Vietnam pushes for FTA with Mercosur to access Latin American market

In 2022, the South American regional economic bloc recorded over $12 billion in two-way trade with Vietnam, representing a 9.2 per cent increase from the previous year. Vietnam exported goods worth $3.3 billion to Mercosur and imported goods worth $8.7 billion from the region, with annual increases of 3.4 per cent and 11.6 per cent, respectively.

Currently, the four South American nations have not signed any trade agreements with countries that directly compete with Vietnam’s export structure. Therefore, access to this market is expected to create a significant boost for Vietnamese goods.

According to the MoIT’s statistics, trade between Vietnam and the Americas, which comprises 35 countries including Mercosur member nations, reached $153.9 billion in 2022, representing a year-on-year growth of 10.7 per cent. Vietnam’s import and export values were over $128 billion and $25.7 billion, respectively, up 12.2 per cent and 3 per cent from the previous year. As a result, Vietnam achieved a historic trade surplus of more than $102.5 billion.

Vietnamese goods can gain a better position in the Americas region and enjoy chances to grow stronger when businesses capitalise on existing FTAs, said local media reports quoting Ta Hoang Linh, director of the MoIT’s European-American Market Department.

The MoIT aims to optimise the 15 existing FTAs and push for the negotiation of new deals, including the one with Mercosur. This scheme is expected to help Vietnam expand its trade relations and improve its position in the global market.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)