Lao Cai (VNA) — An economic and trade promotion conference between Vietnam’s Lao Cai province and Dali prefecture of China’s Yunnan province took place in Lao Cai ward on October 21, marking an important step toward strengthening friendship and practical cooperation between the two localities.
The event aimed to open new opportunities for effective collaboration in trade, logistics, tourism, high-tech agriculture, clean energy, and people-to-people exchange.
In recent years, economic and trade ties between Dali and Vietnam have expanded robustly. In 2024, the prefecture’s total import-export turnover with Vietnam exceeded 1 billion CNY (about 140 million USD), accounting for 36% of Dali’s total goods trade. Major exports included grapes, citrus fruit, leafy vegetables, fresh durian, and processed agricultural products.
Lao Cai has become a key trade hub in this partnership, hosting several Dali enterprises that operate warehouses and logistics centres. Goods are cleared through the Hekou–Lao Cai border gate before being distributed across Vietnam. Notably, 2024 marked the first time Dali’s farm produce was shipped by rail from Dali Xiangyun railway station to Lao Cai, creating a more efficient logistics link between the two sides.
Vice Chairman of the Lao Cai People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Sinh highlighted the similarities between Dali - a scenic region with a rich cultural heritage, strong tourism and agriculture sectors, and strategic importance in southwestern China - and Lao Cai, as both are mountainous, multi-ethnic, and resource-rich localities pursuing green growth, high-tech farming, and clean energy development.
While Lao Cai benefits from its border location, international border gate, and trans-Asian logistics corridor, Dali holds strengths in tourism technology, clean energy, and modern urban planning. Their complementary advantages, Sinh said, offer significant potential for mutually beneficial cooperation that supports local businesses and communities.
According to Yang Guozong, Secretary of the Dali Party Committee, Vietnam remains one of Dali’s top trade partners, with growing economic, cultural, and tourism exchanges. Dali’s agricultural products such as grapes, citrus, pomegranates, and garlic are popular in Vietnam. Vietnamese goods, including dragon fruit, longan, pangasius fish, chilli, coffee, and industrial products like cement and rubber, are widely exported to China.
Yang expressed his hope that the visit to Lao Cai and the trade promotion conference would serve as a new starting point for deeper, broader, and higher-quality cooperation with Vietnamese localities, driving shared growth and prosperity. He proposed enhancing trade facilitation, industrial connectivity, and people-to-people exchanges in the coming period.
During the event, enterprises from both sides presented their cooperation proposals to boost bilateral trade and increase import-export value. Several agreements were signed between agricultural export-import and digital technology firms. Lao Cai pledged to work closely with Dali authorities to strengthen trade and investment links and provide the best possible conditions in procedures, infrastructure, and logistics to support businesses in Dali and other Yunnan localities operating in the province./.
