Making the most of emerging opportunities

Delivering the opening remarks, Tran Phuoc Anh, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Vietnam to Singapore, emphasized that Singapore is one of the region’s leading trade and logistics hubs. The presence and success of Vietnamese businesses in the country not only represent a source of pride for the Vietnamese community abroad, but also serve as an important bridge connecting Vietnam with international markets.

According to the Ambassador, in the context of deepening global integration, bringing Vietnamese products to international markets is no longer merely an option it has become an imperative.

As a gateway to the ASEAN region and a global distribution center, Singapore offers significant opportunities for Vietnamese goods to participate more deeply in international value chains. To effectively capitalize on these opportunities, stronger collaboration is needed among Vietnamese businesses operating in Singapore.

The Vietnamese Government has consistently placed great importance on the overseas Vietnamese community, including Vietnamese entrepreneurs in key markets such as Singapore. In 2019, the Prime Minister approved the project titled “Mobilizing Overseas Vietnamese to Introduce, Distribute, and Develop Distribution Channels for Vietnamese Products Abroad,” reaffirming the important role of overseas Vietnamese communities in trade promotion, business networking, market expansion, and the promotion of Vietnam’s image, culture, and national identity worldwide.

In Singapore, Vietnamese entrepreneurs have actively contributed to promoting and distributing Vietnamese products, helping to establish a Vietnamese-led distribution network, particularly within the Vietnamese community in the city-state.

Representing the Vietnam Trade Office in Singapore, Cao Xuan Thang, Trade Counsellor, shared updates on bilateral trade and investment relations between Vietnam and Singapore, along with insights into Vietnam’s key export sectors in the market. He also highlighted a number of initiatives aimed at supporting business matchmaking, facilitating trade delegations from Singapore to Vietnam, and promoting industrial and service-sector investment in Vietnam.

He discussed practical experiences and identified opportunities to expand business connectivity through e-commerce platforms and distribution channels within the Vietnamese community in Singapore. These efforts, he noted, could significantly enhance the visibility of Vietnamese products, strengthen product and corporate branding, and promote Vietnam’s national brand in the market.

The Trade Office also introduced upcoming trade fairs and exhibitions in Vietnam, particularly the Vietnam International Sourcing 2026, scheduled for early September 2026 in Ho Chi Minh City under the direction of Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam.

During the program, participating businesses shared their experiences in distributing Vietnamese products in Singapore, raised challenges encountered in business operations, and offered recommendations for future support. Many participants praised the quality of Vietnamese products and specialties, while affirming that the Vietnamese community in Singapore remains a crucial driver of demand for Vietnamese goods in the local market.

Every Vietnamese entrepreneur as a “brand ambassador”

In 2024, bilateral trade between Vietnam and Singapore reached a record high of nearly SGD 32 billion. In 2025, trade turnover continued its strong momentum, rising by more than 28% to almost SGD 40 billion, the highest level ever recorded. A significant share of this growth was attributed to distribution networks developed within the Vietnamese community in Singapore.

Singapore imports approximately SGD 500 million worth of rice annually, SGD 1.4 billion in meat products, and SGD 1.5 billion in seafood. The market also shows strong demand for processed foods and premium consumer goods.

Beyond being a domestic consumer market, Singapore serves as a major regional and global transshipment hub, creating substantial opportunities for Vietnam to expand trade connections and export its products to wider international markets.

The Vietnam Trade Office in Singapore reaffirmed its commitment to serving as a bridge between businesses in both countries, supporting business delegations traveling from Singapore to Vietnam and vice versa to strengthen commercial cooperation.

Ambassador Tran Phuoc Anh reiterated that the Embassy of Vietnam in Singapore, together with the Vietnam Trade Office, remains fully committed to supporting businesses by facilitating connections between domestic enterprises and overseas Vietnamese entrepreneurs, providing market information, coordinating trade promotion activities, organizing fairs and exhibitions, and acting as a bridge to distribution systems, import partners, and business platforms in Singapore.

He also encouraged Vietnamese enterprises to combine traditional distribution channels with e-commerce to enable Vietnamese products to reach Singaporean consumers and the wider regional market more quickly, broadly, and effectively.

The Ambassador expressed his hope that every Vietnamese entrepreneur in Singapore would become a “brand ambassador” for Vietnamese products. Their understanding of the market, international business experience, and extensive networks, he noted, represent key advantages in elevating the value and reputation of Vietnamese products on the global stage.

He further called on the Vietnamese business community in Singapore to continue playing a pioneering role in introducing Vietnamese products and expanding distribution channels in the market. Sectors such as food, processed agricultural products, consumer goods, environmentally friendly products, and information and communications technology (ICT), all of which are among Vietnam’s strengths have strong potential to win over Singaporean consumers if supported by well-structured distribution strategies and effective brand development.

At the conclusion of the event, participating businesses expressed optimism about the strong support from Vietnamese representative agencies and the significant growth potential of Vietnamese products. The Vietnamese business community in Singapore voiced confidence that, by working together, they can build stronger distribution networks, further solidify the position of Vietnamese goods in Singapore, and help them reach broader global markets.​