Vietnamese businesses should make fully use of preferential treatments in trade agreements to penetrate the US and Chile markets, which offer a great potential and many opportunities, experts said at a trade seminar in Ho Chi Minh City on Dec. 13.

The American Market Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and the Association of Ho Chi Minh City Businesses organised the event to introduce local firms to the two markets.

Nguyen Duy Khien, Head of the American Market Department, suggested that local firms can look for opportunities in Chile in the fields of tourism, aquatic and farm products, footwear, garment, electronic industry and handicraft products.

According to the MoIT, the trade and economic ties between Vietnam and the US and Chile have seen strong and steady growth in most fields.

In the first ten months of this year, Vietnam earned 19.5 billion USD from exports to the US and 176.9 million USD from Chile , year-on-year increases of 18.9 percent and 39 percent, respectively.

The country’s total export turnover to markets in America is expected to reach 27.8 billion USD this year, up 18 percent.

The MoIT hopes to help Vietnamese enterprises export to all 35 American markets, contributing to restructuring the country’s export markets.-VNA