The EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), which were ratified by the European Parliament (EP) on February 12, offer significant business opportunities for European enterprises, German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Peter Altmaier has said.

German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Peter Altmaier
(Photo: Xinhua/VNA) 

According to the minister, as a fast growing economy, Vietnam is an ideal market for European products and services.

On the back of the two trade pacts, it will be much easier for European commodities to break into this important market, he stressed.

He also described the EP’s approval of the deals as a vital signal for free trade and protectionism prevention.

Meanwhile, Director General of the Federation of German Industries (BDI) Joachim Lang said the local industrial sector breathed a sigh of relief when the EVFTA and EVIPA were adopted by the EP, explaining the deals will promote trade exchanges with the Southeast Asian country.

Sharing the same view, President of the Federation of German Wholesale and Foreign Trade (BGA) Holger Bingmann billed the EVFTA as the most ambitious free trade agreement ever negotiated with a developing country.

He believed the EVFTA, together with the EVIPA, will contribute to boosting economic relations between businesses from both sides.

Statistics from the Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) showed that Germany exported 4.1 billion EUR (4.45 billion USD) worth of products to Vietnam in 2018, a year-on-year surge of 18 percent. Meanwhile, Vietnam gained 9.8 billion EUR from shipments to the European nation, up 1.4 percent from 2017.