer electronics to aerospace and have been in high demand due to supply chain disruptions since the pandemic.

The finished FPT design will be transferred to the factory in the Republic of Korea (RoK) for production and packaging.

7. Phasing out 2nd, 3rd network generations

Internet service providers have started turning off 2G signals in some places where the demand is low. Nevertheless, Viettel is the first operator in Vietnam to turn off the nationwide 3G network with its 35,000 stations. Compared to the global practice, Viettel is one of the few pioneering operators to turn off 3G. The general network quality and customer service experience after the 3G phase-out remained steady, efficient and growing.

The 2G and 3G phase-out helps providers simplify networks, optimize the infrastructure for new technology development, optimize operating costs, and add frequency resources to 4G networks for service quality improvement in the context of increasing data traffic and 4G subscribers.

8. Internet providers join force to fight spam calls

On August 29, 2022, Viettel, VNPT, MobiFone, Vietnamobile, Local, Itel and Gmobile signed a joint agreement to prevent and handle spam calls. This is the first time that network operators have joined hands to block spam calls, with their adverse social consequences. The Ministry of Information and Communications affirms that it will resolutely inspect and publicly penalize network operators that do not seriously handle garbage SIMs, while subscriber information must be cleaned to avoid social consequences, rather than to pass off the burden end users.

9. Samsung launches major Hanoi R&D Center

On December 23, Samsung Vietnam officially inaugurated and put into operation a Research and Development (R&D) Center in Hanoi, the company’s largest hub in Southeast Asia.

The US$200 million R&D Center has 16 floors and three basements, covering a total construction area of 11,603 square meters and a floor area of 79,511s.qm. It is the first large-scale high-rise building devoted to technology development in Vietnam.

10. Vietnam holds first blockchain summit

Held for the first time in Vietnam, the Vietnam Blockchain Summit 2022 attracted thousands of delegates, speakers and experts, leading blockchain technology names in the world and Vietnam (such as Kyber Network, Gala Games, Sky Mavis, DFG, FTX, Binance, BNB Chain, Chainalysis, OKC, AAX). The summit creates connections for technology consultation and promotion of the digital economy.

Vietnam is considered a highlight on the world map with a large number of blockchain projects and highly-qualified blockchain human resources.   LINK

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Henig:  Building global brand for Trang An

06:00 | 11/01/2023

(VEN) - Ninh Binh Province has launched a campaign to preserve the integrity and effectively promote the values of its Trang An heritage site, and boost sustainable tourism development in its magnificent landscape.

Tourism growth

Situated near the southern margin of the Red River Delta, the Trang An Landscape Complex is a spectacular landscape of limestone karst peaks permeated with valleys, many of them partly submerged. Exploration of caves at different altitudes has revealed archaeological traces of human activity over a continuous period of more than 30,000 years, illustrating the life of seasonal hunter-gatherers and their adaptation to major climatic and environmental changes, especially the repeated inundation of the landscape by the sea after the last ice age.

Dominating the landscape is a series of steep, almost vertical 200 meter cliffs covered by forests, and rice fields stretching along rivers, with farmers and fishermen living in their traditional ways. Visitors traveling on river boats steered by local guides can experience the natural, peaceful environment.

Hoang Thi Thu Huong, Deputy Head of the Management Board of Trang An Scenic Landscape Complex, said that the tourist area is creating jobs for 1,300 boat drivers, mainly women aged 45-60, with a monthly salary of VND5-6 million (US$212-255).

In 2014, the World Heritage Committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) added the Trang An scenic landscape complex to the list of World Cultural and Natural Heritage sites. This boosted annual tourism by 5.96 percent between 2015 and 2020, with international visitor growth reaching 11.4 percent a year, and tourism revenue increasing by 27.2 percent annually.

In the first 10 months of 2022, Ninh Binh Province received more than 3.075 million visitors, including over 3.032 million domestic visitors, and 43,400 international arrivals, 3.2 times higher than the same period last year.

Launch of heritage festival

In November 2022, Ninh Binh Province held the first Trang An heritage festival with the participation of 14 provinces and cities from across the nation and the Udomxay Province of neighboring Laos, connecting provinces and cities featuring typical cultural heritages in order to promote them to domestic and foreign tourists and preserve and honor cultural heritages.

Ninh Binh Province wants to turn the festival into a large-scale annual cultural and tourism event towards building a new brand for Ninh Binh culture.

At the recent 50th anniversary of the 1972 Convention, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay affirmed that Trang An heritage has successfully combined economic development with sustainable tourism development. That is why it was picked to pilot a project on sustainable tourism to enhance the benefits for local communities, especially women.

Nguyen Cao Tan, Deputy Director of the Ninh Binh Department of Tourism, pledged to focus on improving the efficiency of state management relating to the Trang An scenic landscape complex.

Accordingly, functional agencies continue to review and adjust policies and legal documents on heritage conservation, develop tourism in a sustainable and responsible manner, and encourage investment and effective exploitation of Trang An and other beauty spots in Ninh Binh in order to preserve outstanding heritage values for future generations.

Kim Chi & Thu Huyen    LINK

Henig:  How can green trade with EU benefit Vietnam?

06:00 | 12/01/2023

(VEN) - Green trade with the EU will benefit Vietnam. In the opinion of economists, however, both enterprises and government agencies must make a sustained effort to adopt green trade standards.

Green standards

According to Vu Ba Phu, Director of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, green consumption is becoming more popular in the EU market. In the past, green standards were applied only to high-end products, but today, they have become a requirement for all EU-imported goods in all market segments.

The EU applies green standards to ensure that all types of consumer goods do not pose risks to the environment, residents and supply chains. In 2014, the EU adopted the Non-Financial Reporting Directive. In 2020, the EU Green Deal was approved. In November 2021, the EU promulgated a law preventing the import of goods linked to deforestation. On November 10, 2022, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive was issued, requiring supply chain reports from 50,000 companies.

“Green growth, green development, and the circular economy have become global trends and are prevailing in developed economies like the EU,” Phu said.

Bartosz Cieleszynski, Deputy Head of the Trade Section of the EU Delegation to Vietnam, said the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) has the potential to boost green trade and support sustainable development goals. The trade deal will remove almost all tariffs for 71 percent of Vietnam’s exports to the EU and 65 percent of EU exports to Vietnam.

Tariff removals and commitments under the EVFTA Chapter on Trade and Sustainable Development will create a strong impulse for trade flows of green products.

Notes from experts

At a recent seminar on promoting green exports, Truong Dinh Hoe, secretary general of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), said local firms need to pay more attention to the sustainability of their value chains.

He cited an example of a Vietnamese shrimp exporting firm losing an opportunity to ship its products to the European Union (EU) as it uses plastic trays for packaging and was slow to convert to environmentally-friendly packaging products.

Bartosz Cieleszynski affirmed that each company in the Vietnamese business community can apply green technology and green trade. In his opinion, for an export-oriented economy like Vietnam, green technology and sustainable trade should start from key export sectors, such as agriculture, forestry and fishery.

The EU encourages organic farming because of its benefits for the environment, water and soil, as well as farmer incomes and rural development. Given the increasing importance of organic farming in the EU, Vietnamese exporters should pay greater attention to disseminating this concept among farmers so that they can create products meeting the demand of EU consumers.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade plays an important role in promoting green trade between Vietnam and the EU. To promote green exports, the ministry will enhance the awareness of green transformation for officials at different levels and in different sectors, while adopting a specific strategy to position Vietnam as a green manufacturing hub. Green standards will be set for production. Priority will be given to promoting a circular economy and developing green business models. Appropriate mechanisms and policies will be put in place to help businesses apply green standards in production. Trade promotion will be intensified to help businesses increase exports.

Viet Nga     LINK

Some Thursday "Iraq News" Posted by KTFA Members 1-12-2023

KTFA:

Henig:  US crude stocks drop global oil prices

Baghdad / NINA / - Oil prices fell today, Wednesday, giving up the gains of the previous session, after data in the sector revealed an unexpected increase in US crude and fuel stocks, which raised concerns about fuel demand.

West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 59 cents, or 0.8%, to $74.53 a barrel.

Brent crude futures also fell 62 cents, or 0.8%, to $79.48 a barrel.   LINK

Henig:  Including Iraq..Three countries will record the highest economic growth in 2023

Baghdad / NINA / - The World Bank expected, today, Wednesday, that three Arab countries, including Iraq, will witness the highest growth rate during the year 2023.

In a report, the bank stated that "the growth of the countries of the region will decline during the current two years 2023 and the next 2024, to record 3.5% and 2.7%, respectively."

Despite the decline in the economic growth of the Arab countries, the bank stated that "Egypt, the UAE and Iraq have the highest economic growth rate among the other Arab countries during the year 2023, as their growth is expected to exceed 4%, while the growth rate of the rest of the Arab countries will decrease to less than 4%.

The World Bank suggested that the economic growth rate for Egypt would be 4.5%, the economic growth rate for the UAE would be 4.1%, and the economic growth rate for Iraq would reach 4%.

It pointed out that "economic growth is likely to decrease for Iraq and the UAE during the year 2024, to reach 2.9% and 2.3% for both countries, respectively, while the economic growth rate for Egypt will rise to 4.8%."

The World Bank pointed out that "oil-exporting countries obtained unexpected gains thanks to the rise in crude and gas prices and the increase in the volume of production, which was reflected in achieving an increase in gross domestic product at the fastest pace in nearly a decade."

According to the bank, "the growth of the Arab oil countries, by themselves, will slow from 6.1% in 2022 to 3.3% this year, and to 2.3% next year."   LINK

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Henig:  Iraq is the largest importer of Jordanian industries during the year 2022

Baghdad / NINA / - Jordan announced today, Wednesday, that its industrial exports to Iraq amounted to 715 million Jordanian dinars during the year 2022.

The Jordanian Amman- Chamber of Industry said in a report: "The chamber's exports to countries of the world during the past year 2022 amounted to 7.577 billion dinars, compared to 5.296 billion dinars in 2021."

It added that "the exports of Jordanian industry products, which are spread in most regions of the Kingdom, reach more than 148 markets around the world due to the export of 1,400 various commodities."

It indicated that "India, the United States of America, Saudi Arabia and Iraq acquired more than half of the Amman Chamber of Industry's exports during the past year, recording a value of 3.936 billion dinars," noting that "the exports of Amman's industry to Iraq rose during the year 2022 to 715 million dinars, compared to 559 million dinars for the same period of the year 2021, with an increase of 28 percent.

It explained that "the Chamber's exports during the past year 2022 were distributed among the mining, chemical, cosmetic, engineering, electrical and information technology sectors, in addition to the exports of the catering, food, agricultural, livestock and therapeutic industries, medical and leather supplies, and other industries."   LINK

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Clare:  Within a week, the Iraq Stock Exchange traded 37 billion shares, at a value of 22 billion dinars

1/12/2023

The Iraq Stock Exchange announced, on Thursday, that 37 billion shares have been traded, with a value of more than 20 billion dinars, this week.

During the second week of January 2023, the Iraq Stock Exchange organized five trading sessions, from Sunday 01/08/2023 to Thursday 01/12/2023.

These sessions during this week achieved the following indicators:

1. The number of shares traded during this week amounted to more than (37) billion shares.

2. The value of shares traded this week amounted to more than (22) billion dinars.

3. The trading index in the market closed for the first session of the week at (588.47) points, while the index closed at the end of the week at (601.63) points, achieving an increase of (2.19%) from its closing at the beginning of the session.

4. During the week, more than (3800) buying and selling contracts were executed on the shares of the companies listed in the market.   LINK

Clare:  The Iraqi Parliament ends its legislative recess and meets next Saturday. Document

1/12/2023

The Iraqi Parliament announced today, Thursday, the end of its legislative and direct recess, by holding its session next Saturday.

The Parliament's media department published the parliament's agenda, scheduled for eleven o'clock before noon next Saturday, and Shafaq News Agency reviewed it, and it included "taking the constitutional oath for some members of the House of Representatives, voting on new deputies in the permanent parliamentary committees, and discussing the draft law on communications and informatics And the draft law of the Fourth Amendment to the Industrial Investment Law for the private and mixed sectors.

The agenda also included discussing the report of the fact-finding committee on the information contained in the book of the Ministry of Environment, the Radiation Protection Center, on the presence of chemical radiation in the Dab fertilizer produced by the Southern Fertilizer Company, and the report of the Health and Environment Committee participating in the Conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change on climate change, as well as public discussions.

And entered the Iraqi parliament, on the eighth of last December in the legislative recess for a period of 30 days.   LINK

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Henig:  In Karbala.. the arrest of an accused who stole more than two billion dinars

Karbala Police Command announced the arrest of a suspect who stole more than two billion dinars belonging to an exchange office.

The police said in a statement, "Under the direction of the provincial police chief Major General Ahmed Ali Zweni, and with careful and distinguished security efforts, the detachments of the Anti-Crime Department were able to arrest an accused of stealing two billion Iraqi dinars from one of the exchange offices in the province.

She added, "The operation began after the Anti-Crime Department was informed about the presence of a suspect who had stolen an amount of money amounting to two billion and 240 million Iraqi dinars from a banking office. The police chief directed the formation of a work team from the aforementioned department and under the supervision of the Director of the Anti-Crime Department."

And the police statement continued, "After that, the collection of sufficient information, careful investigation, and moving in a professional manner and continuous security efforts began with the aim of reaching the thief, while the accused of theft was reached, and within a record time, an arbitrary ambush was set up for him, and he was arrested."    LINK

Wednesday "Vietnam News" Posted by Henig at KTFA 1-11-2023

KTFA:

Henig:  Kiên Giang aims to improve industrial production value by 8%

January, 11/2023 - 08:43

The industrial production value of Kiên Giang Province is more than VNĐ44.6 trillion last year, reaching 105.3 per cent of the plan, up 13.7 per cent compared to 2021.

KIÊN GIANG — The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Kiên Giang strives for industrial production value to reach more than VNĐ48.18 trillion (US$2.04 billion) this year, a year-on-year increase of 8 per cent.

The industrial production value of Kiên Giang Province was more than VNĐ44.6 trillion last year, reaching 105.3 per cent of the plan, up 13.7 per cent compared to 2021.

Director of the Department of Industry and Trade Trương Văn Minh said that since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, this had been the first year that the province's industrial growth reached double digits.

It showed that the process of recovering production and business of industrial production facilities in the area has had many positive changes and strong development, he said.

Among them, the processing and manufacturing industry was the main growth driver of the whole industry, accounting for 95.3 per cent of the total structure of industrial production value of the province.

Accordingly, most industrial products have positive growth. Leather shoes, bricks of all kinds, packaging, beer, frozen seafood, and stone mining have a growth rate of over 13 per cent compared to 2021.

This result is due to the fact that the supply chain of goods has been restored after the COVID-19 pandemic, and the purchasing power increased sharply again.

Enterprises have been proactive and have appropriate business solutions, and timely implementation of supply contracts, which have contributed to the overall growth of the whole industry in the province last year.

The vice chairman of the provincial people's committee Lê Quốc Anh said that the province had stepped up the activities of the province's steering group on restoring industrial production to synchronously and effectively deploy solutions to restore industrial production to support enterprises to accelerate the recovery and development of production and business activities.

The province would strengthen support for investors and businesses to soon complete and put into operation investment projects to enhance the capacity of the industry in the new year, especially key investment projects.

— VNS   LINK

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Henig:  The right direction for Lam Dong to break through into the global supply chain

08:58 | 10/01/2023

(VEN) - Lam Dong Province has many breakthrough solutions to develop comprehensive, sustainable and modern agriculture. Vietnam Economic News’ Diep Hien spoke with Dr. Pham S, Vice Chair of Lam Dong Province People's Committee about this issue.

In 2022, Vietnam's economy faced many challenges but the agricultural sector in Vietnam in general and Lam Dong Province in particular still had many positive signs. To achieve this result, what solutions have been implemented?

Having developed hi-tech agriculture since 2004, Lam Dong Province always issues thematic resolutions on hi-tech agriculture. It provides great orientations for farmers and businesses with basic solutions, including synchronously implementing breakthrough solutions close to the practical situation such as high-tech agricultural production planning; always investing intensively in the selection and breeding of crops and animals for high productivity and quality; and scientific and technological research and transfer.

Branding development has always been interested in the province and has organized the implementation of hundreds of research topics and projects for hi-tech agriculture; a great success in practice is that enterprises have invested in, selected technology and equipment suitable for each ecological sub-region and plant and livestock subjects, and developed farming processes according to standards and regulations on hi-tech agricultural production.

In addition, the province has drastically directed the application of mechanization and automation in the entire production process, especially the care and harvesting stages to reduce production costs. At the same time, in the process of organizing production, Lam Dong Province always has a relatively close forecast to the current international integration conditions, on the basis of which it finds strengths to pave the way for the agricultural sector to take off and integrate into international economic communities.

As a result, by the end of 2022, the province was estimated to reach over 65,300 hectares of production meeting the criteria of high-tech production, accounting for 21.8 percent of the province's cultivated land area; the value of high-tech agricultural production reached an average of VND430 million/ha, accounting for over 40 percent of the total production value of the sector.

 Production value per unit of cultivated vegetable area using smart technology is over VND2 billion/ha/year; flower production using IoT technology is from VND3-8 billion/ha/year. In particular, so far, the province has built a brand and established intellectual property rights of 31 brands for typical products of the province, including Da Lat Vegetables, Dalat Flowers, B’Lao Tea, Di Linh Coffee, Arabica Langbiang Coffee, Da Lat Cold Water Fish, and Bao Loc Silk, among others.

In the process of developing high-tech agriculture, what difficulties has Lam Dong encountered and how has the province overcome them?

Despite many innovations, Lam Dong Province is still facing basic difficulties such as agricultural production still lacking stability because the price of materials in recent years has always increased higher than the price of agricultural products. And the province has a solution to produce organic fertilizers, apply mechanization to reduce living labor in order to reduce production costs. In addition, due to the rapid urbanization process, the province has focused on science and technology as the foundation throughout the production process.

In addition, when developing high-tech agriculture, the nuclear factor, the core is enterprises and cooperatives. However, both of these forces are still slow to develop, not commensurate with their potential; production is not yet tied to the market... Therefore, the province has reviewed to direct the development of a practical and synchronous agricultural cooperative.

Another difficulty is that attracting enterprises to invest in agriculture and rural areas is still limited; most enterprises have difficulties in production public land fund when making investment projects; infrastructure for concentrated production planning areas and industrial parks has not been invested synchronously. Therefore, the province is oriented with a long-term vision of agricultural product processing industrial park.

What mechanisms and policies do localities have to attract foreign investors as well as expand international cooperation? Could you share your experience in multinational agricultural development?

In the current and future periods, Vietnam is fully implementing and will implement its commitments to free trade agreements such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP); Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA); Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), joining the ASEAN community, and implementing WTO regulations. Therefore, Lam Dong Province always has appropriate policies to attract foreign investment, international cooperation and strategic investors; improve the level of state management, access to scientific and technological knowledge and corporate governance to grasp international regulations.

Firstly, mastering all provincial branches of international cooperation is a requirement for integration; providing authentic data on local natural conditions, potentials and different policies; supporting policies on land, trade promotion and labor force training to meet investor requirements; and at the same time committing to donors on accessibility and effective capital implementation for community development.

Secondly, improving training on knowledge of international integration through continuing to promote economic restructuring, especially restructuring of the agricultural sector in association with attracting foreign investment.

Thirdly, reviewing, adjusting and supplementing the master plan of the agricultural sector and specialized plans in the direction of a multidisciplinary approach.

Fourthly, in the immediate future, focusing on building hi-tech agricultural zones; strongly developing hi-tech agricultural areas; accelerating the project of post-harvest centers and flower trading centers with the participation of Japanese enterprises and a number of advanced foreign enterprises.

Finally, strengthening state management of agriculture, especially quality management of agricultural materials, quality management of agricultural products, ensuring food safety and hygiene, promoting the application of production standards such as VietGAP, GlobalGAP, HACCP, and ORGANIC.

In the upcoming plan, in order to continue attracting foreign investment in hi-tech agriculture, the province has planned to focus on training human resources in parallel with training leading experts and training good managers of the agricultural sector; developing new cooperative models and production connectivity among farmers, cooperatives and enterprises, forming safe agricultural production and supply chains with the participation of FDI enterprises

Attracting FDI projects to develop the potential; attracting official development assistance (ODA) to invest in equipment and technology, improving the level of corporate governance in order to improve labor productivity, and improving product quality and enterprise competitiveness; organizing trade promotion missions in markets with potential advantages to expand agricultural export markets; proactively selecting and applying advanced technologies of the world in a shortcut manner to take the lead for the comprehensive, modern, sustainable development of Lam Dong’s agricultural in order to become one of the agricultural centers in Southeast Asia.

Diep Hien  LINK

Henig:  IMF commends Việt Nam’s macro-economic stabilisation policies

January, 10/2023

The IMF will always accompany Việt Nam in post-COVID-19 recovery and development, Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IFM) Antoinette Sayeh pledged, expressing her hope for stronger cooperation with Vietnamese agencies, particularly the Economic Commission.

HÀ NỘI — Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IFM) Antoinette Sayeh has lauded Việt Nam for its high economic growth and controlled inflation over the past years, despite global uncertainties.

At a meeting with the head of the Party Central Committee's Economic Commission, Trần Tuấn Anh, in Hà Nội on Monday, Sayeh spoke highly of guidelines and policies adopted by the Vietnamese Party and State to stabilise the macroeconomy and reform the growth model in response to climate change.

The IMF would always accompany Việt Nam in post-COVID-19 recovery and development, she pledged, expressing her hope for stronger cooperation with Vietnamese agencies, particularly the Economic Commission.

For his part, Anh said Vietnamese Party and State leaders always attached importance and listened to consultations and recommendations of the IMF, which had helped the country devise more effective macro-economic, fiscal and monetary policies.

He highlighted the IMF’s regular, quality reports on Việt Nam’s macro economy and thanked the fund for its support in personnel training.

Briefing the IMF delegation on Việt Nam’s macro-economic situation in 2019-22, lessons drawn from economic management, and development orientations and policies in the time ahead, the official called for more support from the fund.

VNS   LINK

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Henig:  HCM City’s industry and trade sector aims at new heights

January, 10/2023

The city’s industry and trade sector will deploy a number of measures to enable it to always stay ahead of trends, helping the city maintain its role as the economic locomotive and take the lead in innovation in the country, according to the city Department of Industry and Trade.

HCM CITY — The city’s industry and trade sector will deploy a number of measures to enable it to always stay ahead of trends, helping the city maintain its role as the economic locomotive and take the lead in innovation in the country, according to the city Department of Industry and Trade.

The sector also targets 7.5 per cent industrial growth, 12 per cent growth in retail sales of goods and services and a 10 per cent increase in foreign trade (excluding crude oil) this year.

According to a report at a meeting held on January 9 in HCM City to review industrial production and trade in 2022 and set tasks for this year, the sector recorded a strong recovery last year, with the index of industrial production up by 13.9 per cent, total retail sales of goods and services rising by 30.5 per cent to nearly VNĐ1.09 quadrillion (US$46.5 billion), and total export turnover of city-based enterprises up 5.1 per cent to $47.18 billion.

Bùi Tá Hoàng Vũ, the department’s director, said businesses would continue to face difficulties this year such as lower demand in the country’s key export markets, stricter access to bank loans, raising input costs, unstable global supply chain, high logistics costs and others.

In order to realise the goals set out for 2023, the department would focus on developing the high-tech industrial sector, supporting industries, and the four key industrial sectors comprehensively, he said.

It would pay greater attention to promoting key industrial products and those with potential in 2021-25 to foster development, and encourage and instruct enterprises to enhance digital transformation and green production.

It would step up export promotion to help firms expand markets, especially to countries with which Việt Nam has free trade agreements.

The department would also seek to boost the development of e-commerce to meet consumption trends, and develop the logistics sector into a key service sector.

Other plans included strengthening links between producers, distributors and retailers, bolstering connections between businesses and banks to make it easy for enterprises to access bank loans, and setting up a commodity exchange and large-scale supply and distribution chains with the participation of leading retailers and logistics firms, farms and enterprises, he said.

Speaking at the meeting, Võ Văn Hoan, deputy chairman of the city’s People’s Committee, appreciated the efforts made by the department and businesses last year.

Expecting businesses to continue to face difficulties this year, he asked the department to focus resources to understand the operational situation of enterprises so as to propose measures to help solve their difficulties (if any) in a timely manner.

He urged the department to implement efficiently the investment stimulus policy for the industrial sector and supporting industries and continue to foster trade cooperation with other cities and provinces to help firms expand consumption markets, ensure goods supply and demand and stable prices.

The city's industry and trade sector needed to improve its forecasting capacity to raise its management efficiency and better support the business community, he said.

Lý Kim Chi, chairwoman of the HCM City Food and Foodstuff Association, said the city needed to have support mechanisms and policies for developing cold storage and raw material areas to boost the development of the city's food processing industry in the 2021-2030 period.

She also proposed the city organise many programmes that promote goods made by the city-based businesses in other cities and provinces, and resume direct trade promotion programmes with the city’s key export markets to help businesses expand business opportunities.

— VNS   LINK

Some "Vietnam News" Posted by Henig at KTFA Tuesday 1-10-2023

KTFA: Vietnam:

Henig:  Standard Chartered forecast Việt Nam 2023 GDP growth at 7.2 per cent

January, 10/2023 - 07:31

Standard Chartered Bank expects Việt Nam’s strong growth of 7.2 per cent in 2023 and 6.7 per cent in 2024, following a solid recovery to 8.0 per cent in 2022.

HÀ NỘI Standard Chartered Bank forecasts Việt Nam’s economic growth at 7.2 per cent in 2023 and 6.7 per cent in 2024, following a solid recovery to 8.0 per cent in 2022.

The forecast is highlighted in the bank’s recently published global research report on Việt Nam titled “Việt Nam – Still enjoying high-growth status”.

“We still have a conviction on Việt Nam’s high growth potential over the medium term,” said Tim Leelahaphan, Economist for Thailand and Việt Nam, Standard Chartered. “While macro indicators moderated somewhat in Quarter 4 2022, they remain largely robust. Retail sales posted solid growth in the second half of 2022, implying improved domestic activity.”

According to Standard Chartered’s economists, trade balance has tentatively improved; exports may face global headwinds; imports are at risk of reversal. FDI disbursements have continued to increase, but the outlook hinges on the global economy. Inflation may pose a threat to Việt Nam’s continued recovery.

Inflation is anticipated to rise throughout 2023, potentially reaching 6 per cent in the final months of the year and averaging 5.5 per cent in both 2023 and 2024 (from 3.2 per cent in 2022). Việt Nam’s fiscal deficit may persist and be a source of inflation.

Standard Chartered Bank expects the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) to hike rates by another one per cent in Quarter 1 2023 and to stay on hold through end-2024 as it shifts to a tightening stance with a view to maintaining stability.

“We expect the central bank to stay vigilant against inflation, a weakening Vietnamese đồng, and financial instability arising from risky loans in the real-estate sector. The SBV may prefer a relatively strong Vietnamese đồng, as long as it does not harm the country’s trade competitiveness,” said Tim Leelahaphan, Economist for Thailand and Việt Nam, Standard Chartered.

According to Tim, the Vietnamese đồng has recovered sharply in recent weeks, however, the pace of Vietnamese đồng appreciation is likely to slow down, as several headwinds persist. The replenishment of FX reserves is likely to be a key priority for the central bank. An improving Current Account backdrop and tourism recovery is likely to be supportive to the Vietnamese đồng. USD-VND is forecast at 23,400 by end-2023 and 23,000 by end-2024.

VNS   LINK

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Henig:  Some shipping companies confront hardship, some benefit

January, 10/2023 - 08:31

In the context of rising interest rates and rising US dollar, many port and shipping companies are confronting difficulties, but there are still beneficiaries.

HÀ NỘI In the context of rising interest rates and the rising US dollar, many port and shipping companies are confronting difficulties, but there are still beneficiaries.

Good growth in 2022

According to the Việt Nam Maritime Administration, in 2022, the total volume of cargo throughput via seaports was estimated at 733.18 million tonnes, up 4 per cent compared to 2021. Exports reached 179.07 million tonnes, down 3 per cent compared to 2021. Imports reached 209.26 million tonnes, down 2 per cent. Domestic goods reached 342.79 million tonnes, up 12 per cent. The volume of container cargo through the seaports in 2022 was estimated at 25.09 million TEUs, up 5 per cent compared to 2021.

At the conference held last month by the Việt Nam Maritime Administration to evaluate the work results in 2022 and deploy the key tasks in 2023, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyễn Xuân Sang assessed that the Vietnamese fleet has met 100 per cent of the demand for goods transportation. The volume of cargo transported on international routes of Việt Nam's fleet in 2022 increased by more than 10 per cent compared to last year, reaching nearly 1.3 million tonnes of cargo.

"Revenue and profit of shipping companies both increased, possibly partly due to increased freight rates, but fleet quality also continued to improve, so did the fleet structure," Sang said.

According to VNDirect's estimates, in the first nine months of 2022, the revenue of listed shipping companies increased by 73.7 per cent over the same period of the previous year, mainly thanks to the high sea freight rates contracted by the companies. Gross profit margin also improved by 13.0 percentage points due to the increase in scale. As a result, net profit of listed shipping companies increased by 70.8 per cent, in which The Hải An Transport and Stevedoring JSC (HAH) recorded the strongest net profit growth of 171.8 per cent thanks to strong fleet expansion in 2022.

However, in the international market, after a period of rapid growth, sea freight rates suddenly dropped. This is the result of the weakening of global freight demand while the market expects an increase in supply in the near future.

According to Alphaliner, the number of new shipbuilding orders continues to increase, bringing current orders to 27.9 per cent of total market capacity, the highest level since 2012. The global fleet could grow by 4.4 per cent and 8.2 per cent year-on-year in 2022 and 2023 due to new orders being delivered, while global cargo throughput may increase only by 0.9 per cent and 2.7 per cent in 2022 and 2023 due to the global economic recession.

VNDirect forecasts that the oversupply will put great pressure on sea freight rates in the near future. Business results of shipping lines see a certain lag with fluctuations in sea freight rates because charter contracts usually last from 6 to 12 months. Therefore, the impact of the reduction in sea freight rates will begin to reflect on the business results of shipping companies in the 2023-2024 period.

However, analysts still see a number of positive factors that could somewhat mitigate the negative impact of the price reduction. First, China is on track to reopen, which will boost global trade and consumption. Second, the average Brent oil price is forecast to remain around $90 per barrel in 2023, which will help reduce fuel costs for shipping companies.

Stocks

In 2023 - 2024, VNDirect believes lower sea freight rates will support global trade activities. Besides, the shortage of containers – the main factor causing seaport congestion – will be solved thanks to the additional volume of containers. With ports operating at 100 per cent capacity after the pandemic, the number of ships waiting in line has been eased in the main port areas. The reopening of China could offset the weakening global economy, providing a neutral outlook for the global port industry.

Experts also expect that Việt Nam's container throughput will increase by 2.5 per cent year-on-year in 2022 to 24.9 million TEUs after a growth of 2.9 per cent in 10 months of 2022.

In the seaport master plan for the 2021 - 2030 period, among Việt Nam's major port clusters, Hải Phòng port cluster and Cái Mép – Thị Vải port cluster are classified as Việt Nam's special port clusters and will be most developed. Therefore, these two port clusters will have more growth potential in 2023 - 2024

For businesses, VNDirect believes that the interest rate increase will help Port of Hải Phòng JSC (PHP), Việt Nam Container Shipping Joint Stock Corporation (VSC) and Việt Nam Ocean Shipping JSC (VOS) benefit in the near future. Of which, PHP will be the most profitable. In contrast, Hải An Transport and Stevedoring JSC (HAH) and Gemadept Shipping Holding Co Ltd (GMD) may be affected because these companies plan to expand scale in the future.

VNS   LINK

Henig:   Cashew industry expects another tough year amid global demand slump, high raw material prices

January, 10/2023 - 08:28

Last year was a challenging one for the cashew industry, with exports falling from the previous year, but 2023 might be even worse, according to the Việt Nam Cashew Association (VINACAS).

HCM CITY — Last year was a challenging one for the cashew industry, with exports falling from the previous year, but 2023 might be even worse, according to the Việt Nam Cashew Association (VINACAS).

Exports were worth US$3.07 billion against the target of $3.2 billion, a $600-million reduction from the initial target, Bạch Khánh Nhật, the association’s deputy chairman, said.

Thus, 2022 marked the end of a decade during which exports rose steadily, he told a review meeting held in HCM City late last week.

According to the association, there were a number of reasons for exports to fall.

The price of raw cashew stayed very high and processing costs were also high, but export prices were low, meaning exporters were reluctant, it said.

China, one of Việt Nam’s major cashew markets, last year maintained a zero COVID policy, making it difficult to ship to the market, it said.

Nguyễn Minh Họa, the association’s deputy chairman, said the energy and food crisis has driven up inflation around the world, affecting consumer spending.

“So people spent more money on essential needs, and reduced spending on discretionary items such as cashew nuts. The situation is expected to continue this year, cashew demand will be low and it will be difficult for prices to increase.”

According to the VINACAS Information Council, in 2023 cashew production and supply chains will continue to face challenges due to factors such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict, inflation and recession, the State Bank of Vietnam’s credit tightening, USD/VND exchange rate volatility, decline in demand, and increase in processing costs.

So, after careful consideration, VINACAS’ executive board has set a modest export target for 2023 of $3.1 billion.

Delay import of raw cashew

Họa said the number of new export orders signed for this year has fallen to a one-tenth of the normal.

“Usually, at the beginning of the year, businesses signed contracts for at least until the third quarter. But this year most importers in the US and EU do not plan to import cashew until the end of the second quarter.”

Amid lower demand and export prices, the association and businesses at the meeting said there should be no rush to import raw cashew, whose prices remain high.

Họa said last year exports of W320 grade cashew nut (the highest grade based on shape and colour) fetched $2.95-3.1 per pound while raw nuts were priced at $1,200 per tonne.

Now W320 cashew prices have fallen to $2.5-2.6, but Ivory Coast still sells raw cashew at $1,200, even $1,240, he said.

Firms need to carefully study the market and draft appropriate plans for imports, he added.

Last year Việt Nam imported 1.9 million tonnes of raw cashew, slightly lower than in 2021.

— VNS   LINK

KTFA Members "Tuesday News" 1-10-2023

KTFA:

Clare:  The Sudanese government obliges all of its institutions to deal in the Iraqi dinar

The Ministerial Council of the Iraqi Economy took, on Monday, a number of economic decisions, including obligating all ministries and state institutions to pay wages for goods and services in dinars.

This came, during the presidency of the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fuad Hussein, the meeting of the Ministerial Council for the Economy, in the presence of the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Planning, the Ministers of Finance, Trade, Industry, Agriculture, Labor and Social Affairs, the Secretary General of the Council of Ministers, the Governor of the Central Bank of Iraq, and the Chairman of the Commission The National Investment Agency is an agency, and the Prime Minister's advisors for economic and legal affairs, according to a statement received by Shafaq News agency.

At the beginning of the meeting, the council discussed, according to the statement, the draft law of the state’s general budget and the revenues and expenditures contained therein. It also discussed the economic issues on its agenda, and took many important economic decisions.

Among these decisions is obligating all state ministries and institutions to pay wages for goods and services in Iraqi dinars, and whoever chooses from the private sector to have sales as mentioned above, provided that the Central Bank of Iraq compensates those amounts in dollars and at the official rate, in order to fulfill their obligations and purchases outside Iraq.

The Ministerial Council of Economy agreed that the Central Bank of Iraq would contract with the "Zaha Hadid" Foundation to design the Central Bank building in Nineveh Governorate.   LINK

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Henig:  The full text of the new Cabinet decisions

Time: 01/10/2023 18:57:14

{Local: Al Furat News} Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani chaired today, Tuesday, the second regular session of the Council of Ministers, which discussed the overall general situation, issues and decisions on the agenda.

According to the government statement, which {Euphrates News} received a copy of, that the session witnessed a discussion of the rise in the exchange rate of the dollar, its effects on the market, and on citizens’ purchases from local markets, and the measures required to address that and support the national currency, as the council approved the following procedures:

1- Oblige all government agencies to sell all goods and services inside Iraq in dinars and at the Central Bank rate of (1470) dinars to one dollar.

2- What was stated in paragraph (1) above includes sales of goods and services from the private sector, especially the offices of national and foreign airlines, commercial agencies, telecommunications and Internet companies, and sales of investment residential complexes, and it is emphasized that the prices of goods and services are in Iraqi dinars on the price of the Central Bank.

3- The Central Bank shall sell the dollar to the parties mentioned in Paragraph (2) at the price set by the Central Bank at a price of (1460) dinars per dollar for remittances, and (1455) dinars per dollar to cover documentary credits, after undertaking to sell in Iraqi dinars, and this shall be announced on the official websites of the concerned authorities. on sales outlets.

4- The Central Bank of Iraq issues an easy mechanism, and within one week from the date of the decision, through which the private sector mentioned in paragraphs (2 and 3) above can obtain dollars at the official rate, and the bank also secures private sector transfers outside Iraq and at the official rate to cover their external obligations.

The Council of Ministers also continued discussing the file of confirming contractors in all state ministries, and approved the Ministry of Finance’s creation of titles and job grades within the budget of departments and formations, to install contractors before November 2, 2019, on permanent staffing, within the operational or planning expenses of each formation.

In the same context, the Council of Ministers approved the Ministry of Finance to convert (1,000) social researchers into contractors in accordance with Cabinet Resolutions (315 and 337 of 2019), with the addition of financial allocation teams to them with special schedules.

And within the framework of supporting the winter agricultural plan for the current season, and addressing the existing water problem, the Cabinet approved the recommendations of the meeting of the permanent joint committee between (the Ministries of Agriculture and Water Resources) held on November 30, 2022, regarding adding the two paragraphs below to the recommendations of the committee concerned with preparing A clear study on the winter agricultural plan for this season, and focus on the use of groundwater in promising areas in all governorates approved by the Council of Ministers in accordance with its decision (284 of 2022) according to the following:

1. Adding an area of ​​(one million dunums) so that the total area cultivated on surface water becomes (2,500,000) dunums, only two and a half million dunums, provided that the focus is on the agricultural areas of the winter plan on the main rivers, streams and canals.

2. Forming joint committees from water resources directorates, agricultural directorates, agricultural committees and agricultural associations in coordination with them and the operations room composed of the Joint Operations Command in all governorates to follow up on the commitment of farmers and farmers to the irrigation areas approved by the agricultural plan for the winter season 2022-2023 and to remove the abuses, and the trespassers bear the legal responsibility As a result of their transgression, the aforementioned ministries are not obligated and are not responsible for considering or promoting any requests for compensation, in the event of a transgression of the approved agricultural plan, and for setting bi-monthly meetings whose dates are agreed upon in coordination between the directorates of agriculture and the directorates of water resources in all governorates.

And in implementation of the directives of the Prime Minister to expedite the implementation of the government's plans to remove traffic jams and reduce traffic congestion in the capital, Baghdad, and the subsequent measures represented in raising a number of checkpoints on both sides of Karkh and Rusafa, and opening several roads and tunnels inside the Green Zone, the Council of Ministers discussed The comprehensive government plan to be implemented by the Ministry of Construction and Housing to relieve traffic jams in the capital, Baghdad, where the Council approved the following:

1. Authorizing the Ministry of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Public Works to conduct contracts with a ceiling not exceeding 1,500,000,000,000

Dinars, only one trillion and five hundred billion dinars for projects included in the government program, by direct invitation method (design / implementation) and acceptance of the only offer within the total cost, provided that the contracts include a clause stipulating that no amounts will be spent until after the approval of the federal budget of the Republic of Iraq for the fiscal year / 2023, and the aforementioned Ministry will finance the required amounts, including contracting with a reputable and reputable international consulting body, as an exception to the instructions for implementing government contracts (2 of 2014).

2. All ministries and agencies not associated with a ministry provide support for the project to relieve traffic jams in the capital, Baghdad, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Public Works.

3. Forming committees at each site to address conflicts facing implementation, consisting of ministries (oil, culture, electricity, communications, transportation, finance, and planning), the Municipality of Baghdad and the Baghdad Operations Command. The committees are empowered to implement spare orders, and their costs are added to the project cost.

4. Authorizing the Ministry of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Public Works, and the public entities that own land or the owner of the allotment, the authority to implement the projects in question within the lands owned or allocated to those entities, provided that the expropriation takes place or the allotment body is changed.

With the aim of implementing what was stated in the ministerial curriculum, and what was included in the government program with regard to the housing axis, and providing the necessary facilities in this regard, the Council of Ministers approved the following:

Approval of the minutes of the consultative meeting held on November 29, 2022 regarding lands belonging to the Ministry of Finance and complexes designated for the construction of residential complexes, and paragraph (Third) of the recommendations of Meeting No. (17) of the National Housing Council, according to the following: 

• Lands belonging to the Ministry of Finance

- Based on the provisions of Article (1/7) of the Amended Law of Ownership of Lands and Emiri Buildings (3 of 1960), the ownership of lands belonging to the Ministry of Finance and previously allocated by the Ministry above, without compensation, shall be transferred to the Housing Department, one of the formations of the Ministry of Construction, Housing, Municipalities and Works. Public housing, on which public housing complexes are built or under construction in accordance with Legislative Decree (39 of 2001).

• Lands belonging to the General Directorate of Municipalities and allocated to the Housing Department.

2- Owning the lands belonging to the General Directorate of Municipalities and allocated to the Housing Department in accordance with Resolution (693 of 1973) without compensation, with what you need from the lands indicated in Article 1 of Law (80 of 1970) in the event that it applies to lands belonging to municipalities.

In the context of implementing the strategic plans set for the development of the electricity system, the Cabinet agreed to authorize the Minister of Electricity to sign a memorandum of cooperation for the energy program in Iraq, the second phase, between the Ministry of Electricity and Siemens Energy AG, as an exception to the contracting methods stipulated in Article (3) of the instructions. Implementation of government contracts (2 of 2014)

It also authorized the ministers participating in the government delegation to Germany to sign memorandums with their counterparts from the German side.

The Cabinet continued discussing other issues on the agenda, and issued the following decisions: 

First / Approval of the recommendations of the minutes of the (twenty-eighth) meeting of the Diwani Order Committee (45 of 2018), concerned with developing ways, mechanisms and solutions necessary for the completion of public hospital projects.

Second / Approving the draft law of the second amendment to the Iraqi Media Network Law No. (26) of 2015, and referring it to the House of Representatives.

Third / For the requirements of the public interest, work requirements and ensuring the continued provision of the media network in the most complete manner, impartiality and independence in accordance with the standards specified by law, recommending to the House of Representatives the dismissal of the president and members of the Board of Trustees of the Iraqi Media Network.

Fourth / Approval of the recommendations presented by the Deputy Prime Minister / Minister of Planning regarding amending the customs tariff

 Fifth / Approval of the recommendation of the Ministerial Council of Economy according to the following:

- Adjusting the prices of petroleum products in the future will be one of the tasks of the Ministerial Council for the Economy, upon a recommendation to the Council of Ministers.

Sixth: Approving the exemption of military shipments belonging to the Ministry of Defense from paragraphs (3, 5) of Cabinet Resolution (65 of 2022).   LINK

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Henig:  Expectations of approving the budget in the middle of next month will be 140 trillion dinars

JANUARY 9, 2023

COMMENTSON EXPECTATIONS THAT THE BUDGET WILL BE APPROVED IN THE MIDDLE OF NEXT MONTH, WITH 140 TRILLION DINARS CLOSED

Parliamentary Finance: The government will resolve the discussion of the law this week and refer it to Parliament

Special – Al-Sabah Al-Jadeed:

The Parliamentary Finance Committee expected that the budget law would be decided during the cabinet meeting this week, in preparation for presenting it in parliament and voting on it in mid-February, stressing that its amounts will be 140 trillion dinars.

Committee member Mueen Al-Kazemi said, "Our confirmed information indicates that the Ministries of Finance and Planning have completed the preparation of the draft budget law and it has been submitted to the Council of Ministers."

Al-Kazemi added, "Last week, a meeting of the Economic Council in the Council of Ministers discussed the draft, and some amendments were made."
He pointed out, "Expectations are that the law will be completed within the government during the current week, in order to then refer it to Parliament."

And Al-Kazemi indicated, "The dialogues between the federal government and the Kurdistan region have reached certain consensuses in this regard, so there is a real desire among the political blocs to pass the law."

And he reported, “The blocs promised the street to hold elections for the provincial councils in the month of October, and that proceeding with this entitlement requires financial allocation.”

And Al-Kazemi indicated that “these blocs, in order to obtain the approval of the street, must provide something to the street by completing service projects, which in turn need financial allocations through the budget.”

He explained, "Efforts come to approve the law during the first half of next month, and after completing the first and second readings, in order to implement it next March."

Al-Kazemi pointed out, "The law has so far set a price for a barrel of oil estimated at 65 dollars, with exports of 3.5 million barrels allocated to Iraq from OPEC, provided that the exchange rate for the dollar is 1450 dinars."

And he warned, "These figures bring us to the conclusion that this revenue will be in the next budget is 120 trillion dinars, and it constitutes oil revenues, in addition to another 20 trillion dinars for taxes and border crossings."

And Al-Kazemi went on to say, “The entirety of the law will carry sums of money estimated at 140 trillion dinars, with an estimated deficit of 10 trillion dinars.”

For his part, committee member Jamal Cougar said, "The exact information regarding the budget law is still vague, whether in terms of amounts or even when it will be sent to Parliament."

Cougar added, "Discussions within Parliament on the law need at least two months in order to resolve all differences."

But he came back to clarify, "The State Administration Alliance, which formed the government, has the overwhelming majority in parliament and can pass the law, even with objections from other blocs."

And Cougar went on to say, “What we can say is that the political blocs agree that this year a budget should be legislated for it in order to benefit from the surplus that has been achieved from oil revenues.”

The Parliamentary Legal Committee had warned against spending all the surplus during the current year, calling for it to be placed in an emergency fund in order to face any exceptional situation in the country and not to repeat the weak financial position that occurred during the decline in oil prices to very low levels.   LINK

Henig:  Including activating the productive sectors.. An expert shows the mechanisms for developing the Iraqi economy

Today, Monday, the economist Nabil Al-Tamimi explained ways to develop the Iraqi economy in light of the rapid changes, while stressing the importance of implementing economic reforms, some of which reach “fundamental” change.

Al-Tamimi said, in a press interview seen by Taqaddam, that “despite the financial abundance achieved from the rise in oil prices during the last two years, it is very necessary to start implementing economic reforms, some of which may lead to fundamental change.”

 He added, "Decision-makers must develop a plan for economic reform by achieving policies with different short, medium and long-term dimensions, through which the identity of the Iraqi economy will be determined."

The economist explained that “starting with reforms will be with steps aimed at diversifying the economy, activating the productive sectors, and drawing the space for the private sector to work in various sectors, leading to the stage of securing the state’s revenues from resources in a way that guarantees the sustainability of its operational and investment spending.”

And Hadith continued, saying: “Also, expanding economic activities in order to achieve a rise in the Iraqi gross domestic product, ensuring the provision of sufficient job opportunities to absorb unemployment and reduce poverty.”  LINK

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Henig:  Interior Minister: The electronic passport will be launched in Baghdad as a first stage next month

Baghdad / Obelisk: Interior Minister Abdul Amir Al-Shammari said, on Monday 1/9/2023, in a televised interview, that the electronic passport will be launched in Baghdad as a first stage next month, and in 5 governorates in the second stage.

The Obelisk publishes clips from the meeting:

I congratulate all employees of the Ministry of Interior on the 101st anniversary of the founding of the Iraqi police

- The Prime Minister outlined in brief words his support for the Ministry of Interior and its affiliates

-Since we assumed the task, we have worked to automate work in the Ministry's joints to alleviate the suffering of citizens and facilitate their obtaining identity documents.

The electronic passport will be launched in Baghdad as a first stage next month, and in 5 governorates in the second stage

We are working on an electronic visa for arrivals to Iraq

We contracted with a company to develop and modernize the unified electronic card system and provide us with raw cards

We have received the security file in Wasit, Muthanna and Diwaniyah, and in the second phase we will take over Babylon and Najaf, then the other provinces.

We will rely on cameras and intelligence efforts to secure cities

- The changes that took place in the ministry, in which we relied on the principle of integrity and efficiency, and a large number of officers and associates were expelled on charges of bribery.

We will not allow any affiliate or officer to take bribery, and our doors are open to citizens.  LINK

*************

Henig:  The dollar is falling and Wall Street indices are rising strongly

Economy News-Baghdad

 The US dollar weakened in early European trade on Monday, as traders re-evaluated the path of US interest rate hikes in the wake of last week's jobs report while risk appetite benefited from China's reopening of its borders.

The dollar index is now falling by 0.77%, to record 102.852 against a basket of foreign currencies, while the US market indices are rising at this time, as the Nasdaq index rose by 2.11%, to record 10,792.12 points, while the Dow Jones rose by 0.63%, adding 210 points, and the S & S index jumped. B500 by 1.16%, to record now 3940.10 points.

Traders are now considering an easing of monetary policy by the US central bank, with a broadly expected 25bp increase in February, down from a 50bp increase in December.

This followed the release of the official US monthly jobs report on Friday, which showed non-farm payrolls increased by a relatively healthy 223K in December, while average hourly earnings rose 0.3%, less than expected and lower than the previous month's figure. 0.4%.

In addition, service industry activity in the US contracted for the first time in more than two and a half years in December, which is further evidence of a calm economy.

Bets against the US dollar also swelled to 30,457 contracts last week, the most since August 2021, according to CFTC data on eight currency pairs compiled by Bloomberg.

This puts US CPI for December on Thursday into sharp focus, as any sign of price pressures continuing to ease will reinforce the view that the Fed is nearing the end of its most aggressive tightening cycle in decades.

Elsewhere, USD/CNY fell 0.9% to 6.7748, with the Chinese yuan reaching a four-month high after the country reopened its borders to international travel over the weekend.

The move marks the country's biggest pivot away from its strict anti-coronavirus policy, which has contributed to the sharp decline in its economic growth over the past three years.

EURUSD also rose 0.5% to 1.0692 supported by data showing German Industrial Production rose 0.2% m/m in November, an improvement from the revised 0.4% decline seen in the previous month.

Also, GBPUSD rose 0.6% to 1.2159, after rising 1.5% on Friday, USDJPY rose 0.1% to 132.25 and the risk-sensitive USDJPY rose 0.8 % to 0.6930.

USD/BRZ is yet to trade Monday, but the Brazilian real will be in the spotlight later in the session as traders react to news that supporters of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro stormed key government buildings over the weekend, echoing Echo of the United States in January. 6. The 2021 Rebellion.   LINK

Monday Night KTFA CC "The Second Article From The CBI!!" 1-9-2023

KTFA

Monday Night Conference Call

Frank26:   1-9-23….THE SECOND ARTICLE FROM THE CBI

This video is in Frank’s and his team’s opinion only

Frank’s team is Walkingstick, Eddie in Iraq and guests

Playback Number: 605-313-5163   PIN: 156996#

What Frank’s suit color’s mean…. FRANKS SUIT COLORS FOR CC'S..... WHITE = NEW INFO…. SILVER = INTEL FROZEN…. RED= HIGH ALERT… PURPLE=GUEST WITH US…. BLUE = AIR FORCE…. BLACK = GROUND/FF’S…. GREEN= MR OR FAB 4 ... GOLD = CHANGE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rz3PNRjFgLs