(Nikkei BP Group)
(No.1 High-Tech News Site in Japanese)
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| Hewlett-Packard Vietnam Copes with Recession
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December 3, 1998 (HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam) -- Hewlett-Packard Vietnam
said it is enjoying reasonably good sales this year and that it is coping
well with the regional recession.
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Pham Manh Hung, manager of the company's office in Hanoi, said that due
to strong marketing measures and flexible reseller networks, HP Vietnam
is generating good sales even during a recessionary environment.
Hewlett-Packard set up a wholly owned company here in 1996, and it operates
17 service centers nationwide.
The company targets 1999 sales equal to those of this year, and it will
increase the number of service centers to 30 next year.
Also, Hewlett-Packard signed agreements in September with 75 local technology
companies, recognizing them as official resellers and retail partners
in Vietnam.
Most of HP's sales in Vietnam are of small printers purchased by individuals,
Hung said.
The company recently introduced new color printers that range in price
from just over US$100 (personal printers) to US$16,000 (54-in. printers),
Hung noted.
At the same time, Bob Hughes, general manager of HP Vietnam, said that
the company expects to do better in the local software market.
Sales of printers in 1999 will likely reach about 100,000-150,000 units,
said Nguyen Trong, chairman of Ho Chi Minh City Computer Association
(HCA). Also, he said that HP printers will continue to dominate the
market, followed by those of Epson.
"We have not cut any jobs here, as have other IT companies in Vietnam,
owing to the currency crisis over the last two years," Hughes said.
(David Tran, Asia BizTech Correspondent)
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