Footwear firms buoyed by prospect of EU deal
Free trade agreements between ASEAN countries and the EU will help Vietnam's footwear industry enjoy a reduction of tariffs from the current 12.4 percent to zero.
Footwear is one of Vietnam's major exports, accounting for between 7-12 percent of the country's total export turnover.
According to the Vietnam Leather and Footwear Association (Lefaso), the footwear industry includes more than 500 businesses that employ over 65,000 workers, 75 percent of them are women.
The EU is an important trading partner for Vietnam and also a traditional market for the footwear industry.
Last year, footwear export earnings hit US$8.76 billion, accounting for 7.6 percent of the country's export revenue. Of the total, shoe exports generated US$2.65 billion and bag exports raked in US$434 million.
Vietnamese footwear products have several advantages in the EU market, as the anti-dumping levy on Vietnamese leather-upper shoes was lifted. However, the domestic footwear industry faces strong competition from India and Indonesia.
Lefaso leaders affirm that FTAs offer great opportunities for Vietnamese products to access the EU's 27-nation market with a population of 499 million.
In bilateral trade relations, the EU mainly imports shoes and bags from Vietnam while the latter uses the consultancy service and purchases machines and equipment from Spain, Portugal and Italy. In addition, Vietnam's footwear industry also benefits from EU-funded projects.
To help develop a sustainable footwear industry, Lefaso has urged local shoes makers to update technology to enhance their productivity and improve product quality to create high added value products.