Hanoi (VNA)🅺 – The Vietnam Trade Office in the UKon September 13 organised a Vietnam-UK trade promotion workshop in London whichsaw the participation of more than 60 representatives of Vietnamese andinternational businesses.

The event came within the framework of the working visit to theUK by a delegation from the Ministry of Industry and Trade from September 10-18under the National Programme on Trade Promotion in 2023. The programme aims tosupport businesses to continue expanding markets and boost exports. Trade Counselor Nguyen CanhCuong said Vietnam and the UK are complementary economies, and that they have a lot of potential for cooperation. Le Hong Minh, Director of the Investment Promotion Centre forIndustry and Trade, said the Vietnam-UK Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) which started to take effects in2020 has become a bridge to help promote bilateral trade and investment, adding that his office is ready to coordinate withBritish authorities to implement solutions to support businesses from bothsides in connecting, finding partners, and developing cooperation. At the workshop, participants provided update on regulationsfor importing goods from Vietnam into the UK, changes in recent consumptionhabits and tastes of the British people, experience in exporting to the UKmarket, especially compliance with market standards, and how to take advantageof incentives provided by the UKVFTA. Ian Gibbons, Chairman of the UK-ASEAN Business Council (UKABC)and former British Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, emphasised that Vietnamese businesses wishing to succeed inthe UK - a highly competitive market - need to build trust and establishlong-term relationships with partners and distributors in the UK. The official recommended that Vietnamese businesses take fulladvantage of the resources of British organisations in Vietnam and the UK, suchas the British Chambers of Commerce in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, and UKABC. For his part, Giles Whitlam, CEO of Tonkin Products, a Britishenterprise investing in Vietnam for more than 30 years, said that prices are a competitive factor but not a prerequisite for development in the UKmarket where consumers are willing to pay high prices for good products. He emphasising that Vietnamese businesses need to aim for higherquality standards. Regarding Vietnam's potential, Whitlam affirmed that it is amarket with great opportunities for British companies to invest in, with such advantages as a well-trained workforce,competitive labour prices, and Vietnamese partners' willingness to cooperateand learn. After the workshop, the Vietnamese delegation visited LongdanGroup, the largest importer of Vietnamese goods in the UK which is expected tosupport Vietnamese exporting businesses to promote and bring Vietnamese productsinto the UK through its supermarket chain./.