Businesses from Vietnam and Finland were brought together at a conference held in Ho Chi Minh City on November 29 to promote their trade links.

The event created an opportunity for both countries to seek partners and investment opportunities in various fields, such as education and information technology, declared Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Planning and Investment.

Finnish Ambassador to Vietnam Kimmo Lahdevirta affirmed that his country always considers Vietnam a potential trade partner.

Finland ’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has recently sponsored a programme, namely Finnpartnership, promoting business cooperation between Finnish and firms and counterparts in developing countries, including Vietnam , he noted.

Nearly 100 Finnish businesses were reported to be operating in Vietnam . The two countries signed an agreement on investment encouragement and protection in 2008.

Two-way trade between both countries hit 304 million USD last year, up 44 percent on an annual basis.

During the first nine months of 2013, bilateral trade was recorded at 171 million USD.-VNA