The Hanoitimes -  Japanese office equipment maker Canon Vietnam is o­n track for high export profits this year, despite concerns over Vietnam’s high inflation and exchange rate risks.

Sachio Kageyama, general director of Canon Vietnam, said the company had experienced a very good 2010 after the serious global crisis of 2009. The company estimated its export earnings for 2010 at $1.5 billion, a rise of more than 20 per cent o­n 2009 figures.

“The recent successful and profitable business of Canon Vietnam is highly appreciated by our mother company. We are setting higher export targets for this year. Export turnover in 2011 is expected to grow 25 per cent year-on-year,” said Kageyama, adding that Canon Vietnam was recognised as Vietnam’s third largest individual exporter.

“We forecasted that the growth in global demand for ink-jet printers would remain stable in the next few years,” he said

Despite the economic recession, the laser printer market has continued to grow and Canon remains dominant in Vietnam.

Canon’s latest statistics show the market share for its printers in Vietnam was 90 per cent in 2009.

In 2009, the Canon LASERSHOT LBP2900 and LBP330 were among Canon’s single function printer best sellers with market shares of 23.2 per cent and 10.7 per cent respectively in terms of units sold.

Canon currently holds a 31.2 per cent market share for digital cameras in Vietnam.

Canon’s IXUS camera, and Powershot and Lasershot printer brands are all recognised as top performers by the influential market tracker GfK Retail and Technology.

However, Kageyama said that Canon Vietnam was concerned about foreign exchange risks and Vietnam’s high inflation.

The Vietnamese dong has depreciated against the US dollar while the Japanese yen has appreciated against the US dollar. The dollar-yen exchange rate hit a 15-year low in 2010.

“We still depend o­n materials and components from other countries and the problem for us is that while prices for imported materials and components have risen a lot, the price of output products cannot be raised.

“High inflation affects not o­nly workers but also enterprises operating in Vietnam,” he said.

According to Vietnam General Statistics Office, the consumer price index (CPI) rise for 2010 far exceeded all prior targets to hit 11.75 per cent. Increases in the index were mostly driven by hikes in food and foodstuffs and housing costs. By comparison, the 2009 CPI rise was a relatively low 6.88 per cent.

“In my opinion, to maintain competitiveness against other countries, the governments must find ways to rein in inflation,” Kageyama added

Canon employs more than 15,000 people in Vietnam.