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Vietnam-Ukraine agreement could up bilateral trade to $1 billion
Ukraine’s ambassador to Vietnam said his country would soon sign a trade agreement with the Southeast Asian nation that could push bilateral trade to US$1 billion.
The two governments were negotiating the agreement, said Ukrainian ambassador Ivan Dovgnych at a meeting with businesses in Ho Chi Minh City Friday.
He said the agreement would eliminate tariff barriers and noted that local businesses in both countries should prepare for opportunities the agreement will provide. The ambassador pointed out that both countries were two of the newest members of the World Trade Organization. Vietnam joined in late 2007 and Ukraine in May 2008.
Dovgnych said the two governments aimed to reach $1 billion in two-way trade in just a couple of years.
Ukraine would create opportunities for Vietnamese businesses especially as the country gears up to co-host the 2012 Euro Cup with Poland, he said.
The ambassador said the two countries had complementary exports and noted that Vietnamese businesspeople understood the Ukrainian market. Vietnam and Ukraine had first shared a relationship via the Soviet Union.
Nguyen Tan Thanh, Director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Ho Chi Minh City, said Vietnamese businesses exported seafood, garments and agricultural products to Ukraine.
He said Ukraine could export steel, machinery and engineering and power equipment to support infrastructure development in Vietnam.
Vietnam exported $256 million in goods to Ukraine last year while importing Ukrainian products worth a total of $290 million as the global economic crisis struck, said Thanh.
Total bilateral trade value increased 350 percent year-on-year, he said.
Minh Quang
thanhnien
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