Japanese delegation seeks Vietnamese opportunities

TAbout 100 leading Japanese businesses in from many sectors attended a business meeting yesterday with HCM City enterprises to seek cooperation opportunities.

Vo Tan Thanh, director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry's HCM City branch, said Japan provided one of the biggest markets and number of partners of Vietnamese businesses. The companies' activities are in industrial waste treatment, engineering, manufacturing, information technology, construction, automobiles, real estate, logistics, telecommunications, health equipment, pork processing and transport.

The two countries' bilateral trade turnover last year reached more than US$17 billion, an increase of 24 percent compared to 2009.

Vietnam's exports to Japan are mainly agricultural products, seafood, textile and wood products. Japan ranked third among investors in Viet nam with more than 1,200 projects and registered capital of $20 billion.

Since 1992, Japan has been the biggest ODA donor for Vietnam, with total capital of $16 billion, of which $2 billion is non-refundable aid.

Japan's ODA for Vietnam hit a record high last year of $1.76 billion.

The signing of the VJEPA (Viet Nam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement) has created favourable conditions for investment, commerce, tourism, and human resource development, Mr. Thanh said.