Hanoi (VNA) – Minister of Industry and Trade TranTuan Anh affirmed Vietnam’s wish to promote the friendship and economic, tradeand investment ties with the UAE while addressing a business forum between thetwo countries in Hanoi on October 15.

The event was part of a visit by UAE Minister ofEconomy Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, along with some trade promotionorganisations and nearly 20 major businesses of the Southwestern Asian nation.

In his speech, Minister Anh said the VietnameseGovernment always welcomes and is ready to create the best possible conditionsfor foreign companies, including those from the UAE, to make investment and dobusiness.

He called on the two business communities tocoordinate closely with government agencies of Vietnam and the UAE to bettergrasp opportunities and foster economic, trade and investment partnerships.

Statistics show that bilateral trade has beengrowing strongly, reaching 5.67 billion USD in 2018, up 1.3 percent year onyear. The figure is estimated at 4.26 billion USD in the first nine months of2019, down slightly from the same period of 2018.

Anh said Vietnam has a number of competitiveproducts with stable quality and prices like textile-garment, wood products,mobile phones, computers, electronic devices and footwear, which also have muchexport potential in Arabian and Gulf countries. For its part, the UAE is knownfor liquefied chemicals, animal feed and consumer goods, for which Vietnam alsohas great demand.

Vietnam, with a stable economic expansion of 6.5– 7 percent and a double-digit export growth rate, is an emerging market andalso an opportunity for foreign businesses, including UAE firms, to capitaliseon, the official noted.

To boost bilateral relations, he asked UAEenterprises to consider investing in such fields as energy infrastructure,logistics, oil and gas, renewable energy, energy saving, chemical industry,supporting industries, agricultural product processing and industrial parkbuilding in some potential economic zones of Vietnam like the CentralHighlands, the south-central region, and the southwestern region.

At the forum, Minister Mansouri highly valuedthe potential of the Vietnamese market and business chances here, adding thatthe country’s membership in many free trade agreements will generate chancesfor UAE firms not only in Vietnam but also in larger markets when they investand do business in the Southeast Asian nation.

He said it is necessary for both sides to keepclose coordination in facilitating trade and connecting the two countries’businesses to promote bilateral friendship and cooperation.

At the forum, the two ministers witnessed thesigning of various cooperation agreements between Vietnamese and UAEenterprises./.