Vietnam and RoK set to reach US$100 billion bilateral trade target
VOV.VN - Trade exchange and trade promotion activities have been enhanced by Vietnamese and Korean businesses this year with a view to elevating two-way trade turnover to US$100 billion moving forward.
In attempting to increase two-way trade turnover between the nation and the Republic of Korea (RoK), the Korea Trade and Investment Promotion Agency in Hanoi (KOTRA Hanoi) said that the direct trade event between two business delegations from the RoK's Daegu city and Gyeongbuk province alongside Vietnamese importers, organised recently by KOTRA Hanoi, was a great success.
At the live trade event, nine businesses from Daegu city and six businesses from Gyeongbuk province, along with reputable Korean manufacturers and suppliers, introduced a variety of products such as cosmetics; food, functional foods, and beverages; along with household appliances and LED electrical equipment.
Participating in the trade event, 45 Vietnamese businesses found suitable Korean partners through 90 direct trade exchanges.
Sharing the success of the trade exchange, Lee Jun-dae, director of H&H Group Company, said that the Bilateral Trade Agreement (FTA) between the country and the RoK has created favourable conditions whilst opening up opportunities for Vietnamese businesses to take advantage of the best tax incentives.
“H&H Group products such as food and cosmetics have enjoyed preferential tax rates imported into Vietnam of only 1% - 2% compared to the normal tax rate of over 20%. This is a good opportunity for Korean products to penetrate the Vietnamese market more easily," said Jun-dae.
Echoing this view, Park Jong-won, director of Bathproject Company of the RoK, expressed his pleasure at having direct contact with a number of potential Vietnamese importers.
"We believe that today's working session of Bathproject company will have good results, thus opening up many opportunities for broader co-operation for businesses of the two countries in the future through trade sessions," Jong-won stated.
Park Min-sul, director of the Korea FTA Center under KOTRA Hanoi, informed that there are currently three trade agreements between the two nations, namely the ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Agreement (AKFTA), the Vietnam-Korea Free Trade Agreement (VKFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
In particular, the VKFTA has a more preferential roadmap meaning it is used by many businesses. Specifically, cosmetic products have a normal tax rate of 20%, but currently under the incentives specified in the VK FTA the tax rate is reduced to between 1% and 2%.
According to the KOTRA representative, in 2015 joint trade turnover only reached US$36 billion, although this figure has increased more than two times, reaching US$86 billion in 2022 thanks to capitalizing on incentives from the VKFTA.
As a result, trade promotion activities have been enhanced by KOTRA this year with the aim of increasing two-way trade turnover to reach the target of US$100 billion in the near future.
