Speaking at the ceremony, Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang asserted that to facilitate the implementation of the agreement and create a legal framework for businesses and people of both sides to take advantage of opportunities brought by the EVFTA, high-level leaders from Vietnam and the EU agreed to intensify efforts to carry out legal reviews and signing procedures and apply the agreement in 2018.
He noted that trade and investment relations between Vietnam and the EU have seen positive developments as the two-way trade turnover increased from US$4.1 billion in 2000 to US$41.4 billion last year, making the EU the leading trade partner of Vietnam.
The EU is one of the largest sources of foreign direct investment in Vietnam with 2,162 effective projects and US$38.4 billion in registered capital, Hoang said.
The Vietnam-EU trade and investment relations are able to supplement each other, laying a basis for promoting trade, investment and co-operation when the EVFTA is signed, Hoang added.
Ambassador-Head of Delegation of the EU to Vietnam Bruno Angelet said that the EVFTA will generate a bigger wave of high-quality investment from the EU in Vietnam and help promote deep integration and added value for the Vietnamese economy, which greatly depends on the private sector in Vietnam.
He suggested that the private sector supply European companies in Vietnam with local support products instead of imported components while Vietnamese entrepreneurs should develop trade and export, and exploit European markets more effectively.
EuroCham Chairwoman Nicola Connolly affirmed Vietnam’s development and attractiveness to foreign investors as the country has unceasingly improved the business environment, suggesting that further improvements be made to maintain accomplishments and have deeper marks on investment and trade markets.
According to the white paper 2016, directions on implementing many new legal documents have not been issued and processing on investors’ documents is still delayed. To create further added value, Vietnam should resolve the matter of human resources by improving vocational training, raising productivity and innovating capital allocation.
