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Category: Finance

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Finance news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • Vietnam wants urban residents to pay bills without cash

    Vietnam wants urban residents to pay bills without cash

    The Vietnamese government wants cashless transactions made viable for all household bill payments by the end of this year. A recent government resolution on changing the business environment to improve competitiveness and labor productivity contains a push to accelerate use of cashless transactions. Provincial and municipal leaders have accordingly been tasked with instructing all schools and hospitals, as well as electricity, water, sanitation, telecommunications and postal companies in urban areas to coordinate with banks and intermediary payment service providers in collecting bills and fees via cashless transactions.

    The government has recommended that establishments prioritize mobile payments and payment via card readers, and requested that the task be completed before December this year.

    Vietnam Electricity, the national utility, has been asked to ensure power companies work with banks and intermediary payment service providers to collect electricity bills via cashless methods and promote the use of electronic and mobile payments. The target for the year is to double the number of customers using e-payments to pay their electricity bills.

    The State Bank of Vietnam has been asked to come up with solutions that would promote the use of electronic wallets, wherein users can deposit cash into their e-wallets without the need for a bank account. The central bank has also been asked to find ways to remove imitations on e-transactions before the third quarter of this year.

    The State Bank must also require commercial banks and intermediary payment service providers to implement the QR code standard, and work with the Ministry of Finance to come up with a list of types of transactions that have to be done through banks, as well as make amendments to existing regulations to promote cashless payments for real estate transactions.

    According to the World Bank’s statistics released last July, Vietnam was the country with the lowest percentage of cashless transactions in the region with only 4.9 percent, while this value for China and Thailand were 26.1 percent and 59.7 percent respectively.

    While Vietnam rolled out an e-payment system for taxes in 2014 with 95 percent of companies registered, currently only 70 percent of tax money is collected via this method and many businesses still prefer paying their tax directly with cash.

    Similarly, while Vietnam has had policies to encourage consumers to pay electricity bills through banks and intermediary payment service providers, currently only 4.5 million people, or 20 percent of electricity consumers, pay their bills through these channels.

    The government’s resolution does not include rural and remote areas as the majority of Vietnamese living in such areas still lack access to modern payment methods.

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  • Philippines stock jumps ahead of inflation data, Singapore slides

    Philippines stock jumps ahead of inflation data, Singapore slides

    Most Southeast Asian shares climbed on Thursday, with Philippine markets leading gains ahead of the release of inflation figures, while Singaporean stocks bucked the trend to fall sharply. Philippine stocks gained 1.04 percent, as industrial shares SM Investments Corp and JG Summit Holdings Inc propelled the index. A report shows that the country’s inflation is expected to cool to a six-month low in December, making it likely the Philippine central bank will leave policy rates unchanged this year.

    “The investors were mainly concerned about inflation during 2018,” said Rachelle Cruz an analyst at AP Securities in Manila.

    “So now we’re seeing some buying in the index stocks as there’s better expectation on earnings growth now, since that concern seems to be fading,” Cruz said.

    Local investors appeared to be buying more because some Philippine companies have reached “very attractive valuations,” she added.

    A surge in consumer goods stocks powered a 0.4 percent advance in Indonesian shares.

    Shares in Malaysia and Thailand also rose, by 0.56 percent and 0.71 percent respectively.

    In Kuala Lumpur tourist resort chain Genting Malaysia Berhad added 2.7 percent and palm oil producer Sime Darby Plantation Berhad rose 3.3 percent, while in Bangkok energy stocks provided the biggest boost to the benchmark.

    Meanwhile, Singaporean shares edged 0.81 percent lower, with Thai Beverage PCL dropping 3.3 percent and industrial conglomerate Jardine Strategic Holdings Ltd losing 1.4 percent.

    Vietnamese stocks also shed just above 0.8 percent, with most major sectors in the red. Real-estate stocks like Vinhomes JSC and Vingroup JSC, which powered a rally on Wednesday, fell around 2 percent apiece.

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  • Malaysian economy likely to bottom out in Q2, says AmBank Research

    Malaysian economy likely to bottom out in Q2, says AmBank Research

    AmBank Research, which anticipates further pressure on Malaysia’s economic growth in the first quarter of the year (Q1 2019), believes that gross domestic product (GDP) growth should register slight improvement in the second quarter and pick up thereafter. This is partly attributable to the low base effects as well as support coming from domestic activities and foreign direct investments, and complemented by exports as the electronics cycle slows down, added with softer commodity prices, it said in a note today.

    The research house said it foresees growth prospects remaining weak, anti-cipating Q4 2018 GDP growth to ease to around 4% to bring the full-year growth to 4.6%.

    “With our base case GDP outlook for 2019 at 4.5% with the upside at 4.8%, we foresee further weakening pressure on growth in Q1 2019,” it added.

    Malaysia’s third quarter GDP growth moderated to 4.4%, bringing about a nine-month expansion of 4.7%. Bank Negara Malaysia is due to announce Q4 GDP figures on Feb 14.

    AmBank Research highlighted that the strong foreign approved investments amounting to RM48.8 billion as of Q3 2018, which is an all-time high, is expected to support growth in 2019.

    The growth drivers are seen coming from petroleum refineries with RM17.2 billion investment being approved, followed by electrical and electronics (RM10.2 billion), basic metal products (RM5.7 billion), chemical and chemical products (RM4.6 billion) and rubber products (RM3.5 billion).

    Additionally, it said, agriculture, mining, and plantation and commodities saw a notable increase in approved investments with 54 projects as of Q3 2018, compared with 48 projects in 2017.

    Furthermore, investments in the services sector will continue to boost growth largely coming from local players with RM60.4 billion approved investments compared with RM96 billion in 2017, while foreign investments remained muted at RM9.5 billion as of Q3 2018 from RM28.5 billion in 2017.

    Commenting on the slump in the Nikkei Malaysia Manufacturing Pur-chasing Managers’ Index (PMI), AmResearch said it indicates downside risks with overall demand to be weak, thus causing companies to become less willing to hold stocks.

    The headline PMI fell to a six-month low of 46.8 in December 2018 from 48.2 in the previous month. The demarcation between expansion and contraction is 50.

    The data points to the sharpest deterioration in the health of the goods-producing sector since May. It also extended the current period of decline to two months. The drag largely came from severe reductions in production and new businesses.

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  • Vietnam tops Southeast Asia in IPOs

    Vietnam tops Southeast Asia in IPOs

    Vietnam surpassed Singapore and Thailand to top Southeast Asia in initial public offerings (IPOs) last year, raising $2.6 billion. This figure was 3.7 times that of 2017, according to consultancy Ernst & Young. Two of three largest IPOs in Southeast Asia last year were launched by Vietnamese companies: $1.34 billion from Vinhomes, a real estate developer of Vietnam’s biggest private firm Vingroup; $923 million from Techcombank, the country’s largest private sector lender.

    However, an opposite trend was seen in Southeast Asia as a whole, with the money raised from IPOs dropping 34 percent over 2017 to $7.1 billion.

    The number of IPO deals in the region also decreased by 7 percent to 115, with 56 of them raising less than $10 million.

    Ernst & Young economist Max Loh said that the reason for this drop was U.S-China trade tensions, which affected the capital market in the region, as Southeast Asian countries have close trade relationships with China.

    Experts feel Vietnam has the potential to attract more foreign investments in the future. A report by law firm Baker McKenzie and consultancy Oxford Economics said that Vietnam will top the region in the amount of money raised via IPOs by 2021.

    The rise of Vietnam and other developing countries in Southeast Asia could intensify competition for new listings among the region’s exchanges, said Tham Tuck Seng, PwC Singapore’s capital markets leader.

    This will increase the pressure on Singapore to differentiate itself even more in order to stand out, CNBC quoted Tham as saying.

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  • Outlook for local banking sector remains challenging: Kenanga Research

    Outlook for local banking sector remains challenging: Kenanga Research

    The banking sector’s outlook is challenging due to external concerns while clarity and direction on the domestic front remain murky, according to Kenanga Research, which maintained a neutral stance for the sector as no fundamental change is expected, and the sector lacks concrete catalysts. “We view the industry with caution as uncertainties and headwinds still prevail. The industry remains unexciting, dragged by moderate loan growth and soft capital markets. Prevailing negative sentiment both globally and domestically will continue to drive volatility and uncertainty in the industry. Caution will still prevail due to the soft economy outlook globally,“ the research house said in a note today.

    It said banks with healthy asset quality (hence low impairment allowances) will still be the favour due to their defensive quality.

    “As such, selective asset growth will still be the focus for the banks. Despite stable economic outlook in the domestic environment coupled with low unemployment, we opine that cautiousness and selective assets growth will still prevail in the industry,“ Kenanga Research explained.

    It said loan growth moving forward will still be moderate as uncertainties prevail with fee-based income expected to be soft as a result of the volatile capital market. However, with the stable outlook, this will support a moderate and stable credit charge for the industry.

    “We expect impairment allowances (credit costs) to be stable and consistent (as it had been generally in 2018) which will lend support to the banks’ bottom line. We do not discount another potential up-cycle of impairment allowances, especially those highly exposed to the energy sector (CIMB, Maybank and RHB Bank) as energy prices have been under pressure due to the perceived economic slowdown both domestically and globally.”

    Kenanga Research expects mild compression for net interest margin (NIM) as most of the banks’ loan-to-deposit ratio and loan-to-fund ratio are over 90% and 80%, respectively, as compression will be mitigated by soft credit demand. The deferment of NSFR (net stable funding ratio) into 2020 plus the absence of high credit demand will support the outlook for a stable to mild compression in NIM.

    “However, looking at the slowing momentum in household demand, we do not discount the likelihood of competitive lending rates in the short term as banks strive to achieve their loan growth target. This competition will ultimately lead to further downside pressure on NIM.”

    The research house has revised downwards the 2018/2019 earnings estimates by 80bps/30bps to +6.7%/+5.6% respectively.

    “For 2019, earnings are slower at +5.6% year-on-year (yoy) as we based from these assumptions of credit charge at 0.33%; and slight compression on NIM by 3bps and a higher pace from fee-based income (+6.6% yoy due to a lower base).”

    It also toned its outlook on loan growth for FY18 at +4.7% (from +4.9% previously) on account of revision of prevailing headwinds.

    Kenanga Research reiterated its outperform call for BIMB Holdings Bhd, as its financing portfolio (70% of total financing) is skewed towards household (75% first-time buyers for residential property) with focus on growing its personal financing will minimise NIM compression.

    Another preferred pick is Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB), which is expected to achieve 3-4% growth driven by corporate loans/financing as another RM950 million is expected to be disbursed in Q4 18.

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  • Malaysia’s November export growth expected to slow to 3%

    Malaysia’s November export growth expected to slow to 3%

    RAM Ratings expects Malaysia’s export growth to decelerate to 3% in November 2018, as front-loading activities that had temporarily propped up exports by 17.7% in October subside. The rush to front-load orders in October was driven by greater concerns over the planned increase in US tariffs – from 10% to 25% – on US$200 billion (RM827 billion) of Chinese imports, the ratings agency said in a note today.

    RAM is of the view that the export stimuli will remain limited over the next few months – a scenario further supported by a contraction in China’s manufacturing export orders in the last several months.

    In line with the weaker external demand, RAM expects that import growth would ease to 1.8% in November.

    Overall, the trade surplus is projected to come in at RM11.1 billion in November.

    To date, Malaysia has yet to ratify the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) that came into force on Dec 30 with seven members.

    That said, RAM’s head of research Kristina Fong opined that Malaysia’s absence is unlikely to have significant implications for its trade performance in the near term, given that it already has free trade agreements (FTA) with five of the seven signatories.

    “The two remaining countries, Canada and Mexico, constitute a small share of overall exports at just 0.4% and 1%, respectively, thus limiting potential adverse trade diversion away from Malaysia,” she explained.

    Furthermore, she said this trade diversion risk is also mitigated by the fact that the tariff reductions on major goods imported from Malaysia that also overlap with key imports from other CPTPP members, is mostly less than one percentage point.

    While the direct impact of Malaysia’s absence from the deal could be muted in the short run, RAM said it could potentially cause the country to lose out over the long term as regional members in the multilateral FTA could be favoured as foreign direct investment destinations.

    “Standardised rules of origin and lower regulatory barriers brought about by the CPTPP could entice firms to more readily build up supply chains between member countries. This dynamic could in turn foster the development of new industries and global value chains and build new capacities within this alliance,” it added.

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  • China Slowdown, Trade Disputes Weigh on Asia Factory Activity

    China Slowdown, Trade Disputes Weigh on Asia Factory Activity

    Factory activity weakened across Asia in December as the Sino-US trade war and a slowdown in Chinese demand hit production in most economies, strengthening the case for a pause in interest rate hikes in the region in 2019. A series of purchasing managers’ indexes (PMI) for December released on Wednesday mostly showed declines or slowdowns in manufacturing factory activity across the region. In China, the Caixin/Markit PMI slipped into contraction territory for the first time in 19 months, broadly tracking an official survey released on Monday.

    China’s weakness spilled over to other Asian economies, with Malaysia’s manufacturing activity shrinking to its weakest pace of expansion since it launched the survey in 2012 and Taiwan contracting to its lowest since September 2015.

    Meanwhile, official economic data out of Singapore showed its gross domestic product grew more slowly than forecast in the fourth quarter as the city-state’s manufacturing sector contracted on a quarterly basis.

    In other regions, the eurozone was expected to post steady manufacturing activity growth, while US activity was seen a tad slower, but firmly in expansion territory, in a sign that so far China has suffered more bruises from its trade frictions than the United States.

    With growth slowing and inflation below or barely within the target in most countries, Asian central banks are unlikely to continue their tightening cycle this year, barring any shocks in currency markets.

    “We are really seeing a global slowdown into this year, and in Asia, particularly export-oriented countries are hurting,” said Irene Cheung, Asia strategist at ANZ.

    “Our expectation for central banks is that most of them won’t change policy in 2019 and these numbers coming out on the weak side won’t change that outlook.”

    The world’s two largest economies agreed at the start of December to a 90-day truce following tit-for-tat tariffs that have disrupted the flow of hundreds of billions of dollars of goods between the two countries.

    The two sides have pledged to hold frequent talks in the next two months, but uncertainty over whether they can bridge massive differences over commercial practices and intellectual property rights remains very high, despite US President Donald Trump noting “big progress” in a tweet.

    Tariffs are not the only drag on China’s economy. Beijing’s sustained drive to reduce debt risks in the economy has cooled the property market and curbed credit flows to the private sector. Meanwhile, the government’s intensified crackdown on pollution has dented industrial activity.

    In a key annual conference last month, China’s top leaders said they will boost support for the economy in 2019 by cutting taxes and keeping liquidity ample while promising to continue negotiations with Washington.

    “The People’s Bank of China may have to ease further to offset the impact of tariffs,” said Robert Michele, chief investment officer and head of fixed income, J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

    China’s economic growth slowed to 6.5 percent in the third quarter of last year, the weakest since the global financial crisis. As reported, government advisers had recommended a growth target of 6.0-6.5 percent for this year at the annual meeting, though the final figure won’t be made public until the annual parliament meeting in early March.

    Oil Drive

    A sharp drop in the crude price at the end of last year has helped sentiment in Asia’s oil-importing economies, where trade deficits are a key vulnerability.

    Indonesia’s PMI index, although still weak historically, rose to 51.2 from November’s 50.4, a four-month high. India’s declined to 53.2 from 54.0 but capped the strongest quarter for the country’s manufacturing sector since late 2012. Philippines PMI was also 53.2.

    But Malaysia, which relies heavily on oil revenues, saw its weakest reading ever at 46.8.

    Taiwan and South Korea, which are heavily focused on tech production, also saw their activity shrink. The US-China trade war affects chip orders and coincides with a slowdown in demand for smartphones globally.

    The contraction in South Korean manufacturing activity continued last month albeit at a slower pace, its PMI showed, with new export orders declining for a fifth consecutive month. Taiwan’s PMI, meanwhile, fell to its lowest since September 2015. Japan publishes PMIs on Jan. 4.

    Vietnam’s PMI fell to 53.8 from November’s 56.5, but the index’s 2018 average was the highest since the survey’s debut in 2011.

    The Southeast Asian economy is widely seen as benefiting from the US-China trade war as companies look to establish operations in the country to avoid the tariff crossfire.

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  • Indonesia Posts Narrowest Budget Deficit in 6 Years in 2018: Finance Minister

    Indonesia Posts Narrowest Budget Deficit in 6 Years in 2018: Finance Minister

    Indonesia posted the smallest fiscal deficit in six years in 2018 and less than initially projected, despite turbulence in its financial markets due to capital outflows, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said in a Facebook post. The estimated budget deficit last year was equal to 1.72 percent of gross domestic product, narrower than both the government’s original plan of 2.19 percent and the latest estimate of 1.83 percent, Sri Mulyani said in a message posted late on New Year’s Eve.

    As a percentage of GDP, that was the smallest since 2012, the former World Bank managing director said.

    The 2018 budget also has a Rp 4.1 trillion ($283 million) surplus in its primary balance, or budget balance before interest payments, which Indrawati said was the first surplus since 2011.

    “We have done our duty to manage government finances well. The year 2018 was not an easy year with fluctuations in the global economy, commodity prices, capital flows and exchange rate,” she said, while also noting higher interest rates at home and globally.

    The rupiah plunged to its weakest in 20 years in 2018 due to capital outflows linked to worries about its twin deficits, US interest rate increases and concerns about the fallout for Asia from the US-China trade war.

    However, inflows towards the end of the year bounced it back and the currency closed the year 6 percent weaker compared with end-2017.

    Sri Mulyani said 2018 income from taxes and other revenue sources grew “high and healthy.” She previously said higher oil prices and a weaker rupiah had resulted in higher government revenues.

    The minister is expected to hold a news conference on budget realization on Wednesday.

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  • Voon Seng Chuan is new AmBank Malaysia chairman

    Voon Seng Chuan is new AmBank Malaysia chairman

    AMMB Holdings Bhd has appointed Voon Seng Chuan (pic) as the new chairman of AmBank (M) Bhd with effect from Jan 1, 2019. “Voon, a Malaysian, aged 60, has been a member of the board of directors of AmBank since June 18, 2015. He is also a member of the board of directors of AMMB,” AMMB said in a stock exchange filing on its directorship/chairmanship transition plan.

    Voon replaces Tan Sri Azman Hashim, 79, who will be retiring from six entities in the AmBank group in stages over a two-year period announced last year.

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  • Indonesia December Inflation Cools, Stays Within Bank Indonesia Target

    Indonesia December Inflation Cools, Stays Within Bank Indonesia Target

    Indonesia’s December annual inflation rate eased, but the pace was quicker than expected, data from the Central Statistics Agency, or BPS, showed on Wednesday. The annual inflation rate in December was 3.13 percent, the agency said, lower than November’s 3.23 percent, but quicker than the median forecast of 2.98 percent. The December rate was well within Bank Indonesia’s target range of 2.5 percent to 4.5 percent for 2018.

    On a monthly basis, the consumer price index rose 0.62 percent due to rising food prices and transportation fares.

    The annual core inflation rate, which excludes government-controlled and volatile prices, was 3.07 percent, matching the poll’s prediction and representing a slight acceleration from November’s 3.03 percent.

    The central bank raised interest rates six times last year to defend the rupiah, which hit its lowest in 20 years in October. However, the currency pared some losses closer to the end of the year due to capital inflows

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  • Indonesian Stock Exchange ends 2018 in the red

    Indonesian Stock Exchange ends 2018 in the red

    Indonesia’s benchmark stock index declined 2.54 percent overall in 2018 amid a rough year for equities globally. Foreign investors sold a net Rp 50.75 trillion ($3.52 billion) in Indonesian stocks for the whole of 2018, compared with Rp 39.6 trillion in 2017. The market capitalization of Indonesia’s stock market meanwhile stood at Rp 7,023 trillion, compared with Rp 7,052 trillion a year earlier.

    The last trading day of 2018 on Friday last week saw the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) closing 0.06 percent higher at 6,194.5.

    Inarno Djajadi, the new chief of the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX), said during Friday’s closing ceremony in South Jakarta, attended by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, that 57 companies listed their shares in 2018. This is a record high.

    Wimboh Santoso, chairman of the Financial Services Authority (OJK), expressed optimism during the event that the JCI would hit a level of between 6,500 and 7,000 next year.

    “We are still upbeat that the JCI has a chance to gain further. The OJK will provide stimulus to encourage more companies to list by offering various instruments,” he said.

    Wimboh said despite negative sentiment from external factors, such as the ongoing trade war between the United States and China, the business community remains optimistic about the Indonesian economy.

    Not Too Bad?

    President Jokowi also expressed optimism that the JCI may perform better next year. Citing IDX data, he said despite the 2.54 percent decline, the JCI was the second-best performer in Asia after India, which saw its benchmark stock index gain 6.17 percent this year overall.

    Jokowi said 2018 was not an easy year for the country’s economy, which was impacted by both external and internal factors.

    He said Indonesia’s large current-account deficit put pressure on the rupiah, which ultimately also affected the financial performance of listed companies. Meanwhile, normalization of US monetary policy, which caused capital outflows from emerging markets such as Indonesia, the US-China trade war and weak commodity prices also impacted Indonesian companies.

    “All of these have caused volatility in the JCI’s performance and dragged down the performance of listed companies,” he said.

    Jokowi said the government was fully committed to strengthening Indonesia’s stock market, as it should not only serve investors’ interests, but also function as a source of long-term funding for local companies to expand their business and help boost the country’s economy.

    According to Inarno, the number of registered investors on the IDX increased by roughly 222,000 to about 851,000, with 29 percent of them actively trading every day.

    The average daily trade for the whole year stood at Rp 8.5 trillion with an average frequency of 386,968. This is the biggest in Asia.

    Fundraising Down

    Fakhri Hilmi, deputy commissioner for capital market supervision at the OJK, said fundraising by Indonesian companies from capital markets in 2018 is estimated at Rp 163 trillion, which is 35.9 percent lower than last year.This figure includes initial public offerings, rights issuances and bond sales.

    “This year’s isn’t as much as last year; the value of IPOs were smaller,” he said.

    More Stocks Booking Losses

    More stocks booked losses in 2018 compared with last year. Of the 619 companies listed on the local bourse, 252 saw gains in their stock prices, while 327 booked losses. The remainder were stagnant.Of the shares that increased in value, 41 booked gains of more than 100 percent, while four increased by more than 1,000 percent.

    They are Super Energy, a company engaged in oil, gas and mining and petroleum transportation services, which saw its stock price rise by 1,450 percent this year, and financial services provider Pool Advista Finance, which saw its stock price jump 1,529 percent.

    The stock price of Prima Cakrawala Abadi, an exporter of fishing products, jumped 2,006 percent and Transcoal Pacific, a sea transportation and logistics service provider, saw its stock price skyrocket by a massive 3,714 percent.

    However, these are penny stocks. Indonesia’s shallow capital markets allow traders and brokers to trick the price of stocks that have low market values.

    Meanwhile, only 11 companies of Indonesia’s top 45 listed companies by market value, known as LQ45, booked gains in 2018.

  • Vietnamese banks deposit rates rise as usual at year end

    Vietnamese banks deposit rates rise as usual at year end

    Banks usually hike deposit interest rates and even offer promotions at the year end, and this year has been no different. On December 19 Sacombank announced a rise in interest rates on deposits of three months from 5.2-5.3 percent to 5.5 percent, and on deposits of 12 months from 6.9 percent to 7.7 percent. VPBank has increased its rates by 0.1-0.7 percentage points, with deposits of 18 months and more carrying the highest rate of 7.8 percent.

    State-owned banks such as BIDV and Vietinbank have hiked rates by 0.1 to 0.5 percentage points.

    The management of a joint-stock bank headquartered in the south said lending usually rises in the last quarter of the year to meet the rising demand for short-term credit to serve the working capital needs of companies.

    As a result, many banks increase their deposit rates, especially for short terms, it said.

    Besides, experts said lenders are running out of time to use 45 percent of short-term capital for medium- and long-term loans, with the ratio to be reduced to 40 percent on January 1.

    The National Financial Supervisory Commission has recently estimated that credit growth to have slowed significantly to 15 percent this year from 18 percent in 2017.

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  • India eyes $100 billion FDI in next two years

    India eyes $100 billion FDI in next two years

    India will aim to receive $100 billion in foreign direct investments in the next two years and special industrial clusters are being created for countries like Japan, South Korea, China and Russia where their companies can invest and operate, Union minister Suresh Prabhu said. The commerce and industry minister said his ministry has also identified sectors and countries which holds huge potential for investments in India.

    “I have given a target. $100 billion of FDI should come from different sectors into India. It will not happen in one year. We have identified companies, sectors and countries and now we are going for road shows to attract investors,” Prabhu said.

    He said India would remain a top destination for foreign investors in 2019 and the ministry would look at all sectoral issues that may come come in the way to attracting overseas investments.

    “For countries like Japan, South Korea, China and Russia, we are creating industrial clusters where they can invest and operate,” Prabhu said.

    The minister said China has agreed to set up industrial parks in India and the Chinese authorities have been asked to give a list of companies that are willing to set up factories in India.

    Similarly, India would be happy to welcome firms from Europe and the US who want to move out of other countries and set up manufacturing bases in India, Prabhu said.

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  • VN-Index ends year 10 percent lower

    VN-Index ends year 10 percent lower

    The VN-Index closed the last trading day of 2018 at 892.54 points, down almost 10 percent from the year’s outset. This was a drop of 93 points from January 2, the first trading day of the year. The benchmark closed below the 900-point mark on Friday, a drop of over 25 percent from its peak at over 1,200 points in April. The VN30-Index, representing the 30 largest tocks in terms of capitalization, closed at 854.99 points, dropping 10.46 from Thursday, or 1.21 percent lower.

    Many stocks in the VN30-Index also ended in the red. Diary giant Vinamilk closed at VND120,000 ($5.2), 2.6 percent lower.

    Vietnam’s top petro importer and distributor Petrolimex fell 5.69 percent to VND53,000 ($2.3), while food company Masan dropped 1.9 percent to VND77,500 ($3.36).

    However, the HNX-Index on the Hanoi Stock Exchange and the UPCoM-Index for unlisted public companies ended in the green, up 0.24 percent and 0.46 percent respectively.

    Vietnam’s largest private firm Vingroup (VIC) ended the day at VND95,300 ($4.13), 6.93 percent lower. Vincom Retail’s VRE stock dropped almost five percent to VND27,000 ($1.17).

    Total market capitalization of all three stock markets, the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Exchange (HOSE), HNX and UPCoM, was VND4 trillion ($173.25 million).

    2018 has proved the most turbulent year for VN-Index since the 2008 crisis, ending an increasing run since 2016.

  • Petronas buys 10% of Block 61 onshore Oman

    Petronas buys 10% of Block 61 onshore Oman

    Petroliam Nasional Bhd (Petronas), through its subsidiary, PC Oman Ventures Ltd (PCOVL) has acquired a 10% stake in Block 61, onshore Oman from Makarim Gas Development LLC (MGD), after the conditions for the completion of the transaction were fulfilled. MGD is a subsidiary of Oman Oil Company Exploration & Production LLC. Petronas said the completion of the transaction was formalised at an event held in Muscat, Oman on Dec 27.

    Following the deal, MGD’s stake in Block 61 will be reduced to 30%, while P Exploration (Epsilon) Ltd as the operator holds the remaining 60% stake.

    Petronas noted that the acquisition of Block 61 marks an important step in realising the group’s growth strategy in the upstream sector in the region and globally, as it aligns its activities to ensure sustainable energy supply.