A footwear factory in Vietnam (Photo: VNA)Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy, Deputy Director of the Export Promotion Centre atthe Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency, saidTurkey is a large economy with vibrant foreign trade and high consumptiondemand from a population of nearly 84 million. It ranks second, after the UAE,among Western Asian importers of Vietnamese goods, helping Vietnam continuallyrecord a trade surplus with this market over the past years.
However, Vietnamese goods account for just 0.5 percent of Turkey’s totalimports, she went on, pointing out that geographical distance, hightransportation costs, and the weakness in preservation technology are hamperingcommodities of Vietnam, especially agricultural products, from entering themarket.
In the firsttwo months of 2022, Vietnam’s exports to Turkey reached 189 million USD, up16.3 percent year on year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
Thuy said this is a potential market, an important gateway to the MiddleEast, and a point of transit to the EU for many Vietnamese products, includingrice, milk and dairy products, cashew nut, wood products, rubber, tea, fibre,fabric, garment, footwear, and electronic devices.
The TradeOffice of Vietnam in Turkey noted Vietnamese goods are facing competitionpressure from other countries’ rivals, as well as this country’s trade defencemeasures, which means that it is not easy to bolster exports to Turkey.
Businesseshave to overcome many barriers, change theirmindset, further improve product quality, and invest more in preservationtechnology, the office added.
Experts said that authorities should further encouragedomestic firms to take part in trade promotion events, especially large-scaletrade fairs and exhibitions, to help them introduce products and seek businesscooperation opportunities./.
VNA
