Hanoi (VNA) – USbusinesses assess Vietnam as a potential market with a strategic location inthe region, COVID-19 pandemic brought under control, a stable business environment, and an extensive network of free trade agreements (FTAs), Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Nguyen Quoc Dung has said.

In an interviewgranted to the Vietnam News Agency, he said the sectors that US businesses hopeto invest in and cooperate with Vietnam include high technology, energy,agriculture, healthcare/pharmaceutical, finance, aviation, and tourism.Notably, there are an increasing number of Vietnamese enterprises wishing toexpand investment and business activities in the US.

Pointing outdifficulties and challenges to economic diplomacy, he said the US is currentlythe biggest importer of Vietnamese products, with exports to this market thisyear expected to exceed the nearly 100 billion USD in 2021. However, the twocountries need to have a more effective framework for managing trade ties so asto minimise trade remedy investigations.

To grasp opportunities of economic cooperation with the US,Dung recommended that Vietnam should develop the key exports to the US, createmore favourable conditions for US products to enter Vietnam, make use of theUS’s assistance for the realisation of the COP26 commitments, while maintainingdialogue and paying attention to US businesses’ proposals.

Enterprises and localities of Vietnam should learn more aboutstrict requirements of the US, adapt their product marketing plans to consumertastes in the US, capitalise on the Vietnamese community there and hireconsultancies to devise suitable market strategies, cooperate withUS authorities in trade remedy investigations, and steer clear of violatingrules of origin or US sanctions, the ambassador suggested.

The Vietnamese Embassy in the US has worked to maintain andboost relations with the US administration, congress, and businesses, while meetingand persuading relevant parties in order to secure objective conclusions andprotect Vietnam’s interests in monetary policy, product origin, andanti-dumping probes.

It has also organised or assisted delegations from Vietnam tohold business forums and investment and trade promotion events, he added.

The diplomat opined that there arecertain advantages for bilateral economic cooperation, including Vietnamese andUS leaders, localities and businesses’ attention to economic ties, Vietnam’sstrength and stature, the FTAs that the Southeast Asian nation has joined, andthe country’s opportunities to attract foreign investment.

Dung pointed out the need to step up all-level mutual visitsand exchanges between enterprises of the two countries; invest more instudying, forecasting, and warning since the US and global economies are facingcomplex changes that may adversely affect Vietnam; and further update Vietnameselocalities and businesses about regulations, standards, and consumer tastes inthe US market.

He added that his embassy will continue helping Vietnamesefirms solve obstacles and difficulties, form a stable trade cooperationmechanism, and reduce trade remedies by the US./.