Vietnam has started to export agricultural products to the European market under a trade agreement with the EU. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of this country said that the export items include dragon fruit, coffee, coconut, grapefruit and passion fruit. According to the Vietnam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), the bloc will eliminate tariffs on 86.5% of Vietnam's seafood exports within the next 3 years, 90.3% in the next 5 years and for all seafood exports within 7 years. Vietnamese exporters have taken advantage of the tariff preferences by increasing seafood shipments by about 10% since the beginning of August. The EU is the largest market for Vietnamese coffee, accounting for 38% of total exports. of the country.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, many agricultural products have been exported to Europe under the Vietnam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). The EU is a highly demanding market for compliance with safety standards. European consumers value high quality products with exceptional properties such as organic, fair trade and geographical indication. Enterprises should increase the level of processing and compliance with the regulations related to technical barriers and food safety and hygiene contained in free trade agreements in general, especially EVFTA.

Vietnam is now Italy's largest partner in ASEAN and is on the way of stable development. In August 2020, the reporter of the Industry and Trade Newspaper had the opportunity to talk with Mr. Antonio Alessandro - The Italian Ambassador to Vietnam - on trade exchanges between the two countries.

We all know that the pandemic situation in the world has had a strong impact on the global economy. In 2019, trade exchange between Vietnam and Italy has prospered. Two-way trade turnover of the two countries reached 5.34 billion euros, of which, Vietnam's export value to Italy reached 3.44 billion euros and vice versa, the export value of Italy to Vietnam reached. 1.9 billion euros.

However, in 2020, things seem to slow down due to the global crisis effect. However, we are also seeing a positive economic recovery. The numbers in the last 3 months (September, October and November) all show that this crisis is coming to an end. I hope 2021 will be a better year for global trade including Italy and Vietnam. EVFTA Agreement between Vietnam and Europe has just come into effect in August, how do you evaluate the impact of this agreement on trade exchange between the two countries?

The numbers we have collected over the past 4 months are not sufficient for evaluation. The agreement has just come into effect, so it is difficult to see the clear impact of EVFTA on Italian-Vietnam trade. But I can be confident that this agreement will promote trade between the two countries not only in quantity but also in terms of goods quality. The EVFTA is a trade agreement that focuses not only on tariff reductions, but also an agreement on standards. Therefore, to adapt to the new environment, both Vietnamese and Italian products must improve quality. This is arguably the most positive aspect of the deal. Vietnamese goods have great potential in the Italian market. For the Italians, Vietnamese products are of good quality and highly appreciated. The Italians especially love the seafood, coffee and other agricultural products of Vietnam. Currently, the value of Vietnam's agricultural exports to Italy is very high, about 2 billion euros, four times the opposite. This proves the attraction of Vietnamese goods in this market.

How about the opposite direction? Are there any difficulties and barriers for Italian goods to access the Vietnamese market, sir? Currently, there are no special barriers for Italian goods imported into the Vietnamese market. Thanks to EVFTA, customs costs will be reduced to 0% over the next 7 years. This has special implications for Italian agricultural products. These products have long been known to be of high quality compared to other countries around the world but at the same time high cost. Thanks to incentives from EVFTA, reducing product costs is an advantage for us to compete in the Vietnamese market. Our biggest challenge today is that Italian culture and cuisine are not well known in Vietnam. Therefore, we need to actively carry out promotional and marketing activities to bring Italian products closer to Vietnamese consumers.