Argentina and Vietnam seek to expand trade and investment by developing joint value chains, promoting agro-industrial cooperation and advancing agreements on investment, taxation and preferential trade with MERCOSUR.
Vietnam and Argentina are looking for ways to foster trade, investment, and economic ties, with both trying to move away from simple goods trading to closer production collaboration. The talks are being held at a seminar in Buenos Aires jointly organized by the Friendship Committee of Argentina-Vietnam and the Vietnam-Argentina Chamber of Commerce.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Commission for Argentina-Vietnam Friendship Congress Santiago Pauli emphasizes how both economies have something to complement each other. The need for agricultural products is high in Vietnam for domestic use and further processing for export purposes, while Argentina provides competitive agro-industry and biotechnology knowledge.
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Pauli emphasizes the necessity of creating value chains and investing in new markets. In particular, he references Vietnam's place in ASEAN, a market with 600 million consumers, as an important factor for Argentina to increase its business reach in Southeast Asia.
The two parties have identified a number of ways through which there can be enhanced bilateral relations economically. These involve agreements in terms of investment promotion and protection, avoidance of double taxation, air services, and cooperation in agro-industries. The other area of interest involves preferential trading between Vietnam and MERCOSUR.
According to the Vietnamese ambassador to Argentina Ngo Minh Nguyet, Vietnam is currently the sixth biggest trading partner of Argentina on the global level, and Argentina comes third in terms of being the trading partner of Vietnam in Latin America.
It is anticipated that agriculture and agro-industry will continue to be significant fields for collaboration. The expertise of Argentina in the field of agriculture production, biotechnology and genetics can help cater to the needs of Vietnam, which is increasingly in need of agricultural products.
The suggested treaties can contribute to a firmer institutional base for commercial activity between the two nations. Investment protection and tax treaties can lead to more predictability for businesses, whereas collaboration in air traffic will be useful in establishing business connections.
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Trade preferences between Vietnam and MERCOSUR may constitute another possible way of promoting their commercial ties. For Argentina, closer relations with Vietnam would be advantageous in terms of gaining access to the larger ASEAN market, whereas Vietnam may benefit from increasing its commercial ties with the biggest South American countries.
It is clear, therefore, that the most recent debates demonstrate a common attempt to change the traditional trade relationship between Argentina and Vietnam into a more productive one based on investment. It seems that agriculture, biotechnology, and investment are some of the main fields that may serve as a foundation for further economic cooperation.