“Vietnam-US Economic & Trade Cooperation Trends and Growth Potential in Bilateral Trade and Investment”

The current trends of economic and trade cooperation between Vietnam and the United States guarantee 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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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.

In 2022, bilateral trade reached a record USD 138.9 billion. Vietnam was the 8^e trading partner and the largest Asian exporting country of the United States. The United States was Vietnam’s biggest export market last year. Vietnam’s annual exports to the United States have increased by almost 20% every year for the past 10 years.

The US trade mission to Vietnam last March was the largest in decades, coinciding with the 10^e anniversary of full partnership with a total of 52 companies seeking sales, sourcing and investment opportunities, according to USABC CEO.

The United States is Vietnam’s second largest trading partner and export destination.

Photo : VNA/CVN

The delegation was welcomed by the main Vietnamese leaders, including Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, the President of the National Assembly Vuong Dinh Huê, the Chairman of the Economic Affairs Commission of the Party Central Committee, Trân Tuân Anh, and the 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 responses on how those concerns would be handled and who was responsible for follow-up action, 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 just how much confidence U.S. businesses have in the Vietnamese government’s growth prospects and leadership, despite the headwinds expected this year in the Vietnamese economy and the economy. world caused by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the sanctions against Russia, he said.

USABC CEO said both sides will see the continued strong trend of expanding 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 healthcare.

A VinFast car agency in the United States.

Photo : VinFast/CVN

They are starting to see Vietnamese companies investing in the United States, such as Vinfast, An Phat and Sovico, which are also big customers of American 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 up markets. to businesses in both countries and accelerate the development of key sectors such as energy, digital economy, health, defense, etc.

Osius also highlighted the cooperation of the two countries in the fields of health, science and technology, education and aerospace, defense and security.

Health assistance

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 of masks and personal protective equipment.

Regarding science and technology, the two sides recently held a meeting of the Joint Cooperation Committee to discuss major issues such as space cooperation and cooperation in high-tech fields such as AI, biotechnology.

Meanwhile, Vietnam has moved up the rankings to become the 5^e largest sender of foreign students to the United States, he said, considering it a remarkable statement about the commitment of Vietnamese students and parents who want their children to be educated in the United States.

The aerospace, defense and security sector is experiencing renewed interest on both sides. Discussions between the American industry and its Vietnamese counterparts are increasingly frequent. Also, there is still a long way to go for both parties to understand each other’s processes, according to Osius.

VNA/CVN