A trade fair to select outstanding Vietnamese products destined for the Republic of Korea (RoK) will take place in Ho Chi Minh City on June 24-28.

The event is also to promote trade activities between the two countries, according to the municipal Centre of Promoting Trade and Investment and the Industry and Trade newspaper under the Ministry of Industry and Trade on May 11.

Pham Le Cuong, Director of the HCM City Centre for Supporting and Developing Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises, said the programme helps businesses update information on the market’s import-export regulations.

He added that the signed free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries has opened opportunities for Vietnam to boost farm produce exports to the market, such as garlic, ginger and sweet potato.

Tran Thi Nghia, a representative from the RoK’s Lotte Mart, said the company will open three additional supermarkets in Vietnam in 2015 and support capable small- and medium-sized enterprises in farm produce, seafood and forestry products to enter foreign markets.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the RoK liberalised 97.2 percent of import values, accounting for 95.4 percent of all tariff lines on many of Vietnam’s key agricultural commodities and aquatic products such as shrimp, crab, fish, tropical fruits and industrial goods like garment-textiles, timber and engineering products.-VNA