Nguyen Loc Ha, Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee, stated that Viet Nam–China cooperation has undergone an impressive development journey. In particular, collaboration in the field of logistics has made remarkable progress, fostered goods production and bilateral trade. Viet Nam has transformed from an agricultural economy into an important player in the global trade chain, with FDI playing a pivotal role in industrialisation and enhancing export capacity.
Ho Chi Minh City leads Viet Nam in attracting investment from China. Currently, there are more than 800 Chinese-invested projects with a total registered capital of nearly 3 billion USD, focusing on sectors such as information technology and digital transformation, smart manufacturing and supporting industries, logistics and e-commerce, renewable energy and green technologies.
According to Ha, Ho Chi Minh City and China have numerous opportunities for cooperation in digital transformation and artificial intelligence (AI), smart megacity development, and financial investment connectivity.
The Vietnamese southern metroplis is building a comprehensive innovation ecosystem with the goal of becoming a leading startup and innovation hub in Southeast Asia, and looks forward to cooperating with Chinese enterprises in developing AI, Big Data, the Internet of Things (IoT), and blockchain, he affirmed.
In addition, the innovative mega-city project in Ho Chi Minh City will serve as an ideal space for Viet Nam–China technological cooperation, creating modern knowledge infrastructure to support digital economic development, he stated, adding that as a financial hub, Ho Chi Minh City is also ready to cooperate in developing digital financial products, cashless payment systems, and green finance to meet the needs of businesses in both countries.
Tang Li, Chinese Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, said that China will continue to promote policy coordination with Viet Nam in areas such as connectivity, production cooperation, and the digital economy; and will work to create a more favourable environment for trade and investment between their enterprises, ensuring that the outcomes of collaboration increasingly benefit the two peoples.
Yang Yanyan, Chairwoman of the Guangxi Council for the Promotion of International Trade, proposed Guangxi and Ho Chi Minh City soon establish a regular exchange mechanism to promote meetings and interactions between agencies and businesses. On that basis, the two sides can jointly organise thematic activities focusing on AI, the digital economy, and green manufacturing, among other spheres, thereby creating a foundation for dialogue and a platform for technology demonstration.
At the same time, Ho Chi Minh City and China can increase the sharing of foundational resources and strengthen linkages between economic forums and trade fairs to establish an effective bilateral support mechanism, she added.
