Last year, two-way trade hit US$5.6 billion despite the COVID-19 impact, US$4.95 billion of which was Vietnam’s export. The UK remained the third biggest export market of Vietnam in Europe.
In the near future, the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) and the UK Embassy in Vietnam will continue working closely together to effectively realise the UKVFTA and further improve bilateral trade.
Both sides still maintained the plan to organise the 12th meeting of the Vietnam-UK Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO 12) in the UK when the pandemic is under control.
Before the meeting, a series of meetings, seminars and dialogues will be held virtually to tackle difficulties in specific areas.
As scheduled in mid-March, JETCO co-chairs Deputy Minister An and UK Minister of State for Trade Policy Greg Hands will hold an online working session to discuss JETCO 12 implementation and bilateral cooperation plan for the future.
The UK side also wished to hold online dialogues with the MoIT to discuss renewable energy development scheduled for February 24 and early March.
Vietnam aims to ensure an adequate energy supply for socio-economic development and gradually increase the proportion of clean energy use in its energy structure, An said.
The Vietnamese deputy minister stressed the MoIT backs the UK’s efforts in organising the above-mentioned events and dialogues.