Vietnam, NZ to further facilitate two-way trade, investment

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The agreement came at the 6th meeting of the Vietnam – New Zealand Joint Trade and Economic Commission (JTEC) in Hanoi. The event was chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh and Deputy Secretary for trade and economic affairs at New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Vangelis Vitalis.

The two sides exchanged views about issues of mutual concerns and priorities for cooperation in economics and trade amid the unpredictable changes in regional and global trade.

They agreed to reinforce cooperation in the fields of hi-tech agriculture, commercial farming, human resources training, tourism and e-Government, and to step up coordination in promotion of trade, investment and tourism.

Vietnam and New Zealand holds the 6th meeting of the Joint Trade and Economic Commission (JTEC) in Hanoi on October 4. (Photo: VNA)

Vietnam asked New Zealand to provide further support for its localities in developing value chains for fruits, pepper, coffee, cashew nut and others; and at the same time, developing brands and origin tracking systems for farm produce and transferring production technology in agriculture and aquaculture.

Vietnam also wants the partner to assist it in capacity building in agriculture, food safety management, aviation, response to disasters and climate change, and e-Government, and to provide English language training for governmental workforce.

New Zealand, for their part, discussed with Vietnam the possibility for enhanced cooperation in aviation services, tourism, and education. In addition, it proposed Vietnam to facilitate New Zealand’s investment in education and tourism and cooperation between the two countries in food safety.

The two sides later moved on to talk about several issues of multilateral cooperation. They agreed to continue working together and backing each other within the framework of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA), and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

The Vietnam – New Zealand JTEC was set up in 2006 to provide the necessary frameworks to address key issues, promote trade and commercial links, and explore and facilitate investment opportunities. 

New Zealand has remained as one of Vietnam’s key trade partners for years. Vietnam is currently New Zealand’s 16th largest trade partner.

According to statistics by the General Department of Vietnam Customs, bilateral trade of goods and services between the two nations hit 1.2 billion USD last year, up 37 percent from 2016. 

In the first nine months of 2018, the two-way trade amounted to 779 million USD, up 10.8 percent year on year. Of the figure, Vietnam’s exports totalled 357.8 million USD while its imports exceeded 421 million USD.

New Zealand now operates 32 investment projects in Vietnam with a total registered investment of 102.8 million USD, mostly in the areas of manufacturing and processing, education, agriculture, forestry, fishery, construction, information and telecommunication, hospitality and food, arts and entertainment. 

Meanwhile, Vietnam has eight projects in New Zealand, worth a total of more than 30 million USD, mainly in manufacturing and processing, retail and wholesale, automobile and motorcycle repair and maintenance, catering and agriculture.