“The India -Vietnam partnership in the Mekong River - Ganges cooperation, the East Asia Summit and other regional forums will continue to generate more strength in the relationship between the two countries,” Mr V. Saran, President of the Indian Chamber of Commerce in Calcutta (ICC) affirmed, in a business exchange held by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) - HCM City Branch in coordination with the Indian Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City, in mid-April in the city.
The exchange took place after ICC led a trade mission consisting of 10 leading Indian corporations operating in education, technology, retail, synthetic fibres, pharmaceutical, electricity, finance, real estate, transmission material, entertainment, IT and health care to visit Vietnam aiming to share experience and seek business partners and cooperation opportunities in Vietnam.
Addressing the forum, Mr V. Saran hailed the admirable infrastructure development in Vietnam. This achievement can be seen in the highway system connecting the North and South of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos; the upgrading of ports and transportation, and the plan to build an airport near Ho Chi Minh City to meet passenger and cargo demand. Vietnam is a country with rich potential, stable politics and friendly people, and these elements create a strong appeal for investment in Vietnam. Relations between Vietnam and India are close not only bilaterally, but also in multilateral settings. Vietnam always supports India in international forums while India recognised the market status of the Vietnamese economy and also signed the ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement.
Economic and trade ties between Vietnam and India have made significant progress in recent years, with an annual increase of 20-30 %. Especially in 2008, bilateral trade turnover topped the US$2 billion target set for 2010. In 2009, in spite of the adverse impacts of the global economic crisis, total two-way trade turnover reached US$2.055 billion, of which Vietnam's exports to India valued US$420 million, up 9 % from 2008, and its imports from India were worth of US$1.635 billion. In investment cooperation, many leading Indian companies have set up offices and are doing business in Vietnam in many areas like mining, automobile, steel, oil and gas, energy and others. Especially, steel production investment projects by Tata Group and Essar Group have made India one of the 10 biggest investors in the Southeast Asian nation. With the advantage of solid political relations and the huge economic potential of both countries, total bilateral trade revenue is expected to reach US$ 3 billion this year and US$5 billion in 2015.
Affirming the importance of Vietnam in India’s foreign policy, Mr. V. Saran expressed hope that, with its ASEAN Presidency, Vietnam will help India strengthen ties with ASEAN. Accordingly, the two countries should further promote economic, commercial and investment cooperation commensurate with the good political relations and the potential advantages of both sides. Mr. V. Saran also expected that after this forum the two countries will have more opportunities to do business together. The Indian government has created the most favourable conditions for Vietnamese entrepreneurs to invest in India and vice versa.
Mr Ravi Sankar, Counsellor of the Embassy of India in Vietnam, said, in its foreign trade policy for 2009 to 2014, India defined Vietnam as a destination in its Eastward Plan. He said Tata Group, a leading conglomerate in India, will export Nano automobiles to the ASEAN market and Europe in the next two years and will seek partners in Vietnam. So, apart from traditional cooperation areas like information technology, agriculture, oil and gas, commercial and investment cooperation between Vietnam and India will expand into new areas. Accordingly, many cooperation prospects will be opened up for businesses in both countries. According to Mr Ravi Sankar, during this trip, a member of the Indian trade delegation, Philips Carbon Black Company, has become an investor in Ba Ria - Vung Tau province. This project will help increase the interest of other members intending to do business in Vietnam, particularly Ba Ria - Vung Tau province and Ho Chi Minh City.
On this occasion, Ms Le Kim Huong, Director of the Planning and Investment Department of Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, introduced investment-calling projects in the province, like seaports, ecological tourism, real estate and seafood processing.
Hoang Thanh
Vietnamese
