The figure increased by 12% over 2019 and by 37% compared to 2018, when CPTPP began to take effect.
The number was announced at a conference entitled “Review two years after the CPTPP Implementation –Towards a post COVID-19 sustainable future” which was jointly held by the Canadian Embassy in Hanoi and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) on March 23.
“The CPTPP has improved accessibility to trade and services between Canada and Vietnam, strengthened the set of common rules, reduced costs on trade, and made investment activities more predictable. This helps to improve competitive advantage of products in two markets, Canada and Vietnam,” said Canadian Ambassador to Vietnam Deborah Paul.
She emphasised that the CPTPP has established duty-free access to trade in goods between Canada and Vietnam while making high-quality Canadian products more affordable to consumers in Vietnam.
“Vietnam has been Canada's largest trading partner among ASEAN countries since 2015. Besides, Vietnam was the second largest destination in ASEAN for agricultural and seafood exports from Canada in 2020", said the Ambassador.
Canada’s top agricultural products exported to Vietnam include grains, oilseeds, fish and crustaceans, fruits, beef, pork, and dairy products. Meanwhile, Vietnam's main products exported to Canada include textiles, footwear, electronic products and components, seafood, and wooden products.
VCCI Chairman Vu Tien Loc said that imports and exports between Vietnam and Canada achieved a high growth rate of nearly 30% in 2019, nearly four times higher than the average bilateral trade growth ratebetween Vietnam and other CPTPP partners.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the trade growth rate between the two sides slowed down but is still nearly double the average export growth rate of Vietnam.
“This result is thanks to the great efforts of the Government and enterprises of both sides in establishing mechanisms, exploring markets and promoting business cooperation between the two sides over the past two years,” said Vu Tien Loc noted.
