The national trade promotion programme would priotise the search for new markets for agricultural products in the coming time, Director of the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency Bui Huy Son was quoted by the Vietnam Economic News as saying.

The national trade promotion programme has effectively implemented tasks to promote exports, improve production capacity of the business community and organise trade promotion activities, supporting enterprises to consolidate their positions in key markets as well as explore potential markets.

Thanks to the support from the national trade promotion programme, Many Vietnamese products are now available in many markets, especially traditional markets like the US, EU, Japan and China. In addition, the programme has actively supported exporters to return to traditional markets such as Russia and the former Eastern European countries, expand and consolidate their positions in Laos and Cambodia and develop new markets such as Myanmar, Latin America and Africa.

In addition to positive results in terms of market expansion, the national trade promotion programme has also contributed to help enterprises and localities attract investment, renovate technology and restructure production.

The national trade promotion programme has made positive contributions to export-import activities between 2003 and2013. During the period, average export turnover growth reached 23.6 percent per year while its figure in the 2006-2010 and 2011-2013 period reached 18.3 percent and 22.61 percent per year, respectively.

In 2013, Vietnam’s export turnover totaled 132.13 billion USD, recording a trade surplus in the two consecutive years. In 2014, export turnover is expected to reach 147 billion USD and growth would stand at 10 percent compared to 2013.

In recent times, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has paid special attention to trade promotion activities for agriculture, forestry and fisheries products and focused on promoting agricultural exports to major markets. It can be affirmed that agriculture, forestry and fisheries products have been a top priority of the Ministry of Industry and Trade in the national trade promotion programme.

In 2013, in terms of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, 23 trade promotion projects in the national trade promotion programme were approved with a total budget of 28.07 billion VND, accounting for 28.64 percent of the programme’s total budget.

According to exporters, the national trade promotion programme has contributed to promoting exports to key markets such as the US, EU, Japan, China and some Eastern European countries.
As many as 19 trade promotion projects in the national trade promotion programme for agriculture, forestry and fisheries continued to be approved in 2014 with a total budget of 25.64 billion VND, accounting for 36.6 percent of the programme’s total budget.

In the first five months of this year, units successfully implemented many projects such as participating in seafood exhibition in North America, the global seafood fair, the international fair on food and beverage (Foodex Japan 2014), the international tea fair in Dubai and the International Food Industry Exhibition Seoul 2014.

Through these exhibitions and fairs, businesses signed contracts worth tens of millions of dollars, contributing to increase export growth and diversifying and expanding export markets.-VNA