Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung appreciated the contributions made by Vietnamese and US businesses to their countries’ relations over the last 25 years, while attending a business summit in Hanoi on May 10.

Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung addresses
the Vietnam-US business forum in Hanoi on May 10

The Vietnam-US business summit, the third of its kind so far, attracted representatives of some 200 businesses from both countries, including such giants as Exxon Mobil, Amazon, Coca-Cola, Google, Facebook, Paypal, and Visa.

According to Chairwoman of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Hanoi Natasha Ansell, US companies have invested billions of US dollars in Vietnam, helped bring the country into global supply chains, created jobs for local people, and opened up a new market for US goods and services.

AmCham will continue supporting the Vietnamese Government’s efforts to develop the local private sector, she noted.

In his speech, Deputy PM Dung emphasised Vietnam’s consistent policy of considering the US a leading partner and continuing to promote bilateral relations, in which economic-trade-investment partnerships remain a driving force of their ties.

Over the past few years, the US has retained its position as one of Vietnam’s top trade partners. Bilateral trade increased by over 130 times from 450 million USD in 1994, when the two countries normalised bilateral diplomatic ties, to nearly 60 billion USD in 2018. The US’ exports to Vietnam have also been rising sharply, up by nearly 40 percent last year.

During his trip to Vietnam for the second summit with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea in February this year, US President Donald Trump joined Vietnamese leaders in witnessing the signing of many commercial contracts worth over 21 billion USD in total.

Meanwhile, the US now has 900 valid investment projects worth over 9 billion USD in Vietnam, he noted.

The Deputy PM said the two economies are increasingly complementary to each other, elaborating that while Vietnam’s main exports to the North American market include aquatic products, cashew nuts, garment-textiles, and footwear, the US supplies high-tech products to the Southeast Asian nation.

Investment and business projects of US enterprises in Vietnam have played a growing role in local development and assisted the country to join global supply chains, thereby helping to bring prosperity to Vietnamese people, he added.

The Vietnamese Government pledges optimal conditions for US firms to operate, especially in the fields matching their strength and Vietnam’s demand like renewable energy, infrastructure development, finance-banking, education-training, tourism, high technology, and high-tech agriculture, Deputy PM Dung affirmed.