Vietnam – fastest growing economy in Southeast Asia: New Zealand news site
With a rapid development of the economy and an increasing demand for high-end products, Vietnam is becoming an attractive destination for New Zealand exporters, opening up many opportunities for cooperation and sustainable development in the coming time.
Hanoi (VNA) – New Zealan🤡d's news site rnz.co.nz on March 26 published an article saying Vietnam is now the fastest-growing economy in Southeast Asia.
Two-way trade between Vietnam and New Zealand is valued at 2.68 billion NZD (1.54 billion USD), after growing 40% in the past five years, the article said.
Acknowledging the great potential of the Vietnamese market, New Zealand's exporters are striving to strengthen their position as strategic business partners, especially in the field of high-value food and beverages.
According to the article, New Zealand's Trade and Investment Minister of State Nicola Grigg told the New Zealand Parliament that as Vietnam gets wealthier, Vietnamese people want to buy high quality products from around the world. Meanwhile, New Zealand has some of thefood and beverage producers and innovative businesses globally.
Last year, New Zealand fruit companies generated 172 million NZD in exports to Vietnam for mostly apples, then kiwifruit and cherries, The Ministry for Primary Industries data show.
Ben McLeod, head of sales and marketing of Hawke's Bay-based Mr Apple, owned by Scales Corporation, said Vietnam's economic growth had been phenomenal.
He said Vietnam has seen rapid growth in the last 10 to 15 years. It's come from what was a poor to lower income country to now a lower to middle income country.
McLeod said several free trade agreements between New Zealand and Vietnam put New Zealand in good stead with other rival fruit markets, particularly in fruit exports.
Nelson’s Heartland Fruit sales and marketing manager Brendon Osborn said Vietnam's population was becoming increasingly wealthy, marked by the rise of large locally-owned retail super-malls targeted at medium and high-income shoppers.
Osborn said Vietnam has become very competitive. So, his company has focused on premium import segment with strict quality requirements to gain Vietnamese consumer trust.
With a rapid development of the economy and an increasing demand for high-end products, Vietnam is becoming an attractive destination for New Zealand exporters, opening up many opportunities for cooperation and sustainable development in the coming time./.
Australia’s East Asia Forum commended Vietnam as an economic development model, crediting the new leadership for pushing hi-tech innovation, mega infrastructure and institutional reforms.
Vietnam is interested in learning from China’s policies and experiences, particularly Guangdong's, on improving the investment climate, developing the private sector, and advancing new economic models such as free trade zones and high-tech parks, said Deputy PM Nguyen Chi Dung.
Over the past 50 years, Mexico has witnessed Vietnam’s remarkable achievements in national construction and development, considering it a model for not only the Latin American region but also countries across the world.
A key change in the draft decree is a provision requiring bank transfers for gold transactions valued at 20 million VND (765 USD) and above, to enhance transparency and verify customer identities.
In the first four months of 2025, trade turnover between Vietnam and Cambodia surpassed 3 billion USD, marking a 7% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
On June 19 alone, a total of 2,005 trucks completed customs clearance at Lang Son’s border gates — the highest single-day figure ever recorded in the province. Of these, 634 carried exports and 1,371 imports.
The OECD Economic Surveys: Vietnam 2025 report focuses on analysing the country’s macroeconomic fundamentals, the impact of international integration on attracting foreign investment and trade, and the country’s prospects for developing a low-carbon economy.
Antoine Colin, Senior Vice President for Global Supply Chain Digital Transformation & Resilience at HP Inc., affirmed HP’s strategic commitment to building a supply chain and ecosystem in Vietnam and the region.
Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s Trade Promotion Agency Bui Quang Hung emphasised that logistics has evolved from a technical function into a core capability for Vietnamese exporters to maintain their competitive advantage in the US market.
A trade official has suggested companies work closely with shipping lines, airlines, and freight forwarders to monitor routes, transit times, and potential surcharges while exploring broader cargo insurance to cover risks like war and terrorism.
In addition to institutional reform, the agency is also rolling out key solution groups to combat counterfeit goods, imitations, and intellectual property infringements in the digital environment.
The event, co-organised by the Vietnam Trade Office in the UK and TT Meridian, a local importer of Vietnamese fresh produce, aims to build a national lychee brand and encourage broader recognition of Vietnamese fruits in a competitive, high-end market.
The industry's performance has been powered by bold investments in modern production lines, enabling Vietnamese firms to produce complicated products which were exclusive to advanced economies.
Outcomes of ABAC III will shape ABAC’s final policy recommendations to be submitted to the ABAC-APEC leaders’ dialogue, scheduled to take place in the Republic of Korea this November.
This is the second year the magazine has released the ranking, which is based on total revenue and key financial indicators of enterprises from seven countries in the region: Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Cambodia.
At the summit, publishing, tech, and media sectors will discuss emerging trends, business models, and sustainable solutions for digital publishing development in Vietnam.
This year’s “Vietnam Goods Week” marks a significant milestone as it is being held simultaneously for the first time in four locations across Asia: Japan, Hong Kong (China), Cambodia, and Malaysia, from June 19 - 22.
According to NordCham Vietnam Chairman Thue Quist Thomasen, the Vietnamese Government’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 is both a challenge and an opportunity for businesses to contribute to green and sustainable growth.
The analysis from an investment perspective shows that the economy’s growth has been heavily capital‑driven, yet efficiency remains low as reflected by Vietnam’s Incremental Capital-Output Ratio (ICOR) being significantly higher than global and regional averages. This underscores the imperative to enhance capital‑use efficiency.
