Vietnam-EU Trade Reaches EUR6.4Bln

3:26:28 PM | 7/8/2005

Bilateral trade between Vietnam and the European Union (EU) has increased sharply in recent times and reached EUR6.4 billion so far this year, up 20 per cent over last year, the European Affairs Department under Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported on December 21.

Of the figure, Vietnam earned nearly EUR5 billion from exports to the EU. Its export staples include garments and textiles, seafood, footwear and handicrafts and fine arts. The country also spent around EUR1.5 billion on imports from the block.

Vietnamese foreign affairs officials forecast Vietnam-EU trade to surpass EUR7 billion next year when the EU removes import quotas on Vietnamese garments and textiles.

Bilateral trade is also expected to keep soaring in the following years as 23 of 25 member countries of the EU have shown their support for a proposal to continue giving Vietnamese goods the EU Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) status in the 2006-2015 period, reported the Trade Ministry. The EU is now Vietnam’s largest export market. It is also one of the largest foreign investors in Vietnam, with total investment of EUR6.8 billion in 445 projects in the country to date.