A seminar aiming at strengthening exchanges and cooperation between Vietnamese and French businesses was held in Hanoi on May 24.

The seminar, entitled “Exports to the French market – Opportunities and reality”, was co-organised by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Vietnam (CCIFV).

Speaking at the event, Tran Thien Cuong, Head of the VCCI’s Department for International Relations, said that together with the development of the two countries’ relations, trade cooperation between Vietnam and France has seen new growth.

He expressed his hope that in the coming time, Vietnam will become a bridge for France’s goods to penetrate into ASEAN markets and vice versa, France will create conditions to help Vietnamese commodities access the EU market.

According to CCIFV Vice President Claude Cuvelier, Vietnam is a potential partner of France and the French government has made constant efforts to improve the legal and investment environment to attract foreign investors.

He affirmed that CCIFV will support French and Vietnamese businesses in boosting cooperation for mutual development.

At the seminar, economic experts called on Vietnamese businesses to boost exports to the French market as it is considered a potential market in Europe with a population of over 67 million.

They said that two-way trade between Vietnam and France remains modest with France’s exports to Vietnam reaching 969 million USD and Vietnam’s exports being over 1 billion USD last year./.