Japan to donate $90,000 to buy equipment for hospital

BINH PHUOC — The Japanese government has agreed to provide aid worth nearly US$90,000 to Chon Thanh Hospital in the southern province of Binh Phuoc to buy medical equipment.

An agreement was signed between the Japanese consulate in HCM City and the Chon Thanh District People’s Committee on Monday under which the money will be used to buy equipment including an X-ray and blood testing machines.

The new equipment will serve some 62,000 residents living in the district.

Chon Thanh Hospital has a staff of 40, including eight doctors, but lacks necessary equipment.

Japan has also provided nearly $48,000 for the province’s Bu Dang District Hospital and $83,300 for a new school in Dong Xoai District. — VNS

See details: VietNam News

MoH urges lower pharma imports

HCM CITY — The Ministry of Health is encouraging joint-venture companies in pharmaceuticals, vaccines and high-tech medical equipment to reduce their dependence on imports, according to a report released last week by the ministry.

The ministry said by 2010 the country should be able to make enough medical equipment to meet 60 per cent of the needs of hospitals in the country.

The report was discussed at a meeting in Ha Noi last week to review the last four years of a national programme on medical equipment supply.

The ministry said the government would continue to fund the programme to study the design and production of medical equipment through 2010.

According to the report, 56 manufacturers including private, joint-stock and joint-ventures have produced 621 items of medical equipment, of which only 5 per cent was considered to be of a modern standard.

Most of these were for use in physical therapy and functional rehabilitation, and only a minority are for high-tech electronic equipment like X-ray, Doppler and steriliser machines and are not for use in hospitals or clinics.

The report said that locally made products have fewer technical functions than imported products while their appearance is not as appealing as foreign-made products.

In August, the ministry reported after a countrywide inspection that the 289 hospitals in the country, with a total of 64,000 beds, did not meet equipment requirements. Much of the equipment that did exist was outdated, the ministry said.

The inspection found that many hospitals lacked sufficient equipment for surgery and intensive care units.

"We found that even a 500-bed hospital had only two respirators that are operational, and the surgery lights and surgery beds were out of date," said Nguyen Huy Thin, deputy director of the health ministry’s treatment department.

More seriously, the oxygen supply system for surgical units failed to meet professional technical standards, he said.

More than 70 per cent of the hospitals did not have a CT scanner.

Duong Huy Lieu, director of the ministry’s finance department, said that 35 per cent of the equipment had been used for more than 20 years, and nearly 40 per cent of the equipment had been used from 10 to 20 years.

The items of equipment that are old should no longer be used, Lieu said. — VNS

Copyright by Viet Nam News, Vietnam News Agency

Hanoi Securities Trading Center

Hanoi Securities Trading Center (Hanoi STC) located in Hanoi, Vietnam was launched in March 2005 and handles auctions and trading of stocks and bonds. It was the second securities trading center to open in Vietnam after to Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center.

Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center

Ho Chi Minh City Securities Trading Center (HSTC) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam was established in July 2000. It is an administrative agency of the Vietnam State Securities Commission, and manages Vietnam's securities trading systems.

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.

In 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.

Official Website

http://www.vse.org.vn

See also

• Hanoi Securities Trading Center
  

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