Illustrative photo (Source: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) – Trade between Vietnam and the Eurasian
Economic Union (EAEU) hit 1.7 billion USD in the first 6 months of 2017, up 21
percent year-on-year, according to statistics of the General Department of
Vietnam Customs.
The figure was reported at a seminar on the EAEU market and
opportunities to boost export via the Vietnam – EAEU free trade agreement held
by the Ministry of Industry and Trade on August 25.
At the function, Hoang Quoc Vuong, Deputy Minister of
Industry and Trade said the pact, which took effect in October 2016, has
enabled Vietnam to access a market of 183 million people and nearly 2.2
trillion USD in GDP.
Currently, about 900 Vietnamese exporters are active in the
EAEU market, with key exports including seafood, coffee, rubber, tea, rice,
apparel, woodwork products and confectionary.
Kharinov Vyachslav Nikolaevich, Chief Representative of the
Russian Trade Office in Vietnam, said from the beginning of 2017, a strong
increase has been seen in Vietnam’s import of Russian food, coal, steel, paper
products and chemicals, while healthy growth has been recorded for Vietnamese
shipments of mobile phone components, apparel and farm produce to Russia.
However, many were not satisfied with the growth.
Nguyen Ngoc Hoa, Vice Director of the Ho Chi Minh City
Department of Industry and Trade, said Vietnam – EAEU trade felt short of
potentials, staying at just over 3 billion USD on an annual average.
Trade between Vietnam and EAEU members have recorded unequal
growth, he said, citing as an example that HCM City’s firms have mostly worked
with Russian partners and are yet to tap business potentials with those from
Belarus and Armenia.
In fact, Vietnam – Russia trade makes up 90 percent of total
trade revenue between the country and the EAEU, while trade between Vietnam and
Belarus and Armenia in 2016 even recorded decreases from 2015.
Nguyen Khanh Ngoc, Deputy Head of the Ministry of Industry
and Trade’s European Market Department, attributed the issue to long-time trade
partnership between Vietnam and Russia and inadequate understanding of
Vietnamese firms about other EAEU markets.
She urged Vietnamese enterprises to study these markets and
boost their product quality to maximize trade before the EAEU signs free trade
agreement with more nations.-VNA