Electric, electronics markets foresee success

HCM City (VNA) - Domestic retailers in electronic and electric goods say they
predict a successful year, despite the economic downturn.

Many economists and retailers expect the growth rate in such goods to be 20 percent
higher than last year's.

They say Vietnam 's young market desires for better, more advanced technology
which bodes well for higher purchases.

In 2007, Vietnam 's entire electrical engineering market achieved 3 billion USD
in turnover and a growth rate of 30-40 percent compared to the previous year,
according to the Republic of Korea-based GS Retail Group.

The GfK Group, one of the world's largest market research companies, says that last
year the domestic electric and electronic goods market grew by 21.87 percent, with
total turnover of 3.9 billion USD.

The company also estimates that the market would continue growing this year, with
turnover of about 4.7 billion USD.

Many retailers, such as Nguyen Kim, Pico, Best Carings and Cho Lon, are expanding
their business.

Le Hong Xuan, general director of Best Carings, said the current difficult economic
situation would allow domestic retailers and distributors to display their
capabilities.

"Our strategy is to build a sales system that will supply goods of the best
quality so that we can maintain our client numbers and stabilities growth," Xuan
said.

Another major retail company, which requested anonymity, said that although the Tet
market purchasing power had not grown as much as last year the company had still
decided to expand its sales system.

It plans to open more supermarkets in major cities including Hanoi and HCM
City , a company representative said, adding that trademark building would be the
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