Health Insurance

Are You Wondering If Health Insurance Would Have Helped?

The best thing in America is free health care. Health insurance is an option that could provide you this. Given the way health care costs have risen; many families have gone bankrupt paying the bills for a sick person in the family. Some are fortunate to have medical insurance cover either by the employer or have cover by
parents or relatives medical insurance policies others are not so fortunate.

Well what do you want to choose; a health insurance policy that sounds like a bad investment or paying all of the bills yourself. A quick look at a health insurance policy seems like an unaffordable luxury unless some one land up sick and you have to foot all the bills. Medical bills can go way beyond the monthly premiums you pay. Looking at the big picture and planning with that in mind is not a bad investment. If you were to be injured in a car accident, insurance can come quite handy
for the bills and even for the dent in the savings you face when you have to take leave.

Thinking that doctor’s bills are measly when compared to the premium will take you no where. Being prepared for the large expenditure means; taking the right health insurance policy.

* A low copay or deductible would result in higher premiums. This would also mean that your insurance pays every time the bill exceeds the copay amount.
* A higher copay or deductible would result in lower premiums. Just look at the maximum amount you would have to pay. If that is ok then this policy is and ideal choice and would mean that unless the bill is large the insurance would be paying for it.

If you have very little money then get an affordable plan so that you would have to pay little money for the coverage. You would have to pay for your routine visits to the doctor. This is a lot easier than having to bear a hefty bill of the medical care costs. The plus points of going for regular routine check ups will avoid you going for a sudden expensive treatment. You are regularly examined and thus you can avert any major health happening and stay fit and healthy.

* *

*Are there other options?*

If you are savvy enough with your money you could save money and get tax deductions. Health savings account or HAS allows you to put back monthly a small amount into a dedicated bank account for health services. To avail this plan you must be covered by a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP). The money you save on the premiums (in case you take another plan) could be put into the health saving account (tax free) and you
could also get the High Deductible health plan as insurance against unforeseen eventualities. This money saved is thus combined with an insurance plan to maximize benefits.

Travel insurance and Group Health Insurance are options that you can choose because this is the most likely scenarios when accidents happen. When you travel or when a group is going on vacation or camps. This is in case your cover by medical insurance is too less.

*Author:*

spam.spam gives info on health insurance, medical insurance cover etc. It is a source of information that helps to protect you and your dependants against any financial constraints arising on account of a medical emergency.

Health, technology, business, news, source

Vietnam’s stock market will lure millions of USD

Germany’s World newspaper has published an article praising Vietnam’s achievements, commenting that Vietnam’s stock market will attract millions of US dollars after Vietnam has become a member of the World Trade Organization.

According to the article, the double increase of Vietnam’s economic growth in the past nine years and the eight percent growth rate per year in the recent years has made investors consider Vietnam a “promising” market in Asia.

Becoming the member of the WTO and successfully organizing the 14th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, Vietnam’s stock market will spectacularly develop and attract millions of US dollars from global investors.

At the end of last week, the VN-Index in Ho Chi Minh City hit a record high, at 665.5 points, increasing by 116%, in comparison with the beginning of this year.

The article also stressed the developing trade relations between Vietnam and the US and said that Vietnam was of interest to high-tech corporation Intel.

BTA

Multiple Listing Service-Advertising Space or Industry Tool?

The answer to the question really depends on your location. If the question was asked in the USA, I think 99% of realtors would respond ‘industry tool’. Ask the question in Europe and the answer would be reversed with 99% of estate agents referring to MLS as digital advertising.
So what makes this technology be seen by the same industry, in two large geographical markets, in two totally different ways?
The answer I like to call the 4P’s.

PRODUCT, PROFESSIONALISM, PRACTICE, & PERCEPTION

1. PRODUCT

What is MLS?

A Multiple Listing Service in real estate terms can mean two things. One form refers to the type of agency agreement entered into between a realtor and vendor. Whilst this governs the documentation for entry into the MLS database (USA), it is the database itself that most people think of when the MLS is mentioned.
MLS, (in the US) is simply a database of property for sale in the marketplace.
In economic terms, it attempts to create the perfect market, bringing all buyers and all sellers of property together in one place.
In the US market, putting aside FSBO, (For sale by Owner) and the small number of private transactions, the MLS has effectively achieved this ‘perfect market’ status.

In Europe, however, MLS is something completely different. So different in fact that it cannot really be defined as MLS. Instead I am going to call it ALS or Advertising Listing Service.
ALS differs from MLS at a fundamental level because it fails in the primary objective of an MLS to create a perfect market. ALS provides only half of the solution in that, at its most successful, it can only bring all the sellers in the market place together in one place. In reality of course, a proliferation of ALS providers, (advertising companies) means that any one provider fails in even being able to achieve this goal.
ALS therefore reverts to the rules of advertising. It is limited by the marketing success of the provider to gain exposure to as large a portion of the market as possible. The cost of exposure is then duly passed onto the advertiser, the estate agent. The increased costs of competition for exposure, in turn limits the number of sellers, further limiting the success of any one provider to create an effective market.

The benefits of MLS as an ‘almost’ perfect market are; reduced cost and quicker a transaction timeframe. Governed by the most basic of the laws of supply and demand, buyers and sellers are able to find each other more quickly and as an effective monopoly, the MLS does not have to compete for its place in the market thus reducing the cost of providing the service. In the US part of the cost to the realtor can therefore be used to regulate the profession.

PROFESSIONALISM, PERCEPTION & PRACTICE

Here the two market differ greatly. In the US, all real estate agents are required to be licenced. In obtaining the licence they have to prove by way of examination that they are proficient in the General Principles of Real Estate and have a working knowledge of current legislation affecting the industry.
Within a framework of regulation comes trust. Trust in the profession by the public. Trust between professionals within the industry to be able to co-operate with each other.
The regulation of the industry in the US helps to define one aspect of practice that fails in the markets across Europe.

Who is the Agent acting for?

In the US this is defined by the type agency contract entered into and further defined by regulations governing Dual Agency, (acting for both buyer and seller). The notification rules for this ‘Conflict of interest’ are clearly set out and require all parties to agree in writing before proceeding.(rules differ from state to state). The role of the agent is therefore defined and all parties to the transaction are under no illusions of who is acting for who.

Across Europe regulation is virtually non-existent. Looking after the interests of the parties involved tends to fall on the solicitor,(attorney) as the only regulated ‘professional’ involved in the transaction.

The ambiguity of the client/agent relationship only enhances the lack of trust in the professional relationship which may, for the most part be conducted in good faith, but which ultimately is left open for abuse.
In the end the agent/client relationship is reduced to that of salesperson/shopper, belittling the vast majority of agents, who practice their profession in an exemplary manner.

Conclusions

The US market is a model to be followed. Needed regulation is not overbearing and allows the MLS to facilitate efficiency within the industry, which when all is said and done, means that sellers of property, sell quicker. Buyers find what they are looking for quicker, and Agents facilitate more sales.

In Europe, changes are afoot. If individual countries within the European Union fail to regulate at a National level under increasing pressure from the public, then the EU now has the power to legislate. Until recently this was not possible, but with the harmonization of contract law across the E.U., the path to EU-wide Agency Law Directives from Brussels are now a possibility.
Bad property law is already being challenged at E.U. level with the Spanish LRAU ‘Land Grab Law’ being challenged in the European Court of Human Rights under the ‘Right to property ‘ Protocol of Article 1 of The European Convention of Human Rights.

Frameworks for developing trust in a professional environment are being put into place. AMLA, The Association of Multiple Listing Agents recently launched a fully fledged MLS for the Spanish Property Market offering a commitment to standards and education alongside a MLS system at a fraction of the ALS providers.

The market in Europe is changing, to the benefit of all. The pace of change will be set, not by the industry and government, but by the consumers who are demanding in greater numbers, their desire to be represented properly in one of the biggest purchases of their lives. The US model whilst not perfect, is a good place to start.

Offshore Banking & Asset Protection

Panama is currently the new Switzerland and is also the number one retirement haven in the world. Panama does not tax offshore derived income, capital gains, etc. All tax violations in Panama are civil offenses, none are criminal and Panama has no tax treaties with any country. Panama actually requires all corporations to be formed by a lawyer to protect the privacy of their 400,000 corporations on file thus ensuring renewals each year. Panama cares about privacy, bank secrecy and asset protection. We only deal in Panama which is considered to be the most private jurisdiction in the world today, with the best bank secrecy laws, best corporate and foundation anonymity and strongest attorney client privilege in addition to having world class banks. Panama has no hurricanes, no earthquakes, no active volcanoes and no tsunamis which is why the Panama Canal was built here. So you do not have to worry about being unable to contact your bank by internet or telephone because a storm just passed over their island. Since we are in Panama we can and will represent any of clients who need legal representation in Panama with affordable rates ($150.00 hour). And yes we do get in our car and go down to the Panama banks representing our clients to open their bank accounts and to resolve any issues or problems that may come up down the road when our clients need our assistance. We are your corporate resident agent and would receive any official notices on behalf of your Panama Corporation or Panama foundation and of course we would understand the notices and could advise you not just say "hey, you got a document you need to read". We are reachable by phone and email seven days a week and of course all communications with us are privileged communications. Always feel free to ask us questions by phone or email.

We are a law firm which means you have attorney client privilege – We specialize in Offshore Asset Protection. All of your affairs handled with us are covered by attorney client privilege which means that we could not reveal anything about you or your affairs without your specific permission or unless we were ordered to do so by a Panama Court (not a common occurrence). You can benefit from the legal protection and security of dealing with a licensed Panama Law Firm. If you buy an offshore corporation, offshore trust, offshore foundation or an offshore bank account from a non- law firm they could freely reveal your confidential information which they collect from you like name address, passport, name of corporation, bank account information etc. without any statutory penalties, in other words you do not have the benefit of attorney client privilege. Some of these corporate resale agents say they have some sort of financial privacy protections but it is flimsy and cursory at best.

Panama Banking – Panama boasts of having 150 international banks which is a living testimony to their strong bank secrecy laws please keeping in mind Panama is a country of 2.9 million people and these banks are in Panama City which is only about 9 square miles. All the banks we deal with have online banking including the ability to send international wire transfers. You do not need to come to Panama to open a bank account but you do need to supply reference letters and passport copies. You can even get up to 7% interest on 5 year deposits. The national currency in Panama is the US dollar but some euro accounts are available.

Panama Anonymous Bearer Share Corporation – Such anonymous corporations are called by this term in Spanish - sociedad anonima. These corporations have no registry or database into which are entered the owners of the corporation. Ownership is through the printed stock certificate called bearer shares. There is no tax on offshore derived income other than the $300 annual tax included in our prices. Transfers of ownership do not have to be reported. With a Panama bearer share corporation wires moving through the wire system are not associated with any natural persons for more privacy. Panama corporations can be formed in 2-3 days. Panama bearer share corporations can own real estate anywhere in the world under Panama law.

Panama Private Interest Foundations – A Panama foundation has a number of advantages. It is like a combination of a corporation trust and will. Foundations have no real owner. The Panama foundation is anonymous. The foundation instructions are kept secret. Foundation assets including bank accounts are generally non-freezable. Foundations can own corporations and real estate.

Panama stock Brokerage – You and or your corporation or foundation can have a Panama Stock brokerage account and play the worlds markets from home. Panama secrecy laws apply.

Panama Passports, Visas and Residency – Panama offer an instant Passport program, a number of exciting and affordable visa programs.

Panama Legal Law Firm Panama Asset Protection Strategies:
Formation and Management of Anonymous Panama S.A. Bearer Share Corporations (sociedad anonima)
Asset and Estate Protection with a full range of effective strategies including Panama Foundations and Foundation Protectors
Providing corporate nominee directors and resident agent
Offshore Bank Accounts in Panama with online banking
Anonymous ownership of real estate anywhere
Anonymous ownership of boats and planes anywhere
Real Estate Investment (Panama real estate appreciating 28% per annum)
Panama Passport Program
Panama Residency, Citizenship, Visas
Stock Trading Accounts in Panama with secrecy
Offshore Visa, MasterCard from Panama Bank and other countries
Offshore ATM debit card
Offshore Merchant Accounts for high risk or low risk accounts

For more information please visit: panamalaworg or
Call us at: (507) 6-480-1279

Vietnam - Economy (remarkable success)

The Vietnamese economy has enjoyed its remarkable success. See an article in the Economist:

Vietnam

Aug 3rd 2006 HANOI
From The Economist print edition
An economic boom is accompanied by remarkable success in getting rid of poverty and raising life expectancy

SIGNS of rapid development are visible everywhere around Hanoi: from the flashy sport-utility vehicles on the city's roads to the dormitory villages of smart “executive” homes rising among the fields on the capital's outskirts. George Bush and other world leaders will see it for themselves when Hanoi hosts the Asia-Pacific economic summit in November. That meeting will take place in a new satellite-city, Tu Liem, which is now being built on Hanoi's south-western edge. The futuristic conference centre, with a distinctive wavy glass roof, looks almost finished. Nearby, a huge five-star hotel is getting a final coat of paint. Along Tu Liem's broad, four-lane avenues, some apartment blocks are already occupied, others are just steel skeletons. Between the building sites, cows and buffalo still graze in what was open pasture only recently.

Before starting its doi moi market-oriented reforms in the mid-1980s, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam flirted with real communism and came close to famine. Since then, a reform process that was uneven at first has gathered momentum. Recent economic growth, though not quite as stellar as China's, has been remarkable. In 2001-05 it averaged over 7.5%, reaching a peak of 8.4% last year. This year the government is going all out to hit an 8% target.

Since 1990, Vietnam's exports have increased faster than China's. Their growth shows no signs of slackening. Between January and July they amounted to $22 billion, a year-on-year rise of over 25%. Having alarmed the Brazilians by becoming their main competitor in coffee growing, Vietnam is now ramping up its exports of everything from shrimps to ships to shoes (the last prompting the European Union to announce anti-dumping tariffs last month). It has just become the world's largest exporter of pepper and aims soon to overtake Thailand in rice. It is even selling tea to India.

Foreign-owned factories are chalking up the fastest gains. The government's aim of increasing electronics exports by 27% annually should be boosted by Intel's recent decision to build a $605m microchip plant in Ho Chi Minh City. Though farmers' harvests are still rising, industry's still-higher growth rate means that agriculture's share of economic output continues to shrink—from about 25% in 2000 to 21% last year. By 2010 it may be down to 15%.

This economic revolution is being accompanied by a social one. Though Vietnam is still, overall, one of Asia's poorest countries, with income per head behind India's, its recent growth has been impressively egalitarian. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) reckons that deep poverty in Vietnam—defined as a daily income equivalent to under $1—is now only slightly more prevalent than the average for South-East Asia, whereas in 1990 Vietnam's figure was more than twice the regional average (see charts). By this measure, Vietnam has overtaken China, India and the Philippines and now has only slightly more poverty than Indonesia.

Life expectancy has jumped and infant mortality plunged since the 1990s. Vietnam does better on both these counts than Thailand, a far richer country. Almost three-quarters of Vietnamese children of secondary-school age are in class, up from about a third in 1990. Again, Vietnam has overtaken China, India and Indonesia.

The new five-year plan, approved at April's congress of the ruling Communist Party, is laden with targets for increasing output and improving infrastructure, with the objective of making Vietnam a modern, industrial nation by 2020. Of course, other Asian countries' leaders, from Malaysia to the Philippines, declare similar objectives. The difference is that Vietnam's rulers seem to mean it—and their recent record suggests they might pull it off.

The April congress was preceded by a purge of high officials suspected of corruption—most notably at a road-building agency where some staff stole millions of dollars to bet on football matches. While Nong Duc Manh, the party's general secretary, has survived, the other two members of the ruling triumvirate—the president and prime minister—have since been dropped in favour of youngish, southern Vietnamese officials, seen as supporters of continued economic reform.
Good times, bad times

Vietnam is on a roll and its prospects look good. But much could still go wrong. As Vietnam joins the global economy (it should become a member of the World Trade Organisation in the coming year or so) it is becoming more vulnerable to volatile commodity prices and fickle bond-market investors, whose gyrations are largely outside its control. The recent export surge has been helped by strong global demand and high prices for the things Vietnam sells, from rice to crude oil, but a world recession—or an economic bust in China—could cause a big slowdown. The government is racing to build enough power stations, roads and railways to keep the economy moving. Any delays in these would spell trouble.

The communist government's continuing acceptance by ordinary Vietnamese rests largely on its success in delivering prosperity and better public services. If it fails to reduce corruption or produce jobs for the more than 1m young Vietnamese who join the labour force each year and the 1m villagers migrating to the cities, the country's social cohesion and sense of purpose would be in danger.

That makes it vital to accelerate the government's programme to restructure and sell thousands of state-owned firms. They are more graft-prone than private companies, and devour the lion's share of scarce land and credit while creating few new jobs. The private sector provides most of the growth in jobs and exports, but would do better still if it was not crowded out by the public sector. Le Dang Doanh, an economic adviser to the government, reckons that, but for the vested interests slowing down privatisation, Vietnam could now be growing at 11%, just like China.

Vietnam Securities Companies

As of February 2004, thirteen companies have been licensed by both the State Securities Commission and Ho Chi Minh City Stock Trading Center. Of these, nine have capital of VND43bn (US$2.73m) or more and have been licensed to conduct a full range of securities business including brokerage, advisory, fund management, proprietary trading and underwriting. Saigon Securities Incorporation, Hai Phong Securities Joint Stock Company and EAB Securities Company have chartered capital ranging from VND20-22bn (US$1.27m-US$1.4m) while Mekong Securities Joint Stock Company are capitalized at VND6bn (US$0.38m). Neither company is licensed to conduct proprietary trading or underwriting.

Six of Vietnam’s securities companies were licensed ahead of Ho Chi Minh City Stock Trading Center’s opening in July 2000.

All 4 state-owned commercial banks and Vietnam’s largest State-owned Insurance Company established their wholly owned subsidiaries, consisting of Bank for Investment & Development of Vietnam, Industry and Commerce Bank of Vietnam, Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam and Bao Viet Insurance Company. The securities arm of the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam and the Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development are the largest ones with chartered capital of VND100bn (US$6.3m) each.

Asia Commercial Bank Securities Company and Thang Long Securities Company are wholly–owned subsidiaries of joint stock banks - Asia Commercial Bank (which is the largest and considered to be amongst the most progressive of Vietnam’s 33 joint stock banks) and Military Bank (which is majority controlled by the army).

First Securities Company is a joint stock company whose major shareholders include Becamex - an enterprise co-owned by the People’s Committee of Binh Duong Province and several business partners. (Binh Duong Province, some 40km from Ho Chi Minh City, is home to Vietnam’s largest concentration of industrial and manufacturing enterprises).

Saigon Securities Incorporation is a privately owned joint stock company founded by Vietnam’s Pan Pacific and Saigon Business Consultancy and is considered the most ‘internationally minded’ of the licensed securities companies. At the end of 2003, SSI’s reported share of order-matching turnover on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Trading Center was just over 23%; a couple of percentage points ahead of Bao Viet.

During 2003, there were 4 more companies entered the market, including Ho Chi Minh Securities Company (‘HSC’) which is largely controlled by Ho Chi Minh Investment Fund for Urban Development (HIFU), Eastern Asia Bank Securities Company Eastern Asia Bank - a joint stock bank where HCMC Communist Party Economic Committee has major shares and influence and two other companies in the north, Hanoi-based Mekong Securities Company and Hai Phong Securities Company whose headquarter bases in Hai Phong - the second largest city in the north.

Vietnam has thirteen registered securities firms but only four of them - SSI, BVSC, ACBS and BSC - dominate brokerage business, accounting for 71% of all trade.

Vietnam Stock Exchange

The Stock Trading Center of Vietnam (‘STC’), located in Ho Chi Minh City, was officially inaugurated on July 20, 2000, and trading commenced on July 28, 2000. Initially, two equity issues were listed, Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Joint Stock Corporation (‘REE’) and Saigon Cable and Telecommunication Material Joint Stock Company (‘SACOM’). As of this date, an additional 20 issues are also listed with a current market capitalization of US$239m.

The Stock Trading Center of Vietnam is also the official mechanism through which new government bonds are issued, and it functions as the secondary market for a number of existing bond issues. As of this date there are 120 listed bonds with a total market capitalization of US$866m. All securities traded on the Stock Trading Center of Vietnam are denominated in Vietnamese Dong. Par valued is standardized at VND10,000 for equities and VND100,000 for bonds. Trading is conducted daily with two matchings in a morning session, from 9A.M. to 11A.M.

The State Securities Commission (‘SSC’), a body established formally in 1996, is responsible for capital markets development, licensing of participants, and the issue and enforcement of regulations. A wide range of regulations, with significant input from multilateral bodies such as the International Finance Corporation, have been promulgated, including those dealing with such issues as insider trading, take-over trigger points and margin lending. In order to be listed, a company must have been profitable for at least 2 years, have a minimum capitalization of VND5b (approximately US$318,000), and have at least 50 shareholders who are not employees of the company, holding at least 20% of stake. Foreign invested joint venture companies are technically qualified to list, but in order to do so, they must be reorganized into joint stock company status. Companies intending to list must also submit to audit by an approved, independent auditing company.

At the beginning, an overall foreign ownership limit of 20% for equities and 40% for bonds were implemented. In July 2003, in a bid to improve liquidity, the government raised the foreign ownership limit for equities to 30% and totally removed foreign ownership limit of a particular issuer’s bonds. Foreign participants on the Stock Trading Center of Vietnam must register through a custodian licensed to hold securities on behalf of foreigners. Once registered, a securities transaction code is issued to the foreign investor that will permit securities trading.

The mechanism of trading on the Stock Trading Center of Vietnam is via an automated order-matching system. The capacity of the system is 300,000 orders per day. Currently, trading limits of 5% (for bonds and equities) either side of the previous close apply. No price restrictions have been set for newly listed securities but price caps were applied in the case of the very first day of the market’s operations.

Settlement is centralized through the Stock Trading Center of Vietnam using the Bank of Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), a state-owned commercial bank. Several other domestic banks and securities companies have been authorized to accept custody of securities, with HSBC’s and Deutsche bank’s Ho Chi Minh City branches currently the only banks providing custody services for foreign investors. Custody is based on a central depository, central registry book entry system.

Presently, there are thirteen licensed securities companies. Of these, nine have been licensed to conduct a full range of securities services including underwriting, brokerage, custody, research, portfolio management and trading. The minimum capital required to operate effectively as an investment bank is VND43b (c. US$2.7m).

The current market capitalization is now US$239m for equities and US$866m for government bonds.

With the World Bank estimating domestic savings of some US$5b outside the official economy, considerable liquidity could flow into the securities markets in time. The SSC in conjunction with the Asian Development bank have formulated a development plan for Vietnam’s Capital markets which if successfully implemented would result in 100 listed companies on the Ho Chi Minh Exchange and a similar number on the Hanoi exchange by the end of 2005 with an associated total market capitalization of between 2 and 3 percent of GDP.

see details: Vietnam Stock Exchange

Vietnamese Stocks - Equities in Vietnam

Vietnam Stock Exchange - The Stock Exchange for Vietnamese Stock Market

The Stock Trading Center of Vietnam (‘STC’), located in Ho Chi Minh City, was officially inaugurated on July 20, 2000, and trading commenced on July 28, 2000. Initially, two equity issues were listed, Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Joint Stock Corporation (‘REE’) and Saigon Cable and Telecommunication Material Joint Stock Company (‘SACOM’). It is the smallest stock exchange in Southeast Asia. The Vietnam stock exchange is both operated and regulated by the State Securities Commission.

More information about Vietnam Stock Exchange

Vietnamese Securities Companies

As of February 2004, thirteen companies have been licensed by both the State Securities Commission and Ho Chi Minh City Stock Trading Center. Of these, nine have capital of VND43bn (US$2.73m) or more and have been licensed to conduct a full range of securities business including brokerage, advisory, fund management, proprietary trading and underwriting. Saigon Securities Incorporation, Hai Phong Securities Joint Stock Company and EAB Securities Company have chartered capital ranging from VND20-22bn (US$1.27m-US$1.4m) while Mekong Securities Joint Stock Company are capitalized at VND6bn (US$0.38m). Neither company is licensed to conduct proprietary trading or underwriting.

More information about Vietnamese Stock Brokers

Foreign Participation

Foreign ownership of shares in companies listed on the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Trading Center is limited to 49% of the company’s issued share capital. For bonds, foreign investors can hold 100% ownership of a particular issuer’s bonds.

Foreign investors who wish to purchase shares through the Ho Chi Minh City Stock Trading Center are required to register through a custodian licensed to hold securities on behalf of foreigners – of which there are currently three; The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, Deutsche Bank AG and Standard Chartered Bank. Beside these three, securities companies can play role of custodian unit to hold stocks for foreigners as well. Once registered, a Securities Transaction Code is issued to the foreign investor who may then open a Trading Account with one or more of the twelve licensed Securities Companies.

How to Buy Vietnam Stocks

For private investors, it is necessary to fly to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) to open a securities account and a bank account. Foreigners are able to transfer funds out of Vietnam after fulfill tax obligations. There is no time constrain.

You may wish to contact Vietnamese stock brokerage firms on this list for more information.

Thanks for Minh Quan for the updates of the rules of Vietnam stock exchange.

see details Vietnamese Stocks - Equities in Vietnam

Historical weigths and measures

Systems of measurement
A system of measurement is a set of units which can be used to specify anything which can be measured. Some quantities are designated as fundamental units meaning all other needed units can be derived from them. In most systems, length (distance), weight, and time are fundamental quantities; or as has been now accepted as better in science and engineering, the substitution of mass for weight, as a better more basic parameter. Some systems have changed to recognize the improved relationship, notably the 1824 legal changes to the Imperial system.

Later science developments showed that either electric charge or electric current must be added to complete the minimum set of fundamental quantities by which all other metrological units may be defined. Other quantities, such as power, speed, etc. are derived from the fundamental set; for example, speed is distance divided by time. Historically a wide range of units were used for the same quantity; for example, in several cultural settings, length was measured in inches, feet, yards, fathoms, rods, chains, furlongs, miles, nautical miles, leagues, with conversion factors which are not simple powers of ten or even always simple fractions.

Nor were they necessarily the same units (or equal units) between different members of similar cultural backgrounds, the British Empire no longer owned the United States, and of the later British derived societies about half repudiated the British Crown just like the United States did a century-and-a-half earlier. It must be understood by the modern reader that historically, measurement systems were perfectly adequate within their own cultural milieu, and the understanding that a better more universal system (based on more rationale and fundamental units) only gradually spread with the maturation and appreciation of the rigor characteristic of Newtonian physics. Moreover, changing one's measurement system has real fiscal and cultural costs.

Once the analysis tools within that field were appreciated and came into widespread use in the nascent sciences and especially in the utilitarian subfields of applied science like civil and mechanical conversion to a common basis had no impetus. It was only after the appreciation of these needs and the appreciation of the difficulties of converting between numerous national customary systems became widespread could there be any serious justification for an international effort of standardization. Credit the French Revolutionary spirit for taking the first significant and radical step down that road.

In antiquity, systems of measurement were defined locally, the different units were defined independently according to the length of a king's thumb or the size of his foot, the length of stride, the length of arm or per custom like the weight of water in a keg of specific size, perhaps itself defined in hands and knuckles. The unifying characteristic is that there was some definition based on some standard, however egocentric or amusing it may now seem viewed with eyes used to modern precision. Eventually cubits and strides gave way under need and demand from merchants and evolved to customary units.

In the metric system and other recent systems, a single basic unit is used for each fundamental quantity. Often secondary units (multiples and submultiples) are used which convert to the basic units by multiplying by powers of ten, i.e., by simply moving the decimal point. Thus the basic metric unit of length is the metre or meter; a distance of 1.234 m is 1234.0 millimetres, or 0.001234 kilometres.

Metric system
Metric systems of units have evolved since the adoption of the first well-defined system in France in 1791. During this evolution the use of these systems spread throughout the world, first to the non-English-speaking countries, and more recently to the English speaking countries.

Multiples and submultiples of metric units are related by powers of ten; the names for these are formed with prefixes. This relationship is compatible with the decimal system of numbers and it contributes greatly to the convenience of metric units.

In the early metric system there were two fundamental or base units, the metre and the gram, for length and mass. The other units of length and mass, and all units of area, volume, and compound units such as density were derived from these two fundamental units.

Mesures usuelles (French for customary measurements) were a system of measurement introduced to act as compromise between the metric system and traditional measurements. It was used in France from 1812 to 1839.

A number of variations on the metric system have been in use. These include gravitational systems, the centimetre-gram-second systems (cgs) useful in science, the metre-tonne-second system (mts) once used in the USSR and the metre-kilogram-second system of units (mks) most commonly used today.

The current international standard metric system is the International System of Units (Système international d'unités or SI) It is an mks system based on the metre, kilogram and second as well as the kelvin, ampere, candela, and mole.

The SI includes two classes of units which are defined and agreed internationally. The first of these classes are the seven SI base units for length, mass, time, temperature, electric current, luminous intensity and amount of substance. The second of these are the SI derived units. These derived units are defined in terms of the seven base units. All other quantities (e.g. work, force, power) are expressed in terms of SI derived units.


Imperial and U.S. customary units
Both the Imperial units and U.S. customary units derive from earlier English units. Imperial units were mostly used in the British Commonwealth and the former British Empire. They are still used in common household applications to some extent and so are also sometimes called common units, but have now been mostly replaced by the metric system in commercial, scientific, and industrial applications.

Contrarily, however, U.S. customary units are still the main system of measurement in the United States. While some steps towards metrication have been made (mainly in the late 1960s and early 1970s), the customary units have a strong hold due to the vast industrial infrastructure and commercial development. The effort is proceeding slowly due to the overwhelming financial cost of converting the existing infrastructure. U.S. companies which trade internationally are more likely to use the metric system due to international standards and certifications such as ISO9000. The metric system is preferred in certain fields such as science, medicine and technology.

These two systems are closely related. There are, however, a number of differences between them. Units of length and area (the inch, foot, yard, mile etc.) are identical except for surveying purposes. The Avoirdupois units of mass and weight differ for units larger than a pound (lb.). The Imperial system uses a stone of 14 lb., a long hundredweight of 112 lb. and a long ton of 2240 lb. The stone is not used in the U.S. and the hundredweights and tons are short being 100 lb. and 2000 lb. respectively.

Where these systems most notably differ is in their respective units of volume. A U.S. fluid ounce (fl. oz.) is slightly larger than its Imperial equivalent (the former being approximately 29.6 millilitres (ml) and the latter 28.4 ml). However, as there are 16 U.S. fl. oz. to a U.S. pint as opposed to the 20 Imperial fl. oz. per Imperial pint, these pints are quite different in volume. The same is true of quarts, gallons, etc. Six U.S. gallons are a little less than five Imperial gallons.

Mentioned above was the Avoirdupois system which has served as the general system of mass and weight. In addition to this there are the Troy and the Apothecaries' systems. Troy weight was customarily used for precious metals, black powder and gemstones. The troy ounce is the only unit of the system in current use; it is used for precious metals. Although the troy ounce is larger than its Avoirdupois equivalent, the pound is smaller. The obsolete troy pound was divided into twelve ounces opposed to the sixteen ounces per pound of the Avoirdupois system. The Apothecaries' system; traditionally used in pharmacology, now replaced by the metric system; shares same pound and ounce as the troy system but with different further subdivisions.

Historical systems of measurement
Main article: History of measurement
Prior to the widespread adoption of the metric system many different systems of official measurement had been in use, many of these remain today, at least in part, in traditional or customary use. Many of these were related to some extent or other. Often they were based on the dimensions of the human body. When the world turned to trade between city-states better systems were needed to enable that merchantile activity. Overtime, the evolution continued as transportation continued to shrink the world, and so what was once an artifact of a pocket kingdom matured into something that was at least workable. Despite the growth and adoption of modern systems like SI around the world for business and governance, such customary systems are still commonly used in day to day life for everyday ordinary household tasks around the world, most notably, in cooking and cookbooks.

Throughout the history of measurement, many of the units that have been used in Europe and around the Mediterranean are variations on older systems originating in the ancient Near East.

see details: Historical systems of measurement

Space

Space has been an interest for philosophers and scientists for much of human history. The term is used somewhat differently in different fields of study, hence it is difficult to provide an uncontroversial and clear definition outside of specific defined contexts. Disagreement also exists on whether space itself can be measured or is part of the measuring system. (See Space in philosophy.) Many fields use an operational definition in which the units of measurement are defined, but not space itself.


In philosophy
Main article: Philosophy of space and time
Space has a range of definitions:

One view of space is that it is part of the fundamental structure of the universe, a set of dimensions in which objects are separated and located, have size and shape, and through which they can move.
A contrasting view is that space is part of a fundamental abstract mathematical conceptual framework (together with time and number) within which we compare and quantify the distance between objects, their sizes, their shapes, and their speeds. In this view space does not refer to any kind of entity that is a "container" that objects "move through".
These opposing views are relevant also to definitions of time. Space is typically described as having three dimensions, and that three numbers are needed to specify the size of any object and/or its location with respect to another location. Modern physics does not treat space and time as independent dimensions, but treats both as features of space-time – a conception that challenges intuitive notions of distance and time.

An issue of philosophical debate is whether space is an ontological entity itself, or simply a conceptual framework we need to think (and talk) about the world. Another way to frame this is to ask, "Can space itself be measured, or is space part of the measurement system?" The same debate applies also to time, and an important formulation in both areas was given by Immanuel Kant.

In his Critique of Pure Reason, Kant described space as an a priori intuition that (together with another a priori intuition, time) allows us to comprehend sense experience. With Kant, neither space nor time are conceived as substances, but rather both are elements of a systematic framework we use to structure our experience. Spatial measurements are used to quantify how far apart objects are, and temporal measurements are used to quantify how far apart events occur.

Schopenhauer, in the preface to his On the Will in Nature, stated that "space is the condition of the possibility of juxtaposition." This is in accordance with Kant's understanding of space as a form in the mind of an observing subject.

Similar philosophical questions concerning space include: Is space absolute or purely relational? Does space have one correct geometry, or is the geometry of space just a convention? Historical positions in these debates have been taken by Isaac Newton (space is absolute), Gottfried Leibniz (space is relational), and Henri Poincaré (spatial geometry is a convention). Two important thought-experiments connected with these questions are: Newton's bucket argument and Poincaré's sphere-world.

see details: Space - wiki