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President Tran Dai Quang and his Czech counterpart Milos Zeman agreed to forge cooperation between Vietnam and the Czech Republic in various areas during their talks in Hanoi on June 7. At the talks, held following the welcome ceremony for the Czech President, President Quang expressed his belief that Milos Zeman’s State visit to Vietnam will contribute to deepening the time-honoured friendship and multi-faceted collaboration between the two countries in the new period in a pragmatic manner. “Vietnam always attaches importance to consolidating and developing relations with traditional friends, including the Czech Republic,” he affirmed.

The leaders briefed each other on situations in the respective countries and discussed concrete measures to promote the bilateral ties. They also exchanged views on international and regional issues of mutual concern. Hailing achievements Vietnamese people have recorded in the reform process as well as the country’s increasing role and position in the world arena, President Milos Zeman said the Czech Republic always regards Vietnam as its traditional partner and wishes to advance the bilateral affiliation across fields.

Host and guest noted with pleasure active developments of the Vietnam-Czech Republic relations over the past time, particularly in politics and diplomacy, as well as their effective collaboration at international arena. They held that bilateral economic and trade ties have remained stable with annual two-way trade averaging 250 million USD in recent years. The two leaders agreed to continue improving the effectiveness of the joint commission on economic cooperation, while strengthening trade and investment promotion, encouraging and backing the business community of both sides to foster their partnership and study each other’s market, especially in areas of the Czech Republic’s strength and Vietnam’s demand such as infrastructure, food processing, pharmaceuticals, urban planning, public transportation, environmental protection and water resources management.

President Quang thanked the State and people of the Czech Republic for creating favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community in the country to live, work, and integrate into the local society.

The State leader expressed belief that the Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic will continue promoting the role as a bridge for the friendship and cooperation between the two countries. The two Presidents showed their delight at the close and effective coordination between the two countries at international forums.

President Zeman affirmed that the Czech Republic supports the enhancement of the Vietnam-EU relations as well as the signing and approval of the Vietnam-EU free trade agreement, and the EU’s soon recognition of Vietnam’s full market economy status.

Regarding the East Sea issue, the two leaders stressed the need to settle all disputes through peaceful measures, including diplomatic and legal processes in conformity with international law, especially the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS). Meeting with the press following their talks, President Quang said both sides consented to increase the exchange of all-level delegations and consultations on issues of shared concern.

The Presidents were unanimous on the need for the two countries to improve the efficiency of affiliations in trade and investment and join hands with each other in preparing for the sixth meeting of the Vietnam-Czech Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation scheduled for 2018 in Hanoi.

They welcomed and pledged to facilitate the Czech investment in Vietnam in such areas as energy, environment, support industry, infrastructure, manufacturing, medical equipment and food processing. Host and guest also consented to beef up the partnership in other realms like education-training, science-technology, culture-tourism, health care, environment, employment, national defence and security. Regarding regional and international issues, President Quang said that the two leaders highlighted the significance of the maintenance of security and peace as well as the promotion of cooperation and development in the world.

President Zeman said that the business community of his country is interested in the Vietnamese market. He stated that his entourage included representatives of 68 enterprises in various sectors, who show their hope to affiliate with Vietnamese peers through specific agreements. He also revealed that the two leaders discussed and agreed on the opening of a direct air route connecting Prague and Ho Chi Minh City, and the short-term visa exemption for Czech tourists to Vietnam. The Czech Republic will open a Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City in the coming time. He also said that he believes this will contribute to boosting the number of Czech tourists to Vietnam in the future.

After their talks, the Presidents witnessed the signing of cooperation documents between the two countries, including an agreement on the transfer of sentenced persons and another on combating crimes.

Vietnam and the Czech Republic set up diplomatic ties on February 2, 1950. With 35 projects worth 91.3 million USD, focusing on real estate, beer, electronic equipment and construction materials, the Czech Republic ranks 42nd out of 101 countries and territories investing in Vietnam.

Vietnam was among 12 priority markets included in the Czech national export strategy during 2012-2020, which was announced in 2012. The Czech Republic has been the first Eastern European nation to provide official development assistance (ODA) for Vietnam with about 18 million USD.

More than 60,000 Vietnamese are living in the Czech Republic. On July 3, 2013, the Czech Government appointed a Czech representative of Vietnamese origin to the Council of Ethnic Minorities, thus recognising the Czech Vietnamese community as an ethnic minority group in the country.

Source：Vietnam+

Tourism Authority of Thailand joins hands with the Online Tourism Club (Thailand) that seeks to minimise online operators that sell what it called ‘lower quality tour packages.” The recently-established Online Tourism Club (Thailand) is made up of 44 members who represent tour operators and attractions across Thailand. The club claims the objective is to work with TAT to stem the practice of selling cheap low quality travel to Chinese independent travellers.

The Chinese FIT market (fully independent traveller) offers huge growth potential for Thailand and many of the travellers are booking online attracted by special offers and discounts. TAT claims all the club’s members are all legally registered under the Ministry of Commerce’s Department of Business Development and Department of Tourism’s Bureau of Tourism Business and Guide Registration. But TAT said screening the members’ status was the club’s responsibility.

TAT hopes to discourage zero-dollar tourism from China where holidays are sold a breakeven forcing the local ground handling agent to live off commissions mainly generated by taking clients to shops and attractions that offer kick-backs. The new club members say they hope to minimise online tour operators who sell low quality tour packages.

Eliminating cheap online travel will be difficult as many Chinese FITs pre book through their mobile apps, pay with credit cards prior to leaving China and are offered incentives and discounted services in the Thai destinations all sold through mobile phone apps. There are even competitions that offer points if the Chinese traveller goes to a particular restaurants dines and flags the experience in the app. By taking a photo and tagging visits to restaurants, shops and attractions during their visit they gain points and ultimately earn a discount. The photo contest is particularly popular in Phuket.

While the club says it is look after quality, tourists traditionally love a bargain and seek out the best price. There is no guarantee that the club members who charge more can offer a better quality product. Critics posted comments on Facebook pages saying they thought the club was hoping to eliminate competition and might be guilty of over pricing or unfair trading by fixing prices between members in a manner that would not serve the best interests of consumers.

According to the club’s statement on its Facebook, it focuses on five key elements. Grouping suppliers and agents in Thailand who are promoting quality tourism for FIT groups and to make a joint statement to blacklist partners that destroy trading systems. Suppliers must provide clear pricing that complies with a minimum selling price, the net price and the walk-in price. Suppliers must strengthen their products and services and do not neglect to market themselves online to FIT travellers.

TAT will coordinate and increase rules for government awards such as the Thailand Tourism Awards to include a clear price setting for products and services on minimum selling price, net price and walk in price. TAT will support marketing and public relations such as inviting suppliers and tour operators to make a joint declaration to counter price cuts and create awareness in the market through roadshows to promote quality tourism for FIT and through the TAT website. According to TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn, ensuring high standards as well as standardized prices are needed to ensure that the country’s tourism is fair for everyone including tourists. An ongoing project will tackle price cutting on group tours from China to rid the market of zero-dollar tourism.

The measures have been partly successful, but the same principle behind zero-dollar (commissions and kick-backs) has emerged in the FIT sector online selling space too.

The Online Tourism Club (Thailand) president, Nipon Boonmasuwaran, said: “Some online travel agents are more interested in increasing website traffic and building databases in order to boost their company’s shareholding values than in offering memorable holidays to tourists planning trips to Thailand. By selling lower prices, they undermine the industry creating unfair conditions for operators. Now, we need to tackle unscrupulous operators targeting FIT travellers.”

TAT Deputy Governor of Marketing – Asia and South Pacific, Srisuda Wanapinyosak, said TAT will help to promote the standard pricing of the club’s members via TAT’s communication channels. “We will also organise roadshows to Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou where online Thai tourism operators can meet with operators of 10 major Chinese travel websites to discuss cooperation.”

Source：TR Weekly

Above: The real estate market in the west and southwest of Ha Noi is expected to develop further with the development of infrastructure and high demand, according to experts

The real estate market in the west and southwest of Ha Noi is expected to develop further with the development of infrastructure and high demand, according to experts.

In the first quarter of this year, Ha Dong, Nam Tu Liem and Thanh Xuan districts in the region had most apartments for sale in the city with 12,000-19,000 apartments per district, reported JLL Viet Nam, a foreign property service provider.

Meanwhile, CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) Viet Nam Co, Ltd, another foreign property service provider, said the region accounted for 36 per cent of new apartment supply in the city in the first quarter of this year.

Above: Seasons Avenue located in Ha Dong is developed by CapitaLand.

In the first quarter, core urban districts such as Cau Giay, Tay Ho and Tu Liem in this region continued to witness increases in resale prices, ranging from 1.4 per cent to 7 per cent quarter-on-quarter, on the back of newly-recorded large-scale projects that were launched in previous quarters and offered at prices higher than average, said CBRE Ha Noi.

Additionally, developers of landed homes were committed to stronger investment in facilities and amenities within the townships. For instance, clubhouses of international standard at Park City came into use during the quarter, while Dinosaur Park is to be introduced at Vinhomes Riverside Phase 2, together with several clubhouses catering for different zones within the township.

According to a plan on developing Ha Noi by 2030 with a vision to 2050, the west and southwest of Ha Noi will become a new administrative, service and trading centre, reported cafef.vn.

Above: Many infrastructure included the MRT will be finished in these several years

The development will promote socio-economic growth in the region, leading to higher demand for housing, synchronous infrastructure and public convenience.

Moving forward, the west and southwest will continue to have the largest number of units launched, says a report by CBRE Ha Noi on the city’s property market in the first quarter.

Other areas such as Tay Ho District and midtown are also expected to welcome new quality supply. There is increasing interest from local developers in the affordable segment, and new units are to be launched from this segment in the upcoming quarters.

Above: The development will promote socio-economic growth in the region, leading to higher demand for housing

Near-term stable performance is expected with more multi-functional products. The focus will be on affordable housing, mainly in large-scale projects in Ha Dong, Hoang Mai, Tu Liem and Thanh Xuan districts, Savills Viet Nam, a foreign property service company, says in its May report on property prices in Ha Noi.

In the first quarter, the Residential Index was 106.6, decreasing less than 1 point quarter-on-quarter and year-on- year. The average selling price of VND27.4 million per sq.m was due to lower secondary prices in some projects under pressure of increasing supply, according to the report.

The overall primary absorption rate of approximately at 27 per cent was down 4 percentage points quarter-on-quarter and eight year-on-year due to the large supply.

Source: VietnamNet

Nearly 11,000 new enterprises were established in the country in May with total registered capital of VNĐ119.24 trillion (U$5.24 billion). This was a rise of 9.3 per cent in the number of enterprises and 17.8 per cent in the registered capital compared to the same period last year.

On average, the registered capital of individual businesses increased by 7.9 per cent to VNĐ10.9 billion, according to the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s National Enterprise Information and Registration System.

Totally in the first five months of this year, the country had 50,534 newly-established enterprises with total capital of VNĐ485.6 trillion, a year-on-year rise of 12.9 per cent in the number of enterprises and of 39 per cent in the registered capital.

The five-month increase, however, was lower than that of the same period last year with 24.1 per cent rise and 59.3 per cent growth in term of enterprise quantity and level of capital, respectively.

Notably, the number of registered labourers for new businesses in the reviewed period saw a modest decline of 2 per cent to 521,700, the system reported.

From January to May, the number of newly-established enterprises surged 72.8 per cent in property trading sector; 38.9 per cent in banking, finance and insurance; 31 per cent in education and training sector; 27.3 per cent in health-care and social support activities, and 18.4 per cent in the sector of accommodation and catering services, in addition to 12.6 per cent in construction industry and 11.7 per cent in manufacturing and processing industry.

The five-month period also saw some 32,145 enterprises suspending operations, surging 12.5 per cent year-on-year while 4,685 enterprises were dissolved in the period, which was 1 per cent higher than last year’s corresponding period.

Source：VietNamNet

Golden Emperor has been presented the “Best of the Best 2017—Best Overseas Property Agency (Thailand)” award by squarefoot.com.hk again this year, making a 3-year-straight record fully taking the trust and recognition from our clients with pride. To show our gratitude, Golden Emperor is happy to launch a Client Referral Program to share our excitement with all of you.

Promotion period:
Now till September 31, 2017

Promotion details:
Existing client referred a new client who has successfully purchased a property unit, both will be entitled to get a total of HK$6,000 Emperor Key cash vouchers*.

*Terms and Conditions apply. Existing and new clients will each receive HK$3,000 worth cash voucher. In case of dispute, Golden Emperor reserves the right to make the final decision.

• Only existing customers of Golden Emperor are eligible for this special promotion.
• The referral of the customer must take place before 30 September 2017 for the referral to be eligible under this special promotion. The confirmation of the sale can take place after the deadline, but the customer must be introduced to us before the deadline.
• A referral is successful only when the referred customer signs the Sales & Purchase Agreement and transfers the first instalment payment.
• The vouchers will be provided within one (1) week after the customer transfers the first instalment payment.
• In the event of any conflict or disputes, the decision of Golden Emperor is final.
• The referral applies to one level of referral only, i.e. if the referred customer of Golden Emperor’s existing customer refers another customer, the first referee will not be entitled to the HKD 3,000.