Executives of Vietnamese and Indonesian companies exchange information at a business matching event in HCM City on December 19. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — Indonesia is a promising market for Vietnamese products, especially those with Halal certification, a bilateral business matching event heard in HCM City on December 19.

Nguyễn Tuấn, deputy director of the Investment and Trade Promotion Centre of HCM City (ITPC), said statistics from the General Department of Customs showed that trade between the two countries in the first 10 months of this year was worth US$11.58 billion.

Of this Việt Nam's exports accounted for $3.78 billion after rising by 22.3 per cent year-on-year.

The export items included computers; electronic products and components; seafood; coffee; chemicals; plastic raw materials; garments and textiles, footwear and raw materials used in the two sectors; and iron and steel.

Computers and electronic products and components were the biggest items.

“It can be seen that Vietnamese goods are gradually asserting their position in the Indonesian market with the export revenue increasing over time.”

However, Việt Nam major export items such as agricultural products, textiles, food, beverages, household appliances, and consumer products did not have a strong presence yet in Indonesia and so there was much room to advance trade ties.

Indonesia had huge demand for consumer items, especially for Halal products, offering opportunities for Vietnamese firms.

The event offered businesses from the two sides useful and valuable information about each other’s market as well as the opportunity to find business partners.

Indonesian companies got the chance to connect with import-export businesses in the city, find distribution agents and meet with two modern distribution systems, Satra and Saigon Co.op.

Agustaviano Sofjan, the Indonesian consul general in HCM City, said bilateral trade last year exceeded the $10-billion goal set by the two countries for 2023 and now they have agreed to a new target of $15 billion by 2028.

“Next year Indonesia and Việt Nam will be celebrating a decade of their strategic partnership. Much has been achieved, but many more opportunities for cooperation need to be tapped.”

He said nine Indonesian businesses in the food and beverages, plasticware and handicraft sectors took part in the event.

“I hope this business matching event today can expand networking, business exchanges and eventually end up with concrete business deals that benefit both sides.”

The event was organised by ITPC and the consulate to promote bilateral trade. — VNS