Malaysian DPM suggests increased trade with Vietnam

23 Oct '13

2 min read

Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) of Malaysia, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, suggested that Malaysia and Vietnam should work together to further increase bilateral trade and investment, during his recent visit to Vietnam, also a member of the ten-nation Asean grouping, Bernama reported.

Speaking at a meeting with captains of industry from Malaysia and Vietnam in Hanoi, Mr. Muhyiddin said the Malaysia-Vietnam Joint Trade committee should encourage both countries to increase industrial cooperation.

He suggested that the business community of both countries should make use of the Committee and collaborate in strategic partnerships to make the Asean region more dynamic.

He said Malaysian companies made investment of around US$ 2 billion in Vietnam between 2008-12 in various sectors, including in manufacturing of textiles and garments.

Vietnam is currently Malaysia’s fifth largest trading partner in Asean, while Malaysia is Vietnam’s third largest trading partner in the region, Mr. Muhyiddin said.

The bilateral trade between Malaysia and Vietnam increased from US$ 930.8 million in 2000 to US$ 9.03 billion in 2012.

During the first eight months of 2013, the bilateral trade stood at US$ 6.6 billion.

Both Malaysia and Vietnam are also among the 12 countries negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, which is likely to come into force by 2015, and would result in elimination of duties on textiles and garments from these countries.

The garment industry is a major foreign exchange earner for Vietnam and the country has set an export target of US$ 19 billion this year, compared to exports worth US$ 17.2 billion made during 2012.

For Malaysia, the textile and garment industry is the 12th largest foreign exchange earner, involving 2,300 companies that together employ more than 80,000 people.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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