Building and promoting brands is vital for Vietnamese businesses tointegrate deeply and widely into the global economy, experts said.

The establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) at the end ofthis year will offer both opportunities and challenges for small- andmedium-sized enterprises, they added.

Pham NgocHung, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Union of BusinessAssociations, noted that other ASEAN member nations have thoroughlyprepared laws, policies and strategies to support their businesses tomake inroads into Vietnam.

Meanwhile, up to60-70 percent of Vietnamese firms are unaware of integration issues, hecited, adding that only a few Vietnamese brands are competitive in bothdomestic and foreign playgrounds such as Ton Hoa Sen, Vissan and Saigonfood.

Most businesses have yet to increase goodsquality due to financial shortages and difficulties in accessingcapital, he noted.

Chairwoman of the Association ofVietnam Retailers Dinh Thi My Loan said the operation of foreign retailfirms in the local market is inevitable since Vietnam is expandingits market and joining a number of new generation free trade agreements.

The engagement of the overseas retail businesses,which make up 25-26 percent of the market, is considered importantmomentum to develop the retail industry in Vietnam, she said, namingpopular brands at home such as Saigon Coop, Fivimart, Vinmart, Satraand Fahasah.

However, local manufacturing firmscould face substantial pressure due to the flood of imported goods fromASEAN member countries with various designs and reasonable prices suchas consumer products from Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and thePhilippines.

Domestic businesses should reformtheir operations and management to improve competitiveness andstrengthen their foothold in the market while increasing cooperation formutual benefit, experts advised.

They called on theState to build technical barriers to protect domestic products andenhance market management to prevent counterfeit goods from entering themarket.-VNA