Business week boosts Vietnam – RoK trade connection

Addressing the opening ceremony, Kim Tae-ho, executive vice president for Economic Cooperation & Trade Affairs at the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), noted over the past 30 years since the establishment of their diplomatic ties, the two countries have overcome numerous difficulties and have now become increasingly important and indispensable development partners.

The event will create an opportunity to further promote the friendly relationship that exists between the two countries, and to seek ways to restore bilateral trade and investment following a two-year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, said Lee.

Vo Van Hoan, vice chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City administration, briefed delegates on the city’s development goals, saying it aims to further promote economic growth, attract greater investment, improve capital efficiency, and ramp up the application of advanced technology.

The event will therefore help the business communities of both sides to introduce technologies and products, share information, and establish fresh cooperation partnerships, he noted.

The Korean business community is one of the largest of its kind in Vietnam, featuring more than 2,000 businesses, with this number constantly increasing.

Kwak Sungil, director of the Seoul-based Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP), suggested that the two countries strive to take full advantage of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), improve transparency on intellectual property rights, and create an equal investment environment.

Both sides should therefore seek greater cooperation to form a regional value chain through improving production capacity for the small and medium-sized business community, as well as strengthening cooperation in new industrial fields such as digital economy and energy, he stressed.

During the event, Korean businesses are scheduled to take fact-finding tours of some industrial parks in neighbouring areas of Ho Chi Minh City.