Moscow (VNA) – With its high food sales and position as a major transshipment hub that supplies goods to ASEAN countries and China, Vietnam offers attractive prospects for Russian exporters, said Vice Chairwoman of the Russia - Vietnam Friendship Association (RVFA) Regina Budarina at a workshop held in Moscow on April 23.

Budarina noted in her speech that Russia’s non-resource export to Vietnam grew by about 45 percent last year.

Also at the workshop that discussed prospects for import and export between the two nations, head of the Vietnam Commercial Affairs Office in Russia Duong Hoang Minh reviewed Vietnam’ growth in 2020 despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

The nation grew 2.9 percent last year and the number is projected to hit 7 percent this year.

According to Russia’s Federal Customs Service, in 2020, the two countries’ bilateral trade stood at 5.7 billion USD, up 15 percent from 2019 and 50 percent from 2016.  Russia’s export to Vietnam and Vietnam’s export to Russia hit 1.6 and 4 billion USD, increasing 43 and 7 percent on-year, respectively.

Minh noted that with the implementation of the free trade agreement (FTA) between Vietnam and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), Russian firms are seeing an excellent chance for shipping goods to Vietnam as well as investing in production in the nation for exports to ASEAN member nations and to other markets that Vietnam has already secured FTAs with./. 
VNA