Corporate tax cut for clutch of industries
Corporate tax cut for clutch of industries
Six highly competitive economic industries will be given special Government treatment, including a 10 per cent cut in corporate income tax (to 15 per cent), preferential loans and official development assistance.
A seminar in Ha Noi on Thursday heard about the measures set to be implemented to support the nation's most lucrative sectors.
Industries expected to benefit from the plan, which will be enforced during 2013-20, include agriculture and aquaculture, processing and manufacturing, construction, logistics and forwarding, hospitality services, and information and communications.
Hoang Thinh Lam, deputy director of the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Planning Department, said industries must satisfy seven basic criteria to be considered for the special support.
These include willingness to use available local labour and material resources; large domestic or export demand; developed industry and support services; and a dedication to promoting a green economy to ensure harmony between socio-economy and the environment, he said.
On the basis of these requirements, the ministry drafted a list of 28 sub-sectors which have been considered particularly competitive.
However, most of the participants at the seminar said that despite the high number of selected industries, the country was suffering from a shortage of strong sectors.
Deputy Director of HCM City's Department of Industry and Trade Le Van Khoa proposed that the food and wood processing sectors be added to the list because of their impressive export growth.
Timber exports raked in nearly US$5 billion last year, helping Viet Nam become Asia's second largest wood exporter and placing it sixth in the world.
The food processing sector has also demonstrated its strengths and built a close relationship with the agriculture and aquaculture sectors.
The two sectors have not only met the seven criteria but also boast competitiveness and high added values.
General Secretary of the Viet Nam Cashew Association Dang Hoang Giang said the cashew sector has not been listed as a competitive industry despite meeting all the criteria.
The country's cashew exports are globally popular and have not been affected by defensive factors such as trade or technical barriers.
Chairman of the Mechanics Association Dao Van Long said spare parts for cement plants and chemicals have also not been mentioned in the list despite high growth and a large contribution to reducing the trade deficit.
He added that the motor sector included in the list was not enough because the country's auto exports were very little.
Meanwhile, a representative from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said placing rice on the list ran counter to the policy of restructuring the agricultural sector.
He said less emphasis should be placed on how much this sector produced or exported and more placed on producing products at low prices so as to benefit farmers.
Mai Anh Hong, deputy director of the Ministry of Information and Communications said a wider review of previous periods should have been undertaken before making a new list of competitive industries.
Lam also revealed that the ministry was drafting a trade and export promotion programme and planned on building a number of bonded warehouses and goods distribution centres abroad in the near future.
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