Vietnam and Czech Republic eye US$5 billion trade over coming years
VOV.VN - Vietnam and the Czech Republic should bring into full play cooperation mechanisms, including the EU-Vietnam free trade agreement (EVFTA), to raise their two-way trade to US$5 billion in the coming years, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told a joint business forum in Prague, on January 20.
He emphasized that both countries need to fully leverage their unique potential, outstanding opportunities, and competitive advantages in their bilateral relationship to foster mutual development.
It’s reported that after four years of the EVFTA implementation, two-way trade between Vietnam and the Czech Republic has experienced significant growth, with an average increase of nearly 100% each year. In 2024 alone, their trade volume reached over US$2 billion, marking an increase of more than 80% compared to 2023.
Currently, the Czech Republic is Vietnam’s top trading partner in Central and Eastern Europe, while the latter holds a key position as the former’s most important partner in ASEAN.
In terms of investment, Skoda Auto, the largest car manufacturer in the Czech Republic, is currently entering into a joint venture for automobile production with Thanh Cong Group in Quang Ninh province, with a total value of US$500 million. The production line is expected to commence operations in Q1 2025.
The Czech group Sev.en Global Investments is finalizing the necessary procedures to increase its stake to 70% in the Mong Duong 2 coal-fired power plant in Quang Ninh, which represents the largest Czech investment in Vietnam.
The report shows that economic and trade cooperation between the two countries remains modest, not on par with their potential. Bilateral trade accounts for only a small portion of the total foreign trade of each country. The structure of goods traded is still limited in diversity, and direct investment in each other’s territories is relatively low.
The Prime Minister highlighted Vietnam’s ongoing efforts to create breakthroughs in institutions, infrastructure and human resource training, and stated that the country is actively promoting the development of railways and airline routes to enhance connectivity between the two economies.
He highlighted that bilateral cooperation must align with global trends of green transformation, digitalization, and diversification. It must create fresh momentum to revitalize traditional growth drivers such as investment, exports, and consumption, and also accelerate new growth drivers like the digital economy, green economy, circular economy, shared economy, knowledge economy, and creative economy.
He urged businesses from both countries to proactively connect and leverage each other’s strengths for business and development. He emphasized the importance of diversifying products, markets, and supply chains, particularly by focusing on emerging industries such as semiconductor production, big data, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, the Internet of Things, biotechnology, and photonics.
The PM welcomed the two Czech firms’ investments in Quang Ninh, and said efforts are being made to expedite the ratification of the Vietnam-EU Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to facilitate investment between the two countries, with a goal to increase Czech investment in Vietnam to US$2-3 billion USD over the next five years.
He also called on businesses from both countries to intensify their connections and cooperation, in enhancing infrastructure investment, especially green infrastructure and energy-related projects. He emphasized the importance of investing in emerging sectors, scientific research, innovation, and digital transformation toward win-win results.
