Nearly 600 tonnes of malt from France’s central Bourgogne-Franche-Comte region will be shipped weekly to Vietnam via a new waterway route linking an inland port in the French department of Yonne with Cai Mep seaport in Ho Chi Minh City.

First containers are shipped from France to Vietnam via the new waterway shipping route

The route will create favourable conditions for trade ties between Bourgogne-Franche-Comte region and Vietnam, which is expected to thrive thanks to the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) signed on June 30.

Since September, malt planted in Yonne will be transported to Vietnam to produce beer. The two sides recently inked a contract on shipping the first batch of 5,000 tonnes of malt to Vietnam.

Vietnamese Ambassador to France Nguyen Thiep stressed that the shipping route allows businesses to transport goods at a fast speed to the two seaports of Le Havre in France and Cai Mep in Vietnam.

The route is expected to lift trade relations between the two countries by 20 percent when the EVFTA takes effect, he added.

France’s malt exports to Vietnam will increase to 250,000 tonnes next year, the diplomat noted, adding that Vietnam’s staples will also be shipped to France via this route in the coming time if meeting European standards.