Vietnamese products now have good opportunities to expand in Cambodia, as consumers there tend to choose Vietnamese products over those from Thailand and China.
The results show that Vietnamese products in the Cambodian market are cheap and their quality is acceptable. Vietnam has built the trademarks of a number of high-quality products which have become quite popular in Cambodia.By contrast, Cambodian people have recently become cautious about substandard products originating from China.Vietnamese products now hold the second largest market share in Cambodia after Thailand. 400 Vietnamese businesses, most of whom specialise in trade, finance or manufacturing, have invested in the country.
Vietnam’s major exports to Cambodia include instant noodles, plastic products, tobacco, confectionery, seed corn, household products, and vegetables, while it imports materials for textiles and garments, automobile parts, timber and rubber.
Bilateral trade turnover has been rising by about 40 percent every year, totalling US$1.7 billion in 2008. It is expected to reach US$2 billion in 2010. Export turnover sees a much greater increase than import.
The overall worth of Vietnamese products consumed in Cambodia reached US$988 million, surpassing products from China and Thailand. The nine products with the biggest turnover include steel for construction, agricultural machinery, fertilizer, plant protection chemicals, household products, processed agricultural products, dairy products, seafood and re-exported petrol.
According to Cambodian businesses, in terms of quality and prices, Vietnamese products are in no way inferior to Thai products. Some food products are even fresher when arriving in Cambodia due to the shorter distance from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh.
A delegation of experts from the Business Studies and Assistance centre (BSA) and Business Studies Center of the Sai Gon Tiep Thi newspaper recently came to Phnom Penh and Battambang and surveyed 500 retailers to study the competitiveness of Vietnamese products versus Thai and Chinese products.
In fact, Chinese products have not yet been much sought after in this market, while Thai products are beyond the reach of most Cambodian people.
However there appear to remain some shortfalls, according to Truong Cung Nghia, Director of the Truong Doan Market Research Company, Vietnamese products are not nicely packaged as Thai products and even have no desciption in Khmer language.
In addition, Vietnamese trademark advertising is failing to create a strong impression on Cambodian customers and secure a foothold for Vietnamese products in the Cambodian market.
Experts say that to penetrate the Cambodian market, businesses should establish a distribution network for export products, promote the advertisement of Vietnamese trademarks, ensure business prestige and introduce more products to Cambodian retailers. If new products are introduced, customers should be allowed to sample these products. Currently, a number of Vietnamese entrepreneurs are keen on setting up new businesses in Cambodia to distribute their products to Cambodian consumers.Source: Vietnamenewsonline
Market prices increase at dizzying pace
The increase in basic interest rates and the adjustment of the US dollar-VND exchange rate have sent the prices of imported products and essential goods in HCM City soaring at a dizzying pace.
The price of imported products or input materials such as automobiles, motorbikes, computers, computer components, cameras, steel and milk have been adjusted.Automobile is the first product seeing the price rise. Several days after the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV)’s decision to increase inter-bank exchange rates, Toyota Vietnam has announced a new price list with the level rising from 16-64 million/vehicle.
The prices of several imported scooters such as Piagio, SH, Spacy at motorbike shops in Hanoi increase by from VND500,000-3million/vehicle and those of computers and computer components by 10 percent on average.
The prices of consumer goods such as gas, food, cosmetics and milk are on the rise.
Representatives from a number of supermarkets in Hanoi said that some 50 suppliers are to increase the price level by 2-10 percent. However, the price of products at major supermarkets such as Big C or Metro remains unchanged.
Deputy Director of Big C Supermarket Nguyen Thai Dung said that there is no need to increase prices because these big supermarkets have large volumes of goods in stock.According to some economic experts, the price hikes for imported products has also helped locally made products to corner the domestic market.
Meanwhile, food in HCM City such as seafood products, fruits and vegetables, rice and sugar also see price rises. For example, rice imported from Thailand soars by VND1,500-3,000/kg, sugar by VND15,000-17,000/kg, fish of different kinds by VND7,000-15,000/kg.
Chu Xuan Phuong from the Market Management Department attributed the increase in market prices to the impact of the strengthening the US dollar and the rising price of petroleum. The increase in rice price is due to the rising numbers of orders for rice exports, Phuong added.
Many supermarkets have prepared sufficient supplies of goods and money to stabilize six essential goods including sticky rice, vegetable oil, meat, fruits and vegetables to meet people’s needs for the Lunar New Year festival. However, due to fluctuations in the US dollar, the prices of food and foodstuff have begun to rise by 5-15 percent.
