Trade with India should reach $20 bn: Vietnam envoy Nguyen Thanh Hai

Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Hai says India-Vietnam trade has strong growth potential, urges deeper cooperation and highlights VinFast's $2 bn investment in Tamil Nadu

India–Vietnam trade should reach $20 billion, Nguyen Thanh Hai, Ambassador of Vietnam to India, said on Monday in Kolkata.

 

‘Trade is an important pillar in our partnership, with bilateral trade reaching $15 billion. But if you look at the total volume of trade of each of the countries, it is a small proportion,’ the Ambassador said at a session organised by the Bharat Chamber of Commerce.

 

‘There is a lot of potential. We need to find a way to promote further trade with each other,’ he added. 

The environment was ‘very conducive’ to promote trade further, he said. 

On Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Brazil.

 

The Ambassador said that such meetings between leaders provide guidelines for the overall bilateral relationship, including trade and investment. 

 

As far as investment in India was concerned, Ambassador Hai said it was increasing gradually, and this marked a significant development in the bilateral relationship.

 

Citing Vietnam’s electric vehicle manufacturer VinFast, he said it was the most prominent example—investing $500 million in the first phase to set up an electric vehicle manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu. ‘Their product will be launched in the coming months,’ Hai said.

 

The total investment in the project is said to be $2 billion.

 

However, Ambassador Hai added, ‘While we invest in electric vehicle manufacturing in India, we also attract foreign companies to set up business in Vietnam. Indian companies are doing very well in automobiles.’

 

As of early Monday, Vietnam was one of the two countries to reach a trade deal with the United States.

 

Ambassador Hai said every time Vietnam joins a free trade agreement, there is a huge challenge—with concerns and worries around foreign companies making an entry. ‘But we finally overcome such challenges and take advantage of those agreements for the benefit of our people, our businesses,’ he said.