|
The duty free shops of Moc Bai are dying
Changes in tax laws are killing the duty free shops at Moc Bai Economic Zone in Tay Ninh.
Customers are now staying away and although Government concessions have been made in order to try and assist the area the outlets continue to struggle.
The area was recently visited by reporters from VnExpress. The first thing they noted was that 50 percent of shops were now left idle. Other kiosks were open, but no customers were to be seen.
At Save a Lot and Fuso shops, a few visitors could be spotted, but salesmen were sitting idle. The tram cars, full in the past, was carrying just a handful of passengers.
Director of Nam Phat Trade Company Vo Hong Tam said he once had 38 kiosks there, but now only 11 are operational. The number of workers has dropped from 100 to 28. The daily turnover has dropped from 100 million dong to 20 million dong.
Tam said he is likely to shut down the 11 shops because the revenue cannot offset expenses.
Meanwhile, deputy director of Nam Hiep Thanh Investment and Construction Company Hoang Ba Phong, complained that his company injected 245 billion dong in the 48.5 hectare duty free trade area project and it fears that it will never recoup it.
Phong said the company cannot collect rent from retailers, who say they do not have money to pay because they cannot sell products.
“Fuso said it will give back the business premises after Tet, while Save a Lot is going to shut down,” Phong said, adding that he is “tired” of the project in Moc Bai economic zone.
Meanwhile, Moc Bai duty free shops once had their “golden age” in previous years. The prosperous business here stopped in mid 2009, when the Government decided to remove the policy on exempting tax for domestic travelers.
Under the old policy, domestic travelers to Moc Bai Economic Zone could enjoy tax exemption if they purchased no more than 500,000 dong worth of goods per day.
The removal of the tax exemption immediately badly hit the duty free shops.
Eventually the Government relented, however, the new tax exemption policy is tighter than the previous one. Domestic travelers now can enjoy tax exemption for 500,000 dong worth of goods they purchase per week, instead of per day.
As the result, domestic travelers do not go to Moc Bai, while Japanese and Malaysian investors have cancelled negotiations on investments.
“The lackluster business of the duty free shops originates from inconsistent policies on tax and investment,” said Head of the Moc Bai Border Economic Zone’s Management Board Phan Minh Thanh .
vietnamnet, vneconomy
|
