It is opportune to invest in Vietnam, says CCIFV president
As Vietnam’s investment potential has turned attractive, now is the right time for foreign enterprises and investors to come and seek opportunities in Asia’s fastest-growing economy, said Henri-Charles Claude, president of the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Vietnam (CCIFV).
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| Business executives speak at the France-Vietnam Business Forum in HCMC on November 4 |
Over 200 enterprises from Vietnam and France joined the forum, which was organized given the framework of the three-day official visit of French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe to Vietnam starting November 2.
According to Eurocham Vice Chairman Jean Jacques Bouflet, Vietnam has signed many regional and international free trade deals such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), helping businesses active in the country enjoy huge tariff advantages.
For the deal signed with the European Union, the nation will see significant impacts like better legal framework for business doing. As the nation is moving towards the last steps to put the EVFTA into reality, enterprises from France as well as Europe should speed up cooperation and investment in Vietnam to benefit from the deal, he said.
Valentin Tran, general director of Andros Group specializing in fruit product processing, said that Vietnam was chosen for the group’s investment before expanding to regional markets due to its rapid economic growth, large population of nearly 95 million and plentiful material sources.
Vietnam is a dynamic market and has large potential for business and exports to neighboring countries such as Cambodia and Thailand. Notably, the flourish relationship between Vietnam and France is also a reason for Andros’s decision, he said.
Aside from direct investment, Andros also cares about the merger and acquisition market, joint venture establishment and cooperation with domestic suppliers. “We have a long vision for production and domestic sale development in Vietnam, and then expansion to other Southeast Asian markets,” Tran added.
Fabrice Carrasco, regional director of Kantar Worldpanel Asia, said the nation has seen a high demand for domestic consumption, with its growth rate averaging out at 12% per year, which is higher than regional markets’. The market still has big potential thanks to a young population, rapid urbanization and high market demand.
Businesses at the forum also expressed their interest in the equitization of State-owned enterprises, appreciating successful State capital divestment at large companies such as Vinamilk and Sabeco. French enterprises have also found investment opportunities in the fields of infrastructure, urban development and clean energy.
On the same day, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe met with Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee Nguyen Thien Nhan.
He also attended a ceremony to inaugurate the French medical center and took part in French Tech, an event for startup businesses. This was part of the activities to mark 45th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties and five years of strategic partnership between Vietnam and France.
