Business

Vietnamese transport businesses scratch heads over losses caused by unprecedented fuel price hike

Published

9 months ago

June 16, 2022

Many transport businesses in Vietnam have been forced to reduce the scale of their operations and sell their vehicles due to a sharp fuel price hike, which has been hampering their post-pandemic recovery and causing considerable losses.

An increasing number of transport firms are unable to cope with the continuous jump in oil and gas prices, as fuel prices in Vietnam reached a record high on Monday, with RON95-V gasoline selling at VND33,620 (US$1.45) per liter and diesel oil at VND30,410 ($1.31) per liter.

As transport activities in the country have yet to recover following the COVID-19 pandemic, the unprecedented hike in fuel prices brings about new difficulties to already-struggling businesses.

At the parking lot of a company named P.T., hundreds of four- and seven-seater taxis have been inactive for nearly a month, and it remains unclear when they will get back on the road again.

Meanwhile, several passenger bus lines are on the verge of bankruptcy, being forced to sell their vehicles at a low price to minimize losses.

Aside from soaring gasoline costs, expensive diesel oil has also dealt a blow to local businesses since it is the most commonly used fuel in freight and passenger transport.

Dao Ngoc Tuan, owner of Tuan Duyen Bus Line, which operates along the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City route, stated that the cost of oil for a north-to-south trip has jumped to VND30 million ($1,291) from about VND15 million ($645).

Despite rising costs, the number of passengers only adds up to about 40 percent of pre-pandemic figures, Tuan complained, adding that the more trips the company operates, the higher the deficits become.

“We have thought about selling our buses, but we may not be able to sell them at a high price given the current gasoline rates,” he said.

Nguyen Kha, owner of Anh Thu Bus Line operating on the Ho Chi Minh City-Da Nang route, said he had sold two out of five 45-seater buses.

“We suffered losses worth VND4-5 million [$172-215] every journey,” Kha elaborated.

Increasing the fare is not an effective solution because it will result in a drop in passenger numbers, he added.

The cost of cargo transport via a tractor-trailer between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City is about VND80 million ($3,400), but the petrol alone already costs over VND45 million ($1,930), said Tran Van Thanh, general director of A Chau Transportation Corporation.

Businesses also have to pay other fees, including tolls and salaries and meals of drivers, Thanh added.

“We did not raise our fares in the wake of the previous fuel price hikes, but we have to change our mind this time, for we are no longer able to handle the deficit,” he stated.

Many other transport companies already announced an eight-to-ten-percent increase in fares.

“We hope that passengers will understand that we have no other option,” said a representative of Viet Tan Phat Bus Line, which was set to increase the fare for a trip from Ho Chi Minh City to Central Highlands provinces by VND50,000-90.000 ($2.1-3.8) starting Wednesday.

Do Van Thang, general director of Vintrans JSC, stated that the company has taken countless measures to reduce losses over the past two months.

Vintrans sold many of its old trucks and bought new vehicles with better fuel efficiency, while adjusting their operating procedures.

The firm is considering a five-to-seven-percent fare rise, Thang explained.

Authorities need to implement suitable tax reduction policies to help businesses cope with the current fuel prices, said Nguyen Kim Thanh, director of Kim Phat Transport Company.

“Oil and gas must be considered as essential commodities so that suitable solutions can be carried out,” Thanh stressed.

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Source: https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/business/20220616/vietnamese-transport-businesses-scratch-heads-over-losses-caused-by-unprecedented-fuel-price-hike/67632.html

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Business

Two hotels in Nha Trang fined for fake grading

Published

44 mins ago

March 27, 2023

TienphongNews

Two hotels in Nha Trang City, Khanh Hoa Province, south-central Vietnam were fined VND10 million (US$424) each for improperly upgrading their hotel star ratings to promote their services on online travel websites and social media, local authorities said on Monday.

The two hotels are Areca on Phuong Cau Street in Van Thanh Ward and B&N on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street in Loc Tho Ward.

Areca declared itself as a four-star hotel and B&N stated the same on its Facebook page.

Both also listed themselves as four-star hotels on travel and accommodation booking platform Booking.com.

However, the result of an inspection by the Khanh Hoa Department of Information and Communications showed that Areca has not yet been recognized by any state agency and B&N was rated only three-star by authorities.

As a result, the owners of the two hotels were fined VND10 million each and were required to remove the false declarations.

A leader of the Khanh Hoa Department of Information and Communications said that it is difficult to handle fake grading on accommodation booking platforms, such as Booking.com and Agoda.com, given their physical absence in Vietnam and overseas server locations.

Owners of hotels that are detected with incorrect star ratings often shift the responsibility to the foreign platforms.

As of early 2023, Khanh Hoa has had 1,148 tourist accommodation establishments, including 102 rated 3- to 5-star, accounting for nearly 50 percent of the total number of hotel rooms in the coastal tourist province.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!

The two hotels are Areca on Phuong Cau Street in Van Thanh Ward and B&N on Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street in Loc Tho Ward.

Areca declared itself as a four-star hotel and B&N stated the same on its Facebook page.

Both also listed themselves as four-star hotels on travel and accommodation booking platform Booking.com.

As a result, the owners of the two hotels were fined VND10 million each and were required to remove the false declarations.

Owners of hotels that are detected with incorrect star ratings often shift the responsibility to the foreign platforms.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!

Source: https://tuoitrenews.vn/news/business/20230321/two-hotels-in-nha-trang-fined-for-fake-grading/72188.html

Business

Travel giant Saigontourist expects $146 mln gross profit in 2023

Saigontourist Group, Vietnam’s leading travel company, is targeting a gross profit of VND3.43 trillion ($145.69 million), up 22.5% year-on-year.

Published

7 hours ago

March 27, 2023

TienphongNews

saigontourist-1648745253-1035_24111881-1

The corporation is aiming for a revenue of VND14 trillion ($594 million) in 2023, up 22% year-on-year, according to data released at its business review meeting on Tuesday.

In 2023, Saigontourist Group expects to welcome 1.68 million visitors, up 62.3% compared to 2022.

Truong Duc Hung, deputy CEO of Saigontourist, said that in order to achieve those targets, the group will focus on synchronously and flexibly deploying solutions to recover domestic and international markets.

“We will build a synchronous and unique ecosystem of products through its strengths in accommodation, travel, cuisine, entertainment, conferences, and seminars,” he said.

In 2022, Saigontourist served 1.12 million visitors, up 199% year-on-year and up 13% compared to the target.

The group’s revenue reached VND12.2 trillion ($518.2 million), up 104.8% year-on-year and up 17.3% compared to the target. Its gross profit hit VND3 trillion ($127.43 million), up 368.7% and 48.1%, respectively.

Established in 1975, Saigontourist is managing more than 100 hotels, resorts, restaurants, tour operators, amusement parks, tourism training schools, exhibition areas, conference and seminar centers, golf courses, and cable TV etc.

Source: The Investor

Source: https://e.nhipcaudautu.vn/companies/travel-giant-saigontourist-expects-146-mln-gross-profit-in-2023-3351468/

Business

Vietnam Airlines restarts air services between Hanoi and Beijing

Published

9 hours ago

March 27, 2023

TienphongNews

Vietnam’s national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has resumed its regular flights linking Hanoi and Beijing after a three-year pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The airline’s flight VN513 departed from Beijing at 3:30 pm and landed in Hanoi at 5.55 pm on Sunday.

Before the resumption of the Beijing-Hanoi flight, Vietnam Airlines held a welcoming ceremony for the passengers on board at Beijing International Airport, with the participation of Vietnam and China’s competent agencies and enterprises and over 100 passengers.

The air carrier is operating the Hanoi-Beijing air route with a frequency of three round-trip flights a week.

The airline will start increasing its frequency from mid-2023, while planning to open an air route connecting with Beijing’s Daxing International Airport.

China is one of Vietnam Airlines’ biggest international source markets. The air carrier has reopened most of its air routes linking Vietnam to China, said a representative of the airline.

The airline will resume four air routes connecting Da Nang in Vietnam’s central region with China’s Guangzhou, Shanghai and Chengdu, and between Hanoi and Chengdu in the coming months.

Vietnam Airlines is set to use wide-body Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 aircraft for its routes with China.

The resumption of air services between the two countries will contribute to speeding up the post-pandemic tourism recovery and driving up bilateral trading activities, apart from helping fulfill Vietnam’s target of attracting international tourists in 2023.

Vietnam looks to serve 110 million tourists in 2023, with some eight million from abroad and 102 million domestic visitors. The country is also expected to earn about VND650 trillion (US$27.5 billion) in tourism revenue this year.

In 2022, over 3.66 million international tourists traveled to Vietnam, a year-on-year surge of 23.3-fold, according to data from the General Statistics Office of Vietnam.

Over 89 percent of the total arrived in Vietnam by air, up 29.5-fold against 2021, local media reported.

After China added Vietnam to its list of approved countries for group tours on March 15, Vietnamese airlines are racing to transport passengers between the two destinations.