The Ho Chi Minh City Branch of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI - HCM) recently collaborated with the Zhongshan Department of Economic Cooperation and Foreign Trade to organise the “Vietnam - China Economic Cooperation Forum 2014” during the working visit by the business delegation from Zhongshan City (Guangdong province, China) to Ho Chi Minh City. This event aimed to enhance economic cooperation between Vietnam and China in general and between Ho Chi Minh City and Zhongshan City and Chaozhou City in particular, thus creating opportunities for exchanging trade and promoting investment cooperation between the two business communities.
Speaking at the forum, Mr Zhou Tong, Deputy Consul General of Chinese Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City, said Zhongshan and Chaozhou cities and Vietnam have their own advantages and characteristics. Their resources structures, industries and markets are complementary to each other. These characteristic advantages are widening the space of cooperation in various fields and industries, thus opening up new cooperation opportunities.
Despite global economic volatility, bilateral trade turnover between Vietnam and China has achieved an average annual growth rate of nearly 30 percent in the past 10 years. VCCI - HCM Director Vo Tan Thanh said: "This is also a vivid testament to abundant potential for cooperation as well as connectivity and mutual assistance in economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. In the future, bilateral cooperation in trade and investment will still play a central and prominent role in Vietnam - China comprehensive cooperation relations.” He hoped that the forum would create connectivity, trade exchange and mutual understanding for business communities of the two countries in general and for enterprises of Ho Chi Minh City, Zhongshan City and Chaozhou City in particular, thus helping boost Vietnam - China economic, trade and investment cooperation to a new height and successfully realise objectives that the two countries' leaders proposed.
Le Manh Ha, Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, said, during the visit to China by Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang in June 2013, the two countries’ leaders expected their bilateral trade turnover to reach US$60 billion in 2015. Ho Chi Minh City is one of pioneers in Vietnam to accelerate cooperation with China in general and its localities in particular, including Guangdong province. Ho Chi Minh City and Guangdong province have carried out many content-rich activities from cultural and art exchanges to trade and investment promotion since they established friendly cooperation relations in 2009. He stressed, “I appreciate the initiative of organising this forum and see this as a bridge for businesses to exchange information and explore investment demand to set up long-term partnerships. As an economic, cultural and scientific centre and an international transport hub of the country, Ho Chi Minh City welcomes and facilitates foreign businesses, including Chinese, to explore investment opportunities and do long-term business."
Guo Yuanqiang, Director of Department of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation of Guangdong province, said this forum is a tentative step for Zhongshan and Chaozhou cities to implement their development strategies to revive the development of Northwest Eastern Guangdong of the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial Government and actively respond to the call for building the 21st century “Silk Road on the Sea" and the ASEAN - China Free Trade Area. Besides, this forum is also the first foreign cooperation and promotion trip between the two cities, aiming to attract investment and tap markets to actively boost overseas investment in emerging markets such as ASEAN and South Asia. The forum will help promote bilateral investment and trade exchange and cooperation between Zhongshan and Chaozhou cities with Vietnam and ASEAN and help the two cities to access big markets, find potential markets and grasp investment and trade opportunities.
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The business delegation from Zhongshan and Chaozhou cities visiting Vietnam comprises of 50 leading enterprises engaged in metal-ware, consumer chemicals, lights, household electric appliances, household wares, household furniture, stainless steel, general trade and agricultural products.
Two agreements were signed at the forum. Songda Agricultural Investment Co., Ltd, Guangdong province and Vinh Phat Group, Ho Chi Minh City inked an US$100 million agreement on consumption of 240,000 tonnes of rice; and Yueliang Import, Export and Trade Co., Ltd, Zhongshan City and Tung Dat International Company, Vietnam signed a US$40 million contract on consumption of 80,000 tonnes of starch.
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My Chau
Vietnamese
