A workshop on trade and investment promotion in Vietnam has been held in Kent city, just after the sixth Vietnam-UK Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO-6) ended in London .

At the workshop, former UK Ambassador to Vietnam and Acting Chairman of Locate in Kent Warwick Morris highlighted Vietnam ’s potential that he witnessed during his term of office from 2000 to 2003.

He stressed the country’s high economic growth and described it as one of emerging economies in Asia .

Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Trade and Investment Ho Thi Kim Thoa, who co-chaired JET CO-6 in London on September 8, briefed UK investors on developments in the bilateral relations, particularly economic and trade cooperation, since the two countries signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement in September 2010.

Trade turnover between the two countries rose by an average 20 percent a year and surpassed 3 billion USD in 2011, of which Vietnam exported goods worth 2.4 billion USD or 2.5 percent of the country’s total export value.

The Southeast Asian nation imported machineries, pharmaceuticals, chemical products and steel worth 645 million USD from the UK , accounting for 8.3 percent of Vietnam ’s imports from the European Union.

In the first nine months of this year, two-way trade turnover between the two countries reached 2.5 billion USD, Thoa said, adding that she expects the figure would increase in this year.

The Deputy Minister informed the participants of the JET CO-6’s outcomes, saying that both sides will propose both governments further create conditions for businesses.

She urged both countries’ businesses not to miss opportunities for investment, now that Vietnam and the EU have recently launched negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which is expected to facilitate economic, investment and trade ties between Vietnam and EU in general and between Vietnam and the UK in particular.

Deputy Director of the UKTI in Vietnam Pie Craven also said Vietnam is a potential investment destination for UK investors, with such advantages as the high economic growth and a young, skilled and dynamic population. The country has an ideal strategically geographical position in Asia , he added.

Earlier, a similar event was held by the UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) in Manchester . In September, the Lord Mayor of the City of London visited Vietnam to study the market. The London Chamber of Commerce and Industry is also arranging a trade mission to Vietnam next week.-VNA