Japan – a "laissez-passer" for Vietnamese goods to global markets: official

Imported flowers for sale at the AEON Mall Makuhari supermarket in Chiba prefecture of Japan. Many of the flowers are imported from Vietnam. (Photo: VNA)

Tokyo (VNA) – Japan has very strict import standards, but if Vietnamesegoods manage to meet those rules, they will be able to enter not only thisdemanding market but also most of other markets in the world, said VietnameseTrade Counsellor in Japan Ta Duc Minh.

Highlightingefforts by the Vietnamese Trade Office to connect export and import demand, hetold the Vietnam News Agency that the two countries’ export structures do notdirectly compete but are complementary to each other. Vietnam has great demandfor commodities with high technological content and added value from Japan,which in turn has high demand for agro-forestry-fishery products, processedfood, textile-garments, and leather-footwear from Vietnam.

Thatboth countries are members of many free trade agreements (FTAs) such as theVietnam - Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, the ASEAN - Japan ComprehensiveEconomic Partnership, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement forTrans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), and the Regional Comprehensive EconomicPartnership (RCEP), which include many strong tariff cut commitments, has created many opportunities for boosting trade cooperation.

Within the CPTPP and RCEP frameworks, Japan is a promising export market forVietnam thanks to the close proximity, leading to low logistics costs andconvenient transportation, and the optimisation of rules of origin under theseFTAs, Minh said.

Herecommended that to make use of advantages created by the CPTPP and the RCEP,Vietnamese enterprises should pay attention to the rules of origin to selectsuitable partners to increase the optimisation of preferential tariffs.

Vietnamese Trade Counsellor in Japan Ta Duc Minh grants an interview to the Vietnam News Agency. (Photo: VNA)

As Japan is a demanding market with many strict import standards, to ensureVietnamese goods can gain a foothold here, the first and foremost thing is tobuild national brands for products. Vietnamese exporters, importers and sellersin Japan, and relevant agencies should join hands to establish Vietnamese goodsas high-quality and competitive products that meet Japanese consumers’ taste,according to the Trade Counsellor.

He added in the time ahead, his office will press on with coordinatingwith the Vietnamese Business Association and Vietnamese-invested companies inJapan to encourage Vietnamese people there to use Vietnamese products, advertisemade-in-Vietnam goods, and develop distribution channels for those products inJapan. It will focus on the commodities Vietnam is strong at and Japan has highdemand for, such as apparel, agro-forestry-fishery products, food, andhandicrafts.

The office will help consolidate and further expand the market for some itemsthat have already gained a foothold in Japan such as banana, dragon fruit,coffee, cocoa, cashew nut, spices, and processed food. It will also step uptrade promotion for potential commodities like textile-garment,leather-footwear, or mechanical products by participating in fairs,exhibitions, and business matching events to seek suitable partners and exportopportunities, Minh noted./.

VNA