Firms advised to study partners before trading in Latin America
Trade Counselor in Mexico and Panama Luu Van Khang has advised Vietnamese businesses to carefully study their partners, following a range of trade frauds in Latin America in which firms from the Southeast Asian nation were victimised.
The official said language barriers make Vietnamese businesses more vulnerable to scams, adding that most of the criminals use bank accounts in a third country to hinder investigations by competent agencies.
Khang recommended Vietnamese enterprises to sign contracts with legally authorised representatives of their partners, and use the L/C (letter of credit) payment method instead of T/T (telegraphic transfer).
If they have no choice except to use the T/T method, they should not transfer money to bank accounts in a third country or personal accounts, he added.
Apart from coordinating with the Vietnamese Trade Office in information verification, they should cooperate with law firms and business associations in Mexico in particular and Latin America in general to diversify the sources of information, Khang said.
As members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Vietnam and Mexico have great opportunities to boost their trade ties.
Mexico has committed to eliminating 77% of tariff lines from January 14, 2018, and 98% after a decade since the coming into force of the agreement. As a result, Vietnam's exports such as seafood, coffee, rubber, phones, and auto components to Mexico have recently experienced significant growth, ranging from 27% to 65%.
Mexico has also gradually increased its export of beef, pork, agricultural products, and beverages to the Southeast Asian nation.