A woman visiting the kiosk of Việt Nam at the Macau International Trade and Investment Fair. — VNA/VNS Photo Mạc Luyện

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese companies joined about 1,200 companies and organisations from 14 countries and territories at the 28th Macao International Trade and Investment Fair (MIF) that is running in Macao (China) from October 19-22.

This was the first international trade–investment promotion event in Macau after the pandemic, which saw the participation of Vietnamese firms, showing Vietnamese businesses’ interest in expanding in the Macau market, Vũ Thị Thuý, head of the Việt Nam Trade Office in Hong Kong, Macau, said on Thursday.

This was the first international trade–investment promotion event in Macau after the pandemic, which saw the participation of Vietnamese firms, showing Vietnamese businesses’ interest in expanding in the Macau market, she said.

Thuý said that the potential for trade exchange between Việt Nam and Macau remained largely untapped, adding that bilateral trade increased impressively in recent years. The Macau market had high demand for Vietnamese food products such as rice, coffee, cashew nuts, fruits and consumer goods.

The bilateral trade would continue to increase, Thuý forecast, urging Macau to increase investments in Việt Nam, not only in the real estate sector but also in the recreation industry, food industry and cultural exchange.

The MIF was a good opportunity for Việt Nam to introduce and promote Vietnamese products to the international market, she said.

The MIF this year attracted the participation of 1,200 enterprises and organisations from 14 countries and territories to showcase the products and services in sectors including healthcare, high and new technology, modern finance, culture, tourism, trade, retail, food production, cross-border e-commerce, energy and environment protection.

Việt Nam was one among four ASEAN countries participating in this year's MIF, besides Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Statistics showed that two-way trade between Việt Nam and Macau reached US$250.3 million in January- August, a rise of 330 per cent against the same period last year.

Of the figure, Việt Nam’s exports to Macau accounted for 95.6 per cent and rose 379.5 per cent.

Regarding investment, Macau spent $27.9 million to buy stakes in Việt Nam in the first nine months of this year.

From 1988 to date, Macau invested in 18 projects in Việt Nam with total registered capital of $193.5 million. — VNS