According to the evaluation of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, in recent years, the trade relationship between Vietnam and the Americas has continuously developed. Along with that, Vietnamese goods also initially penetrated well into this market and were well received by local people. Although the market space is still very large, in order to effectively take advantage of the immediate opportunities, Vietnamese enterprises need to continue making more efforts in improving product quality to meet new market requirements.

 Wide potential

 In recent years, many important Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) have been established to create a positive foundation for the development of economic and trade cooperation between Vietnam and the Americas such as the Parallel Trade Agreement signed with the United States in 2000; FTA with Chile signed in 2011; Trade Agreement with Cuba signed in 2018; The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) signed in 2018 and came into effect in 2019, of which Canada, Peru and Mexico are the first countries. has free trade relations with Vietnam. Currently, the FTA with the South American Common Market (Mercosur) is also being discussed about negotiating possibilities. Therefore, in recent years, the Americas have continuously been the region with the highest growth in trade turnover among Vietnamese partners.

Trade between Vietnam and the Americas increased 3.5 times from 28 billion USD in 2011 to 96.8 billion USD in 2019. In the first 8 months of 2020, two-way trade increased by 11.8% over the same period of the year. last to America. 69.3 billion USD, with Vietnam's exports increasing 15.9%, especially exports of garments and textiles, footwear and agriculture, forestry and fisheries. Vietnam Trade Counselor in Canada Do Thi Thu Huong told delegates at the Industry and Trade Forum with US partners held in Hanoi on September 25 that Vietnamese businesses now have many opportunities. partnering with Canadian companies as their governments are pursuing a policy of trade diversification and a preference for trade with Asia. In addition, the US-China trade war directly affected a number of Canadian companies and the Covid-19 pandemic caused supply chain disruptions, prompting them to reconsider their purchase plans and production. export. As a result, Canadian companies have paid more attention to Asia in planning new supply chains.

The Vietnamese and Canadian economies complement strongly, with Vietnam's competitive advantage in agro-food and labor-intensive industries. In particular, Vietnam's effective measures to prevent and control Covid-19, political stability and a young population are attractive factors for Canadian companies. Ms. Huong said the number of Canadian companies looking for suppliers and where to locate factories in Vietnam has increased recently, especially in supporting industries. In addition to boosting exports to the Americas, Vietnamese businesses are also willing to import many items from these two continents. Colombian Ambassador to Vietnam Miguel Angel Rodriguez Melo said that Colombia would like to promote cooperation with Vietnamese businesses in the pharmaceutical and tourism sectors. His country also welcomes Vietnam's investment in the agricultural sector, Melo said.

 Chilean Ambassador to Vietnam Jaime Chomali said his country is looking to export fresh fruits, electronic equipment and wine to Vietnam. The Vietnam-Chile Free Trade Agreement has come into effect since 2014, but to take advantage of its many opportunities, Vietnam must quickly settle time-consuming administrative procedures and quality control, Mr. Chomali said.

Formal approach, specific strategy

Although the Americas are a very potential market, the path of Vietnamese enterprises to penetrate this market has many obstacles. According to experts, first of all, there is a long distance geography and traffic because there is currently no direct flight from Vietnam to many American countries. Besides, language is also a big obstacle for Vietnamese businesses. In fact, it is very important to learn about customs, practices, business experiences, and commodities, and can also be said to be vital to Vietnamese businesses.

 According to Deputy Minister Do Thang Hai, the American market is currently very fond of food, beverages, fruits, ... of Vietnam. But our businesses are facing many difficulties in meeting the conditions in this market such as quarantine, food safety quality, customs, ... Many businesses have not yet understood the regulations. regulations on imported goods, regulations on quality and safety of food and many specific rules of the American market. Therefore, in the coming time, businesses need to focus on thoroughly researching to meet these standards.

 Mr. Pham Hoang Viet, Vice Chairman of An Phat Holdings Group, said that businesses must prove their ability to ensure food safety and hygiene and meet export standards to have relevant instructions for factories. mine. The Covid-19 pandemic had a negative impact on the world economy as well as Vietnam and other countries. Faced with declining orders, broken supply chains and increasing unemployment, they need to quickly adapt to changes in economic and trade policy and develop appropriate development strategies.

Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Bui Huy Son said that Vietnamese businesses need to further improve product quality to meet the new market requirements. In addition, they should also improve the packaging design to sell online. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, over the past years, two-way trade value, especially agricultural trade between Vietnam and the United States, has continuously grown at a rate of nearly 30%.

On September 14, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the US Embassy in Vietnam and representatives of several ministries, associations, and agricultural food importers held an import promotion meeting. agricultural products from the US market. According to the General Department of Customs, in the first 7 months of 2020, the total import-export turnover of agricultural, forestry and aquatic products between the two countries reached 7.53 billion USD, up 9% over the same period in 2019 (of which, exports reached 5 , $ 43 billion, up 15.5% over the same period in 2019, imports reached $ 2.1 billion, down 6.5% over the same period in 2019). In order to create favorable conditions for the import of agricultural products from the US, over the past time, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has also proposed and approved by the Government to reduce import tax rates on some products. American agricultural products such as: wheat (down from 5% to 3%), apples, grapes (from 10% to 8%), almonds (from 15% to 10%), walnuts (from 10 % to 8%), pork (from 25% to 22%), ethanol (from 20% to 15%), dairy products (depending on the type, the tax rate is reduced from 5% to 2%, 10% to 5% or 7% ...). Working with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Robert Hanson, Agriculture Counselor The US Embassy in Vietnam highly appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development as well as related units in In the past time, it aims to remove procedures, difficulties and problems. in order to create the most favorable conditions for the importation of US agricultural products to Vietnam.