• An Giang
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  • Yen Bai

Proactivity required for Vietnamese firms to seize opportunities from EVFTA

VGP – The Viet Nam-European Union Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) is opening up great opportunities for Vietnamese businesses to penetrate into such a potential market with 508 million people and a gross domestic product (GDP) of about US$ 18 billion.

August 30, 2019 11:04 AM GMT+7

According to Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh, EVFTA is expected to make many positive contributions to export growth as well as the process of diversifying export markets and products for Viet Nam.

With EVFTA, immediately after the agreement comes into effect, 85.6% of Viet Nam’s goods items, equivalent to 70.3% of the country’s export revenue to the EU, will enjoy a tariff of 0%.

After 7 years, 99.2% of commodities will be tax-free, equivalent to 99.7% of Viet Nam’s export revenue.

 The signing of EVFTA is just the beginning of a new journey, and there still remains a huge workload for Viet Nam to do after ratifying the document, including the immediate preparation of steps to effectively implement the agreement, thus bringing practical benefits for the people and businesses of both sides.

Chairman of the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Vu Tien Loc said that Europe is the “heart” of the world economy, a large market, the origin of the leading technologies in the world, and a global hub for startups and innovation.

Therefore, establishing a free trade platform with this market on the will help to expand the export markets for Viet Nam, while improving the quality of the trade and investment flows. In order to exploit this large market, Vietnamese businesses need to firmly grasp and meet the EU’s regulations on the protection, exploitation and enforcement of intellectual property rights, as well as on the bloc’s technical barriers in trade.

EVFTA is expected to satisfy the protection needs of the intellectual property right holders. The implementation of obligations under the agreement will enable businesses, including Vietnamese companies, to establish and protect their investment results in creativity activities, ranging from technological innovation to designs, packaging and brands of products and services, in an easier and more effective fashion. This will have many positive effects on Viet Nam’s foreign investment attraction and trade.

To seize the opportunities from EVFTA, experts recommend that businesses need to change their business mindset. Right from the moment, business leaders should proactively explore information and firmly grasp the commitments of Viet Nam and partners.

In order to improve their competitiveness in the market, it is necessary for companies to focus on the governance work, while designing business plans for the medium and long-term period, and actively seeking cooperation opportunities with foreign partners.

EVFTA is one of the largest new-generation agreements to which Viet Nam is a signatory. As expected, the deal will soon be ratified to officially go into effect in 2020. This is a good chance for Vietnamese enterprises to increase competitiveness, develop business production and affirm the position of Vietnamese firms in the world trade. 

                                                                                                                            By Vien Nhu