Both Vietnam and the EU will launch a broad range of practical activities to effectively implement the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) from August, with a forum on trade and industry co-operation with EU partners to be held by the Ministry of Industry and the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam on July 31 in Ho Chi Minh City.

Running with the theme of the EVFTA -opportunities for strategic co-operation towards sustainable development, the occasion is anticipated to draw the participation of representatives from various State management agencies, the EU delegation based in the nation, diplomats of EU member nations operating in the country, and experts from a large number of Vietnamese and European businesses. 

In addition, the forum will serve as a venue in which participants can freely exchange views on comprehensive and multi-dimensional information with regard to economic and trade co-operation prospects between both sides once the EVFTA comes into force.

Moreover, the forum will offer updates for Vietnamese businesses on market developments within the EU, along with regulations, policies, and particular trade practices, thereby making practical and timely forecasts and recommendations that can serve to stimulate trade and investment with EU member states.

Most notably, the forum will connect participants online and allow the various Vietnamese Trade Offices in Europe to directly interact and answer questions regarding market information and methods in which to approach and support local partners.

With the EVFTA set to take effect from August 1 amid unpredictable fluctuations in terms of economic, trade, and market trends, the trade deal is expected to open up plenty of strategic co-operation opportunities in an effort to promote trade and investment in both a practical and effective manner.

For local firms, the EU represents a large market that has plenty of room for growth, while import and export structure between both sides can be considered complementary rather than competitive.

Successful businesses operating within the EU market have the opportunity to expand co-operation with 27 member states as a way of solving the output problem of market expansion and diversification towards deeper involvement within the global value chain.

The recent past has seen plenty of Vietnamese businesses fail to fully grasp information about trade deals and market fluctuations, despite the EU being a potentially lucrative market, whilst seeking more opportunities for broader co-operation alongside EU partners.

The opening six months of the year saw Vietnamese exports the EU market suffer a decline of 8.8% to US$16.1 billion due to the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The markets that imported large volumes of local goods during the reviewed period include Germany at US$3.31 billion, down 0.2%, the Netherlands at US$3,178 billion, a fall of 1.8%, Italy at US$1,412 billion, a drop of 20.6%, France at US$1.5 billion, down 20%, Spain at US$963 million, a fall of 27.3%, and Sweden at US$556 million, a decline of 5.5%.

Moreover, there were many other markets within the EU that Vietnamese goods have yet to gain entry into, including Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Croatia, Luxembourg, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, and Romania.