HÀ NỘI — Hà Nội’s export management authorities have set out to invigorate local firms to achieve an ambitious goal of growing export turnover some 7.5 to 8 per cent in 2018.

Nguyễn Thanh Hải, deputy director of the Hà Nội Department of Industry and Trade, said that in the future, his department and the Hà Nội People’s Committee will continue their utmost support for local enterprises in the forms of businesses loans and easing market access.

He emphasised trade promotion activities with partner countries such as Japan, China and Germany, saying that trade ties with these long-term exporting markets are most likely to bring benefits to the city’s business community.

However, some markets have proven to be more difficult for local firms to crack. In recent times, China has tightened its plant quarantine on Vietnamese agricultural imports, while the US, EU and Japan market have also put up technical barriers to Vietnamese products with new standards for quality, food hygiene and safety, said Hải.

Nguyễn Gia Phương, director of the Hà Nội Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Centre, told the Vietnam News Agency that for local enterprises to expand their export markets and promote Vietnamese brand names, participation in international and regional promotional programmes is crucial, such as the February 2018 consumer goods trade fair in Frankfurt, Germany.

He also welcomed foreign business delegations to support Hà Nội’s craft villages, particularly agricultural products, traditional textiles and garments, in hopes of not only revitalising age-old trades, but also boosting overall trade turnover and diversifying export markets.

The city is committed to improving its administrative procedures, reducing incessant business and investment conditions and enhancing online public services’ quality.

According to the Việt Nam General Department of Customs’ report on Hà Nội’s January 2018 export and import values, the city reached a total turnover of US$1.04 billion, up by $139 million year-on-year.

The private sector contributed $352 million to total turnover, while the foreign direct investment sector added $556 million, having increased by 16.6 per cent and 33.6 per cent from 2017’s numbers, respectively.

All of Hà Nội’s major export commodities grew strongly in January 2018 from the same period last year, including agricultural products, computer components, automobile spare parts, machine parts and glass products, according to the GDVC’s report.

The most important task for domestic exporters now, according to Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyễn Xuân Cường, is to maximize its penetration of the global market for agricultural products.

At a February 8 conference in Hà Nội, Minister Cường said that in order to expand agriculture export markets in the context of increasing protectionism, firms should not expect the negotiation process to be anything but difficult and time-consuming.

Cường recommended a number of measures, on which the competent authorities and Vietnamese commercial counsellors in other countries should coordinate closely, in order to actively seek and introduce foreign agricultural associations, corporations and enterprises to Vietnamese products. — VNS