The event, co-organized by the Ministry of Industry and Trade, American Chamber of Commerce (Amcham Hanoi) and the US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC), aims to enhance the promotion of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries.
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| Mr. Do Thang Hai, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, spoke at the forum. (Photo: sggp.org.vn) |
In his speech at the forum, Mr. Do Thang Hai, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, said that the bilateral trade turnover between Vietnam and the US has increased by about 248 times, from 450 million USD in 1995 to nearly 113 billion USD 2021, despite the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and complicated developments that caused the supply chain to be disrupted. This number is expected to increase even more by the end of 2022.
At the forum, the two sides shared issues and contents in the fields of logistics, trade and digital services which are evaluated with great potential and are indispensable factors in the process of transformation and striving to implement the fast and sustainable growth model of Vietnam in general and Ho Chi Minh City in particular in the coming time.
Phan Thi Thang, Vice Chairwoman of Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, said that the city now has 533 direct investment projects of US investors with a total investment value of more than 1.36 billion USD and 1,109 indirect investors in the form of capital contribution, share purchase, or capital purchase of domestic enterprises, with a contributed capital value of nearly 635 million USD.
She emphasized that Ho Chi Minh City is currently implementing many important projects with the determination to maximize the potential and advantages for the city to rise up and develop properly in the new period, such logistics industry development; export development; policy to promote the development of the digital economy, the sharing economy and the circular economy; and building the city into a smart city.
The US now becomes the second trading partner, with trade turnover exceeding 100 billion USD with Vietnam. The country has been Vietnam’s largest and most important export market for many years, while Vietnam has become the 8th largest trading partner of the US.
For many years, the US was one of the largest investment partners in Vietnam, with nearly 1,150 projects in operation and total registered investment capital of more than 10.3 billion USD, now ranking 11th out of 141 countries investing in Vietnam.
There are 116 representative offices of US traders operating very effectively in Ho Chi Minh City. They are important bridges in trade and investment promotion, export and import boosting between the two sides./.