During a recent phone call between the Vietnamese Prime Minister and the South Korean counterpart, the two countries committed to increasing their bilateral trade from USD 78 billion last year to USD 100 billion this year, and USD 150 billion by 2030.
One way to realize the commitment is by utilizing bilateral and multilateral cooperation instruments, such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Vietnam-Korea Bilateral Free Commerce Agreement (VKFTA). In addition, the two parties decided to boost the volume of official development assistance (ODA) supplies to Vietnam while maintaining and developing effective ODA collaboration mechanisms.
Furthermore, South Korea would bring in more investments for Vietnam in electronics, infrastructure development, sustainable energy, and technology. At present, South Korea has been the largest source of foreign direct investment for Vietnam, with Samsung Electronics-the largest single foreign investor in the country. Besides electronics, it was also agreed that Vietnamese imports of agricultural produce, fruits, and seafood would be facilitated in South Korea.
During the call, the two countries also decided to look for ways to reduce the gap in their bilateral trade, providing that Vietnam’s Customs data shows that Vietnam had a USD 34 billion trade deficit with South Korea last year. The primary South Korean imports into Vietnam include electronics, machinery, metals, plastics, fabrics, and fuels.
(Sources: Reuters; VietNam News)
