The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)'s Branch in Ho Chi Minh City and Intrinsic Innovations Vietnam – a non-profit incubator based in Alberta, Canada – co-organised a workshop on Vietnam-Canada investment opportunities in the southern economic hub on December 2. Canada is currently Vietnam's second largest trading partner in the American market, while Vietnam is Canada's largest trading partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Since the establishment of their comprehensive partnership in 2017, trade turnover between the two countries has increased strongly, recording more than double-digit growth over the years.
Between 2017 and 2021, the bilateral import-export value rose from 3.5 billion USD to 6.03 billion USD. In the first seven months of 2022, the figure stood at over 4.27 billion USD. VCCI Vice President Vo Tan Thanh said Vietnam has great potential in supplying items such as textiles, garments, footwear, farm produce, and wooden products to the Canadian market, while Canada is a reliable manufacturer of such items as machinery, and raw materials for industrial production.
Although trade between the two nations has made positive progress, it is still not commensurate with the potential of their relationship, Thanh noted, suggesting the two sides tackle hurdles and facilitate their enterprises’ access to the respective markets.
CEO of Intrinsic Innovations Vietnam Tuan Le said an advantage of Vietnam in approaching the Canadian market is a community of more than 260,000 Vietnamese expatriates there. Oversea Vietnamese in Canada have been making important contributions to the Canadian economy and connecting the two countries, he added.
Brent Jensen, investment and trade director at Edmonton Global, a Canadian-based FDI and international business development agency, recommended Vietnamese firms take advantage of incentives to approach and learn about cooperation opportunities in fields of their advantages such as agriculture, education, and vocational training, thereby exploiting the potential of the North American market./.
