The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) pact and the free trade agreements(FTA) with the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, forexample, are expected to help Vietnamese businesses, especiallysmall-and medium-sized ones, integrate deeper into the global supplychain.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) is also a promising market, assisting Vietnamese exporters informing partnerships with other member states as well as countries withexisting FTAs with the community, including Japan, China and theRepublic of Korea. These ties will further be enhanced with theformation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) slated for late 2015.
Big investment projects from multinational groups suchas Samsung, Microsoft and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries are also seen as agolden opportunity for businesses to gain a stronger foothold in theglobal market.
However, according to the VietnamChamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), only 36 percent of Vietnamesebusinesses are currently involved in the global manufacturing network,compared to 60 percent in Malaysia and Thailand.
This significant gap is attributed to big-and medium-sized enterprisesaccounting for a mere 4 percent of the total Vietnamese businesses,resulting in weak global competitiveness, the VCCI said.
Experts cited the lack of long-term visions, competitivenessstrategies, and connections as limitations of the local companies.
They suggested businesses create products with high levels oftechnology and added value to better participate in the global supplychain.
They also called for more support from theState and further investment in infrastructure and logistics industriesto seize the up and coming opportunities.-VNA