Business Forum Italy Vietnam 2017: Italian firms seek strategic opportunities
Hanoi – Business Forum Italy Vietnam held place in Hanoi where about 70 firms with a total of 122 Italian business delegates meet with more than 200 Vietnamese counterparts to explore opportunities for cooperation and investment.
The Business Forum Italy Vietnam was addressed by Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Ivan Scalfarotto and Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Ministry of Industry and Trade, Hoang Quoc Vuong, with the focus on political-economic relations between the two countries and the opportunities for collaboration and investment offered by Vietnam. According to Vice President for Internationalization Confindustria, Licia Mattioli, with young population, Vietnam is the country that opens up with attractive investment policy, driven by privatization and specific tax breaks, not to mention the prospects for Italy-Vietnam trade opened up by the EU-Vietnam free trade agreement (FTA). Local Hanoi Television on Tuesday reported there are about 600 B2B meeting between Italian and Vietnamese companies to explore possible cooperation opportunities.
On the sideline of the Business Forum Italy Vietnam, representatives also witnessed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing ceremony between Confindustria Marmomacchine and Vietnam Association for Building Materials and Luc Yen White Marble Association. Another agreement was signed between the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (ICHAM) and the General Department of Vietnam Customs.
The Italian business mission to Vietnam this year, from November 27 to 29, is promoted by the Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Led by Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Ivan Scalfarotto, the Italian business mission 2017 is organized by the Italian Trade Commission (ITC), the Italian Confederation of Industries (Confidustria), Unioncamere and the Italian Banks’ Association (ABI). The business delegation include 53 companies, 6 industrial and trade associations, 4 banks and a total of 122 participants. Events take place in Hanoi on November 27 and 28 and in Ho Chi Minh City on November 29 to discuss official opportunities for cooperation and investment in various sectors. Yesterday in Hanoi, roundtables have been organised on the three focus sectors: infrastructure and transportation, power generation and renewable energy, and machinery and technologies. In Ho Chi Minh city, the business mission will have discussion with Ho Chi Minh city local authorities on partnership for Italian businesses in this Vietnam’s business hub.
The mission will end with B2B meetings with local businesses. Italian companies consider Vietnam a gateway to accessing ASEAN markets. In recent years, more and more Italian businesses and investors are interested in the Vietnamese market. The trade and investment sector between Vietnam and Italy has experienced many positive signs. Two-way trade between the two countries has increased tenfold in ten years, reaching USD 4.6 billion in 2016. In the first seven months of 2017, two-way trade turnover reached over USD 2,88 billion, up 9% over the same period in 2016. Investment from Italy to Vietnam has increased to USD 360 million in 2016 with 78 projects implemented.
According to statistics reported by the Customs Department of Vietnam, Italy is the eighth largest trade partner of Vietnam and the largest in the European Union.