Potential remains for Vietnam’s exports to EU

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) on December 27 organised a conference to review the implementation of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) over the last two years.

Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh said that since August 2020, Vietnam and the EU have seen positive results in their two-way trade despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the first year of the EVFTA’s implementation, bilateral trade between Vietnam and the EU reached 54.9 billion USD, up 12.1% over the same period the previous year, of which export revenue reached 34.5 billion USD, up 11.3%.

In the second year, it reached 61.4 billion USD, up nearly 11.9%, of which exports reached 45 billion USD, up 17%.

In the first 11 months of 2022, two-way trade turnover reached 57 billion USD, up 14% over the same period last year, of which exports reached 43.5 billion USD, up 21%. Key export products from Vietnam recorded positive growth such as textiles, footwear, and seafood, with year-on-year increases of 24%, 19% and 41%, respectively.

The results show that Vietnamese enterprises have taken advantage of the EVFTA. Four out of ten Vietnamese enterprises have benefited from the EVFTA, according to the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

However, according to the MoIT, the EU market still offers opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises despite facing difficulties in accessing the market.

Deputy Minister Khanh said that Vietnam's brand has not been built or is not popular in European countries.

The value and benefits that Vietnamese businesses earn are not commensurate with their potential, he added.

Ngo Chung Khanh, Deputy Director General of the MoIT’s Multilateral Trade Policy Department, said that the ministry plans to coordinate with other ministries and agencies to further provide enterprises with EVFTA-relating information.

Besides, the ministry will also assess the implementation of the EVFTA in provinces and cities nationwide through FTA INDEX which is expected to launch in late 2023.

The ministry will open training courses for enterprises, and speed up solutions to support enterprises in accessing and taking advantage of the EVFTA./.