Laos, Vietnam trade value increasing
Laos, Vietnam trade value increasing
The value of trade between Laos and Vietnam in the first five months of this year increased by about 5.6 percent compared to the same period last year, reflecting continued business growth.
“For the first five months of this year, the trade value of the two countries exceeded about 3.4 trillion kip (US$433.78 million),” the Ministry of Industry and Commerce's Foreign Trade Policy Department Deputy Director General, Mr Phanh Vilaysom, said.
“Exports to Vietnam were about 1.8 trillion kip (US$228.43 million),” Mr Phanh said at the business matching forum between Lao and Vietnamese enterprises on Friday in Vientiane. “The imports from Vietnam were around 1.6 trillion kip (US$205.35 million),” he confirmed.
The exports from Laos included wood products, materials, and agricultural products such as maize and cattle. Meanwhile the main import goods included petrol or fuel, steel, vehicles and spare parts, machinery, coal, electric cabling, fruit and vegetables.
Mr Phanh said for the entire year of 2012, the trade value between Laos and Vietnam was around 6.8 trillion kip (US$866 million), of which Lao exports to Vietnam were about 3.5 trillion kip (US$445 million) while imports from Vietnam were about 3.3 trillion kip (US$421 million).
The trade value of the two countries is expected to reach US$2 billion by 2015 and US$5 billion by 2020, he said, which is what the two countries' governments have planned. By the end of last year, Vietnamese companies were investing in 440 projects in Laos with a total value of about 42 trillion kip (US$5.38 billion).
Mr Phan said that in the fiscal year of 2011-2012, total Lao imports and exports to all trading partners reached 33.2 trillion kip (US$4.25 billion), including exports of around 12.5 trillion kip (US$1.6 billion) and imports of 20 trillion kip (US$2.56 billion).
The export products included mineral ores, electricity, garments, wood products, tapioca, instant coffee, rubber and maize. The import products included fuel, vehicles and spare parts, raw material for the production and investment, food and electrical equipment.
The business matching forum was attended by the Trade and Product Promotion Department Director General Mr Somvang Ninthavong, Vietnamese Commercial Counselor to Laos Mr Tran Bao Giam and business representatives from both countries.
The forum was part of the Lao-Viet Trade Fair 2013 that was officially opened on July 18 and will be end today at Lao-ITECC in Vientiane. The fair aims to showcase Vietnamese products for export to the Lao market and the north-eastern parts of Thailand.
It is a collaborative effort between the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of Laos and the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam, aiming to foster more trade and investment in Laos, opening doors for the companies and producers to advertise their products and brands, marketing them to both consumers and suppliers.
It will act as a bridge that will link the organisations of trade, production and investment between Laos and Vietnam and offer opportunities for exchange of technology and business operation. It will also help foster a good relationship between the two countries' businesses and enhance future trade cooperation of the two parties towards the coming Asean Economic Community (AEC) in 2015.
When the AEC comes into being in 2015 it will create a single market and production base, a highly competitive economic region of equitable economic development, and a region that occupies a significant place within the global economy.
vientiane times
