Illustrative image (Source: ndh.vn)
As Vietnamese agricultural export is facing challenges in Chinese market, businesses should focus on technological innovation, product quality improvement and price reductions in order to raise their competitive edge, said an official from the Vietnam Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).
Hoang Van Du, Deputy Director of the MARD Centre for Agricultural Trade Promotion, told a Vietnam News Agency correspondent on the fringes of the Vietnam-China trade conference in China’s Guangxi province that it is necessary for Vietnamese firms to pay more heed to studying the market and promoting trade.
He made the suggestion given agricultural exports to the neighbouring country are encountering a range of difficulties due to China’s yuan depreciation, pushing up prices of Vietnamese products in the market as compared with those of India and Bangladesh.
Limited access to information about China has also hindered Vietnamese exporters from penetrating the market, the official said, pointing to the weak performance of commercial counsellors in the country.
Due to the lack of in-depth market studies, Vietnamese businesses are unable to fully control China’s demand, resulting in an abundance of products, Du noted.
China’s regular policy adjustments and the imposition of technical barriers are also creating difficulties for Vietnamese enterprises, he added.
According to the official, Vietnam has favourable conditions to develop trade ties with China, as the two countries share a long border line and many similarities in culture and custom.
Vietnam’s farm produce export value to the world’s most populous nation in 2014 exceeded 8 billion USD, making up a quarter of the country’s total figure.
Considering China a key market, the Government, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the MARD have always given the highest priority to trade promotion in the country, Du said.
The Vietnam-China trade conference, which took place in Nanning city, on September 19 on the sidelines of the China-ASEAN EXPO, was part of bilateral trade promotion activities.
The event drew 54 representatives from 38 Vietnamese businesses specialising in agro-forestry-fishery products and handicrafts to market their products and study equipment and machinery serving agricultural production.-VNA
