Vietnam and India seek measures to enhance economic cooperation

An increasing number of Vietnamese businesses have paid close attention to the Indian market, with the Vietnamese Embassy in India receiving nearly 10 Vietnamese delegations to join trade activities in just over a month, Ambassador Hai said.

He affirmed that Vietnam supports India’s increasing role and position both regionally and globally in the interest of the two countries’ peoples.

Taking the floor, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang emphasised that the long-standing traditional relationship between the two sides has created a solid foundation to boost their economic-trade ties.

She also pointed out that bilateral trade has faced plenty of difficulties, such as negative impacts from global economic fluctuations, limited information about market and business connections, high transportation costs and time, and a lack of awareness regarding the importance of cross-border e-commerce.

Thang suggested some solutions for overcoming those challenges, including promoting supply chain connections, the application of information technology and digital transformation in trade promotion, as well as setting up direct air routes to save time and costs for goods transportation.

Shantuna Srivatava, former Chairman of India-ASEAN Business Promotion Council, said that collaboration between the two sides still has a lot of potential for development, and trade cooperation is expected to continue to grow strongly in future. He therefore proposed raising two-way trade turnover between the two countries to US$20 billion in the near future.

The Vietnam-India business forum was jointly organised by Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Vietnamese Embassy in India, and the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry in India, attracting around 130 businesses from both countries.