PM Phuc chairs meeting on Vietnam-EU trade cooperation

On April 14 in Hanoi, Prime Minser Nguyen Xuan Phuc chaired a meeting with some ministries and sectors to review economic and trade cooperation between Vietnam and the European Union (EU) in recent years and outline orientations for further augmenting cooperation with this important partner in the time ahead.

The past years have seen Vietnam-EU trade ties develop rapidly. The EU is the second largest export market of Vietnam with 18% of the bloc’s exports coming from Vietnam. The EU is also Vietnam's third largest trading partner with bilateral trade having reached roughly US$50 billion last year.

Vietnam enjoyed a trade surplus of about US$31.8 billion with the EU and its export growth to this potential market hit 12.7% in 2017.

Emphasizing the importance of promoting cooperation with the EU- Vietnam's leading strategic partner in economics, trade and investment, the cabinet leader pointed out a number of pending issues and shortcomings such as the EU issuance of its yellow card for Vietnam's seafood exports and administrative procedures that need to be simplified in order to help further promote trade and investment between Vietnam and the bloc.

At the meeting, the PM instructed ministries to work closely with EU agencies to expedite the signing and ratification of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) by the end of 2018 towards a breakthrough in broader Vietnam-EU economic and trade cooperation.

It is reported that Japan and Singapore are urgently working with the EU to finalize documents for the signing of bilateral FTAs this year.

EVFTA is a new generation FTA between Vietnam and the 28 EU member states and a comprehensive, high quality agreement that ensures balanced benefits for both Vietnam and the EU in line with WTO regulations. Vietnamese and EU leader announced the finalization of EVFTA negotiations in 2015.