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May 19, 2017 / 09:36

Hanoi to enhance cooperation in trade, investment and tourism with Czech

The Hanoi Center of Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion (HPA) has recently organized a workshop to update information on the Czech market to help Vietnamese enterprises expand their market in the Czech Republic.

 
Vietnamese goods in Czech supermarket
Vietnamese goods in Czech supermarket

According to the statistic of the General Department on Customs, in 2016, the two-way trade turnover between Vietnam and the Czech Republic hit US$ 249.8 million, including US$ 148.8 million of export and US$ 103.6 million of import. The Czech Republic is one of Vietnam’s leading traders in the Central and Eastern Europe.

Addressing the event, Mr. David Jakulisch, economic counselor of the Embassy of Czech Republic to Vietnam said that the Czech Republic has a long tradition of industrial development, especially in heavy industry and machinery manufacturing. The Czech government has always supported transparent investment and skilled labor from other countries. Additionally, the Czech Republic has many famous landscapes, famous attractions for tourists.

In recent years, economic cooperation between Vietnam and the Czech Republic has seen positive changes. Vietnam mainly exports traditional products to the Czech Republic, such as footwear, garments, seafood, industrial machinery and electrical equipment, and imports machinery, equipment, tools and products from iron and steel. The country chiefly ships machines, mechanical spare parts, electricity equipment, and plastics to Vietnam.

 
Scene of the conference
Scene of the conference

HPA Director Nguyen Gia Phuong said that, at present, the economies of Vietnam and the Czech Republic are developing at a high speed, integrating deeply into the world and regional economy. The two countries have many favorable opportunities to develop bilateral co-operation in economics, trade and investment. Nonetheless, the potential for bilateral cooperation remains huge.

Especially, the Czech Republic and Vietnam enjoy friendly relations with over 60,000 overseas Vietnamese living in Czech Republic, making the 14th nationality there. However, the rate of bilateral trade and investment remains modest and far from expectations in three criteria: investment, trade and tourism. Currently, Czech investors have poured nearly US$ 10 million of FDI in around 16 small-scale projects in Ha Noi. Hanoi's export to the Czech Republic is about US$ 35 million and import is US$ 20 million.

He hoped that in the coming time, Hanoi and the Czech Republic would promote cooperation in all three areas: trade, investment and tourism; at the same time, building the best interaction between enterprises of Hanoi in particular and Vietnam in general with Czech Republic businesses.