Local firms prepare strategies for Middle East

A workshop opened in Ho Chi Minh City on October 23 for Vietnamese businesses to improve their sales to export markets in the Middle East .
A workshop opened in Ho Chi Minh Cityon October 23 for Vietnamese businesses to improve their sales toexport markets in the Middle East .

Held by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), the “Keyof success for entering the Middle East market” workshop was attendedby representatives of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT),experts from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities,economists and local trading enterprises.

Participants heard the overview introduction of export and importpolicies in Vietnam and the Middle East , typical features ofgeography, culture, consumer habits, and business practices of thetarget export market.

Local businesses were also informed of credit support policies forimport/export transactions with the Middle East as well as somecritical information to equip them to enter the market.

Ly Quoc Hung, Director of the MoIT’s African-Western & SouthernAsian Markets Department, told the meeting that the Middle East is animportant market of large and diversified demands for both productionand consumer goods.

In addition, the market has a reliable payment capacity thanks to itsabundant oil reserve, which is in sharp contrast to its undevelopedproduction capacity due to a lack of labour and input materials, Hungadded.

Vietnam’s exports to the Middle East, which used to be confined toagricultural products--mostly rice and tea--in the past are nowexpanded to include a wide variety of goods, including computers andelectronic parts, textiles and garments, footwear, seafood, coffee,milk and dairy products, rubber and rice.

The MoIT’s project on “Promoting Vietnam-Middle East relations during2008-2015 period,” approved by the Vietnamese government has identifiedas a priority the export staples such as agricultural products (rice,tea, coffee, pepper), food (seafood, fruit and vegetables) and finearts.

Trade and economic relations between Vietnam and Middle East countrieshave steadily developed in the recent past. Bilateral trade rose tonearly 2 billion USD in 2008 from just over 604 million USD in 2000.Vietnam’s export revenues during the period jumped to 1.25 billion USDfrom about 414 million USD.

Vietnam imported the largest amount of goods from the Middle Eastin 2008, with a record value of 744 million USD in 2008. The importsincluded oil and petroleum, petrochemical products, fertilizers,chemicals, steel, iron and plastics.

According to Director Hung, Vietnam will step up activities to helpdomestic businesses promote their products to consumers and theirpartners in the Middle East , including participation in trade fairs,organisation of seminars and business forums as well as working visitsfor market exploration.

The MoIT will also support local businesses to open representativeoffices or branches in several markets in the Middle East, he confirmed.

In the past, Vietnam mainly relied on Iraq and the United Emirates ofArab as target markets in the region. Yet today, its goods have foundtheir way into other large markets such as Turkey, Israel and SaudiArabia./.

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