Vietnamese and Mexican enterprises should take full advantage of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) to promote bilateral trade and investment, according to insiders.

Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Hoai Duong (second from left) at the event

New trade opportunities between the two countries and mechanisms to identify new chances for new products were discussed at a video conference held by the Mexican Business Council for Foreign Trade (COMCE) and the Vietnamese Embassy in Mexico’s trade office on October 7.

Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Hoai Duong emphasised the complementary nature of the two economies, affirming that the CPTPP, which provides an array of tariff preferences, will help create a favourable environment for both sides to promote trade, economic, and investment relations.

Meanwhile, President of the Asia-Pacific Directorate at COMCE Sergio Ley said companies should build a joint export platform based on the thriving bilateral relations and geographical strengths of Vietnam in Asia and Mexico in America.

Defining common opportunities, particularly within the framework of the CPTPP, is important to diversify trade partners, he said, affirming that Mexico always sees Vietnam as a prioritised trade peer.

For her part, Undersecretary for Foreign Trade at Mexico’s Ministry of Economy Luz Mara de la Mora hopes that trade will be intensified between private enterprises on both sides.

Mexico is an important market for Vietnamese electronic products and seafood, while in turn having a good chance of selling food, automobiles and spare parts, and mechanical products to the Southeast Asian country.

On the occasion, COMCE, with support from the Vietnamese Embassy, launched the website https://sites.google.cm/comce/org/mx/comce-moit, containing updated policy and market information for both Vietnamese and Mexican enterprises.

Vietnam is currently Mexico’s third-most important partner ASEAN, while Mexico is Vietnam’s second-most significant market in Latin America and the Caribbean. Two-way trade reached over US$6 billion in 2019, up 97.7 times against 2001.