Vietnam, Egypt boost bilateral trade cooperation
Vietnam, Egypt boost bilateral trade cooperation
Egypt has become a potential market for Vietnamese exports of computers, electronic components, fibers, yarns, seafood and agricultural products both in itself and as a gateway to Africa.
Potential market
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Egypt is one of Vietnam’s most important trade partners also providing a potential market for Vietnamese goods in North Africa.
Egypt is a promising market for many of Vietnam’s advantageous exports
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General Department of Vietnam Customs data show that in the first half of 2021, Vietnam earned US$238.7 million from exporting goods to Egypt, a year-on-year rise of 11.4 percent. Egypt itself is Vietnam’s second largest trade partner in Africa, after South Africa.
In 2020, bilateral trade hit US$515 million, up 4.8 percent from 2019. Egypt's economy has been severely affected by the pandemic, driving down consumer purchasing power and foreign trade value. Vietnam’s seafood exports dropped 24.7 percent, vegetable and fruit exports decreased 42 percent, and phone and component exports were down 18.5 percent.
Despite Covid-19, many Vietnamese exports to Egypt experienced impressive growth, including cashews that soared 49 percent, pepper (up 16.5 percent), coffee (up 14 percent), and machinery and equipment growing almost 20 percent.
Trade promotion
During the second meeting of the Vietnam-Egypt Sub-Committee on Trade and Industry Cooperation, held virtually on August 18 under the co-chair of Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Cao Quoc Hung and his Egyptian counterpart Ibrahim El-Seginy, representatives of the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Egyptian Ministry of Trade and Industry discussed ways to promote bilateral trade especially in the context of the ongoing pandemic.
In 2020, bilateral trade hit US$515 million, up 4.8 percent from 2019
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Both sides reviewed trade and industry cooperation since their first meeting in April 2018, discussed the regional and global situation affecting bilateral economic ties and reached consensus on several specific measures to address foreign trade difficulties.
The two sides agreed to build a mechanism to share information regarding market demand, export-import management regulations, quarantine, and goods quality management. They also expressed hope for further collaboration, especially for agro-fishery products, in line with bilateral and multilateral international commitments. Online trade and investment promotion activities will be held to link the two countries’ investors and businesses. At the same time, logistics cooperation opportunities will be enhanced through seminars and training human resources in the field.
The two sides also shared their industrial development policies and priorities as regards potential for cooperation in trade and investment, and explored possible partnerships in the fields of electricity, apparel, chemicals, automobiles, construction materials and telecommunications, aquaculture and seafood processing.
| At the second meeting of the Vietnam-Egypt Sub-Committee on Trade and Industry Cooperation, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Cao Quoc Hung suggested that Egypt open its market for a number of new Vietnamese agricultural products, including dragon fruit, lychee, ginger and turmeric, as well as creating favorable conditions for Vietnamese exporters to meet local requirements. |
