The current trends in economic and trade cooperation between Vietnam and the United States guarantee a strong growth in bilateral trade and investment over the next 10 years and justify the elevation of their partnership to a strategic level.
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| CEO of the USA-ASEAN Business Council (USABC), Ted Osius. |
| Photo: vn.usembassy.gov/CVN |
United States-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) CEO Ted Osius, who is a former US ambassador to Vietnam, told the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) that trade and investment play an important role in this relationship. The United States is Vietnam’s second largest trading partner and export destination.
By 2022, bilateral trade reached a record of USD 138.9 billion. Vietnam was the 8the trading partner and the largest Asian exporter of the United States. The US was Vietnam’s biggest export market last year. Vietnam’s annual exports to the United States have increased by nearly 20% each year for the past 10 years.
The US trade mission to Vietnam last March was the largest in decades, coinciding with the 10e anniversary of full partnership with a total of 52 companies seeking sales, sourcing and investment opportunities, according to the USABC CEO.
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| The United States is Vietnam’s second largest trading partner and export destination. |
| Photo: VNA/CVN |
The delegation was welcomed by key Vietnamese leaders, including Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, the President of the National Assembly Vuong Dinh Huê, the Chairman of the Party’s Central Committee for Economic Affairs, Trân Tuân Anh, and key stakeholders from several ministries and agencies.
Vietnamese leaders rolled out the red carpet for them, patiently listened to all the companies’ concerns and provided detailed and thoughtful answers on how those concerns would be addressed and who was responsible for follow-up actions, he noted.
Maintain macroeconomic stability and resilience
Meanwhile, USABC reaffirmed its commitment to support Vietnam’s efforts to maintain macroeconomic stability and resilience and its support for Vietnam’s digital transformation strategy and transition to green energy.
Its members proposed new areas of cooperation and highlighted ongoing initiatives in various sectors, including agriculture, aerospace, energy, health, logistics, tourism, digital economy, financial services, defense, innovation and the creative economy in Vietnam.
The large number of companies participating in the trade mission shows how much confidence American companies have in the Vietnamese government’s growth prospects and leadership, despite the headwinds expected this year in the Vietnamese economy and economy. world caused by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and sanctions against Russia, he said.
The USABC CEO said that both sides will see the continued strong trend of expanding the global manufacturing hub and supply chains in Vietnam in semiconductors, FMCG (FMCG), toys, furniture, food and agriculture, digital economy, creative economy, finance and banking and health care.
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| A VinFast car agency in the USA. |
| Photo: VinFast/CVN |
They are starting to see Vietnamese companies investing in the US, such as Vinfast, An Phat and Sovico, which are also major customers of US companies.
All these trends guarantee strong growth in bilateral trade and investment over the next 10 years and justify upgrading the partnership to a strategic level, he said, adding that a strategic partnership should further open markets for businesses in both countries and accelerate the development of key sectors such as energy, digital economy, health, defence, etc.
Osius also highlighted the cooperation between the two countries in the areas of health, science and technology, education and space, defense and security.
Health care
In terms of health, the United States has provided health assistance against tuberculosis in Vietnam since 2004. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it provided 40 million doses of vaccine to Vietnam, which did its part to provide the United States with masks and personal protective equipment.
In terms of science and technology, the two sides recently held a meeting of the Joint Cooperation Committee to discuss important issues such as space cooperation and cooperation in high-tech fields such as AI, biotechnology.
Meanwhile, Vietnam has moved up the rankings to become number 5e largest sender of foreign students to the United States, he said, calling it a remarkable statement about the commitment of Vietnamese students and parents who want their children to be educated in the United States.
The aviation, defense and security sectors are experiencing renewed interest from both sides. Discussions between American industry and its Vietnamese counterparts are increasingly frequent. Furthermore, there is still a long way to go before both parties understand each other’s processes, according to Osius.
VNA/CVN
