Agriculture is among potential fields in Vietnam - Pakistan cooperation. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – The Pakistani Government wants to sign a preferential trade agreement with Vietnam, paving the way for a future bilateral free trade agreement with a view to accelerating the two countries’ trade.
The intention was delivered by Pakistani Finance Deputy Minister Tariq Bajwa at the third session of the Vietnam-Pakistan Intergovernmental Committee, hosted by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), in Hanoi on December 9.
At the candid discussion, MoIT Deputy Minister Do Thang Hai proposed increasing delegation exchanges to boost bilateral engagement.
He emphasised the importance of encouraging trade promotion programmes and market research among the business communities.
Both sides need to set out orientations for agriculture, finance, banking and tourism cooperation.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani side added information technology as one of the promising cooperation fields with Vietnam.
According to statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs, trade revenue between Vietnam and Pakistan climbed to 427 million USD in 2014 from 242 million USD in 2010.
In the January-October period this year, the figure was recorded at 474.6 million USD – an annual increase of 39.5 percent, and is expected to reach 500 million for the entire year.
Pakistan is the biggest importer of Vietnamese tea with 35,000 tonnes valued at 81.2 million USD in 2014.
Vietnam mainly imports fabric, cotton, chemicals and animal feeds from Pakistan.-VNA
