Vietnam hopes for sustainable economic ties with Australia

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh called for Australian and Vietnamese businesses to foster their trade and investment partnership, at a meeting with an Australian delegation on June 12.

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh (R) shakes hands with Craig Chittick from Australia (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh called for Australian andVietnamese businesses to foster their trade and investment partnership,prioritizing cooperation, in human resources, infrastructure, high technology,wind power and renewable power from waste.

Addressinga meeting in Hanoi on June 12 with an Australian delegation attending theAustralia-Vietnam Investment and Trade Expo, the Deputy PM said that Vietnamhopes for Australian firms’ affiliation in exporting and distributing Vietnam’sfarm and aquatic products to Australia.

Henoted that Vietnam and Australia have become important partners in all fields,including defence-security, economic-trade, education, science-technology, aswell as at regional and international multilateral forums.

Thetwo countries have passed partnership programmes for trade, security andrenovation, he said.

Economy-tradeis the most developed area in bilateral partnership, he said, pointing thatlast year, two-way trade reached 5.26 billion USD, up 6.5 percent over 2015. Asof the end of March 2017, Australia has 396 projects in Vietnam with1.82billion USD, ranking 19th out of 116 countries and territoriesinvesting in the country.

DeputyPM Binh held that education and tourism are promising cooperation areas for thetwo sides. Currently, about 30,000 Vietnamese students are studying inAustralia, he said, adding that Vietnam is a popular destination amongAustralian tourists, while the number of Vietnamese visiting Australia is onthe rise.

HighlightingVietnam’s efforts to continue improving the business and investment environmentto enter ASEAN’s leading group, he stressed the importance of the private andforeign-invested sectors to the country’s economic growth and competitiveness.

Vietnam’sNational Assembly is mulling over the Law on Support of Small and Medium-sizedEnterprises, thus backing the firms’ development, said the Deputy PM.

Meanwhile,Enda Stankard from Moelis Investment Fund said that the Australian delegation’sattendance in the Australia-Vietnam Investment and Trade Expo aims to fostercultural and trade exchanges between the two countries. The delegation heldmeetings with many authorized agencies with Vietnam, he said.

Stankardstated that more Australian enterprises are interested in Vietnam’s green andrenewable energy from waste and copyright.

Atthe same time, many Vietnamese businesses are investing in Australia inagriculture, mining, and skilled labour export, he added. -VNA

VNA