On May 18, in Ho Chi Minh City, the Ministry of Industry and Trade held the Vietnam-US Trade Forum with the participation of more than 300 delegates who are leaders of the People's Committee, leaders of the Department of Industry and Trade, trade and investment in provinces and cities in the South, business associations and business community of producers and exporters of Vietnam and the United States.

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Business representatives and state agencies discuss the impact of new US policies on bilateral import and export. Picture: N.Hiền

Speaking at the forum, Do Thang Hai, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, said that since the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) has come into force, Vietnam's export and import turnover and the United States continued to grow steadily and at a high level. Two-way trade between the two countries has increased 47 times, from $ 220 million in 1994 (the year the United States lifted the economic embargo against Vietnam) to $ 1.4 billion in 2001 (the year before the BTA effective) and reach $ 50.81 billion by the end of 2017.

Vietnam is currently the 12th largest exporter of goods to the United States, the 27th largest importer of goods and the 16th largest trading partner of the United States. Meanwhile, over the past 10 years, the United States has become the leading trading partner of Vietnam.

Hai said bilateral trade relations between Vietnam and the United States are mutually supportive. While Vietnam is a developing economy, there is a great demand for imports of machinery, hi-tech equipment, aviation equipment, telecommunication, agricultural products serving as inputs to The US has a tendency to import specific agricultural products, or textiles, footwear and electronics. These are all products that Vietnam has competitive advantage thanks to favorable natural conditions and labor advantages.

However, Vietnam's main export items to the US market are still traditional items such as textiles, leather and footwear, furniture, electronics and so on. High value-added products or high-end consumer products that are directly related to human health still account for a negligible share of Vietnam's export structure in this particularly difficult market. .

According to Hai, Vietnamese exporters are now facing the challenge of imposing strict rules on imports from the US legal system. In addition to federal law, each state of the United States has different rules and regulations. Vietnamese businesses want to bring their products into the US market, in particular, which states must look at the laws, regulations in that state, and federal law. In addition, the trend of protection through the issuance of new regulations, standards, complex quality, food safety, origin of products, especially for agricultural products - forestry. US production is also increasingly applied.

Recent changes in US trade policy will have a significant impact on the export of many of Vietnam's key commodities, keeping the current turnover or boosting exports to the United States. You become a math problem is not easy to find a satisfactory answer.

From that reality, at the forum, representatives of the business community and state agencies have exchanged on the new policy trends of the United States and the impact on bilateral import and export activities, solutions to support Support the business to overcome the challenge, seize the opportunity. At the same time, a number of business representatives also shared their experience in direct market access and development, capacity building, and compliance with US technical regulations.

Along with that, through the activities of introducing, promoting, connecting the trade on the sidelines, the forum also opens opportunities for businesses of the two countries to meet and seek opportunities for business cooperation.

Source agtek.org.vn