The EU Business Avenues in Southeast Asia programme will facilitate 20 weeklong business missions for up to 1,000 European SMEs across a range of sectors in Southeast Asia over the next five years.

The first such mission will |focus on environment and water technologies. A group of European companies, all of which offer technologies that can be used to address environmental and water issues in Southeast Asia, have been selected to join this trip.

They will showcase their expertise at the Singapore International Water Week in July, then move on to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.

Future missions will focus on construction and building technologies, food and beverage, green energy technologies, healthcare and medical technologies and information and communication technologies.

EU ambassador to Singapore Dr Michael Pulch said: “We will bring the best Europe has to offer in these respective sectors. Our aim is to facilitate business meetings, technology transfer and cooperation between European companies and enterprises in Singapore and the broader region.”

The EU delegation to Singapore also launched the latest edition of the EU-Singapore Trade and Investment Report, which shows that EU-Singapore trade in goods rose by 7.7 per cent in 2015 from the year before, while bilateral trade in services increased 15.4 per cent.

The report also shows that the EU was Asean’s largest investor, with 184 billion euros in fixed direct investment stocks held in the region, with 56 per cent in Singapore.

Within its research coverage, major Malaysian investments in the UK are in property developments (Battersea by SP Setia, Sime Darby), regulated assets (YTL Power), casino ops (Genting Malaysia (GENM), and renewable energy (KNM Group).

“A potentially slower UK economy could affect future take-ups at Battersea but positively, the project has locked in sizeable sales (which have yet to be recognised) totaling 1.6 billion ringgit or 18.3 per cent of its total project gross development value. But, a weaker pound should result in lower Malaysian ringgit profits (from the foreign exchange impact and margins).

“Based on our sensitivity analysis, a 10 per cent weakness in ringgit from our base case would impact our financial year 2017 net profit estimates for SP Setia/Sime by -3.5 oer cent/-1.1 per cent, our revalued net asset value (RNAV) estimates by -1.5 per cent/less than -1 per cent,” the research house noted.

A potentially slower UK economy should not impact demand much at Wessex but it could affect visitors/collections at Genting Malaysia’s UK operations, it noted. A potentially weaker pound should result in lower translated ringgit profits and investment values.

Based on the research firm’s sensitivity analysis, a 10 per cent weakness in ringgit from its base case would impact net profit estimates for YTL Power/Genting Malaysia by -7 per cent/-0.8 per cent and its RNAV estimates by -5per cent/-0.5 per cent.

As for KNM’s Peterborough project, it added that a slower UK economy should not significantly impact the project’s financials. Maybank Research said it have yet to reflect any earnings impact from this project in its forecasts for KNM.

Global markets are increasingly jittery ahead of the Brexit referendum on June 23 after recent polls suggest that the odds are tilting towards a “leave”, rather than a “remain” outcome.

The firm, which manages 22 of the country’s international and domestic airports, said it will prioritise investments for terminals showing high passenger growth and special socioeconomic importance.

The important airports are Noi Bai in the north, Dong Hoi, Phu Bai and Cam Ranh in the centre, and Tan Son Nhat, Con Dao and Phu Quoc in the south.

ACV also asked the ministry to consider adjusting the framework for some aviation service rates, which apply to domestic flight routes at airports, according to enternews.vn.

It said that while passengers travelling on domestic routes represent two-thirds of all aviation passengers in Vietnam, the prices of landing and take-off services on domestic routes are about 2.5 times lower than those of similar services on international routes.

The firm suggested that the price gap should be narrowed within five years to ensure the efficiency of investments and asset exploitation.

Industry insiders said if the suggestion is accepted, the fares for domestic flights are likely to increase in the future.

Parties have reportedly made significant progress for the ACV to get closer to an agreement with French group Aeroports de Paris (ADP), which is a potential strategic investor of the ACV.

According to Dau tu (Vietnam Investment Review) online, Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue last week gave Finance and Transport ministries the nod to let ACV designate contractors to accelerate the strategic partnering process.

The Transport Ministry has designated local brokerage BIDV Securities, a consultant for ACV’s equitisation, to continue to advise it on selling stakes to investors.

This contract is worth about 2.9 billion dong.

This month, Vietnamese law firm YKVN also won a bid, with approval from the ministry, to become a legal adviser for negotiations related to the partnering deal.

The contract is valued at 6 billion dong.

“With these consulting tools getting in place soon, ACV will have the necessary confidence to negotiate with ADP,” Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Hong Truong said.

The two companies are expected to conclude their deal this year, he said.

ADP expects the two sides to basically agree on investment provisions by September.

The agreement would create one of the premises for French President Francois Hollande’s September visit to Vietnam, Truong said.

According to Dau tu, ADP plans to buy shares of ACV at a price no less than 13,100 dong per share – the lowest winning rate when ACV auctioned its shares during an initial public offering on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange last December.

ADP has been operating 37 airports in the world through its subsidiary Airports de Paris Management (ADPM), including Charles de Gaulle and Orly in Paris.

ACV officially changed into a joint stock company in March, when its charter capital was recorded at more than 21 trillion dong.

The state retained 75 per cent of the company’s equity and made available a 20-per-cent stake for strategic investors.

Biz Hub reported earlier this year that Changi Airport International, a subsidiary of Singapore’s Changi Airport Group, and the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam were also eyeing a strategic partnership with ACV.

Brian Davis, vice president of US firm Honeywell Aerospace, told Biz Hub late last year that Vietnam was one of the 10 fastest growing aerospace markets in the world.

The country’s aviation market had been growing by an average of 7-8 per cent per year in passenger traffic, and this growth was expected to continue over the next 20 years, he said.

This was done to guard against potential malware attacks, the bank said.

However, the move riled some of the bank’s small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) customers, who were unhappy about the way the message was conveyed.

A few of these customers took to social media to say they had received letters over the past week from OCBC, giving them 14 days’ notice that their accounts would be closed as the bank “can no longer support (the) account”.

Customers – who posted updates on their own social media accounts as well as on OCBC’s Facebook page – said the bank did not offer an explanation for the impending account closures.

They also said they had not received any calls from the bank, and were not told what to do to keep their accounts open.

In response, an OCBC spokesman said the bank has been encouraging customers to install IBM Security Trusteer Rapport, a security software that will protect their computers from cybercrime and financial malware.

“We recently wrote to a small group of customers who had not installed this software despite our asking them to do so several times. Without the software being installed, we would have to review these customers’ online transactions more closely to protect their accounts. Last month, after reviewing the risk and added handling that may be required for these accounts, we wrote to the customers to tell them that we would regretfully have to close their accounts,” the bank spokesman said.

“We are really sorry that the above has caused inconvenience and anxiety. We will not close the customers’ accounts if the software is installed. We have already called the customers and are now working closely with them to ensure this is done. To date, we have resolved the issue with more than half of these customers.”

The move follows a government clampdown on cyber security.

The Straits Times reported earlier this month that 100,000 government computers will no longer have direct access to the Web from next May, as part of efforts to keep government e-mail systems and shared documents safe.

Civil servants will still have access to the Internet, but on separate computers dedicated to that purpose or on their personal mobile devices.

Figures from the Ministry of Industry and Trade show that since 2007, more than 144 foreign franchises have been licensed in the country.

Market leaders include Lotteria (over 200 restaurants), KFC (over 140), Jollibee (over 40), Pizza Hut (over 40), Baskin Robbins and Domino’s Pizza.

Dinh Thi My Loan, chairwoman of the Vietnam Retailers Association, said with its high growth rate, 90 million population — of whom 60 per cent are young consumers — and modern trade channels accounting for just 25 per cent of retail business, the country is an attractive retail market for foreign investors.

Sean Ngo, director of Viet Nam Franchise Consulting, said the number of franchises in Vietnam is forecast to increase substantially given the establishment of theAsean Economic Community and the number of free trade agreements the country has signed.

The food and beverage industry has seen franchising develop strongly, especially in the fast foods segment, he said.

Food consumption in the country is expected to grow by 61.6 per cent between 2012 and 2017, while nearly 50 per cent of household expenditure is on food and beverages, he said.

Nguyen Phi Van, founder of Retail and Franchise Asia, said franchising is a common strategy companies choose when expanding internationally.

In the 10 leading food groups, only two still own more than 50 per cent of their outlets.

In 2008, Burger King owned 12 per cent of its outlets, but the number fell to 0.4 per cent in 2013, while Subway does not own any outlet, Van said.

She said franchising has considerable potential in more sectors, like education and healthcare.

But to be successful, franchisees need to make sure they have a good business plan and management, she said.

The biggest mistake Vietnamese franchisees make is that they spend a lot of money to buy the franchise but not to build a management team to run it, she said.

Franchise in other countries

Van said the franchise market in Vietnam is still in its infancy, and when foreign franchises come to the country, local firms can learn from them how to create their own franchises in the future.

Vietnamese companies could become global franchisers in the food sector, but their poor management prevents them from doing so, she said.

She and the others experts were speaking at the Vietnam International Retail and Franchise show held in Ho Chi Minh City last week.

The rise was lower than the targeted growth of 10 per cent this year.

In May, the industry earned $1.75 billion, up only 3.8 per cent.

The United States was the largest export market of the industry, with $3.4 billion, up 6 per cent. The European Union, Japan and South Korea followed with $936 million, $845.17 million and $677.2 million, respectively.

Industry insiders are concerned with meeting the industry’s export target of $31 billion this year due to falling export prices and difficulties in finding new export contracts, especially for shirts, pants and jackets.

Than Duc Viet, deputy general director of the Garment No.10 Corporation, said this year’s business results for local textile and garment exporters, especially among small- and medium-sized firms, were not as good as expected due to rising input costs and falling demand.

The chairman of the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (Vitas), Vu Duc Giang, said some traditional customers of Vietnam’s garment exporters were moving their orders to Laos and Myanmar, which have preferential tax rates for exports to the United States and European Union.

Free trade pact

Currently, the tax imposed on Vietnam’s textile and garment exports to the United States averages 17 per cent, while the rate to the European Union is nearly 10 per cent. The taxes are expected to drop to zero by mid-2018 when the Trans-Pacific Partner-ship and Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement take effect.

Giang said domestic textile and garment exporters will therefore have to compete fiercely against producers from Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Bangladesh.

Vitas said export growth rates among these producers were rising faster than in Vietnam.

“Duterte wants an Avanza because that’s the cheapest,” said Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez, who was guest at the Meet Inquirer Multimedia forum on Tuesday.

“When someone asked me what I will do, I said I will invoke separation of powers,” the designated House Speaker from Davao del Norte and longtime friend of Duterte said, drawing laughter from editors and reporters.

“I said I will use a pickup,” Alvarez said, adding he is used to cruising around in a light truck, driving it himself sometimes.

In meeting his chosen Cabinet members a day after his proclamation as winner of the May 9 elections and the country’s 16th President, Duterte laid down his rules for a frugal administration, directing his appointees to forego business class plane tickets, forget about using public funds for junkets, or abstain from using expensive cars.

Alvarez said Duterte meant to show it on the very day he assumes the presidency on June 30.

Inaugural

The 71-year-old mayor of Davao City for two decades will be sworn in as President in Malacañang, deviating from the tradition for Presidents to be inaugurated at Quirino Grandstand in Manila’s Rizal Park.

“I suggested that it be held at the Palace grounds,” Alvarez said.

Save for the late President Corazon Aquino who took her oath of office at Club Filipino following the 1986 Edsa People Power Revolution, Presidents Fidel Ramos, Joseph Estrada, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and Benigno Aquino III took their oaths at Quirino Grandstand in ceremonies gathering thousands of spectators.

Duterte had earlier said he would attend his inauguration and exchange his usual casual attire for a more formal barong.

He said he would “just follow protocol” in crafting a “well-prepared speech,” acknowledging that it would be the “policy of this nation.”

Duterte snubbed Congress, which convened as a national board of canvassers on May 30 to declare him winner of the May 9 balloting. He said he had missed such formalities since becoming a politician.

Simplicity, diligence

When he became the House Speaker, Alvarez is keen to toe a similar line of conscientious governance, vowing to practice a leadership style that would reflect simplicity and diligence as Duterte had outlined.

It goes hand in hand with Alvarez’s agenda to give antipoverty efforts top priority.

“Whatever is necessary in addressing poverty,” Alvarez replied, when asked during the forum what people should expect from him.

“I want to be an instrument to uplift the condition of our fellowmen,” said the returning lawmaker, who first served in Congress from 1998 to 2001.

One of the traditions that must go is the annual “fashion show” when members of Congress, their spouses and other guests turn up at the red carpet in glamorous garb for the State of the Nation Address (Sona), as if attending a Hollywood awards night.

“Even the civil code frowns upon the display of wealth amid poverty. So we don’t need to be as extravagant. Business attire would be enough, like what you wear when going to the office,” Alvarez said. “You don’t have to come as if you’re going to a party.”

Wearing formal attire is always a challenge for him, said Alvarez, who wore a collared shirt, black pants and suede boots.

“You know, my greatest problem is wearing barong and Americana. When I was in Congress before, I wore jeans and then a barong,” he said.

The 11 countries also called for “maritime practical cooperation” and for early completion of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea.

The China-Asean Special Foreign Ministers Meeting in Yuxi, Yunnan province, was the first of its kind in three years.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the region “should not become another place of turbulence” as the world has already witnessed considerable chaos.

Wang said the closed-door meeting, which was first proposed by members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, was timely, significant and involved strategic communication.

He added that it had achieved its expected goals. China is committed to future meetings to build trust and dispel misunderstandings, he added.

On the sidelines of the convention, Wang embarked on a whirlwind series of meetings with his counterparts fromAsean countries.

Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh told Wang on Monday that his country is ready to tackle maritime differences properly based on the consensus of the party leaders of China and Vietnam.

Wang said, “Both sides (China and ASEAN) should tackle differences properly and jointly safeguard regional peace and stability. They should cherish the hard-won peaceful and stable situation in this region.”

Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, who co-chaired the meeting with Wang on Tuesday, said it demonstrates that “Asean and China are even able to discuss difficult issues … frankly, constructively and openly”.

Ruan Zongze, vice-president of the China Institute of International Studies, said the meeting shows that most Asean members will not be “hijacked” by the South China Sea issue and related problems.

China has played a proactive role in boosting integration and development within the ASEAN Community, and such a role has won support from the ASEAN members, Ruan said.

Wei Ling, a professor of Asian studies at China Foreign Affairs University, said China has provided firm support to Asean continuously, with this year marking the 25th anniversary of the China-Asean dialogue.

“The strategic mutual trust and cooperation between China and Asean is a cornerstone of the region’s peace and development,” Wei said

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak unveiled the new executive sedan at a ceremony at Putrajaya International Convention Centre yesterday.

Priced at 113,888 ringgit (Bt977,600) and 138,888 ringgit for the 2.0- and 2.4-litre variants respectively, the new Perdana 2.0 comes with a four-cylinder 16-valve SOHC engine producing 154 horsepower and 189 newton-metres of torque, while the Perdana 2.4 comes with a four-cylinder 16-valve DOHC engine producing 178 horsepower and 222Nm of torque.

Also present at the launch were International Trade and Industry Minister Mustapa Mohamed, International Trade and Industry Minister II Ong Ka Chuan, Proton chairman Syed Faizal Albar and Proton chief executive Ahmad Fuaad Kenali.

Ahmad Fuaad said the car, which was made available for orders by the public in February, has received 900 bookings nationwide.

“We expect to sell around 3,000 cars by end of 2016,” he said.

The car is available in six colours – Ruby Red, Sterling Silver, Graphite Grey, Cotton White, Midnight Black and Citrine Gold.