Hanoi VNA) – Hai Phong topped Vietnam's FTA Index 2025, becoming the only locality nationwide to receive the highest rating of 'very good' for the implementation of free trade agreements (FTAs), the Ministry of Industry and Trade said on August 18.

Using data from 2025, the last year for which full datasets were available, the results were released at a ceremony in Hanoi. The event marked the second year of the FTA Index, which assesses how effectively local authorities implement FTA commitments and support businesses in making use of trade preferences.

Hai Phong scored 35.62 out of 40, well above the national average of 21.66. It was followed by Tuyen Quang with 33.61, Thanh Hoa with 30.93, Vinh Long with 29.33 and Ca Mau with 29.10.

The results showed that the overall quality of FTA implementation at the local level continued to improve, encouraging provinces and cities to pay greater attention to international economic integration and support businesses in making better use of FTAs.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Sinh Nhat Tan said the results demonstrated the value of having an objective and transparent tool closely linked to business experience.

"This positive signal shows that, with an objective, transparent and practical assessment tool, localities have a stronger basis to review their performance, make adjustments and continuously improve the quality of governance," he said.

The FTA Index 2025 marks the second year of the nationwide assessment, with improvements made to its methodology, survey coverage and data quality. The survey gathered responses from 4,066 import-export enterprises in 34 provinces and cities as of December 31, 2025.

Eligible businesses were required to have registered production or business establishments in Vietnam and to have conducted goods exports and/or imports for two consecutive years, 2023 and 2024.

The survey covered selected businesses based on ownership type, main business sector and import-export turnover, including those in agriculture, forestry and fisheries; mining; processing and manufacturing; and wholesale, retail and motor vehicle repair.

Speaking at the ceremony, Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Tuc said the first FTA Index, released in 2025, laid an important foundation for measuring local authorities' capacity to implement FTAs and support businesses in making use of the agreements.

"Entering its second year, the requirement is not only to continue scoring and ranking localities, but more importantly to turn the measurement results into concrete action and create substantive improvements in governance, administration and the competitiveness of each locality," he said.

The Deputy PM said the FTA Index should be viewed not merely as a specialised index, but as an important tool for managing international economic integration.

Through business feedback and assessments of implementation at the local level, the index should help identify where authorities were performing well and where improvements were needed, including in institutions, administrative procedures, information, infrastructure, personnel and coordination among agencies, he said.

"Each indicator must lead to a concrete action; each international commitment must be transformed into resources and a real development driver for each locality and the country," he said.

The index comes as global trade competition increasingly depends not only on production costs, but also on compliance with international standards, supply chain integration and the ability to meet evolving market requirements.

After signing and carrying out 17 FTAs, Vietnam is shifting its focus from expanding its network of agreements to improving implementation at the local level.

The ministry said the FTA Index would continue to be refined as a tool to monitor and improve the quality of FTA implementation, with business experience and practical outcomes serving as key measures./.