ARAs set to put the spotlight on reports

>> 2011 ARA to reward triumph

The 37 best reports out of nearly 600 initial entries from listed companies on Vietnam’s two bourses, the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HOSE) and Hanoi Stock Exchange (HNX), will be rewarded at the New World Hotel Saigon on July 5.

Prize categories will include two winners, 29 excellence and 6 commendation awards. Details of the winning companies are to be fully reported in next week’s VIR.

The 2011 panel of judges include six members from the HOSE, HNX, VIR, Ho Chi Minh City University of Economics, ANZ and the Vietnam Association of Accountants and Auditors.

Le Nhi Nang, HoSE deputy director and chairperson of the panel of judges, said: “As Vietnam’s stock market is experiencing a challenging period with many investors losing confidence in the market, this year’s ARAs are expected to reconnect investors with listed businesses and the stock market. Most of our awards will go to the companies that made skilled analyses of risk management and growth strategies in the future.”

“We will not target business results of the reported companies to give prizes,” added Nang.

Vietnam’s stock market now has 677 stocks on the HoSE and HNX.

Nguyen Anh Tuan, VIR’s Editor in Chief and co- head of organising board, said: “Given that the world and Vietnam has grappled with recent global financial turbulence,  insightful analyses of the recent uncertainties in global raw materials and energy prices as well as Vietnam’s growing inflation rate impacts on companies’ operations and their strategies for the future will be key considerations this year.”

“More than 70 per cent of this year’s examined reports meet our basic  requirements. This is a very good effort to be commended especially in this hard time,” added Tuan.

According to the judges, the assessment criteria for this year’s ARAs will be based not only on the Ministry of Finance’s Circular No 09/2010/TT-BTC, asking listed companies to better publicise their business information, but also on international standards of good governance.

Pham Nguyen Vinh, business development director of fund management firm Dragon Capital, said: “By pairing up with ARAs organisers over the last four years, we have aimed to build a strong, sustainable and healthy market in Vietnam, which is in the process of taking more international standards into account.”

“We hope the winners this year can include the impacts of their operations on the environment, possible environmental improvement methods and their management boards’ outlooks on market risk realisation and control policies,” Vinh added.

The third ARAs last year saw Hau Giang Pharmaceutical’s (DHG) report highlighted as the top performer for the second straight year, with eight runner-ups and 21 others wining commendation awards.

First run in 2007, the Annual Report Awards aim to honour listed companies making professional, transparent reports satisfying state authorities’ and investors’ information demands. The awards were initiated and has been coorganised by the HOSE and VIR’s sister publication Dau tu Chung khoan, with support from the HNX sole sponsorship by fund management Dragon Capital Group Limited.