Two-way trade between Vietnam and the US touched nearly US$ 30 billion in 2013, 130 times higher than the figure in 1994.
The Vietnamese Embassy in the US on February 11 held a meeting to mark the 20th anniversary of trade normalization between Vietnam and the US (February 3, 1994 – February 3, 2014).
The event drew the participation of US Secretary of State John Kerry and Senator John McCain, around 300 delegates including congresspersons, officials, diplomats, business leaders, non-governmental organization representatives, and US negotiators for the Trans-Pacific Strategic Partnership Agreement (TPP).
US Former President Bill Clinton who decided to lift the trade embargo against Vietnam and US Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also sent a greetings letter and video clip. They expressed hope that the US-Vietnam relationship would continue to develop for the benefit and prosperity of both nations.
Addressing the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Nguyen Quoc Cuong hailed the formulation of the comprehensive partnership between the two sides in July, 2013.
So far, Vietnam is the 29th largest trade partner of the US. The trade ties picked up around 20% yearly.
US exporters ship approximately 1,800 containers of products to Vietnam every year.
In 2013, a group of Vietnamese companies signed contracts to purchase US wind turbines worth US $2.6 billion, creating tens of thousands of jobs for the US manufacturing.
US investment in Vietnam reached US$11 billion last year, placing the country the seventh on the list of the Southeast Asian nation’s foreign investors.
Representatives from General Electric (GE) Group and the US Chamber of Commerce described lifting the trade embargo as the essential initial step that paved the way for the two countries to foster deep, broad relationship today.
VGP
Vietnamese
