On March 25, 2008, Samsung Electronics Vietnam was granted its first Investment Registration Certificate (IRC) with a registered investment capital of 670 million USD. Fast forward 14 years to the future, Samsung has established its undeniable position as the largest FDI investor in Vietnam, with the capital amount of nearly 19 billion USD to date, an increase of 32x compared to their starting point in 2008. 

Samsung's statistics revealed that around 50% of its smartphones and tablets are produced in Vietnam and exported to 128 countries and territories, including the US, Europe, Russia and Southeast Asia. Indeed, the presence of large global corporations like Samsung has turned Vietnam into a leading exporter of electronics in the world, especially the categories of phones - components and computers - electronic products - components. According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT), these are also the two commodity categories with the largest export value of Vietnam, accounting for over one third of the national export turnover. Up to now, Samsung has been on a great and effective performance in Vietnam. 

On January 19, Samsung Vietnam announced its business results for 2021 - the year in which the Vietnamese economy suffered a heavy blow from the 4th Covid-19 wave and prolonged social distancing. Despite all difficulties, the total revenue of Samsung Vietnam reached 74.2 billion USD, up 14% compared to 2020, and its export turnover reached 65.5 billion USD, up 16% compared to 2020. “The above growth in sales and exports is due to Samsung's factories strictly complying with epidemic prevention measures as prescribed by the Government of Vietnam when the fourth wave of COVID-19 occurred with complicated developments from the end of April 2021", the press release of Samsung Vietnam stated. The South Korean tech giant noted its manufacturing plants in Vietnam faced numerous difficulties from the disrupted supply chains during the second quarter of 2021, but “comprehensive support from the Government and local authorities have swiftly addressed the issues”.

Most of the corporation’s projects in Vietnam are sized above 100 million USD, including 6 manufacturing factories in Bac Ninh Province, Thai Nguyen Province, and Ho Chi Minh City, along with an R&D centre in Hanoi and an entity in charge of distribution and sales. Most notably, among these, SEV (Bac Ninh) and SEVT (Thai Nguyen) are the two largest Samsung mobile phone factories globally, and SVMC (Hanoi) is Samsung’s largest R&D centre in Southeast Asia with a total investment of over 220 million USD. 

The Future of Development

Mr. Choi Joo Ho, General Director of Samsung Vietnam, affirmed that in response to the dedicated support of the Vietnamese Government, Samsung has not changed their business strategy in Vietnam despite the complications of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to disbursing the entire approved investment capital, every year the corporation has been making additional investments of hundreds of millions of US dollars in order to stabilise plant operations, improve productivity and product quality. By the end of 2021, the total accumulated investment capital of Samsung Vietnam had reached 18 billion USD, equal to 102% of the approved investment capital in 2020 of 17.7 billion USD. 

These substantial investments are expected to be maintained in the future, with more and more diversification in terms of areas of interest, such as R&D, sales and distribution, newer manufacturing product lines, and technology and innovation. Recently, MIT has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Samsung Vietnam Complex on a cooperation project for smart factory development, which aims to support 50 Vietnamese enterprises to apply the smart factory model and train 100 Vietnamese consultants in this field. The corporation shall also look to expand its regional presence in Vietnam, with an eye towards Danang with initial testing projects to deploy 5G network solutions in the central city, as well as exploring possible investments in the hospitality space.

The Role of Vietnam in the GVC of Samsung

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, in 2019, the four major Samsung units including Samsung Thai Nguyen, Samsung Electronics Vietnam, Samsung Display Vietnam and Samsung HCMC CE Complex had achieved total revenue of over 1.5 thousand trillion VND, equivalent to nearly 66 billion USD. Among all global Samsung suppliers, Vietnam’s contributed nearly 20% of net income for the corporation globally. 

The South Korean corporation has also made consistent efforts to increase the participation of Vietnamese enterprises into their global supply chain. In 2019, Mr. Choi Joo Ho reported that 210 Vietnamese enterprises have participated in Samsung's supply chain and that the corporation continues to seek more qualified suppliers in the electricity and electricity sectors. In the period from 2014 to 2019, the number of Vietnamese enterprises selected as the first-tier supplier of Samsung had increased tenfold from 4 to 42 and reached 50 in 2020. Additionally, many other firms had also been selected as Tier-2 suppliers, generating great resonance among the domestic value chains.

Furthermore, the 220 million USD investment that Samsung has made to develop a 11-hectare R&D centre in Hanoi solidifies Vietnam’s evolution in the GVC of this global corporation. The nation is now viewed by Samsung not only as a central manufacturing hub globally, but also as a strategic R&D hub in the region of Southeast Asia and globally. Mr. Choi Joo Ho asserted Samsung’s determination to foster the learning capacity of Vietnamese talents in the frontier fields of AI, IoT, Big Data, and 5G, creating a foundation for the nation to move ahead of the pack in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He also added, “The R&D centre not only proves Samsung’s long-term investment commitment in Vietnam but also shows the group’s determination to support the country in becoming the leading manufacturing hub in Southeast Asia.” With the continuous support from Hanoi People’s Committee, by mid-May 2022, the construction has completed 70% of its workload and the centre is on pace to commence its operations by end of 2022. When the centre starts operating, it is expected to raise the total R&D headcount of Samsung in Vietnam to over 3,000.

Why grow your business in Singapore? Singapore is a desirable area to live and work in due to its favorable tax structure, impressive economy, and huge development potential for businesses.

Singapore, which had previously held the top spot on the ranking for several years running, was ranked by the World Bank as the second-best nation in the world for conducting business in 2020. Singapore was ranked as the world's most globally competitive nation by the World Economic Forum in 2019. Singapore was listed by The Economist's Intelligence Unit as well.

You should learn more about the specific advantages you may anticipate as well as some of the few drawbacks of conducting business in Singapore if you're thinking about expanding to Singapore. Both are covered in this manual so that you may choose wisely for your business.

Benefits of relocating your business to Singapore

The key advantages of conducting business in Singapore are listed below.

1. A booming economy

The size of Singapore's economy is one of the key arguments for expansion there. The strong and expanding economy of Singapore is primarily driven by commerce, finance, and manufacturing. The country's workforce is largely employed in the services industry, which also contributes significantly to the nation's GDP (GDP). The gross national income per person in Singapore was 54,530 dollars as of 2017, and the country's GDP grew by around 3.4 percent in 2018 and 0.73 percent in 2019.

Singapore has a surplus rather than a deficit and has comparatively low rates of unemployment and inflation.

2. Favourable tax regulations

Singapore is well-known on a global scale as a business tax haven. Due to its low tax rates and restricted tax base, the nation is perfect for business growth.

You might be curious about the taxes in Singapore compared to the USA if you're growing from the US. The fact that Singaporean businesses do not have to pay taxes on their profits from foreign sources is a notable distinction. Companies are required to pay taxes on all money earned, regardless of where it was obtained, in some nations, such as the United States. But in Singapore, businesses are only required to pay taxes on the money they made there. Singapore is a desirable alternative for global expansion due of this benefit.

Singapore does not impose a capital gains tax, in contrast to many other nations, notably the US. Businesses can sell their capital assets or investments without having to pay taxes on the proceeds.

In comparison to other nations, Singapore's corporation tax rates are likewise quite low. The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore offers a number of incentives that may allow some businesses to lower their corporate tax rate below the country's flat rate of merely 17 percent.

Startup businesses have substantial tax advantages. Startups may be eligible for a tax exemption of 125,000 Singapore dollars on their first SG$200,000 in income for the first three years of their operations. A firm must have no more than 20 shareholders and at least one of them must own at least 10% of the company's shares in order to qualify for this exemption.

Singapore's favorable tax policy benefits some industries considerably more than others. Global trade firms, foreign banks, and offshore funds that meet the requirements can all benefit from generous tax exemptions or preferential tax rates.

Singapore's low currency taxes are another reason why it attracts so many foreign businesses. Since there are no restrictions on currency repatriation in the nation, companies are free to transfer their funds into and out of Singapore dollars. Singapore differs from many other nations in this regard, where businesses transporting currency may be subject to taxes.

Individual employees in Singapore also pay comparatively little in taxes. Residents of the nation pay a progressive tax rate, with the highest tax bracket, which includes incomes over around $320,000 annually, having a rate of 22%.

3. Total foreign ownership of businesses

Companies and business branches are frequently required to have a predetermined number of local shareholders. Through this method, the local nation gains some influence over the business' operations as well as a small portion of its profits.

However, a Singapore-incorporated corporation may have 100% foreign ownership. Due to the possibility of maintaining complete ownership and control over their new operations, this option makes Singapore an alluring location for business expansion for many multinational corporations.

4. A knowledgeable and skilled workforce

The workforce in Singapore is highly skilled, and its educational achievements are among the highest in the world.

The workforce in Singapore is highly skilled, and its educational achievements are among the highest in the world. The majority of Singaporean students receive large tuition assistance to their home institutions, and higher education is generally accessible.

Universities, polytechnic colleges, and art schools all have graduation rates that are more than 90%.

Singaporean students consistently place first in the world on international academic assessments, including taking the top spot on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and being responsible for all but one of the exams' flawless results in 2016.

The depth and caliber of Singapore's workforce are only increased by the country's welcoming immigration policies. Singapore is a reasonably straightforward place to get a work visa because it attracts excellent specialists from all over the world.

5. Minimal deterioration

Singapore has severe anti-corruption laws, and taking a bribe will result in serious consequences. Public employees frequently earn substantial salaries, which reduces their motivation to ask for bribes or otherwise participate in corrupt practices.

As a result, businesses can conduct their operations with little threat of becoming bogged down in bureaucratic red tape or losing money to dishonest officials. Their businesses become more profitable and efficient, and they can trust in the laws and financial policies already in place.

6. Convenient market accessibility and a central location

Your company will have simple access to many other Asian markets if you conduct business in Singapore. Since Singapore sits in the middle of Southeast Asia, several of the continent's biggest economies, such as Australia, China, Malaysia, and India, are easily accessible by plane.

Around 36 million shipping containers pass through Singapore's port each year, making it one of the busiest in the world. There is also a lot of airplane activity at the airport. You can readily obtain resources, transfer your goods promptly to their final location, and support the strong relationships on which your firm depends thanks to Singapore's location and shipping and travel capabilities.

Problems to take into account during expansion

Additionally, your business needs to be aware of the biggest difficulties in growing in Singapore. The main obstacles you might have to overcome include the following:

1. Registering and incorporating your business

The procedure of creating a subsidiary-based entity in Singapore will probably be difficult, expensive, and time-consuming. You must finish a lengthy list of prerequisite tasks. These include, among many other related requirements, signing up for work injury compensation insurance, opening a bank account, applying for a tax number, creating a distinctive company seal, and registering with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA).

By choosing to deal with an Employer of Record (EOR) instead, your business can streamline the way it handles this difficulty. Since you collaborate with an established organization when you engage with a respected worldwide EOR, you can often get around these requirements for establishment.

2. Getting electrical accounts and building licenses

In general, you'll need to secure written authorization, get your structural pans approved, and get technical clearance.

If your company plans to break ground on a new building, you should attend that obtaining a building permit may require lots of time and effort.  Obtaining written permission have to be completed to get approval for your structural plans, and get technical clearance. Your company will like need to consult with the advice and comments from several regulatory bodies including the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, the Land Transport Authority, and the Commissioner for Workplace Safety and Health. According to the World Bank's research, this process takes about 35 days on average.

After finishing all steps, you’ll also need to get electrical services which the process takes about a month. The company must establish an account and make payment of the relevant fees before connecting your new facility to the power grid.

3. Ensuring law compliance

Singapore’s laws have some differences from the laws you are used to in your home country. Do your research carefully and thoroughly on the applicable regulations to ensure you comply with the laws if you have plans to set up a subsidiary.

Besides, you need to make sure registration with the ACRA, have at least one local director who holds an annual general meeting for your business, and complies with the Common Reporting Standards (CRS). Complying with this condition is very important because if you do not meet many of the requirements, your business could face stiff penalties.

You’ll also need to learn to navigate the red tape related to doing business in Singapore.  To meet all requirements before operating legally, you could consult with experts who can give you some useful advice in terms of legal matters. Thanks to this, you manage the process most efficiently. When you work with an EOR who is an established entity in place, you could make sure that you understand legal matters and gain peace of mind regarding legal requirements when you set up a new subsidiary. 

4. Keep up with the competition

The business environment in Singapore is known globally for its many opportunities and advantages. Many companies and businesses from countries around the world have chosen this country to set up new branches in this country to take advantage of the existing and potential economic benefits of Singapore.

If you intend to expand into Singapore, you will face fierce competition not only from these strong foreign companies but also from thriving local businesses. Therefore, if you want to employ talented employees and attract customers interested in your product, you will likely need to work with experts, asking for their advice and experience.

5. Dealing with labor shortages

If you plan to expand to Singapore, you will work with employees who are from other countries. Singapore has historically relied on international staff, leading to diversity in the workforce and cross-cultural conversations in the workplace. This diverse workforce brings benefits for businesses expanding into Singapore from abroad.

However, ever-tightening international labor quotas cause difficulties for businesses working in Singapore These strict limits related to political issues sometimes result in labor shortages and challenges for companies that need to recruit a large number of qualified employees.

Besides,  you will likely do some surveys, research, and analyze numbers in the reality and their change. For example, in 2020, Singapore reduced the quotas for its construction, processing, and marine shipyard industries from 20% to 15% to reduce its reliance on international labor and create chances for native Singaporeans.

How Globalization Partners can help

Whenever you are ready for your plan of expanding to Singapore, Globalization Partners will support and help your company. We can help you cope with challenges regarding expansion and create opportunities even when you face the challenges.

Working with Globalization Partners, you will likely get some advantages as follows:

• Streamlined, state-of-the-art employee management: At Globalization Partners, we use a completely automatic system of employee management with an AI-driven technological platform to monitor and manage effectively your processes including recruiting, hiring, onboarding, and payroll. These outstanding features can help your company save time in terms of management because you can take over and work on many tasks at the same time every single day.
• Easy, protected access: No matter where you are, you completely access our automated platform as it is cloud-based. It is easy to access by any equipment such as a laptop, desktop, or mobile device. This platform also ensures your sensitive data and private information are in the cloud.
• Enhanced regulatory compliance: Globalization Partners has many years of experience and long relationships in Singapore. We know thoroughly about legal matters in Singapore. As a result, the companies work with us, you will not be worried whether your hiring process or employment use complied with all relevant labor laws or not.
• Boosted focus on critical matters: The main task of Globalization Partners related to the administrative, legal, and human resources responsibilities of attracting and managing new employees. If your company has the department to help you manage and monitor this process, you can focus your attention on your most significant challenges and run your own business in the new market.

As you get ready to set up a subsidiary and build international teams in Singapore, working with Globalization Partners, you will use comprehensive, trusted solutions. With our end-to-end technology platform, you can save time and energy in terms of hiring, onboarding, and managing your team members. Moreover, all legal matters and requirements are ensured and complied with according to Singapore Laws, which helps you focus on innovations, and utilize all chances in a new Singaporean market. 

Looking back at Singapore's effective FDI attraction policy, which has made many enterprises choose Singapore an attractive destination for enterprises to invest. Thereof some experience and reference solutions can be drawn for Vietnam.

For the first 6 months of 2020 only, Singapore has attracted about SGD 14.3 billion 

A recent OECD research found that global FDI activity is estimated to drop down by about 30% this year. This drop is especially evident in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors compared to the service sector or in research and development (R&D) intensive activities.

Thanks to the favorable business environment that will be a factor that helps Singapore attract more foreign investment capital, especially in the field of engineering and technology.

For the first half of 2020 only, Singapore has attracted about S$14.3 billion in fixed asset investments – equivalent to 95% of total committed investment for the whole of 2019. Singapore has attracted S$15.2 billion in 2019 is the highest rate within the past 7 years.

Said Kiren Kumar, Singapore Economic Development Board Executive Vice President, thanks to the friendly business environment, strict compliance with the laws and deep connections, Singapore continues to be a hub for many foreign companies to increase their investment and operations.

Said Mr. Kiren, some of the companies that have announced they would invest in Singapore this year including Paypal, Rakuten, Kajima, Johnson Controls, Twitter and Zoom. Descartes Underwriting insurance technology company based in France is also planning to open an office in Singapore, after having raised a capital contribution of S$25.3 million. 

Singapore's particularly effective FDI attraction policies 

1. Non-discrimination against foreign investment:

Although there is no specific law on investment, Singapore is one of the most successful countries in ASEAN in qualified foreign investment attraction. Instead of enacting a specific law, investment activity in Singapore is governed by common laws, such as general contract law, corporate law and industry-specific laws. In general, there is no discrimination between foreign investment and domestic investment, except for some special cases provided for by specific laws.

Singapore restricts foreign investment in such sectors as telecommunications, media, banking and land ownership. Restrictions on foreign investment are set forth in the relevant industry law. For example, the Press and Printing Law restricts foreign control of press companies. In practice, restrictions on foreign investment are made by the relevant regulatory authorities. For example, Singapore’s Monetary Authority stipulates foreign investment in the banking sector through a licensing system, established under Section 7 of the Banking Act.

Singapore also launched a series of investment encouragement initiatives for all investors, not for the foreign investors only. For example, Chapter 10 of the Economic Expansion Promotion Act allows tax deduction for the capital expenditures in the approved project. This incentive including the designation of investments as approved projects, is administered by the Economic Development Board (EDB) and is open to domestic and foreign companies.

Although there is no specific law on investment, Singapore is one of the most successful countries in ASEAN in qualified foreign investment attraction. Instead of enacting a specific law, investment activity in Singapore is governed by the common laws, such as common contract law, corporate law and industry-specific laws. In general, there is no discrimination between foreign investment and domestic investment, except for some special cases provided for by specific laws.

2. Combination between financial policy and labor policy:

In the 1960s, Singapore first introduced such tax incentives as incentives for pioneering companies, incentives and investment support activities, and incentives when enterprises base their headquarters in Singapore, aimed at FDI attraction through the Law on Encouragement of Economic Expansion. In 2010, the act was amended to facilitate various technical and professional services to encourage previously restricted industries such as banking, press-printing, electronics and telecommunications.

In the late of 1970s and 1980s, in order to be able to compete with neighboring countries at low costs, Singapore found that they are necessary to move up to high-value manufacturing activities and upgrade the skills of the workforce. The concentration continued to shift in the late 1980s and 1990s to promote high-value manufacturing activities. From 2000-2010, Singapore focused on promoting investment and growth based on innovation and knowledge. Pharmaceuticals and biomedical technology is one of the recent fields of interest.

For over the years of development, Singapore has built a high-quality infrastructure, a stable investment environment, a stable political background and an industrious and disciplined workforce, one of the world's most favorable places for business activities. Particularly, Singapore is famous for its best enforcement of intellectual property rights.

To resolve the shortage of skilled workers, companies are encouraged to hire foreign workers. 4% tax levied on employers who pay workers less than the legal limit is an effective way to force companies to improve the skills of workers. After the crises of 1985, although this tax rate drops down to 1%, it still plays an important role in improving the skills of workers.

More recently, EDB has adopted a clustering approach, focusing on companies engaged in the electronics-semiconductors, petrochemicals, and processing industries. The clustering approach is an industrial policy tool to attract FDI, at the same time, strengthen the linkages and spillovers; detect gaps and potentials, help the government policy to deal with the underlying causes of market failure and can support services or prepare infrastructure for the common use purpose.

3. The administrative apparatus processes the affairs extremely quickly:

For over the years, Singapore is famous for its smooth and fast administrative apparatus, with effective collaboration between the relevant agencies to help enterprises operate and develop easily. Foreign enterprises only need to apply for an operating license and register for establishment, through the control of the Accounting and Business Administration (ACRA), in such many forms as opening subsidiaries, branch offices, representative offices. The registration procedures are very transparent and consistent, as well as the preferential tax regime and effective partnership and 100% foreign ownership.

Moreover, Singapore government also creates favorable and easy conditions for entry and residence visas for aliens who want to do business in Singapore. With the government’s maximum support through programs and incentives, Singapore is recognized as the world's easiest place to carry out business as well as the most competitive economy in the region.

4. Simple and friendly tax system:

Another advantage of Singapore is the tax system, which is considered as "simple and friendly with investors". The highest corporate tax rate is only 17%. This is the lowest corporate tax rate in the world. In addition, Singapore has signed double taxation agreements (DTA) with more than 70 countries around the world, thereby making an important contribution to reducing tax burden for foreign enterprises. The expansion DTA network, coupled with zero capital gains tax and dividend income, has made Singapore as an attractive place for business investment through the partnership form.

A company selling its shares to new investors can be done in a few hours in Singapore, while that process takes weeks in many other countries. Since there is an anti-double taxation agreement between the two countries, there is no additional tax burden, but Singapore is definitely not a "tax haven" like some other places that often appear prominently in the foreign investment lists.

5. A transparent, fair and impartial legal system:

Singapore's legal system also works very efficiently. The legal ground is continuously updated and renewed to suit the current cultural, economic and commercial environment. Singapore inherits the legal system from the UK and develops into its own identity, Singapore's legal system has been highly appreciated for its efficiency and consistency so far. Enterprises in Singapore must not have to witness the slow legal process, reducing business efficiency.

Singapore government considers the law approach as a fundamental economic value, operated to enhance Singapore's reputation as a leading legal and commercial hub in Asia. Singapore's commercial law system is known as fairness and impartiality, making the Lion Island nation become the natural choice for dispute resolution, especially conciliation and arbitration, in the Southeast Asia. Singapore's regulatory framework has created a fair playing field for foreign investors, as there are no restrictions on foreign ownership and no foreign exchange controls.

Singapore's economic strength lies in an open trade mode, a stable political and legal environment, prudent macroeconomic policies, competitive tax rates, a transparent regulatory environment and an effective regulatory framework, thereby Singapore is turned into the most attractive destination for multinational companies in the region.

What experience for Vietnam?

Looking back at Singapore's effective policies in FDI attraction, which has made many enterprises choose an attractive destination for them to invest, to take few experiences for Vietnam.

1. Singapore has clearly identified that FDI attraction focuses on three priority fields: new manufacturing, construction and export. In addition, depending on the specific conditions of each period, Singapore plans FDI attraction into appropriate industries. Along with the rapid development of the electronics industry and a few other advanced technologies, the investment capital is spent on such industries as: manufacturing computers, electronics, and selling consumer goods, oil refining industry and mining engineering... To implement its export-oriented industrial development strategy, Singapore established the Economic Development Board (EDB), which is an independent government agency that operates on the rule of one-stop, research and development, considers investor requirements and aims at the national key industries (e.g ship repair, metalworking, chemicals, equipment and components).

In the recent time, EDB has adopted a clustering approach, focusing on the companies engaging in the electronics-semiconductor, petrochemical, and processing industries. The clustering approach is an instrument of industrial policy to attract FDI and strengthening the linkages and spillover effects. In order to exploit the advantages of geographical location, as well as overcome the shortage of natural resources, in accordance with the high development level of the economy, FDI attraction also aims at creating a system of service industries to promote international investment.

2. Singapore government has created a stable and attractive business environment for foreign investors. Singapore government has publicly stated that they shall not nationalize foreign enterprises. In addition, Singapore also pays great attention to building infrastructure, serving production activities. The licensing procedure is simple and convenient. There are the projects that apply for a license and then go into production within a few months, and there are the projects that can go into production within 49 days.

3. Singapore has built a complete, strict, fair and effective legal system. Corruption is prosecuted very seriously, all domestic and foreign enterprises are treated equally, everyone works and obeys the law. In addition, the State pays very high salaries to public employees. Every month, they have to deduct part of their salary as a retirement savings. If they commit embezzlement in the course of work, this accumulation will be cut off and dismissed. Employees not only lose money accumulated by them over the years, they could also be sentenced in jail. It is called as this the integrity fund for officials.

4. The Singapore government has issued the policies to encourage foreign capitalists to invest capital. Singapore applies very special preferential policies, which are: When business is profitable, foreign investors are free to repatriate profits; The investor has the right of residence on entry (privilege on entry and naturalization); Investors who have deposited capital in Singapore from S$250,000 or more and have an investment project, their family is entitled to Singapore citizenship.

Recommendation

From the reality of the recent years, Vietnam is potential to remain a "destination" of FDI activities, not a "hub" like Singapore. However, Vietnam needs to implement some necessary structural reforms in terms of administrative efficiency, corporate governance rules, legal process and a team of highly qualified workers in many different fields before being able to compare Singapore as a FDI hub.

Vietnam is an attractive destination for FDI attraction because Vietnam has a semi-skilled workforce with competitive wages compared to the global manufacturers. And Vietnam is a viable alternative to China and Vietnam has become a production hub in the recent times.

However, it should be noted that Vietnam is one of the countries with the fastest aging population in the world, Vietnam will be short in young and high-productivity workers in the medium term. Vietnam also needs to offer more systematic incentives to attract foreign talent to Vietnam, or offer the targeted incentives to attract investment in specific activities.

It is important thing for Vietnam to attract investments that create a lot of added value. In fact, Vietnam is probably in charge of the lowest value-added part in the global value chain that is assembling and sewing products. Vietnam must seriously review its national capacity in R&D, like logistics or marketing. This requires a review of the education system at many levels.

Vietnamese appropriate authorities can also actively pursue a policy of building industrial clusters. A recent similar success is Apple's headphone assembly industry cluster in Bac Giang province. Assembly companies have attracted other component suppliers to base the production facility near their factories. Ultimately, this budding industry cluster may attract other headphone manufacturers here thanks to the availability of skilled human resources in the audio department.

And the most important thing, the shift to more value-creating activities in Vietnam requires a change in the mindset of entrepreneurs and enterprises. People are focusing too much on "tangible assets" like factories, but not enough on "intangible assets" like R&D, reputation developing, knowledge or design skills. Consolidating business capability in these categories is a real challenge for the current and future generations of enterprise leaders.

Vietnam is possible to remain a "destination" of FDI activities rather than a "hub" like Singapore. Vietnam needs to carry out some necessary structural reforms in terms of efficiency, corporate governance, legal process, and a highly skilled workforce in various fields before Vietnam can compare to Singapore as an FDI hub.

Source : Phaply.net

Each nation has their own different approaches to the fourth industrial revolution, Singapore has basically known to how to take their advantages, opportunities to approach the industrial development in their own way.

Singapore is one of many nations around the world to soon announce a program related to The fourth industrial revolution. 

Despite Singapore is an island nation with a limited area and its economy mostly depends on services. Singapore is aware of the importance of the processing, manufacturing industry in promoting innovation, thence to replicate such ideas to other industries. 

In Singapore’s economic structure, the processing and manufacturing industry maintains at 20 %. Singapore's fourth industrial revolution program focuses on developing the future factory, enterprise and value chain models based on the fourth industrial revolution, using the outstanding technologies of the fourth industrial revolution, including the combination of production technology with information technology, in the manufacturing industry, advanced materials, additive manufacturing (3D printing), robotics and automation. The future factory model is researched for Singapore's key industrial sectors, including chemicals, electronics, pharmaceuticals, precision mechanics, automotive mechanics... 

Singapore's fourth industrial revolution program aims at improving the corporate capacity of new technology absorption and the domestic industry via three strategies of technology capacity improvement, digital transformation at the industry and enterprise level, and human resource development. 

To have these strategies carried out effectively, Singapore has established a tripartite cooperation mechanism for the strategies with the participation of public organizations, enterprises and universities. Nayang University is an official member involved in formulating and implementing the strategies on technological capacity and human resource development.

Singapore's industrialization experience

Singapore's industrial policy may be summarized with several key features as follows: the state’s strong intervention to promote industrialization; strengthen restructuring of the economy and a few priority areas; attract the resources based on free trade and foreign direct investment; invest in infrastructure and human resources to improve production supply; maintain a stable business environment and industry relations; use fiscal stimulus tools to reduce the cost burden on enterprises.

Since the early 1960s, Singapore has successfully transformed from the role of a British cargo port and military base into a regional industrial and service hub. In the 1960s, industry accounted for only 12% of GDP and focused on the activities related to raw material processing and military logistics.

In the period of 1959-1965, Singapore’s Government adopted the import substitution industrialization strategy which aims at providing the new economic pillar, strengthening its role as a trade transshipment port while creating jobs for the rapidly growing workforce. Singapore's industrialization plan in the early 1960s was mostly based on the Survey Report of the United Nations Delegation on Industry. The Delegation's report lists the economically viable industries in shipbuilding and repair, metal engineering, chemicals, electrical equipment as well as industrial park development plans, economic, organizational and operational measures to promote the production of developing priority industries.

The report content also recommends that Singapore Government should continue to protect production to several industries and adopt the policies to encourage the domestic manufacturing sector to participate in the industrialization process. The government must directly invest in the fields in which foreign investors or private domestic enterprises do not engage.

With a small size (population of 2 million at the time of separation from Malaysia in 1965), Singapore did not choose the protection policy of the nascent industries because it was a policy choice that required so many resources. Instead, the nation chose a free trade mechanism as the foundation for the industrialization process; Therefore, the process of making and implementing Singapore’s industrial policy is very different from that of other East Asian countries.

In addition, there are almost no domestic enterprises with strong enough industrial production capacity at the starting point, Singapore government decided to work closely with the transnational companies at the very beginning period of the industrialization process. As a result, Singapore has the highest percentage of FDI in total economic investment in the whole world, even higher than the fully free economy like Hong Kong.

However, this does not mean that Singapore is pursuing an industrial policy that completely trusts in the market movements, but on the contrary, in the fields considered to be important, determines the national competitiveness, Singapore government established the state-owned enterprises (SOEs) operating and restricting the participation of the multinational corporations.

Singapore Airlines is a very successful state-owned enterprise, along with such other industries as shipbuilding and telecommunications which are also assumed and played a leading role by SOEs, resulting in Singapore’s big size SOE sector in the world in terms of the economy ratio. If from 1970 to 1990, the public sector’s market share of total fixed capital in Korea was about 10%, the corresponding figure in Singapore was more than 30-36% in the 1960s, 27 % in 1970, and 30% in 1980. In other words, Singapore's industrial picture feature is the big companies or the branches of multinational corporations or state-owned companies.

If in the period of 1971-1990, Singapore focused on upgrading the industrial sector, along with tax, financial incentives, in order to become an investment destination for exporting multinational corporations, the 1991 period marked Singapore Strategic Economic Development Plan with a 30-year vision. This strategy positions Singapore within the next 20-30 years to become a regional and global business and manufacturing hub, with the two main drivers of growth which are high-tech manufacturing, high added value and services.

Upon the adoption of an industry policy friendly to multinationals does not mean that Singapore permits the transnational companies to decide which sectors to invest in; instead Singapore government has targeted FDI in the industrial sectors that are important for enhancing national competitiveness by investing the favorable conditions in terms of human resources and infrastructure as well as providing financial incentives.

Source: Vietnam Ministry of Industry and Trade

Electric motorbikes are becoming more and more popular in the market.

However, to clarify whether to choose an electric motorbike or a traditional gasoline motorbike, let's make a comparison of the cost of use to know which is more economical.

Whether it is an electric motorbike or a gasoline motorbik

they all have some of the most basic costs such as fuel costs, monthly maintenance fees. Clearly identifying information about these expenses will tell you which vehicle is more economical to use.

Whether it is an electric motorbike or a gasoline motorbik

1. Fuel cost for 1 month

Whether it is an electric motorbike or a gasoline motorbik

To know which is more economical, the fuel cost of electric motorbikes or gasoline motorbikes, let's solve the following small math problems.

Whether it is an electric motorbike or a gasoline motorbik

Example: An office worker's travelling for work and go-out is 10km/day, 300km per month.

Gasoline motorbikes

Gasoline motorbikes with 120cc engines consume 2.5 liters of gasoline per 100km. The current petrol price is VND 26,830/liter (price of RON 95 petrol).

Travelling 1km will cost about 670 VND for petrol. The daily cost is 13,415 VND, the monthly cost is 402,000VND

Electric motorbike

Using an electric motorbike for traveling 80km with a 22Ah battery consumes 3 kW. One domestic kW is about 3,000 VND. As a result, 1km travelling costs 100 VND. Oneday travelling of 10km costs 2,000VND, one month travelling costs 60,000VND.

From these figures, we can easily see that the fuel cost of gasoline motorbikes is up to 6.7 times higher than that of electric motorbikes. That means electric cars is more economical at a much more optimal cost.

2. Maintenance costs for 1 month

In addition to fuel costs, maintenance costs are also an aspect that you need to consider when using a car.

Gasoline motorbikes

- Depending on the time of use, the condition of the vehicle, the maintenance cost for gasoline motorbikes will be different. On average, the maintenance cost of gasoline motorbikes ranges from 20,000 – 150,000/time, depending on the fault.

- In addition, with gasoline motorbikes, you will have to change the oil once every 1-2 months. The cost is at least 100,000/time.

- In addition, the internal combustion engine of a gasoline motorbike has a much more complex structure than that of an electric engine, so the maintenance cost for the engine of a gasoline motorbike is also much more expensive if the motorbike is degraded.

Electric motorbikes

- If you rent a battery, the cost will be from 149,000 VND/month.

- If you buy a battery, you will have to replace it when the car battery is damaged. New battery purchase price: 12-15 million VND. Lifespan is 10 years. As a result, the monthly cost is 125,000 VND

Thus, if only comparing the two types of fuel costs and maintenance costs alone, using electric motorbikes is more advantageous than motorbikes. Not to mention, the price of gasoline is on an upward trend, when only 2 months in the beginning of 2022, the price has increased by 5 times, making many people have the intention of switching to electric motorbikes to reduce costs.

Source : afamily

After the successful launch of two electric cars in the D and E segments at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November 2021 in the US, VinFast continues to make impression at CES 2022 with the launch of 3 electric car models in segments A, B, C, creating a complete product range, spread evenly in all segments.

The reason VinFast chooses CES 2022 as the place to complete the electric vehicle range

Initially held in 1967 in the US, the CES Consumer Electronics Show has quickly become the largest and most influential technology event in the world. The event is considered to be the convergence of breakthrough technologies and global innovators, the place of shaping and leading the world's future technology trends.

In recent years, CES has gradually surpassed the world auto shows when becoming the intersection between the auto manufacturing industry and the electronics industry in the global mobility revolution, especially when electric cars are becoming a true high-tech product. Automakers want to come to CES in search of competitive weapons by incorporating the latest technologies in the field of consumer electronics.

That is also one of the reasons that Vietnamese car manufacturer VinFast decided to participate in this exhibition for the first time this year, opening with the event "EV Day".

Reopening after a 1-year of interruption due to the COVID-19 epidemic, this year's CES exhibition has attracted more than 2,200 businesses with many of the world's top names from nearly 140 countries to join in directly. It is expected that in 3 days of CES 2022, there will be more than 75,000 visitors and events.

For a green future for everyone

Participating in the CES 2022 exhibition with the message "Destination: Future", VinFast strongly believes that the only way to solve the current climate crisis is to "live greener - smarter" together.

Sharing about the process of transforming production from gasoline cars to electric cars, Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy - Vice President of Vingroup and Global General Director of VinFast said: "Less than 4 years ago, I was honored to introduce VinFast's first gasoline cars to the world. Today, I am proud to stand here with a lineup of 5 smart electric car models that are evenly distributed in the A-B-C-D-E segments. 4 years is usually just enough to start a car company, but VinFast has made an extraordinary journey, far beyond the imagination of many people. From a rookie gasoline car company, VinFast has quickly become the most trusted and loved car brand in Vietnam and is entering the ranks of the pioneers of electric vehicle production, opening the 'Future of mobility' for everyone".

According to Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy, VinFast's rapid breakthrough and all-limit-surpassing comes from a solid launch platform, the parent Vingroup. Setting itself the mission of "For a better life for everyone", with 3 core pillars of Industrial Technology - Trade Services - Social Charity, Vingroup identifies technology as the key to every transformation, helping to create a smarter, more sustainable future for everyone. Technology is being strongly applied, contributing to creating breakthrough changes in the fields in which the Group is operating such as real estate, resort, healthcare, education, business and especially the auto industry.

"You will no longer be surprised by the extraordinary speed of VinFast when knowing that supporting VinFast is an ecosystem of technology - innovation companies invested by Vingroup like VinES - the company we use to invest in battery technology, or companies in the fields of artificial intelligence, machine learning, multidisciplinary data analysis such as VinAI, VinBigData, VinBrain and Vantix... To encourage creative breakthroughs, the founders of Vingroup also launched the annual VinFuture science and technology award to promote the spirit of innovation and humanity serving. Results and prizes will be announced on January 20, 2022 in Hanoi" - General Director of VinFast Global added.

At the event, Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy also announced that VinFast will officially become a 100% electric vehicle company by the end of 2022.

"VinFast will be the pioneer car company in the world to stop manufacturing gasoline cars to completely switch to manufacturing pure electric vehicles. For us, a sustainable future for the planet and people is created through the zero-emissions and low-noise mobility, on a platform of smart service and excellent customer experiencing"

The Vietnamese automaker has brought to CES this year 5 electric car models named VF 5, VF 6, VF 7, VF 8 and VF9, of which VF 8 and VF 9 are the two VF e35 and VF e36 models introduced at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November 2021. VinFast Global General Director said that the renaming affirms the consistency of VinFast's pure-electric strategy in the electric vehicle revolution.

Gratitude to the first customers

According to the Global General Director of VinFast, in order to show gratitude to the initial customers, VinFast will launch the program "Pioneers show gratitude to pioneers" for the campaign of soon selling of VF 8 and VF 9 cars - two models that will be delivered by the end of this year.

Specifically, customers in the US who make a reservation of 200 USD in advance will receive a voucher of up to 3,000 USD for the VF 8 and 5,000 USD for the VF 9. Similarly, customers in Europe who make a reservation of 150 euros in advance will receive a discount offer of 2,500 euros for the VF 8 and 4,200 euros for the VF 9.

Particularly in Vietnam market, customers who make a reservation 10 million VND in advance will receive a gratitude gift of 150 million VND for the VF 8 and 250 million VND for the VF 9.

The program starts today (January 6) and lasts for the next 3 months. Voucher is valid until December 31, 2023. In addition, VinFast will also apply blockchain technology to reservations to ensure priority order and privileges for pioneers.

VF 8 has a starting price of 41,000 USD in the US, 36,884 Euro in Europe and 961 million VND in Vietnam. VF 9 has a starting price of 56,000 USD in the US, 49,280 Euro in Europe and 1 billion 312 million VND in Vietnam. The above price is not inclusive business tax and VAT as well as battery leasing and ADAS and Smart Services packages. VinFast will apply a 10-year warranty policy and battery leasing model. Of which, the unique lifetime battery leasing policy for each vehicle will ensure that the total monthly cost including battery subscription fee and battery charging cost is only equivalent to the cost of gasoline in each market with a specific and transparent calculation method. VinFast will pay the entire cost of battery maintenance and will replace it for free when the charge-discharge capacity of the battery is lower than 70%.

Especially, all vehicles registered in the program " Pioneers show gratitude to for pioneers" will be given a VinFast mobile charger, ADAS service package with lifetime smart services and a holiday package at Vinpearl villas for the whole family for 7 days at one of Vinpearl's 5-star resorts.

With each registration of electric car reservation, VinFast will have a new tree planted, contributing more to green space for the planet.

Realizing the goal of "technology for life"

Sharing about VinFast's technology investments and strategies, Mr. Sang Hong Bae - Deputy General Director of VinFast Technology said: "At VinFast, we consider technology the key to unlocking potentials. new development capabilities, technology that improves the quality of life for people around the world That's why, in addition to our substantial investments in R&D, finance and human resources, we also partner Cooperating with many technology partners around the world to realize the goal of "technology for life", helping VinFast improve vehicle safety as well as increase the driving experience, towards the integration of smart support systems into products".

According to Mr. Sang Hong Bae, VinFast's technology features are divided into two large areas, including ADAS/AD advanced driver assistance system and smart services.

Of which, the ADAS advanced driver assistance system is being researched and developed, including 2 phases. Phase 1, ADAS will be at level 2+ for Eco and Plus versions of VF e35 and VF e36, which will be launched by the end of 2022. Phase 2, ADAS will advance to level 3 and 4 for Premium version, which will be launched early 2023, including a number of typical features such as level 3 self-driving in traffic jams, automatic parking and level 4 vehicle summon. This version also includes features already present in Eco and Plus versions such as Remote parking, smart common, assistance in traffic jams, driver assistance on highways...

VinFast's in-car smart services include Mobile Home with entertainment and smart home control features, Mobile Office, In-car Shopping and Entertainment. VinFast virtual assistant and other familiar virtual assistants will assist users during the experiencing. There is also FOTA which updates software as often as phones to provide more features to users. "The above innovations make VinFast electric cars no longer just a means of transportation, but may become a mobile office or home. VinFast believes that VinFast cars will help you work safely and efficiency, bringing peace of mind and greater connection to the world," emphasized Deputy General Director of VinFast Technology.

The world press gives positive reviews about VinFast

According to an article by Reuters news agency, VinFast is "Vietnam's answer" in the US electric vehicle market. Reuters said that VinFast is betting big on the US market, hoping that electric SUVs and battery leasing models will be attractive to customers of leading US car manufacturers such as Tesla and General Motors to reach new electric vehicle models of Vietnam

With an article on The Driven, a famous Australian auto website, researcher David Waterworth opens with the assertion: "VinFast can easily surpass the 'tigers' in Southeast Asia to develop electric vehicles in the region and around the world".

Swiss television has called VinFast "a challenger to the world's auto industry". Along with that, dozens of other reputable newspapers have also made positive comments about VinFast.

Source : Vtv

In October 2020, serious landslides were caused by rain and floods in many places of the Central region, including 3 landslides causing major casualties at Rao Trang 3 hydropower plant (Thua Thien-Hue), in Quang Tri and at Tra Leng (Quang Nam). Dozens of people, including the residents, workers at the hydropower plant, officials and soldiers in the rescue team were buried. Moreover, many villages were completely buried.

Time race for early, accurate forecast is the optimal solution to minimize loss and casualties.

Loss of 1-1.5% of GDP per year due to natural disasters

Reported the Department of Natural Disaster Response and Remedy (General Department of Natural Disaster Prevention and Control, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), Vietnam is one of the five nations which have been most affected by natural disasters and climate change with the occurrence of 21/22 types of natural disasters, excluding tsunamis. Especially, storms, floods, flash floods, landslides and droughts have been increasing in intensity and frequency.

For over the past 20 years, more than 400 people dead or missing, and material damage of about 1-1.5% of GDP (2.2% as reported by the International Water Institute) have been average caused by annual natural disaster.

Natural disasters occur stronger and more often in Vietnam. Number of very strong storms increased, although the total number of storms are unchanged. Number of days of extreme cold and harmful cold tends to decrease in the North, etc...

Typically, 778 people died, 2,123 people missing during typhoon Linda in November 1997, wind gusts at 9, 10. Then, 729 people died and missing, 544 people were injured, 52,583 houses, 570 schools collapsed and drifted; more than 1 million houses were flooded; 3,000 km of roads was damaged; total damage was estimated at VND 4,133 billion during the two floods in 1999 including heavy rain, pipe floods, flash floods in mountainous areas, landslides and floods.

60 people died and missing; 350 people were injured; 650 houses collapsed and swept away; economic losses of more than VND 11,000 etc. during flash floods and landslides in Quang Nam province in 2020

In 2020, the total number of 357 people killed and missing, economic losses up to VND 39,945 was caused by natural disasters. This is the year of natural disasters took place irregularly, abnormally, fiercely... Especially, from mid-September to mid-November 2020, storms and floods occurred consecutively in the central region with very strong intensity, on a large scale, causing the great damage to people and property, severely affect the life and production of millions of residents in the area.

Particularly, 13 storms in the East Sea hit the whole nation; 264 thunderstorms, whirlwinds, heavy rain hit 49 provinces and cities, of which 9 waves hit almost 21 provinces and cities in the North and the Central Vietnam; 120 floods, flash floods, landslides occurred; especially the historic heavy rain from October 6 to 22 in the Central region; 86 earthquakes, including 2 earthquakes with natural disaster risk level 4 (in Muong Te, Lai Chau on June 16 with the magnitude of 4.9; in Moc Chau, Son La on July 27 with the magnitude 5.3); drought, severe saltwater intrusion, riverbank and coast erosion, sea dyke subsidence occurred in the Mekong Delta...

In 2021, 841 natural disasters occurred nationwide with 18/22 types; in which, the East Sea was experienced storms and tropical depressions. In particular, from September to November, provinces and cities in the Central region were influenced by 4 consecutive storms and 6 large-scale floods. 108 people dead, missing, and 95 people injured estimated loss value of more than VND 5,200 billion caused by various types of natural disasters

AI application for landslide alert

Reported the General Department of Hydrometeorology, Vietnam still uses the superimposing method of the actual rain distribution map to alert flash floods and landslides, forecast the risk of flash floods, the risk of landslides on the maps, the administrative map, the map of rivers and streams, the land cover, topographic map.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment is assigning the specialized agencies to carry out the Project on Investigation, Evaluation and Zoning for alerting the risk of landslides and rockfalls in the mountainous areas of Vietnam.

Another important solution is the application of AI artificial intelligence in the field of hydrometeorology.

The General Department of Hydrometeorology is engaging in the construction of The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment’s shared digital platform with the following contents: building the data integration system based on Big data, especially AI application in device learning and identification to resolve the specific problems in the field of hydrometeorological monitoring and forecasting.

AI research and application suitable to the industry’s specific problems: AI application in storm forecasting, heavy rain quantification and storm surge forecasting are the key research plans; improving the detailed level and reliability of rain forecasting products by various solutions from using high-resolution models, to maximizing the monitoring data of weather radars, meteorological satellites, especially the mountainous provinces.

The General Department also effectively applied the survey products on zoning the places with the risk of flash floods and landslides to set up the detailed real-time flash flood and landslide warning maps to the district and commune levels, with the alerting levels ranging from the low risk to the very high risk.

In order to apply AI on alerting flash floods and landslides, it is necessary to obtain the big interdisciplinary data source (Big data) not only on geotechnical data but also data on geology, vegetation cover, construction... In addition, it is necessary to integrate high-resolution remote sensing data and analytical information from flying devices, taken from above for the high-risk areas.

Early alert to minimize losses.

In 2021, the General Department of Meteorology and Hydrology synthesized, analyzed, and standardized the layers of component base maps and current status maps, zoning maps on the risk of flash floods and landslides for 22 provinces (340 map pieces, scale: 1:50,000); the General Department of Meteorology and Hydrology synthesized, analyzed, and standardized the layers of component base maps and current status maps of flash floods and landslides in 6 key communes (quantity: 32 map pieces, scale 1:10,000, current layer of flash floods).

In 2022, this agency will complete the target of matching the layers of cover, topographic, administrative, and land use maps from 340 pieces into 22 provinces; this agency will standardize more data fields into 4 new layers (cover carpet, topography, administrative boundaries, flash flood status); set up the thresholds for flash floods and landslides, analyze rain data; set up the flash flood alerting software.

Tran Hong Thai, the General Director said that the project’s overall target is to proactively prevent landslides and flash floods, create conditions for socio-economic stability and development, and prevent natural disasters in the mountainous areas, the midlands, contribute to the assurance of the national defense and security.

"Early forecast of landslides helps reducing loss of people and property caused by natural disasters," said Tran Hong Thai, the General Director of the General Department of Meteorology and Hydrology.

Source : VietNam.Net

5G subscribers only gained 0.54%

According to The Mobile Economy 2022 of GSMA, there have been 209 operators deploying commercial 5G globally in 83 countries and will reach 1 billion connections globally by 2022.

The report also shows that investment in 5G will account for a great percentage of mobile operators’ total investment in the period of 2022-2025. Thereof, investment in 5G during this period will account for 85% of the total $ 620 billion expected by mobile operators to invest in building and developing their networks.

Vietnam is a pioneer in accessing and deploying 5G networks. Since May 2019, Vietnam has been one of the first countries which are successful in establishing 5G technology phone call. From the end of December 2020 to now, the 3 carriers, Viettel, Vinaphone, and MobiFone have commercialized 5G in 20 provinces and cities nationwide.

After nearly 18 months, when the world was successful in 5G commercialization, Vietnam has not yet been able to commercialize 5G, the rate of connection and use of 5G is quite low. Thereof, out of a total of more than 71 million mobile broadband subscribers (3G, 4G, 5G), the percentage of 5G subscribers is only 0.54%, or more than 360,000 subscribers.

According to the assessment of the Ministry of Information and Communications, the research and development of 5G equipment from 2019 up to now can be assessed as a breakthrough with Vietnam's current resources,. However, it is not possible to meet the deployment of 5G with equipment completely originated from Vietnam on a large scale in 2022. The reason is from the difficulty of supply chain disruption, Covid-19 epidemic and the shortage of semiconductor chips that have extended the research and production time by 10-12 months.

Thereby, there are also technical and technological challenges. 5G technology standards for product and service quality are evolving and the issuance has not yet been internationally agreed upon. In addition, there are difficulties in investment resources. Vietnam has only invested about USD 65 million for 5G, while the big firms in the world have invested from 2 to USD 10 billion.

Removing barriers

Carriers are much worried that the rate of 5G users is lower than the expected rate. In a petition sent to the Ministry of Information and Communications, VNPT Group said that operators have provided trial 5G services, however, the conditions for commercialization have not yet been fully satisfied due to bandwidth limitations, development of 5G ecosystem and high deployment costs.

VNPT proposes the Government and the Ministry of Information and Communications to apply the policies to promote the development of 5G ecosystem in such economy industries as industry, services...; supporting enterprises in the early stages of 5G deployment, such as: exempting/reducing taxes on equipment and frequency import fees, financing 5G projects; soon conducting the master planning and implementation of plans for auction and selection of frequency bands in 2022.

Said Mr. Huynh Quang Liem, General Director of VNPT, Vietnam will own many benefits if we can master the global new technologies such as 5G and 6G here. VNPT continues to implement the strategy of expanding 4G coverage and commercializing 5G by 2022 as planned and in line with customer needs. (Diazepam)

Said Mr. Liem, " 5G investment in a large scale can only be carried out when the demand and percentage of users reach a certain scale".

For wide-area 5G coverage, 5G commercialization requires between 30,000 and 70,000 5G BTS stations. With the current investment rate of about VND 1 billion/station, the investment cost for this option will be from 30,000 to VND 70,000 billion.

Therefore, in the initiative of the Ministry of Information and Communications, the 3 carriers will invest and use the same 5G network. At the Conference - Exhibition Digital World (ITU Digital World) 2021, Vietnam will implement a solution to accelerate 5G coverage by mobilizing network operators to jointly invest, said Nguyen Manh Hung, the Minister of Information and Communications.

"Thus, the investment cost of each carrier is reduced and Vietnam will have a nationwide 5G network in just one year," said Minister Nguyen Manh Hung.

A representative of the Ministry of Information and Communications said that, through testing, the ministry proposed businesses to assess the needs of the market and propose policies and licensing criteria to match the conditions of businesses. The ministry is also planning the bands 6/7 GHz and above 40 GHz for 5G mobile communications. The 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz bands are also reallocated to 4G and 5G.

Said Mr. Nguyen Phong Nha, Vice Director in charge of the Department of Telecommunications, in 2022, the Ministry of Information and Communications will add 2.3 GHz band for network operators to develop 4G infrastructure, along with that will officially license the commercialization of 5G. At that time, the mobile speed of Vietnam will be improved and the coverage area will also be improved. Also in 2022, the 5G network will be guaranteed to provide speeds of over 100 Mbit/s for coverage in industrial parks, export processing zones, in large urban areas, by 2025, basic coverage of major provinces and 100% of the population will be covered by 5G by 2030.

“Network carriers need a roadmap, a plan to stop investing in old technology infrastructure to promote smartphone use and stimulate data usage. Redirect investment for next-generation mobile networks, deploying 5G mobile networks with priority given to sharing radio infrastructure and roaming, "said Nguyen Phong Nha.

5G is expected to have a major impact on the global economy, forecast to create about $13.1 trillion and 2 million new jobs by 2035.

The contribution of 5G to Vietnam's GDP growth is forecast to reach 7.34% by 2025.

Source: Institute of Information and Communication Strategy

Source : Baodautu

Petroleum Company BP says that fast charging stations tend to be more profitable than selling gasoline for cars.

Charging electric vehicles for the past few years has remained a losing business for both BP and its competitors, while costly investments have been made to expand the system. This situation is expected to reverse, although it is unlikely before 2025. However, with BP's existing platform of fast charging stations that can refill batteries in just minutes, charging stations are reaching a level of profit close to selling fuel.

Rising demand for fast battery charging in the UK and Europe has helped change everything. BP representative did not disclose how much of a loss or profit would be from charging electric vehicles or when the profits of it could outstrip sales of traditional fuels. Though, BP's 2020 report shows that the gross profit margin of the petroleum retail industry is $3.5 billion. In the first nine months of 2021, net profit was $2.6 billion, about 17% of the company's total profit.

The company also said that sales of electricity to charge cars in the third quarter of 2021 increased by 45% compared to the same period in 2020.

According to energy consulting firm Thunder Said Energy, the profit of the conventional fuel retail at gas stations is about 17 cents per gallon, or about 0.4 cents per kWh.

BP - a company based in London - plans to develop electric vehicle charging in the coming years, growing from the existing 11,000 charging points to reach 70,000 charging points by the end of 2030.

Competitors including Royal Dutch Sell (also based in London) sell fuel and have chains of convenience stores, achieve high profits and focus mainly on energy shifting strategies.

Shell has achieved the goal of having 500,000 charging points worldwide by the end of 2025. On January 13, the company opened its first super-fast electric vehicle charging station in London, which can charge 80% of a car battery pack in just 10 minutes.

While competitors like Shell mainly invest in a range of charging technologies including tens of thousands of low-power charging points on streets in the UK and elsewhere, BP focuses on fast and super fast charging technology.

However, fast charging (with a capacity of more than 50 kW) and super fast charging (more than 150 kW) are expensive to install and require a great investment in large capacity grid infrastructure.

Source : VnExpress

Singapore has long earned a reputation as one of the world’s most advanced economies in the Asia Pacific region. The Singapore economy is mainly driven by exports in electronics manufacturing and machinery, financial services, tourism, and the world’s busiest cargo seaport. Additionally, Singapore’s largest industry is the manufacturing sector, which contributes 20%-25% of the country’s annual GDP.

Hence, this article will provide you with information that is related to the manufacturing business in Singapore, and what are the opportunities for foreign investors in the area. Let’s find out!

The Manufacturing Business in Singapore

Singapore is located off the coast of the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia, making the country become one of the world’s leading manufacturing sites. Singapore has built a strong and diverse manufacturing base, with leadership positions in sectors such as aerospace, electronics, biomedical sciences, and precision engineering. Yet, in recent times, the Singaporean Government has directed the manufacturing industry towards the main focus on advanced manufacturing development.  As robotics, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, smart sensor and the Internet of Things are transforming the manufacturing sector, advanced manufacturing is a burgeoning market expected to reach US$156.6 billion by 2024, growing at a rate of 16.9 percent a year

The manufacturing sector remains a significant contributor to Singapore’s economy, as it contributes about 20% to its GDP. Furthermore, manufacturing will remain a key part of the country’s economy as well. Singapore is also the sixth-largest global exporter of high-tech products. Particularly, Singapore's manufacturing production grew 17.6% YoY in February 2022, exceeding market estimates of 6.3% and sharply picking up from an upwardly revised 2.4% rise in the prior month. The manufacturing sector is projected to continue to expand, albeit at a more moderate pace following the strong outturn last year, supported by sustained global demand for semiconductors and semiconductor equipment.

Singaporean Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong has unveiled a new plan to strengthen local businesses in various sectors, with an aim to significantly grow the city-state’s trade volumes by 2030. In more detail, Mr. Gan Kim Yong noted the plan will be driven by separate strategies that will provide direction and coordinate actions across the four key pillars of the economy – services, manufacturing, trade, and enterprises. The Singapore Economy 2030 vision will continue to build upon the Manufacturing 2030 plan launched last year, increasing manufacturing value-added by 50% in 10 years. Especially, the vision emphasizes the development of advanced manufacturing, thereby introducing multiple initiatives to promote this sector. Mr. Chan Chun Sing - former Minister of Industry and Trade commented that “In the past, many of the older generations of manufacturing that depends on cost competitiveness will increasingly be displaced by cheaper alternatives in other countries,” He affirmed, “Instead, beyond the 50 percent increase in value, we want to see a greater proportion of our manufacturing going into advanced manufacturing, where the competition is not based on cost but based on the intellectual property that we can generate, the quality of the products and the precision that we can provide for the sector.” Thus, the evolving nature of the industry will change the composition of manufacturing to one of low-volume but high-quality products that will require greater skills to produce. Furthermore, Singapore’s strengths in innovation, its skilled workforce, and well-developed infrastructure position will bolster its role as a global manufacturing hub.

In addition, the manufacturing sector can continue to expand if the industry is closely tied to research and development (R&D) because the process would also enrich the country after all. Hence, Singapore has to get its intellectual property protection regime right and gives investors the confidence that they will be safeguarded here in Singapore.

Besides, Singapore has already embarked on a series of initiatives to ensure the economy is prepared for the future. For instance, Singapore has established the leading technology and solutions providers, and it offers the necessary technical expertise to maintain Industry 4.0 adoption. There are some biggest industrial names in the world that are now operating in Singapore, such as ABB’s robotics packaging center to Accenture’s IoT Centre of Excellence, and Siemens’s digitalization hub.

Singapore has invested 3.2 billion Singapore USD (2 billion euros) in R&D in Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering, to build up the innovation capacity of companies embarking on Industry 4.0. 

In 2018, Singapore’s research institutions opened two model factories that will help companies accelerate the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies by implementing a collaborative environment to research and test-bed solutions before deploying them. However, through this initiative, the industrial equipment supplier Feinmetall has successfully achieved productivity improvements of 10 to 15%.

The pursuit of advanced manufacturing itself is not about achieving a one-off boost in productivity, but it is about equipping companies with the right tools and mindset to meet future challenges. It is indeed an evolution rather than a revolution because the companies can go beyond traditional costs to continue reorientation, refine and innovate their products.

The MTI will also help to develop human capital for the manufacturing sector through an M2030 Careers Initiative announced in 2021 to train polytechnic and Institute of Technical Education (ITE) graduates. The initiative will offer at least 200 internships for ITE students from 60 companies by the end-2022, as well as a pilot grant to hire ITE graduates for critical technician and assistant engineer roles.

The initiative will see collaboration among companies, Polytechnics, and technical institutes to identify young graduates in engineering or technical education with relevant skills to the industry.

The Opportunities for Foreign Investors

In 2021, Singapore acquired investments committing 11.8 billion USD in fixed asset investments, fostered by large manufacturing projects from semiconductor and biotech firms despite the ravage of the Covid-19 pandemic. Investments from semiconductor and biotech companies accounted for more than half the commitments secured, which exceeded the Singapore Economic Development Board's (EDB) medium- to long-term yearly target of between $8 billion and $10 billion. Hence, Singapore attracted 5.2 billion USD in total business expenditure (TBE) per annum in 2021, lower than the 6.8 billion USD TBE per year garnered in 2020, but within EDB's medium- to long-term target of $5 billion to $7 billion. 

If these projects are fully implemented, the commitments secured in 2021 are expected to create 17,376 jobs in the coming years, with an estimated contribution of 16.8 billion USD in value-added annually. Thus, foreign investors are presented with more opportunities to venture into advanced manufacturing in Singapore. 

The Singaporean government is focusing on the key priorities to bolster the manufacturing business. Furthermore, the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) aims to strengthen two areas of the digital economy and work to attract leading manufacturers to invest in advanced manufacturing. 

EDB also wants the country to become a regional platform for Singapore-based companies to export technologies and services through the Industrial Transformation Asia Pacific event.

More than that, Singapore will also look to become the digital hub for non-manufacturing companies, where people can learn best practices, access world-class capabilities, and embark on their digital transformation journey.

Singapore has become a part of Singapore’s shift toward a value-creating, innovation-led economy, and that means it will continue to connect companies with Institutes of Higher Learning to establish corporate labs. In addition, it will help companies that are looking to create new products, services, and businesses, and support them on the journey of experimentation, commercialization, and scaling out of Singapore.

The disruptive technology that happens recently will open up new possibilities. Some industries that were previously considered unviable are now becoming potential growth areas for Singapore, for example, mobility. The country can play a leading role in autonomous vehicles and smart mobility, which is supported by its advanced manufacturing capabilities and highly skilled workforce.

The investment in such areas will surely attract foreign investors for expanding their businesses here. The possibility to venture into the business of manufacturing is flourishing this year, and even in the future. Thus, the government keeps pouring incentives to impress more and more investors. In the end, it is always the right time to open up a business in Singapore, especially in the manufacturing business. If you intend to start your business journey in Singapore, Viettonkin will always stand by your side and help you navigate through the legal process. Our experienced professionals, who are insightful of the Singapore market and legal system, will assist you every step of the way! Contact us now for a better understanding!