With a zero per cent preferential tariff under the Vietnam-UK Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA), Vietnamese durian has a competitive price advantage compared to similar products in the UK market, which are subject to an 8% tariff. Since the first export shipment last May, Vietnam’s Ri6 durian has conquered and competed effectively in the UK market.

Conquering a demanding market

According to Nguyen Canh Cuong, Vietnam’s trade counsellor in the UK, Vietnam’s Ri6 durian has been well-received in the UK market with quality comparable to Thailand’s Monthong or Malaysia’s Musang King. This is an encouraging sign for durian and Vietnamese agricultural products in this market.

2024 is not just successful for durian but for many Vietnamese export goods to the UK.

In July 2024, seven OCOP products from Vietnam’s northern province of Tuyen Quang were exported to the UK market. This is the first step in opening a pathway for the province’s agricultural products to the European market.

Nguyen Dai Thanh, Director of the Tuyen Quang Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, noted that the seven products, including six processed items and Soi Ha pomelo, meet UK market requirements and have opened new opportunities for local agricultural products, expanding into the European market.

“Tuyen Quang’s successful export of OCOP products to a market with demand for high quality like the UK is an important premise for the province to have a systematic plan for developing key and speciality products while opening new opportunities for Tuyen Quang’s agricultural products to reach the international market,” said Thanh.

2024 is a particularly vibrant year for Vietnam-UK trade with total bilateral turnover exceeding 8 billion USD for the first time, reaching over 8.4 billion USD, up 18.9% from the previous year, with Vietnam posting a surplus of 6.66 billion USD, up over 20%.

According to the General Customs Department, the leading exports to the UK in 2024 were machinery, equipment and spare parts, reaching 1.36 billion USD, up 32.1%, accounting for 18% of Vietnam’s exports. Other key products included mobile phones, garments, timber and footwear.

In 2024, several exports saw significant export growth, such as computers and electronic products (up 117.2%), rubber (up 77.9%), fruits and vegetables (up 53.7%), common metals (up 31.5%), toys and sports equipment (up 18.7%).

A highlight is that many made-in-Vietnam products from clothing, shoes, tools and equipment to food and vegetables are available in major UK supermarket chains such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s, and premium food supermarkets like Whole Food, Waitrose, and Marks & Spencer.

Characteristic Vietnamese products such as rice, tea, coffee, regional speciality confectionery, rice crackers, noodles, pho, dried vermicelli, various green vegetables and fresh fruits are also abundantly displayed in Vietnamese supermarkets and Asian speciality supermarket chains like Longdan and Eutek Group.

Hoang Le Hang, First Secretary of the Vietnam Trade Office in the UK, noted that Vietnamese goods increasingly meet the UK’s high standards and contribute to diversifying the UK market’s supply. The tax preferences of the UKVFTA and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) have helped Vietnamese goods become price-competitive, compared to countries without free trade agreements with the UK.

Continuing challenges

Despite the optimistic signals, the objective remains to establish a foothold in this highly competitive market.

Thai Tran, Managing Director of TT Meridian, an exporter of Vietnamese durian to the UK, said that despite price advantages, it took businesses significant human resources and costs to personally obtain paper certificates of origin - a mandatory requirement to enjoy UKVFTA tariff benefits.

Cuong suggested that for agricultural products, state management agencies should support businesses by shortening quarantine times, and certificate issuance processes, and ensuring the entire process from harvest to laboratory, customs, and export takes half a day to meet same-day flight schedules while maintaining product freshness.

For other goods, trade connection roles are crucial. The 2024 success has affirmed the role of the Vietnam Trade Office in the UK.

“The Vietnam Trade Office in the UK regularly provides information, and updates on market needs, preferences and standards of the UK, as well as the UK trade policies. They actively connect and introduce Vietnamese businesses to potential UK customers, while advising on market entry and export expansion strategies,” shared Hang.

The UK’s official CPTPP accession opens export growth opportunities for Vietnam, with bilateral trade expected to continue sustainable growth in 2025, given increasing goods and services demand in both countries. However, this also means Vietnam will face more competition from similar products from CPTPP member states. Moreover, the CPTPP’s high standards on intellectual property, labour, environmental protection and corporate management will pose significant challenges for Vietnamese goods.

Therefore, Hang noted that Vietnamese businesses must thoroughly prepare, not just in pricing and quality, but also in meeting green certification, trade and fair labour requirements. Particularly carbon-emitting industries, need to prepare adaptation roadmaps for the UK’s carbon border mechanism.