PM urges leaders of multinationals to support EVFTA in Davos
PM urges leaders of multinationals to support EVFTA in Davos
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc called on the leaders of the world's leading multinationals to lobby the European Union for quicker approval of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) to facilitate stronger investment cooperation between Vietnamese and European businesses on the sidelines of the 2019 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on January 23 (local time), reported the Vietnam News Agency.
At a reception for the chief executive officer (CEO) of American multinational technology company Apple Inc., Tim Cook, the prime minister spoke highly of the group’s achievements in its business operations in Vietnam over the past few years and expressed support for the corporation's establishment of a regional data center in Vietnam.
Three years ago, local and international media reported that the U.S. tech giant was mulling over a US$1-billion data hub in either the Vietnamese capital city of Hanoi or the central coastal city of Danang.
The establishment of the data center is part of Apple’s strategy to reduce its dependence on its third-party data partners, such as U.S.-based multinational ecommerce platform Amazon and American tech giant Microsoft.
The prime minister also expected Apple to continue making efficient, transparent and long-term investments in Vietnam and to serve as a bridge for American businesses to expand their investment and business scale in the Southeast Asian country.
During his meeting with Carlos Brito, CEO of the world’s largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev, based in Belgium, the Vietnamese leader praised the group’s operations in Vietnam and confirmed that his government was stepping up efforts to restructure the economy to achieve sustainable development and improve the business and investment environment to make it more transparent and favorable for investors.
During a reception for Magesvaran Suranjan, president of American multinational consumer goods corporation Procter & Gamble, PM Phuc hailed the group’s business operations in Vietnam and suggested it continue expanding its activities in the country.
At his talk with Kasper Rørsted, CEO of Adidas, a Germany-based multinational corporation known for its shoes, clothing and accessories, the PM thanked the European business community, including Adidas, for its close cooperation and support of Vietnam in the negotiation process of the EVFTA.
The PM expressed confidence that once the trade pact comes into force, their bilateral trade and investment activities would further thrive, bringing benefits for both sides’ residents and businesses.
On receiving Cees ’t Hart, president and CEO of Denmark’s leading brewery group, Carlsberg, the prime minister hailed the corporation’s previous business results.
PM Phuc stressed that Carlsberg, together with other foreign groups, had made significant contributions to the equitization process of the beer, alcohol and beverage industry in Vietnam.
He expressed hope that Carlsberg would join efforts to accelerate the European Union’s ratification of the EVFTA, helping open up new opportunities for businesses from both sides.
Talking to Nick Clegg, vice president of global affairs and communications at U.S.-based social networking company Facebook, the Vietnamese leader asked the tech giant to cooperate with Vietnam to develop its information technology sector, particularly in assisting start-ups and small and medium-d enterprises with information access and business development on its social network.
Regarding the recent cases involving the spread of false news on the social network, PM Phuc asked Facebook to fully abide by Vietnamese regulations and improve the quality of its management and services for Vietnamese clients, especially the authentication system for addressing the fake news problem.
At his reception for Kathleen Tregoning, executive vice president of external affairs at Sanofi, a pharmaceutical multinational headquartered in France, the prime minister praised the firm’s projects in Vietnam, which have helped protect and improve the health of Vietnamese residents.
He proposed that Sanofi continue aiding technology transfer in the production of medicines, vaccines and biological medicinal products while improving product quality and lowering medicine prices to make them more affordable to the general public.
