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Listed firms set lower targets for 2009
With forecasts for the economic downturn to linger, many of Viet Nam’s listed companies are adjusting their business targets downward.
Doan Nguyen Duc, management board chairman of Hoang Anh Gia Lai Group (HAG), said his firm only set a minimum pre-tax profit at VND1.1 trillion (US$62.9 million), to ensure that the target would be obtainable despite any challenges.
HAG deals in wood products, granite, property, hotels and resorts. The company plans to sell houses in its Phu Hoang Anh Project in District 7, HCM City. Only if all these houses can be sold will the company’s profits possibly surpass the target.
The Sai Gon Garment Manufacturing Trade Joint stock Co (GMC) is planning on making a pre-tax profit of VND18 billion ($1 million) lower than the VND22.4 billion ($1.28 million) it earned last year.
The company reported that its contracts from one of its largest importers, Columbia, shrank 30-50 per cent.
The Investment and Trade Joint stock Co (DIC) also only targeted a profit of VND20 billion ($1.14 million), 10 per cent less than the figure realised last year.
The unexpected volatility of the foreign exchange rate had made the enterprise dip into its reserve fund, which negatively impacted its profits last year, and had made it be more cautious this year, said Deputy Director of DIC’s financial department Thuy Nga.
According to assessments of the HCM City Securities Co (HSC), most listed companies will likely lower their growth rates for profits by 10 per cent.
The lower profit objectives have made investors in the stock market feel pessimistic about the possibility of market recovery.
If the Government’s stimulus package can provide incentives for the consolidation of banking and financial systems, this will provide a good foundation for maintaining economic growth this year, according to a recent report of the Ban Viet Securities Co.
Ban Viet recommended investors track retail sales figures, the consumer price index, export levels, industrial production and other factors to assess the economy’s health. Based on these signals, investors can determine the appropriate time for securities trading.
Experts encouraged setting realistic, attainable targets for business plans to secure investor confidence.
VietNamNet/VNS
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