Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City’s People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong (R) and a Lao representative. (Photo: VNA) HCMCity (VNA) – Ho Chi Minh City will do its utmost to strengthen the partnershipwith Lao localities and ministries and agencies, for their success is the city’ssuccess, said Chairman of the city’s People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong onJanuary 24.
Thecity respects ties with Laos, Phong reiterated when receiving Lao seniorofficials from Vientiane, Attapeu, Savannakhet and Khammuane who are visitingthe city for the Laos Goods Week in District 1.
Thetrade fair not only brings Laos’ signature products to consumers in HCM Citybut also provides a platform for businesses from the two sides to expandcooperation, he noted.
Thecity’s support for the hosting of the Laos Goods Week demonstrates itsdetermination to deepen economic-trade ties with Lao localities, contributingto the long-standing ties between the two States, Parties and peoples, he said.
TheLao side thanked HCM City for its support to the fair and affirmed that Laolocalities are ready to cooperate with Vietnam’s southern economic hub in allfields.
The first Laos Goods Week in HCM City is runningfrom January 24 to 28 with more than 150 booths set up by Laobusinesses, Vietnamese businesses operating there and city-based ones thattrade with Laos.
There will be 139 Laoproducts, including rice, sticky rice, dried beef, tea, coffee, fruits andvegetables, wooden products, handicrafts and souvenirs.
Trade between Laos andVietnam topped 900 million USD last year, a year-on-year increase of over 10per cent. The two countries have set a target of 4 billion USD by 2020.
Vietnamese companies haveinvested 5 billion USD in 276 projects in Laos, mainly in energy, services,infrastructure, mining, agriculture and forestry.-VNA
VNA
