Vietnamese lychees are on sale at a supermarket in the UK (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam’sexports to the United Kingdom have shown good signs with Vietnamese tropicalfruits and agricultural products finding their way on to high-end andmiddle-class supermarket chains of UK like Whole Foods, Marks & Spencer (M&S),Waitrose and TESCO.
Previously, only a few Vietnamese agricultural productssuch as cashews, coffee, and pepper could be seen at UK’s supermarkets, while rice,fruits and other products were mainly sold at small supermarkets that serve theVietnamese and the Asian community.
This positive result is made possible through great efforts of Vietnamese agricultural exporters and relevant ministries, but it also reflects the benefits that the Vietnam-UK Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA)has brought about after one year of implementation.
According to Nguyen CanhCuong, Trade Counselor at the Vietnamese Embassy to the UK, UKVFTA is a momentum to promote the recovery of Vietnam-UK trade which suffered a significantdecline in 2019 and 2020. Two-way trade between the two countries reached morethan 6.6 billion USD in 2021, up 17.2 percent compared to the previous year. Ofwhich, Vietnam gained a trade surplus of approximately 4.92 billion USD, anincrease of 15.2 percent compared to that of 2020. British exports to Vietnamalso rose by 24 percent.
He said this is a veryencouraging result in the context of the container crisis, high freight shippingcosts and the UK economy not completely recovering from the COVID-19pandemic.
Commenting on the benefits ofUKVFTA, Luong Tuan Anh, a lecturer at Economics Faculty ofUK’s Montfort Leicester University, said that Vietnam is a gateway to the hugemarkets of Asia-Pacific and Europe, the signing of UKVFTA helps Vietnamesecompanies become intermediaries for companies in the UK who are havingdifficulty accessing the European market after the country leaves the EU.
Pham Trung Kien, GeneralSecretary of the Vietnam Business Association in the UK said the agreement isreally an "impetus" for Vietnamese businesses in the UK as well as inthe domestic market in the context that the British Government is opening thedoor to create opportunities for cooperation and trade with other countries inthe world, including Vietnam, a strategic partner of the UK in Southeast Asia.
Thai Tran, Director of TTMeridian Company, an enterprise engages in the import and export business inthe UK, said that the agreement has reduced import taxes for many types ofgoods that his company is trading such as fragrant rice, fruits, food andpackaging which help it reduce the cost and increase its competitiveness,thereby can push up the import of many potential products from Vietnam to theUK.
However, he pointed out that theUKVFTA sets high-quality technical standards, therefore only high quality products can enjoy preferential tax from the agreement.
Inaddition to quality issues and competitive prices, Vietnamese companies need topay attention to business reputation to successfully penetrate the UKmarket, according to Tuan Anh.
He emphasised that Britainhas long been famous as a country that respects the rule of law. To approachlarge British companies, Vietnamese businesses need to be transparent aboutinformation such as having a reliable website, good track records withreputable businesses, clear contracts and respecting all terms in the contracts.
Anh noted that UK consumersare particularly concerned about social issues such as child labour or sub-standard working conditions as well as activities that cause high emissions, thus,businesses must pay attention to corporate social responsibility.
Meanwhile, Ian Gibbons, ChiefExecutive Officer at UK-ASEAN Business Council (UKABC), stressed the importanceof thorough market research when exporting to the UK to ensure the products aresuitable and capable to compete in the market. He also highlighted the need tobuild trust and reputation with British partners through developing long-termand sustainable relationships.
According to Thai Tran, to beable to get a firm foothold in the UK market, it is necessary to build prestige and highquality national brand for Vietnamese goods with a strategy of using a pyramidmodel, in which leading businesses will be at the top. They are a group oflarge-scale enterprises with sufficient resources to manage quality and buildbrands that can convince British partners to sign contracts, hesaid, adding that the expansion of this model will help Vietnamese brands gaina foothold in the UK market, creating a foundation for other businesses to enter the UK market./.
