Vietnam - Opportunities amidst challenges for export next year

Next year will see many challenges for the country’s export sector due to the ongoing global economic problems and new regulations adopted by several markets, but it is also time to review and make use of the opportunities that have been missed.

Challenges ahead

At the Commercial Counselor Conference 2011 held by the Ministry of Industry and Trade in HCMC on Thursday, Nguyen Thanh Bien, deputy minister of the ministry, forecast the bleak picture of the world economy in 2012.

Specifically, the debt crisis might lead to recession in the euro zone, forcing these countries to tighten spending, thus affecting Vietnam’s export to these markets.

This would be the biggest obstacle for export next year, Bien said. In addition, the more delicate trade barriers, the falling production scale of local enterprises, and financial and macro-economic woes may leave an impact on Vietnam’s export performance.

Moreover, Dao Tran Nhan, minister counselor of Vietnam in the U.S., said exports to the U.S. next year would encounter the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) which requires exporters of processed food, beverages and farm produce to have sufficient written proof of their products’ safety.

Availing of opportunities

Deputy Minister Bien said the trade ministry was now implementing promotion programs in foreign markets, such as the U.S. as a major market for Vietnamese goods and other markets which Vietnamese companies had long ignored.

For instance, as Vietnam has lost many traditional rice import markets to India, the rice export sector is seeking new markets like the European Union (EU), Bien said.

Vu Van Trung, commercial counselor of Vietnam in Japan, suggested local enterprises make use of the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement effective in October 2009 to boost export to Japan.

Trung said that ten years after the partnership agreement became effective, Vietnamese exporters would enjoy a zero tax on 84.6% of the export items, facilitating the export of local farm produce, foodstuffs, seafoods, furniture, textiles and other manufactured goods to Japan.

Japan’s demand for imports will continue to surge next year to serve the restoration of the country after the earthquake and tsunami in March 2011. Similarly, the commercial counselor of Vietnam in South Korea, Le Hai Anh, said South Korean partners also had strong demand for Vietnamese products.

The counselors participating in the conference on Thursday confirmed there was high demand for Vietnamese goods abroad, and advised local exporters to seize these opportunities.

Thu Nguyet and Thai Hang - The Saigon Times Daily

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