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Firms boost output despite fiscal woes
A number of businesses have speeded up production in the early days of the Lunar New Year despite the global economic slowdown that has been plaguing the business community in general.
The General Director of the Garment Joint Stock Company No 10, Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen, said her company resumed production on January 29 (the 4th day of the Lunar New Year calendar) and that a delegation was sent to the EU to seek new customers.
Huyen said that the fact-finding trips to Bulgaria, Poland, Germany and Spain are expected to help the company to find partners to increase export turnover during the global economic downturn.
A number of other apparel producers, including Viet Tien, Nha Be and Binh Minh have also speeded up production in the new year and have signed export contracts until April.
Forecast for apparel exports this year are bleak and exporters admit that their number of contracts has reduced by roughly 15-20 per cent from the same period last year.
Therefore, Huyen said, as well as seeking more export contracts, her company will be focusing on the domestic market.
Work has also been resumed at the Xuan Kien Automobile Joint Stock Company. The company has so far received orders from Japanese customers for a plant which is expected to go into operation in the second half of the year.
The company's director, Bui Ngoc Huyen, said he expected to have more export orders when the plant becomes operational because the country's export turnover from manufacturing products has been rising sharply in the past few years.
Workers came back early to the Dung Quat oil refinery plant to ensure the plant was working by its operational deadline of February 25, said Deputy General Director of PetroVietnam Truong Van Tuyen.
Despite global difficulties, producers and exporters expect the situation to improve by the end of 2009.
Deputy Chairman of the HCM City Leather and Footwear Association Nguyen Quoc Khanh said that 2009 would be a challenging year for footwear, apparel, seafood and processed food exports.
However, Khanh said he still harboured high hopes for Viet Nam's footwear industry.
It was expected that the world's economy would recover in the fourth quarter of the year, Khanh said, adding that enterprises need to be well prepared for this.
To deal with difficulties, businesses are trying to keep loyal customers and look for new ones.
They expect the Government to support them with low interest rates on loans so that their products could be more competitive.
General Director of the Ha Noi Trade Corporation (Hapro) Vu Thanh Son said the Government should also boost investment in trade promotion, especially in new markets in the Middle East.
"Only by boosting trade promotion can enterprises expect to find more export contracts," said Son.
VietNamNet, Viet Nam News
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