Hanoi (VNA) – A Vietnam-Argentinabusiness forum took place in Hanoi on February 21 with a view to promotingcooperation between the countries’ enterprises.

The event, held by the Vietnam Chamber ofCommerce and Industry (VCCI), was part of the State visit by ArgentinePresident Mauricio Macri. It attracted representatives of more than 300businesses of the two sides.

Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam saidsince their diplomatic ties were set up in 1973, the countries’ cooperation hascontinually been strengthened in almost all fields, especially economy.Bilateral trade approximated 2.9 billion USD in 2018 with Argentina the secondbiggest destination of Vietnamese goods in Latin America.

They have complementary export structures whenVietnam has strengths in footwear and textile-garment while Argentina’s strongproducts include plant oil, animal fat, and animal feed.

Vietnam has been an important partner ofArgentina in Southeast Asia, and it is making efforts to become the mostimportant partner of the Latin America nation, he stressed.

The Deputy PM noted Argentina’s investment inVietnam remains modest with only four projects, adding that the VietnameseGovernment highly values these pioneer investors and hopes for more investmentprojects from the country.

Vietnam pledges to create favourable conditionsfor foreign investors, including those from Argentina, to do long-termbusiness, Dam said.

[Vietnam, Argen𝔉tina to work towards strategic partnership]

Highlighting Vietnam’s economic development, hesaid the country is located in a dynamic region and has stable politics andsociety, young and abundant human resources, and a market of nearly 100 millionpeople. It is also a gateway to the 650 million-strong Association of SoutheastAsian Nations (ASEAN).
 
The economy has sustained fast growth for manyyears, reaching 7.08 percent in 2018. Its total trade revenue topped 482billion USD last year. At present, 130 countries and territories are investingover 340 billion USD in over 27,000 projects in Vietnam. Each year, the countrywelcomes over 15 million foreign tourists, while nearly 8 million Vietnamesevisit foreign destinations.

Dam expressed his belief that with the twogovernments’ attention and the two business circles’ dynamism, bilateraleconomic links will develop strongly, thus contributing to the countries’sustainable relations.

The official also asked the Government andbusinesses of Argentina to provide optimal conditions for Vietnamese firms toinvest in their country.

At the forum, President Macri said Argentinebusinesses want to partner with Vietnamese firms to share common interests.Like Vietnam, Argentina has been integrating extensively into the world. In ashort period of time, it has won the recognition of the international communityas seen in its election as President of the G20.

He emphasised that Vietnam is an increasinglyimportant partner of Argentina, congratulating it on the substantialachievements in the change of the economic model and the internationalintegration.

Argentina not only wants to export agriculturalproducts to Vietnam but is also looking for ways to cooperate in agriculturaltechnology development, telecommunications, use of atomic energy for peacefulpurposes, and football development, the leader added.

At the forum, representatives of the countries’ministries, agencies and businesses discussed the advantages and potential ofthe two economies, along with measures to boost business-to-businessconnections.

On this occasion, the VCCI inked a cooperationdocument with the Argentine Chamber of Commerce and Services.-VNA