Hung Yen’s enterprises get updates on FTAs

The conference was organised by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and local authority. It also gave attendees an overview of Vietnam’s global economic integration as well as opportunities and challenges for Vietnam as a member of the Vietnam-EU FTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

The trade deals will allow Vietnam to boost its Gross Domestic Products (GDP) by US$23 billion in 2020 and over US$33 billion in 2025 while the country also expects to add approximately US$70 billion into its export revenue.

Vietnam is likely to be the biggest winner of the TPP as the reduced custom duties will trigger more exports of Vietnamese products, particularly garment & textile, footwear, seafood, farming and forestry products.

The pact is also pressuring the country to make institutional reforms, restructure its economy and draw more investment into knowledge-based industries.

Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh said an increasingly integrated global economy presents many challenges for Vietnam.

He urged localities across the country to be more aware of the impacts of TPP and be prepared with economic restructuring plans in order to be more adaptive to the changes in business climate.

Local authorities need to provide information about TPP to more businesses while enterprises should also actively learn about the trade deal, especially in terms of tariffs, code of conduct and technical barriers to trade, Khanh added.

Hung Yen lies in the northern key economic region which encompasses the economic triangle Hanoi – Hai Phong – Quang Ninh, an advantage for the province to attract more investors.

Better access to information about the FTAs will motivate enterprises in the province to shift towards hi-tech sectors so that they can utilise the benefits of the pacts and reduce the negative impacts of global integration, he noted.