German Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Peter Altmaier (Photo: Xinhua/VNA)Berlin (VNA) – The EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and theEU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), which were ratified by theEuropean Parliament (EP) on February 12, offer significant businessopportunities for European enterprises, German Federal Minister for EconomicAffairs and Energy Peter Altmaier has said.
According to the minister, as a fast growing economy, Vietnam is an idealmarket for European products and services.
On the back of the two trade pacts, it will be much easier for Europeancommodities to break into this important market, he stressed.
He also described the EP’s approval of the deals as a vital signal for free tradeand protectionism prevention.
Meanwhile, Director General of the Federation of German Industries (BDI)Joachim Lang said the local industrial sector breathed a sigh of relief whenthe EVFTA and EVIPA were adopted by the EP, explaining the deals will promotetrade exchanges with the Southeast Asian country.
Sharing the same view, President of the Federation of German Wholesale andForeign Trade (BGA) Holger Bingmann billed the EVFTA as the most ambitious freetrade agreement ever negotiated with a developing country.
He believed the EVFTA, together with the EVIPA, will contribute to boostingeconomic relations between businesses from both sides.
Statistics from the Association of German Chambers ofCommerce and Industry (DIHK) showed that Germany exported 4.1 billion EUR (4.45billion USD) worth of products to Vietnam in 2018, a year-on-year surge of 18percent. Meanwhile, Vietnam gained 9.8 billion EUR from shipments to theEuropean nation, up 1.4 percent from 2017./.
VNA
