The Vietnamese Trade Office in Indonesia has been taking various measures to actively support Vietnamese enterprises in entering Indonesia, given that it is a protected market with many non-tariff barriers, according to Trade Counsellor Pham The Cuong.

With total population of more than 170 million, the world’s fourth largest, and GDP reaching nearly 1.19 trillion USD last year, the Indonesian market is viewed as promising for Vietnamese products, he told the Vietnam News Agency, adding Indonesia and Vietnam share cultural similarities and Vietnamese goods have gained a foothold in Indonesia with rising export turnover from the regional partner.

Bilateral trade grew to 11.5 billion USD last year from 6.81 billion USD in 2017. The figure hit 9.39 billion USD in the first eight months of this year, up 25.3% year on year, with Vietnam’s exports surging 22.8% to 3.08 billion USD.

Yet, Vietnam goods are subject to numerous non-tariff barriers from its Southeast Asian peer, including quotas, Halal certification, Indonesian National Standard (SNI), local content requirements and trade remedies, according to the official. Indonesia’s geography, with its thousands  of islands, causes relatively higher logistics costs for imports from Vietnam and the country has a similar structure of key agricultural products with Vietnam.

To boost sales to Indonesia, the office have joined hands with the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN)’s local chapters, Indonesian retailers’ and importers’ associations in hosting workshops to popularise Vietnamese products in multiple sectors.

To deal with the 2-year restrictions aimed at fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, the office has accelerated trade promotion with Indonesia through virtual business matching events and consultation sessions. It has supported Vietnam’s milk, cheese and instant “pho” products to gain access to Indonesia.

Additionally, it has worked to lure Indonesian FDI into Vietnam. Since the beginning of 2022, three Indonesian companies, one of which is a cooking oil producer, have been assisted to take necessary legal steps to invest in Vietnam. A Vietnamese retailing chain is about to launch its first store in Jakarta thanks to the office’s help.

Attention has also been placed on helping Vietnamese exporters receive Halal certification and protecting legitimate rights and benefits of Vietnamese businesses./.