Vietnam-UK trade up nearly 20%
(VOV) - Vietnam Customs statistics show two-way trade between Vietnam and UK reached a very promising US$4.27 billion in 2013, a year-on-year increase of 19.48%.
The value even exceeded the US$4 billion target outlined in their 2010 Strategic Partnership Agreement.
Of the total, Vietnamese exports hit US$3.69 billion, up 21.94%, and its imports were US$573.27 million, up 5.7%.
Mobile phone handsets and components topped the list of Vietnamese exports to the UK, raking in US$1.24 billion. They were closely followed by footwear (US$543 million), garments (US$471 million), computers and components (US$400 million), wood and timber products (US$217 million), seafood (US$143 million), plastic products (US$88 million), and coffee (US$86 million)
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Meanwhile, the major Vietnamese imports included machinery and equipment (US$194 million), pharmaceuticals (US$79 million), pesticides (US$42 million), chemical products (US$34 million) and iron and steel scraps (US$24 million).
Vietnam often maintains a trade surplus with the UK.
UK Trade Counselor Piers Craven has said the UK wants to balance trade with Vietnam and encourages more Vietnamese businesses to invest in the UK.
The Director of the UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) program in Vietnam, Douglas Barnes, has believed bilateral trade will increase in the future because trade is a key priority in the strategic partnership between the UK and Vietnam.
At the seventh meeting of the Vietnam-UK Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) held in Hanoi on January 7, the two sides discussed measures to remove difficulties for Vietnamese businesses exporting wine and dragon fruits to the UK, and strategies to strengthen market management.