Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai is speaking at the event (Source: Internet) HCM City (VNA) – Improving the quality andadded value of products is crucial for Vietnamese firms to access and fully tapthe US market, experts said at the Vietnam-US Business Forum held in Ho ChiMinh City on May 18.
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Haisaid two-way trade between Vietnam and the US surged 47-fold from 220 millionUSD in 1994 to nearly 51 billion USD in 2017. Vietnam is now the 16th largest trade partner of the US while the US has become Vietnam’s top tradepartner in the past decade, he said.
The two economies have supplemented each other, Haisaid, adding that while Vietnam has demand for machinery, hi-tech, aviation,telecommunications equipment, and agricultural products used for production,the US is keen on importinge farm produce, apparel, leather and footwear, andelectronic products.
However, products with high added value or luxuryconsumer goods have accounted for an inconsiderable proportion among Vietnam’sexports to the demanding market.
According to experts, each US state has differentlaws and regulations apart from the federal laws so that Vietnamese exportersneed to grasp them before doing business.
Additionally, the US has issued new and strictregulations and standards on food quality, safety and origin, especially forimported agro-forestry-aquatic products.
Chu Thang Trung, Deputy Director of the Ministry ofIndustry and Trade’s Trade Defence Department, said the US has enhancedprotectionism measures for domestic manufacturing and limited imports in recentyears.
According to Trung, the number of US lawsuitsregarding anti-dumping and anti-subsidy on many countries’ goods has doubled toover 100. For Vietnam alone, the US launched legal proceedings against 25 casesinvolving aquatic products, steel nails and clothes hangers.
Trung said almost Vietnamese firms are small andmedium-sized with little experience in trade defence so that theywill incur high costs or even risk losing the market if being sued.
Dinh Thi Huong Nga, from the Handicraft and WoodIndustry Association of Ho Chi Minh City, said Vietnam’s wooden furnitureexports to the US surpassed 3 billion USD last year, accounting for 40 percentof Vietnam’s total, mostly those in medium segment.
General Secretary of the Vietnam Association ofSeafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) Truong Dinh Hoe said stricter standardson food quality and hygiene safety will force Vietnamese exporters to improvequality to overcome technical barriers.
Trung urged firms in the same sector to fosterconnectivity and jointly cope with trade contingencies.
In policy terms, the government and traderepresentative agencies need to devise specific strategies to negotiate withauthorities while enhancing warnings and offering instructions to Vietnamesebusinesses in legal proceedings to protect their legitimate rights andinterests, he said.-VNA
Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Haisaid two-way trade between Vietnam and the US surged 47-fold from 220 millionUSD in 1994 to nearly 51 billion USD in 2017. Vietnam is now the 16th largest trade partner of the US while the US has become Vietnam’s top tradepartner in the past decade, he said.
The two economies have supplemented each other, Haisaid, adding that while Vietnam has demand for machinery, hi-tech, aviation,telecommunications equipment, and agricultural products used for production,the US is keen on importinge farm produce, apparel, leather and footwear, andelectronic products.
However, products with high added value or luxuryconsumer goods have accounted for an inconsiderable proportion among Vietnam’sexports to the demanding market.
According to experts, each US state has differentlaws and regulations apart from the federal laws so that Vietnamese exportersneed to grasp them before doing business.
Additionally, the US has issued new and strictregulations and standards on food quality, safety and origin, especially forimported agro-forestry-aquatic products.
Chu Thang Trung, Deputy Director of the Ministry ofIndustry and Trade’s Trade Defence Department, said the US has enhancedprotectionism measures for domestic manufacturing and limited imports in recentyears.
According to Trung, the number of US lawsuitsregarding anti-dumping and anti-subsidy on many countries’ goods has doubled toover 100. For Vietnam alone, the US launched legal proceedings against 25 casesinvolving aquatic products, steel nails and clothes hangers.
Trung said almost Vietnamese firms are small andmedium-sized with little experience in trade defence so that theywill incur high costs or even risk losing the market if being sued.
Dinh Thi Huong Nga, from the Handicraft and WoodIndustry Association of Ho Chi Minh City, said Vietnam’s wooden furnitureexports to the US surpassed 3 billion USD last year, accounting for 40 percentof Vietnam’s total, mostly those in medium segment.
General Secretary of the Vietnam Association ofSeafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) Truong Dinh Hoe said stricter standardson food quality and hygiene safety will force Vietnamese exporters to improvequality to overcome technical barriers.
Trung urged firms in the same sector to fosterconnectivity and jointly cope with trade contingencies.
In policy terms, the government and traderepresentative agencies need to devise specific strategies to negotiate withauthorities while enhancing warnings and offering instructions to Vietnamesebusinesses in legal proceedings to protect their legitimate rights andinterests, he said.-VNA
VNA
