AEC FEED

Vietnam is considered a priority market for US firms looking to expand their businesses and investments in Asean next year, a recent survey found.
According to the “2017 Asean Business Outlook Survey”, published by the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, Vietnam is also leading among Asean countries in attracting investment from US firms that intend to diversify their investments or businesses over the next two years from China into Asean.
Surveyed enterprises outlined an availability of low-cost labour, a stable political and legal system and personnel security as three aspects they are most satisfied with in Vietnam’s business environment.
The 2017 edition surveys business executives from US companies across Asean about their perspectives on the business environment and opportunities in Southeast Asia.

Vietnam’s Foreign Investment Agency said US investors had pumped US$92 million (nearly Bt3.2 billion) into Vietnam in the first half ofthis year, lifting their investments in the country up to $10.9 billion as of June. That helped the United States rank eighth among 116 countries and territories investing in the country. – Viet Nam News

Vietnam's trade with EU grows 9%

Trade value between Vietnam and the European Union in the first half grew by 9.05 per cent year on year to US$21.2 billion (Bt733 billion).
According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade’s European Market Department, during the period, export value from Vietnam to the EU increased by 8.68 per cent to $16.2 billion and import value to Vietnam from the EU surged by 10.28 per cent to $5 billion.
Vietnam mainly exported traditional products to the EU, including textiles, garments, footwear and coffee, in addition to seafood and computers.
Vietnam especially started exporting telephones and their components to the EU in 2011, and the export value of those products in 2015 reached $9.7 billion and accounted for 75 per cent of its total national export value to EU, it was reported on the ministry’s website.
Some other products retained growth of between 5 and 10 per cent per year in export value though this value was small, including plastic products, wood and wooden products, handbags, suitcases and umbrellas, apart from pepper and cashews.
In the first six months, Vietnam mainly imported from EU member countries products that the nation |did not produce, or which it lacked, such as machines, equipment, tools and pharmaceutical products, in addition to milk and milk products. – Viet Nam News

Singapore new-home sales hit one-year high
Sales of new private homes in Singapore hit a one-year high last month and more than doubled June’s sales, boosted in part by a new project in Jurong in the republic’s West Region.
Developers sold 1,091 new units – excluding those in executive condominiums – in July, up 103.5 per cent from the 536 moved in June, the Urban Redevelopment Authority said.
This was the highest number of sales of new homes since the 1,655 units shifted in July last year.
Despite the strong sales numbers last month, they were still down 34 per cent on July last year, which saw sales bolstered by the 1,169 units moved at High Park Residences.
Ong Teck Hui, national director of research and consultancy at JLL, noted: “The market outlook which turned positive in the earlier part of the year seems to be carrying through past midyear.”
Analysts said on Monday that the latest figures could indicate that the primary market “has bottomed”.
Demand for new homes has been lacklustre in recent years owing to a slew of measures to cool the property market.
“The rise in sales can be attributed to improving sentiments as buyers consider putting their capital to use in view of a potentially prolonged low-interest-rate environment,” said Wong Xian Yang, head of research and consultancy at OrangeTee, a property-analysis firm. – The Straits Times

Temasek invests in ICICI

Temasek Holdings bought shares in ICICI Bank Ltd, India’s largest private-sector lender by assets, as the nation’s central bank pushes lenders to clean up bad debts that have weighed on earnings.

The Singapore state-owned investor bought 2.55 million American depositary receipts of ICICI in the second quarter, worth US$18 million (Bt622 million, S$24.1 million) at the end of June, according to a filing on Monday with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Temasek also acquired stakes in US aircraft-parts manufacturer B/E Aerospace Inc and emerged as a shareholder in biotech firm Intellia Therapeutics Inc, which had its initial public offering in May.
The filing showed Temasek’s 2 per cent stake in B/E Aerospace was valued at US$98 million as of June and its 790,527 shares in Intellia were worth US$17 million. Since its May public listing, Intellia’s shares are up 5.2 per cent.
The filing also detailed Temasek’s increased stake in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, valued at US$4.3 billion at the end of June. Temasek last month reported the first decline of its portfolio in seven years as its holdings were battered by last year’s market rout. The value of its assets decreased 9 per cent to S$242 billion for its fiscal year ended March 31.
Temasek added to its investments in India after outgoing Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan set lenders a March 2017 deadline to rid their balance sheets of bad debt, which have curbed their ability to extend loans. The proportion of Indian banks’ stressed assets, which include restructured and soured loans, to total advances surged to a 16-year high of 11.5 per cent as of March 31, RBI data show. - THE STRAITS TIMES