Customs shares experience in managing processing, manufacturing, and export-import activities

The Customs Supervision and Management Department needs help with scattered business data and non-centralized information systems in different industry-specific programs and systems. Additionally, the collection of business information in some local customs departments needs more attention and only focuses on clearance activities. Therefore, the collection of business information still faces many difficulties and has yet to achieve effective management.

In addition, inspecting production facilities and production capacity of enterprises and establishing a unified business information system is an essential requirement in the process of collecting business information. Through this, fraudulent acts in this type of activity can be timely detected and prevented.

On December 20 and 21, the General Department of Customs held a seminar on customs management for processing, manufacturing, and import-export activities in Binh Duong. Thereby, a comprehensive assessment of the administration, inspection, and supervision of customs for processed, manufactured, imported, and exported goods, and an exchange of experience in customs management and proposed customs management methods will be provided with the new digital customs model.

Speaking at the seminar, the Director of the Customs Supervision and Management Department, Au Anh Tuan, said that the processing activity, importing raw materials for manufacturing, and exporting took place in almost all localities across the country. To monitor and manage a large number of these enterprises, the Customs agency needs suitable management methods and measures.

Therefore, at this seminar, units' representatives under the General Department of Customs will discuss management methods for enterprises carrying out processing, manufacturing, and export-import activities and collect, analyze, and evaluate business information to apply appropriate management measures. Skills to inspect production facilities and capacity, monitor benchmarks, and manage the relationship between imported raw materials, exported products, and production capacity will also be discussed.

Customs share experience towards digital customs

Regarding the customs management of export processing enterprises, the Customs Management Supervision Department said that the key issues discussed included: management, monitoring, and supervision of export processing enterprises through the camera system. ; measures to protect data of information about export processing enterprises, customs procedures related to export and import goods of export processing enterprises.

Regarding customs management with on-site import and export, representatives of the units discussed the management and control of import and export declarations on the spot; experience in handling cases where import and export declarations on the spot are still hanging on the system; handling in case the enterprise absconds, goes bankrupt...

At the seminar, the Hai Phong Customs Department representative shared experiences in the management, collection, analysis, and evaluation of information for processing, manufacturing, and exporting enterprises, checking the capacity of production facilities to detect deviations from the actual import and export activities of the enterprise. The Binh Duong Customs Department also shared its experience in applying information technology to the management of processing, manufacturing, and exporting goods. The Ho Chi Minh City Customs Department provided information on managing and inspecting customs declarations on-site, experience in handling outstanding customs declarations, and developing software to monitor and manage customs declarations on-site effectively.

PouYen company plans to cut 6,000 employees due to a lack of orders. 

Due to a shortage of manufacturing orders, PouYen Vietnam Co., Ltd. will not continue to sign labor contracts with about 3,000 workers who have 1-3 year labor contracts. In addition, the company plans to cut 3,000 workers in Zone C and Zone D in February.

The reason given at the time was that the main export markets were sharply reducing orders, affecting the company's production plans. The company also had to compete for sports shoe processing orders in the context of customers offering prices only half of what they used to.

In a report sent to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs proposed that the People's Committee of Binh Tan District and the Ho Chi Minh City Labor Federation monitor and supervise the production situation and labor relations at PouYen Vietnam Co., Ltd., and understand the aspirations of workers. At the same time, there should be plans to support and care for workers in difficulty. The Department will also coordinate with relevant units to guide the implementation of policies for workers and connect them with new job opportunities.

Foreign orders have plummeted, and empty containers are piling up at Chinese ports.

Based on a recent Drewry report, a consulting and research company, the price of a 40-foot container in December 2022 decreased by 45% compared to the same period in 2021. The report estimates that prices will continue to decline for 6-9 months in early 2023 before recovering.

The Freightos Baltic index shows that the shipping price of a 40-foot container from Asia to the United States West Coast last week was $1,295, 92% lower than last year. Meanwhile, the shipping price from Asia to the United States and Europe East Coast has decreased by 86% and 80%, respectively, compared to one year ago.

Mr. Judah Levine, Director of Research at Freightos, explained: "The cause of the decline may be due to high inventory levels, weakened consumption due to inflation, and a trend towards returning to service spending."

The latest report from the US National Retail Federation estimates that the volume of seaborne imports into the country in February will decrease by 12% compared to January and 26% compared to a year ago.

Empty containers are pouring into Vietnam, and many ports are congested.

Experts are concerned that this indicates an impending economic recession as consumer demand has decreased. A spokesperson for Container x Change stated that the market is declining due to reduced consumer demand due to concerns about economic recession and inflation risks. As a result, there has been a significant decrease in consumer demand, leading to less demand for goods transportation.

Mr. Minh explained that Vietnam has the lowest storage and warehouse fees in the world, and even some are free. This directly affects businesses that operate storage and depot services.

This is also the opinion of Mr. Nguyen Duy Minh, Secretary General of the Vietnam Logistics Service Business Association. According to him, global trade is declining, so the volume of transported goods is also decreasing, including in Vietnam. From this, a surplus of containers is also occurring in Vietnam. It is noteworthy that Vietnam is also becoming a "destination" for empty containers.