Vietnam to collaborate with Bangladesh in trade and investment

Vietnam and Bangladesh should make stronger efforts to translate their potential into sound cooperation in economics, trade and investment, said Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc during a meeting with Bangladeshi Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed in Hanoi on 13 September.

PM Phuc welcomed Ahmed to Vietnam for the World Economic Forum on ASEAN (WEF ASEAN) and lauded the long-standing friendship between the two countries, which has been growing.

Ahmed appreciated Vietnam as a good friend of Bangladesh and said he is impressed with what Vietnam has achieved in multiple areas and suggested that the two nations can cooperate more in textile and garments.

According to the commerce minister, “Vietnam is Bangladesh’s large trade partner, so the South Asian country wants to raise the annual bilateral trade to US$ 2 billion.”

He noted that the business climate in Bangladesh has improved remarkably in recent years, creating a good opportunity for investors from Vietnam and also hoped that, the bilateral ties in economics, trade, and investment will progress in the coming years.

The PM said that Vietnam wants to invest in Bangladesh in agriculture, forestry, fishery, textile and garments, and industry and expects the government of Bangladesh to facilitate Vietnamese enterprises in the country.

 Statistics from the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) show that two-way trade soared from US$14 million in 2002 to US$388.1 million in 2012 and more than US$900 million in 2017. Vietnam has repeatedly recorded a trade surplus with the South Asian country.

By the end of December 2017, Bangladesh invested in four projects in Vietnam with a total registered capital of US$ 615,000, ranking 99th out of 125 countries and territories investing in Vietnam. Meanwhile, Vietnam poured US$ 27,900 into a project in Bangladesh, making it 68th position of the 72 countries and territories where Vietnam has invested in.