Ample room for Vietnam-Thailand cooperation in new economic sectors: official
Given the shared goal of achieving net zero emissions, the Vietnam Trade Office in Thailand will actively seek opportunities to connect enterprises in climate change response sectors.
Demand for cooperation between Vietnam and Thailand is continuously expanding and new business opportunities will appear when both countries begin to develop new economic sectors such as green economy, circular economy and renewable energy, according to Le Huu Phuc, Head of the Vietnam Trade Office in Thailand.
As the two countries strive to achieve climate change response goals, especially net zero emissions, the Trade Office will seek opportunities to connect enterprises in those fields, Phuc said, adding that that is also an inevitable trend. There remains ample room to promote bilateral cooperation in the future.
Talking to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA)'s representative reporters in Thailand, Phuc said the office will focus on local economic cooperation, especially between the Northeastern provinces of Thailand, which house many Vietnamese people and the central provinces of Vietnam.
With geographical proximity, cooperation between these two regions can help Viet Nam promote trade links with Thailand, especially border trade via Laos; and facilitate access to each other's market through local products under Thailand's OTOP (One Tambon One Product) programme and Vietnam's OCOP (One Commune One Product).
Regarding supply chain connectivity, the official said that the office will promote support for Vietnamese businesses in finding and building agents and expanding their commercial presence in Thailand while introducing and bringing Vietnamese goods to Thai supermarkets through cooperation with supermarket systems in the country such as Central, Marko and TCC.
It will assist and boost industrial collaboration, especially in the automotive field such as finding and connecting manufacturers of parts and accessories, added Phuc.
According to the official, the relationship between the two countries is developing fruitfully, creating favourable conditions for the implementation of economic diplomacy in Thailand. Since the establishment of the bilateral strategic partnership in 2013, two-way trade increased by 230 % from US$9.4 billion to US$21.6 billion in 2022. Last year, the figure reached nearly US$19 billion.
Thailand is Vietnam's biggest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), while the latter is the former's No. 2 partner, after Malaysia.
Thailand now has more than 700 valid projects in Vietnam with a combined investment of nearly US$15 billion, ranking 9th among foreign investors in the country. Meanwhile, Vietnam's investment in Thailand remains modest with a sum of US$32 million, focusing on consumer goods and distribution.
Viet Nam News
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