These are the two CPTPP (Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership) members that have not yet signed bilateral free trade agreement (FTAs) with Vietnam.
In the first two months of this year, Vietnam’s exports to Canada rose by 20.39% to US$578 million year on year.
With over 37 million people, a high standard of living and an urbanisation rate at 80%, Canada is considered a potential market for many key export items of Vietnam, including textiles, footwear, seafood, tea, pepper, cashew nut, coffee and wooden furniture.
During the first two months, textile and apparel export value reached more than US$100 million, up 5.86% year on year. The export value of mobile phones and accessories surged by 104.22% to US$122.09 million compared to the same period last year.
Other products with strong growth in exports included the group of iron and steel and plastic materials with rates of 153.69% and 354.06% year on year, respectively.
Vietnam’s export value to Mexico reached US$497.2 million in the first two months. Of which, many products gained high export value, including computers, electronic products and components (US$133.6 million), telephones and components (US$122.6 million), shoes and sandals (US$47.5 million), textiles and garments (US$16.3 million), machinery, equipment and other spare parts (US$34.5 million), vehicles and spare parts (US$35.2 million).
Assessing the implementation of FTAs to promote exports, especially the CPTPP, Luong Hoang Thai, director of the MoIT’s Department of Multilateral Trade Policy, said that Vietnam’s enterprises have efficiently exploited markets with which Vietnam has not yet signed FTAs.
In fact, Vietnam’s enterprises have done more than expected, taking full advantage of the CPTPP, Thai said. In 2019, Vietnam gained high growth in exports from the CPTPP countries, especially Canada and Mexico, while the agreement came into effect on January 14, 2019.
The country gained a year on year growth of 26-29% in export value to Canada and Mexico last year, he said.
The CPTPP has partly contributed to the strong growth in exports of Vietnam so the country had a trade surplus of US$1.6 billion with the CPTPP market last year.
Before this agreement, Vietnam had a total trade deficit of US$900 million with this market, said Thai.
