Seoul (VNA) – Government officials from Vietnam and the Republic ofKorea (RoK) have discussed measures to raise two-way trade to 100 billion USD thisyear despite regional and global economic difficulties caused by the novelcoronavirus outbreak.

At their recentmeeting in Seoul, Vietnam Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanhand the RoK’s Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) Park Ki-youngagreed on four main orientations for the two ministries’ action plan to achievethe goal.

The orientationsinclude intensifying RoK investment attraction; supporting RoK businesses inVietnam; increasing the competitiveness of Vietnamese exporters and creatingfavourable conditions for them, especially those operating in the fields ofgarment and textiles, footwear, wood processing, agro-fishery, and foodprocessing; and stepping up the transfer of technology from the RoK to raisethe competitiveness of Vietnam’s automobile, garment, chemical, andmanufacturing sectors.

The action plan isexpected to be signed by Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran TuanAnh and RoK Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Sung Yun-mo during thelatter’s Vietnam visit slated for late March or early April.

Amid the coronavirusoutbreak, Khanh said that his ministry is willing to support RoK enterpriseswhich are facing difficulties in customs clearance of imports from China.

For his part, Parkaffirmed Vietnam is the RoK’s important partner, and hoped that Vietnam willbecome an essential link in the supply chain of Korean businesses, particularlyin automobile manufacturing and electronic sectors.

Emphasising thenecessity of diversifying the supply chain in the region, the Vietnameseofficial expressed his hope that the RoK will become a supplier of materialsfor Vietnam, especially in the fields of garment and textiles, footwear, andwood processing.

He suggested the RoKside to closely coordinate with the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Tradeto push up the RoK Ministry of Agriculture’s permission of Vietnam’s exports offresh fruits such as red-flesh dragon fruit and grapefruit.

During his stay inSeoul, Deputy Minister Khanh also had working sessions with Yoo Myung-hee,Minister for Trade under the MOTIE, and Kang Myung-soo, Standing Commissionerof the Korea Trade Commission./.