ICHAM e-Newsletter N.2/2015 - EN

Cooperation ICHAM—UNIMPRESA (P.2)

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING ICHAM (P.2) MEETING ITALIAN AMBASSADOR H.E.Cecillia Piccioni (P.5) WORK PERMIT for foreigners (P.17)

WORKSHOP VIETNAM DESTINATION II (P.10)

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NEWS

ICHAM Annual General Meeting 2015 ICHAM Annual General Meeting was held on 3rd March 2015 at two offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with the presence of Italian Consul General Carlotta Colli together with ICHAM members.

Icham President Michele D’Ercole summarized all activities in 2014 and forecast financial situations as well as upcoming events in 2015. During 2014 ICHAM organized a large number of business missions for Italian entrepreneurs in Vietnam and Vietnamese entrepreneurs in Italy in full respect of the strategy for the development of bilateral trade between the two countries. At the beginning of January 2015, we also organized successfully in collaboration with Veneto Promozione a trade mission to Vietnam for enterprises from Veneto region. This year, when EXPO—the next scheduled Universal Exposition will be hosted in Milan, Italy from 1st May to 31st October, ICHAM will organize many activities to promote this event.

Cooperation Agreement ICHAM - UNIMPRESA On 9th March, Icham Executive Director Mr. Pham Hoang Hai had a meeting with Mr.Paolo Giraud - External relations director of Unimpresa (National Federation of Italian Enterprises) at its headquarter. The two sides discussed the overall scope and direction of a corporation to promote bilateral trade activities between Italy and Vietnam, with a specific focus on small and medium enterprises and individual households. Also at the meeting, co-operation agreements in terms of promoting business development in the upcoming years were signed.

UNIMPRESA Director Paolo Giraud & ICHAM Executive director Pham Hoang Hai

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NEWS

EUROCHAM Annual General Meeting 2015 Following the AGM, ICHAM members also participated in the Annual General Meeting of Eurocham, held simultaneously in Hanoi and HCMC on 12th March.

EUROCHAM New Executive Committee

Members of the organization approved the EuroCham budget for 2015 and voted in the new Executive Committee. Attending the AGM apart from a quorum of its corporate members were also representatives from EuroCham individual Business Associations and representatives of European Diplomatic Missions.

Goals and outlook 2015 was presented, aiming at further growth in membership, greater cooperation with Business Associations, enriched event calendar through a mix of business and social events. In order to strengthen EuroCham’s effort toward finalization of EU-Vietnam FTA Negotiations in 2015, a strong agenda of advocacy activities was presented. Furthermore, EuroCham will co-organize events celebrating the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the European Union.

Through a ballot vote audited by PWC, a quorum of EuroCham’s members elected the new Executive Committee. The Executive Committee 2015 consists of 11 elected members and 5 representatives proposed by Business Association, namely: • • • • • • • • • • •

Nicolas Audier – Audier & Partners Vietnam LLC Michael Behrens – Mercedes Benz Vietnam Ltd. Wilf Blackburn – Prudential Vietnam Assurance Private Ltd. Luc Cardyn – BNP Paribas – Vietnam Miguel Charneco Garrido – Piaggio Vietnam Co., Ltd Nicola Connolly – Adecco Vietnam Joint Stock Co. Minh-Quang Le Nguyen – Bachy Soletanche Vietnam Co., Ltd. Petrus Ng – BASF Vietnam Co., Ltd. Tibor Novak – Richter Gedeon Rep. Office Mario Viarengo – Shell in Vietnam Quang-Hue Vo – Bosch Vietnam Co., Ltd.

And • Tomaso Andreatta -Icham • Kristof Claes - BeLuxCham • Subir Dhawan - DBAV • Oliver Massmann - GBA • Thien-Nga Ngo-Rocaboy – CCIFV

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Italian Businesses Meet Students of Hanoi University

NEWS Vietnamese fresh graduates in the working world, highlighting difficulties and strong points of the bilateral relations, requirements and skills demanded by the enterprises and possible job opportunities.

Senator Pier Ferdinando Casini visits Vietnam

ICHAM President with teachers and students of Hanoi University

ICHAM president inaugurated at Hanoi University a series of conferences of the Italian business community in Vietnam. The aim is to illustrate to the students of Italian language various aspects of Italian culture and traditions through the sharing of working experiences from the enterprises. The conferences will continue at Hanoi University thanks to the collaboration between the Italian Embassy and the Department of Italian language.

Guest speakers include entrepreneurs and managers of the Italian companies operating in Vietnam, who come to share with the students about their work and life experiences, at the same time presenting various aspects of the Italian culture. Representing ICHAM, President Michele D’Ercole had a meeting with the students of Italian Department. His speech, which focused on trade balance between Italy and Vietnam, was the first in a series of conferences which will continue in the coming months and aim at approaching

President of HCMC People’s Committee received Senator Casini and the Italian delegation

On the occasion of his trip to Vietnam for the 132th Inter-Parliamentary Meeting, Senator Pier Ferdinando Casini along with his delegation spent a few days in Ho Chi Minh City. During the stay in Ho Chi Minh City, he participated in a series of events: signing ceremony of cooperation agreement between Danieli Vietnam and HCMC University of Science and Technology, project "DAN STAR" - Supporting Talents to Achieve Results excellent. Danieli Vietnam and HCMUTE: partner for education and innovation‖ at the university campus; meeting with the new Director of HCMC Department of Foreign Affairs; meeting with the chairman of HCMC People's Committee; meeting with the Italian business community in Vietnam organized by the Italian Consulate General in collaboration with Icham; all the meetings were attended by the Consul General of Italy in HCMC, ICE Director and ICHAM President.

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NEWS

COSMOPROF WORLDWIDE Bologna 2015

Welcome The New Italian Ambassador to Vietnam

This year, ICHAM brought another delegation of Vietnam buyers to participate in 48th Cosmoprof Worldwide Bologna from 20 to 23 March 2015 at Exhibition Center in Bologna, Italy.

Cosmoprof is a leading worldwide event for the professional beauty sector and the international platform for the cosmetics and wellness industry.

The fair is a good chance for Vietnamese companies who are operating in sector of beauty care to access new products, equipments, technologies, expand the business network and find the potential partners.

Under the program, the Vietnamese companies visited the fair and participated in B2B meetings with the leading companies in pharmaceutical and cosmetic field. The program is organized, developed and carefully by both Vietnam and Italy for the best efficient connections.

From the right: Ambassador Cecilia Piccioni, ICHAM President Michele D’Ercole, Consul General Carlotta Coli

Some photos from the fair

H.E Cecilia Piccioni, Italian Ambassador to Vietnam, held a meeting with the Italian business community in Vietnam on 14 April in Hanoi. The event was attended by important Italian companies in Vietnam, Italian Consul General in HCMC Carlotta Colli, ICHAM President, Vice President and Executive Director. The Ambassador took this opportunity to thank all the guests about the good results achieved so far and called for support to continue these excellent achievements.

Meeting with Banca Popolare Emilia-Romagna in Verona The Chamber organized in Verona together with Banca Popolare Emilia Romagna a two-day conference about Vietnam. ICHAM Executive Director introduced to the Bank’s corporate clients about different opportunities the Vietnamese market can offer to Italian companies. Following were a series of B2B meetings to discuss in details the specific opportunities for each company. In addition there were company visits for a more targeted evaluation of specific business needs.

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NEWS

Cosmobeaute Expo 2015 On 9th April was held the inauguration ceremony of Cosmobeaute’ Vietnam at Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC), HCMC. This year, there was the participation of more than 130 international exhibitors from 15 countries such as China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, the United States, and the countries which participated for the first time such as Hungary, the Philippines and Sri Lanka, with exposure to a variety of beauty products and innovative services for the beauty industry. The opening ceremony was attended by representatives of Ho Chi Minh City institutions and business communities, including also the participation of ICHAM president.

5000 Becamex social houses have been handed over

In the morning of 3rd April, People’s Committee of Binh Duong province inaugurated at Hoa Loi Residential Area 5.000 Becamex social houses of Phase 1 and broke ground on the new 10.000 Becamex social houses of Phase 2. Attending the ceremony was ICHAM Executive director Pham Hoang Hai. Mr. Nguyen Van Hung, General Director of Becamex IDC, said that the social housing project invested by Becamex IDC and launched in 2/2012 includes the construction of 64.000 apartments at 37 locations in the districts Thu Dau Mot, Thuan An, Di An, Ben Cat, Tan Uyen, Bau Bang, with approximately 12.096 billion VND invested

Inauguration of Binh Duong Social Houses capital. After two years of implementation, Becamex IDC handed over 4.985 apartments of Phase 1, providing accommodation to more than 15.000 people and helping them settle down in Binh Duong.

According to the investor, the social housing complex located in residential areas includes different blocks, each having 5-15 floors.

Apartments are designed comfortably, easy to be converted from 30m2 to 60m2. They are built inside Binh Duong Industrial and Urban Services Complex, My Phuoc industrial park, and Vietnam-Singapore industrial park In these areas, infrastructures are already constructed together with outdoor facilities. Necessary

services are also established, such as parking lot, commercial center, communal playground, etc.

Speaking at the event, Mr. Tran Van Nam, President of the People’s Committee, appreciated the efforts of the investor and related departments in the project implementation. He encouraged Becamex IDC to continue to deploy the second phase, ensure the construction quality and contribute to the province’s development. Other related departments, People’s Committees of the districts have to guide, support and create favorable conditions for the investor to complete the project in the shortest time possible.

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NEWS

TUTTO FOOD - MILANO

In collaboration with Fiera Milano, the Chamber organized a visit to Tutto Food for 4 Vietnamese buyers.

Tutto Food is one of the most important international food exhibitions in the world, and this year its role has become even more important as a concurrent event for Expo Milano, whose theme is the field of nutrition. The fair visit of Vietnamese buyers took place from 3 to 6 of May. The International Buyer Program facilitated direct contact between exhibitors and buyers of the Chamber of Commerce through pre-scheduled appointments with importers and distributors selected from the international market. The mission is a demonstration of the growing interest of international trade between Italy and Vietnam in various business fields.

Meeting with People’s Committee of Binh Duong Province The Italian Consul General paid an official visit to the newly elected president of Binh Duong’s People Committee Mr. Tran Van Nam. The Consul General Carlotta Colli was head of an Italian delegation composed of ICE director Bruna Santarelli, ICHAM president Michele D’Ercole and Bonfiglioli’s representative Stefano Callegati.

During the meeting, the Consul General reaffirmed Italy’s strong willingness to collaborate and cooperate in various fields of industry, training, and education. She also gave her compliments to the excellent economic achievements of Binh Duong Province, the good presence of Italian companies located in Becamex industrial park, and the upcoming trip to Italy by the President of the People's Committee and his delegation. The other members of the Italian delegation also delivered a speech to present their activities and intention to cooperate in an ever more profitable way with Binh Duong. The President of the People's Committee reaffirmed its willingness to cooperate with the Italian institutions and companies to achieve better results both in industrial sector, for the improvement of technology, and in education. During his upcoming visit to Italy organized by Unioncamere Emilia Romagna, he will take the opportunity to strengthen even more the already good relations between Vietnam and Italy.

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Workshop: “VIETNAM: A COUNTRY TO BE EXPLORED” Ancona, 5 May

NEWS Workshop: “VIETNAM DESTINATION II” Bologna, 6 May Later in Bologna, Unioncamere Emilia Romagna organized in collaboration with Emilia-Romagna region, Sprint Emilia-Romagna and Promec Modena, a workshop to present the second phase of project Vietnam Destination: ―Vietnam Destination II for Emilia-Romagna companies - Food Factorty‖

At the hall of Collegio Mercatile, Pesaro Chamber of Commerce, a seminar on ―Vietnam: A country to be explored‖ was held in collaboration with Unioncamere Marche. The workshop welcomed Graziano di Battista, President of Unioncamere Marche, Alberto Drudi, President of the Chamber of Commerce in Pesaro and Urbino, and the participation via web-conference of Italian Ambassador in Vietnam Cecilia Piccioni and ICHAM President Michele D’Ercole.

The event was attended by Palma Costi, Assessor of Production Activities, Nguyen Hoang Long, Vietnam’s Ambassador to Italy, high officials of MISE and MAE, representatives of Binh Duong province led by President Tran Van Nam, and representative of Becamex Vo Son Dien. In addition, there was the attendance of Italian Consul General Carlotta Colli, representative of Intesa Sanpaolo Tomaso Andreatta and ICHAM President Michele D’Ercole speaking via web-conference.

During the workshop, many topics were discussed including ―Human capital, administrative semplification, investment opportunities for a sustainable development‖ with the sharing from representatives of Italian companies and institutions about their experiences in Vietnam. The attendants were provided with a lot of information about business opportunities in the Vietnamese market.

More insights were given to the discussed topics thanks to the guest speakers: Lawyer Federico Vasoli, President of Binh Duong’s People Committee Tran Van Nam, and Representative of Becamex Industrial Park Vo Son Dien. The attending companies had the chance to deepen their knowledge of business opportunities offered by the Vietnamese market.

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NEWS AREA MEETING ICCA in ASIA & SOUTH AFRICA - SEOUL

In the second part of the morning, all the Chamber representatives participated in a round table and answered questions from the journalists.

Finally, in the third part was the 4th Italian Food Festival which took place in Ristorante Italiano Vera and attracted the participation of 11 Italian restaurants.

During the second day, the Chambers had internal meetings, first joint and then separate meetings of the Presidents and that of the Executive Directors.

Once again, there was a fruitful exchange of ideas

This April, the annual meeting of Italian Chambers of Commerce in Asia and South Africa was held in Seoul, Korea, from 24 – 26/4. This was the twentieth time that the Chambers of Commerce in the Area met to demonstrate strong continuity and vitality of the results achieved. There was the presence of Italy’s Ambassador to Korea Sergio Mercuri, President of Italian Chamber of Commerce in Korea (the hosting coutry) Nicolas Piccato, President of Assocamerestero Leonardo Simonelli, Area Representative Michele D’Ercole (Italian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam), together with presidents and executive directors of the following chambers: Korea, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, Dubai, and the Philippines.

The work was carried out in two days. The first day was dedicated to Seminar "Expo Milano 2015" with very useful and effective presentations on the subject for the benefit of the audience who was provided with a lot of information about the event. Following was the presentations by representatives of Chambers of Korea, Japan and China regarding the guide for ―Certified Italian Restaurant in China, Japan and Korea‖ as part of Project ―Italian Hospitality‖.

and opinions on experiences on how and develop new working days ended Korean cuisine.

the sharing of common to improve future activities business strategies. Two with a dinner of traditional

Dinner with traditional Korean cuisine

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NEWS

Corporate Social Responsibility Forum On 07/04/2015 was held the 26th Corporate social responsibility forum themed “How to organize internal training to increase business productivity”. The event was organized by UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) in collaboration with VCCI (Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry) and UNEP ( United Nations Environment Programme).

After the welcome speech from Mr. Florian Benarek - UNIDO representative in Vietnam, Mr. Nguyen Quang Vinh, Director of Sustainable Development for Business (VCCI) introduced the Global Compact and Labor Principles – an initiative for enterprises to take corporate social responsibility. Given that ASEAN Economic Community will be established at the end of 2015, it is necessary for Vietnamese enterprises to improve their competitiveness in order to be well-prepared for the integration. The ASEAN Economic Community is a good opportunity and a great challenge at the same time. According to a report conducted by Global compact on 1.000 CEOs around the world, 98% of the interviewees said that corporate social responsibility plays an essential role in corporate success.

Following was a short presentation from Mr. Florian Benarek with the topic ―Labor issues‖. He remarked that the key factors in human resources management include: Trust, Respect, Appreciation. First, a manager should have enough basic information of their employees, then approach and talk to them, encourage them to be open and confident in developing their personal skills and creativitity. This will help the company increase business productivity and develop sustainably.

The main part came later with a speech from HR specialist Ms. Dao Thuy Van on ―Calculating ROI of training program‖. With many years working at multinational companies like Coca Cola, Shell and Vietnam’s largest banks, Ms. Van shared her view on training and managing human resources through specific examples. She said that there are 4 key factors in HR strategy: analyze the needs for training, identify training objectives, organize training session, evaluate training results.

NEWS

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Of these four factors, the speaker emphasized on the fourth one: evaluation of training results: there are 4 levels with increasing complexity including Reactions – Learning – Behavior – Results. She also presented the formula to calculate Return on Investment of training programs (ROI): ROI = (Net profit of the program/Cost of the program)x100 In her conclusion, Ms. Van mentioned the barriers in organizing a HR training program. On the one hand, HR training should be considered as a form of investment to increase business productivity. On the other hand, managers and instructors should have methods that motivate the learners, help them realize the benifits for the company and for themselves (increase their value in the labor market), encourage them to participate actively in training programs. Furthermore, beside financial methods like promotion and advancement, it is necessary to apply also non-financial methods.

After the presentation, all the speakers and enterprises joined a discussion in which they could raise questions, share experience, give personal opinions and ideas. Most of the enterprises, including SMEs, consider HR training as an important element in corporate sustainable development. However, the conditions and dimension of a company have a great influence on the model of HR training.

Thanks to this forum, the staff of ICHAM were able to update their knowledge, learn from real experiences of the attending companies and expand their network.

9th European Food Festival To celebrate 25 years of EU – Vietnam relationship, Eurocham organized the 9th European Food Festival in Hanoi on May 9 at the National Library.

With the best food and drink from Hanoi’s leading hotels and restaurants, many outdoor activities, some of Hanoi’s best live bands and DJs, a lucky draw with valuable prizes, the festival attracted more than 1,000 attendees. 20 food stalls brought unexpected success to this event with the best of European food coming from three regions of North, Central and Mediterranean, which together made up European fame in the culinary world.There was also the presence of Italian with a space organized by the Italian Embassy in Vietnam who also collaborated Icham, to promote EXPO 2015, the World Exposition on the theme Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life, which is taking place from May 1st October 31 in Milan. The space also housed Italian, Da Paolo Westlake, Mediterraneo, OESIS and Punto Italia.Also there was another food stall where there were Gelato Italia and Helio Coffee.

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FAIRS & EXHIBITIONS Vietnam International Industrial Fair 2015 Time: 20 - 23/10/2015 Venue: Giang Vo Exhibition Center, 148 Giang Vo, Ba Dinh, Hanoi

Vietnam International Food Industry Exhibition 2015 Time: 13 - 16/05/2015 Venue: Saigon Convention and Exhibition Center, 799 Nguyen Van Linh, Tan Phu ward, District 7, HCMC

International Trade Fair for Construction & Building Technology, Equipment, Machinery, Materials and Mining Time: 2 - 5/12/2015 Venue: Giang Vo Exhibition Center, 148 Giang Vo, Ba Dinh, Hanoi

SOCIAL ACTIVITY Save the Children has been working in Vietnam since 1990s beginning with helping the most disadvantaged children in central part of Vietnam.

Since then, Save the Children has expanded its programs within the country, supporting the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children to gain access to education, healthcare, nutritious food, gainful employment and protection services.

In 2013, Save the Children started to run a sponsorship program through the support by Save the Children in Italy. With donations from individual sponsors, Save the Children has developed a community development program from which children are protected and have access to quality education and health services.

Save the Children believes that working with companies and foundations is crucial to boost our results and promote long-term structural changes in the lives of children and their communities. International partnerships, such as those with Bulgari and Unilever, allow us to raise important funds for our projects and to promote the rights of children to a wide audience of employees, suppliers and customers.

More info at: https://vietnam.savethechildren.net/

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NTS

DISCOU

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ICHAM

MEMB

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UPCOMING EVENTS

ICHAM NETPLUS “GELATO ICE-CREAM WORLD” June 2015 Time & Venue will be updated shortly

MNCs—SMEs Speed Meeting Time: 26 June 2015 Venue: Sofitel Plaza, 17 Le Duan, District 1, HCMC

ITALIAN SUMMER Italy, 29 June 2015 For more info, click here or contact: Ms. Nguyen Thi Nhu Quynh E: officer3@icham.org/M: 01655824891

Welcome our new members

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MARKET INFO

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VIETNAM TO EASE VISA, WORK PERMIT REQUIREMENTS FOR FOREIGNERS

Vietnam's officials have pledged to simplify administrative procedures involving foreign workers in the country, including relaxing work permit and visa requirements for them.

Duong Manh Hung, director of the Foreign Labor Department under the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, said the government has instructed his agency to draft proposals on requirements for foreign professional workers. ―It has been too strict when we require foreigners to have at least a bachelor degree and five years of experience in their field to be able to work in Vietnam,‖ he told a conference in Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday.

Hung said amendments to Decree 102 on foreign labor in Vietnam are expected to be approved and enforced in the third quarter this year.

Multinational corporations Policy makers will also propose favorable policies for employees being transferred to Vietnam from the same company abroad. Currently, they have to apply for a work permit just like other employees who are being recruited for the first time.

The conference attracted an audience of more than 200 representatives of foreign businesses, associations and law firms who also shared their concerns on immigration issues.

Benjamin Yap, senior partner at PBC Partners & RHTLaw, said ―If facing a pending civil suit, foreigners cannot leave the country in three years. It’s a good reminder for foreigners to be careful‖ In response, Colonel Nguyen Van Anh, director of the HCMC Immigration Department, said that a foreigner cannot easily be banned from leaving Vietnam, in reality the government often tries to limit the use of this ban on foreigners.

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VIETNAM’S TRADE POSITION IN ASIA IN 2015

EU & VIETNAM HELD 12th ROUND OF FTA TALKS

Vietnam sits in a prime position in Asia vis-à-vis free trade agreements (FTAs) and trade organization memberships. Very few other countries in the region are included in such a plethora of trade agreements. See below for a visual representation of Vietnam’s position.

Looking briefly at the key FTAs for Vietnam, if they were all to be ratified then Vietnam would have FTAs in place with the world’s three largest economies, as well as five more economies within the top fifteen in GDP. By joining all of these agreements, Vietnam is positioning itself to become a key hub for future global commerce.

If successfully ratified, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will significantly decrease trade barriers between the U.S. and Vietnam. The TPP comprises a region with US$28 trillion in economic output, making up around 39 percent of the world’s total output. The agreement will remove tariffs on almost US$2 trillion in goods and services exchanged between the signatory countries. If enacted, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) would provide Vietnam with tariff free access to China, India, Australia, Japan, and South Korea. The EU-Vietnam FTA will cut at least 90 percent of the tariff lines on Vietnamese exports to the EU.

The EU and Vietnam completed the twelfth round of talks on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA). This time the talks were held in Hanoi, Vietnam, from 23 to 27 March 2015. Both teams made further progress on finding common ground on all open issues, and are continuing to work towards a swift conclusion of the negotiations.

The talks focused on the outstanding areas of the proposed FTA such as goods (tariffs, rules of origin, non tariff barriers, export duties), services & investment, government procurement, state owned enterprises, IPR and geographical indications, and regulatory issues.

The chief negotiators Mauro Petriccione, Deputy Director General for Trade in the European Commission and Vietnamese Tran Quoc Khanh, Vice Minister for Industry and Trade, had also intense discussions on the key areas included in the FTA and explored further leeway on both sides.

The talks aim at an ambitious and comprehensive agreement on goods, services and investment, and government procurement.

In the run-up to the next round of negotiations, tentatively scheduled for the first half of June in Brussels, intensified contacts at Chiefs’ and technical level will take place. Once in place, the deal will further strengthen EU-Vietnam trade and investment ties and create enhanced business opportunities on both sides.

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Market Insight: VIETNAM’S WINE INDUSTRY

As Vietnam’s consumer market continues to grow, more and more global products are pouring into the country. Among those products that have seen considerable growth in sales over the recent years, has been wine. Starting from a very low level, the Vietnamese wine market has exploded, with hotels, restaurants, and retailers now offering a wide variety of wines from around the world.

Currently, the local wine market features wines from such areas as France, Italy, Chile, USA, and Australia.

The best-selling wines are reds with 65 percent of the market, followed by whites with 25 percent, and sparkling wines with 10 percent.

While there are no specific statistics on wine consumption during meals, the beverage has become a staple of many social interactions, such as business dinners. Statistically, the typical wine drinker is predominantly male, and prefers red, tannic and powerful wines with high levels of alcohol.

Despite the male dominance of the wine market, an interesting trend is taking place with regards to the evolution of the female alcohol consumer. Women in Vietnamese society are increasingly entering the business world, travelling more, obtaining higher education, and obtaining more purchasing power. Wine, with its association with sophisticated taste, is likely to attract a market that understands its value outside of simply physical effects. Of additional interest to wine sellers, women are much more open to new wines than male consumers are, often attending outings at wine bars and wine tastings – making them a clear target market for the future.